Battle Royale (1)

I let out a long groan as I collapsed right at the entrance ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠of the dorm the moment I returned. I didn't even have the energy to shower.

I wanted to flop onto that soft bed, but I didn't have a single ounce of strength left. Just climbing all the way up to the dorm at the very top of the building had been exhausting enough.

If I could have it my way, I would've thrown away every last shred of human dignity and crawled up the stairs on all fours. But too many students were watching, so I couldn't.

…Maybe I should've just crawled after all?

It's not like I had any Arrogance Points left to lose anyway.

That aside—

Why the hell doesn't this place have an elevator?!

They have a damn kiosk but no elevator? That's ridiculous. The developers really just made this game however they felt like it.

Anyway.

I somehow managed to crawl my way over and collapse onto the bed. Shower? One day without it won't kill me. Just sleep.

"By the way, what the hell was that earlier?"

The new skill I'd gained while trying to control the ring covered in rune tattoos. The moment I activated it, completely unfamiliar memories had flooded into my head.

I could suddenly understand runes I'd never even studied properly, and I could even engrave them myself.

But…

It doesn't work now?

I picked up the lantern on the bedside table to test the skill, but nothing came to mind. It was as if those memories had never existed in the first place.

What kind of skill is this?

"Well, I'll find out if I check. Status window!"

Now that I think about it, my stats have gone up quite a bit.

Gone were the days when every single one of Kiren Montella's stats was a pathetic F-rank! Those days are over!

My skills had increased quite a lot too.

Anyway, I tapped on the brand-new skill at the very bottom.

"……."

I spaced out for a moment.

A skill that makes my arrogance come true?

I understood exactly what it did the instant I read it.

Up until now, my arrogance had honestly been nothing more than empty bravado. Wind Blade was S-rank only at the beginning—now it was B-rank. My stats were barely above average. I had been overpowering everyone with nothing but momentum and spirit.

But…

"It realizes my arrogance, huh."

In other words, the bluff I put on would become reality for ten minutes.

That's what happened earlier too. When I tried to control the ring, I had shown off my arrogance regarding runes. The Golden Truth skill had made that arrogance into reality.

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

A Rune Master who has mastered every rune in existence. A skill that makes me the strongest in every field for ten minutes.

"Still, only ten minutes once a week is a bit short."

But the important thing was that this was also a growth skill. As its rank increased, the cooldown would shorten and the duration would lengthen.

I basically got an insanely overpowered skill for free.

If using up roughly two hundred Arrogance Points got me a broken skill like this, I'd call that a bargain. It would definitely come in handy in the future.

Quite a bit of time had ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠passed since that day.

And finally, today was the long-awaited first event.

The Heart-Fluttering Survival Game was about to begin.

But…

The naming sense is absolute garbage.

What kind of thought process does someone need to come up with a name like that? Principal Beatrice, please dock that person's pay.

Anyway.

The rules are pretty much what I expected.

An event that gathered only the first-year students for a battle royale.

Since it was the very first competition of the semester, they were giving participation prizes to everyone. But—

"Do you truly believe a mere participation prize is worthy of this body?"

The real rewards started from third place. Scholarships, emergency funds for daily use, equipment, and all sorts of other benefits. There were quite a few things that would be useful during academy life.

And of course, my goal was first place.

The rewards were tempting, but there was another real reason.

I need to farm Arrogance Points.

Controlling a single ring had consumed far more points than I'd anticipated. Actually, no—far more wasn't accurate. I'd used up every single point I had.

I'd managed to recover some, but replenishing Arrogance Points wasn't easy. They weren't handing out a hundred points per word like they did in the beginning. The system was really cracking down on inflation.

Getting first place should net me a decent amount of points.

Acting arrogant while coming in dead last would be far less effective than acting arrogant while taking first.

There was another reason too—

"K-Kiren!"

A voice called out from behind me. I thought it was Priya, but the voice was thinner and higher-pitched than hers.

When I turned around, I saw Elena with her long blue hair flowing down her back.

"It's Elena."

"You remembered my name."

Of course I remembered. She wasn't particularly useful in the early game, but if raised properly, she was a character who ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠could easily pull her weight for ten people. And honestly, she was my type, so that helped too.

