After Sol entered the room pointed by Nicole, his lips couldn't help but twitch a little at the heavy tension that could be felt in the air.
After all, while Sol didn't particularly care about the school, for those outsides of the noble families, entering this school was the equivalent of being set for life.
Not only did the school teach much important knowledge about the use of blessings, but they also have a course taught in any university. All those who graduated from it would automatically receive a recommendation for the job of their choices, no matter if it was on the mundane side or the reverse.
After all, even blessed, didn't necessarily want to fight every day. In fact, very few blessed choose to dedicate their lives to fighting. Sadly, it was far harder for a blessed than for a normal to gain a job.
While he was observing people and lamenting about the hardships of job hunting, the others were also observing him.
His handsome looks aside, the reason he gathered so many stares was because of the golden ring on his right annular.
"A noble."
"Shit. Another noble. Why is the difficulty so high this year??"
"*Sigh* I feel like my chances are slipping by the second."
Such words could be heard all over the room.
The red eyes, as well as the ring on his finger, were the characteristics of nobles. All the others present in this room also had rings on them, but only those belonging to the nobles were golden. As for the eyes. Only nobles or demigods had red eyes.
Those rings, while seemingly simple, were, in fact, a sort of ID. Each ring was tailored for its wearer, and different types of rings gave different perks.
After some seconds of silence, the stares dispersed for the most part.
After all, while seeing a noble was rare, there were already three others present in the room. They were tough to miss. Even though they were nestled within the crowds, they still attracted other people's attention. It was as if they carried a unique vibe that allowed them to be identified easily, even amongst the crowd.
The trio consisted of a male and two females. The male was a muscled youth with a chilly look in his eyes and a black bandage on his right hand.
The first female was exactly the opposite of the male. She was extremely beautiful and had a little smile that made her look like a gentle young girl. She was dressed in a rather short skirt and a shirt that stretched a little with a coiled whip on her side.
The last one was, without a doubt, a huntress. She wore beautiful green clothing, clad in verdant green with her cold, sharp eyes containing a beastly glint. Her hair was stretched out long and unkempt, completely lacking the silkiness that would be found amongst those of noble birth. As one who can be called a beautiful beast in human form, it befits her appearance.
From her, he felt not just pride, but a certain feeling of danger. He couldn't look down on the other two either.
Nobles were known as the kings of the constellationists because the power they wielded was truly incomparable.
It wasn't unheard of some powerful non-noble coming in power, but those were exceptions. On average, a properly trained noble could beat any constellationist of the same rank. So, even though he was sure that he was stronger than them, he would never look down on them.
Bam!!
While Sol was deep in thought, he felt a shock on his back.
He turned to face a young silver-haired girl with a pointed hat on her head and a large book laying next to her. One didn't need to be a genius to understand the situation.
Sol tended his hand as he said with an apologetic smile and did his best to ignore the rather mature lingerie that girl was wearing.
"I am sorry. I shouldn't have stayed so close to the door."
The girl silently looked at his hand before ignoring it and getting up herself as she took her book.
Then, with a simple bow, she began to walk away.
All this while. Sol stood there with his hand stretched and his smile frozen.
It was the first time a girl ignored him like that. He had to say. It was a rather new feeling.
'I wonder who she is.'
---
After this episode, that didn't really garner much attention, the tense silence was broken by the sound of footsteps slowly nearing.
Then, a door suddenly appeared out of nowhere, and out of it, a group of nine men and women entered the room.
The gaze of Sol hardened. He couldn't recognize any of them, but the aura of power coming out from them was something he only felt when facing some of the elders in his family. He shuddered a little.
'It seems like I seriously underestimated the power of the academy.'
The nine didn't stand in the same line clearly denoting some sort of hierarchy.
At the center, and standing at the very front, was a girl. More precisely, what looked like a very young girl. She couldn't have been more than thirteen or so years old. Still, he decided that It was wiser to shut up and observe the situation. In this world. Judging someone based on how they looked was a ticket to hell.
The girl was extremely beautiful. She had calf-length rosy pink hair, partially done up into two pigtails by black hairpieces that resembled bat wings and had large, sharp, slightly slanted eyes that were red
On her, was a short black, frilly style dress with a layer of white ruffles over black ruffles of the skirt. The top has a raindrop shape opening between her breasts, and the straps of the top cross before reaching her neck on either side with an open back with two x-shaped crossing stitches tightening it at her waist. Her get-up was completed by tall black boots that were folded below her knees.
All in all, she was the perfect gothic loli. The impression she gave was that of ephemeral beauty, but the moment she opened her mouth, that impression was immediately destroyed.
"Do you think that you are worthy of entering my school?"
Those words were said with a deep look of disdain. It was unlike anything they expected her to say. The contrast between her looks and her words was so great, that some had their thoughts process crash. The people behind her, on the other hand, let out a bitter smile with a helpless look on their faces. It was as if they already knew that it was going to happen and were resigned to it.
The girl, on the other hand, seemingly dissatisfied with their slow answers, turned her head and addressed a man with glasses on her right.
"Edward, what the fuck is happening? I thought that this batch was supposed to be one the best. Look at how dumb they look right now."
The man named Edward had the appearance of an elderly butler and was dressed gracefully in a traditional black suit and a pair of white gloves. His hair was entirely white, just like his immaculate beard. He had visible wrinkles on his aged face, which made him seem gentle in appearance, but his grey eyes were filled with exasperation.
