The First Trial

Her blonde hair wasn't flashy — neat, understated. She carried a gentle air about her. She was my next-door neighbor, and one of this world's main heroines: Seong Harim.

"You're going to the Academy exam today, right?"

"Yeah. I was just about to head out."

"Then let's go together!"

I hadn't known Seong Harim for long. Back when I'd been tearing through the Seoraksan area like a madman hunting for the Ilcheongeom, I'd finally pinned down its location and mapped a safe route to get there — and that was when I met her.

I'd been thoroughly thrown the first time I saw her. I never expected her to be living here.

Never thought the precious jewel of a major Nebula would be out here like this.

Nebula. Coalitions of contractors — cooperative organizations of a sort. Once they grew past a certain scale, their influence could rival that of a nation. And whenever people listed the four largest Nebulas in our country, one name always came up: the Nebula Divine Shield.

Seong Harim was the daughter of its leader — Divine Shield's most cherished jewel. The idea that she'd be living alone out here had never even crossed my mind.

Are you applying to the Academy, by any chance?

After we'd exchanged greetings, we became friends quickly. Seong Harim was the type who approached anyone with ease, and we shared a common goal of applying to the Academy. Once we got close, we ended up seeing each other fairly often.

"Uh… want a hand? Those look hard to carry alone."

"Pardon? You don't have to. They look like a lot, but they're not that heavy."

"It's fine. Here, give me one."

"Really, I'm okay…"

I took one of the trash bags from her hands. Leaving her to haul both of them alone just felt like committing a crime. A person had to be almost unnaturally kind for that reaction. She was practically a saint.

Well — considering her Constellation, a saint was exactly what she was.

Archangel Gabriel is her Constellation, after all.

Lily Enwrapped in Moonlight. One of the Four Archangels, Gabriel was her Constellation. Main heroines were main heroines for a reason. In the original novel, she was a top-tier healer who displayed staggering support capabilities.

Gabriel was the type to take a keen interest in her contractor. Thanks to that, the original Seong Harim had grown up drowning in every kind of support imaginable — and by the time the final arc rolled around, she could bring someone back from the brink so long as they still had a pulse. After the ending… who knows. She might even have been able to raise the dead.

"Ah! More importantly — did you find what you were looking for? You said you had to find it before the Academy exam."

"Yeah, I found it. This is it."

I showed her the Ilcheongeom hanging at my waist. Even now, it wasn't flashy — just a cleanly, elegantly forged blade. As a sacred relic, it was nearly impossible to break, and even if its abilities weren't exceptional, I planned to use it in real combat for a while.

"Is that a sacred relic?"

"It is, but the performance isn't that great."

"Even so, an undiscovered sacred relic… that's incredible."

Seong Harim's eyes lit up with genuine admiration as she looked at the Ilcheongeom.

…You've been watching?

A chill ran down my spine. I hadn't realized the Constellation was observing me. If I'd slipped up and said something truly offensive… that would have been an instant contract termination and a one-way ticket to hell. Constant close surveillance like this — from now on, I'd have to watch what I said about her.

"You can just toss that one over there."

"I'll throw it out and wait here."

"Okay! Thank you so much!"

The two trash bags were different types, so I waited for Seong Harim to come back. As I stood there, my hand found a long, slender pipe — the gombangdae the Celestial Maiden had given me last time. She'd said it soothed the mind and body. I found myself wanting to try it at least once.

Following her suggestion, I put the pipe to my lips and drew in. Smoke filled my mouth — colorless, neither bitter nor sweet.

There were no medicinal herbs loaded inside yet, so no additional effects kicked in — but this alone was more than enough. I'd been quietly tense about the Academy entrance exam, and drawing on the pipe eased that tension just a little. White smoke drifted from the end of the pipe. Even if it was just herbs, it didn't look like something you'd want to use in an enclosed space.

"Y-You can't smoke that!"

Seong Harim had returned from dumping the trash, and she stared at me with a thoroughly flustered expression.

She was so startled that even from here I could see her eyes trembling.

"Cigarettes are… bad for your body, and bad for the people around you… there's nothing good about them…"

She was so rattled the words just tumbled out of her. Maybe it was because the original was so pretty, but even that wasn't particularly unpleasant. The kind of face that made you want to tease her — that was exactly Seong Harim's type. It had been the same in the original novel.

"Relax. This isn't a cigarette."

"…It's not a cigarette?"

"It's for smoking medicinal herbs. Look."

