Entrants

The laptop screen showing two subjects whose presence resulted in surprise and concern in that group gathered in a room of the Royal Palace, made them soon plan what actions they should take.

- Shall we notify Duchess Sofia? - asked Bruno.

- No ... we need to be 100% sure that it is them ... Walter, get ready; we will go to Count Beltran's residence. - ordered Lisbeth.

- Are you sure they are there? - asked the butler.

- Wasn't Count Beltran the younger brother of the late Marquis Gutierrez? Everything points to Emilia taking refuge in that place.

- Currently, those who are ruling the territory of the marquisate are the Rufasto house, moderately close relatives of the Gutierrez house, isn't that right? - commented Marcus.

- Exactly ... right now they enjoy several privileges ... and, if the news is true, I don't think they like the idea that the genuine heiress has returned. - commented the old butler, Walter.

Lisbeth smiled.

- Yes, but now, if you notice, these types of messages are only attended by the royal family; if that is what I believe, Emilia must have made this contract discreetly in a trustworthy notary's office, I suppose that Count Beltran facilitated this, so that no one would reveal her identity and she would only be seen by us..." explained the princess.

- Do you mean that by using this means, she is letting us know that she is still alive and that she wants us to come and see her at the Beltran mansion without arousing suspicion? - Bruno asked.

- Exactly ... by doing things here, in Madrid where the bureaucracy is directly managed by the royal family, without anyone noticing, it would make it much easier for her ... I don't know what trouble she has been in, but obviously she doesn't want anyone else besides the royal family to know about this. - Lisbeth replied.

- Why on earth would she want us to go and see her? - asked Bruno.

- Isn't it obvious? What she is looking for is help, or rather a backup to help her with her inheritance. Even if she goes alone or with Count Beltran to claim her inheritance, it would be difficult or take her a long time to obtain the marquisate ... the Rufastos would not serve it to her on a silver platter, they would surely fight to keep the dominion of the territory. - Bruno explained.

- But, on the other hand, if the one who helped her was the royal family itself, then it would not be difficult for her to claim that title. - Marcus explained.

- ... But it doesn't have to be the royal family, does it? If Duchess Sofia, who has a greater title and great influence over the whole region of Aragon, would help her, it would be more than enough, wouldn't it? - Bruno said.

- It is true that the Duchess of Saragossa and the daughter of the late Marquis Gutierrez were great friends; that is exactly why she will not endanger Sofia ... on the other hand, it seems that she does not mind putting me at risk. - said Lisbeth with a somewhat sarcastic smile.

- So... What do we do? - asked Bruno.

A few seconds of silence held the young man's question.

- There will be no change of plans, but we will take a medical member to perform the DNA test on our supposed missing person; meanwhile, Bruno, I will leave you the organization of the search team that will join the alliance between the Valdelomar group and Mayor Victoria, understood? - Lisbeth ordered with an exhortative tone.

- Understood.

- Walter, get things ready to leave early tomorrow morning.

- Yes, my lady. 

- And you, Marcus...

- Yes, my lady?

- I've sent you an email, I'm sure you'll enjoy reading it; it's about something they found in the 'little' train accident you had.

- ¿?

Full of work, the young princess quickly set out to attend to the case of the heiress of the Marquis Gutierrez first thing tomorrow morning.

That day passed, the new morning, still dark because it was early in the morning, did not stop waking up every young man admitted to ARET. Having slept for more than a whole day, Liam, Daniel and Renato woke up.

- Where... am I? - wondered Liam who was lying on a bed in an elegant room.

A young maid was sitting and lying next to his bed asleep as if she had stayed up all day without leaving the boy's side.

- ... ¡¿?!

Touching his face, the young man noticed that he was not wearing his eye patch. Looking around, he noticed that the thing was on top of one of the pieces of furniture near the window.

A knock on the door was heard.

- Valeria, are you still awake? - asked a male voice.

- ... Come in, Ralph... - answered Liam.

A little quickly, but without generating too much noise, the door opened.

- Young sir ... you have already woken up ...

- Yes ... How long was I asleep?

- Almost a whole day, young Liam. We were a bit worried, as we didn't know what had happened.

- ¿?

- We were somewhat surprised when the ARET instructors called us to come and pick him up; when we arrived, we saw that several families and acquaintances of the other applicants had been contacted as well. However, the surprise was that we found them all asleep in an auditorium at the academy ... Some of them started complaining about what was there, but they only told us that the exam was quite arduous and that they fell asleep after the last lecture. - Ralph explained.

