Rey found it strange that Belle had just asked the question so casually, but after considering the fact that she freely told him hers, it had to mean they were close.
Since he didn't know the nature of their relationship, he decided to take his mind off it and just listen like the busybody that he was.
As he stood still there, a sudden voice came.
"Hey, Rey… do you have a moment?"
Rey heard something like a whisper behind him, but now wasn't the time.
"You really did well with those—"
"Not now! Hold on…" Rey didn't even bother looking behind him as he kept his gaze on the two.
"O-okay…"
He felt a little bad for what he did, but this was a crucial moment for him.
Once he heard what he wanted, he would apologize and hear the person out.
Since he didn't recognize the voice, it was probably a random student.
"… Ah, I'm in Level 9 now."
'WHAAAAAT?!' Rey couldn't believe his ears.
"Almost Level 10 too…"
'HOW IS THIS EVEN FAIR?!' He wanted to scream this out, but he controlled his expression.
If it wasn't for the effect of his Class, Rey was certain he would scream in downright shock.
'I knew life was unfair, but not to this degree!'
How could Adonis have Leveled Up nine times in just a single day?
It made no sense to Rey!
'I worked my ass off in the Dungeon, and he just became half my Level in a single day? Is there no such thing as justice anymore?'
And it wasn't like Adonis had fought some overpowered monsters or something.
These were summoned E-Tier Monsters!
They weren't supposed to give him any considerable amount of EXP!
'So why…?! WHYYYYYY?!'
There was only one answer to his question, and Rey knew it already.
'His Hero Class! It has to be!'
It was an S-Tier Class, so of course it had to have numerous privileges that would be considered broken by Rey's standards.
Of course, Rey knew he couldn't complain since he had quite the broken Skill himself, but this felt a little too unfair for him.
'I had to sacrifice all my other prospects just to get that Skill…'
To obtain [Doppel], he left behind the Classes and Skills he could have obtained.
This was all he had…
'But Adonis had like three OP Skills and he also has that OP Class. Isn't that too broken?'
Rey had tried over and over again to calculate how it was possible for Adonis to have so many overpowered abilities, but he still didn't get it.
'Even with 100 Karma, that shouldn't be possible.'
As far he knew, Karma was over 100. Was it possible that Adonis had a Karma that was over that limit?
'No way. The rules were clearly stated…'
It wasn't like Adonis had two lifetimes worth of Karma, so how the hell did he get so many broken Skills?
'I still can't wrap my head around it. I guess it was just preferential treatment from Seraph, or maybe a discount…'
If that was the case, then there was nothing he could do
"It's also possible that he got the 'First Comer' privilege, so there's that…" Rey whispered to himself.
It was while mumbling that he remembered the voice he heard from behind him.
"Ah, sorry about that. I was distracted by—" He halted his speech and looked behind him, not seeing anyone there.
It seemed the person had walked off since Rey didn't respond to him on time.
'Now I feel awful…'
However, Rey wasn't allowed to dwell on his feelings on the matter for too long.
"Otherworlders, we are going to end today's session here."
As Rey heard the voice from above the stage, his face twisted to form a look of surprise
'What? Already?!'
Lucielle's announcement seemed to elicit some pleasant groans and sighs of relief among the students, but Rey was genuinely puzzled.
'Isn't this too early?'
The average time he spent in a Dungeon was four to five hours, all so he could grind and increase his Level.
He thought this practical session was meant to simulate that experience, or at least put a lot more pressure on the students.
But, he was wrong.
'It's just been a little over an hour and we're quitting now? Why…?'
Rey only had to look at the faces of his instructors to understand why.
'They're exhausted. I see now… so that's how it is…'
Summoner was a very rare class to have, and while it was indeed very powerful, it wasn't invincible.
Summoning Magic cost a lot of Mana, which meant those who used it tended to run out of energy faster than regular Mages.
Rey noticed a lot of potion vials around them and realized that they had been doing their best to recover their Mana while training the students.
Unfortunately, they had reached burnout.
'Summoning Magic can only be used a certain amount of times a day. If used too much, it affects the laws of the world in a detrimental manner and that can be harmful to both the user and his environment…'
Rey had learned that in the Library, since Alicia recommended it to him.
It was a book that had to do with Tamers and Summoners, which was why she had picked it up to read.
Once she was done, she wouldn't stop gushing over it, so she recommended it to him.
'It seems like they can only do this a limited number of times, and they get very exhausted after they reach their limits…'
All so they could help the Otherworlders with their grind.
'I can see why the Nation wanted to use the Dungeons and not this safer, more controlled way to Level Up.'
Other than the fact that Summoned Monsters were weaker, there were also a few other considerations to put in mind.
'For one, the numbers aren't exactly satisfactory. Summoners can only summon so many at a time…'
Then there was the glaring issue of Mana Usage.
'Those potions must cost a lot. If they have to be using so many per day, then it'll cost the United Human Alliance a good deal of resources.'
The Summoners also had limits, so after a little over an hour, they had to clock out.
'That means we can't experience true battle with this method. Our ability to Level Up is also very limited.'
With all of these placed into consideration, Rey could see why this had to be a temporary measure.
It wasn't sustainable at all.
"You all did exceptionally well today. I am certain you were all able to Level Up at least once or twice, thus growing stronger."
Rey already knew where this was all going, so he braced himself.
Lucielle brought out a Truthseeker as she descended to the stage. Her long white hair and crimson eyes made her appear ethereal in her descent.
"Please state how many times you Leveled Up so we can measure your growth."
The moment Rey heard this, he almost made the heaviest sigh of relief imaginable.
'Haaaa! That was a close one!'
If he had been asked what Level he was, he would be in hot water.
Fortunately, the question was framed in such a way that he could escape scrutiny.
'I'll just tell them the truth.' Rey smiled as it soon approached his turn to speak.
Once it did, he opened his lips and uttered the words.
"I only Leveled Up once."
*
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Thanks for reading!
What do you all think of the current development?
At this rate, it seems like Rey might never catch up to Adonis
Haha!
