32
It has been a week since the start of the official schedule of the Elite Institute.
During this week, the students toured the Imperial Palace and all its affiliated institutions.
The visit was not just a passing tour, but rather a profound experience.
Many of the institute's graduates end up working in the palace.
Even those who intended to join the academy or return to their families often changed their minds after being dazzled by the palace's splendor.
In the midst of these various tours, the institute's students listened to explanations about the various academic subjects.
Here, each student began searching for subjects that were in line with his future ambitions, hoping to choose what suits him.
Those who aspire to work in the diplomatic corps tend to study foreign languages, while those interested in ongoing reconstruction projects choose to study architecture or mathematics to enhance their knowledge.
“Hmm...”
Evie was sitting on a chair a little higher than her height, looking at a piece of paper in front of her. That paper was the elite institute's class schedule.
“Everything looks great...but what do I choose?”
The name “Elite Institute” was not just a façade.
Here, a student can study almost everything.
In the guidance booklet, it was stated that if a student wanted to learn something outside the specified curriculum, he could, after an interview, be assigned a specialized professor.
Evie looked at the stream for a long time, then raised her head to take in her surroundings.
In the garden, tables were distributed here and there, around which the institute's students sat, most of them accompanied by their peers.
“So, shall we take this lesson together? The professor who teaches it is very famous.”
“Really? Should we choose the morning or evening class?”
The familiarity between them was evident, as they chose their lessons together while sitting side by side.
Evie looked at them with eyes full of envy.
“What beautiful moments…”
In a strange place, children tend to make friends quickly. Now, when she looks around, she sees everyone walking around with their friends.
“How I wish I had a friend to share lessons with...”
The week passed, and Evie was still alone.
In fact, she hadn't been completely alone the other day. After that night when she was left alone in the museum, Irene, Arcel, and Ruska accompanied her for two days.
But the conversation between them was not abundant.
Rather, Ruska was constantly talking, Evie responding, while Irene and Arcel were present but barely participating. They were not completely silent, but were content to say only what was necessary.
Irene seemed to feel uncomfortable around Roska and Arcel, while the two of them did not show much interest in her. Fortunately, their relationship was not bad.
Evie thought she'd just keep walking around with them, but then the class schedule was divided up by age group and gender, to distribute instruction for lessons.
And so, Evie is separated from the three again, finding herself alone once again.
Rather, she was not completely alone, as there were three other seven-year-old students with her. But they were so disturbed by the absence of their familiar brothers that the staff had to calm them down and accompany them.
The staff was constantly apologizing to Evie as they cared for the crying students. Since Evie seemed unaffected, she was sent to the student group at the age of eight, but she also remained there alone.
On top of that, something else happened.
“Lemora left the elite institute…”
On the first day, Lemora didn't come to apologize to Evie. Perhaps for this reason, the next day, in the company of Dean Seraphina, Lemora seemed to be holding back tears, her face flushed as she looked at the ground.
After Seraphina left, Lemora approached Evie hesitantly, but, when she saw other students around her, she was unable to open her mouth and left.
This situation continued for three days.
One morning, when Evie went to the residence hall, she saw Lemora, wearing normal clothes instead of her institute uniform, getting into a carriage.
She no longer had the confident attitude she had when they first met. She seemed to be running away as she quickly climbed onto the carriage.
The carriage left with Lemora's luggage, and that afternoon, the dean, Seraphina, called for Evie.
“Lemora left the elite institute.”
"What?"
Evie was startled, but Seraphina assured her it wasn't her fault, then sighed deeply.
“I didn’t expect her to leave the institute just because she didn’t want to admit her mistake in front of others. What foolishness.”
There was a clear tone of resentment in Serafina's voice as she whispered these words.
After Lemura left, the students who had previously accompanied her became quieter. In a strange way, they started avoiding Evie, sneaking glances at her.
However, due to the rumors spread by Lemora, no one has approached Evie yet.
“They…”
Evie looked again at the lesson registration form. Last night, she had circled the lessons she wanted to take. In fact, she wanted to study everything, but it was impossible.
“They said that in the first semester, we can only choose six subjects.”
But she circled more than ten articles.
“Which one should I choose?”
Even a subject like mathematics, which many students chose, was divided into several classes.
“Which professor should I go to?”
Evie lost herself in thought as she looked at the professors' names. Do you choose what you like to study? Or what qualifies her for a prestigious job in the future?
All the subjects seemed interesting. Especially philosophy and ancient languages, subjects not taught in higher schools, seemed interesting.
“The dean will tell me to study what I like...”
But wouldn't it be better for her to study something that could earn her more income after graduation?
Evie held her little head in her hand, sinking into thought again and again.
“I want to learn everything!”
She was sure the dean would be curious to know what classes she had chosen. I asked her in a letter before her arrival to write to her about this in detail.
If she chose classes just for the job opportunities, the dean would undoubtedly be sad.
“So, I will choose three subjects that I like, and three that will earn me a good income.”
Feeling that she had made a wise decision, Evie began marking the lessons she wanted.
After she finished choosing, there was only one subject left: mathematics.
But the problem was not whether she studied or not, but rather in choosing which professor.
Evie thought for a long time about mathematics, then put a mark next to the first professor's name on the list, and finished arranging her papers.
Then I went directly to the office to submit the forms.
There, the institute's employees were working hard. When they saw her, they smiled warmly and asked her:
“What's wrong?”
“I came to hand over the lesson registration form.”
"Do you see the drawer over there? Put her in it and go. Did you spell your name correctly?"
"Yes!"
Evie put her form in the drawer and left. After a while, a group of students entered talking.
“The other lessons are okay, but math… I really hate it.”
“But it is a compulsory subject. We cannot escape it.”
They sighed heavily as they opened the drawer to place their forms.
Suddenly, they noticed a form already there, and their eyes widened.
“Oh my God, someone chose math with Professor Mallis!”
"What? Really?"
At the mention of Professor Mallis' name, the other students were surprised.
They realized that their voices had risen, so they lowered them while whispering:
“Who in the world would choose Professor Malice's lesson?”
Their voice reflected their disbelief.
At that moment, one of the employees looked at them and said:
“Hey there, don’t look at other people’s forms. Put yours in and leave.”
“Ah, yes!”
Under the pressure of the strict tone, they quickly put down their forms and left in a hurry.
Before entering the elite institute, the students tried by all means to find out the personalities of the professors.
In addition to the importance of forming friendships with members of other families, their relationships with professors were no less important.
Many of the professors were nobles, and had extensive networks.
Of course, these networks allowed them to introduce students to important people, or provide advice and support in starting new projects.
Even when joining the academy after graduation, the name of the professor who taught the student played a big role.
“But if someone chooses Professor Mallis...”
It is true that he has great achievements, but he is known for his strange nature and the difficulty of his lessons, even in the academy.
Moreover, this year he will end his career by retiring.
So what is the use of his genius and achievements?
“Doesn’t he… hardly communicate with other professors or his former students?”
“So, it's impossible for him to introduce you to anyone or help you build relationships.”
He was exactly the person that elite institute students avoided.
The students sighed and shook their heads.
“Moreover, it is said that his duties are too many...”
“Whoever this person is, he will really suffer.”
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