Chapter 233

Lumene’s dock.

There, Leo was waiting for the new students.

When Leo had entered the academy last year, it was Professor Artianne who guided them in.

But traditionally at Lumene, welcoming new students was one of the student council president’s duties.

If the president was unavailable, the vice president would take their place.

‘Since both the president and vice president are often dispatched outside the academy, professors usually handle the role.’

Last year, it had been Rhys and Torua.

Both had been on a mission to conquer a Hero Dungeon, so Artianne had stepped in instead.

Shhhhhh—!

A ferry appeared across the lake.

‘Huh? Why is it so quiet?’

Last year, new students had cheered the moment they saw Lumene.

Understandable, considering they’d been harassed by aquatic monsters from day one.

The initiation before the entrance ceremony was something of a Lumene tradition.

But there was no sign of such chaos this time—only silence.

Eventually, the ferry arrived at the dock.

But unlike the boisterous scene from the previous year, the ship was dead silent.

Leo jumped straight onto the deck.

He let out a faint laugh at the sight that unfolded before him.

The deck was a mess.

It was clear a fight had broken out among the freshmen.

Whoosh—!

Suddenly, a sharp sword strike came flying toward Leo.

Tap—!

“……!”

Leo blocked it with a single finger.

It had been sharp, but there wasn’t much power behind it.

Aina, looking exhausted, recognized Leo and opened her eyes wide for a moment before withdrawing her sword.

“Ugh…”

“H-Help…”

Groans echoed from all directions.

A few of the more skilled students were still upright, kneeling and catching their breath.

But Aina was the only one still standing.

‘Did they fight each other?’

“What happened here?”

Just as Aina opened her mouth to reply—

“I’ll explain.”

Step, step…

Between the fallen students, a woman with beautiful silver hair, dressed in a clean-cut suit, emerged with a smile.

“We determined the strongest student through combat to select the new student representative. And the one who earned that title is none other than the one standing here—Aina Beidian.”

Leo’s eyes widened when he saw the Lumene professor appear.

“Hello. I’m Mel, and I’ll be teaching first-year classes in the Magic Department.”

Mel snapped her fingers with a bright smile.

Fwoosh—!

A radiant light spread across the deck.

The groans of pain stopped as students were instantly relieved of their injuries, their expressions filled with shock.

Many of the freshmen had suffered serious wounds.

But Mel had healed hundreds in mere seconds.

Even for a mage specialized in healing magic, that was an extraordinary feat.

‘As expected of a Lumene professor…!’

‘Incredible!’

‘To think we’ll be learning magic from someone like her…!’

The Magic Department students who understood how incredible that magic was stared at Mel with eyes full of admiration.

“Form ranks.”

At Leo’s command, the students flinched, then hastily began lining up.

There wasn’t a single student here who didn’t know Leo.

The only All-Class Candidate in history, and the youngest student council president in Lumene’s history.

Leo Plov!

His exploits the previous year were world-famous.

“I didn’t get to see him in person during the entrance exam…!”

“Wow! He’s really handsome!”

“Haah… I wonder if I’ll get to be taught by Leo-senior too…”

The girls whispered excitedly.

“He’s not that much older than us, but his presence is insane.”

“So this is the greatest genius in Lumene’s history…”

“Yeah, the second All-Class since the Hero of Beginnings…”

The boys watched Leo’s back with tense expressions.

While the students lined up—

A silver-haired boy with silver eyes looked stunned.

“The Hero of Beginnings actually existed? I thought Kyle was just a fictional character?”

As Luke asked in disbelief, nearby students snickered.

“Wow, how did someone like this even get into Lumene?”

“Some Hero Candidate. You’re clueless about current events in hero studies.”

As the students sneered, Luke shrank back.

“Hmph. You’re in no position to mock others.”

“What did you say?”

The students turned angrily.

Then they saw Juen and flinched.

“You lot are the ones who got in through the supplemental exam, right? Unlike you, this guy passed the main exam fair and square. And he even fought that student council president right alongside me, remember?”

With a cheerful grin, Juen slung an arm around Luke’s shoulders.

Seeing one of the top freshmen backing him up, the mocking students scowled and walked away.

“Hmph. Pathetic.”

“Thanks for standing up for me.”

“No problem~ So what if you’re a little behind in hero studies? You’ll learn it all at school anyway.”

“But still… I’m shocked that Kyle wasn’t just a character in a story.”

“Yup. Lumene and Seiren made a joint announcement last year… During the Lumeiren incident, the Founder of the Nebula and the Hero of Beginnings appeared and defeated the Monster Queen. That confirmed their existence.”

“The Great Hero showed up in our time? And the Monster Queen was defeated?!”

Juen looked dumbfounded at Luke’s surprise.

“Do you live in some backwater where newspapers don’t get delivered?”

“Yeah. In our village, we only get old newspapers from a few months ago.”

“Wow. That’s seriously out in the sticks.”

Luke scratched his head with an awkward smile.

After the entrance exam, he had returned straight to his hometown and hadn’t heard any of the Lumeiren rumors.

Juen clicked her tongue but smiled.

“Anyway, let me introduce myself properly. I’m Juen Torbina. Fifteen, from the Northern Magic Tower~!”

“I’m Luke Elda. Fourteen, from the village of Sirne in the east.”

“Nice to meet you, Luke. Fufufu—You were really tenacious during the entrance exam. I’m a mage, so I need a frontliner… I mean, a reliable partner.”

Luke smiled brightly.

“I’m not that good… You’ll find much better people to partner with, Miss Juen.”

“Why are you rejecting me? Being partners with a rising star from the Northern Magic Tower is a huge opportunity, you know?”

