Aaron, Bella, Raios, Laneige, and I—that was our party for the mentoring sessions. Our destination lay south of Valhalla City, a danger zone notorious for the frequent appearance of demonic monsters.

For heroes, the very word “south” carried an ominous meaning. The southern lands were where stood Gehenna City, the city of demons. It was also where the most perilous ruins were densely clustered, where demonic monsters roamed in terrifying numbers. In short, the southern frontier was humanity’s most dangerous border.

The reason demons and demonic monsters gathered disproportionately in the south was simple. To the west lay the Empire; to the east, the Republic; to the north, the Holy Kingdom; and at the center stood the Hero Academy and Valhalla City.

After the Demon God was sealed away, the surviving demons, stripped of power and influence, had no choice but to retreat. The only region left for them was the treacherous south, filled with deadly terrain and ancient ruins. Inevitably, that land became humanity’s most dreaded Demonic Realm.

Now, we were heading straight for it.

Raios, following behind Aaron, spoke with tension etched across his face. “Uh, Aaron, are you sure about this? The place we’re going, it’s rated as an A-rank danger zone by the Tri-Nation Heroic Alliance, isn’t it?”

An A-rank danger zone was perilous enough that even confident active-rank hero parties hesitated to enter it. Exploring such a region required, at least, top-ranking heroes, those among the higher tiers.

Aaron smiled easily, shrugging. “Haha, don’t worry so much. With our party’s level, it won’t be that difficult.”

It wasn’t the reckless arrogance of a fool unaware of his limits. He genuinely possessed the skill of a high-ranking hero. With Bella and Raios added to the mix, this was, by any standard, a team capable of surviving an A-rank danger zone. Of course, that was only true under normal circumstances.

“But still...” Raios’s eyes shifted toward the rear of the group, toward Laneige and me. His expression twisted with open displeasure. “We’re not seriously bringing dead weight along, are we?”

Aaron frowned, his tone sharp. “Dead weight? Watch your mouth, Raios. They’re party members too.”

Raios flinched and tensed up, his bravado shrinking a little.

Aaron sighed softly before continuing, “If things go south, I can use my Blessing. There’s no need to worry.”

The moment Raios heard the word Blessing, his expression relaxed, as if reassured. “Hmm, fine.”

It was Bella who reacted instead, snapping her head toward Aaron. “Aaron! You promised not to use your Blessing with anyone but me!”

Aaron chuckled and shrugged. “I told you, it’s only for the worst-case scenario. I don’t plan to use it unless it’s absolutely necessary.”

But Bella frowned, scolding him for always throwing himself into danger. Despite her nagging, she couldn’t sway him.

Regaining his composure, Aaron said, “Anyway, the terrain ahead is rough. Stay close, and if you get too tired, say so.”

He took the lead, setting a steady pace. Just as he said, the path was anything but easy. Even in broad daylight, the dense jungle was so dark we had to rely on Light Magic to see. Every step sank ankle-deep into muddy swamps that drained our stamina with each movement.

Aaron, Bella, and Raios, skilled as they were, handled it fine. But Laneige, carrying a heavy pack on her back, looked ready to collapse at any moment. Even though she was visibly struggling, she didn’t complain once. She simply kept gasping for breath and pushed forward with desperate persistence, refusing to slow the team down.

Unable to watch any longer, I approached her. “Senior Laneige.”

“Y-yes?”

“Let me carry that for you.”

She immediately shook her head, clutching the large backpack protectively as if it contained something precious. “N-no! This... this is the only way I can contribute to the party. So, I’ll carry it.”

There was a quiet desperation in her voice, one that made me hesitate. I frowned slightly and turned toward Aaron, who was leading the group. “Senior Aaron.”

“Hm?”

“I’m so tired I feel like I’m about to collapse. Can we rest for a bit?”

Aaron scratched the back of his head awkwardly and smiled. “Ah, right. I forgot we had a junior with us. Alright. Let’s take a break here.”

He grasped the spear on his back and swung it lightly. A flash of blue aura sliced through the trees, and within seconds, several trees toppled over, and their trunks formed makeshift seats.

“How is it? Nervous being outside the academy for the first time?” Aaron sat down on a stump, gesturing for me to join him.

I nodded and took a seat beside him. “Yes, a little.”

“Haha, I felt the same way my first time hunting demonic monsters outside the academy.”

Encouraged by my response, Aaron began his “back in my day” story, his face lighting up.

“All that stuff you think you learned in class just flies out of your head, and suddenly it’s like your mind goes completely blank.”

I just kept silent.

“But don’t worry. That’s how it always is the first time. Once you get used to it...”

