The Retired Hero is an Extra

The professor's words elicited a round of applause from the crowd, but it was visibly obvious that not all of them were excited about it.

Well, they were mentally comparing themselves, thinking that it was supposed to be them, not Jash and Ziva.

Naturally, the two had not even bothered to stand up and exchanged a look as if prompting the other to go first.

Neither seemed to be interested in delivering a speech or anything, with one having all her focus on growing stronger and training herself.

While the other was bored and didn't want to do it.

'If only I could put this on someone else while enjoying the benefits,' Jash sighed, thinking of that wonderful possibility.

Alas, it was impossible, but he could at least delay it. "You go first," he whispered, leaning closer to Ziva.

"No," she simply denied, not even wanting to give an excuse for it.

Her straight-up, blunt denial stunned Jash, but he cheekily mentioned, "Ladies first, or in your case, girls first."

Had he stopped at 'ladies first,' she might've gotten angry for being compared to old women, but he pretty much knew what to say.

It even came naturally to him as if the event had already happened in the past, but he didn't realize it due to the lack of the feeling of deja vu.

On the other hand, Ziva only gave him a strange look, feeling compelled to go on the stage or it got too late.

After all, it wouldn't really be nice if they got scolded on their first day now, would it?

'Seriously, what goes on in this guy's head?' she wondered, standing up and heading to the stage.

The moment she stood up, the auditorium fell silent, with only the sound of her heels clacking on the wooden floor.

Her primly styled hair stayed in place, moving only slightly, yet her elegant gait attracted quite a few unsavory eyes.

Sadly, she was used to it, but someone wasn't.

'These imbeciles,' Jash thought, stopping himself from cursing and taking note of who looked on with what kind of gaze.

Honestly, the boys had no idea how petty a person they had been marked by...

"I am Ziva... your Year Representative," Ziva began, her voice melodious and sweet to the ear, yet it carried a strange danger to it.

Only a few caught the hint of it, shivering in their seats, feeling the chill go down their spine.

"I got this through my own strength, and I will continue to do so," she said confidently, unafraid of anyone disliking her.

"If you think you can take it from me, then please be strong enough before challenging me, or be ready to get hurt," she ended her speech.

Yet the entire auditorium fell silent, feeling the coldness of her concluding words, it was difficult to miss, with how obvious she made it.

However, a loud round of applause and cheers erupted as she stepped down and returned to her seat.

"Nice declaration," Jash praised, teasingly while Caera challenged, "Good one, but I will take it from you."

Ignoring Jash as if it were her second nature, Ziva smiled at Caera and said, "Good luck."

Her smile made the boys cheer even louder, some even clamored something about a dual personality yandere waifu–

Unlike Ziva who ignored it all, Jash had a cold air around him, not liking the words and unsavory stares coming her way.

Even his usually lively and tired gray eyes had a hint of irritation within them as he walked slowly, causing the cheering to pause.

Similar to Ziva, he was the son of a ducal family, not someone many could afford to offend and thus, the cheering resumed for him.

Who in their right mind would even openly confront the children of ducal families?

However, their loud cheering was nothing but noise for Jash who's expression soured. 'Annoying,' he thought.

Still, he didn't forget his task, reached the podium and looked forward, similar to Ziva.

His tired, bored face with a hint of irritation in his eyes unnerved the students as the cheers quietened down, making his expression relax.

"I am Jash Ramille, the other Year Representative. I'll keep it short," he began, scanning the students with a nonchalant gaze.

His gaze was as if looking at those beneath him, or even beneath humans, making quite a few dislike it, even ignoring them.

"I hate annoying—people or things, so don't bother me. I don't care about it all, just do it yourself," he said and began to leave.

But he suddenly stopped, as if recalling something. "Ah, right! If you want the position, you're free to take it. I will give it myself; just do all the chores that come with it."

Walking down casually as if he hadn't just undermined the value of Year Representative, something even the seniors respected, he sat down with a small smile on his face.

Meanwhile, his actions enraged many—students, professors, seniors alike—but what could they even do about it?

He was a carefree soul and had no interest in taking the position if not for the benefits it gave.

Thus, many students cursed him, feeling helpless.

After all, even the others who reached the top 10, even if there were no rankings, didn't want to mess with him.

In the audience, one particular student was on the verge of having a breakdown.

"I was the one who should have been there," he muttered.

His disheveled blue hair and lifeless pale-green eyes were a stark contrast to their vibrant hues when he fought using the Lightning Element against Jash and Grunghin.

"Why," he mumbled in confusion, still not able to understand how he was defeated seemingly effortlessly, his every attack easily countered by Jash.

The boy had thought that the Entrance Test would be the place where he would show the world that his talent alone was enough to overcome any obstacle.

He would prove that the noble scions were nothing without the tremendous amount of resources they spent on their children.

Alas, Jash was not someone he could even fathom competing with.

Jash was a monster in human skin, the sole reason he seemed to have a power that was achievable was because he was holding back.

Not holding back on using his strength, but holding back on using everything to maximize his strength.

And hearing the various murmurs, grumbles, curses, clattering teeth, the smile on his face turned into a smirk.

Unlike the time with Ziva, there were no claps or cheers as his words were quite insulting.

"Ahem, the opening ceremony is finished. Please go to your dorm rooms. The staff outside will help you all," The professor took over, seeing the state of the students and decided to end the ceremony.

Despite this, few were in the mood to leave; half of the ones present were not even truly admitted into the Academy.

And the rest had to face the humiliation of not being the Year Representative and seeing its authority being undermined.

It was their dream yet the person who got it had no respect for it.

'I wonder what she thinks,' Jash mused about Ziva, unbothered by the angry stares directed at him.

He really didn't think any of them could be a threat beside the protagonist and his plot-armor...

Why he was not wary of Amael despite the guy being able to rival a protagonist was a matter for another time, though.