“Good morning, everyone!”
With a lively voice, our horoom teacher stepped into the classroom, smiling brightly as she stood at the podium and looked over us.
I couldn’t help but wonder where she found the energy to beam like that on the very first day of the sester.
“Let’s start with roll call, shall we?”
Jeong Yeongyeong began calling out nas one by one, and before long, it was my turn.
“Nam Yein.”
“Yes.”
“Co to think of it, Yein, you did sothing quite remarkable over the break, didn’t you?”
At her words, every gaze in the classroom turned toward .
“Ah… it just sort of happened that way.”
The class burst into laughter at my awkward reply.
“What do you an ‘just sort of happened’? How many students end up stopping terrorists by accident?”
Her face carried a look of exasperated disbelief.
What had happened last week was sothing everyone in this room—and probably every student and teacher in the academy—already knew.
Not because I had bragged about it, nor because Lumina had.
And certainly not because of interviews.
I had refused every interview request. After all, saying yes wouldn’t drop loot or raise my experience points.
The reason the teachers and students knew about what happened with Lumina and at the Porter Departnt Store boiled down to two things.
First, the news had broadcast CCTV footage of the confrontation with Margaret inside the store, along with the mont a man carrying his child thanked .
Second, the very next day, Chairman Porter himself—who should have been in London—suddenly ca to Gwangcheon Academy to et Lumina and .
Chairman Porter was an elderly man with snowy white hair and beard, his warm smile suiting him perfectly.
He sincerely thanked us, then offered to beco our supporter—our sponsor.
The Porter Group controlled a vast portion of global distribution, often considered one of the world’s top three conglorates alongside Forward and Crystal.
Of course, the truth was that Porter Group ranked a step below the other two, but still—if its chairman personally offered to sponsor an aspiring Hunter, who in their right mind would refuse?
Most would have leapt at the chance.
But I turned him down.
“It wasn’t sothing I did in hopes of receiving a reward,” I told him.
Though the real reason was HAUT.
If I had a sponsor before even entering HAUT, half the purpose of participating would already be lost.
So I added, “HAUT will soon begin in Seoul. If, after seeing and my teammates there, you still feel the sa, then please bring up sponsorship again.”
Chairman Porter agreed, promising to attend HAUT, and left.
With events like that, it was no surprise rumors spread through both dormitories and faculty alike.
Which ant that iling and Seo Yui had also heard about what Lumina and I had gone through.
Seo Yui had simply said things like, “I’m glad nothing worse happened,” and, “If I had been there, I could have helped too.”
Later, while heading to the auditorium for the opening ceremony after horoom, Lumina and I crossed paths with iling in the hallway.
“Ah, iling…”
“Hmph.”
Lumina called out, but iling only snorted and turned her head away.
“iling…”
Seeing Lumina’s face crumple as if she might cry, I sighed softly.
iling was sulking.
She was upset we hadn’t told her anything and had gone out just the two of us.
Honestly, I’d expected her to pout if Lumina and I went sowhere alone.
But I hadn’t thought it would last a whole week.
And truthfully, she had already improved.
At first she had shouted in anger, then ignored us completely—scurrying off like a startled squirrel whenever we tried to approach her.
HAUT is coming up soon. If this keeps up, it’ll cause problems.
I walked up to her.
“What do you want?”
She glared at fiercely the mont I stopped beside her.
“We’ll make it up to you. Ask for sothing, anything. We admit it was wrong not to invite you, so let us apologize properly.”
“…”
iling pressed her lips together and stared at Lumina and .
Then, in a small voice, she muttered, “Next ti, take with you.”
Once again, her answer caught off guard.
I had half-expected her to demand we always go out as a group from now on, forbid us from ever hanging out alone, or even, like the first ti we t, insist I kneel and lick her shoes.
“Alright. We promise. Next ti, you’ll co with us.”
“Y-yeah. Promise.”
Hearing our replies, iling snorted again and turned around.
