He returned to the class and sat down in his seat. Students had begun storming into the classroom since the break was nearing its close… it was about two minutes left now.
'Right, System. Where did I get Danger Sense and Mental Resistance from?' he thought, realizing he had forgotten to ask initially.
Danger Sense had first shown itself when he was in the Outer Zone, and now Mental Resistance had allowed him to resist that pink-haired witch's mind control magic.
「Ding」
「Check your Skill Tree by thinking or uttering 'Skill Tree'」
He looked at the notification, blinking at it.
He couldn't exactly remember if the System had mentioned this feature before, but regardless, he let out a sigh.
'Skill Tree…'
There was silence at first, then a tree began to materialize in front of him.
It was a massive blue virtual tree that made his surroundings glow with an ethereal light as well. Everyone could still move normally around him, but it seemed like he was in another world entirely.
There were branches on the tree, and in some branches were his skills, displayed like glowing fruit.
A tab appeared next to them with an explanation.
「All your skills, traits, and abilities are shown on the tree as well as their rank. The higher the skill's rank, the stronger the skill will be」
He got a look at the skills at the higher branches, the ones that glowed brightest.
「Those Skills are your starting skills that the God of Novelty gifted you upon reincarnating in this world」
'So these were part of the package deal,' he thought.
He looked at one branch near the top.
「Unique Skill: Physicality (S)」
「Type: Passive」
「This skill allows your body to become stronger with each rank-up, even if you do not train your body… it will be as fit as if you trained a hundred times harder than the average person」
'Oh?' He raised an eyebrow as he examined it more closely.
That was why his body had received such a dramatic physical boost when he had become a two-liner, even without dedicated training.
With this skill, he didn't need to worry about his physicality at all, but he would still need fighting styles and techniques to supplement this enhanced strength.
Raw power without skill was just wasted potential and then his gaze went to another branch nearby.
「Unique Skill: Danger Sense (S)」
「Type: Passive」
「This skill allows you to detect danger coming at you from any direction, whether it be physical or mental… though the skill is just as strong as the Host, so if your Danger Sense doesn't extend like a sensor then rank up even more~」
Danger Sense was also a passive, which made sense given how it activated automatically and it scaled with his strength, so when he became more powerful, the skill would become equally strong.
'Why couldn't he just give me the full package at once…?'
「Unique Skill: Mental Resistance (S)」
「Type: Passive」
「This skill renders you completely immune to any sort of mental manipulation, whether it be illusions or mind control magic」
'Score!' he thought with genuine satisfaction.
He was resistant to Hakua's enslavement ability as well as that of Mirei's Succubine Beauty.
It was a massive score in his books, considering how many heroines seemed to have mind-affecting powers then the rest of the skills came after on lower branches.
'Wait… why are all of these skills passive?' He thought, he hadn't even gotten one power move. 'That god is just too petty…'
Skill Burst was on one of the lower branches, which was understandable since it was only D-rank.
The Dragon Flowing Fighting Style skill was B-rank, so it was positioned higher on the tree. However, several movements within it were locked behind translucent barriers.
The Dragon Flowing Fighting Style had about ten different sub-skills that followed with it, but you had to purchase those individually.
And they each cost like 10,000 to 20,000 FP, which was insane.
He only had the sub-skill that came along with the main skill itself, which was "Flowing." It allowed him to flow seamlessly between movements like punches and kicks while channeling mana through his strikes.
To use any of the special techniques or advanced stances, he would have to purchase them separately.
'Typical gacha game bullshit.' he thought with mild annoyance then he noticed something in the center of the tree that made him pause.
There was something there, though it seemed to be covered by the trunk itself but he could see a glimpse of red peeking through, pulsing with an ominous glow.
「Bloodline Skill: ??? (???)」
「Type: ???」
「???」
'What the fuck… I have a Bloodline skill?'
The thought shocked him genuinely.
Those were reserved for nobles who took pride in their bloodlines, hereditary abilities passed down through generations. It made him wonder how the original Kōya had gotten his hands on one.
'Tell me more about it.'
「As the Benevolent System I am, I will reveal your Bloodline Skill for 2,000,000 FP」
'I hate how stingy you are,' he thought with exasperation.
