Sponsorship Review (1)
-Divine Spear's Death! Is Humanity in Crisis!?
-New Power Emerges: 'Divine Spirit' Frey!
-Heroes' Association Sends Congratulations to Frey.
-Biheight Kingdom: Prince Frey Is Our Eternal Hero.
-Frey to Hand Over the No. 1 Hero Spot to 'Mujé'.
-New No. 1 Hero 'Mujé' Heads to the Frontlines?
• Divine Spear's Death! Is Humanity in Crisis!?
• New Power Emerges: 'Divine Spirit' Frey!
• Heroes' Association Sends Congratulations to Frey.
• Biheight Kingdom: Prince Frey Is Our Eternal Hero.
• Frey to Hand Over the No. 1 Hero Spot to 'Mujé'.
• New No. 1 Hero 'Mujé' Heads to the Frontlines?
"Hoo..."
Stimulating headlines plastered across every newspaper.
Every single one focused solely on the fallen Divine Spear and the newly ascended power, Frey.
The 'Spirit King'—no, now the 'Divine Spirit,' I suppose.
He'd graciously stepped down from his hero rank upon being listed on the Power Stone, ascending to the ranks of the great powers.
'The Seven Powers are just a system for selecting the continent's strongest. Joining them doesn't mean you have to quit being a hero.'
And yet, he'd retired anyway...
Even so, I heard he'd stayed on the frontlines even after becoming one of the powers.
Ignoring the call from his homeland of Biheight, he was still out there at the foremost edge, subjugating demons. So it probably wasn't a retirement born of a desire to withdraw from the battlefield.
"No idea."
What the hell was that guy thinking?
Until now, he'd held the top active hero spot with massive pride—I figured he'd keep juggling both roles...
But because he'd stepped down, I'd ended up as the new No. 1 active hero.
Thanks to that, the association—which had gone quiet for a while—was pressuring me again to join the frontlines.
Up to now, I'd been able to hide safely in the rear, shielded by that guy. But with my perfect shield gone, the association had sniffed it out like ghosts and started piling on the pressure.
Of course, I had no reason to bow low to the association, so I'd been rejecting them somehow. But their justification was pretty solid, making it hard to outright ignore.
Having the No. 1 active hero off the frontlines just didn't make sense.
The representative of all heroes not being at the vanguard could tank morale across the board—it was that critical an issue.
'That's why Frey barely ever left the frontlines either.'
With the Seven Powers hard to mobilize from their nations, the real pillar of the frontlines had been Frey, holder of the No. 1 hero title. The responsibility and weight on his shoulders had been immense.
The problem was, the association was shoving that No. 1 spot—and all its duties—onto me, hoping I'd shoulder it all.
'Wait, did he plan this?!'
No, no, no way.
No matter what, quitting heroism over something that minor? Sure, Frey was a total nutjob, but even he wouldn't go that far...
"...Can't deny it."
How many times had Frey prodded me to deploy?
Out of hundreds of requests, I'd only accepted the Holy Land reclamation battle. So yeah, it wasn't impossible he'd ditched the hero rank just to screw me over.
"Actually, thinking about it, that's the most likely scenario."
Given his personality—scorn for the weak, respect for the strong.
He'd been relentlessly proposing joint operations with me for ages.
Even among the golden generation, only a tiny fraction met his standards.
From his view, he had no choice but to head into battle trusting heroes he wouldn't even turn his back on.
If it weren't for the top rankers and other powerhouses holding things together, that guy would've pulled out all the stops to drag me out there.
Thud—
"Hoo."
I let out a light sigh and tossed the newspaper onto the desk.
Anyway, what mattered now wasn't why Frey retired.
What did matter was how they'd killed the Divine Spear.
"Hmm."
Lukidus Kingdom, where the Divine Spear lived, had never once suffered a demon incursion.
That was then—this changed everything. Demons couldn't breach the 'Black Storm' separating Lukidus from the demon continent.
A demonic realm where all internal energy was nullified, teeming with massive sea beasts in the depths.
Storms that sucked up the ocean and swept everything in their path.
Only Rowe from the continent could navigate it.
Thanks to Hidden Steel's special alloys and Rowe's shipbuilding techniques, their invincible fleet could find the path even through the brutal storms.
Yeah, no way in hell demons could cross that.
To target Lukidus normally, demons had to detour around the storm toward the frontlines or the Holy Land.
But the allied forces were there 24/7, eyes wide open.
