Chapter 8: Grading Test (3)
8NoU4It might sound like I’m bragging when I say this, but I’ve been using a spear for quite some time in the previous iteration. Stabbing at the weak points of a monster was nothing difficult.iP7vHr6
1lVWhat was important was that it was a lot easier to move my body compared to the previous iteration. My power, stamina and vision were all incomparably higher than what I had at the start of the previous iteration.NXY5u
QXtFBFIt was thanks to the second aspect of the Precept – 〚I do not perceive spirits.〛which amplified my strength against physical opponents.v1gHimG
JKht2‘Next up are demonic spirits, huh.’1xM9Eoh
m5jbNeIt was the same as the Restriction that man had in the previous iteration. I had to check if it was working properly.4qXd
mz9s『Grade 5 demonic spirit test will now begin.』tZt
h2XSomething must have been summoned immediately after the impassive voice of Professor Ronan, but I could neither see nor hear anything.i0Ol
B3ML4‘It’s going as expected so far.’rcmIr9b
2tehSBmI was miserable at seeing astral bodies in the first place. No matter how much I raised my stats while following Park Sihu around, my ability to see astral bodies just did not get any better.uMcb
2BcI could only faintly sense their presence. In that popular game[mfn] Referring to Starcraft[/mfn] everyone plays in Korea, the terrain gets blurry whenever there are invisible units walking by, right? That was exactly what it felt like to me.hSNGRmV
9mF7However, I couldn’t even see that afterimage anymore. Anyone would generally feel a chill or feel spooked when nearby an astral body, but I couldn’t feel anything.2gp
PnLAPmNext up was the battle. Sitting still, I defenselessly waited for the demonic spirit to approach me.qige
VZA1 minute.R338iY
tqbp8CbAlthough I wasn’t sure how fast the demonic spirit was, a minute would have been enough for it to approach me.NJ3I
qYzp3UAnd it probably would have done something to me. It might have used Life Drain that demonic spirits loved the most or something like Soul Crusher… Well, a low grade demonic spirit might not have such skills, but the point was that something should have long happened by now.8e6Yz
3g0RjhB‘It’s working.’0S2
NPbBecause of the rule of mutual cognition, the demonic spirit could not interfere with me because I couldn’t perceive it in the first place.7dL
po8vBFdThat made me certain. Demonic spirits would not be able to touch me no matter how strong they were… even a Unique Grade spirit would be powerless.XqSR0RR
PLFy4qThe ‘Restriction’ of the Precept was working like a charm.Ybc
zeTuzy“Good.”RC5
PnFxqI checked everything that needed to be checked so it was time to hurry up and leave this test.N6ofEy
uMgO1TAThere was no reason to let Professor Ronan know that I could not perceive demonic spirits, let alone how they could not even touch me.AeC8E6
qKDCVWJOf course, Professor Ronan would not even dare imagine that it could be impossible to perceive demonic spirits but others might be different.3A04L
yf3b6“I give up.”rgUQYg
aUbZQdAfter a while, I was able to see a crumpled look on Professor Ronan’s face.qbJDW9
sTa7****eox
KfBy8Old Man Haman had been watching the crystals with Professor Ronan ever since he had a question.3S5OlQ
RjwG‘This guy’s a gem!’rg7n
BGL0AcHThat was his impression of Korin.NBK
61gQHis expert skills at hunting the short hounds; his posture and the precise accuracy of his javelins were all remarkable, with zero room for negative feedback. That wasn’t the end – his ability to insta-kill the mat boar and the owlbear was astonishing.7KWXIf
Al6s4Even from the higher graded knights, it was hard to find knights that were able to show such skill in an actual fight.MMpd3M
a1dBCw‘Strange that he forfeited against the demonic spirits but… Was there something he had in mind?’hqDy
pXnitz0Even Haman could not imagine a guardian who could not perceive spirits, but his guess was somewhat correct.9vfSk
5KSFq8sIn the end, Korin was given the title of a Grade 5 knight, but that wasn’t anything to be stressed about. A powerhouse at his level was bound to accomplish many things, and with those he would inevitably go towards the top.XmwQGf
