Chapter 136
Chapter 136
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 136
Chapter Title: Taehwi Festival Opening Day
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At that moment, Choi Il-hyun spoke up.
"I liked it."
"Pardon?"
"The way you landed a kick on Lee Seo-jun during the exam. That caught my eye."
"......Pardon? That's it?"
"Yeah. Honestly, that was the one thing that really stood out. The most decisive part."
It was an absurd reason. Or maybe he was hiding something else.
"And just between us, I don't like Lee Seo-jun much."
I knew that to some extent from the original story. Of course, it wasn't like Choi Il-hyun truly hated him.
It would be more accurate to call him a "suspicious presence."
Choi Il-hyun stared blankly toward the end of the hallway before opening his mouth again.
"Well, anyway."
Time flew by like the wind, and Wednesday arrived.
The day of the Taehwi Festival, the school's grand festival, had finally come.
The students gathered in the auditorium with excited faces for the opening ceremony.
Choi Seo-yoon was in charge of hosting the event as the student representative.
Reporters, sponsors, and even broadcasting stations were there.
With so many outsiders watching, she felt a strong sense of responsibility to represent the school well.
Choi Seo-yoon practiced reading from the script in her hand.
After about ten minutes.
"Whew."
She felt a bit tired. She took a short break, sitting in an empty spot next to the podium.
Then, purely by chance, she spotted Kim Sun-woo sitting far away.
He was alone, with no one beside him, which somehow made him look lonely.
Like a solitary wolf...... no, more like a cat, perhaps.
Choi Seo-yoon zoned out for a moment, staring at Kim Sun-woo.
For some reason, he seemed to shine lately. His face glowed, and his physique looked better than before.
But when she looked closely, there didn't seem to be any stark difference from before.
......Is this really what they call rose-tinted glasses?
If this is it, then I......
She was lost in thought when a voice came from beside her.
"Hello."
She turned her head toward the voice.
A beautiful black-haired woman was smiling at her.
Choi Seo-yoon recognized her instantly. Her mouth fell open.
"......Han Se-yeon?"
The youngest daughter of the Hanseong family and the de facto head of Hanseong Pharmaceuticals, the main sponsor of this Taehwi Festival.
Choi Seo-yoon was startled when such a big shot suddenly spoke to her.
Han Se-yeon gave her a gentle smile.
"Thanks for recognizing me. You're Choi Seo-yoon, right?"
"Yes, I'm Choi Seo-yoon, the student representative this time."
Choi Seo-yoon stood up and bowed deeply.
Han Se-yeon felt it was cute but gave an awkward smile.
"You don't have to greet me so formally."
"It's just surreal to meet someone I've only seen on TV......"
Choi Seo-yoon murmured quietly.
"Thank you. Ah, sit down. There's still time left, right? Mind if I sit next to you?"
"Yes. Of course."
And so, Han Se-yeon and Choi Seo-yoon sat side by side.
One might expect excitement from sitting with a celebrity, but she felt an odd chill instead. Like a sense of tension?
......What is this?
In the end, she couldn't figure out what that feeling was.
Then, suddenly curious about what Kim Sun-woo was doing, Choi Seo-yoon glanced back that way.
Unlike before, Kim Sun-woo no longer looked lonely.
Yoo A-ra and Yoon Ha-young were sitting in the empty seats on either side of him.
Choi Seo-yoon's hosting was flawless. Her soft, clear voice captivated everyone.
With the teachers' greetings, sponsor introductions, and the recitation of Great Wizard Taehwi's achievements complete, it came to an end.
I gazed at Han Se-yeon, who was sitting quietly in the distance. Seeing her at school like this made my heart race with tension.
Then her gaze swept around and stopped on me. An emotionless stare. She was definitely looking at me.
Like she was observing me.
I quickly looked away, pretending not to notice, and spoke to Yoon Ha-young beside me.
"Yoon Ha-young."
"Yeah?"
"How many events are you joining this time?"
"Hmm. At least five? I'll do more depending on the situation."
"Yeah?"
"What about you, Sun-woo?"
