Episode 130. Festival

“Uh….”

As I was wondering how to respond to such bullshit coming at me like that, luckily, the host spoke to us.

[Let’s pause here and have a brief chat with today’s main characters. First, Cadet Shin Dongmin?]

“Yes.”

[Honestly, you’ve seen him for three years, so you don’t have any questions, right? Let’s move on to Cadet Lee Hoyeon!]

“Pfft.”

Shin Dongmin, who had been waiting for a question directed at him, made a face like he’d just eaten shit at the host’s words, and seeing that, I couldn’t hold back my laughter.

Shin Dongmin shot me a fiery glare, but I ignored him and looked at the host.

[I heard the first-years had their survival exam until yesterday. Seeing Cadet Lee Hoyeon’s tired face, it looks like you survived until the very end. Is that right?!]

My face was being projected onto the large hologram screen in the auditorium.

My hair was dry and brittle, probably from having my energy drained, my cheeks were gaunt, my eyes bloodshot, and I had dark circles under them. I was a mess.

However, because my face was handsome, it gave off more of a ruggedly handsome vibe than a repulsive one.

“Ah… that’s right. To be honest, I overslept. Since I was late, the host-nim must have had a hard time, so thank you.”

[Not at all, not at all. Thanks to you, the atmosphere got incredibly heated.]

“Let’s gooooo!!! Vice President!”

“Shin Dongmin! Shin Dongmin! Shin Dongmin!”

Sadly, the auditorium was mostly on Shin Dongmin’s side.

Most of the guys were on Shin Dongmin’s side, and their voices were almost all loud.

“Lee Hoyeon, fighting!”

“So handsome!”

There were cheers supporting me too, but they weren’t nearly as loud.

[Since this is a friendly match against the third-years, many people expect a loss. What are your thoughts, Cadet Lee Hoyeon?!]

“I’ll show you with the results.”

Can’t we start soon already?

My head hurts a bit.

[Ooooh! A confident statement! What will be the outcome of the match! Shall we begin soon then? First, we’ll start the draw for the battle arena!]

A magic circle that appeared in the center of the auditorium activated, and a large roulette wheel began to spin.

[Since it’s an event match, the arena’s field is chosen randomly! Depending on which field comes up, it could be a match that Cadet Lee Hoyeon can handle!]

“Hmm….”

Even though I showed my skills in the 1v1 duel, this kind of public opinion exists. It’s probably because the opponent is a first-year.

I hope I can finish this decisively this time. It’s about time I stopped hearing this kind of talk.

Dugun dugun-

The roulette wheel gradually slowed down, and the needle pointed to one section.

[Ah-! The ‘Buoy on the Sea’ field has been set! This is devastating news for Cadet Lee Hoyeon! It’s a terrain completely advantageous to Cadet Shin Dongmin!]

“Tsk, sorry about that.”

‘…Predictable, so predictable.’

Seeing that face, there must have been some behind-the-scenes manipulation.

But I don’t care.

A salty sea breeze wafted into my nose.

The moment I came to my senses, my surroundings had turned into the sea.

A space-expansion magic circle surrounding the arena widened its size, turning it into a vast ocean. Beneath Shin Dongmin and me, a buoy tens of meters wide floated on the sea.

[Alright! The friendly match between Cadet Lee Hoyeon and Cadet Shin Dongmin will now beeee~gin!]

The reason I don’t care about the field is simple.

Absurdly enough, having sex with Liliana pushed me one step further in my growth.

I still don’t know Liliana’s secret, but anyway, in the process of countering those high-level magic spells, my magic level rose by one tier.

There was a time before when rumors circulated that I had awakened, and public opinion went wild then too.

At that time, the conclusion was that a first-year couldn’t possibly have awakened yet.

‘This time, it’ll really cause a stir.’

The mana barrier blocking the path between Shin Dongmin and me disappeared, and the surging waves began to rise upwards.

Chwa-reuk! Pa-ak-

Dugeun. Dugeun.

‘He’s strong, alright.’

This is definitely a game with a messed-up power balance. An academy student being stronger than active hunters.

Dugeun.

A familiar combat sense enveloped my body.

Shin Dongmin deployed a magic circle as if he had prepared it beforehand. Every time his hand swept through the air, the surrounding water took various shapes.

Watching the giant wave crashing towards me, I slowly concentrated my mana.

Geu-oh-

Behind the waves, ascending water dragons (水龍) appeared.

“No way! Water dragons?!”

“It’s over. Even the field is siding with Shin Dongmin.”

It was strange that I could hear the sounds from the audience seats all the way here.

I couldn’t hear them during the 1v1 duel, maybe because this is an event match?

[Cadet Shin Dongmin! That’s an unbelievable magic casting ability! He summons 5 water dragons in an instant!]

The massive tsunami and 5 water dragons crashing down on me.

The audience seats were in an uproar, calling it incredible magic.

It certainly looks cool.

“But so what?”

This kind of water play isn’t important to me.

I promised to play with Liliana, so I can’t waste time on this.

Dugeun.

I unleashed the mana surging within my body.

It’s been a while since I practiced other elements because I was focusing on fire magic… but it’s fine.

Because the current me can do it.

Ppa-deuk-!

Kkakang. Kkang

Kka-deu-deuk. Kkang.

A chilling cold spread out from my body.

The water dragons and waves attacking me met the cold and immediately began to freeze.

Kwa-deuk. Ppa-deuk-

The waves turned into ice shards, maintaining their threatening size.

The water dragons, possessing will, struggled desperately to stop their bodies from freezing, but they only ended up freezing in even more grotesque forms.

Ttak. Ttak. Tta-dak.

The cold, seeking its next prey, began to freeze even the sea.

