---

The protagonist’s day begins early in the morning.

No matter how much of a coming-of-age story it is, a novel where one can grow without effort simply doesn’t exist.

Growing without effort is just pure wish-fulfillment.

So, Arthur grabbed his sword and headed to the Training Grounds before the sun even rose.

Because as popular as the Training Grounds were, he needed to secure a spot early.

Currently, he was positioned in the upper echelon of Class B.

As a reincarnator, he had obtained various opportunities and was progressing at a significantly better rate than the original Arthur.

Even so, it wasn’t enough.

If it’s a cliché of a reincarnator intervening in a novel, the story’s pacing had become much quicker than the original.

To keep up with the fast pace, training without sleeping for 24 hours would barely suffice.

He needed to reach Class A as soon as possible.

Thinking about the events that would soon unfold, he needed to be at least at that level to easily fend them off.

Otherwise, he would end up struggling just to block everything.

‘In the Behemoth event, Arthur was knocked out for three days…’

A massive event coming up months later.

In the Behemoth defense battle, the original Arthur suffers severe injuries while clashing with a Demon.

Fortunately, he manages to stop it but ends up hospitalized in the Health Room for three days as a price.

He didn’t want to experience such pain or waste time.

Along with that, something else motivated him to work harder.

‘Luke…’

That extra reincarnator was currently at the Academy.

He learned the previous day from Tia during their chat that he had come to the Academy.

And as a guest professor, no less.

It didn’t stop there.

Rumors spread quickly.

There were already whispers about him brutally assaulting the B-Class professor under the pretext of a spar.

Setting aside the cruelty,

‘His skill is definitely…’

Strong.

For some reason, the extra’s growth speed was far superior to that of the protagonist himself.

He felt he was gradually falling behind, so starting today, he planned to adjust his training hours to wake up earlier and sleep later.

Thus, Arthur arrived at the Training Grounds after drinking a Magical Power-enhancing potion he had obtained at an auction.

But lo and behold, there was already a guest at the Training Grounds.

‘…Who is it? At this hour?’

It wasn’t the first time he had come to train at this early hour.

For several months now, he had been following the same routine, and he hadn’t seen anyone but himself at the Training Grounds at this hour.

With navy blue hair and blue eyes, he was icing the Training Grounds with a cold chill.

Coincidentally, he was someone Arthur recognized.

‘Daio Brando?’

He was a rival character of Arthur’s past life, so it would have been more strange not to know him.

That made it all the more perplexing.

Daio was originally arrogant.

He would usually laze around while everyone else was training, not someone who arose early in the morning to grind hard like an ant.

‘What the…?’

He hadn’t become diligent until after he encountered Arthur.

However, Arthur had not yet personally contacted him.

It was difficult to meet as they were not in the same class, and he knew enough about Daio’s personality to avoid stirring up trouble unnecessarily.

So, what had changed this time?

To uncover the reason for this anomaly, Arthur approached Daio.

*

He believed he was the best among his peers at his age.

In a world that praised him as an elite, he was a talent marching to his own beat.

Although there were the First Best and Second Best above him, he thought he could catch up quickly.

He also held some belief that there wasn’t a significant difference.

Of course, there were many in the world who possessed unreasonable strength.

From the Academy professors, high-ranking adventurers, to the only three S-Rank adventurers existing on the continent.

With Lucia Marygold retired, that number was down to two, but that did not diminish their status.

Even retired, they had merely changed professions; their strength remained the same.

They were all martial warriors of a certain age.

Having honed their skills through multiple life-and-death battles based on outstanding talents, he thought he could eventually reach that level with time.

However, just yesterday,

he had encountered an extraordinary being.

At first, he didn’t know who it was.

From the initial impression, he had been spewing curses and showing laziness despite holding the title of professor, which made him instantly annoyed.

He had thought to give him a little lesson.

Using a handshake as a pretext, he froze Daio’s hand.

And as he turned to climb the stairs, he suddenly heard a voice and felt an indescribable pain in his abdomen, causing his consciousness to flicker out like a match flame.

When Daio eventually woke up in the Health Room, he learned about Luke through his followers.

Luke.

Someone who miraculously enrolled in the Academy without Magical Power, he had been the worst student in the entire school.

He was the one who suddenly dropped out and became a temporary professor.

Which means, the pain he suffered was due to an attack that required not a shred of Magical Power, only pure strength.

How could someone his age possess such power?

No matter how much he was ambushed, getting knocked out in one hit was nonsensical.

Experiencing a strength of a different dimension made him feel small.

That’s why Daio came to the Training Grounds early in the morning to train.

“Huff!”

He spread his Magical Power throughout his hands.

Releasing it aimlessly in all directions without restrictions.

It was a level of Magical Power he had never pushed to the limit before.

Having always used just enough and slacked off, his body cried out in pain as he was suddenly pushed to the limit.

It felt like he was pulling on the Magical Power circuits in his body with his hands.

