-1409- Introductions

"...!"

When that playful voice reached the three girls present, they were all startled.

This was because, before this, none of them had heard the door open, nor had they noticed any movements.

The voice came so suddenly, silently, without any forewarning, causing the three girls to all stand up from their seats in shock.

Then, they saw it.

"You must be Squad E601, right?"

On the platform in the squad room, a boy in a second-year uniform was there, leaning on the podium with his elbows on the desk, looking down at the three girls below and smiling suddenly.

"Sorry I'm late. It's been a long time since I came to the squad building, so I couldn't help but take a look around. Hope I didn't keep you waiting too long?"

Rozen's voice had a hint of amusement, making it hard to tell if he was sincere.

But the three girls present couldn't care less about that.

They just looked at Rozen standing on the platform, completely forgetting to be surprised, and showing expressions of utter bewilderment.

They couldn't help it.

"You... you are..."

Misora trembled, pointing at Rozen with a shaking finger.

"Ugh... Uh uhh..."

Lecty was completely at a loss, hands and feet flailing.

"This can't be real...."

Even Rico muttered in apparent shock.

They really couldn't help it.

The person before them might be unknown to some, but for those in Mistgun's Sky Wizard Division, if they didn't recognize him, they might as well not be in Mistgun at all.

After all, he wasn't just the most legendary and famous person in all of Mistgun but also a figure known throughout the entire Floating City Alliance.

"The Mage King..."

Such a phrase was muttered by one of them.

Rozen chose to ignore this, his gaze sweeping over the three girls, then shrugged.

"Just as I heard, you three are indeed quite distinct and noticeable in many ways. As for my first impression of you, well, it's okay, I'll give you 60 points."

Such a statement finally brought the three girls back to their senses.

Immediately...

"How dare you give a goddess like me, who is flawless and perfect, a score of 60? You must be joking, right?"

Rico was the first to react and responded without hesitation.

This was an instinctive response, hardly going through her mind, and was perfectly in line with her personality.

But this was enough to make Misora and Lecty jump.

"What... what nonsense are you spouting now, Rico...!?"

"Ri-Ri-Rico, you can't speak like that to him! You can't!"

Misora and Lecty were instantly in a panic.

"...I was just telling the truth."

Rico finally realized, seeing Misora and Lecty panicking, and Rozen's amused expression, a flash of panic crossed her eyes but she still huffed, turning her head away, not intending to retract her words.

"I... Idiot...!"

"Rico...!"

Misora looked like she wanted to push Rico's head down to apologize, while Lecty was still flustered.

The three of them were in chaos.

Seeing this, Rozen found it amusing but chose not to continue watching.

"Alright, calm down." Rozen said casually, "I'm just here to see you, so just treat me as an ordinary senior, or we won't be able to have a conversation, understood?"

Rozen's tone was casual, but his voice carried an inexplicable power, making the three girls finally calm down.

But they still found it hard to believe.

After all...

"Uh... Um..."

Misora couldn't hold back and spoke up.

"Are you really going to be our instructor?"

Misora asked this with some excitement.

Not just Misora, even Lecty looked both surprised and nervous, and even Rico's gaze was fixed on Rozen, unable to move away.

Surely, any squad would react the same as Squad E601 in this situation, right?

Who was this man?

He was known as the hero and hope of humanity.

In his first year in the preparatory course, he took his squad from E rank to A rank within a year. In the second year, he was directly promoted to S rank, becoming the captain of the special forces squad. Even Vibel was alarmed and specially summoned him, allowing him to participate in frontline battles as a preparatory student. He then achieved incredible results, not only gaining unbelievable achievements but also leading all Sky Wizards to multiple victories against the Armored Beetles as the frontline commander.

Moreover, his feats in the Alchemist Division were even more astounding. It's no exaggeration to say, who wouldn't want to be guided by him?

Even an A-rank squad would accept his guidance without hesitation.

Yet Squad E601, the weakest squad, had the opportunity to be guided by such a person. How could they not be excited and exhilarated?

Unfortunately...

"I have indeed been appointed as such, but whether I will be your instructor is still pending."

Rozen poured cold water on their excitement with his next words.

"If you disappoint me, I'll leave."

This simple statement instantly brought the three of them back to reality.

They exchanged looks, then fell silent.

It was clear they realized things might not be as easy as they had imagined.

Especially Rico.

"I see, the famous 'Hero of Humanity' doesn't have time to waste on an E-rank squad like ours, so you need to assess us first?"

Rico spoke calmly.

Rozen didn't deny this rather harsh statement, merely shrugging indifferently.

"Well, if that's how you see it, then think of it that way."

Then, Rozen's tone shifted.

"Anyway, all of you sit down."

Rozen instructed.

"..."

Misora, Lecty, and Rico exchanged glances once more, then quietly returned to their seats.

But their eyes remained fixed on Rozen, with different expressions.

Misora was nervous.

Lecty was uneasy.

As for Rico, her gaze was full of scrutiny, as if she wanted to use this rare opportunity to see through Mistgun's most famous hero.

Under such circumstances...

"First, let's do some introductions."

Rozen smiled slightly, his voice resonating.

"As you know, I am Rorelai Arneet, a second-year student in the Sky Wizard Division. I'm the captain of S128 special squad, though I've mostly retired from the front lines now. My goal is to transfer to the Alchemist Division to focus on research."

After introducing himself, Rozen looked at Misora.

"Now, it's your turn to introduce yourself."

Rozen handed the conversation over to Misora.

"Un... understood...!"

Misora immediately stood up.