Chapter 6: Super Freshman

“An officially recognized team by the academy? Are there requirements for choosing a team?” Leo asked.

“Of course, the adventure internship has always been a mandatory course for fourth-year students. Regardless of whether students want to or not, they must participate in the internship, and the internship grades will become an important standard for graduation. If the grades are too poor or if one chooses not to intern, they may not graduate smoothly.”

“The academy has many powerful teams passed down from senior students. Every year, exceptionally talented new members join these teams. If these teams have been around long enough and their achievements reach a certain level, the academy will grant them a special flag, making them an officially recognized team by the academy, receiving benefits and subsidies.”

Without thinking, Leo roughly understood what kind of teams these were, and his chances of joining were almost pitifully low.

“There are six officially recognized teams by the academy, with the first being the Empire’s Sun team, composed of imperial royalty and nobility. If you are a noble, you can apply to try to join; if not, there’s no need to consider it.

The second is the Holy Radiance team, made up of church members, all consisting of apprentice priests and knights from the church. If you are not a church member, there’s no need to consider it. Both the Holy Radiance team and the Empire’s Sun team only accept students from the same faction.”

“Are there members of the church in the academy?”

Leo recalled the pure white girl he saw by the sea, dressed in priestly attire, beautiful and holy, probably also a member of the church.

He just reminisced a little and became immersed in it.

“Leo!”

Angie’s shout woke him up. “What?”

“I’m talking to you, why are you in a daze?” Angie complained unhappily.

“Sorry, please continue.”

Leo felt like he was under a charm spell; it wasn’t his fault for sure!

Women are like tigers, remember!

“Our Nidlan Academy is the top prestigious academy on the continent. Not only do we have royalty and nobility from within the empire, but we also have royalty and nobility from abroad. Even many people from the elf and dwarf nations come here to study. Of course, there are also members of the empire’s church enrolled. By the way, I, Angie, am also an imperial noble.”

Angie proudly stated this, not knowing whether she was proud of the Nidlan Academy or her noble status.

“The third-ranked team in the academy is the Forest team, composed of other races, including elves, dwarves, and orcs. The overall strength of the team is very strong; they are very united and exclusive, only accepting a few races. As for us humans, they do not accept anyone.”

“If these three don’t work, there’s also a Flying Wing team. They allow anyone to join regardless of status and have the most members. However, the atmosphere inside is not very good, and the hierarchy is very serious. If you can’t accept it, you might not adapt.”

Given that Leo was a freshman, Angie introduced everything very carefully.

After saying so much, none of these teams were suitable for him.

“There are two more.”

“Shh! This is a legend of the academy; almost no one knows what the other two teams are, so there’s no possibility of joining.”

Angie looked a bit frightened, and Leo wisely chose not to ask further.

“Besides these teams, can’t I join other teams?”

“It is possible, in recent years, several very powerful adventurer internship teams have emerged. As long as you join these teams, you can also gain the academy’s recognition,” Angie thought for a moment and said.

“However, I still recommend you join one of those teams. Even if it’s just doing chores, you can learn a lot from reliable seniors. But the threshold for these teams is too high; they almost never accept first-year freshmen like you unless you have exceptional talent.”

Leo shook his head, “First of all, I’m not a noble, nor am I a church member; I’m an ordinary human. Secondly, I can’t stand hierarchical relationships, so I won’t join any of those teams.”

“In that case, the internship will have nothing to do with you. Please leave,” Angie sighed regretfully.

“Alright then,” Leo considered for a moment, “I can only go outside and be an ordinary adventurer.”

“Wait, wait, wait!”

As Leo turned to leave, Angie hurriedly grabbed him.

“Are you saying you’re going to skip the academy and go outside to be an adventurer? That’s too dangerous.”

“What does it matter? I’ve already registered as an adventurer. Although I’m only at F rank, I can still take on missions without going through the academy. Does the academy not allow that?”

“No, the academy has never had this precedent. In theory, it’s possible, but you’re so young; it’s too dangerous.”

Leo found it a bit funny, “Young? You must be joking. Many orphans outside start being adventurers at twelve years old, and some even begin their adventurer careers from the time they can remember, doing chores for veteran adventurers and facing countless dangers. What does my situation count as?”

He finally understood where the previous sense of incongruity came from. No matter how perfect the academy’s policies were, it couldn’t change the fact that students were sheltered flowers.

Most students were nobles; they had never experienced the hardships of commoners. Even if they participated in adventurer internships, they could never truly understand the adventurer profession.

Adventurers are a group of lovable yet detestable people.

Some are beasts, unscrupulous in achieving their goals, cruel and domineering; others are full of goodwill, willing to lend a helping hand when others are in trouble.

Think of those orphans who, for survival, have been struggling as adventurers before they even turn ten, fighting mad dogs for a bit of food, covered in mud and filth, facing discrimination and hatred. This is something the glamorous noble young masters will never understand.

Although Leo had not experienced those hardships, he felt deeply about it. He had also climbed up step by step from the bottom to gain his current strength.

If it weren’t for being taken in by the old man, he would probably have to start as a bottom-class adventurer, battling against fate.

Although he didn’t like adventurers, he hoped to become one.

Strong, free, unrestrained!

This was his pursuit, so whether through the academy or becoming an adventurer outside, it was the same.

“Alright, I understand. I will help you apply and see if any team will accept you.”

Angie kept operating the device, browsing team information.

The devices here are magical tools that operate through magical power, capable of storing and retrieving information.

“However, don’t get your hopes up. If your strength isn’t enough, you will be kicked out.”

“Thank you!”

Leo quietly waited, observing his surroundings.

“It really is built to resemble the adventurer hall.”

Suddenly, a large crowd gathered at the entrance, and noisy voices came from outside.

“It’s the Empire’s Sun team, so cool!”

“Who’s the freshman following them? Are they going to join the Empire’s Sun team?”

“Impossible!”

“That’s Yuris, the academy’s super freshman, the direct disciple of the Sword Saint, a once-in-a-thousand-years swordsmanship genius.”

“Exactly, if it’s Yuris, then it makes sense. I’m so envious; entering the academy with such a powerful team to rely on.”

After just a few sentences, Leo shifted his attention. Envying others’ talents only led to useless sighs from the sidelines, which is why mediocre people achieve nothing.

“Hey! You trash! Get out of the way!”

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