The Mithril Golem's Challenge
I drew my sword and poured pure mana into it. It was my own unique mana, similar to the attribute-less kind yet capable of shifting into any property. "What kind of mana is that?" "Fascinating. I can't sense any attribute." "It's not the null attribute… how peculiar."
The judges reacted with confusion, but thanks to Seo Moon-hyun's earlier display, none of them seemed truly surprised. "It looks like you've been preparing for this. Very well. Let me introduce your opponent!"
Kugugugung—
A mithril golem over five meters tall suddenly materialized in the previously empty training field. I knew full well this was nothing more than a theatrical setup meant to intimidate the students. 'They're using the shock of a giant suddenly appearing to rattle them.'
Yee Eun-chae's eyes sparkled with interest, but the other examinees were visibly tense. "Oho, how intriguing." She made no effort to hide her excitement. Yet this was the same Yee Eun-chae—one of my heroines. Her peculiar way of speaking matched the light-novel style of the web novel's female lead; even in the modern era, her speech carried the flavor of an old knight's, though her beautiful voice kept it from sounding unpleasant. 'No, it's actually quite pleasant to listen to.'
While I was savoring her voice, the head judge spoke. "Examinee 532, Seo Moon-jin. Demonstrate your abilities against this golem starting now." "Understood."
At his words, I lightly swung my sword downward. Kuwaaang! The five-meter-tall golem collapsed to the ground from the sheer impact transmitted from above. Even though mithril was a lightweight metal, the academy had skimped on costs by only coating the surface and filling the interior with steel, making its weight no joke. When such a massive construct fell, the ground trembled as though an earthquake had struck. "Impressive power."
The golem was equipped with a power-measuring function designed to evaluate students' attacks. It instantly displayed not only the power score but also the type of attack. My strike had easily exceeded three million points. 'Seo Moon-hyun only managed around one million two hundred thousand.'
In both the original story and here, Seo Moon-hyun's score barely surpassed 1.2 million. His strength hadn't changed since the very first chapter of the original novel. The slight difference in score was likely just a matter of condition—unlike in the original, Seo Moon-min-hye hadn't been there to cheer him on.
"Is this measurement actually accurate?" "Hard to believe." "Hoo~ The level of this year's students really is extraordinary." "Incredible. Even seeing it with my own eyes, I can hardly believe it." "But the device isn't malfunctioning. The force we felt earlier and the damage on the golem's body prove it."
The judges focused on the faint damage left on the mithril golem's body. They stared at their phones in astonishment at the transmitted score, then nodded in understanding upon seeing the actual damage. The head judge, whose rank was higher than the others, admired my score while clicking his tongue at the thought of repair costs, yet looked satisfied when the golem's automatic restoration function quickly erased the damage. Apparently, when he wasn't serving as head judge, his duties included budget management. 'That thing cost several trillion won to build.'
Leviathan, under the name of Yucheon Group, had personally participated in its upgrades as President Leviathan. The automatic restoration function had been included back then. Even if I shattered the golem completely, as long as I didn't destroy the core beyond recovery, it would eventually restore itself. However, since I had deliberately held back to student-level strength, the judges were impressed but not overly shocked. "Well done, Seo Moon-jin. You've shown remarkable skill. Return to your seat. Next is—"
"Head Judge. I would like to go next." Yee Eun-chae raised her hand. Originally, examinee 521 was supposed to go, but after witnessing my performance, her interest had been piqued. As examinee 533, she wanted to test her own full strength immediately. "Very well. Examinee 533, twenty-one-year-old Yee Eun-chae. Step forward."
The moment permission was granted, Yee Eun-chae composed her expectant expression and gripped her sword with focus.
* * *
"Whoa~" "Gulp."
With her long black hair tinged with purple fluttering in the wind, Yee Eun-chae drew her sword. Every student watching gasped at her breathtaking beauty. Her overwhelming appearance naturally commanded attention wherever she went—that was precisely why her family, the Yee clan, had kept her hidden from public view until she entered the academy. 'Excellent.'
