Chapter 633

As the frosty winter faded, a welcoming spring breeze blew through the avenues. The atmosphere on Kuraju Street was brimming with energy ahead of Lumern’s upcoming opening ceremony.

“Take a look at this! Is that a uniform made at Blessriger?”

“Wow, is it really?”

Two young women, who appeared to hail from the West, were talking animatedly outside the doors of . This particular establishment was renowned for crafting Lumern school uniforms and was regarded as the ultimate luxury option among the student body.

“Oh, that’s incredible!”

“My father gave it to me to celebrate my admission, he really spared no expense!”

“Wow, I’m incredibly envious! My parents promised they would get me one once the second semester begins.”

“Oh, really? But yours looks perfectly fine as it is, doesn’t it?”

“It’s nice, but it doesn’t compare to Blessriger.”

As the two girls continued their excited chatter, another conversation drifted over from across the street.

“Are you serious? You’re passing your uniform down to me?”

“Of course. As you know, Lumern uniforms are absurdly overpriced for no real reason. For everyday commoners like us, buying one is a massive financial burden. Since I need a replacement anyway, I might as well give this to you. Though it’s not from a fancy brand.”

“No way, this is more than perfect! Thank you so much, senior! Please guide me well this year as well!”

Possessing the keen senses expected of Lumern newcomers, the two girls caught every word of the exchange. A judgmental smirk flickered on their faces as they listened.

“I’m not sure who they are, but those two must be upperclassmen, right?”

“Yeah, but clearly commoner seniors. Handing down an old uniform and accepting it like that. They aren’t even embarrassed, talking about it so openly. Honestly, seniors like that are just disgracing our academy.”

Right as the two girls were whispering and snickering to themselves, a cold voice spoke up from behind them.

“It seems you two have grown rather bold.”

The icy tone caused the newcomers to freeze instantly. Turning around in a panic, they beheld a young woman with long, cascading silver curls. The color completely drained from their faces.

‘Eliza Hergin!’

‘A third-year!’

In the hierarchy of Lumern, third-years were far above freshmen, representing a level these two wouldn’t dare look in the eye. To make matters worse, they had run into Eliza Hergin of all people—a legendary hero prospect from the celebrated Golden Generation, famous across the globe. Just crossing paths with her on the avenue was enough to make anyone cower, yet they had been caught red-handed mocking an upperclassman.

“A common newcomer dares to mock a senior?”

“Ah?!”

“And to mock the acting student council president and the second-year representative at that?”

Hearing Eliza’s freezing tone, the girls’ faces turned a deep shade of ash-blue. They knew precisely who held those positions: Carl Thomas and Luke Elda.

Carl Thomas had already attained the status of a hero, making him an esteemed figure a freshman could scarcely dream of approaching. Worse yet, Carl was famously close with Leo, Chelsea, Abbad, and Celia. Luke was no different, possessing a profound bond with Shasha, the Crown Princess destined to rule the Rodren Empire on the western continent. A single misstep here could ruin not just their academy experience, but ruin their families’ prospects entirely.

“P-please forgive us!”

“Why are you pleading with me?”

“What’s going on here? Why are you terrorizing the newcomers right at the start of the term?”

Carl suddenly popped his head up right beside Eliza.

“Move away!”

Eliza growled, shoving his face out of her space. Carl grinned, stepping backward with a curious tilt of his head.

“Well? Why are you frightening the underclassmen who just arrived?”

“Hmph, who said I was scaring them? I was merely teaching a lesson to juniors who think they can insult their upperclassmen.”

“What?”

Carl’s demeanor grew serious.

“Are you two out of your minds? Determined to ruin your academic life on day one?”

“W-we are deeply sorry…”

“No matter how terrible Eliza’s reputation is, how could you dare speak ill of her…”

“It was you! They were badmouthing you! And Luke Elda! You idiot! And what do you mean by my terrible reputation?!”

“Ack! Cough, cough!”

Eliza snapped, wrapping her whip tightly around Carl’s neck. Managing to pull away from her grasp, Carl let out a wry laugh.

“Ah, so that’s what happened.”

“W-we have committed an unpardonable offense!”

“Please have mercy on us!”

Carl observed the two trembling young women bowing low. After a brief pause, he spoke up.

“Fine. I will let this go. On one condition.”

“A condition?”

“Precisely.”

Carl withdrew a pair of documents from his coat pocket.

“For this upcoming semester, you will act as my agents and sell the stamina restoration potions I brewed to your fellow classmates.”

“Excuse me?”

“To begin, you will purchase a set quantity using your own funds. Then, as you distribute them, I will collect a percentage of the gains. If your sales figures are impressive, you’ll earn merit points, but…”

Listening to Carl, the two first-years looked completely baffled.

“If you agree to be my sales force, I’ll act as though your insults never happened. I won’t utter a word to a soul. What do you say?”

