The origin of heroes

Ethan and Emily went in total silence to the second floor. The floor was pretty quiet despite being very similar to the others. The reason for that was that the students rarely would go there without reason. So, it was probably the calmest place in all the towers since it was free of teenagers.

Both of them found Lyla with a tired expression eating some bread like a hamster. She tried to smile when she saw them, but her smile didn't lighten the mood. Ethan began to wonder if he should start to feel guilty about that.

"Thank you as always, Emily," Lyla said, showing a weak smile. "Good morning, Ethan. It looks like you have been enjoying yourself quite a lot on the fourth floor."

"More or less," Ethan said. "Is there something I can help you with?"

"As your main instructor, I need to know the courses you are going to apply to," Lyla said. "Even though you won't join mine."

"I see…" Ethan said. "How many courses do I have to apply for?"

"There are no limits. You can apply to as many as you want," Lyla replied. "However, you need to apply to at least one that is related to martial arts, one related to magic, and one theoretical."

It was a lot less than Ethan imagined. That being said, the last option was a bit problematic. Ethan was by no means someone smart and even though he once was a sedentary gamer in the past, one year in another world transformed him into someone who could stand still doing nothing. Besides, he couldn't imagine in what way he would benefit from attending theoretical classes about something. Still, maybe he could learn a few useful things.

"Do you have a list of the courses I can apply to or something?" Ethan asked.

"I do, but I think you should watch the classes before deciding that," Lyla said.

"Nah, it is fine," Ethan said and shrugged his shoulders. "I will choose right now. I can always change my mind later, right?"

Lyla nodded at that. Many boys around Ethan's age wouldn't think seriously about the courses they would take. Only those who lost their powers upon returning would do that. Those who still had the power to defeat massive monsters couldn't imagine why they should take things seriously. They saved other worlds, after all. It was time to sit back and relax while enjoying that glory.

In Lyla's eyes, Ethan was in the group that wasn't interested in any of that. After losing most of his powers, it looked like he had no prospect of recovering them. Even if he could, Ethan had no interest. At least, that was what it looked like.

Regardless, the number of courses was massive, and since most students were between the ranks of D and F, the number of options was pretty high. Sword dance was just one of many types of swordsmanship one could learn. There were even courses one could take to learn how to fight barehanded in many styles or while using several different weapons.

Ethan already knew his fighting style very well, and he didn't want to change it, so he focused on reading the options of the magic courses. Elemental magic, summoning magic, support magic, and even enchanting magic. The options were really good, considering that he was a low-ranked student.

"I'm already learning elemental magic on my own, so I don't need it. Still, I think it would help me a lot to learn support magic. It will take a while to recover a decent amount of strength, so that kind of magic will come in handy."

Ethan thought of picking a theoretical class randomly, he would mostly spend his time there sleeping anyway, so it wouldn't make any difference. However, he changed his mind when he found a certain course.

"The origin of the heroes?" Ethan asked while frowning. "What is this about?"

"This is about some hypothesis people all over the world and of other planets thought about the summoned heroes and their powers," Lyla explained while looking at her bread. "I heard that in this course, the students discuss about those hypotheses. It might be interesting if you don't know the origin of your powers."

At the very least, it was less boring than the other options. In the end, Ethan picked that one alongside the courses of support magic and sword dance. Lyla couldn't help but frown when she saw that, but her complexion changed for the better.

"Are you going to join my course?" Lyla asked while frowning. "Why?"

"I don't think I will change my fighting style," Ethan said. "However, Ian showed me that I can learn a thing or two from your sword dance."

Ethan thought of trying to act like a wingman for a second, but he changed his mind. Ian didn't ask for that, and Ethan didn't want to become the wingman of someone so annoying. Meanwhile, Emily looked at him with dubious eyes. Ethan had seen far worse than that, so he didn't feel anything while being stared at.

"Really? As expected of my most enthusiastic student!" Lyla said while showing a smile full of life. "You taught me something good, Ethan. I will make sure to repay the favor."

Ethan didn't know how to feel about that. An enthusiastic teacher was good sometimes, but Ethan only felt troubled by it. In any case, his free time decreased by a lot thanks to the rules of the school. Each course had three classes per week, and each class would last one hour. It wasn't so bad to get his agenda filled, but Ethan only felt like sighing. Regardless, Lyla also left humming, and Ethan was left alone with Emily. Her gaze was finally starting to make him feel uncomfortable.

"What?" Ethan asked.

"You are a terrible liar," Emily said, furrowing her eyebrows.

"I didn't lie, though," Ethan shrugged.

Ian really made Ethan think that he could learn a thing or two from Lyla's sword dance. However, even if that was the case, Ethan would rather train alone instead of learning a new fighting style or even gaining some tips.

"Whatever," Emily said. "Just make sure not to get late for classes since that will cause problems for me. You are probably free for the rest of the day, but from tomorrow onwards, you will have to attend the classes. Make sure to memorize the time each class will start and where they will be."

After saying that, Emily left. Thanks to her and Ian, Ethan lost a lot of time; it was already time for lunch. So, in the end, Ethan headed home to have lunch with his parents. His new sword and the simulator could wait.