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“I hate this class.”

Osnia flopped onto the sofa, mumbling with just her lips moving.

Honestly, Marian secretly agreed with that sentiment. She had managed to barely get through the 20 sessions while gritting her teeth, but now she didn’t even have the strength to lift a finger. Just thinking about doing this again in the next class made her vision darken.

She had to show them… she really did.

Could she actually do it? Her confidence was wavering.

Marian languidly leaned against the dormitory window, looking out. There, Batar was running through the training grounds, looking perfectly fine even after the class ended.

She thought she might die from trembling hands while showering in her private room, but was he not tired at all? Was everyone from foreign tribes like that? Marian’s prejudice against the immigrants hardened even more.

At that moment, someone tapped her shoulder.

“Marian.”

“Huh?”

It was Titania from the same class calling her.

A warm light emanated from Titania’s hands. Instantly, the fatigue that had weighed so heavily on her body vanished, and her breathing became relaxed.

With a surprised expression, Marian asked, “Huh? What’s this? Divine power? Titania, you know magic too?”

“It’s not exactly magic, but an application of elementalism. It’s like the forest’s secret arts that only elves can use… but really, it just boosts physical vitality, so it’s not a huge help.”

“No way. It was super helpful! Thanks to you, I’m alive now.”

“I’m glad to hear that. Just let me know anytime you need it.”

Titania smiled kindly and approached flopped-over Osnia, using the same secret arts on her.

What’s going on? Is she… an angel?

Are elves actually angels?

Marian’s prejudice against immigrants started to dissipate.

“Ugh, ugh… Ughhh….”

Osnia squirmed on the sofa, mumbling zombie-like sounds as she wriggled her arms and legs after receiving Titania’s magic. In that moment, Marian realized it was recovery magic, but it felt like she was witnessing the resurrection of the undead.

Of course, there was no way Titania had learned necromancy. Marian briefly recalled the infamous elven necromancer from the last war, but linking that high elf from the Great Forest to necromancy was completely absurd.

Anyway, Titania, who even managed to revive Osnia, spoke in a somewhat disappointed voice.

“I wish I could help the other students too, but Schurz and Elizabeth are still washing up, and Saladin hasn’t even come out of his room. Batar… well, he probably doesn’t need it right now, does he?”

Peering out the window, Marian clicked her tongue as she watched Batar running even faster than before in the training grounds. A warrior of that size in armor would be like a mobile magic train on the battlefield. Of course, the nomadic tribes didn’t wear armor for religious reasons.

Just then, Gwen came into the lounge with slightly damp hair, as if he had just finished washing up. Titania approached the drying Gwen by the fireplace with an expression of relief.

“Gwen, you must be tired from running! Want me to heal you?”

“Huh? No, it’s fine. This is nothing. Back in the day, I used to climb cliffs that were several times steeper than the back mountains with my master every day!”

“Cliffs that are several times steeper than that… every day? Why?”

“Because that’s how training works. Climbing was a part of daily life, so this really is nothing unusual.”

Titania’s complexion turned pale. Marian also imagined the kind of training Gwen had endured back in his hometown and mirrored her demeanor.

No way, isn’t that basically abuse? No matter the master, is it really okay to do that?

Well, I guess to be the master swordsman’s pupil, you have to endure that much, huh?

It was already known that Gwen Tris was the pupil of the master swordsman. During the entrance exam, he had briefly become a topic of gossip in high society by openly mentioning his master’s name, so there was no way Marian, a rose of high society herself, wouldn’t know that fact.

“Indeed, he’s one of the Seven Heroes of the Continent.”

“Huh?”

“It’s nothing.”

Marian nodded to herself, convincing herself.

But Gwen was looking at her with a confused expression.

*

History of the Continent class.

Though it was called the Continent, it was essentially history narrated from the perspective of the Empire, which held the hegemony of the land. Moreover, knowledge of the Empire’s history was a fundamental requirement expected of any noble.

“… And so, Philion Grand Empire established the Fourth Empire, ending decades of continental conflict following the fall of the Third Empire. That is today’s Galatea Empire. Is there anything that isn’t clear until this point?”

Marian had no trouble understanding the class material, as she had learned history from a tutor since childhood. Instead, her mind was filled with other questions far more pressing than the class content.

The small-statured Instructor Rilya Bennett was writing on the blackboard while giving the lecture.

How is that person 26?

Is that even possible? I would believe it if you said she was my younger sister!

Schurz also seemed to share Marian’s confusion, as he was struggling to focus on the lecture with a baffled expression. He had even tried to kindly usher Rilya out of the classroom, mistaking her for another student when she first entered, despite wearing the instructor’s uniform.

The cognitive dissonance between her face and age was so severe that he hadn’t realized it was a teacher’s uniform.

“Well then, in the next class, we’ll learn about the early governance of the Philion Grand Empire! That’s it for today’s lecture.”

Aside from her stunning age, Instructor Rilya’s teaching skills were quite excellent.

Her clear enunciation and pleasant voice made the class content easily digestible, efficiently hitting the key points without overly complicating the historical explanations. Frankly, she was far better than the tutor who had taught Marian.

Even the foreign student Gwen and the elf Titania were nodding and paying attention in class.

