Chapter 576

With the opening match over, the spectators watching the Festival of Heroes were swept into a frenzy of excitement.

“I never thought I’d live to see a Phoenix!”

“It was incredible... but terrifying.”

“Whew! It was so fierce, I almost thought it was a Demonic Beast!”

“You fool! How dare you call a sacred Spirit Beast a Demonic Beast! Are you trying to bring divine punishment down upon yourself?”

The visiting spectators chattered excitedly.

Amid them, what stood out most was an enormous group of boys and girls.

“Even thinking back on it now, watching him destroy a Lava Golem with a single strike was incredible!”

“If we enroll next year, will we become his juniors?”

“He looks so small and cute, yet he’s that strong... Ahh~”

The group of roughly one thousand boys and girls was being led by Professor Artianne, who oversaw Lumene’s first-year Summoning Department, along with several assistant professors.

“E-Everyone, please don’t crowd together. Stay in line as you move~”

“I heard Luke Elda is a commoner. He’s incredible.”

“Aina-nim could do just as much, couldn’t she?”

“The same goes for Haviden-nim. Luke Elda merely acted first.”

Professor Artianne pleaded timidly with the children, but those who appeared to be nobles ignored her and remained busy saying whatever they pleased.

“What do nobles and commoners matter at Lumene? Skill comes before everything else!”

At that moment, a girl bristled and stepped forward.

“What was that, commoner? Are you defying a noble like me?”

“Hmph. The way you flaunt your authority first makes it obvious you’re from the west. This is exactly why people from the Lordren Empire’s sphere of influence are hopeless.”

“What? How dare a commoner like you disparage the Lordren Empire! Surely you know Lumene’s Student Council President is Leo-nim, a direct descendant of House Zerdinger?”

“How ridiculous. So what? Are you Leo Plov himself?”

“Ghk!”

“Hey, calm down.”

“She’s the heir to the Lola Trading Company.”

“What?”

The Lola Trading Company.

It was an enormous trading company based in the southern reaches of the continent.

It controlled every trade route used by humans in the south and leveraged that power to exert influence across the entire continent.

Though hers was a commoner family, its influence was so immense that even the royal families of small nations bowed before it.

The intimidated noble boy from Lordren soon bristled again.

“They’re still nothing but rich commoners! How many famous students at Lumene are commoners right now?!”

“There’s Luke Elda, the first-year representative! And Carr Thomas, the Acting Student Council President!”

This time, another commoner boy shouted indignantly.

“Hmph. Didn’t Carr Thomas only get that position through connections? His grades are terrible— Ghk!”

Thwack—!

Someone’s kick struck the sneering Lordren noble in the ribs and sent him flying.

“Are your ears plugged or something? You refuse to listen when I ask nicely, don’t you?”

The children felt chills run through them at Professor Artianne’s ominous voice.

“Wh-What...?”

“Listen when someone is talking to you! You insolent little chicks!”

“Aaaaaaargh!”

“S-Spare me... Ghk!”

Professor Artianne’s fury descended upon those who had ignored her instructions and continued chattering as they pleased.

“Who are those kids getting beaten up by Professor Artianne?”

Eliana tilted her head as she watched from a seat by the window of the classroom building, and Carr answered her.

“They’re entrance candidates.”

“Entrance candidates? Why are they here?”

“While preparing for the Festival of Heroes, we also arranged next year’s entrance examination. Those are the final candidates who made it through the third round.”

“Why didn’t I know anything about this? Did any of you?”

“I didn’t know either,” someone else replied.

“They prepared the entrance examination while organizing the Festival of Heroes?”

The second-years stared in astonishment.

“It’s no wonder none of you knew. You were all busy preparing for the Festival of Heroes, weren’t you? Leo, Elena Sunbae-nim, the professors, and I prepared the entrance examination together.”

'Of course, the dragons helped too.'

Carr recalled the Wisdom students Leo had brought with him.

Carr knew Leo’s true identity, so nothing Leo did surprised him anymore.

However, when Leo brought the Wisdom students along as additional labor, Elena’s reaction had been perfectly calm.

'Wow~ Preparing for the Festival of Heroes has been exhausting, but now we can finally breathe a little easier. I’m counting on you, dragons.'

She had simply been delighted to have more workers.

'Hmph. So you’re Elena Zeron? A pleasure to meet you. I’m Riden. If anything difficult comes up, just say the word. As a Guide, I’ll help you.'

The dragon named Riden had spoken with a faintly arrogant expression.

And then...

'Carr! Tell that witch to stop creating more work! How is it that the more we work, the more work there is?!'

