A Guide for Background Characters to Survive in a Manga-Chapter 87

Chapter 87

Suddenly, Si Zhaohua’s eyes lit up: “How about this? After the midterms, the Student Council will definitely have tasks, and it’s said to be a big one requiring division of labor.

You said you’d help, so you can’t escape. We’ll let you choose any task, with the highest points, and we’ll cover any shortfall. How’s that?”

Admittedly, it was a tempting offer. Su Bei knew the upcoming Student Council task was a plot point, and his goal was to pick the best vantage point within it.

After thinking, he asked: “Can you speak for the others?”

Before Si Zhaohua could answer, the group eavesdropping nearby shouted in unison: “Yes!”

This was their only chance to drag Su Bei in—along with Feng Lan. They’d agree to any terms!

“Just this once?” Su Bei tilted his head slightly. He didn’t want one agreement to mean tutoring forever. He needed to confirm this.

Hearing this, Si Zhaohua knew it was a done deal. He nodded: “Just this once!”

With no lingering concerns, Su Bei nodded: “Since you’ve asked so sincerely, I’ll be merciful and...”

Mid-sentence, Manga Consciousness urgently interrupted: “Stop, stop! You’ll infringe if you keep going.”

Su Bei nearly choked, coughing: “Agree!”

“Yay!”

After pulling Su Bei and Feng Lan into the mess, everyone was much happier. Mo Xiaotian’s power was so great that even the aloof Feng Lan and cunning Su Bei couldn’t avoid frustration. The guy was a goldfish—forgetting things the moment they were taught. A slightly tweaked problem, and he’d be clueless.

The torment lasted until the day before midterms. Finally nearing freedom, Su Bei exhaled in relief after explaining the last problem, smiling threateningly: “Forget the rest, but if you fail my subject, you’ll regret it after midterms.”

Under the shadow of the great demon king, the weak hero Mo Xiaotian trembled, saying meekly: “I... I’ll try my best.”

Su Bei kept smiling: “Not try. You will.”

Under his pressure, Mo Xiaotian could only nod nervously, making a promise he wasn’t sure of: “I will... I will.”

Perhaps because it was just academic exams, midterms passed quickly without much fanfare in the grade. Only when the results came out did people pay attention.

The grade’s top spot was Si Zhaohua, who truly excelled in all areas. Second was Lan Subing, third Su Bei, fourth Qi Huang, and fifth Jiang Tianming. Shockingly, Class S swept the top five.

But the top five weren’t focused on their scores. They were all looking for one person—Mo Xiaotian!

Finally, they found him. He was 25th—from the bottom. Seeing the report, everyone was at a loss for words.

They were genuinely thrilled he’d passed everything, not wasting their efforts. But every subject’s score was between 60 and 62, barely passing, leaving them with mixed feelings.

Mo Xiaotian had no such complex thoughts. Seeing he’d passed, he jumped three feet high, cheering: “I passed! I actually passed! Awesome, woo-hoo!”

Jiang Tianming grabbed his head, stopping his bouncing, his face neutral: “I suggest you listen in class and bug the teachers with questions. We won’t help you next time.”

“What? Why!” Mo Xiaotian wailed.

He was met with cold sneers.

To get him to pass, they’d gone all out. Seeing he couldn’t grasp much, they’d even predicted exam questions for him.

Many of their predictions hit, some with different phrasing, others with changed numbers. If Mo Xiaotian had gotten those right, he’d have scored at least 80.

His 60-average made them feel their efforts were wasted. Studying couldn’t save Mo Xiaotian.

After midterms came the weekend. Returning to class on Monday, even in the hallways, you could feel the first-years’ restless vibe.

Su Bei knew why: the Campus Festival was coming. Or, more romantically, the School Open Day.

Endless Ability Academy’s annual Open Day allowed parents with kids at the school to visit. Invited guests—usually distinguished alumni or Ability world bigwigs—could also come.

On this day, every class had to prepare something special, like a performance, game, or shop. Like in any manga, it was a rare, exciting school event.