Understanding the situation, Liam didn't ask any more questions.

- I think you should start getting ready, young master. - Ralph said as he set a small tray of light food and a glass of water on a table.

Liam looked confused at what his butler said.

- As far as I know, I don't have any business to attend to today, do I?

- You are mistaken, my lord. Today you start your classes ... besides from today you will be interned at ARET along with your other classmates.

Certainly ARET had a large and extensive grounds that could accommodate all the students. In other words, it was a boarding school for anyone who wanted to study there and Liam was not ignorant of this information.

The boy's face looked dead because he didn't even have time to rest from all that had happened.

- I guess the exam must have been difficult, but as the saying goes: it's easy to get in, it's hard to get out. - commented the butler as he served the young man's breakfast on a small table.

- Yes, I suppose...

- But, don't worry, we all have faith that you will make it out; on the other hand, Johan and I have already packed your bags, so you have nothing to worry about.

- Yes, thank you ...

Liam's discouraged answers were no obstacle for him to soon enter the big academy like the rest of the future students.

The hours passed and the reporters were ready near the big entrance gate just as they were at the entrance exams. The press and news channels mentioned this annual event on an international level, but this year the number of visitors was greater due to certain rumors such as some admitted students belonging to distinguished families and companies, as well as the first generation of new students specially prepared by ARET.

- Today, April 2, 2096, ARET has officially confirmed the admission of 1294 new students who will be directed to the different branches of science, including engineering, medicine, technological innovation, among others, in addition to the admission of 23 young people who will enter the R class. However, on the other hand, the first generation of PARET students will be welcomed, with 18 young people who managed to pass the out-of-term test prepared exclusively for them, who will also be part of the R class. - commented one of the many reporters.

 Several drones were flying in the sky recording live that great event that even the royal family and great businessmen, sponsors and guests were witnesses of this event.

- Among this year's inductees, the rumor has been confirmed that one of the new students is the youngest daughter of the royal family, the infant Maria Theresa von Eber. Unfortunately, the first infant and only male child of the royal family is still traveling in France; however, his greetings to his younger sister have been made public. On the other hand, we also have the entry of the heir of the multinational shipping corporation Elmeric SAC, the young Wilmer Elmeric and the heiress of the international banking group Bernard SAC, Amélie Bernard. Finally, the youngest sister of the Duchy Minerva, the young Ofelia L. Minerva and the only daughter of the Eleonor barony, a distant family of the Duchy of Zaragoza, Anna Lucrecia J. Eleonor ... The fact that descendants of aristocratic families from Spain have been admitted has given hope that at last the evolution of humanity has reached the nobility of our nation, giving us great expectations of a promising future for our citizens.

Among the comments on the many news channels mentioning large investments for ARET, there were some who were surprised by such news.

- Oh no... What do you mean, the sister of a duke? - muttered Renato as he looked at his smartphone.

- Give it a rest, Ren. - commented Gajel who was walking with a couple of suitcases towards the academy together with Vicent Marcov and Renato.

- Cheer up, Renato. Our operation starts today. - commented Vincent with a very depressed face.

- Yes ... sure ... On the other hand, how will we get past them? - asked Renato who could see the crowd surrounding the entrance gate a few blocks away.

- Mnm ... Good question.

Some hurried footsteps headed towards that group.

- Renato, is that you! - exclaimed Daniel.

- No, I am the king of Spain... Oops, sorry... please don't take me to the police... - said Renato instinctively while apologizing.

- Yes... it's you. - said Daniel.

 A sigh from the young man was heard.

- Hey, next time let me know it's you... if someone else had heard me mocking the king, he could have denounced me.

- Yes, yes... on the other hand, who are they? Friends of yours?

- Hello, I am Gajel Valentain; nice to meet you.

- Vincent Marcov... likewise. - said the young man with a smile.

- Nice to meet you too, my name is Daniel Crain ... you all seem to be carrying quite a lot of luggage.

- Yes, it's always good to be on the safe side. - Gajel replied with that characteristic boyish smile.

- And aren't you carrying very little? - asked Renato.

- Ah, it's just that most of what I was carrying was lost on the train.

A sad confession.

"Shit ... I shouldn't have asked ... on top of that, he was the one with the saddest story we told on the bus ... now I'm even more depressed."