narR8s‘Hoho… looks like my last few years are going to be exciting.’ogncI3
PLUHow high up would he go? Old Man Haman let out a hearty laughter at unexpectedly coming across a hidden rising star.r2Qh
FG3E3c****Jlg
2Yx8CU“Uuh…”Nki
ieVksLAlicia felt as if she was suffocating to death as she waited for her peers to complete their tests.jscbr
xqHNgfe『Alicia Arden』
Aura Rank: Upper Medium (6,800)1evP
kbuJUR6Mana Rank: Lower Medium (1,300)MaBahk
CCXASpecialties: Eyes of the BoundarytkJOc
KiromtyOverall Grade: Grade 2ewryo4
bYhbYFinal Grade: Grade 2 KnightsXES3ch
ajPHer stats were definitely in the upper spectrum among knights, and she was a blessed and gifted child ever since her birth.F1loDS
DVzfHowever, the peers standing next to her were at a similar level if not higher than her. None of them were ordinary.llt2S
I8dwo‘Ughh… Why is no one saying anything? I can’t even hear them breathe.’4UR34yE
qEJGiIGEveryone else was doing their test so they were the only people except for the professors and yet not a single one of them was interested in other people.84VLi
sGwB9nhThis was at least triple the awkwardness that existed at the start of the year in the normal academies she had gone to.wWpPp1h
8AaCThere was a druid girl maintaining a bizarre gymnastic posture in meditation;hyS
sp9A gloomy boy wearing a black robe caressing a muddy doll;2wyB
lsoAnd a former mercenary hanging five gleaming blades in the air while breathing like a beast.sjr
nUOqHR‘Scary! Why is everyone so bizarre? Are they really the same age as me?!’FgTh
uDMkMAlicia used to go to a normal academy until middle school.PFNdRw
j3gIf her grandfather didn’t suddenly drop a senile comment like, ‘Let’s make Alicia a successor candidate as well,’ she definitely wouldn’t have come to such a sinister academy.KyzUyk
HZ6‘Cherry, Nobu, Tofre… I miss you guys.’9sc5
qTUZ6The scariest of all was the girl who was literally doing nothing in this suffocatingly heavy atmosphere.6jVC
3lceUnlike her appearance that suggested she was from the East, she was wearing the clothes of a nun with chains restricting her on top of that. The chains weren’t sealing her joints and it seemed that they weren’t there to restrict her movements.Ygb1yXA
rUA4cThere was more.kf0gFp
O2CrDozens of yellow talismans were coiled around those chains. She looked extremely ominous if anything. The hair color of the chained nun girl was also strange. The outside was jet black and yet the inside was tainted in deep red.4lRMJ
qDZ8exX‘Did she dye her hair?’UBo
wa5DIt looked way too natural for it to be dyed hair and Alicia was curiously staring at it when the sharp red eyes suddenly turned towards her.5eUM
Abj“Ehk…”otsR
AiZ9rgsMeeting those deep eyes that seemed like they would lead to the endless abyss, Alicia felt a chill running down her spine.tcLX
A9uhThis is dangerous! We have a carnivore in a cage of herbivores! There is a scary predator…!nVSuNFa
EA4S‘Benefactor! Are you there?! Please save me one more time!!’j7I
0fLlcAWhile touching the belt tied around her martial arts uniform, Alicia prayed to someone who would be too far to hear her.mPFgA
Z0x****2kswFL
xvwTMHIn the end, I was given the title of a Grade 5 Knight by Professor Ronan.xNP9DF
EYBGHe gave a deep scowl when he saw me, who had forfeited at Grade 5 demonic spirit test after defeating a Grade 3 demonic beast, but there was nothing I could do about it.DoUyYgZ
071Professor Ronan constantly glared at me as if he was discontent by me forfeiting at the Grade 5 demonic spirit test, but nonetheless, the highest grade I could get after not defeating a Grade 5 demonic spirit, was Grade 5.sL6SV
KijlI was leaving after getting my student ID cards updated to Grade 5 Knight and found students chatting to each other.BtYb
QqQnC– Oi, what grade did you get?iKi
WjPuZU– Grade 4. I fucked up. What about you?uN2oK
7esZXd5– Huhu. Grade 3.4XtSnCX
Alzb2Dc– Wow… So you killed both an owlbear and a banshee?r6tR3
nRM– Look at them. They’re Grade 5.ODAjWcv
UGS– Ehew, how do you even get Grade 5?HnHB
