Chapter 122
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 122
Chapter Title: Midterms (4)
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The mana operation exam was exactly as Lee Seojun had described: maneuvering the magic orb around obstacles to reach the goal point.
"Wow. You're Cadet Lee Seongmin, right? Your skills have improved so much I barely recognize you."
The instructor in charge of mana operation, Yu Na-eun, looked genuinely surprised as she spoke to me.
My score in this exam placed me third, which was understandable why she'd be shocked, but I wasn't satisfied.
'Third place, huh.'
I turned my head to look at the students who took first and second.
I didn't know who they were, but according to Lee Seojun, they were ranked 15th and 27th.
'Why are guys at that level even taking mana operation?'
It wasn't something the number one student like me would think, but I'd originally enrolled at 300th place.
So, without a shred of conscience, I resented the two of them as I prepared for the next exam, herbology.
"For herbology, you'll be solving test problems. There are 50 in total, so do your best."
The herbology exam was at least a familiar format.
A simple method of writing answers on a test paper with the questions printed on it.
'But there's a lot of test paper.'
She said 50 questions, but there were 10 sheets.
I wondered why there were so many, but the first question made it clear.
[Question 1. Describe the appearance and effects of Dark Mint. Also, write all the gate environments where it appears.]
"......"
Just in case, I checked the other questions, and they were all like that.
Plus, when I saw the scoring, each question was worth 2 points, and right then Lee Seojun chimed in.
-Whoa... The herbology exam is no joke.
It was quite intense, just as Lee Seojun said, but no problem for me.
I handled it with the card ability I'd acquired in the 12th world, after all.
【No. 094 『Reading +10』】
【Rank: D】
【Description: Build up the food for your mind. It'll be simple.】
【Special Ability 1: Can read all text written in books.】
【Special Ability 2: Can memorize entire books. (1/100)】
Using this ability, I'd memorized the entire herbology textbook, so I filled in the answers without hesitation.
After acing the herbology exam with full marks easily, I moved on to the next one: magical item crafting.
"For this magical item crafting exam, it's shield assembly."
The instructor for magical item crafting, Park Tae-yong, announced it was shield assembly.
As the name suggested, various materials were laid out in front of us.
"Shields are one of the easier magical items to make. As you can see, their size makes it straightforward. All you need to do is engrave the runes on the shield."
The magical item crafting exam was pretty easy.
And on top of that, there was an extra reward.
"By the way, the shields you make will be given to you. Since this week's practical combat exam is a gate raid, it'll come in handy. Of course, only the well-made ones."
If I made a shield, I could hand it over to Jeong Yu-mi for the gate raid.
Of course, I planned to make it properly, so I started thinking about the runes to engrave on the shield-shaped iron plate.
'What rune would be good.'
Increased durability? Lightning infusion sounds good too.
If lightning flowed the moment it blocked, it would stiffen the opponent's movements.
'For lightning infusion, I'd need to wrap the inside with an insulator.'
Unfortunately, there were no insulators among the materials in front of me.
"Oh, if anyone's looking for a material they need, just let me know. I'll provide any we have in stock."
It felt like he was saying it to me specifically.
There was no reason to refuse, so I raised my hand and called out to Instructor Park Tae-yong.
"Do you have anything good for an insulator?"
"An insulator... So you're planning lightning infusion. Of course we do."
I assembled the shield using plenty of the materials Instructor Park Tae-yong brought over.
First, I engraved the lightning infusion rune, then covered it with another shield-shaped iron plate and tightened the screws around the edges.
'This is ridiculously easy.'
Finally, cover the back with the insulator, and done.
For reference, since the lightning infusion was a three-stage rune, it should be plenty useful in real combat.
"Finished already?"
Instructor Park Tae-yong approached again, asking if it was complete.
"Yes. Here it is."
"Let me take a look."
He picked up the shield and channeled mana, and lightning crackled across the surface.
"Excellent. No flaws whatsoever."
"It's thanks to the good materials you provided, Instructor."
"Nonsense. Look at this shield—it's slightly protruding upfront. Engraving runes in that state isn't easy."
Instructor Park Tae-yong and I exchanged compliments and wrapped up the exam.
-If you just nail the gate raid, you'll get a great score.
"Yeah."
Alchemy and elemental magic were near the top ranks too, and the rest were basically perfect scores.
I was confident I'd break into the top 20 if I aced the practical combat gate raid.
-As long as we get assigned a good gate.