He sighed a little before stepping in front of all the students and with a short bow began to speak,
"I'm the vice principal of the Blue Star academy. You can call me sir Edward or simply vice principal. I speak on behalf of all the professors and the principal, Eleanor Maxwell, by saying that we are happy to see so many young and promising constellationists, sadly our school only accepts the best of the best so, we will have to reduce the numbers." His word made the earlier tension come back.
The girl, who Sol supposed was the principal, was silent while sir Edward spoke. Once he finished, she continued,
"Let me say this more clearly. Most of you guys are trash, no, you're less than trash. At least trash can be recycled, you on the other hand can't even be used on the battlefield. Just a waste of resources."
The look on her face as she was saying it was of utter spite. She didn't simply look down on them. It was clear that in her eyes, they simply weren't worth even her looking down on.
Frankly, Sol didn't really care about what she was saying. He heard far more hurtful things during the last ten years. He even found her somewhat cute.
The other candidates, though, weren't so calm. Most of them had their fists clenched as they tried to control themselves. The three from the noble families seemed even ready to fight if she continued her insult.
Eleanor looked at all of them with a somewhat satisfied smile. She thought that at least they had some spunk in them. That was until her eyes fell on a fellow who stood apart from the others. What drew her eyes wasn't his incredible good look.
No, it was the expression of boredom she found on his face that intrigued her. She had lived far longer than any normal humans had the right to. She knew this kind of gaze. It wasn't just one of boredom toward what she was saying. It was of boredom toward life in general
'So this is the son of that bastard Mino, poor boy…'
She knew what happened ten years ago. Someone who was supposed to become a new star had his wing broken by his own father, and he seemingly never tried to climb back.
She wondered what he was feeling. Still, she had a job to do, even though the batch of this year was somewhat lacking, it was still good enough since there were some good seedlings. Her eyes momentarily paused on another one. The silver-haired girl. But she didn't stare too long before continuing,
"Now that I told you exactly what was your worth in my mind, it's time for me to give you the occasion to rise above and prove that you aren't less than trash."
Behind her, a huge screen lit up. On the screen was the picture of an island.
"This is Little Paradise, an island owned by the school, the second and final test will take place there."
She posed a little to give them the time to process what she said. Some seconds later, she continued,
"This island is protected by a barrier, so no teleportation, we will go there by sea on a ship. The trip will take two days."
The candidates were once again surprised, some of them even wanted to ask questions, but she raised her voice,
"I know that you are confused, but shut up and let me finish, or I will fail you before the start of the test."
After obtaining the silence she wanted, she continued to explain.
Frankly, it wasn't that hard to understand. The island was isolated at the other end of the earth, the fact that they needed only two days to cover such a distance was a miracle.
She also explained that during the travel, all forms of unauthorized fights were strictly forbidden, any person not respecting this rule would be deemed to have failed.
After a few minutes of explaining the situation and throwing insults at them every two sentences, she finally ended by saying
"Let me be clear. I don't care where you came from, who your parents are, or how powerful your clan is. In my school, I'm God, and if you become a student, you'll live by my rules. If I say fight, you'll fight, and if I say to bark like a dog, you'll do it. If you aren't happy with it and you don't want to accept this, then fuck off and go cry to your mother or fight me and take my place."
After saying this, she didn't wait to hear the answer,
"Edward, how long until the circle is ready?" Edward took what looked like a pocket watch and said:
"Only five minutes will be needed."
She seemed satisfied with this answer, she now turned toward the candidates and said, "Now, it's time for you guys to know what will happen once you step foot on Little Paradise."
One of the professors advanced once she stopped speaking. He was a tall and slim man with glasses and slicked dark blue hair. He wore a black and blue suit with two golden markings on it over a white shirt with a curious collar, with spiral-like protrusions on the edges, and a standard black tie. He also sports striped shoes.
While sir Edward gave a gentle impression, this man, on the other, was more strict. His cold voice sounded in the room. "I'm Faust Schaeffer, teacher of summoning and close-quarters combat courses. Those of you who will succeed will have to call me professor Faust. Pleased to meet you."
The candidates answered in kind. After waiting for the greetings to end, he continued, "The test this year will be a little different from the previous tournament system. It will be a survival test."
The candidates began to frown. This test was more than hard. It seemed like an extremely comprehensive test.
Faust continued without taking in their expression, "As you could easily deduce. You won't just have to stay on a deserted island. Little Paradise is called as such because it is a paradise for a rather ironic reason that you'll have to discover yourself. I can assure that anyone who succeeds will be without a doubt the best of the best of those here or... The one with the best luck."
He made a pause as he looked as most of the candidates were pale-faced. So, taking pity, he added,
"Of course, our goal isn't to send you to your death. Teleportation is impossible from the exterior, but the other way is possible. Each of you will be given a talisman. If you tear it, you'll be immediately teleported out of the island. Still, as accidents are always possible, I will have to ask you to sign a contract, which stipulates that you're taking this test while fully knowing the risks. As such, our school will hold no responsibility in case of death or grave injuries."
Following those chilling words, a beep was immediately heard in Sol hear as he was asked if he wanted to accept the doc sent. He accepted it and put in a corner before focusing back to the prof
Faust continued with a serious expression, "This test isn't a game. I have no doubt that people will die. I ask you to consider it seriously. You'll have until we reach the island to send us back the contract with your signature on it. Don't worry, If we arrive at the destination and you feel that you cannot continue, you'll be taken back to your home without a fuss."
The silence was deafening. Everyone was brooding. In the face of death, few things could stay meaningful. For young people such as them, talking about death might have been a little too much, but they had to.
Faust thought about the discussion they had with the principal and the other professors. He knew that it was necessary to make them understand a part of the dangers they will have to face during this test. Even more since the test this year promised to be different.