Chapter 88: Gathering at the Auditorium
A drop of cold sweat appeared on Camille’s forehead after hearing Headmistress Eve’s words.
“L-Leo? What are you—”
Eve suddenly interrupted, “Stop it, Camille. I don’t know why you’re protecting his identity, but you can trust me.”
And she continued, “I was suspicious about him the moment I saw him when you brought him to my office. For someone with amnesia, he didn’t look lost or confused, not to mention his sudden loss of strength.”
“Although it’s possible that he had been injured during the time he went missing, I have confirmed it myself during these past few days that isn’t the case. During our spar, there were no signs of him being injured. Furthermore, his progress every day doesn’t make any sense, especially since I’d gone pretty hard on his body. I thought he was just recovering his strength at first, but it was more like he was progressing his strength than recovering it. If he was truly injured, he wouldn’t be progressing so fast.”
“Last but not least, albeit faint, I can sense traces of magic from his body, almost as if he’d used it recently. I believe that he had been practicing his magic before training with me. However, that shouldn’t be possible considering that Leo doesn’t have the ability to use magic.”
“Now tell me, Camille, who is this Leo with you if he’s not the Leo I knew? And what happened to the previous Leo?” Headmistress Eve stared at her with narrowed eyes and a sharp gaze.
After a moment of silence, Camille sighed out loud, “Alright, fine, you’re right. He is not the same Leo that died several months ago— the same Leo that we knew. However, he is still Leo.”
“Please explain.” Eve spoke with her hands in front of her mouth, and on her face was a serious expression.
“I don’t know what happened to the Leo we knew, but this Leo… It appears that he’d come from another world— a world where ‘Leo’ still existed.” Camille explained.
Eve’s eyes widened with shock after hearing her words.
“He’s from another world?”
Although she was shocked, Eve didn’t seem to be in disbelief.
“I don’t know how he came to this world, but it’s true. I thought he was a zombie at first, or someone pretending to be Leo, but that’s not the case. He’s really Leo— just not the one we knew. And unlike the previous Leo, this one can use magic. In fact, he has tremendous magic talents that even we cannot compare to. I reckon that he will be one of the most powerful magicians in this world in a few years despite having never used magic before coming to this world.”
“Seriously…?” Eve muttered with a pondering look on her face.
“So the Leo we knew is most likely still dead…”
“Dang it, Camille! Why didn’t you tell me sooner?! Do you have any idea what his existence means in our world?! He’s going to be hunted if news of his existence is leaked to the world!” Eve exclaimed.
Camille frowned, “That’s exactly why I didn’t tell you. I didn’t want his existence to be leaked. The fewer people that know about it the better!”
“Where is Leo right now?” Eve then asked.
“He’s either going to be in his room or at the Training Center.” Camille said.
“Let’s go! I need to speak with him!”
Eve and Camille left the office to look for Leo.
They stopped by his dorm first since it was on the way to the Training Center. When he couldn’t be found in his room, they made their way to the Training Center.
However, the person working at the front desk said that he didn’t see Leo enter the building when asked by them.
‘He’s not here? If he’s not in his room or at the Training Center, where could he be?’ Camille pondered.
Unbeknownst to these two, Leo was actually in the Training Center. However, he’d gone in a disguise, so nobody knew that he was there.
“There’s no point in looking for him now. Let’s just wait until the gathering at the auditorium. He’ll definitely be there.” Camille said.
“Alright…”
Once it was lunchtime, Leo left the Training Center to get some food at the cafeteria before making his way to the auditorium for the gathering.
The majority of the students in the academy would be there, so it was immensely crowded when he arrived.
“There’s too many people here…” Leo, who was not good with crowded places, sighed.
“It’s always like this every year.” Lilith said as she hovered above Leo.
They entered the massive building some time later.
The moment he stepped inside, Leo noticed something odd about the scenery inside.
‘The normal students and the magic students are split in half, like oil and water…’ he thought to himself.
All of the normal students were sitting towards the back of the auditorium while the magic students sat in the front.
There was a clear division between the students, but there was nothing the teachers or the academy could do about it. If they forced the two sides together, it would definitely have the opposite effect, so the only thing they can do is wait for the day they naturally come together, which might never come.
Sometime later, Headmistress Eve entered the stage and began speaking through the microphone on the stand before her, “Good afternoon, students. This year, just like every other year, you will all go into the Wilderness to acquire real combat experience as part of your examination. The Wilderness Training Course will last for 30 days. During these 30 days, you can do whatever you want, but you must stay in the Wilderness. If you return to the city, that will mark the end of your examination. The points you have collected during your examination will still be counted, but you cannot gain any more points.”
“In order to acquire points, you will need to slay monsters and clear Labyrinths if you come across one, but you must notify a teacher before you enter the Labyrinth.”
“During the Wilderness Training Course, all of you will be given a watch and camera. The watch can count the amount of monsters you have killed, and the camera can be used to record whatever you encounter. It is not required to have your camera active the entire time, but it is recommended that you use it during fights for evidence.”
“Now onto the rules. It should be a given that you are not allowed to attack other students in the Wilderness. It is a different matter if you encounter students from another academy, but if you are caught harming or sabotaging a fellow student, you will be expelled from the academy and be punished accordingly. Other than that, you are free to do whatever you have to to survive the Wilderness.”
“If you enter the Wilderness in a group, only those in an official group will be able to share points with each other. In other words, if you decide to partner up with another student after the training course starts, the points you acquire won’t be shared with each other, unless you notify a teacher about your changes, but you are only allowed to change your team one time for the whole training course.”
“Of course, you will acquire less points if you are in the group, and the bigger the group, the more points you will have to share with each other. However, we still recommend that you form a team of at least 4 people, as you can all work together to survive, which will greatly reduce your risk of dying out there. Keep in mind that today is the last day for you to form a team and change it as many times as you want. Also, a team cannot surpass six people.”
The Headmistress continued to talk about the Wilderness Training Course for several more minutes before ending her sentence with, “If you have any questions, your teachers will stay in their classroom for the next few hours. I will see you all tomorrow at the East Gate at 9AM. And student Leo Magnus, go wait for me in my office. I need to speak with you. You are all dismissed now.”
The students in the auditorium scattered shortly after.
‘I wonder what the Headmistress wants to talk about…’ Leo pondered as he made his way to the school building along with many other students that had questions for their teachers.
When he arrived at the staircase leading to the school building, Leo noticed a distinct figure standing at the top, and she appeared to be searching for someone.
‘What is she doing there?’ Leo wondered to himself as he climbed the staircase.
Once this figure noticed Leo in the crowd, she stopped looking around and stared right at him.
When Leo arrived at the top of the staircase, she approached him and said, “Leo, do you already have a team for the training course?”
“No, I don’t. Why?” Leo asked her.
“Then can I be part of your team?” She asked.
“You want to be teammates with me? Why?” Leo raised his eyebrows in a puzzled manner.
“I want to repay you even if it’s a little before I leave the academy. I have decided to leave after the training course, and since I won’t have any need for the points, I will give them all to you at the end. I promise that I won’t be a burden. If I do end up being a burden, I will leave you alone.” Nina Wraith said with an earnest expression on her face.