The Circle

The Time of the Hero opens at night during a meeting of The Circle—a gang of four cadets in their final year of the Leoncio Prado Academy led by the Jaguar. Their clubhouse is "the windowless latrine" and they are rolling the dice to see who will steal the answers to the chemistry exam. This criminal act sets off a violent chain reaction although The Circle intended only to pass an important exam a mere two months before graduation. Cava, a peasant, rolled the four, meaning he must make arrangements on behalf of The Circle with those cadets on duty to grant him anonymous passage to the academic building. This is easily granted and Cava goes off into the night while Boa and Curly, relieved by the roll of the die, go off to bed.

Later that night, while the Poet and the Slave (forced...