The students parted to the sides, leaving Leo and Duran Moira at the center.
The match between the student representative and the top scorer sparked great interest among the crowd.
“Who do you think will win?”
“I’m betting on Duran!”
“Yeah, he’s been famous since before enrollment.”
“But Leo is the student representative. He might show us something amazing!”
“No way. He didn’t even come in first during the exam, and I heard he hasn’t mastered Aura Step.”
Most of the first-years predicted Duran’s victory.
Amid the chatter, Celia Zerdinger asked worriedly.
“Are you sure about this?”
“Don’t you trust me?”
“You just learned Aura Step in theory.”
“Don’t worry, I’ll win.”
Duran pointed to a large tree near the wall of the training ground.
“The rules are simple. The first to run around that tree and return here wins.”
“Got it.”
The two stretched before the race.
Leo removed the bracelets and anklets he wore, recalling the Aura Step principles taught by Professor Ain Elrandu.
Once their warm-up was complete, the two stood at the starting line while the student acting as the referee raised their hand.
“Ready.”
Leo tensed his muscles.
“Go!”
Both pushed off the ground and sprinted forward.
Initially, Leo took the lead.
Duran frowned as he watched Leo’s back.
‘He’s ridiculously fast.’
“Alright! Go, Leo!”
“You can do it, Leo!”
Carl Thomas clenched his fists and shouted, while Chelsea Lewallin jumped with excitement.
However, Celia’s expression remained grim.
‘Duran hasn’t used Aura Step yet.’
For now, both were relying purely on physical strength.
Leo’s physical capabilities were exceptional, even by Celia’s standards.
It was no surprise that Leo was ahead without Aura Step. But that advantage didn’t last long.
Once Duran activated his aura, the distance between them quickly narrowed.
Sparks of golden lightning crackled around Duran’s legs.
It was Lightning Aura.
“See you later, slowpoke.”
Duran sneered as he sped past Leo.
Duran rounded the tree and sprinted back at an incredible speed.
It looked like Leo’s defeat was inevitable.
At that moment, Leo suddenly accelerated toward the wall of the training ground.
“Aura Step? Didn’t they say the representative couldn’t use Aura Step?”
“Was that a lie?”
The students murmured in confusion, while Celia widened her eyes.
‘No way! How can that monster learn things so fast?’
While Celia was screaming internally, Leo closed in on the wall without showing any sign of slowing down.
“Wait, isn’t he going to stop?”
“He’s going to crash into the wall!”
The students screamed as they watched Leo hurtling toward the wall at a terrifying speed.
Thud-!
At the last moment, Leo focused power into his legs and leaped.
Planting both feet on the wall, he looked ahead to see Duran’s back.
Crack-!
The wall cracked from the force of his leap, and Leo used the momentum to chase after Duran.
The students gasped in shock at the sight.
Duran, hearing the commotion, glanced back and froze.
Leo was flying toward him like a bullet.
‘That bastard!’
Though startled by the unexpected pursuit, Duran quickly regained his composure.
‘He’ll lose his momentum when he lands.’
Since Duran maintained his speed, he wasn’t worried about being overtaken.
Leo landed and pushed off the ground with renewed speed.
Having activated Aura Step, Leo moved at a speed that couldn’t even be compared to before.
Still, the gap between him and Duran didn’t close.
They had reached the halfway point back to the starting line.
“Go, Leo!”
“Run, Duran!”
The students cheered for their chosen contender.
Celia bit her lip lightly.
‘It’s no use. He can’t catch up.’
Leo was aware of this fact as well.
Fwoosh-!
Suddenly, flames ignited at Leo’s feet.
‘The method Professor Ain used when he walked on air.’
Leo recalled the demonstration Ain had shown earlier.
Though he couldn’t replicate it perfectly as a beginner in Aura Step, he could adapt the technique.
Activating Phoenix Breath, Leo concentrated his aura into his feet.
Fwoosh-!
And then…
‘Push off!’
Thud-! Boom!
The unexpected explosion startled the students.
Celia’s jaw dropped.
‘Phoenix Step? But Leo hasn’t learned that yet!’
Boom! Boom!
A series of small explosions rang out as Leo rapidly accelerated.
Burning through all the aura he had, Leo closed the gap, getting right behind Duran.
“What? This guy—!”
“See you later, slowpoke.”
Leo smirked and pushed off the ground powerfully.
Boom!
“Leo Plov!”
Duran shouted, his eyes wide, as he chased closely behind Leo.
The gap didn’t widen significantly, but Duran couldn’t keep up with Leo’s accelerating pace.
Leo’s aura flames and Duran Moira’s lightning aura streaked through the air as they raced.
By a hair’s breadth, Leo crossed the starting line first.
“Wow!”
“That was insane! He’s so fast!”
The students exclaimed in amazement.
“Huff, huff—!”
Duran, panting heavily, glared at Leo.
Leo also placed his hands on his knees, dripping with sweat as he caught his breath.
“Hey! That was incredible! Duran’s supposed to be the fastest among the first-years, but Leo still beat him?”
