Ch.343Chapter 343 – The Mechanic’s Congratulatory Speech Contains Sincerity

The Main Gate of Glesius Academy.

The only entrance where outsiders cannot enter, and only faculty and students of Glesius Academy are permitted.

About 200 young men and women stood quietly in front of it, waiting for the gate to open.

They all shared one thing in common: they had earned the opportunity to enroll as freshmen at Glesius Academy this year.

Glesius Academy had always been renowned as the Empire of Gelebrio’s premier higher education institution, but in recent years, it had come to be recognized as a mandatory stepping stone for anyone seeking advancement in life.

“So this is Glesius Academy.”

“I heard it’s the cradle of heroes that has produced countless imperial legends. It really is huge…”

While everyone was gazing at the main gate—the only entrance to Glesius Academy—the gate opened slightly, and a person walked out.

“It’s time. Has everyone gathered as previously announced?”

The person who appeared through the partially opened gate was an assistant who had been assigned to guide the new students during the entrance ceremony.

“I am Assistant Gerard, who will be escorting you today. The time is now 8:30 AM. I hereby notify you that anyone arriving after this time will have their admission qualification revoked according to academy regulations and will need to take a reexamination at the end of the year. Now that it’s time, please follow me. There’s no need to walk quickly; just follow along as if you’re taking a leisurely stroll.”

As Gerard finished speaking and began walking ahead, the slightly opened main gate of Glesius Academy opened completely, widening enough for dozens of people to pass through at once.

“Now then… let’s take our first steps into Glesius Academy. Let’s go.”

As Gerard gestured to the students in front of the fully opened gate, the new students, as if entranced, slowly began walking toward Glesius Academy.

The students who crossed the main gate of Glesius Academy witnessed the surroundings change in an instant.

Despite taking only a few steps from the main gate, the walls and large gate had vanished without a trace, and they found themselves in a room filled with people wearing the emblematic insignia of Glesius Academy.

The new students were greatly bewildered by this, while the people wearing the symbols of Glesius Academy—their senior students—smiled slightly at the sight.

Perhaps because the newcomers’ expressions mirrored exactly how they themselves had once looked.

“Headmaster, I’ve brought the new students.”

While the new students were still recovering from their shock, Gerard stepped forward, climbed onto the platform, and greeted Regina.

“Good work, Gerard. You may go.”

“Yes, Headmaster.”

As Regina finished speaking, Gerard bowed his head and left the room.

“Attention, everyone.”

When Regina opened her mouth while standing on the platform, her voice, filled with weighty authority, reverberated throughout the entire room.

Only then could the new students regain their composure.

“I sincerely welcome all of you who have passed the rigorous entrance examination and are attending this entrance ceremony as students of Glesius Academy. I am Regina Blasteria, the Headmaster of Glesius Academy.”

Regina, standing on the platform, paused briefly and once again surveyed this year’s freshmen with her eyes.

From her perspective, this year’s new students didn’t excel in any particular area, but they weren’t lacking in talent either.

‘Indeed, finding someone like Pathos is difficult.’

But she wouldn’t be disappointed. This meant that Pathos was an irregular existence.

“Our Glesius Academy is not simply a place to learn knowledge and skills. From now on, you will learn and develop things on your own here, creating something uniquely yours. The process will be very difficult and challenging, but at the end of it will be the fruits of your efforts, and those who taste them will have a brilliantly shining future ahead. May light shine upon the future of all new students.”

With these words, Regina descended from the platform, followed immediately by thunderous applause from both new and current students.

Then, a well-dressed man in formal attire ascended the platform.

Among the new students who saw the face of the person on the platform, some rubbed their eyes in disbelief, while others opened their eyes wider than they ever had in their lives, utterly astonished.

The person standing on the platform was none other than the saint and apostle recognized by the Great Goddess Order, a hero who had defeated the Demon God, married the Imperial Princess to become a Grand Duke, and above all, saved the world from the brink of destruction by defeating the Demon God.

It was Pathos.

While it was a position that anyone would covet—giving the congratulatory speech at Glesius Academy’s entrance ceremony—the person who actually stood there felt extremely bothered by it.

However, since the person who had asked him was Regina, his de facto first wife, he had obediently agreed to stand here to fulfill her request.

After taking a deep breath in and out, he began to speak.

“I won’t speak at length. Standing here now, I am not the Grand Duke of the Empire, nor a saint or apostle of the Great Goddess Order, nor a hero—I am simply an individual named Pathos.”

The new students began to focus on his words. It was only natural to pay attention to someone who had been involved in so many remarkable events that had shaken the world. For those who had witnessed Pathos’s achievements, this was ‘common sense.’

“I have just one thing I want to say. As you live, you will encounter major problems before you. The easiest way to solve those problems is to look around you. While you may not be able to solve them alone, with your friends, colleagues, family, and loved ones around you—together, you can overcome even the most difficult challenges.”

Pathos reflected on his past. Unlike his previous life, where his relationships had been extremely limited, in this life, he had formed many connections.

And the bonds he had created helped him even in moments of danger, even when he had lost his life.

“Don’t get so caught up in competition that you only look ahead without seeing what’s around you. Don’t neglect to care for the people around you.”

As he wrote this, he had recalled his past life, where he had been so focused on surviving in a competitive society that he had few people around him when his end came.

Perhaps that was why?

Pathos’s voice as he read the script was filled with sincerity.

“To achieve good grades at Glesius Academy, you certainly need to stay ahead of others. But if you trample on others and damage your surroundings out of greed to get ahead, the consequences will come back to you. Compete, yes. But even as you compete, cooperate with each other. The power of one person plus another person can only produce the strength of one person, but when one person and another combine their strengths, they can produce the power of three.”

He also shared his own experiences.

“All the achievements I’ve accomplished were not done by me alone. They were possible because of the people who formed connections with me. If Chancellor Bergen Steiler hadn’t been there, would I have been able to enter Glesius Academy?”

Bergen Steiler, who had recognized his talent and arranged his transfer admission to the academy.

“Without Headmaster Regina Blasteria, would I have been able to frequently leave the academy?”

Regina Blasteria, his lover and the one who had helped him the most.

“If it weren’t for the Saint of the Sun Order, I would never have been resurrected after the explosion incident.”

Eterna, the Saint of the Sun Order who had resurrected him.

“Also, through connections I made in the Eastern Continent, I gained reliable allies to fight against the Demon God.”

Cheonhye-ryeong, the Heavenly Horse of the Cheonma Sect.

“Miss Mina Endras and Miss Elena Sandrios were my first friends at the academy.”

Though they weren’t present, this news would surely reach them soon.

He also mentioned others: Serin Ekatos, the head of the Ekatos family.

Ironbeard, the lord of the Grendillet Mountains.

The people of Beventus Border Territory, and more.

Stories of people he had helped and who had helped him flowed from his lips.

“Everyone, compete while cooperating. Competition without cooperation and cooperation without competition will only break people. I hope that all of you new students will become better people through competitive cooperation, and with that, I conclude my speech. Thank you.”

As Pathos finished his speech and descended from the platform, applause erupted from somewhere.

Soon, one clap became two, then four, then eight, and in an instant, the entrance hall was filled with the sound of applause.

‘Ah, this is so embarrassing. What on earth did I just ramble about?’

The speaker himself felt mortified, but the new students who heard this speech would indeed grow through competitive cooperation to become the Empire’s new golden generation—though that was still in the distant future.