Hell mode volume 3, p.2
Hell Mode: Volume 3, page 2
* * *
Name: Cecil Granvelle
HP: C
MP: A
Attack: D
Endurance: C
Agility: B
Intelligence: S
Luck: B
Talent: Wizardess
* * *
“This is truly impressive! There are no issues with your Talent or stat rankings. Take this to reception.”
So, this is Cecil’s Status. Gotta write it down.
With Cecil also having passed her Appraisal—and Allen writing the details down—it was time for Krena to place her hands on the crystal. Just like when she was five, the crystal shone with a brilliant light.
* * *
Name: Krena
HP: S
MP: C
Attack: S
Endurance: A
Agility: A
Intelligence: C
Luck: B
Talent: Sword Lord
* * *
“Y-You’re a Sword Lord. Are you perhaps Sword Lord Krena?”
“Huh? Yes, that’s me.”
Krena looked surprised that the examiner knew her. In all likelihood, all the examiners had been informed beforehand that Krena would be coming. Naturally, Krena was given a pass and received a numbered tag.
This confirms that Status rankings aren’t affected by level or age. I guess a three-star class is rare even here.
Apparently, on average, around one Sword Lord was born in this country every decade. That was how rare it was. That said, the massive empire to the north had a few dozen Sword Lords, which meant the number was simply proportional to total population.
From what he heard from the viscount and magic tutor, Allen had figured out the general rarity of each star tier.
One-star classes: One in ten people
Two-star classes: One in a thousand people
Three-star classes: Ten people in the kingdom
Five-star classes: The existence of one is a miracle
The last to be Appraised was Allen. As the examiner was still reeling from the results of Krena’s Appraisal, Allen stepped forward and placed his hand on the crystal.
Light seemed to blast out almost as a physical wave, filling the square in its entirety. The surrounding examiners and examinees all whirled over in surprise and alarm.
“WHOAAAA!” cried Allen’s examiner as he squinted his eyes, his expectation rising as he tried to catch Allen’s reading.
* * *
Name: Allen
HP: E
MP: E
Attack: E
Endurance: E
Agility: E
Intelligence: E
Luck: E
Class: Summoner
* * *
“What... What is with these results?! All your stats are ranked ‘E’! Y-You fail.”
Looks like my class really does show up properly when I get Appraised now. But still, I failed, huh? I had a feeling this would happen when I heard they’re doing the Appraisal Ceremony again just now. I guess that’s the end of volume 3, then.
“Wha— You can’t fail Allen!” Cecil protested indignantly. At the same time, Krena asked, “Why did Allen fail?” Dogora stared fixedly at the readings panel as if confirming every letter one by one.
“Well, looks like I’ve failed, guys. Good luck with your exams! Let’s discuss where to meet up after you’re done.”
Cecil retorted, “Why’re you moving on like nothing happened?!”
I mean, there are still plenty of things I can do even without attending the Academy.
Honestly, Allen was fine with failing. He had known that all his stats would show up as “E” and had already considered the possibility that this might lead to his rejection. He had received a written notice from the viscount just in case, explaining that the Appraisal result from when he was five years old was mistaken and that he did indeed possess a Talent, but that letter clearly was not going to be of any help in this situation.
Still, this wasn’t an entire waste. There’s a lot that I can deduce now based on the fact that they fail Talented applicants if their stat rankings are low.
While in line, Allen had observed the examiners fail almost one out of every three examinees. It was obvious that just having a Talent was not enough to guarantee admittance. From this, Allen figured out two things:
There is a variation in stat rankings among those with Talents, which affects how strong they could ultimately become.
It is possible to estimate how strong someone can get based on their stat rankings.
The first implied that it was possible that two people could possess the same Talent yet have different stat rankings—for example, a Swordsman with low Attack was possible. The Academy, for its part, wanted Talented applicants with Statuses actually suited to their Talents. Based on the examiner’s reaction, Krena, Cecil, and Dogora had all met this requirement.
The second meant growth was determined by stat rankings; it was possible to tell how strong someone could become just by looking at their stat rankings and doing the math. The Academy saw no point in accepting and training someone who, even after three years of education and training, would prove to be useless on the battlefield.
This was likely the real reason why there was no practical element to the entrance exam. Some applicants may have done some leveling, whereas some were still Lvl. 1. Whether someone had leveled up or not was a bad standard of judgment, as it did nothing to confirm how useful their Talent and stats were.
I see, they must have determined whether to pass someone or not based solely on their written exam results and the Appraisal from when they were five, but after those nobles falsified their Talents, they now conduct an Appraisal on the spot. This way, there’s no way for applicants to lie about their Talents, plus the Academy also manages to weed out those with low stats. Two birds with one stone.
“What’s all the commotion? You shouldn’t make a scene just because you failed.”
A blue-haired young man approached them. Based on his flippant aura, he was clearly not an examiner. At his side was a silver-haired elf, who seemed in the prime of his maturity. They had apparently been drawn by the fuss that Krena and Cecil were kicking up.
