Chapter 220
“W-What was that?!”
“That was insanely loud…!”
The Lumene students, who had been resting in their rooms, rushed down to the first floor in shock.
“Did they say Leo just now?”
Carr asked, wearing a dumbfounded expression. Eiran, still covering her ears, carefully lowered her hands and replied,
“Y-Yes, that’s what I heard too.”
Furrowing her brow, Celia opened the front door.
And there, in the distance—
She spotted a girl standing tall at the entrance and tilted her head.
“A beastkin?”
The one who had shouted was a beastkin girl.
Her appearance was striking—even aside from being a beastkin.
Her outfit was what really stood out.
Western winters were cold, if not quite as harsh as the north.
And yet, the beastkin girl was dressed extremely lightly.
So lightly, in fact, she was wearing short sleeves.
White cat ears twitched irritably atop her head, and the tail between her back and hips swished in agitation.
But most of all, her sapphire-blue eyes brimmed with fierce hostility.
Like a cat ready to bare its fangs and hiss.
“She looks really mad.”
Chloe, peeking out beside Celia, tilted her head.
“But why is she making a scene yelling for Leo?”
“Wait. That uniform… isn’t that Azonia’s?”
“What?”
Celia looked again, startled by Chloe’s observation.
Sure enough, the girl was wearing the Azonia school uniform.
“Why would an Azonia student be here, demanding to see Leo?”
Celia stepped outside, wearing an incredulous expression.
The beastkin girl—Ar—narrowed her eyes as she spotted Celia.
Step—step—
As Celia approached, she said,
“You’re a student from Azonia, right? I’m Celia Zerdinger.”
“Celia?”
Ar’s sharp eyes narrowed.
Even in Azonia, Celia was a famous Lumene student.
Ar had heard her name several times before.
After scanning Celia from head to toe, Ar folded her arms and lifted her chin.
“I’m Ar Tune.”
“Ar Tune?”
‘Azonia’s first-year rep? Why would someone that important be here looking for Leo?’
Celia blinked in surprise—then remembered something.
‘Ah, that’s right. During summer break, Leo supposedly cleared Aron’s world with her.’
It was widely known that during this year’s Azonia entrance exam, Aron’s world had suddenly opened.
And Leo had entered the exam alongside Ar.
That would mean Leo and Ar had risked their lives together.
But Ar showed no signs of camaraderie.
As Celia raised an eyebrow, Ar asked,
“So? Where’s Leo Plov?”
“Leo’s not here.”
“Then where is he?”
“He hasn’t arrived yet—family business.”
Ar’s brow furrowed.
“If you don’t mind, can you tell me why you’re looking for Leo? Doesn’t seem like it’s for anything pleasant.”
“I came to challenge Leo Plov to a duel.”
‘…What did he do this time?’
Leo wasn’t the type to earn grudges easily—but he wasn’t exactly a saint, either.
“If you’re okay with it, would you mind coming inside and explaining why you want to duel him?”
“Sure.”
Ar nodded and followed Celia inside.
‘She doesn’t seem like a bad person…’
As Ar entered, every Lumene student’s eyes locked onto her.
Thanks to her earlier yelling, the entire student body had gathered on the first floor.
Most would’ve flinched under such scrutiny, but Ar didn’t so much as blink.
“An Azonia student?”
“She’s the one who screamed for Leo earlier?”
“Who is she?”
“They said her name’s Ar Tune?”
“What? Azonia’s first-year rep?”
“Whoa… what’s someone like her doing here? And wait, aren’t those the Seiren reps too?!”
“What the heck is going on?”
Those unaware of the Seiren reps’ arrival finally caught on and began murmuring.
Hearing the whispers, Ar perked her ears and glanced toward the Seiren students.
She spotted the red-haired girl with crimson eyes and immediately recognized her.
‘Lunia El Lunda. Seiren’s first-year top student.’
At the same time, Lunia also recognized Ar and tilted her head.
‘Ar Tune… Azonia’s first-year representative.’
An unexpected encounter between the top students of Seiren and Azonia.
Tension crackled between the two as they sized each other up.
“My, we have quite the gathering.”
Just then, Duran stepped forward, parting the crowd.