- Oh, don't worry. Here, we'll give this to you. - Gajel said while giving him one of his luggage.

- What? But this is yours. - said Daniel in bewilderment.

- Don't worry, we have more than we need. Besides, as I said, it's always good to be safe. - replied Gajel with his smile.

- Oh, thank you; I won't forget this, I am indebted to you.

Gajel laughed kindly.

- Come on, hurry up or you will be late... soon they will close the doors.

Renato and Daniel said goodbye and went quickly to the entrance door.

As the pair walked away, a brief conversation began.

- No wonder you packed an extra suitcase, but how did you know that boy would find us? - Vincent asked.

- Oh, come on; it's not like I knew everything ... like I said ... it's just prevention. 

- Yeah, I believe you ... on the other hand, what do you plan to do with that kid?

The atmosphere became tense.

- You know... it's always good to have allies and two heads think better than one. - Gajel answered with the same smile, but his expression was frightening.

- I see... poor kid...

The hours passed and all the newcomers were inside an auditorium in the academy's facilities. It was certainly noticeable that it was quite large and spacious; this time unlike the entrance exam, all the new students could see the majesty of ARET as well as the faculties they did not achieve before. And there was still more to be seen.

- This will be my last participation with you, but I hope everyone can develop as you hope. Opportunities and fame await you, but only for those who make the effort. Here money or status will be of little use to you, for soon you will see that talent and effort will be the judge of you. - These were the last words of Duchess Sofia, who retired with applause.

- Well, now you will be divided into several groups and will assign some instructors to give you the tour of the campus. Please, everyone exit through the doors in an orderly fashion. - said a male.

As the crowd cleared the auditorium, they were grouped according to their career paths. Only a small group seemed to be waiting, as there was no one to greet them.

A young man with an eyepatch noticed two people approaching him.

- Daniel, Renato... - said Liam.

- Hello ... we thought you had not arrived on time. - said Daniel.

- ... I was one of the first ones to arrive, rather ... it seems you almost couldn't get in.

- Ha ha... yeah... almost, I overslept. - commented Daniel.

While they were both talking, Renato looked a little uncomfortable looking around.

- What's up? - asked Liam.

- ... No, nothing... well, you know..." muttered Renato.

Neither of them understood what he meant.

- I'm talking about that girl... Ophelia... I didn't know it was that she belonged to a duchy... - he mumbled again.

- Yes And? - said Daniel and Liam simultaneously in an indifferent way.

- What, don't they worry if we don't treat her well during the exam? What if she told her family about us?

Liam and Daniel looked at each other and then an expression as if they were talking to a child showed on their faces.

- What?

Putting their hands on Renato's shoulders, Liam and Daniel spoke.

- Don't worry... she already... knows the person you are after spending last night during the exam. - Daniel commented.

- Just... don't screw it up anymore. - added Liam.

Both young men walked forward.

- ... What good friends I have, huh?

Suddenly, a scruffy looking man with some students behind him appeared.

- Mnm ... Are you an entrant to class R? - the man asked.

Renato thought badly about the appearance of such a man in contrast to the neat appearance of the students behind him. It was obvious to notice the hostility coming from those students.

- It hasn't been more than a few seconds and they already seem to hate me. - muttered Renato. 

Inside the Beltran mansion, the head of the family together with his wife and the heiress of the Gutierrez marquisate were gathered in the main hall; in front of them was Princess Lisbeth together with the old butler, Walter.

Taking a light late breakfast for all present, Lisbeth spoke.

- This is a real surprise. The lab results indicate that you are indeed the daughter of the late Marquis Gutierrez.

None of them tried to respond to the possible provocation.

- You are just as I remember ... How long has it been since we last saw each other? One, maybe, two years?

Emily spoke.

- How is Sophia doing?

Raising her teacup, Lisbeth looked somewhat thoughtful.

- Quite well ... somehow, she's managed to establish a solid government, it's a plausible thing she's accomplishing. Right now he must be giving his last words at the beginning of the academic year at ARET.

- I see ... I have heard that his younger sister, Lady Maria, has been admitted as well. - commented Emily.

- Yes ... it is a matter of pride for the royal family that she did so.

They were both silent for a few seconds.

- So... How about now telling me what happened behind your disappearance, Emily? 

A tense conversation could be about to begin. That day, Aren had left early.