Chapter 66
Chapter 66
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 66
Chapter Title: 14. Terror
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I unleashed magic at the approaching mechanical soldier. A mana bullet flew out and pierced right through it. Illusions had no effect on mechanical soldiers. Whether in reality or virtual space, it was the same. Without materializing it, taking them down with an illusion was utterly impossible.
That was the amazing part of virtual training. The virtual training system manifested your real-world abilities exactly as they were when fighting mechanical soldiers or virtual enemies inside the virtual space. On top of that, you could even invite real people to spar against each other in a game-like format. Team battles were possible too. Of course, I never went that far.
For machines, this should work. I cast a barrier spell. The few mechanical soldiers that had gotten back up after taking mana bullets were precisely pierced by sharp barriers. They weren't rods flying in—they appeared as if they'd been there from the start.
All that was left was the person controlling these mechanical soldiers. I recalled that mage's profile. Plant magic... vines, specifically.
"This is...!"
I smirked at the magic flying toward me. The perfect opponent to test another illusion spell on.
I vaguely sidestepped the trajectory of the incoming magic. Then I cast the illusion.
In his eyes, I'd still look like I was standing in the same spot. Next, I erased the magic he'd unleashed from his field of vision. He jolted in surprise.
"M-My magic...! Why...?!"
The magic had actually passed right through where I'd been standing moments ago... but this whole area was already under my illusion magic. He couldn't confirm that fact. From there, it was simple. He kept firing magic at me. But if I implanted illusions like "That magic dissipates before reaching me" or "It misses"—ones akin to suggestions—then... his magic would vanish midway, even without me erasing it with an illusion. Illusions were deeply tied to psychological states like that.
I raised my hand. Using illusions without substance cost far less mana than real magic. Of course, this only became possible after I'd reached a certain level of proficiency with illusions...
'Subtly blurring the line between illusion and reality so no one can tell them apart. That's the beauty of illusion magic.'
Finally, I created an illusion of a massive spell—huge on the surface—and hid a real mana bullet inside it. It struck the mage's body squarely.
The mage fainted on the spot.
[Ending virtual training. Disengaging sleep mode. Current time is 7:00 AM.]
I dazedly removed the device from my head and opened my eyes. I'd been training nonstop in virtual space, but waking up felt incredibly refreshing. Sleep mode really was worth begging Mom to buy it for me.
I got up and started getting ready for school. I washed my face, brushed my hair, and ate breakfast. Then I grabbed my bag and changed clothes.
After putting on black stockings, I tied a ribbon between the collar of my white blouse and slipped on a short skirt that didn't even reach my knees. I added my cape on top, then checked the mirror. Next to it, I opened the accessory case on my vanity. A variety of piercings greeted me.
I pondered for a bit before picking the blue apple-shaped ones and putting them in my ears. The small apple-shaped piercings sparkled, embedded with what looked like silver powder.
Then I touched my hair. Should I tie it up? My hair had already grown down to my chest. After some thought, I just stuck a hairpin in it. It was shaped like a blue ribbon.
I grabbed my bag and headed out. As soon as I passed through the front gate, I saw Inha waiting for me—she'd come out first. I smiled and walked over to her.
"Inha. Wait long?"
"Nah. Just got here."
We held hands and teleported to school. The elementary section was still mostly empty since it wasn't even 8 yet. We leisurely crossed the school park and athletic field toward the building with our classroom.
That's when someone grabbed my hand from behind. I startled for a second, but upon seeing who it was, I smiled.
"Hey. Good morning."
"Yeah."
Hansu gave a light response to my greeting and grinned a bit shyly. Inha shot him a glare from the side.
"Why're you here so early?"
"What's it to you?"
"We were finally walking alone together, and you're just ruining it."
"That's exactly why I came early—didn't want you bothering Eunha when you two were alone. What're you gonna do about it?"
"...You're the one bothering her?"
" Hilarious."
Soon enough, the two were bickering again, each holding one of my hands with me in the middle—just like always. These days, they started sniping at each other the moment they laid eyes on one another. And yet, their relationship wasn't bad at all; if anything, it had gotten better... I watched them both with an amused look.
