Chapter 063
Chapter Title: An Unexpected Confrontation
-----------------------------------------------------------------
“A Death Knight?”
“A Death Knight in a sacred sanctuary.”
Halind and Rune wore grave expressions upon receiving Leo’s report.
“I find that hard to believe.”
However, a spectacled elf sitting in Rune’s office raised an objection.
“It is true that, tragically, monsters began appearing in the Fairy Forest long ago. But a Death Knight? There is no precedent for such a thing, is there?”
Shaking his head, the elf turned to Leo.
“Are you certain you saw a Death Knight?”
“I have no reason to claim I saw something I didn’t, do I?”
“I am not suggesting you are lying, Lumerne student. We received reports from our own students about the appearance of skeletons. That is why I came to speak with the High Council Chairman. However, we received no reports concerning a Death Knight.”
*He must be a Seirun professor.*
The Seirun instructor adjusted his glasses and asked.
“Lumerne student, have you ever seen an undead in your life?”
“Not in this life.”
“In that case, you may have mistaken a Skeleton Knight for a Death Knight. It is a relatively common mistake.”
*I’ve taken down entire squads of Death Knights in my past life. As if I’d make that kind of mistake.*
Leo let out a dry laugh.
“I suppose Seirun students often make that mistake?”
The Seirun instructor paused at his words before clearing his throat.
“Ahem. It is a mistake our students sometimes make.”
With that, the Seirun instructor changed the subject.
“In any case, Lumerne student, if you had encountered a Death Knight, it would have been difficult to escape unharmed. It is a monster that even our first-years at Seirun would struggle to handle alone. Are you saying you escaped by yourself?”
“Yes.”
“You seem quite confident in your abilities.”
A corner of his mouth curled up as he spoke to Halind.
“Professor Halind, what are your thoughts?”
“I trust the word of my student, Instructor Herdium.”
Seeing Halind’s firm response, Herdium narrowed his eyes, then turned to Rune.
“High Council Chairman, what is your opinion?”
“He is not the type to lie,” Rune said with a gentle smile.
Herdium wore a look of resignation.
“Let us discuss the matter of the Death Knight at a later time.”
At Rune’s words, Halind and Herdium nodded.
“Professor Halind, Leo, you may go. I have something to discuss privately with Instructor Herdium.”
“Understood.”
Halind bowed and left the office with Leo.
“Looks like there’s going to be a change of plans.”
Halind muttered as they stepped out of the office.
Leo looked at him with a puzzled expression.
“A change of plans?”
“Instructor Herdium is the homeroom teacher for Seirun’s first-year Advanced Class 1. It seems his entire class came here for a mission practicum.”
Halind let out a faint smile.
“Knowing we were also here on a field trip, Professor Herdium requested a joint class.”
“A joint class?”
“We get to experience Seirun’s teaching methods, and they get to experience Lumerne’s.”
“That sounds interesting.”
“Of course, it will be. But it must be more than just interesting. This is a great opportunity to broaden our horizons. It’s not an experience you can have just by asking for it. In that sense, our class is quite lucky.”
“I see.”
“Advanced Class 1 is where Seirun gathers its most outstanding first-years. It will be a great benefit to us as well.”
“Oh.”
“Instructor Herdium has invited us to dinner this evening. Go and announce it to the class.”
“Yes, sir.”
***
“Whoa! We get to meet students from Seirun!”
“Hey! How’s this? Is my hair styled okay?”
“Does this necklace suit me?”
The students of Class 5 were buzzing with excitement ahead of the evening banquet.
“Karl, what are you doing?”
Leo asked, puzzled, as he saw Karl sitting on the first floor, putting together a booklet.
“Making a catalog. Don’t you think the Seirun students might need some of the goods I handle?”
Chelsea crossed her arms, looking at the grinning Karl with disbelief.
“You’re planning to do business right there?”
“It’s for promotion, promotion. Well, I’m not planning to do it at the party. I’m just preparing to do business during the joint classes starting tomorrow.”
At that, Chelsea nodded.
“It’s time. Let’s go.”
Leo checked the clock, and the Class 5 students rose from their seats.
The moment they went outside…
“So coooold!”
“What was the point of styling my hair?!”
They screamed as a blizzard raged around them.
Karl chuckled at the sight.
“Are you guys idiots?”
Of course, he was immediately pelted with a volley of snowballs for his trouble.
“Good thing it’s close by.”
Nella said with a gentle smile.
The Seirun students’ lodging was a luxury hotel right in front of Lumerne’s accommodations.
“So Seirun was the one that rented out this whole place. Sniff! Looks like they’re loaded, as expected.”
Karl said with a snort, and Chelsea shrugged.
“Seirun is famous for being the wealthiest of all the hero academies.”
The standing of the hero academies differed among the various races.
Even at Lumerne, many factions were dissatisfied with the current system.
Because of the Hero Record, they were forced to send their nation’s top talents to Lumerne.
While many of those graduates returned to hold high positions in their home countries, a significant number joined the hero guilds run by Lumerne.
It was only natural for dissatisfaction to arise over this brain drain.
But Seirun was different.
Seirun itself served as the central pillar of the Elf National Alliance, a massive power that encompassed all elves.
“Right, I heard the amenities Lumerne provides for its students are peanuts compared to Seirun, right?”
“Yeah. And elves supposedly place even more importance on ‘bloodline’ than we humans do. So, unlike our school, there are almost no students from obscure noble families or commoner backgrounds.”
“Their sense of superiority must be off the charts.”
While Karl clicked his tongue, Class 5 arrived at the hotel.
A footman waiting in front of the hotel politely opened the door.
