The next day, morning time
I was waiting for fatty and Julius when suddenly my phone rang. I picked up the phone.
"Raizel, me and Julius need to do some important work. So, you can go ahead of us if you want to," fatty said and cut the phone.
"These bastards. I'm waiting for them for the past twenty minutes and he says that I can go if I want to. Fine then." I cursed fatty many times in my mind after that and went on my way to my class. I opened the digital portal on my ID watch and looked for my class details.
For the first year, all the freshers had 3 main subjects. These were Mana basics, Combat basics, and Rune basics. Attending classes for basic subjects was necessary for all the students. But for optional subjects, we can choose any of these subjects along with many others as a priority subject. Other subjects were specific fields of the Combat Department, Magic department, Runes department, research & development, and medical department.
I already about it so planned about the subjects that I should choose for optional.
I arrived in front of my block without any hindrance. I was about the head to my class when suddenly the guard stopped me.
"Wait! Please scan your ID and watch it here before entering," he said.
'Huh? Oh, yes. The ranking system. I forget about that entirely.' I thought as I remembered the ranking system. This was the ranking Academy gave the students based on their entrance test. Remembering this body's condition, I didn't have any hopes for any good results. But how in hell this unawakened kid got selected for the Academy was still a mystery to me.
I extended my hand, and the guard took out a unique machine and scanned my watch.
"Raizel Askanor, Rank 1701 and Class...What the fu...Uhm...class 1-A. Thank you for your cooperation. You can go now." he said while saving himself from cursing just by a small margin.
I also stood there dumbfounded. I mean seriously? I wasn't surprised at my ranking, but my class was based on the ranking. I was thrown into the class of elites. The class, I was in consisted of true geniuses and also the main cast of the novel. Almost ninety percent of students from that class will become prominent figures in the future. But the question here was, why me?
Guard looked at my face and said, "Don't worry kid. Maybe there is some technical mistake from the academy. They correct it soon or you can apply for the class change."
I didn't say anything just left the place. I want to cry but that stupid skill of mine just won't let me as it won't let me become emotionally unstable.
'I have a bad feeling about this.' I thought and headed for my so-called class 1-A.
My ranking was also updated on my student profile as well as entered the official ranking in the information panel on the meta-net in the Academy servers.
Now, everyone was aware of each other's rankings. Thankfully, only names were provided, not pictures of the students.
***
*Clank* I opened the entered my class.
The class was huge with seat positions with ascending heights like stairs. Right and left row seats were for two people, but the central row seats were for three students.
Not many students were there so I didn't bother talking with anyone and sat on a bench at the left corner of the room at the backside.
Reason? Because it was right beside the fuking window. And I love to take window seats.
I sat there for a few minutes when suddenly two students started arguing with each other.
"Dave, you bastard!!"
"Mind your language, Paul"
"Is that so? What will you do huh? You bastard."
Suddenly another kid started to leak mana as he covered his fist with mana.
"Don't you dare to say that I didn't warn you" he screamed and was about to attack the other kid when suddenly a tight slap sent him flying towards the professor's podium.
"No matter where I go, flies will always buzz around. Let's go fatty. My mood is already spoiled."
He was none other than Julius Scarlet.
Suddenly fatty gazed at me.
"Hey, brother Raizel," he said as he waved his hand.
"Hahaha, now I feel a bit fine. Let's sit together...no fatty you sit beside us. I and Raizel will sit together." Julius said as he immediately rushed to the seat beside me.
"No fair, brother Julius. If you don't wanna get beaten, then let me sit at this seat." fatty said.
I looked at their faces and then noticed other students' gazes.
'These attention whores!' I cursed.
"Uh...fatty why don't we shift to the central row and sit together?" I suggested.
"Oh...why didn't I think of that! Let's go there, brother." fatty said with a cheerful expression and we all shifted to the last seat bench in the central row.
"You are lucky fatty. Raizel saved you from a beating today" Julius said.
"It's not me who was saved by Raizel. It was you who is saved by him." Fatty stated.
'Why the hell did I end up with these two idiots.' I cried within.
They had already started filling up, and most of the students had arrived and taken seats. Some were arguing with each other for seats. No one dared to bother us after the slap show by Julius.
"Oh, by the way, brother Raizel what is your ranking? Mine is 114th and Julius has 3rd."
'This fatty! Seriously?' I cursed him for asking me about my ranking.
"Uh...brother fatty my ranking is...1701" I said with an embarrassed face.
"..."
"..."
Both, fatty and Julius looked at my face silently.
"It's okay brother. We won't leave even if you are trash among the trash. We are brothers after all." fatty said with a dark face.
"...Uh...yeah same. Yes, same." Julius said.
I was twitching at their comments.
'These bastards! Are they consoling me or declaring me trash?'
Suddenly a handsome young man entered the class, with two beauties beside him.
All the students shifted their gazes at them. Females were all looking at the boy and all the males were looking at the beautiful girls while embarrassed. The main cast characters were Collin Farrel, Jennet Farrel, and Elina Steelheart.
I looked at their expressions and find it funny.
I also felt a unique feeling inside me as I looked at them and all the other characters I read about in the novel.
Julius looked at the students and hooked his head in disappointment then he looked at the fatty who was drooling.
*Smack*
Julius smacked fatty on the back.
"Brother why hit me? I wasn't looking at the girls." fatty asked as he rubbed the spot.
All three of them sit at the front bench and ignore the comments and gazes of all the students.
William was about to sit when he suddenly looked in my direction.
'Huh? Did he recognize me?' I thought as I pretended to look out the window.
"What happened Colin?" Elina asked Colin as she saw him looking at me.
She also looked at me.
"You know him?" she asked Colin.
"His eyes...No, nothing. Never mind" Colin said as he sat beside Jennet.
Jennet who was silent the whole time looked at me and then asked Colin, "Brother, was he the one you met in the forest yesterday?"
"I am not sure...but his eyes...looks the same."
I understood from his confused gaze and had a sigh of relief.
I could hear a few students whispering to each other as they were curious about why Colin looked at me. But I ignored them.
"Oi, why did he look at you like that? If that bastard tries to bully you, then tell me." Scarlett said.
"I don't know. Maybe he was confusing me with someone else?"
Suddenly, the door opened, and a beautiful woman entered the classroom. Her brown and attractive face with a curvy future was over the top. She was Julius's Aunt and his mother's younger sister, Samantha Varnis.
*Thud* she dropped the books on the podium and looked at all the students.
"I will be your class in charge from now on and I will be teaching you kids about Combat basics. Now before we proceed any further, we need to take attendance. Just say yes when I call your name." she said and was about to take attendance when suddenly someone interrupted her.
"M-May I come in, Mam?"
Everyone looked at the person who just came. A handsome young man. Sharp brown eyes and black hair. He was none other than the protagonist of the novel, William Barnes.
"Why are you late?"
"I was in Headmaster's office, Mam"
"...Fine, come in." She said and then started calling everyone's name for attendance.
"William Barnes, Rank 1."
"Present"
"Colin Farrell, Rank 2"
"Present"
"Elina Steelheart, Rank 3"
"Present"
"Julius Scarlet, Rank 4"
"Present"
"Jenny Farrel, Rank 5"
"Present"
...
...
"Cyril Zen, Rank 15"
"Present"
...
...
"Adam Smith, Rank 99"
"Present"
"Raizel Askanor, Rank 17...01?"
"P-Present"
"..."
'Phew, here we go again.' I thought as I felt all the gazes in the classroom upon me.