It’s an Academic Fact That Rankers Are Model Students – Chapter 45

Chapter 45: There’s Someone Stronger Than a Ranker Despite Only Studying?! (1)

Plovdiv was a very large city.

The various districts within it were so large that they were essentially each their own town.

Originally, Plovdiv was a border town between numerous kingdoms.

The Kingdom of Hispania, the Kingdom of Francois, the Kingdom of Deutschland, the Kingdom of Holland, the Kingdom of Italia, and so on.

With so many kingdoms bordering it, it was only natural that it became a hub for trade.

As time passed, the various surrounding villages were combined into one and called ‘Plovdiv’.

Plovdiv was no longer part of any kingdom, but had grown into an independent city of merchants and trade.

Whether NPC or player, if one needed an item, they would first look to Plovdiv. This had long been the city’s identity.

“Before entering the city, you must first register your identity! If you wish to enter, please line up at the checkpoint here!”

The checkpoint was bustling.

As befitting the city’s fame, the checkpoint was crowded with people.

Fortunately, there were multiple checkpoints.

So the lines were divided into several.

“Wow. There are so many people.”

Kyung-joon was appalled by the sheer number of people and wondered which line to join.

First, he looked around.

He saw a couple.

“Honey, which line should we join?”

“That one is the shortest. Let’s go there.”

They joined the shortest line.

It was an obvious choice.

A shorter line naturally meant a faster turn.

However, that was only true under the assumption that ‘all lines move at the same speed’.

Kyung-joon observed the checkpoint’s inspection method for a moment before making his decision.

“I’ll join that one.”

The line he chose had the most people.

There were at least fifteen more people compared to the shortest line the couple had chosen.

“Next.”

“Next person, please.”

“Next.”

Swoosh, swoosh.

Strangely enough, Kyung-joon’s line began to shorten rapidly.

The couple who were ahead of him were now behind him.

This was because Kyung-joon’s line was moving three to four people at a time, while the couple’s line only moved one or two.

The reason was simple.

‘I chose this line because it had the most NPCs, and as expected, it’s the fastest.’

The line Kyung-joon chose had far more NPCs than players.

Most of the NPCs carried identification cards.

With an ID card, they could enter the city quickly after a simple verification process.

If players were considered foreigners, NPCs were like citizens.

The line quickly dwindled, and soon it was Kyung-joon’s turn.

The inspector spoke.

“Please show me your ID card.”

“I don’t have one. It’s my first time here.”

“Excuse me? This is the line for those with official ID cards only……”

The inspector pointed to a sign on the desk.

It read 『Official ID Card Holders Only』.

“Ah.”

Kyung-joon scratched his head awkwardly.

There was nothing more embarrassing than failing to outsmart someone.

How could he have missed that?

He was so focused on finding the fastest line that this happened.

“Hmm, it’ll take a while if you line up again……”

The inspector pondered for a moment before turning to another staff member waiting behind him.

“I’ll take care of this person, so you take over inspecting the people in front for now.”

“Okay. The documents?”

“Here. You can start checking from this line.”

After a quick handover, the inspector looked at Kyung-joon again.

“Please place your hand on this crystal ball. This is a one-time exception, okay?”

Fortunately, the inspector decided to make an exception and allowed Kyung-joon to proceed with the inspection.

He didn’t send him back to the end of the line.

“Haha, thank you.”

‘That’s a relief. This is unexpectedly lucky.’

Kyung-joon bowed his head sheepishly and placed his hand on the crystal ball as instructed.

Then he asked.

“What does this do?”

“It measures your strength.”

“Strength?”

Why would they need to measure strength at a checkpoint?

He was curious.

“Just in case, but if you were to cause trouble in the city, we, Plovdiv, would have to dispatch guards, right? This is for reference in that situation.”

The inspector continued to explain kindly.

“To be precise, it’s closer to making sure you don’t exceed a certain standard. It would be troublesome if someone too strong entered the city, especially if they’re unidentified and suspicious, right? So, if someone seems too strong, we call them in for further investigation.”

“I see.”

It made sense that they would investigate anyone with significant power to prevent chaos within the city.

“Then let’s begin the measurement. You might feel a little strange.”

The inspector began to infuse mana into the crystal ball.

“Ah, and don’t worry, it doesn’t reveal any personal information.”

“What do you mean by personal information?”

“Your class or things like that. Here we go.”

Immediately, a tingling sensation spread through his palm, and about 0.1% of his HP and MP drained away.

Woooong!

The crystal ball began to glow a faint blue.

It was the color of mana.

It was the size of an acorn.

[Measuring Strength and Agility stats.]

It seemed like the measurement would take a while.

To alleviate his boredom, Kyung-joon continued the conversation.

“This is quite systematic.”

“Yes? Ah, you mean the inspection method?”

“Yes.”

“Well, isn’t it? But about ten years ago? It wasn’t like this back then. It changed later. There was an incident where the Black Secret Village bandits caused a ruckus in the city. They were all over level 300 in stats, so it became quite a big deal.”

“Stat level 300? Is that the standard?”

“Yes, that’s right. Since that incident, anyone with a stat level over 300 has to go through a separate investigation.”

Stat level referred to the sum of all stats converted into a level.

For example, assuming there were only five main stats, if the total was around 500, the stat level would be roughly around 100.

It’s easy to understand considering that you get 5 stat points per level up.

And also, stat level is always higher than the actual level.

Just like how Kyung-joon raised his Intelligence stat by studying, those things were all reflected in the stat level.

“Are there many people over 300?”

“No, there are hardly any people over 300 at the checkpoints here. Usually, people stop by Plovdiv before they reach 300.”

