Chapter 572
Chapter Title: Let the Games Begin
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572.
A low murmur rose from the crowd.
Countless people were coming and going within Lumerne.
Watching them, Chelsea crossed her arms and muttered.
“I never dreamed I'd live to see a crowd this big in Lumerne.”
Even the second-years, who were more than used to Lumerne by now, found the current scene unfamiliar.
Lumerne did invite outsiders for special events.
But this was the first time they had seen so many people that the entire, vast campus of Lumerne was packed.
“This is definitely a rare occasion in Lumerne's entire history, to have this many outsiders.”
As an educational institution that fostered heroes, it had many enemies.
The greatest of them were, of course, the demons of Tartaros.
But that wasn't all.
There were plenty of factions eagerly awaiting a chance to diminish Lumerne's influence.
On top of that, there were numerous threats targeting individual students.
Political rivals would sometimes attempt assassinations before their targets could grow in power.
Because of this, Lumerne had maintained ironclad security for a long time.
Aside from major world figures and the students' families, invitations were sent out randomly to ensure fairness.
As a result, the visitors to Lumerne were diverse in status and age.
“To make something like this possible… I guess that's Lumerne for you.”
Chelsea was once again marveling at the school's influence.
“Miss Chloe Müller?”
Just then, a boy from the crowd approached Chloe, acting as if he knew her.
Dressed in a luxurious robe and holding a magic staff studded with glittering mana stones, the man stood before Chloe and spoke.
“It is an honor to meet you, Miss Chloe Müller.”
“Who are you?”
“Oh, my apologies for the late introduction. I am Vito Ingteum, heir to the Ingteum family, a house affiliated with the Eastern Magic Tower of the continent.”
“Ah, it’s nice to meet you.”
The Ingteum family was famous even in the North.
“I've read all the magical theses you've published, Miss Chloe. The magical theories you present never fail to excite me.”
Chloe had already gained considerable fame in the magical academic world as a genius magic girl, following in the footsteps of Torua Yan, who had graduated last year.
Unlike Abad and Chelsea, who specialized in combat, she was also showing outstanding talent in magical research.
“Thank you for the kind words.”
Chloe gave a faint smile.
“Ah. Beautiful.”
Vito Ingteum then clutched his head and let out a cry of admiration.
Seeing him, Chelsea scowled.
‘What’s with this greasy guy?’
“You are a woman whose beauty matches your intellect. Grant me, Vito Ingteum, the honor of kissing the back of your hand!”
Making a fuss, Vito Ingteum suddenly dropped to one knee, took Chloe's hand, and tried to kiss it.
Chloe narrowed her eyes at his sudden action and was about to pull her hand back.
Thwack-!
“Gah!”
Betty Marste, Chloe's mentee from the first semester, suddenly appeared and drove her elbow into Vito Ingteum's face.
“What is this insolence! Vito Ingteum!”
“That’s my line! Betty Marste! What do you think you’re doing!”
“You were being rude to Senior Chloe!”
“Rude? I was merely praising her beauty!”
At Vito’s words, Betty’s expression turned cold as she jutted her chin.
“Take care of him.”
At her command, first-year magic students emerged from behind Betty.
“Huh? What’s with this bastard!”
“Who the hell is this nobody!”
“You dare make a move on our Ice Queen?”
“Wh-What… Guwaaaah?!”
The first-year magic students, both male and female, surrounded Vito Ingteum and began beating him with their staves.
Watching the scene, Chelsea took out a small paper bag from her pocket, crunched on a cookie, and said.
“Chloe, your followers are turning more and more into thugs.”
At Chelsea's words, Chloe clutched her head.
Chloe, who enjoyed taking care of others, had also looked after the first-years very well.
Thanks to that, she was the most popular upperclassman among the first-year magic students.
And Chloe's most ardent follower, Betty, rushed over to her.
“Senior Chloe! That pervert didn't do anything weird, did he?”
“Calm down, he just held my hand.”
“He touched your hand with those filthy hands?! I'll blow his wrist right off!”
“That’s a bit too much.”
When Chelsea interjected from the side, Betty paused for a moment before shouting back at the group.
“That perverted bastard! Beat him half to death! He has a real problem with his hands!”
As magic families from the same eastern region, the Marste and Ingteum families had frequent exchanges, so the heirs, Betty and Vito, had known each other since childhood.
Because of this, Betty knew very well that Vito was the type to hit on anyone and everyone.