As Instructor Rilya organized her materials and glanced at the clock, she remarked, “We have some time left. Is there anyone who has more questions?”

When an instructor says that, it’s usually polite to say there isn’t.

Some students just want to get out of class early, and one troublemaker can make everyone else wait. If you really have something to ask, you could just do so after class individually.

But in this class, there was one student who lacked awareness.

“Me!”

“Um, so… Gwen? What are you curious about?”

As Gwen raised his hand, even those students who had been eager to end the class quickly turned their attention to his question about the Seven Heroes of the Continent.

Hmm, I wonder if he was curious about what I casually mentioned yesterday? Marian thought.

“Hmm, so Gwen doesn’t know what the Seven Heroes of the Continent are? If you lived outside the Empire, that might be understandable.”

Instructor Rilya appeared momentarily baffled by the question but couldn’t disregard it, so she continued explaining earnestly.

“First of all, remember that the name Seven Heroes of the Continent is a title people made up for fun, and it’s definitely not the Empire’s official stance.”

Instructor Rilya began writing the names of the seven heroes on the blackboard.

“The Seven Heroes of the Continent refer to the seven heroes who made the most impressive achievements during the last war.”

“The Hero of Light, Wilhelm von Galatea.

“The Saint of the Battlefield, Charlotte Orsia.

“The Dragon’s Sentinel, Calvard von Kalstein.

“The Sword Saint, Jun Cheok.

“The Crimson Sage, Lewelin Elshid.

“The Goddess’ Champion, Notos Garriott.

“And, The Faceless Hero.”

“I consider everyone who fought with their lives during the last war to be heroes as well. However, many believe that without these seven, victory in the war would have been impossible, and I too agree with that view. Considering their achievements, humanity might have faced complete destruction.”

“Everyone knows the hero party, right? Two of them are among the Seven Heroes of the Continent. Calling them ‘Sword Saint’, ‘Crimson Sage’, and ‘Goddess’ Champion’ means they were essentially propping up the battlefield with their individual strength.”

“Although not particularly strong, the Commander-in-Chief of the Imperial Army who led the war, ‘Dragon’s Sentinel,’ is also considered one of the Seven Heroes of the Continent by many. Perhaps it was his operation to miraculously withdraw 90% of the Alliance Army, which nearly faced extermination in the Demon King’s plot, that was crucial. This part might come up on the exam later.”

Listening to Rilya’s explanation, Marian drifted off to another thought.

Looking at it this way, our class is closely related to the Seven Heroes of the Continent.

Elizabeth is the younger sister of the hero. Marian is the granddaughter of the Kalstein Marquis, and both Gwen and Osnia are pupils of the Sword Saint and the Crimson Sage, respectively. Even Instructor Ion is beyond just being related; he’s the Faceless Hero himself.

Gwen, with sparkling eyes, stared at the blackboard and exclaimed, “Wow! My master was friends with those people?!”

“Huh, calling them friends is a bit ambiguous, isn’t it? The Seven Heroes of the Continent refer to the most famous individuals who performed feats across different battlefronts. While there are records of them fighting together a few times, most of the time they fought on their respective fronts.”

As Gwen quietly listened to Rilya’s explanation, he tilted his head in confusion.

“Wait? But Instructor, who is the Faceless Hero?”

“Huh?”

“The name of the Faceless Hero isn’t written down, and you skipped over the explanation. Isn’t he one of the Seven Heroes of the Continent?”

“No, you’re right. The Faceless Hero is one of the Seven Heroes of the Continent. But this one is a bit ambiguous…”

Marian secretly nodded in agreement.

She understood Instructor Rilya’s attitude. Being a history instructor, she likely wanted to teach only well-documented history to the students. It would be complicated for her to discuss rumors or hearsay that circulate among people, as it’s a bit challenging when you’re a specialist.

The Faceless Hero.

An unidentified hero whose identity remains unknown—whether he’s a knight, a mercenary, a soldier, or an adventurer—nothing is revealed about him.

He exists like a legend of the battlefield, only spoken of through tales, with no documented record of him at all.

Some say he singlehandedly ripped apart thousands of monsters.

Some claim he blocked the demon lord’s army singlehandedly, saving countless soldiers.

Others speculate he might have even slain the Demon King.

After the war ended, the hero, who vanished without a trace, remains shrouded in mystery, leading to a multitude of rumors and conjectures.

There are rumors he might have lost his life during the war, and rumors that he’s a secret weapon of the Empire, purposely hidden by the royal family, even farfetched stories that Philion Grand Emperor descended to save the Empire only to disappear again, and that it was the Faceless Hero.

But Marian knows. The Faceless Hero is alive and teaching students right here.

While no one else knew, and with everyone curious about the Faceless Hero, only she knew.

‘… Huh?’

This feels strange.

Why… do I feel good about this?

I dislike Instructor Ion. It’s not even about him. But somehow, I felt a thrill from the fact that I alone knew a secret that everyone was curious about. My mouth was itching to say something, but I couldn’t. I shouldn’t let it show. Yet, it was so tempting.

What kind of expression would these people make if they found out the Faceless Hero was here?

With a compelling urge that even she couldn’t understand, Marian paced in place.

 

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