Chapter 195
Chapter Title: Arrival at Seirun
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195
After their two-day, one-night journey, Leo and Ril returned to Lumeria City.
The moment they entered Lumeria, Ignite vanished.
“Where did Ignite go?”
“Even if you two did a good job persuading him, he’s never been one for people.”
Seeing Ril’s confusion, Jin gestured to the massive crowds in the street and explained.
“A place like this is his worst nightmare.”
“Ah.”
Ril nodded as if she understood.
“In any case, you both worked hard on that mission. It must have been a tricky one, but you handled it well.”
Looking at Jin, who was grinning with his arms crossed, Ril scratched her head.
“I didn’t really do anything special. Leo handled everything on this mission.”
Ril’s shoulders slumped.
Jin chuckled at the sight of her.
“Don’t be so modest. You’re a monster in your own right, from what I can see.”
Grinning, Jin crossed his arms.
“It’s reassuring to have such excellent juniors! I’m looking forward to this year’s Lusejeon. Good luck, everyone!”
“Where are you headed, Senior Jin?”
“I have some business to take care of in Lumeria City. You two go on ahead.”
Jin waved and disappeared into the crowd.
Watching him go, Ril remarked in awe.
“Heroes really are something else.”
“They are.”
“Anyway, Leo. Since you helped me with the mission, I’ll treat you to something delicious.”
“You don’t have to worry about that.”
“No, I insist. I made you waste your precious weekend, so I have to make it up to you properly.”
Speaking firmly, Ril led Leo down the street.
A short while later, Leo found himself at a restaurant tucked away in an alley.
“Isn’t this a tavern?”
“It is. But they have more than just drinks. And the food is amazing! It’s a popular spot for Lumerne students of all years!”
Leo nodded and entered the tavern with Ril.
Just as Ril had said, the tavern was filled with many Lumerne students.
They recognized Leo and Ril and waved at them.
After finding a seat in the corner, Leo rested his chin on his hand and looked around the tavern.
“It’s been a long time since I’ve been in a place with this kind of atmosphere.”
“So you’ve been to places like this before, Leo.”
*Yes, about 5,000 years ago.*
Leo chuckled to himself.
“I just assumed you wouldn’t have much connection to a place like this, since your mother’s family is the Jerdingers.”
“While my mother’s family is indeed the Jerdingers, I didn’t know that until I enrolled at Lumerne.”
“Really?”
“Yes. My family situation is rather complicated.”
“Ah, I shouldn’t have asked.”
Ril looked apologetic.
“It’s complicated, but it’s not an offensive topic.”
Just as Leo shrugged,
*Cling-clang.*
The restaurant door opened, and a group of students walked in.
“Karl, are you sure it’s okay for us to be here?”
“I’m telling you, it is! I came here with some seniors from the commerce club before, and the food was incredible!”
“If we get into trouble, it’s all on you.”
Ten students from the magic department, led by Karl, entered the establishment.
“We won’t get into trouble! Besides, as Lumerne students, we’ll probably end up in places like this often for missions… Huh? Leo!”
Karl, who had been trying to persuade a reluctant Chelsea, spotted Leo and waved.
Chloe and Chelsea whipped their heads around to look at Leo.
Karl approached Leo with a friendly expression.
“Fancy seeing you here. Oh! Senior Ril! Hello!”
“Yes. We meet again, Karl.”
Ril returned the greeting with a smile.
The other first-year magic students also came forward and bowed their heads to Ril.
“Hello, Senior Ril.”
As one of the most famous students at the academy, it was no surprise that none of them failed to recognize Ril.
Ril smiled warmly at the juniors greeting her.
“Seeing all you magic students gathered together, I assume you’re out preparing for the Lusejeon.”
“Yes.”
“There’s a lot to prepare for. Selecting the representatives, for one.”
Karl licked his lips.
“Seirun is the strongest of the four hero academies when it comes to magic, so everyone is preparing like crazy.”
“Hehe. When I was a first-year, I was so busy with preparations that I wasn’t even nervous until the day of the Lusejeon.”
