Class Competition *1

"I messed up."

Behind the academy's administrative building, Reisou munched on a potato bread, nearly in tears after realizing he had forgotten to save system points to buy another GK Card.

A few minutes earlier, while browsing the system store, he spotted an E-Grade GK Card listed for two system points, which instantly reminded him that he didn't have any, as the one gifted by the system had already been used.

'I'm so stupid! Now I have to wait for the school expeditions to start or try find a way to sneak into a public Gate,' Reisou thought, finishing his bread and heading toward his classroom.

Public Gates, unlike private ones, were available for any guild or independent Hunter to explore. However, it was still necessary to have a license, and to get one, he would need to be at least eighteen years old.

Frustrated, Reisou entered the classroom and took his seat, thinking of a solution for his problem while pretending to sleep.

A few hours later, when classes finally ended, he was free and decided to check on 2B. He had left her alone all day and was concerned she might have tried to go out on her own.

Although she was someone who wouldn't disobey his orders, he still needed to check just to be safe.

Upon entering his room, Reisou spotted 2B using his computer. For some reason, the sight of her completely focused on whatever she was doing was oddly amusing to him.

Until he realized something.

'Wait… I never told her my password, and my "homework" folder is on the desktop!'

Reisou felt like his life would end if she accessed his "educational" materials. In an instant, he rushed toward her, praying that he had some dignity left.

"Hey, 2B! Don't open that homework folder!" he shouted, causing 2B to turn her head and look at him.

"Master, you're back," she said, smiling warmly, making him freeze in place, embarrassed by her sudden display of affection.

With a sigh, he walked up to her and saw that she was merely browsing the internet, which put him at ease. However, as he stared at the screen, something felt off.

"2B, how did you discover my password, and what are you doing on the Japanese government's website?" he asked, puzzled, pointing at the screen. "And why is there a confidential warning in there?"

2B glanced at the screen before turning back to face him again and said, "Sorry for using your machine without permission, Master. But yesterday, you said I couldn't go with you because I didn't have a real identity in this world, so I decided created one myself."

Then, 2B explained how she had bypassed the computer's password verification and hacked into the Japanese central server, breaking through their firewall to create a legitimate identity for herself.

Reisou was stunned as she casually explained how she had hacked into the government server like it was nothing. Then again, considering she was a high-tech android from an advanced world, this was probably child's play for her.

Even if 2B wasn't built for hacking, she was still leagues ahead of any hacker.

"You're full of surprises," Reisou said, shaking his head. "But even with a real identity, if people see you here, we're going to be in trouble."

"Don't worry, Master, I've already taken care of it," 2B replied calmly, making Reisou raise an eyebrow.

He didn't understand what she meant by saying that.

"What did you do?" 

"Secret," she said, smiling, gently placing her soft index finger against her lips.

The sudden display of her playful demeanor made Reisou sigh once again.

After ensuring she had deleted the "homework" folder, he went to take a bath. He just hoped she hadn't done anything outrageous—like enrolling herself in Sozukusen.

'Nah, that's not possible,' Reisou thought, dismissing the idea.

Once he finished his bath, Reisou sat on the couch to watch TV when an idea suddenly popped into his mind.

He rushed to 2B, who was still using the computer, and asked her to forge a fake identity and Hunter license for him, confident it would be an opportunity for them to enter a public Gate without raising suspicion.

2B readily agreed, and after completing the process of inputting his new identity into the Japanese government server, Reisou picked up his cellphone to check.

It worked.

He now had two separate logins in the government's application, which meant entering a public Gate was officially within reach.

While examining his fake ID, Reisou raised an eyebrow at some of the details.

"Eh... 2B, why does it say I'm married to someone named Nibee?" he asked, turning to face the white-haired android beside him.

"Don't worry, Master. This is the name of my fake identity, and we're registered as a newly married Hunter couple to make the verification process easier," 2B explained, sounding very convincing.

Upon hearing her answer, Reisou tried to say something but couldn't find the words to refute it.

Hours later, they both had dinner, and once they were done, 2B lay down on his bed, ready to "sleep."

Reisou, on the other hand, stayed up playing a gacha game on his phone and eventually fell asleep as well.

- - -

"Today, we'll be having a spar between classes. Everyone, change into your PE clothes and head to the arena."

Chabashira Sae announced at the end of the second class, causing most students to feel excited.

Reisou, just like the others, was also excited for the sparring class that usually happened once a week, where classes fought against each other for training.

However, his excitement was very different from that of his classmates. For him, it was a good opportunity to test his current strength against a fellow Hunter, while other students saw it as a chance to boost their popularity by defeating popular students.

His class, 2E, wasn't as strong as others, but it did possess a share of strong figures, including Horikita Suzune, Hayama Hayato, and Sudō Ken.

Horikita Suzune was at the top of the class, regarded as a formidable mage-swordswoman, followed by Ken in second place and Hayama Hayato in third.

