Chapter 700

Chapter 700

“Listen up, everyone.”

Chloe effortlessly commanded the attention of the assembled pupils.

“Allow me to introduce someone. As most of you are aware, this is Leo Flobe. He serves as our academy’s student council president and acts as the commander of our squad.”

Following Chloe’s introduction, the second-year pupils bowed their heads simultaneously and called out.

“We look forward to working with you, Senior Leo!”

“We look forward to working with you!”

Emulating the second-years, the first-year pupils lowered their heads as well.

In that instant, Leo found himself bathed in the admiring and reverent expressions of his underclassmen.

“Chloe?”

“Yes?”

“Can we speak privately for a second?”

Illiana requested, flashing a grin.

Hearing her request, Chloe followed behind Illiana with a bewildered look on her face.

Once they arrived behind the storage shed at the training grounds where Combat Studies was conducted, Illiana spoke up anxiously.

“Why on earth did you assign me to this squad?!”

“Why? Quite simply, because we require greater strength.”

The newly instituted Joint Combat Studies course this term was a mandatory class for every pupil from the first through the third forms.

In order to adapt to the swiftly shifting global landscape and accelerate the advancement of the younger pupils, first and second-years were organized into squads directed by third-year mentors.

The third-year pupils selected to lead these squads were Leo, alongside Chelsea, Chen Xia, Warredon, Abard, and Jureden.

There were six commanders in total.

Because Leo and Chelsea were required to depart the academy for an extended assignment, Chloe and Celia—who held the second-highest standing and capability in each respective squad—were tasked with choosing the squad members in their place.

Taking charge of the squad on Leo’s behalf, Chloe had made recruiting Illiana her primary objective, viewing her as an indispensable asset to the group.

“But why?!”

“Because you persistently begged me to place you in this squad right up until we left for our assignment.”

“Aaaargh!”

Illiana clutched her head, cursing her past choices.

“You turned out to be far more sought after than I anticipated, so securing you took some effort.”

“What do you mean ‘than you anticipated’? ‘Than you anticipated’! I am highly sought after! I possess great talent!”

“Setting that aside, why are you so upset about it? Didn’t you claim it would be incredibly convenient to be in the same group as Leo, and that you desperately desired to get in?”

From the very beginning, Illiana had harbored a pathetic yet ambitious scheme to win over Leo and secure an abundance of extra marks.

As a matter of fact, the innocent facade Illiana had put on for the underclassmen on opening day was still being maintained.

‘I assumed she would be thrilled to discover she was with us.’

Faced with such an unexpected turn of events, Chloe looked thoroughly perplexed, while Illiana stomped her feet in frustration and countered.

“Well! It is because of the Demon King! The Demon King!”

“The Demon King?”

“I am talking about the monitor! The monitor!”

“Leo. Illiana is calling you the Demon King, shouldn’t you discipline her?”

“Eeek?!”

Startled by the voice appearing behind her, Illiana gasped with fright and scrambled behind Chloe’s back.

From her hiding spot, she poked her head out to glare at Karl, who was wearing a broad smirk.

“I simply wandered over to see what you two were whispering about.”

Karl shrugged his shoulders, watching Leo let out a quiet chuckle.

“You have been fully aware that Illiana’s mental state has been unstable since our first year, haven’t you?”

“Karl! You jerk!”

An enraged Illiana charged toward Karl.

Karl swiftly ducked behind Leo to shield himself.

Illiana managed to halt just in front of Leo before hurriedly backing away to put some distance between them.

“How did things go during the assignment?”

In response to Chloe’s inquiry, Leo replied evenly, treating it as a trivial matter.

“I have resolved to coddle her far less from now on.”

“Ah.”

Chloe nodded in understanding, while Illiana’s expression crumbled into tears.

“That is cruel! The monitor used to be so gentle! What made you turn so cold all of a sudden?”

“Because it appeared as though she desired to be regarded as a mature adult.”

Leo offered a subtle grin.

Staring at Leo, Illiana inquired.

“Is there any way I can transfer to a different squad?”

“Certainly. Though the instructors mentioned you must obtain the squad leader’s authorization beforehand?”

Illiana’s shoulders slumped in defeat.

Karl, shaking his head at Illiana’s antics, stepped forward to offer her some comfort.

Swish—

“……?”

Karl stared at Chloe, who had extended her hand to bar his path, with a confused expression.

Chloe gave a subtle shake of her head.

A moment passed.

Illiana lifted her gaze and slapped both of her cheeks firmly.

