Chapter 5: The Angel Caught in a Test (2)

Episode 5: The Angel Caught in a Test (2)

With that question, the illusion dispelled,

revealing the true form of the barbecue restaurant owner.

Lusa was an elf with long ears. And like an elf, she possessed an unrealistically beautiful appearance, just like a martial artist, she had a height exceeding 170 cm and perfect proportions. However, if one had to find flaws, it would be the dark circles under her eyes and her cold demeanor.

“I said, how did you figure it out? Answer me!”

Her hand grabbed his shoulder. Even without applying much force, Leffrey couldn’t move.

“Uh… well…”

Leffrey was flustered. Why was Lusa suddenly acting so aggressively? Was she surprised and couldn’t believe he passed the test she gave him? If that was the case, she shouldn’t have given such a test in the first place. He wanted to argue, but Leffrey held back.

It was because her expression seemed so desperate. Honestly, it was also a bit scary.

“It was just a guess…”

“Nonsense.”

Lusa’s expression turned dark.

Her already cold demeanor became even colder.

Leffrey quickly opened his mouth.

“You were focusing so intensely on the meat you were eating, more so than I was. It would be impossible to think you were an elf who abstains from eating meat.”

“That’s right.”

Leffrey smiled slightly.

He was aware of his own cuteness. Honestly, it was a bit disgusting to use his cuteness, but was this the time for Leffrey to be picky?

It seemed to have some effect as Lusa’s attitude softened a bit and she released his shoulder.

“But I’ve heard that there’s an elf professor at the Central Academy who eats meat. If it was that professor, I thought maybe you were showing yourself eating meat to deceive people, and asking about your race like this to prevent them from giving an answer like ‘elf’…”

Leffrey was impressed with the logic he had come up with.

From today onwards, he was Leffrey, the smart angel.

“You expect me to believe that?”

Lusa said in a lowered voice.

“It’s… true.”

What an incredible talent, Lusa thought. He found her so quickly, even though she was thoroughly hidden, and even guessed her race correctly based on minimal clues. To think that such a young being already possessed such talent… Lusa felt a sense of greed for the first time in a long time.

Moreover…

His trembling hands, his manly facade trying to hide his fear and appear strong, but actually looking scared. Yet, his unwavering posture. And… his truly angelic face.

The combination of all these… it was like…

Lusa spaced out for a moment.

And was a little surprised.

To think she felt pity and wanted to help him… It had been nearly a hundred years since she had such weak thoughts.

Lusa managed her expression and said,

“Alright. You passed the test. I’ll give you the application.”

“…Really?”

The boy’s face lit up at the words ‘I’ll give you the application’. Lusa barely managed to keep a straight face.

“And since you passed the additional test… I should give you a reward befitting that.”

“A reward…?”

A befitting reward?

Leffrey couldn’t hide his joy.

And seeing that, Lusa had to use even more strength to maintain her cold demeanor.

“What’s your name?”

“It’s Leffrey.”

“Alright, Leffrey. I’ll write you a recommendation letter.”

And she added as if making an excuse,

“Don’t get the wrong idea. I’m not writing this because I have any personal feelings for you. The fact that you found me as soon as the application period started, and that you accurately guessed my race based on various clues, are all things I highly value, so I’m writing you a recommendation letter.”

With an antique fountain pen adorned with gold leaf, Lusa wrote the recommendation letter in one swift stroke. In fact, Lusa did highly value Leffrey.

He was incredibly talented. She was tempted.

And he was cute too…

“Don’t get any ideas. Got it?”

“Thank you…!”

Leffrey, holding the recommendation letter and application, bowed politely with his hands on his stomach.

“I’ll definitely pass!”

Seeing the boy’s bright smile, Lusa almost said, “Yes, I’m looking forward to it…”. Lusa couldn’t understand why she was so flustered. This body that had lived over 100 years longer than ordinary humans, this self who had never been swayed by a man… flustered by a mere child like this?

No matter how talented he was…

It was impossible.

To be looking at his departing back with regret… it was impossible.

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Having the application and recommendation letter in his hand.

Naturally, Leffrey was in a good mood.

‘Right. My memories of the future are still working. Maybe I really can… get into the Central Academy. Besides, this is a recommendation letter from Lusa, who is in charge of this exam, so it has much more value than other recommendation letters…’

To think he would be entering the Central Academy, the school he had always dreamed of. Leffrey couldn’t stop imagining it.

If he entered the Central Academy, he would be called a cadet, right? From an unemployed person with no family to a cadet of the Central Superhuman Academy, an elite acknowledged by everyone, in one go. It was a truly heart-swelling leap.

‘If that happens… I won’t live like my past self ever again, right?’

Scrunch- The boy folded the application and put it in his pocket. Then he looked at the recommendation letter. The content was simple. It stated that Lusa Sherinan, the martial arts professor at the Central Academy, recommended Leffrey.

‘Was Lusa Sherinan this kind of person?’

Naturally, today was the first time Leffrey had met Lusa. But he couldn’t say he didn’t know anything about her.

Information about Lusa Sherinan was widely available on The Wiki, Awakener information sites, and even YouTube. So Leffrey knew what kind of person she was, what she had done, and even… what would happen to her in the future.

That’s why Leffrey felt something was strange.

