Many students had already partnered up.
Only me… and a boy—small, frail, practically trembling.
"Looks like it's only me and you now."
I glanced at him. "Want to pair up?"
The boy looked at me like I'd just thrown him a lifeline.
"T-thank you," he said, bowing a little too deeply. "Please take care of me."
Up close, with a proper look, I finally understood why everyone avoided him.
The nobles didn't even try to hide it—eyes sliding past him, steps shifting away.
Who would want to team with someone this fragile?
Well my situation is understandable as I am a commoner who have higher grade that usualnobles that probably hurt there ego.
Before I could say anything else, the instructor raised his voice.
"Alright. Since you're all in pairs now… discuss your strategy. You'll be fighting the other groups. Through this, we'll measure your cooperation—
and your will to survive."
"Sir Grey, do you think any of them are promising?"
A man asked as they watched the students pairing up across the training field.
Grey didn't answer immediately. His eyes scanned the crowd, expression unreadable.
"Well… there are a few. I can feel at least four students with the highest mana here."
His gaze paused on Damian.
"And even someone I didn't know existed."
Classic. Pairing up and fighting in front of instructors—
the usual mock battle every fantasy academy loves.
Honestly, this isn't bad.
I get to practice…
though we might get absolutely humiliated since the nobles are already eyeing us like we're some comedy act.
A commoner and a noble boy who looks like a stiff breeze could send him flying.
Why does the world keep doing this to me?
Ding.
{System: Win in a mock battle}
Objective: Defeat another pair
Reward: Swordsmanship ↑ to Beginner level
Failure: Get bullied by nobles. Constantly.
Ah. Another pain in the ass.
But the reward isn't bad.
Swordsmanship is actually useful for me—since I can't even use my mana.
And because it says increase to Beginner, that means Damian's swordsmanship was only at Novice.
God, Damian, why are you like this…
Swordsmanship ranks in this world follow the UST four-tier system:
• Novice – basically you just learned how to hold a stick.
• Beginner – you can perform basic slashes, maybe dodge if you're lucky.
• Intermediate – after around three years of training; you can actually predict movement.
• Master – aura starts to form, unstable but present usually takes seven years unless you're born a monster.
• Grandmaster – the pinnacle. Only one in [Fate] history ever reached it the wandering knight, kaiser.
He's the coolest, most prominent character in all of [Fate].
The kind of guy whose mere silhouette can carry a whole storyline.
As I was stressing myself out, the frail noble beside me suddenly spoke.
"U-uhm… I'm Klein. Klein Fertani."
He looked at me with teary eyes like a lost puppy.
If only this guy wasn't a guy… I'd probably marry him.
I coughed. "I'm Damian. Damian Antares. Let's work together."
"W-we're… paired with Damian, the guy who scored top in mana theory… woah…"
His eyes sparkled like I'd just descended from the heavens or something.
The mock battle began soon after. Pairs clashed one after another.
"Woah! Look—Kyria-sama is so cool!" someone from the crowd shouted.
"But look, even Allen—the top in combat—is struggling against her."
"That's because Kyria-sama is a goddess…"
What is wrong with these people?
…but they aren't wrong. Fighting a mage with a tank protecting her is hell.
I watched their fight closely.
Let's see…
This Kyria girl has insane battle sense. She keeps her tank in front, letting him soak all the attacks while she maintains distance and launches precise spells. Smart.
And Allen—this guy is persistent as hell.
He's deflecting her ice thorns like he's swatting flies. Watching them makes me kinda jealous.
As the mock battles continued, Allen and Kyria clashed fiercely—steel ringing against ice as their teammates circled each other. Kyria maintained her formation flawlessly, her tank positioned perfectly to shield her while she launched spells with calculated precision. Allen, ever relentless, deflected her ice thorns with the ease of a veteran warrior.
But then something changed.
A sudden surge rippled through the air—
a concentrated spike of strong mana, sharp enough that even the spectators felt a faint tremor in their chests.
Allen halted mid-step.
Kyria's next spell fizzled at her fingertips.
Both of them turned at the exact same moment, eyes widening, searching the crowd for the source of that overwhelming presence.
Their gazes locked onto a single student standing quietly among the onlookers.
Damian Antares.
He wasn't casting anything.
He wasn't even moving.
But the mana surrounding him wavered like unseen pressure, dense enough to momentarily disrupt the battle instincts of two top performers.
That brief hesitation—one second, maybe less—was all it took.
Allen snapped back first.
"Now!"
With his teammate, he charged forward, exploiting Kyria's opening.
Her tank was a beat too late, her stance broken, and Allen's sword found its mark.
The match ended in an instant.
"Winner: Allen Bright and Jasmine Cast!" the instructor announced.