“Welcome, everyone.”
“Allow me to take your coats.”
“Please give them to me.”
In the lobby, footmen politely took their coats.
Some students, like Chelsea, handed them over with practiced ease, while others, like Karl, fumbled awkwardly.
“This way, please.”
Guided by a footman, the students entered the hotel’s grand banquet hall.
“What is all this?”
Karl muttered in a daze.
The banquet hall was the very definition of opulence.
“This is on par with a party hosted by His Majesty the Emperor of our empire.”
Even for Chelsea, a direct descendant of the Llewellyn family, one of the most prestigious noble houses, it was excessively extravagant.
As everyone stood there in awe, Herdium approached them.
“Welcome, students of Lumerne’s first-year Class 5. It is my humble pleasure to teach at Seirun. My name is Herdium Wintel. You may call me Instructor Herdium.”
“Thank you for inviting us to the party, Instructor Herdium.”
The Class 5 students greeted him politely.
“As you are the first-years who will lead Seirun and Lumerne into the future, I hope this will be an occasion to forge deep friendships.”
After finishing his speech, Herdium gave them a smile and returned to his seat.
Halind and Sera had already arrived and were eating.
“Well, I’m starving, so shall we eat first?”
As Karl rubbed his hands together, Chelsea shot him a glare.
“Don’t make a scene like you usually do. The Seirun students are watching.”
“I know, I know. I have no intention of embarrassing our school.”
While they were curious about Seirun Academy, Lumerne and Seirun had been rivals for a long time.
In recent years, Seirun had surpassed Lumerne in various exchange events.
Lumerne was looking for any opportunity to get ahead of Seirun, while Seirun sought to maintain its current superiority.
From a broader perspective, this was a meeting with rivals from another school they would clash with throughout their academic years.
That was why they had paid more attention to their appearance than usual. They didn’t want to look inferior.
And so, the party began.
The students of Lumerne and Seirun began to explore their curiosity about one another.
Though awkward at first, the fact that they were peers with the common goal of becoming heroes helped them open up quickly.
Several Seirun students, curious, also approached Leo.
“I’m studying spiritmancy at Seirun. You?”
“I’m taking summoning classes too.”
“Oh? What are the spiritmancy classes at Lumerne like?”
The first student introduced himself as a spiritmancer.
“I’m training in the art of the spear.”
“I’m in the knight department as well.”
“Ooh. I would love to broaden my horizons and see what Lumerne’s knights are like. May I request a duel tomorrow?”
“By all means.”
The second student introduced himself as a knight.
After that, several other students came and went.
Amidst it all, Leo felt a sense of doubt.
*Why hasn’t a single one of them mentioned studying magic?*
Meanwhile, the music flowing through the party hall changed frequently.
Sometimes, soft music for conversation would play, and then suddenly, it would switch to an upbeat tune.
The elves danced frequently to the rhythm of the music.
Class 5 seemed unable to get used to the atmosphere.
This was because human social parties usually had a designated time for dancing.
But for Leo, it was not an unfamiliar sight.
*Elves love to dance, same as always.*
Since ancient times, elves had been a race that loved song and dance.
It was common for them to court one another through song and dance.
Luna, too, had often sung and danced during their time camping.
The dance the Seirun students were performing now was the same one Luna had danced long ago.
*Dweno used to praise her, calling the sight a work of art.*
*‘How can someone with such a cantankerous personality sing and dance so beautifully? It’s a mystery!’*
*…was the kind of bullshit he’d say, which was usually the start of their fights.*
As he was reminiscing, someone approached him.
“You?”
“Hello, we meet again.”
Lunia smiled gently.
Just then, as if on cue, dance music began to play.
Hearing it, Lunia asked.
“Care for a dance?”
“Shall we?”
When Leo offered his hand, Lunia took it.
And they began to dance lightly.
“You know the elven dance?”
“I learned it a long time ago.”
Leo replied nonchalantly to Lunia’s surprised question.
“Are you enjoying the party?”
“Yes. But I have a question. Is there no magic department at Seirun?”
“We don’t divide our departments like Lumerne. We focus on intensively learning what we major in.”
“Hmm. I did get that impression.”
He recalled the students who had introduced themselves as a spiritmancer, a summoner, a spear knight, and a sword knight.
“Still, there weren’t any students studying magic.”
“It seems you don’t know much about Seirun. At Seirun, magic is mandatory.”
“Mandatory?”
“Yes. Because we are the race of magic.”
“Even for the race of magic, there must be students who don’t have an aptitude for it.”
“Such people cannot enroll at Seirun.”
*So they’re basically all dual-class.*
As she answered, Lunia continued her lively steps.
Leo had no trouble supporting her.
Lunia was thoroughly enjoying the dance with Leo.
*He’s an incredibly skilled dancer.*
His skill made it more fun than usual.
When the dance music ended, Lunia stepped back with a slightly disappointed expression and asked.
“I just realized I never asked for your name. What is it?”
“Me? Leo Flove.”
“……?”
Lunia’s face, which had been about to release Leo’s hand, froze over.
Leo looked at her reaction with a puzzled expression.
“What’s wrong?”
“It was you?”
“What?”
The friendly, top-student demeanor she had just a moment ago was gone.
Lunia’s eyes blazed as she radiated an intimidating aura that could rival a thug’s.
“So you’re the thief who stole someone else’s contractor?”
“Ah.”
Leo nodded in understanding, then smiled faintly.
“She’s working out great.”
“How can you say that!”
An incensed Lunia grabbed Leo by the collar.
“A f-fight! A fight’s breaking out!”
The party atmosphere was shattered.