The Retired Hero is an Extra

Snowflakes drifted silently through the crisp, cold air, settling gently on the frosted ground with moonlight casting a serene, silvery glow.

The soft blanket of snow bore many footsteps as the city's populace was active, awaiting this day with excitement every year.

The soft crunch of footsteps and the muffled cheer of a distant New Year's celebration alongside animated conversations hung in the air.

Icicles hung from rooftops like nature's chandeliers, and the starry sky seemed to stretch infinitely above.

Inside cozy homes, families gathered around crackling fires, their laughter and warmth a stark contrast to the icy calm of the wintry night outside.

Meanwhile, others enjoyed the wintry night by visiting high-rise malls, shopping districts, movie theaters, restaurants, and bustling streets.

No matter the place or the people, similar types of excited words were being exchanged.

On the street, two old men were sitting under a tree with smiles on their faces as they enjoyed the winter scenery.

"Old Man, did your granddaughter also get selected for the Entrance Test?" A gray-haired man spoke to the man with a receding hairline next to him.

"Haha, Yes. Yes, she did. I am so happy for her," the balding man replied with a gleeful, proud smile.

"Although I am worried about her. She is very clumsy," the man added, his eyes filled with worry.

"Yeah. With so many big names attending this year, we can only hope our children remain out of their sight," the gray-haired man spoke.

"Exactly! I had to remind her so many times to stay away from any trouble," the balding man replied.

"Heh! I asked my grandson to stay away from them in its entirety," the gray-haired man smirked, taking a jab at his old friend.

"Oh, good, good. That's a good idea!" the balding man said excitedly, ignoring the light-hearted jab by his long-time friend.

Just like them, many others were discussing the same thing.

Some talked about the big names while others expressed their worry and anxiety over whether their children could pass the Entrance Test.

It was the eve of New Year, just a few hours and it'll be 1 January, 2451.

Although the weather was too cold and it was snowing, this was the time when most academies did their admissions.

Of course, the first one to hold it was the world's best academy, the Solarnelle Academy.

No one would want to go to any other academy if they could get into it, after all.

Unfortunately, the number of admissions were limited and the tests were quite rigorous for most young awakeners.

Especially because normal people had to go through the Hunter Association to awaken in the first place.

And only if they completely formed a mana core, were they trained and sent to participate in the Entrance Test.

Yet that wasn't all.

They had to pass the test to get a sponsorship to study at the Solarnelle Academy.

This rigorous process made sure no weak person attended the Solarnelle Academy.

If they wanted to learn, they had no other option than to enroll in other academies, sometimes even without sponsorship.

However, that wasn't the case for nobles' children or those from rich families, irrespective of the race.

"Welcome to 24N News. We are filming the arrival of the Nobles and the participating awakeners," the reporter said, reporting outside the teleportation gate.

Teleportation gates, unlike circles used for short distances, were usually used for long distances. For example, across entire territories of nobles.

Their primary use is to facilitate trade between the three races, given the great distances separating them.

Even if the races lived harmoniously, the elves and dwarves needed specific environments to thrive, unlike humans.

That's why the importance of teleportation gates came into view.

Simply because the teleportation circles were made of runes etched on a surface and could be drawn by anyone knowledgeable enough.

Of course, a continuous stream of mana must be supplied for them to be fully operational; otherwise, they are nothing more than drawn glyphs.

In comparison, teleportation gates were similar to dungeon gates, allowing instantaneous travel to far away places.

Hence, they could only be operated in the presence of space mages or with the help of very specific spatial artifacts.

Naturally, the control of such artifacts was very limited to prevent rampant terrorist attacks at places of great importance.

Jash and most nobles used similar teleportation gates to travel to Adonia, the capital city, for the Imperial banquet.

Given the safety, it became the most viable method for transit if one was rich enough and below S-Rank.

Since hunters at and above S-Rank could literally fly at crazy speeds, there was a chance they'd reach faster than the entire process of teleportation.

As the portals are two-way, unlike teleportation circles, which only send people one-way to a set destination, provided its coordinates were preset.

Also, the Circles could be easily ruined by tampering with them as anyone with enough knowledge about runes could do it.

But gates were secured as long as that artifact was working fine, or that spatial mage didn't go batshit crazy.

Therefore, the strong hunters didn't like even that slightest chance and the delay caused by the portal having to get activated at both sides.

If a monster horde was rampant, who would have time to play house and activate the teleportation portal?

It would be like setting a target on their back, even making the evacuation of people a tougher task than it needed to be.

Yet those same strong hunters who detested using teleportation gates were using them with their family.

Some obviously came to spectate and find someone suitable enough to recruit, betroth into their family, or pass their legacy onto.

No one knew what objectives the person next to them had.

"A few guests had already arrived yesterday, with the majority having arrived today, and only some of them are still not present," the reporter spoke.

He was smiling while giving the view behind him where everyone--the affluent, the nobles, the merchants, the commoners, the Hunter Association--were arriving.

"This is the first time when so many talented people will be enrolling in the same batch," he said excitedly, spittle flying out of his mouth.

"And according to the Hunter Association, even the chosen candidates are no joke this year!" he stopped as the Teleportation gate started shining.

"It seems that the next family has arrived," he reported, the camera shifting from him to focus towards the teleportation gate.

Out of the teleportation gate, many people arrived, surrounding the young ones in the middle.

However, their attire spoke volumes about their identity.

The females donned pristine white gowns with a subtle golden sheen, adorned with delicate golden embroidery.

The Intricate patterns made of a golden accent at the soft, billowing sleeves of their gowns seemingly catching the light.

One thing in common was all females having a veil below their eyes with golden patterns similar to their earrings.

In comparison, the men wore white robes with golden trim and flowing cloaks, complemented by golden belts and embellished clasp.

Yet both the attires reflected purity, reverence, kindness, benevolence as if embodying the radiant essence of the Goddess of Light herself.

"Even the delegation from the Church of Light has arrived!" the reporter excitedly clamored for the people watching him.

In the Church of the Goddess of Light, attire is both ethereal and majestic, making it quite easy for the reporter to identify them.

Still, many reporters like him stayed around, wanting to catch as many elusive figures as possible.

The hype for this year was incomparable to any before, making it all the more worth it.