Volume 3
Chapter 2
The events of lunchtime spread through the academy like an avalanche. A male student was invited to lunch by a beautiful girl whom everyone in the academy knew. Moreover, that student was the biggest underachiever since the academy was founded.
After lunchtime,
countless gazes from his classmates greeted Nozomu when he returned to the
classroom.
"I believe you
have already learned that, in addition to the individual abilities that
manifest, there are racial powers that manifest depending on the race. It is
also known that depending on the race, there are advantages and disadvantages
in acquiring skills such as magic."
Stare... stare...
The students' gazes
were filled with jealousy and hostility, and by no means friendly.
"During the Great
Invasion ten years ago, even the elven nation of 'Nebula,' which excelled more
than any other race in defense, was destroyed before the onslaught of demonic
beasts, making it clear that a single race could not withstand this invasion.
That is why this academy was founded, to promote the understanding and
cooperation of various races..."
Incidentally, the
subject of the class was history. A lesson on the history of the continent
before and after the Great Invasion.
As expected, no
students bothered him during class, but that was only during class. Once break
time came...
"Damn it, what
the hell...?" "Why is he...?" "…………Kill."
Voices of resentment
and the like could be heard.
"...Tch, if
you've got something to say, come at me straight."
Mars grumbled, but
Nozomu could only give a wry smile.
"Mars, the
teacher's calling for you."
"What for?"
A male student
informed him that the teacher who had just been teaching had called for him.
"Mars, you better
hurry. That teacher gets really noisy if you're late."
"I know. I'll be
right back."
When Mars left his
seat and was no longer by Nozomu's side, the whispers around them became openly
louder.
(Well... I guess this
can't be helped.)
Nozomu knew well
enough how the students of this academy thought of him. He had been scorned and
despised for nearly two years. His first year was particularly bad, and while
the rumors with Lisa hadn't died down, he had even been subjected to assaults
that bordered on lynching.
He had been called out
to the back of the school building, where multiple students had punched and
kicked him, and sometimes even cast magic at him.
His belongings had
been hidden or torn to shreds along with words of abuse.
Because of those
treatments, he spent his days emptying his mind and heart of the pain that ran
through his mind and body, living like a doll...
***
"Hey,
dropout."
As Nozomu's thoughts
were wandering back to the past, he noticed someone calling him.
Around Nozomu's desk,
male classmates had gathered. There were about ten of them. The one who spoke
was a student who had previously been one of Mars's followers.
"Come here!"
"H-hey, what are
you doing!"
Male students grabbed
Nozomu by the collar and forcefully dragged him out of the classroom.
Mars had been called
by the teacher and wasn't in the classroom. These male students had probably
been waiting for the moment when Mars left Nozomu's side.
The other students
showed no signs of helping, and although Nozomu resisted, he was no match for
their strength and was dragged out of the classroom.
***
Around the time Nozomu
was dragged out of the classroom, Mars was in the faculty room.
"What is it?
What's the business?"
Mars asked the teacher
in charge of the previous class about the matter, but his attitude was far from
respectful towards the teacher.
"?...What do you
mean by business?"
"Huh? Didn't you
ask a student to tell me you had business with me?"
"? I don't recall
doing such a thing."
"…………What did you
say!"
What's going on? I
definitely heard that there was business, and Nozomu heard it too. But this guy
is saying there's no business.
"More
importantly, I've been thinking this for a while now, but what's with your
attitude? You have absolutely no respect for your elders. In the first
place..."
…………Wait a minute. Why was
it a message in the first place? That was right after class ended. He could
have just told me himself without bothering to send a message. …………Could it be
that the target wasn't me but…………
"Are you
listening! Why are you so-" "Sorry! Something came up!!"
"Hey, wait a minute!"
***
Nozomu was taken to
the back of the school building. The students blocked his escape routes so he
couldn't run.
The students
surrounding him all glared at Nozomu, their gazes as if they wanted to shoot
him dead.
"Hey, dropout!
What the hell did you do!?" "Why are you with Irisdina-san of all
people!?"
And then began the
one-sided questioning. They only thought that Nozomu had charmed or threatened
Irisdina.
Irisdina was an object
of admiration for the students. A girl not much older than them had reached
A-rank, a rank only the elite possessed.
Moreover, her beauty
was so stunning that she seemed like a goddess. Their feelings towards her
would vary, but at least no one would think that a man like Nozomu, who was
considered a dropout, was suitable for her.
