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Students scrambled out of their seats before the professor could finish his sentence. Eugene sat dumbfounded as other impatient students passed him. He then gathered his things. The freshmen glanced at each other and watched his every move.

A monster who had already acquired their Fourth Circle. A talent who might reach the Fifth Circle before graduating from the Academy. While most students set their goal to get the Fourth in a couple of years, Eugene Grayson had a different goal.

“He doesn’t have many friends yet, does he?”

“Arthur, why would he want to talk to us when he’s paying attention to class? He’s already running ahead of us. He’s already got his group with the other top students, so why would he want to hang with us?”

“Yeah, well, he’s good-looking, so he’s gonna want to walk around with girls like me.”

‘Idiots. Why do you have to speak so loud?’

Eugene heard them talking about him behind his back. It wasn’t until the flirtatious freshmen were gone that Eugene sighed and picked up his bag.

“Quite popular now, are we?”

A sarcastic voice came from the back of the room. Cora leaned against the wall, waiting for Eugene. She looked slightly angry at the comments and words heaped upon her former nemesis. Eugene smiled amusedly as he watched her glare at the other students.

“What else can they do about it? It’s good how it’s lessening, though.”

Fighting back is exhausting. It’ll eventually die down over time.

“Anyways, aren’t the classes in the Academy quite interesting? It would be rude to compare it to some noble families’ education.”

Eugene subtly changed the subject, not wanting to devote time and thoughts to the ones far below. Cora sighed in exasperation.

“Right. I assume we both have the same lecture?”

“Of course.”

Cora’s face lit up at Eugene’s words. A class that meets on Mondays and Wednesdays at three in the afternoon. It was a class that attracted the attention of all the students in the Academy and even some professors.

“‘Basic Understanding of Monster Combat, taught by the Hero.\'”

Cora’s eyes lit up with excitement as she spoke. Eugene pretended not to care, but inside, he was also interested. It was impossible not to be curious. What kind of lessons did the seemingly uneducated Hero have for them? His experience would be beneficial, even if the class were garbage.

“Honestly, the class subject isn’t that important, is it?”

Cora nodded, though a bit reluctantly. For a class taught by the Hero, it was a mundane subject.

“Well, even so, I’m curious to know what kind of lessons he’s been preparing, and even if they’re about monsters, maybe we’ll learn something new.”

After all, if there were strong monsters, you just had to be stronger. They weren’t something you fought but instead hunted. You didn’t need a particular method to subdue them. It was unlikely the Hero fought with strategy either, as he was powerful beyond belief.

“I suppose we’ll find out soon enough.”

Eugene muttered and pulled the half-open door of the lecture hall open.

“…Oh.”

He marveled in disbelief at the densely packed room. It was supposed to be just the new students, but there were already so many people seated that it was like the entrance ceremony. Every first-year in the Academy was here. Furthermore, students from other grades also stood at the back. ‘Are they skipping class to attend this…I can’t blame them, though.’

“I guess fame is a bitch.”

Eugene muttered, and Cora shook her head.

“I’m surprised you think that’s a problem with fame. How long are you going to pretend to be such a douchebag?”

“What are you talking about? Let’s just find Natalie.”

Cora nodded. She remembered Natalie’s reaction when she heard about the Hero, the ferocity of it that made the hairs on the back of her neck stand up. Cora called out to Eugene, who looked around with a nonchalant expression.

“I wonder if Natalie is okay.”

“I’m sure she’s fine. What I’m worried about is if she’s not going to take this class.”

As Eugene turned his head so intently, a lock of glossy black hair caught his eye. Eugene’s face lit up with delight, and Cora was almost dragged by the wrist by Eugene as they approached Natalie. Eugene motioned for Cora to sit on her right, and he crept to Natalie’s left.

“You don’t have to surround me like that. I won’t run away.”

As Eugene sat down on Natalie’s left, she turned her head to look at him in disbelief. Eugene waved off Natalie’s comment with a feigned smile.

“No, I thought you were avoiding us again.”

“Don’t use ‘us’ to sneakily lump me in with you. I’m just as much a victim of your manipulations.”

Cora scowled, but Eugene ignored her entirely, focusing his attention on Natalie. She shook her head and stared straight ahead. To get her to open up, Eugene cautiously spoke.

“I thought you didn’t like the Hero.”

Natalie didn’t react at all, almost as if the scene before was a lie. She pulled a notebook and pen out of her bag. Eugene scratched the back of his head.

“Do you hate the Hero?”

Natalie’s question came out of nowhere. She looked at Eugene with a childlike expression. Eugene stammered, baffled by the sudden change in demeanor.