We headed first to the shoe lockers to change our shoes. But... two lockers really stood out. They were stuffed with letters and plastered with magically attached stuff. Wow, still going strong today! I thought, impressed.
"That's impressive in its own way. Our grade has just under a hundred students, and they get love letters almost every day."
Sure enough, I glanced at the two of them. They were the most popular kids in our grade.
Hansu, prickly but surprisingly sweet and handsome. Inha, with her unmatched haughtiness and beauty. Hansu, who'd been gauging my reaction, sighed at my words.
"...Not really. It's not just from our grade."
"Whoa, really?"
"Yeah. I get them from fifth- and sixth-graders too, even underclassmen. Same for Hansu, right?"
"I see. Makes sense."
I'd only thought of same-graders. I mean, elementary kids aren't usually that into romance yet. But love letters from lower and upper grades too...?
Inha and Hansu might seem cold at first glance, but they were actually pretty kind and couldn't bring themselves to ruthlessly toss away others' gifts. The two sighed as they shoved the letters and gift boxes stuck to their lockers into the sub-space of their student IDs. Only then did I open my locker, change into indoor shoes, and grab my gym uniform. We had PE today.
Looking at the gym uniform I'd pulled out, I couldn't help but smile proudly. Once we hit fourth grade, the school started teaching proper combat training. PE classes got longer, and regular classes now ran until sixth period. There were after-school combat training sessions too, and tons of kids signed up. We were in them as well. They were basic for us now, but reviewing still helped.
We grabbed what we needed from our lockers and headed to the classroom. The door was already open when we got there. We went inside. The first face I saw... made me a bit awkward, but Hansu and Inha walked in casually and took their seats. The kid didn't seem to care about us either. I quickly stopped paying attention to them and went to my seat. We quietly did our own things while starting to chat.
Watching Inha and Hansu start bickering again, I glanced toward Siha's seat. Her purple mana stood out especially vividly.
Now that we were in fourth grade, more kids besides us were starting to develop unique magic. It began last fall with Kang Yesul, and soon boys and girls alike were seriously developing spells—about five had created unique magic so far. Siha... Yoon Siha was one of them.
'Gravity magic... I think.'
There were probably one or two others pretending they hadn't. I rested my chin on my hand and blinked sleepily. Soon the classroom filled up, and class began.
As always, school classes were a joy for me. Especially this year, since we'd started properly learning elemental magic, combat spells, and unique magic. Teachers seemed especially focused on unique magic now that more kids were making them.
But balancing core subjects with magic studies was tough. Maybe that's why the magic portion had ramped up noticeably this grade.
Well... it wasn't bad. I might not love other studies, but magic was fun.
Now we moved to the magic practice room for practice instead of the classroom. Since uniforms doubled as combat gear, way more kids wore them this year.
During PE, we did basic martial arts drills along with evasion training. Sometimes we'd spar against each other. That sparring time was the one I dreaded most.
If you ask why I hated real spars after dueling endlessly in virtual space... it's because I had to face kids who knew nothing.
At least with Hansu or Inha, I could go easy. With other kids, I just let them win. Like right now.
"Eyat!"
"..."
I spread my mana thin like a barrier to block the mana arrow coming at me, then pretended I couldn't hold it and fell backward.
"Ugh...!"
"Yes! I win!"
I got up, looking at the cheering kid. Man... even acting is exhausting.
Hansu scowled at me as I returned and whispered in my ear.
"Why do you always let them win like that?"
"Not always. I win sometimes."
"Still... argh, frustrating."
"Leave her be. It's Eunha's call."
"Doesn't make it less annoying."
"So what? If that's what she wants."
After PE came a free study hour. "Study" here meant magic practice in the practice room. They might as well call it practice outright.
"Eunha, practice magic with me this study hall. Yeah? Let's do it."
"Hey, why always you? No, with me this time. Got it? Me."
"Hey, Park Hansu. Move."
"You move."
They'd seemed fine one second, then this. The two flanked my arms, growling at each other. It happened so often I'd gotten used to it, so I just said:
"Yeah, yeah. We can all do it together."
"..."
