Finals Dilemma
"Master, no matter how I look at it, I just don't get you."
"What don't you get?"
"I've lived a long time, but I've never seen a human like you before."
Lilia, who had been lying blankly in midair beside me, staring at me, muttered those words.
"What's so special about a guy like me?"
"What do you mean? You're a human who reached the 6th Circle in less than a year of studying magic."
At Lilia's words, I felt the corners of my mouth twitching upward without thinking.
Yeah. Just as she said, I'd now reached the 6th Circle.
There weren't any special signs or anything.
I'd trained as diligently as always, and I hadn't popped any drugs or anything. There was no way to explain it other than pure talent and hard work—no shortcuts—pushing me to this new realm.
"It's been a while, but your aura feels different."
"Ah, you're here."
The door to the top student's private training room opened, and Reinhold's familiar face appeared.
"You look pretty exhausted."
"...Tch. Teaching those kids... who knew there'd be so much paperwork."
Dark circles had formed under the eyes of a man who'd been swinging his sword nonstop for a week without rest—probably not suited for this kind of work. He looked just like a pitiful office worker getting exploited.
Maybe the chairman piled on the work on purpose...
I decided to keep my mouth shut since saying it out loud wouldn't do any good.
"So, how's the aura coming along?"
"Wouldn't it be faster if you just watched?"
"What a pain. Fine."
To cut to the chase, the aura had fully settled into my body. I could now wield it with the same finesse as mana.
"...What the hell happened in that short time?"
"I just went out for a bit and came back."
"What...? I thought you'd been to a battlefield or something."
"Really?"
Reinhold examined my body and let out a hollow laugh, as if he couldn't believe it.
Was it that impressive? I knew handling aura had gotten easier, but...
"It's abnormal. And not just a small change—you've already adapted."
I had nothing to say about that. I'd gone out, tested the aura for real, and it just clicked like this.
Talent is scary, for sure.
I couldn't even gauge the full extent of my Heavenly Martial Body's power. I'd never played the game with it equipped, after all.
"Anyway, this should be enough, right?"
"Enough for what?"
"The final exams."
A good chunk of time had passed since midterms. I'd dealt with that formless ghost and even learned swordsmanship in the meantime.
"Hmph. You're worried about that? At your level, you could be the one giving the exams."
Reinhold clicked his tongue at me, looking fed up.
Well... yeah, objectively speaking, I'm beyond student level now.
6th Circle in magic, 5-core in aura. Even individually, that's on par with most professors. And that's not all—I could use divine power and magic too. Calling me the only one of my kind in imperial history wouldn't be an exaggeration.
"Hearing you say that... yeah, my worries are gone."
"Of course. Don't sweat the finals."
Honestly, I planned to focus purely on exam prep this time. Midterms and entrance exams had all sorts of side prep, but...
Finals? No need. In the game, they were just a minor event you breezed through.
"Then... I guess aiming for top spot is the plan."
"...You cocky brat. Talking like it's already yours."
"You're the one who said it."
"Tch! It's different hearing it from me versus you bragging about it yourself."
This old man's no normal guy, that's for sure.
With no major events during finals prep, I focused solely on studying—and hit a wall.
"What's with that face?"
"Ah, damn..."
I'm screwed. Totally screwed.
"What happened...?"
Luel, sitting next to me, noticed my darkening expression and asked worriedly.
Yeah. For someone like me aiming for overall top score in finals, this was a major crisis.
"I... skipped classes, so I don't even know what to study."
I didn't even know the exam scope right now. Practical exams wouldn't need much studying anyway, but unlike midterms, finals weighed written scores heavily...
"...Wow."
Luel stared at me in disbelief, but what could I do?
"Didn't you grind the written stuff before? You studied hard for midterms."
"...I skipped classes thinking I'd figure it out."
Club planning, pushing for 6th Circle—I'd ditched class. Maybe I'd relied too much on my Insight talent.
I'd slacked off, assuming classes would make it click automatically. Even with Insight, you have to attend to understand...
"Hmm... How about a study group with the club?"
As I agonized over covering the written material, Luel—uncharacteristically—offered a great idea.
"Everyone here's elite anyway. Top and runner-up spots."
"...Luel, are you a genius?"
"I'm wondering why you didn't think of it."
"Too used to solo studying..."
"...Yeah, no words for that."
Before midterms, I had no friends, so I studied alone. But now? I had friends. Elite ones, at that.
Runner-up in magic dept: Belloa, shoulder-to-shoulder with me.
Knight dept top: Luel, overwhelming skill.
And the academy's absolute top, magic dept genius: Dorothy.
Not using this luxury lineup would be a waste.
"Oh yeah, knight dept finals are joint this time, right?"
"Yep. Unofficial, but since I'm the sword demon's disciple now."
"You prepped for knight dept?"
".........No?"
Luel shot me a scolding look like I'd slacked on this too, but it wasn't fair. Knight dept exams should cover what Reinhold taught me...
Problem was, that crazy old man only taught swordsmanship. "All a swordsman needs is the sword," he said.
I hadn't learned anything else, so I knew nothing else.
"Sigh... Fine, I'll help with knight dept. I'm top student, after all."
"...Thanks, really."
That settled the study group vibe.
Magic and theory from Belloa or Dorothy...
Knight stuff from Luel. Every subject taught by top or runner-up students. Peak luxury.
Me, who couldn't even afford tutoring before academy...
"And we're learning from you too, anyway."
"...Really?"
"Obviously. You teach what theory can't."
Luel grinned as she said it.
What theory can't teach...
Probably real combat experience.
Yeah, stuff you learn through the body, not books. That's why the club existed, after all.
"We've all learned from you and gotten your help, so think of this as payback."
Payback, huh. Not bad.
A give-and-take without reservations. Maybe these were my first real friends in this world.
It was the visage of hell.
The hell that the great sage once claimed to have witnessed.
Snowflakes laced with chill and sand grains full of heat swirled together.
An endless purgatory where spring would never come.
At the dead center of that hell floated a small orb in midair.
"...Is this hell?"
He knew instinctively. Though none of his five senses lived, he could sense it through the mana swirling around him.
An environment too horrific to believe was part of the human world.
Can't find the flesh, huh. The model broke, and I ended up at the nearest trace.
He accepted the reality before him first—not the hell ahead, but this place. This wasn't some long-existing model of his; it was complete.
"Dare to imprison me? Did you think the model would last forever?"
Nothing in the world was eternal. Not even the most perfectly crafted model.
Time would crack even perfection.
Pursued nobility and flawlessness, did you?
He gnashed his teeth, hating the one human who had sealed him.
If that's what he'd craved—nobility and perfection.
Now fully freed from him.
He would become the existence to shatter all he'd pursued.
"Wait just a little longer. I'll destroy everything you created with my own hands."
In the horrific hell of the ancient past.
The disaster that once saved the world was rising again.