Chapter 88
Chapter 88
I Don’T Have Any Magic Power But I’M Having A Blast At The Academy 88
88
Fifteen minutes had passed since the start of the first exam of the final test, the search for the mark.
I lay on the picnic blanket, staring only at the blue sky, waiting for Parang-i and Anastasia to return.
“Hmm······”
Was it because I was lying on the mountain too long? I shivered inexplicably with a chilling sensation, as if someone was watching me.
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“Are there ghosts here.”
Scratching my arm, with nothing else to do, I checked my status window.
[Available SP: 16400]
“It’s not enough.”
Although the number of SP was much higher than before, I needed more to obtain what I desired.
?Player Yi Hae-sol [Pioneer of Souls]
[Gifts: Projection of the Beyond, Mortal’s Worry. Physical Acceleration]
*To acquire new gifts, you must either discard existing ones or break through the limits.]
[Limit Break Cost: 50000 SP]
A player can have a total of three gifts.
To learn more gifts, ‘Limit Break’ was necessary using SP, expanding the slot window.
However, gathering 50,000 SP in this world was a huge sum.
Therefore, my alternative was to strengthen the existing gift, ‘Projection of the Beyond.’
Projection of the Beyond was essential for creating items in Eternity’s game, but it wasn’t just limited to that.
By paying SP, it was possible to temporarily enhance the abilities one possessed.
From vitality to grams, and various passive traits, they could be temporarily boosted.
The projectionist of ideals was the ability to realize the ‘ideal’ I desired.
However, to do so, it was necessary to strengthen the projectionist of ideals.
And the cost required for that enhancement was 20,000 SP.
“If I gather 3600 SP from now on, it should be enough.”
Enhancing the projectionist of ideals until the ‘Intermediate Superhuman Qualification Test’ was currently my goal.
But first, I had to pass the final exam.
By the way, when are they coming?
Yawn. Stretching, I gazed into the distant sky where Blue had disappeared.
“It’s blue.”
“Yes, it is.”
“······.”
A fragrant smell wafted through the air.
With my face stiffening, I slowly turned my head to the side.
Han Seyeon was sitting cross-legged, chin resting on her hand, smiling.
Startled, I asked as I stood up, “How did you know to come here?”
Was my location marked on the bracelet’s internal map? No, but···
“Nicole told me.”
“Nicholas?”
“Yes.”
Nicholas, whom she met on the mountainside, informed her of my location.
Well, if what Han Seyeon said was true, he was a reliable guy who would gladly share such information.
Although he might act arrogantly, he probably guided her kindly like a free guide.
The image of him leading her to a point that I couldn’t see was vivid in my mind.
And my guess was half right.
Han Seyeon could pinpoint my location at any time, and while on her way, she met Nicholas, who comfortably guided her.
“Why was Haesol lying here?”
Han Seyeon, who had settled beside me as if it were her spot, hugged her knees and asked.
I didn’t say anything, leaning on her shoulder as if it were natural. I had already given up on this bit of freedom.
“Blue is waiting.”
I honestly revealed my plan. It wasn’t a story to hide, and Han Seyeon was one of the two people who knew Blue’s true identity. The other person was ‘Noah Maxwell.’
“Ahahahaha, I see.”
Finding it amusing that a spirit was riding on the back of a proud deity, Han Seyeon burst into laughter.
And I thought, “Well, that’s convenient.” Han Seyeon’s sudden appearance was unexpected, but it was better than being alone.
Because the mountain range nearby was in a complete survival mode.
Although I had asked for forty, skirmishes broke out everywhere I looked.
Even though Blue’s vision wasn’t visible, being mentally connected, I could sense the danger in the current mountain range.
“I guess they’re trying to eliminate as many top-ranking candidates as possible in advance.”
No matter how high someone’s rank was, it was futile to push through with sheer numbers. And the most dangerous one in this mountain range was me.
As the top student in the grade, I was a public enemy to all candidates.
Of course, one could use stealth blocking, but as one approaches forty, even if wanting to use stealth blocking, one becomes unable to do so.
During enduring magic or using anti-magic, the stealth block would naturally unravel.
Still, it was better to use stealth blocking near forty, which was one reason I declined Nicholai’s suggestion.
Anyway, that’s beside the point.
“Sent him to find forty, but what’s he doing up there?”
I clicked my tongue, checking the excited state of Parangi.
***
Meanwhile, the ‘survival’ was not only happening on the surface of the Taebaek Mountains.
In the upper reaches of the Taebaek Mountains.
A considerable number of wind spirits and predatory birds controlled by wizards roamed the upper reaches.
Many had the thought to secure their vision to find forty.
And it was natural for a large-scale battle to occur between the gathered wizards and summoned beings.
