Mistaken for a Masked Munchkin

Choice■.

The match ended.

After being reverse-summoned out of the field, I returned to the original waiting zone.

Past the desert turned into a snowfield, the scorched jungle, and the green grassland, we arrived at the center of the arena, where countless spectators looked down on us.

The moment we appeared in midair, cheers exploded as if they had been waiting for it.

-"Waaaaaaah!"

-"There, they just came out...!"

-"Should we record this with a Crystal Orb?"

-"This is front-page material! We need this on page one of the next academy paper...!"

Even Ranne, standing beside me, flinched in surprise.

I let out a short laugh and listened to the uproar.

The cadets were at peak excitement.

-"What the hell was that last hit...?!"

-"I can't believe he was hiding a strike like that this whole time!"

-"Wasn't his total stat grade E? Did they even test him properly?"

-"They should run a doping test. No, even with mana doping, getting that strong is...!"

-"This is the kind of record that goes down in academy history! A cadet who entered Class E beat the top student in less than half a semester...!"

All kinds of commotion filled the air.

Awe, shock, frenzy.

-"How do you shatter an entire reinforced field like that?"

-"Because of you they had to start field repairs!"

-"My match order got pushed back! Take responsibility!"

-"Then take responsibility and show that again just once...!"

The response was better than I expected.

Well, after witnessing that, I guess it was only natural.

'Did I overdo it a little?'

My rank was only top of Class E.

And my total stats were still nailed down as grade E.

I had boosted my stats quite a bit by now, but there was no way for other students to know that.

'Regular rank evaluations only happen once per semester...'

To begin with, someone climbing ranks as fast as I was already abnormal.

It was probably thanks to Merit Points and the growth system tied to them.

In just three months since enrollment, I had raised my total stats by several stages.

Still, drawing more suspicion would be a problem, so I figured I should get tested again soon.

I needed to update the information.

"Haa..."

As I sorted my thoughts, all the accumulated fatigue hit me at once.

A groan and a yawn slipped out together.

I felt like dropping to the floor right then and there.

'She was terrifying.'

Rin Glacia.

Because my opponent was her, I spammed bugs like crazy in just a few minutes of fighting.

Parrying was a given, and I probably used the Slowdown (clock-click) bug over a hundred times.

Maybe that was why I got dizzy, like I'd been spun in a centrifuge.

'Ugh, I'm nauseous.'

Ding-!

[Windfall Harvester]

-Category: Title

-Description: If one windfall is used 30 times or more, it is registered in the Registry. Windfalls registered in the Registry greatly reduce the user's burden.

[Windfall Registry]

1.Step Skip

2.Slowdown

3.Parrying

4.Status Effect-Parrying

Good thing I had that title equipped. Otherwise, I might have thrown up on the spot.

And trading blows with Rin left my whole body aching too.

'...And Predation was absurdly strong.'

Javert's full-power punch.

Then the result of mixing in the Self-Double Counting bug on top of that to inflate the damage fourfold.

Honestly, at my current level, it was basically a double-edged sword.

'Because I can't control it.'

My body still wasn't complete.

Only my Agility was awkwardly high, while the rest of my stats were a disaster.

That last attack had so much recoil it could drag in the user too.

If the mask hadn't protected me, I would've turned into a splattered tomato.

'Not being able to distinguish friend from foe is a problem too.'

Earlier, it was a prepared field, so I could fire it off freely.

But I couldn't go around blasting that out all the time.

Nearby allies, or civilians I needed to rescue, could get caught in it.

There was a lot to consider with that card.

'As expected... big power is hard to handle.'

Powerful, but the stronger it was, the more conditions it needed.

I needed to patch my lacking stats quickly.

I smacked my lips and dusted off my hands.

'I need to stack Merit Points, but when am I going to save that many people again...'

A light sigh leaked out.

When my mind drifted for a moment, the next announcement woke me up.

《Students, thank you for your hard work.》

《Cadets who have finished the practical exam, please move outside the waiting zone.》

《Today's practical will be graded over one week, and the results will be announced together with the written exam scores.》

Srrrk-.

The door at the front of the arena opened.

We headed for the exit.

'Ah.'

That was one filthy long hour.

***

After that.

We headed to the infirmary near the exam site.

It was where dropouts and injured cadets from the exam were sent.

"Here it is."

Caitlin, Gale, Rin.

All of them were sharing one ward divided by curtains.

I passed one partition and greeted the girl on the bed.

"Miss Caitlin."

"You came."

Caitlin was sitting on the edge of her bed.

She had been pulled out mid-match as a wreck.

Maybe because she had been treated in the infirmary, there were no visible injuries left.

"How's your body?"

"Can't you tell? I'm all better."

"Impressive. All those injuries, and not even a mark left..."

Grandia Academy.

Was this why it was called the best educational institution on the continent?

Its facilities and infrastructure were high quality.

"More importantly, what happened with your match?"

Caitlin asked casually.

She had probably already heard, yet she asked anyway.

I gave a short laugh and answered anyway.

"I won."

"Crazy bastard. You actually won that."

"You said it, Miss Caitlin. If I lost, you'd kill me."

"Did I?"

"I'm someone who always keeps promises."

I held out my fist.

For once, Caitlin didn't pull back and answered with a fist bump.

