The next day…
Ethan and Agnes traveled to the railway station together.
Agnes decided to accompany Ethan. Knowing her grandson, she was afraid that the latter would run away and not board the train.
The teenage boy knew that if he did something funny, the incident that happened yesterday would happen again. His bum was still aching from the relentless onslaught that it received, and he decided to be obedient for now… and run away later!
‘Hah! Grandma, do you really think that you will have your way?’ Ethan laughed internally. ‘The moment I get into that Academy, I will definitely take the return train back. Hahaha! Just you wait for my triumphant return!’
Agnes was not aware of Ethan’s stupid plan, and just dragged him to the platform. If she knew what her good for nothing grandson was planning, she would definitely tie him to the train to ensure that he learned a lesson he wouldn’t forget.
“Go, make sure to call me once you arrive at the Academy,” Agnes said as she patted Ethan’s head. “I know that you disagree with me, but that is understandable.
“Ethan, the world is big. Far bigger than you can ever imagine. For you to stay cooped up on the farm is a waste of your good looks. How can my handsome and awesome grandson not accomplish anything in his lifetime?”
Ethan looked at his grandma with a smile. He felt touched when the old hag called him handsome and awesome. Because of that, he decided to stay in the Academy for two days, before going back home.
“Here is your ticket,” Agnes said as she handed a red envelope to him. “Just ask one of the conductors for directions if you are unsure about what train to ride.”
“Okay. thank you, Grandma,” Ethan replied and kissed Agnes’ right cheek.
Agnes smiled and kissed her grandson’s forehead. “When you return, make sure to bring home a beautiful lady. I’ll make sure to take good care of her.”
Ethan rolled his eyes before waving his hand to bid Agnes farewell. Clearly, his grandma still hadn’t given up on hooking Ethan up with a beautiful girl, so she could hold her great grandchild.
As Ethan walked towards one of the conductors in the station, he saw something running towards him out of the corner of his eye.
Before he could even react, he was pushed down abruptly, and fell on his butt, which made him cry out in pain because his bum, that had been repeatedly kicked yesterday by his grandma, had suffered another beating before he could even leave his hometown behind.
Enduring the pain, he glared at the one responsible for the incident and gave them a piece of his mind.
“Hey! watch where you’re goi–” Ethan wasn’t able to continue his shouting as his gaze landed on the person that bumped into him just now.
A young lady with long, silver-blonde hair slowly stood up from the floor and glanced in his direction. This glance only lasted for a brief moment before she picked up one of the small red envelopes on the ground and hurried away. 𝗈𝒱𝗅xt.𝗰𝓞𝐌
“You could have at least said sorry,” Ethan grumbled before picking up the red envelope lying on the ground beside him. “Hah… What a bad start.”
The young teenager sighed before approaching one of the uniformed staff members in the train station to ask for directions.
“Excuse me, Sir,” Ethan said as he looked at the name of the train he was going to ride in his ticket. “This is my first time in the train station and I was wondering if you can help me find the platform for the… Brynhildr Express.”
The middle-aged man looked at the teenage boy with a smile before pointing to his right side.
“Just head straight until you see a black door that is being guarded by two men wearing black uniforms,” the middle-aged man said. “Show them your ticket, and they will allow you to pass through the door. You better hurry up. There’s just fifteen minutes before your train departs.”
“Thank you, sir!” Ethan bowed his head to thank the middle-aged man before running in the direction he had pointed earlier.
Ethan might be reluctant to go to the Academy, but since his Grandma asked him to go, he would at least make sure that he stayed there for a day or two before returning home.
It didn’t take long before he saw the two men that the train staff was talking about.
“Show me your ticket,” one of the men stated as soon as Ethan tried to walk past them.
“Only the students of the Academy are allowed past this point,” the other man said as he eyed the teenage boy with a critical gaze.
The two men had intimidating looks on their faces, which made Ethan subconsciously take a step back out of fear.
Clearly, they were not the friendly type, so he decided to not mess around anymore and handed them his ticket obediently.
“VIP Room Ticket?” one of the men arched an eyebrow after seeing the ticket that Ethan had handed to him. “Very well, you may pass. Make sure to only enter the compartment that is designated on your ticket. Do you understand?”
