"...Ugh."
As I let out a small groan, Yoon Ha-min finally looked at me.
"Kanna, are you okay?"
"Y-yeah."
Though my body ached, I felt somewhat better and pushed myself up from the floor with my arms.
The massive vibrations felt like they were trying to drag my body back down to the ground.
I couldn't understand why monsters were attacking so frequently.
I didn't want to accept it.
My body involuntarily stiffened as it reminded me of the Mysterious Person from before.
I was so terrified of the painful memories resurfacing that I squeezed my eyes shut and hugged myself tightly.
Even though I knew I shouldn't look strange, the trauma accompanied by pain paralyzed me.
I hate this. I don't want to be taken away again.
I trembled at the thought that I might be dragged back to that cave outside the Wall at any moment.
Frowning, I stopped trying to stand and settled on the floor.
"Kanna...?"
"Miss Kanna?"
Yoon Ha-min and Orca looked at me strangely.
"Eep!"
Before long, Yoon Ha-min suddenly lifted me up.
My body seemed to float through the air for a moment before landing securely in his arms.
"Wh-what...? Huh?"
Caught off guard, my mouth froze, and I hesitated without saying anything.
Without giving me time to grab onto anything, Yoon Ha-min turned to Orca.
"Orca! We need to move Kanna somewhere safe!"
"Just a moment...! My Device is..."
Yoon Ha-min said that and immediately left the training hall, while Orca turned back to retrieve her belongings and Device.
In this brief moment when we were alone, Yoon Ha-min said to me:
"Sorry for suddenly picking you up... you seemed scared because of what happened before."
Before I could resist or say anything else, I closed my mouth tightly after hearing those words.
Since he was the only person at the Academy who knew about my situation, and he was being so considerate, I had no choice but to let him carry me.
Especially since running on my own would be difficult right now.
Yoon Ha-min carried me and ran somewhere.
There weren't many safe places besides the Academy.
Moreover, when I thought about places I could go, there really wasn't anywhere except the Academy.
Wondering if he was really planning to run all the way to the Academy, I glanced up at him.
"...Yoon Ha-min."
"What?"
I hesitated briefly. But the hesitation didn't last long.
"...Please don't tell anyone that I was captured by a Mysterious Person."
"I won't."
Yoon Ha-min immediately nodded at my request.
After running for a while, Orca had caught up behind us.
It seemed Yoon Ha-min wasn't going at full speed for my sake.
The three of us were running without time to change out of our training uniforms when we encountered some servants.
But before that, Orca's voice reached us first.
"Yoon Ha-min! You and I have been summoned to the Academy!"
"Really?"
"I think we should leave Miss Kanna with my family's servants and go."
At those words, Yoon Ha-min hesitated before stopping in front of the servants.
After a moment's pause, he looked at me.
I thought staying hidden at the Ramiris estate wouldn't be so bad.
But Yoon Ha-min seemed to think differently.
"...I should change clothes first before deciding."
He was wondering if he'd rushed out unnecessarily, thinking we needed to head to the Academy.
If there hadn't been a summons from the Academy, we could have just hidden temporarily under the protection of the Ramiris family.
Yoon Ha-min turned back around.
*
After changing into my Academy uniform, I didn't have time to tie the ribbon and stuffed it into my pocket instead.
My legs, which had been wobbling until just now, were somewhat better, allowing me to stand properly.
I could walk, but running would still be impossible.
Having changed and ready to head to the Academy, Yoon Ha-min hesitated for a moment before looking at me.
His eyes showed concern about leaving me at the Ramiris mansion.
"...I'll be fine. I'll stay here."
I couldn't be a hindrance on their way.
"Yoon Ha-min, hurry!"
"Alright. I'll come back when it's over."
Yoon Ha-min said that and turned to leave.
It seemed he was having trouble leaving because he was worried about me.
I didn't want to make him worry that much, and I was concerned that I might be obstructing his path to becoming a hero.
