4-02: The Exam Begins

4-02: The Exam Begins

Wait, what are you talking about!? I mean Can you please say that again, Frire Sensei?

The quickest one to turn around and question her was none other than Shinichi himself, but everyone felt the same and the precious time was ticking.

Like I said. I cant supervise the class, and theres also no one else who can, so the only option left is to choose someone from 1-D to takeover the role of the examiner; otherwise, the entire class cant take the exam.

Do you realize how ridiculous this is!?

Dont worry. Assisting in classes is a privilege and duty available only to students with exceptional grades, but if a teacher asks a student to assist with her class, then the grades of the students dont matter.

What!?

That was the problem with the policy adopted by the school to compensate for its lack of teachers. Teachers and students were regularly used in the academy to keep everything running.

Of course, abusing this power is prohibited, so theres a rule that makes it so that the assistance of the students can only be used in class-related matters. Moreover, if the teacher requesting the assistance is judged to have been lacking in preparations or in the progress of her lessons, then its possible for her to be demoted or to have her salary cut. As far as teachers are concerned, requesting help from a student is a last resort. The exam is a part of the class, so requesting a students help here isnt against the rules.

The student also doesnt have the right to refuse. Of course, if the student in question is in bad health or has an emergency, then it is indeed possible to refuse the request, but generally, it cant be refused since its a teachers last resort.

Raise up a fuss all you like, but this decision is final.

Wait! But even then it doesnt really have to be me, does it!? I mean come on, couldnt you have assigned the best student instead!? Like the class representative, for example!

This school makes it a policy to give a chance to the students we expect the most from. Thats why youre the best choice for an examiner. After all, no one expects anything from you. Besides, you have no intention of doing the test, right?

Well yeah, but Huh?

Suddenly, Shinichi noticed that there was an emotion that betrayed Frires eyes and words. Although it was true that hed lost his cool because of her ridiculous remarks, and it was also true that their deal meant that it was okay for her to show contempt for him, the way she was acting was still too strange. It was also unlike her to declare this so abruptly in front of everyone as if it were a surprise.

Shinichi knew full well that she wasnt that kind of teacher, so he asked her a question.

Sensei, I have a question. When was it decided for me to take on the role of 1-Ds examiner?

This morning There are other reasons too, but this was the best I could do.

In other words, something happened this morning that forced her to make this decision, which happens to be the next best thing she could do to keep their promise.

Unfortunately, what that something was couldnt be said here and neither could Shinichi ask what it was.

Sigh Sorry, looks like I caused you some trouble.

Shinichi sighed deeply and muttered out an apology, then he turned to the yet confused 1-D students and looked at them sharply.

Let me confirm again. This is a formal request for assistance from a teacher of the academy, right?

Yeah, the request has already been submitted to your foster. The moment you accept it, you will be given the duty of an examiner substitute Sorry.

There were various emotions mixed in behind her apology, but Shinichi just laughed and said it was fine.

When he looked at the screen on his foster, the request to act as her representative was indeed there. It was also made under her name. There was no Yes or No option, however.

Accepted.New novel chapters are published on

You accepted!?

When Shinichi readily touched the icon that appeared on his fosters screen, the entire class of 1-D broke out into a clamor, and then with a huge grin of his face, Shinichi looked at their shocked faces and cheerfully spoke.

What can I say? As of this moment, I have officially become your examiner You better do as I say or Ill fail you.

That was clearly a threat. The class fell into disorder, but Shinichi remained unruffled.

H-Hey, Nakamura? You understand, right?

Understand why I assigned you as my substitute, she meant, and Shinichi turned around to her with a huge smile plastered on his face.

Yes, of course. I will perform my duties as your substitute to the best of my abilities. Fu fu fu fu.

Its over.

Shinichis smile was so evil that Frire immediately regretted her decision.

Clearly, he was planning on putting that plan of his into action.

D-Do consider my plan too, okay? Anyway, Ill be leaving the rest to you. You guys, be sure to listen to him too. Alright, dismissed.

There was a bit of opposition, but this was her last resort. She had no cards left to play other than this. Thats why she decided to believe in Shinichi when he said that he would do his best. But of course, there were still 30 other people who didnt agree with her decision.

P-Please wait, Sensei! This is just too absurd!

Its impossible for him to be the examiner!

With this dont we basically have no guarantee of safety!?

The way they saw it, Shinichi was a student with worse status than theirs and also someone who hasnt properly attended his lessons.

Someone like that couldnt possibly serve as their examiner or protect them when needed.

Frire herself thought their arguments were sound, but she really had no other choice left. She tried to persuade them again, but

What pathetic gibberish are you spouting?

