A Guide for Background Characters to Survive in a Manga

Chapter 41

But soon, Jiang Tianming calmed down: “Actually, it’s not like that. Qi Huang is the kind of person who’s open and generous; if she loses, she loses. As for Si Zhaohua…”

Out of a sense of propriety that avoided speaking ill of others, he didn’t continue, but from the disdain in his eyes, anyone could understand his meaning.

Su Bei shook his head, knowing that Jiang Tianming was somewhat swayed by his emotions, so he didn’t argue.

According to Jiang Tianming’s view, if Si Zhaohua were a villain, his thinking might be correct. But if Si Zhaohua were a hero, they would eventually reconcile.

However, there was no need to say this now.

After lunch, Su Bei went straight back to the dormitory. Opening his phone, he saw that his next opponent had been assigned—a Class B student. The moment he saw his opponent, he breathed a sigh of relief.

He also checked on the others. Most were matched against Class B students, except for Jiang Tianming, who was once again paired with a Class A student. Compared to Su Bei, a cannon fodder who had escaped his doomed fate, the protagonist was indeed far unluckier.

Without taking a nap, Su Bei continued practicing controlling his Mental Energy. Since this Mental Energy was originally gained through his acting, Su Bei was well aware of its limits.

At the very least, he needed to be able to use Mental Energy to retrieve objects from a distance—that would mean he had truly mastered it.

Time quickly passed to the afternoon, with only thirty-six students remaining. Su Bei’s match was in the first round, and he easily secured a victory. In the early stages, especially in an arena like this with a small battlefield and no special obstacles, physical enhancement Abilities had a significant advantage.

Although Su Bei didn’t possess a physical enhancement Ability, he had excellent stamina, agile movements, and was skilled in combat techniques. Had he chosen the path of physical enhancement, he would have excelled at it.

As long as he could get close, most opponents couldn’t handle him. To defeat Su Bei, one either needed strong defensive capabilities to render his attacks ineffective or had to prevent him from getting close, either by instantly defeating him or kiting him to wear him down.

Take Qi Huang from the morning match, for example. Had she not been overly confident in her strength and underestimated Su Bei, carelessly allowing him to get close, she could have kited him endlessly, and Su Bei would have had no way to deal with her.

After all, the power of her phoenix was undeniable. With slight adjustments, forming a straight line of phoenix, Qi Huang, and Su Bei—like an eagle catching a chick—she could have cornered him step by step, making it impossible for him to approach her, let alone harm her.

His afternoon opponent from Class B, however, was unfortunate. Though their Ability was strong, it couldn’t significantly affect Su Bei, and they were quickly eliminated.

With fewer participants, the afternoon matches progressed rapidly. The second round ended, and Wu Jin was regrettably defeated.

However, his expression showed no disappointment; his flamboyant, rebellious hairstyle alone was enough to shield him from most curious gazes.

After this round, eighteen students remained, and the third-round opponents were freshly announced.

This round finally saw familiar faces pitted against each other. Su Bei’s opponent was Zhao Xiaoyu. Though it wasn’t kind to say, this was indeed a favorable draw.

The most anticipated match, however, was undoubtedly between Wu Mingbai and Zhou Renjie.

Of course, this anticipation existed only in the eyes of Su Bei and his group. To others, it was a one-sided crushing match, the kind where betting wouldn’t yield much profit.

For Su Bei, there was no need to consider the outcome of Wu Mingbai versus Zhou Renjie—Wu Mingbai would definitely win. This wasn’t just because Wu Mingbai was part of the protagonist group but also because Zhou Renjie was currently an outright clown.

Unlike Si Zhaohua or Baozhu, Fatty Zhou was genuinely mean-spirited. In a manga, if such a character didn’t get slapped in the face, it would be the author’s failure.

But Su Bei was curious about how Wu Mingbai would win. Compared to Wu Mingbai’s [Earth Element], an absolute elemental Ability, Zhou Renjie’s Ability was far less certain. Based on current information, it seemed to be spatial, but it could be something else entirely.

With this in mind, he stepped onto the arena. The eighteen students in this round were divided into nine pairs, and with ten arenas on the field, all matches occurred simultaneously, no longer split into batches.

Zhao Xiaoyu’s expression wasn’t great, but it wasn’t terrible either. She had high expectations for herself, but for this monthly exam, she wasn’t arrogant enough to aim for first place. Making it this far was truly a result of both luck and skill.

But her luck had clearly run out, as her opponent this time was Su Bei. Through their previous deal, Zhao Xiaoyu already knew what Su Bei’s Ability was. He claimed it was [Destiny Gear].

Zhao Xiaoyu believed him, but not entirely. At the very least, she absolutely didn’t believe Su Bei’s explanation of the Ability’s function. If this Ability was only for prophecy, how had Su Bei won until now?

His earlier matches could be explained, but defeating Qi Huang that morning was definitely not something achievable without a special Ability.