"This
good-for-nothing bastard, just like with the Red-Haired Princess, the
Black-Haired Princess is definitely going to have a terrible time next. We need
to re-educate him properly before things get like they were in his first
year..."
The classmates even
brought up the rumors with Lisa. They closed in on Nozomu with sneering grins.
Remembering Lisa,
Nozomu's chest creaked, and his face twisted slightly.
"Just stay still.
We're not demons either. If you do that, we'll finish this quickly."
"Kuh!"
As the student who had
been one of Mars's followers said that, he suddenly punched him. Nozomu
instinctively parried the fist that came at his face with one hand.
Annoyed that Nozomu
had dodged, the male student punched repeatedly, but since his pre-motion was
completely obvious, Nozomu continued to dodge without taking any damage. The
current Nozomu could even exchange blows with Mars if he concentrated. In a
one-on-one fight, it was unlikely that he would be hit by the punches of a
10th-class student.
"Tch, don't move
around so much!!"
Having become
irritated that his punches kept being dodged, the opponent's movements became
even more sloppy. Nozomu parried a straight punch aimed at his face, stepped
in, placed his weight on the opponent's center of gravity, and pulled the
opponent's fully extended arm.
The male student
tumbled forward with the momentum, slammed his back hard against the ground,
and let out a crushed frog-like groan, "Gweh!"
"This guy!"
"Let's torture him to death!"
Surprised by Nozomu's
unexpected resistance, the students surrounding him snapped and started
punching him. Nozomu moved around in the same manner as in previous group
fights, dodging while trying not to face multiple opponents at once. As
expected, since he was surrounded from the beginning and the back of the school
building wasn't very spacious, making it impossible to maintain a one-on-one
situation at all times, it was a very precarious balance.
The male students'
irritation grew further at this sight. To them, Nozomu was nothing more than a
scarecrow to vent their frustrations on.
They, too, as members
of the lowest-ranked 10th class, were constantly looked down upon by other
classes. Until now, they had vented their frustrations on Nozomu, who was the
lowest-ranked within that lowest-ranked class.
Nozomu's resistance
was unexpected for them. When they had tormented Nozomu before, he had offered
almost no resistance. But the current Nozomu was resisting the male students
who were punching him head-on.
Furthermore...
"Phew!"
Taking advantage of a
missed wide hook, he slammed a Ki-enhanced fist into the opponent's solar
plexus, and the male student who had been struck in a vital point collapsed in
agony.
Until now, Nozomu
hadn't been very aggressive in attacking, but gradually he had become more
proactive in his attacks.
Nozomu had been
irritated when Mars had attacked him and his opponent together during the mock
battle at the beginning of the third year, but the current him had come to use
his techniques within a range that wouldn't cause problems depending on the
situation.
However, his
techniques were still as lethal as ever, so it remained difficult to know when
to use them...
That was Nozomu's
growth.
Even while being aware
that he was running away, he couldn't move forward. But gaining friends and
using his power in front of others had become the catalyst for him to take his
first, albeit very small, steps forward.
(Tch! There are too
many of them!)
However, no matter how
superior Nozomu's skills were, he was outnumbered and unarmed. Moreover, the
location of the brawl was bad. The back of the school building was narrow,
making it difficult to move around. Although he was managing to dodge, Nozomu,
who had a disadvantage in physical abilities and didn't have his weapon, had no
way to break through.
(Anyway, I need to
somehow get out of this situation- "Guon!" What the...!?)
Nozomu was thinking
about how to get out of this situation when he suddenly felt a wave of magic
power. Looking in that direction, he saw a male student enraged and about to
cast a spell.
"You bastard!
I'll kill you!!"
The one trying to use
magic was the male student who had been punched in the stomach by Nozomu
earlier and had been writhing in agony. His eyes were bloodshot, and he had
clearly lost his composure.
"What!"
"Damn it! Are you trying to drag us down with you!?"
At the same moment,
the other students surrounding Nozomu all moved away from him, the magic was
activated.
The magic aimed at
Nozomu was "Earth Serpent Whip."
The earth of the
ground itself rose up and formed multiple whips of earth, and these whips
attacked all at once.
"Damn it!!"
Nozomu instantly
jumped back. Immediately after, the earth whips thrashed around like literal
snakes, passing by Nozomu's sides.