Before she could, that cold voice that changed their confusion into anger just a while ago resounded again.

This time, however, he was clearly talking to the students and mocking them.

Unlike me, didnt you all apply for this school? Moreover, from your profiles, it seems youre all hoping to get a military related job in the future.

What!?

With a flick of his fingers, the profiles of the students were projected into the air.

Since Shinichi has been given the authority of an examiner, he temporarily had the rights to view those.

The students understood why he could see their profiles, but they found it hard to accept that a student worse off than them in status who didnt even take school seriously was doing whatever he pleased with their private information.

They glared at him hatefully as if hed hurt their parents, but unfortunately for them, he didnt care one bit.

The directions you each want to go in seem to vary, but in general, you all want to go to the battlefield, right? The enemy is strong, so I dont want to go. Its not safe, so I wont go. I dont like my boss, so I dont want to. Youre not the kind of selfish idiots whod say something like that, right?

That cold voice remained unchanged even as Shinichi looked down at them and treated them like fools. Until now no one from 1-D has really looked at Shinichi properly, so when they saw him acting like this, they couldnt help but falter. After all, what was in front of them wasnt the uncaring and uninterested Shinichi, but something that released an overpowering pressure. But what was really overpowering even more than the pressure he released was the gap between this Shinichi his usual self.

B-B-But w-were just students. W-Were here p-pprecisely so we can train to go to the battlefield.

But despite that someone was still able to insist that they should have a guarantee for safety while they were still learning. It was a statement made while desperately wringing everything out from oneself, but unfortunately, the answer was an immediate no.

Are you stupid!? If you cant do it now, then youll never be able to do it!

No one could say anything in response to that instant rejection. No one agreed with Shinichi, but they were terrified of his glare.

If I just work hard, Ill be able to do it one day. I wont refute that statement. But that only applies to building foundations. If you cant even play at a kids playground properly, you dont have the right to run your mouth off as if you have any qualifications.

Shinichis words and gaze were full of arrogance and disregard. Normally, theyd be hurling all kinds of abuse at him right now. After all, he hasnt shown them the slightest hint of strength despite talking so big.

Y-You dont have the right to run your mouth off like that either! We know were at the bottom of the barrel! Were D Class for crying out loud!

Through his anger, someone was finally able to pick himself up and speak out against Shinichis unreasonable words, but Shinichi only snorted and made fun of the students even more.

Youre the one who doesnt get it. If you really understood, then you wouldnt be acting this pathetic.

That fed-up voice faded into the sound of footsteps, reaching no one.

About 15 minutes later, 1-D finally reached their designated point. It was an area with a river located between the woods and the base of the mountain range. It was curious what the reason was behind designing the place like this, but the area was covered in rocks, giving the ground a hard sensation with cracks here and there, and bad footing where one could easily trip from inattention.

The class of 1-D arrived before 11. No hint of exhaustion could be seen on their faces as they immediately asked Shinichi what their exam would be.

Sigh.

W-What?

Shinichi sighed in an exaggerated manner, causing the students of 1-D to become dumbfounded.

He wanted to point out their mistake here, but he decided to leave his fun for later.

Apparently, Im supposed to give you the topic for your test, but I dont know anything about your abilities, so I dont know what topic would suit this class.

Hey!

You got some materials from the teacher, right!?

Just pick something randomly.

Kyui!

But Shinichi ignored the protests of 1-D and picked up his servant from his head, then placed her onto the ground. The orders he gave her were brief, but she immediately understood his intentions, and she bolted off with her four short legs toward the direction of the mountain.

Before they could ask Shinichi what was happening, a thunderous sound roared, the air and the earth shook, and the sound of something big falling reached their ears. It seemed as if a huge building had just collapsed.

W-What are you doing?

Clearly, Shinichi had told the amaryllis to do something. But the 30 students gathered here didnt understand what hed told her to do. No, they didnt want to understand. After all, the answer they first came to was simply too terrifying.

As youve guessed, Im picking out an opponent for your first test. Its a lot faster to bring the raybeast here rather than to wait for it.

When Shinichi confirmed their fears, they became even more tense. No one from 1-D could imagine what kind of giant creature could possibly make such a loud sound. The biggest raybeast theyve seen until now was at most the size of a big dog. Of course, theyve seen raybeasts bigger than that from the pictures, but never personally. Thats why even though they heard the sound in person, it didnt feel real.

Once, the raybeast is here, you will all fight together. Ill be using this first test as a way to gauge your strength.

Huh? All together?

