Chapter 66
The next morning.
Since Lumene’s students were invited to Seiren last night, classes were held at Lumene’s dormitory.
The Seiren students’ reactions upon arriving at the dormitory were no different from Lumene’s when they first arrived.
“Oh my? We’re supposed to sleep here?”
“Maybe Lumene is having financial trouble?”
“Can you really sleep in a place like this?”
Seeing their aversion, Eliana crossed her arms and shook her head.
“Bunch of pampered young masters and ladies.”
“You’re one to talk after reacting the exact same way just two days ago… Ack!”
Carr, who was nitpicking, got jabbed in the side by Eliana and toppled over.
With that, the Lumene and Seiren students each settled into their seats and took out their writing materials.
“I have a question.”
At that moment, a female student raised her hand.
“Hm? What’s your question?”
Carr, always sociable, asked with a smile, and the Seiren girl replied with a curious expression.
“What level are you among the first-year students of Lumene?”
“What level, you ask?”
“Well, it varies from student to student.”
The Class 5 students shrugged at each other.
A male Seiren student crossed his arms and asked,
“What do you mean it varies? Don’t you divide into upper, middle, and lower classes?”
“No. Unlike Seiren, which divides classes by grades, Lumene educates all students equally.”
“So that’s how it is at Lumene. Then that’s a bit disappointing.”
Hearing Chelsea’s explanation, the Seiren boy sighed and muttered.
Chelsea’s eyes twitched at those words.
“What exactly is so disappointing?”
“I misspoke. I apologize if I offended you, milady. But we are Seiren’s advanced Class 1. We have classes befitting that status. I’m not saying Lumene’s philosophy of equal education is wrong… but I do wonder if the classes here are worth our time.”
A few Seiren students glared at the boy, but most seemed to agree.
“Wow, what a smug way of talking.”
“I’m just stating the facts, milady.”
At that, Eliana sprang up in anger.
“Ha! If you’re that confident, want to go at it? Doesn’t Seiren evaluate duels starting in the first year?”
“Sit down, Eliana.”
“Fine, class rep.”
Of course, she sat right down at Leo’s words.
Still, the overall atmosphere in Class 5 was tense.
The Seiren student wore a haughty look as he glanced at Class 5.
“I don’t know what kind of amazing classes you usually take, but…”
Leo stepped forward.
“I don’t know what’s so great about you so-called advanced Class 1 students.”
“Even as Lumene’s year representative, isn’t that statement a bit careless?”
The Seiren students flared up.
Leo just gave a bored look.
“I was just stating the truth. After sparring with that guy yesterday, I didn’t find him all that impressive.”
The Seiren boy who had spoken out earlier flushed with embarrassment—he was the one who’d been thoroughly beaten by Leo the day before.
“And weren’t you the ones who made the careless remarks first?”
As Leo gave the Seiren students a cold look, they flinched.
A strange tension filled the air.
“Haaah! It’s cold. Hm? What’s going on?”
Lunia entered through the door.
As she looked around in confusion, Luca approached her with a wry smile.
“There was a bit of an argument.”
“L-Luca! Argument?”
“It was just a difference of opinion.”
Some students hurriedly tried to stop Luca.
But it was already too late.
“Want to explain, Luca?”
With a gentle voice, Lunia listened as Luca recounted what had happened.
“Hmm~”
Lunia half-closed her eyes, looking apologetic.
“Lumene students. It seems someone on our side made a mistake. I’ll talk to them later, so could you be understanding?”
Seeing Lunia speak so meekly, the Class 5 boys grinned ear to ear.
“No, it happens!”
“If Miss Lunia says so!”
“Haha! We’re not offended at all!”
A few Class 5 girls shot them a sharp glare.
Carr clicked his tongue.
“Was that really the same girl who seemed so fierce yesterday?”
“Seriously.”
Leo stifled a laugh as he watched Lunia effortlessly play the part of the quiet, smart honor student.
Lunia gave the advanced Class 1 students a gentle smile.
“It’s good to be proud of your school, but shouldn’t a school’s excellence be proven by results?”
“She’s not just pretty, she’s kind too!”
“Wow! That’s what an ideal elf should be!”
“Why don’t we have a beauty like her in our school’s first year?”
Eliana shook her head at her friends who were completely taken in by Lunia.
“Ugh, idiots. The moment there’s a pretty girl, they lose all sense.”
“Eliana, you’d be the same if you just kept your mouth shut…”
“Hm? What about my mouth?”
“Have mercy, big sis! I’ll behave!”
As Carr kept teasing, Eliana grabbed him by the collar.
Meanwhile, the faces of the advanced Class 1 Seiren students who’d seen Lunia’s face had gone pale.
Though the Lumene students couldn’t see it, Lunia’s face was utterly cold.
With the situation settled for now,
Leo quietly spoke to Lunia as she passed by.
“Quite the act you put on.”
“Shut up.”
Lunia shot him a glare and went to sit with the Seiren students.
A little later, Professor Harrid and Herdeum entered the dorm.
While Herdeum stood aside to observe, Professor Harrid began the class.
“This morning, we’ll have Lumene’s specialty lectures. Knight, Magic, and Summoning. Gather by your major.”
At that, the Lumene students split up by major.
But the Seiren students hesitated, unsure what to do.
“Lumene teacher.”
“There’s no ‘teacher’ title at Lumene. Call us professors.”
