Chapter 11: What the hell is Nano?

Chapter 11: What the hell is Nano?

Instructor let out a sigh and peered at the crystal ball.

He confirmed it was in working order.

I tried again, but still, nothing happened.

-"Looks like we've got a dud in the class," someone complimented.

Another voice chimed in,"That's strange... "

The taunts began.

- "Wow, I've never seen someone fail to activate a mana crystal before. Is his mana that weak?"

In the background, I could discern the sounds of some female students giggling like hyenas who found their prey.

I looked back to see Freya among the group of students.

It was clear that they weren't going to leave this chance to mock me.

'Tsk...fucking bitches.'

- "That's strange, it worked for me just fine."

-"Ugh! Why is he even here if he don't even have an affinity?" a girl's voice interjected. Freya.

- "This is a waste of time."

- "I can't believe we have to put up with this incompetence."

I refused to falter or show any signs of being affected by what they said.

Without wasting any more time there, I left the room with a frown etched on my face.

-"Can't believe we have such lossers in our class!" The voices of taunts trailed off as I walked away.

My frown wasn't because of what they said, but because of what had happened. It only meant one thing.

"I have no mana core. That also explains why my mana capacity is 0."

.

.

.

In this world filled with monsters and magic it's impossible to survive without a mana core.

If it was somebody else in my place they would have certainly been depressed.

After pondering for sometime I came up with two solutions.

Solution no.1→ Acquire a mana circuit tattoo. The challenge lay in the nonexistence of the mana circuit tatto.

'It was only introduced in the later half of the novel. This circuit functions as a converter that absorbs and augments atmospheric mana.'

Waiting for its development is not an option as time is of the essence.

Therefore, I must take the initiative to create it myself.

Solution no.2→I need to learn Aura and get my hands on more mysteries.

As I was formulating the plan of action I should be taking...

—????????! I bumped into someone.

"Hey, watch where you're going."

Turning my head, I saw two boys.

One with orange hair and blue eyes, and the other with black hair and violet eyes.

I immediately recognized Luke Armstone, one of Takahasi's layckeys, who was likely ranked F.

I was easily able to memorize his character due to his orange hair.

The other boy was unknown to me.

"Isn't he that weakling from the affinity test?" Luke asked, pointing at me. "And now he's walking around like he owns the place."

"I think we need to teach him a lesson and put him back in his place." The other boy suggested.

Before I could react, Luke kicked me in the groin, causing me to sink to the ground in pain.

'Fuck this!' The pain began in my kidneys as I sank to my knees.

Luke raised his fist, and I could feel mana radiating from it, glowing with a slight blue hue.

I tried to dodge, but my body gave out on me.

While a normal human might have survived the blow, I knew I couldn't. I didn't even had a mana core.

[Sensing danger from hostile entity.]

[Initiating healing process. Numbing sensory nerves for instant pain relief.]

[Activating augmented reality on user's field of vision to deal with the threat.]

[Activate battle mode? To enter battle mode, initiate command "Let's go."]

Without thinking too much I replied with, "Let's go."

As the fist came at me, my body reacted on its own.

My knees bent as if they had their own brain, and moved out of the way, avoiding the punch while my arms covered my face in a boxing stance.

It was a downward movement—a duck. It was quick and swift. Luke completely missed his punch.

A smile prostrated to my lips. A reaction of amazement.

Seeing me smile seemed to infuriate him, and he followed up with another punch.

His dark hair and eyes gave him a mysterious look. No, his eyes were not your regular dark-brown. They dark, like a black hole.

A shinning red bracelete, which appeared to be made of stone could be seen in his left arm.

He slowly sat up as he, panted heavily.

***

????????'?? ??????(???????? ???????? ???? ?????????)::

"Status!"

──────────────────────

┌─────────────────┐

│ S t a t u s W i n d o w ?

└─────────────────┘

Name: Noah Grey

Age: 16 (+23?)(=39?)

Class: None

Rank: (G-)

PRIMARY STATS →

╭─────────────────────╮

│ Health: G- │ 100/ 100

│ Mana: G- │ 100/ 100

│ Strength: G- │ 110/ 110

│ Dexterity: F+

│ Intelligence: ???

│ Mana Capacity: │ 0

╰─────────────────────╯

SECONDARY STATS→

╭───────────────╮

│Armor: G- │ 1

│Resistance: G- │ 1.2

│Stamina: G-

│Charm: E-

│Durability: G- │ 1

│Flexibility: B

╰───────────────╯

SKILLS:

- None

RELICS:

-None

ART:

-None

Propensity: None

Mysteries:

[Mystery of Teleportation]

Achivments:

[Legendary Achievment! Acquired the mystery of Teleportation!]

──────────────────────

"It should be about time, I should get going."

I took a glance at the room's simple decor, and its practicality made sense for a single occupant.

The comfortable twin sized bed was made up with fresh white sheets, and the standard-sized desk with a lamp and a comfortable chair made a cosy working area.

The walls were plain, and the wooden floor-boards were scuffed and well-worn.

A small closet, complete with hangers and shelves on one side, was tucked away next to the entrance.

I knew that other students from the academy were also staying at this same hostel, but everyone was given their own private room.

It wasn't quite as glamorous as the living spaces for students who ranked higher up, but I was grateful to have my own space to focus.

I was in A3 hostel of Arcanum Academy.

Ofcourse this place was for the bugs of 1st year. Bugs which included me.

Your average Joe is sent to A2 hostel with much better facility.

And those who are ranked 100 and above are sent to A1 hostel.

Of course, I don't need to mention but A1 hostel is a luxury resort with state of the art tech instilled in it compared to A3 hostel.

"It's about time I get going," I said to no one in particular while taking one last look at the room.

"I hope they are not dead yet."