"Be crushed! You
piece of trash!!"
But it wasn't over
yet. The snakes that had passed by Nozomu's side writhed and attacked Nozomu
again.
However, perhaps
because the caster's own mind was unstable, the earth serpents' movements were
indiscriminate. Each strike was merciless, and every time a whip hit the
ground, earth was churned up, and pebbles flew around. If Nozomu, whose Ki was
weak, were to be hit, it wouldn't end well.
"Kuh, this,
uwa!"
Nozomu dodged the
chaotic swarm of whips with all his strength with body strengthening and body
maneuvering, but the earth serpents were faster, and he was surrounded.
"It's
over!!"
Along with that voice,
the earth serpents rushed at Nozomu all at once. The whips' trajectories
approached Nozomu from the front, top, left, and right, as if to mow him down.
There was no gap to dodge, and without his weapon, he couldn't parry.
"Not yet!"
Nozomu still resisted.
If there was no gap to dodge, he would create one!
Nozomu charged towards
the whip in front of him. He accelerated instantly with the Ki Technique
"Flash Step," poured all his Ki into his left arm, and extremely
compressed it.
He placed his right
hand on that left arm, thrust it forward, and slid it against the earth whip
that was attacking from the front.
"Guuuuuuuuuuh!"
The earth weapon, a
deadly tool that could easily kill a person, scraped off the skin of his left
arm, but the whip slid over his Ki-compressed left arm, its trajectory
diverted, passing over Nozomu's head. Nozomu continued to charge towards the
student who had cast the spell.
"Wh-what the
hell!!"
"Uooooooooh!"
The opponent hadn't
expected Nozomu to completely evade his magic and was completely defenseless.
Moreover, with this type of manipulation magic, the caster couldn't move while
casting the spell.
Nozomu tried to punch
him away with his right hand, concentrating his Ki, with the momentum of his
charge, but...
"Don't get cocky!
Dropout!!"
Suddenly, a magic
bullet attacked from the side. Nozomu instantly twisted his body to dodge, but
even more magic attacked.
He couldn't dodge them
all and was blown away, slamming into the wall of the school building.
"Gah!"
The ones who used
magic were the other students who had been about to be caught in the
"Earth Serpent Whip" and had evacuated.
"Why are you
struggling against such a dropout...?" "S-sorry..."
The male students who
had blown Nozomu away looked at each other, then looked at the blown-away
Nozomu. Nozomu somehow stood up, but he was clearly damaged, and his movements
were stiff.
"You made us go
through a lot of trouble."
The male student who
had almost been defeated by Nozomu grumbled and fired a magic bullet. Nozomu
dodged by rolling on the ground, but the classmates who saw that figure fired
magic bullets at Nozomu one after another.
"Look at him.
What an unsightly figure!" "How dirty. Can't you dodge a little
better?" "Hahahaha! How long can you keep dodging?"
The students, finding
Nozomu's desperate dodging quite amusing, laughed loudly as they fired magic.
It wasn't a pretty way
of dodging by any means, but Nozomu continued to dodge and resist.
(Not yet, I can't give
up just because of something like this!)
What was driving the
current Nozomu was the will to "resist." It was pure anger at the
unreasonable treatment.
However, he reached
his limit. He was thrown off balance by being hit by a magic bullet he couldn't
dodge, and then a swarm of magic bullets approached. The power of each one was
low, but there were many, and if he was hit squarely, he wouldn't escape
serious injury.
Even so, Nozomu didn't
avert his eyes. He had seen things far more terrifying than this.
Tiamat's giant flames.
Shino's ultimate technique. Rugato's multiple magic.
Even if he understood
that the magic bullets approaching him were a threat, it wasn't a reason for
him to look away.
The moment the magic
that had approached Nozomu's eyes was thought to have hit him. An arrow shot
past Nozomu's eyes, sweeping away the swarm of magic bullets all at once.
"What!"
"Who is it! Who interfered!!"
The classmates shouted
loudly and looked towards the direction the arrow had come from, where a maiden
stood with a bow in hand.
"What did I do,
you ask? You are the ones who should be asked what you are doing in a place
like this."
A voice like a bell
echoed around them.
The maiden's long,
straight, bluish hair fluttered, and her bangs were held back by a black
hairband...
"I'll ask you one
more time. What were you guys doing in a place like this?"
More than anything,
her long ears were visible from her hair.
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