The Legendary Hero is an Academy Honor Student-Chapter 28: Fire and Lightning

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The Legendary Hero is an Academy Honor Student

[Original — Yerona]

[TL — MiT7]

[PR — Spades]

[QC — Lumi]

Chapter 28 — Fire and Lightning

——————

Classes 5 and 1 split into two teams, sitting in circles around their professors.

"Any volunteers for the match?" Halind asked.

"I nominate Leo and Chelsea!" Carl said, raising his hand.

The class nodded.

Leo, the freshman representative, had left a strong impression during trial classes, cementing his reputation as a skilled student.

Chelsea, from a prestigious hero family, had the highest entrance exam score in Class 5.

"Leo Flove, Chelsea Lewallin. Any objections?"

"None here," Leo said.

"Me neither," Chelsea added.

"Good. Carl Thomas, since you nominated, you're in too," Halind said.

"What? Others would be better..."

"No vetoes."

"Yes, sir!"

Carl joined reluctantly.

"Next?" Halind asked.

"I'll go!" Iliana said.

"Me too!" Tade added, both raising hands eagerly.

"Iliana Raden, Tade Marcoa. Four more slots," Halind noted.

"I'm in," Nella said in a languid voice.

"Nella Carven."

Nella, one of the class's prettiest girls, sparked a rush of male volunteers.

Eight players stepped forward.

"Class 5's team is set. Let's go!" Sedjen said, spreading his arms.

Hum!

Light flared across the training grounds, forming a rectangular field with mana-lined goalposts at each end.

Both teams gathered at the center.

"The match lasts 20 minutes. Winning matters, but fair play matters more. Take a moment for strategy," Sedjen said, heading to the referee's stand.

"Bold move, stepping up," Celia sneered at Carl.

"We'll crush you," Chloe added, both flashing menacing smiles.

Carl hid behind Chelsea, spooked.

After greetings, both teams huddled in their zones.

Chelsea, at Leo's suggestion, named him captain.

"Forget the top rankers—look at Class 1's other players," Tade said.

"All from noble families," Iliana noted.

"They're out to win," Carl added.

"Class 1 had the highest average score, right?" another teammate said.

As they strategized, tense, Leo, donning a glowing blue vest, asked, "Isn't a physical game like this stacked for Knight Studies?"

"What? No, Leo. Bastera isn't just for knights. Magic and Summoning Studies shine too!" Tade replied.

"Why?"

"Well, because..." Tade trailed off, then asked, "Have you played Bastera before?"

"Nope."

"You're from Dellad Kingdom, right?"

"Yeah."

"Oh, right. Dellad's remote, so you wouldn't know."

Tade covered his face. "Bastera's about scoring more goals in the opponent's net within the time limit. But..."

"But?"

"Strategy time's up! Captains, step forward! We'll decide first possession," Sedjen called.

Leo stepped up for Class 5, facing Duran, Class 1's captain.

Sedjen held a coin. "Heads or tails, Leo?"

"Heads."

Sedjen glanced at Duran, who nodded indifferently.

Ding!

The coin flipped, landing on Sedjen's hand.

"Tails. Class 1 gets first possession."

Duran, taking the transparent ball, smirked viciously. "This time, I'll crush you."

Leo shrugged off the taunt.

Duran, scowling, returned to his team and passed the ball to Celia.

"Finish explaining," Leo said to Tade.

"No time! Experience it! Here they come!" Tade shouted, tense.

Whoosh!

The transparent ball turned red, engulfed in flames.

"Here we go!" Celia yelled, hurling the ball.

Flash!

It rocketed toward Leo in a straight line.

Leo dodged urgently.

Thwack!

"Urgh!"

A male teammate behind Leo took the hit to his side, screaming as he tumbled.

Thud! Roll, roll, roll!

Celia, brushing back her hair, high-fived her teammates.

Seeing his writhing teammate, Leo asked gravely, "He's not dying, is he?"

"The vest protects us, but... it hurts like hell," Carl said, voice shaky.

Tade swallowed hard. "That's Bastera! Hit an opponent with the ball, and you gain attack rights. But if you're hit and can't move, you're out! A strong thrower could kill—it's a dangerous game!"

Leo finally understood the students' tension.

Scoring more goals was one way to win, but knocking out the entire opposing team also secured victory.

***

"Magnificent! Powerful! Elegant! Truly a Zerdinger heir!" Sedjen clapped, ecstatic.

"Halind, your class can't beat ours!"

"Game's just started," Halind said dryly.