That was enough FP for HeroGod to buy one world-destroying ultimate skills and still have change left over.
「Passive Skill: Danger Sense has been activated」
The warning came a split second before the projectile.
He reached out and caught the pen that was flying toward his face with relative ease, plucking it from the air.
He looked at the professor who had thrown it with barely concealed irritation.
Everyone seemed to be arranged and ready for class while he had been lost in thought, completely zoned out.
"Return my pen, Amagi-san."
With that, Kōya threw the pen back at the man with a casual flick. The professor caught it smoothly, then settled down behind his desk.
'Right, this guy is… Hiroshita Tanzaki.' Kōya thought, placing the face.
He had originally pulled the Class 5 students out of the Main Hall before they left in the manga and gave them that brutal course test which disgraced most of the class.
It had been the whole reason he wanted to rank up initially but the scene hadn't happened in the Entrance ceremony.
The professor cleared his throat with exaggerated authority.
"Since Amagi-san was busy in whatever wonderland he lives in, I will re-explain it," the professor said, his tone dripping with condescension. "I am Hiroshita Tanzaki, and I will be your physical instruction professor. I am usually used to teaching Class 2 and above, so you can imagine my... disappointment at being assigned to such a lower class."
He paused for effect.
"I only want to test your capabilities."
He clapped his hands together sharply.
"I have designed a course in which all of you will try to clear so I can assess your abilities for my class," Professor Tanzaki said, then grinned in a way that didn't reach his eyes. "Don't worry, it'll be livestreamed on the school's official channel too! And I have made sure that all the teachers stopped their next classes just to tune in."
The grin widened, becoming almost predatory.
"All of ALI will be watching you today~"
'Damn.' Kōya thought, his expression remaining neutral. 'This guy really is the epitome of pettiness…'
But then he shrugged internally.
'Well, I needed a warmup anyway.'
…
'Fuck.'
Kōya thought as he looked at the course laid out before them, his internal monologue taking on a note of genuine alarm.
It incredibly differed from the one described in the manga… it was a damn maze, sure, but he knew it would be far more dangerous than the original version.
The place they were using was as wide as a football field, maybe even wider.
But he was more interested in the fact that…
'Where the fuck did this guy get lava?!'
Real, actual molten lava filled a massive lake between them and the maze entrance, heat coming off it in visible waves.
"I call it the Maze of Death!" Tanzaki announced proudly as he stood on a floating platform above them.
The students were dressed in tracksuits and gathered on the ground, looking up at him.
"It was meant to be a lot easier, but this Class 5 seems to have quite a few prodigies like Tachibana Misora and Amagi Kōya, so I had to spend more time on it, ramping up the difficulty!"
His grin was almost manic.
"And before you ask, yes, this course has been approved by the Academy administration for this test! Tsukishiro Mirei, please start the stream!"
"Yes, Tanzaki-sensei!"
Mirei, who was positioned on the ground at a safe distance away from the Class 5 students, pressed a remote control.
Several drones hovered into the air immediately, their cameras activating with soft beeps.
「Stream is starting…」
「Ah, the Professor really did the stream as he promised」
「They're fucked lmao」
「That Kōya student… remember that he's a delinquent that tried to assault Akari-sama!」
|___「Who is this agenda pusher? Saki-sensei already cleared him, I vote Kōya-kun wins」
「Bruh, what kind of testing field is this? Why is there damn lava?」
「Class 5 about to get roasted literally and figuratively」
There were several comments already flooding in, and Mirei could see them on the phone she used to regulate the stream.
'Kōya-kun, huh…?' she thought, her hands going up to cup her wonderful breasts then she pushed them together, squeezing them with a dreamy expression.
'He resisted my Bloodline ability so easily…' She barely kept her moan inside. 'I want to cut him open… Uh, dissect… yes, that's the word. I want to dissect him and then know exactly how he resisted it.'
She bit her lip.
'Mother said that my attraction must be strong enough to attract even the men with the strongest wills, and my own Attraction even works on my Father, though I never let him touch me.'
Her thoughts trailed to the useless man who sired her. He was only kept as a breeding pet for the Tsukishiro household, and her mother had kept him because he was good in bed and had decent genetics.
