222 Meeting


    "I made it~ I made it~"


    ''I don''t know how but I made it to the very top oh dear goddess of light~!!!!''


    Enna couldn''t contain her joy as she practically bounced into her seat, smiling like she was the happiest person in the world.


    The soft chirping of birds outside and the warm spring breeze only added to her already bubbly mood, as she hummed to herself,pletely ignoring the speeches going on in front of her.


    Today was the day—the grand entrance ceremony for all the iing freshmen at the academy.


    Enna could barely hold in her excitement.


    She''d spent the previous night writing tons of letters to her grandfather, sharing the good news she''d received about her cement in the General Department.


    Being epted was already exciting, but the fact that she''d ced 10th?


    That was the cherry on top.


    It meant she was eligible for Killian Hall, the prestigious dormitory reserved for the top students.


    "Hehehehe~" Enna giggled softly to herself, her mind racing with possibilities.


    Right now, all the freshmen were gathered in the gymnasium, listening to the seemingly never-ending speeches from the academy staff.


    Enna didn''t mind too much, though.


    She was just looking forward to finding her friends as soon as the event was over.


    They''d made ns to explore the campus together, soaking in all the new sights and enjoying theirst bit of freedom before they inevitably had to split off into their respective specialties.


    But more than anything, Enna couldn''t wait to brag to them about her cement.


    Being in the top 10 was a huge deal, and she was eager to share her aplishment.


    Her friends would definitely be impressed, and she couldn''t help but feel a little smug about it


    ''Vanessa will probably hug me~ Reina will pat me~ Stacia will give me some kind words~ and mme... mme will probably be nice to me, right?''


    Pushing her thoughts aside, Enna finally opened her eyes and nced toward the stage, where the top students from each department were being recognized.


    As expected, mme stood among them, her usual cool demeanor intact.


    Enna also noticed a few other familiar faces, students she had seen during the written exams at the testing area.


    Even Stacia was there, looking asposed as ever.


    They were all being marked and congratted for their achievements, ranking among the top of their respective departments.


    Enna couldn''t help but feel a surge of pride, not only for her friends but also for herself.


    She had worked hard to be where she was, and seeing them up on that stage filled her with motivation.


    Clenching her fist in excitement, she silently made a promise to herself.


    After the ceremony, she was going to gather everyone together for a celebratory feast.


    They deserved to share in this moment, and Enna was determined to make it a day to remember. n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Meanwhile, among the crowd of students, Reina let out a quiet sigh, her gaze shifting to the people around her.


    She sat among the top 10 students in the knight department, yet a lingering feeling of inadequacy gnawed at her.


    Despite securing 10th ce, she couldn''t help but feel undeserving of the recognition.


    After all, her match... well, it hadn''t been much of a match at all.


    ''What did Senior Lucas mean by his words?'' she thought, the memory causing her face to flush beet red.


    She shook her head quickly, trying to dispel the heat creeping up her cheeks.


    ''Why are you thinking about such useless things, Reina? I''m sure he was just confused about something!'' she reminded herself sternly.


    She''d worked too hard to let her mind wander into distractions, especially something as impractical as romance.


    Now that she was finally inside the academy, her focus had to be on her dreams—on making her parents proud.


    There was no room for daydreaming about what might have been.


    Lucas had probably forgotten the encounter by now, and she should do the same.


    Her goal here wasn''t to indulge in silly thoughts; it was to be a knight, a warrior her family could be proud of.


    Reina straightened her posture, forcing herself to concentrate on the ceremony.


    The academy was a ce to train, to grow stronger, and to forge a path for herself.


    There was no space for distractions, no matter how tempting they might be.


    Looking ahead, Reina''s gaze settled on Stacia, who had imed the number one spot in her department—though, surprisingly, she wasn''t the sole titleholder.


    For the first time in the academy''s recorded history, there were two students who had earned the top position: Stacia Alger Del Luna and Uriel Elora.


    It was an unprecedented situation, one that the academy had never encountered before.


    Due to unforeseen and incalcble circumstances, both Stacia and Uriel had achieved identical ranks based on the judges'' evaluations.


    The academy, with its strict system that allowed only ten top students per year, had been forced to nullify the second rank in the knight department to amodate the unusual urrence of two students sharing the first spot.


    As Reina watched them standing at the forefront of their respective departments, she could feel the weight of thepetition—the sheer pressure from the top.


    But instead of feeling discouraged, she found herself smiling.


    After all, she was close to one of those top contenders, and she knew these were the walls she would have to climb if she wanted to reach the peak.


    As her thoughts drifted to the challenges she would face, another figure entered her mind—someone she would inevitably have to surpass one day.


    ''That brother of mine… where the hell is he?''


    ….


    When the ceremony finally came to an end, just outside the academy''s colossal gymnasium, Enna, brimming with excitement, spotted her friends and wasted no time gathering them all up in one fell swoop.


    "Hehehe! It''s amazing, isn''t it? I''m amazing, right~?!" she eximed proudly, practically glowing with joy. Her energy was contagious, though her obnoxiousughter rang out louder than necessary.


    "Oh my, is that so? As expected of our little Enna," Vanessa teased as she gently pulled Enna into a tight hug, her soft hand patting Enna''s head from behind.


    "I''m not little..." Enna pouted, her voice half-hearted in protest.


    But she quickly relented, too content being smothered against Vanessa''s warm chest to truly argue.


    She knew she was being babied, but when it came to Vanessa, for some reason, she didn''t mind it.


    In fact, she almost craved it.


    "Hoh? This is unexpected," came a snide voice from the side. "And here I thought you''d fail. Good job, Enna—you''ve been upgraded from stupid to dumb!" mme chimed in, a smirk ying across her face.


