Editor : Amethyst00



BEEP—YAAAK!

Fiora spread her wings wide and let out a roar.

But there was no noticeable reaction.

BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP—!

Then, as if annoyed, she flapped her wings and jumped wildly in place.

"What's wrong, Fiora?"

Chelsea tilted her head as she lifted Fiora onto her hand.

BEEP BEEP BEEP—!

Fiora rolled around on Chelsea's palm, clearly showing her displeasure.

"Is she hungry?"

Chen Xia looked puzzled and offered Fiora a biscuit.

But even after devouring all the biscuits, Fiora kept crying.

Eliza, who had been silently watching, spoke up.

"It seems she's in a bad mood after returning to her original form."

CHIRP!

Fiora nodded her head.

"You really know her well."

When Chelsea looked amazed, Eliza replied while casually filing her nails, as always.

"It's just basic."

After saying that much, Eliza glanced briefly at Chelsea and chuckled.

"Anyway, she's back to her original tiny self. That form suits you best."

"Yeah. It's fine. I grow tall in the future!"

Despite Eliza's teasing, Chelsea didn't seem fazed.

Eliza clicked her tongue lightly at the sight.

'Boring.'

Then it happened.

WHOOSH—

A white flame ignited from the crown of Fiora's head.

Seeing it, Chelsea's eyes widened.

"Huh? A white flame?"

"What did you say?!"

Eliza widened her eyes and hurried over.

Just as Chelsea had said, white flames were rising from Fiora's head.

"What does that mean?"

Melina asked, eyes wide, turning to Leo.

"Katariou chose Fiora as her successor."

"Then Alty too?"

"Yeah."

Nodding, Leo recalled the moment the illusion disappeared after Sylord's annihilation.

In front of Kyle, who was sending off Sylord, stood Albus and Katariou.

"Is the succession done?"

["Thanks to you."]

Albus answered with a smile and asked, ["How have you been?"]

"Still trying."

Kyle replied, and Albus gave a soft smile.

["You saved the world, albeit in an imperfect state."]

Katariou also spoke up with a slightly sullen look.

She and Kyle had always been at odds.

From the very first meeting, Katariou disliked Kyle's rude behavior toward her contractor.

["Make sure you end things properly this time."]

"I will."

The illusion was slowly breaking apart.

["Kyle, I have one last favour to ask."]

Albus said with a serious face.

Seeing this, Leo nodded sincerely.

"Alright, I'll do my bes—"

["Find the next Pegasus King as soon as possible."]

["No. The Phoenix King comes first."]

Katariou also spoke, her face unusually serious.

Watching the two, Leo said:

"I get how you feel, but despite how they look, they're both competent."

["I don't care about that! I'm trusting you! I heard it's been 5,000 years! The noble Phoenix King, revived after 5,000 years, is going around picking food crumbs off the ground! That's absolutely unacceptable!"]

["I agree with Katariou! The sacred Pegasus King is a pervert who enjoys being trampled! Unthinkable!"]

Katariou grabbed Kyle by the collar and shook him, while Albus, close to tears, cried out in protest.

Seeing the desperate faces of the two Beast Kings, Leo said:

"I'll do my best."

Only after hearing that did the two look slightly relieved before disappearing.

"Did you say your goodbyes properly?"

Melina's question brought Leo out of his recollection.

"Maybe."

He answered with a strange expression and looked up at the sky.

"What are you thinking about?"

"That the ones left behind must've had a hard time too…"

Melina smiled gently as she looked silently at Leo.

"Shall we go back now?"

"Yeah."

Leo turned toward the others and began walking.

Melina followed behind.

"Oh, and make sure you turn in your written reflection."

At Leo's words, Melina's shoulders slumped.

bl

"What kind of mission is Leo even on? It's been two weeks since the semester started and he still hasn't come back to school."

Nella looked puzzled.

At her words, Eliana pouted.

"How should I know? If I'd known this would happen, I would've begged Kyle to let me join the mission too."

"Even if you joined, you'd still have to do all the assignments."

"Yeah, but at least I'd have a legal excuse to delay them."

Nella shook her head at Eliana's hopeless logic.

Since entering the second semester of their third year, the third-years were enduring a brutal schedule.

Especially Eliana, who was in a dual class, had to juggle both Knight and Magic Department assignments.

At Lumene, dual-class students could attend secondary department classes, but their grades were based only on their primary department.

This reduced the burden and allowed students to focus on their main studies.

However, Eliana still put effort into her Magic Department exams.

The reason was Leo.

'Finally, I'm free from all those complicated magic assignments!'

