In the auditorium, Drai was sitting among the thousands of students. He was separated from Christo and Jian because the seats were arranged based on faculties.
Drai was currently sitting in the Faculty of Body Transformation area. Around him were evolvers whose class mainly involved body transformation. The majority of bloodline classes in the academy were members of this faculty.
Waiting for the entrance ceremony to start, Drai watched the people around him with interest. Although many of them had indistinct features like Drai, there were several students whose non-human features stood out.
A male student seemed to be some kind of plant hybrid as his skin resembled a tree bark and tiny green leaves were growing among his hair.
Another student was busy brushing his hairy arms. He also had two long fangs, indicating that he had a beast bloodline of some sort.
Meanwhile, a female student caught Drai's attention because she had reptilian features just like Alancho. Although she had no horns, parts of her body were covered in azure scales. Her pupils were also vertical, which added to her charm.
'Although people who don't look too different can also be strong, these eye-catching ones must be special,' Drai thought.
Suddenly the light above the audience dimmed and the murmurs quieted down. The stage curtain opened, revealing dozens of seats filled with people who Drai assumed were the professors.
A man walked to the front left of the stage. Wearing a suit and glasses, he looked like a genuine scholar. His hazel eyes and auburn hair seemed to attract many young ladies as gasps could be heard when took the stage.
The man smiled and greeted the audience, "Good morning, everyone! My name is Lucas Vale and I happen to have the pleasure to be the MC for today's event."
Loud cheers could be heard, especially from the female students. Lucas waited for the cheers to settle down before continuing.
"First of all, let us welcome our new friends who are now officially part of the Soluna Academy family. Please give a round of applause for our talented new evolvers of the 2498 batch!"
All the professors and older students applauded. Many were looking at the first-years with various interests. Some were trying to guess which ones were the most talented while others were searching for some cuties.
"Thank you, everyone. Next, the lovely Elena Moritz will grace us with her rendition of the national anthem. In respect for our beloved nation, I would like to request everyone to stand up."
Everyone stood up and the mood turned solemn, following which a young lady with a graceful demeanor took the stage.
Elena smiled to the audience, then she started singing "Rivers of Rivideria" without accompaniments. Her singing was enchanting and the audience could vividly feel the underlying sentiments behind the lyrics which portrayed their motherland. Some people even started tearing up.
The song finally ended and Elena nodded to the audience and professors before leaving the stage. Some people felt regretful that the song had ended already and watched Elena's fading figure longingly.
Meanwhile, Drai didn't feel anything in particular. In the first place, he wasn't patriotic, since he was never interested in Rivideria's history and politics. Furthermore, he also wasn't particularly interested in music. So, Drai viewed Elena's magnificent performance as trivial.
Lucas took back the stage and continued, "Thank you, everyone. You may sit down."
Seeing the numerous longing faces, Lucas remarked, "That was truly a splendid performance by Elena. I wonder why she enrolled here instead of debuting as a singer. I'd pay half my salary to watch her concert."
The audience laughed as they heard this, but many could actually relate. They too would pay big bucks to watch Elena sing.
"Anyway, next will be a word from our honorable rector. Please welcome, Professor Zar Augra!"
The audience applauded, then something happened that made the majority of the first-years freeze in the middle of their clapping.
At the center of the stage where Elena was singing earlier, a dark circle appeared, hovering in the air and facing the audience. The circle was around 1.5 meters in diameter and its surface was rippling.
Then, a small figure flew out of the circle. It was an old man whose height didn't seem to reach 1.5 meters (4'11"). He was bald and his eyes were tiny compared to his thick eyebrows. He had a lush white beard and was wearing a robe that dangled below his feet.
"Spatial magic!" several first-years gasped.
Drai was also astounded. Although he wasn't interested in magic, even he was aware that spatial magic was one of the rarest types of magic that evolvers could wield.
As the applause and commotion died down, Zar closed the portal behind him and greeted the students as he remained floating.
"Good day, my honorable colleagues and students. Please forgive my crude entrance, for these old legs can't handle long walks across the campus anymore."
The audience giggled as they imagined their small rector scuttling around the academy grounds.
Satisfied with the crowd's reaction, Zar continued, "It has been several decades since I became a rector. With every passing year, my entrance speech has been quite stale. They were mostly sincere words of formalities with a few anecdotes thrown in here and there."
The audience listened with intrigue. Although Zar had always sounded sincere in his speeches, it's true that their rector usually spoke similarly during the entrance and graduation ceremonies. However, this time the opening had already strayed from the usual talk about the academy's history.
"But today I'd like to tell you a rather personal story of mine, since I've heard that there's a few special young ones entering the academy this year," Zar said with a knowing smile, surprising the students who started looking around curiously, trying to guess which first-years the rector was referring to.
Seeing the commotion, Zar said with amusement, "Calm dawn, everyone. If they are truly special, you'll know about them soon."
After the students returned their attention, Zar continued, "As all of you have known, I am already old enough to be your great grandfather. Perhaps some of you might have questioned why I haven't retired yet.
"And you're not wrong, since retirement life might be quite pleasant for me. Maybe I would even get a wife for once," Zar said, making the crowd laugh.
"But what most people don't know is that nothing is more enjoyable for me than working hard for the academy and its students, and not because of the seemingly lofty position I am occupying.
"There's not a day that I feel tired from exerting my aged mind and body for the betterment of Soluna Academy. One could even say that I am obsessed with it, and they wouldn't be wrong."
At this point, the crowd was quite baffled. The professors were particularly so, since for many, it was the first time their rector had spoken his heart out, much less doing it during a public speech. Some even suspected that Zar's reason for this wasn't as simple as what he had said.
"But why such an obsession? The answer is actually rather simple. It is all because of regret," Zar said solemnly.
"A long time ago when Zar Augra was merely a nobody, he was met with an incident which left him with regret. And it was due to this event that Zar Augra eventually turned into the obsessive person speaking in front of you right now.
"Although I won't go into details due to certain implications, there are things I had come to realize following that experience and would like to share with you. First, many states of affairs are not what they seem to be. A seemingly gentle river may hide turbulent undercurrents. Keep in mind that prudence is key to avoid being caught unaware, or worse, unprepared."
Amidst the listening crowd, a few faces turned wary as if understanding what the rector was implying.
"Second, a small action may lead to significant consequences, both good and bad. In this case, prudence is also key, but too much hesitation can also end with regret. Sharpen your mind and broaden your views so you can make the correct choice when it truly matters," Zar said as a flash of regret appeared in his eyes.
"And third, the young are often unwise, but they are significant nonetheless. In dire times, it is likely that the bold will pave way for salvation. And none are more dauntless than the young. And this is one of the reasons for my extended stay in Soluna Academy," Zar declared as he looked hopefully at the thousands of students who were trying to wrap their minds around his words.
"And that's it from me," Zar concluded shortly, back to his carefree demeanor. "I have an important guest waiting at my place, so I apologize for leaving early. Anyway, welcome to Soluna Academy, first-years. Consider this your home, and feel free to trouble our professors. They're paid well enough for that."
Displeased voices could be heard from the rows of professors as Zar opened up an identical portal as the one before, then flew into it with a smirk.