A Genuine Thank You
The Crystal Guild member Jin Hyewon had been dispatched to Elphon Academy today. She was there to closely observe the duel between the first-years and second-years and scout talented students for recruitment into the Crystal Guild.
She currently sat in the foremost seat of the colosseum.
“Senior. Did you see that just now?” the newbie sitting beside her asked. The rookie wore an expression of complete incomprehension.
“The arrow clearly split, but instead of weakening it got stronger. Does that make any sense?”
“......”
Even Jin Hyewon found the feat Jeong Hayeon had displayed moments ago genuinely astonishing. When the arrows split there had been no mana loss; instead, the power had amplified and successfully struck the opponent. And that opponent was no ordinary student—he held candidate status in the Crystal Guild.
This was not something achievable through effort alone. It was purely the result of overwhelming innate talent that had turned the impossible into reality.
“.....”
Jin Hyewon gritted her teeth.
Had the girl not been the daughter of the Hunter Association president, she would have extended a serious scouting offer. But the possibility of Jeong Hayeon abandoning the Association to join the Crystal Guild was nonexistent.
“What a shame to lose such talent.”
Jin Hyewon clicked her tongue.
“Um, senior.”
The newbie beside her spoke again.
“What?”
“Then what happens to the guy lying over there now?”
The newbie pointed at Kant, who had collapsed in the arena.
“...We cut him.”
“Huh? He only lost once.”
“He wasn’t officially hired. He was nothing more than a candidate. Once he becomes useless, we discard him immediately.”
Originally, guilds registered every promising prospect as a candidate. Yet only a tiny fraction ever became full members. Any hint of a flaw or loss of usefulness meant instant replacement.
NEXT MATCH — Nam Doyun vs Kate
“Oh. This match looks worth watching.”
Jin Hyewon smiled faintly. The next bout contained a name she was rather interested in.
Nam Doyun.
“Senior. Anyone can see Kate’s going to crush this, right? I looked up Nam Doyun—his entrance scores were dead last. Kate’s an elite even among the second-years.”
“....”
Jin Hyewon gave a silent smirk.
Under normal circumstances she would have agreed. Surface information alone suggested Nam Doyun’s odds of victory were zero.
But she remembered the demonic human whose movements had frozen in front of Nam Doyun. If that had truly been his power, beating Kate would be entirely possible.
I sat on a chair in the waiting room, staring blankly at the electronic board.
Five minutes remained. I had thought I wouldn’t feel nervous, but the tension was far worse than expected.
Having already scored the absolute lowest on the physical exam, failing here could mean repeating the year. I had to make up for it in this evaluation no matter what.
The pressure was so heavy my hands wouldn’t stop shaking.
Creak—
The door opened.
I turned my head.
“....?”
Why was she here all of a sudden?
The person who had opened the door and stepped inside was Jeong Hayeon. A shopping bag dangled from her hand.
What was that? It looked incredibly suspicious. Given our current relationship, whatever was inside couldn’t be anything good.
She stood by the door staring at me quietly, then seemed to reach a decision and strode straight over.
“Hey.”
“...What?”
I was honestly scared. What the hell was in that shopping bag? It couldn’t be a weapon, could it?
“...Take this.”
Jeong Hayeon kept her head lowered as she held out the bag. Her cheeks were flushed bright red.
“...What is it?”
I asked carefully.
“Open it and see.”
“It’s not a weapon or anything, right?”
“You wanna die?”
I accepted the shopping bag.
“Open it now?”
“Yeah.”
◈ Herbal formula for nerves and tension
◈ Single dose provides immediate calm
I looked at her with a puzzled expression.
“Eat it. I was incredibly nervous before my match, but this helped a lot.”
“Why are you giving this to me?”
“..........”
She bit her lip hard, like someone who had something to say but couldn’t get the words out.
Instead of answering she spun on her heel and headed for the door.
Creak—
Jeong Hayeon grabbed the handle and opened the door. Just before she stepped completely outside, she stopped.
“I was able to win today’s match thanks to you. Thank you.”
She slammed the door shut behind her.
“......”
I stared at the closed door for a long time.
Then I looked down at the box of calming pills again.
She always lived behind a mask. To everyone else Jeong Hayeon seemed like a gentle, kind person. Countless people must have heard her say “thank you.”