It had not taken long for Riden and the other dragons from Wisdom to clutch at Carr’s trouser legs and beg him for help.

Of course, Carr had wanted to cry just as badly.

What made Elena truly frightening was not that she forced people to work or wrung them dry to the bitter end.

It was her drive to launch a new project the instant she had any resources to spare.

Carr shuddered as he recalled Elena smiling with delight the moment she saw the Wisdom students and saying, 'Now we can hold next year’s entrance examination during the Festival of Heroes too.'

“Elena Sunbae-nim really is amazingly capable. I definitely want to learn from her example.”

“No, Nella.”

“Hmm?”

“Listen carefully, Nella.”

Carr placed his hands on Nella’s shoulders and brought his face close to hers.

“That woman is a witch. You must never follow her example.”

The students fell silent when they heard the terror in Carr’s voice.

“Leo! Say something!”

“I don’t know. I think she’s rather cute.”

When Leo answered with a smile from his seat by the window, the surrounding second-years clicked their tongues in amazement.

“Wow. Leo really is Leo.”

“How can he look at Elena Sunbae and call her cute?”

“Class Rep, do you treat even Elena Sunbae like a child?”

Leo merely shrugged at their reactions.

Having endured Lysinas, who was far more vicious than Elena, Leo genuinely found Elena rather cute by comparison.

“Anyway! You must never follow that witch’s example—”

Carr had been speaking with utmost seriousness when he noticed all his friends staring behind him and fell silent.

Cold sweat ran down his back.

“...She’s behind me, isn’t she?”

When Nella nodded, a small, pretty hand came down firmly upon Carr’s shoulder.

Tap—!

“Carr-gun. What were you discussing with such enthusiasm? Were you perhaps talking behind my back?”

The touch was gentle and the beautiful voice a delight to the ears, yet Carr collapsed to the floor without realizing it.

When he turned around with trembling eyes, he found the Queen of Lumene staring down at him with pink eyes.

“F-Forgive me...”

“It’s fine. You’re allowed to gossip about your Sunbae.”

Elena smiled and patted Carr on the head.

“But I take back my promise to let you rest once the Festival of Heroes is over.”

“N-No!”

Carr despaired, his face turning deathly pale.

Leaving Carr behind, Elena smiled and walked back to the classroom entrance.

Leo rose from his seat when he saw her.

“Then make sure you’re all prepared.”

With those words, Leo left the classroom.

Elena, who had been waiting at the door, followed him.

“Seeing them like that, Elena Sunbae looks like his secretary.”

“They’re the Student Council President and Vice President. Their relationship is naturally similar.”

“I don’t know. Lately, Leo doesn’t feel like someone in the same year as us. It’s like he has this air of experience about him.”

The students murmured among themselves as they watched the pair leave.

“It feels like Class Rep has gone far away.”

Eliana’s shoulders drooped as she muttered.

Lately, the second-years had felt the distance between themselves and Leo more keenly than ever.

And it was not only the other second-years.

The top-ranked students from each department also felt anxious as Leo seemed to drift ever farther away.

Chloe tightened her grip on the spellbook she had been reading, while Celia clutched the sword at her waist.

Duran clicked his tongue, while Walden, who sat with his arms crossed and eyes closed, released an uncharacteristically quiet sigh.

Watching them, Chen Xia thought,

'Everyone can feel how distant Leo-nim has become.'

It could not be helped.

Leo and the rest of them were fundamentally different.

The number of years they had lived and the experiences they had endured were worlds apart.

They could never have stood on the same starting line to begin with.

But although Chen Xia knew the truth, the others did not.

Chelsea, who also knew Leo’s identity, spoke in alarm.

“Why does everyone look so dejected?”

“I don’t want to show weakness, Chelsea, but when I look at Leo... honestly, I suppose I can’t help but despair.”

Abad gave a bitter smile and patted his sister on the head.

“Not you too, Oppa! Hey, Celia! Stop looking like a campfire caught in the rain!”

“...What an interesting comparison.”

Celia frowned and shot Chelsea a slight glare, but her reaction lacked its usual fire.

Chelsea stamped her feet in frustration at the sight.

Chelsea knew the truth.

Leo wanted companions who would never give up and would stand beside him on the final battlefield.

And all of them were candidates.

That was why Leo had subtly encouraged everyone around him to grow.

But they could not rely on Leo’s help forever.

'What should I do?'

Chelsea bit down hard on her lip.

'I made a promise to Arron-nim.'

She had promised to help Leo.

To support him.

But she could not do it alone.

As Chelsea struggled to find an answer, Eliza scoffed.

“How strange, Chelsea Lewellin. Why are you so anxious?”

