The Imperial Capital.
This city was vastly different from the one housing Glory Cael Magic Academy.
If the latter was a serene city of magic academics, then this place was an imperial nexus in the truest sense.
The streets were wide and straight, paved with neat bluestone slabs, while most buildings on either side were built of light-colored granite, their walls carved with intricate reliefs recording major events throughout the history of the Empire.
Arches, domes, and colonnades bore testament to the architectural legacy of a classical empire at every turn.
Patrols mounted on gryphons occasionally swept across the sky above, casting brief shadows.
Positioned slightly east of the city center, a towering magic tower stood majestically, piercing straight into the clouds.
Constructed from pure white magical stone, its surface hummed with faint blue mana lines that gleamed brilliantly in the sunlight.
This was the magic tower built specifically for the Hundred Academy Exchange. Divided into tiers containing living areas, academic zones, discussion halls, experimental labs, and more, it was truly a pinnacle of contemporary architectural craft.
Right now, the spacious square in front of the magic tower buzzed with noise.
Faculty and students from over a hundred magic academies across the continent were arriving in succession. Flags fluttered across the square, and uniform colors from various institutions blended into a vibrant tapestry.
People moving luggage, lining up delegations, looking for registration desks, or greeting long-lost friends—all sorts of voices mingled together, filling the air with a warm, bustling energy.
Beside a stone pillar on the eastern side of the square, two girls shared a warm embrace.
"Long time no see! You're looking great!"
The one speaking first was a girl with a brown ponytail named Kayla. She wore a dark green academy uniform with a lush, leafy ancient tree embroidered on her chest badge—the emblem of Greenfield Magic Academy from the Far South.
"Don't even get me started."
The girl hugging her let go and shook her head with a bitter smile.
She wore a dark blue uniform pinned with a hexagonal ice crystal badge, representing Frost Ring Magic Academy from the border.
Her name was Adele.
"Our academy's beat-up carriage broke down twice on the road. The first time, an axle snapped while crossing a mountain pass, and the second time, we wasted half a day waiting for a ferry at the crossing. It took us twenty whole days of suffering just to get here. What about you?"
"We didn't have it much better."
Kayla sighed.
"We rented a public airship. They call it an airship, but it's really just a flying tin can. The cabin was so cramped you couldn't even turn around, and the guy next door snored loud enough to shake the sky. I barely got a wink of sleep the whole way."
The two exchanged a look and let out empathetic, wry laughs.
Both were leading their respective academy delegations, and both were participating in the Hundred Academy Exchange for the second time, so they were already used to such arduous journeys.
The delegations standing behind them were sparse, each numbering fewer than ten people, but this was already the entirety of the representatives they could afford to send.
Compared to the Five Great Magic Academies, whose rosters easily numbered in the dozens, they looked exceptionally shabby.
"Oh, right!"
Kayla suddenly remembered something. She glanced at the team behind Adele and lowered her voice to ask:
"I heard one of your representatives this time is an exceptionally talented freshman, right?"
"Are you talking about Melina?"
Adele looked toward a girl behind her with lovely, raven-black hair who was standing quietly and reading a book. Though her features were ordinary, she carried an unmistakable air of mystery.
An undeniable look of pride washed over Adele's face.
"Yeah, she's definitely gifted. Her magic affinities and control precision set records for our academy over the last decade. Honestly, I feel like someone with her talent could've easily gotten into Glory Cael or Ironpledge Crucible among the Five Great Magic Academies. But maybe her family was worried about not being able to afford the tuition and living expenses at those top-tier academies, which is why they sent her to us instead."
Outside of the Five Great Magic Academies, students at most magic academies were commoners, with noble children being a rare sight.
Thus, whenever they saw an extraordinarily talented student choose an ordinary academy, their immediate assumption was financial constraints.
"I really envy her talent," Kayla remarked, following Adele's gaze.
"If she performs well at this exchange, she might even get noticed by someone from the Five Great Magic Academies and get a chance to transfer."
Past iterations of the Hundred Academy Exchange had seen such precedents—students from ordinary academies who displayed astonishing strength or talent had caught the eye of high-ranking figures from the Five Great Academies, earning transfer offers with full tuition coverage.
For countless magic students of commoner background, this was a shortcut to changing their fate.
"If talking about it makes you feel bad, let's drop it," Adele said, withdrawing her gaze with a wave of her hand before switching topics.
"Speaking of the exchange, did your academy prepare any academic research presentation to show on stage?"
Kayla shrugged. "Funds are pretty tight this year. The headmaster said we shouldn't bother making fools of ourselves, so we forfeited the academic research presentation segment. But I won't lose to you in the specialized defense this time!"
Kayla suddenly clenched her fist, determination flaring in her eyes.
"I pulled countless all-nighters in the library for this!"
"Heh."
Adele raised her chin, refusing to show weakness.
"While we might not compare to the geniuses of the Five Great Magic Academies, I'm confident I won't lose to you, either."
As the two chatted, the sky above the square suddenly darkened.
A massive shadow swept across the ground like a giant bird soaring overhead.
Students around them raised their heads one after another, letting out gasps of awe.
A giant airship slowly descended from the clouds, its silver-white metallic hull gleaming in the sunlight with smooth, elegant lines.
Painted on the ship's gunwale was a striking emblem—an open magic book with a floating star above it.
That was the crest of Glory Cael Magic Academy.
In the magic world, the weak had always revered the strong.
When this airship representing one of the Five Great Academies appeared above the square, the eyes of every student around were irresistibly drawn toward it.
People stopped what they were doing and looked up, watching the gargantuan vessel descend.
The airship soon touched down smoothly in the reserved docking spot in the center of the square. The hatch slowly clicked open with a soft hiss of released air pressure.
Then, the passengers inside began stepping out one by one.
The first to emerge was a girl with long aqua-blue hair.
She wore the standard uniform of Glory Cael, her posture tall and straight, carrying a cool and aloof aura as she stepped with effortless composure and grace.
As she walked down the gangway, the surrounding clamor seemed to fall silent for a brief moment.
The boys stood mesmerized, while the girls suddenly felt self-conscious, terrified that their voices might startle this goddess-like figure.
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