Minerva looked at this young man with a puzzled expression. While most of the other candidates were out of breath, he walked calmly without a single drop of sweat on his body.
She felt a shiver run down her spine.
It wasn't arrogance.
It wasn't recklessness.
It was unsettling self-assurance.
As he approached the sword, silence seemed to gradually settle around him.
Candidate #1: "Who is he?"
Candidate #2: "He's weird?"
Candidate #3: "He's rather cute?"
Even the remaining contestants, men and women alike, seemed to slow down, as if drawn against their will by this unusual presence.
Minerva never took her eyes off him.
She didn't know who he was.
But one thing was certain:
Minerva: "This young man wasn't like the others."
Without a sound, the young man stopped before the sword.
Dark-haired man: "..."
He didn't take the time to examine it.
He didn't place his hand on it hesitantly, as the others had done.
He simply grasped the hilt with a simple, almost nonchalant gesture.
Dark-haired man: "...".
Then he pulled.
Slash
The blade left the ground without resistance.
No light faded.
No illusions shattered.
The sword was real.
Minerva: "..... ".
Candidate #1: "..... "
Candidate #2: "..... "
Candidate #3: "..... "
A heavy silence fell over the field.
The young man then raised the blade to the sky, his arm relaxed, performing the gesture that officially declared his success.
His face remained hidden by his dark hair, and no emotion betrayed his demeanor.
He simply turned and joined the crowd of those who had passed, walking past Minerva as if nothing had happened.
It was at this moment that the murmurs began.
Whispers rippled through the group, discreet but filled with surprise and incomprehension.
Some exchanged troubled glances, others tried to understand how he could have chosen so quickly, without the slightest hesitation.
Minerva felt his gaze follow the young man despite herself.
Minerva: "He hadn't run."
"He hadn't panicked."
"He hadn't even seemed to doubt."
She didn't know his name.
But deep down, Minerva was certain of one thing:
Minerva: "He... he's going to be important."
???: "MINERVA!"
Roy finally pushed through the crowd and reached Minerva, a sword firmly in his hand.
His face was etched with fatigue, his clothes slightly dusty, but a broad smile lit up his features.
Roy: "We did it... didn't we?"
His voice trembled slightly, a mixture of exhaustion and excitement.
Minerva turned her head toward him and let out a soft breath, almost a laugh.
The tension she had been holding since the beginning of the challenge finally dissipated.
Minerva: "Yes... we succeeded."
Roy raised his sword a little higher, as if he wanted to make sure it was real, then nodded his head in satisfaction.
Roy: "I thought I was going to die at the end."
"Seriously, that race..."
He took a deep breath, trying to regain his normal rhythm.
Roy: "But seeing you still standing helped me."
"I told myself that if you kept going, I couldn't give up."
Minerva lowered her eyes slightly, a little embarrassed by his words.
Minerva: "Me too… when I saw you still running, it gave me courage."
They exchanged a look, simple but sincere.
Neither of them needed to say more.
They knew what the other had endured to get here.
Around them, the crowd of accepted students continued to murmur, but for a brief moment, Minerva heard nothing.
They were there.
Together.
The first step toward the Academy had just been taken.
Silence gradually fell over the testing ground.
Minerva: "....".
Roy: ".......".
Candidate #1: "..... "
Candidate #2: "..... "
Candidate #3: "..... ".
The last candidates, still without swords, were escorted off the field by staff members, some supported by their comrades, others walking alone, their eyes vacant.
There were no shouts or protests.
Everyone understood.
The test was over.
Only 150 remained.
One hundred and fifty people had passed the selection test.
The others had been eliminated.
As the successful candidates formed a tight-knit group, still marked by the effort and emotion, a steady hum began to be heard.
Clap Clap Clap Clap Clap Clap Clap Clap Clap
Minerva: ".....".
Minerva turned her head.
Galgados Bormis advanced toward them, this time walking on the ground, his boots calmly striking the hard-packed earth.
Clap Clap Clap Clap Clap Clap Clap Clap
He clapped his hands with a barely visible smile, but its presence was enough to command silence.
Galgados: "Congratulations."
He stopped a few meters from the group, scanning the faces in front of him.
Some lowered their eyes under his gaze, others supported him with pride or defiance.
Galgados: "You're still standing."
"For that alone, you deserve this applause."
Clap Clap Clap Clap
He clapped his hands again, more slowly this time.
