Necromancer Academy’s Genius Summoner

The Class A students returned to the lecture room after eating to take the second class of Beginner Black Magic.

“What? Are the results already out?”

And as soon as they entered the lecture room, all hell broke loose. The test results of all the Class A students were posted on a wall.

“Woah, that was really fast!”

“Get out of the way!”

Rumble!

As soon as the students entered the lecture room, they threw away their bags and ran.

Not only their grades, but also the grades of other students were all publicly shown.

“Kyaaah! 85 on curses!” 

“Ugh, Hemomancy got all my average chopped away.”

“Should I change my major for real?”

“See? Didn’t I tell you to just pick option 5 for Combat Magic!”

“Your hypocrisy disgusts me. You cried saying you fucked up in Curses. Why is it 80?”

It was so boisterous that it felt like a public market.

Simon didn’t want to check his grades, but he wasn’t so stupid as to run away from reality…

He opened his eyes wide and checked his grades.

[Simon Polentia]

Curses: 40

Mechanics of Jet-Black: 33

Summoning: 76

Necromancy: 35

Hemomancy: 20

Poisonous Alchemy: 20

Combat Magic: 43

Defense Against the Holy Arts: 40

‘……I guess I’m not too surprised.’

He was prepared mentally, but it was a disastrous grade.

The only consolation was that his Summoning grade had reached 70 points. Perhaps thanks to studying over the weekend, it seems that the grade came out well.

“Simon! Simon! How were your grades for the test?”

Asked Rick as he hurriedly ran towards Simon.

“76 in Summoning. Everything else is doomed.”

“Wow! 76?”

Rick tapped Simon’s shoulder.

“Good job! To be honest, it exceeded my expectations for a person who didn’t have any prior learning! It’s way better to have one subject that you’re good at than to have a decent average grade!”

“How about you?”

“My highest grade is 74 in Mechanics of Jet-Black, and the rest are in the 60-70 range. I guess I’ll get around 70 as my average.”

Simon blinked his eyes.

“You’re also good at studying, huh?”

“I just studied to the point where I won’t be expelled.”

Rick’s face slightly hardened as he said that with a shrug.

“By the way, this is something we didn’t expect. The other students' grades are all revealed from the first class”

Rick’s plan was to quickly recruit talented group members in a situation where information about each other was lacking.

However, if everyone’s grades were revealed in this way, the students would select their members based on clear and visible criteria.

“U-Uhm, everyone!”

The students who went wild with their grades revealed were out of control. The female assistant said while flustered,

“Please return to your seats! Professor will be arriving soon—!”

“Leave them be.”

Slide.

Just then, the lecture room door opened, and Jane entered.

At her appearance, the shouts of the students were cut off. Still, their gazes were reluctantly directed towards the grades.

“I’ll give you 30 minutes from now.”

Said Jane as she put her bag down on her desk.

“After checking your grades, make a group of four people. Except under special circumstances, this group will be maintained throughout the semester.”

The expressions of all of Class A hardened.

She was starting right away?

“Henceforth, Basic Dark Magic will be conducted as a group class, and tasks that can be solved only when each team member works together will be given. Individual and group grades are calculated separately. Of course, even if an individual excels, points will be deducted if teamwork isn’t achieved between the members.”

Phew. After letting out a breath, she swung her tie and straightened it before raising the corners of her lips.

“So, you’ll have to choose good members, right?”

At that statement, the emergency switch turned on in the minds of all the students.

“It’s 30 minutes. Students who couldn't form a group by then will be grouped together to form a separate group. Now, begin.”

As soon as she finished speaking, the students' voices poured out.

“Jasmine! Who’s Jasmine?”

“It’s me, why?”

“You had a pretty good grade in Curses! Wanna join us? We got Mechanics of Jet-Black and Necromancy aspirants here!”

“Looking for 3 C.M.S.! Above 60!”

“Any group looking for high-ranking Necromancy?”

The race to recruit members has already started fiercely. Simon and Rick also nodded and split apart.

‘Rick will go directly to Jamie, the highest priority recruit.’

Simon moved in search of Claudia, the 2nd priority recruit.

But unfortunately, she was already talking to the other two students. Seeing her talking with a flushed expression, it seemed that she had been completely taken in.

Rosenthal, a Curses aspirant who was the 3rd priority, acted as the leader herself and looked for members.

And the 4th priority, Catherine, a Hemomancy aspirant, was being persuaded by Rosenthal.

In the blink of an eye, groups were being formed one by one.

‘This won’t do.’

Rick, who went to Jamie, was also struggling.

Students who performed well in this test were given some kind of power. They wanted to form a group around themselves.

In particular, as all groups tried to fill the three studies of a Necromancer, ‘C.M.S.’, as a top priority, Curses aspirants were running out rapidly.

This was a crisis. The blank was too big if they couldn’t fill up the Curses spot, which had high credit.

‘Calm down.’

Simon erased the anxiousness that filled his head and calmly analyzed the situation.

‘It’s still early, and there’s not a single group that has four people.’

‘They aren’t really searching. Everyone’s in a hurry because there’s a time limit. They tend to combine as long as they have similar grades or different majors.’