Although not common, there were occasional clashes between the scouting wizards sent out.
However, at present, a completely different development was unfolding among the wizards than the usual clashes.
“Ssssssh!”
Parangi, soaring through the center of the upper airspace where lesser wind spirits and predatory birds fluttered, let out a majestic cry.
The wizards exposed to primal fear provoked by the creature’s fear were thrown into confusion.
The lesser wizards sent out for exploration were not Parangi’s targets.
Parangi, looking down at the confused wizards as if they were cute, soared through the sky like a fish in its own world.
“Ssssssh!”
Deliberately flying mainly where the wizards were gathering, Parangi forced the dispersal of the assembly, making life difficult for them.
The owner had given the order to find ‘forty,’ but Parangi, who had set up his own justification to eliminate the enemies to find forty, was acting otherwise (not eliminating, just intimidating).
One thing that did not sit well was the fact that Anastasia, an unknown ‘local spirit’ to the great divine creature himself, was flying around without a clue.
It was truly displeasing, but since it was the owner’s command, I was patiently enduring it.
Of course, accidents were inevitable during flight, so considering that, I tried flying backward, dropping from above, and attempting all sorts of acrobatic flights, but the spirit fellow did not think of falling like a clumsy creature.
“Ssssssh!”
In a fit of rage, Parangi drove the wizards out of the mountain range.
“Kkaak!”
Suddenly, when Anastasia grabbed his head feather, Parangi barked in surprise.
Anastasia, without a care, grabbed Parangi’s head feather and turned his head forcefully.
Anastasia’s eyes, piercing through the distortion, found an abnormal space.
Anastasia forcibly held Parangi’s head to fixate it, preventing him from arrogantly rising.
Only then did Parangi realize that the direction was where forty was and swiftly swooped down towards it.
***
“Here.”
As Parangi and Anastasia, who found forty’s location, flew above, I stood up from my spot.
“Let’s go.”
“Okay.”
I held Han Se-yeon’s hand and used stealth blocking. Our presence vanished in an instant.
Following Parangi for about 30 minutes, we encountered numerous hostile beings, yet none of them seemed to notice us passing by.
“It looks like this is the place.”
A cliff with a massive waterfall cascading down.
Parangi leaped first. Surprisingly, Parangi’s body vanished into the waterfall without hitting the cliff.
It was an “Illusion Magic” to conceal our appearance. Following Parangi, we stepped into the waterfall.
“It feels surreal.”
Feeling the cool touch of the waterfall against our skin, we crossed the cliff, experiencing the mystery of magic once again, and a new sight unfolded before us.
Our clothes, soaked moments ago, were now neatly dry.
“Finally, you’ve arrived. I’ve been waiting.”
A path through the pierced forest. Amelia, who had arrived earlier, greeted us like an examiner.
“Are you alone?”
I asked, looking around, to which Amelia smirked.
“Yes, I arrived 30 minutes ago.”
She mentioned the time unnecessarily, as if seeking praise, her eyes sparkling.
“Wow. Impressive.”
I already knew she would arrive first.
Amelia, an expert in human detection, had superior perception when it came to magic compared to other beings.
“So, you couldn’t come alone and had to wait for others to arrive?”
“Yes, you know well. There are Stone Knights ahead. It’s difficult to pass alone.”
Indeed, as I gazed ahead, knight statues made of stone lined the path on both sides.
“It’s going to be challenging for us.”
It’s not easy to bring down those Stone creatures in one go. There were as many as 15 of them ahead.
However, with only long-range attackers like archers, shamans, and mages, it seemed quite a task to defeat the Stone Knights.
Just as I was contemplating waiting for other beings in the absence of a front line.
“Of course, it’s Hyesol. She’s here early.”
“?”
Turning around, Cheon Woojin and Eungaye approached. Eungaye seemed to be following Cheon Woojin.
Nevertheless, of course, it’s Hyesol…
He seemed to be glowing with pride, thinking he had mastered magic before me.
I felt a bit overwhelmed by being lifted up when all I did was meet a decent spirit.
Hanseyeon, who knew this about me, chuckled.
Anyway, with the arrival of the two awaited inspectors, there was no more time to waste.
Perhaps Amelia also thought the same, as she picked up the white wand leaning against the tree.
“There are Stone Knights ahead.”
“If Cheon Woojin and I take the lead, it should be fine.”
“Yes, please.”
In response to Eungaye’s words, Amelia nodded.
We quickly formed a team and headed towards the cliff.
“Be careful. They’re about to move.”
Amelia warned us from a distance of about ten steps away from the knight statues.
“Then I’ll go first.”
Thud! Eungaye, who had struck the ground, aimed towards the Stone Knights on the left. Following closely, Cheon Woojin darted towards the one on the right.
