Rise of Franz

Chapter 5: Advanced

Franz, suspicious, retracted his Sharingan, his red, eerie eyes returning to their normal black. After all, using the Sharingan consumed a significant amount of chakra.

“Ding, would the host like to accept the class transition quest?”

“Confirm.”

Currently, he was a Genin with the unfortunate title of “Pig Slayer.” According to the system’s rules, Franz had to complete the class transition quest to advance to Chunin and continue leveling up.

Class Transition Quest: Achieve a top 3 ranking in the clan’s test. Rewards will vary depending on performance. Failure will result in expulsion from the clan and the system will be closed for a year.

Sigh. Why does the system always threaten with closure? It seems this test is more complicated than just defeating Desmond; he needs to prepare thoroughly. Now that Franz was level 20, equivalent to a late-stage Battle Master, he was confident he could deal with Desmond quickly with the system’s skills. However, Franz knew that the younger generation of the Bonaparte clan had many talents superior to Desmond. A prime example was his elder sister, Leona.

Franz entered the system. After the recent battle, he felt that his skills were still lacking.

“Since the host has reached level 20, you can now use various Chunin-level techniques. The system needs to determine the host’s chakra nature. Please use the chakra paper to identify your chakra nature. The chakra paper has been added to your inventory.”

Franz was taken aback. This was a new feature, perhaps due to the system’s changes. It was no longer just a game.

Chakra Paper: When chakra is applied, the paper will display one of five states corresponding to the five chakra natures. The state displayed indicates the user’s chakra type.

Lightning Nature: The paper crumples.

Wind Nature: The paper is cut in two.

Water Nature: The paper becomes wet.

Fire Nature: The paper is burned.

Earth Nature: The paper crumbles to dust.

Franz took the small piece of paper and gently channeled chakra into it. The paper changed, first crumpling, then splitting in two, and finally catching fire. Lightning, Wind, Fire. Three chakra natures.

Franz was very pleased as he entered the system. However, his excitement quickly turned to disappointment. Almost all the skills in the system were grayed out due to insufficient funds. He looked longingly at the options. His favorite was the Shuriken Rasengan. Just imagining holding a gigantic energy shuriken in front of an enemy was enough to make him look cool. At that moment, beautiful women would flock to him… hahahaha… cough, cough. That was a bit excessive.

Returning to reality, Franz wiped away his saliva and chose some techniques. In the end, he selected two techniques suitable for him:

Fireball Jutsu: A Uchiha clan secret technique, the user launches a massive fireball at the enemy, dealing damage within a 5-meter radius.

Thousand Years of Pain: The user combines their middle and index fingers to deliver a painful jab to the enemy’s rear. The skill causes a 3-second stun and intense pain. (Also known as “Butt Blossom”)

In the manga, Fireball Jutsu is a C-rank fire technique with great power and can intimidate the enemy. Thousand Years of Pain, on the other hand, is the most despicable and shameless technique Franz had ever encountered. With a wicked grin on his face, Franz contemplated his devious plans.

Desmond suddenly felt a chill down his spine: “Damn, someone is scheming against me.”

Bonaparte Clan: The clan was bustling today. Members aged 12 to 18, whether from the main or branch families, gathered for the annual test. Those deemed talented in cultivation would receive special training, while those with lesser talent would be isolated and assigned to the clan’s business. This tradition had allowed the Bonaparte clan to remain a prominent pillar of the Ala Empire for thousands of years.

The test rules were simple. Participants were divided into two groups: Martial Arts and Magic. To test martial arts, the participant must strike a special stone with all their strength. The examiner would then assess their martial strength. For magic, the mage only needed to perform their strongest spell. The level of the spell would indicate the mage’s cultivation level. The top 32 participants would then compete in direct elimination rounds for clan rewards.

For Bonaparte youth, this test was extremely important. Even making it into the top 16 was a significant achievement. Falling short would mean a difficult life in the clan. Franz was one such case—a natural-born failure who couldn’t cultivate. Living as a pariah in the clan, it was fortunate or unfortunate that, as the clan leader’s son, he was not expelled but subjected to prejudice and abuse until he was on the verge of death.

“Have you heard? The useless Franz has been missing for almost a month. Could it be that he’s avoiding the clan’s test?”

A teenager from the branch family spoke to another. The other teenager nodded in disdain.

“Of course, our Bonaparte clan, which has always been heroic, could have such a useless and cowardly member.”

“Right, right. If it weren’t for the clan leader, he would have been expelled a long time ago.”

In recent days, Franz had become a topic of gossip. Especially among the weaker youths, Franz’s misfortunes provided them with a sense of superiority and amusement. Ridiculing Franz had become a favorite pastime for many.

“Shut your mouths, your dogs.”

A cold voice reached the ears of the two teenagers, causing them to shiver. Behind them stood a 17-year-old girl in black mage robes, her long black hair flowing naturally, her figure graceful and beautiful but cold. On her forehead was a red flame mark, signifying her status as Leona Bonaparte, the clan’s prodigy.

Leona Bonaparte, at 17, had reached the level of a mid-level mage by 14. With both Wind and Fire chakra natures, she had been directly recruited by the Royal Mage Academy. With her talent and status as the Bonaparte family’s eldest daughter, she was surrounded by glory, overshadowing even her useless younger brother. However, Leona was particularly protective of Franz, almost obsessively so. If she overheard anyone talking about him, that person would be in trouble.

