The Retired Hero is an Extra

He had returned to his room after the conversation, feeling mostly fine with minor scrapes that would heal on their own.

Thanks to the high-ranking Doctors and Healers present inside the medical facility, he was back to his peak state in no time.

All his injuries healed easily, except for his unstable mana pathways, but that was something that healed automatically.

The things he witnessed in his dream triggered a domino effect, allowing him to restore his mana circulation.

It also validated the technique he received, making him eager to try it once his condition improved.

\'Caera has been training for an extra year yet she hasn\'t reached Mid E-Rank, let alone me,\' he thought to himself and sighed.

He had just entered E-rank, and his body hadn\'t fully adapted to the change, so he postponed trying the new mana circulation technique.

"I will do it when I am Mid E-Rank and inside the academy. That way, no one will even know or ask me its source," he mumbled.

"Anyways, it\'s good that Caera was still trying to break through, or else," Jash muttered, worried about her reactions.

Caera had been training in an isolated underground area where she could try to break through until she succeeded or gave up.

It was fairly rich with densely concentrated pure mana, easing the process of ranking up, even if it was just a subrank.

Caera mostly went there for rank ups unlike Jash who went for his E-Rank breakthrough, doing the rest in his room.

He really wasn\'t one for all the luxuries. He only wanted to enjoy the luxury of sleep, alas, it remained a far-fetched dream.

\'I will be able to sleep as much as I want after I escape my predetermined demise,\' he mused as a smile blossomed on his face.

Jash believed that sacrificing some sleep now would allow him to enjoy it more in the future.

No matter how stupid that line of thought was, he truly deluded himself with it and went to sleep once again.

This time, however, he didn\'t have any special dreams.

…

The days passed quickly, and Jash fully recovered before getting forced into light training with his father.

Carcel and Sera were mostly busy dealing with the aftermath of the dungeon explosion and the removal of the spies.

While Caera had already reached Mid E-Rank and ended up sparring with Jash to consolidate her rank.

"Damn! You\'re cheating!" Jash complained after their sparring session.

He felt bitter as she didn\'t even give herself a handicap despite being a sub-rank higher than her!

\'Just what\'s wrong with her!?\' he wondered in confusion for the nth time.

"Hmph!" Caera just snorted in response and jeered, "It\'s your fault for not catching up with me!"

Jash rolled his eyes in response, but kept silent, not even trying to argue with her.

He had already tried and failed to reach her every time, getting frustrated over it and gave up in the end.

Jash still found a way to tease her, "You talk big for someone who can only defeat me because of the rank difference!"

"Hah! And you think you stand a chance in front of Amael?" Caera sneered in response.

"We don\'t talk about him! He is in a different category, alright?" Jash exclaimed, feeling strange inside.

Even though Caera wanted to keep arguing with him, she too knew that his words were indeed correct.

While the two were struggling with consolidating Mid E-Rank and Early E-Rank, Amael was already at the Late E-Rank.

"He\'s a monster, no?" she muttered, feeling inappropriate to even compare with him.

"He sure is! Did you forget he had a natural awakening unlike anyone recorded in the past few decades?"

Jash agreed with her words but deliberately used the word recorded, knowing fully well there ought to be some unrecorded hidden monsters.

No matter what someone said, he firmly believed in the prospect of hidden monsters waiting to become teachers to the protagonist or his harem.

It was just such an overused cliche that there was no way to make Jash think otherwise, especially given the kind of events in this world.

\'I\'ll be sure of it at this banquet either ways,\' he thought inwardly before getting distracted by Caera.

"...what do you think about the banquet?" Caera asked him tentatively.

"Hmm? I don\'t know, to be honest. It is compulsory for all nobles to attend, irrespective of their children\'s age," Jash replied thoughtfully.

"Well, it only takes place if the Imperial Family has children attending the academy that particular year, so it makes sense."

"Mhm." Jash nodded at her words but didn\'t quite like the arrangement.

The Imperial Family forced all noble families to stop holding birthday banquets for their children after they turned 12.

Only the coming of age ceremony when they turned 18 was allowed.

Yet the Imperial Family would hold a banquet in December every time someone with their blood entered the Solarnelle Academy.

This went on to show their confidence in their bloodline, as everyone, regardless of their status, had to take the Academy\'s entrance test.

There were no exceptions to it.

"The annoying thing is forcing all of us to attend, including the Associations," Jash grumbled in annoyance.

"Jash," Caera called him seriously, stopping in her tracks.

"Hm?" Jash turned to face her, confused at her sudden solemnity.

"Don\'t ever say those words in front of anyone else," she advised with a grave expression.

\'What does she-,\' he thought for a second before it finally struck him.

"Yeah, don\'t worry. I will be extra careful next time," he nodded with a serious expression.

It turned out some of his previous world\'s habits had indeed come through inadvertently.

The two worlds were fundamentally different as one had an open government while this one had the Imperial Family and nobility.

It was quite obvious what would happen if someone dared to badmouth the Imperial Family, even indirectly.

That\'s why he understood her point quite easily and made a mental note to always be careful regarding his speech.

Although he did hate etiquette and mannerism classes, he had taken them until everything was ingrained in his body.

He had long become accustomed to the strange traditions of the nobility and adhered to their strict standards.

\'Damn these noble houses! Can\'t a kid relax?\' he mused, though he kept such rebellious thoughts to himself.

"By the way, what do you think? Will something interesting happen at the banquet?" Caera asked, attempting to change the serious atmosphere.

"Who knows? But it should be quite boring like any other banquet since it\'s in the heart of the Empire," Jash said his random guesses.

"Think before speaking, will you?" Caera chided him as she massaged her temples, unable to comprehend Jash\'s recent behavior.

"Ah! What does it matter? It\'s just you and me," Jash justified his slip of tongue, but Caera just shook her head and left.

"Just be sure to get ready and keep your tongue in check, or I\'ll tell Mom about you skipping training," Caera said playfully as she stopped before running away.

"Ugh, so troublesome," Jash grumbled and decided to just stay silent.