'If you fail in the Magic Department, I'll give you extra tutoring every day.'

'Gasp?!'

On the day she chose her major, a cheerful Eliana had heard those words from Leo.

As Eliana groaned, Nella tilted her head.

"Isn't it actually a good thing that you get to spend time alone with Leo after class?"

"Nella, you're such a fool."

"I don't want to hear that from you."

It was rare to see Nella respond so seriously.

In her hand was a fearsome morning star.

Seeing that, Eliana quickly put some distance between them.

When Nella put the weapon away, Eliana moved closer again and said:

"I want to hang out with the class president, not study. And most importantly…"

"Most importantly?"

"If he's serious about tutoring, it's going to be a nightmare. It'd probably be easier to just get scolded by a furious Professor Len during class."

Eliana shuddered.

Nella nodded and muttered, "Fair."

Len was one of the most popular professors in the Magic Department.

He was extremely passionate about magic and truly cared for academically driven students.

The problem was that once he got angry, he lost all sense of restraint.

There was a well-known story about students who made mistakes during class, angered Len, and ended up half-dead after after-school tutoring.

Eliana was convinced that Leo's private lessons would be at least as intense—if not worse.

Just as Eliana sighed—

"Ah! Eliana-sunbae!"

Five first-year girls walking down the hallway rushed over to her.

Eliana greeted them with a warm smile.

"What is it?"

"The light magic formula you taught us before! There was a part we didn't understand…"

"Oh? Show me where."

Eliana kindly explained the formula.

"Ah! Thank you so much!"

"You're welcome. Ask me anytime you need help."

"Yes!"

The first-years bowed repeatedly and left.

Soon after—

"Eliana-sunbae!"

"Hm? What is it?"

This time, a first-year male student from the Knight Department approached her.

"About the aura step you taught us for evasive movement—can you check my footwork? I keep falling midway."

"Can you show me?"

The boy demonstrated.

"Your leg angle and spacing are too narrow. Your breathing's too short. Overall, it feels too rushed."

Identifying the issue, Eliana corrected him kindly.

"Ahh! Thank you!"

The first-year bowed and left.

Even after that, first-years from various departments kept greeting Eliana.

Eventually, she paused and furrowed her brows.

"Something's off."

"What is?"

"Among the third-years, I'm considered one of the top honor students, right?"

"Yeah, thanks to all your acting."

Nella nodded.

From the beginning of the semester, Eliana had been putting on an act in front of the first-years.

Because of that, the first-years didn't know her true personality.

To them, she was just an honor student—kind, friendly, and full of admirable qualities.

Upperclassmen found it amusing to see how long she could keep up the act.

"What I wanted was to be the kind of senior that's beyond reach. Like the class president!"

"Huh?"

"Leo is also kind and admirable, but his charisma is so overwhelming that the juniors don't dare approach him."

"True."

"Why can't I be like that?"

"Because Leo is Leo, and you're you."

No matter how much she imitated him, she couldn't match that innate charisma.

Leo's charisma was something he was born with.

Still, Eliana was troubled by how casually the first-years approached her.

"Do I seem like an easy target?"

"There's definitely that vibe."

"Hmm… Should I try acting like Duran or Walden?"

"You'd still seem easy."

"You're so mean!"

Eliana pouted.

"Just kidding. Honestly, I think it's a good thing."

"What is?"

"The juniors really like you. You teach them so kindly when they ask for help."

Nella looked a bit envious.

Indeed, among the third-years, Eliana was the most popular with the first-years.

"How about becoming a professor at Lumene later?"

"Oh? A Lumene professor?"

Eliana's eyes sparkled at Nella's suggestion.

Just then, they arrived at the center of the clock tower dormitory.

"Hm?"

A large group of students was gathered in front of the dorm's notice board.

Seeing that, Eliana and Nella's expressions tensed.

When students gather at the board, it usually means bad news rather than good.

So their bodies reacted on instinct—tense and cautious.

The two slowly approached the notice board.

And then addressed a familiar face.

"Tade, what's going on?"

At Nella's question, Tade replied in a surprised voice.

"Leo, Professor Melina… and Senior Lyl's party apparently defeated a fragment of Erebos!"

"What?!"

Eliana and Nella's eyes widened.

"So now everyone who went on that mission might get their names in the Hero Record! Everyone's going crazy!"

"Is that confirmed?"

"Yeah! The school even announced a celebratory dance party!"

"A dance party?"

If it was true, it made sense.

The school rarely held events unless it was something truly special.

Right then—

The dormitory doors opened, and familiar faces entered.

Seeing the gathered students, Lyl tilted her head.

"What's going on?"