The City of Philos
It was early in the morning when Sergio told them that they were a few minutes away from Cypress Academy that was in the city of Philos. In the Cypress Kingdom, the capital city was located near the center while Philos was located 800 miles south of the capital city. They were traveling on the main road that was made and covered with beautiful white stones.
During their trip to Cypress Academy, Luca tried to talk to his two new bodyguards, Griffin and Eve, but they didn't talk much and only responded with a nod. He wasn't sure why they wouldn't talk, and Luca thought that they might be upset that they had to babysit him for a few years. So, it was a boring trip where people rarely talked. Also, with the help of the Bloodsworn, Damien no longer had to keep watch and was able to teach Luca again.
Damien taught something different this time. It was about how to act around others and how to blend in. He told him that he shouldn't bring attention to himself. To act like a demon fox that blended in with their surroundings and only made a move when there were benefits involved. How to lie with a straight face and how to pretend to like someone even if you hated their guts. Luca at first was hesitant to learn and believed it to be a waste of time. But after the first lesson, his interest peaked. The demon fox blood within him seemed to like learning that.
Sergio would lead them during the day and sleep at night, which didn't leave him much time to teach Damien. Well, he did try to teach him how to act around other nobles, but Damien disliked it. Luca spotted the city. It's milk-white walls which are 300 meters tall. The walls are guarded by huge ballista's on the walls and fortified arrow towers. The dark city gates are 50-meter-wide and 70 meters long. As they got closer to the city, Luca spotted a blue river that stretched out for miles and a part of the river that went under the city of Philos. In the sky, where ships that looked like boats, flying through the air
It was such a sight that Luca couldn't believe his eyes.
"WOW" Luca couldn't contain his excitement
Luca was looking at everything with excitement, making it obvious that he was from a small town. They got to the city gates that were guarded by dark blue knights. There were 10 of them that checked any cargo and inspected each person that went by. Lucky for them, they were let in quickly. Sergio simply showed them a piece of paper and the guards let them go in! It was faster than the last time they visited a city. There was a public stable nearby where they left the spirit beast to be taken care of.
Inside the city, there are three streets that went Northwest, North, and Northeast. The streets are clean and paved with white stones. Commercial buildings are in the Northwest direction and the Northeast. There are so many people in the city. To the point that Luca started to feel claustrophobic. If the Bloodsworn weren't in a circular formation protecting Luca and Sergio, Luca was sure that he would have gotten lost in the crowd. Ever since Luca entered the city, people would occasionally give him weird looks. He was still wearing the clothes that he made in the forest, which made him look like some barbarian.
They walked down the street heading north. This street of the city was filled with beautiful houses and the further they walked the more expensive the house looked and the bigger they got. They walked for a while before they reached the center of the city where a circular fountain was located. In front of the fountain, there were two lifelike white sculptures. The sculpture was of a muscular knight in full armor standing and stabbing what looked like an angel that was on its knees. There was a gold plaque next to the statues that read.
"In honor of the hero Cypress who brought us away from the oppression of angels during the Age of Calamity. One of the first 12 Knightsmiths and the founder of the Cypress Kingdom."
The statue was lifelike, and Luca could imagine the power this Cypress once wielded.
They passed by the statue and walked to the left. There was a line of people waiting in front of a small building that said Cypress Academy Registration. They got in line and waited. Luca got to see the people in line, and each one of them was wearing clothes and styles that he had never seen before. Some were wearing what looked like robes and others wearing vests and strange hats, others even wearing a loose wool shirt that was a collage of colors that exposed their upper chest.
Luca noticed that besides their style of clothing, most had this air of nobility around them. He could also sense some crafty ones within the crowd and sparsely some with a strong battle aura around them. But what most got Lucas's interest was that they were all around 12 or 13 years old. They were in his age group. After waiting half an hour, they were halfway there. A line gathered behind them. He suddenly heard a commotion behind him so he turned to look. He saw two people his age arguing. On was wearing a buttoned-up vest and a top hat. The other was wearing a beautiful silk tunic and expensive jewelry
"YOU move out of the way, this young master is passing by." said the one with the tunic.
"I don't care who you are, you're not cutting in line." Said the one wearing the vest.
"My father is a duke in the Hastam Kingdom."
"I don't care even if your dad is the King of the Hastam Kingdom, you're not cutting!"
"HOW DARE YOU"
"You want to fight you spoiled punk!"
