Martha's (Aria's mother) POV:
Tears rolled down my face as I watched my daughter leave in the carriage. I try to maintain a dignified persona in front of my daughter, but I can't help but break down at the sight of her leaving.
I glanced to my left and saw the small frame of my daughter's maid/slave, Letica. She was in the same state as me, if not worse.
I hugged her and let her cry her eyes out. I wish Aria was as expressive as she is.
"Let it all out, de-ar", I said. But because I was crying myself, my voice came out a bit muffled.
We both cried in front of the gate until the carriage was no longer visible. I wish I could have been the one to drop her off instead of Richard, but alas, it can't be helped.
***
Aria's POV:
It has been four days since we left Swindfort. After crossing a huge forest and many small cities, we finally reached the gate of the capital city, Asmore.
We were accompanied by a party of adventurers, along with some guards, and Sir Nicol, the A-grade knight serving my dad. I saw monsters for the first time in my life, and I puked at the sight of the grotesque battles between adventurers and monsters. True to their name, they were indeed experts in handling monsters.
During the journey, I talked with Dad a lot. We had nothing better to do, so he kept telling me stories of his business ventures. His class is Merchant with a B-grade Talent. At the age of 14, he was saddled with the responsibilities of managing the territory as well as surviving on his own after his parents died unexpectedly due to some pandemic.
He did what he knew best and started a business venture to financially aid the territory. After one semi-successful business, he finally struck fortune upon the discovery of Mithril mines on the outskirts of the city, and his status skyrocketed.
He rose pretty much from rags to riches at a groundbreaking pace. Many people called him lucky, but he perfectly grasped the opportunity he was given. No one but him could have made it so far based on the mines alone. I deeply respect him for that.
Aside from seeing a slightly narcissist side of my dad, the rest of the journey was boring. This was the first time I saw magic being used for combat, and oh man, was it cool! The sorcerer lady blasted the orc in a single shot. It was a sight to behold. It made me realize the frightening power that is granted to practically anybody through magic.
No wonder the world was constantly in chaos, leaving no room for technological advancement.
This made my resolve even stronger.
Moving back to the present, our carriage is slowly moving towards the city gate, along with our whole party. The city is covered with huge walls to fend off monsters, and a toll is being collected for entering the city. I can see another set of walls inside the city, but these ones were shorter, so they were probably erected to fend off humans.
As we entered the city, I could see how different it was from our city Swindfort. Despite being the capital city of the kingdom, the outer city was pretty dirty as well as neglected. The roads were in bad shape, and most of the buildings looked old. The air around the citizens was kind of gloomy as if they've been starving for days.
Meanwhile the inner city, or the wealthy people's city was exceedingly bustling. The contrast between the inner and outer cities was pretty sharp.
We made our way through the inner city, towards the 'Royal Academy'. It was magnificent (AN: imagine Hogwarts).
I inquired about the entrance test and found out that it will take place in two days, and I received an appointment time.
The test wasn't just written or practical, in fact, one might not need to compete with others to get in. The academy has a fixed number of seats and as a student drops out, their seat becomes available for a newcomer. A test is held every few months or so to keep scouting for new talents.
As for what kind of test to take, it totally depends on the professor in charge of the test. Sometimes, examinees have to compete against each other, or sometimes show them their talents, or sometimes they would have to pass a written exam.
One thing is for certain, getting in there is not going to be easy for a Scholar such as me.
The adventurers went out towards the outer district to pass a few days before the return journey. And we headed towards a mansion that Dad rented for a week. He sure knows how to use the money he makes.
For the next day, I spent my time inside my room and reviewed everything I might need to know for the upcoming test. I was confident in my theoretical knowledge, but I had basically zero experience implementing it.
Hopefully, I can make it with whatever I've studied so far. If not, I'll go back the way I came and spend more time with Letty. It's a win-win situation.
So have some faith in yourself and get your sh*t together, Aria. I slapped my cheeks, thankfully, no one saw that gesture.
Dad accompanied me until the gates of the academy,
"Good luck, my baby. You can do it"
Gosh, be quiet.
I scorned him, "Humph", and walked away.
