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The summer break has gone by swiftly, and today marks the first day of TJ's college life.
He could swear that he just graduated from prep school yesterday, though. Time truly flies when you're busy.
Currently, he sat in a cab that's taking him to U-Belt. It wasn't a long drive since the U-Belt was practically right next to the Alma Mater Lane. Honestly, he could've walked there, but TJ didn't feel like it.
TJ's wearing casual clothes today. Nothing too fancy or expensive, just neat and tidy; he looked unremarkable but presentable.
He got out of the cab upon arriving at the U-Belt. He walked to the entrance but didn't enter since he's waiting for his friends.
Said friends appeared soon, just a few minutes after he arrived.
"TJ! Here!"
That crisp and energetic voice was unmistakably Lily's. TJ looked over and saw that she wasn't alone; Sieg was trailing behind her.
He nodded to them as they walked closer. It was here when he discovered the subtle changes they had during the break.
Lily's more...pink than ever. Like, vibrant pink. The color was practically glowing off her. She's more cheerful, and she's glowing radiantly like she just returned from a very refreshing vacation. She's grown a few centimeters too but is still the shortest amongst the three of them.
Her mana, though...now that's even more surprising. TJ's keen senses (and brief use of Detection) caught the density of her mana, and she could easily drown both him and Sieg with how much she has.
If TJ's mana was like a bonfire, Lily's would be the goddamn sun. He's not even worthy to compare.
TJ almost suspected if this was truly Lily. He knows that Dean Skywind helped her transition into a magical girl, but seriously, he couldn't recall magical girls having this much mana!
And Sieg, he's grown more muscle somehow.
He wasn't any taller (thank goodness, the dude's already six-foot-seven at 17 years old), but his frame became bulkier. An intimidating aura radiated out of him instinctively. People were making way for him, scared of how intense he looked.
Sieg was wearing his old clothes, which were now a real tight fit on him because his body had become larger over this break. One wrong move and the buttons on his shirt will pop, unable to hold on to the cloth that hides his extremely defined physique.
What made him less scary was his barely hidden grin as he trailed behind Lily, all too happy to follow her wherever she dragged him off to.
"Wow! Wow! Wow! You look more depressed since the last time I saw you. What the heck!?" Lily shot off and began circling around TJ, inspecting him from head to toe.
"Happy to see you too, Lily," TJ deadpanned.
"Here I thought you'd dress more fancy now you're essentially a very rich man. Why are you still wearing your old clothes? You don't have to live frugally anymore, right?"
"What's wrong with this?" TJ frowned. "I look presentable. Is that not enough?"
"Enough. But it could be better," Lily frankly said. "Do you need my help shopping for clothes? I know a place!"
"Maybe some other time. And if Gravepath would be so kind as to give us free time," TJ replied before walking towards the entrance of the U-belt.
His reply stunned both Lily and Sieg into smiling wryly.
Right. They almost forgot that they'd start their freshman year at Gravepath Institute soon.
Wordlessly, they followed him.
The entrance to the U-Belt had a film that isolated the other side, making it impossible to see through it without personally entering. Only those with permits or students of the universities and colleges at the U-Belt can freely pass through; otherwise, they won't be allowed in.
Passing through this film of light, the trio finally saw the real appearance of the U-Belt.
It's busy, crowded, and noisy. The type of place that TJ would hate to see himself in. People move in droves, wearing all sorts of colorful uniforms differentiating them.
There were hawkers and callers on the streets and stores selling school supplies, equipment, and other helpful items.
Surprisingly, there's a lack of tall buildings here. The highest they could see was about ten floors high, and that's it.
One unique thing, though, is that there were gated fences everywhere. They're practically right next to each other.
The U-Belt was a massive circle filled with gated fences like this, and at its center, the tallest building—the one that only has 10 floors—stood. At its front, a large sign reads:
[District 13 - Department of Education]
The DOE is the government branch that handles the academic flow of District 13. Everything that has something to do with education, be it rules, events, disputes, or concerns on a large scale, has to be run through here first.
