Book 1 Chapter 177

177

"That's absurd! How can we beat fifth-year seniors?"

"Professor Sedgen! 'Surpass your limits!' may be our school motto, but this seems too extreme!"

The first-year students clutched their heads and screamed.

The reality was that most first-years couldn't even properly make eye contact with second-years.

But suddenly, a test against the revered fifth-year seniors?

From the first-years' perspective, they had no choice but to panic.

Even students like Celia, Duran, and Eliza, who were always full of confidence, wore extremely bewildered expressions.

Sedgen looked at the first-years and said,

"I didn't tell you to win."

"Huh?"

"As I said before, midterms are graded on a relative scale."

Sedgen offered a gentle smile.

"The fifth-years might be intimidating, but simply showing your best effort will be enough to get a good score on the test."

Hearing Sedgen's words, the first-years regained their composure.

They had been prematurely scared by the mention of fifth-years as opponents, but Sedgen was right.

"Th-that's right. There's no need to be scared."

"Against the fifth-year seniors, we just need to do our best."

"I guess… Professor Sedgen really does care about his students."

"Yeah. I feel much more at ease."

Sedgen smiled faintly at the first-years, who had once again returned to a harmonious atmosphere, then approached the fifth-years.

And towards the 47 fifth-year students, he said without mercy,

"Crush them."

"Yes."

"Shall we stretch our bodies for the first time in a while?"

The fifth-years chuckled and began to warm up.

Sedgen returned to the first-years and said,

"As I said before, the second-semester midterm practical exam is graded on a relative scale. Additionally, I will add a special condition."

The first-years wore puzzled expressions.

"The number of fifth-years is limited to one."

Bastara was fundamentally a sport played by eight people.

It was a game that consumed an enormous amount of stamina.

However, no students felt relieved simply because it became an 8:1 match.

Rather, they broke out in a cold sweat.

'So, they're really going all out, without mercy?'

'Hmm! A fifth-year, huh…!'

Lumerne had 500 freshmen.

Among them, only 47 graduating students remained after five years of rigorous selection.

Over five years, approximately 90% of the students had left the school.

These were truly hero candidates in the truest sense of the word.

It wouldn't be strange for any of them to become a hero.

From a fifth-year's perspective, facing eight first-years was clearly not much of a handicap.

"And if you're not satisfied with the results, you can form a new team and challenge them as many times as you like until you display a satisfactory level of skill."

At those words, the first-years began to murmur.

Then, a student from the Department of Magic cautiously raised a hand.

"Um… Professor. Wouldn't that take up too much of the fifth-year seniors' time? All the fifth-year seniors are busy, aren't they?"

During the first semester, they had seen second, third, and fourth-years quite often, but almost never the fifth-years.

This was because all the fifth-years had spent very busy days with school classes, external missions, and so on.

For such fifth-years to invest their time in them…

They felt a bit overwhelmed, but at the same time, wondered if it was really okay.

"You don't need to worry about that. The graduating class is idle right now anyway. Do you have any questions?"

No students asked questions.

"Good. Then form your teams."

The first-years quickly began to move to find the optimal teammates.

***

"First-years are refreshing, that's nice."

Torua observed the first-years, muttering to himself, standing on his tiptoes with his palms spread over his eyebrows.

"Indeed. There's a freshness you can't feel from anyone anymore."

"Yeah. It seems the muscle-brained knight from the Department of Knighthood, who's grown disgustingly big and could easily be called an old man now, surprisingly knows his place."

"I'm talking about you, old hag."

Torua and Jamua looked at each other and smiled brightly.

Ulta, who was watching them, said,

"You two. Graduation is almost here, so stop fighting. You don't have much school life left, do you?"

Ulta spread his arms wide and said,

"Shouldn't we cherish these precious days by confirming our love for each other?"

"Ugh. Just hearing that makes my stomach churn."

"Agreed."

Torua and Jamua both grimaced simultaneously.

Amidst all this, Lis was lost in thought.

'Is announcing Leo as a student council president candidate really the right path?'

Lis was troubled by how to handle Leo's recommendation as a student council president candidate.

