The Fake Saintess and the Elf Warrior

"Ee! I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry... Did you call me...?"

"If it's not you, then who is it? Are there any other green-haired people here?"

Taqia looked up and saw that the young man had long black hair, while the others either had white or black hair. She was indeed the only one with green hair. However, the other party hadn't used such definitive wording to confirm her identity from the start, and Taqia felt quite wronged. But seeing his angry expression, she didn't dare to argue. She could only timidly ask...

"Is there anything I can help you with?"

"Hey kid, did you come to the wrong place? The beginner class doesn't meet here; it meets over by the pool. This is the advanced class area."

Kind-hearted Tatya assumed he had made a mistake and didn't realize that his words were actually a form of contempt. She honestly replied...

"Um, I'm also in the advanced class, I shouldn't have come to the wrong place."

"You? With your skinny arms and legs, looking so frail, you're in the advanced class? Haha, looks like this school isn't all that great after all. It's disappointing that a greenhorn like you can get into the advanced class."

The young man seemed to get more and more excited as he spoke, and he even became dissatisfied with just verbal mockery. He walked directly up to Tatsia and forcefully pressed his hand down on her head.

"Children should go back to their mothers' milk and not join in the fun here, okay?"

"...Let go"

"Takia said quietly. Her voice was calm and low, but filled with anger."

"What did you say? I can't hear you."

"I told you to let go!"

Tatsia had no intention of causing trouble. But joking about her mother in front of her had completely crossed a line. She didn't want conflicts with others, but she wasn't afraid of them. At that moment, she realized that her earlier words and treating her like a child were a complete insult. Tatsia exploded. As she roared, her right hand swiftly grabbed the young man's wrist, while her left hand wrapped around his elbow. With just a slight twist, the young man's elbow snapped with a "crack" and fell limply to his side.

"It hurts! It hurts so much!"

The young man screamed in agony, clutching his dislocated arm. He rolled around on the ground. Taqia, seeing this guy who was all talk and no action, retorted without holding back.

"You're right. Even someone like you managed to get into the advanced class, so the overall level here is probably not that great."

The other heroes had also noticed the commotion and understood that the young man had brought trouble upon himself. None of them were willing to intervene, and they acted as if nothing had happened.

This young man's abilities were among the lowest of these heroes. Seeing that everyone else was formidable except for Tatiya, who appeared quite vulnerable, he decided to take advantage of her. However, not only did he fail to bully her, but Tatiya also crippled his arm. Enraged by his failed attempt, the young man struggled to his feet and roared at Tatiya.

"You brat...!"

"Enough! What are you doing! Stop it!"

But just as he was about to attack Tatia, a stern female voice suddenly rang out. The heroes looked in the direction of the voice and saw a woman with long, fiery red hair, a very tall figure beneath her staff uniform, but a flat chest, standing not far from them. The experienced heroes were all secretly startled. None of them had noticed her arrival.

Because she also appeared at the lecture, the heroes recognized her. She is Worth, the instructor of the Advanced Hero Class.

"Teacher, this brat started it..."

The young man seemed to want to preemptively accuse the other party, but was sternly stopped by Wors.

"Shut up! Do you think I didn't see that? Since you dare to speak rudely to others, you should be prepared to pay the price. If you don't even have that much awareness, how dare you call yourself a hero?"

"..."

Having exposed his cowardice and bullying of the weak, the young man had nothing more to say. He could only retreat dejectedly. At the same time, Wors also looked at Tatia. This seemingly well-behaved and gentle boy was surprisingly ruthless. Tatia's retaliation itself wasn't wrong, but Wors still criticized Tatia for her lack of restraint.

"You're such a child. If you wanted to teach him a lesson, you could have hit his head, hit his stomach, or thrown him to the ground, and I wouldn't have said anything. But why use joint locks, which could cause permanent damage? If something really happens to him, can you take responsibility?"

"I'm sorry..." Tatsia lowered her head. She had acted impulsively without considering the consequences.

"And you all."

Wolse's gaze swept over the other three heroes present, who were trying to distance themselves from the matter.

