After Damian was taken away for treatment while Elijah went to rest, the arena sounded more crowded than ever. Almost everyone could not believe what they saw with their own eyes. A prince of the elven race, the epitome of the power of the most respected race, was surprisingly defeated by a human who was famous for being the only one on foot despite coming from outside Arlo City.
Of course, Damian was indeed famous for his lack of mana capacity. But in magic, mana capacity was not everything. Damian even had the advantage of possessing various rare magic with advanced levels. The magic control Damian had wasn't that bad either. If it was someone else, his enemy would have been defeated easily by Damian.
Unfortunately, in reality, Damian still lost against someone who could only use basic fire and thunder magic. Some blamed Damian's mana capacity for his defeat. While others recognized Elijah's victory honestly, as they saw how quickly Elijah moved and reacted when fighting with Damian.
"Sir, what do you think was the real cause of Prince Damian's defeat?"
A teacher asked Griffin, an old man who served as the Principal at the Academy of Sword and Sorcery. Griffin stroked his beard while looking at Elijah, who was about to walk out of the arena.
Not long after, the old man suddenly laughed. From such a long distance away, Griffin did not expect someone to notice him in the middle of the crowd. Griffin could not have been more wrong at that moment. Elijah had clearly turned his head towards him, then looked at him with those piercing eyes.
That kind of ability could only be possessed by those who had the instincts of a wild animal like himself. Griffin nodded with satisfaction. It seemed that this time, he met a lot of potential new students who caught his attention.
"Sir?"
When the teacher called out to Griffin in confusion, the principal finally answered his question calmly.
"He chose something that was not his path, and happened to meet the wrong opponent, so he could not awaken his true ability. Offer him to enter the warrior class. If he accepts, then put him into the special class in the warrior group."
The special class was a class filled with the best of the best or those born into the royal family. The teacher nodded confidently. With the light step skill learned by the entire royal family of an elven race, the warrior class would always be open for Damian, who was able to use magic as well as physical attacks.
"Then, put his opponent in the mages' group special class."
"Sir!?"
"Ian, what can you see from the fight?"
Rather than let the other teachers protest at his decision, Griffin asked the teacher sitting next to him, Ian, who was a famous one-handed master in the warrior class, for his opinion. The former S-class adventurer looked at the other teacher, then said what he thought of Elijah honestly.
"Although he's a mage, his posture and fighting style are like someone who used to use a one-handed sword. That kid also has fast reflexes and good instincts as a fighter. Honestly, I don't quite understand why he chose to become a mage."
"Hey, even though he only uses basic magic, his control and ability in using magic is already like someone who has been using magic for a long time, you know! He can also use magic for that long without running out of mana first. I'd say he could become a magic genius if taught properly."
Anya, the attack magic teacher in the mage class spoke up in protest when Ian mentioned about Elijah's decision to become a mage. These two were the most powerful teachers from each group. When they alone had recognized Elijah's ability, the other teachers no longer had a problem with them.
"Now, you know why I made that decision, right?"
The teachers nodded embarrassedly in response to Griffin's question, finally understanding why the principal had made that decision. Being good at one side was no longer unusual in using magic or fighting. But being able to use both simultaneously was something only a genius could do.
Even from the entire history of the Rhodes Continent, there were only a few geniuses from each race who had mastered both magic and the sword with equal ability. If Elijah could indeed use both of them well, he indeed deserved to be put into a special class that was only filled with extraordinary geniuses or those with extraordinary births.
***
Elsewhere, Elijah was following another senior mage who came up to him right after he finished getting off the stage. Elijah didn't really listen to what his senior was saying at that moment. For the time being, Elijah's eyes remained fixed on the transparent mission status in front of him.
[Side mission: The Greatest Disciple
1. Enroll in the Sword and Sorcery Academy to level up the User. (COMPLETED)
2. Enter the special class to gain access to missions while studying at the academy. (COMPLETED)
3. Obtain high grades to stay in the special class until graduation.]
Elijah closed his mission status after that, too tired to think about what he had to go through to do the main mission in five years.