Unlike regular schools, the Academy held an auction that evening. But that had little to do with students—it was for adults.

Such an event couldn’t be set up by teachers alone; the Student Council was involved. This was the “busy” thing Feng Manman mentioned, and unsurprisingly, all of Class S was drafted.

Now it was time for Si Zhaohua and the others to honor their promise to Su Bei, letting him pick any task.

Options included security, venue setup, and guest reception. The first was the most dangerous, the second the busiest, the third the most annoying. None were great.

After thinking, Su Bei chose guest reception. Though annoying, it was hard to take the blame for. Plus, it let him meet big shots and learn their identities.

But first, they had to handle their class’ Campus Festival task.

Monday afternoon’s last period was a class meeting. Meng Huai walked in and got straight to the point: “What are you doing for the Campus Festival?”

Huh? They had to do something? Weren’t they all drafted by the Student Council? They hadn’t considered this.

Seeing their blank looks, Meng Huai sneered: “Every Campus Festival ends with a ranking. I don’t expect you to get first, but my classes have never been last. If you break that record, I’ll break my rule of not hitting students’ faces.”

Everyone’s faces changed. Meng Huai had indeed gone easy on them, avoiding face shots during sparring. The occasional hit was healed by Ye Lin to avoid embarrassment.

If he stopped holding back, going to the cafeteria with bruised faces would be humiliating.

But avoiding last place wasn’t easy. As the only in-school Class S, their class would be a prime target.

If they did something average, they’d likely rank low. If they messed up, it’d be worse. Even if they did well, someone might nitpick.

Figuring out what to do was a real challenge.

Meng Huai didn’t care what they thought. After issuing his ultimatum, he left.

After a moment’s silence, Zhao Xiaoyu spoke: “Let’s discuss our class’ Campus Festival activity. I think we should rule out performances. Finding a good script and polishing acting skills in such a short time is too hard. Plus, performances... too subjective.”

Her words were tactful, but everyone understood.

Jiang Tianming had an idea: “How about a haunted house? Sign a contract before entering—get scared, and you vote for us.”

It was a solid idea. Other classes couldn’t use this method; signing a contract might deter visitors. But as the only in-school Class S, they’d have no shortage of guests, so they could be more forceful. Fear was hard to hide, and they wouldn’t worry about people reneging.

With the goal set, they considered how their Abilities could enhance the haunted house. As Ability users, not using Abilities would be a waste.

Su Bei’s Ability was useless here, so he had to play a ghost to scare people. Feng Lan, Wu Jin, Jiang Tianming, Mu Tieren, Si Zhaohua, and Qi Huang were also roped in.

Wu Jin’s face was perfect for this—his Ability made him ideal for jumping out to scare people.

Costumes were left to Ai Baozhu, with Ling You assisting. Ai Baozhu, thrilled to have a task matching her skills, confidently promised: “Don’t worry, I’ll make you all unrecognizable!”

Su Bei wasn’t reassured. He didn’t want to be a clown! Could someone save a poor 15-year-old high schooler? He cared about his image!

Haunted houses could be Chinese or Western, but specializing in either required expertise and risked criticism. A mix was better.

The night before the Campus Festival, preparations began.

Wu Mingbai had made a blueprint, and today, he raised earth walls per the design, dividing the large classroom into sections to form a maze. Thanks to their recent maze Different Space experience, they had inspiration.

Zhao Xiaoyu painted red stains on the walls to look like blood, adding bloody handprints for a horror movie vibe.

Mo Xiaotian placed air blocks on paths to block routes, aiding the planned chase scenes.

Yes, this wasn’t a regular haunted house but an escape-style one, with Su Bei and the others chasing players as ghosts.

To make it fun, they got Meng Huai to break through to the empty classroom next door. With two classrooms—about four regular high school classrooms’ worth of space—the maze was much larger.

The next morning, Ai Baozhu started their makeovers.

Su Bei adamantly refused to be a zombie or anything ugly, so Ai Baozhu made him a masked slasher. With a mask hiding his face, no makeup was needed.