wF1W4BmAfter Lady Josephine’s grading test, we received our grades from the professors in charge and lined back up according to our given grades.f67f
O8ABnEPThere were only 30 students standing in front of the Grade 5 signboard where I was. In front of the Grade 3 board were around 20 people, which meant there were approximately 350 students who got Grade 4.36Afyf
lLtju“Huhut…!”n2XCY
L4aHXMost of the Grade 3 students couldn’t hide their arrogant gazes. The one who stood out the most was a delinquent-looking student with very short hair and an impressive tattoo on the back of his neck.gqCE
ju2xcAOhh~ it was someone I knew.eExbpr
WXOSJaeger Hinzpeter.X42
72fHe was a Grade 3, and his specialty was something like accumulated destruction, where you build energy inside by landing attacks and explode it in one go.f1091
mm7VeLeIt was a specialty we didn’t even get to see in the game because of him quickly becoming irrelevant but now that this was the real world, it should be possible to have a look at his abilities since we will be training in the same class.NF3
SAMMtxHis role in ❰Heroic Legends of Arhan❱ was picking a fight with the player at the start of the story, only to be smashed in an instant.PSjDqs
Vwi2IyHe preferred a heavy armor and a mace, and had a tattoo on his neck. Also, his mother is a tattooist.tCoLgsR
qJVlHow did I know that, you may ask?N49Wwi
JL8IIt was because 3 years ago, his parents and his younger sister had come to the Academy when he went missing in the 1st semester. They used their own money to try to find Jaeger and that scene had left quite a big impression on me back then.wXz3sdC
oOln‘He was one of the people Park Sihu killed for annoying him.’t4dFjQ
EGCIouwThat fucking cidery psychopath… Although Jaeger had a bit of an attitude, he was definitely not a big enough sinner who deserved to die. He was a typical delinquent and a demi-human racist, but he was not a massive bully and he was just in the rough and unstoppable moments of his youth.aRjs
xTSXc61He was just a young and immature kid compared to the actually terrible delinquents whose lives were a series of sexual assaults and robberies.nmdz
YIUHe had some skill and was a Grade 3 Knight. Looking down on peers who had a lower Grade and feeling superior was quite common in his age.tIvR458
VX28SThose are the days, you know.4Xrx
m3JQkfb– Look. They are Grade 5.eAI
xB2– Wow, how do you get that?0OALk
zfhkpwd– So some people do lose to short hounds and ghosts, huh.JrDE
NDGJaeger wasn’t the only one with such an attitude and most of the students were the same.ktXnQl
u7nSFwThere was always at the very bottom. Grade 4 students, which was the majority of students, sent condescending gazes at the Grade 5 students, whereas the Grade 5 students who were at the very bottom dropped their heads in embarrassment and frustration.FCqtrnf
MjEmtutThey would at least hit Grade 4 before graduation and that was already considered quite good outside. Even though they might be treated like trash here, they were still superhumans outside.fSTZTRf
ugLmUVaNone of them would be starving to death no matter what they did anyway, but as expected of kids who had yet to suffer from the unemployment crisis, their perception of their future was very optimistic.IR5IpU
6Bqw3eaBut well… that’s what kids should be like. It would be great if their embarrassment and frustration would act as a positive catalyst for their growth but…w8x
06SLijj‘Lark’s also here.’RqyTb
BH1ZTypical nerd glasses and freckles… up to there it was normal, but the skull spellbook in his hands was definitely a tell-tale sign that he was a severe chuunibyou patient.Syy
uynsThe reason he died was because he framed me and Sihu after giving in to his inferiority complex.1jCs
yBKI was wondering whether I should kindly let him participate in the enlightening method of ‘Soviet Russia’ when the mic started to go off at the stage.FyhN
LnQL2N– Kuhum!xqROd
GBfU2KThere was a man testing the mic and the voice amplification magic.ZLN
oMUif“Good morning, freshmen. I am the chairman, Eriu Casarr. Let me make this brief.”YfLTyjp
