Chapter 404

Book 1 Chapter 404

Lumen regained its bustling energy as the first and second-year classes returned to campus following the conclusion of their practical field missions.

As an institution built entirely on relentless rivalry and academic survival, Lumen naturally filters its student body each year, resulting in mandatory dismissals across every grade. Because of this high turnover rate, the underclassmen—specifically the freshmen and sophomores—make up the vast majority of the school’s population. It was no wonder the campus had felt so deserted while those two entire year levels were away on their external operations.

“Man, there’s really no place like school. Being out in the field is just pure peril and endless misery. Isn’t it wonderful to just sit back and study?” Karl remarked, performing a deep stretch after their morning magic lecture concluded.

Chloe, carefully stacking her notebooks, offered a gentle smile at his comment. “Is that so? In that case, how about we spend this free time going over what we just learned today?”

“Pass. Honestly, I think I’m genuinely allergic to the word ‘review,'” Karl joked playfully.

Chloe narrowed her gaze at him. “The final examinations are right around the corner. What’s your actual plan?”

Karl merely laughed out loud, “Haha-ha-ha!”

“Don’t worry, tomorrow is another day!”

Hearing this, Chelsea, who was walking out of the lecture hall alongside Abbad, widened her eyes in disbelief. “Do you even have a bright future to look forward to?”

“Ouch, that’s a bit harsh, don’t you think?”

“It’s just the truth. Karl, your academic prospects look incredibly dim. Just about as dark as Celia Zerdinger’s hair.”

Faced with Chelsea’s blunt criticism, Karl could only let out a self-deprecating chuckle.

At that moment, Abbad chimed in. “For what it’s worth, Karl, I genuinely hope you manage to pass.”

Leaning back against his chair, Karl let out a heavy sigh. “You think I don’t want to? Look, if you really mean that, how about helping me put together a little cheat sheet?”

“Karl,” Chloe warned, shooting him a sharp look.

Karl quickly held up his hands. “Just teasing, just teasing! Besides, we all know Abbad is far too upright to ever agree to something like that.”

Abbad Lwelyn, widely recognized as the most handsome boy in the sophomore year, maintained a perpetual, mild expression. Yet beneath that gentle exterior lay a remarkably composed and resolute personality. He stood in stark contrast to Chelsea, who frequently used sharp language but never failed to look out for others.

“Moving on, what do you think they’ll throw at us for the practical portion of this semester’s finals?”

“Well, the midterm was focused entirely on familiars.”

“And we haven’t really had any out-of-the-ordinary curriculum blocks recently, have we?”

As Chloe, Chelsea, and Abbad debated the upcoming exams, Karl listened from the sidelines and sighed. “Times like this make me question how I even ended up in this group.”

“What makes you say that?” Leo asked, pausing as he finished packing up his learning materials.

“I mean, just look around. This is obviously a circle reserved for the absolute prodigies and top-tier scholars of our class.”

Leo let out a soft laugh and stood up from his desk. “Heading out for lunch?”

“Yeah.”

“Mind if I tag along?”

Karl began to rise as well, but Leo stopped him. “Actually, I already have plans this afternoon.”

“Plans? Can’t I just come with?”

“You could, technically. But I’m supposed to eat over at the student council administrative office.”

The color immediately drained from Karl’s face. Having previously been hauled into that very office over a past narcotics investigation, he preferred to stay as far away from the student council premises as humanly possible. The mere recollection made him shudder. “Never mind, I’ll pass.”

Leo couldn’t help but laugh at his reaction. Turning to the others, he asked, “What about the rest of you?”

“We’re booked as well today. We have a scheduled luncheon with the visiting delegation from the Lodren Empire,” Abbad explained with a polite smile.

“And I’m meeting up with Celia for lunch,” Chloe added, noting her plans with her closest companion.

“Understood. See you all later, then.” Leo gave a brief nod before stepping out of the room.

Inside the Student Council headquarters within the Tower of Heroes.

“Well, look who finally decided to show up—our esteemed student council president!” A fifth-year representative greeted Leo with an enthusiastic expression as he crossed the threshold.

“Good day, senior.”

“With both Harc and Elena currently away, it feels like you’re the only major figure left to actually step foot in here,” Toren, a fifth-year male student, remarked with an amused look.