"Those two are about to fight, and you're just going to stand here and watch like nothing's wrong? I know you're all brave warriors, and competitive people. Generally speaking, duels between warriors shouldn't be interfered with by outsiders. But this isn't the time for you to actually fight. I don't expect any friendship between you, but at least don't let the situation escalate, okay?"

The heroes seemed to know that standing idly by was inappropriate. However, the principle of "minding one's own business" had been their guiding principle throughout their lives. Now, unlike Tatia, they couldn't simply admit their mistake. They all remained silent. This made Wols sigh.

"Sigh, this year's advanced class students also have a lot of problems."

Regardless of their profession, the children in the beginner class still retain a student-like spirit and can get along well like friends. However, in the advanced class, having gained sufficient adventure experience and abilities, everyone becomes self-centered. They are resentful and displeased with others of the same profession and skill level. This is especially true in the classes for combat professions like heroes and warriors, where the old saying "rivals in the same trade are enemies" is fully demonstrated.

Similar incidents are not uncommon in every session. Even for Wolse, a seasoned adventurer and teacher, this is quite a headache. The only saving grace is that the advanced class has fewer students each year due to its higher requirements for adventurers. Managing them isn't too difficult. This is a stroke of luck for Wolse, as a teacher.

Wolse walked up to the young man and asked...

"May I have your name?"

"My name is Nass."

"Nass, is it? Just bear with it."

Wolse grabbed his dislocated upper and lower arm, positioned it at the joint, and pushed upwards forcefully. Nath's arm snapped again.

"!!!!!!"

The pain, even more intense than when his shoulder was dislocated, left Nass no room to even cry out. He could only let out a strange sound.

"What are you yelling about? Try moving your arms around a bit."

However, after a brief moment of sharp pain, Nath's arm regained full mobility. Raising his hand or clenching and unclenching his fist was no longer an obstacle.

"If you want to continue being an adventurer, you'll have many more injuries that are far more painful than this to deal with in the future. You'll need to learn to put your dislocated joints back in place yourself."

"Yes, yes... thank you, teacher..."

Having gained the upper hand, Nath could only act docile, distancing himself from Worth and Tatia, standing like a wooden stake to the side, not daring to utter another word.

However, if everyone could just behave themselves, this wouldn't be the Advanced Hero Class anymore. Another slightly older male hero stepped forward and boldly questioned Wolse.

"It's Ms. Wols...right? I'm a fairly well-known hero in Reni, my name is Reti. Have you heard of me?"

"Are you from a town affiliated with the capital? I've never heard of you."

"Ms. Wols, if I may be so bold, women are inherently weaker than men. There are decisive differences in strength, physique, reaction time, comprehension, and so on. I'm not being sexist; this is a problem explained by many common phenomena. I've been adventuring for over twenty years, no less experienced than you teachers. Yet I've almost never seen a female hero. Compared to the combat profession of a hero, which is always at the forefront of battle, I think professions that avoid close combat, such as magicians or saintesses, are more suitable for women."

"What are you trying to say?"

"Ms. Worth, to be frank, I seriously doubt your ability to take charge of my teaching duties..."

"Swish"

Before she could finish speaking, a wooden sword had suddenly appeared in Wolse's hand, and with lightning speed, it was pressed against Retti's throat. Retti didn't even have time to react. Only when he realized he was about to be attacked did cold sweat pour down his back.

"So? Do you still have any objections?"

"No, I was just careless just now..."

"Then don't be careless. Watch carefully."

Rhett reached for the wooden sword, but before his hand could reach it, it was no longer at his neck, but rather stabbed into Rhett's abdomen. Rhett was furious and raised his fist to strike. But just as he raised his hand, Wolse's wooden sword struck his wrist hard, forcing him to withdraw his attack. Having been outmaneuvered by Wolse three times in a row, Rhett seemed unconvinced.

"Very well, your swordsmanship is indeed excellent. However, I am also a master swordsman, and since I am currently unarmed, this comparison doesn't prove anything..."

"Yeah?"

With a flick of her wrist, Wolse handed the hilt of the wooden sword to Retti.

"Then this time you use this thing, and I'll try it with my bare hands."

"You said it yourself, Ms. Worth..."

