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I’m A Villager, So What? – Chapter 36 – part 1

Welim Forest.
Also known as the Forest of Confusion, it is a dangerous area.
During the great calamity that occurred in ancient times, the demon lord who caused it was born from the Treant race, and the rampaging Treant race invaded human settlements. As a result, about 5% of human habitat was lost, and it became a forest of demons.
Thus, the Welim Forest that was invaded by monsters became a place where humans could no longer live.

ーCalamity.

It refers to the phenomenon in which monsters evolved into demon lords or evil gods, or abnormal monsters raised themselves.

In contrast, the Great Calamity refers to the entire race undergoing a one-time mutation, including the emergence of demon lords and evil gods as a matter of course.
Of course, individual entities cannot compare to demon lords or evil gods, but their sheer numbers are overwhelming.

For example, goblins.
In small groups, they are just monsters that village residents armed with hoes and shovels can collectively fight against.
However, according to past examples where goblins became a Great Calamity, it was said to be a tremendous event.

A mere goblin became a goblin king, and the goblin king became a goblin emperor.
Goblins are often the go-to for fledgling adventurers, and even goblin kings are often the go-to for the average adventurers.

Well, goblin kings aren’t that strong of a monster… but the threat of numbers is serious.

First of all, goblins are a species with a high reproductive rate that can breed 1,000 or more and were even kept in the underground caves of the Dragon’s Nest for that trait.

All of those goblins increased by the sudden mutation of the Great Calamity.
Naturally, the frontier villages were helplessly swallowed up by the goblin army one after another.

And… Goblin Emperor is considered a rare monster that is classified as a mythical beast.
Even a low-ranking dragon would be defeated by it.
One or two of those monsters appeared in the goblin villages that exist in large numbers all over the place, so the knight orders of each country were very busy.

But, well, if that was all, humans would have been able to deal with the threat of goblins.

Goblin Emperor is supposed to be the final point of evolution for the goblin species, an obsession with evolution.
However, the apex of the goblin tribe, which became the center of the Great Calamity, underwent an evolution that should never have been possible…

At that time, it took the mobilization of all the heroes from north, south, east, and west, as well as all the S-rank adventurers from each country to finally achieve the extermination…

Now, as you may have noticed, the world where I and Cordelia live is a gradually declining world for humanity.

Great calamity occurs periodically every few hundred to thousand years.
Each time, a few percent of the inhabited area was lost, and currently, less than 50% of the continent is inhabited by humans.

Advancements in chemical and magical technology are also declining with each disaster, and even maintaining the status quo is a struggle…

And… I have gotten off topic.

Our current campus at the Altena Magic Academy was actually moved from its previous location a few hundred years ago to the current one due to those circumstances.
The previous location was supposedly swallowed by the demonic forest during a major disaster… and now exists in the Welim forest, also known as the Forest of Confusion.

So, why am I telling you all this?ーShortly after the entrance exams ended, class placement was determined based on the results.
Lilith was admitted to the scholarship class due to her big fight with Cordelia, but I ended up in the lowest class.

The official response from the academy was a blunt “because you’re a Villager.”

There might be some scheming from the high-ranking noble boy in the background, but that’s not my concern.
As long as I can be in a position where I can easily monitor Cordelia’s movements, it’s fine.

For now, since Lilith made it into the scholarship class, everything’s okay.

Right now, we, students of the lowest class, are gathered on the sports ground of the Altena Magic Academy.
The class consists of over 40 people, all of whom are carrying backpacks for mountain climbing.
In the distance, you can see five intimidating figures dispatched from the adventurer’s guild.

「Instructor? I have a question.」

I called out to the middle-aged man standing in front of us with his arms crossed, dressed in a gray robe.

The instructor frowned noticeably before saying,

「Hey, kid?」

「Kid…? Are you talking to me?」

「Who else is there?」

「Well, never mind that. What is it?」

「Starting today, we will be holding a one-month training camp. During this period, the instructor’s orders are absolute.」

「…?」

He smiled, and said not only to me, but also to everyone around.

「Listen up. You guys are trash.」

It was a well-modulated, deep voice that was easy to understand.

At those shocking words, everyone looked at the instructor in unison.

「Your entrance exam scores were the worst. To be frank, more than half of you are useless. And every year, during this camp, more than half of you voluntarily drop out.」

Certainly, I heard about the treatment of the lowest-ranked class during the enrollment explanation.

However, using the word “trash” was going too far.

「There’s a reason why the Academy picked you guys up… most of you come from commoner backgrounds and have never received any training in the magical system. Therefore, your current abilities are trash, but some of you may have the potential for talent hidden within you.」

「Well…」said the instructor with a self-deprecating tone.

「My job is to pick up garbage. To search for rare gems in the filthy, excrement-filled gutters with a sieve… Seriously, I’ve been given such an unfavorable role.」

「Uwaa…」or so I thought.

I can’t stop my mouth from opening at the extreme way of speaking. Then, the instructor steadily walks towards me.

「Hey, kid?」

「What is it?」

「Just now, you said “I have a question.” didn’t you?」

「I did, so?」

The instructor nodded greatly and then raised his fist.

「During the training camp, when you speak to the instructor, be careful how you address him. The correct way is to say, ‘Instructor-dono! May I ask you a question!?’…like that!」

He threw a right hook.
It was a blow slow enough to make me yawn, but I didn’t avoid it.
To be exact, I didn’t even try to avoid it.

A dull sound echoed, and it hit me right in the cheek.
Looking around, the atmosphere had completely frozen.

As a matter of fact, this approach may be considered one methodology among many.
If the rumors are true, this training camp will force us to do some pretty outrageous things.

As the instructor said earlier, more than half of us here are truly talentless in magic, so we will be forced to drop out voluntarily.
To express our current situation accurately, we are in a position similar to studying for an entrance exam in overdrive.

‘Since we don’t know if they will be useful, we will figure it out after educating them for a while.’ That’s probably their mindset.
They are going to sort out those who they know they can actually use by training them in desperate situations in various ways.

Because if they train the lowest class normally, complaints and dissatisfaction will arise.
That’s why they need to give a hard knock at the very beginning… Give a strong impression of the hierarchy, and make them obedient.

That’s the method this old man used.
And I don’t like this kind of approach.

I have never been a member of a sports team even since my time in Japan, so I really don’t like that kind of atmosphere.
That’s why I deliberately didn’t avoid the blows of this old man.

Anyway, the first contact with the instructor seemed to have a valid effect on everyone except me.
As evidence, many students were frozen solid.

The instructor tried to disguise his confusion, but I didn’t miss the color of bewilderment in his eyes.
He grinned at me before saying,

「Open your mouth.」

I see, so he thought that way… I obediently did as I was told.
The instructor tilted his head curiously after confirming that there was nothing in my mouth.

「What’s wrong?」

「No… it’s nothing.」

The instructor’s expression was indescribable. I almost burst out laughing as I watched him rub his fists repeatedly.

For a normal human to punch me in the face with all his might… is no different from punching a lump of steel.
If they are not a fighter with a close-combat class, it’s nothing but self-harm.

Well, it doesn’t look like there is a fracture or more than a light bruise from what I can see.