Chapter 14: Entrance ceremony (2)

The Next Day.

“Sion! Where are you?!”

Isabella frantically ran around near the landing area, desperately searching.

She wasn’t there. Nowhere to be found.

They had landed together, holding hands tightly to make sure they wouldn’t get separated, but when Isabella came to her senses, Sion had completely disappeared.

Could something like this even happen?

Isabella felt as if she were possessed by a ghost.

“Isabella! Did you check over there?”

“I did, but she’s not there! What about you?”

“Same here!”

Martin and Isabella stomped their feet in frustration.

“What do we do? The entrance ceremony starts in ten minutes.”

“What do you mean, what do we do?! I’m not going into the auditorium without Sion! I’d rather get kicked out and sent back to the kingdom!”

“Damn it…”

Martin bit his lip. He felt the same way, but he was the student council president.

No matter how important it was to find the Hero, he couldn’t neglect his duties.

He looked around anxiously.

“There shouldn’t be any big problem. This school is pretty big, so it’s not impossible to get lost while wandering around.

Plus, the attendants and school staff are all combing through every inch of the place, so we’ll find her eventually.”

“That’s just an assumption… I can’t relax until I see her face in person! I’m going to find her myself!”

Isabella protested with tearful eyes. She knew there wasn’t much she could do besides keep looking, but still.

Why was the Hero blessed by the gods, anyway?

For once, Isabella resented Sion’s sacred body.

If it weren’t for the way holy power and magic repelled each other, they could’ve easily used a detection spell to locate her by now.

Martin sighed as he watched Isabella, nervously biting her nails.

“…..Fine. Then let’s keep searching until one minute before the entrance ceremony starts. You can use Dimension Door, right?

We’ll search until the last moment, and if we find her, we can teleport straight to the auditorium.

But if we still can’t find her by one minute before the ceremony, we have to give up and head to the auditorium.

It’s already embarrassing enough for the kingdom if two of Salem’s new students are absent. Got it?”

“Alright.”

Isabella nodded.

The two exchanged determined looks and, without waiting for each other, dashed off in opposite directions, shouting at the top of their lungs.

“Hero! Where are you?!”

“Sion! If you can hear me, answer!”

Their unanswered cries echoed in the blue sky.

Meanwhile, what was Sion doing?

“Looks like everyone’s busy looking for me~.”

“…..”

From the top of a tree in a nearby forest, Sion was calmly petting a cat and watching the commotion.

Exia, sitting next to her, looked at Sion with a bewildered expression.

“Uh… what exactly are you doing?”

“What do you mean?”

“Oh, come on, don’t pretend you don’t know…”

Exia glanced at the panicked faces of Martin and Isabella from afar.

“Why are you doing this weird stuff? Are you enjoying watching them panic or something?”

“No way. I don’t have a hobby of doing inefficient things like that.”

“Then why?”

Sion smiled faintly.

“To maximize the effect of the performance.”

“The effect of the performance…?”

Exia tilted her head.

What performance? She couldn’t think of anything.

“Let’s see… it’s about three minutes until the entrance ceremony starts.”

Sion checked her pocket watch, then placed it back in her pocket.

She picked up the cat on her lap, cradling it in her arms.

“Guess it’s time to head back.”

“Feather Fall.”

Using magic, she leaped from the tree.

A soft, feather-like breeze cushioned her fall, slowing her descent.

“Meow~.”

“Shh. Calm Emotion.”

The startled cat let out a meow, but Sion quickly soothed it.

The spell Calm Emotion, which pacified the target’s mind, had the cat once again nestled quietly in Sion’s arms.

Exia, who had jumped from the tree branch as well, asked, “Are you going back now?”

“Yeah.”

“Hmm…”

Exia tilted her head.

What was this all about, really?

Sion’s actions were often incomprehensible, but today was particularly baffling. She couldn’t even guess what Sion was up to.

One moment, she seemed to be calmly following Isabella, holding her hand, and then, suddenly, she used the Blink spell to teleport to a nearby forest.

After looking around, she hypnotized a passing cat and climbed a tree.

What did it all mean? Why the cat?

“Pardon me, Your Highness…..”

While Exia was pondering these questions, Sion cautiously approached Martin and spoke to him. Martin turned around and was shocked to see her.

“Hey, hero! Where have you been?!”

“I’m sorry for disappearing without a word…”

Sion bowed her head repeatedly, looking as if she had nothing more to say. Martin groaned and rubbed his forehead.

“No, it’s fine. The important thing is that you’re back… Are you hurt?”

“No. I’m perfectly fine.”

“That’s a relief. We were worried that something might have happened to you. It’s a great relief that you’re safe.”

At that moment, Martin noticed the cat that Sion was holding tightly in her arms.

“And that cat…?”

“It was on top of a tree.”

