Lord of the Truth

Chapter 2367 The academy future

The Holy Covenant Cosmic Academy—Sector 99

"..." In profound silence and absolute stillness, with not even the slightest unnecessary movement disturbing the atmosphere, more than twenty people sat side by side in perfect order, maintaining identical postures as though every one of them had been frozen in place while patiently waiting for the exact same moment.

Then, in an instant, one of them opened his eyes and said, "Come on, hurry." Without wasting even a heartbeat, he sprang to his feet and immediately ran toward a particular direction, his movements swift and practiced as though he had repeated this routine countless times before.

Whoosh Whoosh Another person, who had been sitting pressed closely against his side, also stood up the very next moment, and the two dashed away together in the same direction through a dimly lit corridor whose faint illumination barely reached its distant end, leaving everyone else behind still seated exactly as before without a single person reacting or changing position.

"Where have you two been? The recording is about to run out!!" A girl wearing a pair of oversized glasses greeted them the instant they arrived, not even giving them the chance to speak before she swiftly tossed two identical discs toward them with practiced precision.

Tak Tak The two quickly caught the discs without hesitation, then simultaneously closed their eyes and began injecting their soul sense into them, carefully recording everything within for nearly a full minute without uttering a single word.

Then they opened their eyes once more and handed the discs back to the girl.

"Here you go, a complete memory recording covering the required half-hour."

"Mhm." The girl nodded in satisfaction before gesturing behind her. "Now get back to your positions, and don't be late again!"

She did not wait for either of them to respond or even greet her. Instead, she immediately turned around and continued down the long corridor until she finally emerged from it, where the gentle rays of sunlight softly fell across her beautiful face. Without slowing her pace, she continued walking until she reached what appeared to be the area situated behind the platform.

She opened two cabinets filled with neatly arranged discs that had been carefully organized in advance, then placed each disc into a different cabinet according to its proper sequence before gently closing both doors again. Only then did she let out a relieved sigh.

"Phew~ Another half hour has been secured without any problems."

She then quietly tiptoed forward, carefully stretching her neck just a little so she could secretly peek at what was happening in front of the platform without drawing anyone's attention.

"Eek!"

Her blood instantly froze in her veins, and she hurriedly pulled herself back in alarm.

There were no fewer than ten thousand students and instructors looking directly toward her.

"Wooooah!"

"My heavens!"

Baaam Baaam Bang

"Haha, don't take your eyes off the screen on the right! Lord Hedrick is the best!!"

"Look, look! Lady Renara destroyed a massive vessel!!"

"How could she possibly have done that? She only pointed at the vessel, and it started cracking apart all by itself. Maybe the Grade-4 Supremacy Note vessel activated some special ability!"

"She definitely did it herself. She's incredible!!"

Even though nearly ten thousand students had gathered together to watch the enormous screens broadcasting the battle, there was not the slightest sign of crowding or disorder anywhere throughout the plaza.

Some were comfortably lying across the soft grassy fields, some were embracing floating bubbles suspended peacefully in midair, while others had chosen to sit inside gigantic flowers or within the wide open beaks of enormous birds that had clearly been prepared as unique seating areas.

The plaza had obviously been designed to accommodate a far greater number of students—and even their accompanying families if necessary—with vast amounts of open space still left unused...

Yet today, it was empty.

And that was entirely because of Morgana's newly implemented policies.

The Cosmic Holy Covenant Academy, which was now recognized as the parent academy while simultaneously serving as the Supreme Council of the Star Academies, the ultimate source of educational materials, accumulated knowledge, and practical expertise, the headquarters responsible for training instructors and hosting meetings for academy directors from every affiliated academy... Morgana had firmly decided that such an institution would no longer be treated like any ordinary academy.

She issued a decree stating that it would primarily remain open to the descendants of the Burton Family and the descendants of the Cosmic Elder, with only those two groups being admitted freely and without limitation or restriction. If any Behemoth wished to send their own children to study there instead, those children would first have to undergo a series of examinations to determine whether they truly deserved admission and whether they possessed the qualifications required to become first row scions.

