Book 1 Chapter 338

338

Seirun lunchtime.

Leo was walking down the corridor of the 'Castle of Origin,' a first-year building.

Thump- thump-

And at the end of the long corridor.

Swoosh-

A girl with gray hair peeked out from behind the wall at the corner of the corridor.

'It must be Leo Flove, right? Are you sure? Not someone who looks similar?'

Seeing Leo leave the dining hall, Leah hastily finished her meal and chased after Leo.

Leah was sure it was Leo, but she still didn't understand the current situation well.

It made no sense for the student council president of Rumern to pretend to be a Seirun student.

'And in a lower-tier class of first-years?'

In such a strange situation, she followed Leo to confirm it was him.

Thump-

Just then, Leo stopped walking, and startled Leah instinctively hid behind a wall-mounted armor decoration with a swoosh!

'Wait a minute, why do I need to hide? Can't I just ask?'

She felt pathetic for hiding when she had done nothing wrong.

"What are you doing?"

"Kyaaak?!"

At the voice from behind, Leah screamed and clung to the armor decoration.

Whoosh-!

The armor decoration creaked under Leah's weight.

Thud-! Whee-!

Leo reached out and caught Leah.

He used wind magic to set the armor decoration back in place.

Seeing Leo's face up close, Leah became certain.

'It really is Leo Flove!'

"Are you okay?"

Leo asked, steadying Leah who had lost her balance.

Leah, who had been staring intently at Leo, snapped back to reality with a gasp!

Then, she distanced herself from Leo and hurriedly turned away.

'It's Leo Flove! It's really Leo Flove!'

Leah hastily adjusted her clothes.

Then she cleared her throat and turned back.

Looking up at the boy taller than her, Leah politely bowed.

"Nice to meet you, my name is Leah Tingel."

Seeing Leah, who even slightly lifted the hem of her school uniform skirt and bowed with proper etiquette, Leo wore a puzzled expression.

'Top student of the first-years?'

Seirun's top first-year student, who Professor Tina had mentioned, and the one who had successfully communicated with Silod.

'Well, it's not strange to meet since we're both first-years, but why is her attitude so polite?'

Same first-year.

And to Leo, who was in a lower-tier class, she was acting as if he were a senior student, which made him wonder.

Leo's confusion was soon resolved by Leah.

"You are Leo Flove, right? Why were you in the Seirun first-year dining hall? And in a lower-tier class at that."

'She recognized me.'

"H-Hold on! Did Aunt Tina send you to Seirun? Is that it? Huh? Huh?"

"Why are you so flustered?"

"Because I like you!"

"……."

Leo's face contorted strangely as he watched the girl who declared her affection to someone she met for the first time that day.

Leah, unable to contain her excitement, poured out her words.

"Ever since I was little, I've loved the fairy tales of Kyle, the Hero of Origin! His stories are, how should I say it… tragic? I thought he was a true great hero who moved the heart! And you are All Class, just like Kyle! On top of that, you've made great contributions in proving that Kyle is a real person! Ah! My heart pounded with excitement every time I heard your heroic tales!"

Leo looked bewildered at Leah, who was speaking at a terrifying speed.

In fact, quite a few students at Rumern were fanatically devoted to great heroes.

This was characteristic not only of Rumern students but of all Hero Academies.

As they admired heroes and dreamed of becoming heroes.

It was not strange to have deep respect for the great heroes who saved the world and could be called the greatest heroes.

Especially, there was no rule that the great hero of the same race had to be one's favorite.

Even among elves, one could admire Arion, who possessed the greatest courage in the world.

Or one might prefer Lisinas, who wisely led everyone.

It was only natural that the great hero one revered differed according to individual preferences.

However…

'She's weirdly saying she likes me the most?'

While it was now revealed that Kyle had existed,

Calling Kyle, who had been treated as a fictional character for thousands of years, one's favorite great hero was definitely eccentric.

Among the great heroes, Kyle was quite niche.

In fact, the only people who liked Kyle's stories were Chelsea, Eiran, and Luke.

Even they didn't necessarily have Kyle as their most favorite and respected great hero.

But for someone of another race.

Especially for an elf, who had strong racial pride, to call Kyle their favorite great hero.

"So! I wanted to enroll in Rumern and take the entrance exam! But my family strongly opposed it!"

Leah, who had been chattering away, clasped her hands.

"Then why are you at Seirun?"

"I came as an exchange student."

"Exchange student! Ah! I see! But…"

Leah's expression turned very flustered.

"Then… why… in a first-year lower-tier class…?"

The exchange student program did not exist at Seirun.

However, Leah, a direct descendant of the Tingel family, knew how powerful her family's influence was.

Even though Tina was not well-known in her family, it wouldn't be difficult to create a non-existent system as a special exception if she requested it.

Leah also thought that Leo's presence as an exchange student at Seirun would be of immense help.

They had never met and were not acquaintances.

But seeing the great deeds Leo had accomplished as a hero candidate, it was clear he was a remarkable person.

