Chapter 280
Chapter 280
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 280
Chapter Title: How to Steal the Protagonist's Woman
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I submitted my completed exam paper with a flourish and headed straight out to the high terrace to enjoy the morning air.
"Whoa, the entire vibe of this place is totally different in the early morning light."
The last time I had spent time up here, it was during the golden evening glow, when everything was bathed in a warm yellow light. Now, the stark black and white architectural decorations of Schutra blended together in a welcoming embrace under the bright daylight. The school grounds were unusually quiet, as most students were still buried in their test papers. On my way to the terrace, the proctors patrolling the silent halls had given me curious, almost suspicious stares, but none of them actually tried to stop me since I had officially checked out.
The moment I arrived at the ledge, I plopped down in my usual spot and leaned back comfortably against the cool stone.
‘Ahh... exam season really is the best time of the semester.’
Just to be absolutely safe, I had double-checked every single question and my corresponding answers before turning the paper in, hunting for even the slightest mistake, but I hadn't found a single error. The problems Zodiac had tipped me off about were perfectly spot-on, not a single character or punctuation mark out of place. The exam itself was a masterpiece of planning, but it seemed that my behavior during the test had raised quite a few eyebrows among the faculty.
‘It’s a matter of pride...’
‘No... not my pride. I’m targeting Louis’s.’
My bet with Louis wasn't just about the written exam results; the practical exams were very much in play as well. Even if I crushed the written portion or managed to tie with him right now, a blowout during the practicals would make this perfect score feel completely worthless. That's exactly why I was laying down some psychological insurance—by absolutely blazing through the written exams with unnatural speed.
‘I have to keep provoking him at every turn. The main and sub-attribute exams aren't until Thursday and Friday anyway, so I have plenty of time to chip away at his pride until he finally cracks.’
The exams leading up to Wednesday weren't the "big ones" that would significantly swing the final rankings. My plan was to needle him nonstop and rattle his focus before we reached the real heavy-hitters. There was no guarantee Louis would play along, but with an ego larger than his next meal, it seemed like a very promising strategy.
‘Plus, if Luna sees me displaying this level of skill and confidence, it will definitely boost her affection for me too.’
It might seem childish, but it was undeniably effective. The scores wouldn't be posted instantly, but when they finally were, the look on Louis's face would be absolutely priceless.
‘It’s better to win first and deal with the fallout later, don’t you think?’
‘Yeah, I got it.’
Armonia had been nagging me about that forever, and while I had originally planned a big Enel binge to power up, I realized getting caught would be a disaster. Still, even as I reflected on my actions, just picturing Louis's inevitable meltdown had me grinning like a fool.
‘When the scores finally drop, I'm going to rub his nose in it real good.’
I chuckled softly to myself. Unlike the usual calming sunset glow of the terrace, the bright morning sun already had me yawning from the early start.
‘Yawn... Armonia, how much longer until the next exam session begins?’
‘I suppose I'll try to catch some quick Z's then.’
I closed my eyes, drifting off with a satisfied smile while fantasizing about the various ways I could humiliate Louis later that week.
..
..
"You seem awfully relaxed for someone in the middle of exams."
"Huh? Oh, you're already here, Luna?"
I rubbed my eyes to clear the lingering fog of sleep and turned toward the source of the melodic voice.
"So, how exactly did the exam go for you?"
"...Is that really the first thing you want to say to me after what you did?"
Luna sat down calmly beside me on the terrace and immediately launched into a lecture.
"What on earth were you thinking back there in the hall?"
"What do you mean, thinking about what?"
"You know exactly what I mean... Why did you just submit your paper and bail without even finishing it properly?"
I covered my mouth for a long, exaggerated yawn, while Luna waited with impressive patience for my actual answer. After I finished yawning, I gazed at her softly, but she only shot back a sharp look of disapproval.
"Didn't you promise me that you were actually going to win this bet?"
"Yeah, I did. And I am going to win."
"Then why would you behave so recklessly...?"
Luna stared at me with a look of genuine disappointment, so I simply stared into the distance and began to recite.
"The Fire attribute. It possesses no standout strengths in basic control, but it has no glaring weaknesses either—making it highly efficient for combat. The Water attribute excels in fluid control and atmospheric handling..."
