[In The Palace Of Gods]

Chapter 11

Royal Academy

It was a chilly day in the kingdom of Enlogia. The trees had shed their leaves, and the sunlight was dim. Yet the marketplace was as crowded as ever. People walked around the town in thick coats that kept them warm. The adventurers guild was partially filled with people. 

A figure stood out from the rest. He was casually walking around the town in summer clothes. He had beautiful golden eyes, silky blue hair and a jolly aura around him. The door of the adventurers guild was pushed open. Neon entered the guild carrying a jute pouch with him. To everyone, he was an D - rank adventurer who carried out simple tasks. Nobody knew the truth. He went to the receptionist and asked if the guild master was available. She inquired and nodded her head. He went besides the receptionist towards a black door. As he opened it, he climbed a couple dozen of stairs. He arrived at the first floor, knocked on the yellow - red door, and waited. The door was opened by a man that looked in his fifties. His hair was white and beard almost white. He looked as if he hadn't had enough sleep. Well he had a lot of work, he was the guild master after all. The guild master greeted him. They entered his office and sat down facing each other. 

(Here, the one you asked for.) Neon said with a smile on his face. 

(Thank you, Lord Neon.) The guild master bowed down before him. 

(I told you so many times not to call me that! Act like a proper guild master!) 

(As you wish, my Lord - I mean, sir Neon. Can you please show it to me?) 

(Yea sure.) 

Neon put his hand inside the jute pouch. The pouch was not what it seemed. It was a mythical grade item that had infinite space inside it. He pulled out a horn which was almost double his height. The guild master stared at it with eyes wide open. 

(Wow! This is my first time seeing such an absurd thing!) The guild master couldn't hide his surprise. 

(That's no big deal hehehe.) Neon blushed. 

The horn belonged to an adult Earth Dragon, an SSS Grade creature that terrorised the east of the countryside for centuries. It was always in a state of hibernation unless it was disturbed. An earthquake that occurred last week woke it up. Neon, who appeared just last week, was assigned to kill the dragon. He was the only SSS Mythical grade adventurer to ever exist. The grade card was issued to him by the king himself, and was kept a secret even to the nobles. His rank was different from others, as the highest rank in the guild was S grade. 

(Here is the promised reward.) The guild master handed him a huge bag filled with coins. 

(Wha-???? These are… Platinum coins!!!???) Neon gasped. 

(Yes, as per the order of His Highness, you are to be rewarded a million platinum coins.) 

(A-A-A Million!!!???) He doubted even the castle cost that much. 

(Weren't you told so? And to remind sir Neon, your entrance exams are scheduled at 4 o'clock.) 

(Oh that's right, please excuse me guild master.) I knew nothing about the reward money. 

He left the room and hurried to the Royal Academy, the most prestigious academy in the nation. The main reason that he was allowed to have a break in his training was because he wanted to spend some time with his fiance. He remembered his sensei and shivered. The Shadow Monarch had harassed him during the last month's duration. But even he didn't know the true goal of his sensei. It seemed that all his God-sensei's were planning something. He still remembered the way The King and Lady Algaya were threatened by his sensei. 

.. 

.. 

He went into an empty alley and changed his attire with {Creation Magic}. He was told to go to the entrance exam as a Noble. He soon arrived at the gate of the Royal Academy. It was a huge door painted golden. It may look royal to everybody, but Neon had seen better. 

He walked inside the Academy and went to the exam hall. It was spacious, tilled with white tiles that had golden flower patterns on it. The ceiling had a chandelier and there were dozens of benches. Many students were chatting with each other. Neon was nervous cause he didn't know anyone. He walked and sat on the last bench of the first row. After a couple of minutes, a beautiful girl entered the hall. She had long, pink hair and glossy lips. Her cheeks had a tint of red and her eyes had a colour of glittering golden. She wore a fluffy pink dress with many precious stones. It was the second daughter of a Count. She was the only person that Neon knew, his fiance. She saw Neon and blushed. She walked up to him and politely asked him if she could sit next to him. 

(Um.. Ne-Ne-Neon - sama, can I sit next to you?) 

(Of course! Please have a seat.) I said as I made her some space. 

I was getting some serious stares from everyone. 

(.........) 

(..........) 

We just kept staring towards the floor. It's sooo awkward. Maybe I should take the lead. But what should I say?