'He's like the heroes themselves.'

For such a person to come to the first year instead of the second year.

At best, it could be to have a good influence on the first-years.

Leah had even considered enrolling in Rumern because of Leo.

If they could study together, she would welcome it with open arms.

'But… a lower-tier class?'

She couldn't understand.

Leo, glancing at the flustered Leah, asked,

"Leah Tingel."

"Ah! Please call me Leah! Senior Flove!"

"Senior? I'm not a Seirun student."

"Even if it's another Hero Academy, as fellow hero candidates, you enrolled a year before me, so of course you're my senior! Senior Flove… Ah! What a wonderful resonance."

Leo let out a wry laugh at Leah, who was getting overly excited on her own.

"Alright, Leah. What do you think of the lower-tier classes?"

"Lower-tier classes? The teachers said that the students in the lower-tier classes are those who don't try hard."

Leo clicked his tongue at Leah's innocent reply.

'Is that how they're educating them?'

It seemed they were educating the students in the lower classes as 'lazy dropouts.'

'It seems Seirun's current direction is quite clear.'

The school founded by the Comet Mage, who wished to follow in the footsteps of the Star of Genesis.

The faction currently leading Seirun's operations seems to plan to make Seirun itself a school for nurturing the successors of the Comet Mage.

A school only for outstanding Star Mages.

'…Would the Comet Mage have truly wanted that?'

Even now, in the Hero Records, the Heroes of the Genesis are fighting against the fragments of Erebus.

And Seirun, one of them.

'…If Seirun had conquered Luna's world of heroes…'

Leo's eyes sank.

'If she truly followed Luna's will… would she really want a school only for Star Mages?'

Luna wanted a world blooming with flowers.

She gambled everything and faced Erebus, yearning for that peaceful scene.

A junior whom he had never met, separated by 2,000 years of time.

However, that heart, which sought to fight Erebus by sacrificing herself for the world, was probably not much different from his own 5,000 years ago… and his friends.

It was unlikely that such a Seirun would want to create a school solely for 'Star Magic.'

She would not have expected someone to follow in Luna's footsteps.

Even less would she have sought Seirun's own successor.

She likely founded this school to pass on the wish to protect this world, which she admired Luna for sacrificing her life to protect. And which the previous generations had rebuilt with all their might.

'If we were in the same situation as the Heroes of the Genesis… we would have done the same.'

The current Seirun is wrong.

There must be students in the upper years of Seirun who feel that way.

'I was just going to pretend not to care if the school collapsed or not.'

Leo chuckled and said to the strange elf girl who liked the Hero of Origin the most.

"Leah Tingel."

"Oh dear, call me Leah…"

"If I give you a homework assignment, do you think you can do it?"

"What kind? If it's about the theory of Star Magic, I can have it done by tomorrow…"

"Go and ask your seniors what they think of Seirun right now."

"Ask the seniors about their thoughts on the current Seirun? Which seniors?"

"Luna and Eiran."

When the names of the second-year top and second-ranked students, who were currently the talk of the school, were mentioned, Leah's eyes widened.

"If they look like they don't want to talk about it, tell them I asked."

"Okay! But! If you do it, will you grant me a favor?"

"What is it?"

"Treat me as your junior and teach me magic, Senior Flove."

Ahem! Leo chuckled, watching Leah puff out her chest.

"Alright."

"Hooray!"

Leo continued, watching Leah's genuine joy.

"And keep it a secret from your classmates that I came as an exchange student."

"It's a secret between Senior Flove and me! Understood!"

Leah, smiling sweetly, ran down the corridor.

It seemed she was heading straight for Luna and Eiran.

Leo chuckled, watching her go.

'I wonder if I'm inadvertently turning a good kid into a delinquent.'

He thought for a moment, then murmured, looking at the scenery of the 'Castle of Origin' outside the corridor window.

'…Should I try to fix it properly?'

***

Spring in the Northern Continent is harsh.

Perhaps that's natural for this cold Northern Continent.

However, the faces of the people working were full of vitality.

The elves, looking at the 'Castle of Origin,' which would be completed soon, had bright faces.

They believed without a doubt that this place was their new hope and future.

"Your school will be completed soon too."

"Yes."

An elf woman replied with a slight smile to the only human present.

"How about your school, Rumern?"

Rumern replied to the elf's question.

"The new students are cute."

"Really?"

"Yes. Don't make that face, Seirun."

Rumern said with a smile to his friend with a gloomy expression.

"Heroes who will save the world in the future will surely be born from it."

"Yes. It's a Hero Academy to achieve that."

Seirun nodded with a bright smile.

While Rumern turned his gaze elsewhere.

Seirun raised his head.

Just then, it appeared.

The symbol of disaster, visible only to himself, who was perhaps the only 'real' one among the people here.

Black flames.

When he founded the Hero Academy, he had no doubt.

That heroes who would protect the world would be born.

But…

'It's already been 2900 years… Can I hold on until then?'