Chapter 269
Chapter 269
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 270
Chapter Title: Mentor Selection and the Choi Family Manor
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After all the twists and turns, the Special Ops Basic Training finally came to an end.
The 'Acting' training, which had left the students with plenty of laughs and embarrassment, ultimately wrapped up in a serious atmosphere thanks to my performance activating Overimmersion.
Those around me, unaware of my latent quirk, were surprised and asked if I'd ever taken acting lessons separately.
It was a perfectly natural reaction, in a way.
Even I had felt like my speech patterns, voice, and expressions weren't my own while acting in that overimmersed state.
"Kim Sunwoo, what's his deal? He was good at acting too? I thought he turned into someone else."
"Yeah. His vocalization sounds trained. Did he take lessons?"
"Hey, I didn't even notice it was ad-libbing at first. Why'd he do that for the documentary part?"
Pretending not to hear the whispers around me, I returned to my seat.
As I plopped down, Lee Seojun sidled up to me like he'd been waiting.
"Kim Sunwoo~ You could be an actor."
Lee Seojun said in a bright, beaming voice.
"......Why are you so excited?"
"It's just amazing. Have you ever taken acting lessons?"
"No way."
Lee Seojun chuckled at my response.
"Well, yeah. Taking separate acting classes isn't common. So it's innate?"
You could put it that way.
Though my acting skill stemmed from the effect of my 'latent quirk,' that latent quirk was ultimately a hidden innate quirk of mine.
Just then, I felt an intense gaze from beside me.
Glancing over, Yoon Hayoung was staring at me with sparkling eyes.
"Sunwoo, I forgot for a second!"
Yoon Hayoung's out-of-the-blue remark made me tilt my head.
"Forgot what?"
She leaned in close and whispered in my ear.
'That your daily life is acting!'
Ugh...
Yoon Hayoung pulled away from me and muttered to herself with a suddenly serious face.
"Is this the depth of everyday acting skill?"
......What're you talking about?
Right then, Kim Muntae, who had been grading from the documents, stepped forward in front of everyone. The rowdy atmosphere in the training ground quieted down again.
"You all worked hard during the training. This was probably a novel experience for many of you, so there might have been awkward moments or regrets. But those shortcomings can improve with more training, so don't be discouraged and keep pushing forward. Now, I'll announce the top three who will receive the 'Mentor Selection Right.'"
Everyone tensed up and swallowed hard at the announcement of the final top three.
Lee Seojun and Yoo Ara were no exceptions. They'd done well in 'Presence Concealment' but shown underwhelming performances in 'Acting.'
They probably lacked confidence in making the top three.
Kim Muntae looked down at the paper in his hand and spoke.
"1st place: Kim Sunwoo. 2nd place: Lee Seojun. 3rd place: Yoo Ara."
At the same time, Yoo Ara, sitting next to me, let out a deep sigh of relief.
She'd been more anxious than anyone, especially after her lackluster acting performance.
But contrary to Yoo Ara's worries, the gap between 3rd and 4th was quite large. This ranking placed more weight on 'Presence Concealment' than 'Covert Infiltration.'
"Training is over for today, so you're free to go. Oh, and the three students who earned the selection right should stay behind. That's all."
The headquarters of the Seoul Anti-Terror Special Ops Team, under the Wizard Association—known as the world's strongest organization.
There, two men—Kim Deokhyeon and Jeong Hyeonsu—were conversing while staring at a hologram.
"The Jaun bastards have been quiet lately."
"Yeah. They've gone completely radio silent since the Seongmuje incident."
The pair were tracking traces of Jaun, the Special Ops Team's arch-enemy.
The monitor displayed data on the cycle of Jaun's incidents, but they'd far exceeded that interval recently.
Having spent their lives pursuing Jaun, this sudden shift in their behavior patterns left them flustered.
"But right now, Demons are more of a problem than Jaun."
Jeong Hyeonsu waved his hand, changing the hologram's display.
It showed a map of the Korean Peninsula dotted with small red points in various locations.
"These red dots are the sites of Demon incidents over the past month. They've surged by a whopping 220%. Terror attacks and Mystery thefts have increased too."
Kim Deokhyeon peered at the hologram with a grave expression at Jeong Hyeonsu's words.
Demon incidents had indeed spiked dramatically this year.
Demons were a race that valued 'grounds' over personal desires.
