Chapter 9
Chapter 9
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 9
Chapter Title: The First Cheat (1)
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In the monitoring room within the academy.
"......"
The room, which had been buzzing with lively chatter up until the second exam, now fell into heavy silence.
The instructors, who had been analyzing and evaluating the talents and skills of the examinees they were monitoring, had all gone quiet.
This included the two instructors who had been focused on monitoring Lee Yoo-jin.
A brief silence hung in the air.
"......Hah."
Kang Cheol-su, the male instructor among the two, broke the silence with a short exclamation of admiration.
"...Impressive."
The female instructor, Lee Yeon-ji, murmured in awe as well.
"Lee Yoo-jin, that guy's the real deal."
Kang Cheol-su's eyes gleamed as he stared at Lee Yoo-jin on the monitor.
He had been working at Arena Academy for 20 years.
In those 20 years, he had seen countless examinees, taught many students, and helped numerous graduates debut as heroes.
But he'd never seen an examinee like Lee Yoo-jin before.
He didn't look like someone taking an entrance exam to join the academy. He seemed more like a battle-hardened veteran hero.
Thorough preparation, outstanding combat prowess.
And bold decisiveness to boot.
Who would believe this was a 20-year-old examinee?
'Honestly, there are plenty of examinees with superior abilities to Lee Yoo-jin.'
Lee Seo-yeon, daughter of Korea's transcendent, the Sword Star, and heir to the major guild Mirinae.
Arthur Pendragon, heir to Britain's major guild 'Round Table' and descendant of the Knight King.
Shuhei Asuka, daughter and successor to Japan's transcendent, the Twin Sword Dragon Shuhei Kento.
Noah, son of the 1st-generation transcendent and America's guardian, the Grand Saintess Gloria.
(Noah is even considered a candidate for Saint.)
There were many other examinees with exceptional bloodlines, families, and abilities in the testing grounds.
In comparison, Lee Yoo-jin lagged behind in everything.
Bloodline? None.
Family? None.
Abilities? Weak.
From observations since the first exam, Lee Yoo-jin's physical capabilities were the weakest among all the examinees.
When sprinting through the forest to evade the electric field, he had kept running persistently, but unlike the others, his stamina had drained quickly.
Mental capabilities... hard to say yet.
Judging by his actions, they seemed high, but grit, willpower, and wits weren't directly tied to mental stats.
Regardless of physical or mental prowess, Kang Cheol-su rated Lee Yoo-jin the highest among this incoming class.
The other instructors here likely felt the same.
'Hope classes start soon.'
Nothing was more exciting for an instructor than teaching a standout student like that.
Kang Cheol-su grinned at Lee Yoo-jin on the monitor.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ The entrance exam had concluded.
Both passers and failures returned to the grand hall without exception and were dismissed under the guides' instructions.
Before that, the guides had gathered the passers, including me, separately.
They said details like enrollment date and guidance would be available later via Smart Watch.
The Smart Watches handed out during the first exam were now ours to keep, but only for passers.
Handing out cutting-edge Smart Watches just like that.
As expected of the world's top academy. They had money to burn.
After returning to the old officetel I'd been staying in since possessing this body, checking the Smart Watch's functions along the way, I flopped straight onto the worn mattress.
"Hah... Running for real is exhausting."
The game Arena Academy supported VR systems.
Most content was played on PC, but combat switched to VR for first-person immersion.
But since it was just a game, not reality, moving and fighting in first-person only consumed and recovered stamina via the system—no real fatigue or exhaustion.
Yet now, in the real world of Arena Academy turned reality, moving my body like this... it was fun.
Immensely so.
At first, I was bewildered that the game had become reality, but after registering for the academy exam and seeing characters I'd only known virtually in the flesh, it felt nostalgic and surreal.
Through my own eyes, not the character's.
With my own body, not the character's.
Existing in the same world as the game's people.
Conversing with the game's characters.
It was exhilarating.
Like being a distant fan who suddenly has their idol approach and strike up a conversation.
Savoring that thrilling feeling, I pulled up the message window that had appeared since the exam ended. I'd shoved it to the corner of my vision to check later.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ You have completed quests. Please open the Quest Window to confirm your rewards. The message blinked insistently, urging me to check. I sat up abruptly, leaning back against the wall.
Main Quest: 'Get Accepted'.
I wasn't officially enrolled yet, but since I'd passed all the exams and met the conditions, whatever this was—god or developer—had graciously marked it complete.
Rub rub.
Anticipation building, I rubbed my hands together.
I'd cleared countless quests and claimed countless rewards.
But those were all in-game.
Now, in reality, my first real reward had my heart pounding.
And above all, that thing in the quest reward.
'Random Cheat Usage Ticket'.
Just one, and random instead of designated.
But it let me finally use a 'cheat' from the 'Cheat Tool' I'd only dreamed of till now. My mouth watered.
"Shouldn't get my hopes up too much..."
The higher the expectations, the less the letdown.
But with cheats now possible, how could I not?
Anyway, calming my trembling hands from excitement, I opened my mouth and uttered the command.
"Quest Window."
With those words.