Wearing a black robe and holding a bloodied dagger, Su Bei stood aside, pleased.

Notably, he’d asked Manga Consciousness and learned this horror character existed in the real world too—a rare connection between the two worlds.

Seeing him ready, Zhao Xiaoyu reminded: “Don’t forget your counter item is a gun. If shot, you go down.”

Right, the ghosts weren’t fully dominant. Each role had a counter item; if players got it, they could temporarily defeat them.

Counter items matched movie lore. His character was killed by a headshot, so the counter was a gun.

Jiang Tianming, done up as a zombie, looked unhappy. Seeing Su Bei’s outfit, he widened his eyes, poked the mask, and asked Ai Baozhu: “Why does he get a mask?”

Ai Baozhu shrugged: “He insisted. Hey, be careful—you’ll lose that severed limb!”

Jiang Tianming turned back to Su Bei: “You didn’t warn us?”

Su Bei mimicked Ai Baozhu’s shrug, pointing at Qi Huang, who’d just emerged: “Smart people figure it out.”

Following his gesture, they saw someone draped in white cloth trailing to the floor, covering everything except two holes for eyes—round, black, a bit cute, a bit creepy.

Jiang Tianming turned back, expression complex: “How’d you know that’s Qi Huang?”

Before Su Bei could answer, Ai Baozhu grinned: “Who else but Qi Huang would I let skip makeup?”

At 8 a.m., the Campus Festival began. As predicted, their class was swamped with visitors.

Since forming the first-year Class S, they’d been in special training and soon left for expeditions. Though many were curious, their teachers forbade disturbances. Until now, few had seen this year’s Class S.

The Campus Festival was different—no teacher would stop them, so they flocked to Class S, eager for the prodigies’ service.

Normally, each grade visited their own Class S, but with second- and third-year Class S members on expeditions, only the first-years were available to be “harassed.”

“Maze Escape?” The earliest arrivals read the artistic sign at Class s’ door, intrigued.

Zhao Xiaoyu, holding a stack of papers, handed contracts to the first five: “The maze allows five people at a time. Please sign the contract before entering.”

Though the contract was for voting, it couldn’t be too blatant. It was framed as a liability waiver, stating they weren’t responsible for scares. The real purpose—voting if scared—was at the bottom.

The first four didn’t notice. The fifth did, spotting the overbearing clause: “This rule’s too much! Vote if scared? Aren’t you afraid of losing guests?”

Zhao Xiaoyu calmly pointed behind him. Turning, he saw a long line and fell silent.

They really weren’t afraid of losing guests. The waiver only fueled curiosity about the escape maze.

After signing, Zhao Xiaoyu gave each a heart rate monitor, saying: “This protects you, preventing shock from high heart rates. It’ll alert if it’s too high.”

In reality, it was evidence of being scared, preventing denials and ensuring votes.

Behind the door, Wu Mingbai chuckled: “Sounds so noble. If I didn’t know the truth, I’d believe it.”

The first group of five entered, reaching the maze’s entrance. Turning, a timid one screamed: “Ah!”

By the door stood a faceless man in a suit, with wriggling tentacles behind—Wu Mingbai as Slenderman.

He didn’t move, just manipulated colored earth tentacles to tap the door. Following his gesture, they saw a note with text.

“There are many ghosts in the maze chasing players. Scattered in corners are various items—some counter specific ghosts, others are cursed. Choose carefully.

Being caught by a ghost means elimination. Escaping the maze is victory. Winners receive our carefully prepared gifts.”

Confirming they’d read it, Wu Mingbai, in his suit, bowed eerily yet politely, gesturing “please.”

A bolder player raised a hand: “Can we use Abilities to attack while being chased?”

Wu Mingbai shook his head, tore the note off, and reattached it backward. The back had text: “Attacking staff is forbidden. Violators bear consequences.”

“Bear consequences” meant “attack me, and I’ll attack back.”