Their collective activity signaled a common goal among them, unknown to humans.
"So, we still don't know why the Demons raided the H-A Expo?"
"Yes. The analysts are investigating, but they haven't found any Demon connections yet."
"......I see."
Kim Deokhyeon nodded with a serious face.
The H-A Expo was the most mysterious incident among recent events.
There had to be a clear reason for the Demons to act in a group.
But with no stolen items or casualties at the expo, it remained a puzzle.
However, what puzzled Kim Deokhyeon most about the expo incident was something else.
The unidentified man who had attempted to attack first, before the Demons even caused the incident.
Honestly, that man intrigued him the most.
"......It's weird how there are so many sphere forms."
"Spheres?"
Jeong Hyeonsu asked at Kim Deokhyeon's sudden comment.
"You know those mysterious incidents solved last year? Thinking about it, they all seemed to involve sphere-form magic."
"......Huh? Now that you mention it."
Jeong Hyeonsu blinked in surprise.
Of course, spheres were the only commonality—neutral, light, electric attributes varied. Still, all being 'spheres' was suspicious enough.
"Where was the first occurrence of these unidentified sphere magic incidents?"
At that, Jeong Hyeonsu waved his hand, switching the hologram screen.
"Last year's Korean Wizard Academy midterms, the Jang Ye incident."
The hologram displayed Jang Ye's face and a map of the uninhabited island that was the test site.
"At the time, light-attribute spheres identical to those at the expo were detected on Jang Ye's body."
"......And they preemptively attacked, knowing the opponent was a Demon. That's the same too."
Kim Deokhyeon muttered to himself. Hearing it, Jeong Hyeonsu's expression turned serious as well.
"......Yeah, that's suspicious."
"No light-attribute sphere users at the Wizard Academy, right? That's confirmed?"
"Yes, definitely."
"Sphere users in general?"
"Sphere users aren't rare. Promising stars like Kim Sunwoo and Yoo Ara use them too."
By now, the hologram showed Kim Sunwoo and Yoo Ara's faces.
Kim Deokhyeon stared fixedly at Kim Sunwoo's face.
"......Didn't Kim Sunwoo participate in this expo too?"
"Yes, I heard he did."
"And he was nowhere to be seen during the Demon raid."
"Right. But it's probably not Kim Sunwoo."
"Why?"
Jeong Hyeonsu switched the hologram screen again.
Detailed info on Kim Sunwoo appeared.
"He used 'wind attribute' at Seongmuje. So he's a dual-attribute user: neutral and wind."
"Dual-attribute users are rare, but triple would be even rarer, so not him?"
"Exactly. Plus, Kim Sunwoo handled wind attribute quite proficiently. It looked like he'd practiced it for a long time. Would he have time to practice light attribute on top of that?"
A reasonable line of thought.
Mastering even one attribute takes ages, let alone two at that age.
Especially for a kid not yet an adult to handle triple attributes—unprecedented in wizarding history.
"It doesn't add up. But think about it."
Ugh...
"Do you think Kim Sunwoo's performance surge makes sense?"
Jeong Hyeonsu felt like he'd been struck in the back of the head at those words.
"......It's, it's nearly impossible."
"We can't judge Kim Sunwoo's potential by normal standards. He might be a genius even surpassing Lee Seojun."
Jeong Hyeonsu couldn't come up with a rebuttal.
Silence hung in the air for a moment until the Special Ops HQ door opened and someone entered.
"I'm here."
It was Kim Muntae, back from his dispatch as the Wizard Academy's Special Ops training instructor.
"Oh, you're back?"
"Yes, Senior."
Kim Muntae glanced around after replying.
"But it's empty. Where's everyone else?"
"On dispatch or investigations."
"Hmm."
Kim Muntae nodded.
Then Jeong Hyeonsu asked him.
"Senior, how was the Special Ops training?"
"Training? Well, some disappointments, some surprises. Oh, right. That Seongmuje winner, Kim Sunwoo—he exceeded expectations."
At the name Kim Sunwoo, Kim Deokhyeon and Jeong Hyeonsu looked intrigued.
"Kim Sunwoo? Why?"
"I taught Presence Concealment, and he scored a 6 on the Presence Detector."
"......A 6?"
Jeong Hyeonsu muttered in disbelief.
"......Without a Mystery? Is that possible?"
"Not a Mystery. Unless it's a trait."
