It was currently mid-summer. Nothing much has changed besides the increase of heat. Ivy was not a fan of the warm weather since she was more likely to get a heat stroke or pass out. Ruby also told a few things to Ivy and Neo about the entrance exam and what they should, hopefully, expect. Neo tried to plague Ruby with more hints, but Ruby dismissed her and went off to a meeting.
It was a sunny day out, no visible clouds, and Ivy blowing bubbles in a nice refreshing pool. Though she hates massive water pools, Ivy can make an exception since it cooled her off. Neo also joined Ivy since she had a horrible headache and also avoided having a heat stroke. Neo did try to get Ivy to move from her spot, but the girl wouldn't budge.
Ivy's ears perked up before they hid themselves under her hair. She looked over at the entrance before seeing Ruby in a bikini. Ivy was a little bit surprised seeing Ruby back from her meeting, she lowered her head more until her face was almost submerged. Neo got out of the water and greeted Ruby before pulling Ruby into the pool.
Unexpecting Neo's sudden actions, Ruby was chilled to the bone before she finally got used to the water and started to move around. She looked over at Ivy before swimming over and hugging her.
"What's wrong, Ivy?" Ruby asked. She wonders what was bother Ivy since she seemed so quiet than usual.
Ivy lifted her head from the water and simply said, "Nothing, just curious about the entrance exam, really. Kinda been on my mind for a while."
Ruby nodded her head as she heard Neo moving closer to the two. She smiled as she pulled both of them into a group hug. Ruby felt very lively and wanted to share it with the two. Neo and Ivy hugged back while Ivy was a bit curious.
"Hear, I'll give you two a small rundown about how the academy will go, but I get Ivy for myself tonight!" Ruby cheekily smirked at Neo, who was pouting and wanted to refute her deal. She giggled before whispering something in Neo's ear.
Neo's face lit up as she agreed with Ruby's deal. Ivy was caught in the middle as she was currently spacing out. She closed her eyes, hugging closer to Ruby's chest. Ivy didn't understand why, but Ruby somehow made her feel either sleepy or internally happy. She relaxed her body as she could feel herself slipping in and out of consciousness.
Ruby was surprised by Ivy's sleepy actions before pulling her out of the water and carried her onto one of the sun chairs. She laid down before lying Ivy on top of her. Neo pouted at how intimate the two have become recently. She wanted to complain and wanted Ivy to give her attention but sighed. Neo laid down by the sun chair besides Ruby and waited for her to give her the juicy details.
Ruby laughed a bit at how eager Neo was. She watched as Ivy's breathing slowly stabled before gently petting her head. Ruby smiled before explaining what Neo and Ivy should expect if Ivy was even awake anymore, "There are usually four years of the academy. First-Year, Second-Year, Third-Year, and Fourth-Year students. I'll start off with the first year since that's where your journey will begin. Most First-Years have to take an entrance exam that will evaluate your potential on the field. It also helps see who is more reliable since it gives the students a chance to team-up. However, there's a catch that will be explained later."
Neo nodded her head before sitting on her side. She took a mental note about what Ruby was saying before asking a quick question, "What about protecting the students? Like a demon came out of nowhere and started to kill all the First-Years. That would ruin your reputation."
"Good point. We hadn't had a demon incident since...oh god, when was the last demon incident? Anyways, it's doubtful for a demon to appear on the grounds. Besides, we have multiple demon senors so we can evacuate the grounds immediately," Ruby answered Neo's question. She liked talking about things like these. It made her feel like she really does have friends.
Ruby cleared her throat before continuing, "After the entrance exam, you will be assigned your teams, which is usually four people, sometimes five if there is an exception. The teams are typically addressed by whatever your leader's name is. So like, Team Ivy or Team Vahn, you get the point. After that, you get to learn and hone more of your skill. Then, we allow First-Years students to get a taste of their first Hunter mission. More on that when the time comes. After that, comes the super fun stuff. The Elemental Arena festival. Every year, we celebrate the union of the kingdoms and academy by inviting students all around the world to participate on student-to-student combat."
"So you are watching kids, fight each other, for amusement?" Neo questioned. She didn't understand the entertainment value of the festival. Though Neo did like the idea of fighting other students, it didn't seem right to battle against other people when they should be training together.
Ruby waved her side to side: "No, no, no, it can be seen as entertainment for those, not in the arena. Those who are on the field, t's a perfect place to learn how to improve or understand how some people will fight. And then that's how the first year should start for you two, after the festival, you resume training and studying."
Neo held her chin before frowning a bit. "So it just a lot of learning during the first year?"
"Yes, since you're new. We have to make sure the learning is very vital. Knowledge is essential. Once you get to your third year, teaching and studying aren't as important, but it will be necessary. There have been a few occasions were people gone up a year due to how much they know about the monsters in this world."
Ruby finished explaining before hearing Ivy making a cute noise. Both Neo and Ruby smiled at the cute girl. Ruby decided to take Ivy inside to sleep as she had one more meeting before the fall. Neo decided to take care of sleeping beauty.
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It was currently 1800, Ivy was moving around in a white shirt with short shorts. She just recently woke up. Ivy walked around the palace before stumbling upon Akagi at the king's door. She noticed that her friend wasn't with her. Akagi looked up before smiling.
"It's nice to meet you again, Ivy," Akagi bowed down a bit before seeing the slightly tired look on Ivy's face. She covered her mouth a giggled. "I see that the kitten has wakened up, fufufu~."
Ivy rubbed her eyes before yawning: "You need something, miss Akagi? I don't think Ruby is back from a meeting, or maybe she is, I dunno."
Akagi laughed before she walked over and grabbing Ivy's mechanic hand. She held it up close. Akagi had a slight blue face before whispering, "How did this happen? Who hurt you so much to remove an entire arm and a hand?"
Ivy tilted her head before saying in an apathetic tone, "I'm not sure who did or why. But I'm gonna have a friendly chat with them when I get the chance."
Hearing Ivy's response, Akagi's expression worsens as she suddenly gave Ivy a hug. She hugged Ivy so tight that Ivy couldn't move her arms to push Akagi away. Sighing, Ivy tried to hug Akagi before hearing a bolt pop out.
("Great. Now I have to deal with a broken arm,") Ivy lament in her head. She finally got a grab on Akagi's shirt before pulling her off.
"S-Sorry, I just got carried away," Akagi apologized. She bowed low before standing up and noticing the broken arm. Akagi apologized again, but this time, Ivy simply said to get up and ignore the matter. "You're very kind. Would it be a bother if I could do some stuff with you?"
"Depends."
"I just need to confirm my theories about a few things," Akagi replied, keeping the reason away. Ivy noticed this but shrugged and agreed.
Akagi smiled before departing quickly. The king came out to see what was going on before seeing Ivy. He walked up to the girl and smiled.
"Doing well, Ivy?" the king asked in a polite tone. Ivy nodded before reaching out her hand.
"Oh? A handshake, I wouldn't mind," the king gave Ivy a firm handshake which incidentally crushed Ivy's hand. The king's face froze before apologizing sincerely. Ivy smiled a little before saying it was fine, and she could get Neo to fix them.
The king apologized once more before giving direction to guiding Ivy to Neo's workshop. Ivy thanked the king, which she never thought she would.
End of Volume 1.