I've met the MC

 **Gideon's Perspective:**

*Of all the students thus far, his technique stands out the most. His upper and lower body maintain precise angles and positions, maximizing his attack potential.*

*His movements are finely tuned. However, the fact that he can generate a punch force of 300 is mind-boggling. It's evident he's undergone extensive training to achieve such proficiency.*

*I doubt this stems from raw talent. He's truly exceptional—a handsome young man with a mysterious background and formidable strength, complemented by superior intelligence.*

*I believe I've identified the protagonist of this story, and surprisingly, I'm his self-proclaimed best friend. I might have to distance myself; in manga, the MC's best friend often gets dragged into their problems.*

*Henry's performance surprises everyone, but I remain astonished at how oblivious and unintelligent he can be at times.*

*"...eon!"*

*Henry Stephen—only I am privy to his secret.*

*"...ideon!"*

I can't wait to see the reaction of the people when the MC's secret is being exposed.

"Gideon!"

*My thoughts are interrupted by the teacher's voice.*

*The other students fixate on me, making me uncomfortably aware of the attention—something I detest.*

"Hey there, dude. What's up? You've been lost in thought. You didn't even notice when I returned to my seat," Henry says.

"Oh, uh... sorry about that. I was just taken aback by your performance," I lie.

*"Right? You couldn't have seen that coming. A handsome, smart guy who's also OP—overpowered. Yeah, I'm the perfect main character, the one who ends up with all the girls and has a harem," Henry boasts.*

*Did he read my mind? I guess great minds think alike.*

*"I think you'd be even cooler if you weren't so narcissistic," I reply.*

*"We're done waiting, Gideon. Come forward and let's proceed with your test," the teacher instructs sternly.*

*I rise from my seat, enter the glass cubicle, and prepare for my turn.*

*I have a hypothesis, although I'm not sure if it'll make sense. No harm in trying, right?*

*I believe the force applied in a punch doesn't truly matter; what counts is the aftermath—the force of impact.*

*When a person expends all their strength to punch but the force of impact doesn't significantly differ from the implied power, it isn't much of an achievement in my opinion.*

*As the lazy individual who prefers conserving energy and achieving desired outcomes, I think I need to pinpoint a spot to punch that will send shockwaves throughout the body, even without much force.*

*~burz!~*

*Research indicates that the forehead and fingertips are the most pain-sensitive parts of the human body.*

*Punching these areas will trigger enough pain shockwaves throughout the person's body. Since this dummy is equipped with pain receptors used to measure our force of impact, I believe it should have the same weakness.*

**Later:**

*"Why the heck is he delaying us?"*

*"Is he meditating or something?"*

*"Isn't that the kid Darwin Markus took as his student?"*

*"Yeah, that's him."*

*"Do you think he'll break Henry's record?"*

*"He might. Let's watch and see."*

*The students murmur as the teacher grows impatient.*

*If I'm correct, they're not only testing our punching force but also trying to sense a weak spot in an enemy.*

*In a fight, a person who conserves energy doesn't necessarily lose; it's the one who deals less damage. So, they're evaluating how much we can achieve even with minimal strength.*

*"Gideon, waste any more of my time, and it's an automatic fail," the teacher warns in annoyance.*

*I guess I'll have to try it out.*

*I pull back my hand and punch the dummy's forehead. I don't apply force when extending my hand; I only exert force when my fist is about 5 inches away from the dummy.*

*Other students have been targeting the abdomen, some even focus on the neck, indicating they understand the test but aren't aware of the weakness.*

*~Boom!~*

*The resonating clash of my fist against the dummy reverberates throughout the hall.*

*~Ding!~*

*My results are already available.*

*[154 punch force]*

*[236 force of impact]*

*"What the hell? After wasting our time, he failed?"*

*"Booo!"*

*"He's probably wasting Mr. Darwin's precious time. I wish it was me."*

*"Damn you, kid. He's the worst of the worst."*

*"Hey, that reminds me. He was at rock bottom in the class last test, right?"*

*"Yeah, he's dumb and weak. What's he even doing here?"*

*"He's the only one in the whole class to fail."*

*"Even the feeble Charlotte scored higher."*

*"He's probably gotten used to visiting the grim reaper."*

*"Yeah, rumors say that he's a masochist."*

*The students mock and insult him, but Gideon doesn't mind.*

*It really worked.*

*And no one seems to notice, probably because my punch force is low. Hehe, that's great. It's called being badass on the down low.*

*"And that's a fail for Gideon!" the teacher announces.*

*"Go meet Kai sensei when you're done."*

*~Hmp~*

*I nod in satisfaction and head back to my seat. Although I'm not thrilled about meeting the grim reaper, it's worth it.*

*"Sorry, dude. Better luck next time. And know this, I don't believe what those guys are say..." Henry tries to console me, but finds me smiling.*

*I think he's a masochist.*

*"Next, we'll start the duel, and something interesting is going to happen," the teacher says.*

*"Hell yeah!"*

*"I can finally beat the crap out of my nemesis!"*

*"Can't wait to see the top ten fight."*

*"Wait a minute, I just realized we'll change our class's top ten later."*

*"Yeah, tell the captain about that."*

*"I'm not meeting with that dude. I hate him."*

*"Your problem."*

*The class murmurs.*

*"Calm down, everyone. The interesting thing is that the highest and second-highest scorers from our last test will have to face each other in this duel.*

*That means Henry will fight against Emma in this duel," the teacher announces.*

*Things are really getting interesting, aren't they? I think to myself as I look forward to the fight that will happen soon.*