Chapter 4 - Part 20 (Book 1 - Fantasy World)

Hearing the confidence in Yi's voice, Valessandria nearly clenched her teeth but was successful at stopping herself. She looked at the young lord's grin, realizing that he had spoken in such a nonchalant manner to garner a reaction from her.

Valessandria wanted to yell at the young noble for him to be more considerate of her position as she felt the eyes that drilled into her -- waiting to pounce for any excuse and sign of hostility. She felt like a mouse being eyed by a cat, playing around with her as it thought about whether to eat her.

"Bring our guest something to eat. She looks a little pale." Yi turned his head to command one of the numerous maids around them.

A wave of dizziness overcame Valessandria, witnessing the young noble act as if he was concerned about her. She wanted to yell at him about how he was the cause of her emotional distress but thought better about it. Slowly breathing in, she let the air out as she prayed for any of the gods to give her strength during such a trial.

"If you are interested in enrolling in our academy, we have numerous tiers based on the student's capabilities and life circumstances," Valessandria put a smile back on her face. However, she could already feel the corners of her mouth beginning to twitch.

Yi stared at her as he opened his mouth to eat a ruby-colored strawberry.

"The tiers are not just based on the financial situation but to help us determine what level the student should be placed. Some students may be skilled relative to their immediate peers, but they would struggle against a student who has been trained since a young age. This is why we want students to be grouped with others similar to their skill level." Valessandria struggled to not feel as though she were pouring water into an endless void as the words spilled from her mouth.

Despite feeling as though she were being pressured, Valessandria congratulated herself on being able to maintain her calm demeanor.

"I do not think that our Master needs to worry about whether others will be more skilled than him," Helania's eyes smiled as she looked at Valessandria. "You could even say our Master is one of a kind."

Valessandria raised her cup to take a sip. Feeling better, she looked at the attendant, "I have no doubt that Yi would perform well. The assessment is just a formality to make sure that students receive the best treatment at our Academy." She couldn't help but imagine the attendant as an overprotective mother who wanted only the best for their child. Unfortunately, it wasn't something foreign to her with the number of nobles she had to deal with regularly.

She was glad that none of the maids in the room directed any glares at her for her refusal to acknowledge the young lord as being above any other student. As the words flowed out of her mouth, for a moment, she worried that they would pounce on her in retribution.

"I also feel that our meeting is fortuitous since our open enrollment would be opening soon," Valessandria couldn't help but let out a laugh. "This is when we are at our busiest due to the large number of kids hoping to be accepted at Illumin's Academy. You would just need to take the assessment in order to meet the requirements." She nearly said if the young noble would be accepted after the assessment, which many fail due to the difficulty.

Yi sat in his chair, merely listening to her words. He turned to look at Helania, who shared a look with the young lord.

Helania turned her head to look at Valessandria, "Due to the sensitive nature of our Master's family, I would like to ask if attendants would be allowed to join." She smiled as she placed a hand on her bosom, "I have no doubt about the security inside the City, but our Master's family has a lineage that spans far back through the ages. With this, we would prefer having ourselves escort and tend to his needs."

Hearing the woman's demand, a cold bead of sweat when down her back. Taking a moment to gain control over herself, Valessandria asked, "How many attendants are you hoping to bring in addition to Yi? I just want to ensure you understand that an excessive cost is associated with nobles allowing even a single staff member."

The one named Queen glared at her.

Leaving the cup on the saucer, Valessandria raised the free hand and waved it at the white-haired woman. "This is not punitive in nature. We require a premium placed on the noble because Yi would be required to live inside a house instead of in the dormitories. The house size would increase depending on the number of people your Master brings. On top of that, there are a limited number of spots for such locations. The costs increase exponentially to prevent an incident of all housing units being taken."

"So it would not be an issue for me to bring my attendants," Yi raised an eyebrow. "I would also think it would not be an issue to rotate them out?" He added.

Despite having felt under pressure the entire time since entering the room, hiding such an existence as the young noble, hearing that her words didn't have any impact on Yi confused her. She didn't know if his family was extremely wealthy or not, but how he asked her made Valessandria think that money wouldn't be an issue. Thinking of the cost of tuition for a noble and how much costs increased as attendants were added, on top of the housing costs and any additional fees, created an image of a small nation's annual budget casually tossed away for convenience purposes.

"Just to be clear, based on the number of years most students require before they graduate, the annual tuition for a noble would be 625 gold coins using the current rates used by Illumin Academic City." Valessandria took a moment to remember what the current rate was for an IAC gold coin. "A single ounce of gold, which is what most coins weigh, is around 200 IAC. Compared to other nations, our currency is extremely stable." Clearing her throat, "This is just for the noble and not factoring costs such as room and board."

Valessandria looked at Helania and Queen to ensure they understood how expensive it would be for even a single person to attend their school. Depending on the size of the house, there were even nobles who would struggle to pay the tuition fee.