“We’ll be late. Let’s go.”
Lumina and I exchanged a glance, then took our places on either side of her as we walked to the auditorium.
[…Now, we will hear from the principal.]
The voice bood through the microphone as Im Seongyeon appeared on the stage.
“With the end of sumr vacation, a new sester begins. Though the sun’s heat still lingers, it is ti to awaken minds and bodies that may have grown sluggish, and prepare ourselves for new experiences…”
I let her words pass through one ear and out the other while my mind wandered to the upcoming events of the sester.
What I had realized from the incidents of the first sester and sumr vacation was this—events didn’t follow Latessae’s original tiline.
The Dungeon Transfer, my encounter with Persilla… things that should have happened later were occurring ahead of schedule for reasons I didn’t understand.
That was why I had spent the vacation raising the levels and gear of Lumina, iling, and Seo Yui as much as possible.
With their specs, and my knowledge of the ga, I have to survive until Phase 2. After that, the path to further growth will open…
“Ye-Yein…!”
Lumina tugged at my arm, snapping back to reality.
“What’s wrong? …Oh?”
Only then did I notice that everyone in the auditorium—students and teachers alike—was staring at .
[Ahem! Nam Yein, Lumina Cueva. Please co up to the stage.]
Great.
I quickly stood and walked up with Lumina.
“What were you thinking so hard about?” the principal asked, mic turned off.
“Sorry,” I answered.
She said nothing more, only switched the mic back on and accepted two plaques from a teacher.
“Nam Yein. Lumina Cueva. These two students courageously stood against the terrorists who attacked Porter Departnt Store, saving countless lives from harm. For their valor, we present them with the Righteous Citizen Award. On behalf of Mayor Cheon Jiweon.”
She handed each of us a plaque, and applause thundered through the auditorium.
“You both have done sothing extraordinary. As principal, I am very proud.”
Then she addressed the audience.
“I hope all of you will follow their example and use your strength for aningful purposes.”
Her words rang oddly in my ears.
Knowing her personality, she probably ant “profitable purposes,” not “aningful ones.”
After the ceremony, we received our new schedules and announcents from our horoom teacher, and the day’s official program ended.
Though the cafeteria had reopened, our squad decided to eat out. A privilege of those free to leave campus at will.
“So, what’s this Righteous Citizen Award even good for?” iling asked as we walked down the street.
“I checked online. You get free admission to places like the National Museum, and sotis invitations to city events.”
“What? That’s useless. If waving the plaque around let you order people around, that would be sothing.”
“That would make you a dieval noble, not a citizen awardee.”
I shook my head at her logic.
What I didn’t say was that the real reward wasn’t the plaque or the free tickets.
It was that Cheon Jiweon’s suspicion of had completely disappeared—and I had gained his recognition.
About two hours later, as the four of us were walking back after dinner, my phone rang. It was our horoom teacher.
“Hello?”
[Ah, Yein. It’s .]
“Yes, teacher. What is it?”
[I just got word from the HAUT executive committee.]
“The HAUT executive committee?”
The mont I said it, the three beside widened their eyes slightly.
[Yes. This Friday, Crystal Academy will be hosting an orientation covering this year’s HAUT schedule and locations. I wanted to make sure you knew. Tell your squadmates too.]
“Understood.”
As I hung up, the three imdiately closed in around .
“What was that call about?”
iling asked, narrowing her eyes.
“They said the HAUT orientation will be held at Crystal Academy this Friday. Just letting us know in advance.”
“I-It’s finally starting…”
Lumina’s face tensed with nervous anticipation.
“But the actual start is in September, right?”
Seo Yui turned toward .
“Yes. HAUT always begins in early September. During that period, instead of regular classes here at the academy, we’ll be receiving training directly through HAUT.”
“That ans those rude brats will be there too.”
iling’s eyes sharpened. She was talking about the twin representatives of Magicka—Zen and Rune.