“R-really?”

“Naturally. I am a man of my word. Just sign right here.”

Carl indicated the bottom of the agreement, his voice turning remarkably gentle. Without a second thought, the two girls signed their names.

“Mind your manners going forward. Lumern is a place where reckless talk can bring immense ruin. I trust you’ve learned a valuable lesson from this.”

“Yes! We will never do it again!”

“Thank you so much, Senior Carl Thomas!”

Bowing frantically, the two freshmen hurried away. Watching them sprint off, Eliza frowned.

“Hmph. Trying to play the benevolent upperclassman?”

“What? What are you talking about? Their time at this academy is about to become a living nightmare.”

“What?”

“What sort of agreement was that anyway?”

Luke inquired, his face filled with curiosity, prompting a wicked grin from Carl.

“A multi-level marketing scheme.”

Eliza’s brow furrowed deeper.

“And that makes it a nightmare?”

“Of course it does. Attending Lumern demands an exorbitant amount of money unless you hold a top academic scholarship.”

Carl snickered.

“They are going to have a miserable time trying to move the inventory I assign them. This will teach them two vital rules of reality: never speak ill of your seniors, and never sign a contract blindly. Most importantly…” He shrugged, sliding the documents back into his coat. “I only promised that my grievance was settled. I said absolutely nothing about letting Luke’s issue slide.”

“Oh, I don’t really mind…”

“Wait, absolutely not! Luke, being kind-hearted is a virtue, but in situations like this, you must exact a proper penalty. It’s only a crime if you get caught, and since they were, they must pay. Start brainstorming what kind of retribution you want.”

“Understood.”

Luke rubbed his cheek, nodding in agreement.

“Setting that aside, Eliza, how was your break?”

“Hmph. You took your time asking.”

Eliza adopted an indifferent expression, focusing on filing her fingernails.

“It was entirely dull.”

“So you had a tranquil vacation. Meanwhile, I was pushed to my absolute limits by Duran without any rest.”

Carl complained, before pausing as a thought struck him.

“Come to think of it, didn’t you promise earlier that you would grant me any request I made?”

“I did.”

“Because of that, there’s something I need to discuss with you briefly. Do you have a moment to spare?”

“Hmph, I am occupied at the moment. I need to go shopping. I will listen to your request when I find some free time later.”

“Come on, don’t be unreasonable, just give me a few minutes. I won’t ask for anything bizarre.”

“For someone requesting the time of the sole successor to the Hergin family, you lack proper etiquette, don’t you?”

Hearing this, Carl smirked mischievously, giving a theatrical bow as he formally offered his hand.

“My lady, would you graciously bestow upon me a moment of your invaluable time?”

“Hmph. Ten points.”

“Out of ten?”

“No. Out of a hundred.”

Eliza scoffed but placed her hand in his regardless.

“Fine. Let’s hear what sort of favor you require.”

Carl escorted Eliza down Kuraju Street.

“Luke. We’ll catch up later at the academy.”

“Senior Carl, I’ll make excellent use of this uniform! Have a safe trip, seniors!”

Holding the uniform protectively against his chest with both arms, Luke lowered his head in respect.

“Something is amiss,” Celia remarked, her eyes narrowing as she looked out over the Lumeria Lake pier.

Seated on a bench along the dock, Leo responded, “What do you mean?”

“Anyone can see this is bizarre. Why is every single class assembled at the pier?”

Celia’s observation was entirely accurate. At that moment, the entire student body of Lumern had gathered at the Lumeria dock, ranging from the fifth-years at the top down to the newly entering freshmen. Ordinarily, the returning second, third, fourth, and fifth-year students would have already made their way into Lumern to prepare for the term’s opening. This time, however, an official directive had mandated that everyone journey to Lumern together from the Lumeria dock.

Because of this, an incredible gathering materialized at the Lumeria City pier, packed with students. The incoming freshmen, visibly daunted by the presence of so many legendary upperclassmen, stood in organized rows in a corner. They cast covert glances at Leo, their eyes shining with reverence, but whenever their gaze met Celia’s beside him, they quickly looked away in alarm. Naturally, Leo wasn’t the only center of attention; many onlookers cast admiring glances toward Celia as well.

The second-year class had also congregated in their designated area on the dock. They conversed casually with an air of ease, yet whenever their eyes crossed paths with an older student, they stiffened up instinctively. Meanwhile, the third-year students mingled effortlessly, conversing freely with the seniors they knew well.

“Do you truly know nothing about this?”

As Celia eyed him suspiciously, Leo shrugged.

“Just because I hold the title of student council president doesn’t mean I am privy to every scheme the faculty cooks up.”

“Fair point.”

Celia nodded, accepting his reasoning.