“Now, who was it that got so anxious she started receiving training from Leo at dawn?”

“Kyaaaaaaaaah?!”

Eliza shrieked when Carr suddenly appeared behind her and whispered in her ear.

She gritted her teeth, wrapped her whip around Carr’s neck, and hissed,

“I told you not to tell anyone about that!”

“Th-That’s why I whispered it... Ghk! S-Spare me...”

Eliza released Carr, her face flushed as she huffed in anger.

“Eliza-yang, startling you does not justify going this far. Look, you left a mark.”

Chen Xia spoke reproachfully. Eliza flinched, clicked her tongue, then pulled a small jar from her clothes and tossed it to Carr.

“I went too far. That’s an ointment I use for wounds. Apply it.”

“...”

“...”

Chen Xia and Carr stared blankly at Eliza.

“What?”

“Eliza-yang admitted she went too far and gave him medicine for his injury?”

“You aren’t terminally ill, are you?”

Eliza’s hand trembled before she began whipping Carr like a madwoman.

“Why only me?!”

“Because Chen Xia would never let me hit her!”

After the commotion died down, Carr spoke while applying ointment to his injuries.

“Why are you all acting so unlike yourselves? It’s hardly the first time Leo has felt like an insurmountable wall.”

“Hmph. It’s easy for you to say when it doesn’t concern you.”

Eliza sneered coldly.

“You’re a failing student who barely scrapes by every time, so of course you can relax and laugh with Leo Plov. How could you possibly understand how we feel?”

The words had come out sharper than usual in a moment of emotion, and Eliza immediately realized her mistake.

Carr smiled at her.

“You’re right. It doesn’t concern me.”

He shrugged.

“It’s also true that I’m a failing student who could fall out of this race at any time.”

“No, that isn’t what I...”

“Well, I’ll probably never become a hero.”

Carr shrugged again.

“But that doesn’t mean I haven’t tried. I’ve struggled desperately to survive somehow. And seeing all of you challenge Leo without giving up has given me courage too.”

“...”

Eliza fell silent without realizing it.

“The others probably feel the same way I do. Just as you’re chasing after Leo, they’re chasing after all of you. As long as you don’t give up on chasing Leo, they won’t give up either.”

Just as Leo had led them, they too had led those around them.

“So don’t show weakness. I’ll keep cheering you on too.”

With those words, Carr clenched his fist and left the classroom.

“Where are you going?”

Carr shrugged more theatrically than usual in response to Chelsea’s question.

“The bathroom.”

Slide—! Slam—!

Once Carr had left, everyone turned toward Eliza.

“I-I mean...”

“That was too harsh, Eliza-yang.”

When Chen Xia reproached her, Eliza bit her lip and left the classroom as well.

Chelsea tilted her head as she watched her go.

“Where is she going?”

“To apologize to Carr, I imagine.”

“That bundle of pride?”

“Eliza-yang may be proud, but she’s kind. It’s a shame she isn’t very honest... though that’s also what makes her cute.”

“Xia, I think your definition of kind is a little too generous.”

“Of course~ I even say you’re kind, Chelsea-yang.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?!”

“Good girl~ Such a good girl~”

“Stop treating me like a child!”

Chen Xia laughed brightly as Chelsea bristled.

===

Ruuuuush—! Squeak—

Carr turned off the faucet after washing his face and gave a self-deprecating laugh.

“What’s wrong with you, Carr? Just brush it off like you always do.”

Addressing his reflection in the mirror, Carr took a deep breath.

“I guess you still have some lingering attachment, huh? Listen, you’re already doing well enough. No one would have been surprised if you’d failed during the midterms of your first semester, but you can make it through your second year. Know your place, all right? Don’t be an idiot and cling to pointless hopes.”

Carr was shaking the water from his hands as he repeated the words to himself when—

“Fascinating.”

“Ghk?!”

Carr recoiled at the voice that had come from behind him without the slightest warning.

“G-God-nim?!”

“How very curious.”

Holding a bag of snacks from a street vendor, Rian bit into one with a loud crunch and looked up at Carr.

“In all of Lumene Academy’s history, you are the first student who does not resemble Lumene in the slightest, Carr Thomas.”

“Haha.”

Carr laughed awkwardly.

Rian licked the crumbs from the palm of one hand while regarding Carr.

“And yet, curiously enough...”

Rian grinned.

A chill swept through Carr’s entire body when he saw that gaze.

They were quite literally the eyes of an absolute being gazing down from an unfathomable height.

“You possess something Lumene did not.”

“Pardon?”

“Two things, in fact.”

***