On a bright morning, with the scorching sunlight illuminating the world—
I, Kai Argo, was on my way to the Konstan Academy of Magic and Sword.
I walked to the academy, quite a distance from my residence.
Leaving behind the house I rented with money earned from hunting in the guild, I bid farewell to my younger sister, who lay paralyzed in bed.
Before leaving, I gave her a kiss on the forehead, and she wished me luck in passing the entrance.
With a firm and vigilant stride, I maintained my posture, treating it as if it were part of an assessment.
I walked through the crowd, wearing armor that was quite heavy on the lower body but light on the upper half. A black eyepatch covered my left eye, and my neck-length brown hair gleamed under the sun.
On my back, my beloved greatsword swayed with every step I took.
Arriving at the academy gate, I halted my steps and carefully observed the grand structure before me. Then, I smiled.
"Yosh..."
I stepped inside, joining the other students.
One thing I liked about this academy was that age and graduation time didn't matter.
In short, anyone could enroll at any age and remain here until they graduated. Some even claimed that a few students had reached their 15th semester, though that seemed absurd.
Rather than blending in and going unnoticed, my very first day turned me into the center of attention. The moment people saw me, they immediately started whispering. Their conversations tickled my ears.
They were all talking about the sheer size of the greatsword on my back—around two meters from hilt to tip.
"Isn't that heavy…?"
"Damn…!"
I heard them, but I chose to ignore it.
As I entered the academy, excitement filled my face.
While I was still taking in my surroundings, someone suddenly bumped into my back—more precisely, into my sword.
"Ouch..."
A soft, cute voice caught my attention.
I turned around to meet the person.
"Uh... Are you okay?" I asked with slight concern.
She was almost as tall as me, though I still had a slight height advantage. She held a clipboard with both hands, pressing it against her chest.
"Oww… Don't just stand in the middle of the way with a sword that big," she said, rubbing her forehead.
She stopped rubbing her head and looked into my eyes.
"Huh? A new student? I've never seen you before," she said casually.
"Yeah, I'm a new student. A transfer student, to be exact."
"Ohhh, I see. If you're a transfer student, you need to go to a special room first. But since we're heading in the same direction, we might as well walk together," she said before slowly walking past me.
Without saying a word, I followed her from behind, gradually moving to her side—though I still kept a bit of distance between us.
We walked through a slightly quieter corridor.
"By the way, I haven't introduced myself yet. My name is Venena," she said, glancing at me as we talked.
"Right. My name is Kai Argo. Nice to meet you."
"Kai… What's your dream?" Venena asked innocently.
"I want to become the Grand King."
"G-Grand King?" Venena exclaimed in shock. "That's an incredibly difficult dream… I hope you can achieve it."
We kept walking until we reached a group of about a dozen students standing in front of two massive doors.
"Alright, that makes everyone present," Venena said to the gathered students.
…Huh?
•.
…She's a teacher?!
All the students assembled inside a slightly rundown room, with cobwebs hanging in the corners.
"Alright, I've been assigned as the supervisor for transfer students. My name is Venena, and I'll be guiding you all…"
"I'll explain how this process works. I'll call your names one by one, and when I do, you'll go to that table over there with the crystal orb on top. Place your palm on the orb and grasp it. The orb will then react to your Mana, and a text will appear—a manifestation of your past Mana patterns. This orb can predict your future with absolute certainty!"
She glanced at the clipboard, which held a single sheet of paper listing the transfer students.
"First up… Fuji Hayashi."
A student stepped forward, approaching the table with the crystal orb. He grasped it while keeping his palm pressed against the surface. A text appeared in the air—Royal Army.
"Yes! The Royal Army!" he exclaimed excitedly.
"Next..."
Several students had already received their predictions from the magical orb, and all of them looked overjoyed and satisfied with their results.
Everyone seems happy with their outcome… Maybe I'll become… the Grand King.
"Participant number 11… Kai."
"Yeah…"
With my greatsword still on my back, I stepped forward and placed my palm on the orb. Then—
A GOD…
That was what appeared. But I didn't understand what it meant.
"God?" I muttered, confused and curious.
"What does this mean…?" My hand instinctively moved away from the orb.
Suddenly, time froze. The atmosphere turned eerie and silent—no one moved. Everyone had turned into motionless mannequins.
Then—my body cracked in half, right down the middle.
•.
"Kai…"
A faint voice echoed in my ears. My body felt heavy, as if something was pressing down on me.
"Oyyy, wake up…" The voice became clearer—it was a woman's voice.
I opened my eyes, and the first thing I saw was a noblewoman with long, golden blonde hair and striking blue eyes.
"You lazy bum..." she muttered, sitting on my waist.
"Reina…" I groaned, stretching my body.
"Come on, it's your first day at the academy. You should be more excited!"
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