Yep a tournament arc

Rin had survived lava oceans, frost giants, starvation, and public dueling.

But she had never faced anything quite as terrifying as...

Administrative budgeting.

---

The Announcement

The mood in Class 7-Z was unusually quiet.

Rin sat beside a now “mostly behaved” Lirien (who was drawing battle diagrams and giggling at her own bruises), while the other students kept their heads down. Even the bee-meditation guy had paused his buzzing.

Professor Kremeth, the only instructor brave enough to teach this gaggle of magical disasters, stood at the front holding a scroll with trembling hands.

“Ahem,” he said, adjusting his cracked glasses. “It is with heavy heart I read this…”

He unrolled the scroll. It hit the floor. Twice.

> “Due to budget reallocations and strategic reprioritizing, the Academy Council has voted to temporarily shut down the Special Research Combat Class 7-Z.”

Silence.

Then—

“THE HELL THEY MEAN TEMPORARY?!” screamed the girl with drill hair.

“Does this mean we have to take normal classes?” groaned the half-dwarf.

The guy juggling bees let out a scream and ran out the room. The bees remained.

Rin blinked. “Wait, are they… replacing us?”

Professor Kremeth coughed. “Yes. The council intends to convert the wing into... a Luxury Herbology Spa Extension for noble guests.”

Rin stood up.

“I’m sorry, you’re telling me they’re replacing our magic trauma lab with a fancy tea garden?”

“Hydrotherapy gardens, technically,” said the professor.

Lirien whispered, “If they plant lavender where I bled last week, I will burn this academy to the ground.”

---

The next day, Rin (with Lirien sneaking behind her like a murder cat) decided to visit the Academy Council chambers.

After all, if someone was going to shut her class down, they could at least do it to her face.

The chambers were lavish. Gold trim, floating tea trays, and a large holographic waterfall for ambiance.

Rin looked around. “Feels like a place where people don’t punch each other enough.”

They met Vice-Chancellor Dallin, a smooth-talking noble with slicked-back hair and an even slicker voice.

“Oh, you're from 7-Z. That… adorable little project. It’s just not cost-effective, you understand.”

Rin crossed her arms. “We’re literally your strongest class.”

Dallin chuckled. “Strong, yes, but... explosive. Unpredictable. You make the donors nervous. Not a good look.”

Lirien leaned in. “I could make you nervous.”

He took a step back.

Rin smirked. “What would it take to keep our class?”

He tapped his chin. “Hmm. Well, if your class could prove its worth publicly—say, win an interclass tournament, or impress the nobles—then maybe... maybe we’d reconsider.”

Rin glanced at Lirien.

Lirien whispered, “We can win. Or burn everything.”

---

Back in 7-Z

Rin returned to the classroom, where Professor Kremeth was hiding under his desk.

She knocked.

“We have a chance. Tournament. We win it, we keep the class.”

He peeked out. “You’ve seen the other classes. They’re... coordinated.”

Rin cracked her knuckles. “We have a bee sphere and a battle-masochist elf princess. We’re going to be just fine.”