He wasn’t alone.
Chloe stood off to the side in the lounge.
Abad and Chelsea sat not far away, watching with interest.
Eliza, as usual, filed her nails with an indifferent expression—but her eyes sparkled with intrigue.
Watching this, the Lumene students gulped.
Leo, Chen Xia, and Walden were absent due to family matters.
Even so, nearly all the top hero candidates of their generation were now gathered in one place.
The air was thick with tension.
“So, why exactly are you challenging Leo to a duel?”
If someone like Azonia’s rep held a grudge, this could easily escalate into a diplomatic mess.
Especially since the Tune family was among the top beastkin heroic houses.
If it was serious, it could spark international issues.
Celia’s question drew confused looks from the Lumene students.
Not many knew that Leo had participated in Azonia’s entrance exam over break.
So a sudden challenge from Azonia’s first-year rep left them puzzled.
“Is this like dojo-hunting? Trying to defeat the most famous guy, Leo Plov?”
“Oh yeah, Azonia students are known to be battle maniacs, right?”
“If that’s the case, this could be fun.”
As speculation swirled, Ar clenched her fists.
Her previously limp tail stiffened, fur bristling.
“Leo Plov… that bastard…”
Ar’s lips trembled as she shouted,
“He toyed with me and made a complete fool of me!”
*Pfft! Cough! Haaack!*
Lunia, who had been sipping tea, choked and violently coughed it all over the table.
“And then he left me behind and vanished!”
*Thud!* *Thump!*
Chloe dropped her grimoire in shock.
“Ow!”
Carr clutched his foot, having been struck by the falling book, and rolled on the floor.
But Chloe, still stunned, just stared blankly.
“I’ll never forgive someone who played with a girl’s innocent heart!”
“T-That can’t be… Lord Leo… Lord Leo…”
Eiran mumbled in a daze, visibly shaken.
“Wait! Hold on!”
Chelsea shot to her feet, face flushed red.
“Leo would never do something so indecent! Don’t lie!”
“Lie?! He totally tricked me!”
Ar stood as well, shouting right back.
The hotel lobby descended into chaos.
“Hmph. So that’s the reason. Well, Leo Plov does have a rather devious side.”
“How disappointing, Leo Plov.”
Eliza coldly commented while Duran scoffed with his arms crossed.
Celia tried to stay composed.
But the absurdity of the accusation made her head throb.
‘She doesn’t seem to be lying… What the hell did he do over there?!’
Just as Celia was screaming internally—
“What’s going on? Why is everyone on the first floor?”
A voice rang out.
Every single person turned toward the source.
White hair, red eyes.
The problem child himself—Leo Plov—stood in the doorway.
“Leo Plov!”
“Hmm?”
Ar leapt to her feet with a fierce glare.
“Prepare yourself!”
She bared her fangs and extended her claws as she lunged, and Leo calmly raised a fist.
*Whack!*
“Augh!”
“What the hell are you doing?”
Leo asked nonchalantly.
Ar, crouching and holding her head, looked up.
“Leo Plov! Have you forgotten what you did to me?!”
“Oh, that? Yeah, sorry about that. But what could I do?”
“Hey! Leo! Did you really mess with her?!”
Celia asked urgently.
“Yeah. But it’s not like I could actually enroll in Azonia, right?”
“What?”
Celia blinked.
“I tricked her and attended the Azonia entrance ceremony. But Professor Ain and Professor Yura caught me, so I couldn’t even explain properly and had to leave.”
“I had dreams, you know! I thought we were going to make Azonia the greatest Hero Academy together! And then you just left me! I can’t forgive you!”
As Ar snarled and lunged again, Leo casually pushed her face back.
“What’ll it take for you to let this go?”
“Transfer to Azonia right now!”
“You seriously think that’s an option?”
“Why not?! You took the entrance exam as a Lumene student! Just transfer already!”
Watching Ar throw a tantrum like a kitten, Carr mumbled,
“I swear, that guy is way too popular…”
Eliana added,
“I’ve said it before, but I want none of that kind of popularity.”
Every Lumene student nearby nodded in solemn agreement.
—
On the outskirts of Lorend stood a massive parade ground.
