There was no room for argument. Everyone silently nodded at Dick's words.Simon scratched the side of his head, a little embarrassed, while Hector showed no reaction whatsoever.“And the weakest team is…”Dick glanced at Mei-rin before continuing, “It’s probably Team 1, the one you and I are on, right?”“Hey! Why are we the weakest?!”Mei-rin protested, her face flushing.“Mei-rin, do you know any enhancement-type dark magic?”“Uh, well, a few minor ones…?”“Unless you’re going to burn all the C-Class kids with Jet Black Flames, it’ll be tough to shine in a game like this.”Scattered chuckles erupted from various spots. Mei-rin’s face burned even hotter.Regardless, Dick continued his explanation.“While Team 1 is concentrated on Mei-rin, Team 3 has solid depth in its power.”A-Class Necromancy ace, Cindy Vivace.A-Class Curse Studies ace, Jamie Victoria.A-Class Summoning Studies ace, Pierre Buckley.A-Class Toxicology ace, Claudia Menzies.These students, who scored in the 90s for their chosen subjects in written exams, were all concentrated in Team 3.Simon and Hector’s performances had been so overwhelmingly dominant that some students actually considered Team 3 the strongest.On the other hand, Mei-rin, who had to lead Team 1 alone, didn’t possess dark magic particularly specialized for a ball game.“So, our class composition is Weakest, Strongest, Strong-Medium. We have to somehow get Mei-rin’s weakest Team 1 to face Serene’s team.”“……You just wait and see.”Mei-rin shot Dick a glare, then crossed her arms and turned away. She then began to burn with a fierce fighting spirit.Dick watched her, a subtle smirk playing on his lips.Beyond that effect, he believed that if Serene was the opponent, Mei-rin would fight even harder.“He’s so full of himself, that little punk.”A chilling voice subtly changed the lively classroom atmosphere.Hector cut in, his eyes gleaming menacingly.“Stop dragging it out and get to the point.”“Ah, so impatient~ Just wait a bit.”Dick said leisurely, hands in his pockets.‘He’s really acting up, relying on Simon Pollentia.’But Hector didn’t react further.There was no need to pay attention to such a small fry. He had enough to focus on just one person.“I found it.”Suddenly, a male student’s voice echoed from thin air. Everyone looked around, and the air shimmered as a student wearing glasses appeared beside Dick.It was Camouflage, a stealth-type technique that concealed the body.“Tell me?”Dick grinned.* * *“Alright, students. Get ready for the game.”Bread, acting as referee, grumbled. Students flocked to the front of the court.‘Ugh, this is annoying.’Hongpeng and the other assistants had just left to prepare food, leaving Bread and two senior assistants to babysit the students and play referee.Of course, the senior assistants had also dumped everything on Bread and disappeared somewhere.‘Damn it, this is really driving me crazy! Am I really at a level to be treated like this?’Bread ran his hand through his hair wildly.‘Ever since that incident with Simon, I feel like Professor Hongpeng has been treating me coldly! The other assistants are subtly ignoring me too! Damn it! Damn it! They definitely all know! Did that bastard Simon spread rumors?’Of course, it was just Bread’s own paranoia.‘Simon Pollentia…!’And earlier, something even more annoying had happened.Simon had brought a girl named Kamibarez.“Assistant Teacher. Kami seems to be a bit anemic, so she needs some medicine.”Bread curtly replied that there wasn’t any and she should just endure it.That’s when Simon smiled coldly and said something outrageous.“A student is sick. Do you just stop being an assistant if you say there’s nothing?”His heart sank.It was an unspoken threat to reveal his secret to Hongpeng and make him lose his position as a Kizen assistant!With his weakness exposed, Bread had no choice but to run all the way to Hongpeng’s cabin to get the medicine.‘Aaaargh! So annoying! That bastard is getting way too cocky!’Thump-thump-thump.Bread’s leg trembled with rage. At the same time, his helplessness at not being able to resist Simon made him feel pathetic.How would he endure for three years until that guy graduated?Maybe he wouldn’t take Martial Arts in the second semester?No way. Professor Hongpeng put so much effort into him, and Martial Arts was an area where he displayed powerful talent.What bothered him most was that earlier, when that guy succeeded in ‘Internal Jet Black Differentiation’, Professor Hongpeng, from afar, had worn a happy expression as if she owned the world.He had never seen such an expression in the five years he had served the professor.‘Ugh!’Between jealousy, anger, and self-pity, Bread felt like his head would explode. He irritably tore at his hair.He was still in his mid-20s, fresh and vibrant, but his hair was already falling out from stress. At this rate, he’d end up just like his father…“Assistant Teacher.”Bread opened his eyes at someone’s voice.Jamie was standing at attention in front of him, speaking.“A-Class and C-Class, everyone’s gathered.”“Ahem.”Bread slowly stood up.“Then, let the game begin. A-Class, C-Class, first teams forward.”From A-Class, Team 1, including Mei-rin and Dick, stepped forward.And from C-Class…“Serene! It’s Serene!”“Serene is first!”“Whoa!”A-Class raised their arms and cheered.On the other hand, C-Class students looked towards Simon and Hector, and realizing they weren’t coming out, let out disappointed sighs.From A-Class’s perspective, it was the most ideal move: pitting their weakest card against the opponent’s ace card.“It’s a huge gain to get Serene’s team out with this team.”“The other kids will somehow manage.”A-Class students were already taking their victory for granted.“Don’t get excited! You crazy idiots!”Mei-rin yelled, turning back to the A-Class students.“We’re going to win!”A-Class students gave her half-hearted, unenthusiastic applause. Of course, their eyes showed no belief whatsoever.Mei-rin thought about how many times her stomach had churned today and sharply turned her head.Flutter-flutter.There, Serene, wearing a white coat over her uniform, was waving and smiling at Mei-rin. Mei-rin glared back with a furious expression.