The courtyard was huge, nothing like the novel described. Words couldn't capture this - pathways stretching endless, trees so tall their tops reached far into the sky, fountains singing everywhere he looked and lecture halls towering above everything like giants.
'No wonder the author gave up on descriptions,' he thought, pushing through the crowd. 'Writing this would take forever.'
Students walked past in groups, their uniforms glowing. The standard uniform was navy blue with gold trims and a crest stitched onto the chest.
He glanced down at his clothes, a plain tunic from a secondhand shop.
'Right, uniforms aren't provided,' he remembered. 'Parents are usually the ones who buy them, meaning, for nobles, this was nothing, they could afford them without any issue.'
A group of nobles walked past with their spotless uniforms. One even glanced at him, sneered, then looked away.
'Class S gets you a free uniform,' he reminded himself. 'Along with everything else, another reason to aim high.'
His system pinged.
[System fully synced]
He stopped, pulling up the interface.
[Name: Tany]
[Level: 1]
[Age: 18]
[Title: None]
[Class: None]
[MP: 80/80]
[Overall stats: 44]
[Skills:]
[Infinite Potential (Unique)]
[Consume (Passive)]
"Pretty basic," he muttered, tapping on the skills. 'Let's see what these actually do.'
[Infinite potential]
[Your growth potential has no limit and every level up grants +3 to stats instead of +1.
His eyes widened, quickly pulling up the next the skill.
[Consume]
[You are capable of stealing skills, eating magic and mana stone... etc]
He stared at the screen, then a grin spread across his face, 'no way she gave me these, they are so broken.'
With skills like these, the heavens are the limit.
'No wonder she looked so tired when she gave these to me,' he closed the interface, still grinning. 'She's been saving these for the perfect candidate.'
He kept walking, still talking to himself about the skills.
'Consume is insane, I can literally take someone's abilities after beating them and Infinite Potential means I'll outscale everyone in the long run. In the original novel, Leon was the only one who could reach level 200+ by graduation but with these skills...'
WHAM.
Someone slammed into his shoulder hard enough to knock him sideways.
"What the fuck, that hurt," he said as he caught himself from falling.
He turned to see a guy in a noble uniform standing in front of him, with a hand on his shoulder like Tany had punched him.
He was tall, maybe a head taller, with sharp features, polished shoes and nose so high it was practically vertical.
"You should watch where you're going," the noble sneered down at him. "Some of us have important places to be."
'Ohhh, it's the classic noble bullying commoner setup. I've read about this a hundred times but seeing it in person is something else.'
"You are the one who bumped into me though," Tany replied calmly.
"What? Did you just accuse me of something?" The noble puffed up his chest, trying to look intimidating. "You commoners always think the world owes you something. Maybe I should teach you some manners."
Tany burst out laughing. "Pfft, hahaha! Oh man, this is too good!" He doubled over, clutching his stomach as tears formed in his eyes. "Seeing this in person is so much funnier than reading about it!"
He wiped the tears from his eyes, still chuckling. "You're literally doing the exact same thing I read about in so many novels. The arrogant noble who thinks he can intimidate everyone with his noble status. It's like watching a bad actor perform a cliché!"
The noble's face turned purple with rage. "You think this is funny?"
"Yes! Yes, I do!" Tany wheezed between laughs. "Let me guess - you're going to tell me about your family name, threaten to have me expelled, and then try to physically intimidate me. Am I close?"
The noble sputtered, completely thrown off by Tany's reaction.
"And here's the best part," he added, grinning widely. "You're going to fail spectacularly because you're underestimating me. Just like every single arrogant noble in every single story ever written. It's practically a law of fiction!"
The noble stood there, his mouth opening and closing like a fish out of water, completely unsure how to respond to someone who was laughing at his intimidation attempts.
"You're wasting my time," Tany said, still smiling but sounding more serious now. "I have an entrance exam to ace, and you're just delaying me."
The noble finally found his voice. "I'll have you know that I am Lord Cedric Von Albrecht, third son of the Duke of--"
"--Yeah, I don't care," he interrupted, waving his hand dismissively. "Family names mean nothing to me. What matters is what you can actually do, and right now, you're failing at basic human interaction."
Cedric's face turned an alarming shade of red.
"I'll make sure you never get into Grett Academy!" he threatened.
"Sure you will," Tany said, already walking past him. "Good luck with that."
As he walked away, he could hear Cedric sputtering behind him, completely flabbergasted that his intimidation tactics had failed so spectacularly.
"This is going to be fun," he muttered to himself, heading toward the examination hall. "Let the entrance exam begin."
As he walked through the crowded courtyard, he noticed people whispering and pointing at him.
He could hear snippets of the conversation:
"Did you see that? He just laughed at a noble!"
"Who does that commoner think he is?"
"He's either incredibly brave or incredibly stupid."
"I've never seen anyone stand up to Lord Cedric like that before."
Tany felt his body vibrate with excitement, this was exactly what he had dreamed about - being the protagonist who defies expectations, standing up to the arrogant nobility bastards.
Every whisper, every pointing finger and shocked expression just confirmed that he was doing exactly what he was meant to do.
He arrived at the examination hall, a massive building with ornate doors and beautiful carvings. Students were filing in, some looking nervous, others chatting excitedly.
Tany found a spot near the back wall and leaned against it casually, crossing his arms. He watched as more students entered, feeling the nervous energy in the air and how the nobles stuck together while commoners huddled in their own groups.
"Just like the novel described," he thought with a smile. "But now I get to experience it firsthand."
The hall was filling up quickly and he spotted a few familiar faces from the courtyard - some gave him curious looks, others quickly looked away when they caught his eye.
He closed his eyes for a moment, letting the anticipation build. 'This is it, the beginning of everything.'
After what felt like hours but was probably only minutes, the large doors at the front of the hall opened.
A stern-looking man in a professor's uniform walked in, his presence commanding immediate silence. He had short gray hair, a sharp nose, and eyes that seemed to miss nothing.
"Welcome to the Grett Academy entrance examination," he said, his voice carrying across the hall without needing to shout. "I am Professor Thorne, and I will be overseeing your exam today."
He paused, letting his gaze sweep across the assembled students.
"The examination will test your magical potential and combat abilities. Those who demonstrate sufficient skill and power will be admitted to the academy."
Another pause.
"Let the examination begin."