At Betty's shrill cry, the atmosphere among the first-year magic students grew even more menacing.
“What is this undignified behavior! Mages beating someone with staves! You should be ashamed of yourselves as mages! I never dreamed the upperclassmen of the academy I plan to enter would be so vulgar!”
Vito shouted.
At his words, the first-years looked at each other and nodded.
“Oh, so you’re a junior who’s taking the entrance exam next year?”
Then, their expressions became even more sinister.
“This is a physical magic we learned from an upperclassman in the magic department. Magic Swing!”
“Aack!”
“Magical Fist! You arrogant prospective junior!”
“Guh?!”
“Magic Kick! You bastard!”
“Kehek!”
Watching the first-years become even more violent, Chelsea narrowed her eyes.
“Who on earth taught them such stupid things?”
“Senior Iliana.”
“They learned all the wrong things.”
Chelsea clicked her tongue.
“That’s enough, you guys.”
Unable to watch any longer, Chloe calmed the first-years down.
“He was rude, but this is a little too much.”
“Oh, Miss Chloe Müller… your heart is as beautiful as your intellect and appearance! Please, grant me the honor of kissing your cheek…”
As Vito got up and tried to place his hands on her shoulders, Chloe pushed him away without hesitation.
“Yes, it seems you deserve to be taught a lesson.”
The enraged first-years swung their staves at Vito.
“When a lot of people show up, a lot of weirdos do too.”
“Tell me about it.”
Chelsea shook her head, munching loudly on her cookies.
In truth, the strangest people here were none other than the Lumerne students themselves.
Indeed, the surrounding visitors stared at the scene, dumbfounded, but the Lumerne students, who were thoroughly used to their school's ways, didn't recognize anything strange about it at all.
Chelsea checked the time on a clock tower in the street and spoke.
“First-years, it’s almost time to get ready for the opening ceremony. Let’s move.”
“Yes!”
***
Countless visitors continued to stream into Lumerne.
Accordingly, the ships traveling to and from Lumeria City were bustling with activity.
That wasn't all. Huge pillars had risen up all over Lumeria City.
They were magical devices that projected magical screens, broadcasting the events of the Festival of Heroes live from Lumeria City, visible from anywhere in the city.
Even now, the magical devices were showing various spots around Lumerne.
Amidst all this.
Suddenly, all the magical screens switched to show Lumerne's Erec Parade Ground.
Lumerne students began to enter the massive parade ground.
At the appearance of the Lumerne students, the people watching from the stands erupted in cheers.
Perfectly lined up by department, a white-haired boy, Leo, appeared at the very front, holding the Lumerne flag.
“It’s Leo Flove!”
“Lumerne’s youngest-ever student council president!”
“The hero who put his name in the Hero Record!”
The atmosphere grew even more heated with Leo's appearance.
Just as the entire crowd was roaring with enthusiastic cheers.
Suddenly, a shadow formed in the middle of the Erec Parade Ground.
Startled by the unexpected event, the spectators looked up at the sky.
“…A ship?”
Someone muttered in a voice filled with astonishment.
In the sky above, a massive ship that looked like an airship was flying.
It was literally a culmination of the best of modern magical engineering and alchemy.
The appearance of a flying airship, something that should only exist in imagination, left the entire audience in shock.
“Demian! That’s Demian’s flag!”
“Could that ship have been made by Demian?!”
Gasps of admiration erupted from all over the stands.
Kuuuuung-!
The airship landed in a corner of the Erec Parade Ground.
Thud- Thud- Thud-
With that, the students of Demian began to disembark from the airship in perfect step.
Though small in number, the power they exuded overwhelmed the crowd.
Crackle-!
Suddenly, sparks began to fly in another part of the Erec Parade Ground.
Zzzzzzt! Flash-!
With a brilliant flash of light, the students of Seirun appeared.
“They teleported hundreds of people at once without a warp gate?!”
“Was something that absurd even possible?”
“As expected of Seirun… truly a school that nurtures the strongest mages!”
As everyone’s eyes widened at the unimaginable magical technique.
Screeeeeeech-!
The massive roar of a beast echoed through the sky.
The crowd's gaze turned to the sky again, where hundreds of wyverns were flying.
“Not just dozens, but hundreds of top-tier beasts like wyverns…”
“Incredible… That must be Azonia, right?”
Just as the audience was exclaiming in admiration.
Whoosh-!
The Azonia students riding the wyverns suddenly leaped off them.
