Survival Test (9)
âSo hungryâŚâ
âQuit complaining; itâs a waste of energy. Iâm hungry too. â
Wednesday. The morning of the third day dawned, and the students began to feel the limits gradually. Although there were many edible plants on the deserted island, intense competition among the participants was also evident. Numerous carnivorous animals, monsters, and fellow students were all engaged in hunting for sustenance.
âHey, isnât that a wild boar?â
âHush⌠Letâs check it out.â
For two hungry students who had only eaten fruit for two days, the prospect of a wild boar was tempting.
âHey, whatâs up with you guys? Thatâs ours, you know?â
âUgh⌠Iâm really hungry, and I donât have the strength to fightâŚâ
However, these two students were not the only ones eyeing the wild boar. They confronted other students they encountered in the bushes.
âHey, weâre hungry and not in the mood to fight. Canât you just step aside?â
âBut we canât just give up the wild boar. Weâre fed up with fruits by now.â
âWait, do we really have to fight?â
On the third day, about half of the students had been eliminated. This meant that most students had experienced one or two battles.
And they discovered something: defeating the enemy in front of them didnât fill their stomachs. The food from supply boxes was ridiculously scarce, and even defeating monsters didnât provide sustenance. In other words, the more they fought, the greater their energy consumption became.
Of course, it was all according to the academyâs plan. In a situation with high demand but low supply, surviving meant competing and sometimes cooperating to obtain food. It perfectly matched the theme of âsurvivalâ in the survival test. However, now that things had deviated from the original, the students began to consider alternative solutions.
âLetâs join forces and look for Lee Hoyeon. I heard he brought a lot of food.â
âYeah, I heard he has a massive supply of smoked duck.â
âTrying to fight each other will only make it harder. Letâs gather other people.â
The survivors began searching for the golden goblin somewhere on the island.
***
Wednesday morning.
âHmmâŚâ I gently patted Alice on the shoulder and infused her with mana.
âYouâre not meeting Lumi?â
After a few days together, Alice began initiating conversations occasionally. Today, out of the blue, she brought up Lumi.
âShe wants to team up with Lucy.â
âHmmâŚâ
Why is she asking about Lumi? I still canât fully understand her.
After infusing mana into Alice, I checked the remaining participants with my smartwatch.
â130 peopleâŚâ
âThe rate of decrease is slower than I thought.â
âRightâŚâ
Aliceâs observation is correct. This is really strange. There should be a gradual decrease to below 100 people by the third day⌠What changes could have occurred?
The most critical issue in the survival test is food. Due to the abundance of monsters, there are few wild animals, and the fish are not substantial. Ultimately, we have to rely on tree fruits and wait for supply boxes to drop, fighting fiercely to get the limited supply boxes that fall less frequently than expected. But people arenât decreasing. Whatâs the problem?
âFour people ahead.â At that moment, Aliceâs words snapped me back to reality.
âAh, okay. Sorry, I got lost in thought and forgot to check.â
âItâs fine.â Aliceâs slight smile seemed to indicate she was pleased to have spotted the enemies before me.
âLetâs take two each.â
âYes.â
âYou handle the two in front; Iâll take the two behind.â
After dividing roles, we approached the enemies. They were familiar faces, a team consisting of Class A and Class B students. Even though facing the two of us might be intimidating, strangely, their expressions showed they were ready to fight from the start.
âItâs Lee Hoyeon! Take him down!â
âHand over your damn food, you piece of garbage!â
âCheck out his rosy complexion. Heâ been feasting so well!â
âHeâs even hanging out with Alice! Iâm going to end you!â
Iâm the problem after all. Did they stop fighting each other just because of me?
It was only a matter of time before they decided to come bother me since they discovered I had food right from the start.
âHey, I was just prepared. Donât blame me.â
While charging my mana, I exchanged a knowing glance with Alice, and in perfect synchrony, we rushed toward the enemies. My focus centered on neutralizing the two mages, leaving Alice to manage the pair wielding blades. In a less-than-ideal 1 vs. 2 conflict, the notable difference in ability between top-tier and upper-tier students was hard to overlook.
As I closed in, I skillfully sidestepped an ice arrow aimed at my upper body while simultaneously incenerating the vines coiling around my feetâa tactical move against a treeâs ensnaring strategy.
Seems like we have a dynamic duo similar to Lucy and Lumi here.
While considering the most effective way to secure a clean win, a tree behind me disrupted my thoughts by unexpectedly releasing a flurry of leaves.
âNo, whatâs this?â
Dodging, I saw a student with their hands on the ground manipulating the tree. The ice mage beside him summoned ice around me and hindered my movement.
Iâd really like to just burn everything.
Being a fire mage in the forest is a real headache. If a fire accidentally catches in the surrounding woods, the situation can escalate beyond control. Summoning lightning and striking them down would be ideal, but I wasnât quite ready to reveal my other elements.
âAh, whatever. Just die, all of you.â
Itâs truly bothersome when these lesser beings swarm.
Acceleration.
I accelerated the circuit in my body, infused mana into my feet, and charged at the enemies. Upon realizing that a mage like me was engaging in close combat, the momentarily confused guys abandoned tree manipulation and opted to wrap themselves with vines for close-quarters defense.
âItâs too late, idiots.â
Probably, while one guarded, the other was preparing a big spell, but itâs too straightforward.
Fire Wave.
A skill that spreads flames like a shallow wave. I had used this skill during a practical test to infiltrate the gap of a scrap giant. Normally, weak firepower entering through these vines wouldnât harm the enemy. However, my Mana Sensitivity made it possible.
