Because of the entrance exam, the capital was bustling with people. Young prospective students had gathered from various regions to enroll.
Many carriages could be seen on the streets, each bearing the crests of different noble families. Various stalls were open, and the city had been decorated to some extent.
"It feels like a festival, Young master," the Left Guardian's disciple, Soren Valerian, said while observing the lively surroundings as they were riding the carriage toward the academy.
"It seems so..." Gray said, with an uninterested face.
He didn't really care about the festival. He was more focused on the upcoming entrance exam and the possibility of meeting beautiful girls at the academy.
Moreover, he also pondered how he could obtain the relic left behind in the academy by Julius.
Gray's Supporting Celestial Being, Julius von Legolant, had left 11 relics behind, each holding power at the level of a Celestial being. They were meant for a destined figure who would appear in the future—Gray's descendant, Aether von Noctvain.
Out of the 11 relics, Gray had acquired the first relic: the Sunless Sword.
The sword Gray had found in his previous life, which emerged from his chest in this life, was the first relic Julius left behind.
Gray furrowed his brow as he thought about the Sunless Sword.
It was an overpowered sword with a sinister aura. When he used it for practice inside the Ashborn isolation chamber, his consciousness faded and he saw weird visions that didn't make any sense.
Thus, he decided not to use it unless necessary.
Other than the Sunless Sword, there are 10 more relics. They are scattered across the world. The Human Continent has 3 more relics, and the Dragon Continent and the Elf Continent have one each.
Unfortunately, this world's most dangerous continent, The Chasm: Graveyard of Madness, has more than three.
Well, it's expected, as that continent is the largest compared to the other six continents.
Gray needed to collect those relics, and the second relic is within the Rajuk Caeloria Academy.
As he was lost in thought, they arrived at the outskirts of the capital city, Rajuk, where the Rajuk Caeloria Academy was situated.
It is the Ataraxia Empire's biggest and most highly respected academy. Even members of the imperial family study here, making it more prestigious.
Thud!
Gray came down from the luxurious Ashborn family carriage and saw the huge academy's entrance.
There were many young people with weapons in their hands entering through the gate.
However, since Gray was mentally sixty years old, it felt a little cringe for him to appear as a student, but for his harem-building goal, it was necessary.
Then, as he walked toward the entrance with Soren Valerian, the young people noticed him and looked at him with various expressions.
Some were captivated by his face, some envied him for being from one of the ducal families, and some were wary of him.
However, Gray ignored their glances and walked with dignity, befitting the youngest son of the Ashborn family. A family renowned for being the northern wall that protects the border from the Chasm: Graveyard of Madness's monsters.
After entering through the academy's main gate, Gray and the prospective students were guided to one of the academy buildings.
There, Gray and Soren Valerian parted ways and entered separate classrooms.
Inside, Gray took his seat following his roll number. After some time, an exam overseer came and distributed an envelope using magic.
Then he spoke, "A total of 1,500 applicants from Scholar, knights, and Mages will be taking their written exam now. After that, the practical exam will be held."
As he announced the start of the written exam, everyone opened the envelope they received, took out a question paper, and began their written exam.
Gray looked at the envelope and took out a question paper, but he quickly narrowed his eyes.
What is this?
The exam had 20 questions in total. At first, it asked about what a mana core is, how mages and swordsmen cultivate, the soul realm, etc., but later it asked about magic formulas, world creation, and questions that went over his head.
It felt more suited for a mage rather than a swordsman like him.
Fortunately, he had something that could solve all the questions in a matter of seconds.
'Activate God's Gaze.'
At his command, the system window popped up.
Ding
[Activating Heavenly Authority "God's Gaze"]
[Description: The Gaze of the Primordial Being.... (Restricted)]
As soon as the authority was activated, Gray's black eyes turned crimson, and words floated in front of his eyes.
Those words were the answer to the questions Gray was having trouble with.
The God's Gaze was an authority Gray got from Julius. It lets him see the unknown, according to what he realized while pondering for a month in the Ashborn isolation chamber.
This also lets him see another person's mana channels, demonic energy, light energy, and some minor stuff.
its description was vague, meaning it might have some other power.
Anyway, for now, it was solving the questions Gray had difficulty understanding.
It was breaking down the essence of the questions and showcasing them with proper visualization, while words also floated for easy and quick reference.
Gray ignored the explanation and quickly wrote down the answers.
After he completed all 20 questions, he let out a deep breath.
"Overseer, I'm done with my exam," Gray said.
At his words, every student showed a puzzled expression.
"What? He's done already!"
"Wooah, Is he also a prodigy."
"It seems nobles are geniuses."
The prospective students were sharing their opinions.
There was still plenty of time left before the exam ended, and many were having trouble with the questions; thus, they felt perplexed.
There was still plenty of time left before the exam ends, and many had trouble with the questions; thus, they felt disbelief.
But just then, the overseer asked, "You're a swordsman, right?"
"Yes, Overseer." Gray said.
"Then why did you answer the magic paper?"
"What!!!" Gray widened his eyes.
There are three paths one student can learn at the academy: the knights, the mage, and the scholar.
And as the three types of students attended together, the academy provides three sets of questions in one envelope.
However, Gray didn't know this and mistakenly took out the magic question paper and answered it, thinking everyone was taking the same exam, while in truth the knight's paper he was supposed to attend to was still inside the envelope.
Realizing this, Gray felt like a fool, while the other students, who thought he was a genius, sneered at him.
Aura -999999