Chapter 11
***
This time, Hector was called.
Meilyn leaned back with a disappointed pout, and Hector slowly rose from his seat.
Just like in the first class, Simon and Hector stood facing each other.
An assistant placed a skeleton set in front of each of them.
"We have about ten minutes until the bell rings,"
Aaron said, glancing at his wristwatch.
He rummaged through his pocket, pulled out a cheap necklace, and placed it around the neck of a skull model on the lectern.
"Use the skeletons to retrieve this necklace. The one holding the necklace at the end of the class wins. You are prohibited from moving yourselves or using other dark magic, but any other actions are permitted. Now, prepare yourselves."
Aaron extended his arm. Both Simon and Hector lowered their stances.
"Begin."
Simon and Hector simultaneously knelt before their skeleton sets.
'I can do this!'
Simon's eyes gleamed as he took out the skull.
'I can win this class!'
Simon channeled his Jet Black into the magic circle within the skull, awakening the undead.
A black light flickered in the skull's eye sockets, and it began to clatter as if alive.
'Let's assemble the spine in one go. From number 2 to 7...'
Simon looked up at the blackboard. But then...
"....!"
An assistant, with an apologetic expression, was removing the skeletal diagram from the board.
Aaron spoke.
"No 'cheating' is allowed in this match."
Simon gritted his teeth.
Hector's eyes flickered with surprise, but he quickly turned his attention back to his skeleton set.
Simon composed himself and began sorting through the bones.
'At least the bones are numbered. I just need to assemble them in order from number 1!'
However,
No matter how closely he examined the bones, there were no numbers written on them.
"What you used earlier were materials prepared for the class. The assistants kindly wrote the numbers on them. Commercially available skeleton sets don't usually have numbers written on the bones."
Aaron's calm voice echoed through the classroom.
"I told you, didn't I? A necromancer must memorize everything."
It felt as if the sky was falling.
Simon glanced sideways at Hector.
Hector, who had already completed advanced studies in all subjects, was assembling his skeleton without hesitation, as if he had memorized the order and structure of the Island Ratman's bones.
'...Don't give up. I've assembled one before, so I should remember the order of the important bones.'
Simon found the number 2 cervical vertebra and began assembling his skeleton piece by piece.
Aaron watched with his arms crossed.
'Special Admission Number 1 is handling a skeleton for the first time.'
He turned his gaze to Hector.
'On the other hand, that big guy has memorized the order and structure. He's relying on knowledge and memory.'
Aaron had his reasons for covering the skeletal diagram and not revealing the bone numbers from the start.
Of course, this gave those who had done advanced study an overwhelming advantage, but Aaron wasn't interested in who won.
His goal was to find students with an aptitude for summoning.
'Hector, was it? He has the knack.'
While his prior knowledge formed the basis, it was his intuition that allowed him to avoid mistakes at crucial moments.
When faced with two confusing options, he chose the correct one with a remarkably high probability.
'As for Special Admission Number 1...'
He was struggling from the very beginning.
He was making mistakes with the order of key bones, throwing off the overall balance of the assembly.
Judging by the way he was randomly swapping bones, he seemed to be half in panic.
While he didn't necessarily value advanced study, if one lacked skill, they should at least be well-prepared.
'Hector seems to be the only promising one in this class.'
Click. Click.
Hector's skeleton, with both legs already assembled, stood upright.
Applause erupted from around the classroom.
The self-proclaimed Hector faction, in particular, jumped to their feet, chanting his name.
'I'm going to win.'
Hector glanced at Simon as he began assembling the arms.
Simon was stuck on the torso, completely panicked.
'And since I'm winning anyway, I'll crush him thoroughly so he can never rise again.'
Hector finished assembling the right arm.
He could have gone straight for the necklace, but he took the time to assemble the left arm as well.
'I need to make him a laughingstock in the class. I need to crush his confidence from being a special admission student, and bring him down to rock bottom.'
He quickly finished the left arm as well.
Hector had completely assembled a skeleton without even looking at the diagram.
Hector's skeleton began to move.
It was a bit unsteady, but it was definitely taking steps forward.
After circling Simon tauntingly, the skeleton picked up the necklace from the model and placed it around its own neck.
Hector flexed his muscular right arm.
Simultaneously, his skeleton mirrored the action, raising its right arm.
The students sitting down burst into laughter.
"Five minutes remaining,"
Aaron's cold voice announced.
"...."
Simon was still struggling with assembling the torso.
Perhaps due to nerves, or perhaps due to his awareness of his opponent, the order of the bones, which he had almost remembered, vanished from his mind.
'Calm down.'
Simon put down the bones he was holding.
When he couldn't recall the order or numbers of the bones from the class, Simon relied on instinct or intuition.
But that led to a conflict between knowledge and intuition, creating a jumbled mess in his mind.
So, Simon decided to give up.
Unless one had a genius-level memory, it was impossible to memorize the precise order of every bone in a single class.
Therefore, he abandoned the knowledge he had learned in class.
'This time, I'll go with intuition. I'll just assemble it however I feel like.'
Simon swept his arm across the skeleton he had been assembling, scattering the bones.
Surprised gasps erupted from around the classroom.