She seamlessly blended her ice element with powerful sword techniques while also boasting a substantial amount of Nano reserves.

'But her unapproachable personality is just like in the original work,' Reisou thought, sneaking a quick glance at the beautiful black-haired girl with striking red eyes, who always seemed to be alone.

Her title of Iceberg Princess really spoke for itself.

Before Reisou got up from his seat to follow the other boys to the locker room, he overheard some of his classmates excitedly chatting behind him. He heard their talk briefly.

"This time, I will definitely win a match!" a random boy shouted to his friends, who were struggling to hold back their laughter.

"Pfff~ Yeah, yeah, bro, I trust you," his friend, wearing a red bandana, answered, covering his mouth.

"Me too. Last time, trusting you cost me five thousand yen," another one said sarcastically, showing his empty wallet.

"Tsk, you bunch of snakes," the boy grumbled angrily, chasing after the duo, who were now laughing.

Seeing such a display of friendship made Reisou smile. Even though he didn't have any friends in this new world, he wasn't entirely alone anymore.

He had a cute girl to keep him company.

A small smile tugged at his lips as he walked toward the locker room, thinking about the exotic, white-haired android.

- - -

After everyone changed into their PE clothes and gathered at the arena entrance, a woman with light green eyes and brown hair tied in a side ponytail approached Sae, offering a brief greeting. She was dressed in a simple black and white tracksuit, holding a red tablet in her right hand.

Sae simply nodded in response before walking away, leaving the students under her care.

The woman didn't seem bothered by Sae's attitude. Instead, she smiled and turned to the class, instructing them to follow her.

This person was Takei Miwa, the head coach of the second-year, and a highly popular teacher among most students for her unique personality.

"Okay, we've arrived. This is where you guys will fight against Class 2C," Miwa explained, pointing to a dark gray square area the size of a tennis court. "So, wait here for a moment. I'll bring the other class, and then we'll start forming the teams."

When Miwa walked away to gather the other class, some students immediately began chatting among themselves, while others started warming up.

Reisou chose to join the latter group. He was eager to test his abilities and measure his strength against another Hunter.

Unlike weak Gate monsters, even a low-ranked Hunter could be dangerous, as humans were often unpredictable.

Also, Hunters were not invincible, and a single opportunity could be enough for someone weaker to defeat a stronger opponent. After all, only a select few Hunters possessed strong defenses, such as regeneration or muscles tough enough to withstand heavy blows.

As Reisou distracted himself by doing some push-ups, Miwa returned with the students from class 2C. Instantly, he spotted a few familiar faces among them.

In class 2C, Reisou saw the glutton Nakano Itsuki, the infamous blonde "dog loser" Sawamura Spencer Eriri, the walking refrigerator number one Yukinoshita Yukino, and the traumatized Karuizawa Kei.

'Those heroines appearances are outstanding as always,' Reisou thought, standing up and wiping sweat from his forehead. Sometimes, his simp mode activated on its own.

Unlike Reisou, who kept his inner simp in check, most of his male classmates didn't hesitate to cheer when they saw the girls from the other class, especially Kei, Eriri, and Yukino, who were known as the "Princess Trio of 2C."

Aside from their beauty, those three girls held good positions on the Kiroku List, earning them great popularity among boys and envy from girls.

Miwa signaled for Class 2E to quiet down and began explaining how the matches would proceed, summarizing the rules. The classes were already familiar with the rules, but it was necessary to repeat them for legal reasons.

She then instructed both classes to form teams of three within their own class and mentioned that anyone unable to form a team would be paired with others in the same situation.

A few minutes later, Miwa had already arranged sixteen teams in a tournament-style bracket.

Reisou ended up being paired with two other unlucky individuals who didn't manage to form teams on their own.

"Okay, all teams are set," Miwa announced while tapping on her tablet, making a large weapon shelf rise from the ground, displaying a variety of weapons. "Now, Team One and Team Seven, step forward and choose your weapons."

Following her command, the members of both teams chose weapons suited to their roles and headed to the fighting area to start the match.

The first match ended in under five minutes, and the next two followed suit due to poor teamwork and a lack of strong members.

Miwa glanced at the results on her tablet, her expression tinged with disappointment. The quality of Hunters seemed to drop each year. Coming from the strongest generation, led by legends like Makima, the Gojo siblings, and the Dark Witch, such results felt discouraging.

Still, she maintained her smile and announced the next match, which immediately grabbed everyone's attention.

It was time for Team 9, also known as the princess trio, to participate, causing many boys from both classes to cheer.

Reisou was also eager to see how strong they were. He watched closely as Kei, Eriri, and Yukino chose their weapons and stepped into the fighting area.

The opposing team, made up of two boys and a girl from his class, couldn't hide their fearful expressions. Losing was certain, but backing down would be worse.

*Sshhwee

At the sound of a loud whistle, Miwa started the match.