episode_0006

The chandeliers on the ceiling are bathing the banquet hall in golden light.

The appropriate intensity of light, neither excessive nor insufficient, made the luxurious interior even more prominent.

Decorations such as vases with flowers are placed at the center of each table, surrounded by a variety of cultural foods.

Expensive brands of alcohol and beverages, each bottle costing tens of thousands of won, were also present.

“Do we really need to take Basic Magic? We’ve probably already learned the content at the academy.”

“Still, the level of professors must be different, so there must be something to gain.”

“‘The Relationship between Spirits and Magic,’ Professor Liana Velus…? I remember she was active on the African front.”

“I heard she retired last time. It was because of an injury.”

Students dressed in casual wear were scattered around, finding conversation partners and engaging in discussions.

What subjects are you planning to focus on?

I heard this new professor conducts this kind of class.

These days, the growth trend of which clan is remarkable?

I heard the situation in Africa is quite serious, etc.

There were trivial personal stories and small talk, but a considerable number of them were on specialized topics related to world affairs.

Shiyoram students.

The status obtained by those considered to have the highest potential among humans of their age group worldwide is the title of Shiyoram student.

If everything goes well, they will be the mainstay of the next generation. The benefits that come with being a student are significant, and many take pride in this status alone.

“Of course, we should take Basic Magic… We should just take all the basic courses.”

“That’s why there’s a free semester. If there’s anything not covered in prerequisite studies, we have to take it during the free semester.”

There were also those who did not engage in conversations at a professional level.

More precisely, they were a group lacking the knowledge to engage in professional discussions.

There are two official admission methods for Shiyoram.

First, admission through examination.

After announcing the exam to the world, individuals are selected based on their current abilities and future potential in various fields.

Most of them are talents who have grown up from an early age through specialized and systematic education, often from what is known as distinguished families.

If the first method is to find the sprout that is developing its potential, the second method is to find the seed that has not yet started to develop.

Not from a distinguished family nor having received systematic education, but as certain as their potential, they are brought in as a newborn through meticulous examination.

Roughly in a ratio of 9:1.

“The one who just came, is he admitted by special admission? Is he really blind?”

“I heard he has a specialized ability in detection. If that’s the case, he could definitely walk around even with his eyes closed.”

“Indeed, detection ability is essential in raiding. But…”

Is it as important as special admission?

One student lowered their voice and another student next to them nodded cautiously.

“…We still don’t know.”

There was a common topic among the two types of conversations.

Special admission.

In various places in the banquet hall, such words popped up.

Strictly speaking, it is a concept similar to recommended admission, but ‘special admission’ is different in terms of the person being considered.

A talent brought in by the owner of the cradle. Interest in this person is still burning in real-time.

Whether it’s good or bad.

Strictly speaking, there were more negative opinions.

Most people kept their mouths shut because they knew who made the decision about special admission, but inside, they harbored dissatisfaction and doubt.

Bang! The door opened forcefully at that moment. Through the wide-opened doors, the revealed student attracted everyone’s attention.

Sighs erupted throughout the room.

The flaming hair seemed to embody the flames, and the eyes, embedded with top-grade rubies, captivated the onlookers.

Even the casually worn jacket looked luxurious, and the confident stride exuded self-assurance.

Hong Yeon-hwa.

A central figure no less than a special admission student.

A promising figure in the 122nd generation of Siyolam, and the successor of the Guphwa Clan.

A prodigy who single-handedly subjugated a 5th-rank monster before admission.

…Everyone who had been focusing on the boy who followed behind him widened their eyes.

[Thank you for guiding me.]

“No, there’s no need to be so thankful. If you need any help, just let me know anytime. It’s my fault, after all.”

[Yes.]

Moreover, doesn’t the atmosphere seem somewhat awkward? She seems to be taking a caring attitude as if she’s entering from Hong Yeon-hwa’s side.

Everyone who has met Hong Yeon-hwa before knows very well about her fiery personality.