“They jumped?!”
“They’ll land with magic, right?!”
The crowd screamed as they watched the Azonia students begin to fall from the high sky.
But the Azonia students didn't use magic and simply plummeted toward the ground.
Thud!
Gasps of shock erupted from all over the stands as they watched the Azonia students land on the ground and rise to their feet using purely their physical abilities.
Every one of the invited schools made an overwhelming entrance.
Their unique methods of arrival, far beyond the common sense of ordinary people, left everyone watching unable to contain their excitement.
Amidst all this.
Leo, having handed the Lumerne flag to Elena, walked to the center of the Erec Parade Ground.
-I hereby declare the Festival of Heroes has begun.
“Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!”
At Leo’s calm words, everyone watching erupted in cheers.
-The 100 first-year students selected as representatives from each school, come forward.
At Leo’s words, all the students except for the 100 selected first-years began to exit the Erec Parade Ground.
Demian’s massive airship rose into the sky again and headed toward Lake Lumeria.
“Karl, is the opening ceremony only for the first-years?”
Iliana asked with a puzzled expression, and Karl nodded.
“That’s what I heard.”
“What? You don’t know the details either?”
“The Festival of Heroes is supposed to be fair for everyone. So, aside from Leo, only the professors know the full schedule.”
Iliana nodded at Karl’s explanation.
Meanwhile, the first-years stood in formation before Leo with tense expressions.
“First-year representatives, to the stage.”
At Leo's words, four students climbed onto the stage where he stood.
From Lumerne, Luke ascended the stage with a terrified look on his face.
Azonia’s representative, the bear beastkin Medvez, clenched his fists as he looked at Leo.
‘This man is Leo Flove. The strongest man acknowledged by Senior Ar!’
Medvez looked at Leo with serious eyes, then glanced at Luke, who was so short he only came up to his shoulder and was trembling with tension, and narrowed his eyes.
‘He has no nerve. To be scared at a mere event like this. I heard he was amazing, but I guess rumors are just rumors. No need to be wary of him. I should be most wary of Seirun’s Leah Tingel… Huh?’
Medvez's jaw dropped when he noticed Leah staring openly at Luke with her eyes wide.
It turned out Luke was desperately trying to avoid making eye contact with Leah.
‘Wh-Why has this person been doing this to me since before?’
‘Unforgivable. Unforgivable. To enjoy the luxury of being Senior Flove's mentee all by himself. This enviable bastard! Unforgivable.’
‘…Leah Tingel… To burn with such a competitive spirit toward Luke Elda… I was a fool to judge him by his appearance!’
Medvez’s eyes widened.
‘Luke Elda! As an apology, I too will face you with my all!’
‘Eek! Why is this person…?’
As the giant bear beastkin glared at him, Luke became even more terrified.
Watching the scene, Demian’s first-year representative, Rixen, muttered to himself.
‘I’d better not get anywhere near those three.’
Leo spoke to the students standing before him.
-First-year representatives, recite the oath on behalf of your schools.
-As students of Lumerne, we will challenge our limits!
-As students of Seirun, we will not forsake our belief in ourselves.
-As students of Azonia, we will not hesitate to move forward.
-As students of Demian, we will not doubt our potential.
After reciting their respective school mottos, the first-year representatives declared in unison.
-We swear upon the names of our great predecessors to participate in the Festival of Heroes without shame!
At their words, Leo nodded.
-This concludes the opening ceremony.
Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaah-!
The opening ceremony, short but impactful, had come to an end.
Just then.
Snap-!
Leo snapped his fingers.
With that, a scoreboard materialized above the Erec Parade Ground.
[Lumerne: 100]
>[Seirun: 100]
>[Azonia: 100]
>[Demian: 100]
“...?”
The sudden development left the entire audience with blank expressions.
Not just the audience, but the first-years on the parade ground also looked dazed.
Flash-!
Kwagagagagagagak-!
A flash of light appeared in the sky, and simultaneously, weapons, magic staves, and summoning orbs materialized and fell to the ground.
“What the…”
Luke muttered blankly.
“What are you doing? I said the opening ceremony is over.”
Leo said calmly.
“Yes… it’s over. But what is all this?”
Medvez asked in a daze, and Leo replied.
“If the opening ceremony is over, it's time to start the opening match. The first event is a survival game. The school with the last person standing wins. Got it, more or less?”
Leo grinned.
“Now, kill each other.”