Chapter 552

“Pardon? A romantic outing?”

Later that same day.

Celia, receiving the update in the middle of her Combat Studies period, wore a look of pure disbelief.

“Are you saying he actually ditched our lectures to go on a date?”

“Precisely. Word is quite a few people spotted them.”

“That is simply absurd.”

Celia crossed her arms, letting out a sharp breath of derision.

Leo stood undisputed as the most powerful figure among the second-years.

Honestly, at this point, it was more accurate to call him the most formidable combatant in all of Lumerne.

Yet, if one were to ask if he maintained the flawless academic record of a model pupil across every discipline the way Celia did, the answer would be negative.

When it came to applied areas like warcraft-centered training, conquering Hero Dungeons, or executing tactical assignments, his superiority was unquestionable.

The story shifted entirely, however, regarding the remaining coursework.

Even with its status as a prestigious Hero Academy, Lumerne functioned fundamentally as an institution of learning for adolescent boys and girls.

Chronicles of history, societal structures, mathematics, linguistics, musical theory, fine arts, decorum, and similar fields.

They were required to study general liberal arts as well.

While his performance in those classrooms could not be labeled disastrous, it certainly fell short of the highest tier.

This set him apart from the elite scholars of the department, who consistently competed for the top single-digit ranks across the board.

Even so, Leo had maintained a perfect record of attendance since the day he first arrived at the academy.

‘And especially not to sneak off with a girl? That completely contradicts his nature.’

Celia knit her brows in confusion.

Elena Zereon.

Objectively speaking, even from Celia’s perspective as a fellow woman, her striking appearance was undeniable.

Furthermore, she stood as one of the three most exceptionally gifted individuals currently residing within Lumerne.

To top it all off, her lineage and family status were utterly beyond reproach.

Celia was well aware that Leo enjoyed immense popularity among the female student body.

Yet, there had never been a single whisper connecting him romantically to anyone.

‘Leo is a young man after all, so if it involves someone like Elena Zereon…’

Just as Celia was growing increasingly anxious over her relative’s sudden lapse in discipline.

“What is everyone fussing about? Leo has normal urges like any guy. It makes sense he’d want to spend time with a striking woman.”

“Hold your tongue, Avard. Do you truly imagine Leo behaves the way you do?”

Celia’s expression darkened with intense irritation as she cast a piercing glare toward Avard.

Avard, universally recognized as the most attractive male student in the second-year class, was equally notorious for showering every girl with charm and attention.

As a consequence of that behavior, he was responsible for the vast majority of romantic gossip circulating through the grade.

Observing Celia standing there with narrowed eyes, defensively folded arms, and audibly grinding teeth, Avard quickly threw up his palms in retreat.

“Easy now, easy, lower the tension, Celia. Aren’t you letting this get under your skin a bit too much?”

“I occupy a position where I must carefully weigh the political dynamic between the Zerdinger and Zereon houses!”

“Granted you are a stickler for order, but isn’t that taking things a step too far?”

“Hmph.”

Snorting in dismissal, Celia ran a hand back through her hair.

Aside from their exchange, the entire second-year cohort was completely consumed by the revelation that Leo had played hooky to spend a romantic afternoon alongside Elena.

“Come to think of it, some of the freshmen mentioned spotting Leo and Senior Elena making their way down toward the waterfront earlier.”

“Really? They actually left for Lumeria City?”

“It’s hardly breaking news for Senior Elena to cut class; she’s done that plenty of times before.”

“Do you think they are officially a couple?”

“They’re basically locked in to be the student body president and vice president next term, aren’t they?”

“Looking at their sheer status, they look incredibly well-matched.”

No matter the location, listening to tales of other people’s romantic lives is always entertaining.

This was doubly true when the individuals in question were the prospective student body president and vice president of Lumerne, the most celebrated institution on the planet.

“Shia, did some sort of development occur?”

Carl wasted no time interrogating Chen Shia, who shared duties with Leo within the student council, aiming to verify the validity of the rumors.

“Young Master Leo approached Senior Elena regarding the vice presidency. In response, Senior Elena requested that Young Master Leo accompany her on a date as her condition for accepting the vice president title.”

“Is that so?”

Carl’s gaze shone with sudden interest.

That piece of information traveled like wildfire through the rest of the second-year class, passed along by the council members of their tier.

Right around that time, the hour for instruction arrived, and the faculty member supervising Combat Studies made his entrance.

As the instructor conducted the roll call, a look of bewilderment crossed his features.

“Leo is missing from the roster, quite a rare occurrence.”

“Word is he shirked his duties to go out on a date.”

“A classic justification, though highly atypical for someone of his character.”

The Combat Studies instructor cast a fascinated glance toward Eliza, who offered the explanation with total composure while meticulously shaping her fingernails.

Nonetheless, he chose not to press the matter any further.