“Fine! Seeing that things have turned out this way, I might as well embrace it!”

Steeling her resolve, Illiana thrust her finger squarely at Leo.

“Monitor! Give me the harshest training you want! I shall fulfill every single task!”

“Oh, really?”

“Wait, I take back the ‘harhest training’ part.”

Observing Leo let out an intrigued sound, Illiana rapidly shook her head in retreat.

Amused by the sight, Chloe smiled softly.

“Regardless of her laziness, Illiana delivers results when the situation demands it.”

“That is true.”

Karl agreed with a nod.

“The underclassmen are waiting for us. We should head back immediately.”

Prompted by Karl, the group of four returned to stand before their squad members.

“Leo.”

At Chloe’s cue, Leo stepped to the forefront.

‘Goodness. That is actually Leo Flobe.’

‘The youngest student council president in history!’

‘The heir to Kyle, the Hero of Beginnings!’

The moment Leo took the lead, the first-year pupils’ eyes gleamed with even greater intensity.

Their countenances beamed with immense pride over the fact that they had been placed under Leo’s command.

When Chloe had initially posted the recruitment criteria for the squad.

Quite literally, the entire first-year population had forwarded their requests to join.

From that pool, the third-year leadership had hand-selected the final members.

Consequently, 100 out of the 500 total first-years managed to secure a spot in Leo’s group.

Because of this large number, the proportion of second and third-year pupils was lower.

Naturally, the individuals picked for Leo’s squad were heavily envied by the rest of the first-year class.

Even at this very moment, first-year pupils from rival squads were casting resentful looks in their direction.

This attention only served to make the first-years in Leo’s squad appear even more conceited.

“They are celebrating, completely oblivious to the fact that they are stepping into purgatory.”

“Juen. Quiet.”

“What? It is the absolute truth, isn’t it? Am I right, Luke?”

“Hahahaha.”

When Juen muttered his complaint, Betty quickly shushed him, leaving Luke to offer nothing but a strained laugh.

Amidst the chatter, Leo began to speak.

“Greetings. I am Leo Flobe.”

“Greetings, senior!”

“President! You are incredible!”

“Wow~”

Following the formal and rigid acknowledgments from the male pupils, the excited cheers of the first-year female pupils filled the air.

Observing this display, Karl and Illiana wore highly disgruntled expressions.

“They are absolutely thrilled, aren’t they?”

“Tell me about it.”

Thud—!

“Oof!”

“Ack!”

Chloe delivered a sharp elbow to the ribs of both Karl and Illiana on either side of her.

While the pair doubled over in pain.

Leo continued,

“As you are well aware, today marks the official formation of our squad and our inaugural gathering. It is intended to be an occasion for us to familiarize ourselves with one another. You are free to utilize this period as leisure time, provided it meets the squad leader’s approval.”

Hearing his explanation, the first-year pupils nodded along.

The details had already been made public, so everyone was well-informed.

Furthermore, this represented the final period of the day, and the weekend commenced tomorrow.

Because of that timing, a significant portion of the first-years had harbored hopes that the class might dismiss ahead of schedule.

“With that in mind, our squad will be departing the academy grounds today.”

“Pardon?”

“Incredible! I was already planning a trip to Rumeria City for tomorrow anyway!”

“The president is amazing!”

Shouts of joy rippled through the ranks of the first-year pupils.

“We shall proceed to the harbor immediately, so form up into lines and move out.”

Chloe began organizing the first-year pupils into formation.

As they moved, bitter glares rained down upon them from the first-years of the alternative squads.

“Is this privilege because Senior Leo holds the position of student council president?”

“Incredible, getting let out early solely on the authority of the student council leader.”

“I am so jealous.”

“You lot. Are you truly envious of that?”

The first-years winced when Chelsea materialized abruptly behind them to question their words.

“Th-that is not what we meant at all.”

“Oh? You plainly stated you were envious, did you not?”

Confronted by Chelsea’s interrogation, the first-year pupils lowered their heads defensively.

“You are terrorizing the children.”

Celia, arriving right behind Chelsea, placed a heavy hand down upon Chelsea’s head.

“Hey, this constitutes blatant mutiny against your superior officer. Are you conscious of that?”

“How much longer do you intend to keep whining about being the officer?”

Celia clicked her tongue at Chelsea’s response and remarked.

“There is absolutely nothing to be jealous of here.”

“Huh?”

Hearing Celia’s statement, Chelsea scoffed while peering over at the first-year pupils.