“I don’t…but I could see why people would. Some despise the Gods. It’s the same for the Hero. Maybe someone out there hates him.”

Eugene rambled on. Natalie rolled her eyes as if she didn’t find it all that interesting, then spoke up again.

“I don’t hate him. There’s no reason for me to hate the Hero.”

Eugene watched Natalie’s lips curl. Hero’s expression was so neutral that Eugene couldn’t help but frown a little. He didn’t know if he should talk more about the Hero, fearing it would decrease his standing with her.

“Then why did you react the way you did?”

It was Cora who saved Eugene’s life. He turned his sparkling eyes toward her as if he had met his savior, but she ignored him. Natalie looked at Cora.

“The reaction I showed you?”

“The animosity you showed at the mention of the Hero. Who was that animosity directed at?”

“Ah…It’s not that.”

Natalie’s voice was light as smoke. Eugene and Cora studied Natalie’s pensive face; she seemed deep in thought.

“Jealousy.”

Natalie defined the emotion as jealousy. As she said it, she nodded repeatedly, seemingly trying to justify her feelings. Natalie turned her head toward the lectern with a dreamy look.

“Yeah. Yeah, I think it’s more like jealousy.”

Jealousy. Eugene frowned even more. Typically, he would have dismissed the idea of being jealous of the Hero as nonsense. But he couldn’t do the same for Natalie.

Natalie’s talent is overwhelming. Her practicality makes him wonder if she needs to go through the Academy. He couldn’t imagine what Natalie was aiming for, as it was too far from his sight.

“Do you believe you should have the Hero’s place?”

Natalie glared at Eugene, unwilling to answer. Eugene cringed inwardly but backed away, not wanting to offend her further. He’d already gotten enough information to recognize her. There was a time to gain and a time to yield.

“Okay, okay, thanks for telling me.”

“Why would you ask me that?”

At Natalie’s question, Eugene smirked and held out his hand. Natalie frowned and looked at his hand.

“Because I want to get to know you. It’s natural to want to know more about my friends, right?”

Natalie snorted and turned her head away. Of course, Eugene didn’t care that he’d been rejected. She was worth being dragged in the mud for. With that conviction, Eugene pulled his notebook out of his bag.

“Isn’t he bothering you a lot?”

Cora nudged Natalie from the side. Eugene sent an unspoken signal to her to stop talking nonsense, but she ignored it with a firm pout.

“Not much.”

Natalie’s answer was a surprise. But Eugene stayed silent. If someone had approached him like this, he would have ignored them and tried to push them away.

“What, you’re not bothered by that?”

Natalie just slowly tilted her head in response. It didn’t even bother her in the first place. Eugene clicked his tongue, wondering if she was trying to tell him to back away indirectly. Eugene could feel Cora’s eyes on him.

“…Here he comes.”

The atmosphere in the classroom changed as Eugene, who had been making a lot of noise, fell silent. Cora’s eyes sparkled as she quickly flipped through her notes. Everyone in the room heard the footsteps slowly approaching before the door opened.

“Good to see you all.”

It was a calm, relaxed voice. Stepping before the lantern, the Hero’s turquoise eyes scanned the room. A few of the girls let out a small cheer at the sight.

But something was unsettling about him. The face of kindness the students expected was not there. His eyes were sharp and cold, and his mouth didn’t smile.

“My name is Elroy, and this semester, I have been assigned to teach ‘Basic Understanding Monster Combat.\'”

The Hero didn’t use his title. Eugene’s eyes widened with surprise. The Hero’s presence was enormous to the point he couldn’t even comprehend it.

“The academy has permitted me to teach an unlimited number of people, so invite others who want to listen.”

The Hero’s words were no different than any other professor’s. But the students were all listening with bated breath.

“First, let me tell you something before I start the lecture.”

He walked over to the board and picked up a piece of chalk. Glancing back, his gaze landed squarely where Eugene, Cora, and Natalie sat.

“Right now, you have no idea how to fight monsters. If I were to send you into battle again, I doubt one of you would make it out alive.”

The new students held their breath with that assertion, though a few scrunched their faces.

“However, it’s not likely that we’ll have to fight a monster, so what’s the point of your class.”

The Hero shrugged his shoulders. Cora glared at the one who asked the question. She wanted to scream, “Who’s the reason we don’t have to fight monsters-!!!” Eugene had to reach out to calm Cora, who was grinding her teeth.

“No, you need to prepare.”

However, the Hero answered the rude question nonchalantly.

“Otherwise, you won’t live to see the next year.”

The Hero’s eyes narrowed to a serious look. The weight of his words was enough to shut the freshmen up.

“And the number one goal of this class is to make sure you don’t die pathetically.”