༺ Class Placement Evaluation (1) ༻ Chapter 6

In three days, there would be a class placement evaluation.

It was an event where the main character, Ian Fairytale, and one of the heroines, Luce Eltania, would get entangled.

As for why they got involved, it was because a demon suddenly appeared.

Right before Ian and Luce fought, a demon emerged and the two joined forces to fight the demon, and Ian ended up protecting Luce.

Ian was just protecting Luce, thinking that she was caught off guard.

Anyway, they succeeded in defeating the demon and after the class placement evaluation was over, Luce started caring for Ian because of the memories they formed that day.

The two of them end up dating because Luce was vulnerable to situations where she is being protected.

'Of course, none of this would matter if Ian were to lose again at the beginning.'

In the first place, there was no need for Ian to protect Luce.

If Luce didn't take the lover route, she would live with 'living my life my way' as her motto and instead become a supporting character who occasionally helped Ian. Even if Ian didn't protect Luce, there wouldn't be any problems with the story.

My role was to simply defeat the demon without much thought.

By the way, even if Ian was defeated and Luce was left alone, she could still defeat the demon.

The problem with that, however, was that it led directly to a bad ending.

So, the key to that event was to defeat the demon as quickly as possible and prevent a bad ending from occurring.

However, the class placement evaluation started at 2:00 PM, and the demon wouldn't appear until 7:00 PM.

The class placement evaluation was a survival game where everyone was an enemy besides yourself. In that battle royale, I would have to survive for five hours until the demon appeared while being the weakest student.

'Firstly physical training, secondly magic training, then Introduction to Basic Magic, and finally The Study of Elementary Ice Science…'

I started to move according to the training plan that I had drawn up in advance.

As dusk descended, I arrived at the corner of the Butterfly Garden.

The place I had arrived at was an open area. Under the dark and gloomy evening sky, I deeply inhaled the grassy air.

Probably because the location was so large, it was easy to find a deserted place.

"Whoo."

From now on, I intended to use the 1-star spell [Ice Generation] like crazy.

Basic elemental magic was very useful, and it was necessary to master it first because it was the basis of all magic.

'[Ice Generation].'

I stretched out my hands into the air and let the ice mana flow.

「Ice Generation (Ice Attribute, ★1)」

I repeatedly produced ice blocks the size of soccer balls before removing them through unfreezing.

I used up almost all the mana I was able to muster and then patiently waited for my mana to replenish itself before doing it all again.

Despite the cold weather, beads of sweat were dripping down my body as if I was standing in the rain – the fatigue that I had been ignoring so far finally settled in, causing my energy to dwindle and blood to start flowing from my nose.

Spending mana recklessly was more arduous than I thought.

Then, after two hours had passed, I headed to one of the seven gyms with an exhausted body.

Most of the students in the Department of Magic aimed to become wizards, so they didn't feel the need to come to the gym.

It was much more efficient to study magic theory or increase your magic proficiency while training your muscles in moderation for conditioning and health.

I'd rather train according to the standards of this world, but in <Magic Knight of Märchen>, having good stamina came with a variety of benefits, both in terms of growth and overall progression of the story. In other words, physical training was something that no one could deny the importance of.

"Oh, oh."

When I arrived at the gym, I saw students from the Knight Department in sportswear exercising with great intensity.

A party of steel for men. I felt like I was going to drown in all the testosterone that was radiating from their bodies.

'There really isn't anyone from the Magic Department, is there?'

Fortunately, I didn't see any students who seemed to be from the Magic Department after looking around for a bit.

If there were, I would have been criticized for things like 'he's a commoner with Grade E mana but doesn't train his magic and instead chooses to do outrageous exercises, it's clear that he doesn't understand what he's studying.'

Wouldn't I lose all interest in exercising?

"Ugh."

I started with the bench press.

I put a collective 20kg of iron on the left and right of a 20kg iron bar, for a total weight of 40kg.

I could feel the fit students of the Knight Department glancing at me.

It must have been a strange sight to see a normal-looking Magic Department student trying to exercise.

Let's ignore it.

"Uughhhh…!"

–Haa Haaa!

Gritting my teeth, I lifted the iron bar with all my strength.

"Ha."

I managed to lift the iron bar up for 5 reps, then rested.

I lifted it 5 more times. Rest.

Then another 5 times. Rest.

"Blerchhhh…"

I dropped it as is. I felt like I've already completely overworked my arm and chest muscles. Is this really my limit?

I was staring at the ceiling for a moment when suddenly four muscular male students rushed towards me.

"Are you a student at the Magic Department?"

