1. The First Letter (75)

Darkness fell in the sky, but light and heat remained on the ground.

It was a sight that seemed to bring countless starlights from the night sky down to the ground. The heat of a brilliant civilization heated up the land.

The lights of Mother Nature had no choice but to give up their glorious place on earth today. Only moonlight did not lose its presence alone in the competition between nature and civilization.

It was a scene that signaled the end of the hunting festival. Countless onlookers gathered in front of the forest south of the academy.

This was because the biggest highlight of the two-day weekend hunting festival was about to begin.

It was a two-day festival, but tomorrow there was only an after-night festival to celebrate the achievements of the hunt. The event that represented the hunting festival was, no matter what, the awards ceremony held tonight.

It was also a time for the crowds scattered throughout the academy to gather in one place. Even the students who run the stalls closed their stalls for a while and gathered here when the awards ceremony approached.

Winning the hunting festival meant that. To become the academy’s best hunter and the most attention-grabbing student that year.

In fact, by this time, rumors about who the winners were were bound to spread.

Hundreds of onlookers camped out in front of the forest and waited. It was because rumors spread through their mouths about who hunted which beast.

Some senior in the 4th year said that he subdued a bear beast presumed to be a high-ranking beast, and someone in the third year said that he only hunted dozens of intermediate-level beasts.

The academy was a place where talented people picked and picked from all over the continent. Even if they didn’t bother to measure the monster’s magical power level, the eyes of the students were already at a level comparable to that of quite a few hunters.

Therefore, the information about the winners, which should have been rumors, was quite reliable. At most, there were only minor differences. Nonetheless, students at the academy flocked to the awards ceremony at dusk like ants attracted to the smell of sugar.

Hearing with the ears and seeing with the eyes are different. And sometimes, when unbelievable rumors spread, there were people who stepped in to confirm the truth. Today’s countless crowds were the result of those two factors.

The students who had gathered without any time to set foot looked around here and there. I was wondering if there was a face I knew.

As expected, celebrities from the academy were already seated in front of the podium.

“Hey, look over there. It’s the princess, the head of the 1st year magic department!”

“Hey, hey. Be careful with your words. No matter how it is, can I just call the great lineage?”

“How are you? it’s an academy And from the saintess to the queen of the ball… … .”

The whispers recited the face of those who participated in the awards ceremony. It was an event that most of the students in the academy participated in.

Those who had a noble status, excellent skills, or famous names for their beautiful appearance were no exception. And some of them, who were now mere spectators, would be called the leading candidates for the hunting festival next year.

The clearing, which had been noisy for a while, became quiet as soon as an old wizard moved. It was as if the power had gone down.

It was an old man with shaggy white hair. His name, ‘Delemore’, with an impressive waist-length beard, was a professor who trained younger students for a long time at the academy and was the current president of the academy.

As a 7th Circle mage, one of only a few on the continent, he was a person who was considered to be on the verge of becoming a master.

It was unknown if he would be able to overcome the master’s wall that frustrated countless geniuses for the rest of his life. However, the fact that he has the potential to do so is not enough reason for him to be admired.

It meant that there was no one capable of overpowering him, except for the only three Masters.

Although he was such a fearsome talent, the traces of the past years were evident in his old age. It was because he deliberately neglected his body aging according to his beliefs as a magician seeking the truth.

At first glance, it was an appearance that seemed to be nothing but an old man with a benevolent impression.

Even so, his presence was overwhelming as he silenced thousands with just a few steps. Because everyone in this room knew.

That this villager-looking wizard was a monster that could blow up a small village at once if he put his mind to it.

The podium temporarily set up in an empty lot was high. Standing in front of it, President Delemore paused for a moment and surveyed the crowd.

It didn’t take long for his mouth to open. A trembling voice resounded throughout the clearing.

“… … Dear students of the academy!”

The voice that resounded in the air boasted an overwhelming volume. It was the result of applying special magic. It was clearly only the voice of an old man trembling weakly, but its size was enough to pierce the ears of thousands.