I mean, she's pretty, right?

Anyway.

"So, what do you want?"

"Well… um…"

Elena hesitated for a moment, then clenched her fists as if she'd made up her mind and spoke.

"I want to get stronger! So… can we team up just for this event?"

"Hmm…?"

What the hell is this about?

Elena suddenly coming to me?

I'd played through Tinesi Academy multiple times, but this was a first. Elena asking someone for help.

The Elena who only ever relied on her own strength and self-study was asking for help. And from me, of all people.

…Did I have some kind of connection with Elena?

Now that I thought about it, we didn't really have any points of contact. I'd called her trash during the entrance exam and exchanged a few words at the entrance ceremony. That was it.

Ah, right. There was that.

The Wind Blade currently sitting proudly in my skill window. Maybe she'd seen me use it and thought there was something she could learn from me.

When I didn't answer right away, Elena added,

"Besides, isn't it too dangerous to go alone in this place?"

"Hmm."

She wasn't wrong. I turned around and looked at the location where this battle royale would take place.

A volcanic island completely surrounded by sea, with a massive volcano rising from its center.

The scale is insane.

They were using an entire island just for the first-years, not even the whole school. It was surprising they'd spent this much money on a hastily prepared event, but the important thing was the map size. It was ridiculously, absurdly huge.

I couldn't even think of anything to compare it to. And even at a glance, it looked horribly complicated. Dense forests despite being a volcano, steep cliffs, and so on.

Survive until only one remains, huh.

It was definitely a harsh environment to tackle alone.

But.

"I refuse."

"Why?!"

"Because you're far too weak. To me, you'd only be a hindrance."

"!!"

It was the truth. Elena would become active in the future, but that was exactly it—the future. The current Elena? She was a one-trick Wind Blade pony who couldn't even pull her own weight. Taking her along would just be for eye candy.

I'd rather take Priya.

I glanced at Priya standing alone in the distance. She'd planted her greatsword—which was as tall as she was—into the ground and was munching on the rice balls she'd brought. But the moment she noticed my gaze, she waved at me with a bright, innocent smile.

What the hell is with her?

She could sense my gaze from this distance and even react to it?

Yeah, I'd rather team up with Priya.

"Besides, I never planned on traveling with anyone in the first place."

"You'll be fine by yourself?"

"You've chosen the wrong person to worry about. Do you really think I would lose?"

"That's… no."

No?

I was certain I wouldn't. This island didn't only have first-year students. A few monsters had been placed here as well. Probably to weed out students who planned to camp out the entire time.

If I traveled with someone and they saw me struggling to kill a monster with Wind Blade? From that moment on, my Arrogance Points would be permanently stuck at zero.

Still, I should show my face at least a little.

I couldn't build up Arrogance Points by just hiding away by myself. And with my current strength, I was confident I could handle most monsters.

I pulled my right hand out of my pocket. The golden ring on my index finger.

The plating looks flawless.

It looked exactly like real pure gold. Well, it was actually worth far more than pure gold.

The functions discovered so far allowed it to store and retrieve twelve different weapons. Everything else was still unknown.

Still, I know it's a good ability.

After all, I'd personally removed all the useless runes and left only the good ones. I'd find out more as I used it.

At that moment—

Principal Beatrice's voice echoed through the air.

I glanced at the watch-shaped device on my left wrist. Using it allowed you to forfeit, and you'd be teleported back to the academy immediately. Basically a dodge button. There was also a professor summon button for when something happened that students couldn't handle on their own.

Well, I doubt I'll need to use it.

The moment the signal was given, many students began running toward the mountain. They probably thought securing a good spot early would be advantageous.

I'll take my time and go later.

The vanguard would probably wipe themselves out by then anyway. I was considering lying down on the nearby sandy beach when—

"KIREN MONTELLA!!!!!!!"

A loud, masculine voice called my name.

It was a face I'd never seen before.

Who the hell is this nobody?

Since I didn't even remember his face, he must be some irrelevant extra…

"Are you looking for me?"

"That's right! Kiren Montella!!"

The man pointed his finger at me and declared,

"I challenge you to a one-on-one duel!"

"…?"

Who the hell are you?

This bastard. He's sharp.