The Weakest in the Academy Became a Hero Rider with Limits

Class Placement Evaluation

At Sirius Academy, there are four class levels: A, B, C, and D. Students with the highest scores are placed in Class A, while those with the lowest scores are placed in Class D.

The results of the mana evaluation and this class placement evaluation will determine which class a student will be placed in.

Since this evaluation determines the class a student will attend until the next semester, the class placement evaluation is extremely important.

My top priority is to observe Kevin and Luna's situation while collecting some mana particles I find along the way. Although it's clear that I'll prioritize securing the event over my own ranking.

Currently, all first-year students of the Magic Department have entered the Old Sylphy Forest.

This means the risk of encountering other students is high, and there's a strong possibility of direct confrontations immediately after the evaluation begins.

This is the domino effect caused by Professor Ferdinand's emphasis on the word "survival." Most students likely understand that they'll have to fight when they encounter each other.

Bang—!!

Boom—!!

Kwangg—!!

The sounds of gunfire and magical explosions could be heard from all directions, signaling that the battle royale had begun.

In a situation like this, it's natural for some students to cooperate to gain a numerical advantage and make it easier to find mana particles, which is the main objective of this evaluation.

However, it's clearly impossible for anyone to want to cooperate with me, someone with an F-grade mana. To be honest, I feel luckier if they don't approach me because they'd likely try to take advantage of me.

Should I look for Celine and cooperate with her?

...No. That's too dangerous; the risk is too high. Celine and I have grown close in a short time, but I can't fully trust her yet, and there's no guarantee she'd help me. She probably also wants a good score to get into a good class. I also can't let her know about my goals or the demon's appearance. I don't know anything about her, and she might end up stabbing me in the back.

So, I only have one option now.

I think...

I'll just hide...

I've found a suitable hiding spot based on my memories from playing [Flame Chaser].

By walking deeper into the forest, I found a tree with dense foliage covering it.

This is perfect...

I then focused my mana into my feet and walked up the tree trunk.

I discovered this method while experimenting during my previous training. It's similar to using chakra in Naruto, where by focusing chakra on the soles of your feet, you can walk on various surfaces, including trees and even water.

This is comfortable...

As I sat on the tree branch surrounded by dense foliage, I leaned my back against the tree. The tree is tall enough, and with the foliage covering it, it should be impossible for anyone to see me. No, more accurately, they probably wouldn't expect someone weird enough to climb a tree and wait instead of focusing on finding mana particles.

"...."

Unfortunately, this strange strategy is the only one I can use. I'm the weakest right now, and I can't act recklessly.

But what will I do if other students have already collected all the mana particles while I'm waiting in the tree?

Well, honestly, while thinking about this plan, I overlooked one thing.

Mana particles are luminescent, emitting light at temperatures below incandescence. This means that as the day gets darker, the mana particles will become easier to spot with the naked eye.

Well, it's a shame, but what can I do? I can't risk fighting others if I force myself to collect mana particles, even though I think I have decent mana perception.

So, I stayed still and focused on listening to my surroundings. I needed to know if anyone was approaching the tree.

Finally, 20 minutes later, someone approached the tree I was in.

I then channeled a small amount of mana and conjured wind and ice magic simultaneously, mixing them together.

After that, I directed the magic toward the person, and they shivered from the cold.

"Eek!? W-what was that!? Why is there suddenly wind, and it feels so cold!? I-impossible, is that a ghost!? Mommm!!!"

Then they ran away in fear.

I just smiled slightly as I watched the person run away in terror. It's still daytime, but I'm in a forest with trees everywhere, so even a slight change in atmosphere can create a terrifying horror vibe. Especially for people their age, who are still teenagers, most of them still harbor fears of ghosts. So, I just used that fact as a card to scare off anyone who came near.

Then, several others came one after another, and I scared them off in the same way. Of course, they ran away screaming, "Mommmm! Help me, there's a ghost here!!"

Hehehe, this is kind of fun...

Let's wait a little longer...