Lusa Sherinan wasn’t known for writing recommendation letters like this. She was a professor famous for being stingy with praise and giving harsh evaluations. There was even a joke that she was so good at giving out C grades that she was called the ‘The Grade Reaper’. Moreover, it was said that she was problematic for not showing enthusiasm in teaching except for students she liked.

But to praise an Awakener like him with pathetic stats and even write a recommendation letter for a child she had just met?

‘I guess The Wiki isn’t always reliable.’

Leffrey felt a sense of unease.

He had challenged the academy entrance exam based solely on the fact that he knew the future, but to think that there was already something wrong…

However.

He couldn’t give up now.

*

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The Central Superhuman Academy’s entrance exam could be considered a semi-international event. It was an opportunity to see the future talents of the era who would close dungeons and hunt monsters.

Therefore, it was understandable to a certain extent that so many people had gathered for a mere application process, not even the actual entrance exam. The Central Academy’s application process could be seen as a preliminary entrance exam for the academy.

The application center is set up inside the Central Superhuman Academy. It was laughable to call it a center when it was just a temporary tent, but considering the scale of the newspapers and broadcasting stations that gathered from all over the world, the name ‘center’ was no joke.

Among them, two reporters from the Superhuman News, a newspaper specializing in news related to superhumans, were talking while exhaling cold white breath.

“But honestly… waiting here is pointless.”

“What do you mean, senior?”

February, days when the harshness of winter hadn’t ended. The senior reporter fiddled with a hand warmer as if it were meaningless and said,

“No one else is coming today. Even active detection and tracking-type superhumans would take more than 10 hours to find where the academy professors are hiding, right? The kids entering Central are all geniuses, but they definitely can’t find them within a few hours.”

“But…”

“But finding them is just the beginning. They have to get the application from those picky professors, right? Including that… no one else is coming today. No, they can’t come.”

“Still…”

Still… the junior reporter couldn’t help but look around. Most of the reporters were spacing out, and a few were looking at their phones with bored expressions. There were even people who had thrown aside their cameras and were enjoying coffee.

“It can’t be helped…”

“So let’s go warm up. Let’s live a little more flexibly.”

“B-But.”

“But what! Are you my little sister or something?!”

The senior reporter yelled angrily, but the junior reporter wasn’t listening to him, nor was he even looking at him. The junior reporter pointed at something.

“Someone’s coming over there.”

“…What?”

A boy was walking towards them from afar.

The area around the center instantly became noisy. The clicking of shutters, the sound of cameramen being woken up, and the hurried rustling of people grabbing their equipment.

“Wait, who is that? I’ve never seen him before.”

“Which guild is he from? No, is he from a family?”

They looked at the boy.

The blonde boy was beautiful like an angel. It was a cliché expression, but it suited him perfectly. However, the worn-out jumper that didn’t match his appearance, the embarrassed expression at the sudden attention, and the awkward demeanor as if he wasn’t used to this kind of situation…

The veteran reporters realized it right away.

If he looked like this, there was no way they wouldn’t know him.

This child wasn’t an elite raised by a powerful force. Perhaps he had just awakened a few days ago, or maybe he wasn’t even an Awakener at all.

Just as they thought that,

An entrance exam application appeared from the boy’s pocket.

“Oh my god.”

“Already?”

The reporters immediately rushed towards the boy. As more than ten microphones surged forward at once, the boy stood there awkwardly, not knowing what to do.

“Reporters, pressuring examinees can escalate into a diplomatic issue. You know that, right?”

One of the professors who was watching the scene spoke up.

The name of this professor, who had a crew cut like a soldier, was Park Jin-ho, a powerful superhuman who was considered one of the top ten close-combat specialists in Korea.

To think he would see such a famous awakener in person. And to think that such a powerful hero was actually working as a professor here. Leffrey’s heart started racing again.

“Come in quickly. There’s no need to deal with them one by one.”

“Ah… thank you.”

Park Jin-ho took the boy’s application and muttered,

“Hmm, a real application. Leffrey? Are you a foreigner?”

“No, I’m a Korean citizen.”

“Not from a superhuman family… and not affiliated with any guild?”

“Yes.”

The professor smiled as if intrigued.

“For a rookie who hasn’t even been contacted by guilds to get Lusa’s application… strange. I don’t feel any special power from you. Could it be…”

Park Jin-ho’s eyes gleamed sharply.

Leffrey felt a bit nervous.

“Ha, there’s no way Lusa fell for a trick. My apologies.”

“No problem.”

“…And to think, there’s already two.”

The professor led Leffrey to the end of the hallway. Wait… a hallway? Wasn’t this inside a shabby tent? Why was there such a long hallway inside a tent?

‘And how can there be a brick hallway… And two people? Someone came before me?’

Honestly, Leffrey thought he was the first. He practically cheated on the test by knowing the answers, so wouldn’t it be strange if he didn’t get a perfect score? But someone got a higher score than the cheater? Just what kind of monster was that?

“Rest here.”

At the end of the hallway was a hall, a huge Western-style hall. Beautiful chandeliers that looked like they belonged in a French palace, floors made of expensive marble, and antique furniture.

However, the only unusual thing was,

There were a lot of doors.

And in the middle of it all,

stood a woman with long hair.

Leffrey recognized her at a glance.

“No way… could it really be…?”

Leffrey shuddered.