บท 7: Chapter 5

That day was the first time I went back home in two years. When I arrived, father looked at me and with one glance he smiled and said: "You've gotten stronger but you have ways to go before you can beat me. With that, tomorrow you are going to the mage academy. Find your sister and bring her back home."

With a smirk on my face I said: "Yeah."

-"You have to promise me two things before you leave."

-"…"

-"You cannot come back home without your sister and no matter what, do not attempt to bring you mother back to life."

I was caught off guard as my eyes widened but I managed to composed myself. I agreed and the next morning I was off. I carried a small black backpack and 2 large duffel bags. In one of them, I had my two weapons and a few items of clothing. The other duffel bag had money in it. I had told the old man to hold off on paying me but he seemed to insist. I wonder why he insists on staying in that village even though he was a qualified master blacksmith. Whenever I brought up the topic, he'd either shrug it off. In the end, I choked it up to him getting old and tired of the busy life of the city. I did not have any reason to leave the village before so this was the first time outside it. I had to walk a little over 20 kilometers before I got to the train station. The walls were full of color unlike the brown walls I was used to. It was a small station but it looked futuristic. There were drones flying around and one came a scanned my face and went on as if I was never there. I paid my fare and I got on the bullet train. I was in the main city known as Staridge by 2 pm.

The Staridge train station was massive and it had holographic maps at certain locations you could go and look at. It maintained the futuristic feel that the other train station had. The maps available were of the entire city so the first thing I needed to do was to get a phone so that it would be easier to navigate and it was an important commodity in major cities. The old man said you used a phone to do almost anything such as purchase things, navigate around, contact people and depending on social standing, it allowed a select few to enter distinct areas. People watched videos on their cell phones and even took images with it. Phones could control drones and almost everyone had one and it followed them everywhere they went.

First off I went to the bank and deposited all the money I had which was a pretty hefty sum since I worked as the old man's apprentice for a whole two years without spending the money he paid me. The lady at the bank counter who serviced me was so shocked at the money I had on me.

-"May I have your name sir." She said in a panic

-"Reiji Hashimoto."

She entered my name into the system and she looked at me once again in shock.

-"We already have an account under your name. Just to confirm your identity, would you mind if we drew a blood sample?"

Well they may have mixed me up with someone else so I understand them wanting to confirm my identity but one thing worries me. The color of my blood is more red-purplish in color than the normal red tint. They drew a small blood sample. Seconds later they took in the money I had on hand and I was given matte black card and a smartphone. It all looked new and amazing to me. I quickly checked the bank balance to ensure if things were alright but to my surprise, there were more zeros than what I had anticipated. Where did all this money come from?

I quickly asked: "I did not hand in this amount, was there an error made?"

-"No, sir. No mistake was made, your details are already in the system and this amount was already under your name." she quickly responded,

-"Are you sure?" I responded inquisitively.

-"Yes sir. Would you like to see your transaction history?"

-"Yes please."

A quick beep rang out from my new phone and in it was a message showing my previous bank transactions and it was only 1 transaction. It was a 4 million unit transfer from a sealed account 14 years ago. I looked up and enquired once again

-"Is there another Hashimoto in your banking records?"

-"That information cannot be shared as it is our company policy to keep our client's information confidential." She replied in a calm tone and a smile.

She was convinced that the money was mine and the DNA test to prove it but how did I end up on their system? For now, I will focus on getting into the academy and worry about the rest later. I was still overwhelmed by the number of zeros I had in my new account. For a fourteen year old to have so much money was just crazy. If I had known I already had so much money, I would have left most of it with father but I will be sure to send some to him once I am sure I passed the entrance exams.

The bank offered me a free phone which saved me the time to go looking for one. Next stop I had to get new clothes since shorts and t-shirt would not do. I stood out too much and attention was one thing I did not like. I opened the GPS on the phone and headed to the nearest clothing shop. The shop was so huge that I thought it was a mall at first but it was just a single shop which sold almost everything. As soon as I walked in the door, a beeping sound played melodically. I was taken back a bit as I did not know what was going on.

Seconds later, a man in gaudy looking clothes came downstairs to where I was. He must have been the shop owner because when came down the employees all seemed to bow. I found it strange that the owner would come down to attend to while he had enough employees that could attend to me.

-"Welcome young master to my humble store, would the young master like anything to drink before he decides on what he wants to purchase?"

With those words he quickly guided me to a seating area.

-"Water will suffice" I quickly responded as I took a seat.

The couches were one of the softest I had ever felt. The white couches fit the total aesthetic of the entire room. The owner quickly snapped his fingers and an employee walked in with ice cold water. He gestured toward the table and the employee placed the water and glass on the table. The employee quickly bowed and a left the room. Once the employees saw the phone and card I was carrying, they just called the owner and they made me unnecessarily open some kind of account. The whole thing was a drag but at least the clothes were really nice so I guess the whole hassle was worth it. They even allowed me to wear the clothes as I got out so I grabbed a collarless long sleeve black shirt which ended just a few centimeters above my knees, shorts coupled with leggings. I bought sneakers too and grabbed a long collarless grey jacket to complete the look. Before I left the shop, they handed me a set of keys and told me that's where I would be staying. They ordered a car around as I came out of the shop which was really amazing. They would charge me 15000 units a month for the rent and services such as laundry, cleaning and driving services. With the money I had on me, I would live this life for 33 years without any worries.

I had not been in a car before so it was an amazing experience. The driver asked me where I would like to go and I replied and told him to drop me off at the Staridge mage academy and a few moments later we were off.

The car's interior was amazing. It looked like the one I saw in a magazine which they called a Mercedes. It was about 18.30 in the evening. Exactly 30 minutes before the official entrance exams started as I arrived at the main gate of the academy. The sun was setting and a lot of people stood at the gate. Most of them were staring as I approached which made me uncomfortable but shrugged it off and looked the part as I came out of the car. The driver asked if he should wait of leave but I had no idea when I would be leaving so I told him I'd call him. He tapped my phone with his and his numbers were saved on my phone and he was off. The car's tail lights were mesmerizing I could not help but stare as it left. Cool.

As I turned around, I had a few distasteful stares and some were all dreamy but there was one distinct look which struck me. A boy who looked the same age I was. He was grinning at me like a long lost friend. His was the only friendly face around so I made sure to walk towards him. Maybe he could provide useful information.

As I was about to get to where the grinning boy stood, a girl who look a few years older than I was stood on a platform which had suddenly materialized. The platform was within the academy's fence which left us still standing outside the academy grounds. Hovering above her were two drone speakers. She cleared her throat and everyone immediately stopped what they were doing and faced her direction.

"Welcome to the 195th Staridge mage academy entrance exams. I am one of the Elder 15 of this country's mage academy."...