Is it wrong to try to meet someone in a dungeon?

"Well then, Nano and Luke, you two, being Level 3, should greet Instructor Lefia first."

"Ah, yes!"

Upon hearing Yarisa's instructions, the human girl responded in a loud voice, while another human male student who had not joined in the welcoming ceremony stood up from his seat.

"I am Natalie Noel Kradfield, please just call me Nano!"

She was smaller than Lefia, and her flowing golden-red hair—a color more vibrant than that of Miss Misia at the guild window—swayed gently with her movements. Nano introduced herself with a nervous yet energetic expression.

"...Luke Faul."

The human boy with short gray hair was concise in his speech, much like Nano. Although he exuded a sharp and capable aura, he was quite handsome.

You could tell at a glance from their demeanor that the girl was a defender and the boy was a forward.

On the other hand, Rafia was somewhat surprised.

Because she didn't expect that Nano, whose speech was not very clear and who seemed a bit immature, had already reached Lv.3.

(Illustration 014)

Based on the characteristics of "God's grace", "never judge a book by its cover" can be said to be the ironclad rule of adventurers. However, judging from the atmosphere emanating from Nano, Lefia originally thought that Lv.3 was someone else.

The remaining two are the female elf Mililia and the male orc Kor.

"Reaching Level 3 while still in school...that's really amazing. Have you guys been in the 'school district' for a long time?"

From Orario's perspective, the methods for "leveling up" outside the community are quite limited, let alone reaching Lv.3 or higher. Even though Lefia leveled up within the "School District" before joining the Loki Familia, Lv.2 was already her limit.

Lefia frankly praised the two of them, but only asked the question because she felt it was impossible to achieve this within one or two years.

"I entered the 'school district' five years ago. To be precise, I'm older than you, senior."

"Luke!"

Luke, whose appearance is somewhere between a teenager and a young adult, answered in a strangely barbed tone.

Despite Nano's attempts to dissuade him, Luke looked directly at Lefia and continued speaking:

"You may not have heard of us, but you are not unfamiliar to us, senior 'Elite Elf Student'."

"...It seems I was being presumptuous, but please don't address me that way again."

Upon hearing someone mention that embarrassing nickname from their school days, Lefia immediately straightened her face. Arisa, who had been standing a step behind her, could no longer contain herself and interjected:

"Luke, Lefia is indeed your senior. She specifically left the Familia to guide you. You shouldn't be acting like this, should you?"

"I'm sorry, I don't know how to treat a senior who is younger than me."

"I'm talking to you...!"

With her almond-shaped eyes wide open, Yarisa and Luke started arguing.

Even though the conflict was eventually quelled thanks to the help of Nano and Lefia, the boy remained unmoved. Leon watched silently from the sidelines.

After an awkward moment, Rafia reintroduced herself to everyone and then adjourned the meeting.

During this time, Luke stared at Lefia with a cold gaze.

*

"That's the 'Seventh Squad,' which Baldban is so proud of! It's currently their elite unit!"

Upon returning to Lyon's private faculty room, Arisa spoke these words in a barbed tone.

"'Seventh Squad'... Even in the 'school district' where graduates and freshmen frequently change, these four still achieved outstanding results and ranked among the top in combat skills... Am I right?"

As is natural, within the "school district," classes are established according to the number of main gods, and these are further subdivided into "teams." Due to the educational system, vacancies in "teams" always occur, requiring replacements. Under the arrangement of the gods and faculty, team members generally complement each other's strengths and weaknesses—however, sometimes, to foster a "chemistry," exceptionally outstanding students are grouped together—

The "Seventh Squad" of Baldban is a well-known elite unit.

Whether it was fortunate or unfortunate, Lefia was assigned to instruct the "Seventh Squad".

"Although the school never made this arrangement on purpose, strange history always repeats itself. The students who were assigned to this squad worked exceptionally hard, which is why the name of the 'Seventh Squad' as an elite unit has been passed down ever since."

"I'm not deliberately picking a fight just because they're an elite team! It's just that their attitude is too arrogant! Especially that kid Luke Faul! I should say, out of the four of them, he's the most arrogant! Even though he's older than Lefia, he's younger than me in both age and grade! According to him, he should speak to me in a manner befitting him!"