Overwhelming talent and beautiful looks. Apart from that, the attached characteristic is her sharp personality.

– Damn, she keeps nagging.

At a past party, there was an incident where someone kept provoking her and ended up being beaten and chased out of the party.

There are countless other stories about her behavior.

From the perspective of those who have had such experiences, the current attitude of Hong Yeon-hwa… seems like a culture shock in itself, as if she is considerate and gentle.

It’s like a fierce tiger holding a small puppy in its arms, not devouring it but carefully licking it.

“Unbelievable.”

The evaluation of the majority of special admissions students has been revised.

As something that changed the crazy Hong Yeon-hwa’s attitude.

* * *

“…What kind of look is this?”

The types of emotions that were directed towards me were diverse.

Curiosity, doubt, suspicion, jealousy, ridicule, and so on.

Similar yet different emotions flew around, and now there seems to be something else added.

It’s like a gaze that seems to be looking at something incomprehensible, something extraordinary.

“These bastards…”

The gaze also turned towards Hong Yeon-hwa beside me. She, who was about to say something inevitable, suddenly looked startled and then turned to look at this side, closing her mouth.

“Uh… I wasn’t talking to you, it was for them over there.”

“……”

“Don’t misunderstand…”

Why is she doing that? Why does it feel like she’s watching my every move?

No, the gaze is getting strange again. Is this a new form of harassment?

I’ve never experienced it, but I’ve read a lot of stories about nerds during my school days.

They were about nerds pretending to care for other nerds and teasing them…

If this is really harassment, how should I escape from it? As I ponder deeply, a woman approached with hurried steps.

“Yeon-hwa, why are you so late? You came right before it started?”

A fresh and lively voice, similar to her footsteps. It was a voice I had heard in-game once again.

“I overslept. Normally, Erial should have woken me up, but he neglected it today.”

“Why?”

“It’s my dad’s orders. He said not to indulge me anymore.”

What kind of indulgence is this? The woman who smiled at Hong Yeon-hwa, who was grumbling, turned her gaze towards me this time.

“Who’s this?”

“Oh, this is Yi Ha-yul. She’s the one who entered through special admission this time. We met on the way here and came together.”

“Huh? Met on the way and came together? Yeon-hwa, you…?”

“What’s it to you, jerk…! Ahem!”

“?

Everyone mentions these three as the representative clans of South Korea.

Hong Yeon-hwa’s clan, “Geomhwa (劫火).”

The clan known as the first established clan in South Korea, “Taesan (泰山).”

And the woman in front of us, Baek A-rin, belongs to “Changhae (滄海).”

Roughly speaking, they are the three major clans in South Korea, each with names representing fire, earth, and sea. They are the powerful forces that were highly weighted in the original work as well.

“Baek A-rin.”

In the original work, Hong Yeon-hwa and Baek A-rin were particularly intertwined.

If Hong Yeon-hwa is the next successor of the Geomhwa clan, Baek A-rin is the next successor of the Changhae clan.

While Hong Yeon-hwa has fiery red short hair and a hasty, fiery personality, Baek A-rin has calm, composed long blue hair that reaches her waist and a cool, rational personality.

Hong Yeon-hwa is a flame that burns everything, while Baek A-rin is water and ice that heal and block.

“…What’s wrong? What happened?”

“What do you mean what happened? Why are you suddenly talking nonsense?”

“Lies. You never listened even when I told you to fix your bad habit until just recently.”

Baek A-rin seemed to be pressing for the truth, and Hong Yeon-hwa seemed to react as if stung.

I don’t know. Their conversation was new to me.

Seeing the scene firsthand, rather than in the game… she can’t be underestimated.

What a ridiculous sense seal. This guy is the real problem.

“Oh! I’m sorry. My attention wandered for a moment. I’m Baek A-rin from the Changhae clan. Nice to meet you.”

[Yes. I’m Yi Ha-yul. Nice to meet you.]

