Editor : Amethyst00



The Hero's Tower located at the very center of Lumene.

This was considered the core of Lumene.

First of all, it housed the principal's office, where the principal—arguably the highest authority in Lumene—resided.

It also contained the student council president's office.

In other words, it was home to the highest authorities among both professors and students.

As usual, Lumene's principal, Rina, was drinking alcohol in a lazy, slouched posture.

"Come to think of it, when the principal first took office, there was a lot of external backlash, but now no one talks about that anymore."

Walking down the corridor of the Hero's Tower, Carl tilted his head in curiosity.

Just as Carl said, there had been a lot of noise when Rina was first appointed.

The board had objected due to her origins in the Shadows.

Most of the alumni had strongly opposed it as well.

However, internally, there hadn't been much of an issue.

The board's dissatisfaction was appeased when Altec Zeron, chairman of Lumene, gave his approval.

The alumni protests died down when it was revealed that Rina had been recommended by Harrid and Sedgen.

Harrid and Sedgen were the top candidates expected to take over after the death of the previous principal, Kalian.

With support from both of them, public opinion shifted to a "let's waik and see" stance.

"She's capable, after all."

At Leo's comment, Carl nodded.

Considering the uproar when she first arrived, one would expect her to have a strong presence, whether good or bad—but after becoming principal, Rina's presence diminished quickly.

That meant she was running Lumene with remarkable stability.

Even so, the changes she brought to Lumene were radical.

Last year, the mentorship system.

This year, the full-grade commuter dormitory system.

"And most importantly…"

"Hm?"

"Since Principal Rina took over, Lumene has been safe from Hero Hunters and Tartaros' monsters."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Think back to our first year."

During the midterms of the first semester, two students had been targeted by Tartaros.

Chloe from the Department of Magic, and now-deceased Sen Liu from the Department of Summoning.

In the second semester, the cursed king Kigoros—whom Kalian had once defeated—nearly revived on campus, and a clone of the monster queen Sillatna had infiltrated.

It wasn't so much a matter of Principal Kalian's competence—these incidents had occurred because the enemies had attacked in ways that targeted vulnerabilities in heroes.

But since their second year, such incidents had completely vanished.

"Now that you mention it…"

As Carl marveled, Leo casually responded.

"It means Principal Rina is doing her job."

Protecting heroes from the shadows.

That was the specialty of the Shadows.

And Rina's status as a Shadow was second only to the emperor of the Xian Empire.

"Maybe I should've brought a bigger gift."

Carl stared seriously at the prettily wrapped box of cookies in his hand.

At present, the top three members of the student council—Leo, Carl, and Elena—were on their way to the principal's office at Rina's summons.

"What's with the gift?"

"A bribe. I might need another special promotion at the end of the second semester. Just a little something to stay in her good graces."

"…That's pretty far from Principal Rina's tastes, though."

The wrapping was extremely girly at a glance.

"Surprise is the essence of a good gift."

Carl winked playfully.

"Carl."

"Yes, Elena-sunbae?"

"When we get back from the principal's office, compile the midterm and final grade changes for the entire student body."

"Out of the blue?"

"It's not out of the blue. The semester has started. As the acting student council president, shouldn't you have that information ready?"

"I… guess so?"

"Have it done by today. I have to report to the president."

Elena spoke while twisting a lock of hair with her fingers, her words sharp as the wind.

Watching her, Carl smiled wryly and thought to himself:

'She's being petty.'

She was creating busywork just to mess with Leo.

The problem was that her antics caused trouble not only for Leo, but the entire student council—including herself.

Looking at Elena, who dragged those around her into her mischief toward Leo, Carl glanced sideways.

Leo shrugged, and Carl nudged his side with his elbow.

It was a silent plea to smooth things over.

Leo glanced at Elena and said,

"Are you a child?"

At that blunt response, Carl facepalmed, and Elena's expression grew colder.

Leo pulled out a candy and offered it to her.

"Want one?"

Of course, Elena didn't even look at it.

"Elena-sunbae's not Chelsea. You think she'll forgive you over candy?"

Carl remarked. Leo just shrugged again.

"I did my best."

Carl snorted in disbelief at his shameless answer.

Just then—

"I wanted to see what the president looked like as a child and as an adult too."

"…."

Carl turned toward the voice.

Elena was glaring at him with a pouty expression.

"Leo."

"What?"

"Turn five years old for me."

"Leave her. She'll get over it."