More importantly, even if Su Bei had no Ability at all, Zhao Xiaoyu knew she couldn’t beat him.

The two stared at each other from a distance for a moment. Just as Su Bei prepared to end the match swiftly, Zhao Xiaoyu finally spoke: “Is there any chance I could win?”

“No chance.” Su Bei’s movements didn’t pause as he strode toward her.

Zhao Xiaoyu gave a bitter smile, assuming a fighting stance while retreating toward the arena’s edge. Even if her chances of victory were slim, she wouldn’t give up easily.

But Su Bei saw through her intentions almost instantly. She was definitely planning to use herself as bait at the last moment, swapping positions with Su Bei to make him fall off the arena first.

Unfortunately, how could he give her such an opportunity? Seeing Zhao Xiaoyu retreat to the very edge, one step away from falling, Su Bei suddenly shifted from walking to running. With a swift leap, he delivered a horizontal kick, mercilessly sending her off the arena.

As one side had fallen, the referee teacher immediately announced the result: “Su Bei versus Zhao Xiaoyu, Su Bei wins!”

This teacher had been the referee all day. He glanced at Zhao Xiaoyu below the arena, then at Su Bei: “It’s good to be ruthless on the arena, but off the arena, shouldn’t you show some gentlemanly demeanor?”

Su Bei knew he was referring to the incident with Qi Huang that morning as well. He shrugged: “Am I not giving the school a chance to shine?”

“The school doesn’t need that kind of opportunity.” The referee shook his head with amusement, then looked at Zhao Xiaoyu, lying injured on the ground. “What about this one…”

For the same reason he didn’t escort Qi Huang, Su Bei didn’t plan to miss the day’s conclusion just to take Zhao Xiaoyu to the infirmary. So he feigned innocence: “I can’t play favorites, can I?”

Lying flat on the ground, Zhao Xiaoyu overheard their conversation and raised a hand: “Teacher, I want a beautiful female teacher to carry me away.”

In truth, even if Su Bei hadn’t said anything, she didn’t want him to take her to the infirmary. First, even with a one-in-a-million chance, she didn’t want to offend Qi Huang over something like this. Second, Zhao Xiaoyu had no desire to be carried by someone who had just kicked her off the arena!

The referee, both helpless and amused, said: “You’re even picky now?”

But he ultimately granted her request, letting a beautiful teacher from the infirmary princess-carry her away. Su Bei, meanwhile, walked off the arena with a cheerful smile, declaring his victory.

Everyone else had finished, leaving only Wu Mingbai and Zhou Renjie’s match ongoing.

Since he couldn’t see inside the arena, Su Bei first checked the situation outside. Eight students were confirmed to participate in tomorrow’s matches: Jiang Tianming, Lan Subing, Su Bei, Feng Lan, Mo Xiaotian, Mu Tieren, Si Zhaohua, and Baozhu. Among them, five were from Class F, accounting for more than half.

This result was undoubtedly shocking, even to Su Bei, who had anticipated it. Without the manga’s perspective and with today’s arenas being enclosed, he had no idea how everyone had won.

But it was imaginable that when the manga updated, at least Mu Tieren’s secret would be mostly revealed.

Thinking of this, he suddenly realized a problem: “There’s a lot of content for the last two days. Are you sure the author will draw it together with the team battles?”

[Manga Consciousness] knew he was addressing it. After a moment of silence, it replied: “He got carried away earlier and is now hesitating. But from what I see, it’ll probably be split into two parts.”

Hearing this, Su Bei inwardly sighed in relief. If the final two days’ battles and the team battles could be split into two manga chapters, he’d have much more time.

Undoubtedly, this was good news.

Waiting for Wu Mingbai’s match to end was a bit boring. Su Bei thought for a moment, took out his phone, and opened the grade-wide group chat. Before even entering, he saw a 99+ message notification.

And the latest messages in the group were still rapidly updating, clearly very lively.

After clicking in, Su Bei scrolled up casually and began reading with interest.

[MushroomBro: Another Class F student won! That’s five from Class F, right?]

[DarkCrawler: Awesome! Our great Class F is rising!]

[StudyHard: You’re from Class F? Do you know those guys? @DarkCrawler]

[StriveUpward: Tell us quick! Were these guys misplaced in Class F? @DarkCrawler]

[Arthur: Curious +1]

[CupAndPlate: Are couples in this group so blatant? Using matching names? @StudyHard @StriveUpward]

[StudyHard: Ahem, there’s no teacher here…]

[DarkCrawler: I’m not too close with them, but they seem to be in their own little circle. Like attracts like (in a good way)…]

[Bamboo: I know Feng Lan and Lan Subing! One has the [Prophecy] Ability, the other has [Word Spirit]. No idea how they ended up in our class. Honestly, I’m not surprised they’ve made it this far.]

[Sky: What? Why are those two in Class F? Could it be some hidden rule that Class F is actually the elite class?]

[DeathLikeWind: @Sky I think you’re onto something…]