Oh booyyy! I have no freaking idea how to start a conversation. Oohh! Our eyes just met. This sure is embarrassing! Let's just ask about her condition. 

(Um.. Are you doing well?) 

(Y-Ye-Yes. What about Neon - sama?) 

(Oh, I'm fine as well. Thanks for asking.) 

*sileeeeennnnnccccceeee*

This situation again-

*Ding - Dong*

The examiner arrived as soon as the bell rang. He immediately distributed question papers and told us important instructions. The paper was super easy, more than I expected. I finished it within half the allotted time. I got up from my seat and submitted it to the examiner, who stared at me with disappointment. He must have thought that I didn't study enough. 

Well, I left the class and started walking towards the practical field. We were divided into 4 sections to complete the test faster. Unfortunately,  Elize and I were in different sections. 

Damn! I wanted to show my powers to her. 

Even though Neon could take on a fully matured Earth Dragon, he was not allowed to use that kind of power during the practical. 

The practical exam started after an hour. I didn't try to find Elize as everyone was giving me an awkward stare. 

.. 

.. 

The exam was simple, we just had to shoot at the five targets. To pass, we must at least hit 3 targets. Not just hit, but also inflict some damage on it. 

That was so freakin' simple. Among the students, I did stand out, but the one who did the most was a guy who looked to be in his twenties. He had yellow long spiked hair and little brown eyes. He looked handsome. I found out afterwards that he was a student as well. 

Even though the roll numbers were given alphabetically corresponding to our names, Neon got the last one. Surely it had to be done by his sensei. 

Everyone was trying their best to hit the target, but only a few could do all five. And the damage? The maximum they could do was burn the 1st layer of the target. They all used simple spells like fireball, waterball, wind slash and stone throw. I really needed to control my powers. I wanted to be as average as possible, even though a few moments ago I wanted to show my magic to Elize.

The last one to go before me was Zephir, the one who looked to be in his twenties. He was the only one to use an intermediate level spell - Fire Arrow. He hit all of his targets and destroyed them. It was finally my turn. 

(Last participant, Neon.) The examiner called out. 

(Yes sir.) I got up and walked down the stairs. While I was going down, Zephir gave me a look that probably meant that he was looking down on me. 

I stood in my position. I had already decided the spell that I was going to use, a simple fireball. I had no plans to use a spell any higher than this. 

{Hey, why don't you use Hell Flare? }

(Huh? –) A voice suddenly popped in my head. It was a voice that I can never forget even in my dreams. 

{What do you want, Tony sensei?}

{I already told you, use chantless Hell Flare.}

{No way! I can't use something of that caliber.}

{You have my orders, dear disciple. Hehe, You Roger That?}

{Ya Ya I roger that}

So it was decided that I'll use Hell Flare. I have to keep it as weak as possi-

(You can do it Neon - sama) 

No need to weaken it. Elize is watching. It's my chance to prove myself. 

(Flame God Magic - [Hell Flare]) I chanted as five massive bullets of blue flames shot towards the targets. I didn't even need 'Mana Sense' to aim. It was simple as hell. 

The bullets shot by Neon destroyed all targets along with the ground behind it. Everyone had jaw-dropping reactions, including the examiner. Neon was glad that this spell was an advanced spell in this world. If his sensei had told him to use some complex magic that was unknown to this world, it would have thrown the world into a mess. Even Elize had her mouth wide open. 

(Wasn't that — Hell Flare? To use a magic that only 5 people can use in this country……. You are a prodigy.) 

(Huh?? Such praise is..) 

Everyone began to clap but some made bitter faces. Elize expressed her excitement and shock to me. After the test, I hurried over to the dorm which was located just behind the school building in an attempt to avoid unnecessary attention. As soon as I entered my room, Naku was sitting on the sofa calmly sipping tea. Along with him was a lady I didn't recognize. 

(Yo brat! Meet her. She is my little sister Lisanna.) She wanted to meet you for a long time. 

(O-Oh. Hi Lisanna sama.) Little sister? She looks more like your mother. 

(Yooooo little one. It's nice to meet'cha. I'm here to do some tests on ya. Shall we proceed?) 

(Huuuuhhhhhh????????? Wait Naku! I didn't hear anything about this.) 

(I swear it's my first time hearing this too.) 

(Shall we proceed-) 

*knock knock*

Lisanna jumped towards the door and opened it. Crap it was Elize. 

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To be continued..........