Some players, unable to control themselves, tried attacking the staff out of reflex. They weren’t intentional, just instinctive self-defense.

The staff didn’t retaliate, just dodged. Only deliberate attackers would face consequences.

As expected, their event was a hit. Few classes had done an escape maze for the Campus Festival, giving them a novelty edge over maid cafés or standard haunted houses.

Close-quarters chase games spiked adrenaline, naturally interpreted as fear. Honest players would vote for them.

Zhao Xiaoyu placed the voting box at the exit. Non-voters had to give a reason on the spot.

At noon, Su Bei, Mu Tieren, Wu Mingbai, and Jiang Tianming left the classroom. They weren’t needed as ghosts in the afternoon, so they could roam freely.

Some classmates also swapped shifts to join family, leaving just the four of them, the loners.

Su Bei noted that only they four had no parents visiting. Even Mo Xiaotian had a “grandfather,” likely not his real face, but Su Bei memorized it.

Walking through the lively campus, Su Bei felt a bit dazed. He’d attended many school festivals in elementary and junior high, but none left as deep an impression as this high school one.

It wasn’t because their event was spectacular or his involvement was high. Rather, this semester had been tense, making these joyful moments stand out.

Sighing, he thought about the evening. It was fun now, but the auction would keep him busy.

An auction with great items—trouble was inevitable. He just hoped it wasn’t too dangerous, especially for him. His task was guest reception, staying with VIPs, so it should be safe, right?

But not necessarily. Who knew if the enemy targeted the items or the guests?

Hearing his sigh, Jiang Tianming, ever vigilant, tensed. The other three also looked uneasy. “What’d you see?” Jiang Tianming asked cautiously.

Su Bei paused, then said meaningfully: “The auction tonight won’t be peaceful.”

He knew too well that such warnings changed nothing. Even if he said the auction would have issues, and they believed him and told the teachers, the trouble would still happen. That was the forced plot.

His brief words killed their good mood. But Su Bei perked up, saying contentedly: “Seeing you all unhappy makes me happy.”

Everyone: “...”

Strolling through, many classes shone. A juggling act was hard to imagine at an Ability Academy.

The auditorium was taken over by classes for looping performances. Su Bei’s group watched Seven Calabash Brothers vs. 007, fleeing the eye-searing show.

“I thought it was a serious performance,” Jiang Tianming, who’d suggested the auditorium, said glumly. “Subing tricked me.”

Lan Subing, off in the morning, had told Wu Mingbai at lunch that the auditorium’s show was a must-see. Wu Mingbai sneered: “Next Campus Festival, I’m tying her to the stage.”

Suddenly, Mu Tieren said gravely: “What if Subing genuinely thought it was good?”

Silence fell. It was... possible.

After touring the classes, Jiang Tianming sighed: “Our class was too conservative with venue choice.”

Indeed, some classes were wildly imaginative and bold. One used the whole school for an orienteering game, another turned the principal’s office into an adventure site, and one had their teacher turn a painting into a real space for games.

Back at the field, stalls sold food, crafts, and Ability creations.

One stall sold a stationery set: a pen, eraser, and two notebooks. The pen wrote invisible ink, revealed only by the eraser. Writing in one notebook appeared in the other.

The seller said she’d collected them separately. The pen was just invisible, the eraser revealed any text, and the notebooks came from a pen pal at another Ability school.

Together, they felt like a set, so she sold them as one.

A fascinating Ability item, perfect for passing intel. Su Bei bought it immediately.

Another was a card by a card Ability user, storing Abilities. It should be valuable, but these were just imitations, not powerful.

They were one-use; using the stored Ability destroyed them. They had to be used within 24 hours of storing, or they’d break. Storing required the Ability user’s consent, and the Ability was only 50% as effective.

Despite limits, it was a decent substitute. Real Ability-storing cards cost 1,000 points in the school’s store—more than a storage ring—showing their value.

The Campus Festival ended at 6 p.m. It was Friday, so except for Student Council members, everyone had to go home until Monday.

