blueteamnovel Chapter 321
Chapter 321
chapter 321
“f-first place is...”
“luna?”
“that mischievous cat?”
the students stared in shock, their faces blank with disbelief.
even luna looked as stunned as they did.
her mouth gaped open as she stared at caron.
luna got first place...
thinking about it, it wasn’t all that surprising.
she had been there when i fought those four lower demons.
there was also that one rabbit... but since the professors didn’t witness the fight, her score was probably judged lower.
the scoring was based on the wounds found on the lower demons’ corpses and the testimonies of witnesses. this naturally minimized rezé’s contribution.
few people knew it was rezé who had launched those powerful attacks, tearing holes through the bodies of the demons.
some of rezé’s wounds might’ve been mistaken for yuridia’s magic too.
in a way, rezé’s overwhelming firepower was a problem in itself.
many of the creatures, like the ground beetles and other insects, were vaporized without a trace.
without bodies left behind, it was impossible to accurately assess the number of monsters rezé took down.
plus, she ran off at the end.
rezé had been so stealthy it was like she’d vanished into thin air.
no verifiable attacks.
no bodies to examine.
and on top of that, she’d fled.
it was no wonder rezé’s score was lower than luna’s.
“luna.”
“y-yes?”
“come up here. i’ll present you with your award.”
“an award... for me?”
“well... because you’re the top scorer?”
“...?”
luna seemed genuinely unable to believe she had come out on top.
caron didn’t rush her. he simply held the award, waiting for luna to fully process the situation.
favoritism, plain and simple.
if it had been me, he’d probably have yelled, “no award for idiots who ask stupid questions!” and torn it to shreds.
so that’s why he seemed in a good mood... because luna got first place.
perhaps finally coming to terms with it, luna rose from her seat and started walking toward the podium.
“this can’t be right. she only helped a little with a few lower demons.”
“yeah, and she was the first to go down against the higher demon.”
“the ones who fought the higher demon to the end were zero, yuridia, victoria, alex, and raymon. and she’s the top scorer?”
the closer luna got to the podium, the louder the students’ whispers became.
though tinged with envy and jealousy, they weren’t entirely wrong.
high demons are on a completely different level.
if you encounter a high demon, you’re supposed to flee. that’s the basic protocol at annwood academy.
high demons are in a class of their own.
in other words, no matter how many lower demons you take down, one high demon outweighs them all.
the students’ points weren’t invalid.
caron must’ve anticipated this. the other professors too.
no matter how much authority he has, caron can’t decide the top scorer by himself.
the other professors had also reviewed the scores and debated, ultimately agreeing that luna deserved the top spot.
there must have been something we didn’t know—something that made luna’s first place unavoidable.
“everyone, quiet down.”
caron’s polite yet firm request echoed through the classroom.
was it just me, or did he sound like he was saying, ‘if you value your life, shut up.’?
judging by how quickly the room went silent, it seemed i wasn’t the only one who heard it that way.
“i’ll explain why luna is the top scorer.”
caron looked down, focusing on luna standing in front of the podium.
his eyes softened, just a touch.
i’ll have to tell him later—he doesn’t hide his smile as well as he thinks.
“it’s not just that she fought four lower demons. what’s important is that she kept running without rest to save her friends and comrades.”
exactly. we had run from zone 1 through zone 4, fighting demons without stopping.
while i’d done it for the rewards, the professors probably saw it as the heroic act of someone rescuing their friends.
that’s why teron’s score was lower too.
even though he knew other zones were under attack, he didn’t move a muscle.
...why is that here?
it’s an endgame item on par with luna’s [breath of the spirit].
that’s right. a pinnacle-tier item.
you’re only supposed to obtain it near the end of the game, and yet here it is, in chapter 2, no less—now two in luna’s possession.
that damn lolicon caron...
it was obvious what was going on.
normally, the only reward for ranking first in the midterms is a title.
this level of reward? unprecedented.
maybe the reward changed because we took down a high demon after marbelga, but...
that’s unlikely. and on top of that, the item is perfect for luna?
there’s only one explanation.
caron prepared this gift especially for luna.
a private present, wrapped under the guise of a top scorer’s reward.
and he even had the nerve to claim he “picked it up on a mission.”
lowlife lolicons—knights should be doing something about people like him.
“it looks really old. not even my grandfather would wear this.”
“it’s all scratched up, and there’s no gem in it.”
“repaying a life-saving debt to the principal with something like that? typical empire scum! maybe they’re just worried about their own finances!”
luckily, the ring’s appearance was rather shabby.
no one seemed to suspect it was a top-tier artifact, so luna probably wouldn’t get pestered over it.
looking dazed, luna returned to her seat with her certificate and artifact.
“i’m sorry... i ended up taking first place. that spot should’ve been yours.”
“keke, it’s only because i made mistakes that i lost the top spot. there’s no need to apologize.”
“but still...”
“it’s fine. you deserve it, luna. as caron said, sacrifice isn’t easy. even if it hadn’t been about scores, the competition would’ve been fierce.”
“y-yeah! and even if we went head-to-head, miss luna would still be... f-first!”
oh, little rabbit, didn’t you hear what caron said earlier?
i was the rightful top scorer. i only lost out because of penalties.
well, it doesn’t really matter.
losing the title is disappointing, but if i’d been top scorer, i wouldn’t have gotten [frederick’s ring].
is it possible i could have? no, definitely not.
caron would never hand me an endgame item like that.
in a way, it’s a relief that luna got first place instead.
luna’s growth benefits the entire party. and later, when we’re split into smaller teams, it’ll be crucial that everyone is well-rounded.
with luna growing stronger, this was probably better than me taking the top spot.
“the runner-up is yuridia.”
a loud cheer erupted from the yuridia faction.
for the first time, they’d managed to surpass the teron faction’s dominance, so of course they were thrilled.
“second place... it’s a shame, but there’s no helping it. at least we proved that love conquers all.”
yuridia’s lips twitched with satisfaction.
she was struggling to hide her glee.
“yuridia got second? then third place must be...”
“you idiot! of course it’s lord teron!”
“we heard the scoring criteria! it’s heavily biased against teron’s faction!”
“anyone else is fine, but being placed below victoria would be a disaster!”
“everyone, quiet! we can’t hear caron!”
third place would be problematic, but dropping lower would be an even bigger blow.
i admit i’m curious too.
teron had mentioned he expected to place sixth, but he was a consistent contender for second or third place in the midterms.
with the penalty system affecting the ranks now, he might still have a shot at the top three.
if yuridia’s second, then teron will probably be third, right?
landing in third would at least save face.
just then, as everyone held their breath, caron pinned a piece of paper to the board.
“if you’re interested in the rankings beyond this, check the board yourselves.”
so he wasn’t concerned about anyone other than luna.
after posting the rankings, caron vanished like the wind.
damn lolicon bastard.
–tl notes–
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