When walking, Elijah's walking speed was neither fast nor slow. He did not have any severe injuries from his fight with Damian. It's just that, his mana being depleted twice in a row made Elijah overwhelmed enough that he couldn't even walk properly anymore.
"You can drink this."
At one point, the senior, who was a human, stopped and then handed him a bottle of the familiar blue liquid. Elijah accepted it gladly. "Thank you," he said before gulping down the liquid.
Elijah felt much better after drinking the liquid, so he no longer lagged when walking with his senior.
"For now, I'll take you to the uniform distribution station outside this arena, and we'll go to the dormitory building you'll be staying in from now on. There is no admission ceremony for new students at the Academy of Sword and Sorcery. You and the new students will be immediately divided into special or regular classes and receive lessons immediately afterward."
"However, the academy has prepared an admission party for the end of this week. All the students will be off on that day. I can say, you can look forward to the acceptance party."
"Alright."
Elijah listened to his senior's explanation, then noted some important things in his mind. Of course, Elijah also answered the senior's remarks when he needed to.
"By the way, my name is Theo, a third-year student in the academy's magic class. Your name is Elijah, right? You gave an interesting fight on stage."
"Thank you very much."
Elijah replied briefly for once. At first, Theo opened the conversation because he felt that Elijah was more approachable, thanks to his humble style. But after he realized that Elijah was not a man of many words, Theo finally stopped talking about unimportant things and just focused on doing his job at the moment.
Elijah got the uniform he had to have and was taken to the dormitory afterward. The dormitory was located right behind the academy building. The dormitories of the warriors and mages classes were united in that place. The place looked more like a big castle with hundreds of rooms than a normal dormitory.
"This dormitory has eight floors. Where the first and second floors are inhabited by new students, the third and fourth floors by second-year students, and so on. There is no restriction that the second-floor residents cannot go to the third floor or vice versa. You are free to visit your seniors at your leisure. If you have any problems, you can even ask the seniors to help you."
"There are no special rules in this dormitory because everyone is busy with their affairs. However, I suggest you be quiet when passing through the dormitory hallways, considering most mages don't like it when someone is noisy near their rooms."
"Each dorm room will be occupied by two students, no matter what their status outside the academy is. The room assignment is random, so you'll never know who you'll be sharing a room with for the next year."
Theo spoke as he led her to the second floor, then opened the door with the number 71.
"I've been told in advance that this will be your room from now on. You can choose to take the bed on the right or the left. Just, please always remember to think of your roommate's feelings while you're here."
Elijah's new room was clean and tidy, with sunlight streaming in from the window that divided the room into two sides. A study table, chair, bed, and drawer were neatly arranged on each of the left and right sides. The place had an indoor bathroom just like Elijah's room in the guild dormitory. With the layout of the place that he had recognized since he first moved to the world, it seemed that Elijah would have no trouble getting familiar with his surroundings like he had when he first slept in the guild dormitory.
"And one more thing. I hope you'll read the rulebook that's in the drawer of every student's room. This academy was built to eliminate the differences that separate the four races. So, every student will be punished according to their misdeeds if someone gets into trouble in this place."
"Alright."
"Then, my duty to escort you is only up to here. You, new students, won't have anything scheduled until tomorrow. You can use this time to rest or go to the seniors' rooms. Making friends with them can save you from any problems you might encounter while studying at this academy."
"I understand."
Elijah answered everything calmly, so Theo didn't feel worried when he left Elijah to rest alone in his room.
Elijah immediately went to the bathroom to clean himself up afterward. After taking a shower, Elijah laid down on one of the beds and closed his eyes quietly.
For several months, Elijah spent all his time awake on Earth. After Elijah regained his zest for life and even had a purpose in life, sleep eventually returned to being something Elijah looked forward to most in his life.