And then, the Stone Knights started moving, emitting a red light in their eyes.
Kwaang! Kkong!
The two engaged in a fierce battle, the sound of swords clashing echoing continuously.
And as expected, Cheon Woojin swiftly took down one of the Stone Knights.
Pew pew pew!
Han Seyeon’s Beretta spat fire, taking down another Stone Knight.
Following that, Amelia completed a combination spell and hurled a fireball.
The Stone Knights crumbled in an instant. Eungaye effortlessly pushed back two of them.
At that moment, abruptly, four Stone Knights changed direction and charged towards Eungaye.
Caught off guard, Eungaye shouted in a fluster, “Ah, hey! Han Seyeon! Are you doing this on purpose… W-what!”
“Sorry, I think I misfired a bit.”
Han Seyeon apologized. However, contrary to her words, Han Seyeon’s face seemed oddly delighted watching Eungaye in a fluster.
She had deliberately provoked the Stone Knights to a level where Eungaye could handle them.
‘She’s secretly enjoying this.’
Han Seyeon had a mischievous pleasure in watching Eungaye in a fluster.
Even dragging her to the library under the guise of studying had an element of that. The flustered appearance was somewhat cute or something.
Eungaye then single-handedly displayed a remarkable feat of taking down a whopping seven Stone Knights each, and we moved on to the next gateway.
The next gateway was a trap where magical stones sprang up from the ground in a certain area.
There was only one way to pass without getting hit by them, and having experienced the end-of-semester exams in the game, I knew that method well.
It was a way that couldn’t be solved with the mind but had to be experienced physically by colliding with the stones.
It involved suppressing the ‘magic power’ within the body, causing the stones to rise and pass harmlessly.
“Oh, that’s how it is.”
Having heard the answer from me, Eungaye, unlike with the Stone Knights, cheerfully sang a tune and passed through the second gateway first.
“Hmm…”
Amelia, trying to find a pattern in the sprouting stones, furrowed her delicate brows and made a groaning sound.
“Want me to tell you?”
“It’s okay. I’ll try to figure it out on my own.”
Maintaining a peculiar pride in such situations, Amelia once again focused on the sprouting stones, carefully examining them with her sharp mind.
“…”
She looked and looked again. Just kept looking.
She tried every rule she knew but couldn’t find any pattern whatsoever.
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It was expected.
What pattern could there be in stones sprouting randomly?
On the other hand, Cheon Woojin and Han Seyeon, blatantly ignoring the correct answer of suppressing magic power, solely relied on their ‘dynamic vision’ to pass through all traps.
When Amelia, with pursed lips, was about to give up, it was when I returned.
Seeing me coming back, Amelia seemed apologetic yet moved, as she smiled.
“Thank you.”
“For what?”
Amelia tilted her head.
“Because of me, did you come back?”
“Why would I?”
“······.”
Ignoring the dazed Amelia, I picked up the bag I had placed next to her and crossed back over.
After Amelia, who had been groaning, finally set aside her pride and asked me to explain, we were able to move on to the next gate.
Passing through three more gates in succession, we finally entered the realm of the fortieth.
An area where dense magic flowed. Upon entering, I couldn’t help but furrow my brows.
“This is farther than I thought.”
Even with minimal usage of my Icarus ring’s output, the maximum operating time couldn’t exceed five minutes.
The Icarus ring, which had been emitting anti-magic to remove the magic, was now burning hot, possibly exceeding its operating time. However, there was still quite a distance to go before the fortieth appeared.
I could have burned the magic with the flames of the blue fire, but I preferred not to reveal myself if possible. As I pondered what to do, the magic approaching me suddenly vanished, as if washed away. I quietly expressed my gratitude as I turned to look beside me.
“Thank you.”
With my small thanks, Han Seyeon smiled silently. Walking beside me, she had redirected the magic in her direction.
For her, a contractee of the unknown, redirecting the magic was not a difficult task. Thanks to her, the magic that had been heading towards me disappeared completely.
Of course, besides the magic, there was also mental pressure, but I could easily brush it off thanks to my unwavering mental fortitude.
After comfortably traveling for about ten minutes, a huge black rock, cracked like a spiderweb, appeared on the rocky hill beyond the forest path.
“Is that······”
I muttered.
A status window notification popped up.
[You have discovered the fortieth. You will be rewarded with 500 SP.]
The black rock bore traces left by the ephemeral mine, with ‘fortieth’ engraved on it.
Ding!
[Approach the fortieth after enduring the trial. Additional SP will be given.]
“A trial?”
I tilted my head. Suddenly, the footsteps of the group came to a halt.
“······.”
A vacant expression as if their souls had departed.
They had fallen into the ‘trial’ that the system mentioned.
And I…
Was unscathed.