"Huff...huff..."
After finishing yet another training session with Ms. Zito, lying on the floor while trying to stabilize my breathing, I finally allowed myself to look at my status panel after a week of training.
===Status===
Name: Aarick Laupier
Rank: F [Potential S]
Strength: F+
Agility: F+
Stamina: F+
Intelligence: F+
Mana Capacity: E+
Blessing: Gravitational Bond - Level 1
Elemental skills: [Inherent gravity]
Bond skills: [Claws]
==========
Though I hadn't expected to see much difference after this short time, I was happily surprised to see that all my physical attributes had actually grown a bit. In fact, when looking at my status right now, I couldn't understand how or why they had improved so much.
As if reading my mind, Ms. Zito answered the question that I didn't ask, while at the same time handing me a bottle of water.
"Of course, you would be growing quickly right now. Your body is currently in a state of acclimating to the changes within you, so it's expected."
"I see... By the way, about today... Why didn't you try and stop Mr. Ainsworth?"
Tilting her head while looking at me, it almost seemed like she had forgotten about what was going to happen today.
"Oh! You mean the show match? Why would I stop something that will be a boon to you?"
Having caught enough of my breath already, I sat myself up and looked at the beautiful demon who didn't appear to understand my woes at all.
"But I'm not going to gain anything, am I? Aren't I just going to get beaten down due to the differences in rank?"
Crossing her arms, Dona wasn't all too pleased with my thoughts about the matter at all.
"Of course, you are going to gain something! This is the day you can show your classmates that you aren't completely useless by proving your worth in a fight. Even if you lose, if you can put up a good fight it will still have done you well."
"But how will I be able to put up a fight when I barely know how to throw a punch? Mr. Faer hasn't even taught me how to launch a kick, not to mention..."
"Why are you talking about punches and kicks? Just use your claws! Why would we spend so much time training with them if you're not going to use them?"
"Huh?"
My mind started spinning, trying hard to figure out if I was the crazy one, or if she was the crazy one. Noticing my obvious mental distress, Ms. Zito seemingly understood what I was thinking, as well as what delusion had dominated my mind.
"Did you think that you couldn't use your claws because someone would find out that you are a demon?"
"...maybe."
Pinching her nose, she held herself together, even though I had undoubtedly said something very weird or incorrect.
"So, Lucifer hasn't told you about irregulars either?"
'Hey, Lucifer, what's that?'
'-I have no idea!'
Scratching the back of my head, I quickly relayed the answer that I had gotten from the fallen god to my teacher.
"She says she doesn't know what that is."
"Haa... I guess it makes sense in some absurd kind of way. Even during the occasions she showed herself on Earth she never cared much about... anything, really. Okay, I'll try to explain it briefly, because we don't have much time."
As the rays of the rising sun had already begun to make themselves shown, it wasn't long until we would have to depart to the academy for the beginning of a new week of classes. As well as for that stupid show match that I had gotten forced into.
However, as Dona explained to me about how blessings worked, they were some key parts that I was able to take away from it. First of all, even blessings from the elemental gods could look quite different.
For example the electric swordsman I had watched on tv. It turns out, that his electricity was just a derivation of the blessing from the fire god. Also, blessings could evolve, and though one's blessing would always stay the same, the element might divert from its original form and become something else.
So, an earth Elementalist could at some point find himself leveling up his blessing, and instead of using earth, he would now be using metal. Did it make sense? No, but I didn't care.
Another thing that didn't make sense to me, but still brought a wide grin to my face was when Dona started talking about irregulars.
Irregulars were people blessed by gods other than the elemental gods, and although their potentials were almost always quite limited, they would bear very different kinds of abilities compared to the ones blessed by an element.
In other words...
"There will be no problems using your claws. I have already made a report to the principal that you are an irregular, so even if some might find it a bit appalling or weird, you don't have to worry. I will take care of any discourse that might arise."
Replacing the earlier nervousness, I could now somehow feel my body filling up to the brim with pure and unadulterated excitement. An excitement that would later be stolen away from me.
==========
"Good morning. This week will be your second week at the academy, and although I know that a lot of you might still find yourself struggling to get used to it, things will now start to become a lot more real."
Turning on the digital whiteboard behind her, Ms. Zito clearly had something important to tell us this homeroom session, something that she hadn't told me about at home. She still seemed to believe that it was better for me to live as a normal student, and as a normal student, it would be cheating if I were to know everything that would happen beforehand.
But a part of me really felt like she could have said something about this to me because I finally understood why she had accepted the notion of the show match.
"After this week, all the freshmen will be ranked relative to each other, and depending on the rankings, you will either be put in the A or B-class. The highest ranked students will be in the A-class."
Raising her hand, Lydia was quick to ask the question on everyone's minds.
"Will you still be the homeroom teacher for the A-class?"
Crossing her arms, inadvertently raising her chest a bit, I finally got to hear the real reason why I would have to go on and have a show match with the brown-haired bully and why it didn't matter if I lost. No, from what she said, I knew I had to lose.
"That depends on the show match today. The teacher whose student wins will be the homeroom teacher of the A-class."
It was hard not to be frustrated with Dona right now, as I now realized that she was probably purposefully making sure she would be the homeroom teacher for the B-class. Because I would most likely end up there no matter what I did.
'-Aarick...'
Even if I somehow ended up improving at miraculous speeds, there was no way I would improve enough to put me head to head with the twelve best freshmen, not to mention the fact that theoretical grades would also play a part.
And I hated it. I hated it because not only did that mean I would have to lose on purpose, although I knew I was probably not favored to win, but that also meant that Ms. Zito herself had expected me to lose.
'-No, that's probably not...'
*Crsht!*
"Mr. Laupier? What are you doing?"
Suddenly, the desk that I was resting my hand on made a crushing kind of sound, but my mind was already too muddled with anger to care, not to mention listening to the voice desperately trying to talk to me.
So, I left.
****
[Lydia's Pov]
"That depends on the show match today. The teacher whose student wins will be the homeroom teacher of the A-class."
It wasn't something unexpected, the tradition of Augustus had long been one where even the teachers were competing with the ones responsible for the same grade. And the opening event was always the start of the competition between teachers, as well as competition between students.
However, as Ms. Dona continued talking about the week, and what we could expect, a sudden shiver went down my back out of nowhere. And looking further up the classroom, where a white-haired boy was now sitting on his own, there was no one that could miss the weird sound coming from him.
As everyone was confused about what was going on, with even Ms. Zito stopping her lecture, Aarick just stood up and left the classroom, leaving us all in a daze, unable to comprehend what he was doing.
So, when Ms. Zito exited the room to see what was going on with him, I couldn't help but get a very bad feeling as I looked at the desk where he had been sitting.
Because on the desk there was a very pronounced indent in the form of a hand.
Now, even if the desks were quite sturdy, it wouldn't be a problem for any of us to slam our fists down hard enough to break them.
But he hadn't done that.
No, because just like always, I had been watching him. And all he had done was merely rest his palm on the desk. So how in god's name was he able to produce such immense force without moving a single muscle?