A Guide for Background Characters to Survive in a Manga

Chapter 277

At Endless Ability Academy, classes varied by rank. Lower classes had more cultural lessons, as their abilities weren’t enough for the ability world, and most would return to ordinary life.

Cultural lessons were essential for that. As freshmen, Class F spent most of the day on them. After three years, they’d review senior year seriously, with college entrance scores similar to regular students.

The requirement made my face scrunch up. Luckily, my youthful skin didn’t wrinkle like an orange peel. If I recalled, I’d overperformed last exam, beating Lan Subing and others for second place.

With Si Zhaohua always first, the top five shuffled often. Second was my ceiling; dropping next time was normal. Punishment for that would be unfair.

I raised my hand: “Teacher, maintaining my rank is tough.”

“It is,” Meng Huai knew my scores, impressed by my past performance. Nodding, before I could push further, he continued bluntly, “So try harder.”

Me: “…”

Hide your strength, I said. One moment of pride, and I was hit by a boomerang. I resolved to control my score next time.

“By the way, Teacher, how’s the government handling Vixi Holy Land?” Jiang Tianming asked, braving everyone’s admiring gazes.

He didn’t want to revisit it but was curious. Vixi Holy Land’s Nightmare Beast collaboration warranted sanctions, though some innocents were there.

Having scolded earlier, Meng Huai wasn’t as angry now, answering directly: “Vixi Holy Land’s not our country’s turf—UN handles it. The process is standard: identify everyone’s faction, then assign charges accordingly.”

The Conservatives were the worst for collaborating with Nightmare Beasts. Radicals came next, harming tourists’ interests—a commercial crime. Neutrals, knowing but not reporting, were least culpable.

“As for Vixi Holy Land itself, it depends on political wrangling,” Meng Huai scoffed. “Maybe the Neutrals end up with it.”

Everyone agreed—interests meant if I can’t have it, neither can you.

When the bell rang and Meng Huai left, I looked pleadingly at Lan Subing, Jiang Tianming, and Qi Huang, waving like a beckoning cat: “Please go easy~”

Class F’s cultural lessons were dull, and not attending regularly made it awkward. Getting called on and failing to answer would be embarrassing.

Lan Subing, turning first, covered her mouth, laughing: “Karma’s a wheel. I remember you were thrilled last exam.”

Though teasing, she was gentle. I’d scored third multiple times, finally hitting second—beyond thrilled, I was smug.

Now, that joy turned sour, proving Lan Subing’s point—karma’s a wheel.

I sighed, feeling doomed. Scanning the room, I hoped someone else would join me in Class F.

Unlike us, oblivious to finals, other freshmen accepted it well. The halls were quieter, most studying in classrooms, some holding books—either true learners or cramming.

I had no urge to cram. It helped those with gaps, but I knew most material; cramming was a waste.

Not everyone agreed. Jiang Tianming’s trio, with non-conflicting ranks, reviewed together.

Ai Baozhu hired a pre-exam tutor for herself, Si Zhaohua, and Zhou Renjie. Notably, she didn’t expect progress from the tutor. I knew she’d secretly sent red envelopes to those ahead and behind her last exam, asking them to go easy.

Damn rich people!

Feng Lan, less concerned about grades but wealthy, hired a tutor. Qi Huang planned to study alone but, seeing Feng Lan’s tutor, joined him.

Mu Tieren, with average grades, studied steadily. Wu Jin joined him—Mu Tieren’s solid basics were great for gap-filling, and his quiet, considerate nature made it stress-free.

Zhao Xiaoyu and Ling You, academy favorites, got special tutoring. It wasn’t unfair—they often trained during study time, so this was compensation.

After class, the room was full of studious figures. Everyone was determined to avoid Class F’s cultural lessons, studying hard.

Only Li Shu and I stood out, leisurely, showing no exam stress.

“Not worried?” I asked Li Shu, my seatmate. With no revision, we naturally hung out during breaks.

I wasn’t worried because I knew my level—maintaining my rank was luck-based, and cramming was useless. But Li Shu had no bottleneck. Was he aiming for Class F life?

“I missed a subject last exam,” Li Shu said calmly, flipping through a manga.