Large enough to hold imperial military ceremonies, it could easily accommodate tens of thousands.
And today, the field was packed.
The long-awaited Lumene unified entrance exam was finally beginning.
Normally, attention at these exams focused on the applicants.
But not this time.
Most eyes were on the second-year students brought in for the event.
“Look over there! It’s the so-called golden generation—Lumene’s second-years!”
“Isn’t that Chloe Mueller? The genius from the Northern Mage Tower!”
“Even Duran from the Knight Kingdom Moira is here.”
The top-ranking students drew all the attention.
Most of the second-years wore proud expressions under the crowd’s gaze.
But even in this moment, some stayed focused on their tasks.
“Jackpot! This is huge!”
“What crazy business idea now?”
Chloe, who had been checking in on juniors from the Mage Tower, looked up at the grinning Carr.
“Success talismans!”
“Success what?”
“You know how I barely scraped into Lumene and barely survived into second year?”
Carr smirked.
“So now I’m marketing them to the applicants!”
“…Isn’t that fraud?”
“Fraud?! Please. I’m even giving out free fatigue potions as a bonus!”
Chloe could only shake her head at his antics.
Meanwhile, Leo was giving his knights some advice.
“Do your best.”
“Yes, sir!”
“No matter what the test is, don’t give up.”
“Of course!”
“Leo-senior!”
As Leo encouraged his knights, a bright voice called out.
The Slayer Order gasped in unison and bowed.
It was none other than the princess of this country—Shasha.
The leading candidate to become the next emperor of Lordren, she approached Leo surrounded by an entourage of retainers.
“I’ve been waiting for this day.”
Shasha beamed.
“The day I become your junior and receive your guidance!”
“Oh, okay. Good luck.”
Leo replied flatly.
Her escorts glared daggers at Leo for his tone.
But he didn’t flinch.
Shasha didn’t mind either. She grinned confidently.
“As your direct junior, I’ll aim for class representative!”
“Sure. Work hard.”
“Fufu! Please look forward to it!”
As the radiant princess departed, Martina asked nervously,
“Um… Young Master Leo, is it okay to speak to the princess so casually?”
“What’s the problem? She’s just a junior. And technically, I’m not even from this country.”
Leo’s nationality was Delard Kingdom.
While the second-years supported the incoming first-years—
“Attention.”
A low voice echoed across the exam grounds.
“I am Harrid Edmond. I’ll be overseeing this year’s Lumene unified entrance exam.”
Gasps rippled through the crowd.
One of Lumene’s most renowned professors had taken the stage.
The examinees tensed.
Harrid spoke without preamble.
“I will now announce the entrance exam’s task.”
As expected of Harrid, there was no fluff—straight to the point.
“This year’s entrance exam is [Survival].”
The applicants began murmuring.
“Survival?”
“Do we just have to stay alive?”
“You’ll be tested on how you handle extreme conditions. Only those who survive within the time limit or demonstrate excellent crisis management will pass.”
Sighs of relief spread across the crowd.
“That’s it? Just survive?”
“I guess the unified format means it’s easier.”
“Survival’s a piece of cake!”
“I was nervous for nothing.”
They chatted cheerfully.
Harrid’s expression didn’t change as he spoke flatly.
“Easy? Simple?”
His frigid voice silenced them instantly.
“Seems you’re under the impression the Lumene entrance exam is a joke. But you don’t even know who you’re supposed to survive against.”
He smirked.
“Your opponents… will be none other than your seniors—the Lumene second-years here today.”
The applicants—and even the second-years—were stunned.
“‘Survive within the time limit’ also means… if you don’t, you all fail.”
Harrid’s eyes gleamed.
“In other words, it’s entirely possible for this year’s class to have zero new students.”
Faces across the crowd hardened.
‘No way! I don’t want a second year with no juniors!’
Even the second-years screamed internally.
“Seniors—if any of you go easy on them out of pity, I’ll expel you on the spot.”
Harrid’s voice struck like a hammer.
“Th-That’s unfair!”
“Yeah! How can we fight second-years?!”
Several students protested.
Harrid curled his lips.
“Surpass your limits. That is Lumene’s creed. This is how Lumene does things.”