Oh, man, it's intimidating to be surrounded by such muscular individuals.

It was natural for them to notice that I was in the Magic Department, since the navy blue sweatshirt I was wearing right now was for the Magic Department.

But what were students of the Knight Department doing here?

"Yeah, what about it…?"

"Why exercise…? Are you an aspiring Magic Knight…?"

I wasn't able to think much because I was tired so after taking a deep breath I just told them the first thing that came to mind.

"I just want to become stronger…"

"...!!"

The eyes of the male students from the Knight Department lit up.

How did… the atmosphere become like this…?

"I know that feeling very well…!"

"To think there would be a person with such a wonderful mindset in the Magic Department…! Yes! If you want to be strong in magic or whatever else, exercise is essential!

"Can we teach you how to properly exercise?"

What…?

Are you guys saying you want to become my personal trainers, right now?

Before I came to this world, I would frequently go to the gym and I would always hear that getting a personal trainer was an effective way of helping you exercise, but they were too expensive for me to even think of hiring one.

The students from the Knight Department had better muscles than any personal trainer I had ever seen so it seemed like a good idea to accept their proposal.

"I'd appreciate it if you could."

"...!"

Soon I would regret those words.

━─━─━━─━「₪」━━─━─━─━

The muscles all over my body were screaming in pain.

I couldn't even walk properly.

"Ughguk…"

The training of the Knight Department students could only be described as hell. 'You're doing great! Good! Great! One more rep, one more rep!' I forcibly lifted the iron while thinking I was going to die.

The effect was certain as every single one of my muscle cells was aching.

They wanted to see me again tomorrow, it seems they had fun teaching me how to exercise.

[Status]

Name: Isaac

Lv: 25

Gender: Male

Year: 1st

Title: Freshman

Mana: 250/320

– Mana Recovery Speed (D-)

– Stamina (D-)

– Strength (D)

– Intelligence (D)

– Willpower (B)

Potential ❰❰Details❱❱

There was no immediate change in stamina and strength, it seemed that they would only increase after new muscle tissues were formed.

'Ahhh…'

My body had reached its limit.

Seriously… I barely made it to the dormitory, after crawling like a drunk.

I had to study now… but my stamina didn't last…

As soon as I entered the room, I kicked the bucket, and fell asleep on the floor before I even got to bed.

━─━─━━─━「₪」━━─━─━─━

[Status]

Name: Isaac

Lv: 26

Gender: Male

Year: 1st

Title: Freshman

Mana: 340/340

– Mana Recovery Speed (D)

– Stamina (D)

– Strength (D+)

– Intelligence (D+)

– Willpower (B)

Potential ❰❰Details❱❱

[Combat Skills]

Elemental Series 1: Ice

– Elemental Firepower (D)

– Elemental Efficiency (D+)

– Elemental Synergy (C)

– Elemental Series 2 (Locked)

It was difficult to expect dramatic changes in just three days but I did grow a little.

As a result of training, my level rose by 1. I invested the newly acquired 2 stats in [Magic Training Efficiency] and thanks to that, my [Magic Training Efficiency] went up from C- to C.

My abilities also increased and my mana was raised by 20.

[Mana Recovery Speed], [Stamina], [Strength], [Intelligence], [Elemental Firepower], and [Elemental Efficiency] also rose by one level each.

'I'm seeing less growth than when I was playing the game.'

It seemed impossible for me to grow as fast as when I was playing the game as Ian. It was probably a matter of overall potential, so it would be clear to anybody that I was the weakest student at the academy with Grade E mana.

However, if I kept raising [Physical Training Efficiency] and [Magical Training Efficiency], my growth rate would skyrocket later.

'The preparations are…'

I prepared for the class placement evaluation by buying 10 slingshots, magic pouches, a few magic tools, and a Magic Cloak of Disguise.

The slingshot was easily obtainable at the general store, and the magic tools at the magic tool store, however, the magic tools were a little on the expensive side.

The Cloak of Disguise could only be bought at a secret shop, which could only be found by taking a secret route, since ordinary magic tool stores only sold perception-impairing glasses.

Perception-impairing glasses only made it difficult to distinguish faces, but did not hide physique or voice.

On the other hand, the Cloak of Disguise could completely change the physique and voice of the wearer, effectively making them look like a different person. The reason for this lied in the optical illusion cast upon it, which altered the perception of those who looked at it.

If I wore this outfit, I would be able to hide myself in front of Luce's sharp eyes and photographic memory, since if she realized my true identity, she would report it to the academy's office, and inevitably, it would reach the ears of the student council president.