Me: “…”

Right, he’d had a fever last exam. Though healing abilities could cure it instantly, ability users didn’t prioritize cultural exams, so he skipped the first day, missing a subject.

As long as he didn’t skip this time, he’d almost certainly surpass his last rank.

Now I was really worried. Would I be the only one in Class F? Maybe I should study these last days—not for results, but for comfort.

But I quickly dropped the idea. Going to Class F it was—studying wouldn’t change anything, just waste time. Cultural exams banned abilities, so I couldn’t even boost my luck.

Class F wasn’t all bad. Teachers favored S-Class students, giving leeway. I could use the time to study Destiny’s materials.

Cultural and ability exams were half a month apart. Finishing the last cultural exam, I left the first exam hall, stretching: “Finally done. When’s the ranking out?”

Si Zhaohua, seated ahead due to last exam ranks, shook his head: “Not sure, but probably before the ability exam.”

“Won’t that affect people’s moods?” Lan Subing frowned. A bad score could ruin the next exam.

Qi Huang joined from behind, hearing them: “Few care. We’re ability users.”

At an ability academy, few valued cultural scores. Our class was odd—Qi Huang heard Class A friends complain about our excellence.

She stretched: “Wonder what the ability exam is. Killing Nightmare Beasts in their world?”

“Not that simple,” Si Zhaohua shook his head. “If it’s just killing, why go there?”

Good point. Qi Huang pondered: “What can only be done in the Nightmare Beast world?”

She asked casually, but I took it seriously. The Nightmare Beast world was a keyword. Her words sparked a guess—there was one thing only doable there.

The manga aimed for the main plot. 《King of Abilities》 started with one: fighting Black Flash.

But my actions added another: eliminating Nightmare Beasts, confirmed by Manga Consciousness.

Black Flash appeared often, but the Nightmare Beast elimination plot hadn’t started. That was reasonable—my addition was recent, needing time for planning and drawing.

With Black Flash’s plot over halfway, the other hadn’t begun. From a manga perspective, I guessed the author would advance the Nightmare Beast line.

Eliminating Nightmare Beasts meant removing all meteorite fragments from their world. This tied to the Nightmare Beast world, making the final exam a perfect chance.

I got a bit excited. Though the author targeted me, my survival odds were high. I hoped for world peace.

More importantly, if I could predict the author’s plan for eliminating fragments during this exam, I could prepare and contribute.

Not for world-saving—contributing then would earn more support for revival if things went wrong.

I was confident the author couldn’t kill me off easily. My character wasn’t meant to die randomly—readers would riot. But just in case, manga flags were plentiful. I didn’t want to be the clown setting one. My actions were precautions.

The cultural exam results came out soon. As expected, I got third, behind Si Zhaohua and Qi Huang.

Seeing the ranking, I grinned. I was definitely going to Class F, but I wasn’t alone.

“Karma’s a wheel~” I smirked at Lan Subing, throwing her words back. She was third last time, now fourth—a drop.

Hit by her own boomerang, Lan Subing’s face stiffened, trying not to crack. She told herself not to let me enjoy it more.

Wu Mingbai cheerfully countered: “Why so happy, Su Bei? Thought karma hit your house?”

I wasn’t fazed—misery loves company. Grinning at the others: “Who else is going to Class F next semester?”

“Me…” Zhao Xiaoyu raised her hand glumly. “Filled the answer sheet wrong.”

Checking her score, it didn’t match her estimate. She asked the teacher and found she’d misaligned a row, dropping her rank significantly.

“So rough,” Lan Subing patted her hand comfortingly.

Our class’ cramming worked. My and Lan Subing’s drops weren’t due to lack of study, and Zhao Xiaoyu’s was a mistake. Everyone else improved, showing the review’s impact.

Seeing their gloom, Jiang Tianming changed the subject: “Scores are out. Shouldn’t the ability exam details be too? Or do we wait until the Nightmare Beast world?”

Freshmen and sophomores’ exam details were out. Freshmen’s were like the first monthly exam: kill Nightmare Beasts in a Different Space, ranked by points. But this was individual, testing personal strength, though alliances for better scores were allowed.

Sophomores had arena team battles, currently forming teams, their footsteps echoing from upstairs.

Only the seniors’ details were undisclosed, with less than 15 days until the exam, making us anxious.