"Same, depending on the situation......"
Applause erupted then. The opening ceremony was finally over.
Having successfully completed her role, Choi Seo-yoon flashed a bright smile and exited the stage.
Next, the Manifestation Department teacher, Lee Hee-young, took the podium.
"Alright, now I'll explain the Taehwi Festival format. As you all know, the Taehwi Festival uses a special scoring system called 'coins.'"
Coins. It was the name of the wizard academy's notorious culture that set it apart from other schools' festivals.
Various events during the festival awarded personal coins to fuel competition.
"Ranks are determined by the coins earned over three days. At the closing and awards ceremony, prizes are given from 1st place down to around 450th based on rankings."
Lee Hee-young caught her breath before continuing.
"Prizes change every 10 ranks. Hanseong Pharmaceuticals has provided elixirs as the base prizes. Note that special prizes are prepared for the top 5 students. Now, I'll reveal them."
Something floated up on the podium.
A thin bracelet embedded with a blue gem.
"This bracelet item, 'Sanctuary of the Soul,' aids in improving concentration."
Murmurs rose among the students. They immediately showed interest once prizes were mentioned. Lee Hee-young continued.
"The Sanctuary of the Soul enhances concentration. But that's not all—it's a work by the world-renowned master jeweler 'Jean Verne,' so it has exceptional value as an artwork."
The Sanctuary of the Soul was given to 1st through 5th place as a common prize.
It was like a trophy.
Lee Hee-young then introduced the rank-specific prizes.
1st place: 'Ring of the War God.'
2nd place: 'Necklace of Amplification.'
She went on up to the 5th place item.
For reference, 1st through 4th in the original story were all taken by the main characters.
Since they were growth-related items, I had no intention of interfering. So I aimed for 5th.
"Additionally, 'Training Room' entry tickets are given to the top 5 students."
Training Room entry ticket.
That was what I was after.
But aiming precisely for 5th might be harder than expected.
In the original, 5th place went to a complete surprise character. Not even a regular one.
It was a newly introduced villain.
I turned my gaze to the 2nd Year Class B seats.
A male student was staring at the podium with flushed cheeks. His face looked like just another average extra.
I used Character Insight on him.
Name: Won-hyuk
Age: 82
Race: Demon
Status: Calm
Mana Rank: S
Interest Level: 0
An S-rank demon, no less.
He was the main villain of the second demon invasion that would dominate the midterm in the original.
With the opening ceremony over.
Students poured out of the auditorium. The first Taehwi Festival event, the 'Manifestation Art Contest,' was about to begin.
It tested aesthetic sense by seeing how beautiful a form one could manifest.
It was entertaining to watch, so it drew large crowds of tourists visiting for the festival.
Won-hyuk stood up and looked around when someone spoke to him from the side.
"Hye-chan. Which event are you doing?"
Kim Hye-chan. That was the name of the student Won-hyuk was impersonating.
The night before, he'd killed the student on the king's orders for the 'Child of Prophecy Execution Plan' and used a human skin mask to steal his face.
"Dunno."
"Huh? Why not?"
"......Don't talk to me."
"What? Did you eat something bad?"
That's when it happened. A blond man approached with a smile. Students bowed their heads upon seeing him.
"Teacher Chris. Hello."
"Haha. Yes, hello."
Chris—no, Jung-hyun—smiled and returned the greetings.
Then he glanced at Won-hyuk.
"Hye-chan. Mind if we talk for a sec?"
Won-hyuk nodded slightly at Jung-hyun's words.
"Yes. Sure."
The two headed to a secluded alley outside the wizard academy.
Alone, Jung-hyun checked for onlookers before speaking.
"......Mr. Won-hyuk. You need to act the student's role properly."
"I know."
"Not just that—you need to do it more convincingly. Be friendlier."
"What am I supposed to do about my real personality?"
Jung-hyun shut his mouth at Won-hyuk's words laced with killing intent.
Among the demons in the Ten Demon Society, Won-hyuk was infamous for his rigid, inflexible personality.
He was also arrogant and cruel.
