"Haha, I didn't know it would work, but look at this," Ren had a celebratory look on his face as he stared at his system panel. It was a bit of an overreaction compared to his normal self, but that only showed how much he had been wanting to create something new.
While trapped in the other side of the portal, Ren wished he could teleport himself back, but that was only wishful thinking. That led him to fantasize briefly about all the abilities he could have that are related to teleporting, and during that brief, he realized one thing he hadn't thought of consciously, yet.
"Since I have the lighting attribute, it's only natural that skill using lighting as part of the concept will work the best…" It wasn't an epiphany to him, since he had thought of this before, but he forgot about it and it slipped to the back of his mind and he then forgot completely as he focused on other things.
Ren didn't even bother trying to create a teleportation skill, he was aware that his knowledge in that field was a bit lacking even though he had read about it once in the library. Instead, what Ren focused on was creating a skill to temporary boost his speed, much in the same way his 'lighting impulse' those. Even though he already had a skill that did the same thing, no one said the effect could not be stacked. After all, with his ability that seems to be able to cut most things even at level one, he didn't need hitting force, what he needed was speed.
'I've thought of being a speedster many times, but I would have to raise my agility stats to unimaginable heights to achieve that.'
Since Ren couldn't wait to test the new skill, he went up to the roof since it was closer than going down. After testing it, he confirmed that both skills could be activated at once, so he was very satisfied.
'It even gave me the choice of naming the skill…' Obviously, he couldn't miss the chance to name the skill 'god speed' for various reasons. Not only was his speed increased, his concentration, senses and reflex time were also increased, it was like a cheat skill to be honest.
. . .
The following Monday during class.
"Ok, everyone pay attention! There's been a little change in plans, so instead of starting the mock raids straight away today, it has been decided that you all will engage in mock raids to access your skills instead! It's only for today, so I don't want to hear any complaints. Of course, you need not worry, the first time will be an easy dungeon that even a baby can scale through." Well, saying so only meant that the punishment for performing below average was harsh.
"Each team will consist of two close quarters damage dealers, one mid- or long ranged damage dealer, and one supporting member, making four people in every team!"
"As you may already know, there will be no guide coming along and the only other person apart from your team entering the dungeon will be a guard that will be present just in case something goes wrong. Of course, if you end up needing assistance, it will affect your scores and lower your ranking, maybe."
"Alright, take a look at your watches, you should be able to see your team number and the team members, do good to get along, as you won't be able to change until the semester is over. Also, there should be no complaints about teammates regarding distribution, it was done at random, but even then, the students with good performances and those with bad performances have been mixed up to balance things out and to introduce fairness. Alright, that all for now. All teams should assemble and get ready!"
After the lengthy announcements, the instructor left. The place where they were to gather had been communicated, and what was left for the students to do was find their teammates and organize themselves.
'We're on the same team, huh?' Ren thought to himself seeing the list for those in team 22.
-Ren Ashburn
-Yulia Lee
-Lucy Finn
-James Coal
'But, James Coal? What trashy name is that? Isn't he the guy that has some kind of perverted power that ended up killing his teammates and even became a huge nuisance later on in the story? Won't you say heaven smiles upon me like this?'
It didn't take for the students to find their teammates and organize themselves.
"Hey, seems we're in the same team." Lucy said facing Ren, completely avoiding James like he wasn't present, even though they all were standing together. She still hadn't talked to him yet, not even an introduction, and James didn't try either. Both of them were prideful, the only difference being that James was more reserved and kept his opinions to himself.
"I suppose so. How's Yulia doing? She won't be able to join us, so we'll need another member to complete our team." Ren said.
"Hey, what the heck? At least give me a chance to answer one question at a time."
While they spoke amongst themselves, the instructor walked up to them, "team 22, one of your members is absent, so you will have to sit this one out until-"
"SIR, we can do it, just three of us, no problem, sir!" Ren said, very animatedly, it was too clear that it was an act, but the instructor didn't seem to care.
"Are you sure? Remember, this will affect your rankings, and you might get another opportunity to increase your rank for a while." Even though the instructor sounded worried following his words, he wasn't in the least.
"We are ready sir."
"What about you guys?"
Of course, Lucy tried to put up some resistance, but the majority carried the vote, and it ended up being something… good, since Yulia was going to gain regardless following the team's performance.
'Kicking aside the fact that Yulia is useless in a fight regardless, I'm not really worried about the ranks for now, there'll be other opportunities to gain merits, that reminds me…' After returning from the portal and rescuing Yulia, everyone who took part was set to receive some merits for their service in foiling the plans of the syndicate, and as the highest contributor and the one who made it possible to capture one of the syndicates for questioning, Ren was sure to receive the chunk of it. 'I wonder when I'll receive it…'