The Strongest Student of the Weakest Academy

"Fuu..."

I adjusted my tie, tugging it just a bit tighter, before exhaling deeply.

Here I was, standing before the grand gates of Silverleaf Academy.

My academy.

The massive gates gleamed in the morning light, their silver sheen perfectly complementing the tall trees that surrounded the entire campus.

The buildings themselves were sleek and elegant, reflecting a quiet majesty, standing tall between canopies of lush greenery.

Everything about this place felt so... familiar.

So home.

Of course, I was wearing the Silverleaf uniform.

Not the standard one, though. I had the leader's uniform—the one I earned after the competition a few months ago.

It was the only uniform that I had.

Honestly, I just didn't ask for another uniform because I wanted this to be some kind of surprise.

And now...

It was the perfect time to do it.

After all, at this hour, the academy was holding its weekly event, [Catch Me, If You Can]—a game of tag, where the students could bet money on the players.

It was chaotic, fun, and most importantly, everyone would be gathered in the stadium, leaving me with the perfect chance to make my entrance.

"Alright... It's time."

I stepped forward, walking up to the guards stationed at the gates. As soon as they spotted me, their hands flew to their swords.

But before they could unsheathe them, I called out with a grin.

"Yo! How's it going, Jorge?"

One guard paused, blinking in confusion, then broke into a grin as he recognized me.

"And how's your wife, Robert?" I asked, turning to the second guard.

Their eyes went wide in shock, and they froze for a moment.

"Aestrea!"

Clang!

The sound of swords hitting the stone ground echoed in the air as both guards rushed toward me.

Jorge wrapped his arms around me in a big hug, nearly knocking me off my feet.

"It's really you! You're back!" he said, his voice full of excitement.

I chuckled, ruffling his hair.

"Yeah, I'm back." I smiled, then glanced at Robert.

"I heard you got yourself a title now, huh? Congratulations, man."

"Thanks!" Jorge grinned widely, stepping back.

"You should've seen it. The whole academy was buzzing when they heard you were coming back."

"Well, a lot's happened," I said with a small, wry smile.

We shared a few more laughs, catching up on life.

Finally, after some friendly back-and-forth, I waved goodbye to the guards.

They opened the gates wide for me, and I stepped through, taking in the familiar sight of Silverleaf Academy once again.

Swoop!

The air felt crisp, like it always did.

A gentle breeze rustled through the trees, and I couldn't help but close my eyes for a moment, breathing it all in.

"Hah... how I missed this pure air," I murmured to myself, smiling softly.

"Nothing beats it."

I made my way through the academy grounds.

The path was quiet, except for the sound of my footsteps crunching the gravel. The trees lined the paths like silent sentinels, their leaves swaying gently in the breeze.

It didn't take long to reach the stadium, and as I got closer, I could hear the noise spilling out from within—the sounds of excited voices, shouting, and laughter.

[Now... there's only one student remaining to be caught!]

The announcer's voice boomed through the stadium as I effortlessly leapt into a hidden spot above, keeping my mana concealed as best I could.

Thankfully, no one seemed to notice my movement.

From here, I could clearly see some familiar faces.

Well... familiar would be the wrong way to put it.

I knew all of them.

Derek, James, Mia, Taylor, and many more.

However, in the arena, someone caught my attention.

It was none other than Maria.

She wasn't exactly a dexterity-type mage, but she was currently the last one remaining to be caught.

And right now, she had to dodge a barrage of spells from the other students.

[...Only five minutes remaining! Can Maria defend herself against all those attacks without being tagged!?]

The announcer's voice was full of excitement, adding to the energy of the moment.

My eyes naturally followed Maria.

Mana crackled around her hands, and a powerful gust of wind sent her flying backward, creating space between her and the others.

"You're not getting away, Maria!" shouted one of the students, trying to close the gap.

CRACKLE!

SWOOP!

Lightning zapped through the air, flames shot toward her, and a massive wave of water surged in her direction—all aimed at her in a coordinated attack.