"It's E-rank anyway, so does it matter?"
-It might not for you, Lee Seongmin, but the others...
Lee Seojun was thinking of my teammates excluding me, saying it'd be fine if we got a good gate assignment.
Excluding me and Cheon Seo-yun, considering Oh Ye-rin, Jeong Yu-mi, and Park So-yul, an easier gate might indeed be better.
'But I doubt they'll assign us one like that.'
Just because me and Cheon Seo-yun were there, they'd probably give us the toughest E-rank gate.
And my prediction hit the mark the moment Instructor Kang Ju-young assigned gates in the group training grounds.
"Group 4 heads to the gate in Inje-gun, Gangwon-do. Here's the info packet—read it over."
I took the paper from Instructor Kang Ju-young and read it with my teammates.
[Terrain: Humid forest. Estimated temperature: 30°C. Appearing monsters: Insect-type.]
-Ah... Of all things, an insect-type monster gate.
Lee Seojun grimaced at the word "insect-type."
Oh Ye-rin, reading the info, scrunched up her face and said,
"Humid forest at 30°C? And insects? Ugh, just stepping in there will drain all my energy."
Her words darkened the faces of the other teammates too.
Even Cheon Seo-yun was just staring blankly at the paper without a word.
"Huh? Hey, Lee Seongmin. What's that shield you're holding?"
"Made it in the magical item crafting exam. Thought it'd be good for Jeong Yu-mi."
I handed the shield to Jeong Yu-mi as I answered.
Jeong Yu-mi pointed timidly at her sword and shield.
"I already have a shield."
"This one's magical. Channel mana, and lightning comes out."
"I heard magical items aren't that effective."
"......"
Despite her timid face, Jeong Yu-mi sure said what was on her mind.
Anyway, she took the shield and channeled mana into it.
Pzzt!
"Whoa?"
Jeong Yu-mi blinked in surprise at the stronger-than-expected lightning.
The other teammates watching made similar faces as they eyed the shield I'd made.
"Isn't this supposed to be a magical item? This is basically artifact level."
-That's about E- to F-rank artifact quality.
Lee Seojun chimed in on Oh Ye-rin's artifact comment.
"Anyway, insects are coming out in this gate, right? It'll help at least a bit."
Jeong Yu-mi seemed to agree and ditched her old shield for the one I gave her.
Just then, someone approached us, greeting us cheerfully.
"Hey~ Nice to meet you. I'm Park Ji-mok from Crescent Moon Guild. As a B-rank hero, I'll be leading you, so let's do our best."
"Yes. Heading out now?"
"Gotta go to Gangwon-do, so yeah, now. But your team..."
The hero who introduced himself as Park Ji-mok noticed that, excluding me, the rest of the team were women.
He looked back at me with an impressed glint in his eye, but I had no interest in reacting.
"Impressive skills. Anyway, follow me. We'll take my car."
We followed Park Ji-mok to his parked car outside and headed to Gangwon-do.
"About three hours. Rest easy till then."
"I can rest, but the others might not."
I was in the passenger seat, while the teammates crammed into the back with their gear on.
It felt way more cramped than expected.
"Oh, right? Hang in there a bit. Once we clear the gate, it's over."
"How long does it usually take to clear an E-rank gate?"
"Depends on skill, but usually 10 to 15 hours."
Even E-rank gates took longer than I thought.
'That's quite a while.'
This one would probably take about that long too.
Since I wasn't going all-out solo, but coordinating with the team.
"Don't worry, though. I'll step in if you're in danger."
"Isn't this an exam? Won't that deduct points?"
"Points get deducted, sure, but better than getting hurt or killed."
So, every time Park Ji-mok intervened, points would drop.
'Well, he probably won't need to anyway.'
Bzzzzt!
"Eek! King mosquito! Lee Seongmin! Kill it quick!"
"......"
After entering the E-rank gate in Gangwon-do, a sticky, humid heat greeted us first.
The environment that spiked anyone's discomfort index was bad enough, but it made our formation practice pointless as flying insect monsters appeared.
'What mosquito is as big as a person's torso.'
One stab from that proboscis would suck every drop of blood and kill you.
And with the giant mosquitoes swarming from the sky, formations meant nothing.
'First things first.'
Stab!
I used [Warlord's Weapon] to pierce and kill the incoming king mosquito, but inwardly, I was worried.
Since no one was pulling their weight, clearing the gate like this wouldn't net big points.
'How do I handle this.'