Chapter 031
Chapter Title: The New Class President
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“Hey.”
“Good morning, Leo!”
“Have a good weekend?”
It was the morning after the weekend had ended.
As Leo entered the classroom, his classmates greeted him.
“Leo, I heard you met the student council president over the weekend!”
As he was about to sit down, his classmate Tiede approached him and asked in an excited tone.
“I knew you were close with Celia Jerdinger from Class 1, but you met the student council president too?”
Iliana, who had walked over with her arms crossed, also wore a surprised expression.
In their class, only Karl and Chelsea knew that Leo and Celia were cousins.
“You’re pretty interested in the student council president, huh?”
“Of course! He’s the strongest at Lumerne, ranked number one!”
Tiede said excitedly.
“Great family, great skills, great grades. And he's handsome. Leo, did he ask you to join the student council?”
Iliana asked in a curious voice.
Leo was a talent who was drawing attention at Lumerne.
At first, many questioned why Leo, who wasn't the top student, had become the freshman representative, but things were different now.
As an unprecedented 'All-Class' student, he was highly coveted by the professors of every major.
At Iliana's question, Leo shook his head.
“I didn't get any kind of offer. And even if I did, I'm not interested in the student council.”
At his words, Tiede and Iliana’s eyes lit up.
“Leo, why don't you join the Summoning Material Research Club with me?”
Tiede eagerly recommended joining his club.
“You're still a bit weak in practical summoning, right? It'll definitely help!”
“Move it! Did you forget Leo is an All-Class? Leo! Join the Magic Swordsman Club with me! You'd be more than welcome!”
Tiede and Iliana bickered.
The two had already temporarily joined their desired clubs before the official period for first-year club activities had even begun.
Watching the two squabble, Karl appeared, clicking his tongue.
“You're both behind on the news. Leo's already decided on his club activity.”
“What? Which one?”
“He's going to make his own club.”
“Make a club?”
“A first-year?”
Tiede and Iliana blinked.
“What kind of club are you making?”
Nella, who was sitting far away, showed her interest in her characteristically languid voice.
“A Hero Research Club, he says.”
“But we already study that enough in Heroics.”
Iliana made a face as if she’d bitten into something sour.
“He said he wants to research forgotten heroes. Like Kyle, for instance.”
Hearing that, Tiede and Iliana wore expressions that said, ‘Why would he do that?’
But Nella nodded.
“Even if he's a fictional hero, Kyle is the only All-Class hero, so it makes sense to be interested.”
Nella nodded her head.
‘I need to find my Hero Record page, and fast.’
As long as his Hero Record remained undiscovered, there was no way to prove his existence.
Just then, a male student from Class 8, Elige Tuna, entered Class 5's room.
He approached Leo's group and asked.
“Hey, Class 5. Who's your class president?”
“We don't have one, but I've been acting as the president for now.”
“We haven't decided yet, but you can tell me.”
“Huh? What's going on?”
Not just Tiede and Iliana, but also Chelsea, who had been reading a magic book nearby, looked up and responded.
“Uhm… so who's the class president?”
Elige asked, looking back and forth between the three of them.
The gazes of the three tangled in mid-air.
“It's obviously me. I've been assisting Professor Halind all this time.”
Tiede said with his arms crossed.
“What are you talking about? I've helped Professor Halind plenty, too. Besides, shouldn't it be me, a member of the renowned Laden family?”
Iliana scoffed and puffed out her chest.
“Are you really bringing up family names in front of a Llewellyn? How ridiculous. Not that I need the prestige of my family name, of course. The class president is the face of the class, so shouldn't it be the most outstanding person? And who's the most outstanding in our class?”
Chelsea smiled and stood up from her seat.
As the three claimants to the class presidency began to bicker, Elige approached Leo.
“Leo Flove. This is for you.”
He handed a document to Leo.
“What's this?”