Oh! It’s a real-life elf!
Allen was slightly excited at his first sight of a fantasy race since coming to this world.
“Uh, um, actually...”
After the examiner explained the situation, the blue-haired young man said, “Really? Let me take a look at the Appraisal results,” and peered over.
Cecil closed in on him, demanding, “It makes no sense for Allen to have failed! I need an explanation for this!”
“What do you mean by ‘it makes no sense’?” the man returned.
“It means exactly what it means! After all, Allen is strong enough to kill a murdergalsh by himself!” As someone who had watched the life-and-death battle between Allen and a murdergalsh up close, Cecil absolutely refused to accept this turn of events.
“A murdergalsh? At his age? Now, that is a feat indeed. And yet all his stat rankings are ‘E.’ It’s true that I’ve never seen an Appraisal result like this...” The man turned and shrugged at the elf. “Maybe this really is your guy.”
What does that last part mean?
The elf’s eyebrows rose in surprise. “So Lord Rohzen was right. A young man with all his stat rankings at ‘E’ really did show up this year.”
“Did Rohzen say anything else, Headmaster? It’s hard to make a call based on this alone.”
What’s going on? What’re they talking about?
“Our Lord is not so proficient at reading the future. In the first place, foresight is not a gift that naturally belongs to spirits. And more importantly, as I’ve asked time and again, can you stop referring to our object of worship so casually?”
“Ah, sorry. I’m not good at using ‘lord’ and ‘lady’ and all that.”
“So then, Sir Helmios. Can you help confirm the validity of this reading?”
“Gimme a sec; I’ll take a look.”
The blue-haired man’s golden eyes gleamed as he turned toward Allen.
Allen and Cecil both recognized the names “Helmios” and “Headmaster.” According to their magic tutor, Helmios was the name of the Hero who had been born in Giamut. This Helmios had referred to the elf as Headmaster, the title for the person at the very top of Academy City.
Helmios’s eyes glowed even brighter as he continued staring at Allen.
So, the Hero showed up. What’s he doing in a place like this? And when he said he’d “take a look,” he was talking about me, right?
“Uh, lemme see... His Attack is 570— Whoa! His Intelligence is 1,630!”
Hold on a damn moment! He totally has an Appraisal skill! And he’s just exposing my Status in front of the whole world! Why does a five-star Hero get an Appraisal skill while an eight-star like me doesn’t?! The gods are so going to get some prayers for this!
Allen practically bit his tongue trying not to exclaim, “Don’t read my stats out loud!” Doing so would have confirmed that Helmios really was reading his Status.
“His Intelligence would have to be ‘S’ to be higher than 1,600,” the headmaster said, peering at the plaque displaying Allen’s Appraisal results. “So why is it ‘E’ here?”
“Something’s not adding up,” Helios announced. “This Status isn’t enough to defeat a murdergalsh.”
“Is that so?”
“Mm-hmm. His Attack, Agility, and Endurance are all lower than what a murdergalsh would have. He wouldn’t last a second. His Intelligence is high, sure, and his overall Status is close to that of an Archwizard, but he doesn’t have any magic skills listed.”
Okay, seriously, can you stop? That said, his analysis is correct. He’s not the Hero for nothing, I suppose.
“An Archwizard who can’t use magic...” The headmaster frowned as he tried to wrap his mind around what Helmios was saying.
“I believe this Talent that I’ve never heard of—‘Summoner’—is the key. Your name is Allen, right? Apparently the Appraisal Ceremony equipment is broken, so I’ll Appraise you myself.”
Cecil broke into a smile. “In other words, Allen passes, right?! Allen, you passed!”
“Hmm, but we would want to see a little bit of his powers as a Summoner. It’d be hard to make a call if we don’t know anything about what he can do.”
“Huh? That’s all you need? Allen, show them that large be—?!”
Allen stepped up from behind Cecil in a split second and covered her mouth. Can you not give away my personal info too?! So, how should I handle this? From what’s been said, it seems like they were looking for me. In that case...
“I’m sorry for the commotion, Mr. Examiner,” Allen said, ignoring Helmios’s expectant look. “Since I’ve failed, I’ll get out of your hair now. Wouldn’t want to waste any more of your time, with how long the line is behind me and all.”
“Uh...what? Huh?”
With Allen’s hand still over her mouth, Cecil made an indignant rumble that sounded something like, “What do you think you’re saying?!”
Helmios interrupted, “But I’m saying that I’ll pass you if you show me your power.”
Allen turned to him with a confused look. “I’m sorry. You don’t appear to be an examiner. May I ask who you are?”
Both the headmaster and examiner went, “Huh?!”
After a short pause, Helmios gathered himself and said, “Oh, I’m sorry. My name is Helmios. I’m the Hero, if you’ve heard of me.”
“Hero? Don’t think I have. Is that a reason why I have to show you my power?”
Another “Huh?!” went around. No one expected Allen to maintain his attitude even after learning of Helmios’s identity.