As a result, only the exceptionally talented and widely renowned children of the Behemoths were left with even a chance of enrolling in the academy.

As for the rest, they were distributed among other Cosmic Academies throughout Sectors 99 and 100, while additional newly established academies had been built within their own distant sectors so they could continue receiving the same education and training without all having to gather in a single location.

And anyone who ignored the obvious cheers of admiration, the overflowing excitement filling the atmosphere, and the constant bursts of celebration echoing across the plaza, choosing instead to carefully observe the students themselves, would soon notice something rather unusual...

"Look over there in the background behind Lady Renara. The fleet's movement there looks suspicious." A young man with blond hair and unwavering eyes began carefully analyzing the situation displayed on the enormous screen. "Isn't the whole purpose of battle formations supposed to be protecting the mothership above everything else?"

"The Gen-4 Supremacy Note vessels is positioned at the very front where it's completely exposed to enemy attacks, while the Gen-4 Flood Note vessels are following directly behind them, and finally the Gen-4 Destruction Note vessels have been stationed at the rear. What an unusual formation... What do you guys think about it?"

"Judging from the overall battlefield conditions and the surrounding movements, I think this formation was intentionally designed to use the Gen-4 Supremacy Note vessels as bait, while keeping the Flood Note vessels ready to move forward and shield them if they become the target of a large-scale assault, with the Gen-4 Destruction Note vessels remaining safely at the rear so they can function as the fleet's true offensive force when the opportunity appears. What a ruthless formation... A great many Gen-4 Flood Note vessels will probably be sacrificed in the process."

"But under hostile conditions like these, that same formation will ultimately save far more lives than it costs."

"Hehe, today's your day, Burton Family!"

Off to the side, a girl confidently placed both hands on her waist as she looked toward the cheering crowd with an amused smile.

"I'm certain some of our friends here won't be getting any sleep tonight after witnessing all of this!"

"Hehe." Beside her, several human girls exchanged glances before laughing together, clearly sharing the same thought.

"Haha, please don't make fun of us." One of the young men pointed toward his own chest with apparent modesty that was completely betrayed by the unmistakable arrogance hidden within his expression. "We still don't know who's orchestrating these events behind the scenes or what their true objective actually is."

"Pfft—please stop pretending to be humble." The girl stuck her tongue out slightly before rolling her eyes. "Those are the Note Fleets, Rapid Intervention, and Spectral Shadow, and that's Renara, who serves under Marshal Caesar, while over there is Hedrick, who's rumored to work directly under Lord Robin himself. Who besides Lord Robin could possibly be responsible for all of this? Especially when both the Sorcerer and the Cursed have openly been his enemies for such a long time."

"I honestly don't know what to tell you." The young man shrugged with a relaxed smile before turning his attention back toward the broadcasts, a sense of pride openly dancing within his eyes as he continued watching. "Lord Robin does whatever he wants. The only thing we can really do is watch carefully and learn from it."

"Hmph." The girl pursed her lips in slight annoyance before turning toward her siblings with an unconvinced expression. "Where exactly is that old man anyway? Why doesn't he ever do amazing things like this? I want to show those Burtons that we're no less impressive than they are. Our father is strong too!"

"Do amazing things?" One of her brothers shook his head while letting out a laugh filled with obvious self-mockery. "It's already been years since the path allowing us to return to our homeland was opened, and not a single new sibling has joined us since then either. Do you think... he might have actually forgotten about us?"

"I honestly wouldn't be surprised if he really has forgotten us." Another voice sighed helplessly. "I just hope Lady Morgana doesn't decide to charge us academy tuition. I don't have anything at all!"

"...Maybe he's busy making more siblings so he can send over one truly serious batch all at once instead of sending them little by little?"

"....."

"We seriously need to have a proper conversation with him about birth control."

"....."