Chapter 125
“This is so random.”
“What did you expect? Is it the first time our school has pushed students out of nowhere?”
“True.”
Tide muttered, and Carr just shrugged.
Hearing that, even Tide had to agree.
If in the first semester the freshmen had been flustered by unexpected situations, now everyone was unfazed.
Everyone had become used to surprises—so this much was taken in stride.
No, the prevailing attitude was that they had even expected as much.
“Alright, then.”
All eyes turned to Riven.
“Begin.”
As soon as Riven spoke, the entire first year rushed toward Lumene at once.
Riven stroked his chin as he watched.
‘Their reactions are impressive. The ability to move this quickly must be a matter of experience.’
This year’s first-years had all faced crises during the Department Competition.
‘Celia, Xia, Duran, Abad, Chloe, Chelsea, Walden, Eliza. And Leo. Those nine defeated the Gigantes. People only talk about them…’
But the other students had fought monsters, too.
That experience was what set this year’s students apart.
‘It happens sometimes—a generation like this.’
A special generation.
Usually, in one generation, you might see one hero with such traits. But sometimes, you get several in the same class.
‘It was like this for the current fifth-years, too.’
The fifth-years were also a class filled with outstanding talents.
But Riven had no motivation to teach the first-years.
‘Over the past centuries, have any Lumene graduates truly achieved remarkable things? No. Not just Lumene—none of the other Hero Academies, either.’
Many heroes had been born over the years.
To become a hero meant overcoming great trials.
So most were content once they gained that title.
‘But that’s not enough.’
The reason the gods gifted the Hero Record to the world—
It was to completely eradicate Erebos and Tartarus.
‘But now, the ultimate goal seems to have become just ‘becoming a hero.’’
Riven had spent ages as a professor at Lumene.
Very few at Lumene knew he was a dragon.
A hundred years ago, he became a teacher at Lumene by order of the Dragon Lord.
The average dragon’s lifespan is about three hundred years.
Riven had spent much of that as a professor at Lumene.
After the Age of Calamity.
Following the will of Lysinas, King of Wisdom, dragons adopted the tradition of selecting and supporting heroes.
Perhaps that’s why, when a hero was recognized by dragons, they achieved even greater feats.
At first, Riven was full of enthusiasm.
He was certain that in the near future, someone would carry on the will of the great heroes and defeat Erebos and Tartarus.
But the state of the world hadn’t changed in centuries.
The battle with Tartarus dragged on endlessly, with no real progress.
‘These days, there are few young people who look beyond just ‘hero.’’
So he’d lost motivation.
‘Part of it is just age.’
As the students disappeared into the distance, Riven looked up at the sky.
A world with no change for so long was enough to wear down even a dragon.
‘Maybe it’s time to retire.’
—
The vast Lumeria Lake, big enough to be mistaken for a sea, holds many islands.
At its center is the vast Lumene Academy.
‘Come to think of it, before the Age of Calamity, this wasn’t a lake.’
The center of the world.
Now home to Lumene Academy, but originally it was the land of dragons.
‘Erebos appeared and this was the first land attacked, wasn’t it?’
Even Leo barely remembered, since it was a story from childhood in his previous life.
Even when traveling the world to defeat Erebos, he had never visited the area around where Lumeria City now stands.
As he recalled the past, Leo suddenly looked up.
“Get ready, Leo Plov!”
Crackle—!
A fierce spark flew as golden lightning Aura flashed.
Crack-crack-crack—!
Zzzzap—!
“Argh! Get away!”
“Move away from there!”
Startled by the sudden attack, students scattered in all directions.
Everyone defended themselves from the lightning in their own way.
“You dodged.”
Standing on the water with Aura Step, Duran gave Leo a cold smile.
Leo crossed his arms.
“We’re not supposed to be competing with each other right now. Why are you attacking me?”
“No one said to compete, but no one said not to, either.”
Duran’s eyes burned with fierce fighting spirit.
“That means there’s no reason not to fight. I trained over vacation just to defeat you. Bring it on, Leo Plov.”
Crackle—!
Duran was enveloped in lightning Aura.
Leo scratched his head.
“Ugh, I really don’t want to go all out on the first day.”
“Heh. That smug look will soon—”
“There you are! Leo Plov!”
A sharp voice cut in between them.
Whoosh—!
Eliza, riding the high-rank familiar Delphinus, charged with her eyes blazing.
“Prepare yourself!”
Delphinus created a spray of water.
“Huh?! Even Eliza Hergin?!”
“Get back! Get back!”
“If you get caught up in that, you’re done for! Back off!”
As another top student—Eliza—joined the fray, students hastily put more distance between themselves and Leo, but didn’t actually flee.
