As the grand sound of trumpets filled the air, dozens of students collapsed on the ground, finally being able to let go of all the tension inside them. Among those standing unscathed were only around ten individuals, the main characters and also me.
Well, to be precise, not everyone was unscathed.
The trembling of my fingers had intensified. It was all because I made a fuss and insisted on using my cleaning skill on Haru.
Teachers who had barricaded the field like a fortress now approached the injured students with kind smiles, saying, "Well done," as they neared.
"Huuueehh!"
When an adult approached, one student burst into tears as if awakening from a nightmare. Their sobbing became the trigger for several others, and the teachers awkwardly comforted them as more students shed tears.
They all seemed to be feeling very sorry for themselves. To have to go through this kind of hardship at such a young age can't be good for them.
Despite the loud fuss, there was only one healer among us, the teacher who assisted in engraving Sihyun's class mark. He struggled, armed with a staff, to treat the students.
Soon, sweat formed on the teacher's forehead. Even a quick glance around revealed dozens of injured students. It was a daunting task for one person to handle alone, and I looked at the teacher with sympathetic eyes.
"Aren't you a healer too?"
"…?"
Turning my head towards the unmistakably directed question, I found a fiery orange-haired boy at the edge of Sihyun's gaze. He was holding his bleeding arm, trying to put pressure on it with his hand.
"And if I am?"
Responding nonchalantly, the boy furrowed his brow.
"Then shouldn't you also help with healing?"
"Why should I?"
"Huh?"
I answered without a hint of hesitation and the boy's expression crumpled further. Sihyun, showing signs of fatigue, stared at the boy. Swiftly, shifting my gaze, I looked at his name tag: it read 'Kang Donghyuk.'
It was an ordinary name. Considering this was a world within an webnovel, he didn't seem to be a central character. Yet, to be stepping forward and confronting him like this, Sihyun couldn't help feeling doubtful.
He was a student too, and the responsibility for healing rested solely with the teachers. Moreover, they were the ones who initiated this, so it was the school's responsibility to take care of it. Even elementary school kids knew the basic principle that one should take responsibility for their actions.
So, even if I had enough mana, I couldn't find a reason to intervene by myself.
"Don't you see the injured ones? Are you blind?"
Donghyuk pointed out all of the injured students, perhaps in an attempt to make me feel bad. It was regrettable for the injured, but it wasn't my concern.
While I might be seen as kind and altruistic, unfortunately, I wasn't that type of person. Though I felt sorry for the injured students, I didn't want to unnecessarily involve myself when I was in a precarious situation too.
Especially not when someone demanded treatment from me as if kindness was their right.
Exhaling softly, I gazed at Donghyuk. I felt like I knew what he wanted.
"Do I have an obligation to treat you?"
Wasn't this just him asking to be treated first? Waiting on the teacher to heal you was painful and scary, so instead he looked around for other healers.
Unfortunately there was no help to be found.
Donghyuk flinched as if struck by my words, becoming childishly flustered. Looking at the seventeen year old who was unable to hide his expression, Sihyun let out a deep sigh.
This wasn't a game, this was reality, where dying was final. You can't live counting on healers always being available.
"This is no way to act if you want to live."
Sihyun mumbled, almost too quiet to hear, and Donghyuk's face hardened. He didn't seem like he had any retort to that, so after giving him a vacant stare Sihyun turned to someone else.
"Are you hurt anywhere? Can you show me?"
I started fussing over Haru a bit too loudly, and he looked back and forth between me and Donghyuk, trying to sense the mood. I had to ask him twice before he finally lifted his head towards me. Donghyuk's expression kept worsening.
"Oh my, If you've been hurt you have to tell us! I'll tend to Donghyuk now so just hold on a little bit!"
The healing teacher had just finished treating a student, and came over while drinking some sort of blue potion. The timing couldn't have been better.
"Seems like everything worked out."
