Chapter 219

219

The streets of Lorand, the capital of the western hegemonic nation of Rodren on the continent.

Befitting the capital of the strongest human nation, the streets were filled with countless crowds.

Recently, the influx of people has become even greater.

Naturally, with Lumern’s entrance examination taking place there, this was expected.

However, the bustling streets weren’t purely a good thing.

“Stop him!”

“Thief!”

“Stand still!”

An urgent voice echoed through the outskirts of Lorand.

“Hmmph! Like I’d stop just because you say so?!”

The robber, grinning, quickly slipped into an alley.

As the capital of the empire, Lorand was known for its excellent security.

But with the influx of outsiders, it had become nearly impossible for the existing guards to maintain order alone.

Where there’s light, shadows must follow.

Even in the Era of Heroes, criminal organizations still exist.

Ironically, as more heroes hunt them down, these groups retreat further into the shadows and consolidate their power.

A prime example: the Thief Guild.

And currently, Lorand was a ripe target for the members of the Thief Guild.

‘I’ve already thoroughly scoped out this alley!’

The outskirts, unlike the central areas of the city, have fewer guards.

Because of that, thieves from out of town were taking full advantage to wreak havoc.

Swoosh!

At that moment, in the middle of the alley, stood a girl with her arms crossed.

“Eh? Get out of my way! Do you want to d*e?”

The robber, wielding a dagger, shouted.

Looking at the robber, the girl smirked and lifted her staff.

“A wizard!”

Realizing the danger, the robber quickly twisted his body and fled deeper into the alley.

One of the reasons why this robber had been able to survive by committing highway robbery for so long was his fast judgment.

“Hmph! No matter how good a wizard you are, you can’t catch me in this complex alley…”

“Excuse me, but wouldn’t surrendering be less troublesome?”

“Wh-what?!”

The robber was startled by the voice coming from beside him.

A moment earlier, the girl with blue hair had blocked his path. Now, she was running alongside the robber with an uninterested gaze.

Instinctively, the robber swung his dagger.

Hooowww!

Suddenly, a gust of wind blew.

“AAAAAAHHH!”

The robber, lifted high into the air, fell flailing toward the ground.

Thud!

“Ugh!”

The robber writhed in pain after falling from a considerable height onto the cobblestones.

Chelsea cast a mere glance and used her magic.

Hooowww! Thud!

“Pl, please… kek!”

Once again lifted into the air, the robber crashed down.

Chelsea casually brushed her hand, noticing that the robber was no longer breathing.

“Sir, are you breathing?”

Still not hearing any breath, she added menacingly:

“Would you like me to drop you from a height where you’ll actually d*e?”

“S-s-sorry! I’m breathing! Breathing!”

The robber, who had quickly risen to his knees, bowed down.

Chelsea used her magic to crush the robber’s dagger into uselessness and then used the magic to compel him to approach the guards.

Once Chelsea handed over the robber, the responding officers who had received the report saluted her in gratitude.

“Thank you for your assistance!”

“Oh, it was nothing. It’s only natural as a student of Lumern.”

Chelsea beamed and replied.

The gathered onlookers whispered among themselves upon seeing this.

“Lumern student?”

“Huh? That’s why… they said she’s incredibly skilled.”

“That’s the Lumern uniform, isn’t it?”

“Wait… isn’t that Chelsea LeWalyn?”

“Chelsea LeWalyn?”

The murmuring crowd erupted in cheers when they recognized her.

Chelsea smiled and waved at them.

The crowd roared even more enthusiastically as she left the scene.

A little later, Chelsea spotted a boy wearing an identical uniform to hers.

None other than Kal.

Kal had also just returned from capturing a criminal, like Chelsea.

“How many did you catch today?”

“Five.”

Kal groaned, rubbing his shoulder.

“Man, why don’t these criminals decrease?”

“Well, all sorts of riff-raff are gathering here because they think there’s something for them to pick up in our country.”

Where people gather, crime naturally increases.

Especially since travelers arriving for the exams had recently surged.

One important characteristic of travelers? They typically have money.

To the Thief Guild, they were like drooling targets.

Like flies to food, thieves were flocking to Lorand to rob the well-lined pockets of these wealthy visitors.

And thus, Lumern’s countermeasure for maintaining security was sending in the students.

Almost all students from the current second-year level-up group were already present in Lorand, barring any special circumstances.

After returning to their dormitories, Chelsea and Kal found other Lumern students gathered in their high-end hotel lounge, provided by Lumern. Students complained about the situation.

“Why do we have to chase down criminals during our break?”

“Vacation time is precious!”

“Our school really exploits us!”

Witnessing this, Kal suddenly began to chuckle.

“What are you up to now?”

“Just watch.”

In response to Chelsea’s question, Kal cleared his throat and shouted:

“Professor Halind! Good evening!”

“Wh-what?”

“Professor Halind?!”

The complaining students all jumped in shock and turned toward the source of the voice, genuine fear flashing in their eyes.

“Hahaha! Hohoho!”

Kal clutched his stomach, laughing uncontrollably at the sight.

“HAHAHA! Kuwaa! Kyaaa?!?!”

Needless to say, his fate was swift justice administered by his fellow students.

As Kal was getting beaten up, Chelsea simply sighed in despair. At that moment, two male students entered the hotel lounge.

“So you’re saying he’s too lenient. Abad LeWalyn.”