Wait a moment! I know we barely have any experience fighting raybeasts, but we have 30 people here!

No matter how big that raybeast might be, 10 of us should be enough to deal with it!

The students became furious for being made light of so much, but Shinichi didnt mind it and just laughed.

I dont really mind, but, you know When did I ever say that the raybeast Im bringing is from the D Rank area?

Huh?

Its true that were at the D Rank area right now, but the monsters here are too weak. If you fought them, you could easily win against one of them with just three of you. But what about the raybeasts from those parts?

As a cheerful smile appeared on Shinichis face, he pointed at the amaryllis that was running toward the direction of a mountain.

The students immediately took out their fosters and checked the ranking of that area from the map, and when they confirmed what it was, they were shocked. Just as Shinichi had said, they were indeed in the D Rank area, but right beside them was the B Rank area. Until now theyve been looking only at the route to get here, so they didnt notice that at all. Because of that they thought that the enemy Shinichi picked out for them would only be D Rank.

Y-Youre kidding, right? !?

Eek!

But as soon as they confirmed that, it fell. A thunderous sound resounded, the earth split, and the students went tumbling. Even the people who braced themselves fell on their backsides. Every one of the students gasped.

Something is there.

A giant raybeast covered in thick fur laid down like a wall in front of them. They knew it was a raybeast, but it was so big and the clouds of dust were so dense that they couldnt even fully grasp its shape.

Kyui!

Well done.

Overwhelmed by the giant raybeast, the students of 1-D couldnt even find it in themselves to become agitated. Meanwhile, the young beast that nonchalantly threw this thing at them jumped up her masters shoulder as though her job was done.

As their examiner lightly patted her on the head and a fearless smile appeared on his face, the students were pushed into hell.

30 students, 10 students, whatever, just fight that thing. Ill judge your strength based on the results. If you can beat it, Ill immediately give you a passing grade Of course, we all know thats impossible.

The moment that death-sentence-like exam was announced, the giant raybeast stood up. It was so heavy that the rocky terrain actually cracked under its weight.

The students looked up at the raybeast.

Speechless. Until now theyve never been put in a situation where they had to express that word. They were overwhelmed. And when they finally saw the raybeast after it stood up, they could only describe it with one word, Monster. No, it would be more apt to call it a behemoth.

The closest thing to it was probably the centaurs from the Greek myths. Only, it didnt have the beauty of a horses body or the burliness of a mans upper half. The four limbs of the lower body were thick like statues, while the human-shaped upper body looked like it had merely grown out of that. Fur covered every inch of its body, and its arms were thick like logs. They were long too. The part that seemed to be its head did have something that resembled a face, but the rest were glowing organs (crystals), the proof that the monster before them was a raybeast.

Ah, ah

The glowing objects where its eyes should have been looked down at them. Though its figure may be likened to humans and statues, its size was on a completely different level. Standing at 15 meters tall, before its overwhelming pressure and sharp eyes, the class of 1-D were silent.

They knew that raybeasts werent living creatures. Just energy that had taken form. As such, these creatures neither had the compassion or warmth or mode of life that animals would. When the overwhelming presence emanating from the monstrous raybeast right before them made them understand that, their thoughts came to a halt. So great was their shock that they couldnt even feel the fear.

You guys do your best now.

A-Are you nuts!?

I cant believe this, youre a demon!

Youre an idiot, right? Youre definitely an idiot! Only an idiot would do something like this!

Shinichi ignored the overwhelming presence of the raybeast and told the students to do their best as if none of this concerned him.

It was curious whether it was because of their anger at him or their fear of the monster, but before long, emotion returned to the faces of the students and they yelled at him.

Unfortunately for them, their yells only served as a signal of sort, and the thick legs of the giant raybeast stomped onto the ground as if it were trying to flatten it.

There were no howls or roars like one would expect from a beast. The raybeasts had no reason to threaten others by bellowing out. Instead, what did bellow was the sound of the raybeasts powerful arms slamming and crushing the rocky terrain.

D-Damn it!

We dont have a choice anymore! We have to fight!

Ah, sheesh, everyone, put on your protector and ready your weapons!

That bastard When this is over, Im going to give him a good punch to the face!

We just have to do it, right? Just have to do it, just have to Do it!

Dont look down on us! We have 30 on our side!

The class of 1-D somehow managed to dodge the initial attack, then with feelings akin to that of self-abandonment, they changed gears and prepared to attack.

Like this the unwinnable battle between the academys weakest class of 1-D and a B Rank raybeast began

The spirit is commendable, but No one even considered to retreat, so thats a minus.

Not knowing that theyve already been given a demerit.