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A girl with a familiar face sent me a gaze as if she recognized me. She looked to be around my age, yet no matter how hard I racked my memory, I couldn’t recall her name. On top of that, her eyes sparkled with warmth, making it hard to ask her who she was.

“What’s this, newbie? You know the Hero?”

“Oh, yes! We were in the same class back at the Academy!”

Fortunately, it was Stella who came to my rescue. With her interjection, I finally had a clue about the identity of the familiar girl in front of me. By the way, the Academy… It was such a nostalgic place filled with many memories from my childhood. Not only that, connections with Selian, Yuli, Anne, Frecia, and Mariel all began at the Academy.

So, who is this girl in front of me? If we were in the same class, then that narrows it down significantly. A single class at the Academy has only a few dozen students, and those are split evenly between boys and girls. And since I had been somewhat close to her, the number shrinks even more.

But no matter how much I searched my mind, no specific image came to me. The only guess I had was if she had hair of the same light brown color…

“Class President…?”

“Hahaha, what a nostalgic title. Though, I only held that position for less than a year.”

With a bit of hope, I decided to speak the word “Class President,” ready to apologize if I was wrong, but it seemed I was spot on. It turned out my instincts and sense were reliable.

“By the way, you’ve changed a lot. I almost didn’t recognize you as the Class President.”

I tapped my finger against my eye. It wasn’t a joke; it genuinely took me a moment to remember she was the Class President. Back in school, she wore glasses, but now they were nowhere to be seen.

When she wore glasses, her image of a model student and Class President was so strong that it would be hard to recognize her in an instant.

“Ah… Well, being in combat, glasses are inconvenient. I could wear them for daily life, but right now I’m in contacts.”

Indeed, as she said, glasses can be quite troublesome. When moving vigorously, no matter how secure they are, they can fly off, and should they break right in front of you, there’s a risk of going blind.

“Kraaa!”

As I was catching up with the long-lost Class President, one of the knights surrounding us charged towards us with a cry that was neither a scream nor a battle cry. Perhaps they were just testing the waters since not all of them rushed in all at once. It seems even in an infected state, they can still manage a simple attack.

I raised my hand to stop Stella, who was about to step in, and instead took a step forward myself.

This knight appeared to be more skilled than the ones we encountered inside the mansion; even in their lost state, the trajectory of their sword was quite refined.

However, just one knight was trivial. This time, rather than swinging my sword, I reached out and grabbed the man’s wrist.

With a pull and a trip, I easily toppled the knight, twisting their wrist as I brought them down to the ground. It was a bonus that I placed my aura on the knight’s nape and flipped them over.

Having disabled one knight with ease and looking around, I noticed knights slowly closing in, perhaps waiting for an opportunity.

It seemed several other infected individuals had picked up on the commotion and were closing in as well.

“For now, let’s save the reunion chat for later and deal with those guys first?”

“No! We’ll handle this! I’m sorry to push you into a dangerous place, Hero, but you need to head inside! It seems the enemy’s target is His Majesty!”

However, Erin, who had been listening to me, shouted and halted me before I could step forward. She was right; if the objective was to harm humanity, there are numerous places to ambush. But if they were specifically targeting the capital, there must be a compelling reason behind it.

Moreover, the Emperor was a prime target for the Demon King’s Army. She wasn’t just a central figure of this Empire; she was also assembling an alliance to stand against the demonic races, transcending the boundaries of countries and races across the continent.

When many people gather, opinions multiply, and those harboring different thoughts might emerge, making it difficult to unite, even in the face of a common enemy like the demonic races. Each nation prioritizes its own interests, and from an ethnic perspective, there are inherent tensions between races like Elves and Dwarves. Add personal greed into the mix, and it becomes even more complicated.

However, the Emperor defied the odds. She found ways to negotiate, threaten, collaborate, and guide the warring factions, ultimately creating a united front of human armies against the Demon King’s Army.

Of course, discord still lingers. The Emperor manages to suppress it, but if she were to disappear, the fragile alliance could crumble at any moment.

The Demon King’s Army, suffering losses due to my recent actions, I suppose aimed to turn the tables with this reckless plan. It was all but a gamble; ironically, that very absurdity caught them off guard.

“But you all…”

Yet, as much as I was urged by Erin, I still couldn’t head straight towards the castle. Among the knights surrounding us, there didn’t seem to be any particularly strong ones. However, I still felt uneasy just leaving without addressing the situation first.

“No. Let’s leave this to the team leader, as she said. Don’t underestimate me; I’m quite capable of handling this team.”