“Enough,” the headmaster cut in. “I, the headmaster, order you to show us. Would that do?”
“I refuse,” Allen replied firmly.
“What?!” The headmaster did not expect Allen to remain uncooperative still.
“If you’re admitted into the Academy, you’re going to have to show it off anyways,” Helmios pointed out. “Why are you so against it?”
“I never said that I’m against showing my Talent,” Allen returned.
“What?”
“I’m saying that I don’t want to show it for free.”
“What do you mean?”
“My Talent is so rare that even the headmaster has never seen or heard of it before, right? If you want to see it in action, then I want something in return.”
“Like what? Money?”
“No, I’m not interested in money. Judging from your conversation with the headmaster, you’ve seen my Status. Would you mind showing me yours using the crystal? Then I’ll call it even.”
Allen knew that the whole thing about the Appraisal Ceremony equipment being broken was just something that Helmios had made up on the spot. Helmios shot a glance at the headmaster, who sighed and nodded to give his permission.
Helmios shrugged. “I mean, I don’t really mind.” He approached the crystal.
Awesome, I’m glad that worked. This is going to be really helpful for my analysis. I haven’t the faintest idea why the Hero would be roaming around the exam grounds, but this is a lucky break for me.
Three years from now, Allen would have to head to war. Just how much strength would he need to survive it? Just how powerful was the Hero who had managed to beat the Demon Lord Army back and restore Giamut’s borders? This was what Allen wanted to know.
When the Hero’s hand touched the crystal, it glowed—not as brightly as it had for Allen, but still more than enough to be impressive.
* * *
Name: Helmios
HP: S
MP: A
Attack: S
Endurance: S
Agility: S
Intelligence: A
Luck: A
Talent: Hero
* * *
Whoa, it’s all just “A”s and “S”s. This is more of a physical combat build, I see. Pretty much as I’d expected.
Allen could not help doing some light analysis while copying down the reading into his grimoire.
“Okay, I’ve shown you my Status. Now show me your Talent.”
“Yes, sir.”
Other nearby examiners and examinees had also been watching the exchange between Allen and Helmios. They gave Allen their undivided attention as he thrust out his hand.
Mousey, come out.
Beast H, a Summon in the form of a small mouse, suddenly appeared on Allen’s palm, prompting gasps and murmurs from all around along the lines of “A mouse came out of his hand!” Everyone leaned in for a closer look, including Krena and Dogora, neither of whom had yet seen Allen’s powers in action. Cecil, the only person who had, seemed proud for some reason.
With his eyes still on the mouse, Helmios said, “You called out—no, summoned a beast out of thin air. Thus, ‘Summoner.’ I see how it is.”
Similarly, the headmaster also seemed to be analyzing what he was seeing. He muttered under his breath, “This looks like the ability to control beasts. It seems similar to a Tamer... I’d heard they were wiped out by the Demon Lord, but...are the beasts Summoned by a Summoner different?”
Hold on, did he just say that the Demon Lord wiped out the Tamers?
An adventurer Allen knew, Raven, had confirmed before that this world did not have a class that fought by controlling monsters. Turns out it had existed in the past, though.
“Now, I’ve shown you my Talent, so I’ll be taking my leave.”
Allen’s understanding was that he only needed to display an example of what he was capable of as a Summoner to pass this Appraisal Ceremony. Without waiting for the headmaster’s answer, he headed to the examiner—Mousey still in his hands—to pick up a numbered tag, then headed for the school building. Krena and the others followed. Helmios and the headmaster silently watched the children go, appearing lost in thought.
When they were out of earshot, Cecil hissed, “You almost failed, Allen!”
“If it happens, it happens,” Allen shrugged. I can still go to the battlefield even if I don’t get into the Academy, after all.
There were multiple ways to get sent off to the front lines. Allen had looked them up ahead of time in case he failed to enroll for some reason.
Graduate from the Academy
Volunteer
Accompany a noble
Go as a sentenced criminal
He was already going through the process of applying for the Academy, so there was no need to explain the first one.
Volunteering was apparently an option available to all with no barrier to entry. Those without a Talent would not be dispatched to fight on the front lines, but armies still needed people to cook, transport supplies, provide medical attention, and any other number of tasks that could be done from the relative safety of the back. This system was only really used in Giamut, and those without any other means to make a living made up a bulk of the volunteers.
The third method was an option due to the fact that very few nobles went to the battlefield alone. Instead, they would bring subordinates along, which the kingdom permitted. Mihai had been one of the few exceptions who did not, but there were nobles who would have more than ten people accompany them. These escorts did not necessarily have to be the noble’s personal attendants; they could even be adventurers or mercenaries, with the only requirement being that they had a Talent. This was the option that Allen had planned on defaulting to on the off chance he failed to get into the Academy.
The fourth method was a way for people—especially those with Talents—caught for committing crimes to shorten their sentence. Depending on the severity of their crime, they could serve on the front lines for one, three, or five years. Seventy percent died within five years on the battlefield, but any who managed to survive would then be released for good.
