Graduation from Academy

Brolia Central Academy, inside the City of Morwall of the Brolia Empire.

This was the most prestigious Academy of the Brolia Empire. It was stated that all the graduates from this Academy would have a blessed future. The Alumni of this Academy consisted primarily of Advisors in the Court of the Brolia Empire, Strategists, Great Generals, or a respectful members of a Noble Family.

The Brolia Academy had 10 branches inside the Brolia Empire. It was to encourage the study of the commoners. Maybe they could find a diamond in the dirt.

After the first year at the Branch of this Academy, an aptitude test was taken, which tested the students physically and mentally. For commoners, this wasn't just a lifetime opportunity. It also served as a matter of life and death. By passing this test, they could graduate from an institution as prestigious as the Brolia Central Academy.

The competitions were so harsh that only 1 student from each branch would be selected and given the opportunity to learn at the Brolia Central Academy.

Currently, on the second floor of the Brolia Central Academy, the final year students are eagerly listening to their teacher's words. The results of the commoners are being announced. It made them anxious as one of them would be thrown out of the Brolia Central Academy.

Meanwhile, the Noble Family's heirs' results were discrete and sent to their family through a letter.

The Noble Family's descendants sat on the right side of the classroom, while the commoners sat on the other side. A nonchalant look lay on most of the descendant's faces. The distance between the two sides was large enough for the commoners to be reminded of their 'inferior' position. Interaction between the two circles of students was laughable at best.

The teacher was standing in front of these students. He had a stern look on his face, and soon enough, he started speaking, "I shall announce the results now …"

"Isamu Isao, First Rank. Pass."

"Masaki Masaru, Second Rank. Pass."

"Muraoka Rumiko, Third Rank. Pass."

"Kudo Ryusuke, Fourth Rank. Pass."

"Oishi Etsuya, Fifth Rank. Pass."

"And… Hisamatsu Kyoji. Fail."

Each and every student had a smile on his or her face. Well, everyone except for the guy named Hisamatsu Kyoji. He was dumbfounded. To him, it seemed as if he had heard something wrong. Maybe his ears were playing a trick on him.

He hurriedly stood up and asked, "Sir, are you sure there isn't some slip-up? How can Kudo Ryusuke rank above me?"

Most of the students in the class, irrespective of their status, had the same question. They were curious about how Kudo Ryusuke had even passed this exam.

Kudo Ryusuke had a bored look as he stared at Kyoji.

Hisamatsu Kyoji's eyes had a red-maroon color with round pupils. At first glance, he didn't look that handsome or ugly. He stood right in the middle, mildly average.

Kudo Ryusuke was a 15-year-old body with short spiky blonde hair with sharp reddish-colored eyes. He wasn't surprised that this boy had some issue with him. It was to be expected.

"Sir, Ryusuke did not even participate in the practical exams. It should be impossible for him to rank above me. Even though I wasn't the best, I did perform decently."

The teacher stared at Hisamatsu Kyoji with an unreadable face.

"This is because Ryusuke has aced the written exam. He had compensated for the practical exam with the scores from his written exam and received bonus points."

The teacher's reply caused a lot of commotion. All of them were glancing at Ryusuke, some shocked, while some just sighed at the information.

The written exams at the Academy were no joke. The tests about strategy, geography, history, tactics, situation analysis, weapons… It was almost impossible to get all of them right.

Only the Seventh Prince of the Brolia Empire had managed to achieve this feat before. However, unlike that of the Seventh Prince, Yamato Rai, Ryusuke hadn't taken part in the fighting exam, so his overall score was only average.

There was no surprise on Ryusuke's face as he heard the teacher. He seemed to have anticipated this.

The information completely shook Kyoji. He gritted his teeth and hatefully glared at Ryusuke. He pointed his finger at Ryusuke.

"I refuse to accept this decision. I refuse to let my spot be taken by this coward!"

