Amidst the scrutinizing gazes filled with overwhelming curiosity and pathetic contempt from the surrounding crowd of students, Jeremy, his expression unchanged, nonchalantly walked to the processing counter and smoothly received his new uniform, faculty emblem, and personal magic ID card.
The standard uniform of the Anima faculty consisted of a sharply tailored white silk shirt that perfectly hugged the contours of broad shoulders, paired with long black trousers that accentuated a tall, neat physique, carrying the arrogant beauty of the wearer. Draped over it was a magic cloak reaching below the knees, featuring angular cuts exuding classic military aesthetics.
The overall outfit utilized pitch black as the dominant color, accented by borders embroidered with interwoven gold and crimson threads forming complex micro-matrices. The black silk tie, subtly embroidered with protective runic characters, was accompanied by a semicircular emblem carved from silver crystal—the unique symbol of authority for Anima faculty students, radiating both coldness and an unassailable arrogance.
As for the magic ID card, this palm-sized thin crystal block served an equivalent role to an identity card integrated with a bank account in the modern world. It was strictly bound to the student’s soul mark and personal asset access rights.
Not stopping there, the magic ID card also operated as a sophisticated communication device, possessing the right to connect to the academy’s internal information network—practically speaking, even upon stepping into an unfamiliar magical world, Jeremy could still use it to surf the net, update news, and investigate data as usual.
After performing fingerprint scanning and facial recognition to activate it, the thin metal block instantly projected a floating light screen in mid-air, equivalent in size to a tablet.
This virtual screen possessed a mechanism to automatically track the owner’s visual movements, could be opened and closed with just the blink of an eye, completely eliminating the risk of dropping or losing it on the battlefield.
Jeremy glided his fingertips lightly across the luminous surface, accessing the faculty management section.
Anima Faculty.
Based on the developments in the book Jeremy had read, the male lead Amber belonged to the Zenith faculty. All narrative perspectives of the plot were focused on that central power faction, therefore Jeremy had almost no concrete concept of the internal structure of this Anima faculty.
Jeremy continued scrolling down the screen. The moment the member list of the practical combat squad appeared, a miniature tracking radar in the right corner immediately displayed four blinking light dots, indicating that his newly assigned teammates were all gathered not far away.
Just as Jeremy slipped his hand into his trouser pocket and prepared to step forward, a warm, deep male voice suddenly drifted over from a diagonal angle, possessing a resonance and clarity akin to piano keys being struck:
"Hello, new teammate~"
Jeremy slightly turned his head. Entering his line of sight was a young man possessing silver hair radiating under the sunlight.
The instant their eyes met, the other party tilted his head slightly, taking long strides closer and proactively extending a slender hand enveloped in a snow-white silk glove.
The person’s voice carried a strangely soothing melody, easily clinging to the listener’s hearing: "I am Lucius D’Arsy. I have long heard of Young Master Valmont’s reputation; it is truly a great honor to become a teammate fighting alongside you."
The glossy silver hair extending past his shoulders slipped gently following Lucius’s courteous slight bow.
The masculine face mixed with a sharp charm of this person was enough to make anyone facing him pause for a beat. The narrow, elongated phoenix eyes possessed a breathtakingly cold ice-blue color, and right at the outer corners of the eyes was a deep pink flush akin to plum blossom petals steeped in cold snow, inadvertently creating an attraction that was both dangerous and lethally seductive.
Even though the original owner’s reputation in the capital’s aristocratic circles was merely a pathetic mess, Jeremy naturally grasped the rules of the game for these purely formal pleasantries. The corner of Jeremy’s lips curled up to just the right angle, extending his hand straight out to grasp the other party’s hand. A decisive tightening grip, brimming with arrogance and masculinity: "It is also my honor."
The smile on Lucius’s lips seemed to deepen a fraction. Lucius naturally withdrew his hand, his slender figure slightly turning to point toward a marble gazebo a short distance away: "The magic map shows our three remaining teammates are all gathered over there, shall we head over together?"
"Alright."
Since they were individuals forced to share a boat on the battlefield for the next few years anyway, Jeremy nonchalantly took strides parallel to the other party.
Five minutes later.
Five youths were present together beneath the dome of the exquisitely carved marble gazebo.
Jeremy, with one hand tucked into his suit trouser pocket, swept a calm gaze over the other three one by one.
Sitting on the stone steps on the left was a female student possessing light green hair, the ends gradually transitioning into a deep ocean blue hue. Her sparkling blue eyes were like a spring lake. Her long hair was neatly braided with a white silk ribbon, draped loosely over one shoulder. Her expression was absolute indifference, her long eyelashes drooping down to conceal a hint of fatigue and lethargy, as quiet as an aloof carved statue.
