Chapter 137: Test your skills (6)
The next day.
A curious crowd gathered in front of Class B of the Cold Warrior Class.
It was a mix of first, second, and third years, and even a few fourth years who don't show up for public events due to graduation and employment.
The common thread was that almost all of them were girls.
"Hey, who's that kid who was dripping water off the end of his chin after the game yesterday?"
"Is that him? Is that him from yesterday?"
"Wow, that face is crazy. How did he get that look?"
"Oh my god, he's so cute... I want him...."
The girls hadn't gotten over the shock of yesterday's game.
Everyone who watched yesterday's class-level lead Naphtali competition between the cold class, whether in person or on the magical video or photos, all noticed one thing: the Naphtali was amazing.
'Holy shit. Who is that?'
'I, I stopped breathing... ... 'It takes my breath away.'
'Wow, he's so ridiculously handsome.'
That's the face of a schoolboy walking back to the stands after the game, swiping at his damp bangs.
That sweaty, water-soaked face belonged to Vikir.
Yesterday, Vikir had taken off his glasses for a few moments and put on his bangs.
And it struck unexpectedly at the defenseless hearts of countless female students sitting in the stands.
As Vikir returned, water dripping from the tip of his chin, countless water bottles and towels were thrust in front of him.
'Here, use this handkerchief, do you want some water too?'
'Big brother, my water is cooler, take this!
'Funny, why brother, we're in the same class?'
'Who cares? If he's handsome, he's my brother!'
Vikir was quickly recognized as the star of the game.
The moment he returned to the stands, the brief movement of brushing his bangs was embedded in the mana screen as a "snapshot," which was played over and over again on the sports page of the magically created school newspaper.
[Exclusive] The Identity of the 'Face Genius' Who Appeared in the Cold Warrior Class's 1st Year Naphtali Game!? / Views: 29,872
-Last night in afternoon physical education class, an unidentified freshman was returning to the bench sweating after the game. This mysterious male student is known to have contributed greatly to the class' victory by showing excellent skills in the game and scoring one point, making it a hot topic...
<Comments: 13,021>
?(Cold Class 1st year student): Isn't that synthetic?! What kind of person has a face like that?
??(Hot Class 2nd year student): ???I'm the first to hear that there's such a visual in the cold class~.
??(Hot Class 1st year student): I don't think any of our classmates had that kind of look?
??(Hot Class 1st year student): I didn't see him in OT?? If he had a face like that, I'd definitely ask him out~.
??(Hot Class 2nd year student): Why are you flirting with a 1st grade topic, CC is only from 2nd grade?
??(Cold Class 1st year student): Wow but he's really good looking;;; Who is he? I'm a guy and I'm still in love with him.
??(Cold Class 1st year student): He's the guy who played Naphtali with me yesterday... He really looks like that... I was surprised and just stared for a while...
??(Hot Class 3rd year student): Look at his jawline...his disheveled hair...his face...he's so cute! ????????????
??(Cold Class 3rd year student): Water droplets flow along the jawline and cut...My sister's heart breaks ??
??(Hot Class 4th year student):???? I'll go see you right away tomorrow...I'll find you even if my sister searches all the cold classrooms!!!
??(Hot Class 3rd year student): ?Oh my... calm down... I have to graduate...
.
.
It was truly unknown when a passing student from the newspaper club took the picture using Mana Screen.
"Who's Vikir, where is he!"
"Tudor was nice, but... I came to see Vikir!"
"Vikir, where are you? I love you so much!"
"My sister bought 10,000 handkerchiefs to wipe the water off our Vikir's face!"
After hearing the rumors about Vikir, a lot of girls and some boys(?), regardless of classmates and seniors, came to the party, especially the seniors.
Then.
"... What's going on?"
There was a voice that froze the crowd gathered in front of class B of the Cold Warrior Class.
Professor Morg Banshee.
His entrance caused the mass of students in front of the lecture hall to scramble to make way for him.
