"The Academy."
The main part of the story revolves around the academy itself. As I mentioned before, it took the protagonist and his squad five full years of growth to finally defeat the Demon King and his army out of which four of those years were centered around the academy.
In this world, the academy goes by the name "Demonbane Academy." It was founded with the sole purpose of nurturing young talents who would one day stand againt the demon race and protect humanity. While Demonbane isn't the only academy out there, it's without question the most prestigious and also the academy I am part of.
How did I even get into Demonbane Academy despite only having a B- potential?
Well... I am or was a Frostbane—before Celine Frostbane or should I say my mother, disowned me.
The Frostbane family is one of the most prominent families in the Human Dominion. They're one of the founding pillars behind the establishment of the academy itself, which naturally came with a few privileges. That's how I managed to slip in through the backdoor.
Though, it wasn't easy. I had to beg her for that admission slot. She was dead set on reserving it for her dear disciple. Fortunately for me, the guy wanted to prove himself and insisted on taking the entrance exam like everyone else. And do I even need to mention what rank he got?
"What a guy," I said in mild admiration as I turned the knob of my room door and stepped out.
I was staying at a rather expensive hotel ,something I probably shouldn't be doing, considering I needed to start saving money for the long run.
"All thanks to the previous me," I added with a hint of mockery in my tone.
The hallway painted in brown stretched wide and clean, the marble floors polished to perfection, and soft lighting ran along the ceiling like a trail of luxury. Everything about this place screamed wealth. and here I was, living in this place when I didn't even have any idea of how to earn money from here.
As I walked down the corridor, heading toward something essential before beginning my journey to save the world, something absolutely necessary for any human to survive.
"Food," I announced in a dramatic tone. I was really hungry at this point. After the integration, the hunger had kicked in almost immediately, but the flood of questions and revelations took priority, so I had to hold back on ordering anything.
I could have easily had something delivered to my room, but since the previous me had already booked the hotel for 3 days with meals included thus, I figured I might as well check out the hotel itself. It's not every day you get to stay in a place this extravagant—so a little sightseeing wouldn't hurt, i guess?
I walked toward the elevator at a leisurely pace, the soft thud of my footsteps muffled against the rich, red carpet lining the corridor. As I approached, one of the many elevator doors slid open smoothly without any need to press a button.
I stepped inside without a second thought—only to be greeted by a display of luxury that didn't surprised me. I kind of expected this.
The inside of the elevator was very fancy. The walls were made of dark wood with shiny gold trim. A small crystal chandelier hung from the ceiling, which was covered in mirrors. Soft lights made everything glow. The buttons were on a smooth black glass panel with glowing white symbols.
I clicked on the white glowing white button representing the Ground Floor option, and the lift began its smooth descent ,silent, almost weightless, like floating on air.
The elevator, like most of the high-end infrastructure in this world, was powered by mana stones. Mana stones had long since replaced the energies of past. No smoke. No pollution. Just pure, refined energy. Cheaper in the long run, far more efficient, and environmentally clean. Of course, there were different grades of mana stones, with the higher-tier ones often monopolized by noble families or big companies, but even a mid-tier stone could power a medium size house for around 2 months.
The demons brought chaos but with them Mana brought a new age for humanity— strength, technology and hope to fight against the demons. Anyway,
I walked toward the restaurant on the ground floor. The soft carpet in the hotel lobby made my steps quiet as I passed by tall marble columns and warm, golden lights. A few guests glanced at me, maybe because of my looks or because I looked like someone they recognized— Celine Frostbane.
As I entered the restaurant through wide glass doors, a waiter in a black vest greeted me with a polite smile.
"Good morning, sir. Table for one?"
"Yes," I replied.
The restaurant was calm and quiet. The golden lights made everything feel warm and relaxed. I could hear the soft sounds of cutlery and quiet talking. The waiter led me to a corner table. I picked up the menu, glanced through it, and placed my order without much thought. I was hungry, and I already had an idea of what I wanted.
***
"Here is your order, sir," the waiter said as he placed the dishes in front of me.
Some might think I ordered too much, but honestly, I didn't. I was hungry, yes, but that didn't mean I'd stuff myself first thing in the morning.
I had a truffle mushroom omelette, which was just soft eggs cooked with mushrooms, chives, and a bit of black truffle oil. I only knew the fancy details because of the previous Thorin. The second dish was a caviar omelette, which was basically an omelette topped with caviar. It added a salty taste to the eggs. I'd always wanted to try caviar since it was super expensive back on Earth, so I didn't miss the chance now all thanks to the old Thorin for picking such a nice hotel and paying for it in advance.
For the drink, I just went with water. Simple and enough.
The meal was good but not the kind that makes you lick your fingers clean, but still good. A bit different from what I was used to, but not bad at all.
I sat there for a few more minutes, letting the food settle. Then I stood up, gave a small nod to the waiter, and made my way out of the restaurant.
It was time to head to the academy.