Chapter 65: Auditorium
"What’s taking it so long this time? Shouldn’t the orientation have started a few minutes ago?"
"True, maybe they were accounting for freshmen who woke up too late?"
"I heard there’s an assistant professor who’s running late; they’re one of the watchers for this exam, so they need to be here during the orientation."
As Novus and Medea walked inside the auditorium, it was clear to them that there were some inconveniences that were happening right now, the words the young man picked up from the students around them making him look towards the stage as well.
"Hey, what are you looking around for? Let’s find an empty spot~" overtaking him and turning around to look at him as she speaks, Medea asked, letting her eyes roam around for a while before she finally found what she thinks is a good spot to sit on.
"Aren’t you way too enthusiastic about this exam for someone who had already gone through it three times, Senior Medea?"
Novus asked as he followed the lady towards the location she picked, the question reaching the lady’s ears clearly despite the loud noise within the surroundings, a testament to the sharpness of her senses that, while pale in comparison to the young man’s, still stands above any normal person’s senses.
"Why wouldn’t I be? This is a great opportunity to earn a fat stack of student points after all~~" she answered with a tinge of excitement in her voice, showing quite the greed for money unbefitting of a daughter of a prestigious family like hers.
"Quite amusing to hear from someone of noble birth." and that is exactly what the young man pointed out as well, making Medea’s smile a bit teasing as she replies in good light.
"I have to remind you that you are of noble birth as well, Junior Novus, hell, I would even agree that you are born in an even better circumstances than mine~~" she pointed out as she recalls the family he came from, a family whose reputation sounds so great that their renown even reaches all the way to the east, to the point that she can even hear mention of their members from her elders every now and then back when she was still a child.
"Well, that is beyond the point. What I really want to say is my, our status outside is completely useless inside the academy, that’s why even I have to struggle to afford the things I want in this place... You already know that, don’t you?"
As they finally reached the seat she had previously found, she sat down on one and pointed him at the other, all while staring at him, waiting for his reply to her question.
"That’s true, I didn’t quite think of that." he agrees without any argument this time, his body, despite feeling all the lightness and power from his continuous growth as he absorbs Evolution Crystal without stopping, still couldn’t help but show its comfortable relief as it sat down after a long while of walking to go here.
"Tsk, there are a lot of bugs around..." Medea voiced out in annoyance, making Novus scan their seat, as well as their surroundings with his Sensory Expansion to see where the bugs Medea is talking about are located, only to find nothing, as he witnessed just how well sanitized the academy keeps its facility.
Not a single grain of dust nor a single spot of imperfection, hence why he couldn’t help but look at her with a confused gaze as he wondered where the bug was that she was talking about.
"N-not that kind of bug... hah... look over there, Junior Novus." Staring at him, she sometimes forgets just how clueless he can be, so clueless sometimes, when he can also be so sharp at times, guiding his gaze towards the other students as she shows him the gaze that is directed towards them.
Amusement, curiosity, confusion, envy, and some even jealousy.
Of course, most, if not all, the negative emotions are directed towards Novus himself, as if it isn’t enough that he was once in a relationship with who can be considered the greatest flower of the first year, it seems like he is building rapport with one of the most prominent names among the seniors now as well.
"Fufufu~~ if looks can kill, those other guys would’ve already killed you dozens of times over~" as if she’s taking entertainment in the gazes that are directed towards her junior, Medea teased with a light smile on her beautiful face as she stares at him, making the young man reveal a faint, wry smile as he notices what she is doing.
"You know you’re just making it worse, don’t you, Senior Medea?" he said as he shook his head, wanting to say something about how those individuals would not even be able to touch the sleeves of his uniform if they really wanted to fight, but refrained from doing so as he thought that it just sounded too arrogant.
"Making it worse with what?" the upperclassman replies, that mischievous smile still on her face as if she’s set on making trouble for this junior of hers.
"Forget about it," he sighed in defeat, admitting that she feigns ignorance way better than he does.
As the two of them continue their little chats while waiting for the orientation to start, the gazes of both students and some other staff aware of the little happenings within the student body continue to gather around the two of them, wondering just what sort of things happened between them for their talks to go in such a familiar, close way.
"Brother, mind slapping my face for a bit?"
"Sure thing, here."
"Fuck! That hurts!! This is not a dream."
"T-this... I still doubt it, it might be, let me slap your face again."
"Stop!!"
It is only a natural reaction, especially for freshmen who are well aware of both the bad rumors surrounding Novus and the legends, both good and bad, surrounding that senior from the prestigious Heavenblade Great Clan, and for the two of them to act this close to each other, most of them couldn’t help but worry and wonder about something.
Whether they fell asleep too late the last night, and they are still inside a dream right now.
Such worries are unfounded, however, as they will come to know how much of a reality it is that they are existing in right now, as they felt the need to get serious the moment they heard a singular step coming from the stage, a calm, yet nevertheless heavy pressure silently encompassing the entire auditorium as the individual who took that step reveals themselves in front of the students.
It is a familiar figure to the class where Novus belongs; perhaps, it is a familiar figure to the entirety of this year’s freshmen class, since this is the very same professor who teaches the entire year level magic theories, an individual who excels not only in the ways of magic taught by the academy, but in its advances as well.
Runia Leona al Veritas
"Hm? It’s Sister Runia~~" staring at the individual standing right in the middle of the stage, Medea smiles as her eyes grow with light of interest, as if there’s something different about this professor compared to others that warrants her attention.
"You know her?" Novus asked, wondering from where Medea knew of the very same professor who brought the news of this exam onto himself and his classmates.
And her answer surprises him quite a bit.
"Hm? Yeah, she’s kind of my cousin~~."
