Chapter 114: Oreki Yuuri!
After breakfast, Ikki brought Shiro and the others to Year One, Class One.
Before long, a woman walked up to the podium. After confirming that the number of students present was correct, she began her speech.
"Everyone, welcome to school!"
The young teacher stood at the podium and pulled the party popper in her hand.
Bang!
"I'm the homeroom teacher in charge of Year One, Class One, Oreki Yuuri~ I'm still a rookie teacher right now, and this is my first time being responsible for an entire class, so you don't have to be too stiff when interacting with me. If you call me Yuuri-chan like a friend in daily life, Teacher will be very happy."
The teacher named Yuuri stood there with heavy dark circles under her eyes, showing the students below a kind smile.
"Hey, Ikki. Is this teacher really okay? She looks like she stayed up for three nights in a row..."
Shiro was already being very tactful. This teacher's face was as pale as someone on the verge of death, and even her voice was weak and powerless. The students could only hear her clearly because she was using a microphone.
"Probably..."
Ikki's mouth twitched. He remembered that Yuuri-sensei had been weak and sickly since childhood, and her dark circles had already become her trademark. So there should be no problem. Probably.
"Ikki, do you know her?"
Stella asked in confusion. She remembered that Ikki had repeated a year, so it was not strange for him to know this teacher. But judging from his current expression, he seemed rather familiar with her.
"Mm. When I took my entrance exam before, Yuuri-sensei was my examiner. Don't judge her by how she looks. She's actually a very gentle person inside." Ikki nodded.
Logically speaking, Ikki should not have been able to enter Hagun Academy. Before Kurono became the director, Hagun's admission requirement was that a student's magic power had to be at least upper E-Rank, while Ikki was the weakest F-Rank in everything except physical ability.
During his entrance exam, it was Yuuri who rejected the objections of the others and gave him a chance at a practical test. That was how he managed to enter Hagun Academy.
"Today is the first day of school, so Teacher will announce one thing first. It concerns the representative selection battles for the Seven Star Sword Art Festival. Everyone, please take out your student handbooks."
Yuuri paused, then continued.
"Although the director already mentioned this once during the entrance ceremony, Teacher is worried that some students might have zoned out during the ceremony, so I'll repeat it once more. Everyone, please don't think Teacher is being long-winded, okay?"
As she spoke, the LCD screen behind Yuuri lit up, displaying several charts.
"Until last year, Hagun Academy selected opponents based on [ability], right? But this year, there has been a slight change. The 'ability-based selection system' has been abolished and replaced with a 'practical combat system that all students can participate in.' All students will fight matches, and the six strongest students among them will be selected as representatives."
At this point, she even exaggeratedly went, "Wow~"
Paired with her pale face, the students below only felt frightened, afraid that she would collapse in the next moment.
This was also why Ikki, despite being strong, had always carried insults like "backdoor admission" at school. As an F-Rank knight, he had been eliminated before he ever had the chance to display his strength at Hagun Academy.
"The specific match schedule will be sent to each of your student handbooks, so everyone, please pay careful attention to the time~"
After she finished explaining the Seven Star Sword Art Festival matters, the classroom grew noisy.
"What a pain. Now I can't even go out and play."
"I never wanted to participate in the Seven Star Sword Art Festival anyway."
Naturally, this policy made the students dissatisfied.
After all, not everyone wanted to participate in the Seven Star Sword Art Festival. Most students were well aware of their own ability, and they knew that even if they joined, they would only be cannon fodder.
Moreover, the Seven Star Sword Art Festival was not fought using the Illusionary Form of their Devices. If they were injured there, it was genuinely possible for them to die.
The students present did not have ideals like pursuing honor either. They merely wanted to graduate safely from the academy, then find a stable job with a high salary.
"Phew, good. The selection matches won't be held consecutively."
Ikki took out his student handbook and let out a breath of relief after seeing the more detailed explanation on it.
His Ittou Shura could only be used once per day. After using it once, his entire body would enter a state where he could barely move. If someone seized that chance and eliminated him because of it, that would be far too tragic.
"Teacher, will there be any punishment for giving up a match?"
At that moment, one student calmed down and asked Yuuri a question. However, she wagged her finger and said,
"No, no, no. You have to call me Yuuri-chan. Otherwise, I won't answer your questions."
"Then, Yuuri-chan..."
"Yes!"
She seemed very happy to hear a student call her Yuuri-chan.
"There won't be any punishment for withdrawing from the selection battles or losing. But if you win, there will be a small reward. If you really aren't interested in the Seven Star Sword Art Festival, please send a message directly to the [Executive Committee]. They will automatically remove your name from the participant list."
"However, Teacher hopes that everyone will participate as much as possible. Even if you don't get good results, these experiences will become valuable assets that help you move forward."
'She really is a gentle teacher.'
Shiro silently gave Yuuri that evaluation in his heart.
These students only cared about whether they could obtain stable jobs in the future, but they did not realize at all that the occupation of magic knight often came with danger. Battle was part of this profession's daily life.
Right now, they should be gaining as much practical experience as possible through the Seven Star Sword Art Festival. That way, when they encountered enemies in the future, they would not panic, fail to know what to do, and end up losing their precious lives.
"Then, everyone, for the next year, let's put in all our effort and study hard together! Come on! Let's all do our best—Pff—!"
Yuuri's body finally could not withstand her own overly dramatic behavior. Halfway through her sentence, she suddenly spat out a huge mouthful of blood with astonishing force, staining the area around her red.
"Yuuri-chan!!!" × N
The sudden scene made all the students present scream. Shiro even directly took out a bottle of panacea from his Gift Card and poured it down her throat.
"Cough, cough. Thank you. If I remember right, your name is Shiro-san, yes?"
After swallowing the panacea, Yuuri's condition improved slightly.
She looked around at the surrounding students with an expression that seemed as if she might ascend at any moment.
"Don't worry. I'm already fine... Teacher spits up about one liter of blood every day."
"How is that fine?!" × N
"Don't worry... Teacher has been like this ever since childhood... I've lived for twenty years while dragging around this body, so Teacher's body can already be considered very sturdy."
"Please don't show off such a tragic thing. Shiro, I'll take Yuuri-sensei to the infirmary first. Could I ask you to pick up my sister?"
Ikki set an example and stepped forward. After Shiro nodded, he supported Yuuri and brought her out of the classroom.
…
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