"Dammit…" Kyria muttered under her breath.
Allen extended his hand to her. "It was a good match."
As kyria smiled and spoke "It was a good match indeed," she replied, accepting it.
Well, turns out Allen won. I knew it—the tank's stamina was running out. With that kind of consumption catching up, it was only a matter of time. Even Kyria didn't notice; she was too focused on the opponent, not on her partner.
"Next!
Damian Antares and Klein Fertani… versus Gabriel Dike and Cassandra Luv!" the instructor called.
A wave of murmurs swept across the field as all eyes turned toward the four students.
"Well… lucky for Gabriel's team," someone whispered.
"I kinda feel bad for the other two. Gabriel's cruel as hell."
"Right? Didn't he keep beating that guy in his old school until the guy passed out?"
"Poor them…"
"Yeah…"
Every word reached Damian and Klein.
Not that it helped; the tension was already suffocating.
Damian and Gabriel stepped forward, facing each other.
Damian's thoughts nearly leaked out of his mouth: Fuck. I feel why am I holding a wand I can't use magic…
And then—
He actually raised his hand.
"Instructor…can I switch to sword. "
The entire class suddenly froze and burst into laughter.
"Sword against a two star mage what is he Allen"
A girl muttered at the back.
"He's trying to copyhim, this is hilarious"
A guy spoke while laughing.
Only Kyria and Allen didn't.
Their eyes stayed locked on Damian—
the commoner overflowing with mana dense enough to freeze two elite students mid-battle.
They weren't laughing.
They were wary.
"What are you afraid of me well considering my reputation it's quite alright to be afraid commoner" Gabriel spoke taunting infornt of Damian.
This pissed of Damian as hell but what Gabriel spoke was right.
He is afraid of course he is afraid he knew he doesn't have anything special in particular yet he still feels the gaze of everyone around him.
Even the two elite students is watching him extensively.
*What are that two name again ....ah.. it's Allen and Kyria but why are they watching me with those gaze.
Uhh..it feels suffocating being watchike this.
Both teams then went into the mock battle area where Klein was shivering afraid of he's wits.
"Are you both ready." The instructor spoke
Both side then nod and "then start"
Before the fight began Klein and I had created a strategy plan to win.
"So what magic do you use Klein." I ask him
"Well I can use heal and increase stats." He muttered
"You said you can do increase stat by how much is it actually"
"Well I could always cast two times increase stats up to four times."
"Well can you increase stats by stacking the buffs you gave to your target."
"Well I didn't try it but I'll try.."
The mock battle began.
Just like the class rumors had warned, Gabriel and Cassandra stood side by side—
a Fire-type, Two-Circled Mage, and a Wind-type, One-Circled Mage.
Their attributes perfectly complemented each other.
A bad matchup. A nightmare matchup.
Damian felt his stomach twist.
Klein raised his hand.
A faint glow wrapped around Damian's body.
"Status Boost—go."
Damian's body grew lighter, muscles tightening with borrowed strength.
But even then—
FWOOSH!
Gabriel's fire magic roared like a wild beast.
Every blast forced Damian back, searing his skin even through Klein's buffs.
It wasn't flashy—it was just relentless, merciless heat.
"Damn… this is annoying!" Damian hissed, dodging another fire arc.
But the moment he tried to break through—
WHOOSH!
Cassandra's wind magic slammed into him like a hurricane wall, tossing him back across the arena floor.
He gritted his teeth.
I can't even get close…!
Students watching on the sidelines murmured in disbelief.
"Damian's getting pushed back hard…"
"He's already reaching his limit…"
"This is it for him…"
Gabriel grinned, lifting his hand.
A fireball formed—small, but dense, glowing like molten stone.
"End of the line, commoner."
He threw it.
BOOM!
The fireball exploded right on Damian's face, launching him clean off his feet.
His vision blurred, ears ringing, the world fading.
He hit the ground.
Silence.
Gabriel chuckled.
"Just as everyone expected. You were all bark after all."
His eyes shifted to Klein.
"Looks like it's just you now."
Klein didn't panic.
He didn't flinch.
He simply slammed his palm to the ground.
Magic burst out—
not a gentle glow, but a sharp, violent surge of light.
"Healing Surge!"
Damian's body jolted.
Stamina flooded back into him, his lungs filling with burning air as life snapped into place.
His eyes shot open.
Klein stood behind him, sweat dripping, but smirking.
"Get up," he said, voice steady.
"I didn't buff you just to watch you die lying down."
The ground beneath Damian cracked as he pushed himself up.
Gabriel's smirk faded.
Cassandra swallowed.
The students erupted.
Damian rose—eyes sharp, breathing steady, aura flaring.
The real battle was about to begin.