Demons couldn't reach it easily.
And Lukidus wasn't stupid—their vulnerable coastal terrain was always under heavy guard.
Yet one of the Four Heavenly Kings had slipped through all that to reach the continent.
'And killed the Divine Spear in the process.'
Meaning, even after whatever method they used for intercontinental travel, they hadn't burned much power.
No doubt they'd found an efficient way to move.
'Even if it's just the Death Devil's unique ability, we still need to treat it as a serious threat.'
The Death Devil was one of the Four Heavenly Kings with the least intel.
Compared to the War Devil, who showed up often on the frontlines, or the Terror Devil, puppeteering every major incident through minions, the Death Devil had only surfaced twice: the old Crim Kingdom incident and the Holy Land reclamation.
Not as mysterious as the Darkness Devil's brief endgame appearance last season, but still a black hole of info.
"At least it's clear he ignores distance."
Might be a one-shot skill, but I had to assume the worst.
Meaning, he could pop up anywhere from the continent's edge.
The key question: Could he bring other demons along?
If his shady skill let other demons teleport too, the alliance's defense perimeter would balloon overnight.
'That'd render the defensive lines meaningless.'
Block the front, they hit the rear.
Push the demons hard, they raid empty bases.
The alliance couldn't not prepare for those headaches.
Fortunately, mages and shamans were grinding away on countermeasures, but no one knew how soon they'd be ready.
Even Chief Director Adelia had taken the issue and dove into research.
As one of the continent's top archmages, it made sense for the association to tap her.
Plus, she was one of the heroes who'd saved the world from the first Demon King—no reason to refuse.
"...So."
Yeah, that was the crux.
"What the hell is this?"
I was staring at the resignation letter right in front of me.
Centorio Zaobinaqi.
Department head of the Total Student Council's Planning and Finance Division. Despite his high reputation and popularity, he was notoriously prone to demanding retirement.
Normally, I'd soothe him by folding that resignation letter from his pocket right back into it. But not today.
"...Please, President."
A pristine white envelope extended across the desk.
Neat script in the center: Resignation Letter.
"Hmm."
Even for him, this scene felt off. I rubbed my temple and groaned.
"...No real need to retire, is there?"
"You know, President."
—My homeland is in chaos.
I closed my eyes, saying nothing.
"The Divine Spear I admired met with tragedy, and the capital is in utter turmoil."
"But the kingdom's damage is just a few outlying villages. Quitting your studies to go back..."
"In Lukidus Kingdom, the Divine Spear shouldered most of our military might."
"Hmm..."
"Long peace led the royals to consider downsizing the army, and his emergence let them slash it even further."
It was inevitable.
Armies were money pits.
Nations always eyed military cuts first to hike taxes.
If it were wartime or similar, maybe—but the Black Storm gifted them unprecedented peace. Military irrelevance debates at court were par for the course.
And then a Seven Power popped up in the kingdom.
A royal one, no less?
With a Seven Power handling national deterrence solo, no need for a bloated army.
More efficient to reward him handsomely and skeleton-crew the forces.
No personal salary matched army upkeep costs.
Thus, Lukidus devolved into a freak structure: bare-minimum military, total reliance on the Divine Spear.
"And now he's gone."
Naturally, the royals were in panic mode.
"But they didn't call for you specifically."
"True. But I served under the royals once. I had my loyalties. Sure, I stepped back for studies, but I'm still His Majesty's subject. If the throne shakes, shouldn't I help?"
I looked at Centorio's face.
His eyes showed no tremor—just calm resolve.
"Hoo."
The standoff lasted a moment. I raised the white flag first.
"Can't be helped."
"Then...!"
"Resignation only. No withdrawal from school."
"President!"
"Enough. You're in your fourth year of university division now, right? Even with the kingdom in uproar, dropping out right before graduation isn't smart."
"But President..."
"Instead, I'll recommend you as an exchange student. Rare for a fourth-year, but given the circumstances..."
Lukidus had academies partnered with Academy City—easy swap there.
He was too capable for Planning and Finance to lose entirely, but oh well.
"Got a successor in mind?"
"Yes, planning to hand it to Vice Head Aria."
Aria?
Aria Saintpaul from Saint Maria Holy Academy, I presumed.
"She's just a first-year in university division now, but sharp with numbers. I think she'll manage well."
"I see. Should meet her sometime."
I didn't doubt his judgment, but the role demanded my own check.
Centorio nodded in agreement.