Dormitory Number 2023

Ernst Academy only recruits one hundred students each year, and they come from every corner of the continent.

Although Ulada Magic Academy is not quite as stringent, it cannot compare to Ernst Academy in terms of competitiveness, even though many people from the Dark Alliance apply to Ernst Academy every year.

Ulada Magic Academy is ranked third on the continent, but aside from the first, who remembers the second, let alone the third?

Therefore, they have no choice but to lower their standards.

This year, the discovery of Jonathan, an exceptionally brilliant magic seed, caused quite a stir among the academy's instructors. His affinity for both Earth Element and Dark Element is super-grade, and his spiritual power is 64 times that of an average person, far exceeding the standard for "super-grade."

A talent like this is something Ulada Magic Academy might not encounter in decades, or even a century.

Once the news spread, people within the Dark Church began to take notice of Jonathan.

As long as Jonathan does not falter in his future progress, he is guaranteed a high-ranking position within the Dark Church after graduation.

He might even be groomed further by the Dark Church until he becomes a true powerhouse capable of standing on his own, serving as a sharp blade against the Light Church.

Jonathan and Ford arrived relatively early, so after waiting for an hour, it was their turn to process their enrollment.

"Jonathan here to report to the academy. These are my acceptance letter and identification."

"Jonathan?!"

The staff member who took the two items exclaimed, "You are Jonathan?!"

"Yes."

The staff member opened them to check, then smiled slightly, "That's correct."

"It has been a long time since Ulada Magic Academy had a student as outstanding as you. You have no idea—you were already famous throughout the academy before you even enrolled."

"Not only the instructors and teaching assistants, but even the students have heard your name."

"Now, I finally get to see you in person!"

"Go over there and take a magic test. As long as your talent matches the records, or exceeds them, you can officially enroll."

Jonathan nodded.

The magic talent test here is identical to the one in the church; after all, both were built by the Dark Church.

Over these past few months, Jonathan's strength has not broken through, and he has not officially begun learning magic. Furthermore, because he deliberately hid his true capabilities, the duration he held out during the spiritual power test was not much different from last time.

Ford followed him.

Ford also passed the test smoothly and officially became a member of Ulada Magic Academy.

"2023."

Jonathan looked at the number printed on the dormitory key in his hand.

At this moment, Ford leaned over and suddenly said with delight, "I just prayed that we would be in the same dorm, and it turns out we really are!"

"That's great!"

Jonathan sighed inwardly; it seemed this inexplicable fate was something he could not avoid.

"Let's go, let's check out the dorm first, then walk around the academy."

"Whatever you say."

Ford had effectively become Jonathan's little sidekick.

Ulada Magic Academy is not as ancient as Ernst Academy, but thanks to the heavy investment from the Dark Church, the campus is magnificent, filled with lush trees, lakes, stone bridges, corridors, pavilions, pyramid-style buildings, and obelisks.

Every time they walked a short distance, Ford couldn't help but exclaim in wonder.

The two asked for directions to the dormitory building and headed straight there. Upon arrival, they followed the numbering system, starting from 2000, and soon found their corresponding room.

Ford opened the door and peeked inside. Two people were already sitting in the living room; they looked over as the door opened.

"Hello."

Ford greeted them with a smile.

"New roommates? Come on in. We were just discussing when you two would arrive."

After Ford entered, Jonathan followed.

One of the two who arrived first stood up and said, "Now that everyone is here, let's introduce ourselves. My name is Collet McNeil."

Collet was about 1.7 meters tall, the tallest of the four, with striking blonde hair and handsome features, though not quite as refined as Jonathan's.

The other person was about 1.5 meters tall, looking more scholarly with a faint smile on his lips; his appearance was no less impressive than Collet's.

"This is Charles Bandas."

"My name is Ford."

"Jonathan."

"You're Jonathan? The student with the highest talent in this year's Ulada Magic Academy intake!"

Collet was very sociable, and upon hearing Jonathan's name, he exclaimed, "Your reputation was already spreading like wildfire before you even enrolled; it's truly legendary!"

"Everyone says you are the most talented student at Ulada Magic Academy in the last hundred years. I never expected to be roommates with a genius like you—it's my honor!"

"It's just talent, not actual strength. Who knows, perhaps all of you will achieve more than me in the future," Jonathan replied politely.

Then, he looked at Charles and asked curiously, "Your surname is Bandas; could it be that you are of royal blood?"

Collette smiled and said, "You guessed right. Charles is the current kingdom's sixth prince."

Ford was astonished and wanted to bow, but was stopped by Charles.

"Once we've entered the academy, we are all classmates. Besides, status doesn't carry much weight at Ulada Magic Academy, especially since he has the Dark Church backing him."

Seeing that they were still carrying their bundles, Collette said, "You two should go to your rooms and put your things down first. Rooms 1 and 2 belong to Charles and me; you two can divide rooms 3 and 4 between yourselves, is that alright?"

"Of course, no problem," Ford said with a grin.

Ford let Jonathan choose first. Jonathan did not refuse and picked room 4. After entering, he looked around.

The room's furnishings were very simple: a bed one and a half meters wide and two and a half meters long, a desk, a brown wooden chair, a wardrobe, and a bathroom.

Opposite the bed was a shelf embedded into the wall, which could be used to store small items.

The room was about forty square meters, just right for one person to live in.

There was brand-new bedding and a pillow on the bed. To the south was a floor-to-ceiling window, a huge transparent pane that allowed sunlight to spill onto the balcony outside.

After putting down his bundle, Jonathan stayed on the balcony for a while before walking out of the room and into the hall.

Seeing him come out, Ford said excitedly, "Jonathan, Collette and Charles both have very strong talents; they are even better than me!"

"Is that so?"

"Yes, Collette is 10 years old this year. His Wind Element affinity is superior, and his spiritual power is sixteen times that of his peers, which is also superior."

"Charles is the same age as Collette. His element affinity for Dark Element and Water Element is superior, and his spiritual power is eighteen times that of his peers, even higher than Collette's."

Collette smiled and said, "Ford, stop talking about it in front of Jonathan; you're making us feel ashamed."

"Earth Element and Dark Element are both transcendent, and his spiritual power is sixty-four times higher—we really can't compare, we really can't!"

"I heard that among the students recruited by Ulada Magic Academy this year, Jonathan is the only one with dual transcendent talents, and there are only three people in total with transcendent element affinity and spiritual power."

"Right, to celebrate our meeting, let's go out for a feast. Hehe, His Highness the Prince is paying!"

"You're the son of a marquis and you're not short on cash either, why am I the one paying?"

"How can I compare to you? After I enrolled, my old man strictly controlled my pocket money. He only sends it once a month, just two hundred gold coins. How is that enough to spend?"

"Two hundred a month isn't enough?" Ford said in surprise. "I only get one hundred gold coins for the whole semester."

Collette was extremely intelligent and, knowing that Ford and Jonathan were from small places, smiled and said, "Actually, one hundred gold coins is enough for a semester. If it's not enough, you can apply for academy subsidies. Helping instructors with tasks or organizing the library can all earn you gold coin subsidies."

"So that's how it is." Ford nodded as if he understood.

"Let's go. I'm inviting you, and the prince is paying. You two wouldn't dare not give us face, would you?"

Jonathan smiled. "Since you've put it that way, don't blame us for fleecing you two for a massive meal."

The group laughed heartily as they headed out the door.