Lyon smiled, looking slightly troubled, while Arisa complained angrily.

After hearing this, Lefia gave a wry smile and vaguely sensed that Arisa, who was a supervisor, had probably had several arguments with Luke, who was at level 3.

"But he... he shouldn't be a 'problem student,' right?"

"Oh? Why do you think that?"

"Because of Natalie Ye... the trust that Nano and the others have in him is obvious, he must be the squad leader, right?"

Arisa was surprised that Lefia brought this up, and a smile appeared on Leon's face.

Perhaps pleased to see that Lefia had developed a level of insight far superior to that of her student days, Leon nodded in satisfaction and handed Lefia the "Seventh Squad's" report card and resume.

"You're right. Luke's grades are excellent, both academically and practically. His swordsmanship is second to none among the students, and most importantly, he's very hardworking. Although he doesn't get along with Arisa, the students and teachers outside the team trust him a lot."

After hearing this, Rafia thought, "I knew it."

Even if there are some issues with one's character, Lv.3 is definitely not a level that can be achieved through half-hearted training.

Furthermore, even if Luke acts coldly, he still seems like a decent human... at least much better than those difficult characters in the Loki Familia, especially Bert, Bert, and Bert.

The only puzzling thing is why Luke would give Lefia that kind of "look".

"Lefia, what are your thoughts on Luke and the others?"

"...There is no discord among the team members. At least for now, I don't think they need outside guidance, nor do they seem to be aware of the concerns that the teachers have."

Reflecting on what she had just witnessed, Lefia frankly expressed her feelings.

Although what followed was just a gut feeling, she decided to speak it out as she touched her chin.

"However, he... Luke seems to be quite 'anxious'."

That was all Lefia felt.

Does he not like the way graduates are being praised?

But then again, I felt that his gaze didn't seem to stem from such foolish jealousy...

Seeing Lefia lost in thought, Leon did not comment on whether her statement was right or wrong.

However, judging from the upturned corners of his mouth, it seems he has already given the answer.

"As you said, this isn't exactly a problem, but it harbors a 'spark' that will eventually explode. And their—no, Luke's mindset—is definitely not a mistake, which is why no one can step forward to advise them, but that will be the trigger."

"It's not exactly a mistake?"

"Yes, and as teachers, we should praise him."

Is that why Leon and the others didn't know how to deal with "Seventh Squad"?

But—

"Even so, Mr. Leon should still be able to give him some guidance, right?"

Conversely, if even a teacher like Leon couldn't solve it, then it's definitely not a problem that Lefia could handle.

Seeing that Lefia looked troubled for the first time, Leon temporarily turned his gaze to the window.

Outside, you can see a blue sky that has nothing to do with worries or troubles, and an incredibly vast blue ocean.

"Let's set aside whether I can solve this problem for now. I'm asking you for guidance for two reasons."

"Two reasons?"

"That's right. The first reason is that we feel that it's more effective for you, as an adventurer rather than a teacher, to persuade Luke and the others."

Leon looked away and met Rafia's gaze.

"As for the second reason, someone said that doing so would also benefit you, Lefia. It was none other than the god Bald."

"Will it benefit me?"

"Yes, and I think so too. Your existence can serve as a guide for Luke and the others, while Luke and the others will become the light that blocks your way."

When Leon uses "I" instead of "I" as the first person—

This indicates that the statement was not his judgment as a teacher, but rather contained Lyon Waldenberg's personal feelings.

Lefia looked bewildered, not fully understanding what Leon was trying to say.

However, you can sense Lyon's trust in you, and he is genuinely looking out for you.

"To put it bluntly, I just need you to deflate Luke's arrogance, Lefia!"

"Yarisa, your statement is way too much..."

Seeing her old friend leaning out to chime in, Lefia's face showed an expression of wanting to smile bitterly but failing to manage it.

"You can tell me if you need anything!" Arisa showed her natural class monitor qualities, but Lefia ignored her and looked down at the report card and resume in her hand.

The four sheets of paper each contain a portrait of one of the four students.

Then she met the gaze of the gray-haired boy whose age was listed as sixteen.