Carl Thomas exclaimed excitedly, while Celia Zerdinger commented.
“If it had been a long-distance race, he wouldn’t have won.”
“Huh?”
“Celia’s right. Duran has a much larger aura capacity,” Leo agreed, nodding toward Celia.
“Still, I won. See? I told you I would.”
“Ugh, fine. You’re amazing,” Celia said, shaking her head at Leo’s smug grin.
“Leo! Here’s some water!”
“Thanks.”
Leo smiled warmly as he took the water bottle Chelsea Lewallin handed him.
“Even as a guy, I have to admit you’re cool. No wonder you’re popular with the girls. A true gentleman,” Carl remarked in admiration.
But Chelsea shook her head.
“Gentleman? Not quite.”
“Huh? Why not?”
“During the entrance exam, he threatened to burn my butt if I didn’t cooperate.”
Chelsea pouted, her face filled with mock horror.
“A… perverted gentleman, huh,” Carl muttered under his breath.
***
“I sensed it yesterday, but now I’m certain. Albi Jeron didn’t recommend him as student representative for no reason.”
On the roof overlooking the training ground, Professor Ain Elrandu muttered to himself.
“Isn’t it a professor’s duty to intervene in disputes among students, Professor Ain?”
Assistant Professor Claria Rivace sighed deeply, her tone critical. Ain chuckled.
“It’s an annual tradition, isn’t it?”
At Lumerne, students from various cultural backgrounds and social statuses gather.
Because of this, situations like the earlier one often occurred during the early days of enrollment, almost like an annual event.
“Even knowing that, I think it’s more problematic that you didn’t intervene.”
“This year’s first-years have many potential heroes. The academy is paying special attention to them. That’s why I thought it was important to separate the wheat from the chaff early on.”
Lumerne’s professors follow the principle of treating all students equally.
But as humans, they inevitably develop favorite students.
Ain, despite his stern exterior, was passionate about his students and earned their respect even after graduation.
However, there was one regret: none of his students had yet achieved the title of hero.
“Raising a hero… Claria, you know how much I desire that, don’t you?”
“Of course,” Claria replied, sighing as she pulled out a notebook.
“So, what should we do about this?”
Even in a trial class, holding an unsanctioned competition was against school regulations.
“Let it slide. It wasn’t a fight.”
‘He must really like Leo Plov,’ Claria thought.
Professor Ain, who usually prioritized rules, had decided to turn a blind eye to the incident.
Claria chuckled softly as she watched Leo chatting with his friends.
***
After the class, Leo sat in the student café.
By now, the story of Leo and Duran’s race had spread across the entire school.
“You’re already the center of attention on your first day,” Carl said, giving Leo a thumbs-up. Chelsea, sipping fruit juice through a straw, nodded in agreement.
“Leo’s performance was definitely impressive.”
“Hey, Chelsea Lewallin. I’ve noticed you call Leo ‘big brother,’ but you just use my name. Why is that?”
“Because I want to.”
Chelsea stuck out her tongue.
“You—!”
“If you don’t like it, why don’t you call my brother ‘big brother’ too?”
“Just call me by my name. It’s fine,” Celia interjected, giving up on the argument.
“The next class is Summoning Studies. Is anyone else attending?”
Carl checked his schedule as he asked.
“I am,” Leo replied.
The three exchanged puzzled looks, as if to ask, “What’s the point?”
While Knight Studies taught techniques and Magic Studies enhanced magical adaptability, Summoning Studies was useless for those without talent.
Leo sipped his drink and thought to himself.
‘I wonder how they’ll react if I tell them I’m taking all three majors.’
After parting ways with the others, Leo headed to the lecture hall.
As he walked, he recalled the reward he had received during the entrance exam.
In the world of living heroes, no rewards were typically given, even if you conquered it.
‘But I received a reward.’
This was highly unusual.
Additionally, there was one more mystery related to the reward.
‘Why was it the Fairy King’s Vow?’
The rewards obtainable in a hero’s world were tied to the powers of its ruler.
‘Albi Jeron is a pure mage.’
Normally, the reward should have been a magic-related ability.
However, the reward Leo received was a summoning ability.
The last known contractor of the Fairy King, according to history, was Luna, the Founder of the Constellations.
The pact with the Fairy King, severed since the Age of Calamity, had now been bestowed upon Leo.
‘But the pact alone isn’t enough to form a contract.’
Summoning a spirit beast requires a catalyst linked to the beast.
The summoning catalyst for fairies is a leaf from the World Tree.
All World Trees were destroyed during the Age of Despair by Erebus.
To contract with a fairy now, one would need to travel to the Fairy Land, where fairies reside.
‘But Fairy Land is under the elves’ domain, inaccessible to humans. Even if I go, there’s no guarantee I’ll meet the Fairy King.’
For now, the reward was useless.
“You’re attending Summoning Studies too?”
Someone spoke to him from behind.
Leo turned to see a female student standing there, her expression curious.
‘Let’s see… She’s the top scorer from the eastern region, isn’t she?’
End Of Chapter
