Chapter 592
Chapter Title: Promotion by Surprise
-----------------------------------------------------------------
592.
The Flame of Calamity that appeared during the Hero's Festival.
A colossal incident that occurred with the eyes of the world watching.
But the calamity soon turned into a miracle.
The appearance of the Hero of the Beginning, Kyle.
The world erupted in fervor at the sight of Kyle vanishing after defeating the Flame of Calamity.
After the chaos was brought under control, the Hero's Festival resumed.
There had been a crisis, but there were no casualties.
“Phew~ For a moment there, I really thought we were done for.”
Karl, who was setting up his stall, chuckled with a playful exaggeration.
“You seem to be in a good mood.”
“Of course! I worked my fingers to the bone preparing for this festival! I would've been so mad if it had been canceled!”
After the incident was resolved, there was talk about whether to continue the Hero's Festival.
However, due to the wishes of the countless people who had been waiting for it, the decision was made to see the festival through to the end.
“In fact, the incident actually drew more attention. It's all thanks to the Hero of the Beginning showing up at the perfect time.”
Three days had already passed since the start of the Hero's Festival.
The four hero academies were currently locked in a fierce competition, all with neck-and-neck scores.
The hero candidates' performances fueled the growing excitement of the spectators.
Just as Leo had hoped, it had become a festival for everyone to enjoy.
“So, what are you setting up?”
Leo asked with a curious expression, and Karl grinned.
“This is my last big score here at Lumerne.”
Karl gave a triumphant thumbs-up, his face beaming with confidence.
“Gotta go out with a bang, right?”
“What are you planning?”
In response to Leo's question, Karl showed him the sign.
“A prize draw?”
“Yep, what's a festival without a prize draw? I'm collaborating with Driana to open up a shop.”
“Why Driana?”
“She's going to be running another shop right next to mine.”
Karl hummed a little tune.
Looking at him, Leo asked.
“What about advancing to the third year?”
“It'd be nice if I could, but there's no hope, right?”
Karl shrugged.
“But that doesn't mean I'm going back home or giving up.”
“Then?”
“I bought a small building in Lumeria City recently.”
“When? With what money?”
“A little while ago. As for the money, haven't I been working hard at my business since I enrolled?”
Karl made a circle with his thumb and index finger and grinned.
“My noble customers are quite generous. I saved up a tidy sum. I used that to buy a building.”
Karl said as he prepared his stall.
“Starting next year, I plan to make Lumeria City my base and expand my business with what I've learned at Lumerne.”
“Business?”
“I'm going to build a system that can immediately confirm incidents happening all over the world and report them to Lumerne, not to mention providing battle supplies and information. I also want to use the connections I've made at Lumerne to establish my own warp gate.”
Karl looked at Leo.
“You guys will be active all over the world from now on. I need to get everything ready to support you before you graduate.”
“Are you satisfied with that?”
“I've always wanted to be a supporter. So, it's enough for me to support you all to the best of my ability, right?”
Karl cleared his throat with a theatrical “Ahem!”
“And to be honest, even if I could advance to the third year, I'm kind of scared to.”
Karl grabbed his head with both hands and shivered.
“That witch... how much harder will she work me to the bone next year? No... I don't want it!”
Leo shook his head as he watched Karl shudder.
‘She really was harsh.’
Just when it seems a task is about to be resolved, Elena doesn't finish it; she creates more work.
What's even more vicious is that she assigns tasks that push you precisely to your limit, but not beyond.
“So, I'll go out first, prepare everything, and wait for you.”
***
Lumerne's headmaster, Liina, was in her office discussing the Hero's Festival schedule with the student council vice president, Elena, and Professor Sedzen.
“How is security in Lumeria City?”
“It's good. Because of the incident on the first day, people are more on edge, so the crime rate actually seems to have decreased.”
“So we were actually helped by that damn incident?”
Liina scratched her head roughly.
It was certain that without the appearance of the Hero of the Beginning, Kyle, there would have been massive casualties.
“What's the status on finding the culprit behind the incident?”
“I hear the Dragon Lord is tracking them personally.”
“They'll be caught soon, then.”
“Yes.”
It made no sense for this incident to have occurred so suddenly.
A fragment of Lumerne's Hero Record had suddenly gone berserk in the middle of the Erek training grounds.
That meant an outsider had brought a Hero Record inside.
“Just as Seirun has the Pureblood Society, we have no shortage of traitors in our midst.”
Liina's eyes grew cold.
Even if she had retired from the front lines, she was still a Shadow.
