The moment the students realized Monaka had healed me, the hall erupted in chaos. Weiss's eyes bulged behind his glasses, his body trembling with rage.
"No… that's impossible! Monaka's heal was meant for me!" he roared. Class 1-20 swarmed around him, their voices sharp with accusation. "Hey, Weiss, what the hell did you do?!" "Why'd you exile Leopin so fast?" "If he'd stayed in our class, that ten million ¥Ender would've been ours!" "You're the worst! Take responsibility and undo the exile!"
Weiss glared at them, teeth gritted. "You all agreed to it! And there's no way to reverse an exile now!" As Class 1-20 bickered among themselves, two girls approached us, their eyes blazing with malice. One sported a ponytail and a white breastplate over her uniform, exuding a knightly aura. The other hid her face beneath a black hood, moving like a shadow.
They flanked Monaka like light and shadow, scolding her sharply. "Monaka-sama! A saint's first heal is a sacred gift! How could you waste it on such a worthless horse bone?" the breast-plate girl snapped. "Nin. For someone like Monaka-sama, powerful men would pile gold for that honor! To give it to a horse bone—unthinkable, damn it!" the hooded girl added.
"Onesco-san, Shinobuko-san!" Monaka protested. "Leo-kun isn't a horse bone! To me, he's a white horse… no, a prince riding one!" "Monaka-sama, we're your chaperones!" Onesco said firmly. "Nin. From now on, you act only with our permission, degozaru," Shinobuko added.
The black-and-white duo dragged Monaka back to the crowd of new students.
On stage, the vice principal, who'd been stunned into silence, snapped back to reality. "Ahem… woo-hoo! Silence! Quiet! About Monaka's award—I was just using it as an example! It's not really being given out!"
But when questioned about the "Love with Monaka Award" certificate in his hand, he backpedaled. "Er, well, there are plenty of other awards, thanks to our generous supporters! Excel at this school, and you could win fortunes! Also, your school life will be broadcast worldwide via magical devices. As the first students of Royal Pioneer Academy, conduct yourselves with dignity! And with that, the entrance ceremony concludes!"
"Wait!" The principal shoved the vice principal aside and stepped forward, glaring at the students—except me. "One final word! What we seek are golden eggs—students whose supporters will shower the school with wealth! Those who fail to generate coin are rotten eggs, worthless failures!"
His gaze locked onto me, venomous, as if I were his despised stepchild. "I'll crush those rotten eggs without mercy. Be warned!" After the ceremony, a lavish buffet from a renowned restaurant was served. But I was told the Special Training Class got nothing, so I left the hall early.
Outside the castle, where the school stood, stretched vast, untamed plains and forests. From now on, we new students would explore this land while attending classes. There were no dormitories or cafeterias—only basic equipment for each student's occupation was provided. Everything else depended on self-sufficiency. You had to cooperate with classmates, sometimes even compete against other classes, to survive.
"But I'm alone…"
The Special Training Class was a dumping ground for outcasts, shunned by all. Surviving solo was nearly impossible, and most who ended up there gave up quickly. Feeling wretched, I opened my status window. The grim reality hit like a lead weight. This is beyond terrible… There's no future for me like this…
Even the lowest students usually got an occupation, like garbage collector. But me? I was so pathetic I couldn't even qualify for the bottom rung. "And my skill… labeled 'Poor Dexterity.' It's like it's mocking my future."
Sighing, I tapped the "Poor Dexterity" skill, expanding its skill tree. A list of abilities appeared. Touching a skill name opened an explanation window above the status screen.
Dexterity Body: Convert Dexterity points to enhance other stats temporarily.
"What's this? I never heard of this skill in middle school." Curious, I tested the "Dexterity Body" skill. In my mind, I commanded, Dexterity, convert to Life!
My MP dropped by 1, Dexterity by 100, and—Life increased?! HP too?! "No way…! If this is real, this skill is incredible!" Skeptical, I converted Dexterity to another stat, testing further.
Suddenly, my sharpened senses caught a voice like a gust of wind. "Look! That trash is outside the castle! Let's have some fun to kill time! First one to shoot him with a bow and arrow wins! I'll start!"
Swoosh!
An arrow sliced through the air toward my head. Reflexively, I raised my hand. Gashi!
I caught it bare-handed. I couldn't believe my own reaction speed. But the archer atop the castle's veranda was even more stunned. "No way… that trash caught the arrow?!"
"That's impossible! He's no Martial Arts Master!" He's Master of no skill! The students with bows wavered on the balcony of the banquet hall. I gripped the arrow and turned slowly toward them. "I'll give this back."
With a flick of my wrist, I threw the arrow.
Bishuuun!
It rocketed back with lightning speed, piercing the wall behind its owner with a thud! The students collapsed, screaming, too shocked to move.
"Hyaaaaa!!!"
"He threw it back! From that distance?!" "No way! That's at least 200 meters! You'd need bow-and-arrow skills to hit that, not just bare hands!"
"M-Monster!!!"