Hope and Jealousy
I left the infirmary and wandered the academy grounds without any particular destination in mind, eventually getting lost.
What now.
I’m not bad with directions.
The academy grounds here are just absurdly vast, that’s why I got lost.
……Huh?
That was when I spotted a woman.
“Huuuung~”
It was a golden-haired beauty humming as she walked—Christina Helen.
She wore a strange little smile, as if lost in some amusing daydream.
The moment I saw her, I walked straight over and asked.
“Hey, Christina. Could you show me the way?”
We were already acquainted, and curiosity was written all over my face. I figured she wouldn’t refuse.
“I’m sorry……”
She seemed ready to turn me down without even looking, so I cut in.
“Is it not possible?”
She finally glanced at my face, then hurriedly changed her tone and started walking ahead.
“N-no, of course not! I understand. Let’s go! I’ll show you the way.”
Watching her, I thought to myself.
She must have thought I was just another Extra #1 trying to confess to the top first-year beauty.
That made sense.
With her looks and personality, she’d probably received countless confessions even before enrollment.
With that odd thought in mind, I caught up to Christina and walked beside her.
“……”
“……”
We walked across the academy grounds in silence for several minutes.
The atmosphere was strangely tense.
It was Christina who broke it first.
“Adel, where would you like to go first?”
She looked up at me with wide, sparkling eyes.
She reminded me of an eager puppy waiting for an answer.
“Is there anywhere you’d like to show me? I don’t know my way around yet.”
Christina thought for a moment before replying.
“Then shall we start with the café? It seems like a good place to talk.”
A café?
Did this world have cafés too?
Curious now, I nodded.
“Sure.”
When we arrived at the café, I sat down with Christina, coffee in hand.
It feels familiar.
The distinctive café aroma and cozy atmosphere were no different from the modern world.
“Adel, where are you from?”
Christina gazed at me gently as she asked.
“Me? I came from the mountains.”
It was half true.
After all, back in the modern world, people always asked if you didn’t know something obvious, “Did you grow up in the mountains?”
“So that’s why you didn’t know the way? You must not know much about the academy either, then?”
“Only a tiny bit.”
“Really? Hehe, I’ll teach you slowly.”
“I’d really appreciate that.”
Christina covered her mouth with her hand and giggled quietly.
I had no idea what she was thinking, but one thing was certain.
She’s beautiful.
A golden-haired, blue-eyed beauty smiling against the backdrop of coffee and a café terrace.
It was like a painting.
“Christi……”
“Tina.”
She cut me off before I could finish saying her name.
“Call me Tina. It’s my nickname.”
Christina smiled with her eyes.
It felt like she’d be devastated if I didn’t.
“Alright, Tina.”
I felt a little dazed.
Tina.
As far as I remembered, the only person in the academy who called her that was Siris.
Now I’m calling her that too.
I had no idea what kind of ripple this would cause.
“Adel, can I ask you something I’m curious about?”
Christina’s cheeks were slightly flushed as she spoke.
Why?
I hadn’t done anything.
Thinking she was like this because she liked me would be far too delusional.
“Ask me anything.”
There was no reason to refuse.
After a brief hesitation, Christina asked.
“What does your flame exist for?”
It sounded somewhat philosophical.
“Was that too difficult?”
“No, it’s just right.”
I understood it perfectly.
What does it exist for…
I had never really thought about it before.
To save people?
The world hadn’t faced any crisis yet.
To protect my loved ones?
I didn’t have anyone I cherished that deeply yet.
I didn’t know about the future, but right now, there was only one answer.
“To devour everything.”
Whether it was skill, talent, or enemies.
It existed to consume them all.
“In other words, to kill demons.”
“I see.”
Christina nodded as if she understood.
“Why did you ask?”
I didn’t have to ask, but I felt like I should.
Christina’s lips parted.
“My light exists for everyone. To become hope for those who have lost precious people to demons.”
I had learned it from her mana nature, but she really was too kind.
Yet I also got the feeling that when it came to evil, she could be endlessly terrifying.
“I came to think this way after seeing far too many people suffering because of demons.”
The North where I was… it was truly horrific.
“So I wanted to know. I wanted to know the heart of someone who came to the academy to catch demons. Because I think you’ll come to the North someday.”
As she spoke, Christina wore a slightly sad expression.
She seemed to be remembering the people she had seen before.
Perhaps the weight of being “hope” was why she smiled so often and treated everyone with such kindness.
“The mood got a bit heavy. Shall we head to the training room?”