That was horrific pain that couldn’t develop tolerance like bodily organs.

“Hah…! Hah…!”

In just a moment, he was drenched in sweat like rain pouring down.

“Daio Brando?”

It was then.

A voice called out from over Daio’s shoulder.

“Who is it?”

When he turned around to check, there stood a familiar man with a fine complexion.

Could there really be someone else utilizing the Training Grounds at this hour?

“Ah, sorry. I’m Arthur from Class B.”

Not having a surname indicated he was a Commoner who dared to address him that way.

However, considering what had just happened, Daio had no intention to provoke anything.

After all, he was currently busy training.

“…I see.”

That short dismissal meant he had no further intention to converse.

Yet, the oblivious Commoner didn’t leave and spoke up again.

“Hey, are you training?”

Wasn’t it obvious?

“Why? You’re in Class A, aren’t you? Shouldn’t you be strong enough?”

He had thought so too, until he met that guy.

“Who? Who is he?”

“Luke.”

“……”

There was no response after the answer to the question.

For some reason, Daio felt it was finally quieting down, so he intended to resume his training.

“Do you want to train together?”

If he hadn’t heard that proposal from behind…

“…What?”

Did he mishear that?

“No, if you’re going to train, it would be more efficient to do it together rather than alone.”

Was this guy really looking down on him?

The person in front of him had just introduced himself as a B-Class student.

Even if Luke was an anomaly, Arthur was Class B, and Daio was Class A.

It was as if the Academy was proving he was stronger than Arthur.

“Let’s forget what you just said.”

There was no need to waste time on a duel with a predetermined outcome.

However,

“Are you scared?”

“……”

How did he manage to pick only words that would provoke him?

If this were an actual battle instead of a duel, he would have complimented him.

Success in provocation during combat was directly linked to victory.

“Fine. If you want to duel, I’ll oblige!”

Immediately afterward, Daio swung his hand downward towards the ground where Arthur stood.

-Crack!!

Of course, the opponent wouldn’t just stand still.

Arthur drew his sword.

Not a mage’s weapon but that of a warrior, he struck it vertically towards the front.

With that, a line burned like a fuse and charged towards the ice he had deployed.

The steam produced from the collision filled the Training Grounds as Arthur, seizing the moment, sprang out of the vapor to launch a surprise attack.

Once horizontally, once diagonally, once upward.

Yet, Daio chose to dismiss Arthur.

He responded to the gracefully sweeping blade with an ice shield.

Mages, who are weak at close combat, still learn a certain degree of close combat skills.

Close combat isn’t solely the domain of warriors, but naturally, warriors are at an advantage over mages, thus Daio chose to block rather than counter with his sword.

The blade ricocheted off the shield, and Arthur and Daio ended up in a face-off position.

“Phew… not bad.”

“Hah… right?”

It seemed they had shown everything they had.

Both were preparing their trump cards.

Then, out of nowhere, a shadow covered the Training Grounds.

“……?”

What’s going on?

Arthur and Daio glanced up at the sky simultaneously.

“What… is that?”

“What the heck?!”

The shadow wasn’t limited to just the Training Grounds.

A massive shadow settled over the Academy. No, over the Empire as a whole.

*

‘What in the world?!’

Arthur could only be dumbfounded upon confirming the source of the shadow descending upon the Empire.

The culprit for the shadow was the monster he had been contemplating before arriving at the Training Grounds.

The Behemoth.

Due to the gigantic mass reaching hundreds of meters, all he could see was the belly of the Behemoth, but thanks to the narrative present in the novel, Arthur knew exactly what the Behemoth looked like.

Resembling a gigantic whale, the Behemoth’s body was white, and its belly was blue.

Extended wings jutted out from either side of its body, with fins below and big round, gentle eyes beside its giant toothless mouth.

However, despite its gentle appearance, that massive form could wipe out the Empire just by landing.

The real question was why it showed up now.

Normally, the Behemoth event wouldn’t occur for at least another two months.

Even if the pacing had quickened, this felt far too rushed.

‘How could I prepare like this?!’

His plan to train and smoothly block the event had crumbled.

-ROOOOAARRRR━━━━━━━━.

The deafening, wondrous roar shook his eardrums, leaving no room for awe.

The Behemoth’s mouth opened, and countless monsters burst forth.

Monsters of all types and ranks scattered about.

“This is insane…!”

Arthur quickly sprinted away from Daio, who was ranting behind him.

Soon enough, the Behemoth would come crashing down.

The crucial point of this event would be then.

As its altitude lowered, they could penetrate the Behemoth and defeat the Demons manipulating it from within.

Arthur dashed towards the female dormitory at full speed.

He needed to gather the heroines.

Given the unsettled circumstances, he required allies to help him.

At this point, the only ones who could potentially be of help were the heroines, besides the professors.

As per the original story, the professors would defend the Academy students from the deluge of monsters, while Lucia would directly battle the Behemoth.

