Julia, Romario, and Alvin then exchanged numbers after finishing their Familiars' test.
"Well then, there is still an hour before the first classes. Do you guys want to go and eat something?" Romario asked.
Alvin and Julia quickly accepted. "Seems like a great idea!"
However, as soon as they stepped out of the building, several people approached them... Or, to be more specific, Alvin and Linfel. "This..."
Alvin looked at their uniforms. Although they were all in the same academy uniform, they had an extra emblem different from the mandatory academy's one. One of these people was Milia and Nori, who said they would wait for Alvin to come out with Linfel from the Familiars' Test. As for the rest... Alvin recognized a few of the emblems. They were Faction Emblems in the academy.
Milia quickly took the initiative. "So, Alvin, Linfel, have you thought about it. Would you like to join the Floating Blades Faction?"
Only then did Alvin remember he truly said he would take the time of Linfel's Test to think about it. Too bad, though. With Linfel's 'low profile' display, that memory vanished from his head.
"Hey, not so fast!" A young man in his early twenties approached as well. "Why would he join your Floating Blades Faction? You guys have barely established yourselves in the academy, so there is no prospect for Alvin and Linfel."
Milia's expression turned dark as she looked at him. However, the guy completely ignored Milia and introduced himself to Linfel and Alvin. "Hi there. My name is-"
"Max Turfel!" Alvin quickly completed it. "You are the top Magus of your 21st academy section. I doubt there are many who don't know someone like you."
Alvin was right. Max was just as famous as Milia and the other top students.
Max smiled, satisfied. "It makes me happy you know me. So, the reason I came here is to extend you an invitation to join the Heaven Breaking Faction. We have a lot of history within the academy, and our training resources are the best ones. You won't regret."
"Hmph!" Someone else snorted. It was a woman not far from her twenties called Amanda Sosei. "Best your ass! How could it compare to our Star Explorers Faction? Linfel, Alvin, we also have an agreement with the Space Station Company that gives us quite the deal for exploring other nearby worlds. You two would definitely fit well since we rely strongly on our Familiars as well. We take the Master Familiar Connection very seriously."
Yet, it didn't stop there. "What's the point of having a deal with the Space Station if one can't pay for it anyway?" Asked a young man, seeming younger than Alvin and Milia. "Alvin, Linfel, Amanda's Star Explorers Faction is a sinkhole of Academy Credits with no real benefit. Instead, you should join our Earthlings Faction. As the name implies, we are very down to earth, using every single Academy Credit available to us in the best way possible. Nothing is wasted when you receive access to our computer's specialized training program."
One by one, other factions came forward to introduce themselves, making Alvin and Linfel feel somewhat lost at what to do. Of course, even though it became a gathering of big figures, none of them were the leaders of their Factions. Only one or another had any real important position inside their Faction.
The reason was simple, Linfel and Alvin's Master Familiar Connection was indeed impressive, but Alvin himself wasn't. Linfel's Familiar test that he just took was immediately added to the Academy's Website, so they saw he only had a 57 Magic Score. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't that good either. In the end, the Factions didn't really put all that importance on them. If they joined their faction, that's good. If they didn't, it wasn't like they lost much anyway.
In fact, the academy had more Factions, but the others didn't even bother to send a representative to ask Linfel and Alvin to join them. Let's not forget the academy had more than a hundred thousand students. It was normal for it to have many Factions.
Milia continued to stay there, still angry with that crowd. She just wanted to leave already. "So, everyone expressed their wishes for you to join them. Just make a decision already." She didn't hold much hope. Max Turfel was right. Her Floating Blades Faction was quite new and still lacked the same advantages as more established Factions. Besides, after the mess in the Master Familiar Connection test, it would be weird if Alvin truly selected the Floating Blades with Milia there.
Alvin didn't give an answer straight away. Instead, he pulled Felia closer to him and asked everyone. "Felia is also my Familiar. Would it be an issue if she joined with me?"
"This..." Suddenly, everyone grew quiet. Spending resources on a Familiar with just a slightly above-average MFC just to get Alvin to join them didn't seem worth it.
"We don't mind," Milia was the first one to answer, though. For a new Faction like hers, they truly couldn't look too much at such issues. Factions in that position needed to get a foothold first, so they would usually overlook some disadvantages.
"Then it is decided," Alvin immediately made his decision. In fact, some other factions were still considering if they should accept that term, but Alvin didn't give them time to do it.
Felia then got closer to Alvin's ears and whispered. 'I'm happy that you did it for me, master. However, let's be honest, you would have chosen her regardless, wouldn't you?' Of course, she made sure that even Milia couldn't hear her by using her Magic Energy to talk to Alvin and Linfel only.
Alvin looked away, pretending he didn't know what Felia was talking about. 'You misunderstand me.'
Linfel heard that and was all puzzled. However, he looked at Milia and understood. 'Procreation. In the end, it is all about procreation.' For once... the wisp wasn't entirely wrong.