Sudden Class Exams
The faculty of Arcana Academy had gathered in the staff room, heads together over the abrupt schedule change.
"A class-by-class exam all of a sudden..."
Romina was the first to speak up.
"Tell me about it. I thought there wouldn't be any tests until finals."
Jerome, the acting professor, chimed in.
"Ugh, I'm so jealous of the history professor who used up all their vacation days early..."
Ocla, the potion professor, slumped in her chair. Karsen, on the other hand, seemed unfazed.
"Can't be helped. It's a directive straight from Central."
"Y-yeah, it's gotta be because of that gate bill from last time, right?"
Even so, unpleasant was unpleasant. Ocla grumbled anyway. And as she said, the sudden addition of exam schedules to the academies stemmed from Metis pushing through the gate-related legislation. With students now needing to grow even stronger, exams were bound to be added alongside.
In the big picture, this extra work was all thanks to Zien's party succeeding in their raid. Naturally, the conversation among the faculty drifted toward Zien.
"Still, it's something to be proud of that Arcana students pulled it off. Heh heh, a 5th rank gate, no less! I was 24 when I cleared my first 5th rank."
Ocla smiled as she spoke, but Jerome teased her with a straight face.
"I see. And since you're turning 50 this year, Ocla..."
"What kind of nonsense is that!? I'm not even 30 yet...!"
Ocla jumped up in outrage, but her short stature robbed it of any real impact. Romina smirked at the smug-looking Karsen.
"This is all~ because our dueling professor here is so great. So, what's your take on your self-proclaimed disciple's performance?"
Karsen flushed red in a way that didn't suit him.
"Well, I believed Zien could clear it for sure."
Ocla clasped her hands together, hanging on his every word.
"Whoa! As expected of Professor Karsen! I'm so jealous!"
Jerome, meanwhile, shook his head.
"Hmm, not sure about that. From what I saw of Zien's swordsmanship, there's nothing left for you to teach him. But did you catch his acting skills in the gate? The little coaching I gave him must've made a big difference."
"Huh."
Ocla gaped in surprise.
Romina's reaction was much the same.
Did this guy eat something weird? What's with the sudden change?
Jerome, who had treated Zien like an enemy before, had done a complete 180. Zien's stellar acting played a part, but that wasn't all. The biggest influence was actually Romina, who was now staring at him in shock.
Jerome was grateful to Zien for creating the opportunity for him to get close to Romina.
"In that sense, you could even call Zien my disciple."
"What? What are you talking about?"
Karsen was dumbfounded by Jerome's attitude. But Jerome wasn't the only one trying to hitch his wagon to Zien as a mentor.
"Ah, now that you mention it... Zien's success is all thanks to my stellar Stigma classes..."
Romina suddenly upped the ante.
Jerome eagerly backed her up.
"Exactly. No wonder Zien handles his Stigma on another level. I wonder what his assimilation rate even is..."
Ocla, with zero connection to Zien, slumped even further.
So jealous!
Though she hadn't taught Zien anything directly, Ocla had cheered harder for his party than anyone.
Those kids I care about so much! Zien and Chris! No, Chris and Kua? Or even the Zien-Kua combo. Unexpectedly...
But unlike the others, Ocla couldn't pretend she'd taught him something. Meanwhile, Karsen and Jerome were locked in a tense standoff.
"Looks like you've gotten pretty attached to Zien in the time I wasn't looking, Jerome."
"I always care for my students. Unlike some who play favorites. But now I get why you'd want to favor Zien. I can understand your behavior now, Professor Karsen."
A sudden battle over Zien's mentorship erupted.
Romina giggled at the two professors insisting they were his master.
"Everyone, calm down~ Wow, and here I am playing peacemaker..."
"Heh heh. You're right. Professor Romina playing referee is..."
Ocla, about to laugh, shut her mouth under Romina's glare.
"We got sidetracked..."
The reason they'd gathered was the sudden class exams. Romina finally steered things back on track.
"Running exams by class has more than a few issues, doesn't it?"
"Agreed."
Even Jerome nodded along.
Class exams meant massive content due to class sizes, tough grading, and above all, the biggest problem: balance. Ocla sighed.
"Sigh. The One Numbers are evenly distributed per class... but even among them, the skill gaps between students are huge."
