The Villain is Too Good at Sniping

11. Enrollment (1)

A week had passed since then.

I was staying at the guest house guided by Professor Biern.

The items provided by Arsen, including the watch and spare uniform, were neatly stacked in a corner of my room. They would be moved to my assigned dorm once the entrance exam was over.

And I wasn’t the only one staying at this guest house.

“Did you sleep well last night, Zion Illeonhart?”

“Yes. Did you sleep well, Rebecca?”

“…Of course.”

Student Council President Rebecca. She had also rented a floor of the guest house.

According to Exion, the dormitory was under construction, so she had no choice but to stay here.

The reason was probably because there were many incoming students this time, and the dorm couldn’t accommodate everyone unless it was expanded.

“Is there anything else to say?”

“No. That’s all.”

“I’ll take my leave then. I expect to see your results in the exam, Zion Illeonhart.”

“Yes. President Rebecca.”

Sometimes, when I ran into Rebecca, I felt this strange atmosphere. It wasn’t something I created, but rather an ambiance that Rebecca herself generated.

I returned to my room and closed the door.

The admission process was handled swiftly. There wasn’t much for me to do, thanks to my prior efforts at Esperand.

My written and practical exam scores were moderate, around the middle range. Since it was the entrance exam scores that affected class assignments, it wasn’t a big issue.

First, I checked my main quest.

──[New Goal]──

▶[Main] Enroll in Arsene Academy (New!)

Goal: Pass the entrance exam

◇ Reward: Unlock additional system (special privileges)

*Sub-goals

□ Talk to characters from the original story

□ Rank within the top 3 in the entrance exam

□ Defeat n students in the entrance exam

*Some functions are restricted since the system is not fully unlocked yet.

──────────

The key goal is to pass the entrance exam.

In reality, passing itself isn’t difficult. Unless you’re extremely incompetent, you’re bound to pass the entrance exam.

As long as you don’t get caught cheating or intentionally troll, you’ll pass the exam without issues.

The sub-goals are there to be achieved somehow, and none of them seemed particularly challenging.

This place, where the entrance exam is held, has many hidden pieces.

Veteran players have repeated the process multiple times, collecting all the rewards, and I was no exception.

…Originally, I would have given everything to the main characters, but…

“For now, I’ll just survive.”

Thinking about the original story’s villains I’ll face in the future, I need to get stronger somehow. I need to survive first, then I can do whatever I want.

So, I’ll take my share without getting in the way of the main characters. Whatever is left over, I’ll take care of.

Whether the protagonist will collect hidden pieces like the original story’s player is unclear, but I can check directly.

I didn’t have much to worry about.

After all, the ‘entrance exam’ was nothing compared to the brutal curriculum at Esperand.

…How do I know?

I didn’t want to know.

***

The Colosseum-shaped auditorium, Geord’s Hall.

“Welcome, all the prospective students who have come to Arsene!”

A female student on the stage, holding a microphone, spoke.

Her arm badge indicated she was a student council member. In other words, the ‘tudent council president’ was also present.

“Is that the student council?”

“Only nobles can join, right?”

“And…”

Applause erupted from various parts of the room. It was obvious where most of the attention was focused.

Rebecca, the student council president, exuded an overwhelming presence, sitting in the center of the student council. She was a person who could stop people in their tracks, making them lose their minds with her captivating charm.

Beside the student council stood Arsene’s professors and staff, showcasing the council’s influence within Arsene.

In Arsene, the student council held a position that even professors couldn’t take lightly.

Even unreasonable demands could be forcefully pushed through if it was the student council.

And on top of that, they received numerous privileges. That’s why second-year students strived to become the student council president.

The current student council president was ‘Rebecca von Anastasia Grandeur’.

Rebecca, on the podium, was clearly emphasizing the existence of the student council to the freshmen.

However, Rebecca was gazing at me with an inexplicable, subtle gaze. It was an unsettling stare.

“Those who have passed the written and practical exams will take the entrance exam at the Geord Auditorium today.”

A female student was enthusiastically explaining into the microphone, but…

The freshmen, including me, couldn’t focus on her words. Our gazes were fixed on the podium.

A portal wrapped in black sparks.

An artificially constructed gate was installed at one corner of the podium. This gate, which existed but didn’t exist in Arsene, would transport us to…

None other than the location of the entrance exam.

Beep!

Just then, the sudden microphone feedback startled the students.

The student council member holding the microphone was also taken aback. She frantically checked the microphone, but there was nothing wrong with it.

“What’s going on? What’s wrong?”

“Why is it doing this?”

As the student on the podium panicked, the freshmen also became flustered. Amidst the growing chaos, another noise erupted from the ceiling.

It was only then that the female student grasped the situation and put down the microphone. A woman’s voice resonated from the ceiling.

“This is an announcement from the broadcasting room. Due to changes in today’s schedule, the entrance exam will be temporarily suspended.”

“related information will be announced shortly.”

“Please remain in your seats until then.”

The microphone connection had already been cut off.

The source of the noise was not the microphone on the podium but the broadcasting room outside.