Whether a pupil elected to attend a lecture remained an exercise of personal autonomy.

Furthermore, a significant portion of the faculty took a hands-off approach to attendance, viewing the task of maintaining hours, tracking lessons, or falling behind as the sole accountability of the student.

“With that settled, let us commence our session. Today’s drill involves Bastela, played in squads of 8, designed to foster tactical synchronization.”

“Understood!”

The class chorused their assent with vigor.

Yet even as the exercise began, conversations regarding Leo and Elena refused to die down.

“It truly is quite shocking, though. For Senior Elena to be the one initiating a date. I never would have anticipated that from someone possessing such an icy demeanor.”

Durand, assigned to the exact same squad, offered a quiet laugh at Illiana’s quiet reflection.

“It is simply the fundamental law of nature that the powerful secure greater rewards. Human beings are instinctively pulled toward strength.”

Howl, sharing the team placement, muttered his agreement while observing Durand tightly clench and release his fists.

“Setting that aside, we’ve drawn an incredibly formidable set of rivals right out of the gate, haven’t we?”

“Let’s see! Chelsea, Chloe, Carl, Chen Shia, Eiran, Tayde, Nella, Eliza.”

Illiana raised a flattened palm against her forehead like a visor, rising up on her toes to scan the opposite side of the field as if peering into the distance.

“And our lineup consists of… Celia, Durand, Avard, Woredun, Juredun, Howl, Turka, and myself.”

Omitting Carl from the equation, this roster effectively assembled the absolute peak of direct martial capability among the second-years.

“The ultimate offensive powerhouses clashing right at the start? Suits me just fine.”

Turka let out a series of pops from his knuckles, a fiercely competitive grin spreading across his face, while Avard offered a wry smirk.

“There is more to it than just that.”

“Like what?”

“Our core strategic styles are diametrically opposed.”

The moment Avard trailed off, Celia picked up the thread, leaving Juredun, Turka, and Howl looking thoroughly perplexed.

“Hmph, you failed to register an attribute so incredibly basic? Truly pitiful.”

“What did you say?”

Turka’s temper flared instantly at Durand’s mocking tone.

In that exact instant, Howl and Juredun let out synchronized sighs, clearly accustomed to such friction.

“Our group is configured entirely around aggressive force, whereas their lineup is geared exclusively toward defensive containment.”

Illiana explained with complete nonchalance, prompting everyone around her to turn and stare in absolute astonishment.

Even Woredun, who typically remained entirely detached from the business of his peers, shifted his gaze to her.

“What is with the sudden staring?”

Celia looked upon Illiana—who was asking the question with an utterly baffled expression—with eyes full of profound sentiment.

“The reckless hothead who only understood sprinting forward is actually analyzing the tactical composition of allied and opposing formations! Illiana! I am incredibly moved!”

As an exemplary scholar, Celia took the development and well-being of her peers very seriously.

Her methodology differed slightly from Chen Shia’s approach; where Chen Shia offered gentle accommodation to those around her, Celia operated by identifying flaws, calling them out, and pushing for collective improvement.

Despite the complexities of the dual-track curriculum, Illiana was affiliated with the Knight Department and thus shared these specific lectures with Celia.

Consequently, Celia had invested an immense amount of energy trying to curb Illiana’s compulsive urge to blindly rush into conflict.

Up until very recently, those attempts had yielded zero results.

Therefore, seeing Illiana—a girl who traditionally abandoned all thought the moment a clash began—actually evaluating the layout of the field caused Celia to swell with genuine emotion.

“It appears Celia’s painstaking instruction has finally borne fruit.”

Howl expressed his genuine awe.

“You people! What kind of simpleton do you take me for!”

Illiana scowled, letting out an indignant cry, to which Turka provided a blunt, deadpan response.

“An idiot.”

“Shia! Chloe! Look at how these guys are insulting my intelligence!”

While she voiced her grievances with a comically tearful expression, Carl’s voice carried over across the divide from the rival squad.

“They say the grandest form of turning the tables is an act of unexpected betrayal.”

“Oh?”

“Do not let him manipulate you! You simpleton!”

“Who on earth executes a betrayal during an academic drill!”

Howl and Juredun barked simultaneously at Illiana, who was currently rubbing her chin as if deeply considering the suggestion.

“Just as Illiana pointed out, the core distinction separating our squads is that they possess an extreme specialization in containment while we are geared entirely toward breakthrough force. They wouldn’t have structured the rosters this way without a specific purpose.”

“A classic confrontation between the unstoppable force and the immovable object.”

Howl crossed his arms, his expression turning distinctly analytical.

“To begin with, if we hope to pierce that level of containment, we must disrupt their coordinated alignment. Furthermore, the opposition features Carl Thomas, an individual highly proficient in tactical maneuvers. If we attempt to overwhelm them by blindly relying on our offensive output, we run a massive risk of walking directly into one of his traps.”