Upon arriving at the female dormitory, Arthur first headed toward Tia’s room.

She was the easiest heroine to persuade and trusted him the most.

-Knock Knock!

“Tia! It’s me, Arthur!”

Upon hearing the ruckus outside, Tia flung open the door in a rush.

“Arthur?! What’s happening outside?!”

“I’ll explain in detail once I join the others!”

“Okay!”

As expected, Tia, high in likability, immediately agreed to follow him.

Next, he headed to Stella.

Stella’s door was slightly ajar, and her face peeked out from inside.

“Stella!”

“Ah! Arthur! Tia!”

Seeing Arthur and Tia, Stella quickly dashed out of her room.

“…I was so surprised. It got dark all of a sudden, and there was a loud noise.”

Given the recent succession of Demon and Demon incidents, it was only natural to feel anxious at the slightest disruption.

Thus, it made sense that Stella would be scared.

“Now we only need Riche. Let’s hurry and pick her up.”

“Yes…!”

They raced down the hallway up to the stairs.

While Tia and Stella were on the same floor, Riche’s dormitory was on the upper level.

But… would he really be able to persuade Riche?

After all, their likability had plummeted, making him uncertain.

As they ascended the floors toward Riche’s room, they found Riche waiting in the hallway.

She stood in a position defensive enough to react at any moment.

“Riche!”

“……!”

“Wait, it’s me, Arthur!”

At the moment she sensed a potential foe and was about to channel her Magical Power, upon confirming he was an ally, she relaxed.

“What’s happening right now?”

“We’re all together now, so it’s time to explain.”

Arthur recounted the events that occurred in the Training Grounds, cleverly interweaving the information he knew along with details about the Behemoth to explain the situation to the heroines.

“That dangerous monster is currently above us…?”

“An A-Rank Monster… I’ve never seen one before, but it’s indeed incredible.”

“Then, what should we do?”

If someone knowing nothing about the situation reacted that way, it was a normal response.

“Guys, I know how to deal with it, but will you help me?”

“There are Deans and other professors here, and we’re to solve it?”

As always, Riche seemed displeased. She was not wrong in her grievance.

Still, given that there was only one way to stop the Behemoth, there were no alternatives.

In other words, they had no choice but to act.

“The professors are protecting the other students, and the Dean will be confronting that monster. Just its landing could wipe out the Empire.”

“I can’t believe you. Almost dying a few times is hardly anything.”

Just as expected. It seemed persuading her wouldn’t be easy.

What if he made it so she would want to step in herself?

“There are Demons inside. You might be able to gather the information you want.”

“……!”

Arthur subtly prodded her soft spot.

How he knew this was secondary; having already mentioned Demons, Riche was left with no choices.

Everything she worked hard for was centered around catching one Demon.

Since the scale of this event was significant, she could later handle it alone if time passed, but if that happened, she would miss out on important growth opportunities.

“What do you think, Riche? Would you like to help?”

“…….”

There was no wait. She didn’t respond, but her silence was a sign of affirmation.

Thus, Arthur and his group exited the dormitory.

What lay before their eyes was a scene of chaos, markedly different from when the Behemoth first appeared in the sky.

Timid students hurried to flee, and magical spells flew from every corner.

Furthermore, outside the Academy, the screams of commoners echoed, and sounds of combat from the Knight Order and adventurers rang out.

“Guys! Let’s hurry!”

They needed to resolve this tragedy quickly to minimize the number of victims.

The moment the Behemoth was about to land, Lucia’s attacks would provide the timing.

At that moment, an enormous wave of Magical Power swept across the area.

Turning back, Arthur looked at the highest building of the Academy.

Above it, Lucia hovered in the sky.

Naturally defying the laws of nature, both Arthur and the heroines could only watch in awe.

“Is that an S-Rank Adventurer…?”

“For sure, the Dean is beyond what can simply be called a monster.”

“Incredible… really amazing…”

Truthfully, she was just pushing the ground down with overwhelming Magical Power to hover.

The principles appeared simple, yet only someone as exceptional as Lucia could replicate such a feat.

Then, the altitude of the Behemoth began to slowly drop.

A small spark ignited in Lucia’s hand, rapidly expanding as it soared toward the Behemoth’s belly.

That flame could no longer be described as just fire.

It resembled a small sun.

-ROOOOAARRRR━━━━━━━━━━━━!!!!!!!!!!

The intense magic struck the Behemoth’s belly directly, transforming the sun blue and resulting in a colossal explosion.

Caught off-guard by the unexpected pain, the Behemoth halted mid-descent.

“Ah…!”

Arthur snapped back to reality after zoning out.

With full force, Arthur and his party headed for the Behemoth’s face, confirming the still-open maw.

Utilizing Magical Power for a physical boost, they leaped high into its mouth.

Daio, who had awaited their entrance, was already there.

“Welcome.”

Luke.

The one he disliked the most was already there, setting a pot over an open fire below.

 

---