‘You’re dead today, seriously.’Twenty students from each side entered the court.Outside the court, fervent cheering battles erupted from each class.As the students on the court waited, burning with competitive spirit, Bread yawned lazily and blew the whistle around his neck with an expression full of annoyance.“Quiet! Representatives from both teams, step forward.”Mei-rin and Serene walked out. Bread pulled a 1-silver coin from his pocket.“Heads or tails?”“Heads, no matter what!!”Mei-rin said, her voice heated.“Then I’ll take tails~”Serene replied in a soft, gentle voice. Bread casually flipped the coin and then roughly caught it.“Heads. A-Class serves first.”“Yes!”Mei-rin clenched her fists. Serene turned around, her hair fluttering.“Cute~ Did you want to win even something like this?”“I’m happy because I’m thinking of smashing your head with the ball!”The two, like fire and water, turned their backs on each other and walked away. Even then, Serene chuckled to herself.Bread tossed the ball towards the A-Class side.“Begin.”Beep.He blew the whistle. Mei-rin passed the ball to Dick.“Hey, Enchantment Shuttle. Hurry up.”“Alright~ Alright~ As ordered.”While Dick enchanted the ball, Mei-rin activated a magic circle. Dick subtly glanced at her and said,“You know using offensive magic on an opponent is an instant disqualification, right?”“I know that too!”Having drawn the magic circle, she stepped back a few paces. The fervent cheers of the A-Class students could be heard.“Hit them hard with the first shot!”“Take one out and do ‘that pose’!”She flushed and sharply turned her head.“Ah, everyone’s so loud! Shut up!!”Mei-rin, having silenced the A-Class students who kept getting on her nerves, returned to a serious expression.Dick, having finished the enchantment, gestured upwards and shrugged his shoulders, and she nodded.“Here I go.”Dick served the enchanted ball high into the air. Mei-rin, who had stepped back, activated Internal Jet Black Operation, ran forward, and leaped with all her might.Whoosh!She soared like a butterfly and powerfully swung her arm.And just before the ball touched her palm, the magic circle drawn on the back of her hand ignited Jet Black Flames.Fwoosh!Flames burst forth like an explosion as she powerfully struck the ball.Crack!The ball, flying through the air, directly hit a male student from C-Class in the face. The student couldn’t even react.Thud.Roll-roll-roll.The ball fell from his face, and she landed lightly, exhaling the breath she had held.“Whoa!”“Nice, Mei-rin!”Cheers erupted from everywhere.“Did you see that?”Mei-rin straightened her posture and looked back at Dick.“I told you we could win even without enhancement magic!”“Oh, of course~ You’re definitely the best.”She kicked Dick’s teasing butt and turned her head.She saw Simon, who was watching with the other students, smiling broadly and clapping. Only then did she feel her mood lift and her pride swell.Bread, who was on the referee’s stand, rested his chin on his hand and waved his hand.“Quick, quick. Next, C-Class attack.”From C-Class, a female student with pigtails walked forward. Mei-rin gave instructions.“Meat shields! Everyone go forward!”Mei-rin, the main attacker, and a few other students stepped back, and large male students came forward. These were Martial Arts majors, or students with defensive dark magic.The pigtail girl glanced at the A-Class formation, then awkwardly threw the ball. The ball was going out of bounds.“Haha! Where are you throwing…!”Just then, the ball, which was heading out of the court, sharply veered and hit a student in the middle of the chest.This time, cheers erupted from the C-Class side.“You idiot! Didn’t you see the ball curve when the professor demonstrated earlier! Don’t let your guard down!”Mei-rin got heated. The student who was hit by the ball scratched his head awkwardly and walked off the court.“Dick! Enchant it again and throw it up!”Mei-rin acted as A-Class’s main cannon. Whenever the ball came over, all of A-Class passed it to her.Her offensive power was indeed excellent. 100% success rate. Not a single student had failed to drop the ball.On the other hand, C-Class had various students taking turns leading the attack. Serene herself stood in the corner of the court, not attacking, and indifferently trimming her nails. The other C-Class students didn’t dare tell her to step up and just watched her, gauging her mood.Wham!An A-Class student was hit in the arm while trying to catch the ball and was out.Simon, watching from outside the court, gave a wry smile.‘Actually, attacks usually succeed.’This game was overwhelmingly advantageous for the attacking side. Of course, apart from that, the general trend among first-year Kizen students to disregard defense also played a part.In the first year, the power of each curse was considerable, so in duel evaluations, the win rate of the one who landed a curse or a first strike first tended to increase significantly.It was a situation where both sides lacked basic skills, and the trend of 'first strike wins' was deeply ingrained.Furthermore, in real combat, defense could rely on protective suits or Kizen uniforms, which further amplified the first-years’ offense-is-everything mentality.Of course, as one advanced to higher grades or professor level, the importance of defense naturally increased.Thump!“Ooooooh!”At that moment, shouts erupted from both A-Class and C-Class.In this game, where the attack success rate was extremely high, the super play, without a doubt, was ‘defense’.An A-Class Martial Arts student had blocked C-Class’s attack for the first time. Jet Black flowed from his body.‘He used Internal Jet Black Differentiation.’A Martial Arts major who had studied ahead. He immediately counter-attacked, throwing the ball, and a C-Class student was caught.It was a successful attack that nullified the opponent’s attack, making its value double. Everyone on the court rushed to him and high-fived.A student who possessed defensive dark magic, or otherwise had powerful Martial Arts abilities, was the key to this game.‘Defense, huh.’Simon’s eyes gleamed.With a simple ball game, Hongpeng was presenting students with a new topic.
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