"Guards teach this fool a lesson," said the one with the tunic
The one with the tunic had a group of 4 knights with him. They pulled out their swords and Luca could feel that they were at the peak power expansion stage, but from the energy, he felt they were only ordinary cultivators. The other kid with the vest only had one bodyguard who was wearing a blue yukata and a sheathed blade on his left side. The kids' only bodyguard simply looked at the four bodyguards and suddenly let out a hint of killing intent. The four bodyguards stopped and started shivering, unable to move! Even Luca who was behind could feel like there was a sharp blade against his throat. This man was dangerous, and he hadn't even revealed his cultivation level yet.
He watched the kid in the tunic pee his pants from fear and ran away. This made Luca laugh and made the wait in line more bearable. They finally got to the front and Sergio worked his magic where it only took about 1 minute before Luca was accepted into the Academy. They gave him a key to his dorm room, a book of academy rules and three ID cards that had his name on it and the other two were for his guards. They also gave Luca a schedule for his classes. His first class was going to start in three days. It seemed like they barely made it!
Sergio acted as if he knew this city, walking the streets until he found a restaurant. The restaurant was small with only a few tables, there weren't many customers. They sat down and ordered food. This is where Sergio spoke to him.
"This where we part ways, Luca. You have guards that will be with you until you graduate, don't worry they're both strong and will protect you. If you ever need help in the future, you can go to the Octsio Kingdom and ask for help with this." Sergio handed over a badge that had a crown that had a shield at the bottom.
"What is this?" Luca asked.
"This badge means you're a trusted friend to the royalty of the Octsio Kingdom. If you have this you'll be treated like a noble and can ask to talk to anyone who's royalty." Sergio replied like it was no big deal.
One of the Bloodsworns emotions was strong enough for Luca to catch it. It was the leader of the Bloodsworn, who was overwhelmed with respect and curiosity towards Luca. The Bloodsworn where already aware that Luca was a high-blood.
Luca nodded and ate the amazing food that Sergio ordered for them, it was called Marinated Lamb Chops. He never tasted such interesting meat from an ordinary animal, and the use of new spices made his taste buds dance in joy. Afterward, outside the restaurant, Luca and Sergio looked at each other as Sergio waved goodbye
"Farewell, Luca, remember what I taught you. It'll come in handy sooner than you think." Sergio turned around and walked off with three Bloodsworn following behind.
Suddenly tears started falling down Lucas's cheeks. He remembered the hard times but also the fun times he had with Sergio in this journey. He also remembered how he saved him and gave him the power to defend himself. He refused to look away as he swore that he would repay Sergio for the kindness that he showed him. He wiped his tears and calmed his heart. He would try to get stronger to avenge his parents and help Sergio if he ever needed him.
He with the help of a map that Sergio left for him of the city, Luca traveled to the dorms of Cypress Academy. The Academy was located north of the fountain at the center of the city. The academy was protected and closed off from the rest of the city, being surrounded by its own walls. He walked up to the walls that were half the size of the city walls and went up to the gate. There were two knights guarding the entrance. They asked for their ID'S. They let him and his two guards. The academy only lets people bring a maximum of two bodyguards.
Once he got inside there were huge trees on both sides that created a narrow hallway. He walked past the hallway and walked out. He saw a three-story gray building with the words Cypress Academy written at the very top. There were square windows that went horizontally across the building, on each floor. This was the main building where the classes are held, he could see people walking around in confusion with a map in their hands.
He walked to the left and saw 10 three-story buildings to the left of the main building. Each building had a big number on it. Five were up front and the other five were a few meters away. The five up front are the dorms for the boys and the five at the back where the dorms for the girls. He saw that his dorm was building three, floor three, room number 10. He went to building three and saw that the interior of the building was made of the best materials money could buy. Beautiful wood decorated the building, which went well with the marble they used for the walls. Each floor has 12 rooms. He went up the stairs and touched the handrailing's made from diamond.
He opened the door to his room. The living room was the first thing he saw. The floors are covered in milk white titles, sofas made from spirit beast leather and diamond chandeliers. The kitchen was big enough for three people to fit in comfortably. To the left, where three doors, each door was a room that had a bathroom and shower. There are closets and cabinets for clothes. Each dorm room was fully furnished and there was a separate building near the school that sold food. Luca wanted to pick the room that was closet to the front, but his guards told him to get the one in the back for his safety so he listened to their recommendation
Luca felt like a king, his own room was already bigger than the living room he had back in Greenwood. This was unbelievable, and he wasn't used to it. He was then sadly interrupted from his thoughts when he heard a yell outside.
"What are you doing here?!"
"It's not like I had a choice either."
Those voices sounded familiar, so he opened the door to his dorm and peeked his head outside. To his surprise, the two, which argued in line earlier, are now arguing in the hallway. The kid who peed his pants looked a bit scared, but he still argued back. From what it looked like the two were neighbors now! Luca smiled mischievously as he felt that he was going to have a good time here!