"...? What on earth are you on about all of a sudden...?"
"Low mana consumption is its primary tactical edge. The Wind attribute..."
I completely ignored her confusion and continued to rattle on with the contents of the exam. At first, Luna looked at me as if I were some kind of delusional weirdo, but gradually her expression hardened as she started listening intently to the data I was spewing. I didn't throw in a single useless word, reciting every one of my answers from the exam paper perfectly in front of her. From the simple short-answer questions to the most complex magical equations, I listed every single question in the correct order and read off the exact responses I had written. I poured out the information without a single hitch all the way to the very end of the fifteen-page document.
"...resulting in final rounded figures of 48 maba and 7483 mana for the stabilization coefficient."
"That last figure... could you please repeat it for me one more time?"
"It was 48 maba and 7483 mana."
"... "
Luna slowly closed her eyes and began to ponder deeply, cross-referencing my answers with her own. Only then did I finally turn my head to look directly at her. I had been far too focused on the paper earlier to notice her aura.
"So? Was my work good enough for you?"
"How is it even possible... to solve those in that short of a time...?"
"It was all thanks to your excellent teaching, Luna."
"...Me?"
I gently reached out and stroked her long silver hair with a genuine smile.
"When I saw the exam questions, everything you taught me over the last week just suddenly clicked into place. Thanks for everything."
"... "
Luna stayed quiet for a long moment, then she softly hugged my arm and leaned her head against my shoulder.
"I feel like I'm always worried whenever I'm with you, Suho."
"Haha... I'll try to be more careful from now on."
I laughed softly and spent the rest of the break enjoying her proximity.
..
..
Truth be told, I was still a little bit anxious beneath my facade. If Louis threw a tantrum and somehow managed to void the bet, it would still dent his pride significantly—making it a technical win for me. But if the school administration actually pinned a cheating charge on me? That would be a one-way ticket to bankruptcy city. There was no way of turning back time now, though.
‘If I only had a Hanyorum clone handy right now, I could just suicide-regress and this would all be incredibly easy...’
I could just lock one up in a room here and kill it whenever I needed a reset... it would be so convenient. Nah, he was just a piece of useless trash anyway.
‘They won't actually force a retake of the exam, right? That would really suck.’
‘But now that I think about it more calmly, the dean has never actually done anything to screw me over directly...’
If he had truly hated my guts from the very beginning, he could have pushed for my permanent expulsion instead of a simple suspension. Hell, he could have even rigged the exam questions behind Zodiac's back to ensure my failure.
‘Why? He could have easily scribbled the correct answers under his hand during the review process.’
‘Wait, are you talking about voyeurism?’
What? Am I not the one being surveyed here? Armonia monitored me meticulously every single day—peeping... er, performing professional surveillance. Even if I tried to sneak around, the fact that I shared my vision with her meant that everything I did was exposed. Apparently, the same rule applied to the dean and his connection. Zodiac and the Holy Order were different; they could somewhat read the will and intent of their chosen protagonist. It wasn't full mind-reading, but they had a vague sense of their puppet's ego and shared their feelings. If the dean were to fly into a rage, the Zodiac controller on the other end would feel that heat bleeding over into their own mind. The bottom line was simple: you couldn't hide anything perfectly from your observer.
‘Maybe it's just otherworlder curiosity?’ I thought. The Demon King had once found me incredibly intriguing for entirely different reasons. Perhaps the dean was just experiencing the novelty of meeting an otherworlder.
‘Stonewalling us, huh...’
I was muttering to myself while doodling on some scrap paper during the next session when Armonia pinged me again.
‘Roger that.’
I timed it with absolute perfection, wrapping up my "work" just seconds before Louis could finish his final page. I strode confidently to the podium and handed in my sheet to Professor Sonya.
"...Is everything really all good, Suho?" she asked with a soft voice.
"Yep, perfectly fine."
Unlike her worried look from earlier in the week, she offered a small smile, took my paper, and neatened the growing stack on the desk.
"Good work today. I wish you the best of luck on tomorrow's exam as well."
"Thanks, Professor."
I turned around and gave a slow, deliberate wink at Louis, who was currently glaring absolute daggers at me from his seat.
