The Retired Hero is an Extra

Although it was initially rowdy and full of participants, the competition had thinned out significantly as not many examinees remained until now.

Out of the few, many were nervous about not being adequately taught to compete with the specially trained ones.

For them, fighting and losing seemed like a waste of time as they would eventually learn and be able to compete with other privileged students.

At least that was what they hoped for as the prerequisite being their passing the Entrance Test and entering an academy, if not the Solarnelle Academy.

The Solarnelle Academy, surpassing even the offerings of Noble and Imperial Families, was unmatched in its prestige.

Still, The other academies weren\'t looked down upon by the general masses despite the disparity.

Simply because the Solarnelle Academy was the oldest, gathering all types of knowledge in one place.

Those families may have one specialty where they outclass the Solarnelle Academy, such as the Church.

And nobody could dare say they could teach healing magic better than what one could learn from them.

Similarly, blacksmithing for the dwarven masters was their pride while it was the plant magic and archery for the elves.

Of course, Cornelius Ramille was an exception to the archery, being able to compete with the Elven Royalty in it.

Even with all of that being a given, the privileged participants only numbered around two hundred or so, including both males and females.

These participants were the ones who were taught or thought they had a chance at winning.

One couldn\'t dismiss the fact that they were too proud and wanted to show off in the Entrance Test.

But it made sense, as there was no real risk except for a few injuries which could be treated within a few days at worst.

However, the audience couldn\'t care less about all those things, they only wanted to see fights and something entertaining.

So, most of the focus was now on Amael, Avon and an unknown boy, who were defeating all their opponents quite skillfully.

"It seems that the new guy is giving his all, not wanting anyone to take his spotlight," Rui commented.

The new guy was Yirox, a mage, and although he was not as excellent as other mages, it was enough for him to defeat other participants with relative ease.

"4," Yirox muttered as he looked around, counting the examinees who ran away.

With short chocolate-brown hair and a decently handsome face, Yirox was striking but not comparable to Amael or Jash.

Still, he seemed to share a similar height with them despite being on the skinnier side.

He didn\'t rush after the escapees, choosing to sit down and regain his stamina since casting spells against a group took a toll on him.

"It should probably be soon," he exhaled, hoping for the final boss to show itself and get the points for slaying it.

"Looks like we need to switch again as everyone\'s resting now," Rui mentioned with an exaggerated sigh for the audience.

It was obvious with how the sun was right above their heads, telling them the final boss might show up anytime as it was the third day itself.

"Hmm, who should I show?" Rui mumbled under his breath, contemplating which contestant to show before his eyes lit up.

\'Yes, the girl\'s side is quite active right now!\' he noticed with excitement.

In the girls\' tournament, Caera, Ziva, Vivia, Sylvie and Ava were doing their own things as he locked onto Ziva.

Many people had cheered and were surprised by the performance of the girls as well despite the difference in style.

Although Ziva was actively using her mana, she was making sure she recovered enough before moving around, heading deeper.

Currently, there were quite a few monsters that she took down as soon as the screen focused on her, giving a short replay.

The screen didn\'t focus on her for long, for her brutal methods to take down monsters without any hesitation didn\'t sit well with her looks.

Well, mostly because it wasn\'t what the audience wanted to see.

The screen shifted to Ava, who was keeping both her mana and stamina in check, taking a safer approach.

Though her cautious approach made for less compelling viewing, leading the screen to shift to other competitors before focusing on Caera and Vivia.

Caera had now come close to Vivia, both having a magic staff in hand, after eliminating a few examinees only.

Yet both shared the inherent kindness and never went overboard like Ziva who went to extremes or Sylvie who eliminated them quickly.

While Freirae, a dwarf with yellowish-orange hair was having a much easier time fighting as nobody she encountered had enough strength to defeat her.

However, none of them would meet each other despite their closing distance on either part—the males and females.

The time was ticking with only 10 minutes left, and more and more people were getting eliminated, the number closing in to 2000 quite fast.

Some of the people got sad after their son or daughter got eliminated, but they were still happy for them for getting selected into some Academy.

Naturally, surviving till this point guaranteed admission, but they didn\'t know that Solarnelle Academy had planned a little surprise.

Meanwhile, in the VIP rooms, some were happy about their children reaching or even surpassing their expectations.

Just as there were happy ones, there were also sad ones.

Some unlucky ones were even kicked out of their homes and families for their subpar performances.

Jash\'s parents were eagerly waiting for the result, expecting not much from their children.

"It seems I have been holding them back," Sera sighed as she slumped on her seat.

Being alone with her husband allowed her to relax and not put up any facades and her guilt was gnawing at her.

"Darling," Carcel called sweetly. "It\'s not your fault. You only want the best for them," he said while caressing her hand.

Sera remained quiet for a few seconds before shaking her head, "No, it\'s indeed my fault."

"Let me," she stopped him from interrupting and continued, "I was overprotective, stopping them from achieving their full potential."

Her eyes turned to the ever-switching screen as she added, "I don\'t know what the results will be, but they will grow too much by their graduation."

"Mhm." Carcel agreed, knowing what was going on in her mind.

As both of them were graduates of the Solarnelle Academy, they knew better than anyone how much it would change their children.

Their once-naive shells would be shed off, ready to face the harsh realities of the cruel world.

"Sera, it\'s fine," Carcel consoled in a soft voice, giving support to his wife.

"It\'s not a matter of your fault or not, what has happened has happened and it can\'t be changed," he said in a tone of finality.

"What mattered is how you treat them and guide them after their graduation as they will easily be at B-Rank by that time."

Hearing her husband\'s logical words, Sera couldn\'t help but agree, whispering, "Okay."

Rather than saying a word of thanks or mentioning her love, she leaned in closer, resting her head on his shoulder and chest.

It was a sign of trust and love, more than any words could explain as actions spoke louder than words.

Right at that moment, the screen paused and buzzed as Rui yelled at the top of his lungs, "It\'s time, everyone!!"