“Ah, I guess that makes sense. They say Plovdiv is a must-visit place if you want to buy items.”

“That’s right. And since Otherworlders haven’t been around for that long, there are even fewer of them. Even the current Otherworlder Rankers probably don’t have a stat level over 300, right?”

“Ah, is that so?”

Woooong.

The light from the crystal ball continued to grow.

What was once the size of an acorn was now the size of an orange.

[Strength and Agility stat measurement complete.]

“Oh, you must be quite high level? Your Strength and Agility alone put you over stat level 100.”

His Strength and the Agility he had previously allocated added up to roughly 500 points, resulting in a stat level of 100.

“I reached that level about a month ago.”

He had gone from level 19 to 119 a few weeks ago after clearing the Contaminated Underground Villa, so he was indeed around that level.

[Stamina stat measurement complete.]

After measuring Stamina, the mana, which had been the size of an orange, grew slightly larger.

‘His Stamina stat isn’t very high. It’s too low compared to his Strength and Agility. Is he a Thief class?’

The inspector began to record his observations and judgments on the document.

Observing the opponent’s strength without prying into their personal information and recording it was the inspector’s job.

[Measuring Intelligence and Mana stats.]

Next, the measurement of Intelligence and Mana began.

The light, which had been growing sluggishly during the Stamina measurement, now began to grow rapidly.

‘Wow, he’s invested in Intelligence and Mana as well as Strength and Agility?’

“Your Intelligence and Mana seem quite high too?”

“Hmm, I guess they might be.”

“A jack of all trades, are you? Impressive. It’s rare to see an Otherworlder like you.”

Woooong!

The light in the crystal ball showed no signs of stopping.

It had already filled more than two-thirds of the crystal ball.

“Uh, uh…? It’s not stopping…?”

Woooong!

The inspector’s expression gradually lost its smile, replaced by a look of bewilderment.

The light already occupied more than 60% of the crystal ball.

For it to fill two-thirds of the crystal ball meant a stat level of at least 200.

However, the inspector had heard that Kyung-joon’s actual level was around 100.

‘Didn’t he say he was around level 100? But his Intelligence and Mana are this high? Did he lie about his level? Hmm…’

Soon, the measurement of Mana and Intelligence stats was complete.

Strength, Agility, Intelligence, Stamina, Mana.

The measurement of all five main stats was complete.

Over 80% of the crystal ball was filled with light.

The inspector spoke with a slightly suspicious tone.

“…This is almost a stat level of 250. You’re the first Otherworlder I’ve seen who hasn’t visited Plovdiv until reaching this level…… What have you been doing all this time?”

“Well, I’ve been studying.”

“Studying? Ah, studying magic?”

“Hmm, well…… something like that.”

To be precise, school studies were his main focus, and magic was just an extra, but Kyung-joon didn’t go into detail.

‘……Is he a new Wizard Ranker? To think he hasn’t come to Plovdiv until reaching this level.’

‘But why is his combined Strength and Agility so high? Did he invest heavily in Agility to compensate for his low Stamina? Hmm……’

The inspector had a slightly uneasy expression but nodded and spoke to Kyung-joon.

“Hmm, alright. For now, you’ll receive a temporary ID card. If you want to get an official one, you can go to the Plovdiv Central Government Office.”

‘I’m sure they’ll do a thorough investigation when he applies for an official ID card. I doubt he’s a dangerous person, right?’

He had passed the criteria of having a stat level below 300.

The rest was up to the Central Government Office.

“So can I take my hand off now?”

“Ah, wait a moment.”

Just as Kyung-joon was about to remove his hand, the inspector stopped him.

“Just hold on a little longer. There might be something else besides the five main stats.”

“Something else?”

“Unallocated stat points or special stats, things like that. Well, you don’t have to worry too much about those, but it’s procedure.”

[Measuring unallocated stat points.]

Woooong.

The sound of mana moving within the crystal ball resumed.

The inspector was already finalizing the documents, assuming nothing would change.

‘How many unallocated points could he have? And even if he has high special stats, it’s probably just Dexterity or something. He doesn’t look like the crafting type.’

Woooong!

However, the unthinkable happened.

The light in the crystal ball was growing even larger.

And at an unbelievable speed.

“W, What…? Don’t tell me you haven’t allocated all your stat points?”

“That might be the case?”

“Why on earth……?”

The inspector couldn’t understand.

Whether NPC or player, the first thing anyone did after leveling up was to allocate their stat points.

It was almost unheard of to leave them unallocated like Kyung-joon.

Wooong! Woooong!

The light had almost completely filled the crystal ball.

“No way, just how many stat points have you saved up?! This is close to 200 points…!”

The inspector’s astonishment didn’t end there.

‘C, Could it be…… even special stats? His stat level must be close to 290 already, could he really be over 300……?’

[Measuring special stats.]

The inspector’s suspicions became reality.

Thud! Thud! Crack!

The light had nowhere else to go, causing the crystal ball to tremble violently.

‘He really did it! An Otherworlder with a stat level over 300! Even the Rankers haven’t achieved this……!’

The inspector couldn’t help but be shocked by this unprecedented event.

It was extremely rare for anyone to reach a stat level of 300 without visiting Plovdiv.

This applied to both NPCs and players, and if this young man was telling the truth, he was the first Otherworlder to achieve this.

At that moment, a thought suddenly crossed the inspector’s mind.

‘Wait…… if this is happening, I need to cast the spell to forcefully stop the crystal ball…… What was it again……? The spell…… um, the spell……’

Crack! Crackle! Zap!

Cracks began to appear on the surface of the crystal ball.

‘Hahaha…… what was it again……?’

He had long forgotten the spell, believing such a situation would never occur.

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