Nobody refuted his words, not even the teacher. Many students also felt that he was right. Since the time Ryusuke had entered the Brolia Central Academy, he had never given any practical exams. He performed in theory to pass.

Many students thought of him as just a bookworm or a nerd, someone who would be utterly useless in a battle. Some even thought that people like him should only go to a school for scholars.

At this time, a young woman around 15 years old stood up. She had a heart-shaped face and long blue-colored hair that reached to her knees. With her beautiful, emerald-colored eyes, she stared at Kyoji Hisamatsu. There was an icy glare in her eyes as she faced him.

She was Shiraki Miyuki, one of the descendants of the renowned Marquis Rank, Shiraki Family.

"Kyoji Hisamatsu, the teacher, has already given an explanation which was more than necessary. Since the decision has been made, you must take your leave now."

Her voice was ice-cold as she spoke to Hisamatsu Kyoji.

"Miss Shiraki…"

The students weren't surprised to see Shiraki Miyuki standing up for Ryusuke. This wasn't the first time it had happened, after all.

Ryusuke tilted his head towards Shiraki Miyuki and gently smiled as if thanking her efforts.

Miyuki noticed Ryusuke's smile, and her cheeks reddened. She felt her heart beating madly as she saw Ryusuke's smile.

Ba-Dump! Ba-Dump!

She took a deep breath in and tried to calm herself while thinking 'Calm down, Miyuki. You are a descendant of the Shiraki Family. Show a more dignified appearance. Don't lose yourself just by his smile… Remain calm.'

As she calmed down. She tilted her head a little and peeked at Ryusuke's face. She blushed even harder when she noticed him still gently smiling at her.

All the boys in the class enviously stared at Ryusuke. They would die to get such a favorable response from the class beauty.

Unfortunately, Miyuki treated them with an ice-cold expression.

Some of the boys were irritated as they saw Miyuki madly blushing. Most of these boys were from noble families. The fact Miyuki treated Ryusuke so well made their blood boil in anger.

One of them looked at his friend while gritting his teeth, "This geek…!"

"Looks like he doesn't understand the difference between a commoner and nobles."

"I really have the urge to beat him up!"

"Let's teach him a lesson later."

It was unknown if Ryusuke had heard their conversation, but if he did, he did not show it. Meanwhile, Hisamatsu Kyoji kept talking with the teacher. He begged the teacher to help him out.

With his talent and strength, there was a low chance that any noble family would be interested in him if he didn't graduate from this Academy. It would practically mean that his dreams for the future would end right here.

"Sir, please, I beg you! Give me one last chance! Please…"

"Guards. Take him away. Honestly, this is getting annoying now."

However, the teacher did not let the constant begging get to him; he was seemingly used to this. In a way, it was true. Kyoji was not the first commoner nor the first person to beg like this.

The guards entered the classroom and took off with Hisamatsu Kyoji. Clearly, he would be thrown out of the Academy. Even if they felt pity and sympathy for the youth, they did not show it.

"Now that the results have been concluded. The Academy shall send your results to all the noble families. Within a week, you will receive offers from the Noble Families. It will be your choice which family you want to join. The Academy won't be interfering with your decision. And if you do not receive an offer, you only have yourself to blame." He finished speaking while staring at the commoner students.

After he was done talking with the commoner students. He turns towards the 10 students from Noble families.

"Your training has now been concluded. You all are free to return to your family. May you have a blessed future."

His tone was entirely different as he spoke to the descendants of the noble families. It was a tone filled with reverence. Clearly, even the instructors here didn't want to anger these descendants of noble families.

The class was dismissed.

Almost all the students stood up and started walking toward their own circle of friends and left the classroom together.

Shiraki Miyuki tilted her head to look in Ryusuke's direction.

Right now, Ryusuke was approached by Masaki Masaru and Isamu Isao. As far as she knew, she had only seen Ryusuke interact with these two.