‘Ooh... that vein popping out on his forehead is visible even from all the way up here, Armonia.’
‘Make sure to record that specific vein for posterity, will you?’
Grinning from ear to ear, I offered a mock wave at that gorgeous bulging vein on Louis's forehead and sauntered leisurely out of the lecture hall.
..
..
A few minutes later, I was sitting on the high terrace with Luna, rattling off my exact answers to her for comparison. She focused hard on every word, then covered her mouth with a delicate finger and murmured softly to herself.
"They're spot on."
"Whew, that's good to hear. Matching your answers means we both likely nailed the entire exam."
"...Isn't it the exact opposite? I was the one feeling relieved after hearing yours."
I chuckled at her humility and scanned the crowded terrace. Students were buzzing everywhere about today's difficult questions. A few from our specific class were there too, sneaking judgmental glances at us while whispering behind their hands. I turned to Luna and said,
"You should go and chat with your friends for a bit."
"...And why don't you try to go and make some of your own, Suho?"
Damn, that was actually a savage comeback from her... but I wasn't about to back down that easily.
"It's simply not the right time for me to be socializing. Besides, it would really suck if your hard-earned friends decided to ditch you just because of my reputation."
"...That wouldn't bother me in the slightest."
"Still, you should go and mingle with them. I'm going to head back to the dorm for a while."
"But what about our study session?"
"I'll be in the dorm for a bit. You should use the time to study with your friends as well. It'll be good for you."
I knew I sounded a bit cold, but I stood firm on the decision. I was perfectly fine being a social pariah, but I was genuinely worried that her new social circle might bail on her because of our association. Luna pouted up at me from her seat, grumbling under her breath.
"...You can be such a meanie sometimes."
"I'll meet you for dinner together later, okay?"
"Hmph... fine, I suppose."
I offered her one last smile at her adorable sniff and headed off toward the student dormitories.
Time flew by in a blur of tests and late-night reviews, and Thursday finally rolled around. Everyone was gearing up for the critical sub-attribute exam. The lecture hall was humming with nervous chatter about past tests and today's upcoming challenge—until the heavy door swung open, drawing all eyes to the entrance. In walked Louis Brandt Rup.
His usual group of fangirl followers swarmed him almost instantly.
"Louis! Are you really okay?"
"Uh... yeah, I'm doing just fine, thanks."
"Oh, thank goodness... we were so worried about you. We called the infirmary every single day—what on earth happened to you?"
"Uh, yeah... it's all been sorted out now. Please, don't worry yourselves."
Louis offered a strained, wry smile and shuffled toward his designated seat. The girls trailed after him like a group of worried chicks after a mother hen. Exams aside, he had spent the last few days getting grilled relentlessly by the senior professors, being forced to write reflection essays until he went to bed. They had dug into every embarrassing detail: Why the no-show on his return? Did he really use his family status to fool the city guards? It hadn't blown up into a public scandal, thankfully, but from Monday to Wednesday, he had been summoned to the discipline room immediately after every exam for hours of writing.
‘Fuck... why did this have to happen to me of all people...’
Only his strict parents had ever chewed him out with that level of intensity. For Louis, who had never faced a single word of rebuke in his entire life, the act of writing formal apologies was nothing short of mortifying—he felt scarred for life. The only silver lining was that the news hadn't leaked to the rest of the school yet.
‘At least there won't be a permanent record like a formal suspension. If there were, I can't even imagine Father's wrath back home...’
As he was shuddering at the thought of his parents' reaction, he sensed someone approaching his desk. Luna was standing before him, a look of genuine concern etched onto her beautiful face.
"Louis, are you really okay?"
"Yeah... I'm fine, Luna."
Her unexpected kindness warmed his heart for a second, but it was quickly followed by a crushing wave of shame. He had always wanted to shine as a hero in her eyes, but lately, he had only experienced one embarrassment after another. It was getting harder and harder for him to meet her gaze. Still, he saw an opening to talk. Forcing a natural smile, he asked her,
"Luna, how did the exams go for you so far?"
"I did my absolute best. We'll find out the truth when the scores finally drop next week."
"Haha... I’m sure you'll cruise