NOVEL WEB Chapter 65
A Shape-Shift Ability User from Class E. An Enhancement Ability User from Class D. And a voluntarily self-identified Shape-Shift Ability User from Class B.
This was my team of members I gathered over a span of 13 minutes. In other words, they were nothing but a bunch of misfits.
First off, the one from Class E.
They say the Strengths of a Shape-Shift Ability User are their bizarre physique and powerful strength, but looking at this Class E kid, no matter how kindly I tried to view it, they looked completely incapable of exerting any strength.
Of all things, their ability was cheetah-based. And to top it off, they were a girl who looked like a stick; there was no hope for muscle strength there.
I picked her because she was confident about her speed, but I didn’t have high expectations. Her body’s shape-shifting ability was low. At first glance, she looked no different from a regular cheetah.
The difference between a cheetah and a Shape-Shift Ability User lay in their birthright.
Ain was a human 1.01-2 version affected by the Gate at a genetic level, whereas a Shape-Shift Ability User had their innate magical power manifested and transformed their body from birth.
You could say abilities users had the upper hand at least because they could use magical power.
Of course, I wouldn’t even dare to compare them with Ain kind of abilities users.
Next, the Class D Enhancement Ability User. This guy could enhance, but after using his strength once, he needed to cool down, and his magical efficiency was pretty meh.
Considering that the distinguishing factor of Enhancement Ability Users is the duration of their abilities and the cost-effectiveness of their magic, this dude could be deemed a failure as an Enhancement User.
I couldn’t help but wonder how such a guy even made it in. But since he had passed the first match, I figured he must have some sort of skills.
I just hoped he could show them off without holding back in this match.
But one hopeful thing was that he was from Class B. Even if his speed was a bit slow, he could definitely fly.
And even being slow among flight ability users was still faster than carrying someone and running on the ground.
“If I save them, you carry them. Simple enough, right? What’s your name…”
“Asad. I never thought I’d partner with Class A, but it can’t be helped. For now, we’re comrades.”
The Class D and Class E folks were still looking at me with disdain. But I didn’t have time to cater to them one by one.
Time was too tight to even settle the grudges they held against me. So, just before we started, I asked a few necessary questions.
“So… is there anyone among you scared of needles? Or do you have any allergic reactions to specific medications? Be honest. I don’t want anyone getting taken out.”
Both the Class D and Class E—let’s just call them D and E—shook their heads, saying there was nothing like that.
“Then it’s settled. If I suddenly poke you with a needle in between, don’t freak out, just keep doing what you’re doing. I’m helping you out.”
The unilateral announcement made D and E angry, wondering if they really wanted to work as a team, but when I threw them a question, they quickly fell silent.
“So, you guys can keep up with me?”
I didn’t need to mention levels or add more words to nudge them. Like it or not, we were a team.
“We need to move as efficiently as possible. I can’t waste my potential adjusting to you guys.”
I instructed Asad to fly high and carry the rescued members, while guiding him to where I thought they were struggling.
Asad seemed to understand the task well and quickly nodded in agreement.
“Time’s up. After informing the coordinator of the total scores, head to your respective starting lines.”
The homeroom teacher of Class B said this and waited for a moment. After everyone lined up at the starting line, the starting gun went off.
With magic swirling around my legs, I darted off in an instant, while keeping a close eye on where Minho, Jinhyeon, and Changwon were headed.
Those guys were like natural disasters. It was better to avoid them.
After dodging where they were headed, I enhanced my cognitive abilities with my medication and listened closely to the faint sounds coming from the mannequin.
Inside a nearly crumbling building, I heard five faint sounds. As soon as I heard them, I broke through the window and asked if they were okay while clearing the wreckage atop a mannequin.
You could say, why am I talking to a mannequin like that, but this was the second trap in this trial.
The instruction to rescue to the best of our ability was also a heads-up about this.
The mannequin had various sensors, documenting everything from how the player treated the mannequin from start to finish.
Did I check if it was conscious? Did I reassure it? Did I take appropriate actions, and so on.
If you were to ask, “Don’t you get any points for ignoring it and just shoving everything aside?” the answer was no.
If a Hero doesn’t take any of the actions required to rescue a citizen, the mannequin would automatically degrade.
Of course, a degraded mannequin would score zero points.