"True! But with Celia, we're untouchable! You know Zerdingers excel at Bastera!" Sedjen boasted.

"..."

A Class 1 student raised a hand. "Why do Zerdingers have an edge in Bastera?"

"Great question! Fire attributes pack the most destructive punch in Bastera, and Zerdinger flames are rated the strongest among humans!"

Sedjen pointed at Halind, smug. "Your legendary senior, one of our first students, the Empress of Bastera, was a Zerdinger!"

Sena, listening, smiled. "We've got a flame aura user too."

Halind watched Leo grab the ball, flames bursting from it.

***

'Neutral mana inside?'

Analyzing the ball, Leo spun it on his palm, cloaked in flame aura.

Class 1 tensed, eyeing him.

"Carl," Leo said.

"Yeah?"

"Can you attack or restrain people with abilities?"

"No. Marking to block movement is allowed, but attacks are ball-only."

'So the ball's the only weapon. The team with it has the advantage.'

"Got it," Leo said.

As he processed the rules, Nella approached their fallen teammate, raising a white aura.

Light burst, and the boy's face eased.

'Healing aura? Rare attribute,' Leo noted.

Aura had various attributes, mostly for enhancing attacks, but some, like Nella's, healed wounds.

"Leo, hold the ball too long, and it's a foul—attack rights shift," Chelsea warned.

"Got it. One more thing—can you kick the ball instead of throwing?"

"Sure, but it's less accurate," Chelsea said.

"No problem."

Leo tossed the ball up and kicked it hard.

Boom!

Aura exploded at his toes, propelling the ball with his immense physical power, faster than Celia's throw, toward Class 1's goal.

"Block it!" Celia shouted.

Crackle!

Mana surged from Chloe, forming a thick ice wall before the goal.

Crash! Crack!

The ball lodged deep in the ice.

"No goals while I'm here—" Chloe began.

"Think so?" Leo interrupted.

Charging into Class 1's zone, he grinned at Chloe and rushed the goal.

"What the—!" Class 1 players stammered.

Leo leapt toward the ice wall.

"No!"

Crunch!

He spin-kicked the embedded ball.

Crack! Shatter!

The ice wall broke, and the ball soared into Class 1's goal.

Tweet!

"Class 5... scores first," Sedjen said, voice bitter.

"Way to go, freshman rep!"

"Insane reflexes!"

Class 5 cheered.

'He's no pushover,' Celia thought.

'Ugh, I let my guard down,' Chloe fumed.

'This guy!' Duran glared.

"Nice! First point's huge!" Carl gave a thumbs-up.

"Let's defend and steal attack rights!" Iliana, the mood-maker, raised her hand.

"Yeah!" Class 5 roared, energized.

"It looked reckless, but he seized the moment to score!" Sena exclaimed.

Halind shook his head. "No, that was planned."

"Huh?"

'Ain said Leo took a leadership role on the ship during orientation. He likely studied Chloe Muller's strengths.'

Chloe excelled at ice magic, with top-tier high-speed casting among first-years, making her ideal for goal defense.

Leo had anticipated this and exploited her gap.

'A strategist beyond his years,' Halind thought, stroking his chin, eyes gleaming.

Meanwhile, Class 1's counterattack began.

Duran, holding the ball, charged Class 5's zone.

Crackle!

Golden aura sparks flared around him.

Whoosh!

Chelsea matched his speed instantly.

Lightning and wind—both speed-focused attributes.

"Going somewhere?" Chelsea taunted.

"Tch!" Duran clicked his tongue, passing to Celia trailing behind.

"Oh no!" Chelsea faltered.

'Cocky, but his passes are spot-on,' she thought.

Celia, receiving the pass, barreled toward Class 5's goal.

Classmates tried to block, but she dodged effortlessly.

Leo appeared before her.

"Hey," he said.

"Knew you'd show," Celia grinned.

"But too bad. He's cocky, but—"

Crackle!

"This guy's speed is no joke," Celia said.

"Talking about raw power like yours, Celia Zerdinger?" Leo shot back.

Duran, having outrun Chelsea, leapt over Celia.

Even with speed attributes, Chelsea couldn't outpace Duran in a sprint.

Celia and Duran exchanged glares.

Their rivalry was intense, but they wouldn't sabotage victory for personal grudges.

Whoosh!

Celia passed to Duran.

Leo didn't even try to intercept.

'Giving up?' Celia wondered, glancing at Leo.

Seeing his expression, she sensed trouble.

"Duran, wait—"

Too late—Duran had thrown the ball.

Crackle!

"This ties it!"