Since the U-Belt is a place where all the universities, institutes, and colleges are concentrated in the district, it would make sense why their headquarters would also be here.
As the trio stood gobsmacked at what they were seeing, a voice suddenly brought them back to reality.
"Hello, friends! You are looking good today! I can tell that you're new here. Have you enrolled yet? No? Perfect! Let me introduce you to our prestigious institute—the Green Leaf Academy!"
The trio didn't even get the chance to put a word in. The man who's talking to them was sweeping them up with his endorsement. And before they could say another word, somebody had already interjected.
"Psh! Green Leaf Academy? That sounds like a brand of tea," the new guy disdainfully spat.
His face then turned to them, now wearing a friendly and amiable expression, before saying,
"Don't listen to this buffoon, young friends. If you want real academic excellence, look at our very own Black Curtain Academy! I'll have you know, one of our students became a finalist at the Inter District Competition. That alone says a lot about our achievements, right?"
"Bullshit. Finalist, my ass. That student of yours barely made the cut at the 100th place. He only got in because the one that should've gotten his place became ill at the last second. Your student didn't even last for five minutes in the finals. What are you so proud of?"
Another one came, discrediting the claims of the previous guy.
"Besides, your school sounds like they're selling some furniture. And maybe they should; maybe you'd find more success there."
Now, it was this man's turn to pitch in his offer.
"I'm from the Iron Fist Academy. We are strong, dedicated, and serious. Join our ranks and you would, at the very least, become a real strong pro by the time you graduate. I'm not lying to you; we have records to support my claim. Trust me."
"Iron Fist Academy? Tch. How original! How many institutes and clubs have been named like that around here?"
"What did you say, punk!?"
"I said that you're a scam! A fraud! Yeah, you heard me! What are you going to do about it, huh?"
"Both of you are stupid."
"Says you!"
"Come on, let's go," TJ whispered to both of his friends, leaving the arguing recruiters behind.
Behind him, Lily and Sieg were still shocked but followed him anyway. Fortunately, those three were so absorbed into their conflict that they conveniently forgot about their actual purpose.
"Has it always been like this here?" Lily couldn't help but wonder.
"I wonder, too. It's like I'm at a wet market instead of the U-Belt," Sieg commented.
"The requirements to start a school, as I heard, are low," TJ stated. "From what I can recall, the main requirement is for the headmaster to be a Grandmaster Rank Pro. The rest are just paperwork and permits. Once those are submitted and confirmed, they just need to find a site, preferably in the U-Belt, and build their own school."
"So long as they passed the initial screening and they received the DOE's stamp of approval, they can begin recruiting students. That's as far as I know," TJ concluded.
And he's right. This wasn't much of a secret, not to netizens anyway.
"But why, though? I mean, I get that there are people willing to settle down and help the youth by teaching them what they know. But there are just too many here. Now, it looks like this is a marketing scheme instead," Lily questioned in a low voice, being careful not to be heard by many people.
"That's because it is," TJ replied. "It is a marketing scheme. The majority of schools around here aren't exactly schools; they're businesses. They're essentially raising their own employees, disguising their intent using 'education' as a cover."
"Pretty much every school here is like that, the Big 5 included. In fact, the Big 5 themselves are huge business empires if you think about it. But unlike the newly sprouted schools here, the Big 5 have a deeper background, history, and pockets; that's why they stand above the rest."
"They've already proven themselves to the masses. They don't need to recruit anymore since their reputation alone was enough to attract students to them."
"Technically, we're not here to learn anymore. Sure, we can if we really want to. After all, there's still so much for us to learn. But the truth is, we already know enough to function as pros. What we're here for is to join the market, build our portfolio, build social connections, and prove that we're worth their investment."
"Trying to climb higher professional ranks without the help of the universities or colleges is a dead end."