“It's about a change in today's Heroics class. We're all supposed to gather in the main auditorium after homeroom. Professor Artian decided to hold a joint class for ten classes this time.”
For required subjects like Combat Studies, the respective homeroom professors are in charge.
This was because they needed to guide students in a way that identified and nurtured their individual traits.
However, for Heroics, there is a dedicated professor.
And the first-year Heroics professor was Professor Artian, the homeroom professor of Class 8, who had left a strong impression on the first day of school.
“Just give this to your homeroom professor during morning assembly. Well, I'm off.”
Elige left the classroom.
“Let me see, let me see.”
Karl took the document from Leo.
“Oh! This is it! The thing about researching the recently recovered Hero Record page.”
“Really?”
Nella also checked the document's contents.
“I wonder which hero it is. Leo, did the student council president say anything to you yesterday?”
At Karl's question, Leo rested his chin on his hand.
“He mentioned there was a page so damaged that it was impossible to manifest its World of Heroes. I guess it might be that one.”
“Ugh! Deduction classes are the worst!”
Karl clutched his head.
“I told you, I'm the class president!”
“No! It's me!”
“You're not listening! Let's settle this with skill! Both of you, come at me!”
“You think that'll scare us?”
“I'll show you what I can accomplish in a month!”
The three of them were still shouting, each insisting they were the class president.
Watching them, Nella wore a troubled expression.
“If Professor Halind comes while they're like that…”
“They're dead meat.”
Karl shook his head.
***
“A joint class? Understood.”
During homeroom.
Halind took the document from Leo and nodded.
“It seems that for this joint class, not only Professor Artian but all the first-year homeroom professors will be observing.”
He tossed the document onto the lectern with an indifferent expression and spoke.
“Since this is the first joint class, make sure you're on your best behavior.”
“Yes.”
“If you show such foolish behavior in front of the other classes like these ones did, it won't end with just this.”
The class's eyes turned to the three students kneeling on their desks, holding chairs above their heads.
Chelsea, Tiede, and Iliana lowered their heads in shame.
“Professor! Why haven't we chosen a class president yet?”
Karl raised his hand and asked.
A month had passed since classes started, and Class 5 was the only one that had yet to elect a class president.
“I expected you would choose one amongst yourselves without my involvement. It would be inefficient for me to intervene and waste time.”
Other classes wasted an entire Combat Studies period just to elect a class president.
In Class 1's case, since they have three top students, it took them twice as long as the other classes.
Halind considered that a waste of time and left it to the students' autonomy.
However, the students of Class 5 had been waiting for Halind to bring it up.
“If you want me to intervene, I'll do it my way. Leo, Nella.”
Halind called to Leo, who was in the very back corner of the class, and Nella, who was at the very front.
“Leo is the class president, and Nella is the vice president.”
“Yes.”
“Understood.”
“W-Wait a minute! Professor! Shouldn't we have a vote or something! There are proper ways to do this, right? Choosing like this is unfair!”
“I agree!”
Iliana protested, and Tiede backed her up.
To that, Halind responded nonchalantly.
“Is there any student in this class better suited to show leadership than Leo Flove?”
At his words, Iliana and Tiede fell silent.
It was true that no student in Class 5 could match the leadership Leo displayed in Combat Studies.
“And Nella has the calmest personality in our class. I believe she is perfectly suited for the vice president, who must support the president, don't you?”
Again, they couldn't argue.
It was simply that neither of the two had any desire for the position of president or vice president.
If Halind had appointed them, there was nothing more to be said.
“Any objections?”
“None.”
“Good. Then everyone, prepare for class and head to the main auditorium.”
The great migration of the first-years began.
Since students rarely had classes together outside of their major courses, everyone was in a rather excited mood.
“Hi, Leo?”
“Leo! Want to have lunch together after class?”
A few female students giggled as they spoke to Leo.
Since he took every major subject, quite a few students were acquainted with him.
“Heh! Leo! You're so popular. Well, you've got the looks for it.”