"Giving up?"
"No skill, no guts."
"What kind of Special Admission Number 1 is he?"
Simon ignored the comments.
He didn't want to have any regrets, not even for a moment, within the given time.
He picked up the number 1 skull.
And in that brief moment, the common sense and habits he had formed unconsciously urged him to pick up the number 2 cervical vertebra.
'I'll do it my way!'
Ignoring the urge, Simon connected bones 5, 7, and 10 to the skull in succession.
"Uh, isn't that wrong from the start?"
"It's over."
Simon gritted his teeth.
There was no need to create the "correct" answer.
Professor Aaron's requirement was simply to assemble a skeleton and retrieve the necklace, regardless of the method.
'I'm running out of time. I'll simplify the structure by omitting the complex parts.'
'I'll build the forelegs around number 20.'
'Number 27 is crucial, so I can't omit it. Instead, I'll use number 29.'
Aaron, who had been silently observing Simon's work, widened his eyes.
'This is...!'
What Simon was creating wasn't a bipedal Island Ratman.
It was a quadrupedal beast, with both arms and legs on the ground and its upper body lowered.
'Impossible. Absurd. But...!'
There was no mistaking it.
The bone structure was similar to that of the "Gray Rat," a large rat monster found in the major cities of the western continent.
Essentially categorized as the same creature, it was known to be the evolutionary ancestor of the Island Ratman.
'He's rearranging the bones to recreate the Ratman's pre-evolved form?'
Of course, due to differences in anatomical features, ecology, and internal organs, he couldn't create an exact replica of a Gray Rat.
But what he was creating now was an "undead," unbound by the conventions of living beings.
It was possible to animate the bones with dark magic, regardless of whether they fit together perfectly.
'He attached the number 49 tailbone to the chest. Ingenious.'
'How does he know that number 11 and 16 are compatible?'
'He's not relying on memorized concepts or knowledge, but on intuitive insight?'
What was being created before his eyes was a defective product, far removed from Aaron's intended answer.
Nevertheless,
Aaron felt a wave of excitement wash over him.
'Something's not right.'
Meanwhile, Hector also sensed that something unusual was happening with Simon.
Simon's creation, with its arms and legs on the ground and its upper body lowered, was a grotesque skeleton that couldn't be called an Island Ratman.
But it was definitely taking shape.
"Go, Simon!"
Cindy Vivace suddenly jumped to her feet and cheered in the otherwise silent classroom.
"The form is good! Finish it, whatever it is!"
Rick was also on his feet, shouting encouragement.
Other students watched Simon's creation with tense expressions.
Even Meilyn, the top student in Class A, was leaning forward in her seat.
Hector gritted his teeth.
I'm the one who completed the skeleton.
I did it in the shortest time, without even looking at the diagram.
I'm the protagonist.
So why isn't anyone looking at me?
Hector grew anxious.
Just like in the first class.
'I'm not just going to sit here and watch!'
Hector issued a command to his skeleton.
Aaron had only forbidden them from moving themselves or using other dark magic; any other action was permitted.
Hector's skeleton started running towards Simon.
Simon, seemingly oblivious, was focused on his assembly, and shouts of "Watch out!" and "Dodge!" erupted from around the classroom.
Crash!
In the end,
Hector's skeleton kicked Simon's skeleton, shattering it.
The skeleton crumbled from the torso, bone fragments scattering into the air.
The students gasped and jumped to their feet.
'I won, Simon Polentia!'
Hector, dripping with sweat, grinned triumphantly.
But
'...Why?'
Simon, as if he had anticipated this, was smiling and extending his right arm.
Something was wrong.
Time seemed to slow down, and Hector's eyes followed the direction of Simon's outstretched arm.
Among the bones that had scattered from the kick, he saw an arm bone arcing through the air.
It flew past Hector's skeleton, performing a simple but precise action.
Snatch.
The arm had grabbed the necklace from the skeleton's neck.
Then, as if losing its strength, it fell to the floor.
Everyone gaped.
And at the same moment,
Ding!
The clear sound of the bell signaling the end of class reverberated through the room.
"...."
"...."
A heavy silence fell over the classroom.
No one could speak.
Even Aaron stared blankly at the skeleton arm clutching the necklace on the floor.
"T-This is... No!"
Hector cried out in protest.
"Professor Aaron! You said to retrieve the necklace with the skeleton! That's not a skeleton, it's just a meaningless bone fragment!"
A small chuckle echoed through the room.
Everyone's gaze turned towards the source of the sound.
Simon, drenched in sweat and sitting on the floor, looked up and met Hector's eyes.
"I don't think so."
Whoosh!
The arm bone holding the necklace flew towards the collapsed torso as if drawn by a magnet.
Click!
Clack!
Snap!
The scattered bone fragments began to reattach themselves to the skeleton's torso.
The skeleton staggered to its feet, perfectly recreating its form from before it was shattered.
Hector's eyes widened in disbelief.
The skeleton, still clutching the necklace, approached Simon.
It stood on two legs and placed the necklace around Simon's neck.
Looking at Hector's dumbfounded expression, Simon grinned.
"Better now?"
Without a moment's hesitation,
The classroom erupted in thunderous applause.
***
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