CH 17

The students were split on either side, with Leo and Duran at the center. 

It was a lively atmosphere as everyone was excited for the match titled "freshman representative vs Top Ranker representative".

“Who do you think will win?”

"I'm rooting for Duran!"

"Me too, he was famous even before he entered the school."

“Still, the freshman representative should also possess a considerable amount of strength, right?”

"Yeah, but he's not the top ranker in the entrance exam. Besides, I heard he's not well-trained in combat oriented skills."

All the first-year students were betting on Duran's victory.

Amidst all this, Celia asked with a hint of concern.

"Are you going to be okay?"

“Don’t you trust me?”

"You've only learned about the theory of Aura-Steps a moment ago."

“Don’t worry, I will win.”

At that moment, Duran said, pointing to a large tree far away that was attached to the training field's wall.

"The matchup is simple. Whoever goes around that tree and returns to this point first wins."

"Okay."

The two warmed up before the start.

As Leo removed the bracelets and anklets from his wrists and ankles, he recalled the aura step theory Professor Ain had taught him.

The referee raised his hand as the two approached the starting line after their warm-up.

"Get Ready…… Set"

Leo tensed his muscles.

"GO!"

They both stomped on the ground and took off simultaneously.

At first, it was Leo who took the lead.

Looking at Leo's back, Duran frowned.

'He's running recklessly.'

"Alright! Go faster!"

“Brother Leo, Go go go go!”

Karl cheered with his fists clenched while Chelsi jumped up and down in ecstasy.

However, Celia's expression remained dark.

'Duran hasn't used Aura step yet.'

At present, both individuals are solely relying on their physical strength to run.

Leo's physical capabilities are extraordinary, surpassing even Celia's.

Therefore, it was expected that Leo would be faster without using the Aura Step.

However, this initial advantage was short-lived.

When Duran activated his Aura step, the distance between them quickly diminished.

A golden spark surrounded Duran's legs, indicating his use of the lightning Aura.

"I'll take the lead, slowpoke."

Duran sneered and ran forward.

Duran, who took the lead, ran much faster than Leo, separating them by a wide margin.

Anyone who witnessed it would believe Leo's defeat was predetermined.

But at the same time, Leo accelerated towards the wall of the parade ground with explosive force.

“Oh, Aura step? Didn't you say that the Freshmen representative is someone who couldn't use Aura step?"

“Was it a lie?”

While the students murmured, Celia's eyes widened.

'No, he is a monster that learns really fast!'

She screamed inwardly.

Even though the walls of the training ground were approaching, Leo did not think of slowing down.

"Wait, why is he not stopping?"

“He’s going to bump into the wall!”

The students screamed as they saw Leo about to slam into the wall at lightning speed.

BAM-!

At that moment, Leo concentrated all his strength on his legs and leaped.

Then, with both feet on the wall, he raised his head and looked at Duran who was ahead of him.

BANG-!

Leo then jumped by stomping on the wall with Aura and rushed towards Duran with all his might.

The students who saw it were shocked.

At the same time, Duran's face hardened as he looked back.

He saw Leo flying towards him like a bullet.

'You son of a bi*ch!'

He was taken aback by the unexpected pursuit, but he soon regained his composure.

‘He would lose his acceleration after landing on the ground!’

Duran maintained his speed, so he didn't have to worry about being overtaken.

Leo once again kicked off the ground and ran forward.

By using Aura, his speed was incomparable to the previous one.

However, it didn’t narrow the distance between Duran and Leo.

They are now halfway to the starting line.

"Leo, give it your all!"

“Duran! Run!"

The students split and raised their voices to show their support.

Celia’s lips slightly parted.

'No, He can't catch up.'

Leo knew that too.

PLOP PLOP-!

It was then, from Leo's feet, flames erupted.

'Was it like this when Professor Ain used when walking on air earlier.'

He recalled the demonstration that Professor Ain showed.

It would be difficult to replicate it at that moment.

Leo was just a beginner when it comes to Aura Step.

However, he tried to replicate Professor Ain's method.

After activating the phoenix breath, Leo concentrated the aura on his toes.

Fwoosh-!

And then...

'Kick the ground!'

BOOM! BOOM!

The sudden explosion made the students freeze.

Celia opened her mouth wide in shock.

'Phoenix step? Leo! How could he have mastered that?'

BOOM! BOOM!

A series of small explosions were heard in succession.

As a result, Leo accelerated at an incredible speed.

With the little Aura inside his body, Leo chased after Duran.

“What? This fu*king bastard!”

"I'll go ahead, slowpoke."

Leo grinned and kicked the ground vigorously.

Boom!

“LEO FLOVE!”

Duran, who was close behind Leo, opened his eyes wide and shouted.

The gap between them widened, and Duran was unable to keep up with the accelerating Leo.

Leo's fire aura and Duran's lightning aura left traces along their path.

And finally, Leo crossed the starting line first by a small margin.

"Woah!"

"That was crazy! He was so fast!”

The students exclaimed in admiration.

“Huh-! Huh-!"

Duran stared at Leo as he panted heavily.

Leo also placed his hands on his knees and exhaled deeply, while sweating profusely.

"Hey! That was amazing! How could you be that fast? Duran was the fastest guy in the first year, but you just beat him.”