At Professor Harrid’s words, Luca—who’d raised a hand—paused and said,
“Professor, the Seiren students don’t have a specific major.”
“I know. Seiren students can choose the area they focus on most.”
Only then did the Seiren students begin to move.
In the end, Seiren students also divided up in similar ways.
Knights and mages were the majority; summoners were the fewest.
‘Is Professor Harrid planning to conduct all the classes alone?’
‘Even for Professor Harrid, handling all majors would be impossible.’
“Chelsea, Nella, Tide.”
At Professor Harrid’s call, the three students stood up.
“You’ll be leading the class.”
“Huh?”
“Us?”
“No matter how well we did, Professor, us leading the class is…”
“Just think of it as reviewing what you learned. You’re all top students in your departments. I think you can at least explain what you’ve learned at Lumene, can’t you?”
Nella and Tide hesitated at those words.
But Chelsea stepped forward without hesitation.
Her confidence as a member of a Heroic House showed.
‘A class led by students, how interesting.’
Herdeum’s eyes sparkled.
‘It’s a bit odd the year representative isn’t participating, but let’s see just how good Lumene’s top students are.’
With Herdeum’s interest piqued, the exchange class began.
And as it progressed, the Seiren students were shocked.
“Whoa! So that approach is possible?”
A boy taking Chelsea’s class was amazed as he took notes.
“Wow! Even Seiren hasn’t done it like this… no, maybe this is even more advanced…”
A girl in Nella’s class didn’t even know how to react.
“Aha! So that’s how Lumene interprets summoning circles? Could this method be used too?”
“Yes, uh, that’s right.”
Even the summoning side was full of admiration.
Lunia soaked up Lumene’s new knowledge like a sponge.
Professor Harrid watched with a slight smile.
‘Looking from another race’s perspective opens your eyes to new methods.’
It wasn’t just Seiren; the same was true for Lumene.
‘There will be friction since each school’s pride is on the line, but… through that, they’ll both grow. In that sense, our class is lucky.’
Herdeum’s eyes sparkled as well.
‘Impressive. All three students are excellent. They’d do just fine even as upperclassmen. Especially the female mage—she must be a direct descendant of Lewellin. This generation of Lumene is something else.’
Some Seiren students tried to deny it out of pride, but Herdeum was different from the children.
Being responsible for advanced Class 1 meant being among the very best Seiren teachers.
If he were the type to belittle students from other schools out of mere pride, he wouldn’t be here.
‘Heh, if your rivals are outstanding, victory is that much more rewarding. I believe in our students!’
While stroking his chin and praising himself, the class ended.
“After lunch, we’ll attend Seiren’s lecture.”
Lunch was held at Seiren’s dorm.
The Seiren students ate with serious faces.
They had assumed their classes were superior, but after attending Lumene’s, there was much they didn’t understand.
Some students actively talked to Lumene students to understand what they’d learned, but most just kept glancing around.
Thus, the afternoon Seiren class began.
“Lumene students! This morning’s class was truly fascinating! So, we will now present Seiren’s lecture to you!”
If Lumene’s teaching style was about selection and focus, Seiren’s style was about balance.
Aura, Magic, Summoning.
All three disciplines were taught together in a single class.
Done poorly, it could have ended up being neither here nor there, but as a teacher, Herdeum’s skill was overwhelming.
The Knight majors gained a much deeper understanding of magic and summoning and could better understand how to counter them.
The same went for the other departments.
Seeing the Lumene students repeatedly exclaiming in surprise made Herdeum excited as well.
‘Feels like I’m teaching my own students at the start of the semester!’
When the learners are enthusiastic, the teacher feels great too.
‘Accepting new knowledge flexibly is Lumene’s strength. It’s something our Seiren students should learn.’
Even as he taught, Herdeum considered ways to better guide his students.
Despite it being just after lunch when concentration drops and sleepiness sets in, the Lumene students listened intently with sparkling eyes.
Of course, there were exceptions.
“Huuuwaaam— oops.”
Leo yawned without realizing and quickly covered his mouth.
But for Leo, who was in the All-Class, the class was inevitably boring.
He already knew the material; in fact, he might even have been able to teach better than Herdeum in some respects.
‘That, that, that, that, that! That guy! How dare heeeeee!’
With everyone focused, one person looking bored really stood out.
Herdeum, who had been secretly looking forward to the year representative, felt considerable frustration.
‘How can a student like that be Lumene’s year representative! There are so many passionate students!’
“Now, let’s move on to Star Magic.”
‘Yeah! Let’s see if you can keep that bored look while learning Star Magic!’
It was a lecture never offered at Lumene.
Not only the magic majors, but even students from other departments perked up.
Seeing their enthusiasm, Herdeum felt healed and began drawing a giant magic circle on the board.
“This is the entire curriculum for Seiren’s first-years.”
Tap! Tak! Ssssssk—
The sound of chalk echoed calmly.
Seeing the magic circle written with Star Magic formulas, Leo narrowed his eyes.
‘What the… why did he draw the circle with the wrong interpretation? There’s no way magic would activate like that.’
Since it was a spell Luna especially liked to use, the interpretation on the board bothered Leo.
When Herdeum finished drawing, Leo raised his hand.
Herdeum inwardly smirked.
‘Of course. He must be interested in Star Magic…’
“Professor. The interpretation is wrong.”