Chapter 405
Chapter Title: The World Summit and a Rival's Declaration
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405.
“A World Summit?”
Kyle's eyes widened at Leo's words.
It wasn't just Kyle; everyone else having dinner with them reacted with surprise.
The World Summit.
As the name implied, it was a meeting where the world's most powerful figures gathered.
It began 3,000 years ago.
The first-ever World Summit was held in none other than Dragonia. The one who brought the world leaders together at that time was the Dragon of Creation, Rhodia.
The reason for the summit was the second coming of Erebos.
The attendees were the heroes now known as the Heroes of Creation—Lumerne, Seirun, Azonia, and Damian—along with the heroes they led.
Since then, a World Summit has been held whenever a major event threatened the world.
The locations were largely five places.
The summits were held at Dragonia and the four great hero academies.
“Wow, a World Summit! Does that mean all the world's leaders are gathering at Lumerne?”
Iliana exclaimed in amazement.
“Probably? Attendance isn't mandatory, but skipping the summit could mean falling behind the flow of world affairs. Most of them will likely attend.”
“Chloe, how in the world do you know all that?”
“Books.”
When Iliana asked, Chloe pointed to the book in her hand and replied.
“But the library's closed.”
“Yeah. I happened to have a book about the World Summit stored in my subspace.”
“…You store books in your subspace?”
For Iliana, who normally avoided books unless they were textbooks, grimoires, or swordsmanship manuals, this was a culture shock.
“But they don't happen often, do they?”
“Of course not. Given its immense influence and impact, the conditions for holding one are extremely strict. It requires the consent of the four great hero academies, and ultimately, the permission of the Dragon Lord.”
Kyle stroked his chin and muttered.
“The last World Summit was about a hundred years ago, wasn't it?”
“Ninety-seven years ago, to be exact.”
“Wow.”
An event that might happen once in a lifetime.
And they would be witnessing this historic moment up close.
“My heart's kind of pounding.”
Iliana grumbled at Kyle's mutter.
“My heart's pounding, sure, but we've also been handed a bunch of annoying tasks. We're going to be swamped with preparations to welcome the guests, aren't we?”
“True. There will be plenty of people who want to see our school's students on this occasion.”
“We might have to prepare something to show those people.”
“We're already busy preparing for final exams, and now we have to be treated like animals in a zoo?”
Complaints erupted from all around at Iliana's words.
It was a rule of thumb that when a big event was held at school, the students were the ones who suffered.
Amidst the discussion, Celia spoke up.
“Does the fact that a World Summit is being held mean that the 'Dragon of Silence' has finally broken her silence?”
At her words, the students' eyes widened.
The Dragon of Silence.
It was Melina's title, given to her because she had rarely shown herself for a long time.
“I have a feeling this will be a noteworthy summit in many ways.”
You could clearly feel that the history of the world was in motion.
Amidst this, Chelsea said to Leo.
“You're going to be the busiest this time, Leo.”
“Why?”
“Because you're the student council president. Don't you have a lot to prepare?”
Chelsea said, bringing a forkful of cake to her mouth.
Leo chuckled, watching Chelsea nibble on the cake with her cheeks puffed out like a squirrel.
“There are plenty of capable upperclassmen above me. Why would I be busy?”
“The vice president still has some time before he returns from his mission, doesn't he?”
“He does.”
“Then shouldn't you be handling the summit preparations until then, Leo?”
“It's fine. Hark will take care of it. He's the type whose efficiency increases when he's short on time.”
Everyone shook their heads, watching Leo calmly say something that would have made Hark grab the back of his neck and lunge at him.
‘Isn't that guy Leo afraid of Hark?’
Even after spending a year at Lumerne and having their own underclassmen, many second-years were still afraid of their seniors.
Hark, in particular, was the strongest fifth-year and the heir to one of Lumerne's three great noble families.
Yet Leo was only thinking about working him to the bone.
Everyone looked at Leo, exasperated.
As Leo got up to return his tray, Iliana quickly spoke.
“I'm so glad I'm in the same year as Leo.”
“Right. If we were his seniors or juniors, we'd be worked to death.”
Chelsea nodded in agreement with Iliana's words.
“The power of a student council president comes from their ability to execute tasks. But that Leo guy doesn't seem to care about that.”
As Celia muttered with her chin in her hand, Chloe nodded.
“That's right. He has Hark completely wrapped around his finger. Hark may have the real power… but in the end, it feels like he's the one being played by Leo.”
“Let's send our condolences to our seniors.”
Iliana clasped her hands as if in prayer.
Kyle clicked his tongue at his friends.
“You guys know one thing but not the other.”
“What do you mean?”
Chelsea looked at Kyle with a puzzled expression.
“Hey. Why do you think Leo works the seniors so hard?”
“Because he doesn't want to work and wants to make his own life easier.”
Everyone looked at Iliana with pity at her answer.
“Is Leo you?”
“The way you think.”
“Chloe! The kids from the other dorms are looking down on me!”
Iliana whined to Chloe with a tearful face, but even Chloe had to agree with them.
Watching this, Kyle said.
“Leo works the seniors hard because they're competent. What happens when those seniors graduate? Who do you think he's going to work next?”
At his words, everyone's face stiffened.
“The way the seniors are now? That's your future.”
Kyle cackled.
“Well, it's the tragedy of being a talented, high-achieving student. Hahahaha! I'm not talented anyway, so Leo won't work me.”
Kyle laughed confidently.