I waved my hand to send him off.
*
The moments of practice in the training hall kept circling in my mind.
The groaning, the chest—after encountering them once, it was like my mental focus was blurred, or maybe my attention was just elsewhere.
Anyway, my somewhat eventful training continued only briefly.
Because monsters that hadn't been coming until now kept breaking through the Wall and invading after that first incident.
And at the same time, Kanna was on the floor, groaning.
Not the ear-stimulating moans from earlier, but truly painful groans.
What flashed through my mind was the image of Kanna walking along the Wall in blood-soaked clothes.
Her voice saying she'd been taken by a Mysterious Person echoed in my mind.
That's when I realized it was due to her trauma.
I wanted to help her somehow, but there was nothing I could do.
"..."
I had no choice but to leave her at the Ramiris estate.
It wasn't due to my lack of ability, but still, leaving her alone bothered me a bit.
It wasn't that I didn't trust the Ramiris family, but remembering that she was taken by a Mysterious Person from inside the Academy made it impossible not to worry.
I just thought it might be better to keep her where I could see her.
But that path was already behind us, so all I could do was head to the Academy where I'd been summoned.
As we ran quickly, Orca asked from behind:
"Don't worry. The Ramiris family manages the Wall, so they maintain tight security inside their estate too."
"That may be, but..."
Wasn't the Academy the same?
Even then, despite the confusion from the monster invasion, numerous heroes had gathered there at that moment.
So it wasn't about not trusting someone, but rather fearing what the Mysterious Person might do.
"I don't know."
No matter how much I worried, no one could predict what would happen next.
The hero observation rights given to students who ranked high academically.
Remembering that experience couldn't be bought with money, it was certainly a good opportunity.
Even if I didn't like it, I had to accept it if I ranked high enough.
Arriving at the Academy, I followed the guidance of the teachers and trailed behind the other heroes.
It was fortunate that I could try dealing with monsters using the method I learned from Kanna, but my mind was still with her at the family mansion.
"You're just a kid, aren't you?"
A woman with blue hair and blue eyes, giving off a refreshing impression, stood holding a sword.
The hero who addressed me seemed to embody the ideal image everyone aspired to.
"...Yes, I'm Yoon Ha-min, here for hero apprenticeship."
"Is that so? Do you know this is more like a practical exercise this time?"
"Yes."
She swung her sword through the air a few times and then smirked.
"They say monsters these days don't take after animal forms anymore, so be careful, okay? Follow me closely."
"Yes!"
I drew the sword at my waist and followed right behind her.
The appearance of monsters that defied the common knowledge that monsters have cores that must be destroyed.
But if you knew the method, they could be dealt with relatively easily, which is why we could try it as practice.
I drew out my power to cut off the flow of mana.
Being able to harness the properties of stars was truly versatile enough to be considered a blessing.
Emitting light, and then concentration and explosion.
If desired, I could even raise the temperature.
With my sword, I drew a quick line as I unsheathed it.
A line of intense heat crossed the monster's body.
With the explosion, the monster's body staggered.
Seeing how the sword didn't cut well explained why mana paths were positioned outside.
If I hadn't known this solution, I might have died desperately trying to hack away at a monster's body that couldn't be cut, trying to break the core inside.
Even while having such chilling thoughts, I faced a reassuring situation.
"Hey, what year are you in?"
The hero mentoring me asked with a raised corner of her mouth.
I turned my head at the question while watching the monster crash to the ground with a thud.
"I'm, a first-year."
"...First year? You're still green, but your future looks bright. Are you top of your class?"
"Yes. I'm ranked first. Though I did lose it once."
I answered with a bitter smile.
It felt like I said more than I needed to, but sharing this much would help mentors make their own judgments, which seemed good.
The hero in front of me hummed thoughtfully after hearing my words.
"My name is Sela. Someone like you could join our organization later. What do you think?"
"I'll think about it."
"Good, think it over carefully."
She said that and turned to deal with the next monster.