Upon entering the castle, I couldn't help but hold my breath in shock.
The palace corridors were excessively wide and spacious, almost as if they were built for giants rather than humans.
The ceiling and walls were adorned with intricate decorations of leaves and various flowers, along with numerous artistic works—paintings depicting epic battles and statues of various strange and wondrous shapes.
As I walked through the vast and wide corridors, I couldn't help but marvel at their sheer size and artistic design, which seemed as if they had been taken straight out of a painting.
Despite the presence of hundreds of students walking within the corridor, it never felt crowded at all.
Seeing this, I couldn't help but sigh. Even though I was the one who had written this, there was a vast difference between imagining something and seeing it with my own eyes.
However, when I thought about what awaited me soon, I forgot all about the corridor and started feeling nervous. Despite training for every possible scenario (by talking to the wall), I was still anxious.
Because in just a little while, I would meet the main characters—the very characters I had written.
The ones whose suffering I had penned, along with their joy, sorrow, pain, and anger.
The ones whose past and future I had crafted, whose victories and losses I had determined.
The ones I had loved and hated.
The ones who felt like a part of me.
While I was lost in my chaotic emotions, I failed to notice that I had arrived at a massive hall, as grand as every other place in this castle.
The hall featured white marble columns, making it resemble one of the ancient Greek temples. There was no furniture, so all the students were standing, chatting amongst themselves.
Upon entering the hall, my eyes were immediately drawn to the platform at the far end.
The platform stood about six meters above the ground, and on it stood dozens of men and women.
Without exception, their expressions were cold and devoid of emotion.
The second thing they all had in common, aside from their cold stares, was their immaculate black attire—except for the insignia of the Union Army displayed on their uniforms. This insignia was a shield bearing the crests of the four great families:
- Three stars forming a triangle—Crest of the Lightstar Family.
- A crimson flame tornado—Crest of the Stormflame Family.
- A blue sword pointing to the sky—Crest of the Swordice Family.
- A silver moon—Crest of the Moonlight Family.
But among the group of instructors clad in the Union Army's uniform, one person stood out like a sore thumb due to his different attire.
Standing in the center of the instructors was an old man with a muscular build. However, the strangest thing about him was his clothing—a dazzlingly white daraa.
This was unusual, given that the Union Army had enacted a law mandating uniform attire for all members of society.
The Union Army had imposed this law in an attempt to eradicate racism and instill a sense of unity among all people, forbidding any traditional clothing or names that symbolized a particular ethnicity.
But, of course, these rules only applied to the weak—those whom the Union Army could suppress. They did not apply to one of the few SS-ranked warriors.
In short, if you reached a certain level of power, even if you wore a princess dress, people would still compliment you on how regal you looked in it.
"Ahem."
A sudden, loud voice pulled me from my contemplation. Looking around, I wasn't the only one affected—every student had stopped talking and was now focused on the platform at the end of the hall, specifically on the old man in white.
Seeing that he had captured the students' attention, the old man smiled and began speaking.
"First, allow me to introduce myself, though most of you should already know who I am or at least have an idea."
Although he wasn't shouting, his voice was clear and audible to everyone in the hall.
"I am Ahmed Salem, the headmaster of this academy."
"This academy, which your enrollment in signifies that you are the most talented individuals within human territory."
As he said this, Ahmed's tone turned serious.
"But that does not mean you will live in luxury. No, we do not raise pampered children here; we train soldiers who fight for the glory of humanity."
"From this moment on, it does not matter whether you are noble or common-born. Here, your strength alone determines your status and way of life."
"And if you fail to meet the academy's standards, you will be expelled."
Upon hearing this last statement, the students started to grow anxious. They had exerted immense effort to gain admission to the academy and avoid the Union Army's training camps.
And now, someone was telling them that they could be expelled at any moment?!
Noticing the chaos beginning to spread among the students, Ahmed amplified his voice with mana before continuing in a louder tone:
"Silence."
"It seems you have misunderstood something. This is not an ordinary academy where you can study and have fun with your friends. This is a training camp designed to produce humanity's strongest soldiers."
"Soldiers who fight to the death to protect human territory and reclaim our world, which was stolen by those monsters from another realm."
"We have been in an eternal war with the invaders since their arrival, and thousands of brave soldiers have sacrificed their lives to bring human territory to its current level of prosperity."
"And we will not allow those sacrifices to be in vain because of an incompetent generation."
"Therefore, you will receive the best training possible to become the future leaders of humanity."
Upon hearing this, the students gradually regained their composure, realizing that the academy was no different from the Union Army's training camps—perhaps even worse.
After half an hour of dull talk about humanity's glory, repelling the invaders, and reclaiming their world, Ahmed Salem finally stopped speaking.
He nodded toward the students below.
"And now, I will call forward the top ten rankers."
"The best students of this year and humanity's hope for reclaiming its world. I expect you to treat them as role models and strive to reach their level of strength."
"First place: Ludwig Moonlight."
At the mention of his name, a student began ascending the platform.
He was a boy with silver hair and captivating silver eyes.
Once he reached the platform, Ahmed gestured for him to stand behind him before continuing.
"Second place: Victor Stormflame."
Similarly, another student climbed onto the platform and stood next to Ludwig.
Victor had shoulder-length gray hair and crimson eyes.
"Third place: Alexander Earth."
At the mention of this name, a small commotion arose among the students, as it was unusual for a commoner to be among the top five.
Alexander was massive, making Ludwig and Victor look like children beside him. He stood at nearly 190 centimeters, with a muscular build, short black hair, and matching black eyes.
"Fourth place: Edward Lightstar."
Hearing my name, I sighed and began ascending the platform, standing to Ludwig's left. He stood in the center, with Victor and Alexander on his right.
"Fifth place: Jess Earth."
Jess had a completely ordinary appearance—the kind of person you would pass by in the street without noticing.
Yet, judging by the murmurs among the students, having one commoner among the top five was barely acceptable, but two? This was unprecedented in the academy's history.
Of course, I didn't care about that. Instead, I was searching for someone amidst the sea of students.
"It seems we'll have some interesting classmates, won't we, cousin?"
Turning toward the source of the voice, I found Ludwig smiling mischievously.
Damn, I had forgotten about the relationship between Ludwig and Edward!
But before I could respond, I felt someone's gaze on me.
It was the academy's headmaster, Ahmed Salem, who cast a warning glance at Ludwig and me.
Sensing the headmaster's gaze, Ludwig stopped smiling and stared straight ahead like a statue.
Ignoring him, I resumed searching for my target among the students.
Here is the continuation and completion of the translation:
"Sixth place: Rob Swordice."
"Seventh place: Maria Earth."
"Eighth place: William Shadowmoon."
"Ninth place: Nick Blackstar."
"Tenth place: Anna Earth."
Upon hearing this, my attention finally returned to the platform. At that moment, a stunningly beautiful girl was climbing up. Her fair skin, platinum blonde hair, and striking blue eyes gave her an almost ethereal presence, as if everything she gazed upon was touched by her brilliance.
Even though I had never seen her before in my life, it was impossible to mistake her for someone else.
After all, she was one of the heroines of my novel—the very girl Edward had raped.