While Karl was making a fuss, Celia spoke.

"If it had been a long-distance race, you would not have won."

"What?"

“Celia is right. Because his aura capacity is much higher than mine.”

Leo nodded at Celia's words.

"However, I still won. See. Didn't I say I'd win?"

"Yeah Yeah, you're right. You're amazing."

Celia shook her head as she looked at the proud Leo.

“Brother Leo! Here, water!"

"Thanks."

Leo smiled softly as he received the water bottle from Chelsi.

"You look cool even to guys. You'll be popular with the girls. Is that what it feels like to be a gentleman?"

As Karl admired, Chelsi shook her head.

“He is not a gentleman.”

"What? Why?"

“During the entrance exam, he threatened to burn my ass and forced me to cooperate.”

Chelsi's face looked scary as she said this.

Upon hearing this, Karl shuddered.

“He turned out to be a perverted gentleman.”

⏩ ⏩ ⏩ ⏩ ⏩ ⏩ 

“I felt it yesterday too, Professor Alby indeed didn’t recommend him as the freshman representative for nothing.”

Professor Ain muttered as he stood on the roof overlooking the training hall.

“As professors, shouldn't it be our duty to prevent fights between students? ”

When Associate Professor Claria pointed out with a deep sigh, Ain smiled.

"Isn't this an annual event that takes place every year?"

Lumeln selected students from different cultural backgrounds around the world.

In addition, everyone’s status varies widely.

"In the early days of admission, similar situations happened frequently like annual events."

"I think the bigger issue is that we didn't stop it even though we were aware of it."

"There are many potential heroes among this year's first-year students, which is why the academy is paying attention to them. That is also why I believe it is critical to establish standards from the start of the semester."

Though professors of Lumeln believe in equality for all students.

However, as humans, it is unavoidable for them to favor a talented disciple.

Despite his cold exterior, Ain, who is passionate about his students, is highly respected by them even after graduation.

Ain too was also proud of his students.

But the regretful thing is that there is no one among his disciples yet to attain the position of hero.

“To raise a hero, Claria. Don't you know how badly I want to do that?"

"It may be difficult."

Claria sighed as she pulled out a notebook, and inquired.

“So, what shall we do?”

Even if it is a regular class, engaging in a brawl without permission from the professor is a violation of school rules.

“They didn’t even fight, so just leave it alone.”

'Looks like he really likes student Leo.'

Professor Ain, who values school rules, chose to turn a blind eye to this incident.

Claria laughed as she observed Leo engaging in conversation with his friends.

⏩ ⏩ ⏩ ⏩ ⏩ ⏩ 

After class, Leo went straight to the student café.

Meanwhile, the story of Leo and Duran quickly spread throughout the school.

"You have become the center of attention right from the first day?"

Said Chelsi, who was drinking fruit juice through a straw while Karl agreed with a thumb up.

“There is no doubt that brother Leo’s performance left an everlasting impression on everyone."

“Hey, Chelsi Llewellyn. I've been feeling it since earlier, why do you call Leo 'Brother Leo' and me by my name?"

"My wish."

Chelsi stuck out her tongue.

"You!"

"If you want, you can also call me 'Brother Karl', what do you think?"

"Nah. Calling you by my name is more comfortable."

Celia gave up neatly.

"The next one is a summoning class, is there anyone attending it?"

Karl took out his timetable from his pocket and asked while checking.

"I'll be attending the class."

The three of them looked at Leo with an expression of [why the heck do you attend that class?]

In knight class, you can learn techniques, and in magic class, you can raise your magic-response ability.

That's why they are a popular elective class, but in the case of Summoning, except for those who have talent, this class is useless for others.

Leo put his mouth on the straw and muttered to himself in response to the three's reaction.

'I'm curious what kind of expression they'd make if I told them I was taking all three majors.'

After parting ways with the three, Leo headed straight for the lecture hall.

Suddenly he remembered the reward he got during the entrance exam.

‘Even if the world of living heroes is conquered, there should be no reward.’

'But I was rewarded.'

It was an unusual event.

In addition, there was another question regarding the reward he got.

'Why is it had to be the Fairy King’s blessing?'

The rewards that can be obtained in the world of heroes should be related to the power of the Owner of that world.

'Professor Alby is a pure wizard.'

So, he should have originally acquired abilities related to the magic department.

However, the reward Leo obtained is related to the summoning department.

The last recorded contractor of the Fairy King was none other than Luna.

The Fairy King’s blessing, which had disappeared since the Age of Despair, was attained by Leo.

‘But it’s difficult to sign a contract just with Fairy blessing.’

For a successful summoning, a catalyst associated with the targeted summon is required.

And the catalyst required for summoning fairies were the leaves of the World Tree.

The World Tree was all wiped out by Erebos during the Age of Despair.

Now, in order to make a contract with the fairies, it was necessary to go to Fairy Land, where fairies live.

'However, the Fairy Land should be located in the territory of elves, where humans cannot go. Even if I manage to get there, I won't be able to meet the Fairy King unconditionally.'

‘So, The reward is useless for now.’

“Are you also taking the Summoning class?”

Someone spoke from behind.

When Leo turned his head with a suspicious face, there was a female student standing there.

'Let's see... … she should be the East region's chief, right?'