“Possible,” Li Shu said, propping his chin. “But we could ask senior students. They might know something.”

Good idea. Jiang Tianming thought: “Let’s ask Senior Mu.”

Mu Yunfan was friendly and the former student council president at Endless Ability Academy. Though retired due to graduation, his connections remained. If anyone knew, it was him.

“I’ll go too,” Si Zhaohua stood. He had student council tasks to hand over and could ask about the exam.

They were gone all noon, returning for the first afternoon class with odd expressions.

Facing curious looks, with class starting, they said nothing. After class, Jiang Tianming satisfied our curiosity: “Senior Mu said the exam tasks are weird. Different ability types have different tasks. The odd part is it seems overly focused on elemental abilities, with separate tasks for each element.”

Usually, elemental abilities were grouped together, rarely split by element for exams.

“It’s weird,” Qi Huang, a fire elemental, felt it keenly. Elementals always tested together; she’d never had a fire-only exam.

Wu Mingbai, also elemental, noticed another issue: “Besides elementals, what are the other categories?”

“Elemental, physical, control, summon, support, and special Rosycheeks,” Jiang Tianming explained. “In our class, you and Qi Huang are elemental. Class Monitor is physical. Me, Bingbing, Li Shu, Zhou Renjie, and Wu Jin are control. Zhaohua’s summon—Qi Huang could be summon too. Xiaoyu’s support. Feng Lan, Ling You, Baozhu, and Su Bei are special.”

Some categories weren’t certain, but that was the gist. Si Zhaohua added: “Except elementals, others in each category share one task.”

That was another oddity. Elementals, the most common ability type, had never been so highlighted.

I understood. The real focus wasn’t elementals but earth elemental users within them.

This matched my guess. Going to the Nightmare Beast world was likely to find a way to eliminate meteorite fragments, fully eradicating Nightmare Beasts.

Meteorites were stone, under earth elementals’ control. Compared to other abilities, earth elementals were the most straightforward for eliminating meteorites.

This was what I wanted to know. I planned to finish the exam quickly and observe the elemental tests.

To avoid revealing its intent, Endless Ability Academy wouldn’t test earth elementals first if elementals were tested sequentially. This gave me time to watch.

Time flew, and the final exam arrived. The details remained undisclosed until we gathered on the field, ready to head to the Nightmare Beast world.

On the field, students buzzed, guessing each category’s tasks. Most seniors had been to the Nightmare Beast world, even Class F, under teachers’ guidance.

Seeing us, they were shocked. With fewer than 200 students per year, everyone knew each other’s faces after three years. We were clearly not seniors, so our presence for their exam surprised them.

The Director Li on the podium didn’t give them time to dwell, having teachers confirm attendance. Lei Ze’en appeared, opening the teleportation array to the Nightmare Beast world.

Accessing the Nightmare Beast world usually required finding a Close Point in a Different Space and opening it. But with Lei Ze’en’s [Teleportation] ability, he could reach anywhere effortlessly.

As the Great Door opened, Lei Ze’en smiled, approaching Jiang Tianming’s group: “I’m your lead teacher this exam. Little Huai says you love trouble. Since I’m in charge, please don’t make me lose face to him, okay?”

He was coming anyway—safety in the Nightmare Beast world required a reliable return channel. His presence ensured we could return even if trapped by a Nightmare Beast’s Barrier.

Since Lei Ze’en was joining, Meng Huai asked him to watch Jiang Tianming’s group, lest these troublemakers vanish in the Nightmare Beast world.

As the only freshmen, we needed special supervision. Lei Ze’en agreed to his friend’s request, applying to oversee us.

Endless Ability Academy approved, thanks to our class’ antics. Principal Wu Di, familiar with us, thought a teacher who knew us was better than a clueless one.

“Don’t worry, Teacher,” Zhou Renjie nodded confidently. “It’s the final exam. What could go wrong?”

Hearing this flag, I sensed trouble. Without that line, we might’ve had a smooth exam. But now, it was bound to be turbulent.

It felt dangerous. Like Meng Huai, I worried. The Nightmare Beast world wasn’t the real world—danger there far exceeded reality.

Crucially, dying there turned ability users into Nightmare Beasts, and many revival items wouldn’t work. Even pre-binding might not save you.