His temperament had caused countless disturbances within the society. But no demon could say a word to him.
At 82 years old, he was the eldest in the Ten Demon Society.
Demons, with their strong sense of camaraderie, had a culture of respecting elders.
"......We still have time until the plan. Mr. Won-hyuk, we must avoid any suspicion at all costs."
"I know. If I'd known it'd be this annoying, I should've switched identities the day before the execution plan like you said."
Won-hyuk muttered quietly. He'd started with enthusiasm, but it was just a hassle now.
And that human brat who'd talked to him earlier. He'd nearly killed him in a fit of rage. He was barely holding back, but if this continued, who knew.
"......How about handing the role to someone else until the day before the plan?"
"No. I'll handle what I started. Don't worry about it."
"......Yes, understood."
"By the way, today's been fun. Taehwi Festival, huh."
"Yes, it's the wizard academy's festival. Oh, and just in case—please avoid drawing attention during the festival."
Won-hyuk fell silent. The blue gem prize even for 5th place had caught his eye during the explanation.
The ability inside wasn't impressive, but as an artwork, it tempted him.
"I'll handle it."
Handle what?
Jung-hyun barely swallowed the curse threatening to escape about Won-hyuk.
He didn't want to die today.
Seeing an S-rank demon inserted just like in the original made me tense up without realizing it.
Naturally, S-rank was rare even worldwide—immensely powerful.
Now the demon episode was truly beginning.
Won-hyuk was the one who brought a strange tension to the once-peaceful wizard academy.
Beyond his volatile, explosive personality, his strong pride and stubbornness amplified it.
Inserting himself at this ambiguous timing showed just how much he lived by his own whims.
"Why so serious?"
Yoo A-ra spoke up beside me then.
"Huh? Oh, nothing."
"......Really?"
Yoo A-ra nodded and added.
"Anyway, so many people."
I looked around. Lots of civilians there to watch. Kids held snacks in their hands.
"Everyone looks happy."
"It's a festival, after all. Fireworks tomorrow night, right?"
"Yeah. Ha-young was really looking forward to it."
Yoo A-ra said that and looked at me.
"So, what's your goal this Taehwi Festival? Aiming for 1st?"
"Nah."
1st would be nice, but I didn't want to snatch Lee Seo-jun's item. And against him, it wouldn't be easy.
"5th is fine."
"......What? That's a lame goal."
"It's not lame. 5th is tough."
I meant it thinking of my rival Won-hyuk, but Yoo A-ra thought I was joking and chuckled.
"Such a drama queen."
"Oh, right. Join a team event with me."
"Team event?"
"Tomorrow's 2-person hunt exam style—catch the most monsters in the time limit to win."
"Simple. Sure."
Yoo A-ra nodded. I smiled in satisfaction.
That secured 1st in one event. No one could match Yoo A-ra in hunting.
Beeep—
[In 10 minutes, the Manifestation Art Contest begins at the Future Hall.]
[Participants and spectators, please gather at the Future Hall quickly.]
"Event's starting," Yoo A-ra said.
Manifestation Art Contest.
A contest to create beautiful artworks through magic manifestation.
My imagination wasn't great, so I'd given up on it early.
"I'll head out now."
Yoo A-ra said to me. She was participating this time.
"You're doing the race, right?"
"Yeah."
It was a field I was confident in, so I was definitely entering.
"Good luck. You're fast. Oh, and I heard Lee Seo-jun's joining too."
I already knew that.
With him participating, 1st would be tough. But 2nd should be doable. My physical abilities had improved lately.
"Anyway, I'm off. Gotta go to the art contest."
"Yeah. Do your best."
Yoo A-ra smiled at my words.
"You too."
The highest space in the Korean Wizard Academy.
This was the 'Headmaster's Office,' used by the headmaster holding the academy's highest position.
Choi Il-hyun walked through it, eyeing the numerous magic tools and mystical decorations on the walls with interest.
"Nicely decorated."
He walked along until he spotted a massive wall safe. Instinctively sensing the mana within, he infused a bit of his own.
The wall safe opened wide, revealing a new space.