136 John Archibald Willis Henderson Goodman The Third

"You have been selected from countless other geniuses to be a member of the main campus of our great university."

"I hope by the end of these five years of studying you will turn out to be fine cultivation warriors and fight for the glory of the Earth Federation."

"This academy was established on a dream by our noble founder John Archibald Willis Henderson Goodman the third and then later built by his son John Archibald Willis Henderson Goodman the fourth…." 

Sophie was feeling bored out of her mind while the principal continued to talk on and on about the rich history of the school.

Why did every assembly have to be so freaking long?!

She was currently sitting down next to her friends in a vast open field while the face of the principal was projected onto a holographic screen floating above them.

Principal Malik was an elderly Mendolesa man with a firm chest full of muscles and a lean yet toned body. 

His fur colour was a bit unusual for the typical Mendolesa as it was a soft white colour that matched his scarlet red eyes.

Mendolesa males were characterized by having slightly bulkier bodies, shorter tails, and dark fur while females typically had slender bodies, long tails, and a lighter fur colouration.

The sun shone down fiercely on those listening to his speech on the field and beads of sweat could be seen running down the backs of the white uniform of the elite class students.

Sophie still found it to be an interesting experience being in a college where the majority of students were not human.

Under the integration policy of the Earth Federation, the four great universities were required to have at least a thirty percent population of students outside of their race enrolled on campus.

There were about one thousand students packed on the grass listening to the principal but only a tiny fraction of those would be in the elite class.

Zrudread University would only hold one general assembly for the freshman students and then there would be no more.

This would also mark the beginning of the official interactions and competitions between those in the elite class and the students in the regular classes.

No class was mandatory to attend and one could even skip the midterms if they were in the regular class.

The only important event was the final exam at the end of the semester that determined which students would be staying on the main campus.

There was fierce competition as the students on the side campuses eagerly waited for any opportunity to move up.

As strange as it may sound, Zrudread University had a very relaxed academic policy and encouraged students to study on their own.

Cultivation resources, techniques and training rooms were just some of the resources available for students to freely use.

Sophie had already booked quite a few sessions with Professor Macabre from the training camp as she had formed a liking to the stern yet caring teacher.

The main goal of the university was to produce powerful warriors not scholars.

Perhaps the lack of structure and order was a test to see which students had the willpower to keep up their training schedule on their own when they were under no supervision.

It was easy to fall into the cycle of partying, drinking and other forms of entertainment when students finally got a chance to cut loose. 

"Qiana are you getting any of this?" Astrid yawned sleepily as she whispered to the quiet girl next to her.

Hearing no response, Astrid tilted her head cutely and discovered that Qiana was already fast asleep with a boy love novel still being held in her hand.

It was clear that she had not been paying any attention to the speech from the start!

Astrid wanted to talk to Sophie about this revelation but was treated to the sight of two lovebirds showing off their affection.

"You look gorgeous in that uniform," Sophie smiled gently as she flirted with Cleo.

The white uniform of the elite class was heavily inspired by typical military combat gear, so it contained many hidden pockets and various self defense devices woven into the fabric.

"Thank you," Cleo held her girlfriend's hand shyly as her face blushed red.

The uniform was short sleeved and exposed Cleo's neck as well, so Sophie had to make sure not to leave any visible marks on the princess during their 'study' sessions. 

Astrid gazed at the sugary sweet scene between the two girls and had to resist the urge to complain.

Why the heck did they need to rub their relationship into the faces of poor single dogs like herself?!

Poor Astrid was in a grumpy mood for the rest of the assembly but neither Sophie nor Cleo noticed as they were stuck in their own little world.

A strange thought struck Astrid while she wore a despondent expression from the lack of attention.

Maybe she would take this opportunity to actually pay attention to Principal Malik!

(Five minutes later….)

Zzzz…...Zzzzz...Zzzzz

Astrid had fallen asleep while resting her head gently on Qiana's shoulder as the principal seemed to be more effective at knocking people out than any tranquilizing drug. 

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Principal Malik finished the end of his speech with a quick summary of everything he had just said during the last two hours.

"Now I would once again like to thank our founder John Archibald Willis Henderson Goodman the third, his son John Archibald Willis Henderson Goodman the fourth and his grandson...."

"Frank."

"The Goodman family's legacy will truly live on within the hearts of the proud members of Zrudread University!" 

The virtual projection showed principal Malik standing up from his chair and passionately addressing the students.

Polite applause was heard from some the students who were still paying attention, but by now the majority of students were already in dreamland.

The principal took an additional fifteen minutes to finally wrap up before the students were dismissed to head towards their first class.