“Hmph, you don’t even have the right to meddle in the matters of the main family.”

Leona snorted coldly, and the wind suddenly picked up, making her robe billow and creating a rustling sound. Her eyes, filled with cold intent, turned as the Wind Element swirled around her, forming two cutting wind blades that clashed.

“Go.”

Leona snapped, and the wind blades shot toward the two teenagers. There was a loud crash, and the teenagers screamed in agony before losing consciousness. Their clothes and hair were shredded, and one of them was even exposed. It was truly disastrous.

“From now on, anyone who dares to talk about my brother will meet the same fate. Remember that.”

Leona declared to the clan’s youths. All heads bowed, too intimidated to speak. Leona’s status in the clan was unmatched, and even if she had killed the two unlucky teens, no one dared to report her to their parents. Leona cast a final glance at the crowd before turning and leaving. Three years ago, she had been fierce; this year, she was even more ruthless.

“It seems this girl is still the same as two years ago, even more temperamental.”

In the central tower of the inner courtyard, an old man stroked his beard as he observed Leona. There was no trace of reproach in his eyes, only admiration and affection. Beside him was Duss, the current clan leader, who also looked pleased.

“Yes, Father. It’s my fault for not teaching her better.”

The old man was Heter, the previous clan leader, and Franz’s grandfather. It was said he was on the brink of reaching the divine level, with profound martial arts skills. Heter snorted.

“Members of the Bonaparte clan should be like this, not like the ‘noble’ pretenders who only know how to indulge in luxury and decadence.”

The Bonaparte clan had its roots in the military. Heter himself had once been a general of the Ala Empire. With peace lasting too long, society had seen the rise of “noble” classes that were nothing but superficial. Heter had little regard for these nobles, often saying, “Such nobles may have a beautiful exterior, but inside they are no different from rotten wood, not worth a dime.”

Knowing his father’s temperament, Duss changed the subject with a smile.

“It’s almost time. We should head down, Father.”

Heter nodded and turned to leave. At the door, he suddenly stopped and said,

“Also, take care of that boy, Franz. He is a child with a hard fate.”

With a sigh, he walked away, his steps heavier than usual, accompanied by an unusually somber feeling.

“Don’t worry, Father. The boy won’t let you down.”

Looking at his father’s back, Duss said softly. No one knew what he was truly thinking.

Under the supervision of the clan elders, the test proceeded swiftly. On the high platform were the clan head and the council of elders, who were the important members of the clan. Heter was not present. Given his current status, he would only appear before everyone if the clan were in real danger. Perhaps he was in some hidden place observing the test of the clan’s younger generation. No one knew.

The council of elders consisted of six members, each with a strength of at least a Martial Emperor, with the highest being the Grand Elder, who had a cultivation level of mid-Saint. Among them, the Fourth Elder was a beautiful, middle-aged woman—a Mage Saint at the early stage. In the clan, the council of elders had the power to veto the clan head's decisions and wield significant authority. However, if two elders in the council disagreed, the vetoed result would not be accepted.

The testing time for martial arts was quick, averaging about one minute per person. However, the number of young people participating in the martial arts test was very large, so the crowd waiting for their turn remained chaotic. In contrast, the testing time for each mage was longer because mages needed time to chant their spells, but the number of people being tested was small—only a few dozen—so it soon came to an end.

“Last up: Leona.”

The crowd fell silent. Leona’s reputation in the clan was immense. As the clan’s prodigy, everyone was eager to see her true strength.

Leona was, as usual, her cold expression as she ascended the stage. Her mage robe fluttered in the wind, giving her a unique beauty, unlike the demure noble ladies. Leona glanced around the arena as if searching for someone. The people below looked at her with adoring, admiring, and even envious eyes. But it didn’t matter. The person she was looking for was not there. Leona sighed in disappointment. Three years ago, he used to be below, loudly cheering her on.

“Miss Leona, please use your strongest spell to attack me.”

The examiner smiled at her. This was the rule of the test. The examiner himself was a middle-aged man with the cultivation of a Grand Mage. Given that the youths here were only between 12 and 18 years old, with the highest being intermediate mages, he was confident he could withstand any attack from the participants.

Leona said nothing and did not take out a staff like the others. She lightly extended her hand forward, muttering the incantation. Her movements were natural and graceful, captivating everyone. The wind element magic gradually concentrated and intensified, and the wind grew stronger. The examiner's expression became cautious. It seemed this was not the kind of magic a mid-level mage could produce. The level was at least a 4th-tier spell.

In just a few seconds, the wind element had formed a massive tornado, interspersed with swirling wind blades creating a terrifying whistling sound. The elders on the platform also showed astonishment and stood up.

“No, this is a 5th-tier spell. My goodness, at 17 she’s already a High Mage.”

At this moment, Leona spoke sharply.

“Wind Storm, go!”

The tornado immediately rushed toward the examiner. Without hesitation, the examiner had already chanted a spell to create a light golden magical shield. It turned out he was an Earth-element mage specializing in defense.

“Boom, boom, crack… crack.”

The tornado collided with the shield, producing deafening sounds. At times, the shield wavered as if it were about to break, but then the golden light brightened, maintaining a stalemate with the tornado. But this magic was not so simple. Leona softly said, “Explosion.”

“Boom.”