So… this is it.

The Royal Knights Academy.

The day my lives change, for better or worse.

I took a deep breath and was about to step through the gate. Although Carine did so easily, Feyt was stopped with a firm hold on my shoulder by one of the guards.

I stopped in my tracks as Carine to wait for Feyt.

"You. You're an examinee?"

I turned to him, slightly nervous. "Y-Yes?"

He lifted his hand and then extended it in front of me. "Your papers, please."

"Ah, right."

I pulled out the folded paper in my pocket. It was a license to participate in the standardized exam, as well as proof of Father's and Mother's payment. I was thanking them heavily that day for paying for it, and they were insistent that it was also an investment.

The guard looked over the paper and then handed it to me again. "Here you go. Good luck."

I accepted it, blinking. "T-Thank you!" I pocketed the paper nicely before catching up to myself.

I breathed a sigh of relief. Not a single exam yet, but my nerves were already wracking.

The first few steps I took in the academy were those of awe. This place was expansive, almost like a small town in itself, with various buildings decorating the grounds connected with a series of interconnected flat stone road. Each road was decorated beautifully with trees, bushes, hedges, flowers, and the Luminite lamp posts seemed high-end as well, the type that doesn't glow green.

Each building could've been its own mansion as well. They were made of various high-grade materials, and I spotted very minimal wear and tear on their surfaces.

I could hear countless voices around the academy grounds, a mix of students and instructors, I believe. Most of them were probably from those taking the exam. Most voices came from a large, expansive building on the right corner.

That must be where we'll be gathering.

As I continued my walk, I began to worry. I would be basically taking two exams at the same time. The one for the Gilded Track, Carine's… And one of the Standardized Track, which was Feyt's. With how "different" it was based on what I read… It really, really bothered me to no end.

I was seriously hoping my multitasking abilities wouldn't fail me.

Before long, we reached an intersection. A lone, stern-looking woman with medium-length dark brown hair wearing a dark blue militaristic uniform with golden accents stood tall in the middle. She had a cold, sharp look in her eyes as she stared into the nothingness between both of us. Her head hadn't moved since I spotted her in the distance, and it still didn't as she addressed us.

"Are you two examinees?"

This is where they split the two different exam tracks, right?

"Yes, I am on the Gilded Track," I said as Carine.

"And I am on the Standardized Track," I said as Feyt.

Sure, she can probably tell which track we were on based on our clothes, but I didn't want to assume.

"Please head to the grand assembly hall to your right."

I took a glance to the right and, yeah, that building there was where I heard the most noise from. But…

"Is that the assembly for the Gilded Track, or the Standardized Track?" I asked as Feyt.

Cold silence peeked its head into the air all of a sudden. Her eyes narrowed instantly, her gaze snapping to Feyt. I moved a half-step back at the sudden hostility.

"Tell me. Did I say 'assembly hall for the Gilded'? Did I say 'assembly for the Standardized'? Or did I say, quite clearly, 'head to the grand assembly hall to your right'?"

I blinked… words caught in my throat. "T-The last one?"

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"Hmph." She remained emotionless as she scoffed. "So your ears do work. Then I suppose it is your mind that doesn't."

The sudden jab hit harder than a hammer.

She turned forward again, as though I no longer existed. Her gaze fixed on the empty air between us.

"What are you two standing around for? Another foolish question to ask, perhaps?"

"N-No, Ma'am!" I said with a high salute.

She didn't respond at all. The silence was heavier than words. The less time I spent here, the better. I quietly took off to the right with both bodies, both of them rigid.

I wanted to make sure, you know? But I guess that was a taste of how strict life in this academy would be… Or maybe she's just a one-off, strict instructor? Who knows.

Still, though, the assembly for both tracks would happen in the same building? That wasn't in the reports I read.

—

Royal Knights Academy - Grand Assembly Hall

6:49 in the morning.

The hall swallowed us whole the moment we stepped inside. It was vast with high-arched ceilings supported with marble columns, banners embroidered with the Academy's crest, and chandeliers glittering like stars hang overhead. Everywhere I looked, I saw wealth and prestige.

