Riven eventually reached the orientation hall several minutes later, as the Academy worker escorting him stopped outside the enormous double doors before gesturing towards the entrance.
"Your orientation will begin shortly, Young Lord. You may sit wherever you please."
"Thank you."
Riven replied politely before stepping inside, as a steady stream of students kept flooding in all around him.
The orientation hall was already crowded.
Hundreds of students occupied the ascending rows of seats overlooking a large stage at the front, with conversations echoing throughout the enormous chamber as new arrivals introduced themselves to fellow students, or were reunited with old acquaintances.
However, rather than immediately searching for somewhere to sit, Riven remained near the entrance for several moments as his eyes slowly swept across the room.
Almost instinctively, he began to discern the hierarchy structure of the room, despite orientation not having even started yet.
’I see.... So the commoners and weaker families sit near the back, while the strongest sit at the front....’
He assumed, as students wearing ordinary clothing or Imperial military uniforms seemed to be occupying much of the rear seating, while those carrying recognizable noble crests appeared increasingly concentrated towards the middle and front rows.
The closer Riven looked towards the stage, the wealthier the students appeared to become, until the first few rows seemed occupied almost entirely by children belonging to families important enough that Lucius had taught him their names and crests during his lessons.
’So that’s how it is...’
Riven thought, as he quickly understood that where someone chose to sit within this hall had already become an unspoken declaration of their standing.
"Riven!"
A familiar voice suddenly called from somewhere towards his right.
Riven instinctively turned.
Several rows below the middle of the hall, Sophia was enthusiastically waving both hands towards him, with several boys and girls he did not recognize sitting around her.
"Riven! Over here!"
She called again, apparently unconcerned by the handful of students who turned towards her because of the noise.
"You can come sit with us! I’ll introduce you to my friends!"
For the briefest moment, Riven was tempted.
Sitting next to Sophia Mellow and getting to know her friends from the East was not a bad choice to make. Especially on the very first day of academy.
However, when his gaze moved from Sophia towards the students surrounding her, he immediately realized that he could not do so.
’No.’
Riven decided, as he understood that he was not like the rest of them lesser nobles.
He had entered this Academy carrying the Dawnriver name, and that meant that he needed to act according to his stature.
So despite hearing Sophia call his name once more, Riven deliberately offered no acknowledgement and continued walking down the central aisle towards the stage, as Sophia gradually lowered her hand behind him, and puffed her cheeks in annoyance.
"We thought you said he’s cool? Are you sure he even knows you?"
A female beside her muttered, as her words dampened Sophia’s mood even more.
"Yeah, you bragged so much about this Riven Dawnriver, saying he’s a perfect gentleman..... but I guess he’s just like the rest of them high nobles, isn’t he?"
Another guy commented, as the whole group kept observing Riven as he walked down the hall.
.
.
Meanwhile, Riven himself shifted his attention towards the first row, where one particular seating arrangement immediately caught his interest.
At the very centre sat a brown-haired boy approximately his height, dressed in expensive dark clothing decorated with subtle silver embroidery, while several equally well-dressed students hovered nearby.
Yet despite the hall becoming increasingly crowded, the two seats immediately beside him remained completely empty, as Riven found that arrangement considerably more interesting than the boy himself.
’Is he so repulsive that nobody wants to sit beside him?’
He wondered initially, although after another glance towards the students surrounding the first row, the answer became obvious.....
.... It wasn’t that nobody wanted to sit beside him, but rather that nobody dared.
Several seats elsewhere along the front remained occupied by children from prominent noble families, yet even they had maintained a noticeable distance from the brown-haired boy sitting confidently at the centre.
As whoever he was, it seemed like everyone around him apparently understood his standing.
Step. Step. Step.
Riven continued walking.
If there was one place within this entire orientation hall befitting someone carrying the Dawnriver name, he had just found it.
However, when he almost reached the empty seat on the first row, he was suddenly stopped by the entourage surrounding the brown haired boy.
"Sorry."
One of them said, although his expression contained very little apology.
"But we can’t allow you to sit beside Lord Gary."
Riven looked towards him without responding.
"It’s nothing personal."
The second boy added, as his gaze briefly travelled across Riven’s clothing before returning towards his face.
"Lord Gary simply dislikes the stench of lesser nobles, so you’d be better off finding somewhere else."
For several seconds, Riven merely stared at them.