Then Inha and Hansu glared at each other again. This setup had become routine lately—them linking arms with me on both sides. Like kids refusing to share Mom... Honestly, it felt awkward at first, but now it was kinda fun.
"Kang Inha, don't you have any tact? Why do you always butt in when I'm about to say something?"
"You're the one interrupting me and Eunha. Let go of her arm."
"You first."
"Hmph!"
Fighting could be so cute. Thinking that, we headed to the practice room when a familiar voice came from a bit away.
"Persistent, huh? If you want to enter the campus, make an appointment ahead of time. Or at least bring a permit. What do you say, Je-hyeon?"
"I checked with the admin office—no related staff, no appointments."
"Come on, just a quick look around...!"
"You know how many terror incidents and kidnappings there've been lately, right? Especially at Daeyeon—it's severe here, so we don't let in anyone whose identity isn't verified. Even if it is, no entry if they're unrelated to school matters."
"But that's too strict...! Keep acting cocky and..."
"You wanna fight? As you know, all Daeyeon guards are B-rank mages or higher."
"Ugh...!"
We stopped and looked toward the noise. In the back garden, Sister Eunhee, Brother Je-hyeon, Brother Cheonho—three school guards—were arguing with a man.
"Non-staff aren't allowed in except through the gate. And if you came through the gate, we'd know you entered. This is straight-up illegal trespassing. Plus, this campus is extraterritorial. School rules are the only law here. Without proof you're staff, side entrances are off-limits too... Yoo Cheonho. Scan him."
"Okay!"
Brother Cheonho cheerfully complied, scanning the man with some device. Beep! A bead-like thing floated up through his clothes. Sister Eunhee's face hardened.
"That's... a student's?"
Sister Eunhee's expression turned grave. She immediately checked the student ID on the computer. Then she sighed in relief.
"Lost and found report's in... At least no one's dead."
As she spoke, she conjured something on the back of the man's wrist. It was like a glowing plant vine that tightly bound his wrist. It looked fragile but was made of solid mana.
We'd tensed up without realizing, watching the scene. Hansu whispered in my ear.
"Illegal intruder...?"
"Our school's famous..."
"...Who's there?"
Guess they heard. Hansu and Inha straightened casually on either side of me, but I flinched. The three spotted us and looked surprised.
"...What're you kids doing here?"
Hansu replied nonchalantly and cheekily.
"What else? On campus. There's a gate road to the magic practice room this way."
"Oh... Sharp eyes, huh?"
Inha and I nodded.
"Sometimes the school's space bends weirdly."
"Almost got lost once."
"Haha. No worries. If you mess up on those paths, it alerts us. Can't even find them without decent mana anyway."
Makes sense. I shrugged and greeted the three. The intruder bugged me, but it wasn't our problem. But then... the guy shook off Brother Cheonho's magic—maybe because they'd relaxed seeing us—and charged our way.
"Waaaah!!"
"!"
My eyes went wide. But before he reached us, the siblings moved. Brother Je-hyeon pinned him with magic, Brother Cheonho reinforced his wind chains.
A beat later, Inha and Hansu activated theirs too. A wooden spear and a light spear targeted him each.
Snap!
"H-Hey..."
Fine for them, but why're you two so vicious? I panicked and tugged my friends.
"That jerk tried to attack Eunha?"
"...Can't forgive."
"Hey, guys, he's still an adult... And pointing magic right away... Never mind. Sorry, sisters and brothers. For interrupting. We'll head out now."
Awkwardly, I dragged the kids away—more like yanked them by the arms. They were still glaring at the guy. Whistles came from behind.
"Whoa! Cool!"
"...Grown a lot."
"Eunha's lucky~."
No, why're you proud?! The kids are getting violent—don't encourage it!!
'Sometimes I think the siblings have weird sensibilities!'
I swear it's not just me being timid. That's not cool; it's dangerous. Pointing spells first at danger... where'd that habit come from?
──I tried saying that to my friends once. Problem was, their reactions matched the siblings exactly.
"You did good. Daring to go after Eunha!"
"Hmph."
"Whoa, Hansu and Inha are awesome."
Minhee praising, Inha smug, Hyunho impressed... What the heck. Why're they like this?
Haa... I sighed deeply.