For the test, I was led to a lavish room and was offered a cup of tea. While I sipped the tea, an old man, probably my test in charge, arrived and sat in the seat opposite to me.
I introduced myself.
"I am Professor Primos, the head of the Scholars department at the Royal Academy. A little birdie asked me to look out for you, so I shall oversee your entrance test. Are you ready?", he asked, and so the test/interview began.
I had watched a bunch of interviews on YouTube in my past life. So I gave him the best answers he could hope for.
He tested me thoroughly in 'Magic Circuits', 'Magic Theory', 'Magic Inscriptions' and so on. He gradually increased the difficulty of the problems and even had me write down a few of the concepts. At some point, the difficulty of the problems became too complex for me to answer, so I gave up.
"Hmm, Miss Aria. I will be very honest with you. You exceeded my expectations in the test, you should not have been able to hold on for so long. Yet you did, this shows the efforts and diligence you've put into studying Magic." He continued.
"Most of the examinees don't have their basics clear, but your foundation is very strong. Even though you are lacking in certain areas, you did very well compared to what any other 10 year old could ever fathom. So congratulations, Aria Ernius, you've made history today. You are the youngest disciple ever to study 'Magic Theory and applications' in the Scholar's course at the Royal Academy. I am looking forward to having you as my disciple", he stated.
"Really? I actually did it. Yay!" I celebrated.
"Haha, so you are a kid after all. Keep up the good work and report at the academy's gate tomorrow morning. Keep this letter with you. I'll prepare someone to help you look around and settle in. Bid farewell to you family members as you will have to live in the dorms just like everyone else within this academy", he handed me the letter and walked away.
I was overjoyed, yet sad at the same time. I got accepted, my hard work paid off, I can have a smooth sailing future. Yet why? Why do I miss home so much?
I was in a dejected mood as I left the academy. Mistaking it for my failure, Dad tried to cheer me up, he is so sweet. I hugged him and cleared the misunderstanding.
We had a feast to celebrate my enrollment, and Dad kept cheering me up. He's really good with his words, he made me forget about the parting for tonight, and we genuinely celebrated the night. I wrote a letter for Mom and Letty and handed it to Dad to deliver it.
***
The next day, I entered the academy by flashing the letter of acceptance to the guards. Another student came to show me the dorms, the A-grade talents had special rooms assigned to them. It was bigger, and more lavish than the normal rooms. The rooms also had a cleaning artifact built into the floor that would automatically gather and dispose of the dust every once in a while. I was given two sets of uniforms and some books I will need as per the curriculum.
Overall, it was no worse than my own bedroom back home, the only flaw with this room was that Letty wasn't here. I miss her so much already that I don't know how I'm gonna survive the next few years without her.
I dropped all the luggage in my room and continued the tour of the academy. But just as we left the dorm, a familiar face, Beatrice Rose, greeted us.
Hah, not so soon…
"Oh my, Miss Aria, you actually made it. Congratulations!", she shook my hand.
"Thank you so much. I just arrived, and this gentleman here is giving me a tour of the academy. So we'll be on my way" I tugged at the student who is giving me the tour.
"That simply won't do. What sort of friend would I be if I couldn't help you with a simple tour around the academy. Mister, uhm whatever, do you mind leaving the job of touring her to me?", she asked him.
"Oh, you two are friends. That's fine, I'll leave you two to reunite", he said and walked away.
Sigh, my luck must be terrible if we crossed paths within a few minutes of my arrival.
She gave me a tour and kept making small talk, but I kept my distance. I know better than to trust the villainess of the novel.
While I actively tried to avoid conversations with her, she mistook it for me being overwhelmed and shy. So she kept pestering me more and more.
Alright, that's it. We are at the academy, so she can't do anything to me, and Mom is not here to reprimand me. So let's make some things clear.
"Look, Beatrice, I'll be frank. I don't like you, so don't bother me anymore. I don't want to be friends with you. Please, just leave me alone and we'll be on our merry way", she was in awe of what I just said. I took the opportunity to leave, and now hopefully she will leave me alone.
Will it be enough for her to back off? Only time will tell.