P.O.V. Cristóbal Xehanort
Disregarding the jeers and mockery of the other students, I took my seat with an unshakeable sense of detachment. My classmates watched me, their expressions a mixture of pity and bewilderment, unable to find the right words to break the heavy silence. Lucius, however, approached and rested a heavy hand on my shoulder.
"Hey, brother... you doing okay?" he asked. I lazily cracked an eye open to look at him. "I mean... dammit, I'm not exactly cut out for pep talks. Just tell me if anyone gives you trouble, and I'll break their face!" He beat his chest, and I could almost swear I heard a metallic ring resonate from the impact.
"Lucius is right, don't let it get to you," Alicia added, her voice soft but steady. "Perhaps your class hides something unique, a latent ability. You'll be fine; you always are. After all, you're... well, you know..." She trailed off, her cheeks flushing a faint crimson before she shook her head frantically. "But if you need anything at all, don't hesitate to ask!"
"EXACTLY!" Lucius echoed.
I looked at these two. In my previous life, I had never experienced what one might call a genuine friendship. Everything had boiled down to professional ties where anyone would stab you in the back for a promotion, or shallow acquaintances that withered after a week of silence. But these two... polar opposites who, despite my "Useless" class, refused to leave me behind. Heh... really...
"It's not the end of the world. It's just a silly label; it won't define my future, and nothing has changed, understood?" I told them, offering a dry, smirk.
They exchanged a glance before letting it slide, accustomed to my aloof demeanor. Nevertheless, my mind kept drifting back to what I had glimpsed on my status card. It was best to keep that under lock and key. I'm not usually secretive with them, but Lucius is an open book, and Alicia's parents are so controlling they wouldn't hesitate to interrogate her at the slightest suspicion.
The ceremony concluded shortly after. When the last student from Class A stepped down after awakening a Martial Artist class, Director Valerius took the stage, radiating the warmth of a wise grandfather.
"Well, young ones. You have all finally awakened your internal Mana. With that power, you have unlocked potential that will lead you toward a brilliant future. But remember: whether your class is the most legendary or the most modest, do not allow it to dictate who you are. Your classes are tools, not the final destiny of your lives," he stated with an unusual gravity. I noticed his gaze linger in my direction for a beat longer than necessary.
After wishing us success, he reminded us that registration for the school tournament—the first of eight over our three-year cycle—would open in two weeks. It was the golden opportunity for freshmen to test their newly acquired strength and discover their limits in a controlled environment.
We were granted the rest of the day off. And like any euphoric teenager who had just received a new toy in the form of magical faculties, everyone—including us—slipped into our gym uniforms and headed to the vast training campus.
Unlike the upperclassmen, the field was dominated by freshmen from combat classes. I stayed relaxed at the firing range while Lucius flaunted his newfound brute strength, hoisting a colossal concrete block with insulting ease. His smile was cocky, though he seemed to have developed enough tact not to brag directly to my face, now that I bore a supposedly mediocre class.
Alicia, for her part, was buried in absolute concentration, trying to mold a "hard-light" construct with her mana. Her target was a simple arrow, but the shape was crude and flickered erratically, dissolving before it could solidify.
[.]
"Dammit... this is much more complex than it looks," she muttered as the arrow vanished into luminous particles.
"Heh, seeing 'Miss Perfection' fail at something actually makes me glad I don't have a magic class," Lucius teased, performing mid-air push-ups with a single arm.
"Just what I needed: the muscle-head has even more strength now. In what universe is that fair?" Alicia grumbled, while Lucius flexed his biceps with pride.
"It's the nature of physical awakening, remember?" I reminded her.
"Yes, yes, I know. But it's annoying. We don't need the local idiot to be even more robust," she countered, shooting a dry look at a Lucius whose mind seemed to have gone blank.
We watched him for a moment as he tried to whistle—or at least attempted to. He only emitted a pathetic puff: "Pfff pfff pfff...". Met with our inquisitive stares, he sighed in defeat and dropped the concrete block. The impact triggered a small tremor that made me stumble; Alicia lost her balance and grabbed onto the nearest thing: me.
"Okay, I don't know what that was, but that's enough. Now, explain it to me," Lucius said, crossing his arms over the concrete.
Alicia straightened up immediately, apologizing with a flushed face. After a feigned cough, she began lecturing like a veteran professor:
Alicia steadied herself, offering a hasty apology with her cheeks flushed a deep pink. After a small cough to regain her composure, she crossed her arms and adopted that "prodigy professor" persona that defined her.
