Isla stood calmly, accepting the gasps of amazement and shock from the crowd around her. She had guessed from the fact that her and Sila had progressed to this point without any knowledge or teaching, that they were definitely talented.
She looked up at the young woman on stage, waiting for her to speak. Thankfully she wasn't kept waiting long.
Erin recovered from the shock, her eyes stuck to the girl in front of her. Although the girl had an indifferent expression and calm eyes, she couldn't hide the immaturity that came with age. Erin felt she was about to be shocked again after asking, but she had to ask, "May I have your name and age?"
"Isla Olbrand, 17 years old" Isla stated.
'17 years old!' Erin screamed internally. She could feel the warrior aura in the young woman was stronger than her, yet she's a whole four years younger?
Erin didn't know whether to be envious or frightened. She knew that this girl would definitely be a strong recruit for the academy. The near perfect affinity itself would be enough for her to receive countless benefits, but she also has the strength of a gold rank, which means she has practical experience as well. Erin thought about becoming acquainted with the young woman in front of her. At the growth rate that Isla has showed, she will definitely become a major combat power of the empire.
Baldwin was also looking at Isla. Unlike the way he looked at Lucy, full of lust and contempt, his eyes were now filled with calculations. He wondered if she could be used by him. He was well aware that a woman like this wasn't like the other women he had played around with, she was definitely not to be taken lightly.
Everyone on the stage had their own thoughts, but none of it mattered to the person in question. Isla walked off the platform, but didn't leave immediately, which confused the crowd. Only Delia who had noticed the twin sister still waiting in line understood Isla's actions.
Stepping up on the platform after Isla was another person with an identical face. Although she maintained a quiet and calm expression like her sister, Delia could tell that this girl was definitely the cruel one of the two, not that Isla herself was kind. She had seen many people and these twins knew how to hide their true nature behind masks of politeness and immaturity. However the bloody smell on them was one she was most familiar with.
Sila placed her hand on the orb as her sister had, and after the violent aura reappeared, the academy guard was forced to repeat his words, "Near perfect affinity, warrior aura".
Erin felt her world was crumbling. Not one genius, but two!? Both are twins as well? What are the chances? She wanted to cry but had no tears, so she could only grit her teeth and ask "Name and age?"
"Sila Olbrand, 17 years old" Sila said.
The city lord was ecstatic. His plan to curry favour with the daughter of Marquis Ralan, but with Delia by her side, he shut down that idea. Hoping that there were a couple talents in his city so he could be rewarded and now there are two geniuses. How could he not be excited?
Baldwin's eyes were wide with shock, he thought there was only one to get close to, but another jumped out. Dealing with one would already be difficult, but two? That's asking for trouble. If he wanted them to be at his disposal, he'd have to watch them and plan accordingly. 'Perhaps coming to this backwards place wasn't so bad after all' he thought wickedly.
Sila didn't wait for long and came down to where Isla was waiting, the test of ability wasn't until the next morning, so the twins wanted to enjoy the last peaceful day they'd have in their first home.
The two walked out of sight, chatting casually with each other. Neither of them cared about the thoughts or opinions of the crowd behind them.
The test ended early in the night. Out of the thousands of participants, only twelve managed to pass. Nine of the twelve were of the warrior class, as expected, while the last three were in magic. The twins were the obvious champions with near perfect affinity, the next highest was another warrior class, with excellent affinity.
Erin was quite happy with the gains this trip, she had heard that the students who discovered the best talents had their own reward, and she was certain there wouldn't be any better than those two.
The next morning Isla and Sila woke up early. Although they knew they'd be first, they didn't want to seem impetuous and prideful. They had already drawn too much attention with their level, others that were jealous would definitely want to find a reason to deal them a blow.
Unlike yesterday, the girls chose to wear their adventuring equipment. They knew that today they'd have to set off towards the capital. Although it was much earlier than the two of them planned, they felt that rather than rushing into battles hoping to come out the other side alive, the only way to progress was to find a teacher to train them, and the Larsille academy was their best bet to find one.
Arriving at the square where the tests were taken yesterday, the area was far emptier than yesterday. The twins saw the other successful candidates standing with their families, while the people from the academy hadn't arrived.
The two of them didn't have any intention of speaking with those people, they found a place to sit down and rest, whispering to each other.
"How long do you think it'll take to get to the capital?" Sila asked flatly.
"Depends. If there's no trouble, probably two weeks. But I feel that this whole trip will be full of trouble" Isla replied with her head resting against Sila's shoulder.
Sila tried to position herself so that Isla would be more comfortable, "Look at them all. They think going to that academy is the greatest gift they've ever received" Sila sneered at the groups naivete.
"They don't know any better. Too inexperienced. Here they're something special, but there they're nothing. No family, no friends. Only themselves in a place where even a random person walking down the street might be a powerhouse of the empire, or a high ranking official of the court" Isla said her eyes gazing over the other candidates indifferently.