Personally, Lis would be satisfied if Leo became student council president.

'But can Leo bear that burden?'

Just becoming a first-year student council president candidate would subject him to considerable pressure.

'If, by any chance, he becomes student council president, it would be an immense burden. But even if he doesn't, his school life will be just as tangled.'

A junior student who had fallen out of favor with the seniors could hardly expect a smooth school life.

That would be the case even if Leo's maternal family was the Zerdinger.

It was also not good to escalate student affairs into family matters.

'If I had remained at school, I might have been able to mediate somehow… but I'm graduating this year.'

Lis couldn't help but worry about his cousin after leaving school.

Ulta approached Lis, who was contemplating.

"Lis, what are you thinking about?"

"Ulta."

Lis chuckled, seeing Ulta approach him.

"It's nothing."

At those words, Ulta sighed.

"Lis. You haven't changed since your first year."

"Is that so?"

"Yes. Especially how you keep things to yourself when you're troubled."

Ulta folded his arms.

"Lis. I believe you and I are friends who can confide in each other, even before being rivals who have competed for five years, wouldn't you agree?"

"Friends, huh. You're right."

Lis nodded.

And he confided in the person he had fiercely competed with for the class representative position for five years about the current matter.

Ulta stroked his chin as he listened to Lis's words.

"Hmm. It's a complex issue."

"Right?"

"Then isn't there only one conclusion?"

Ulta smiled faintly.

"Doesn't he just need to prove that Leo is capable enough to be student council president?"

"That's true, but Leo is still a first-year."

Lis sighed.

"He's still not ready to take on the student council president role."

"Who decided that?"

"What?"

Ulta looked at Lis, who wore a bewildered expression, and said,

"I asked who decided that a first-year is insufficient to be student council president, Lis."

Ulta smiled faintly.

"Lis, it seems you've forgotten the motto we've heard ad nauseam for five years."

Ulta spread his arms.

"Surpass your limits. We have surpassed our limits time and again. We have turned what was thought impossible into possible."

He was always singing about love and saying strange things.

But at this moment, he was serious.

"Lis. Your cousin is already capable enough to be student council president."

Lis was surprised by Ulta's words.

'To think Ulta rated Leo so highly.'

Ulta Regdison.

Undoubtedly one of Lumerne's strongest summoners.

Although he was considered a bit eccentric, he was famous for never making empty boasts.

Lis also knew his friend's nature well.

"Moreover, the timing isn't good right now. Lumerne is being shaken little by little from both outside and inside. No, cracks are appearing in the peace of the entire world."

Ulta looked at Leo.

"At a time like this, I believe there must be a firm leader to guide the school."

"Are you saying Leo is that leader?"

"Yes."

Ulta curved the corners of his lips upwards.

"So, Lis. You'd better watch closely today."

Ulta elegantly folded his arms.

"Because today, you'll see Leo's true worth."

***

The practical exam began.

The first-years, having formed their teams, bravely and spiritedly challenged the fifth-years.

"Hooit."

Thud-!

"Cough!"

Karl was struck in the abdomen by a ball thrown by a fifth-year female student from the Department of Knighthood and bounced away.

"We're ahead in points! Hold on! What if we hold on?!"

Illiana cried out urgently.

"Well. Of course, you'd be ahead in points. I wasn't particularly interested in defense or offense."

She offered a faint, friendly smile.

"But first-year cadets, remember this. Bastara is also a game where you win by 'annihilating the opponent.' Your strategy to distract my eyes wasn't bad. But I regret your lack of ability to prepare for more fundamental issues."

A team composed of the ace students from Class 5, excluding Leo and Chelsea, was defeated within 3 minutes of the game's start.

Other students who witnessed this were shocked.

The Class 5 combination, led by Nella, Illiana, and Teide, with the strong support-oriented Karl backing them up, was clearly well-balanced and flawless to anyone.

Yet, that team was annihilated so easily.

As everyone broke into a cold sweat, screams erupted elsewhere.

With many fifth-year and first-year Bastara teams, matches were being held simultaneously in several places.