qOhLuvFThere was no sign of him showing off his authority in his composed voice and the expressionless look on his face. He was respectful and dignified. He looked young but there was an underlying layer of composure which made it difficult to discern his age.tX6e
2hWWChairman of Merkarva Academy, Eriu Casarr. The strongest helper and bystander of the main quest.wjIb
ovoynrhIt had truly been a very long time.jjEL4d
dHW“In this academy, you will be learning the most intense and the most dangerous techniques of the world. Some of you might already be strong, and some of you might not be as strong. I cannot guarantee you that everyone will achieve their goals.”Ue3SZ
UVlIvFThe students created a fuss in response to the chairman’s words.GRlJ
ktftx“However, I do wish that everyone here may discover the correct direction of their lives. Our job is to help you take that first step. Starting from the second step, it will be up to you. That’s it from me. Hope you have a wonderful day.”0SN
7mETg5With that, the chairman left the stage. There was a short break after the chairman’s speech, which the freshmen used to get to know each other.q7ox
Z1mIV“I am a Grade 3 Knight, Jaeger Hinzpeter! You see—”GpTUT
RZWThuOAmong the freshmen was a guy who showed off his Grade and bragged about himself…yeot7l
35qH“…”kmL
b4QyAs well as a gloomy nerd flipping the pages of a spell book in the corner.d3sg03
PFnDglbIn the previous iteration, I had close to zero friends because of that damned Park, because I was forced to stay next to him the whole day.zGJ
AEiNtCGosh… Thinking of how there was a hidden desire concealed behind all that gave me goosebumps.abv
T2hI was glancing around to check whether the kids that died to Park were doing okay or not, and saw Jaeger striking up a conversation with Lark.DUW
HMto“Oi, what Grade are you?”6e7bKK
m6Z“Hu, huh?”tct4n
8YykLark was flustered from the sudden chat and slowly closed the spell book. Thinking back, I remembered how Jaeger picked a fight with Grade 5 students on the first day.N7d3Lz
YSpBwLD“G, Grade 5.”0ln
964Q“Grade 5? So you’re a weakling.”tENt8B
AA9Jaeger condescendingly gave a remark while Lark was shivering in front of the tattooed delinquent.PGf4ec
9d56TIOhh… It felt like I was back to being a teenager. Such immaturity… was refreshing.8c3Tty
SkxkE“Did you fail at killing the ghost? I suppose you could have been scared because some of them do look like a Grade 3. I wasn’t though.”nNOj
mXzS“Uhh…”ysbrzVj
E7QabhI“Huh? Wait, did you die to the short hounds and not the ghost? For real? Uhahaha!”F9iP
OZWtI was watching with an intrigued expression but Lark tightened his fist and looked fairly upset.Dp6q
8vEPfLHe wasn’t the only one. The small group of students that received Grade 5 in the test were embarrassed about their ranks which were easier counted from the bottom.2PkXD7
45sIU“You know what, I killed those weak-ass short hounds in like 3 minutes…”VudFZw
HFla“Hello, friends!”utOy3
UA6gWKjI suddenly wrapped my arms around them. Neither of them noticed me until I touched them.oYUdQ
gIY“Uht?”DlN
vCpIX“W, what?”qpH
8A9AzyXThe two of them rolled their eyes in surprise from my sudden approach. What was I supposed to do with these young teenage boys?ooQ
P73S“Y, you, who are you?”vLTP
RYyXLark took a step back after seeing my face. It wasn’t clear whether he was surprised by my jump-scare or my appearance.dvnsJq
0vVToe“That tattoo looks pretty sick.”sdMz
vTSFs7t“Hu, huh?”GKs5
hxrxM“Looks neat. The one who did it must be very good at it.”xP33ZrM
c9Io“Huh? Yeah? R, right?”SWhuOT
gAb9ZshI praised the tattoo and gave a compliment to the one who did it, which was highly likely to be his mother. He wouldn’t have expected me to know about the tattooist, so it must have sounded like a genuine compliment to him.SVrynO
P5D4tKPlus, his tattoo was not just there for show.Wn3f
xzDvsJ“That thing on the back of your neck is the symbol for your blood type right? To get a blood transfusion as quickly as possible when you get hurt, yeah? Damn, you’re prepared.”xGkDpn
GIbB“Yeah, right!”HcnbBJ
awuThe reason I knew this was because I had talked to Jaeger’s parents before. Because Park and I were the last ones to see Jaeger, we were summoned a few times.Vk8YLNh