Professor Banshee sternly warned everyone, especially the older students.
"I don't know what all the fuss is about, but don't you dare come into the underclassmen's classrooms. It's against school rules."
The students turned away with sullen faces.
...And there was one person who was relieved to see Professor Banshee.
It was Vikir, sitting in a window seat in the corner of the classroom.
Vikir had taken Piggy's advice and was listening to the lecture with a hood and glasses covering most of his face.
'Professor Banshee saved my life. I didn't expect to be in the papers.'
Even Vikir, a man of the world, hadn't expected this to happen.
Before his regression, Vikir's face was a mess of burns, stab wounds, and poisoned scars from his childhood.
This was the first time he realized that his appearance could attract such attention.
'Hagiya, I haven't really had any scars on my face since I returned.'
Even if he had, he'd regenerated it all with the monstrous regenerative powers he'd stolen from the monsters, so there was no way he'd have any scars left.
'In my previous life, I never spoke to a woman. Ah, no. Saint Dolores, she was not frightened by the sight of my face. She was merciful and fair to all.'
While Vikir was thinking this over.
"Now, ..., let's go over the homework assigned last time."
Professor Banshee began his lecture.
He had asked the students to do their own research and write a report on a few specific types of monsters.
They were the following monsters
<Venompion>
Danger Rating: A
Size: 3 meters
Found in: Sand Falls, Harsh Desert, Eastern Continent
-Named the Reaper of the Sands.
A scorpion armed with heavy armor and powerful venom.
Its exoskeleton is harder than steel, and it swings its powerful pincers to crush or strike its prey to death.
The venom that oozes from the tip of its tail is said to be capable of killing 44 humans with a single drop.
A large scorpion is stretched out on a test tube.
Venompion. A rare creature from the deserts of the distant Eastern Continent, it had been preserved and stuffed as soon as it died, and was now Professor Banshee's favorite prized possession.
Professor Banshee's eyes lit up.
"This scorpion hides itself under the sand and burrows quickly to find its prey. It sticks its tail out of the sand like a shark with its dorsal fin above the surface."
At this point, the students caught in Professor Banshee's gaze shake their heads and avert their eyes as if they were being stung by a scorpion.
This is because Professor Banshee's questions are always tricky to answer.
Moreover, the Venompion is still so little known to the scientific community that it is not even listed in most of the magical encyclopedias.
Professor Banshee smirked as he looked around at the new students, who were already avoiding his gaze.
"Okay, let's see who's brave and wise enough to explain this monster to us, but let's give the cold students a chance first, and the hot students shouldn't feel too bad."
The hot students burst out laughing and the cold students sulk.
When no one volunteered, Professor Banshee clicked her tongue.
"Are you really not proud of your research results? So what do you plan on doing after graduation? What about graduate school? What about employment? You guys are pathetic."
But still, there is nothing he isn't confident about.
Professor Banshee scanned the faces of the cold-warrior students and said in a stern tone,
"If there's no one else, I'll name one."
With that, he stretched out a long, slender finger and pointed at someone.
"Heh!"
It was Piggy.
Piggy, who ranked third on the written exam, was a brilliant mind in his own right.
But even the information he'd worked so hard to gather and analyze wasn't up to Professor Banshee's standards.
"E... Venompions have a black, thick exoskeleton that is harder than steel. Their large right claw acts more like a hammer than a pair of scissors, and they kill their prey with the venom contained in the poisonous stinger at the tip of their tail. Official records state that they grow up to three meters long, but some natives say that during times of great drought, individuals over five meters long are often seen...."
"That's enough. You're to be commended for finding and gathering such rare material, but that's it. You have no new arguments, so what's your original research, just a bunch of rehashed discussions? What's the difference between that and a parrot's mindless chatter?"
Piggy's face contorted into a scowl at Professor Banshee's point.
"I'm deducting one point from your entire cold class score. Now, let's see your hot class score."
As it turns out, Professor Banshee's notoriety was not a myth.
