Academy – Hero

body {
font-family: Georgia, serif;
line-height: 1.6;
max-width: 800px;
margin: 0 auto;
padding: 20px;
}
h1 {
color: #333;
border-bottom: 2px solid #ddd;
padding-bottom: 10px;
}
p {
margin-bottom: 1em;
text-align: justify;
}

-KWA-AAAAANG!

White light erupts from Jade’s body.

‘Finally!’

As the moment I had been eagerly awaiting for months materialized before my eyes, I barely managed to suppress the cheer that threatened to burst from my lips.

Jade had succeeded in being reborn as a Hero.

The powerful energy rippling around Jade.

Mana fluctuating as if drawn by a magnet.

Even the right eye shining with a blue light.

Even I, who had anticipated everything, felt captivated by the sacred spectacle before me.

Was I like that when I awakened in the distant past?

It’s almost a shame that no one remembers when I became a Hero.

‘The timing of the awakening was better than expected.’

I was worried that Jade might fail to awaken in this duel, but it happened at the perfect moment.

If he had lost and become a slave, it would have been troublesome to fix. In that situation, the only way would have been for me to use my power to break the contract.

Anyway, it was an unnecessary worry.

Well, Jade wasn’t chosen as a Hero for nothing. If he gave up in the face of this much hardship, he wouldn’t be worthy of being a Hero.

The awakening conditions for a Hero that I know are quite interesting.

The more one rages and strengthens their will to protect or save someone, the more their power gradually awakens. When they reach a certain threshold, they fully awaken the Hero’s power.

I was in a similar situation, so it must be true.

As expected, Jade awakened magnificently.

Sometimes I wonder if they should just let the Hero’s power awaken immediately.

From the Goddess’s point of view, it seems like they want to ensure it’s used only when one is qualified to wield the power…

But from the Heroes’ perspective, they awaken only when they’ve lost someone or are about to lose someone, which is absurd.

“You had more hidden? You’re really persistent. Just fall already!”

Doran haphazardly fires magic at Jade.

I should step back now. I don’t want to get in Jade’s way.

I calmed my excited heart, straightened my clothes, and retreated to the corner of the dueling arena. From a safe distance, I began to watch Jade’s actions after awakening his power.

Curiosity about the unfolding events surged within me.

It’s just kids bickering to me, but watching fights is always fun.

Should I beat Doran up? Cut off his limbs?

Or maybe… kill him?

I don’t think that would happen, given Jade’s personality.

-Whoo-oong

Mana gathers in Jade’s hand, instantly creating Aura. He reaches out to the incoming magic.

-Fasaak.

Each time Jade, having awakened his power, swings his arm, the magic crumbles.

‘It’s a cheat-like ability.’

It’s a power I miss.

When you awaken as a Hero, you can draw in and use the surrounding mana, and you can see the flow of mana with your blue right eye.

Thanks to this, Heroes can even break through magic of a higher level than themselves.

When you reach my level, sensing and analyzing the flow of mana isn’t difficult…

But there’s a difference between that and being able to see it in detail with your eyes.

Soon, Jade arrives in front of Doran and grabs him by the neck.

“Surrender quietly.”

“Ugh, you lowly commoner!”

Just as Doran is about to make a last-ditch effort without surrendering,

-Seogeok.

Jade simply cuts off one of Doran’s wrists.

“Oh…”

I couldn’t help but exclaim in admiration.

He had never shown such a cruel or brutal side before, so he must have had a lot of pent-up anger towards Doran.

“This is revenge for Lena and me. Should I do the same to your other hand?”

“Hwaaak! I, I understand. I’ll surrender. I surrender!”

In the end, Jade gets Doran to surrender.

“The winner of this duel is Jade.”

““Waaaaaaaah!””

Cheers erupt along with the instructor’s declaration of victory.

Even if I orchestrated this situation, it’s still an amazing sight.

You could call this a ‘miracle.’

-Sreureuk.

With Doran’s surrender, the contract is fulfilled, and the connection between Doran’s and my mana is severed. The expensive contract is worth it, as the effect is applied quickly.

Jade, who had been standing there with a dazed expression, looks around and finds me, then,

“I did it…”

He leans slowly to the side with a relieved expression.

-Tadadak!

I quickly run to Jade and catch his falling body.

“Oof.”

He was unconscious in my arms with a peaceful expression.

-Molkang.

When I hugged him a little tighter, Jade’s face was buried in my chest. My breasts were exposed, revealing my fair skin, because Doran had torn my clothes earlier.

I feel like a mother holding her baby.

Ugh.

Thinking about it like that gives me the creeps.

Some might ask why I went to the trouble of planning such a complicated scheme.

Of course, I could have dragged Jade away and killed or tortured someone close to him in front of him to awaken his power…

But if I did that, I would become Jade’s eternal enemy and be chased forever. A fully realized Hero is not an easy opponent, even for me.

Having lost the Hero’s power in the past, I needed it again for my plan.

Whenever a Demon King was born, someone with the power of a Hero inevitably appeared.