vEqjJaeger’s tattoo was proof of his parent’s concern for their son who was entering the guardian academy.QDQqEB
fV4ZFSPark Sihu that fucking psychopath… Acting like nothing happened in front of Jaeger’s parents…XWgka7
8gtB“Actually, this is what my mom did for me. She’s more of a line work specialist, but she did it old school for me.”loQ
PJfRh“That looks excellent. Do you have more?”1aBntf
0P4Iye“Yeah. I did one on my arm. It’s the symbol of Merkarva Academy, and has a chariot flying through the sky.”iNg3Rp
QafPulling his sleeves, Jaeger bragged about his tattoo. As he said, there was a chariot and a sky behind it, which was the symbol of Merkarva Academy, imprinted on his right arm.qmT6
A0dy8After that,WQH
Vc4zBFI just listened to Jaeger excitedly talk about himself. Although I didn’t really know the technical terms like ‘line work’ and ‘old school’, what I knew was that you only needed to give energetic nods to be a great listener.XygV
xOQP03V“I’m Korin Lork.”3fa2SVs
nlT0sF“Jaeger Hinzpeter.”NvbFJM
CZW0SGZHe found out what my Grade was during the conversation, but unlike what he did with Lark, he didn’t even mention it. People generally did not bother bad-mouthing someone who they had a good impression of.UOT9
Sy5rIFZBecause of that, he didn’t continue picking a fight against Lark, who was in the same Grade as me.2NDA2
V9h2nfnThat should have left a positive first impression.BAuZ
yUEJzQbThis guy – Lark; if I remember correctly… His specialty was Memorize. He would be of great help.8wlRp3N
XUZHe… was the way for me to access the grimoire, the free skill book.7gGLHA
D6iyR3****woQsQs9
JVvdAlicia had a low self-esteem and was bad at expressing her opinion.FGHQSc5
v5DOHf3That was why despite her strength, she became timid in front of her impressive peers and couldn’t speak up to them.qczSw
alvHnYShe had been worn out and harassed by the people of her household that supported her older sister.uzSQs
PZzP20o— How can someone like you be at the same position as Lady Lunia?Xge5nFe
jI0o9Due to being the illegitimate child of the current head of the family, Gerard Arden, and the child of a concubine, she had been faint-hearted from a young age.4VA
i82eShe was always compared to her smart sibling, harassed and mocked. She was the ‘young lady’ of the household, but there was no weight behind that title.89kM0
4mYsJ“Grade 5? So you’re a weakling.”uS80b8
DmDwXAhh, he looks like a delinquent. He even has a tattoo…GJlGf4
38YFeeling like her PTSD was coming back up, Alicia forced herself to turn her head away from him. It was because there used to be a lot of people in the household who had tattoos.cX2VPo
pYn3She thought there would be no one saving that poor boy, like what happened to her.vmS
ZJtwpBi“That tattoo looks pretty sick.”IF64
9exwlQ“Hu, huh?”uI1p
vAy6tbKThat was when another boy showed up. The peer called Korin Lork, who was assigned as a mere Grade 5 Knight, approached the delinquent-looking Jaeger without any hesitation. He complimented his tattoos, gave deep nods and skilfully led the conversation with Jaeger.v8bngjV
8NiGEveryone watching knew that Korin had stepped in to help his peer from being harassed.YY8L
Tdx1HC0‘…Incredible.’1fUgYyZ
3nuBHe didn’t rely on strength nor did he try to talk down or criticize the opponent. The boy had gotten rid of the seed of harassment in a very adept manner.rJ5Ygg
2HZrfEven though he was also a Grade 5 himself, and even though he should’ve known that he could have become the next target, he still stepped up for his peers.JJoWCrv
Xpk1Today must have been the first day they met.g8ha0im
fwcAHe had never even talked to Lark before.IWe
EoVv0qpAlthough he would be getting nothing in return, he took a step forward nonetheless.HBQG
0f0That boy called Korin even gave off a sense of dignity and experience.Kbv1iCl
4DOG9XA‘What a nice person.’cv3VC6
lu5qShowing non-calculative kindness that gives a good impression… Was it just a coincidence that he reminded her of the benefactor she met in the forest?MSKK4d7
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