This was also to prevent someone like Im Changwon from cleaning up the mannequins without a care while simultaneously evaluating the heroic qualities possessed by the players.
“Don’t worry, I’m a Chemicat, not a villain. Are you okay? Can you understand me?”
In the original story, the conscious mannequin replied with a “yes,” so it must have lost its consciousness now.
But just in case, I carefully held the mannequin’s head to make it look at me and met its gaze.
I think this should be enough.
Though it was called a mannequin, if you didn’t know beforehand, it would be easy to mistake it for a human since it looked so similar, even showing injuries.
It had a penetrating wound on the right leg and was likely suspected to have a fracture on the left.
While the mannequin didn’t bleed bright red, a greenish liquid was oozing from the punctured spots due to the protruding debris, so there was definitely blood loss.
Turning my fingertips into needles, I poked the area near the puncture to inject a coagulative agent, followed by tramadol, to alleviate the mannequin’s bleeding and pain.
After that, I picked up nearby bits of wood and stone and adhered them to the left leg using adhesive, creating a makeshift splint.
Carefully lifting the mannequin, I handed it to Asad, who flew in through the window, and we went further into the building to rescue more mannequins.
By the time I had rescued ten people alone, Asad told me D and E were calling for help.
I really didn’t want to go, but since we were a team, it wouldn’t hurt to show my face to prevent any teamwork points from getting deducted. With that thought in mind, I headed toward where D and E were.
And there they were, D frantically trying to lift some large debris, while E stood under it, just hopping anxiously.
“Why can’t I hear it…!”
After injecting adrenaline into D’s thigh, I casually walked over to help him lift the debris.
“On the count of three, we go.”
“Hey, what did you just do to me…!”
“One, two.”
Even though I told him not to be surprised, he was still reacting. It was probably the right decision to keep moving separately.
If I had wasted my time with such a brute, I might have barely rescued three by now.
Grumbling silently, thanks to D following my instructions and lifting the debris together, E was able to pull out the mannequin stuck underneath.
“What is this…?”
And that was a bust.
“This one seems hopeless.”
No matter how favorably I looked at it, it seemed like it wouldn’t survive with its lower half in ruins.
Still, since it had its eyes intact, I placed a narcotic painkiller on the mannequin’s neck.
Before long, the mannequin turned black and degraded.
“To think I’d pick a loser like this. My luck is just abysmal.”
D and E were still standing there, trembling with shock, as if they forgot this was a competition.
“How can this be a loser for a person… Are you really a hero?!”
E seemed to be unable to hold back their resentment anymore.
I wasn’t planning to respond seriously, so I got ready to leave and casually replied.
“It’s not a person, it’s a mannequin. And even now, while you’re zoning out, someone is dying somewhere. If you want to question what a Hero’s quality is, rescue those first and then ask.”
Don’t distract me.
Recalling Jinhyeon’s annoying justice, I couldn’t help but add one more comment.
Well, it didn’t matter anyway.
After all, they were just things that existed, whether I acknowledged them or not.
———
“This makes… the final tenth. It’s all done, Wei. Wow, I thought I’d be caught in the middle and freaked out, but somehow it turned out alright.”
I never thought I would bury someone inside the Academy. Immanuel shivered for no reason as he received a pile of beads from Wei.
Putting the pile of beads into a dimensional pouch labeled ’10’, Immanuel then placed that pouch into another one labeled ‘Base Camp’.
“The boss is… oddly lucky…”
“Even I think so.”
“Could it be because of today’s fortune…?”
“It might be that, but I doubt it. Maybe it’s just pure luck on my part?”
“If that’s the case… you really could become something great, boss.”
“Where does a 14-year-old learn to say stuff like this?”
But who cares. Wei nonchalantly said it was nothing and picked up the dimensional pouch labeled ‘Base Camp’, then stood atop the spot where he had just created beads.
“So, I just have to return to the base from here?”
“Yeah. Good job, Wei.”
Wei took out a black bead from his pants pocket, crushed it, and disappeared somewhere.
Immanuel stood there, quietly observing, hoping that nothing would happen, no alarms would sound, and no guards would come.
Soon, confirming that nothing actually happened, Immanuel smiled meaningfully as he headed towards the stadium where the first-year match was being held.