“Hey there! Leo! Celia! I heard your exploits over the break were incredible! I notice Chelsea and Abbad aren’t around?”

A lively voice rang out. Leo and Celia looked over to see Carl walking toward them, wearing his typical amiable grin.

“Chelsea and Abbad haven’t made it to the pier yet. More importantly, what happened to your eye? Did you get into a fight?”

Leo inquired curiously, noting the dark blue bruise marking one of Carl’s eyes.

“A minor incident occurred,” Carl replied carelessly.

“You undoubtedly got struck for acting foolishly again,” Celia interjected dryly.

Carl merely offered a sly chuckle.

“Presideeeent!”

At that moment, Illiana caught sight of Leo, sprinting over to leap onto the bench beside him.

“President! Why are all the classes gathered at the pier? Is there another event happening? Huh? Tell me! What are the professors plotting this time?”

Seeing Illiana bursting with questions, Leo simply offered a calm smile.

“It appears even the president is in the dark.”

Illiana crossed her arms, tilting her head in thought before waving to Celia and Carl.

“Hello! Did you two enjoy your vacation? Oh, and president! Word is you’re going to take the throne of Tungkun soon, right? Wow! That really is an unprecedentedly swift ascent! Make sure you don’t ignore me once you become a king, alright?”

Flash!

Suddenly, an immense rectangular magical display manifested in the sky above the water.

[Greetings, my dear companions! It is I, your sophisticated instructor, Sedgen!]

Sedgen, one of the most prominent professors at Lumern, offered a boisterous greeting.

[I trust our returning students had a wonderful break! To our newcomers, I offer a heartfelt welcome! Enrolled students, you must surely find our current arrangement peculiar! And your intuition is entirely correct! Unexpected trials are a proud tradition here at Lumern!]

Hearing Sedgen’s words, the second through fifth-year students wore expressions that said ‘here we go again.’ The freshmen, conversely, looked utterly lost and apprehensive.

[From this moment on, we will execute a practical combat assessment categorized by grade level! The guidelines are straightforward! Every class must retrieve the school gate key from a designated target! Through this exercise, the faculty will evaluate your current weaknesses to tailor the upcoming year’s syllabus!]

At that point, Chloe raised her hand.

[What is your query, student Chloe?]

“What occurs if we fail to secure the key?”

[You will be barred from entering the school grounds until you do.]

The students’ eyes widened at the revelation.

[Excellent! Now, I shall reveal the targets for the fourth and fifth-year classes!]

As Sedgen spoke, the fourth and fifth-years grew visibly tense. Upon seeing the image revealed on the display, collective gasps echoed through the crowd.

[The adversary whom the fourth and fifth-years must overcome is none other than Leo Plob! Taking down the pride of this utterly insufferable Leo Plob—that is your assignment! Give it everything you’ve got, my companions! How much longer will you allow yourselves to be intimidated by underclassmen…]

[Remove him.]

Sedgen, swept up in his own excitement, was abruptly seized by Ain and Ren and hauled away, accompanied by a freezing remark from Hallinde.

[I shall proceed.]

Hallinde maintained the announcement in a detached tone.

[The individuals possessing the keys for the third-year class are these two.]

The portraits that flickered onto the screen belonged to Lil and Elena, the top representatives of the fourth and fifth years.

[This is the student tasked with holding the keys for the second-year class.]

The target for the second-years was revealed to be none other than—

“Oh, my.”

Chen Xia, realizing she was the target, offered a gentle smile.

The second-year students let out collective sighs of relief. They reasoned that regardless of how formidable Chen Xia might be, an organized assault by their entire class would guarantee an easy victory. However, a few faces grew incredibly tense among them. These were the second-years who had previously been Shadow Candidates, such as El Jane and Fritz.

[Lastly.]

Carl’s jaw dropped as he stared at the image on the screen. The entire freshman class immediately shifted their focus toward Carl.

“Why am I the target?! Has Lumern completely lost its mind?”

Carl clutched his head, crying out in dismay.

[Oh? Do you take issue with my arrangement, Carl Thomas?]

“No, absolutely not.”

Hearing Hallinde’s icy inquiry, Carl instantly lowered his head.

Whirr!

An enormous teleportation magic circle formed across the entirety of the pier.

[In that case, show me your best efforts.]

Alongside Hallinde’s concise parting words, a brilliant flash of light erupted.

When Leo blinked his eyes open, he found himself standing on one of the myriad deserted islands dotting Lumeria Lake.

“Hmm.”

Leo ran a hand along his chin, letting out a soft chuckle.

“Are they trying to thoroughly evaluate what areas the students need to develop before we begin our studies on the world of legions?”

Leo nodded to himself, reviewing the list of keyholders assigned to each grade. Walking over to a boulder situated in the center of the woodland, Leo took a seat.

“I suppose I’ll just wait for the seniors to arrive.”