📜 QUEST CLEAR 📜 Main Quest Chapter 1
Glistening golden text for the quest name appeared, followed by rewards scrolling into view.
Reward: '3,000 Points' granted. Reward: 'Point Shop' unlocked. Reward: 'Random Cheat Usage Ticket x1' granted. And then.
Pam-papa-ba-bam!
☆★ Performance Bonus! ☆★ Fanfare blared, and a message like the '☆Developer's Special Gift★' from my first possession day popped up, radiating rainbow colors.
Behind it, new golden rewards lined up, just like the quest name.
「First Exam: 5th Place Achieved」 Additional Reward: '5,000 Points' granted. 「Second Exam: 3rd Place Achieved」 Additional Reward: 'B-Grade Item Selection Ticket' granted. 「Third Exam: 1st Place Achieved」 Additional Reward: 'Random Cheat Usage Ticket x2' granted. "......"
I was speechless.
Blinking repeatedly, I double-checked the rewards.
Moments later.
"Whoa."
All I could muster was a single word packed with every meaning imaginable—an exclamation of awe.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ A feast of rewards that left me dazed.
Regaining my wits amid it all, I exhaled a hot breath surging from within and closed the quest window.
"......Do they have so much they're just giving it away like this?"
I'd played Arena Academy for 30,000 hours, but they'd never been this generous.
The note by points said 'Additional rewards based on performance,' so I figured it'd just be extra points.
But no—points plus a ton more.
'Stuffed.'
Felt like they'd gone beyond pork belly to slicing beef steak into my mouth.
"Is the developer playing favorites?"
The developer who possessed me here.
The developer who gifted me the illegal Cheat Tool legally.
Ah, Developer bro!
If you're watching, hook me up with good cheats!
I squeezed my eyes shut and prayed for 3 seconds.
Opening them, I immediately opened the 'Cheat Tool'.
⚙ CHEAT TOOL ⚙ [☆Arena Academy☆]
[v 1.0 plus 8 Trainer]
• Invincibility • Infinite Health • Infinite Stamina • Infinite Mana • Infinite Items • Speed Limit Removed • Super Accuracy • Enemy Slow Motion "Kya, it's been a while."
First time opening the Cheat Tool.
Well, only 3 days since then.
Day 1: Registered for the entrance exam after possession.
Day 2: Scrambling to gather exam items.
Day 3—today: Taking the exams.
And now!
The momentous day I'd met the conditions to use cheats!
Chest swelling with anticipation, hands shaking from excitement, I reached for the Cheat Tool.
First, I tapped the cheat of cheats: 'Invincibility'.
Dung!
⚠️ INSUFFICIENT TICKETS ⚠️ Designated Cheat Usage Tickets: 10 required. None available. Random Cheat Usage Tickets confirmed in player's possession. Use Random Cheat Usage Ticket? YES / NO
A short drumroll sounded, followed by an unavailable message and a prompt for random ticket use.
I mashed YES hard.
Random Cheat Usage Ticket usage confirmed. Checking quantity before activation. "......What?"
Checking quantity? What did that mean?
I frowned at the follow-up message after usage confirmation.
The anticipation swelling in my chest deflated like a punctured balloon.
Player possesses 3 Random Cheat Usage Tickets. "Ah, no way."
Please don't tell me it's what I think.
Listing cheats matching Random Cheat Usage Ticket quantity. "Argh, damn it!"
I'd hoped not, but it really was!
🎰 Draw List 🎰 1. Infinite Stamina 2. Infinite Items 3. Speed Limit Removed 4. Super Accuracy *3 tickets for 1 cheat.
Use '3' Random Cheat Usage Tickets? YES / NO "......"
Out of 8 cheats, only 4 listed.
Seeing it, my furnace-hot chest went ice cold.
The excitement from anticipation vanished.
"Well... I kinda expected it."
When I tapped Invincibility and it mentioned needing 10 Designated Cheat Usage Tickets, I wondered if Random ones worked similarly.
"But I didn't think it'd actually be like that......"
A sense of emptiness washed over me, body slumping.
But that lasted only a moment.
"Still, being able to use cheats at all is something."
My mood skyrocketed again.
The top picks like Invincibility, Infinite Health, Infinite Mana, Enemy Slow Motion were missing, sure!
But Infinite Stamina, Infinite Items, Speed Limit Removed, Super Accuracy were still great cheats.
No, honestly, they weren't inferior to S-grade talents or skills held by main characters.
Might even surpass them.
Rub rub.
Anticipation rising anew, I rubbed my hands and reached for the usage prompt.
"If I'm drawing, please let it be Infinite Items."
The others were good too, but Infinite Items felt best right now.
So many possibilities with that cheat.
"Not because I'm broke or anything."
Anyway, not.
With that thought, I mashed the 'YES' button.
Then.
Ding-ding-ding-ring!
🎰 ROULETTE SPIN 🎰 [Infinite Stamina] → [Infinite Items] → [Speed Limit Removed] → [Super Accuracy] It spun rapidly with roulette sounds in sequence.
And shortly after.
....
......
Pam-pa-ra-bam!
The first cheat was drawn.