As night fell, classroom and field lights dimmed. Su Bei and others boarded a bus to the auction venue.

The auction, hosted by three Ability Academies, was grand, with reportedly rich items to broaden students’ horizons. Buying anything was out of reach, except maybe for Si Zhaohua and a few others.

At the venue, students setting up bustled with tables, chairs, and food. Mo Xiaotian and other patrol members, arriving earlier on another bus, circled the site to keep suspicious people away.

After disembarking, Zhao Xiaoyu and Su Bei were assigned to check guest lists, later guiding them to seats.

They memorized their lists and swapped to cover unknowns. What they really thought, only they knew.

From the list, Su Bei learned not all guests were Ability users; many were ordinary politicians, local and foreign.

The school assigned teachers as escorts, mainly for these ordinary guests. Ability world elites were usually strong enough to not need protection, unlike ordinary people, even with firearms.

Soon, guests arrived. Su Bei led them to seats with ease—polite but not overly formal.

First, after learning he was in a manga world, his mindset shifted. Seeing everyone as manga characters made it hard to feel nervous.

Second, he’d been through a lot, knowing the world teetered on destruction. That pressure dwarfed any other.

Finishing his tasks, Su Bei took his seat, conveniently next to the last guest he’d guided—a man in his forties, not an Ability user, curious about them.

Impressed by Su Bei’s composed demeanor, he asked: “Hey, kid, what grade are you in?”

“Uncle Liu, I’m a first-year,” Su Bei replied politely, subtly scanning for where trouble might emerge. ƒreewebɳovel.com

A first-year at such an event surprised the man: “First-year and you’re here? You must be impressive at school.”

As a non-Ability user, he knew the Academy wouldn’t let regular students attend. In danger, unprotected students would be the first hit.

“Not that impressive. How great can a first-year be?” The venue was warm, so Su Bei humbly replied, taking off his school jacket and placing it under his chair.

Hanging it on the chair looked messy, and teachers had stressed not to. It was Friday, so a dirty jacket was fine—he’d wash it tomorrow.

This Vice Director Liu was chatty, only stopping when the auction began. He asked nothing sensitive, not even Su Bei’s Ability, just about school life and if they had regular classes.

The auction started, and staff served each a glass of water. Thirsty from talking, Liu gulped his down.

Su Bei, also thirsty, eyed the water but only pretended to sip, then set it back.

He wasn’t sure the water was bad, but with trouble certain, he’d avoid consuming anything here.

The venue was full. Glancing back, Mo Xiaotian stood guard at the door. Patrol duty was tough, but he seemed to enjoy it.

After the vice-principal’s opening, Ye Lin, in a dark green qipao, took the stage to present the first item.

Academy items were top-tier. The first was a “Substitute Doll,” familiar from novels and manga—its use was obvious.

Starting with a life-saving item showed the top Ability Academy’s caliber. Su Bei, envious, wondered what Ability could make such a prop.

As its function was explained, the crowd’s breathing quickened. Ordinary or Ability user, all coveted such a treasure.

Bidding started in billions and soared, closing at over ten billion—for just the first item.

Even three schools combined weren’t so extravagant that every item matched this. After the opener, the rest were more “ordinary.”

But “ordinary” here meant treasures Ability users craved: Mental Energy potions, Ability-evolving fruits, cooldown-free invisibility cloaks...

Su Bei, listening, cursed his poverty. One of these could let him “stir up storms.”

After two hours, a break came. Su Bei joined his friends. Zhao Xiaoyu, face flushed with excitement, whispered tensely: “Guess what the finale item is?”

The last item was usually the heaviest hitter, surpassing even the first.

Everyone was curious. As mere escorts, not invited guests, they had no way to know the items. But a three-school auction’s finale was bound to be extraordinary.

Si Zhaohua and Ai Baozhu, due to their backgrounds, had family attending and knew some details.

Taking a deep breath, Zhao Xiaoyu whispered: “The big shot next to me said it’s an item that can awaken Abilities in ordinary people!”