CHAPTER 337 PRIVILEGE OF THE TOP 1

"Silvanus, you haven't heard the news yet, have you? You ranked first in this year's selection! The new student with the most outstanding results will be announced and praised across the entire continent- you're famous now!"

Ariana was so excited that she eagerly explained everything to Silvanus.

Hearing that, Silvanus nodded. He felt happy inside, though his body was still weak, so he couldn't really express it.

The dream he just had didn't fade away like the others. Even after waking up, it lingered in his mind, smoldering quietly in his heart as if urging him to do something.

Silvanus had never felt such a strange emptiness before.

"Silvanus, are you alright?"

At that moment, Matthew suddenly spoke up, taking Silvanus's hand with a worried expression.

Silvanus glanced at him and shook his head. "I'm fine."

He quickly gathered himself a little, looked at Matthew and Ariana, and asked, "You two got into Lumina as well, right?"

Ariana immediately nodded excitedly. "Of course! It's all thanks to you, Silvanus! The opening ceremony is tomorrow-you might even get to give a speech!"

Matthew also nodded and said softly, "Good thing you woke up in time."

When Silvanus heard he might be on stage, he couldn't help but feel a spark of energy return. He was destined to shine on that stage-he couldn't afford to look exhausted!

Just then, he realized the egg that had followed him throughout the

competition area wasn't there anymore.

He turned toward Matthew and Ariana and asked, "Did either of you egg beside me?"

see

The two exchanged glances. Matthew shook his head. "No. Why? Are you hungry or something, Silvanus?"

Before Silvanus could answer, Matthew hurriedly stood up, saying anxiously, "I'll-I'll go to the cafeteria and get you something to eat."

"Are you sure you're okay talking like that?" Silvanus couldn't help but

comment.

Matthew shook his head repeatedly and dashed out of the room.

Ariana couldn't help but laugh as she watched him leave. "Matthew looks just like your little wife, haha."

Leaning back against the bed, Silvanus glanced at her and said, "Matthew doesn't like that kind of joke. Don't say that about him."

Ariana froze for a moment, then quickly nodded. She realized that even though Silvanus seemed indifferent on the surface, he actually cared quite a bit about his friend, Matthew.

However, it made sense. If Silvanus didn't truly consider Matthew a friend, he wouldn't have gone out of his way to help him during the competition. In fact, Matthew had even ranked within the top 2000, which meant that even if they hadn't found the door back then, Matthew could still have entered Lumina thanks to Silvanus's support.

Only she... only she had truly received help-help that, to Silvanus, might have been nothing more than a coincidence.

"Thank you, Silvanus."

Silvanus turned to see Ariana smiling brightly at him, her dimples showing, her adorable face looking even softer and more endearing.

He simply waved his hand, not paying it much mind. That afternoon, upon hearing that Silvanus had regained

consciousness, the headmaster came to visit personally. He expressed how fortunate the continent was to have a genius like Silvanus appear. As for Silvanus's privileges, he would be the one representing the new students to give a speech at the opening ceremony, receive a private dorm room, and be granted a full scholarship for the entire duration of his studies at Lumina.

Ariana and Matthew, standing to the side and listening, could only widen their eyes in astonishment and admiration.

They knew that the top student would undoubtedly receive a reward -especially someone as talented as Silvanus-but they hadn't

expected the prize to be this grand!

Heavens, Lumina's tuition wasn't cheap, even though the academy allowed students to take on debt.

After the second year, however, students were required to have enough ability to register as Hunters-joining expeditions to hunt Shadow Creatures or seek out rare materials in exchange for payment. More than half of their earnings would be used to repay their previous tuition debt.

The income of a Hunter was never low, but the danger was immense.

Many students, even by their second year, ended up dying during missions.

This kind of reward... was something ordinary people, and even an abandoned child of a noble family, couldn't help but envy.

It was just... so good.

Matthew watched as the usually cold headmaster smiled and spoke warmly to Silvanus, a flicker of light dancing in his eyes.

Silvanus was always like that-living effortlessly, moving through life as if he were destined to. He was exactly like the "main characters" in the countless heroic tales Matthew used to read back at the orphanage.

His future would only continue to shine brighter because he was so

capable.

If... if only that reward could have been his instead... Matthew knew he craved it, and he also knew how pathetic that thought was.

That night, Silvanus had to leave the infirmary and return to his

dormitory.

Seeing Matthew nervously twisting his fingers at the side, Silvanus lifted his chin slightly and said, "If anyone dares to bully you, just tell

me, alright?"

Matthew looked up and nodded quickly, his light brown hair swaying with the motion.

The crooked glasses he'd worn during the competition were gone

now, revealing his clear, lake-like eyes.

No matter how he looked at it, Silvanus couldn't help but feel that

Matthew was the type to get bullied.

He just hoped Matthew wouldn't be foolish enough to endure it all on his own.

Following the directions he'd been given, Silvanus spent nearly

twenty minutes walking to the dormitory area located behind Lumina's main castle.

He couldn't use magic to speed up his pace either-the academy

strictly prohibited the use of magic on campus except during lessons or in exceptional circumstances.

From what Matthew had told him earlier, their dormitories were

utterly different.

In Matthew's building, each room housed up to four students, and the space wasn't huge. Silvanus's dorm, on the other hand, was for single occupancy.

As he walked along the path toward his dormitory, he noticed quite a

few people glancing his way, whispering and pointing at him. Most of

them wore fine, elegant clothing and carried themselves with the air of confident nobility-clearly, his background was worlds apart from

theirs. This dormitory was a luxurious residence reserved for nobles. And now, a commoner was "mixing in" among them...

No need to imagine it-those aristocratic brats, with their noses in

the air, were probably fuming inside.

But so what? There was nothing they could do to him anyway.

Silvanus walked with a spring in his step, unconcerned.

Still, when he finally saw the size of his room, he couldn't help but be

stunned.

It was huge-complete with a living room, two bedrooms, and a

private bathroom. The bedroom featured a bed, a wardrobe, a vanity, and a desk. The living room had a sofa and a coffee table, a large bookshelf, and a reading chair. From the balcony, he could even see several empty flower pots waiting to be filled.

Was this really going to be his residence from now on? Silvanus had slept outdoors more times than he could count, and he

was certain-this was the largest room he had ever seen in his life. Overjoyed, he looked around the room before plopping down on the sofa. It was so soft that his body bounced slightly upon landing. Was there really something this comfortable in the world?

It might have seemed childish, but Silvanus couldn't help himself-he

jumped up and down on the couch a couple of times, feeling absurdly happy.

"I should start preparing for tomorrow's speech," he said to himself. As someone who considered himself a perfectionist, there was no way he'd allow his shining moment to have even the slightest flaw!