"I understand, I will do my best."

After hearing Rafia's reply, both Leon and Arisa smiled in response.

*

The following day, Rafia's instruction officially began.

That being said, she did not immediately lead the students to the labyrinth city (Orario).

Even if she was guiding students aspiring to become adventurers, it was still thoughtless to immediately say, "Let's head to the dungeon then." The reason is that before becoming Luke and the others' mentors, their lives were in Lefia's hands, so no accidents could be tolerated. Rushing into the monster's lair without first assessing the four's strength was incredibly foolish from a safety perspective.

The school district will officially announce in two days that all students will be able to participate in a "special (underground) internship".

It's not too late to get to the main event then.

Therefore, the first step is to conduct small-team training within the "school district".

(As I expected, Nano is a mage in charge of defense, Mililia is an archer who can act as center forward, Cole, who is proficient in daggers, is a scout, and Luke is a full-fledged forward...)

In the training grounds located in a corner of the academy level, there is a white diamond arena used for class matches. Lefia sits in the audience, watching the "Seventh Squad's" combat performance.

The combat skills department holds classes here, and this class is a simulated combat exercise between squads.

The various squads of Baldeban and Walban clashed in turn in the center or corners of the field.

Among them, the "Seventh Squad" was particularly active.

Luke, wielding an unsharpened longsword, charged into the enemy ranks, while Miria, Cole, and Nano were a step behind and gave chase. The enemy squad, first subjected to a Lv.3 assault, followed by a series of attacks, must be suffering greatly by now.

"Cole, back off! You block the path of the shots! Milie, come here! Team up with me for a pincer attack! Nano, you give the order to fire (magic)!"

"Received it, Luke!"

Despite serving as the forward, Luke, who was also in charge of command, was outstanding in all aspects. He not only had a broad vision, but his swordsmanship was also far superior to that of the other students.

In addition, I was thinking that the team members were relying too much on Luke's breakthrough ability, but they also have Nano's "magic" as a giant "turret".

Although the opposing team was quite used to fighting against "Squad Seven" like sworn enemies and had prepared various countermeasures for this training session, they ultimately could not stop the four's attack and quickly fell into disarray.

(Luke and Nano truly live up to their Lv.3 status, but Miria and Cole, who were responsible for connecting the forwards and defenders (the two of them), also provided excellent support. Thanks to them, the team was able to maintain their formation... Hmm, these four really trust each other; they're a great team.)

This is the modern-day "elite force".

Rather than having these four people join different exploration-type [familias], it would be better to form a team directly, which would yield more results—Lefia couldn't help but lower her head in frustration at this thought.

She suddenly felt like complaining about why she had the right to look down on others and judge them so condescendingly.

Even though she could only be considered a mid-level member of the Loki Familia, she couldn't bear this feeling of self-loathing and even had an impulse to go find Loki, who had sent her to the "school district," and complain about it.

At the same time, Rafia felt that as a "mentor," she also had to reform her self-awareness.

"Being a mentor is definitely tough..."

Lefia came to realize this again and rose from the stands as the training session ended.

The first thing to do between the person in the "leader's position" and the person in the "guide's position" is to build a more harmonious relationship through communication.

"Senior Lefia, how did I do?! Actually, I was so nervous just thinking about you watching from the sidelines! Thanks to Luke and the others, we were able to act as usual! Also, we agreed to make the high and mighty 'Thousand Spirits' utterly humiliated—uh, wow—wow—!? That last sentence doesn't count! Pretend I didn't say anything! Please pretend you didn't hear me, okay?!"

Nano is a talkative student.

She opened up like a toddler who couldn't distinguish between what should and shouldn't be said (Lefia was quite hurt by being perceived as aloof), but watching her gesticulate wildly and express her emotions with all her might was quite endearing. According to other classmates, Nano was also well-liked by the girls outside the group. They said, "At first, we thought she was too pretentious and didn't like her at all, but later we realized she was so silly, a girl who would probably get into serious trouble if no one looked after her, and we felt like she was a little sister to her."

Because Nano and Luke are the same age, Nano is older than Lefia, but probably no one is more suitable to be called a "junior" than her.