Bella, sitting next to him, smacked him hard on the back. “Aaron!”

“Ow!”

“Seriously? You can’t even let him rest without turning into an old man telling war stories?”

“W-what? I was just trying to help him adjust in the spirit of the mentoring program!”

“Yeah, because nothing helps someone relax like listening to you drone on about your glory days. Let him breathe a little, will you?”

“Guh!” Aaron fell silent, his shoulders slumping under Bella’s barrage of scolding.

Meanwhile, Raios glared at them with thinly veiled jealousy. What a wonderfully chaotic party we had here. I sighed softly and turned my gaze toward Laneige.

She had finally sat down on a tree stump, exhaustion plain on her face. Nevertheless, she was still breathing heavily, wiping sweat from her forehead.

I watched her in silence, lost in thought, when a series of heavy footsteps suddenly echoed through the jungle. It was not just one, but several.

Aaron was the first to react. “Prepare for battle.”

He sprang to his feet and gripped his spear tightly, eyes narrowing as he aimed it toward the direction of the sound.

From the dense foliage emerged several demonic monsters, reptilian monsters with serpent-like heads and humanoid torsos. They resembled smaller versions of the crocodile-like demonic monsters we had faced during the midterm evaluation.

“Grrrhhk.”

“Kieeeek!”

Aaron’s gaze darted across the group, quickly counting the glowing eyes on each creature. “Seven-eyed demonic monsters...”

There were five in total, surrounding us. Fitting for an A-rank danger zone, these were no small threats.

He said to Bella and Raios, “I’ll take the front. Back me up.”

Then he charged forward with a shout, like a streak of lightning. A surge of blue aura flared around him.

The blue comet pierced through one monster’s thick scales. The monster screeched and writhed violently, its body trembling from the massive wound.

“Kyaaaaargh!”

However, a seven-eyed demonic monster wouldn’t die that easily. It wheezed heavily, then lashed its long tail around Aaron’s spear shaft, trying to wrench it away.

“Blink.”

Aaron vanished, but it wasn’t teleportation. He was moving so fast that it looked as though he had melted into thin air. An instant later, he appeared behind the monster. The spear’s tip burst out through the back of the demonic monster’s skull.

“Kiiiiiieeek!” Another reptilian monster lunged at him from the side.

Bella leaped forward, blocking its path. “Not so fast!”

Her eyes gleamed red with feral light. “Chaah!”

With a single sharp cry, her sword flashed countless times. It was so fast it looked like a blur of steel. The monster was shredded into ribbons before it even had time to scream.

“Krhhk!”

“Kyak!”

The remaining three monsters exchanged glances, then bolted toward the rear line. But waiting for them there was Raios Ryu.

“Pathetic little reptiles, where do you think you’re going? Thunder, heed my call!”

A deafening crash resounded as a massive wall of lightning formed around Raios, encasing him in roaring thunder. One of the monsters couldn’t stop in time and slammed into the wall, letting out a strangled shriek as electricity surged through its body.

It was an impressive display. Watching this from behind, I couldn’t help but let out a quiet sound of admiration. It was, after all, a mentoring class, meant for observing the upperclassmen’s combat skills. Aaron, Bella, and Raios truly lived up to the “strongest cohort” reputation.

It was especially so for Aaron Baek. That explosive burst of acceleration was beyond remarkable, almost breathtaking. It was no wonder he was called Yuren’s rival in my past life. Just as I was silently marveling at that thought, Aaron skewered another monster clean through and turned toward me.

He pointed his spear toward the last remaining reptilian monster. “What do you think? Care to take this one, Junior?”

He watched me with the same assessing eyes one used to judge whether a stone was a rare gem or just a worthless pebble. At that moment, I understood exactly why Aaron had brought me here despite the risk.

That was what this was supposed to be. It wasn’t uncommon for mentors to give their juniors some hands-on combat experience during field sessions, but bringing a bottom-ranked cadet into an A-rank danger zone to face a seven-eyed demonic monster? That wasn’t about giving me an opportunity. There was only one reason behind that look in Aaron’s eyes.

Aaron was testing me. He wanted to see for himself whether the rumors about my abilities were true.

Aaron smiled faintly, the challenge in his gaze as clear as day. “How about it? Oh, don’t worry, no pressure. If you’re scared, you can decline.”

I let out a short, dry laugh. Pushing myself up, I grasped my sword hilt and walked toward the remaining demonic monster at an unhurried pace.

So that’s what this was about from the start, huh? A test, is it? How amusing. Using such a cheap trick to gauge me? What a foolish brat.