Chapter 175
Chapter 176 The Dodge Test
The only person who hadn’t rushed forward finally showed himself.
It was Garfield.
Of all people.
Garfield’s face was dark and tense, as if he were in a constant bad mood. Lately, he had been keeping a low profile, grinding for credits and training hard. He came from a wealthy family and had learned combat skills since he was young.
Being assigned to Class SSS-1 made him proud, until he found out Joanna was here
too.
A summoner who stays home eating cupcakes all day-what combat skills could she possibly have?
Then another thought crossed his mind.
Perfect. If we spar later, I’ll knock her flat.
There wasn’t much time to talk before the instructor arrived.
The teacher was built like a bear-wide shoulders, thick arms.
Oddly enough, his last name was Bear.
His name was Buck Bear.
“Hello, everyone,” he said. “You can call me Mr. Bear. I’m your assistant instructor. My level is only 30, but when it comes to combat skills, I’m the best in the entire academy p>
He clapped his hands once.
“Today’s first lesson is Dodging. Take out your limiter rings and cap your attribute points at 1,000, especially Agility. If your Agility isn’t at 1,000 yet, go raise it first p>
With everyone locked at the same Agility, their speed would be equal. That made
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learning easier.
After a short theory lesson, Buck rolled out a large training machine.
“This device is made for dodge testing,” he explained. “It fires nonstop projectiles at the test subject p>
He stepped onto the platform to demonstrate. Despite his massive build, Buck lifted onto his toes with surprising grace, almost like a ballet dancer. Not a single projectile touched him.
Buck was strong and oddly funny.
His exaggerated moves had everyone laughing.
“All right,” Buck said. “Next, we’ll test one by one, and I’ll give feedback. Now, isn’t there someone here who ranked first in the arena? Joanna, where are you p>
“That’s me, Mr. Bear,” Joanna answered.
She stepped forward. Out of respect, she wasn’t wearing her veil today. She had even bought a sporty transmog outfit for class.
As for her gear,
she never took it off unless she was sleeping.
Buck made an over-the-top gesture. “Please p>
Joanna stepped onto the machine.
The test began. She moved smoothly, dodging without hesitation.
Compared to Buck, she looked lighter and faster, as if it took no effort at all.
The test ended quickly.
Perfect score.
Even Buck looked stunned.
“Joanna really lives up to her reputation,” he said. “Impressive. Want to try a higher difficulty? The next level is micro-level. Pass that, and you won’t need to attend my
dodge class anymore p>
“I’ll try,” Joanna said.
Buck adjusted the settings.
The machine erupted. Projectiles filled the air, leaving almost no space to move. Some even collided midair and changed direction.
Joanna stopped using her eyes. She closed them. She listened. She felt the airflow shift around her.
Her body blurred, leaving afterimages across the platform.
The entire class held their breath.
Everyone here had 1,000 Agility. But how much of it could they really use?
Most people just ran fast.
Joanna was different. She brought every point of Agility to life.
Five minutes later, the test ended.
Another perfect score.
Buck clapped loudly.
“Outstanding! Joanna, your dodging has reached true precision. Credits +10 for Joanna p>
Joanna stepped down.
“Thank you, Mr. Bear p>
“All right,” Buck said. “Next. Who’s up? If no one volunteers, I’ll call names p>
One by one, students went up. The laughter from earlier disappeared fast. Everyone looked miserable.
The gap was just too big.
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Garfield ranked dead last.
“This is ridiculous,” he muttered. “She lives in the villa district, so she must’ve trained early. And Helen’s her mentor; of course she’d get special lessons. She says she stays home eating cupcakes, but she’s secretly grinding and leaving us behind. I hate people like that p>
Garfield refused to accept the result.
The next day, the class switched to close combat.
No weapons. Just fists, legs, and full-body fighting.
This wasn’t something Joanna had formally learned.
But three years of intense training back in high school had built a solid foundation. When she faced others, she didn’t fall behind at all.
Garfield had been waiting for this moment.
“Mr. Buck,” he said, stepping forward, “I want to spar with Joanna p>
“How about you fight me first?” Katherine said, stepping in. “Beat me, and then you can fight her p>
Katherine didn’t know that Joanna had real fight experience from her school years. Dodging could be a talent, but real combat was different.
In close combat, hesitation could get you hurt.
Joanna’s arena score had been earned by Lucien on her behalf. Katherine worried Joanna might not be good at real combat and might end up suffering a loss.
Joanna raised a hand and stopped her. She looked at Garfield with a faint, knowing smile.
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