‘The students with average grades are forming groups quickly, and those with the highest grades are observing the situation for now.’

‘In that case, what I can do here is…’

Finally, Simon set a goal and started moving.

While numerous students were talking and exchanging stories, Simon steadily walked between them.

Occasionally, some students tried to talk to Simon, but Simon refused them euphemistically, saying that they could talk later.

He only had one target.

‘I found you.’

* * *

* * *

Finally, the target came into Simon’s eyes.

Unlike the other students who were rushing about, she was like a person from another world.

She sat with her arms and legs crossed and sat quietly while observing the situation.

Other students around her glanced at her while trying to read her countenance, but they couldn’t take the initiative to talk to her.

It was probably because it was nearly impossible to convince her to bring you in with a mid-range grade in the 60-70 region.

Simon daringly dug through such a gap of hesitation and finally came to her.

“Meilyn Villenne”

The top of Class A.

Ranked 1st in the entrance exam grade.

And the only one with an average grade of 90 in all subjects on this test.

“I want you to join our group.”

Simon was aiming to recruit the top from the beginning.

The students, reading the situation around them, began to whisper after seeing Simon.

“Hey! Hey Simon!”

Rick, who broke through the students before Simon knew, mouthed, ‘That’s reckless.’

In fact, Meilyn wasn’t the No.1 priority recruit because Rick concluded that it was impossible to bring her in.

Simon raised his hand a bit to signal Rick to count on him.

“……How funny.”

Her eyes, reminiscent of a cold glacier, scanned Simon’s face.

“Do you think being a special admission means something?”

A voice like a cold blizzard blew.

“Even if you’re a special admission, it’s just that you had some sort of personal connection, isn’t it? I only believe in what I see, clear numerical values.”

A firm and defensive attitude.

“And I’m sorry, but an average grade of 30 like yours is a little bit off.”

Lastly, reality coldly digging into the heart.

But Simon endured it. Negotiations to recruit the top started now.

First of all, throw in the bait.

“You had a pretty low grade on summoning. 85.”

Her eyebrows twitched.

Summoning was Meilyn’s only subject in the 80s, and it was her provoking point.

But she didn’t budge and fought back.

“Are you in a position to say such a thing? Still, my Summoning grade is higher than yours, you know?”

Of course he knew. Simon took a deep breath.

“I promise.”

“……?”

“One month. In just one month, I’ll surpass you in Summoning.”

Her eyes widened sharply with the whispers around her.

“Are you crazy? Such bluff, anyone can—!”

“If I don’t,”

Simon interrupted her and said,

“I’ll drop out of Kizen.”

A shocking declaration from the Special Admission No.1. You could hear bated breaths from everywhere.

So far, there had never been a single case in the history of Kizen that a Special Admission No. 1 left the school on their own accord.

Meilyn let out a laugh, but the corners of her lips were trembling slightly.

“You must be really crazy, huh? If you don’t want to be humiliated, quickly take back what you said!”

“I just said what I can do.”

Simon was speaking very calmly.

“……”

Meilyn slightly bit her lips.

Simon seized the initiative in an instant, and a strange mood was flowing.

‘He’ll surpass me? How arrogant. Know your place.’

Her eyes turned to Hector, who was mixed among the onlookers.

‘But……’

Apart from the war of nerves with Simon, she also had her own calculations.

Meilyn had to maintain her position as the top of Class A through the whole first semester, no matter what.

And the biggest hindrance to this was Hector. His test results were good, and above anything else, he was a person who was better at practicals than written exams. If the duel assessment and performance assessment, which’d be happening soon, were reflected in the grades, she may lose her place at the top of Class A.

‘Therefore, I need to crush him in the group class.’

One problem was that Hector was strong in Summoning, getting a grade of 88 on this test.

From the eight subjects, it was the only subject that Meilyn was falling behind in, even in the performance assessment.

That was why Meilyn thought of reinforcing an ace of Summoning to help her in this group class.

However, Hector moved faster than anyone else and succeeded in recruiting the only person in Class A who scored a 90 in Summoning, Pierre Berkeley.

Except for Pierre, the rest of the summoning aspirants were just average.

Their Summoning grades weren’t that different from hers.

‘……Simon Polentia.’

Although he didn’t have any prior learnings, he proudly defeated Hector in the first Summoning class. Like many Class A students, Simon left a strong impression on Meilyn.

Meilyn was placed in a situation to make a choice between the two.

Recruit other Summoning aspirants with scores in the 80s.

Or, carry a wild card named Simon, who has defeated Hector head-on.

In that sense, Simon’s statement that he would surpass Meilyn wasn't provocative or bluffing.

It was an appeal of the latter option, which she was concerned about.

He talked as if he could read her mind.

“……Sigh.”

Finally, after a long time,

Meilyn organized her thoughts, uncrossed her legs, and stood up from her seat.

“That promise. You can really keep it, right?”

Simon smiled and held out his hand.

“Definitely.”

Meilyn grabbed Simon’s hand reluctantly.

It was the moment when Meilyn, the top of Class A and the only student with average grades of 90, joined Simon’s group.

——