It was her principle to hunt down and annihilate traitors.
“First, we need to finish the Hero's Festival properly.”
Sedzen said to Liina.
Just as Liina nodded in agreement.
*Knock, knock.*
The door opened with the sound of knocking, and Halind entered.
Halind, holding documents, approached Liina and handed them to her.
“Here are the papers you mentioned.”
“You've prepared everything. Impressive, especially when you're so busy.”
Liina exclaimed in admiration as she took and reviewed the documents.
Watching this, Elena wore a puzzled expression.
“What documents are those?”
“They're papers regarding Karl Thomas's promotion.”
Elena's eyes widened at Halind's impassive words.
Halind's nickname was Lumerne's Wailing Wall.
Among the upperclassmen, he was an object of pure terror.
That was because Halind was famous for mercilessly expelling any student who didn't meet his standards.
Last year and this year.
That tendency had lessened since he took charge of the first-years, but that was only because his evaluation subjects were now first-years.
Elena had seen countless upperclassmen pack their bags because of Halind.
For such a man to prepare documents for a student's promotion rather than their expulsion was astonishing.
What's more, Karl didn't even have the grades to be promoted.
“That's surprising. I never thought Professor Halind would prepare documents to promote a student with inadequate grades to the next year.”
“I simply believe that Lumerne's current evaluation system cannot fully assess Karl Thomas's potential.”
Halind stated calmly.
“The boy has attended Lumerne since enrollment with the goal of becoming a supporter. He has indeed shown a strength for assisting others from behind the scenes rather than taking the lead.”
Elena nodded at his words.
“I thought that was the extent of it. But as I watched him, I saw he was a bit different.”
Having been in charge of Karl during his first year, Halind had observed him closely and come to understand his abilities.
“Drawing out the potential of others and gathering their strength to exert an even greater power. I came to believe that is Karl Thomas's true ability.”
Halind said, looking at the report on Karl Thomas in Liina's hands.
“It was a new kind of ability, one we hadn't known until now. I believe that aspect also holds the potential of a hero. That is why I prepared the documents.”
Elena nodded at his words.
“The intention is good. But convincing the board of directors won't be easy.”
Sedzen, who had been listening, clicked his tongue.
He, too, agreed with Halind's opinion.
However, special cases weren't made easily.
Even though Halind and Sedzen had served as Lumerne professors for a long time and held considerable influence, the authority to create exceptions rested solely with the board.
And the conservative board was more likely than not to refuse to acknowledge Karl's case.
“I am simply doing my best for my student.”
Elena nodded at Halind's stoic words.
“That's just what I'd expect from the academy's best professor.”
“What are you talking about! The best professor at Lumerne is me! Sedzen!”
Sedzen shouted, throwing a fit.
“Yes, yes. You're the best professor too, Sir Sedzen.”
Elena smiled gently, her eyes twinkling as she looked at the documents in Liina's hands.
***
A few more days passed.
As the Hero's Festival was entering its final stages.
“...What is this?”
Eliza stared with a bewildered expression at the long line stretching out before her.
In her hand was the winning medal from the Phantom Beast Race.
After winning her event, she had some free time and remembered hearing that Karl was running a business for the spectators. She decided to pay a visit, only to find a terrifying crowd lined up in front of his stall.
“Come on, everyone! This isn't an opportunity that comes every day! Knights! Mages! Summoners! Right here! A chance to win equipment made by none other than Miss Driana of Demian, Leo Flove's exclusive smith! Don't miss out!”
Karl was on a stage, holding a megaphone and hawking his wares.
A cloud of knights, mages, and summoners had gathered around him, each hoping to get weapons, magic staves, and summoning catalysts.
Just then, a man who appeared to be a knight stepped onto the stage with a nervous face.
“Everyone! A knight from the Del Kingdom in the southern continent is about to attempt a ten-pull!”
As Karl shouted enthusiastically into the megaphone, the crowd roared, “Woooooah-!”
Dazzling magical lights illuminated the stage, shining on a giant glass cylinder on the ceiling.
Inside the cylinder, fist-sized, multicolored balls glittered like jewels.
*Whirrrrrr-!*
The balls inside began to mix wildly, and soon the cylinder's opening released ten of them.
Spotting a crystal-shaped ball among them, the knight from the Del Kingdom let out a roar.
“Diamooonnnd!”
He dropped to his knees, holding the crystal ball aloft with both hands, as groans of disappointment erupted from the crowd.
“Aaargh! A diamond-tier prize! That's what I was aiming for!”
The knight opened the crystal ball with trembling hands, only to despair at the small note inside.
