Neyvar stared at his black sword for a moment, then slowly looked up at the sky.
A little while after class had ended, Neyvar was walking down the hallway when he heard a voice behind him:
"Hey, wait up!"
He turned around—it was Rina.
"Thank you... for what you did back there during the test," she said with a smile.
Neyvar shrugged and replied,
"Ah… anyone would've done that. We're teammates, after all."
Rina thanked him again. Neyvar nodded slightly, then walked off alone, his thoughts restless.
"This sword… why do I keep getting such a strange feeling from it…?"
He wandered through the market, lost in thought.
Suddenly, a golden carriage passed by. Inside, he saw an elderly, noble-looking woman. Neyvar's eyes followed her for a moment… and he sensed something unusual—an odd, powerful aura surrounding her.
He turned away and headed home.
---
The next morning, as Neyvar arrived at the academy, he was summoned to Zeltor's office.
He entered casually and said,
"Hey, old man. You wanted something?"
Zeltor, the strict head of the academy, frowned.
"Come in, kid. Sit down."
As Neyvar moved to sit, his eyes caught a familiar face…
The same old woman from the golden carriage was seated right there.
She looked at him with a calm, sharp gaze.
"Hmm… So this is the talent you spoke of?"
Neyvar stared at her, puzzled.
Zeltor spoke up,
"This is Lady Serfina Alvera… Head of the Aetherion Academy."
Neyvar, confused, thought to himself,
"Aetherion?"
Serfina smiled.
"Pleasure to meet you, young man."
"Likewise, ma'am," Neyvar replied politely,
though inside he was thinking:
"She's strong… I can feel that strange aura around her."
Zeltor smirked.
"What's this? You call me old man, but you're all respectful with 'ma'am'?"
Neyvar replied without hesitation,
"Because she's stronger than you."
Serfina chuckled softly.
"You're too kind, child. But compared to the Prime Minister and the Grand Advisor of this empire, I'm nothing."
Neyvar blinked.
"What? Prime Minister? Who?"
She laughed.
"You don't know? Zeltor isn't just the head of this academy—he's the Prime Minister of the empire."
Neyvar stared at Zeltor in shock, his face full of confusion.
---
End of Chapter 14