The people running away in fear because of my antics made the tense atmosphere that had enveloped me earlier disappear, and they relieved my boredom while waiting.

I can definitely survive until the time comes...

—————————

The sky then turned reddish, and gradually the world grew darker.

I waited a little longer after sunset.

The sounds of students chanting spells had long disappeared, and the forest was enveloped in thick darkness.

The time now showed 7:30 PM, and I was still holding out by hiding in the tree.

Should I come down now...?

Fortunately for me, the strange strategy I prepared worked.

I had used up all my mana earlier to scare off people approaching the tree, but now it's recovered.

I then jumped down from the tree.

Thud—!!

"Ah, this feels refreshing..."

I then breathed in the cold night air of the forest and stretched a little because my butt hurt and my legs were trembling from sitting in the tree for too long. What's even more unfortunate is that I still felt a bit of muscle soreness from yesterday's gym training.

After massaging my legs for a bit, I started moving.

Where are they, approximately?

I don't know exactly where Kevin and Luna will fight the demon.

In the game, you get a cutscene after passing the class placement evaluation. The cutscene shows the first meeting between Kevin and Luna, and the scenery changes dramatically.

I need to find that location immediately. Fortunately, I've marked several locations that I predicted would be where Kevin and Luna fight the demon.

The sky above the barrier had become pitch black, with only the moonlight illuminating the forest. In that darkness, I stepped carefully to avoid making unnecessary sounds.

I also needed to find some mana particles.

All my savings were spent on preparing equipment for this event, leaving me with only a few points. So, if I can't earn enough points this time, I'll end up starving or forced to borrow points from the academy's bank.

So, finding the remaining mana particles is crucial right now.

...Did I make a mistake?

Haa, damn it, I haven't found a single mana particle; the students must have taken them earlier.

My hope of easily finding mana particles was completely shattered.

I really overlooked something; this is the prestigious Sirius Academy, the center of humanity's academic representation.

It's only natural that the students have excellent mana perception.

Come on... I just need a few, not a lot...

Then, I kept walking until finally—

There it is!

I found some mana particles.

"Thank godness there are still some left."

There were quite a lot, about 15. I'm really lucky this time.

I was so engrossed in finding the mana particles that I didn't hear the footsteps approaching me.

"Huh?"

A woman's voice entered my ears, and in an instant, my expression darkened.

I, who was bending down to pick up the mana particles, froze at the sound.

This voice... what should I do...?

I really didn't expect something like this to happen.

I still have enough mana, but this voice... it's impossible for me to fight her.

I then slowly raised my head and saw a silver-haired girl with her hair tied back with a black hair tie staring at me.

[Liana Astralin] 

Level: 90 

Race: Human 

Elements: Wind, Fire 

Danger: X

"..."

"..."

What should I say...?

This is so awkward...

I left her earlier while the conversation was still ongoing, so it's only natural for Liana to be angry.

As I kept thinking hard about what to say, Liana spoke.

"Ah, hello."

She greeted me awkwardly.

"Oh, hello."

And of course, I also replied awkwardly.

"..."

"..."

"What are you doing?"

She finally asked, but for some reason, her question was strange.

"What? Can't you see? Of course, I'm collecting mana particles."

"Oh... okay."

"..."

"..."

Then, as the awkward atmosphere returned, I decided to leave before Liana attacked me.

But Liana forcefully stopped me by grabbing my arm tightly.

"Hey, why are you hiding your power?"

I fell silent at her words, and my eyebrows naturally furrowed as I looked at her unhappily.

What the hell...? She's asking that stupid question again...?

"What do you mean? I don't understand."

"I mean it literally. Why are you hiding your power?"

She repeated her question, and I, hearing it, grew annoyed.

I then forcefully pulled my arm out of her grip.

"I don't understand what you mean. I've never once hidden my power. Why do you keep annoying me with that weird question?"

"Sorry... I didn't mean it like that. But I just don't understand what's really going on..."

"You don't understand...?"

"Yes, I witnessed you fighting the demon on the first day while protecting the blond-haired student named Kevin. Honestly, even to me, the power you showed at that time was incredible, but now it's not; it's very weak. Why...? I don't understand..."

