The morning I left House Ashford was surprisingly ordinary.
No grand ceremony.
No emotional farewells.
No dramatic speeches.
Just another sunrise over Elarion.
The only difference was that this time, I would not be returning for quite a while.
A servant loaded the last of my belongings into the carriage as I stood at the estate gates wearing the black combat coat Ceal had made for me.
The morning air was cool.
Peaceful.
For once.
I glanced back toward the manor.
The massive structure stood proudly against the rising sun.
For eighteen years this had been my home.
In my previous life I had never owned a house half this size.
Now I was leaving it behind.
Life truly was strange.
"You look nervous."
I turned.
Selene stood there rubbing sleep from her eyes.
The little liar had obviously woken up hours earlier.
"You woke up before sunrise?"
"Maybe."
"You hate mornings."
"And?."
I sighed.
She grinned.
She had always been like this.
"I'll be fine."
"I know."
Her answer came instantly.
No hesitation.
No doubt.
That surprised me.
"You sound confident."
Selene crossed her arms.
"You're scary."
"..."
"That's supposed to make me feel better?"
"Yes."
"How?"
"Because scary people usually survive."
I couldn't even argue with that logic.
Before I could reply, another voice interrupted us.
"She's not wrong."
Lucien.
Of course.
The silver-haired menace appeared carrying a cup of tea as though he hadn't nearly killed me a month ago.
"Try not to get expelled."
"I'll do my best."
"Try harder."
"Noted."
He nodded approvingly.
Apparently that was the correct answer.
Behind him stood Ceal.
Unlike Lucien, he actually looked awake.
Which was concerning.
"Your equipment."
He handed me a small storage pouch.
"Everything passed inspection requirements."
That was expected.
The Academy prohibited personal legendary and mythic equipment.
Epic grade and below were acceptable.
Custom uniforms were acceptable.
Training weapons were acceptable.
The purpose was simple.
No student would enter Galia Academy carrying enough family heirlooms to start a war.
Anything stronger had to be earned.
I took the pouch.
"Thanks."
"Don't break the gauntlets."
"You literally made them indestructible."
"That doesn't mean you should test them."
That sounded like experience speaking.
I decided not to ask.
The last thing I needed was to discover what Ceal considered normal testing procedures.
The sound of footsteps echoed behind us.
Silence immediately followed.
Father had arrived.
Kaelith Draven Ashford.
The Patriarch of House Ashford.
The strongest person I had ever met.
Even now I could not accurately measure his strength.
Every attempt felt like trying to estimate the weight of a mountain.
He stopped before me.
His golden eyes remained calm.
Unreadable.
"Walk with me."
I obeyed.
The two of us left the estate gates and moved down the stone road leading away from the manor.
Neither of us spoke immediately.
That was normal.
Eventually Father broke the silence.
"Do you know why I am accompanying you?"
I considered the question.
"To make sure I don't embarrass the family?"
"No."
That answer surprised me.
Father continued walking.
"The Academy is one of the few places in Peroza where your family name has no value."
I listened carefully.
"The instructors know who you are."
"The administration knows who you are."
"The Emperor knows who you are."
He paused.
"The students do not."
"And they are forbidden from finding out."
I nodded.
That was one of the Academy's oldest rules.
No noble titles.
No family influence.
No political authority.
Inside those walls everyone stood on equal ground.
At least in theory.
Father stopped.
For the first time that morning he looked directly at me.
"Do not rely on the Ashford name."
"I won't."
"Do not rely on Lucien's reputation."
"I won't."
"Do not rely on mine."
"I won't."
The silence stretched.
Then Father spoke the most important words.
"If they respect you..."
His golden eyes narrowed slightly.
"Make sure it is because you earned it."
I smiled.
For perhaps the first time since arriving in this world, I genuinely agreed.
"Understood."
Father nodded.
Conversation over.
That was simply how Ashfords communicated.
A few minutes later we arrived at the transport station.
Hundreds of students crowded the area.
Some were accompanied by family.
Others stood alone.
Several looked terrified.
A few looked arrogant.
Most would soon learn that confidence and competence were not always the same thing.
Father glanced at me.
"What name will you use?"
I froze.
The Academy required aliases for noble students.
Most Ashfords used secondary names.
Lucien would use Athanios.
Eldra used Zariel.