"……"

Carl gave a sad smile at that response.

Shortly after, the three arrived at the principal's office atop the Hero's Tower.

Knock knock—

"Come in."

At the voice from within, Leo opened the door.

Inside, Rina and Sedgen were waiting at the desk.

Rina chugged the contents of her mug and wiped her mouth with a loud "Ahhh!"

Judging by the sharp scent, it was definitely alcohol.

Carl gave an awkward smile.

"Principal, shouldn't you refrain from drinking during work hours?"

"This isn't alcohol. It's water. Water."

Rina waved her hand nonchalantly.

Carl looked at Sedgen, who sighed deeply like he had given up.

When he looked at Leo and Elena, both of them acted like they couldn't care less.

'Yeah. Let's not overthink this. Thinking normally is a losing game at this school.'

That's why Sedgen looked so resigned.

Thinking so, Carl handed Rina the gift box.

"Principal, here's a present."

"A present?"

Rina lazily untied the pretty ribbon and checked the contents.

Clicking her tongue at the high-end confections inside, she said,

"Well, thanks, I gues—"

Then she spotted a bottle among the treats, and her eyes lit up.

"…Thanks. Carl, you really are one of our school's top students."

"Carl is far from being a top student, Rina."

"Hey now. Don't say it like that. Being kind makes you a top student in my book."

"Hehe. Thank you for your kindness."

As Rina patted Carl's head, he rubbed his hands together and smiled slyly.

Rina cheerfully placed the cookie box in the liquor cabinet.

Sedgen covered his face in exasperation.

"Alright! Then…"

Rina straightened her posture.

"Let me explain why I called you three."

She pushed a document on her desk toward Leo.

"I'm thinking of holding a second-semester practicum evaluation for the first-years."

Leo looked through the papers with a surprised expression.

"Will this be conducted jointly with other hero schools?"

"That's right."

Rina nodded.

"The location will be Azonia. The schools have already agreed on everything."

"Then isn't it just a matter of making an announcement?"

Elena asked, twirling her hair, and Rina shrugged.

"Well, not everything is finalized. The key evaluation task hasn't been decided yet."

"Given how important this event is, very few people in each school even know about it."

If word leaked to the students, it would be a disaster.

"In the principals' meeting, someone suggested letting the student council presidents from each school submit the evaluation tasks."

"Student council presidents?"

"Exactly. Push your limits. Believe in yourself. Move forward. Pursue potential. These school mottos are best exemplified by the student council presidents. It was thought that having top students design the trials would be the most beneficial for the first-years."

"…"

Leo looked at Rina.

"You're not just dumping work because you're lazy, are you?"

"Well, anyway."

Clap!

Rina clapped her hands to lighten the mood.

"The student council presidents' meeting will be held in Seiren. I hope you'll pour your creativity into crafting a meaningful trial that will help all first-year students grow. And of course—don't breathe a word of this to anyone."

Rina smiled brightly.

"I get why Leo and Elena-sunbae need to know, but do I really have to?"

"What do you mean, Carl? You're just as important as Leo or Elena in our student council."

"I am?"

"Of course! The most diligent slave of the student council! That's you!"

Rina beamed as she said it, and Carl looked out the window with a gloomy face.

"That's all for the announcements. Ah, and please also inform the students about the school-hosted dance party."

Rina handed another document to Leo with a grin.

After receiving the notice, the three left the principal's office.

Outside, Leo silently read the dance party details.

Carl looked glum, and Elena was radiating icy energy.

"Here, Carl."

Leo handed the paper to Carl after reading it.

"Let's head to the council room. You've got work to do if you want to follow the vice president's orders."

"…Leo. Go ahead without me. I've got some errands."

"Really? Alright. See you at the council room."

Leo waved to Carl and Elena.

Elena scoffed quietly at Leo's retreating back.

Just as she was about to leave too—

"Wait a second, Elena-sunbae."

"What is it?"

Elena shot Carl a cold glare.

Carl pointed at a phrase on the dance party announcement.

[Best Couple Contest.]

"I'll do everything I can to make sure you get to enter this with Leo."

"…"

Elena stared silently at the phrase, then smirked.

"I could win Leo's partner spot on my own."

"No, I don't think you could, Elena-sunbae."

"What?"

Her eye twitched. She was clearly displeased—and her tyrant side was starting to surface.

"I can even tell you why."

Carl felt intimidated by Elena's glare, but decided to press on.

"You need to trust me completely, sunbae."