“But you just called me a meat shield!”

Luke turned pale and tried to run.

But Juen grabbed him and grinned wickedly.

“Uhehehehe, you’re not going anywhere.”

“S-Save me!”

“Quiet down and line up.”

A calm voice rang out.

Juen smiled wide.

“Aina Beidian.”

She licked her lips.

“I lost the representative spot this time, but considering the advantages your knight-mage class gave you, next time I’ll take it back.”

“…Suit yourself.”

Aina stood at the front, uninterested.

Before reaching the front, she locked eyes with Luke.

Luke gave an awkward smile, but Aina just turned away.

“What the heck! She completely ignored me? Acting all high and mighty just because she’s the successor to the Sword Star! Hmph! You’ll regret it!”

As Juen burned with competitive spirit, the new students disembarked.

They followed their escort, Leo, to the Erek training grounds.

Along the way, they constantly exclaimed in wonder.

“Oh my, how fresh. These kids are so full of energy and youthful passion. Fufufu. I can already feel the spark of youth.”

Watching the new students, Mel burst into laughter.

“I’m only a couple of years older than them…”

Leo muttered flatly.

Mel smiled.

“You may look like a boy, but inside, you’re a grumpy old man.”

They spoke quietly so the new students couldn’t hear.

“Anyway, how do you feel? Now that everyone believes in Kyle’s existence?”

“What’s there to feel? It was always true.”

Leo answered indifferently and looked at Mel.

“By the way, what’s with the sudden professor act?”

“…It’s just the times we live in. I felt the world needs more new heroes.”

“Do the other dragons know?”

“No. My true body is still in Dragonia. This is an avatar I created.”

Mel’s true identity was none other than Dragon Lord Melina.

As she smiled brightly, Leo spoke.

“Then this works out perfectly.”

“Do you have something for me to do?”

Mel asked politely at Leo’s words.

Anyone else hearing this might’ve found it strange, but the new students couldn’t hear their conversation.

“Can you look into Chen Xia for me?”

“Understood.”

She didn’t ask why.

Because the boy in front of her was the Great Hero.

The one who saved the world.

And she alone knew that truth.

To repay the Great Hero’s deeds, Mel believed she must follow any command he gave.

—

Led by Leo, the new students arrived in Erek.

They stood in formation, wearing nervous expressions.

Leo went over and sat in the second-years’ area.

“We will now begin the entrance ceremony. First, a word from the principal.”

At that, the current students began murmuring.

The principal who hadn’t shown up at the opening ceremony would finally make an appearance.

Rumors had circulated wildly, so her appearance drew interest from both new and returning students.

Step, step—

A woman appeared on the platform.

She looked younger than expected, and all the students stared in surprise.

Then Leena began to speak.

“Nice to meet you, students of Lumene. My name is Leena Flix. I am the new principal of Lumene.”

“Leena?”

“Have you heard of her?”

“No.”

All the students wore shocked expressions.

“Lumene’s principals are usually world-renowned heroes… Who is she?”

Chloe looked confused.

All of Lumene’s past principals had been top-class heroes of their time.

But no one had ever heard of Leena.

“It’s not strange that you don’t know me.”

Leena’s golden eyes gleamed.

“I’ve lived my entire life in the shadows. There’s no reason for you to have heard of me.”

The students’ expressions changed.

Shadows.

They were those who rooted out traitors—those who betrayed their kind and joined Tartarus.

They too worked for world peace.

But they lived entirely in the shadows.

A hero wasn’t just a protector of an era.

A hero was someone who transformed the world and led people.

But not a shadow.

Their job was to hunt down traitors and destroy their networks.

The problem was that they were known for excessive brutality.

“Haven’t the shadows accidentally killed heroes multiple times in the past?”

“Some kingdoms in history were wiped out because of them.”

“And now a shadow is our principal?”

The students looked uneasy.

Leena smiled.

“I look forward to working with you. Hero Candidates.”

She swept her gaze across not just the freshmen but the returning students as well, then returned to her seat.

Amid the confusion—

“We will now have a speech from the new student representative. Aina Beidian.”

The students fell silent.

All eyes turned to Aina as she walked onto the stage.

Just a year ago, the successor to the Sword Star had stood there, giving a speech to encourage her peers.

“Honored professors and upperclassmen, thank you for welcoming us new students. As proud members of Lumene, we freshmen…”

Aina read her speech calmly.

“New student representative, Aina Beidian.”

Clap clap clap clap—

Applause erupted.

“Welcome, Aina Beidian!”

“You’re sure to become a great Hero Candidate!”

Surprisingly, cheers and support came even from the upperclassmen.

If it hadn’t been for Kalian last year, many of them wouldn’t be alive now.

And having served as Lumene’s principal for decades, Kalian was someone the older students had known for years.

As the Sword Star’s successor, Aina was a figure with deep significance for Lumene’s students.

Amid the warm welcome, the officiating professor spoke.

“Aina, do you have any final words as the student representative?”

Aina paused for a moment, then spoke.

“Leo-senior.”

Instantly, all eyes turned to Leo.

“I will definitely earn your recognition.”

Her declaration drew a loud chorus of gasps.

“What the—Leo! What’s going on with you two?”

“Did you meet after the entrance exam or something?”

“What kind of relationship do you have for her to say that in front of everyone?”

Their classmates buzzed with excitement.

If Leo’s speech last year had been shocking in its own way, Aina’s was a new kind of bombshell.

“Did something happen with her?”

Chloe asked with a puzzled look.

Leo replied flatly.

“Beats me. She’s been obsessed with me since the entrance exam.”

Looking at Aina, Leo murmured—

“Guess I’ll need to have a chat with her soon.”