This time, the Hot students began to squirm and stare like lab rats waiting for the syringe.
Then.
A small, white hand rose high above the crowd of students.
It was Sinclair.
Professor Banshee narrowed her eyes.
"First in the Hot Class. I take it you'll be taking notes this term."
"Yes, Professor."
"try."
Professor Banshee said grimly.
Sinclair, on the other hand, stood up with a glint of enthusiasm in his eyes, and began to read his report with a flourish.
"Yes, I'm Sinclair, class A, first year, Hot Class, and I'm going to start my presentation now!"
Sinclair pulled out four sheets of paper, each one crammed with scribbled notes.
"I've categorized the Venompion's attacks, or hunting patterns, into three different categories and drawn different conclusions."
"Hmm?"
After hearing Sinclair's argument, Professor Banshee looked mildly intrigued.
Sinclair then proceeded to explain in a serious tone.
"Venompions have a reputation for being one of the hardest monsters to defeat in the desert. Aside from a few large worm-like monsters like the Sandworm, it has no natural enemies."
"That's a story everyone already knows."
"Yes. As I said, I've compiled a list of cases where Venompions have attacked humans, or where they've been seen hunting their prey, and I've categorized their personalities into three types."
Sinclair held out the report.
In it, along with numerous graphs, Sinclair categorized the creature into three types, each with a different strategy for dealing with it.
"Simply ignorant": Exceeds others in dashing speed, strength, and endurance, but has significantly lower intelligence, such as an inability to flee when in danger or escape when trapped.
When defeating them, it is better to surround them, ambush them, or set traps than to fight them head-on.
'Wimpy': Has a small skeleton and inferior physical abilities compared to other individuals, but exhibits unpredictable attack patterns, such as popping out from unexpected places or using its middle or last leg to make ineffective attacks.
When fighting them, it is best to kill them before they can get close with a powerful single shot or ranged attack.
'Cunning': Not only physically strong, but also intelligent. Combines the best qualities of 'Simply Ignorant' and 'Wimpy' into a drunken state.
※Siege and annihilation by high ranking knights or mages is the only answer.
Sinclair's argument was so new that even the demanding Professor Banshee nodded.
"There have been too few sightings of Venompions to fully categorize them, but you have a point, and I will make a formal report to the academy and let you know the results."
The words of recognition from Professor Banshee's mouth were enough to stun all the students.
Sinclair snorted with pride and sat back in his seat.
She seemed to be aware of someone else, as she glanced at the window seat outside the classroom with a furtive look.
Then Professor Banshee looked back at the cold class.
"That's an excellent idea, Hot Class. It's still just a possibility, but it's an idea that could contribute to academia in its own way. What do you guys have?"
None of the students from the cold side stepped forward to answer.
"Vikir from class B, then."
Professor Banshee called out to Vikir specifically.
Ever since the last incident, he'd been questioning Vikir from time to time.
It was clear he didn't like it.
When Vikir raised his eyes from behind his bangs and gave him an annoyed glance, Professor Banshee crossed his arms with a wicked grin.
"I'm sure you know a lot about these evil scorpions, so let's see some of your reports, see what you've been working on for the past hour."
"There's a report here: ...It's just the basics."
Vikir felt the pressure of Professor Banshee's gaze.
He didn't want to be the center of attention among the students anymore, and his nightly assassination runs outside the academy had left him with an absolute lack of time to work on his assignments.
So Vikir had only scribbled down a few lines of the most basic, common sense stuff for this preliminary report.
... It reads.
"Venomphion is a B+ ranked monster that is not difficult to catch as long as you pay attention to the first stinger on its tail and the second stinger on its belly."
It's so generic and common sense that I was just writing down what I thought everyone knew.
... but.
As Vikir talks about his research topic and conclusions, every head in the room turns from left to right.
Finally, Professor Banshee asks with a furrowed brow, as if he's never heard of it before.
"... 'second sting'? What is that?"
The source of this c𝐨ntent is freewe(b)nov𝒆l