I found out about the Demons’ plot to revive the Demon King and wondered if the Hero’s power would return to me.

But once the power disappeared, it never came back.

In the end, I had no choice but to travel the world in search of someone who had been granted the Hero’s power.

One day, while rummaging through back alley rumors and information guilds, I heard information that someone had seen a sacred ray of light descending near the Veil Academy.

It was something a low-level informant had seen alone, so most people dismissed it as nonsense…

But as soon as I heard that story, I remembered someone in the old days saying they saw a ray of light falling on me.

‘This is it.’

I wasn’t sure, but my intuition told me that there was a Hero there.

I immediately headed to Veil Academy. But I ran into trouble from the entrance.

‘But what do I do now?’

I came to the academy without thinking in my excitement, but the problem was that I didn’t know who had been chosen as the Hero.

The completely sealed Hero’s power couldn’t be detected even with my abilities. And what if the person chosen as the Hero wasn’t here?

“Ugh… Is it another wild goose chase?”

As I blamed myself for making such a hasty judgment and slumped on a chair by the roadside,

“Hey, what classes are you taking today?”

“I have swordsmanship and… history.”

“I only have swordsmanship with you. See you later, then.”

Some students were chatting happily as they passed through the entrance of the academy.

‘Academy…’

As an orphan, I was taken in by a mercenary group and raised as a mercenary, so I never dreamed of academy life.

But perhaps everyone in the mercenary group back then had imagined it at least once.

Being born into a wealthy family and naturally entering the academy.

Making new friends, taking exams, and building happy memories.

Seeing the students reminded me of a forgotten dream from the past.

‘Now that it’s come to this…’

In the end, I naturally decided to live at the academy for a while. Even if there was no Hero here, it seemed like it would be a good memory.

It wouldn’t be bad to take a break and fulfill a small wish. Although it’s a bit embarrassing to hang out with kids who are now adults at my age.

A few days later, I created a fake identity and enrolled in the academy. And I scanned the students, constantly looking for who might be the Hero.

I also went back to my youth and enjoyed academy life. Since the students had little social experience, whether they were nobles or commoners, they seemed like chicks chirping to me.

In the meantime, it was purely by chance that I found out that Jade had the power of a Hero.

**

It was during a group assignment when we encountered a Black Orc and were struggling.

Normally, it would disappear with a wave of my hand, but since I was hiding my power, it was difficult to deal with it in one go.

“Kkueeeeek!”

“You’re annoying!”

-Pook.

Even when I infused mana into my swing, the sword didn’t penetrate its black skin properly. It’s not for nothing that most adventurers run away when they encounter a Black Orc.

At this point, I have no choice but to use Aura…

―Sswaaaaaek!

The Black Orc’s club rushed towards me as I was wondering whether to use Aura or not.

If it’s this much, I can easily dodge it to the side—

“Watch out!”

-Peoeok!

“Eh?”

Suddenly, my body was thrown forward. Jade, who had appeared from behind, pushed me away.

-Kwang!

Jade was hit by the Black Orc’s club instead of me and flew away.

‘What a foolish thing to do…’

It was an attack I could have avoided easily, but I didn’t expect Jade to step in like this.

I didn’t think he was that important, but I had to save him first, so I quickly dealt with the Black Orc and ran to check on him.

I stroked Jade’s face to check his consciousness—

-Twitch!

At that moment, I felt a very faint but warm energy from Jade’s chest.

‘T, this is…?’

Others might not have noticed, but I couldn’t possibly not know what this power was.

It was the aura of a Hero.

**

Thinking about it now, the Hero’s power must have awakened in response to Jade’s will to protect me by throwing himself.

I was definitely lucky. Maybe it was a gift from the Goddess for all the hardships I’ve been through.

From then on, I devised a plan to awaken Jade and allow me to feel pleasure.

First, I would seduce Jade to build goodwill and naturally create a connection. It would be ideal if Jade fell completely for me.

Then, using Doran, who was flirting with me, I would have Jade witness me being humiliated to awaken the Hero’s power.

In this process, I would enjoy myself falling into depravity as Doran takes me.

What a great plan, isn’t it?

Of course, it was a plan that could have gone awry, but it went almost perfectly.

Thanks to Doran taking me so enthusiastically, I was very happy for a week, and the reactions of the students, as well as Annie and Jade, were the best.

In conclusion, I enjoyed my academy life this time.

It’s in the top five of my experiences so far.

“Ugh…!”

I hear Jade’s panting groan.

Surprised by the sudden sound, I looked down and saw that Jade’s face was buried in my chest, making it difficult for him to breathe.

‘Oops.’

I was lost in thought and must have hugged him too tightly without realizing it. But wouldn’t being suffocated by my big breasts be a reward for Jade?

I loosened my arms and created space.

Then, when I looked at Jade’s face, he had a peaceful expression again.

“Hoo…”

Anyway.

I gently stroked Jade’s cheek, who was still unconscious. Dirt and some blood from his face came off on my fingers.

“Jade, I look forward to working with you in the future.”

Because our journey is just beginning.