Her eyes darted, calculating her next move, and she quickly began chanting another spell, launching herself upwards to avoid the incoming dangers.

But then—something caught my attention.

A sudden surge of mana.

I turned my head, trying to place it.

Who was this?

A new face.

Never seen him before.

The man stood at the edge of the arena, his focus completely on Maria. I could sense his mana building—he was about to unleash something powerful.

『 Frost Explosion! (✦ 6th-level Spell ✦) 』

And he's using Frost Explosion...

Shit.

My heart sank, and my eyes instantly widened.

A sixth-level spell against someone who was already weakened?

That is too fucking dangerous.

FWOOP!

The spell shot toward Maria at breakneck speed.

"QUICKLY, STOP THAT SPELL!"

The professors shouted immediately in panic, and the man who had thrown the spell frowned deeply as his expression shifted from confidence to panic.

He didn't seem to be a bad person...

However, now I had another thing to do.

Snap!

I snapped my fingers.

『 Time Freeze (✯ 9th-Level Spell ✯) 』

Everything froze.

The world paused.

I bolted from my hiding spot, landing right in front of Maria in an instant. I barely took a moment to check the trajectory of the incoming spell.

With a swift motion, I snapped my fingers again.

Fwoop—

I extended my hand, catching the ball of frozen mana.

—BOOOOM!

The explosion rocked through the air, ice shards scattering like shrapnel, debris flying in all directions. The force of it blew a thick cloud of smoke around us.

"Ahh..."

Maria's voice was barely a whisper, her body trembling behind me.

The cloud slowly started to clear, and as the smoke faded, my figure became visible to the students in the arena.

I turned to Maria with a small smile, shaking out the arm that was covered in ice.

"Are you okay?" I tilted my head.

Upon hearing the familiar voice, Maria slowly opened her eyes.

Soon, they shimmered.

Glistening tears appeared on her eyelids.

Thud!

She threw herself into my arms, muttering...

"Aestrea, you big dummy, you're finally back!"

I patted her back lightly.

"Yeah... I'm indeed back."

—

"Dammit! Let's go, guys!"

The moment Derek and the others saw the incoming powerful spell, they immediately sprang into action.

Without a second thought, they dove out of the crowd, charging toward Maria.

"What the hell was that guy thinking?!" Mia cursed, her voice sharp with frustration as she bit her lip in worry.

BOOOOM!

A massive explosion rocked the air, sending a towering cloud of smoke spiraling upward.

Ice shards and debris flew in every direction, and the group froze for a moment, their faces filled with shock.

That spell could have done serious damage to Maria.

"Please be okay... Please, just be okay!" Mia whispered frantically as she pushed toward the dissipating cloud.

She could practically feel her heart beating without even touching her chest.

Then, through the thick smoke, something stirred—a silhouette.

A very familiar one.

The mist cleared out.

A man with silver hair and stunning, glowing red eyes.

He wore the leader's uniform of Silverleaf Academy, the very one that signified the strongest student of the academy.

A silver mana swirled around his outstretched hand.

It was clear to them who it was.

And then—

—Thud!

Maria launched herself into his arms, her face flooded with relief as she hugged him tightly. The rest of the group's faces shifted in surprise, mouths agape.

The entire arena fell silent for a beat before—

"AESTREA!"

The shout erupted from the crowd, a collective roar of excitement and joy. Every single student leapt from their seats, rushing toward the arena as one.

The professors weren't far behind, their expressions equally elated.

James, Mia, and Derek wasted no time.

They all jumped towards Aestrea.

Thud!

"Finally, you bastard!" James yelled, laughing as he practically pounced on Aestrea.

Mia followed HIM, her voice full of enthusiasm.

"AESTREA, I MISSED YOU!" she shouted, squeezing him in a bear hug.

Before Aestrea could even react, Derek added with his trademark grin.

"Wassup, buddy!"

They all piled onto him, sending him crashing to the ground in a heap of laughter and friendly chaos.

The group of friends was back together.