She still had that prickly mood, but her reaction felt oddly refreshing.

Tap-.

"Good work. You too."

"Oh."

Words from the bronze-skinned girl.

It was unexpected enough that I couldn't help being surprised.

"Wow."

"What? Why that reaction?"

"I never thought I'd hear that from you, Miss Caitlin."

"That means what, exactly?"

"Words of praise for someone?"

"What exactly do you think I am?"

"Hmm... an antisocial, psychopathic, gifted racist?"

"You're dead, seriously."

"Or Pikachu works too."

"So what the hell is Pikachu."

We bickered for a few lines.

Ranne, who came with me, suddenly jumped in and praised Caitlin too.

Pure, one-hundred-percent goodwill crashed into the blonde, tanned delinquent girl.

"Miss Caitlin!"

"W-what?!"

"I heard everything from Sir Viktor! Your performance was incredible! Even with your body in ruins, for our sake, for mission success, you crossed the boundary while carrying the flag...!"

"Wait, back off! Don't grab my hand...!"

"I was deeply moved! I never imagined you were nurturing such a blazing spark!"

"No, I'm telling you, you're too close!"

"I hope we can become close from now on!"

Ranne charged straight in.

Meanwhile, Caitlin's reaction turned oddly stiff.

Maybe she was weaker than expected against this kind of praise barrage.

Caitlin frowned, but she couldn't forcefully push her away either.

'So she's weak against pushy types.'

Learned something useful again.

I'll tease her with this later.

"Ahem."

Light chatter continued.

With my teammates in front of me, I glanced toward the opposite side of the ward.

"..."

The bed where Rin was lying.

That side had the atmosphere of a funeral house.

Her teammates seemed crushed by the heavy mood, frozen and unable to speak.

Meanwhile, a young man stood across from Rin.

'That's...'

A neat uniform.

Blue hair and deeply sunken eyes.

Appearance-wise, he looked very much like someone.

Valteric Glacia.

Rin's elder brother.

At the same time, a staff member at Grandia Academy.

One of the representative figures of the historic House Glacia, a prestigious mage family.

"..."

That man was looking down at Rin.

There was no concern in his gaze.

Only deep, icy pupils.

Rather than a brother looking at his sister, it looked like someone staring at trash on the roadside.

'So that's why.'

I finally understood.

Why Rin had been unusually obsessed with victory today.

Her elder brother, Valteric, had come to watch the match.

'Rin... gets treated poorly in her family.'

I held my breath and watched.

Soon, Valteric spoke first.

"Trash."

"..."

"You lost."

"Brother..."

"I told you not to call me that."

"...I'm sorry, Lord Valteric."

It didn't sound like a sibling conversation.

Not even a fingernail's worth of warmth, a temperature cold enough to make your throat feel strangled.

Rin lowered her head.

"Trash. Born with the Glacia name, yet a mutant who can't use magic at all. I thought maybe you could at least handle that inferior swordsmanship, but not even that now. You couldn't even beat a mere Class E top student."

"..."

"I heard you were sprawled out pathetically. In front of the whole school."

"..."

"You insist on smearing the family name."

"..."

The air cut like blades.

The girl gave no rebuttal and no resistance.

She only stayed silent, like a criminal.

"..."

"Tch."

Maybe even that sight disgusted him.

Valteric clicked his tongue once, then turned and left the ward.

A faint winter scent lingered behind.

Only then could Rin's teammates make sound again.

But whether they did or not, the girl stayed frozen.

"..."

Complicated family history.

I looked away as if I hadn't seen anything.

'If I want Rin as an ally, I'll have to resolve that side someday too...'

But not today.

If I approached carelessly, it would only backfire.

For now, I had to let it pass and have a separate talk with her soon.

"Miss Caitlin, are you interested in chivalry? If you'd permit me to guide you together with me...!"

"I told you, I'm not interested in knight stuff...!"

Meanwhile.

Maybe because they hadn't noticed what happened over there, my teammates were bustling among themselves.

Everyone was distracted, so it seemed like I could handle my own business.

I quietly sat down in a chair across from the beds.

A blue window opened before my eyes.

Ding-!

[Special Reward]

-You have obtained item '???-Grade Reward Selection Ticket.'

-You may choose and obtain two rewards from the list.

'Can't skip checking rewards.'

I'd been curious the whole time.

A reward selection ticket.

This was my first time getting this kind of reward.

And the ???-marked grade was interesting too.

Without hesitation, I clicked one of the two tickets.

Ding-!

[???-Grade Reward Selection Ticket]

-Would you like to open the list of selectable rewards?]

I clicked Yes immediately.

Right after that, the status window unfurled.

-Selection Ticket-

[Please choose one of the options below!]

1.Obtain Merit Points (10000p)

2.Damaged Item Repair Ticket×1

3.Broken Item Restoration Ticket×1

4.Item Grade Downgrade Ticket×1

5.Spatial Leap Ticket×1

6.■■■■ ■(???)

7.■ ■■(???)

.

.

.

28.■■■■■■(???)

29.■■■ ■■(???)

30.■■(???)

"..."

A long stream of text.

Every item listed looked extremely strong.

After checking the message to the end, I couldn't help but stare blankly.

'No way...'

I can choose rewards here?

And two of them?

A completely unexpected jackpot had appeared out of nowhere.

Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!