“You can’t fight at orientation. If you do, they might disqualify you. Just hold out until September.”
“I know that! Do you think I’m so mindless brawler?”
That’s rich, I thought. This from the sa person who nearly pointed her wand at them inside the dungeon.
“It’s alright, Yein.”
Seo Yui looked at with a serious expression.
“If iling loses control, I’ll stop her like last ti.”
Instantly, iling’s face crumpled.
I pictured her again—hauled out of the dungeon like baggage, arms and legs pinned by Lumina and Seo Yui.
“Yes. I’ll leave it to you.” I smiled.
“Don’t you dare ask for sothing like that, you idiot!”
iling exploded.
“Ahaha…” Lumina could only laugh awkwardly at the sight.
Friday.
We skipped afternoon classes and left Gwangcheon, heading to Crystal Academy for the HAUT orientation.
“Why Crystal Academy of all places? Couldn’t they rent so neutral venue instead of using a rival academy?”
iling grumbled from the backseat.
“The chairman of HAUT’s executive committee is personally close with Crystal’s principal. And besides, Crystal Academy’s facilities are among the best. It’s also ideal for inviting Hunters.”
I glanced toward the driver’s seat.
“Should you really be telling students about the chairman’s personal connections with academy heads?”
“You’re not ordinary students,” replied Kim Sang-sik, our chaperone, as he drove. “I figured you could handle that much.”
This car, too, was his.
“How’s Jodie doing these days?” Seo Yui asked.
“Thanks to you all, she’s safe at my place. Living as an ordinary person now.”
“That’s a relief.”
“She bathes regularly these days?” iling asked bluntly.
Kim Sang-sik gave a short chuckle. “Yes. Several tis a day, even. To the point where it feels excessive.”
Apparently, iling’s sharp words had left more of a scar on Jodie than we thought.
Before long, we arrived at Crystal Academy.
It wasn’t far from Gwangcheon, since both were located in Yongsan. Crystal, however, stood proudly on Namsan.
“…Wow.”
Lumina gasped, unable to tear her eyes away from the surrounding buildings.
iling and Seo Yui also looked around, wide-eyed.
Now this looks like a real academy.
Unlike Gwangcheon Academy, which had only dorms, the main hall, and training grounds, Crystal Academy was a sprawling complex of countless buildings.
“Why are there so many? Do they have that many students?” iling asked.
“Not all the buildings are for students.” I pointed to one nearby. “That one’s a research institute for materials from the Demon Realm. Next to it is the Skill Gem Institute. Behind that is a training ground where both applicants and researchers test skills. Crystal Academy hosts all kinds of Hunter-related research facilities, with researchers staying here too. Their findings directly support applicants—helping them grow faster, providing new forms of assistance.”
“S-So there’s an academy like that…” Lumina murmured in awe.
“It’s not just Crystal. Magica has research labs for magical skills and abilities. Martial God Academy has a combat techniques institute. Ucheon Academy runs an item research facility. Professors and artisans from the markets guide applicants. But Crystal Academy is exceptional—it has all of these types of institutes under one roof.”
“You sure know a lot,” Kim Sang-sik comnted, glancing at .
“I did so research on academies.” I answered casually.
“…No wonder Gwangcheon gets called a dump,” iling muttered.
“M-iling…” Lumina whispered, darting a nervous look at Kim Sang-sik.
“You don’t need to worry,” he said calmly. “It’s no secret that Gwangcheon’s educational standards lag behind.
“Honestly, it’s almost a sha. Students as talented as you should be sowhere that nurtures those gifts. That’s why I want you to absorb as much as you can from HAUT.”
“Y-Yes, sir!” Lumina straightened into a stiff salute.
Just then, voices ca from behind us.
Oh no.
I turned and muttered under my breath.
Rune and Zen. Behind them trailed other Magica Academy students and teachers.
“Ah.”
“Ah.”
“Ah.”
Our voices overlapped as we locked eyes.
(End of Chapter)
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