I fell silent hearing her. I knew Liana had witnessed my fight with the demon, and I also knew her tendency to be self-deprecating. In [Flame Chaser], she feels inferior to Luna and tends to admire people she considers extraordinary.

But now, isn't she being a bit excessive?

"I really don't understand what you mean. I'm weak, and that's the truth."

I answered honestly based on what was in my mind.

But Liana's reaction was completely unexpected.

"No! No, no! That's impossible! You're not weak!"

She screamed hysterically to deny my words. I really couldn't understand her.

I reflexively took a step back, feeling horrified by her denial.

"What the hell is wrong with you...?"

Instead of answering my question, Liana continued her argument.

"It's impossible for you to be weak! I'm sure you're strong, especially when you gathered mana into your golden sword back then! That was a terrifying amount of mana... so... so... so... it's impossible for you to be weak..."

After screaming hysterically and defending her argument, Liana then burst into tears.

"Why...? Why...? Why won't you tell me the reason...? Am I not worthy of knowing your reason...?"

I frowned, and my expression darkened further. I really didn't understand what she was talking about. I am weak, and even if I was strong because of [Heroic State], it's not as strong as she imagined. I used Excalibur back then because I couldn't control my power, resulting in splitting the mountain in the distance. Even if she were my friend, I have no intention of telling her about my abilities, but why does she feel betrayed? I don't understand. We're not even friends. We're just strangers who've spoken twice. So, why is she so disappointed that I didn't tell her? This is so weird.

"I don't understand a single thing you're saying. You're a annoying person, Liana Astralin."

Finally, I spoke harshly, fed up with her attitude, and walked away, leaving her behind.

As I was about to leave—

"Hey, could it be that you're actually a Hero?"

Liana's natural question stopped me in my tracks. My body trembled, and my mind was filled with thoughts.

What? Why did she come to that conclusion!?

"What do you mean? Me, a hero? Are you joking now?"

I answered immediately while turning my back to her so she wouldn't see my shattered expression.

"No. I'm not joking at all. I just find it strange, that's all. I've been thinking about the possibility that you've reached the realm of an Archmage or Swordmaster, but the conclusion I reached is that it's impossible. But... it's not the same for a hero, right?"

I fell silent for a moment upon hearing her words, then took a deep breath and exhaled roughly to calm my mind. After calming down, I answered.

"I don't know. I'm not a hero. Isn't it an insult to the hero if you compare them to me?"

"Why do you think that?"

Liana asked, feeling strange about my words.

Why is it an insult to the hero if they're compared to me?

That's definitely what she's thinking right now.

"Of course, because I'm just a lowly commoner who—"

"That's enough. Stop saying that."

Before I could answer properly, Liana's voice stopped me. It was a cold, angry voice.

"Why are you belittling yourself? What's wrong with being a commoner? What's wrong with a hero from a commoner? No, there's nothing wrong at all! It's not an insult! So, stop belittling yourself!"

Liana's angry voice reached my ears. Maybe she's right.

I've been underestimating myself too much since coming to this world because of the status difference between nobles and commoners.

I remained silent after hearing her shout. Then, as I decided to leave rather than worsen the situation with her—

KRA-ROOM—!!

A deafening explosion echoed in my ears.

And then, a massive shockwave spread in all directions.

I forced myself to hold onto the ground using mana as the shockwave hit my body.

Then, after the shockwave subsided, Liana and I reflexively looked in the direction of the explosion.

There, flames were raging, burning the forest with intense ferocity.

And in that direction—

Impossible...

That's one of the locations I marked as the place where Kevin and Luna meet!

I immediately rushed toward that direction as fast as I could. I pushed all my strength and mana to speed up my steps.

Please...

Wait me, Kevin, Luna! I'll help you!!

Beside me, I could also hear the sound of Liana's hurried footsteps running behind me, but I didn't pay attention to her.

I need to see what's happening and make sure Kevin and Luna are safe!!

Please help me, God!! I beg You!!