âItâs futile! Our duo is invincible!â
The forest-dwelling mage, concealed behind vines, shielded another mage and prepared an advanced ice spell. He appeared rather confident in his endurance. However, as flames emerged between the vines and merged right in front of him, he couldnât remain silent.
âNow, hold on. How do you control magic once unleashed⌠Aaagh!â
The flames engulfed both the mage caught off guard and the one casting magic from behind.
âArgh!â
âAhh!â
The two mages, startled by the unexpected attack, being teleported with the warning sound from their smartwatches.
âGoodbye. Bring more food next time.â I waved farewell to the departing duo.
âYou devil! The enemy of men!â
âI canât stand anyone being with Alice!â
Tsk, pathetic. In the end, they couldnât handle me hanging out with a girl. The fight took longer than expected. Of course, Alice must have already dealt with hers.
âHuh?â Turning around, I witnessed Alice being relentlessly pushed back by two swordsmen.
âAm I seeing things wrong?â Even after rubbing my eyes and double-checking, it remained the same. Alice couldnât withstand the onslaught while retreating with each clash of swords.
I activated Vision Enhancement and checked her internal condition.
âOh, sheâs out of mana.â
Well, considering the time that passed since recharging, itâs understandable. Although she knew my fight was over, she wasnât asking for help. Probably her pride, wanting to deal with it herself.
I comfortably sat on a nearby large rock. Aliceâs remaining mana was barely a handful. Maybe Iâll let it go for about 10 minutes. Wait until sheâs on the brink of injury, then swoop in to rescue.
***
About 30 minutes later, Alice finally lowered her sword, and just before one of the opponents could strike her down, I stepped in.
âSorry, I couldnât just stand by and watch you get hurt.â
ââŚâ
I swiftly positioned myself between Alice and the swordsman and blocked the impending strike with the Cotton Guard. Alice, unable to help herself, bowed her head as if her pride had been wounded.
âWhatâs this? Why is Lee Hoyeon here!â
âAnd the others?!â
The two swordsmen were so immersed in their duel that they didnât realize I had been observing for over 30 minutes.
âYouâll meet them for yourselves soon.â
Dealing with the exhausted swordsmen after more than 30 minutes of combat was easier than a stroll in the park. After the two teleported away, breaking the awkward silence and initiating conversation proved challenging. The negative energy emanating from Alice was no joke.
âAhem, Alice? Are you okay? Iâll replenish your mana.â
ââŚâ
âBut still, your mana control is truly incredible. You held out for 30 minutes with almost no mana.â
âHow did you know I had almost no mana leftâŚ?â Alice raised her head, glaring at me with a fierce look.
Why the anger⌠novelbuddy.cĎŕš
âJust because I have a bit of talent with mana.â
âI seeâŚâ
Itâs a slight information slip, but subtly conveying that thereâs no masseur as exceptional as me might not be a bad idea.
âCome here. Iâll refill your mana.â
I turned behind Alice and placed my hand on her shoulder. However, her words halted my action, âIf you do it with bare skin⌠itâs more effective, right?â
***
âStudents are starting to gather. Theyâre targeting Lee Hoyeon.â
âHow frustrating. Howâs this turning into a test like this?â
âIt might not be detrimental. Facing such a situation is uncommon. It will offer a one-of-a-kind experience for everyone.â
In the professorsâ meeting room, they were conducting real-time checks and evaluations of the survival test. While the scoring concluded the moment someone was eliminated, accumulating a high score allowed those eliminated early to potentially receive a higher score than someone eliminated later.
Among the professors, Professor Im Sol silently observed Lee Hoyeon.
Iâve never seen mana control like that before⌠Impressive.
Im Sol was pondering whether to disclose herself as Lee Hoyeonâs sponsor or possibly take him on as a personal disciple. Such a decision could hold social advantages for the 20-year-old Lee Hoyeon.
Iâll just observe a little longer.
At that moment, her smartwatch set on vibration mode started buzzing. Typically, it would be considered appropriate to turn off the smartwatch entirely during grading. However, Professor Im Sol is an invited professor personally brought in by the principal and chairman. While she wasnât obligated to partake in test grading, she came to observe Lee Hoyeon, and no other professors voiced complaints.
âWhat do you want?â Im Sol stepped out of the meeting room to take the call.
[Sola! Howâs the test grading going?]
The voice on the other end was Min Yejiâs. Im Sol let out a sigh at her friendâs enthusiastic tone.
âNot much. Why are you asking?â
[No, if itâs a survival test, you shouldâve given me a heads-up! I was planning to reach out to Lee Hoyeon this week!]
âYou knew I couldnât. Even if I could, I wouldnât.â
It wasnât like she didnât know about the Mana Oath. Still, she was quite a bothersome friend.
[Okay. Then tell me what he likes. Iâll try bribing him when negotiating.]
âBribingâŚâ
Im Sol couldnât help but picture Hoyeonâs delighted face every time she sucked him off.
âHe likesâŚâ However, she couldnât bring herself to say that he would easily succumb if enticed with your body. It was just a regular, light-hearted joke, and Min Yeji wouldnât take it seriously. But still, she didnât want to voice those words.
[What is it?]
âI donât know⌠Oh, he likes magic.â
[No, I know he likes magic!]
âI have no clue! Iâm busy, Iâm hanging up.â
[Sola! Sola!]
Click
âShall I take a short breakâŚ?â
Staring at Lee Hoyeonâs face for an extended period had started to play tricks on her mind. Even though he wasnât hers to claim, she felt it would be a missed opportunity to let someone else have him.
âAlright⌠Letâs dive into some magic research.â
For Im Sol, taking a break translated to delving into magic studies. Yet, as she immersed herself in her research, thoughts of her exceptional student lingered more prominently in her mind.