*Of course, the moment the day arrived, I was so nervous I had to take stomach medicine.*
Ril wisely chose not to share that part of the story.
She was a senior who always wanted to appear dignified in front of her juniors.
It was then that,
“By the way, Senior Ril, Leo, why were you two away from the academy overnight for two days?”
The first-year magic students stared at Chelsea, aghast.
As usual, Chelsea was staring wide-eyed, her gaze shifting between Leo and Ril.
Not only did she have a personality that couldn’t stand not knowing things, but she was also bothered by the fact that the two had spent a day and night together outside the academy.
Ril smiled at Chelsea’s question and replied.
“I received a mission and got some help from Leo.”
“I see.”
Chelsea smiled brightly and nodded.
Chloe, who had been watching with a nervous expression, let out a sigh of relief.
Then her eyes met Karl’s.
“What?”
“Feeling relieved now?”
Seeing Karl teasing her with a sly grin, Chloe blew a frosty breath at him.
“Gaaah! M-my fayce feelsh like ish gonna be rippd off!”
As Karl screamed, clutching his face, the magic students around them started whispering.
“Don’t you think Chloe’s been acting more and more like the ice queen from the fairy tales lately?”
“I heard the seniors have started calling her the ‘Ice Princess.’ Not because of her personality, but literally. She’s an actual ice princess.”
“Hm? What was that?”
“Nothing at all!”
“Yeah! We were just saying Karl deserved it!”
their classmates hurriedly replied when Chloe asked with a smile.
Watching the scene unfold, Ril said,
“Anyway, since you’re Leo’s friends, would you like to join us? I received a lot of help from him, so I’ll treat you all to something good.”
“Oh! Thank you, senior!”
“Senior Ril, you’re the best!”
“You’re amazing~”
As the first-years cheered and acted cute, Ril beamed with a wide smile.
Once the tables were arranged and food and drinks were ordered, the conversation quickly turned to the Lusejeon.
“Who is the Seirun first-year that you magic students are most concerned about?”
“Lunia El Lundua.”
Abad said, dabbing his mouth with a napkin.
Finding his refined manner, which seemed so out of place in a tavern, strangely charming, Ril nodded.
“Definitely. Even the summoning department is wary of Lunia El Lundua.”
Before being an extraordinary mage, Lunia was the young lady of the Lundua family, destined to form a contract with a phoenix.
Her summoning skills were just as, if not more, formidable than her magic.
As such, she was their top priority to watch out for.
“Leo, Chelsea, Karl. You’ve met Lunia El Lundua before, right? What’s she like?”
“If you’re asking what she’s like…”
Chelsea crossed her arms in thought, then tilted her head.
“A thug?”
“Isn’t Lunia famous for being a top student, not just in terms of skill but also in conduct?”
Abad asked with a puzzled expression, and Chelsea nodded.
“That’s right, brother. But no matter how I look at it, that whole persona seemed like an act.”
“Oh! Of course, an expert in putting on an act would know… Guh!”
Karl, who couldn’t resist teasing her, was struck in the side by Chelsea and went rolling on the floor.
She nonchalantly stepped on the fallen Karl and said calmly.
“I don’t really put on an act.”
Chelsea, who acted fiercely toward others, became docile in front of Leo and Abad.
Of course, that didn’t mean she wasn’t fierce toward others.
“I-I surrender! Surrender!”
Karl cried out pitifully as Chelsea stomped on him.
“We can’t overlook Eiran, either.”
“Yeah. That’s right, there’s Eiran too.”
Chelsea thought of Eiran, with whom she had become close during the school trip.
As a magic swordsman and the second-ranked first-year at Seirun, she was also someone to be very cautious of.
Lunia stood out so much that people tended to forget, but Eiran’s skills were outstanding enough to threaten Lunia’s top position.
“She’s a magic swordsman, you said. How does she compare to Iliana?”
Turka, a student from Class 10 of the magic department, tilted his head.
Among Lumerne’s first-year magic swordsmen, Iliana was by far the most skilled.
“Comparing them at all is an insult to Eiran.”
“Right. You can’t compare her to that attack-freak.”
