"The Goddess' Blessing"

Lucius shook his head and chuckled again, finding it amusing that she even thought of something nonsensical, "Like what I've said before, I am also a new student. I am just eighteen."

"Oh! I'm a year older than you. What do you want me to call you?"

"Lucius. Please call me Lucius. How about you, Miss Ivory?"

"Call me Ivory," she smiled, feeling grateful she met someone as nice as him.

Sir Zwain Arthurdane started walking towards the front of the wide, wooden stage. He cleared his throat as he called the attention of the hundred students in front of him.

While using a conical object to amplify his voice, he spoke loudly, "Welcome to Qawiun Academy, our new students! I am Zwain Arthurdane, the principal of this school! As we all know, the Kingdom of Destinia is composed of three main lands: the Land of Olivea, the Land of Rosaria, and the Land of Sandria. But you should all know that in the past, these three lands weren't unified! Once upon a time..."

Lucius leaned closer to Ivory and whispered, "Looks like we're going to have a history class."

The other students sighed as the principal continued discussing the history of the Kingdom. While most students found the speech boring, Ivory did not think the same. She loved hearing about the history of the Kingdom ever since. She enjoyed listening to her mother's bedtime stories when she was still a kid.

"And so, as the chosen fighters of our beloved Kingdom of Destinia, you all have the obligation to do your best and fight for peace and order!" Sir Arthurdane said with conviction, "Today, you will summon your fated loyal Servants that will fight with you! Do you understand?"

"Yes sir!" all the newbies shouted in unison.

As soon as they shouted, a glittery illusion with tints and hues of blue filled the room, leaving everyone in amazement, including the academy staff. Seeing this magical phenomenon, the students got even more excited and noisier.

Principal Arthurdane quickly conversed with the Educators about the surprising incident and after the discussion, he appeared again in front of the students as the shimmering light, now composed of white orbs, continued to scatter in the air.

"Everyone… This is the blessing of our Goddess Destinia! Your batch has been blessed and chosen to participate in the Servant Competition that will take place in three years, which is exactly after your graduation!" he said enthusiastically, then continued explaining,

"The prizes include the following,

Two horse drawn carriages of the top quality, with the horses being trained in the Castle's stables,

One hundred fifty thousand gold coins,

Ownership to a stone mansion near the Castle,

Two years unlimited supply of pork,

and... either a Royal Knight position in the Castle or an Educator position here in Qawiun Academy!"

The exhilarated first years started talking about the prizes.

"I want that two years unlimited supply of pork," Ivory heard one of her classmates say. She then faced Ivory and asked her in a friendly manner, "How about you, what do you like most?"

"I want the pork, too," Ivory chuckled, "But I want the horse drawn carriage right now! I was late today, and it was really awful…"

Sir Arthurdane proceeded with his speech, "Settle down, settle down! It's nice to see you all get excited! However, we can't do the Servant Competition without the prerequisites. First, you need to summon your very own Servant. Second, you need to practice your combat and magic skills, and in the process learn to control your mana. Finally, you need to figure out your best fighting style and graduate with flying colors. So, to the new students of Qawiun Academy, are you ready to summon your Servants?"

"Yes, sir!"

"Come with me to the Coliseum!"

The students followed the principal in an orderly manner. In three long lines, they walked behind him as their hearts were beating fast due to nervousness and excitement.

The Coliseum was situated at the centermost part of the academy. The stone structure was shaped in a circle, which had no ceiling. Judging from the area it occupied and the number of rows that the stone seats had, the Coliseum could accommodate at least five hundred people.

The one hundred new students sat around on the stone seats nearest to the center where the summoning circle could be found.

One by one, they were called to the middle by the Educators, and they summoned their Servants by touching a crystal ball attached to a stone stable. A bright blue light emitted at the summoning circle every time a Servant got summoned. The excitement was evident on the faces of the Masters.

"I wonder what kind of Servant I'll summon…" Ivory uttered.

Lucius, upon hearing her statement, explained, "It is said that your servant will appear in your dream in the same week as their summoning. Have you dreamed of anything peculiar this week?"

"A dream…" she thought deeply. "But I've been dreaming a lot of things recently… so how will I know?"

"It's like this-"

An Educator suddenly called her, "Ivory Sprucemint… Ivory Sprucemint? It's your turn!"

"Oh! I'm sorry, I need to go down, Lucius."

"No worries! Good luck, Ivory," his gaze followed her.

The elated Ivory stepped down the stone-made coliseum stairs and approached the summoning circle.

"Don't be afraid, young one," one of the Educators said, "Don't be too surprised if the summoning circle glowed. Do not let go at all costs. It will just respond to your mana. Okay?"

With a big smile, Ivory nodded, and she was asked to stand beside the Educators. In front of her was a crystal ball, and she was ordered to touch its surface with both of her hands.

"Be calm, it will be quick. Are you ready?"

Ivory responded with determination in her eyes, "Yes, sir!"

Not long after, her palm felt cold on the surface of the crystal ball. To her surprise, it started shaking a little, and the summoning circle…

…emitted a bright red light!