Chapter 113
Chapter 113: Opening Ceremony
***
Raising my head to look ahead, in my line of sight, the principal granny, supported by Sister Theresa, had already stood at the front of the formation amid the students' cheers. The teachers lined up on both sides of her, and across from them on the massive training grounds, the formations from the four towers, Ceylon Lakeside, Yahama Mountain, Emi Plains, and Tristre Canyon, stood shoulder to shoulder, filling half the field, their boisterous clamor seeming about to overturn the entire academy.
She raised her hand to signal for silence.
Just a simple gesture, yet it was extremely effective. The students quickly quieted down. The principal granny then tremblingly reached her hand into her clothing, rustling around for a moment, before pulling out a...
Huh?
What is that... it looks like a golden sphere? Mm... it has that feel of a magic orb from movies, about the size of a fist. I can't help but feel like something strange might emerge from inside it...
"Thump thump—"
My heart suddenly beat violently twice.
At the front of the crowd, the principal granny held the sphere and began chanting in a low voice. A faint, gentle golden light bloomed from the orb in her hands.
A strange feeling suddenly arose in my heart... that very familiar feeling that put me at ease, that sense of intimacy.
It seemed like that kind of feeling, but it was fleeting, my little brain hadn't been able to react to it yet.
The next moment, dazzling golden light broke through the sky, parted the clouds, penetrated the barrier without obstruction, and cascaded down like it was covering the heavens and earth. In an instant, the ground beneath our feet, the iron railings standing not far away, the tiny particles of dust in the air, Sarah's face beside me, everything visible was plated with a gold as thin as a cicada's wing.
I couldn't help but squint my eyes, hearing only the students' loud clamor once again.
"Wow—"
"It's a divine miracle! The ancient divine oracle!"
"So amazing..."
Immediately after, earth-shaking words came from the sky, resounding through the clouds: "Silence—!!"
Buzzzz...
This shout, carrying what felt like an eardrum-shattering reverberation, made me cover my ears involuntarily from the trembling waves. I recognized it was the principal granny's voice.
"Ah..."
The three girls beside me similarly couldn't withstand such decibels, covering their ears and closing their eyes one after another, screaming in fright. After a brief moment of panic, the entire scene gradually fell silent as a grave.
The principal granny swept her gaze over the four formations, pondered for a moment, then her words rang out again in the golden light.
"You all, you're this year's new students at the Royal Academy? ...This is what you look like?"
The old woman's low, slightly trembling voice was like a deafening rumble of thunder flashing across the sky, yet also like an intimate whisper hovering right by one's ear.
This is... a megaphone? Transmitting sound a thousand miles? No, it's a divine miracle...
Faith Power, it can even do this...
"First, take a look at yourselves, cough cough." In the golden light, the principal granny coughed twice and continued, "Sloppy, lacking spirit, clothes worn improperly, hair messy like bird's nests..."
Hearing this, Sarah hurriedly straightened her hair.
Granny paused, then pointed her index finger at those still running laps.
"Now look at them... 20 laps, doesn't that sound like a lot? But I left 20 minutes for you all. Last year, with only 15 minutes, there weren't this many late arrivals. You can't even manage such a small thing as being punctual, yet you dream of accomplishing great things? So I moved up the assembly time on purpose, just to see exactly how many incompetent people there are among this year's new students..."
"...Don't glare at me. You are incompetent. Tell me yourselves, what can you do? Give you the finest steel sword from the Central Workshop, who could you kill with it? Those vicious heretics? Or the bandits blocking roads outside?"
"I don't care what your status is. Noble or commoner, since you chose to come here, you'll honestly follow the academy's rules. Don't bring your outside ways in here. The royal city is a special place..."
The lengthy lecture began. I quickly found myself unable to listen anymore, my little brain thinking of something else.
I felt something was odd.
Since this golden light is a divine miracle, shouldn't it be performed by Church personnel? Sister Theresa is standing right there, why is it the principal granny? She's not from the Church, she doesn't have Faith Power. This isn't normal.
"Sophia..."
"It's a divine miracle." Sophia looked straight ahead, her expression unchanged. Before I could even speak, she already knew what I wanted to ask. "It's activated using something called the 'Ancient Divine Oracle'... that sphere in the Principal's hand. That's a Divine Relic belonging to the royal city, with a maximum coverage range of about the size of the entire city."
"Divine Relic..."
That thing again.
I raised my head, looking at the barrier tinted gold by the light: "Like... an eggshell?"
"...Please properly call it 'Boswell'." Sophia rolled her eyes at me without any courtesy. "Try not to say that word in front of the royal city residents, some people really hate it, thinking it's blasphemy against the divine."
"Oh."
But I can't remember these complicated names...
"'Boswell' — that's what humans called the ancient divine in legends, you know." Sarah chimed in from the side.
"Both right and wrong." Sophia cleared her throat and continued, "Your understanding isn't wrong either, Peylo. According to historical records, the 'Ancient Divine Oracle' and 'Boswell' are two great relics bestowed upon Order City by the divine hundreds of years ago, it's just that nobody knows what the latter is."
"Nobody knows, meaning..."
"For safety's sake, it has to be kept secret. The Church has hidden 'Boswell' so tightly that even the royal palace seems to be kept in the dark. What everyone knows is just that barrier."
"So... it can be used without Faith Power?"
"Should be. Her Majesty the Queen has used it too, and she doesn't have Faith Power."
I nodded.
"Oh."
Putting it this way, Divine Relics feel more like some kind of... how to say it.
Just like in those stories from my previous life, the "cheat abilities" that deities bestow upon reincarnators. Functional items given to humans? Depending on their characteristics, each Divine Relic displays different abilities, like force fields, like megaphones... is that how it is?
Generally speaking, I suppose. Hard to say.
I still have too little experience. When I have time, I should visit the academy's library, there are definitely more good books there than at Shanter Castle... or maybe visit that woman during rest days—
Gurgle.
!!!
Startled in my heart, my eyes quickly scanned the surroundings in circles, seems like nobody noticed.
...I'm getting a bit hungry.
I wonder what the Royal Academy's cafeteria is like... I remember meals don't cost extra. I hope they don't limit portions... they shouldn't limit them, right?!
Please let the ceremony end quickly...
"...The divine has protected the royal city for a thousand years, and the academy has existed for 600 years since its founding. Countless legends have emerged from here, with heroes appearing in abundance in recent centuries. Sword Saint Ryan, Meteor Rain Magipani, Blazing Flames Lapria, Tulip Chris, and... Her Majesty our Queen."
"They are already world-renowned, and you all may become people like them in the future... cough cough!"
The principal granny took a deep breath.
"The heroes of this world, they wear pure gold badges of honor on their chests, wear Sunflower Shield armor, have pristine Iris Lily cloaks draped over their shoulders, stride across millions of miles, and slay demons with a flick of their fingers — tell me! Will that be you!"
"Yes—!!"
In the cloud-piercing roar, Sarah beside me was the loudest of all.