Chapter 357: The Stage Is Yours

[Ruvian’s POV]

With Ophelia now standing on the stage, the ceremony moved forward without wasting any more time. One by one, the remaining scholars were called, each stepping forward to receive their bracelet and medal directly from the Chancellor herself.

Fifth place went to Natalia Crystavos with 8,100 points and an additional 15,000 tokens. Rosalin Varion followed in fourth with 8,600 points and 17,500 tokens, while Calyra Arcanis claimed third with 8,800 points and 20,000 tokens.

Then came second place.

"Scholar Silvena D’Elvoire, with a final score of 10,100 points and an additional reward of 25,000 tokens!"

A louder round of applause swept through the hall as Silvena made her way onto the stage. After receiving her rewards from Ophelia, her name joined the others on the wall behind them.

==========

5th: Natalia Crystavos (8,100Pts + 15K Tokens)

4th: Rosalin Varion (8,600Pts + 17.5K Tokens)

3rd: Calyra Arcanis (8,800Pts + 20K Tokens)

2nd: Silvena D’Elvoire (10,100Pts + 25K Tokens)

==========

Taking a deep breath, Ruvian rolled his shoulders, stretched both arms above his head, then bent slightly from side to side as though he were about to begin a training session.

Ophelia slowly turned toward him.

Her eyes narrowed.

—"What are you doing?"

—"Warming up."

Ruvian answered with complete seriousness.

—"My name is about to be called, and you’re planning to send me there through one of your spells, so I figured I should warm up a little."

Ruvian casually rotated his neck from side to side.

—"I’d rather not stumble onto the stage from spatial dizziness the moment I appear."

*****

The host waited until Silvena had returned to her seat before stepping forward once more, and this time, the excitement written across his face was impossible to conceal.

"And now, ladies and gentlemen, only one position remains, first place in this year’s Individual Excellence Awards. For our final scholar, I will admit that even I had to check the numbers more than once before walking onto this stage tonight."

The host let out a short laugh before shaking his head, genuine disbelief still lingering across his expression.

"Throughout the island test, this scholar tore through the competition like a one-man powerhouse, amassing points at a pace that, quite frankly, stopped looking reasonable after a certain point. And I am not exaggerating when I say that his individual score alone surpassed the total score accumulated by the entire squad currently sitting in second place."

Even after saying it aloud, the host briefly glanced back toward the ranking wall, as though some part of him still refused to believe the number displayed there.

"For some context, something similar happened two years ago, when a scholar shattered the academy record by collecting 15,000 individual points during this very test."

The host paused for a moment before slowly raising his eyebrows.

"That record has remained untouched ever since. But tonight, not only has it finally been broken, our first-place scholar went several steps further and tore straight past the 20,000-point threshold."

A wave of disbelief swept through the hall, yet the host himself looked no less stunned than the scholars staring up at him.

"More than twenty thousand individual points, ladies and gentlemen. At that point, I honestly do not know what else I am supposed to say about it."

By now, the entire hall had grown restless beneath the suffocating silence. Hundreds of eyes remained fixed on the host, as though silently demanding that he stop dragging it out and reveal the name already.

The tension was almost unbearable.

At this point, nearly half the hall already knew exactly whose name was about to be called. The rest were either still clinging to some other possibility or quietly praying that there had somehow been an error in the final count.

Yet as the host slowly raised the crystal toward his mouth once more, even those last scraps of hope began to fall apart.

The host let the silence stretch for one final second before his expression sharpened.

Then, his voice rang across the Grand Magisterial Hall.

"From Squad 69, the first Class E scholar ever to rise to first place in the Individual Excellence Awards, the new holder of the academy’s individual point record, and the new benchmark against which every future scholar will be measured..."

His words lingered over the hall for a brief moment.

"...On behalf of the Academy, I hereby call upon you to step forward and claim your place upon this stage — Scholar Ruvian Castelor!!!!"

Then, turning toward the central aisle leading directly to the podium, the host swept one hand toward the empty path.