Ceal used Navir.
I could have chosen Lucifero.
Instead another name surfaced.
One from long ago.
One from another world.
One that belonged to a different life.
"Benjamin."
Father looked at me for several seconds.
Then nodded.
No questions.
No judgment.
No curiosity.
Simply acceptance.
"As you wish."
And just like that—
Astaroso Ashford disappeared.
Benjamin remained.
The journey to Ero took most of the day.
At first the scenery remained familiar.
Forests.
Mountains.
Rivers.
Then civilization began to grow denser.
Towns became cities.
Roads became highways.
Trade caravans filled every route.
Flying vessels crossed the skies overhead.
The closer we drew to the capital, the more absurd everything became.
Eventually even I stopped pretending to be unimpressed.
Then I saw Ero.
And for the first time in months—
I was speechless.
The capital stretched beyond the horizon.
Massive walls towered into the sky.
Countless buildings filled the landscape.
Skyships drifted between towering structures.
Mana-powered rail systems crossed entire districts.
Thousands upon thousands of awakeners moved through the streets.
I had written descriptions of Ero years ago.
Yet reality surpassed imagination.
By a considerable margin.
"Wow."
The word escaped before I could stop it.
Father smirked.
Actually smirked.
A historical event.
"Beautiful isn't she?, welcome to the heart of our motherland the capital city of peroza ."
I stared at him.
Then at the city.
Then back at him.
The smirk widened.
The Academy stood apart from the rest of the capital.
Not within the city.
Not outside the city.
Somehow both.
Its territory alone rivaled entire kingdoms.
Training grounds.
Dormitories.
Research facilities.
Arena complexes.
Libraries.
Artificial dungeons.
Artificer workshops.
Everything existed on a scale so absurd that it felt intentional.
As though someone had looked at common sense and personally insulted it.
A massive stone arch marked the entrance.
Above it stood four words.
Galia Imperial Military Academy.
Even from a distance the pressure was tangible.
This was not a school.
It was a machine designed to produce legends.
Registration proved surprisingly simple.
Name.
Age.
Class.
Origin.
That was all.
No mention of House Ashford.
No noble titles.
No family affiliations.
When the clerk looked up from his paperwork, he simply asked:
"Name?"
I answered without hesitation.
"Benjamin."
The clerk wrote it down.
And that was that.
No fanfare.
No recognition.
No expectations.
For the first time since arriving in this world—
I was just another student.
Strangely enough...
I liked it.
As I made my way toward the freshman assembly grounds, I began observing my future classmates.
And immediately discovered that everyone here was ridiculous.
A giant bloodline holder carrying a stone pillar.
A girl with six floating swords following her.
An artificer dragging a mechanical construct behind him.
A winged student gliding overhead.
The Academy truly gathered monsters.
Then my eyes landed on another figure.
Blond hair.
Athletic build.
Surrounded by people.
And very obviously trying to impress a certain dark-haired girl.
The Hero.
Even from a distance I recognized him.
Though unlike everyone else around him, I wasn't impressed.
Something about the situation simply looked exhausting.
The girl appeared completely uninterested.
The Hero continued trying anyway.
I silently wished him luck.
He would need it.
Several thousand freshmen eventually gathered within the central assembly arena.
The atmosphere buzzed with excitement.
Nervousness.
Pride.
Arrogance.
Hope.
The usual ingredients of future disasters.
Then the crowd suddenly quieted.
An old man had appeared on the stage.
No grand entrance.
No magical effects.
One moment he wasn't there.
The next he was.
That alone spoke volumes.
The Headmaster.
One of the strongest individuals in the Empire.
He surveyed the crowd.
Thousands of students fell silent.
Then he spoke.
"You were all exceptional where you came from."
Smiles appeared.
Pride surfaced.
Exactly as expected.
Then the Headmaster continued.
"Forget that."
The smiles vanished.
"You were geniuses."
"Forget that."
Silence.
"You were prodigies."
"Forget that."
The pressure in the arena grew heavier.
Then came the final statement.
"From this moment onward..."
His gaze swept across the crowd.
"...your past achievements are worthless."
Complete silence.
Thousands of students stood frozen.
Some offended.
Some shocked.
Some angry.
I merely smiled.
Because unlike many of them—
That was exactly what I wanted to hear.
The Academy Arc had officially begun.