Nothing more or nothing less.
'Kōya-kunnnnnn~' she thought, her internal voice taking on a sing-song quality. 'If you're good in bed too… I'll grace you with the honors of becoming my breeding pet~'
She massaged her breasts even more enthusiastically, and the control phone was pressed between them.
'I'll make sure to drain you until you're completely dry, and I can lick every last drop of semen off your body~'
Then she stopped massaging her breasts in public, suddenly remembering where she was. She raised a fist up with genuine enthusiasm.
"Go, Kōya-kun!!!!"
Her voice carried across the field, and several students looked at her weirdly.
…
"First student, Fujimori Takeshi! It's your time to shine!" the professor announced with theatrical flair.
"The field is as follows: first, you must hop atop these rocks that are floating on the surface of the lava lake, and then once you get to the other side… you will pick a weapon from the stack and charge into the maze!"
He cleared his throat dramatically.
"It's a very tough maze, but once you break through, the next segment will come! You're ALI students… you're not meant to be handheld through everything! Now begin!"
Takeshi walked over to Misora with visible nervousness, then bowed deeply.
"Class Rep… I dedicate this to you," he said while bowing even deeper at Misora, his face flushed with determination.
Then he made a run for the first rock with the desperation of someone trying to impress their crush.
He was a one-liner, so he was just a bit better than the average human physically.
From his running stance alone… his arms flailing wildly and legs pumping inefficiently, Misora knew he was done for.
She didn't even bother watching closely.
She turned in Kōya's direction instead and let out a small smile.
'I'm very excited for your performance, my Knight. Hopefully you will reach my high expectations.'
Takeshi landed on the first rock with a heavy thud that made it sink slightly.
He jumped onto the second with slightly better form, then the third and fourth in rapid succession.
The last one… the fifth rock was distanced a bit far away, maybe three meters.
He leapt upward with everything he had, his arms windmilling for balance.
Then he landed in a roll that actually looked somewhat athletic, which showed he at least had some training.
He made it to the other side without falling into the lava.
「Oh shit, he might actually make it」
He reached the place where weapons were mounted on racks and immediately grabbed the spear without thinking.
'Stupid,' Misora thought with disappointment.
The spear was the worst choice for a maze… because it was too long and too unwieldy in tight corridors.
He ran into the maze entrance with the spear held awkwardly, clearly not trained in its use.
The following instant, something barreled into him from inside the maze.
A Rust monster projection hit him like a truck.
He shot through the air backward, completely airborne, and went flying right into the lava with a scream.
「Nevermind, spoke too soon」
「RIP Takeshi-kun, we hardly knew ye」
"GYAAAAAAAAAAH—!"
Though a burst of protective magic escaped from Tanzaki's floating platform immediately, completely covering Takeshi in a shimmering barrier.
It brought him out of the lava before he could actually be injured, teleporting him to the side.
A majority of his clothes were burned away, leaving him in his boxers and his skin was bright red from the heat, and he was shaking like a leaf.
Steam rose from his body.
「Bro got cooked quite literally…」
「Man pulled a Icarus and flew too close to the sun lmaooo」
「At least he made it across the lava? That's something?」
「Takeshi-kun's speedrun any% (FAILED)」
「My guy lasted 0.5 seconds in the maze 💀」
"And that's it for contestant one! Failed spectacularly!" the professor announced with barely concealed glee.
His grin was wide and satisfied.
'Like this, I'll surely get my Class 2 position back,' Tanzaki thought smugly. 'These Class 5 students will embarrass themselves on livestream, and the administration will see I'm wasted on them.'
Takeshi was carried away by medical staff and still steaming.
"Contestant 2, Kusaba Renji! You're up!"
Nobody reacted to the name as Renji strolled forward to the lava.
'So that's a fake name too…? I wonder what his real name is.'
Renji burst into a sprint, his form was perfect and his arms swayed gently then he jumped and looked back at Kōya with tears in his eyes.
'I'm afraid I must fail so that you will get the attention of the ladies more… Bros make sacrifices for the other.'
He thought and with that, he missed the first rock entirely and fell into the lava.