"To put it bluntly, Zien and his party members are the main issue. They cleared a 5th rank gate—even if virtual. That real combat experience makes a massive difference."
As Jerome said.
Zien and his party swept the top ranks in school. Amy and Isabel were strong to begin with, Zien had no comparison, and even the former weakling Chris had gained skills befitting his One Number through off-campus events and raids. In short, all four were wrecking the exam balance. That's when Romina, who'd been quietly observing, came up with an idea.
"How about this? Send Isabel and Amy to different classes..."
"Ah, reshuffling just these members arbitrarily? Then why not go all in!"
Ocla was thrilled by Romina's idea and added her own twist.
"What if we divide the classes like this?"
Class 1: Amy, Chris
Class 2: Isabel
Class 3: Zien
Support-type Chris with Amy. Top mana potential Isabel and year ranking 1st Zien to Classes 2 and 3 respectively. Of all ideas so far, Ocla's was the most practical.
"It's arbitrary, but I think this is the best option too."
Even picky Jerome approved.
And as teachers, they were all curious about the results of Zien's party's three-way split.
"Class 1 with two of them will take 1st, right?"
Ocla's vote: Class 1.
"I say Class 2 with the most One Numbers. Plus Isabel."
Jerome's vote: Class 2.
"Unexpected. Isn't it obviously Class 3? What do you think, Karsen?"
"We'll see when results are out, but with this setup, my prediction is Class 3."
Romina and Karsen, who'd been gazing at Zien like sunflowers, both picked Class 3.
"Then we'll submit this class assignment to the principal for approval!"
Ocla cheered, excited to have solved one problem. But she deflated again thinking of the remaining work.
"Now all that's left is exam content, procedure, and grading..."
"Nightmarish."
For once, the teachers agreed with Jerome's sharp remark.
The sudden class exams.
To the academy students, class exams were a hot topic.
"Hey, big guy! You hear the news?"
Aria said to Lake as they exited the theater. Lake looked puzzled.
"News?"
"The school homepage right now. Check it quick!"
Lake pulled up the homepage on his phone at Aria's pale expression. His face soon paled too.
"No way, adding exams out of nowhere now?"
"And what, classes merging for exams? 30, 40 people fighting at once?"
Aria grumbled in disbelief. Lake blinked in surprise, then muttered softly.
"Sounds good to me."
"What?"
"Think about it. Who's in our class?"
Aria pondered, then gasped.
"Right! If it's by class... we win!"
She raised her hand high like a victor. And rightly so. Class 3 now housed the man who'd become the icon of victory. Lake laughed heartily.
"Yeah. We've got Zien on our team."
The clubroom, now the pinnacle of luxury.
Chris scanned his teammates one by one.
"All of us against each other now, huh."
"Didn't check the brackets? I don't love it either, but you and I are teamed up."
Amy shot Chris a look.
Chris sighed.
"Why'd it have to be you?"
Their bickering was proof they got along. Zien smiled and set down his teacup.
"Think positive. The class exam's a great chance for you all to sync up."
"No favoritism just 'cause you're party leader, got it?"
Isabel gave Zien a subtle smile. Until now, she'd been the teammate closest to him in the party. She knew his strengths and flaws better than anyone. The other party members felt the same. Amy especially seemed thrilled, eyeing the exam as broadcast content.
"Heh heh, guess we'll get to try leading too."
"Huh? Aren't I the leader of Class 1?"
Chris scowled at Amy's words. Class 1 looked headed for a leadership showdown between Amy and Chris.
Meanwhile, Isabel checked Class 2's members on her phone.
Frick. Rita... even Leon?
Class 2 had the most One Numbers packed in. With smart strategy, 1st place was within reach.
The event's a conquest battle. All about scoring points anyway. In that case...
Isabel thought.
Beating Zien... might be possible.
Her gaze analyzed Zien carefully. Zien watched Isabel and the party with warm satisfaction.
They've all got some serious competitive fire.
That drive was a good sign.
For Sabers to grow stronger, such mindset was the driving force. After finals, Zien's party would tackle a real5th rank gate.
Better to get stronger somehow.
Zien was already pondering training regimens for each member. One of his main goals was building the strongest party.
The class exam was a perfect chance to gauge their skills.
Guess I'll sit back and watch.