"Ha, amazing. Ah! So he got the Mentor Selection Right this time? Who are the other two?"
"Lee Seojun, Yoo Ara."
"As expected."
Jeong Hyeonsu nodded.
"Who'd they pick as mentor?"
At the question, Kim Muntae turned to Kim Deokhyeon.
"You were popular, Senior. All three picked you."
Kim Deokhyeon grinned.
"Is that so? Perfect timing. I wanted to observe him up close."
Friday evening, after all classes ended.
The time had come to visit the Choi family main house for the 'Immortality Investigation Assignment'—a fairly significant episode for Lee Seojun in the original story.
Arriving at the appointed spot, the school gate, Lee Seojun and Choi Seoyun were waiting, changed into casual clothes.
"Senior!"
Choi Seoyun, wearing a large beige vest, waved enthusiastically at me.
Maybe because of the outfit change, she exuded a fresher vibe than usual.
Lee Seojun, mindful of visiting someone else's home, was neatly dressed in a thin sweater.
"Didn't keep you waiting long?"
Choi Seoyun shook her head at my question.
"No. We just met up too."
"Alright? It's late, so let's head out quick."
"Yes!"
We reached the gate and teleported somewhere.
The Choi family estate was in a residential area on Seoul's outskirts.
Though the district itself was modest in size, it was lined with main houses of famous families—known as the 'rich neighborhood.'
Even a quick glance revealed buildings of clans I'd likely heard of.
Feeling that wonder as I looked around, Choi Seoyun, leading the way, stopped.
"This is our main house."
Before us stood a massive mansion reminiscent of a castle.
Lee Seojun and I gawked at it in admiration.
"Wow...... It's huge."
"......Yeah."
Among the mansions I'd seen in my life, the largest was the Hanseong family estate—but this looked twice as big.
Of course, the Hanseong place served mainly as a 'residence,' while the Choi mansion doubled as a 'training facility' housing and raising numerous disciples, hence its size for the many residents.
The Choi family had faced some controversies over this, namely......
Just then, Choi Seoyun, more tense than us, placed her hand on the mansion door.
A magic circle rose where her hand touched.
A biometric recognition magic circle.
Clunk!
Choi Seoyun glanced back at Lee Seojun and me.
"What's up?"
When Lee Seojun asked, she shook her head.
"......Nothing. But don't be startled when we go in. And everyone's nice, so......"
"What's that suddenly?"
Lee Seojun asked with a puzzled look, and Choi Seoyun just smiled faintly instead of answering.
Entering, a vast courtyard came into view.
At the same time, numerous burly men in the yard became visible.
But they all had fierce looks. Lots of facial scars too.
Spotting Choi Seoyun, they bowed their heads in unison, as if rehearsed.
"Welcome back, Miss!"
Lee Seojun briefly looked flustered at the hearty greeting from the burly men.
And as if anticipating this reaction somewhat, Choi Seoyun gave an awkward smile.
Then one of the burly men stepped forward.
"Miss, who are the anchovies behind you?"
......Anchovies? He means me and Lee Seojun?
It might be awkward to say it myself, but Lee Seojun and I had balanced, muscular builds from consistent training.
Far from anchovy-like......
Sure, compared to these overly bulked-up giants, we might look scrawny...... but still, bit harsh.
Choi Seoyun sighed deeply and glared sharply at the burly men.
"Uncle Hwijin, these are my guests. Watch your words."
At that, the burly men looked at Lee Seojun and me with wide eyes.
"......Guests?"
"They're guys?"
"Miss Seoyun's at that age already......"
Choi Seoyun looked momentarily flustered at the voices from behind.
Then the burly man called Hwijin beamed innocently and bowed to Lee Seojun and me.
"Oh dear, my apologies. Didn't realize they were the Miss's guests. I'm Park Hwijin, with the Choi family for 21 years."
"......Ah, yes. Nice to meet you."
Lee Seojun bowed back with an awkward smile.
Park Hwijin then glanced at Choi Seoyun.
"So, Miss. These two boyfriends or something? Crushes maybe?"
"......Wh-what? What are you saying?!"
Choi Seoyun replied with a flushed face.
"Can't be just friends, right? Ah! For reference, I prefer this one."
The burly man pointed at me.
Not Lee Seojun, but me.
An unexpected outcome even for me, leaving me momentarily taken aback.