“Aaaaargh! A magic staff!”
“Yes! You've pulled a diamond-tier magic staff! Congratulations!”
The knight, having pulled something excellent but unusable for himself, screamed in frustration.
At that, mages rushed toward the stage.
“Sell that to me!”
“No! To me...!”
“Me!”
Eliza's jaw dropped at the pandemonium, which bordered on madness.
“What on earth is this?”
“They're calling it a 'toxic gacha'.”
“Leo Flove?”
Eliza looked at Leo, her eyes wide with surprise.
“I'm currently debating whether I should sanction this as a member of the student council.”
The product Karl had prepared was, quite literally, a lottery ticket.
It was subtly expensive, but not when compared to the value of the prizes.
The problem was the abysmal odds.
With flashy presentation, he captivated people and continuously sold tickets.
People were opening their wallets like crazy, driven by the thought that if they were lucky, they could get their hands on equipment made by Driana.
Of course, even if one was lucky enough to pull what they wanted, it didn't end there.
“I got it!”
A beastkin mage raised the recently won magic staff with both hands and cheered.
Then, with bloodshot eyes, he headed to the side of the prize draw stall.
There stood Driana, holding a hammer.
“I'm here to reinforce it.”
“This is your third attempt. I recommend you just take it and go.”
“Hmph. I am a beastkin.”
The mage laughed as if the suggestion was absurd.
“The heart of a beast beats in my chest.”
“A fine courage, following in the footsteps of Lord Ar-on.”
“Hmph.”
Driana took the magic staff the mage handed her.
She placed it on an anvil and began to hammer.
*Clang- clang- clang-!*
Not just the beastkin mage, but everyone around swallowed nervously as they watched.
As they watched with bated breath.
*Crack-!*
“Oops. My hand slipped.”
Driana could be heard clicking her tongue.
“Noooooo!”
The beastkin mage who had attempted the reinforcement grabbed his head and shrieked.
“Try again next time.”
Driana patted the beastkin mage's shoulder.
“...”
“It seems if you beat the low odds and succeed in reinforcing, they exchange it for an even more powerful weapon.”
Of course, they weren't actually reinforcing it on the spot; it was just a performance using a replica that had a certain chance of withstanding the hammering.
But for some reason, the effect was more intense than necessary, driving people to emotional highs and lows.
Spurred on by this, even more people became obsessed with reinforcement.
“I have no idea how he comes up with these things.”
Leo was watching the hawking Karl with a fascinated expression when...
“Leo!”
From a distance, Chelsea called out to Leo and came running at an incredible speed.
“*Pant-! Pant-!*”
Leo looked with curiosity at Chelsea, who was bent over with her hands on her knees, gasping for breath.
“What's wrong?”
“Kaarl! Where's Karl?”
Seeing Chelsea ask between ragged breaths, Leo pointed toward the stage.
“Karl!”
Chelsea called out to him.
Thanks to her voice being amplified by wind magic, everyone's attention instantly snapped to Chelsea.
“Chelsea? What's going on?”
Karl asked in a bewildered tone, and Chelsea replied in a flustered voice.
“It was just confirmed! Your name is on the Hero Record now!”
“Huh?”
“What?”
*Murmur, murmur, murmur-*
At Chelsea's shout, Karl stared blankly, and Eliza's eyes went wide.
Everyone around them began to murmur as well.
“Oh?”
Leo's eyes gleamed as he stroked his chin.
Chelsea stamped her foot in frustration, looking at Karl, who was still staring dumbly, unable to grasp the situation.
“I'm saying you've become a hero!”
“Whaaaat?!”
Karl let out a scream of disbelief.
Just then, Elena appeared from behind Chelsea.
“Oh my, have you come to deliver the news already? You're fast.”
Elena smiled sweetly and said to Karl.
“Karl. The board of directors has been convened. They're holding an emergency meeting about your promotion to the third year... and from the looks of it, I think you're going to make it.”
Chelsea's face lit up at Elena's bright smile.
Even Eliza, uncharacteristically, couldn't hide her surprised delight.
“Wooooah!”
The crowd didn't fully understand the situation either, but at the mention of a new hero's birth, they began to cheer.
The only one frozen in place was Karl, who was just standing there, mouth agape.
Elena smiled at him and said.
“So I'll be counting on you again next year, Acting Student Council President.”
Seeing the chilling smile that only he could perceive, Karl clutched his head.
“Noooooo!”
Watching the screaming Karl, Leo muttered.
“Looks like his promotion reinforcement succeeded.”