It was utterly jaw-dropping seeing it from Feyt's perspective, though. This kind of building could become a major town hall if set in a small town or even a village.

Despite that, it seemed we arrived early. Even in a hall meant to house thousands, the space already felt alive with noise and chatter, with various examinees already hanging around in pockets. It wasn't the full roster yet, but the sheer volume was overwhelming all the same.

The examinees were, as expected, divided into two groups based on their tracks.

The first group wore the same uniform as Carine, but it would seem the boys' variant featured a longer coat, sleeker shirt, and long pants instead. They looked orderly even when standing casually.

On the other side was a chaotic mix of mismatched outfits, ranging from plain shirts and worn boots, to modest training clothes. They stood far more… rigidly? I wouldn't blame them, though. Failure in the standardized track meant rejection; the pressure was real for them.

The examinees weren't lining up or standing in order; some were roaming around, chatting with one another. But there was almost like an invisible line in the center, dividing the group apart.

I debated whether I should split up and follow the line or what. But then…

"Is that Lady Carine?" a familiar voice said in the Gilded Track group.

I turned my head instinctively to someone calling my name. In return, everyone there stood and stared at me back.

As I properly analyzed several of their faces, I recognized some of them instantly. They were the students attending my house's sword lessons.

I took another quick assessment of the people, counting just how many I recognized… and indeed, I'd say that nearly a third of the students here were our house's students in one way or another, and since we were early, more was to come.

I let out a silent, but relieved sigh. Of course, I'd be a person of interest here. I was the daughter of their instructors, after all. Maybe I could hang around with them after all.

As I was about to head over, Feyt's ears started picking up things besides the former classmates' comments.

"Carine? As in Carine Sareid?"

"Tch. So the rumors were true."

"No way… that's her? The ducal heiress?"

"Shouldn't someone like her be in Royal Governance instead?"

…Of course, there would be comments about my status, too.

Most of the students standing before me were sons and daughters of Barons, Viscounts, maybe some Counts…

Not a single one of them came from a ducal. Especially an heir to a ducal.

Yeah… Maybe I'll distance myself a bit.

—

6:57 in the morning.

I had been standing silently near the corner, leaning on the wall for support. No one had even attempted to approach me, not even my former classmates. What gives?

On the other side of the invisible line, I was standing amidst the crowd as Feyt. Many of them just stood still, taking deep breaths and whatnot. Some were moving around and chatting with each other, but the former, I guessed, was just warming up, while the chatter was… less casual than the other side.

"This is your second time here, right?"

"Yeah. Can't believe how cheap it is now."

"How was the previous exam like?"

"Actually, I heard the tests are always different."

It was a mix of various conversations, all of them about the upcoming exam. They were really taking this exam seriously, huh?

"Ah, Lady Carine!" A sudden voice came from the side.

A new examinee had popped into the building, and he immediately walked towards me. It was none other than that noble kid who talked with me on the last day of training last year.

If I remember correctly, his name was Phil—uhh…Philip…? Fillian?

"Good morning, Lady Carine," he said. "I hope the day finds you well."

"Good morning," I said as my mind was still trying to dig up his name.

Fidal? Phil? Seriously, what was it?

He smiled, polite and a little too nervous. Must be the exam's stress weighing in.

"It has been some time since we last met, hasn't it? I trust your training has continued without pause."

"Yes, I have," I answered curtly.

He held my gaze for a moment longer before nodding with respect. "I am glad to hear that. I, too, have been training since the class ended. I hope you will do well in the exam."

"The same goes to you."

He opened his mouth again as though he wanted to continue, but before he could—

—The bell rang from above the hall. I glanced at a wall clock nearby, and it was precisely seven o'clock.

Finally… the moment everyone was waiting for.

The curtains on the stage slowly unfurled. The chatter around the room died quickly as everyone faced the stage. When the last fold of the curtain was pulled away, there stood a middle-aged woman, her eyes soft and her smile gentle. She wore a similar uniform to the strict instructor outside at the intersection.

She walked forward on the stage with slow steps, hands behind her back. She scanned the room with deliberate slowness, then she cleared her throat.

"Welcome… to the Royal Knights Academy of Setus."

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