She couldn't observe him any longer. Her female friends approached her and urged her to leave the classroom.

Masaki Masaru was slightly annoyed as he started talking, "Ryusuke… Why did you tutor him for the written test? I lost the bet because of you!"

The edges of Ryusuke's lips curled upwards as he glanced at one of his only friends in this Academy.

Masaki Masaru, he had pure, silver-colored hair. They seemed to shine as the sun rays fell upon his hair. His eyes were of a light Golden Color which glowed in the darkness. Unlike Ryusuke's pupils, his pupils were slitted like that of a cat.

"There was never any rule stating that I can't accept Ryusuke's assistance. It's your fault that you didn't prepare enough. Not my fault that I took advantage of a loophole."

The one who replied wasn't Ryusuke. It was Isao, Ryusuke's other friend.

Isamu Isao, he had a darker shade of brown colored hair. His eyes were pure black with a faint greenish glow in his pupils. Contrary to Masaru's annoyed expression, Isao had a calm look. There was no emotion on his face, making it increasingly difficult to guess what he was thinking about.

The three were at the same age of 15-year-old. Isao was the largest in their group of three in terms of height.

Ryusuke had a height of 5 feet 8 inches, Masaru was over 5 feet 7 inches, and Isao had a height of 5 feet 11 inches.

Isao's body was much bulkier than Masaru or Ryusuke's body; his muscles were apparent even though he was wearing the school uniform.

Meanwhile, Masaru and Ryusuke's bodies were entirely covered by the uniform. It was hard to guess how they looked underneath it. Their bodies were somewhat similar. Both seemed to have a lean build, which was like that of the athletes.

"Hgggghh… Shut up, Isao! You cheated! I won't accept this result. Now, fight me, Ryusuke. You promised you would fight me if I was top ranker."

"Hah? Are you stupid? The teacher clearly announced that I am the top ranker."

"You cheated by asking for Ryusuke's help. Your result is invalid for our bet. By default, I win!" Masaru had a cheeky look as he finished speaking.

Isao replied with the same calm expression, "I shouldn't have expected any other response from a crybaby."

Before Masaru continued this argument even further, Ryusuke started speaking, "Stop! Don't fight, you two. I won't fight either of you. Today, my sister is coming here. She has passed the entrance exam required to transfer to the Central Academy. So, I am not in a mood to fight."

"Argh..."

"That's great, Ryusuke. Ayumi would be delighted to see you again."

While Masaru wasn't exactly happy at the fact that Ryusuke wouldn't fight him. But he didn't try to stubbornly ask for a fight now. He knew Ryusuke wouldn't change his mind.

Isao was genuinely happy for Ryusuke. They knew his sister as well.

The first time they saw his little sister, she was just 5 years old. She was a little bundle of energy. Always running around and joining Masaru in his pranks. She used to live together with Ryusuke in his dorm.

However, after she turned 9 years old, Ryusuke sent her to one of the Brolia Academy branches. The condition for her return to the Central Brolia Academy was the same as other students.

It was to spend the first year in the Brolia Academy branch and clear the entrance test.

The only reason she could stay together with Ryusuke for four years was that she was young at that time. And since the siblings were orphans, the Principal made an exception and let her live in Central Academy until she was of age to study in the Brolia Academy branch.

"So, what time is Ayumi coming? I haven't seen that brat for a year. Maybe she can keep up with my speed now. We wouldn't be caught after pranking the teachers. Hehehe…" Masaru said with a burst of laughter.

Even Isao turned towards Ryusuke; his eyes were asking the same question.

In turn, Ryusuke could only shrug and say, "How would I know? I was planning on walking to the entrance gate and waiting."

Masaru looked at him with a deadpan expression and thought 'I hope she appears soon enough. I don't wanna stand in the sun for so long for this little kid.'

Isao, however, didn't have any deep thoughts regarding this. He merely thought of it as a natural occurrence.