Sedgen, floating in mid-air, was grading the first-years' scores.

'Teamwork isn't bad. But the details are a little disappointing.'

Click-

He pressed his pen and swiftly wrote down his evaluation on the paper.

At first glance, it might have seemed like a rough assessment, but Sedgen wasn't called Lumerne's best professor for nothing.

He oversaw the drill ground, not missing a single one of the simultaneous matches.

He perfectly graded, checking the students' strengths and weaknesses.

At Sedgen's words, the fifth-years showed no mercy.

The first-years, who had been slightly complacent believing they could challenge multiple times, became extremely tense seeing the vastly different level of the fifth-years.

'Lis and Ulta aren't stepping up yet.'

Sedgen nodded, watching the two who were observing the situation without participating in the matches.

Aside from those two, the most noticeable were Torua and Jamua.

Torua rested his chin on his hand and lightly waved it.

Thump-!

"Cough?"

"Gr-gravity magic?"

"Yep. But if you take the hit and then try to react, it's too late."

Torua, who had rendered all opponents unable to respond within 5 seconds of the match's start, shook his head.

"Hahaha. Let's see how tough you are, shall we?"

"Huh? Toughness… *cough*!"

A student was hit by a ball thrown by Jamua and bounced away.

"Tsk. You're not training hard enough. To be knocked down by a ball without even aura infused in it."

"I-I'm a mage, though. And I even put up a shield…!"

"Hmph. Overwhelming physical force sometimes surpasses magic. Remember that."

"Th-that's…"

Jamua, who simply pushed with brute force without even using aura.

Jamua, who had annihilated the first-years, clicked his tongue.

"Well, well. I had expectations, but this is more disappointing than I thought. Weren't you called the best of your cohort?"

Jamua provoked the first-years.

But the first-years couldn't retort.

It was highly unlikely they could retort when they were being utterly annihilated by someone not even using aura.

'Oops. Did I dampen their spirits too much?'

Just as Jamua was scratching his cheek.

"You can expect more from now on."

Thump-!

Someone stood before Jamua.

Celia, with a ball tucked under her arm, smiled faintly at Jamua.

"Because things will be a little different from now on."

"Hoo, Celia."

Jamua curved the corners of his lips upwards, looking at the students other than Celia.

'Chen Xia, Duran, Howl.'

All the junior students from the Department of Knighthood he had been watching were out.

The only slight disappointment was Leo's absence.

'Where is that guy?'

Jamua turned his head and spotted Leo standing on the adjacent field.

There, with Leo at the forefront, stood Chloe, Chelsea, and Abbad.

"Tch. Leo Flobe, that guy. To be aligned with the Department of Magic."

"It's a betrayal."

Duran clicked his tongue, and Chen Xia pouted her lips.

"Yes. It's a betrayal."

Jamua also clicked his tongue.

Meanwhile, Torua looked at Leo with a satisfied expression.

"Mm! Mm! Leo. You've finally found your path. Yes. Magic is truly the best."

"…I'm still an all-rounder."

"Oh, Leo. It seems you've become unable to think logically from taking knight classes and summoning classes."

It was Torua himself who seemed to be saying things completely unrelated to logic, but Leo responded to Torua's actions with familiarity.

"Well, anyway, I'm here today to show you first-years how vast the world is."

Torua, closing his eyes slightly with a prim expression, raised a finger.

Snap-!

"Gasp!"

Along with that, the first-years standing before Torua staggered from the gravity they felt in their bodies and fell to their knees.

"Quietly fall down."

Torua, who had cast the spell and opened his eyes, widened them.

Unlike the other first-years who had all fallen to their knees or were prostrate on the ground, Leo stood without batting an eye.

'Dispel? No, that's not it. How is he standing?'

Torua, feeling the magic activated, his eyes sparkled.

"What kind of magic did you use? Did you perhaps dispel my spell?"

"No."

Leo shrugged.

"I'm just enduring the gravity with sheer strength."

"With strength?"

"Yes."

Leo smiled faintly.

"Overwhelming physical force can sometimes overcome magic, can't it?"