His voice rose higher, no longer merely carrying through the Grand Magisterial Hall, but crashing across it like the toll of some distant bell that announced the beginning of the new era.

In that instant, every gaze within the hall turned toward where the host pointed, their hearts caught between awe and disbelief that seemed almost impossible to reconcile.

Then, the space where the host had pointed suddenly distorted — twisted as mana spread across the empty path.

At the same time, every shadow within the hall seemed to stretch toward that single spot, gliding across the floor as though heralding someone’s arrival. Even the lights above dimmed, leaving the Grand Magisterial Hall darker than it had been only moments before.

From within the swirling darkness, a figure gradually emerged, his night-black hair neatly kept with only a few strands falling across his forehead. His cold dark blue eyes were penetrating.

The moment Ruvian fully appeared, everyone tensed, staring at him with solemn expressions.

[You have received +10,000 Plot Points!]

They all were thinking the same thing.

How could a mere first-year scholar carry this much pressure around him?

Ruvian could feel every gaze resting upon him, yet none of them carried the same weight they once had, because his name now commanded genuine influence within the academy.

Whether they admired him or despised him, there was no longer anyone in that hall who could dismiss him as merely another Class E scholar.

Ignoring every gaze fixed upon him, Ruvian kept his expression calm as he took his first step toward the stage, his footsteps echoing steadily through the silent hall.

While Ruvian continued walking, unbeknownst to him, several quiet conversations had already begun spreading through the nearby tables.

"Hey, come to think of it... if he really accumulated that many individual points, don’t you think the rumor about him defeating twenty scholars by himself wasn’t an exaggeration after all?"

"Well, you were the only one who doubted it. I already knew he had done something like that. After all, we saw it with our own eyes when the dots surrounding him on the bounty map started disappearing one after another. What else could that possibly mean?"

The first scholar fell silent for a moment before lowering his voice.

"So... does that mean we can also assume he defeated Julian Rozenberg?"

The scholar beside him suddenly went quiet.

His expression stiffened slightly as he glanced toward Ruvian’s back.

"I guess..."

Similar whispers continued spreading through the hall as Ruvian approached the stage. However, the moment he stepped onto the platform, those conversations quickly faded away.

The hall fell silent once more.

Ruvian stopped before Ophelia, who was already waiting for him with the medal and silver bracelet prepared in her hands.

Without saying anything unnecessary, Ophelia stepped forward and carefully placed the medal around his neck before fastening the silver bracelet around his wrist.

The host waited until the Chancellor had finished placing the bracelet around Ruvian’s wrist before stepping forward once more.

"Before we officially conclude the Individual Excellence Awards, there is one final tradition reserved exclusively for the scholar who claims first place."

He turned toward Ruvian with a professional smile.

"As the highest-ranked scholar of this year’s island test, Scholar Ruvian Castelor will now be given the opportunity to address everyone gathered here tonight. There is no fixed subject you are required to speak about, so you may use this moment however you see fit."

The host paused briefly, almost as though he had finished.

Then, just as Ruvian prepared to step toward the podium, the man raised one finger.

"Ah, and there is one more privilege I should mention."

Ruvian stopped.

He already knew what it was.

The host’s smile widened slightly.

"By academy tradition, the scholar who places first in the Individual Excellence Awards is also permitted to make one formal request of the academy. Naturally, the request must remain within the academy’s authority and reasonable ability to fulfill."

A few murmurs immediately rose from the tables below. The host allowed them to continue for only a moment before adding calmly.

"However, there will be no separate petition tonight. Whatever you wish to request must be included within your speech and declared before everyone present."

Hearing that, Ruvian simply nodded.

’Got it.’

The host then stepped away from the podium and gestured toward it with an open hand.

"The stage is yours, Scholar Ruvian."

Ophelia gave Ruvian one final glance, a faint smile still resting on her face.

Without saying anything, she turned and descended the steps alongside the host, leaving Ruvian alone at the center of the platform.

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[Chapter 357: The Stage Is Yours]

Plot Points = 299,000