Galgados: "One hundred and fifty survivors."
A murmur rippled through the group.
Galgados: "Out of two hundred and forty-three candidates."
He deliberately let a heavy silence hang in the air, allowing everyone to do the math.
Galgados: "You ran."
"You suffered."
"You doubted."
"Some cheated with their bodies."
"Others with their minds."
"But all of you made a choice."
He placed a hand on the hilt of his sword, without drawing it.
Galgados: "The choice to move forward when others stopped."
Minerva felt a shiver run through the crowd.
Galgados took a few more steps.
Galgados: "Whether you wish to become a knight, valkyrie, scout, or support fighter… it doesn't matter."
"Today, you have proven one essential thing."
He raised a finger.
Galgados: "You are capable of seeing this through."
A student dared to raise his hand, his voice trembling.
Candidate: "Sir… was… was it really necessary to eliminate so many people on the very first day?"
Galgados looked at him.
Galgados: "Yes."
The response was immediate.
Galgados: "The Academy is not a place for dreaming."
"It is a place for survival."
"Those who cannot bear this reality would die on a battlefield."
"Here, we spare them that fate."
Silence fell once more.
Galgados: "Don't mistake this selection for gratuitous cruelty."
"This is a lesson."
"The first of many."
He observed the group again, pausing for a moment on Minerva, then on Roy, before continuing.
Galgados: "From today onward, you are no longer mere civilians."
"You are students of the Knights' Academy."
A thrill of excitement crossed some faces.
Galgados: "But make no mistake."
"Your place here is not guaranteed."
"Every day will be a new test."
"Every mistake will have a price."
Tap
He tapped the ground with his foot.
Galgados: "Some of you will leave before the end of the first year."
"Others before the second."
"And only the strongest will reach the fourth year."
He smiled slightly.
Galgados: "Heh heh."
"If you're still here by then... then perhaps you'll begin to earn your titles."
He turned slightly to the side.
Galgados: "For now, rest."
"Eat."
"Take care of your injuries."
"Training starts tomorrow."
A student let out a collective sigh.
Galgados: "Ah... and one last piece of advice."
He turned back to them one last time.
Galgados: "Look closely at the faces around you."
"Some will become your allies."
"Others your rivals."
"And a few..."
His gaze darkened.
Galgados: "...won't see the end of the year."
Clap clap clap clap
He clapped his hands one last time.
Galgados: "Welcome to the Academy."
The test was over.
Just as the group was beginning to release the pent-up tension, a new presence made itself felt.
The air changed.
A sudden coolness swept across the plain, as if the temperature had dropped several degrees.
The still-dusty ground was covered with a thin film of moisture, and some students shivered without understanding why.
FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFfffffffffffffffffff
Minerva instinctively looked up.
A few meters from Galgados, a figure had just appeared.
It wasn't a spectacular entrance like that of the Wind Swordsman.
???: ".....".
No levitation.
No crash.
She was simply there, as if space itself had decided to let her pass.
A woman stood straight, a long, elegant sword strapped to her hip.
Her hair, a dark blue almost black, fell over her shoulders.
Her eyes, calm and deep, seemed to observe each student with unsettling precision.
Galgados offered a slight smile.
Galgados: "Here is someone you should listen to carefully."
The woman took a step forward, and with each movement, the humidity in the air seemed to respond to her presence.
???: "My name is Mariana Tery."
Her voice was calm and clear, yet carried a natural authority that commanded immediate silence.
Mariana Tery is a swordswoman of the same rank as Galgados, but while Galgados's elemental attribute is wind, Mariana's is water.
A murmur rippled through the students instantly.
Some opened their eyes wide, others unconsciously sat up.
They were all impressed to see two such powerful individuals before them.
Mariana calmly observed their reactions, then continued.
Mariana: "You survived the selection trial."
"That's a first step."
"But surviving doesn't make you fighters."
She took a few steps in front of the group.
Mariana: "Before continuing your training, you must discover two essential things."
She raised two fingers.
Mariana: "Your elemental affinity... and your class."
Minerva felt her heart clench slightly.
Mariana: "Fire, Water, Wind and Earth."
"Each of you possesses a natural affinity."
"Some already know it."
"Others are still unaware of it."
She placed a hand on the hilt of her sword.
Mariana: "Without knowing your element, you will only waste your potential."
"And here, wasted potential has no place."
Chapter 7: Welcome to the academy
The End