Editor : Amethyst00



Nine first-years quickly gathered around Leo.

‘Three from Knight Department, two from Summoning, four from Magic… quite a number.’

“Jevin!”

“Nivea! Perfect! Lucky of you to join so early!”

Jevin spotted his ally from the Magic Department, the girl Nivea, and brightened up.

“I don’t recall doing anything to make enemies.”

At Leo’s words, Nivea snorted.

“Hmph! Don’t make me laugh! Do you think the trouble other students go through because of you is just a one or two-day thing?”

“What trouble did I supposedly cause?”

“Getting favoritism from professors with that All-Class nonsense! Because you show off uselessly, our magic lessons keep getting harder! Do you even know what it means to consider others?”

“That’s right! Thanks to you acting high and mighty in summoning class, we’re saddled with difficult assignments every day!”

“Knight training too—we have to endure brutal drills every day!”

Hearing the flood of complaints, Leo let out a dry laugh.

“If that’s your problem, you should be protesting to the professors.”

The students flinched at that.

“And you think it makes sense that a single student like me changes the entire course curriculum? Did you never consider it’s just that you can’t keep up?”

“What did you say!”

Nivea snapped at Leo’s words.

“Before I entered Lumene, I was always top of my class at my old academy! Someone like me can’t possibly be unable to keep up!”

“It’s because you can’t keep up that you’re saying that. Doesn’t it embarrass you to blame others for your shortcomings?”

“Ugh! Shut up! Chain Lightning!”

Crackle crackle crackle—!

A chain of lightning burst from the tip of her staff, flying at Leo.

As the current reached right in front of him, Leo waved his hand and brushed the spell aside.

Whoosh! Crack! Crackle crackle crackle!

The deflected magic exploded midair, sparks scattering everywhere.

“H-how?”

“The power may be strong, but the spell structure is simple. That’s why it’s easily dispelled. We learned this in the very first class, remember?”

Leo’s lips curved upward.

“Don’t rely too much on casting formulas.”

“Ugh! Stop acting all superior, you country bumpkin from a backwater kingdom!”

Flaring up, Nivea began firing spells recklessly.

“Everyone, attack! He’s just another first-year like us, grade representative or not! With this many against him, even he won’t hold out!”

“Just another first-year?”

At Jevin’s shout, Leo burst into laughter.

“If you were true Lumene first-years, I might have a hard time. But the likes of you who blame others for your own shortcomings? Hardly feels like I could lose.”

“What was that!”

“You bastard!”

The Magic Department students unleashed spells, while the Knight Department students drew weapons and circled to pressure Leo.

The Summoning students called forth elementals.

Fwoosh—!

Leo conjured flames into his hand.

“Fire Wall.”

Rumble—!

A wall of blazing fire surged up, neutralizing the oncoming spells.

The Magic students pressuring Leo shrank back in shock.

“N-no way! Our magic got erased so easily…!”

“Don’t be scared! Obviously a powerful spell like that consumes a lot of mana! It’s just a desperate move!”

One of the Knight students rallied the others, gripping his spear and lunging forward.

Whoosh—!

A sharp thrust, lightning fast.

But Leo effortlessly caught the spear shaft mid-strike.

Thud—!

“Kh!”

The attack stopped cold, the boy tried to yank his weapon back.

But the spear didn’t budge.

Instead, Leo pulled, dragging the student forward like a puppet with cut strings.

‘W-what monstrous strength is this!’

What he didn’t know: in raw physical strength, Leo was the strongest in the Knight Department.

Vmm—!

Leo’s free hand glowed with aura.

As the student was pulled in, Leo swung a fist at his face.

“Ghk!”

Bam!

The boy hastily raised an aura armor to block, but his head still rang with a dull thud.

Thud—!

“Guh!”

Leo followed with a kick to his stomach.

Wham! Crash!

“Keugh!”

The boy slammed into a tree and collapsed in agony.

“An opening!”

A large-built student ambushed Leo from behind, hefting a massive two-handed sword with a triumphant grin.

“You’re done, Leo Plov!”

Clang—!

“…!”

Leo’s hand shot up, grabbing the giant blade’s edge.

The sudden stop made the boy panic, tugging to pull it free.

But the sword stuck fast in Leo’s grip.

Crack crack—!

Instead, cracks spread along the blade as Leo’s grip tightened.

“N-no way! It’s a sword imbued with aura!”

“Aura isn’t invincible, you know.”

Crunch—! Crack!

“…!”

The two-hander shattered to pieces, fragments scattering.

“You should’ve prepared a backup plan.”

Thud—!

“Argh!”

Leo drove a kick into the boy’s side.

Bang!

“Guhhh!”

The student flew helplessly, hitting the ground with a crash.

Light burst from the two fallen Knight students’ bodies, and then they vanished.

Teleport magic.

Meaning they had been eliminated from the competition.

Rumble rumble rumble!