The two primary pillars currently running the daily operations of the council, Harc and Elena, had been deployed on an official mission to Ellem, leading their respective elite dungeon exploration teams. As the top two contenders vying for the title of the strongest student in their graduating class, it was only logical that they were sent to handle the massive hero-grade dungeon that had manifested in Ellem.

Their absence left the student council largely unattended, prompting Leo—who usually preferred to remain detached from administrative duties—to finally make an appearance.

“You might hold the record for being the youngest student council president in the history of Lumen, but at this rate, you’re also going to be the first ghost member to ever hold the title.”

“I’m only a second-year student. I still have a lot of observing and learning to do before you seniors graduate.” Leo offered a pleasant smile, though Toren looked entirely unconvinced.

“Knowing you, I fully expect you’ll still be dodging council paperwork even when you’re a fifth-year yourself.”

“That’s definitely not true.”

Leo offered a playful shrug, but Toren wasn’t buying it. After all, despite being a fifth-year elite student himself, he knew how Leo operated. Leo was the only person capable of dumping a mountain of administrative tasks onto Harc—Lumen’s officially recognized top combatant—without a single hint of hesitation.

Having been classmates with Harc at the Knight Academy for five whole years, Toren knew him well.

‘I can say with absolute certainty that Harc is enduring the most grueling school year of his entire life right now.’

Harc had maintained his position as the undisputed top student since his freshman year. As the direct successor to the prominent Ligard family—one of the three legendary noble houses of Lumen—not even the upperclassmen ever dared to treat him with disrespect. Even though he had a habit of falling asleep at random intervals every day, his academic rankings remained flawless.

Furthermore, despite his notoriously strained relationship with Elena Zerone, who was a year below him, neither the highly influential ‘Queen of Lumen’ nor her massive political faction dared to cross Harc openly.

Yet, during the previous academic year, a single underclassman had arrived who managed to completely upend Harc’s peaceful existence. That student was Leo.

Toren shook his head at the thought.

‘Once our class graduates, he’ll undoubtedly dump all of this official paperwork straight onto Elena Zerone.’

And what would happen when Elena eventually graduated?

‘He’ll just hand it off to Lil.’

Lil Luce, the exceptionally capable class representative who was currently one year ahead of Leo. She possessed a terrifying level of natural talent. And when her time to graduate arrived, Leo would inevitably find a way to delegate the student council responsibilities to the high achievers of his own year level.

‘Well, it’s not like any of that will matter to me by then.’ Toren shrugged, dismissing the thought. “Anyway, we have a highly critical piece of business on the agenda today that requires your direct authorization. That’s why I requested your presence.”

“What exactly are we looking at?”

“Let’s go over the specifics once the remaining members get here,” Toren replied, shuffling through his neat stacks of parchment.

Right at that moment, a fourth-year female student representing the Knight Academy stepped into the chambers.

“Ah, Young Master Leo! You’ve already arrived. I really should have come to escort you here myself.”

The speaker was Niel Roda. Belonging to the Roda household, which served as a loyal vassal family to the Zerdingers, she also functioned as Celia’s personal protector. Initially, she had been a member of the fine arts club, but following Leo’s ascension to the role of student council president, she transferred into the council specifically to support his administrative needs. This move was a mutual desire shared by both herself and her household.

The Zerdinger family was highly invested in cementing Leo’s administrative authority as firmly as possible, given that he had become the youngest president to hold office since the era of Lyss. Under normal circumstances, the entry requirements for joining the student council were incredibly rigorous, but since Niel possessed exemplary grades, her admission went through without any complications.

“Greetings, Senior Toren,” Niel said, offering a cheerful smile.

A few moments later, the heavy doors opened once more to admit a fifth-year student hailing from the Magic Department. The moment Niel caught sight of him, her pleasant expression instantly soured.

The newcomer was Machael Luzia. His household served as a loyal vassal to the Lwelyn family. Because of their respective allegiances, he and Niel naturally got along like oil and water.

“It is an honor to see you again, Young Master Leo,” Machael spoke, showing the utmost courtesy.

Even though Leo belonged to the Zerdinger lineage, he was also a close companion to Chelsea and Abbad. More importantly, he was a prodigy who had already sent shockwaves through the academic magic community at an incredibly young age. Despite being the older student and holding seniority, Machael had every reason to treat Leo with profound deference.

“Chelsea mentioned she was heading out to dine with the representatives from the Lodren Empire. You didn’t join them?”