“Do the second and third-year pupils within Leo Oppa’s squad appear to be enjoying themselves?”

At those words, the first-years turned their attention toward the older pupils belonging to Leo’s group.

In stark contrast to the cheerful disposition of the first-years, the second and third-year members carried an expression of total grimness.

Noticing the bewildered looks on the newcomers’ faces, Chelsea let out a subtle laugh.

“It is not his role as student council president that allows him to dismiss class ahead of schedule and leave the campus. I possess the exact same level of authority. Yet, I choose to be merciful, don’t I?”

“Merciful, my foot.”

“Be silent, subordinate.”

“Why, you…!”

An irritated Celia reached out and yanked on Chelsea’s cheek.

Rather than focusing on the two bickering and tussling, the explanation came from Martina, a second-year student from the Knight Academy who served as one of Leo’s personal knights.

“They are not departing for a leisurely stroll.”

“Then where?”

“They are being marched straight to the execution block.”

Upon hearing those words, a cold shiver ran down the spines of the first-year pupils.

‘What exactly are they going to make us do?!’

The first-year pupils who boarded the vessel from the harbor bound for Rumeria City passed the time merrily, acting as though they were embarking on a holiday excursion.

Luke considered offering a word of warning to the underclassmen, but Juen intervened to stop him.

“Let them savor the moment while they can.”

It seemed the remaining second and third-year pupils shared that sentiment, allowing the first-year pupils to disembark at Rumeria City in high spirits.

However, the first-years quickly realized something was amiss once they left the boundaries of Rumeria City behind.

Having departed the city gates, Leo’s squad began traveling at an astonishing pace.

The first-year pupils exerted their individual talents to keep up, but the velocity showed no indication of slowing down.

It was at that moment they realized things were taking a deeply problematic turn.

“Senior Leo will completely abandon you if you cannot keep pace, so you had best strain every nerve to stay with the group.”

Heeding Luke’s cautionary advice during the trek, the first-years pushed themselves to their absolute limits to avoid falling behind.

By the time Leo finally came to a halt, the sun was dipping below the horizon.

They stood at the base of a remarkably imposing peak.

“Mount Luderea?”

Karl nodded, signaling his understanding of their location.

“Are you familiar with this place, Senior Karl?”

In response to Juen’s question, Karl answered casually.

“It is a peak that has recently seen a massive influx of orc inhabitants.”

“Ah.”

Juen nodded in agreement.

He comprehended Leo’s objective perfectly.

Leo stood before the gathering of first-year pupils, the vast majority of whom were now collapsed exhaustion upon the earth.

“The Joint Combat Studies course is centered entirely around real-world application. There is a designated quota of combat assignments to fulfill. The greater the peril of the objective you achieve, the higher your marks will be. Furthermore, during these operations, individual performance marks are distributed based upon how effectively each student comports themselves.”

Hearing Leo’s explanation, the first-year pupils nodded.

This was information that the faculty had already detailed to them previously.

“Intelligence indicates that a massive orc settlement has established itself upon Mount Luderea. Our squad’s inaugural objective is to eliminate this orc settlement.”

Faced with an actual combat assignment on their very first day, the first-year pupils swallowed hard.

“Be that as it may, the roster size specified in the mission directives is strictly limited to 50 individuals. Consequently, the operating force will number exactly 50.”

Leo stated, taking the official assignment documents from Chloe’s hands.

“The total number of second and third-year pupils amounts to 42. And every single one of your upperclassmen will be participating without exception.”

Upon hearing Leo’s declaration, the expressions of the first-year pupils turned pale.

That meant there were a mere eight vacancies remaining for the entire first-year contingent.

“From this moment forward, the roster for real-world operations will be determined solely by individual capability.”

A student had to take part in these practical assignments to earn substantial marks.

Even if one managed to avoid getting kicked out during their initial year, advancement to the second year was never assured for everyone.

The specific departments that triumphed in the inter-departmental tournaments could advance their entire roster, but there was no certainty that one’s own department would emerge victorious.

Because of this, one had to secure exceptional marks within the standard coursework.

And the Joint Combat Studies course constituted a full half of the entire Combat Studies evaluation.

If a student was left out of the operations, they would naturally receive no marks.

Leo spoke up, addressing the wide-eyed, terrified first-year pupils.

“I assume you all grasp the parameters now?”

Leo remarked, offering a warm, pleasant smile.

“From this point on, battle amongst yourselves to claim the spots.”