“Is that so?”

Durran smirked as he spoke, and Abad scratched his cheek.

“Why do you keep annoying my big brother?”

“I simply corrected LeWalyn’s unreasonably lenient judgment.”

“What? What’s wrong with my brother’s judgment?”

Chelsea snapped back, prompting Kal to intervene. He poked his fingers under her armpits and lifted her, her feet dangling off the ground.

As Chelsea struggled, Kal commented lightly:

“Wow, wow, easy there. Is it only recently that our prince’s vocabulary became so vulgar?”

“You’re always so disrespectful, Kal Thomas.”

“People should always be consistent.”

Kal grinned.

On one side: the heir of the Moira Dukedom.

On the other: a commoner from that very Moira Dukedom.

Though their statuses appeared polar opposites, Moira was a knightly duchy; small but highly valuing talent. Anyone with enough ability could be recognized, regardless of their background. And Hero Academy students were the epitome of top-tier talent.

Even Kal, for his own reasons, had successfully advanced to second year, something Durran acknowledged even if begrudgingly, which is why Kal was spared severe punishment for his cheek.

“So? What’s going on?”

Kal tilted his head, to which Abad responded with his usual gentle smile:

“There were a lot of potential students outside wanting to greet their future seniors properly and bring some gifts.”

“Gifts?”

“What kind of gifts?”

“Plenty of snacks.”

Female students cheered upon hearing this.

Most Lumern female students were known for their love of desserts.

“Hehe! So polite juniors!”

“There’s a reason why we like being seniors, you know~”

The female students rushed toward the door enthusiastically.

Seeing this, Abad gave a faint smirk and added:

“Now, Durran has already driven them all off.”

“They came here to greet, why’d you chase them away?”

One of the female students who had been in the same first year class grumbled, prompting Durran to scoff:

“They lack the qualification to call us seniors. Do you really think we should accept ‘seniors’ who haven’t even proven themselves? That’s arrogance, plain and simple.”

“But among them, perhaps there are some who might become worthy juniors?”

“I didn’t see anyone capable of passing the entrance exam. With such skills, they dare to call me ‘senior’? Utterly disrespectful.”

“Occasionally, it’s clear that you really are a prince.”

“Truly, only royalty could embody such haughtiness. The nobility couldn’t even attempt to imitate that.”

Some of the students close to Durran chatted quietly, but when Durran turned his gaze to them, they quickly put on a facade of innocence.

In that way, students patrolling outside returned one by one.

Even Rodren Empire students spent their vacation here.

Besides the presence of fellow classmates, they could also face the killer vacation homework collectively.

“Anyway, what happened to Celia and Chloe?”

“They haven’t returned yet?”

“Are they going to eat dinner out?”

The students were wondering about their absent class leader and vice leader, when suddenly Celia and Chloe walked into the accommodation.

However, they were not alone.

The students in the first floor lounge, who were doing assignments, were shocked to see the three unfamiliar visitors in different uniforms.

The three newcomers wore uniforms not from Lumern.

The visitors were none other than Lunia, Eiran, and Luca, representatives of the Seyrun class.

“We’ve come here as guests today to observe Lumern’s entrance exam period, so we stopped by to say hello.”

As Chloe explained, Lunia took a step forward, offering a charming smile.

“Hello, everyone from Lumern Academy! I’m Lunia El Rundah.”

“Nice to meet you! Representatives from Seyrun!”

“How’s it going at Seyrun?”

“Did you complete the cleanup?”

The Lumern students crowded around them.

The timid Eiran quickly hid behind Lunia.

Luca laughed at the sight.

“Yes. Thanks to all of you, Seyrun has returned to its original state. Back then, there was no time for proper gratitude, so we’d like to thank everyone now.”

Lunia, with a radiant smile, bowed deeply.

“Thank you for fighting for Seyrun.”

“Of course! Lumern and Seyrun have long been rivals, but to rephrase, also friendly competitors.”

“That’s correct! And considering the Tartarus invasion, collaborating was only natural!”

“There’s no need for thanks at all!”

Upon Lunia’s beautiful gesture, male students cleared their throats conspicuously and strutted around.

“Anyway, those guys always lose their cool when a pretty girl shows up.”

“But I have to say, even though I’ve noticed it before, Seyrun’s third-ranked student—what’s the word—she’s incredibly cute, isn’t she?”

“Yes! She’s the type you’d want to protect.”

The female students began chatting excitedly about Luca.

“What? You’re no different from them!”

Kal, witnessing this, rolled his eyes and turned his gaze toward Lunia.

Despite her current act as the perfect top student of Seyrun, Kal knew better.

He knew that Lunia was, in fact, a terrifyingly fierce elf.

Kal shuddered as he thought about her true nature when suddenly,

“Kal-sama! Have you been doing well?”

“Oh, Eiran.”

Eiran approached Kal, the student most familiar to her, greeting him warmly. During conversation, Eiran, with a shy glance, quietly asked:

“…Um… Kal-sama, where is Leo-sama?”

“Leo is not here due to family matters.”

Upon hearing this, Eiran’s ears drooped.

‘Leo! What a lucky guy!’

Kal inwardly exclaimed.

With Seyrun students’ visit, the Lumern students’ accommodations were bustling.

“Come out immediately, Leo Flove, you son of a–!”

A thunderous voice suddenly erupted that seemed to pierce the eardrums.