Dark Dragon: The Summoned Hero Is A Villain

Chapter 302: Promotion Exam

Arlo leaned back in his chair, still chuckling. "You really do have to fight for everything, don’t you?" he said, shaking his head. "The academy sure doesn’t make it easy for you."

Noah shrugged. "It’s fine. I could use the exercise."

Arlo grinned at that. "Well, if you want to stop having to fight every time promotion season comes around, there’s a faster way."

Noah arched a brow. "Oh?"

"Yeah," Arlo said, gesturing lazily with his fork. "You just need to challenge a higher-ranked student of the same tier in an official duel. If you beat them, you automatically take their spot. Simple as that."

Noah tilted his head, his curiosity piqued. "Who’s the highest-ranked student in our class?"

"Used to be Ines," Arlo replied without hesitation. "But since she’s... well, queen now, her ranking’s frozen."

"The current number one is Damien Krell. He’s been holding that position since the beginning of the semester."

"Damien Krell," Noah repeated. "And second place?"

Arlo’s expression soured slightly. "Frederick Ramsay."

Noah blinked. "Frederick? That same idiot?"

"The very same," Arlo said dryly. "He might be a twig before both of us, but he’s not that weak when compared to the rest of the gold-tier students."

Noah smirked. "Figures."

Then, after a moment, he glanced at Arlo, the question forming before he could stop it. "Why aren’t you first? If you wanted the spot, I know you could take it."

Arlo snorted, waving his hand. "No thanks. Being first is a nightmare."

Noah raised an eyebrow. "How so?"

"The top five constantly challenge each other for the ranking," Arlo explained. "Every few days, there’s a duel, sometimes official, and sometimes not."

"Everyone’s obsessed with proving who’s strongest, and who deserves to be number one. You can’t even eat in peace without someone throwing down a challenge."

He gave a small grin. "I’m comfortable right where I am. Smack in the middle. Not too high to get challenged, not too low to be looked down on."

"And everyone below me already knows they can’t win against me, so they don’t even try. It’s peaceful. A nice, boring life."

Noah couldn’t help but smile at that. "You’re lazy."

"I prefer to call it strategically efficient," Arlo countered, mock offense in his tone.

Before Noah could respond, a voice interrupted from behind them.

"Um... excuse me."

Both of them turned. Standing awkwardly nearby was Ben Stanley.

His uniform was rumpled, and his face had that pale, drawn look that came after a long illness. His eyes darted between the two of them nervously. "Can I... sit for a moment?"

Arlo frowned but gestured to the empty seat beside them. "Go ahead."

Ben sat, clasping his hands together on the table. "I, uh... I just wanted to say thank you. For saving me that day. I never got to say it properly."

Noah and Arlo exchanged glances. Arlo gave a polite nod. "You don’t need to thank us. You were in trouble, and anyone would’ve helped."

Ben shook his head. "No. I know what you risked. Those things... they would’ve killed me if you hadn’t shown up."

Arlo studied him for a moment, his eyes narrowing slightly. "You look... off," he said bluntly. "Your mana feels strange."

Ben forced a laugh. "Yeah. They said it’s from the potion those undead fed me. It’s still in my system, but the infirmary staff said it’ll fade soon. It just needs time."

Arlo nodded slowly. "Good. Keep an eye on it, though."

"Yeah. I will." Ben hesitated, fidgeting with his hands. The silence stretched between them awkwardly.

Arlo finally raised an eyebrow. "Was there something else?"

Ben swallowed. "Yes. I wanted to apologize. To Noah."

Noah looked up at him, his expression blank.

Ben took a deep breath. "Back on Earth... I was awful to you. I don’t even know why. I guess I hated how calm you were about everything."

"You mostly kept your cool, and that made me angry for some reason. But I’ve been thinking a lot since... since everything that happened." His voice faltered. "I’m sorry."

Silence filled the air.

Noah didn’t say a thing. He just stared at Ben, not with anger, not even with disdain. Just silence.

Then, without a word, he turned back to his plate and resumed eating.

Ben’s face fell slightly. The silence stretched again until Arlo sighed.

"He accepts your apology," Arlo said smoothly.

Ben looked between them, uncertain. "He does?"

"Yeah," Arlo said. "He’s just not great with words."

Noah didn’t even look up.

Ben nodded slowly, forcing a small, awkward smile. "Right. Well... thanks again."

He stood, mumbling a goodbye before walking away.

When he was gone, Arlo chuckled quietly. "You’re still so cold."

Noah swallowed another bite of food, unfazed. "I have no obligation to soothe a spoiled brat’s guilty conscience."

Arlo smirked. "You really haven’t changed."

Noah shot him a glance. "Neither have you."

[][][][][]

By the time evening came, the air over the academy had grown cooler, the sun dipping low over the towers.

Noah arrived at the arena, his steps confident and his expression calm.

He’d left his jacket behind, wearing only his combat uniform. His shadow stretched long across the floor as he entered the large domed space.

Professor Oliver was already there, standing near the edge of the arena with his hands behind his back. His expression was neutral, but his eyes flicked towards Noah the moment he entered.

"Good," Oliver said. "You’re on time."

Noah inclined his head slightly. "I try to be."

The sound of footsteps drew his attention to the opposite side of the arena. His opponent had arrived.

The boy was tall and lean, his silver-tier badge gleaming on his chest. He looked confident, maybe a little too confident.

His mana flared around him in a soft red aura as he stretched his arms, sizing Noah up with a smirk.

Oliver’s voice carried through the space. "This will be the final test for the first promotion exam of the second semester."

His gaze swept across both of them. "If your opponent wins, he’ll be promoted to the gold-tier. And you, Noah Webb..."

He paused, his eyes locking on Noah’s. "...will be demoted to silver-tier."