Rhett grabbed the wooden sword and raised it above his head. Just as he was about to strike, Wolse preemptively grabbed his neck and kicked him in the heel, sending him sprawling to the ground. She stepped on Rhett's wrist as he lay on the ground and asked calmly...

"Do you want to continue?"

Raiti, who thought himself experienced and powerful, never expected to be so helpless against such a weak woman. He couldn't even land a single blow; his attacks were completely blocked before he could even prepare. In a real fight, his opponent would have countless opportunities and methods to kill him. These few short rounds had already revealed the vast difference in their abilities. Continuing the fight would be pointless.

"No, no, I give up. I'm sorry, Ms. Worth... no, teacher. I underestimated you."

"It's nothing. Every year there are those who question whether I, as a woman, am capable of being a teacher. I've always answered them in the same way. I'm used to it."

Wolse reached out and helped Retti up. Retti, standing behind her, bowed deeply in apology, ashamed of his shortsightedness and rudeness. The other two heroes and Nath also recognized the woman's power and dared not act rashly again.

"..."

She was clearly a woman, yet she possessed such authority and ability. Tatsia couldn't help but feel immense admiration for Wors. Her strength, no less than that of a man, her magnanimous heart that tolerated others' rudeness, her leadership that made those who refused to be subordinate to obey her obediently… this powerful woman made Tatsia somewhat change her perspective on her own womanhood. Originally, she believed that women were looked down upon and incapable of shouldering great responsibilities. That's why she concealed her true gender and disguised herself as a man. But Wors proved to her that women are by no means inferior to men. If she could become like her, she wouldn't need to hide her gender anymore, ending up in this awkward situation of being forced to mingle in a boys' dormitory.

At that moment, Tatia found her target.

The First Lesson of the Hero Class (Part 2)

"Alright, let's begin roll call!"

Having resolved the unexpected incident before class and subdued these unruly, hot-blooded young men with her own power, class could officially begin. Wolse produced a roster containing the names of the advanced-level heroes. Since the advanced-level class consisted entirely of higher-level heroes, there were only six of them. Wolse read them out one by one.

"Nass!"

"Here, here..."

"Get your act together! You're a warrior in battle, not a sickly weakling! Next! Letty!"

"arrive"

"Herminu!"

"Here," replied a tall, thin young man with short hair.

"Tasia!"

"yes!"

"Yabo!"

"Here," another hero stepped forward.

"And finally, it's Oz!"

But no one responded. Worth looked up and saw that there were indeed only five people in front of her. Oz, who had been recommended by Frost, did not appear.

Where is Oz?

Wolse's question left the five students exchanging bewildered glances. No one cared about the whereabouts of that arrogant, specially recruited student, and naturally, no one could answer. Wolse could only sigh. These students were already a bit troublesome, but at least they knew to attend class on time. That Oz, though a talent sponsored by Frost, was even more eccentric than the other five. As a teacher, Wolse felt she still had a long way to go.

The school has fulfilled its responsibility to inform students; whether or not students attend class is entirely up to them. Worse had no choice but to set aside those who weren't there and begin class with the five punctual students.

The advanced class participants were no longer clueless beginners. They didn't need much introduction. Long before the semester started, Worth had already reviewed their abilities and records, and tailored a training plan specifically for them to improve their skills.

"Nass! You have the lowest stats out of the six, especially strength. If it were any lower, you'd probably be moved to the intermediate class. For the next two weeks, you'll be doing physical conditioning training. Get your strength up. Then you can start skills training... Letty! You're going to...?"

Even experienced warriors are not without flaws. Each has their own problems. Wolse accurately identified their shortcomings, which made these men put aside any lingering prejudices they might have against women.

"And then it's you, Tatia."

After giving instructions to the others, Wors finally came to Tatia.

"You're fourteen years old, right? For your age, reaching this level is quite rare. Lord Frost recommended Oz, whose stats are about the same as yours. How did you train?"

"I am..."

Tatsia recounted in detail to Wors the special training Naka had given her, including the muscle training and the various battles she had experienced. Of course, Tatsia didn't mention the last, painful mission she had taken on before enrolling here. But even setting that aside, Tatsia's achievements were considerable.