"Listen closely, Lucius, for I shall not repeat myself," Alicia began, her gaze turning sharp and analytical. "The Awakening is not merely a change in status; it is a comprehensive biological restructuring. In the case of a Physical Class like yours, mana isn't stored in external reserves but is integrated directly into the tissues. This leads to accelerated bone mineralization, transforming your skeleton into something with a density akin to titanium alloys. Your muscle fibers undergo magical hyperplasia—they don't just grow; they multiply and tighten, allowing your frame to withstand pressures that would pulverize an ordinary human. Essentially, your skin and muscles have become a reactive biological armor."
Lucius blinked, struggling to process the technical jargon. Alicia sighed and continued:
"For Magic Classes, the process is neuro-spiritual. Our mana channels—or 'ethereal veins'—expand and interface directly with the frontal lobe. This enhances neuronal synapses, allowing us to process information at staggering speeds. It is what we call 'Cognitive Acceleration.' I can calculate trajectories, break down alchemical formulas, and analyze structural weaknesses almost instinctively. In short: you are the unstoppable force and the immovable object; I am the processor that directs that force."
"She has higher mental 'octane,' and you're a tank on magical steroids," I summarized with an amused look as I saw a metaphorical lightbulb finally flicker to life in Lucius's head.
"So assassins have super-senses?" Lucius asked. Alicia and I clapped at his unusual flash of intellect.
"Congratulations. You actually learned something. A historic milestone for you," I joked.
"Hehe, thanks... Wait, was that an insult?"
Our laughter withered as three figures intercepted our path, casting shadows that felt heavy, laden with elitist arrogance.
At the lead was Brandon Rigoberto. He possessed the sculpted face of a magazine model, with a chiseled jawline and electric-blue hair that fell perfectly over his brow. However, all that beauty was marred by a sneer of superiority that screamed "I have a lot of money and you don't." He wore his gym uniform as if it were a piece of haute couture, and the casual way his hand rested on the hilt of his practice sword signaled that he was not just wealthy, but dangerously proficient.
To his right, Mercedes Dicatria stood like a statue carved from a glacier. She was undeniably elegant, with fine features and pale skin, but her gaze was a frigid blue that seemed to freeze the very air around her. She didn't move or gesture; her mere presence evoked the silent disdain of someone who viewed others as mere insects beneath a layer of frost.
And finally, slightly behind them, was Saulo Zamtum. Unlike the other two, Saulo didn't stand out through his attire or his posture. He was shorter, of a lean build, and maintained a dangerously relaxed, almost languid attitude. His eyes were permanently closed in two straight lines, giving him an air of perpetual drowziness. However, there was something terrifying about him—an invisible pressure emanating from his frame. It was like watching a predatory beast feigning sleep; you knew that if those eyes opened even a sliver, what you'd see wouldn't be human.
[.]
"Lady Dormet, do you still stoop so low as to mingle with this pair of classless pariahs?" Brandon spat.
"Rigoberto, I don't see why you believe you have a say in my friendships," Alicia snapped back, acting as a social shield for us.
"It concerns me when our families are partners and I see you mixing with a commoner and a... failure," he stated, looking at me as if I were a smudge of dirt on his boot.
I raised an eyebrow, unfazed. But Lucius, whose patience is nonexistent, stepped forward, rolling up his sleeves.
"What did you call my friend, you second-rate rich brat?" he roared.
Saulo, the boy with perpetually closed eyes, stepped in with a fox-like grin.
"Calm down, let's not be barbarians. Though I wouldn't expect anything less from a brute like you," Saulo provoked calmly.
"You son of a—!"
"Lucius, stop!" Alicia warned, but it was too late.
Lucius threw a devastating punch, but Saulo intercepted it with terrifying fluidity. Using Lucius's own momentum, he flipped him through the air and slammed him onto the ground. The impact was dry. The technical superiority of Saulo, an SSR-rank Martial Artist, was undeniable.
Before Lucius could react, Saulo planted his foot on his chest, exerting suffocating pressure.
"Now... be a good commoner and stay on the ground where you belong," Saulo murmured. His eyes opened just a sliver, revealing a threatening crimson glint.
"That's enough, Rigoberto! Tell him to stop!" Alicia exclaimed.
"Why should I? He's merely defending me from an insolent pest. Punish him for doing his duty?" Brandon replied with malicious glee.
I watched the scene with a cold, bored gaze... Why, all of a sudden, did this feel like the cheap cliché of a 'Young Master' face-slapping the protagonist?
[End of The Chapter]