Christina quickly changed her expression and suggested.
I didn’t answer, but we were already standing up and heading toward the training room.
We walked while chatting about light topics.
Thud.
My shoulder bumped into someone.
“Ah, I’m sorry.”
“I’m sorry too……”
I apologized immediately.
It was the result of growing up in Korea’s Confucian culture.
The man I had bumped into started to apologize but suddenly turned ice-cold.
Christina, who had been walking ahead, turned around.
“What happened?”
The man looked at Christina and his expression became completely indifferent.
Wondering if he was hurt somewhere, I asked.
“Is something wrong?”
“Nothing.”
But the man clearly wanted to end the encounter and quickly walked past us.
What was that about? I thought as I watched him go, but it didn’t seem like anything important.
“It’s nothing. Let’s go, Tina.”
After that, since we were allowed to use the private training rooms, we spent time in Christina’s personal training room.
We had a simple spar and talked about various things.
Some time later, we finally stepped outside.
“Take care, Adel. See you tomorrow.”
“Yeah, see you tomorrow, Tina.”
And so my day came to a close alongside the beautiful sunset.
***
Class S.
It was a special class where the chairman and president of Heiden Academy, along with instructors from every field, reviewed footage of the entrance exams and selected thirty students.
In reality, most of those in Class S were chosen through the chairman’s Heavenly Eye.
The standard was how strong they could become.
But that wasn’t entirely accurate.
That was why it was possible to enter Class S through sparring.
If you didn’t want to leave, you simply had to get stronger.
The class ranking within Class S wasn’t from 1st to 30th.
Freed, who was ranked 390th overall and belonged to Class S, was currently heading back to the male dormitory after class ended.
Why?
With slightly sticky, gloomy emotions swirling inside him.
Why did he smile?
Swordsmanship Instructor Cain.
He was a figure even those who didn’t use swords at the academy would know.
During his prime as a hero, he had been called the Sword Emperor. If he hadn’t come to the academy as an instructor, he would have already reached Transcendence—that was how strong he was considered.
Why?
There was only one reason Freed was voicing this emotion.
Why?
It was the smile Cain had shown during today’s class.
He had never smiled like that at anyone before.
If the recipient had been Christina, Siris, or Daren, Freed wouldn’t have thought this way.
They were qualified to receive such a smile.
But.
……Adel Ifrit.
Why did that guy, ranked lower than him at 500th, get to receive a smile from the instructor he respected so much?
Freed couldn’t bring himself to think, I’m stronger. He’s weak.
That technique.
The technique Adel had used at the end. Everyone else probably thought it was just a simple line of mana—something anyone could do.
But to Freed’s “eyes,” it was clear.
……I can’t reach it.
To use that technique, one had to eliminate all unnecessary mana usage and move mana according to one’s will, condensing it perfectly.
It required an innate talent for mana.
When Freed first realized this, he denied it.
……There’s no way that bastard is better than me.
After all, hadn’t it taken him a full 45 days to pass the entrance exam?
But as he kept thinking about it, denial eventually forced him to face reality.
“Fuck……”
That was what created his current sticky, murky emotions.
Thud.
Lost in thought, Freed bumped into a man.
“Ah, I’m sorry.”
“I’m sorry too……”
At the other person’s apology, Freed had been about to smile and apologize as well—until his expression turned ice-cold.
He had seen the other person’s face.
Long dark-red hair, black eyes, black martial arts uniform. An annoyingly handsome face.
Adel Ifrit.
And beside him.
“What happened?”
The top first-year student and golden-haired, blue-eyed beauty—Christina Helen—was standing right there.
The moment he saw the woman he liked together with the man he hated, the emotions he had been feeling until just now surged violently.
“Is something wrong?”
Adel noticed Freed’s stiff expression and asked.
“Nothing.”
Even though the question was kind, because it came from Adel, Freed answered coldly and walked toward the dormitory.
Adel looked back with a puzzled expression.
Soon he continued on his way and said,
“It’s nothing. Let’s go, Tina.”
Crash.
The moment he heard those words, it felt like something inside him shattered. His mind went completely blank.
He only felt himself being swept away by a tidal wave of emotion.
……I’ll kill him.
He called her Tina—a nickname even Freed himself had never used.
I’ll kill him.
That bastard can’t possibly be better than me.
I’ll kill him.
I will definitely kill that son of a bitch.
In his world, only those thoughts remained.
The seed of jealousy that would never have bloomed under normal circumstances began to sprout.