Baek Arin, who spat out a sigh of having forgotten for a moment, greeted and shook hands with a smile.

Without hesitation, they clasped hands. I shivered involuntarily at the coldness felt in the palm of my hand.

Baek Arin’s eyes curved gently.

“Did you sense it…? It’s an essential ability that must not be missing from the strategy team. Oh, if it made you uncomfortable, I’m sorry.”

[No, it’s okay. And yes, it’s related to sensing.]

Relieved that I wasn’t uncomfortable, Baek Arin smiled again, apologizing once more.

Outwardly bright and mischievous, she seemed polite.

‘Was this acting? I still have my doubts.’

If you raise Baek Arin’s favorability, you can hear episodes about her “mask.”

There, the choice is divided.

Do you solve the mask or leave it alone? If you choose the wrong option here, Baek Arin turns clearly hostile.

The episode where the mask story was pushed and ultimately killed Baek Arin in the 11th episode.

By the way, in the 11th episode, she finally retired after being chased like a madwoman by Hong Yeonhwa.

Even though they were depicted as having opposite personalities in the game, they were particularly close.

So when one died, the other fought desperately. Experienced in the 11th episode.

After somehow finding out the identity of the murderer who killed Baek Arin, it was not easy to chase after everything. 30% of the failure in the 11th episode is due to Hong Yeonhwa.

So in the next episode, I didn’t even bother with Hong Yeonhwa or Baek Arin.

After finishing a simple chat, as the time for the welcome party approached, Baek Arin waved her hand regretfully.

“It’ll start soon. See you later. And.”

Baek Arin reached out with the hand holding the smartwatch and tapped my smartwatch.

[Contact ‘Baek Arin’ has been saved.]

“If you ever need help, please feel free to contact me anytime.”

As she replied, those who seemed to be her friends gathered around her.

“Oh, right. I forgot about this.”

[Contact ‘Hong Yeonhwa’ has been saved.]

Similarly, after registering the contact, Hong Yeonhwa looked around with a worried expression.

There were many pretending not to, but there were a lot of glances flickering in this direction.

“Shall we stay together? What’s wrong with being with me and our kids?”

[We can’t cause trouble like that. Thank you, but I’ll pass.]

Even now, the burden is at its max.

As expected, being alone is the most comfortable.

Hong Yeon-hwa, who hesitated, finally moved towards where Baek Ah-rin was, saying that she was fine all along.

“Phew…”

Finally, she was alone. Thanks to the other main characters entering soon, attention was scattered, and she could breathe a bit.

She walked briskly towards a secluded spot. She leaned her body against a chair prepared for tired people.

It seems grand, but its essence is just a freshman welcome party.

In terms of the game, the vice president would come out, say a few words, and then the freshmen’s party would start.

“I’m tired.”

Just yesterday, I couldn’t sleep much. It’s partly due to spatial perception, and partly because my mind is in turmoil…

The headache doesn’t stop, and my vision isn’t just blurry, it’s completely cut off.

The world I perceive right now is limited to a 30m sphere. Even that is a simple world with only black and green outlines.

I’m making an effort, but even though spatial perception seems about to change, it remains the same.

“Sigh…”

I haven’t even started yet, but I feel like I’m going crazy. I’m so tired that my eyes are closing, but I can’t fall asleep.

I wish I could just sprawl out and sleep for two days straight.

“But I still have to see the main characters.”

– Thud!

As I sat there absentmindedly for a moment, I heard the sound of the chandelier on the ceiling turning off. While expecting the surroundings to darken, suddenly the spatial perception expanded beyond its range.

‘?’

Originally from 30m to almost 50m, thanks to the expanded spatial perception.

Because of this, I felt someone stepping onto the central stage within the range.

A woman suddenly appeared as if teleporting. She was wearing a large robe, advertising herself as a magician.

“It’s the vice president.”

The freshman welcome ceremony starts with a speech by the vice president, who suddenly appears on stage through teleportation.

The welcome ceremony began shortly after.