Meanwhile, the young man sitting on the jade chair opposite carried a posture so uninhibited that it bordered on lazy.
His hair blended ash gray and silver strands in a rebellious mix, tied up neatly at the nape of his neck. This person’s face possessed extremely cold, sharp features. His silver-gray eyes reflected almost no human emotion. He crossed his long, perfectly straight legs, his entire body exuding an arrogant casualness to the point of complete indifference.
Lastly was the black-haired boy huddled in the darkest corner of the gazebo...
That person kept his head bowed to the ground, his ragged bangs growing so long they almost completely covered his eyebrows and sharp eyes. His pale face clearly revealed two dark circles from severe sleep deprivation, and right on his straight nasal bridge, a bright red mole stood out like a dazzling tear of blood. His entire body was wrapped tightly in a baggy black cloak, constantly emitting a gloomy, chilling aura that made strangers feel suffocated and instinctively want to retreat.
The very first moment his gaze swept past that image, four words of precise evaluation automatically popped into Jeremy’s head: "Gloomy male ghost."
However, a person’s true personality could never be hastily concluded just through a few physical traits.
Just as Jeremy was about to withdraw his gaze, he sharply noticed the black-haired boy’s slender fingers, hidden deep inside his sleeves, curling slightly. The boy stealthily pulled his hood up a bit higher.
The baggy hood, which already obscured half his face, was now being forcefully yanked down deep by the other party, just as if this person desperately wanted to hide his entire existence deep within the shadows.
Yet, those skinny hands with prominently large knuckles, so pale that one could see every green vein running beneath the skin... at some unknown moment had quietly flushed an eye-catchingly bright red out of embarrassment. It was so genuine and obvious that it would be difficult for Jeremy to even pretend he was blind.
Jeremy: "..."
A gloomy male student possessing an aura that frightened others... turned out to actually be the type of person who got this embarrassed the moment he met a stranger?
Afraid that continuing to look at the other party would make him genuinely so humiliated he’d dig a hole and crawl into the ground, Jeremy considerately averted his gaze elsewhere.
At this time, Lucius had finished introducing himself. Jeremy also nonchalantly dropped his name.
The next person to speak was the girl with light green hair. Her voice was as soothing as her appearance, but her complexion was as flat as stagnant water: "Evelyn Vael, Spirit Covenant number 302."
The silver-and-ash-haired young man leaning back on the stone chair slightly lifted his eyelids, his voice bland and lacking patience: "Leon Vance, Spirit Covenant number 303."
The last person was the black-haired youth huddled in the corner. He still kept his head down, the voice transmitting out was extremely pleasant to the ear but wrapped in a gloomy, aloof membrane, carrying a feeling of extreme refusal to communicate: "Phoenix Noir, Spirit Covenant number 301."
Lucius lightly tapped his fingertip against his own chest: "Forgot to mention, my Mark is 304." Lucius curved his eyes into a smile, his phoenix eyes narrowing meaningfully, looking over at Jeremy: "And what about you?"
Jeremy replied concisely: "305."
Lucius instantly put on an exaggerated expression of astonishment: "It seems our team truly has a strong affinity for the bottom-ranking numbers."
Jeremy let out a faint chuckle in his throat: "That is true."
301, 302, 303, 304, 305.
A bizarre sequence of numbers, so perfect that it was brimming with vicious sarcasm.
The academy’s squad division mechanism truly knew how to arrange things...
But thinking carefully, gathering all those belonging to the bottom tier of society into one place like this was actually a good thing. At least they wouldn’t have to clash or endure the troublesome friction born from a massive talent gap with the prodigy class.
Lucius proactively initiated the conversation, his voice overflowing with excitement: "In a practical combat squad, there is always a need for a captain to lead, does anyone want to nominate themselves?"
Hearing that, Evelyn spoke up to refuse first, her face unchanging in color: "I am not suited to be a leader, I won’t participate."
Leon lazily half-closed his eyes, his tone indifferent: "Whatever, as long as it’s not me."
Phoenix shrank his body even deeper into his pitch-black cloak: "Not interested."
Just as Jeremy was about to open his mouth to announce that he also wasn’t free enough to shoulder the responsibility, Lucius standing next to him immediately clapped his hands with a "smack," his face as radiant as if he had just struck gold: "Wonderful, it seems everyone unanimously agrees to let Jeremy be the captain~ I raise both hands in approval~"
Jeremy: "?"
When did the four of them agree? Was this guy having auditory hallucinations?