Hellmode ~A Hardcore Gamer Becomes Peerless in Another World with Retro Game Settings~

(Okay, now I can do some analysis. I don’t know why the Hero was hanging around this area, but this might be a good start.)

I will go to the battlefield in three years. I want to know how much power is needed to survive on that battlefield. And what kind of ability value the Hero who restored the borders of the Empire in five years has.

When the Hero put his hand on the crystal, it emitted a very strong light, though not as strong as mine.

[Name] Helmios

[Strength] S

[Mana] A

[Attack] S

[Endurance] S

[Agility] S

[Intelligence] A

[Luck] A

[Talent] Hero.

(Hmmm… only A and S? He’s more of a physical type. Just as I imagined.)

While analyzing the ability values, I also recorded them in my Grimoire.

“I’ve shown you my stats. Show me your Summoner skills.”

“Then.”

Since the situation was what it was, both the students and the examiners were watching this exchange between me and the Hero.

The Principal was there, and with everyone’s attention, I thrust my  palm out in front of the Hero.

With everyone’s gaze on me,

(Come out, Chousuke.)

A H-rank Beast which looks like a rat appeared in my palm.

“”What’s this?””

Helmios, the Principal, Kurena, and Dogora stared at Chousuke. It was the first time Kurena and Dogora saw my summons. I wonder if it’s my imagination or Cecile really looked proud.

And I heard someone around me saying, “He took a rat out of his hand.”

“You brought the beast out of thin air. Summon, right, so you’re a Summoner.”

(Because the word “summon” itself exists in this world, they guessed it.)

Helmios analyzed the summon that I produced as he looked at it.

“Does this mean you tamed them? Well, it looks like a magical beast, doesn’t it? I thought Druids were destroyed by the Demon Lord. Are the beasts the Summoner produces different?”

The Principal also seemed to be analyzing my skills. He mumbled as he looked at Chousuke.

(What? Druids were destroyed by the Demon King!?)

I had heard from Raven that there were no Druids in this world, but I wonder if there used to be.

“Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ve shown my abilities as promised.”

I am aware that the only requirement to pass the Appraisal Ceremony was to show my abilities.

Without waiting for a response from the Principal, I, with Chousuke in my arms, took a ticket from the examiner and headed for the building. Everyone followed me with their eyes as I started to move. Neither Helmios nor the Principal said anything more.

“You almost failed the test!”

“Well… let’s go to the next exam.”

(Even if I fail the test, I can still go to the battlefield.)

There are several ways to get to the battlefield. I looked it up in case I fail to get into the Academy.

The first is to graduate from the Academy and go straight to the battlefield.The second is volunteering to go to the battlefield.Third, follow the Nobles to the battlefield.The fourth is to go to the battlefield as a punishment for your crime.

The first is what I am currently doing by taking an exam for admission.

As for the second one, it seems that people can volunteer regardless of their Talent. However, since information is controlled in the Kingdom, no one volunteers. Basically, the people of the Empire who are having trouble making a living volunteer. If you don’t have any Talent, you won’t be able to take part in battles, but there are many opportunities for you to work such as transporting goods, cooking, and medical care.

Third, it is common for Nobles to take subordinates with them instead of going alone. This is also recognized by the Kingdom. Mihai went alone, but there are many Nobles who take their subordinates with them. It is said that some Nobles take more than ten bodyguards with them to save their lives. I prepared these options for me if I failed the exam. If you have the Talent, you can be an adventurer or a mercenary as well as a manservant.

The fourth is that if a particularly Talented person commits crimes, they can lose their sentence in exchange for a period of service in the battlefield. Depending on the severity of the crime, it costs one year, three years or five years of service. Though 70% of criminals die on the battlefield. If the sentence is death penalty, the criminal would have to fight in the battlefield for five years, but if they survive, they are freed.

 We headed for the exam room.

(It looks like a school building, and the classrooms are more like an elementary, middle, or high school type than a university auditorium. Well, I’m twelve.)

From the passage of the building, I could see the classroom. We proceeded to the classroom that the receptionist of the building told us to go to. Cecile was a Noble, but I got on the Magic Train and entered the building without any hesitation, so was becoming the leader.

We entered the classroom and sat down in the appropriate seats. We were told that we would have to wait a little longer because the exam would be held in individual classrooms. The exam would start once the classroom was filled with about 30 students.

Shortly after, 30 students filled the room and the exam began.