Then he stepped forward.
Both boys blinked before instinctively shifting to block him again, only for Riven to continue walking as though they weren’t standing there at all.
"Hey—"
One complained, and yet Riven calmly brushed between them, as neither appeared prepared for someone to simply ignore their warning, allowing Riven to pass before they properly realized what had happened, as he walked towards the centre of the first row and lowered himself into the empty seat beside Gary.
"Mmmm?"
Gary muttered in surprise, as he slowly turned towards Riven, while behind them, his two companions looked considerably less amused by Riven’s behaviour.
"Did you not hear what we just told you?"
One demanded, as Riven leaned comfortably backwards within his seat without even bothering to turn around.
"I heard you..... And what about it?"
Riven asked, as the boy’s expression immediately darkened.
However, before he could respond, Gary suddenly laughed.
"Hahaha!"
His two companions fell silent.
Riven finally turned towards the brown-haired boy sitting beside him, finding an amused smile spreading across Gary’s face as he studied him with considerably more interest than before.
"You’re gutsy."
Gary muttered, as instead of appearing offended by Riven’s behaviour, he seemed thoroughly entertained by it.
"I like gutsy people. What’s your name?"
He asked, as Riven looked at him squarely in his brown eyes before responding.
"My name is Riven."
He replied.
"Riven Dawnriver, Son Of Drew Dawnriver."
He declared, as the expressions upon the two boys standing behind them changed almost instantly.
Their irritation disappeared as one stared towards Riven, then towards Gary, before looking back towards Riven again as though wondering whether he had somehow misheard the surname.
"Dawnriver...?"
He muttered.
Riven glanced towards him.
"Yes."
Both boys suddenly appeared considerably more interested in the floor.
"Ah..."
One awkwardly scratched the back of his head.
"Our apologies, Young Lord. We didn’t recognize you."
"No offence intended."
The second quickly added.
Riven stared at them for a moment before giving a dismissive wave.
"None taken."
That was apparently enough permission for both boys to retreat, as they quickly returned several steps behind Gary without another word.
Gary watched the entire exchange with growing amusement, before his gaze briefly dropped towards the shortened Sky Cleaver clipped against Riven’s waist.
"So..."
He muttered.
"A Dawnriver carrying around a rusty old halberd? Now that’s interesting."
Gary remarked, as his eyes lingered upon the weapon for another moment before returning towards Riven.
"I’ve actually heard quite a bit about you within noble circles recently. And I must say, I don’t think I’ve ever encountered anyone with a background quite as interesting as yours."
He leaned back comfortably within his seat.
"They say you were raised somewhere in the wilderness by a wandering Ascendant, that despite your upbringing, you’ve somehow developed impeccable manners and inherited all the guts of your father."
Gary paused, as an interesting thought arose in his mind.
"I’ve even heard that you killed a Night Panther with nothing but a wooden sword."
His smile widened slightly.
"Although, that last one I don’t particularly believe. People make up a million different stories about me too, and I’ve learned that most rumours become considerably more impressive every time they’re repeated."
Gary then extended his hand towards Riven.
"Anyway, I’m Gary Ironveil. It’s a pleasure to finally make your acquaintance."
He muttered, as Riven shook his hand in the standard noble way, before returning the favor as he said—
"Gary Ironveil... The third son of Duke Alaric Ironveil, and supposedly the most talented Ascendant produced by House Ironveil within the past two generations."
Riven began, as Gary’s eyebrows immediately rose.
"I’ve heard that you awakened your Soul Vessel at nine, reached Ember Rank before your tenth birthday and are on the cusp of advancing into Spark Rank currently."
Riven continued, recalling everything Lucius had once narrated to him regarding the younger generation of the Four Great Ducal Houses.
"They also say that you’ve never lost an official duel against anyone your age, that you once defeated three Ember Rank Ascendants simultaneously during the Western Tournament, and that your father personally gifted you an Aether Artifact from the Ironveil treasury after your victory."
Gary’s amused expression gradually widened.
"And apparently, you once became so angry after losing a game of Imperial Chess that you threw the board through a third-floor window and challenged the winner to settle the match through combat instead."
Riven paused briefly.
"Though I dismiss that as a rumor."
Gary immediately burst into laughter, as Riven finally allowed a faint smile to appear upon his face.
"And the pleasure is all mine."