He congratulated Donghyuk, who sat grinding his teeth. He had been trying to intimidate Sihyun into healing him, but after fighting all those irregulars Sihyun was not easily shaken.
After Sihyun finished his business he completely disregarded Donghyuk.
As the students' treatments neared completion, the Four Heavenly Kings naturally gathered around Seowoo and Sihyun. Sihyun frowned at how naturally he had become a meeting place. As Haeun and Hamin approached, a playful sound echoed.
"How many did you catch? Less than Haru hyung, right?"
"Shut up."
"Oh? Did I hit the nail on the head?"
Wow! Hamin had been going on about how numbers didn't matter as long as you got the job done, but now he actually looks embarrassed!
Despite trying to cover his mouth, Haeun's mocking voice echoed across the field. Hamin, understandably upset, raised his hand and hit Haeun's head hard. Bangー Haeun's eyes watered at the impact and he ran over to Geonu to hide. As he was complaining about the pain, Geon just looked at him in silence, unsure of what to do.
I was wondering what kind of combination this was as I observed the three, somehow it doesn't feel like they mix very well. As Haeun spotted Haru, his tears were replaced by a bright smile, his mood shifting instantly.
"Haru hyung!"
"...?"
Hearing Haeun call out to him so intimately was strange, and Sihyun wondered when they had gotten so close. Haru on the other hand proceeded to step back and hid behind Sihyun's smaller frame.
'Ah, ok. Not close then.'
"You were awesome earlier!"
"Ah… uh… yeah."
Haru, still hesitant, spoke while hiding behind Sihyun, and Sihyun started backing away together with him. Haeun's personality really was exhausting.
If they took an MBTI test, Haeun's would definitely start with an 'E', and Sihyun did not have the energy to deal with him. Just as he was about to leave, the principal, who had been in a meeting with the other teachers, grabbed the microphone.
*Beeeeeep!*
The sharp sound of the mic made everyone turn their attention to the teachers, including Sihyun, Haru, and the Four Heavenly Kings.
As everyone's eyes turned abruptly due to the unexpected noise, the head teacher, who had been scanning the children, began to speak.
"We will now begin announcing the results of the placement exams!"
The eyes of the previously droopy students instantly widened. There was no cheer, but applause followed. After the brief applause, the announcement began.
"First, we'll announce the results the teachers have assigned, then reveal the final class placements based on the survey. After the announcements, each of you will receive a personalized academic report based on your pairings, and following that, we'll disclose the top 10 outstanding students. Now, starting with Class D, let's call out the names. Jo Yeonhee!"
Kim X, Park Tra, Namu myeong, and others—names streamed out one after another, and kids scattered across the field, slipping to the right side like sifting through a sieve. Glancing quickly, Sihyun noticed those who had fled from the Irregulars. He swallowed hard; it seemed unlikely he'd be assigned to Class D.
There was no way he could drag Haru with him to Class D when it was just a place for those who were lacking.
"Next, we'll announce Class C. Students called, please line up to the left of Class D. Lee Jihan, Kim Chulsoo, Ahn Yeonghee…"
Once again, the called students formed a shorter line for Class C than D. If Class D comprised kids who either ran away or didn't participate, Class C seemed composed of students who moved or opposed but didn't achieve much.
Once again, Sihyun's name was not called by the teachers.
Sihyun sighed with relief. It had been challenging to experiment with abilities that he didn't know much about, but it had paid off. Now, all that was left to do was to calmly join Haru and move to Class B.
"Next, Class B. Called students, line up to the left of Class C. Kang Donghyuk, Nam Jihwa…"
Contrary to Sihyun's expectations, his name wasn't called even after Class B's announcements.
As fewer names were called for Class B and the line was completed, Sihyun stared up at the principal in bewilderment. He hoped his name might come up as a last minute addition, but the principal's lips remained sealed until it came time to announce the next class.
"Now, let's announce Class A. Ban Haru, Lee Hamin, Yu Seowoo, Jeong Daun, Lee Jihye, Baek Geonu."