I solved more and more problems in arithmetic, literature, and Kingdom History.

(Hmmm… It’s pretty hard. Huh? What year did this event take place?

I opened my Grimoire and checked the contents I had written down. There were some rather difficult questions mixed in with the easy ones.

(Is it made so that it’s not easy to get a perfect score? It is so difficult that I would have solved about 60% only if I studied normally?)

I proceeded with the test, thinking that it reminded me of my college entrance exam in my previous life.

After completing the academic test, we were given one last parchment and told that this was the last one. This seemed to be another test.　Unlike the previous questions, there were only a few lines of questions in this one. I tried to read the questions.

Question 1

There are three Goblins and one Orc. If you were a Swordsman, which one would you kill first?

Question 1 (My answer)

I will kill the three Goblins first. Then, kill the Orc one against one.

The reason is that when surrounded by four of them, I will face more attacks. I’ll waste a lot of energy and medicine. That’s why I will start with the Goblins, which are easier to defeat.

Question 2

An Orc is about to attack a Priest and a villager. If you were a Swordsman, which one will you protect?

Question 2a (My answer)

I will protect the villager.

The reason for this is that I don’t know how well the Priest can withstand the Orc’s attack, but I assume that unlike the villager, he won’t be killed by two or three attacks. If that’s the case, I will protect the villagers, who would probably die from a single attack, while the Priest can heal himself and withstand the Orc’s attacks. In this way, both the Priest and the villager can be saved.

However, if the villager is farther away and I cannot help him in time, or if the Priest doesn’t have armor and is in imminent danger, I will protect the one in more danger or the one who can be helped, not one or the other.

(What is this, some kind of essay? Does it mean that I need to have at least some knowledge of thinking skills, ethics, and also the ranks of magical beasts?)

I wondered why they would ask such questions. This world has levels and a status called [Intelligence].

That’s why the increase in [Intelligence] will help you remember things better. However, an increase in [Intelligence] ability does not mean an increase in thinking ability. It doesn’t mean that your mind will become pure and correct. It is probably a test to find out one’s knowledge about magical beasts and one’s ability to make decisions. I wonder if this is a consideration to prevent people with obvious moral problems from entering the Academy.

Somehow, I think I’ve seen the motive behind the establishment of the Academy: to train students for the battle against the Demon King’s army.

There were about three similar problems left to solve, and I was done with them all.

At the end of the exam, the examiner told me that the results would be posted in front of this building tomorrow afternoon.

It was almost dark when we found an inn and stayed there.

And the next day at noon

(I thought the checking system was pretty fast, but I guess they don’t give detailed scores. I thought it was pretty difficult, but I guess I got an S, huh?)

Dogora, B Grade, Pass

Cecile, A Grade, Pass

Krena, C Grade, Pass

Allen, S Grade, Pass

(Whoa,  Kurena, you just barely made it. They didn’t pass you just because you are a Master Swordsman, did they?)

I was told that if I received a grade of “B” or better, the Granvelle family would pay part of the examination and tuition fees. I heard that the procedure was complicated, so I did not make such a request.

The examination fee was one Gold coin. The annual tuition was 10 Gold coins. It would cost a minimum of 31 gold coins to graduate. I wonder if the Nobles of the respective territories would pay for the excellent students, even if they are serfs.

“If you have passed the exam, please gather in front of the building.”

The students who passed the exam started to gather.

I headed towards the compound and we were introduced to the Academy.

They say that uniforms will be provided. After the introduction, we were told to bring back a dress that matched our body measurements.

Also, we had to decide now if we wanted to live in the dorms or commute to Academy.

And we are told to get our own adventurer’s cards before entering the Academy.

“Allen, are you going to live in a dorm?”

Kurena asked me what I was going to do. Cecile didn’t seem to mind, even though she was a Noble. From my behavior over the past few days, the four of them have come to the conclusion that I was the leader of the group. Viscount Granvelle had also asked Allen to take care of everyone.

Cecile, too, was waiting for my answer.

“No, let’s just rent a house somewhere and live there together.”

“All right. Then let’s go to search for a suitable house.”

Cecile agreed with my answer and said that we should go look for a place to rent.

“No, we should get our adventurer’s card first. Then we can look for a place.”

Allen said that they should go get their adventurer’s cards first. Thus, Allen and the three others passed the Academy’s exam and headed for the Adventurer’s Guild.