Duran and Eliza.
Both were the very best in the year, and both had strong personalities.
And both especially wanted to defeat Leo.
So they were always watching for an opportunity.
Other students also aimed for the class representative spot, but these two were particularly combative.
‘No way I’m missing this show!’
‘This is exciting from the very first day!’
After all, there’s nothing more fun than watching a fight.
The students watched the three with sparkling eyes.
Leo looked at the oncoming wave and sighed, raising his Magic Power.
“Freezing.”
Crackle—!
The huge wave rushing at Leo instantly froze.
But as if she had expected it, Eliza prepared her next move.
Delphinus, empowered by Eliza’s Spirit Power, opened its mouth and let out a roar.
Kyaaaaaaaaaah—!
The powerful sonic attack shattered the ice in an instant.
Leo felt a ringing in his skull and used Aura to resist the sound.
Duran, caught up in it too, grimaced.
Unlike Leo and Duran, who withstood it head-on, some students with low resistance just foamed at the mouth and fainted.
Those watching from a distance swallowed nervously.
‘Maybe watching could get dangerous…’
As everyone tensed, Duran’s sharp gaze turned to Eliza.
Crackle—!
Moving at incredible speed with Aura Step, Duran closed in on Eliza, sword raised.
Crash—!
Lightning-fast sword strikes came down like thunder, and Eliza grimaced as she summoned her Spirit Power.
“Luri! Move!”
Delphinus, strengthened by Eliza, dove deep underwater.
Duran grinned viciously.
“You think you can escape by diving deep?”
Boom—!
Duran’s sword thundered, and the spectators’ faces went pale.
“Run! It’s an area attack!”
“Ahhh!”
“I don’t want to get fried on the first day!”
As Duran swung his sword, a storm of lightning swept the area.
The students who barely got out of range looked at Leo, who had blocked the attack, in shock.
Even if they weren’t the main target, the fact that Leo stood calmly after that barrage was astounding.
“So even an attack like that doesn’t faze you.”
Duran grinned at Leo.
Rumble—!
A strange presence rose from underwater.
Splaash—!
Students stared in horror as creatures burst through the surface.
“Aqua Gorgos!”
A water-serpent monster, and a tough opponent in the water.
Five Aqua Gorgos charged Duran in a fury.
It was one of Delphinus’s domination abilities.
Duran just sneered and swung his sword.
Flash! Slash! Slash! Slash! Slash! Slash!
With golden flashes, blindingly fast sword strikes decapitated all five Aqua Gorgos.
As their heads dropped, a vortex of water crashed down on Duran.
He slashed through it with his sword.
Slash—!
He managed to cut the vortex, but the impact sent him flying.
Now Duran’s face was filled with murderous intent.
“Hmph!”
Eliza, now back on the surface, sneered at Duran.
“Trying to interfere? Do you have a death wish?”
“You’re the one interfering with me.”
As the two glared at each other, deadly smiles crossed their faces.
“You two are full of energy for the first day, huh?”
Leo sighed.
The two turned to Leo.
“It’s just a rare chance to settle things.”
“This time, I’ll take the class representative spot.”
“So, are you two going to team up against me?”
“I wouldn’t stoop to something so low, Leo Plov.”
“There’s no reason for me to join forces with this guy, and even if I beat you that way, it’d be meaningless.”
“Then decide who goes first.”
“Obviously me.”
“In your dreams. I’m going first.”
The sparks flew between them again.
Leo spoke up.
“Then let’s do this. The two of you fight each other first, and I’ll face the winner. Sound fair?”
Duran grinned.
“Simple and direct. Come on, Eliza Hergin.”
“That’s just what I wanted, Duran Moira.”
The two, both famous for their fiery tempers, glared at each other—and a fierce battle broke out.
As the other students watched the spectacle, one turned to Leo.
“Where are you going? Weren’t you going to duel the winner?”
“Yeah. But I never said I’d do it right now.”
“What?”
“Well, I’m off.”
Leo waved and walked away.
Duran and Eliza were so focused on fighting each other that they didn’t even notice Leo leaving.
The students who watched the scene felt sorry for the two.
‘Wow, you guys just got played by Leo.’
‘They’re going to be so frustrated when they realize Leo’s gone.’
One student muttered,
“Hey. What if they find out Leo left and take it out on us?”
“…”
The students glanced at each other.
There was nothing stopping that from happening.
One by one, the onlookers quietly slipped away.
A short time later.
Duran and Eliza realized they were the only ones left—and that Leo was gone.
Their faces twisted in rage.
“Leo Plov! You little—!”
“You really—!”
Their hollow anger echoed, but Leo was already far ahead, in a place they couldn’t reach.