First Day At The Academy

I was sitting in the classroom and listening to Nero talk about his experience on the train.

"When the terrorists came through, they started grabbing all the prominent nobles' children but severely underestimated us. Despite them being in the Bronze realm we still kicked their asses. I remember that guy Ren fought three at a time and won."

"I am just happy there weren't any casualties," I casually replied while scrolling on my tablet.

In the game, a lot more people died and the terrorists succeeded in kidnapping a few nobles.

Nero leaned closer and whispered: It's all because of the guy on the roof. When a large group of enemies arrived, we thought we were done for, but someone killed them all through the roof."

"Through the roof?" I asked with a questioning look.

"Yes, suddenly a sword made of light cut through the ceiling and stabbed all of them to death!"

Nero pulled out his tablet and showed me a short video that he recorded with his optics.

"I called my family and they said that they've never seen anything similar."

"Let me guess. They also told you to recruit the guy if you ever come in contact with him," I replied with a slight smile on my face.

I was happy that Nero was being talkative instead of his usual gloomy self.

"How did you know?" Nero asked surprised.

I ignored his question and continued scrolling until I found what I was looking for.

"What subjects are you going to pick," I asked and handed Nero my tablet.

Subjects:

[Close combat (mandatory)]

[History of the Eternal Human Empire (mandatory)]

[Wilderness survival (mandatory)]

[Basics of governance and management]

[Basic engineering]

[Basic cybersecurity]

[Basics of mech piloting]

[Physics]

[Math]

[Alchemy]

…

While Nero scrolled through my tablet I started explaining: "I am going to pick the basics of mech piloting and not bother with any other subjects."

Nero stopped scrolling and looked at me: "Don't you at least need to take basics of governance or accounting? Also, theoretical knowledge like alchemy can be very useful."

"I am an only child which means I don't have to contend for the heir position. The best course of action for me is to either become a knight or marry some lady of high status and if I fail at both of those I can just retire and spend my days playing chess or something," I explained.

In reality, wasting my time on other subjects is detrimental to my plan since I plan to spend most of my time doing missions and assignments to try to gain as much experience as possible. While I might be quite powerful compared to other students I don't have the rich combat experience most other students have because I come from a mentalist family and not a knight family like Nero does.

The Royale family owns a small barony in the north. The region is a bit underdeveloped because it is still recovering from the previous war. The main exports are ores and coal. Elijah's family also owns a debt of around twenty-six billion credits which is a problem that I'll have to solve eventually.

"I wish I could become a knight," Nero replied.

The title of a knight is a meritocratic title that is given either for upstanding performance in the army or for reaching a certain level of power. Those who manage to temper their physique to the point of entering the Platinum realm automatically become knights. Becoming a knight is a good thing for any noble because it increases the number of troops that you can legally wield by a brigade which consists of around five thousand troops. 

The problem is that I know no way to increase my genetic potential. The maximum realm that I can enter with my body is Platinum and my aether core can never go past Gold. Although my genetic potential isn't bad per se it is not ideal either. The main character, for example, has no genetic limits. He could probably become the strongest person in the universe given enough time.

So, while becoming a knight is possible it would be extremely hard because the closer you get to your genetic limit the slower your progress becomes.

"You will definitely succeed in becoming a knight. At least compared to me you have the best enhancements and some really formidable techniques while I am just a weak mentalist," I replied.

Nero wanted to object but at that moment the teacher suddenly appeared in front of the class.

She had chestnut brown hair, beautiful light brown eyes, and a pale complexion. She was quite tall as well and today she was wearing a white blouse and a long black skirt.

The whole class was silent in an instant as if someone flicked a switch.

She walked to the podium and started talking:

"I will be your homeroom teacher for the next few years. My name is Rose, and I am a Platinum-ranked knight. I will oversee your mandatory subjects."

She looked at every one of us and it could be just me seeing things, but I am sure that her gaze lingered on me for a few moments longer.

I am assuming that she was trying to feel our aether level to see how strong we are.

At that moment the doors of the classroom burst open, and a white-haired youth could be seen standing there out of breath as if he ran the whole way to the classroom.

"What is your excuse for being late?" she said while drilling a hole in him with her piercing gaze. I could see Ren shudder as he made eye contact with her.

This woman had the psychic ability 'mental pressure' even though she wasn't a mentalist but a spearman.

She would often use it to bully students who misbehaved. In the game, if you failed certain quests she would beat you up until you passed out.

"I had police question me again regarding the train attack," Ren replied while averting eye contact as much as possible.

He might be the main character but in front of this woman, he turned into a nervous teenager.

"You will be deducted fifty merits."

"What are merits?" Ren asked, not realizing the mistake he was making.

"Merits are the school currency that you will use while living here. You can buy toiletry, food, entertainment, weapons, and even aether techniques with them."

Aether techniques are so rare that they are passed on through generations as a closely guarded family secret and the academy is the only place where you can buy them. This is the reason I chose to attend in the first place. I desperately need cultivation resources if I want to survive and attending the academy is one of the best ways to get those.

"You will be awarded a thousand credits monthly for every star you own. Stars can be gained through winning competitions, completing assignments, and most importantly through duels. If you look at your profile, you will realize that you already have three stars. A membership cap of twelve stars is established, granting those who achieve this distinction eligibility to join either the discipline committee or the student council," she continued.

"Now that I explained all the basics we should go to the gym and start with our first combat class," Rose grinned deviously while looking at Ren.

I just hope the main character won't die too soon.