Karl playfully nudged Leo's side.
As a school celebrity and a handsome boy, Leo was certainly popular.
“Do you have any friends you could introduce me to?”
“You have plenty of female friends yourself, so why are you asking me?”
“In my case, they're all customers.”
Karl grumbled, lacing his fingers behind his head.
“Karl.”
“Hmm?”
Someone called Karl from behind.
Turning his head, Karl’s expression became strange.
“Chloe, you look exhausted.”
At Karl's question, Chloe glanced at Leo before shaking her head.
“Not really. If you have any spare fatigue recovery potions, will you sell them all to me?”
Karl took out fatigue recovery potions from his subspace.
After receiving them, Chloe uncapped several bottles and chugged them down.
“It's the beginning of the semester. Aren't you pushing yourself too hard?”
At Leo's question, Chloe shook her head.
“I'm fine.”
With that, she walked on ahead.
“Wow, she's intense. So intense. She's already number one in the theory exams, and she's still pushing that hard.”
Currently, the top student in the Magic Department's theory exams was, without a doubt, Chloe.
Second place was Abad, third was Chelsea, and Leo was fourth.
Suddenly, Chelsea chimed into the conversation.
“Chloe can't help but feel anxious.”
“Huh? Why?”
“Karl. Sometimes I doubt you're even in the Magic Department.”
“I study just hard enough not to get expelled!”
Karl said proudly, giving a thumbs-up.
“Ugh. Anyway, the reason Chloe is anxious is that once Leo gets used to the latest magic trends, he could easily catch up to her in theory scores.”
It was just as Chelsea said.
Leo was more ignorant of the latest magic trends than any other mage at Lumerne.
And the classes were all focused on these latest trends.
However, when it came to the magic analysis skills that the Lumerne professors emphasized, no student could match Leo.
“Tsk. Is being first in theory really that important?”
“It's a matter of pride for a mage of the Magic Tower, so I guess that part is unavoidable.”
Chelsea shrugged.
While mages from noble families who inherit their magic through bloodlines tend to focus on 'combat-oriented' magic, mages from the Magic Tower focus on 'exploration and research'.
Mages from heroic noble families, like Chelsea, may be strong in combat, but they don't lead the latest trends in magic.
Conversely, new discoveries and spells were almost always created at the Magic Tower.
Therefore, Chloe felt threatened by Leo in a field where she believed she absolutely could not lose.
‘Well. Working hard is a good thing, but…’
Leo scratched his cheek, watching Chloe walk ahead.
‘If she overdoes it, she's going to burn out.’
A former Great Hero who saved the world and a budding sprout.
Their starting lines are different, so it can't be helped.
‘I should find some time to talk to her.’
***
“Yes, Lis.”
Lis was in the principal's office, reporting to Kalian on the results of his recent dispatch.
“Is it true that this Hero Page reacted?”
Kalian carefully lifted a small fragment of a Hero Record page.
“Yes.”
“Interesting. A page fragment of this size should normally contain no power.”
It was normal for a fragment so damaged it could barely be called a page to hold no power whatsoever.
“Was there any reaction after that?”
“There was not.”
“Hmm… Was it a reaction caused by proximity to the Hero Record?”
Kalian set the page fragment down.
“In any case, Lis. Good work on the dispatch.”
“Yes.”
After seeing Lis out, Kalian turned and spoke to his secretary, Elena.
“Take this to the Hall of Beginnings' main auditorium.”
“Yes, Principal.”
At Kalian's words, Elena stared intently at the Hero Record fragment he handed her.
“Elena?”
“Ah, yes. I'll take it now.”
After Elena left the office, Kalian, now alone, stroked his chin.
Having conquered countless Worlds of Heroes, he knew more about the Hero Record than anyone.
‘Come to think of it, there are times when a fragment that small can react.’
Thinking it was impossible, Kalian shook his head.
‘It would react if the very person recorded in the Hero Record were present.’