    "How is that an upgrade?!" Enna snapped back, her frustration only fueling mme''sughter even more.


    mme''s sharpugh cut through the group as she snickered, clearly enjoying Enna''s flustered state. "It''s an upgrade because, unlike before, now there''s a tiny bit of hope for you," she teased with a wicked grin.


    Enna''s face flushed, torn between pride and embarrassment. Vanessa simply giggled, still holding her close. "Don''t listen to her, Enna," she said soothingly. "You did wonderfully. We''re all proud of you."


    Reina, standing right beside them, was genuinely surprised by Enna''s revtion. She tilted her head in wonder. "This is a surprise. I really thought you didn''t do so well, considering the way you reactedst time."


    Enna, her cheeks puffed with embarrassment, chuckled nervously. "Oh, hehehe... I might have overreacted a little bit back then."


    Reina smiled, softened by Enna''s infectiousughter. "I see. Well, congrattions, Enna."


    "Hehehe…" Enna giggled to herself, her eyes lighting up with excitement as she remembered something. "Ah, that''s right! Congrattions to all of you as well! Hehe, I can''t believe all of us are top-ranked students!"


    "Hm~ but I don''t think everyone here is top-ranked though~" mme suddenly quipped, her eyes drifting toward Reina with a mischievous smirk.


    Reina, catching mme''s gaze, narrowed her eyes. "What do you mean by that?"


    "Who knows~?" mme replied with a teasing shrug, clearly enjoying the tension she was stirring.


    Sensing the brewing conflict between the two, Enna quickly jumped in, squeezing herself between their sharp stares.


    "C-Come on, everyone! This is our first official day at the academy—let''s not ruin it, okay?" Her voice was shaky but filled with sincerity.


    Reina and mme exchanged one final nce, but neither escted the situation. Reina let out a huff, while mme simply gave an exaggerated shrug, backing down. Enna, feeling the tension dissolve, sighed in relief.


    "Good job, Enna," Vanessa said proudly, patting her head once more for sessfully defusing the situation.


    Enna''s face lit up at the praise, her giggle returning as she basked in Vanessa''s approval.


    But, despite the praise, she quickly refocused on her thoughts and objective for the day.


    "Since today is such a special day and all... why don''t we celebrate with a small feast together?" Enna suggested with a hopeful p of her hands.


    The idea caught everyone''s attention, and for a brief moment, the awkward tension from before disappeared.


    Even mme looked intrigued, though she tried to hide it behind a yful smirk. "A feast, huh? Now that''s more like it."


    "I''ll dly join in as well," Vanessa said with a warm smile. Though not typically one for festive gatherings, she agreed with mme—small moments like this could create unbreakable bonds in the future.


    "I would have to decline," came a calm voice. Stacia raised her hand slightly, her faceposed. "I''m sorry, but there are certain matters I need to attend to. However, I do wish for all of you to have a blessed and fun time."


    "Ehhh… that''s too bad," Enna''s face fell, clearly disappointed.


    Stacia''s absence felt like it might put a damper on her ns.


    She had really been hoping to spend more time with Stacia, maybe even get closer to her personally. But despite her selfish desires, she bit back her disappointment.


    "I understand… I hope everything goes well with whatever you''re doing!" Enna forced a smile, knowing she couldn''t impose her own wishes on Stacia.


    Still, the letdown stung.


    She wanted this to be a moment where they all grew closer.


    Enna sighed inwardly but remained optimistic, quickly shifting her focus to the others.


    Her eyesnded on Reina, who stood quietly off to the side.


    Enna''s expression softened, and her eyes gleamed with unshed tears, silently pleading with Reina to join them.


    She didn''t even have to say a word—her look alone was enough tomunicate how much she wanted her toe.


    "Ahaha—" Reina let out a nervousugh, feeling the weight of Enna''s emotional plea. As much as she wanted to indulge in a little fun with her new friends, she had a packed day ahead.


    There was still the matter of finding her brother, not to mention everything else on her agenda.


    "I''m sorry, Enna, but I have ns with my brother for toda—"


    "Reina."


    A familiar voice interrupted Reina mid-sentence. Hearing it, she immediately turned her head in the direction of the sound, and the others followed suit.


    A young man was walking closer to her, his deep blue eyes and golden blonde hair a mirror of her own.


    If not for the fact that he was taller and more broadly built, someone might easily mistake them for twins.


    "Big bro…" Reina mumbled softly.


    It had been a while since she had seen him face-to-face, ever since he left early during his winter vacation.


    Seeing him now stirred a feeling of happiness within her, though she couldn''t quite bring herself to express it openly.


    "You finally show yourself. Where exactly have you—"


    Reina''s words trailed off as her eyes widened.


    She noticed something strange about her brother—more specifically, the two people standing on either side of him.


    They were two incredibly beautiful girls, their appearance so striking that it seemed to transcend the normal standards of beauty.


    There was something ethereal about them, almost as if their presence radiated an otherworldly aura.


    On his right stood a girl with golden hair and eyes that shimmered like molten gold.


    She was gazing at Reina with a kind smile, her expression soft but filled with curiosity.


    There was something about her that felt regal, almost divine, as though her very presencemanded attention.


    On his left was another girl, holding onto Reina''s brother''s hand, interlocking fingers as if it was the most natural thing to do...


    Her beauty was no less captivating, but there was an undeniable coldness to her gaze.


    Her eyes, though looking at Reina curiously, were devoid of emotion, as if she were observing her from a great distance, detached and unreadable.


    Reina felt a lump form in her throat.


    She had so many questions, but for some reason, the words wouldn''te out.


    All she could do was stand there, her mind racing as she tried to process the scene before her.


    ''W-Who are they?''