 Sion said nonchalantly.

“I found it while I was looking around. I don’t know how, but it had climbed to a spot where it couldn’t come down on its own… It was crying out desperately for help, so I went up to rescue it.

I intended to return quickly, but the tree was taller than I thought, so it took longer to get down. I’m sorry.”

Sion bowed her head again.

The cat was her alibi! Exia finally realized the purpose of the cat and clapped her hands inwardly. That was one mystery solved.

‘She’s really something. How does she come up with these things on the spot?’

Exia couldn’t help but admire Sion.

There were countless excuses for being late or missing, but not many that also made you look kind-hearted.

If it were Exia, she would have just used the old excuse of going to the bathroom.

Just as Exia predicted, Martin looked somewhat moved by Sion’s explanation.

“So that’s why you disappeared.”

“You don’t need to apologize. It’s rather reassuring to see you acting true to yourself. Just let us know next time.”

“Yes.”

Sion nodded, and Martin smiled warmly. His fondness for Sion grew even stronger.

Just then, Isabella appeared from around the corner behind Martin.

“Hey, did you find anything over—Sion?!”

The moment Isabella spotted Sion, she sprinted over and hugged her. Startled by the sudden movement, the cat leaped out of Sion’s arms and ran away.

“Where have you been all this time?! Do you know how worried I was?!”

“I-I’m sorry, Princess…”

Seeing Isabella’s tearful face, Sion put on a guilty expression. Of course, she didn’t feel guilty at all on the inside.

Sniffling, Isabella wiped her tears and spoke.

“Fine. You can explain later. More importantly, there’s less than a minute until nine o’clock. We need to hurry, or we’ll be late.”

“Yes, I’ll follow your lead.”

“Alright then… Dimension that bends, open the door to the promised place! Dimension Door!”

As Isabella softly chanted, the space before them distorted in real time, and a small portal appeared.

She grabbed Sion’s hand and pulled her toward the portal.

“Come on, let’s go! We don’t have time!”

“Sure.”

The three of them stepped through the portal, and a massive auditorium, capable of holding tens of thousands, appeared before them.

Isabella quickly checked the main entrance. Perhaps because the event was about to start, the doors were completely shut.

Voices from the other students could be heard murmuring inside.

She groaned. Just as she expected.

“What should we do? If we go in like this, everyone’s going to stare at us… Maybe we should use the student council’s private entrance—”

“No, let’s just go in.”

“Huh?”

Isabella looked at Sion in surprise.

“Are you sure, sis? I know you don’t like being the center of attention…”

“I can’t trouble the Prince over something so trivial.”

And anyway, this was all part of her plan, Sion thought with a hidden smile.

“Let’s get inside quickly before the host declares the ceremony open.”

“W-wait, Sion—”

Before Isabella could stop her, Sion strode forward and grabbed the door handle.

Just as the doors opened with a creak, she whispered softly.

“Frightful Presence.”

A faint wave rippled outward from Sion, spreading low and fast.

Isma von Ulmenvalt was not in a good mood.

Rumor had it that among the new students coming from Salem was the famous “Hero.”

The one who had pulled the Holy Sword and, despite being born a commoner, had been immediately integrated into the royal family—a tale of unbelievable success.

And that was exactly the part that Isma found unappealing.

He didn’t mind attending school with commoners; he could tolerate it as part of the school’s educational policy.

But having to attach honorifics and speak respectfully to a commoner—a “Hero”—was a serious blow to his pride.

“What use is there for a Hero in the modern age anyway?”

There hadn’t been a major war on the continent for over 500 years, and in that time, magical engineering had developed remarkably.

Even if not just the Demon King but his great-grandfather were to invade, humanity could now repel them.

And leading that charge would be none other than his own country’s advanced and superior army, Espera.

With such a belief, Isma genuinely thought that heroes were unnecessary.

To him, the “Hero” was an outdated idol that only priests and ignorant masses clung to.

His honest opinion about the title of “Hero” was that it was just an old-fashioned delusion.

He thought he would at least get to see how impressive she was, but she was late to the entrance ceremony… Arrogant peasant.

“Look at her, huh?”

Isma clicked his tongue.

He disliked it. While he and other nobles had arrived early and were waiting, the audacity of her arriving late irritated him.

And Isma had a tendency to “solve” problems that he found displeasing. He suspected other Esperans felt the same.

Fine. When she enters, let’s crush her with everything we’ve got. Let’s make her realize how insignificant she truly is.

Satisfied with his own “educational consideration,” Isma nodded to himself.

At that moment, the doors at the back of the auditorium quietly opened.

Not just Isma, but all the students turned to look.

Oh, so she’s finally graced us with her presence. Let’s see how precious she is, some muttered with sneering expressions.

Then.

In an instant, Isma and everyone else in the auditorium felt a shiver run through their bodies.