However, the Class President cut off my hesitation entirely. She nudged me aside and stepped up beside Stella.

It seemed I had no idea how long the Class President had been in this team, but surprisingly, Erin and Stella looked to trust and acknowledge her.

“…Okay. Then I’ll leave it to you, Class President. Erin and Stella, please take care of yourselves.”

“Don’t worry! We’ll take care of this and come help you right away!”

It would be disruptive to intrude on the bond between the three of them. At times like this, I had to trust them.

I left them behind and smashed through the knights encircling us, just like when I first breached the inner gates. As I moved forward, I felt disappointed that I could only offer such trivial assistance and hurried toward the inside.

*

“It’s been a while, but your kind nature hasn’t changed at all.”

Lena muttered as she watched Elysia’s silhouette fade away. It had been a long time since she last saw Elysia, but she truly hadn’t changed one bit. Three years is not a short time, so her appearance might have undergone some changes, but her heart remained the same. Instead of worrying about herself, she prioritized taking care of others.

On the other hand, there were parts that seemed changed to Lena.

Is that what being a Hero is like? Though her distant back looked small, it also radiated support and reliability. Elysia was surely a Hero back in school; yet that was a side of her I hadn’t recognized before. It felt like a difference that transcended mere status change compared to those days.

What changes separated then from now? Lena couldn’t grasp it.

Thus, instead of mulling over pointless curiosities, Lena glared at the encircling knights. Her grip on her sword tightened to the point of almost cramping.

“Newbie, don’t be too tense. We’ll fill in the gaps where you’re lacking.”

Stella, watching her from the side, lightly tapped Lena’s shoulder with her heavily armored hand. Being overly tense can prevent one from performing their best.

“You’re better than you think. Otherwise, the team leader and I wouldn’t have even considered you as our new teammate.”

A slight glance revealed that Erin nodded in agreement with a smile. It was true that both Erin and Stella were meticulous about their standards; hence, they had only formed a team of two for an extended period.

Instead of responding, Lena raised her sword. Then she raised her other hand, igniting a fiery orb above it.

Those who wield both sword and magic are often called ‘Magic Swordsmen.’ However, along with that title came the disdainful glances from others.

In truth, the title may sound impressive, but one becomes a being that is neither here nor there. Striking out in both fields often means not excelling in either.

Yet Lena ventured into magic for the sake of two unforgettable individuals.

She recalled her school days, where Elysia shone brighter than anyone else, and Selian, who sparkled just as brilliantly. Feeling envious of their talents, she cherished admiration rather than jealousy.

However, Lena knew her own limits well. Although she managed to earn decent grades through effort among outstanding classmates, she recognized that it only matched the average student level at the Academy. She was somewhat capable but hardly exceptional.

While she could sit side by side with them as classmates in the Academy, once she graduated, they would soar far away.

She understood she couldn’t reach the two she admired so much.

But being someone whose only strength was her earnestness, she never gave up. Even if it was impossible to be beside those two soaring high in the skies, she just wanted to be a branch where they could rest for a while when they needed to.

She compensated for her lack of talent in swordsmanship with effort. If one didn’t suffice, she’d try two; if two fell short, then she’d do three, taking every means possible. Clinging on desperately was the last resort for one who lacked talent.

Thus, she learned magic. Though Griffin Academy had collapsed due to an invasion, luckily, her good reputation at the Academy led to her being recommended by a professor to transfer to another Academy mid-semester.

She studied magic alongside swordsmanship. Every day, she rose earlier than anyone and slept later than everyone. Although everyone was given 24 hours, Lena used her time more selfishly than anyone.

And the place she ended up after graduating from the Academy was here, the team with Erin and Stella.

However, even after joining the team, Lena still held doubts. It was only natural for a rookie who had just graduated from the Academy and stepped into society.

Yet those doubts of Lena were quickly washed away by a single phrase from Stella and a smile from Erin.

The disdain of others towards Magic Swordsmen could no longer hurt Lena. Even if the whole world threw stones and cursed, if there were even one person who recognized her, that was enough. And there were already two.

The approval of Erin and Stella became a great source of strength for Lena. It solidified her faith in herself. Her efforts had not been in vain.

“Alright, the newbie seems prepared. Let’s wrap things up and hurry to help the Hero!”

Stella clapped her gauntleted hands and boldly shouted. As if that sound was a signal, the knights charged simultaneously.

Despite it being my first real fight, Lena felt no fear. Rather, all she could think was to wrap things up quickly and go help Elysia.

‘But they keep calling me Class President, do they really not remember my name?’

It was a rather offbeat yet accurate thought.