As the ice spread, accompanied by a cracking sound, Shin Dongmin panicked and started screaming.

“I-impossible! I-ice?”

[… W-what is happening! Cadet Lee Hoyeon possesses the ice attribute! Is this… dual attributes? Dual attributes?!]

Kka-deuk- Kka-deu-deuk-

The sea froze over.

The buoy, which had been rocking with the waves, was proof of that.

“Surely this isn’t the end, right?”

I gave Shin Dongmin a sly smile.

After all that commotion, you’re not going to give up just for this, are you?

“….”

“Oh. You still have some pride.”

Shin Dongmin didn’t give up and drew another magic circle.

Just because there’s no water doesn’t mean you can’t use water magic. It’s just less advantageous because summoning water requires less mana; water magic inherently includes the process of creating water.

Dugeun. Dugeun.

I used quite a lot of mana just now.

Since my condition isn’t great, it would be best to finish this quickly.

Using my remaining mana, I lifted chunks of the frozen sea.

Shin Dongmin, who was drawing a magic circle, looked around and his face turned pale.

“I said I’d do anything if I won, right? Never approach the President-nim again. If I catch you next time, I’ll really kill you.”

Ka-deuk!

Hundreds of ice chunks surged towards Shin Dongmin.

“Uwaaaaaah!”

Kkang! Kkang! Kkang!

He managed to block a few dozen with sheer willpower and frantic magic circles, but the match was already over the moment his first spell was blocked.

Kwa-ga-ga-gak-!

The ice chunks pierced through Shin Dongmin’s magic and began embedding themselves in his body, and with the accumulating damage, Shin Dongmin’s magic gradually weakened.

“Why! Whyyyy!!!”

Seeing Shin Dongmin screaming and trying to block the ice chunks made me laugh involuntarily.

“You should have put that effort into training instead of manipulating the field, Senior-nim. Maybe the result would have been different?”

“Kkuaaah!”

Pak. Pak. Pak. Pak. Pak.

Ice chunks were haphazardly embedded around Shin Dongmin, and eventually, a massive ice pillar formed around him as he failed to block them.

He turned into a human snowman, not Elsa.

[Ah… Match end! The winner is Cadet Lee Hoyeon!]

Seu-reuk-

The frozen sea vanished, returning to its original state as the battle arena.

Shin Dongmin, trapped in the mana-forged ice, collapsed onto the floor with a thud as the ice disappeared.

Medical staff quickly rushed over, placed Shin Dongmin on a stretcher, and carried him away.

Last time, I was the one carried away. This time, it was my opponent.

“Ugh.”

My head is spinning.

I feel like I need to go and sleep right away.

[Cadet Lee Hoyeon? Please give us a word on your victory!]

Before I knew it, the host had approached me. I wanted to leave quickly because I was tired, but this person kept me here for a while, so I should at least do this much.

“Ah… thank you. I revealed my hidden weapon this time, and I hope everyone enjoyed it. Please enjoy the Cheonsangje festival. I’m going to sleep now.”

[Wow! So cool. So cool! Since Cadet Lee Hoyeon looks extremely tired, let the guild officials handle the talk about dual attributes! I’ll move on to the next segment!]

Luckily, the host saw my state and didn’t ask any further questions.

Oof, I’m exhausted.

I came down from the battle arena.

Still, I should at least say goodbye to the student council members.

“You worked hard. I’m heading off.”

“Junior-nim, you were totally awesome… Leave the rest to us!”

“Yes, yes. Thank you. Where is President-nim?”

I looked around, but couldn’t see Moon Surin.

“She was over there, but where did she go?”

Leaving the female student tilting her head in confusion, I entered the staff waiting room.

She probably doesn’t like crowded places.

“Hoyeon-ah…!”

Just then, I bumped right into Moon Surin coming outside.

“Surin noona. Thank you. I’m tired, so I’m heading off. I came to say goodbye.”

“Okay. Go get some rest. Your face is a wreck.”

I thanked Surin noona, who placed her hands on both my cheeks with concern, and stepped out of the waiting room.

Now I really need to head back to the dormitory.

“Yo~ Handsome-ee! You worked hard.”

“… Is my name fixed as ‘Handsome-ee’?”

As I was leaving the main auditorium to head to the dormitory, Kim Young-han approached me. It seemed he had been waiting outside for me.

“Yep!”

I didn’t like the way he chuckled.

“Haa… Just call me by my name.”

“Why? It’s good, isn’t it? Handsome-ee. Rolls right off the tongue.”

“Sigh, aren’t you tired?”

He survived until the last day with me too, yet he seems full of energy.

“Well, I didn’t fight as hard as Handsome-ee did. I just ran away on the last day.”

“If you call me Handsome-ee one more time, I’m going to start calling you ‘Thorn Wrapper, 4th Place Loser’, okay?”

“….”

“I’m going to go rest. I’m tired.”

Ignoring Kim Young-han, who looked dejected at my words, I headed towards the dormitory.

Thinking about hugging Liliana and sleeping made my chest feel warm and fuzzy.

Ttirring-

I opened the dormitory door and came inside.

I had rushed out of the dormitory at 8:50 AM, and I was back in less than an hour.

On the way to my room, I shed my cadet uniform, leaving a trail like Hansel and Gretel.

In the room, Liliana was still asleep, exactly as she looked when I left.

I took off my clothes too and lay down next to her.

Kkomjirak kkomjirak.

I snuggled close to Liliana and placed my hand on her chest.

The soft sensation against my body and hand was comforting.

“Haa….”

As soon as I lay down on the bed, the tension and fatigue washed over my body all at once.

‘I’ll play with Liliana after I wake up. Ah, speaking of which, I should ask Liliana about her magic too….’

Ttuk-

My memory cut off there.