'It's very expensive…'

Just like one would expect from the secret store, the Magic Cloak of Disguise cost me a sizable 3000 gels.

Fortunately, I had just enough after eating nothing but a 10 gel piece of bread every day, I wouldn't have been able to afford it otherwise.

In the end, I was robbed of all my fortune…

However, depending on the results of the class placement evaluation, the gel allocated would increase, so I had no choice but to get a decent grade.

━─━─━━─━「₪」━━─━─━─━

"We will start the class placement evaluation today."

It was the day of the class placement evaluation.

The midday sky was clear and blue.

The Magic Department's Provisional 3rd Class had arrived in front of a dense forest located on the west side of the academy, the forest was called 'Delphine Forest'.

There Professor Fernando faced the Provisional 3rd Class while standing in an orderly manner.

"The rules are simple, all you have to do is find as many mana grains as you can within the allotted time, they are hidden throughout 'Delphine Forest' and if you bring the watch I gave you close to the mana grains, they will naturally attach themselves to it. The mana grains cannot be removed from the watch once they are attached."

The contents of Märchen Academy's performance evaluations and exams changed every year, and they were all revealed on the same day. In other words, this was the first time the students heard the contents of the class placement evaluation.

I looked down at the watch on my left wrist.

The hour and minute hands indicated that it was currently 1:30 PM.

My name, 'Isaac', was engraved on the watchband in magical characters. I just have to bring this closer to the mana grains.

Mana grains emitted weak mana, making them difficult to detect. In other words, the most important thing in this class placement evaluation was mana perception.

For reference, mana could only be detected if it was emitted, meaning even a person with excellent mana perception couldn't detect mana from Luce Eltania when she wasn't using magic.

Mana perception that was sensitive enough to detect mana that wasn't being released, was in the realm of an Archwizard.

"Mana perception? That's easy."

"It is simple."

"I am confident."

The students listened to the exam contents, shrugged their shoulders, and started chattering.

These were the students who would soon be terrified after hearing Professor Fernando's explanation, which would follow.

"Also, if the watch is removed from the wrist for any reason, a signal is sent to us immediately and the student is eliminated. It is also possible to steal another student's watch. A student who succeeds in stealing a watch will receive additional points equal to the level of the opponent's mana. In a word, it's a 'survival' game, any means of collecting points is acceptable, so be careful since all first-year students of the Magic Department will be participating.

The students were startled and started whispering.

"Was it a survival game?! What should I do? I'm weak…"

"If I get caught by someone like Luce Eltania, won't I just die? It's all luck…"

"On the other hand, if I get a Grade E like Isaac, I will be lucky."

"No, since even if you do catch him his magic power is Grade E so you wouldn't receive a lot of extra points."

If you caught Luce Eltania, who had Grade A+ mana, or Kaya Astrean, who had Grade B+, you will receive an enormous bonus. Then not only would you get into a good class, but you would also earn a lot of gel. Of course, there was no way I would be able to pull something like that off.

On the other hand, Ian Fairytale, who had Grade E mana, would only net you a small number of points if you caught him…

Ian will be targeted by many students because he's Grade E, but what about me? I can already see the dark future ahead of me.

At least Ian's fighting skills and physical abilities were excellent, so he wouldn't be defeated easily. This was the reason he could hold out until 7 P.M. when the demon appeared.

On the other hand, I was as good as doomed.

"Professor, what if an outsider breaks in during the exam? It's in the forest, so I'm afraid I might meet a strange person…"

A female student asked Professor Fernando.

"When all the students enter the forest, a barrier is set. No one will be allowed inside during the test, so don't worry about threats from the outside."

That's right, the test was safe from external threats. Except the demon came from within the forest.

Besides, once you got eliminated and left the forest, you wouldn't be able to re-enter until after the exam had ended.

Afterward, the question 'What about the bathroom?' came up, and Professor Fernando simply answered, 'Do it yourself'.

"Then you will enter in numerical order starting from the number 1."

Student number 1 entered Delphine Forest and with a bit of time difference between them, all the students started entering as well.

Other provisional class students must have entered like this from the other side of the Delphine Forest.

Finally, on number 25, I also entered the Delphine Forest.

The class placement evaluation began at 2:00 PM and the demon will appear at 7:00 PM.

'Let's do it…'

I have to endure for 5 hours in a survival game with only people stronger than me.

Recalling that fact, I held my breath and maintained my tension.

Before I knew it, a barrier was drawn around Delphine Forest, and a firecracker exploded in the sky.

The class placement evaluation had begun.