“Y-Yes, Sir,” Ethan stuttered.
“Go,” the other man said. “The train will be departing soon.”
Ethan nodded his head and entered the door as he was told.
After entering the door, he went down a flight of stairs leading underground. Since he was in a hurry, he didn’t have time to appreciate the unique design of the stairwell, which didn’t match the setting of an old train station.
“Welcome to Brynhildr Express,” a young lady with light-brown hair said with a smile as soon as Ethan walked towards her. “The Train will be departing soon. So, please show me your ticket so you can enter the train.”
Ethan did as he was told and showed her his ticket.
“VIP Compartment No.69.” The young lady’s smile became brighter when she found out that she was dealing with a VIP student. “You can board the train now. Please, allow me to help you with your luggage.”
“Thank you.” Ethan smiled back at the kind young lady who was being very helpful to him.
A few minutes later, he sat inside a very spacious, and classy compartment, which made him wonder if his Grandma had prepared all of this beforehand to ensure that he wouldn’t try to run away.
“Grandma really loves me,” Ethan said softly. “Fine. I’ll stay in the academy for a week before going home.”
While Ethan was enjoying the comfort of his VIP Compartment, the silver-haired beauty that he had bumped earlier was arguing with the two men that were guarding the door that led to the Brynhildr Express.
“Young lady, do not make things difficult for us,” one of the men said as he barred the door with his body. “Only those with the right ticket can pass through this door.”
“But, this is the ticket that my Aunt gave me,” the teenage beauty argued. “Are you telling me that Professor Ophelia made a mistake?”
The other man glanced at his partner for his opinion, but his partner only shook his head.
“Sorry young Miss, but rules are rules,” one of the men said. “It will be best if you just…”
Just before the men could tell the young lady to go home, a middle-aged lady called out to her from behind.
“Alice? Why are you still here?”
“Aunt! You’re finally here. They won’t let me ride the train.”
Professor Ophelia, one of the Professors of Brynhildr Academy frowned before looking at the two men that were preventing her niece from boarding her train.
“Gentlemen, is there some kind of problem?” Professor Ophelia asked.
One of the men gave an awkward smile before bowing respectfully to the professor.
“Professor, did you perhaps make a mistake when you gave your niece the ticket?” the man asked. “Her ticket isn’t meant for the Brynhildr Express. It’s meant for the Saint Claire Express.”
“Excuse me?” Professor Ophelia asked back before taking the ticket from her niece to take a better look at it.
A glance was enough to tell her that the ticket was indeed meant for a different train, which made her frown.
“Sorry, Professor, but rules are rules,” one of the men said. “I really can’t make an exception, even if it is you, Professor.”
The words of the guard broke Professor Ophelia out of her daze, which made her nod her head in understanding.
“Sorry about this,” Professor Ophelia replied with a smile. “It seems that my age is catching up to me. I’ll personally take my niece to the Academy. Alice, let’s go.”
Professor Ophelia held her niece’s hand and walked away from the two men at a brisk pace.
She might be getting old, but she was certain that she gave Alice the VIP ticket that would allow her to have a comfortable journey to the Academy.
When they were out of anyone’s sight, the professor summoned a wand out of thin air and waved it around them, creating a dome of invisibility, preventing anyone from seeing, or hearing the things that they were about to discuss.
“What happened?” Professor Ophelia asked. “Tell me how you suddenly got the wrong ticket.”
Alice, who had kept her silence since she was taken away by her Aunt raised her head to answer her question.
A while later, Professor Ophelia’s face became pale when she heard her niece’s explanation.
It was also at that moment when the faint whistle of a departing train was heard, making her face become paler.
“We have to hurry!” Professor Ophelia said as she grabbed Alice’s hand in order to leave the Train Station. “We must get to the Academy before the Ordinarius is screened by the Scrying Crystal.”
Professor Ophelia knew that if the Gatekeeper were to discover that a normal teenage boy had managed to infiltrate the Wizard Academy, that teenager would definitely suffer a fate that was worse than death.
———-