Just then, the ground writhed like a living creature, snaking up to coil around Leo’s body.

At the same time, water orbs formed around his face, covering it in a sphere of water.

Bubble bubble—

“Yes!”

“We’ll suffocate him and force a dropout!”

The two Summoning students cheered.

Crack! Boom—!

But the earth restraining Leo crumbled into dirt, and the water sphere popped uselessly.

“No way! Our elementals, our elemental arts—!”

Leo shook water from his hair and spoke coolly.

“If you made a temporary contract with the local elementals, you should’ve expected a superior elemental user could seize control of them.”

Brushing dirt off himself, Leo asked:

“So, what’s next?”

They stumbled back without realizing it.

‘The gap is this wide…?’

“Nothing?”

Vmmm—!

Leo’s aura flared.

“Then you’re ready, right?”

“W-wait! Leo! Please!”

Jevin shouted frantically, face pale.

“We were wrong! If we get eliminated, we’ll be expelled! Please, just spare us this once!”

“Y-yeah! Forgive us!”

“I-I never meant to fight you, Leo! They pushed me into it!”

“Don’t lie! You were the most eager of all!”

With their will broken, the group quickly crumbled.

“L-Leo! There’s no need for you to take us out, right? So, please…”

Nivea’s voice trembled.

Looking at her, Leo spoke.

“True. Leaving you lot alone won’t be any real threat. And eliminating you gains me nothing.”

Faces brightened with hope.

“Th-then—!”

“But.”

Leo’s face turned cold.

“In the same situation, would you have spared me?”

Despair washed over their faces.

Shing—!

“This could be your last fight as Lumene students. So face me like Lumene students.”

“Don’t be ridiculous! I’m staying in Lumene no matter what!”

Cursing, Jevin cast Wing Magic and fled the battlefield.

“Coward!”

“Damn it! Run!”

Watching his classmates scatter in panic, Leo sighed.

Surviving the practical exam didn’t automatically mean a high score.

“A hero knows there are times you fight even knowing you’ll lose.”

They had just thrown away their final chance.

“You’d better give up the illusion that you can escape.”

Leo smirked coldly.

bl

Once the inter-department tournament began, most students dropped into panic as they were tossed into Neigrang.

“Monsters? Hey! Don’t drag them this way!”

“My beloved comrade! Let’s take down the monster together, like we agreed!”

“That was in a normal competition! This time it’s an exam—damn it, get lost already!”

One student, chased by monsters, shoved his “ally” toward them.

“Wait! There’s a curse here—hrrghhh!”

“Confusion curse… urk! N-nausea!”

Others fell victim to curses scattered across Neigrang.

“Come at me!”

“Just what I wanted! A duel!”

Some students battled each other fiercely.

“Please! We’re in the same class! Form a party with me!”

“Ah! B-but we’re different departments—hey, let me go!”

Others clung desperately to classmates.

The sudden addition of the final exam turned the competition into pure chaos.

The pressure of the exam overturned any strategies made in advance.

Watching through projection magic at Lumene, Class 8’s homeroom professor Artienne spoke gravely.

“I’m not sure this isn’t too harsh on the students.”

“That’s a naïve thought, Professor Artienne.”

Harrid’s words made her flinch.

“This year’s battle may look like an individual free-for-all, but strictly speaking, students could have formed teams and worked together.”

“For a hero, politics and diplomacy are important virtues. Preparing alliances in advance is part of readiness.”

Picking up where Harrid left off, Professor Sedgen said, watching the students in the projection:

“But the world never goes as planned. The Principal intended this. It wouldn’t be wrong to call this sudden situation a test of crisis response.”

“Still, it’s too harsh. Shouldn’t we guide students in safer ways?”

As a newcomer not from Lumene, Artienne still couldn’t adjust to the academy’s teaching philosophy of constant trials.

“In a normal school, yes. But Professor Artienne, this is Lumene.”

“…?”

“Our students are hero candidates. And a hero is one who overcomes trials.”

Sedgen’s expression hardened.

“If they can’t overcome even this, they won’t just fail to be heroes. They may not even survive Lumene’s curriculum.”

He let out a long sigh.

“That’s why we must endlessly test their potential—so they won’t die.”

Having seen more student deaths than anyone, Sedgen’s words brought silence to the room.

“Professors.”

“Secretary Erena, what brings you here?”

The Principal’s secretary approached where the first-year professors were gathered.

“There’s urgent work for the assistant professors. May I take them?”

“What sudden work for assistant professors?”

At Harrid’s question, Erena smiled.

“Because of the lockdown, we need to reassign personnel.”

“…Very well. Assistant professors, go with her. It’s school duty.”

With Sedgen’s approval, the assistants followed Erena out of the drill hall.

“What troubles you, Harrid?”

Sedgen asked, seeing Harrid’s eyes fixed on Erena.

“…It’s nothing.”