I took the pipe from my mouth for a moment and held it out to her. Once she recognized it as an item, Seong Harim's face flooded with embarrassment all over again. She really was fun to watch — how could a person's expressions be so vivid and completely unguarded?

"Augh… th-then shall we go?"

Apparently embarrassed by her earlier fuss, Seong Harim flushed and strode ahead. Teasing her had been entertaining enough that I considered bringing it up again, but it was time to move for the Academy entrance exam, so I let it drop.

"You applied for C-rank, right, Jinwoo?"

"Yeah. You're A?"

The Academy was divided into four ranks total — from the highest, A, down to the lowest, D. I'd applied for C. My skills weren't ready for A or B yet, and more importantly, the protagonist Lee Shinwoo started out in Class C.

He's a late bloomer, after all.

Weak in the early stages, then exploding with power from the mid-game onward — a classic late-bloomer protagonist. Innate combat sense, a strong Constellation, a ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠hunger for growth, and the monstrous effort to match. With all of that, his actual ability was nowhere near mere C-rank.

Better to build a connection early.

The further into the story you went, the harder it became to get close to him, so early was the time. His Constellation was a concern, but… what could go wrong? That Constellation couldn't show itself directly either, so it should be fine.

"More importantly — did you eat breakfast?"

"Just some bread."

"You can't do that! Today's the exam — you need a proper meal."

What was this, a mother hen? I was getting food lectures I'd never heard even in my previous life.

"Hmm… then would you like to have lunch together?"

"Lunch? Will we even be done by then?"

"The entrance exam doesn't take that long."

"I'm in. Having someone to eat with is always better."

"Let's eat at my place! I just went shopping yesterday, so there's plenty of ingredients!"

Wait — her place? Seong Harim's house?

I was briefly thrown by that, but thinking about it, it had happened before. The first time we met, I'd eaten at her place too. Back then I'd been coming off days of eating nothing while searching, so I'd just gone along with it — but looking back, it had been a pretty bold invitation.

It should… be fine.

Neither of us was thinking anything weird. Sharing a single meal was perfectly okay. What could possibly go wrong?

The Academy ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠entrance exam grounds. Once we arrived, Seong Harim and I parted ways — the A-rank and C-rank testing sites were in completely different locations.

"Let's meet back here when the exam's over."

"Good luck."

"Yes! You too, Jinwoo."

With that, I headed to the C-rank testing site. There weren't many people. Even so, C-rank applicants were still contractors — only natural, given that being a contractor was the Academy's admission requirement. In this world, contractors were both numerous and rare. And half of the people here were going to fail.

The Academy's exam content — more precisely, the Combat Division's exam content — was a duel. One-on-one. Lose, and you were done. Win, and you were in. Nothing else was evaluated. A test perfectly suited to a combat track.

"Examinees number 32 and 33, please prepare for your duel."

Examinee number 33. That was me. I stepped forward, and the referee looked me over.

"Name: Yoo Jinwoo. Constellation: Celestial Maiden of the Nine Heavens. Is that correct?"

"Correct."

"Then please step onto the dueling platform and prepare."

Having confirmed my identity, I climbed onto the platform. In my hand was the Ilcheongeom — a real blade. Live steel was allowed in these duels. Any attack that looked ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠like it might cause serious injury would be blocked by magic, so real swords were fine. In the original, the protagonist had pushed past those limits and gotten hurt — but surely that wouldn't be me. And if I did get hurt, that was on me.

"Examinee number 32, Ha Jeongho."

"Examinee number 33, Yoo Jinwoo."

My opponent, examinee 32, had a face that resembled a fox. Not just figuratively — his eyes were unnaturally slanted, truly foxlike. Ha Jeongho, examinee 32. I'd been uncertain at first, but seeing his face confirmed it.

An extra from the original novel.

His role amounted to a handful ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠of lines. His Constellation was none other than the Fox of the Water Jug — the very fox from the Aesop fable of the Fox and the Crane. Rank: Fairy Tale. Not particularly strong, nothing special — a textbook extra.

Still, I can't afford to look down on him.

I was trash on roughly the same level right now. My stats were naturally low, and I only had the first form of Gucheon Hyeongeom. Calling myself a half-baked contractor wouldn't have been unfair. Even so, I didn't feel like I couldn't win. Three weeks of hellish training and hours of practice every dawn hadn't been for nothing. By the time this duel ended, my Gucheon Hyeongeom would be complete — and I would be enrolled in the Academy.

And so, my first trial began.