Aestrea grinned, a small chuckle escaping him as the weight of his friends crashed into him.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm back. Didn't miss you guys that much," he teased, though his smile was warm.

Suddenly, the ground seemed to shake beneath them.

The rest of the students—everyone from the academy, including the professors—rushed forward, eager to see their long-missing leader.

"Shit—we're FUCKED!" Derek said, trying to stand but getting knocked down again by the sheer force of the crowd.

THUD!

The weight of all the students and faculty flattened them like pancakes, and all Aestrea could do was laugh.

"Let me breathe for a second!" he shouted, but his voice was drowned out by the overwhelming noise of laughter and chatter that surrounded him.

But despite all this trouble, a small smile remained on Aestrea's lips.

It took a while for them to distance themselves from Aestrea, and as soon as he did, Aestrea began greeting everyone with the same familiar smile.

Aestrea was the heart of Silverleaf Academy.

No matter how much time had passed, they all felt that connection with him.

There were a large number of students, so one could tell that greeting everyone would take a long time.

So yeah... Aestrea spent two hours greeting everyone; he even made plans with many of them, so he already knew he would be busy for a while.

Until finally, only Derek's group remained.

Mia wasted no time, slipping up behind Aestrea and wrapping her arms around him in a tight embrace.

Her insanely huge chest pressed firmly against his back as she hugged him with a dramatic flourish.

"Aestrea~" she purred playfully.

Aestrea turned his head, his smile light as he chuckled.

"Mia... you're still the same as before."

Muah~

Before he could say more, Mia leaned forward and planted a soft kiss on his cheek.

"Why, of course! The only thing that's different now is that this heart of mine..." she trailed off dramatically, "...that's been torn apart by the long absence of my one true love—"

—BAM!

In an instant, Derek grinned as he shoved Mia off of Aestrea, sending her stumbling back.

"Leave the flirting for later," Derek scoffed, though his grin couldn't hide his affection for his friend.

"Wassup, dude? How've you been?"

Without missing a beat, the two embraced, a brotherly hug that felt like no time had passed at all.

James stepped forward next, fist raised in the air.

"Aestrea, my man! Finally back from your little vacation! You're looking even hotter than before!" he laughed, and the two bumped fists in a way only old friends could.

Aestrea smiled back.

"Really? It's a pity I can't say the same about you."

"Ah.. you damn bastard!"

A vein popped in James's forehead.

Slap!

He slapped Aestrea's back with all his might, but despite that, Aestrea's face didn't even show a hint of pain.

"Damn! You got even stronger?! Then, how the fuck will I catch up to you?" James's eyes widened dramatically.

"Fuck... it seems that we'll need to increase our dose of training," Derek added, exchanging glances with James.

Aestrea only shook his head at them.

They continued chatting for a while, and after that, Aestrea got teased by Mia for a while, which, unfortunately for her, didn't end up working.

Besides that, Aestrea said goodbye to Maria, who seemed a bit shy.

But even while being shy, Maria hugged him again before leaving in a hurry.

Aestrea chuckled at her actions.

"Fuu... they left me completely alone here."

He couldn't help but shake his head.

He turned around, and then his breath suddenly caught in his throat.

Fwoop!

A sudden gust of wind whipped through the air, ruffling his coat

There, standing in the soft glow of the moonlight, was a woman.

Her long hair—scarlet red, like the brightest flames—cascaded down her back, swaying because of the powerful wind.

It framed her face in a way that made the moonlight seem dull in comparison.

The rich crimson of her dress clung to her figure, the satin fabric catching the light with every slight movement.

Aestrea's gaze traveled up, meeting her eyes.

They were deep, almost as if they could see straight through him, and a soft smile curled at the corners of her lips.

It was none other than Vivian.

"Aestrea..."

Her red lips parted, her voice was soft, like a whisper only meant for him.

"I missed you."

She tilted her head, her smile gentle, her eyes locked with his in a way that made everything else disappear.

The world around them seemed to pause, and all he could do was stare back.