“I have prior commitments regarding council administrative tasks. It’s unfortunate, but I figured I would grab a quick bite here and focus on the paperwork instead.”

The vast majority of the upperclassmen serving on the council were currently absent, having joined Harc and Elena on the frontlines in Ellem. Consequently, these three were the only senior representatives left in the chambers available to deliberate on major administrative proposals.

“Very well, let us officially open the council session. To begin, we need to address the allocation of club budgets leading up to the summer recess.” Toren, stepping into his role as administrative secretary, directed a cold look toward Machael. “Machael, the Magic Engineering Department has submitted yet another request for a budget increase. They claim it’s necessary preparation for the upcoming Luse War next term.”

“That is correct. By its very nature, advanced magic engineering demands a substantial amount of financial resources,” Machael countered smoothly.

Niel narrowed her eyes in response. “Even so, this amount is entirely unreasonable. While Senior Harc previously utilized his executive power as Vice President to approve these funds, this latest request is simply going too far.”

Despite the firm pushback from the two Knight Academy representatives, Machael remained completely unbothered. “I have already discussed and settled this matter directly with Harc. If you prefer, I can always summon James Dext here to provide a thorough breakdown of exactly why these additional funds are vital.”

Hearing that name, Toren rubbed his temples in frustration.

‘If we bring that guy in here, he’s just going to start shouting and rambling an endless stream of incomprehensible technical jargon.’

James Dext belonged to the Magic Department and had been a close confidant of Harc since their freshman days. Because of that long-standing relationship, Harc routinely approved James’s financial petitions. While it was undeniable that the Magic Engineering Department had delivered highly impressive breakthroughs over the past year, approving any further supplementary funding was becoming highly problematic.

At that moment, Leo, who had been silently monitoring the debate, intervened. “Should I pay him a visit to discuss this personally? Or would Senior Machael prefer to go back and handle the explanation?”

Upon hearing Leo’s calm suggestion, Machael paused, visibly hesitating as he weighed his options. Ultimately, he chose the wiser path and gave a compliant nod. “I will handle the matter and explain the situation clearly to James.”

“In that case, we will proceed with the understanding that no supplementary funding will be granted.”

Watching Leo effortlessly dismantle the financial dispute surrounding the Magic Engineering Department, Toren murmured, “You know that James fellow is going to storm over here completely losing his mind, right?”

“He definitely won’t show his face here. If he takes issue with the decision, I can always pay him a visit myself. Though I highly doubt Senior James has any desire to speak with me.”

James Dext, the prominent leader of the Magic Engineering Department, was notorious for turning on his heel and fleeing whenever Leo came into view. During the prior academic year, he had foolishly underestimated Leo’s authority as a first-year president, attempting to artificially inflate his department’s budget. That stunt backfired spectacularly, nearly resulting in his entire operational budget being slashed.

To a researcher completely reliant on funding for magic experimentation, the phrase ‘budget cuts’ was the most terrifying collection of words in existence. From James’s perspective, a student council president who possessed the absolute authority and logical precision required to strip away the Magic Engineering Department’s financial resources was far more frightening than death itself.

With that issue resolved, the council proceeded to cycle through the remaining club-related proposals.

A short while later, Toren brought forward the final item on the docket. “We have one final proposal that was forwarded directly from the institutional school board just prior to the start of this session.”

The announcement left the remaining council members looking utterly perplexed. It was highly unusual for the Lumen school board to hand down administrative directives so suddenly.

“I assume everyone here is well aware of how much global attention is currently fixed on the recent field operations of our underclassmen?”

The room nodded in unison at Toren’s words. Although the first and second-year classes had concluded their deployments and returned to their regular academic routines, the geopolitical shockwaves generated by the crisis in Ellem were far from over.

“There have been active consultations regarding the complications in Ellem, alongside the historical significance of last year’s [Reappearance of the Nebula’s Progenitor] and the more recent [Reappearance of the Comet’s Mage]. Reports indicate that the leadership across all major Hero Academies have been pushing for a centralized forum to thoroughly deliberate on these emerging threats.”

Toren slid the official documents across the table to Leo.

Leo focused his gaze on the text, his eyes narrowing slightly as he read the title. “A World Summit?”

“Precisely,” Toren confirmed with a firm nod. “It is scheduled to coincide directly with our upcoming final examinations. The [World Summit] will officially be convened right here at Lumen.”