But the truth was different. There were almost no times when she genuinely felt gratitude. The words were just for image management.
“....”
That was why her words and these pills struck me so deeply. She had no reason to put on an act with me, yet she had given me this.
Had she ever thanked someone from the heart before?
NEXT MATCH — Nam Doyun vs Kate
Remaining Time: 3 Minutes
I glanced at the board. After taking the calming pill she gave me, the tension seemed to ease a little.
It helped.
It was time to leave the waiting room and head to the arena.
I pulled out the elixir I carried with me. It glowed a vivid green, the color of verdigris. Just looking at it made me reluctant to swallow.
“Still have to eat it.”
I closed my eyes tight and gulped it down. The taste was so vile I nearly retched on the spot. I barely kept it down and forced the entire dose into my stomach. My insides churned violently.
But thirty seconds after ingestion, an unbelievably powerful vitality began to surge through my body.
Nam Doyun and Kate stood facing each other. Kate looked at him and gave a small snort.
“Are both contestants ready?” the announcer asked.
“Ah, one moment.”
“What is it?”
“Well, it’s a spar against a first-year. Shouldn’t there be some kind of handicap?”
“You may do as you wish.”
“Then I will restrict myself to 1st Circle magic only.”
Kate looked at Nam Doyun as he spoke. Before the match he had thoroughly researched his opponent—his specialties, his current grades. The conclusion was simple: the guy was pathetic. Dead-last entrance scores and the lowest physical exam result. Even 1st Circle magic would be more than enough.
“Junior, don’t take it the wrong way. I’m not looking down on you.”
Kate smiled and patted Nam Doyun’s shoulder lightly.
“Then what happens if you end up using magic above 1st Circle?” Nam Doyun asked.
“That won’t happen.”
Kate cut him off cleanly.
“But there is still a chance, isn’t there?”
“Junior. Underestimating yourself is bad, but overestimating yourself is something you should avoid as well.”
Kate smirked.
“Are both of you ready?”
Nam Doyun and Kate nodded.
“Then begin!”
The moment the match started, Kate thrust his hand toward Nam Doyun. A magic circle formed above his palm, and a blazing flame arrow shot forward.
Whoosh—
The arrow flew straight at Nam Doyun. Kate smiled. He had seen the boy’s physical test results beforehand. Pathetic strength, speed, and stamina. There was no way he could dodge even a 1st Circle arrow. The match should end right here.
“!!!!”
But when the flame arrow reached its target, Nam Doyun was no longer there. He had kicked off to the side and evaded it with ease. His movement was so fast it was hard to believe it came from his supposed physical stats.
Luck?
Woooong—
Kate gathered mana in his hand once more. Three flame arrows launched in rapid succession.
Swish—
Yet Nam Doyun simply rolled across the ground and dodged all three without difficulty. Kate’s brow furrowed. That wasn’t luck. There was no way his body should have been capable of those movements.
Was he hiding his true physical ability? But why? What possible reason could he have for concealing his stats even at the cost of receiving the lowest score on the physical exam?
Nam Doyun began sprinting toward Kate while continuing to dodge the flame arrows. He stretched out his hand. An invisible surge of mana shot forward. Kate couldn’t see it, but he sensed something approaching. He hurriedly deployed a 1st Circle shield. A blue barrier appeared before him.
This should be sufficient. No matter how unexpected the boy’s power was, he wouldn’t be able to break this shield—even if it was only a 1st Circle version.
Kate began preparing his next spell, predicting Nam Doyun’s path.
Crack—
“!!!”
Kate’s eyes widened in shock as he saw cracks spreading across his shield. The same shield that had endured a second-year’s flame spear without a scratch was fracturing in an instant.
Just what was this guy?
The shield would shatter any second and the invisible mana would strike him. Kate urgently cast a 2nd Circle shield.
Boom—
The formless mana vanished instantly.
“I forfeit.”
Nam Doyun shook his head as he spoke. With his strongest copied skill from Urbashi now blocked, there was no point continuing.
“......”
Kate frowned. Even though the boy had announced his surrender first, this was effectively his own defeat. He had declared in front of the entire audience that he would only use 1st Circle magic. Yet he had unconsciously cast a 2nd Circle spell in response to the attack.
“No. I lost.”
Kate admitted.