The training grounds of Arcadia Academy, usually alive with shouts, clangs, and bursts of mana, were silent. Deathly silent.
Luca’s eyes widened as he stepped inside. Hundreds of students filled the vast arena, yet not a single voice rose above the stillness. So stood with their arms crossed, their uniforms torn and dirt-stained. Others sat on the ground, bandaged and bruised, exhaustion etched into their very bones. Even from a distance, Luca could see the remnants of battle in their faces—the hollow-eyed fatigue of those who had fought for their lives.
W-what is this...? he thought, his throat tightening. His voice escaped in a shaky whisper:
"W-why is everyone here...?"
Selena, standing beside him, kept her gaze fixed ahead, offering no reply.
Instead, Kyle placed a steady hand on Luca’s shoulder, a wry smile tugging at his lips. "Wouldn’t you like to know?"
Luca blinked at him in confusion.
"T-they’re here... for y-you," Lilliane said awkwardly, her fingers twisting together as she tried to force the words out.
"For ?" Luca’s brow furrowed. "What do you an?"
Before anyone could answer, Aiden took a step forward, his voice ringing with clarity and authority.
"Everyone!"
At once, hundreds of weary faces turned toward him.
"Our Luca is fine now," Aiden declared, his tone firm and reassuring. "No need to worry anymore."
He raised his hand and pointed directly at Luca.
The mont his na was spoken, a wave of sound crashed through the training grounds.
"LUCA!!"
"He’s safe!"
"Thank the Goddess!"
"LUCA!!""LUCA!!""LUCA!!""LUCA!!"
Exhaustion was forgotten as the students erupted into cheers. So raised their fists, others stomped their feet against the stone floor, their voices hoarse yet filled with raw joy. Laughter and relief mingled together in the uproar. Faces that monts ago had been blank with fatigue now shone with genuine happiness, their eyes fixed on him—on Luca.
Luca stood frozen, dumbfounded, as if the ground itself had shifted beneath him. W-what? W-why...? His lips trembled as he muttered under his breath, unheard beneath the cheer:
"W-what did I do to deserve this...?"
Then, amidst the chaos, the sharp click of heels echoed against the marble floor. The cheers softened to silence as a clear, authoritative voice rang out.
"What did you do?"
The crowd parted, revealing a woman whose presence commanded respect. Her gaze swept the grounds before fixing firmly on Luca.
"Professor Seraphina?"
"You stayed calm even when everything seed hopeless. You gathered everyone together, gave them the will to fight against the cultists. If not for you, many here would have died." Her tone grew heavier, each word pressing into the still air. "Then, with only three allies at your side, you faced a thousand cultists—including two Archmages and a Spatial Expansion Stage expert—and massacred them. Enemies who had more than enough power to slaughter everyone present here."
She lifted her chin slightly, her eyes burning with conviction. "They all fought those cultists. They all understand what you did. That’s why, since the mont they returned to the academy, every single one of them has been waiting here, without rest, for you."
All around him, the students’ gazes bore into him—no longer just relief, but respect. Gratitude. Admiration.
Luca lowered his head, his hair falling into his eyes as he clenched his fists at his sides. His chest tightened painfully, his throat dry. He shook his head faintly, as if trying to swallow down the emotions threatening to spill out.
This... What is this feeling?
He let out a small, shaky chuckle. Is this what it feels like to have so many people... care for you?
His lips curved into a bitter smile. How ironic. What I never had in the real world... I’m getting here, in this ga world.
Kyle nudged him lightly. "Don’t you think you should say sothing to them?"
Luca took a deep breath, stepping forward into the center of the training ground. Hundreds of eyes followed him, silence falling once more as if the world itself waited for his words. He let his gaze sweep over the battered students—faces streaked with dirt, robes torn, bandages wrapped around arms and legs, yet all of them burning with the sa fire.
"I..." his voice began steady but low, echoing across the grounds, "I don’t know if I deserve all of this. But I do know one thing—this wasn’t my victory alone."
He looked toward a group of students sitting together, their heads lifting at his words. "Every single one of you fought. Every one of you endured. When everything seed lost, you didn’t run. You stood. That courage is the reason we are here."
He let his words hang for a mont before his eyes swept the crowd again. They stopped on Aiden, standing tall with his arms crossed. "There are those who led with unwavering resolve, who took charge even when despair was thick in the air. A friend who answered my call without hesitation... and whose steadiness gave others the will to fight on."
Aiden’s stern face twitched, his brows knitting before he gave a curt nod, hiding the quiet pride in his chest.
Then Luca turned to Selena, whose cold eyes were fixed on him, unreadable as ever. "And there are those who, even when their voices cut sharp, never faltered. Who faced danger head-on, their strength a wall for the rest of us to lean on. Their sharpness, their clarity—it saved more lives than anyone will ever count."
For the briefest mont, Selena’s lips parted, but she quickly shut them, crossing her arms tighter. Still, a faint glimr softened her usually frosted expression.
His gaze shifted again—this ti to Lilliane, who fidgeted awkwardly under the weight of his eyes. "And there are those who found themselves in unfamiliar places, who fought battles they never imagined they’d face... yet chose to stay, to endure, even when fear tried to crush them. That courage—quiet as it may be—is no less valuable than any blade or spell."
Lilliane’s cheeks flushed, her lips trembling as if she wanted to say sothing but couldn’t. Instead, she lowered her head, hiding the small, guilty smile that tugged at her mouth.
Finally, Luca looked at Kyle, who stood smirking in the corner. "And then there are friends who, despite rivalries and playful words, never abandoned us. Who stood shoulder to shoulder, not as opponents, but as brothers-in-arms. Even rivalry, in its own way, has forged us into sothing stronger."
Kyle chuckled lightly, brushing his nose with the back of his hand, but his smirk carried sothing genuine this ti—sothing warr.
Luca then cast his gaze wider, letting it fall upon the two boys who once fought bitterly but now stood arm in arm. His smile widened faintly. "Even those who once stood apart... now stand together. This unity, this bond—it’s brighter than any fla. It is proof that we are not just survivors—we are comrades."
The two boys flushed, scratching the back of their heads awkwardly, while those around them laughed softly and clapped their shoulders.
Lisa, standing at the edge, blinked rapidly as her throat tightened. "I didn’t know... my brother had this side to him..." she whispered, her small hands clenching at her chest.
Aurelia stood beside her, arms folded, her athyst eyes softening with pride. "That’s Luca for you," she said, her voice carrying warmth.
Luca turned his gaze across the sea of students, eting eyes, giving each face the weight of recognition. His voice rose, firm and unwavering.
"So let no one here think they were useless. No one here was weak. Without each and every one of you, we would not be standing here now. Rember this—we all bled, we all fought, we all endured. And that ans..."
He lifted his arm, pointing across the crowd, his words ringing with conviction:
"...we are all heroes here."
The silence cracked like thunder as the training ground exploded into cheers, raw and unrestrained, their voices shaking the air. Tears welled in the eyes of so, while others raised fists, shouting his na.
But as the roar filled the air, Luca’s gaze shifted—and froze. At the far end of the training ground, a lone figure had arrived, standing with arms crossed, a frown etched on his face. Eric.
Luca’s brow furrowed. Where was he this whole ti? Why does he look so distant?
Then, like a strike of lightning, another thought stabbed through his chest—
T-that’s right... Where are the Saintess and Big Bull?
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