Watching him, his other classmates narrowed their eyes.
‘Somehow, I feel like you're the one who's going to be worked the hardest.’
The Leo they all knew was the type of person who would find anyone's strengths and exploit them to the fullest.
“Should we tell him? That Kyle's probably going to be worked to the bone?”
Iliana grinned at Chelsea's mutter.
“Let him enjoy it.”
“Why? He's being annoying.”
“His grades are at the bottom, and he's going to suffer the most. I feel sorry for him.”
Chelsea tilted her head at Iliana's words, then nodded in understanding.
***
A sense of vitality filled the air among the first-years, who were facing the major school event of the World Summit.
“The time has come to show my skills to the world.”
“Ah, what if I get a scouting offer from a nation more powerful than my own kingdom?”
“Do you think there will be sponsorship offers? I hear quite a few of the upperclassmen have them.”
The first-years were buzzing with excitement.
Most of them wore smug expressions.
The World Summit, held right before the final exams, was more than enough to inflate their expectations.
Even for hero candidates, it was rare for first-years to have the chance to show off their skills in front of the world's most influential leaders.
The final exams were a stage to display all their achievements from the past semester.
Having keenly felt their own growth during the first semester, the first-years were brimming with confidence.
Thus, the students gathered in the first-year classroom building's main auditorium were busy chatting, full of their own dreams.
Watching them, Luke spoke.
“It seems everyone's looking forward to the final exams.”
“Aren't you?”
At Luke's mutter, Haviden, sitting next to him, narrowed his eyes and asked.
“I'll just be grateful if I can somehow manage to stay at Lumerne for the second semester.”
Luke said with an awkward laugh.
At that, sneers could be heard from here and there.
“Pfft, did you hear that?”
“His goal is to attend Lumerne for the second semester.”
“Wow, how shameless can you be? To think of staying for another semester with those grades.”
“Isn't he just relying on the student council president?”
“Probably.”
“But no matter how much the president has his back, isn't it unfair for a failing student to stay in school?”
“Yeah.”
“Won't the president get expelled along with him because of that guy?”
“That'd be interesting.”
“Nah, no way. They'll probably just expel him.”
“That's unfair in its own way!”
A flood of sneers and mockery poured in from all sides.
“You're noisy, so stop barking and shut your mouths.”
At Haviden's cold words, the students who had been mocking Luke bristled.
“What did you say?”
“You finished talking?”
Haviden was ranked second in the Knight Department.
Among all first-years, he was one of the top five strongest students.
Normally, most wouldn't dare to talk back to someone like Haviden, but these students were different.
They were the so-called Aina Line.
In other words, students who followed Aina and had formed a faction around her.
Factions were something of a tradition at Lumerne.
It was a school where talents from all over the world gathered, but even among them, there were bound to be those with overwhelming talent.
And people were naturally drawn to these heroic prodigies.
The representative faction among the fifth-years was Hark's faction, and among the fourth-years, Elena's faction was famous.
Among the third-years, Lil stood out, but given her disposition, the students tended to be more individualistic.
The second-year class had so many formidable students that, in the beginning, it seemed poised to split into several factions.
There were even concerns among the faculty that they would become a dysfunctional group before becoming a golden generation, but now they were the year with the least inclination towards factions.
And then there were the current first-years.
The most representative among them was the Year Representative Aina's faction.
The problem was that Aina had no interest in things like factions and, naturally, didn't even manage it.
The students calling themselves the Aina Faction were just sticking around her as they pleased.
Since Aina was focused solely on her personal training and studies, the Aina Faction had been running rampant lately.
Haviden curled his lip as he looked at those showing hostility towards him.
“Interesting. I guess I'll find out whether Aina Veydna protects you or not after I beat you all to a pulp.”
The Aina Faction flinched at Haviden's cynical smile.
Within the Knight Department, at least, the only student who could stop Haviden was Aina.
“Just you wait.”
The students of the Aina Faction ground their teeth and stormed away.
Haviden snorted at the sight.
“Thank you for helping me.”
Luke gave an awkward smile.
Haviden narrowed his eyes at Luke.
“You should stop acting like some bumbling, pathetic failure, Luke Elda.”
“Huh?”
Luke looked bewildered by the sudden remark.
Haviden stood up from his seat.
“It seems you think my eyes and everyone else's are just for decoration.”
Haviden said coldly.
“I know exactly how you look at me, at us. It's a very irritating gaze.”
Haviden knew.
He knew that this failing student was aiming for the position of year representative.
The one who had first told him this was none other than Duran.
‘If you're aiming for the year representative position, be wary of Luke Elda.’
At first, he hadn't understood.
‘If Leo Flove chose him, there must be a reason. And that boy has the eyes of one who looks upward.’
Duran had curled his lip.
‘Don't just look ahead and to the side. Your rivals are behind you, too.’
After hearing that advice and looking into Luke's eyes, Haviden realized.
He wasn't showing it.
But Luke was genuinely trying to surpass him.
‘It's like he doesn't even realize it himself. That's what makes it even more annoying.’
And during the last mission practicum.
Haviden and the other first-years had seen it.
The top students who had stood on the front lines, including Haviden, had seen it.
Luke's sword strike in that moment.
“Your irritatingly kind nature is probably innate, so I guess it can't be helped. But if you're going to challenge me, at least bare your fangs.”
Haviden snorted, his words like a declaration of war.
“That way, I can knock you down with a clear conscience.”