Turka looked dumbfounded at how mercilessly Chelsea and Karl spoke.
“Aren’t you being a little too harsh on Iliana? She’s your classmate.”
“Turka. You have to be even more objective when it comes to your own classmates.”
“Exactly. If she heard you comparing her to Eiran, she’d get a big head all over again.”
The other magic students nodded at their firm stance.
Watching them discuss the Lusejeon, Leo rested his chin on his hand.
“Seirun, huh.”
The hero academy that sought to carry on Luna’s will.
*I wonder what kind of place it is.*
He had met students from other hero academies before, but he had never visited one himself, so Leo was also looking forward to the Lusejeon.
***
After the midterm exams, the selection trials for the Lusejeon representatives began.
Many students competed fiercely to become representatives of the academy.
Yet, they all shared a single goal.
To defeat Seirun.
Having lost to Seirun in the Lusejeon for the past few years, Lumerne’s determination was stronger than ever.
Watching these Lumerne students intently were the heroes who had been summoned to the academy.
They had entered a hero academy to become heroes themselves.
Knowing that the very seniors they admired were watching them only fueled their determination further.
And so, the representative selection trials came to an end.
The entire student body gathered at the warp gate, ready to depart for Seirun.
“The day has finally come.”
Lis, who was giving a speech as the student representative, stood on the platform and looked down at the students.
“For us fifth-years, the past Lusejeons have been a history of defeat. We gave it our all, but we could never overcome Seirun.”
A shadow passed over Lis’s eyes.
“For me, who has always declared that we are the best, the Lusejeon is my greatest regret. And now, we face our final one.”
The faces of the second, third, and fourth-years clouded over.
Having been bested by Seirun, the second, third, and fourth-years felt apologetic toward the fifth-years, who had always won their year-level competitions.
“As student council president, I will not offer you the gentlemanly advice of not dwelling on victory or defeat.”
Lis said firmly.
“We fifth-years will do everything in our power to ensure we don’t pass this history of defeat on to you. So this time, let’s win the Lusejeon!”
“Yes!”
The entire student body roared in unison.
A grin spread across Lis’s face as he watched them, and he shouted.
“Now! Let’s go! To Seirun!”
“Let’s go!”
“Waaaaaah!”
Their motivation soaring, the Lumerne students let out a deafening cheer.
In that state of excitement, the floor began to glow as the warp gate activated.
Hundreds of students were warped away in an instant.
And then…
*Whoooooooosh!*
“So coooooold!”
“Aaaah! What is this?!”
The students screamed.
The brutal weather of the northern continent’s farthest reaches assaulted the students of Lumerne.
Caught in the sudden blizzard, the entire Lumerne student body was thrown into a panic.
Of course, they had all anticipated Seirun’s cold and had dressed in thick clothing.
But the severe cold of Seirun far exceeded their expectations.
“Hey, sorry about that. We were unlucky enough to get hit with a blizzard today.”
Just then, a female student in a Seirun uniform emerged from the blizzard.
“Rienia.”
Lis smiled upon seeing Rienia, the fifth-year student council president of Seirun.
“We knew you were coming, but we couldn’t counter the blizzard with magic since it came on so suddenly. Just hold on a moment, we’ll take care of it with magic right…”
“There’s no need.”
Lis shook his head.
In an instant, the blizzard subsided.
Rienia’s eyes widened as she stared at Lis.
*He’s gotten even stronger since last time, hasn’t he?*
Rienia realized that Lis had intervened in the harsh climate by manipulating his Aura.
As the blizzard died down, a scene that had been hidden came into view.
A competitive fire ignited in the faces of the Lumerne students, who had been shivering, sniffling, and brushing snow off themselves.
With the flag of Seirun fluttering, the students of Seirun were waiting for them.
Rienia grinned and crossed her arms.
“Students of Lumerne. Welcome! To our home, Seirun!”
*Thump-thump.*
“Welcome!”
The Seirun students stomped their feet in unison and shouted.
Watching them, Karl muttered.
“Is this a welcome? Or a threat?”
Leo smiled at his words.
“It means the Lusejeon has already begun.”