As Durand delivered his cold assessment, Illiana adopted a highly inquisitive look.

“You hold Carl’s abilities in remarkably high regard?”

“Simply because it matches reality.”

Durand cast a brief look toward Carl, who was actively conferring with the rest of his group.

“Despite his specific level of sorcery capability, he has maintained his place within Lumerne all this time, now hovering on the cusp of his third year. Even granting him a measure of good fortune, a person cannot endure on luck alone. The reality that he stands on equal footing with us in this space confirms he possesses genuine capability.”

“I find myself aligned with Durand’s assessment.”

Avard flashed a subtle, knowing smile.

“I also view Carl as the most problematic element present on their side of the field.”

When it came to coordinated squad engagements, Carl represented a uniquely dangerous factor.

“There are few things more perilous than an analytical mind operating with elite assets.”

Carl had consistently served as the definitive wild card capable of altering the trajectory of critical encounters.

Though he might lack the raw destructive output of a top-tier warrior, when it came to reading the momentum of an engagement and issuing directives, or delivering the unexpected, Carl was unmatched within Lumerne as far as Avard was concerned.

‘Though he personally doesn’t seem to estimate his own utility very highly.’

“For that reason, my preference would be to coax the rival squad into launching an aggressive push against us. That way, they won’t be able to capitalize on their defensive positioning.”

“If our goal is to prompt a direct advance from them, we would have to intentionally leave our zone vulnerable. The potential consequences of that are far too steep.”

“Mm. Is there no ingenious tactic we can deploy?”

Right as the entire squad fell into deep thought over the points raised by Avard and Celia.

Woredun, who had remained silent while evaluating the entire board, finally spoke up.

“Illiana Raden.”

“Eh? What is it?”

“There is a particular role you must fulfill, operating at the absolute vanguard.”

“Huh?”

“You represent the defining element for this entire Bastela match.”

“Me?”

Illiana’s eyes went wide as saucers as she jabbed a finger toward her own chest, and Woredun gave a firm, decisive nod.

“Hmph, I maintained rather lofty expectations given your involvement, but this strikes me as an incredibly mundane approach.”

Eliza remarked, her tone thick with palpable boredom.

“I appreciate the generous flattery. However, I am hardly some legendary mastermind; how could I possibly invent a revolutionary gambit for every single exercise?”

Carl offered a casual shrug of his shoulders.

“When dealing with evenly matched capabilities, the optimal path is to play to our absolute strong suits. Under these parameters, defensive containment stands as the premier method.”

“Hmph.”

Despite Carl’s rationale, Eliza continued to view him with a distinctly critical glare.

‘Seriously, haven’t people been projecting way too much onto me lately? I am literally the lowest-ranked combatant in this institution; it would surprise absolutely no one if my dismissal papers arrived tomorrow.’

Carl let out a silent, self-deprecating chuckle.

“A prolonged deadlock is the most likely outcome, then.”

“Precisely. That is, unless a specific variable introduces itself…”

“An anomaly? Such as?”

“The presence of Illiana on the opposing side.”

“Illiana Raden? In what way does she constitute an anomaly?”

“Were I organizing their tactical approach, I would have designated Illiana to handle the task of psychological disruption.”

“I am well aware that Illiana Raden is generally scatterbrained, but I seriously doubt she possesses the nuance required for effective baiting.”

“That is true under normal circumstances. But our current environment presents a rather unique opportunity.”

“Oh?”

“Well, consider Celia, Avard, and Durand. All three possess sharp intellects, yet they aren’t particularly cunning in that specific way. Therefore, it’s highly unlikely they would think to utilize Illiana for a psychological ploy… Wait.”

Right at that moment, Illiana stepped forward out of her formation, advancing directly toward the front line.

Chelsea, positioned at the very vanguard of their defense, offered a subtle smile toward Illiana as she came to a halt across from her.

“Brace yourself.”

“Sure thing, but hey, Chelsea. You’re familiar with how the class representative operates, right?”

Chelsea’s eye gave a involuntary twitch.

The reaction wasn’t limited to Chelsea alone; Eiran’s ears, situated directly behind her, perked up instantly, while the warmth completely drained from Chen Shia’s face as she stood adjacent to them.

Chloe, holding down the absolute rear of the defensive matrix, maintained a perfectly serene, gentle smile.

Unfazed by the shifting atmosphere, Illiana carried on, cheerfully and loudly gossiping about the details surrounding Leo and Elena.

Illiana, who had effectively conducted a lengthy monologue right up until the official signal for the match to commence, suddenly adopted a completely earnest expression, crossed her arms, and spoke in a contemplative murmur.

“Hmm, but realistically speaking, class rep, there’s no way you’re staying out the entire night, right?”