Everyone’s attention was focused. It was thanks to my intuition that the time I had been waiting for had come.

“First of all, thank you for showing great interest in the hunting festival this year. More than 500 students participated in this year’s hunting festival, and, as has been the case every year, the results exceeded expectations. Although there were some unpleasant things… … .”

President Delemore did not say what the ‘unsavory thing’ was, but the students standing in front of the podium already heard about it.

The students’ mouths, which had been shut for a moment, began to churn. It wasn’t overtly noisy, but the whispers were annoying.

“I heard that Delphine-senpai… … .”

“I heard Confucius with the hatchet rescued him? However, traces of temporary treatment remained, and it seems that the cause of the stab wound was taken with a weapon such as an axe.”

“Ugh, I’m scared. No matter how noble he is, how can he be so savage?”

“Hey, isn’t it because you’re a lower noble? Delphine must have been cowardly attacked or something. Does it make sense that the noble Yurdina’s lineage only belongs to the lower nobles?”

“Well, I heard that all four members of the crew had marks from an ax… No matter how much he was surprised, he wouldn’t have been able to attack four people at once.”

Of course, the truth of the rumor was unknown. Some of the testimonies might be exaggerated or ignored as various opinions were reflected. Then, at some point, the rumors will eventually disappear.

There was no way the Yurdina family would let such a disgraceful rumor go on. It was also a false rumor about the successor of the family. Regardless of the authenticity, today’s event was meant to be a conversation among acquaintances.

There was no way that the students of the academy were unaware of such a future. So they enjoyed their brief freedom with even more enthusiasm. The whispers were slowly spreading.

It was near the end of President Delemore’s speech, which was short if short and long if long, that their mouths were shut.

“… … Then, from now on, we will announce the glorious winners of this year’s hunting festival!”

Those words were the signal flare. Thousands of pairs of eyes once again turned toward the podium. And whenever President Delemore called out the winners one by one, thunderous applause and shouts erupted.

3rd and 2nd place names were called in turn, and then, as special prizes, injuries were handed down to the person who hunted the smallest monster and the person who hunted the most monsters.

High-ranking officials from each country seated in the VIP seats watched the students ascend to the podium in silence. I could tell just by looking at those sharp eyes. They were watching each winner individually.

The process of handing out the awards, announcing the awards, and giving impressions of the award was repeated several times.

In the meantime, the night had already gotten quite deep. Even so, the crowd in front of the podium did not diminish. It was because the most important announcement remained.

It was the moment when the protagonist of one of the biggest festivals of the academy, the hunting festival, was announced.

Delemore adjusted his monocle with trembling hands. And with a serious voice, he took off his rhyme.

“I have been in the teaching profession for decades, but I still enjoy watching young people. This is because young people like you always create variables beyond imagination.”

The president then slightly flicked his index finger. Then, a wave of magical power arose, and soon the corpse of the demon beast hidden behind the stage appeared.

Some students screamed at the sight of the floating corpse of the monster. They were first-year students who weren’t familiar with magic beasts yet. It was such an intimidating giant.

It was more like a tree or a building than an animal. It was impossible to even measure the length from the snout to the tail, and even if you stood there, you would think it would be the size of two average adults combined.

Unlike some freshmen who covered their eyes with their hands, the current students in the second year and above showed a relatively calm reaction. Even so, there was an inconceivable astonishment in their eyes.

It was a body long since life had left, but it could be seen just by its traces.

A high-ranking witch, more than that. Maybe it was the level that deserved a name.

The rumors were true. A few people who realized this started to talk in whispers. However, the winner had not yet appeared.

“This year’s hunting festival was a dangerous situation. Unbeknownst to us, a great evil lurked in the forest. Maybe that’s why so many people died and were injured. I deeply apologize for this.”

At the same time, President Delemore bent down and made it clear that he wanted to apologize. The murmur spread more widely.

