I raised an eyebrow as I brought a piece of meat to my mouth.
"What are you talking about?" I bit down on my fork and pulled the meat off.
Reinhardt flipped his paper down. "Open yours first."
He smirked.
I set my fork down as I swallowed. My eyes wandered over to my envelope. I picked it up and broke the seal.
Inside was the same kit as Reinhardt's. The rulebook, the map of each tower, the stupid anthem card. And lastly, my schedule.
I unfolded it with little enthusiasm.
But as I read through it my hands tightened at the page edges. What the fuck is this piece of shit?
— — —
First bell: Breakfast.
Second bell: Homeroom.
Third bell: Imperial history.
Fourth bell: Basic Ouro theory.
Fifth bell: Lunch.
Sixth bell: Independent study.
Seventh bell: Independent study.
Eighth bell: Independent study.
— — —
Where's math? Where's literature? Where's physical education? Why do I have so much independent study?!
Reinhardt tilted his head. "You look as if you saw an evil spirit or something."
He looked over at my paper. His jaw dropped the moment he saw it. "H-how?" He stammered softly.
I continued to stare at the page
He then looked at me. "How?" He asked again, this time more audibly. I continued to stare at the page.
He finally grabbed my shoulder and shook it. "How?!"
"I don't know!" I shoved him aside as I flipped the paper around. In the back, there was a bit of print that read:
"Upon request of the recipient's guardian, three periods have been set for independent study. If the recipient wishes to dispute this they can submit a request."
It continued.
"Please note that a request can take up to six months to process and requires a legitimate reason to be submitted. Otherwise, it'll be rejected at the Headmaster's discretion."
Six months.
It would take six months to even have a chance at fixing this. The words seemed to blur together as I tried to suppress a livid scream.
Lilith screwed me over. She set me up to fail, I should've known she wouldn't have played fair but this is just insane.
How am I supposed to learn anything? Sure I can recall some stuff from my past life. You don't really forget math or science.
But the names of things change and so does the order in which they do them.
I almost crumpled up my schedule before Reinhardt snatched it. "Whoa, just relax."
I glared at him. "Relax?! What are you even worried about? It's not like I'll forget about the THREE classes I have."
Reinhardt fell silent as he examined my paper.
I leaned forward and gripped my temples. I was already getting a headache on my second day of school.
First Lance, then the lift lady, and now this?
I ran my hands down my face as I looked to the ceiling. "I'm done for," I mumbled.
"You're not completely screwed. As long as you have good discipline and hold yourself accountable."
He handed my paper back. "Besides as a page, this is a good deal. It gives you more time to train for challenges."
I dropped my hands in my lap. "Stop, please just stop talking," I said without looking at him.
He nodded and went back to eating.
I closed my eyes and wished I still had the dragon at this moment. Because he'd probably have some kind of plan for this.
Or even if he didn't he'd help me open another seal.
Speaking of, I should probably use all of this free time to figure out how to open the next one anyway.
Ugh, everything is piling up just like Lance said it would.
It wasn't long before the second bell rang.
Bong-Bong. Bong-Bong. Bong-Bong.
I gathered my things and wordlessly stood up. Reinhardt followed behind me. We had the same homeroom so I figured I'd just follow him.
Reinhardt followed his map up to the sixth floor. We walked down a hall of doors and windows.
"Oh, here we go." Reinhardt looked up at the room door. "Room 6-12." He opened the door and inside was a tall bald man in white robes.
He sat behind his desk while reading a book.
"Take your seat, don't do anything stupid." He sighed, as he flipped through his book.
Reinhardt and I took our seats in the back.
There were long desks that formed semi-circles around the main desk.
The back row was the highest and the front row was the lowest. Reinhardt and I watched as the classroom filled with curious students.
Once everyone was in their seat, the professor snapped his book shut and stood to his feet.
"Alright, now that you're all here I suppose I should get to work."
He approached his blackboard and grabbed a piece of chalk. He then began to write in big white letters.
— — —
Upcoming events.
End of week one: First-Year page selection.
End of week two: extracurricular activity selection.
End of month one: school team competition.
— — —
He set the chalk aside as he dusted his hands.
"I am Professor Whillem and I will not be taking your attendance. That's because I believe if you care about your education you'll be here."
He gestured towards the board. "At the end of week one some of you will be approached by an elite scholar. All that means is that you've been chosen as their page. You'll receive a white uniform and several additional duties."
His eyes looked over us. "If I'm being honest with you I wouldn't recommend shooting for this position. You'll get further in your career if you spend more time learning rather than fighting. But only take my advice if you want a long life."
He lowered his finger to point out the extracurricular activity selection.
"This is pretty self-explanatory. You get to join a club or group like the student council or martial arts."
He lowered his finger to point out the team event. "Whether you're a page, an elite scholar, or a regular student, all of you will take part in competitions."
He rolled his hands. "If I remember correctly this event will be a survival contest. You'll form teams and compete for points. Those points can then be turned in for privileges such as legal tender."
He chuckled softly.
"Now while I know most of you come from rich families there is nothing like earning your own funds."
"However, that's not all we offer. There are things such as weapons, passes, and armor that you can purchase and use in future competitions."
He clapped his hands. "If you have any questions please refer to your rule book. If not, enjoy this free period and stay silent."
Whillem returned to his desk and reopened his book without another word.
I pulled out my rule book along with the rest of the class and flipped through it. There were the basic things, like not murdering your fellow peers.
But also, there was a section regarding school competitions. Turns out the academy held these events frequently. From wilderness survival to beast hunting.
Every student who leaves the academy will have some combat experience. And to incentivise better performance they were awarded points.
Elite scholars could only team up with their page in these events though. While other students could form up to teams of five.
Just imagining how I'm going to survive with Lance gives me a headache. This gives me even more motivation to open that second seal before this month's over.
I sighed.
The next bell rang and I made my way to history class. It was pretty much the same deal as homeroom. The professor was named Smith.
He spent most of his time attempting to connect with us and make us laugh. But I barely paid attention. In fact, most of us weren't.
The next class, Basic Ouro Theory, was a little more interesting. But it wasn't by much. The Professor, Hinna, was a very visual woman.
She showed us a few tricks and techniques but nothing that would benefit me in a combat scenario.
By the time lunch rolled around, I was tempted to just go back to Lance's room. But Reinhardt convinced me to join him at lunch.
The two of us were currently in line. "The first half of the day is over and done. How are you holding up?"
"Like a twig in a storm," I replied dryly.
Reinhardt's gaze fell. "You're still angry about that independent study thing?"
"Obviously."
Reinhardt fell into a contemplative silence. I was too, when I spotted a group of students entering the cafeteria. They were dressed in green uniforms with golden buttons.
They entered like they owned the place
And at the back of the group was…
Melissa.
The princess.