Yee Eun-chae felt satisfied with the sword in her hand. She loved swords. Holding one gave her a taste of freedom, however limited. [Magnificent!] [Such talent! We are proud of you!] Her parents and the elders of the clan had all rejoiced upon seeing her talent. Until then, her striking beauty had marked her only as a candidate for a political marriage, but the moment she displayed her swordsmanship, her position within the Yee family changed dramatically. Thanks to that, she gained a measure of freedom and devoted herself even more deeply to the blade, delighting in her daily growth. 'With this power, I will become a hero. Then I can bring happiness to even more people.'
She had become happy because she obtained strength. Yet countless others never gained power and never found happiness. Yee Eun-chae found that unfair. People dying or getting injured by monsters. Villains harming innocent people despite being human themselves. She genuinely felt sorry for those who suffered from such injustice. That was why she resolved to grow stronger—so more people could be happy. To do that, she needed to become even stronger. "Huuup!"
Yee Eun-chae looked at the golem that had risen again. It was huge. It looked powerful. 'I can't beat it as I am now.' The metal covering its body was probably mithril. With her current skill, she couldn't cut through mithril yet. 'Seo Moon-jin.'
Yet the young man who had just demonstrated his strength was only one year older than her, and he had managed to damage the mithril. Wanting to know exactly how far she could go, she gripped her sword and infused it with mana. Shuuu— A powerful sword aura formed around her blade, maximizing its cutting power. Her ability was a swordsmanship-type physical enhancement specialized in thrusting and slashing. "Haaah!"
With a resounding battle cry, Yee Eun-chae swung her sword at the mithril golem. Kuuung! "That was quite powerful." "Remarkable, isn't it?" "This year's students truly are exceptional." The judges offered high praise. The other students were impressed not only by her beauty but also by her skill, and the female examinees looked on with envy. Yee Eun-chae could feel the men's gazes filled with longing, but she had no time to care. 'Still lacking.'
She was lacking in every way. She felt a twinge of self-reproach for failing to leave even a single scratch on the mithril, but quickly steadied herself. 'No matter what, I will become stronger!' The head judge addressed her as she made that vow. "Well done. You may return to your seat, Yee Eun-chae. Now, next is—"
* * *
Yee Eun-chae's performance was roughly on par with what appeared in the original novel, though there was a slight difference. 'Her score is 1.19 million.' Compared to Seo Moon-hyun's score of just over 1.2 million, her power was nearly on the same level. Among the heroines, she was considered the strongest in close combat, yet in the original her score had only barely exceeded 1.1 million. She had clearly grown stronger. The butterfly effect from me establishing Yucheon Group and profiting off mana awakeners must have played a role.
While the other students took their turns attacking the mithril golem, I watched Yee Eun-chae before approaching her. "Your name is Yee Eun-chae, right?" "Yes! Ah! My apologies. Should I speak formally? You're one year older than me, after all…" Her speech suddenly swung from one extreme to the other, which was odd, but her beauty and lovely voice had a way of making everything forgivable. "You can speak casually. We're classmates anyway. I don't really care about being called 'oppa' just because I'm a year older." "Then I won't hold back!"
Pointing out the one-year age gap would only create unnecessary distance. So I decided not to dwell on it. "By the way, did you need something? Is there something you wanted to say to me?" "Yeah. There is. I saw your attack earlier. It was impressive, but there was something a little lacking." "Lacking?" "When you infuse mana into your sword, right before forming the sword aura, if you had done it a bit more delicately, the power would have come out even better."
Seeing interest light up in Yee Eun-chae's eyes, I smiled inwardly. 'This small conversation will create a connection. Combined with Yee Eun-chae's personality, she'll end up playing a part in bringing Seo Moon-hyun down. Heh heh.' And in the end, she would live happily ever after as my woman.