It was an uproar of fear and curiosity. One is the fear of the possibility that a large-scale bloodshed might have occurred, and the other is the curiosity about who the main character who hunted the terrifying beast was.

The answer soon became apparent. Delemore’s booming voice hit the clearing once again.

“However, through the courageous students who risked their lives, that evil was removed and I express my deep and deep gratitude to them here. From now on, I will name them one by one.”

Everyone caught their breath. Many people had already heard of it, but after seeing the overwhelming size of the corpse, another question engulfed their heads.

Does a student who can hunt that monster exist?

“First of all, the 4th year of Magic Faculty, Elsie Rainella!”

A petite girl with a proud face jumped up onto the stage at once. She put on a large cone hat and put her hand on her waist. It was a very proud expression.

But the cheers did not return. The crowd was still waiting for the next protagonist, swallowing dry saliva.

“And Seria Yurdina, a sophomore of the Swordsmanship Faculty!”

A woman with gray hair and a cold complexion walked slowly up the stage. It was an arrogant expression, but in fact, there were no spectators who knew that it was a face that came out when you were nervous.

Instead, people were paying attention to something else.

It was the birth of the Yurdina family. In other words, she had completed the Yurdina family’s task that Delphine Yurdina had not been able to accomplish.

A slight commotion broke out among the onlookers. Before the commotion spreads, the next name was called.

“Likewise, the sophomore of the swordsmanship department, Celine Hester!”

As if pouring out the cheers they had been holding back for so long, shouts of congratulations broke out in the vacant lot.

It was the second year of the swordsmanship department that was leading this. Among them, the cheers of the lower noble women were high and loud. It was a place where Celine’s friends were especially numerous.

The dark-haired girl with tawny eyes scratched her cheek shyly. Then, he slightly averted his gaze and waved his hand once. Her friends made a fuss as if that alone would take her back.

Of course, the uproar did not last long.

“This is the last name now.”

At that weighty declaration, the audience again fell silent. And he paid attention to the podium with eyes filled with both anticipation and fear.

There was no one who did not know that the next name to come out was the true protagonist of this year’s hunting festival. The glory of winning the hunting festival is shared evenly among the members of the team, but the value of the name ‘leader’ could not be ignored.

And above all, he was the most notable figure in the Academy recently. According to rumors, it was said that he was most credited with hunting that terrifying monster.

I kneaded that ‘Yurdina’s slobber’ until it was kneaded.

After that, he single-handedly subdued 10 monsters, including high-ranking beasts, and smashed the infamous Thean gang of the Southern Ten Kingdoms with a hatchet.

He was also a guy who had a knife fight in the room of Delphine Yurdina, the head of the 4th year swordsmanship department, and today it is said that he completely defeated her.

It was a month like a storm. In just 30 days, the achievements he had accumulated in that short period of time were even heavier compared to his previous academy life.

He slowly made his appearance on the stage.

Black hair drenched in blood, and golden eyes that did not lose their light even in the dark.

The academy’s uniform was stained with blood and dirty. It was unknown whose blood it was. Judging by the bandaged left arm, it was only clear that his condition was not normal.

Even though he would have been treated temporarily by a high priest, he didn’t make any sense. It was proof that they had gone through such a fierce battle.

So the people in the left felt more overwhelmed. That bloody appearance was clear evidence that he had fought to the death with that gigantic demon beast.

“… … 3rd year of the Faculty of Swordsmanship, leader Ian Perkus!”

The eyes of the dignitaries of each country stared deeply at him. A few eyes stood out among the silent crowd.

The ‘Saint of the Holy Land’, the ‘Queen of the Ball’, and even the girl called the ‘Princess’, the first-year head of the Faculty of Magic.

They were the ones with a great reputation. However, even the girls scattering light like stars were not the main characters of the night.

Tonight’s protagonist is only one.

It was the responsibility of the man standing on the stage covered in blood at this moment.

Countless attention was focused on his tightly closed mouth.

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