As the surroundings grew chaotic, I felt gazes directed at me.

It wasn’t Rebecca. She had her eyes closed, sitting calmly.

“What’s with that gun…?”

Several male students were staring at me. The leader, a tall, burly guy, sneered.

“I thought something was off, and it turns out there’s a weirdo here too.”

He approached me, his eyes openly provocative.

“This isn’t a joke, Arsene.”

“What’s with this guy?”

“Look, he’s suspicious. How did he pass the practical exam with that gun?”

…What are these guys talking about?

I was simply at a loss. However, I had a hunch. A group of people was eyeing my Glock as if they wanted to snatch it.

“Did he pass the exam with this? Are you kidding? You didn’t even take the exam properly.”

“He must have used some trick to get in.”

These guys’ words were baseless, a mere leap of logic—

But I had actually cheated on the exam. I had colluded with a professor to get a free pass.

These guys’ words were piercing through the truth. Of course, they themselves wouldn’t know.

“Hey, are you ignoring me?”

If there was a guy with this physique among the extras, he would have definitely caught attention.

However, no matter how hard I try to remember, I don’t recall seeing a gorilla like him in the game. That means these guys must have committed foul play and got kicked out of Arsen.

I didn’t bother responding. It wasn’t worth it.

Anyway, the entrance exam would resume soon, and this would be the only time I’d see these guys’ faces.

But the leader, who resembled a gorilla, approached me.

“If you don’t answer-“

It was the moment he was about to reach out to me. The broadcast resumed, and he froze, his hand still outstretched.

-This is an announcement from the admissions office.

-This year, we have an unprecedented number of applicants.

-Therefore, there will be some changes to the entrance exam.

Naturally, there was an uproar. The instructors navigated through the crowd of anxious applicants.

“What’s going on? What’s changing?”

The commotion soon died down. The guy who was approaching me also clicked his tongue and returned to his original spot. I guess he wasn’t reckless enough to challenge an instructor.

-Our admissions office will evaluate applicants fairly and transparently.

The same old script.

The next words were something I’d heard dozens, even hundreds of times. Unconsciously, I was already thinking about the next line.

“This entrance exam…”

-This entrance exam…

A brief pause, and then…

“will be held in a Battle Royale format.”

-It will be held in a “Battle Royale” format.

The guy who had ignored me earlier raised an eyebrow, seemingly thinking he could take me down in the exam.

But he didn’t know. This entrance exam wouldn’t be the usual one-on-one evaluation, but a Battle Royale.

In other words…

-Each applicant will be assigned a number and must compete against each other.

This entrance exam is an individual competition, and these guys’ friends won’t be able to help them.

-Your score will be calculated based on the number of people you defeat, your survival time, and your tactics.

-Naturally, the longer you survive, the higher your score will be.

-All scores will be updated in real-time. Our professors here will be watching, so please show us a fair competition.

-Now, let me introduce the professors who will be evaluating this exam. First, we have Professor Siren.

One of the professors suddenly stood up and waved. He was the one introduced on the broadcast.

-We also have Professor Reina, Instructor Sizard, and Professor Armin, who will be observing your exam.

-Additionally, the scores you earn in this exam will be converted into mileage and credited to your account.

“……!”

This time, I heard a stifled gasp from beside me. The voice was so familiar that I didn’t need to turn around to know who it was.

“So, even after deducting the tuition fee…….”

…LaLa Stillhaiden.

She was sitting next to me, counting the numbers with her hands spread out.

-“For students who achieve excellent grades and rank first, Arsene has prepared a ‘pecial privilege’ to be awarded.”

-“We wish good luck to all of you, prospective students. That’s all.”

The explanation was lengthy, but the content was concise.

As all prospective students entered the examination hall, each of them wore a bracelet.

This bracelet had the function of absorbing the shock that came to oneself, but unfortunately, its durability was limited. If it received damage above a certain level or was subjected to a set number of shocks, it would break.

If the bracelet broke or was removed, the student would immediately be eliminated.

Eliminated students would be sent back to the Geord Observatory.

Of course, once sent back, they would no longer be able to earn points, and it would be all over. If they failed to meet the minimum requirements, they might even be forced to leave Arsene.

Beep-

The sound of the communication line being cut off was the last thing I heard.

“I’ll be waiting. Let’s meet in the examination hall.”

I didn’t even want to face those guys, but an unexpected promise was made.

First, the gorilla-like guy whose name was called went forward with his colleagues. It seemed that a fierce battle would ensue once they entered the gate. This entrance exam was different from the previous ones.

“A-839, Sion Illeonhart.”

Soon, a bracelet was placed on my wrist as well. The bracelet, which I saw with the [Observer’s Eye], was an exquisite artifact at the level of overtechnology.

In front of the gate, the called students were entering one by one.

Battle Royale. The well-known rule was that the last surviving student would take first place.

This time, it wasn’t the law of “survival of the fittest” but “survival of the strongest” that applied. Even the gorilla-like guy would realize it once he entered the examination hall.

…In this entrance exam…

It wasn’t that the strong survived…

But that those who survived became strong.