It was a chill they had never experienced before.

It was like facing a roaring dragon head-on—a primal fear when confronting a vastly superior being.

Death.

“…..!”

Isma’s instincts warned him for reasons unknown. This fundamental biological signal overpowered the arrogance that had been bubbling moments earlier.

Meanwhile, the one who had captured everyone’s gaze walked down the central carpet at a pace that was neither fast nor slow.

Click, clack.

With each step, her long, white silver hair swayed.

She wasn’t particularly large. In fact, she was on the smaller side.

There were no visible muscles or any overwhelming traits.

Yet, everyone in the auditorium instinctively knew:

This was the “Hero.”

“Wow…”

Someone unintentionally let out a low exclamation.

Truth be told, most of them had looked down on the Hero.

How strong could a girl who had merely been lucky enough to be chosen by the Goddess be?

Even the tale of saving the world 500 years ago was just a distant story to them. They expected to be underwhelmed.

But they were wrong. The authority of the divine far exceeded their imagination.

Just walking beside her was enough to make their legs tremble and hearts race.

“….Tsk.”

Isma let out a groan.

It wasn’t fear, he told himself. Just that a little more preparation was needed.

A revised plan. Instead of trying to teach her a harsh lesson right away, more meticulous preparation was necessary…

Not because he was scared. Absolutely not.

“Sorry for being late.”

“Uh, um…”

The girl who had walked in bowed respectfully to the teacher in front of her. Even the teacher, faced with her presence, appeared rather daunted.

Clearing his throat, he tried to regain his composure.

“You’re Sion of Ashtaria, right? Please take that seat over there.”

“Yes.”

The girl politely responded and walked to her designated seat. Every step seemed to ripple the very air around her.

Yet, there was one person in the hall who was unaffected by her overwhelming presence.

While everyone else was overawed, there was one person who maintained their composure.

“What’s she doing…?”

Mana, standing on the stage, muttered incredulously as she watched Sion stride confidently.

-“Do you know the saying, ‘There’s a fine line between fear and respect’?”

As she walked to her assigned seat, Sion telepathically spoke to Exia beside her.

-“When one sees a superior being far above themselves, they experience two conflicting emotions: the desire to flee and the desire to submit.

Fear and respect are determined by which emotion weighs more heavily. That’s why the term “reverence” exists.”

-“So that’s why you did this?”

Exia spoke with a tone of disbelief.

Frightful Presence. Commonly referred to as Dragon Fear.

It’s essentially the same concept.

It’s the aura that high-ranking demons or dragons emit, overwhelming and subduing others just by their mere presence.

It’s one of the ultimate privileges possessed only by overwhelmingly powerful transcendents.

Up until now, Sion had been suppressing that aura, but at this moment, she was letting it show. Of course, the intensity was significantly reduced so that the students wouldn’t faint.

-“Yes. This way, anyone thinking of picking a fight with me will turn tail and run.”

Sion glanced toward the group of Esperans.

-“To those pathetic ones who look down on others simply due to their birth, a straightforward stimulus like this is perfect.

Trying to persuade or communicate with them with words wouldn’t work anyway. Imprinting the difference in class onto their very souls is the best approach.”

-“So you were deliberately late. You dragged out the time as much as possible to make sure you’d appear just before the entrance ceremony began and grab everyone’s attention.”

-“As I said, presentation is important, right?”

Sion grinned.

-“There’s no point in sitting around early with your presence activated.

It’s when you open the door and walk in that you need to unleash it for the dramatic impact. That’s how it gets etched into their minds. Don’t you agree?”

-“Uh, yes…”

Exia responded with a hesitant tone. Seeing this, Sion tilted her head slightly.

-“You sound like you don’t quite approve. Do you have an issue with my method?”

-“No, I don’t think there’s an issue. Like you said, it’s efficient…”

-“Then what is it?”

Sion’s question left Exia pondering how best to explain.

That the plan had worked was evident from the students’ expressions.

Even the Esperans, who had secretly mocked and dismissed the Hero, had lost their smirks and were now visibly intimidated by Sion.

However, regardless of its effectiveness…

-“It just feels… kind of thuggish, doesn’t it? Coming on strong to intimidate from the first meeting just to avoid being looked down upon.

 It’s like trying to assert dominance with scary clothes or tattoos. What’s the difference?”

-“Hm. I don’t see the problem with that. Isn’t it a perfectly rational strategy?”

-“Well, if you see it that way, then I suppose…”

Exia gave up on arguing.

There was no point in debating it further.

It wasn’t so much about being right or wrong but rather a clash of values.

Still, she couldn’t help but think.

‘Behaving like this… will she ever make any real friends?’

-“Did you say something?”

-“No, nothing.”

Exia sighed inwardly.

It already felt like the academy life ahead was going to be anything but smooth.