After hearing her explanation, Wors secretly marveled. While it seemed somewhat like last-minute cramming, this combination of physical training and real combat, along with practical skills and combat strategies, including the joint lock technique used against Nath, comprehensively developed Tatia's overall combat capabilities. This training method, which considers various situations, can quickly cultivate a potential warrior. Even seasoned adventurers might not be able to quickly find their niche and understand which direction to strive towards. Such a thorough and precise training method was unlike anything a saint could conceive of and implement effectively. If Tatia's words were true, then she had truly found an excellent mentor and friend. Younger generations don't only need the guidance and instruction of senior adventurers to grow. Mutual help and support can also help them progress. As an adventurer who had retired from the front lines and a teacher, nothing was more gratifying than seeing young people who had the potential to surpass their generation.

"I see... Tatia, your teammate is indeed remarkable, to be able to complete all the training programs she planned and achieve such transformative progress in just one month. You are also a rare and valuable talent. I believe that as long as you continue to work together, you will definitely become renowned adventurers who make a great contribution to defeating the Demon King's army. Therefore, you must cherish that saintess. Even if there are some conflicts between you, don't break up with her. I can only teach you for half a year, but she may influence your entire life. Meeting her is truly your good fortune."

"Yes! That's what I think too!"

What made Tatsia even happier than the self-praise was that the special training Naka had prepared for her received high praise from professionals. Even if Worth hadn't said anything, Tatsia had already decided to follow Naka forever.

"However, even the saintess made a mistake. Although I think she did consider it, she just had no choice."

Naka's training plan still included goals that were impossible to achieve due to unforeseen circumstances. Compared to her double-digit physical abilities, her magic power, which hadn't increased by a single point since Tatya met Naka, was truly glaring. As the Demon King, Naka genuinely had no idea how the hero increased her magic power or learned magic.

However, as a former elite adventurer, this problem was naturally no challenge for Wors. She took out a training list and handed it to Tatia.

"Follow the steps written above and first feel the magic power hidden within your body. Once you can feel its presence, I will teach you how to increase your magic power. Without proper preparation, it will only be counterproductive."

Naka prepared physical enhancements for herself, while Wors prepared mental enhancements for Tatsia. These mainly included breathing techniques and methods to better sense the presence of magic in the natural environment. Magic is largely related to the elemental attributes present in nature. Each person's strengths lie in different elements. Therefore, Wors proposed many different environments, all of which were simulated within the venue, eliminating the need to travel to the wilderness. Wors also thoughtfully wrote down the locations of each scene, making it very simple and easy to understand. Tatsia was very grateful to this responsible teacher.

"I understand. Thank you, teacher."

"Alright, go ahead."

So the five heroes dispersed on the spot and went to the places that Wolse had arranged for them to begin their training.

It's said that you need to draw out the magic within your body, but how exactly do you sense it? This is something that Wors didn't teach Tatsia.

Magic is a subjective thing, and its effects are very limited when explained verbally. Once you find the knack, it becomes something akin to instinct. This was what Wolse was thinking. But Tatsia couldn't grasp this level of understanding. Filled with hesitation, she took very slow steps.

The first location on the list was a large pool simulating a lake. Tatya, who had been kicked into the lake by Naka before, didn't feel anything from the water. It seemed the water element didn't resonate with her. So she skipped the first scene and went straight to the second location: the forest.

The magical artifacts simulating wind have a feel almost identical to natural wind, and the vibrant trees and forests were all planted by hand. Sunlight streaming through the roof further catalyzes the plants' photosynthesis, propelling their growth. Stepping inside, one almost forgets they are indoors, feeling as if they have entered a real forest. Walking here, Tatsia couldn't help but recall her now-vanished homeland. If it weren't for the Demon King's army, she would probably be living peacefully in such an environment now.

However, a fake is still a fake. There were no wild animals in this forest. The vegetation and branches were simply pruned by staff. It was easy to see the signs of human intervention for aesthetic purposes. The sense of nature was greatly diminished. Perhaps because Tatiya grew up in the forest, she was particularly sensitive to this issue, and she couldn't sense anything here either.

"According to what's said above, it should be possible to develop magic with a higher affinity for wind in the forest. It seems I'm just not cut out for wind magic..."