A select few were called to Class A. Sihyun felt something was amiss when his name still wasn't called.
Come to think of it, there was one other person whose name hadn't been called yet. Someone who was supposed to be in Class A—among the Four Heavenly Kings, Kang Haeun's name hadn't been called either. Facing reality, Sihyun turned to glance at Haeun, only to meet eyes that seemed to harbor similar thoughts. Their gazes locked, mirroring the same suspicion.
"Haven't been called yet?"
In a tone so casual it almost sounded playful, Sihyun observed Haeun's expression. There didn't seem to be any special knowledge behind his words, but his relaxed demeanor created an eerie sense of something unsettling. Opting not to respond, they both awaited the teacher's words, but even Class A shifted to the right side of the field, leaving the two remaining students standing in the vastness. Among 96 students, the presence of just two felt oddly desolate.
"There are still two students whose names haven't been called yet. Judging from their contributions to the Irregulars incident, both of them should go to Class B."
As expected.
It was a wise judgment. Sihyun silently nodded in agreement with the expected result. The principal, noticing Sihyun's resigned acceptance, smiled and opened his mouth.
"However, considering their abilities, their final placements will be Class A!"
Then, the pr delivered a harsh pat on Sihyun's back.
Clap, clap, clap!
Caught amidst the shower of applause, Sihyun's back tingled, his lips quivered in disbelief. He had thought at best he'd end up in Class B, he did not expect to get moved up to Class A based on his abilities.
All throughout the test all I did was put up a couple of shields and treat wounds that could barely even be called injuries, and that got me to Class A? Class A??
Although he wanted to raise objections about fairness, the approaching teachers guided Sihyun to the line for Class A. Standing at the end of the line, Geonu glanced at him. Sihyun's expression showed his bewilderment at the bizarre turn of events.
The survey results caused some shifts in the class compositions, as expected. However, there were no changes among the students in Class A.
Class A: 8 students, Class B: 18 students, Class C: 30 students, Class D: 40 students.
The final class allocations were sent out with academic reports linked to pairings. As the chime sounded from the ring, Sihyun instinctively pressed the ring, and a holographic window appeared before him.
[Academic Report]
1st Year, Class A, Kang Sihyun
Reaction: A | Damage: F | Judgment: S
Cooperation: B | Support: S | Adaptability: A
Remarks: Healer Class Awakener
Special Note: Exceptional adaptability.
> Final Result: Class A
It felt like a nightmare. Already trapped in a nightmarish situation, something even worse had happened, causing Sihyun to gnaw at his inner lip. Despite blinking and shutting his eyes, the unchanging report denied reality, making him feel as though he were choking. His lips dry, throat parched, he suddenly found a water bottle thrust in front of him.
Startled by the unexpected bottle, Sihyun lifted his head to see Geonu still offering the water with an impassive face.
"Drink."
Seeming parched, his puzzled eyes widened slightly at Geonu's barely audible, subtly adolescent voice, tingling his ears with its ambiguity.
Watching him with a quizzical expression, Geonu once again offered the bottle. Under the sunlight, Geonu's blue hair shimmered as if about to scatter. Staring at the sight for a moment, Sihyun unknowingly grabbed the bottle. Once he regained his composure, he couldn't help laughing a little at how he had ended up accepting it.
It seems like he was shaken for a second.
Reluctantly thanking him, he nodded and twisted the bottle's cap. The water, tepid as it streamed down his throat, was enough to quench his thirst. As he drank, a moment of relief washed over him.
"Now, we'll announce the top 10 outstanding students. Starting from the 10th place! In 10th place, Kang Donghyuk!"
"Pfft—!"
Startled by the announcement, Sihyun spewed the water he was drinking. Geonu's startled deep blue eyes turned to him, but Sihyun just looked ahead at the principal in shock.
He actually spat out his water at the mention of rankings,
This was really overwhelming.