Some of the things Eric learned from his previous life were that sometimes, or even most of the time, you can't make everyone satisfied. In addition, sometimes you also can't make everyone believe you or force them to like you.
He carries that life lesson with him in this world, which is why he won't bother trying to change the image of Eric Ostheno that he now possesses. He'll do exactly as he pleases, maybe occasionally making friends along the way.
"Friends? In this fucked up world?"
He got his attention back to the 5 boys in front of him. He recalled all of their names, including their interaction with previous Eric.
A boy fired a fist-sized flame toward him, but he only pointed at it and dispersed it. The boys gasped seeing one of their attacks getting erased easily.
"What!? Anti-magic!? No!"
"It can't be! He's just low Bronze-rank!"
"Did he get his hand on rare equipment!?"
They keep yapping and theorizing but undeniably getting attacked first, he retaliated. They heard something fall and they turned their heads on the source of the sound. He slammed a boy into the wall of a storage facility. The attack was so quick to the point that all of them couldn't keep up or register what's going on. The slammed boy groaned, holding his head, trying to stand up.
One of them snapped and cast a pointy-shaped water form on his hand, "Water Lance!" The boy shouted on top of his lungs. The projectile came fast, but Eric only bothered by using his casual wave of his hand. The water lance suddenly halted before him, floating idly and slowly rotated toward its caster.
"Here. You can have this back."
The water projectile launched back to its original caster, and the caster fumbled trying to set up a barrier. One of the boys stood shielding the water boy, his whole arm covered in stone.
"What the hell are you doing!?"
"I-I don't know! My Water Lance was supposed to strike him! Not backfired to me!"
One of them cast a glowing attack on Eric. He thought of a light-based spell but his guess was wrong, because he felt an electric shock all over his body. The electric boy cheered out seeing his attack connected.
"Damn yeah! That's what you get for making me lose my money! Give me-" His demand abruptly stopped because Eric grunting loudly and managed to dispel the spell.
I hate violence, why did they attack me? It's not my fault they lose their money-
Eric gritted his teeth for thinking like that. Why did he suddenly chickening out and become soft-hearted at this moment. It's as if someone or something forced certain feelings on himself.
17%
The stone boy lunged at him and punched him. Thankfully, Eric had layered his body with a thin forcefield barrier, so he had no trouble blocking the stone punch with his hand but what he unaccounted for was the stone boy dramatically buffing his following punch.
"Boulder Punch!"
That attack managed to pierce through Eric's barrier, he felt pain in his nose and he gulped down a metallic taste in his mouth. "Hahaha! Not so tough right now, huh!?" The stone boy celebrating his successful punch."
"Haaaaaahhh!! Flame Cluster!" The flame boy threw a barrage of pebble-sized flames at Eric. The cluster hit his chest, and once again he was thrown backwards. The slammed boy chanted something, clumps of wind swirling around his hands.
"I don't know how you attacked me earlier, but make sure to clench your teeth, Eric!" The slammed boy aka the wind boy finished his spell and unleashed it, "Wind Ball!"
A powerful shockwave crashed on his body before Eric could stand up or dodging. In the nick of time he successfully repaired his forcefield barrier and tripled its thickness, resulting in a mild shock received on his body.
All of his assailants stopped after seeing Eric not getting up or moving. The water boy mildly worried, "Did we go too far?" then the stone boy rotating his arm and replied with a blunt tone. "Nah, we just use Bronze-rank spells. The bastard might get some light concussions, but he deserved it!"
"Come on, guys, we're done here," said the flame boy to his friends. "Mrs. Jane will heal him, don't worry!"
The electric boy added, "Yeah, let's get out here before the Student Council comes here." Before they can walk away, they heard a groan coming from Eric's mouth.
"Ugh, fuck..." said Eric while hobbled, trying to stand upright. "Did your momma teach you some manners? Arggh that was rough, you dumbass!"
22%
The boys stood still, mouth agape. After all their spells are thrown at him, Eric can still stand and mock them. As for Eric, aside from searing pain on his chest and tingling ache on his face, he was pretty fine. Burning rage boiled within him, slowly he raised his right hand.
"My turn."
He willed his power to bring the wind boy towards him so fast before the boy could react. "Wha-what is thi-" the wind boy unable to resume his words after Eric punched him so hard in his gut with his psychic-coated fist, resulting in the wind boy gagging profusely and passing out. Eric tossed the wind boy far behind him.
"Crazy bastard! As I thought, he must be secretly using rare equipment!"
"Attack him with all you've got!"
The stone boy rained sharp pebbles, the flame boy manifested a lance-shaped flame, the water boy chanted a wall of water, lightning crackled on the electric boy. Each of them fired their spell at Eric endlessly to the point dust and smoke began forming around Eric who only stood still.
The boys stopped their attack after sensing their magic power dwindling. From behind the cloud of dust and smoke, Eric emerged unscathed and unharmed, only his face showing anger.
30%
Stretching both of his arms, Eric crashed both the electric boy and the stone boy against each other while they were in the middle of casting. Thanks to Eric's intervention, they can't properly aim their spell thus struck on each other aka friendly fire. The stone boy got electrocuted, while the electric boy got a point-blank stone impact on his face. Both of them collapsed.
The water boy hastily formed a water ball on his hands, but before he can launch it Eric took over controlling the water and wrapped the water boy's whole head inside a giant water bubble.
"Mmmm! Mmm!"
Eric drained all of the oxygen from the water boy's lungs and the poor boy ended up unconscious, slumped to the ground. Only one left, the flame boy who is locked in place as if he is frozen. Before he dealt with the electric and stone boy, Eric squeezed the flame boy's joints and muscles, preventing him from making moves.
Now Eric freed the flame boy, "Fire Lanc-" the poor boy got his jaw clamped shut by Eric's hand. Without announcement, Eric brings him fly through the sky, inciting surprised gasps from the boy. They both stopped at a certain altitude.
Eric grabbed the boy's collars, and gently asked him. "As fellow gentlemen, we should come to a certain agreement." the boy dangling his feet, he can see the whole Academy from this view. "No-no, no! Please don't let me go!"
"That depended whether you and your pitiful gang agreed on my terms or not." Eric scoffed. "Never show yourself in front of me, and stop bugging me. Simple, isn't it?"
"Ye-yes, I swear!" The flame boy panicked, his face went so pale. "As a warning, if you ever instruct someone or indirectly command someone to harm me, I'll assure you..."
Eric's smile deepened. "...you'll get more 'luxurious treatment' than this. Hmmm...maybe I should drop you in the middle of ocean or-"
"I swear, I swear, I swear in the honor of my family and the goddess! I won't!"
Satisfied, Eric brought him down so fast to the point made the boy screaming like a girl. "Kyaaaa! I'm gonna die! I'm gonna die, I'm gonna dieeee...!"
After they both stood on the ground again, Eric let go of the flame boy. What he saw was the flame boy pitifully quivering, while mumbling some prayers.
"Make sure you keep our deal, brat."
***
After Eric got called and reprimanded for his fight with the boys inside the faculty main room, he got dismissed and later to be called if the Academy, or in this case the Student Council and Disciplinary Committee found any flaws of his 'self-defense' retaliation.
The sky is showing a hue orange dusk. Finishing his last lesson, Eric was about to go back to his dorm when he stumbled upon a person who called his name.
"Eric, please wait a moment."
He turned around, and immediately posed an annoyed expression. Because the person before him was his fiancée, or to be precise, his former fiancée.