Yuuji had faced many terrifying things in his short, violently magical tenure at Halcyon Academy.
A fireball that gained sentience and unionized.
A grimoire that whispered tax advice in the middle of the night.
Elira Vortemer, before morning tea.
But nothing—nothing—could have prepared him for the Inter-House Tournament orientation.
He stood in the Hall of Triumphs, a cavernous chamber filled with magical banners, suspended sigils, and glowing plaques that displayed the names of past champions—half of whom had suspicious cause-of-death listings beside them.
Around him, the elite of the elite were gathering.
Every house. Every year. Every absurdly overpowered lunatic with a sword and a smirk.
Too many uniforms. Too much magic. And far, far too much muscle.
[Warning: You Are Surrounded by Hotblooded Characters. Ego Density Reaching Unsafe Levels.]
[System Tip: Try Not to Look Like the Tutorial NPC.]
Yuuji took one cautious step forward.
Immediately, someone bumped into him.
No—correction. He was shouldered aside by a human wall wearing the crimson-gold crest of House Drakos.
The guy was six-foot-something, veins like enchanted cables, with spiked pauldrons and an aura of pure protein-based arrogance.
"Move it, beanpole," the guy grunted.
Yuuji stumbled back a step, blinking.
"Wow," he muttered. "Didn't realize protein powder came with fire resistance."
The human wall either didn't hear him or was too busy flexing in three directions at once.
A flare of chilly air passed beside him.
Elira Vortemer arrived—cool, composed, and so terrifyingly regal that the room's ambient temperature dropped at least three degrees.
She gave Yuuji a glance. "You're late."
"I had to dodge three sword poses, one magical duel, and a guy doing shirtless mana yoga in the hallway."
"Elira Vortemer."
A new voice—smooth, aristocratic, and laced with condescension—cut through the noise.
Yuuji turned just in time to see Liam Everhart strolling toward them, silver-trimmed uniform immaculate, blonde hair glinting like it had been polished by a stylist-mage.
He didn't look at Yuuji.
He didn't need to.
Yuuji felt the judgment anyway.
"I see our tutor has arrived," Liam said smoothly. "Still unarmed, I presume?"
"Hey," Yuuji said. "I have... sarcasm."
[Passive Ability Triggered: Verbal Evasion (Rank F)]
[Effect: -2 Aggro from Hostile NPCs. +3 Irritation to Named Rivals.]
Liam made a sound halfway between a scoff and a polite cough.
Then another voice boomed through the room.
"Alright, brats! Quiet down!"
The crowd parted as Professor Caldris descended the grand stairs, trailed by several hovering, rune-bound scrolls and one mildly concerned assistant.
She didn't raise her voice again. She didn't have to.
Magic pooled around her like gravity.
"Welcome," the Headmistress said, "to the official orientation for this year's Inter-House Tournament."
Her eyes swept the room, pausing—briefly—on Yuuji.
He stood up straighter on reflex.
"You are here because you've been selected—by faculty, performance, or sheer narrative disruption," she added, gaze sharpening.
Yuuji looked down. "Why does that feel personal?"
[Main Quest: Survive the Tournament Arc]
➤ Phase 1: Introduction and Character Flag Setup.➤ Objective: Meet the competition. Identify who might kill you.➤ Optional: Don't trip over your own aura.
Caldris gestured, and several magical sigils unfolded midair, forming glowing panels labeled with names and house crests.
"One representative from each primary house will form a team," she said. "Each team will compete in trials testing combat, cooperation, enchantment, and narrative relevance."
A few students whispered at that last one.
"You will be evaluated on performance, creativity, survivability, and crowd appeal. Some of you were born for this. Others… will have to adapt."
Her eyes flicked to Yuuji again.
He gave her a thumbs-up, which immediately felt like a mistake.
[Achievement Unlocked: Thumb of False Confidence]
➤ +1 Boldness, -3 Self-Preservation Instinct
"And now," Caldris continued, "introductions."
A holographic roster appeared beside her. One by one, names flared to life, and the students stepped forward.
First was Dorian Graves, a brooding necromancer from House Umbramire, wearing more skull motifs than was strictly healthy. His summoned shadow-thing waved politely.
Then came Kaiya Storme, dual-blade prodigy of House Virellia, who unsheathed both weapons in the middle of her introduction for absolutely no reason.
After that was Ajax Flamereach, the walking forge that had shoulder-checked Yuuji earlier.
"Fire magic, brute strength, and zero indoor voice," Yuuji muttered. "A classic shonen archetype."
And then—
"Seraine Thorne, House Sylverveil."
Yuuji looked up.
Ah.
There he was.
Cool smile. Tousled hair. Wind-swept cloak billowing even though there was no wind indoors. Seraine, his roommate, team member, and now apparently tournament contestant.
He winked at Yuuji on the way down the stairs.
Yuuji whispered to Elira, "How does his hair do that?"
"Charm magic," she said flatly. "Probably illegal."
Then came Liam.
Then Elira.
And then, horrifyingly…
"Yuuji Hoshino. Halcyon Academy Affiliate."
The room went quiet.
Somewhere in the back, someone muttered, "Wait, who?"
Another voice: "Isn't he the guy who enchanted a tripping rock?"
Yuuji cleared his throat, walked stiffly down the steps, and stood beside Elira, trying very hard not to make eye contact with the glowing scoreboard listing everyone's mana stats.
His was labeled: "???"
[System Notice: Your Actual Stats Are Obscured Due to Tutorial Mode Suppression.]
[Suggested: Continue Bluffing.]
Headmistress Caldris waved again.
"Now that introductions are complete," she said, "you will be divided into three-man squads and assigned preliminary trial objectives."
The groups flickered into existence on the panels.
Team 3: Elira Vortemer, Seraine Thorne, Yuuji Hoshino.
"Oh good," Yuuji muttered. "We're Team Main Cast."
Liam, standing two teams over, narrowed his eyes.
From across the room, Ajax cracked his knuckles loud enough to make a few first-years flinch.
"This is going to go so well," Yuuji whispered.
Later That Evening...
Yuuji collapsed onto the nearest couch in the student lounge.
His head was buzzing with too many names, too many stats, and the crushing realization that his current rank was, according to the leaderboard, "Probably Dies First."
Elira settled into the armchair beside him, flipping a page of her ever-present grimoire.
"You didn't trip," she offered.
"That's the bar now?" Yuuji groaned.
"It's higher than you think. Seraine made a first-year faint just by smiling."
"And Ajax threatened to suplex a basilisk."
"A classic Drakos mating ritual."
He stared at her. "…What?"
"Kidding," she said.
He wasn't sure.
[New Quest: Survive Team Trials Without Getting Vaporized]➤ Optional Objective: Score Higher Than Liam➤ Bonus: Impress Elira Without Setting Something on Fire
"I'm not ready for this," Yuuji muttered, slumping back.
"You weren't ready for the duel, either. Or enchantment class. Or your first toast."
"That toast had opinions!"
She gave him a sidelong glance. Her lips curled—just slightly.
"You'll manage. Somehow."
He exhaled. "That's the scariest encouragement I've ever heard."