Chapter 91
Chapter 91
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 91
Chapter Title: The Final Night
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About 30 seconds until the event ends.
Now that the event is almost over, I guess there's no need to search anymore.
10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1…
[The event 'Hidden Treasure Hunt' has ended.]
"It's over!"
[The rankings are now being announced.]
[1st Place: Kim Sunwoo (Treasures Found: 22)]
[2nd Place: Lilly Rose (Treasures Found: 12)]
[3rd Place: Yoo Ara (Treasures Found: 8)]
['Lilly Rose', your ranking is 2nd place.]
[You found 12 treasures and earned 520 points.]
[You earned an additional 320 points as a ranking bonus.]
"Wow! First place! …No, wait. What the hell is this?"
Lily stared at the ranking window floating in front of her, doubting her own eyes.
The name in first place wasn't hers—it belonged to someone else.
Kim Sunwoo.
"What the— who is this guy?"
The completely unexpected name made her blink blankly.
Kim Sunwoo? Why the hell is he here?
But the number of treasures he'd found was no joke.
"…22?"
She rubbed her eyes, wondering if she was seeing things, then looked again.
Still clearly 22.
Nearly twice as many as she'd found.
"Is… is this even possible?"
Lily couldn't believe it even seeing it with her own eyes.
Common sense told her it was impossible to find 22 treasures in just one hour.
She'd been so sure she'd take first in this event.
What the hell…
"Kim Sunwoo…"
Come to think of it, there was a record of Kim Sunwoo beating Lee Seojun for first in a few subjects at the Korean Wizard Academy.
She'd thought it was just because the school's standards were low.
But looking at these rankings, that clearly wasn't the case.
There was a reason Kim Sunwoo took first.
"This is ridiculous."
Is it even fair for him to get first?
Right now, Yoo Ara probably has the highest points overall.
If it got out that Lee Seojun—not Yoo Ara—had his first place stolen…
She didn't even want to think about it.
"…Time to start plundering."
About 18 hours left until the exam ends.
The other students must have built up a decent amount of points by now.
Perfect timing to start plundering.
"But where the hell is Lee Seojun? Why hasn't he shown up?"
Lily scanned the rankings again.
No matter where she looked, he wasn't there.
She even checked the top 100, but no Lee Seojun.
"…Is he going for the 30th floor?"
Nah, no way.
A place cleared only once in 50 years?
He's aiming for that?
But thinking about it, it wasn't impossible.
Someone had reached the 30th floor once in those 50 years.
And Lee Seojun was the current genius hailed as the best in history.
He just might pull it off.
"Ha."
So what could she do about it right now?
Nothing.
She'd just have to pray he didn't reach the 30th floor.
11:50 PM.
With about 12 hours left in the exam, I was clearing the 19th floor's theme stage and monsters, steadily racking up points.
Not many students had reached the 19th floor yet, so I had the point zones to myself and made a nice haul.
I'd also scored high in the occasional events, pushing my total points past 2,700.
At this rate, top 20 is a lock.
But my mana shortage was still a pain.
If I just had a bit more mana, I could've gotten way more points.
If I could've chugged mana elixirs without anyone noticing…
"What can you do."
Mana shortages had screwed me over plenty of times before.
I shook off the thought and kept moving.
That's when the Tower's will rang in my head.
[A new 'Red Player Leader' has been born!]
Red Player Leader.
The Red Player with the most plundered points.
I opened my Smart Student Handbook and checked the 'Red Player' list.
[Red Player List]
[1. Lilly Rose: 5,200 points]
[2. Park In-hwan: 4,500 points]
[3. Jo Min-seok: 3,900 points]
Just as I expected—the new Red Player Leader was Lilly Rose.
She'd racked up a insane 5,200 points just from plundering.
Probably 3,000 of that from Korean Wizard Academy students.
That was what she meant by "enemies next time we meet."
"Hoo."
But soon, the final event would flip the entire point rankings on their head.
Right now, Lilly Rose and the other Red Players were ahead.
But the moment the event started, everything would reverse.
Of course, this part wasn't covered properly in the original story.
When the event kicked off, Lee Seojun was off challenging the 30th floor, writing his own side story.
"It's about time."
I checked the time.
11:59 PM.
Just one minute left.
Then the Tower's will rang in my ears.
[In a moment, the final event, 'The Final Night,' will begin.]
Here we go.
The most crucial event, one that would massively shake up every student's rankings.
[5, 4, 3, 2, 1…]
['The Final Night' has begun!]
[For the next 6 hours, even if you attempt to plunder, you will not be registered as a 'Red Player'!]
I selected Lilly Rose from the 'Red Player List.'
Her real-time location popped up on the screen.
[Lilly Rose]
[+Red Player Leader+]
[Current Location: 12th Floor, Spirit Lake]
"Let's go."
2:00 AM.
Lily Rose was swinging her sword at Spirit Lake on the 12th floor, locked in combat.
Nearly 10 students were ganging up on her.
"Tch!"
As soon as the final event, The Final Night, began, students swarmed to steal points from the Red Player Leader, Lilly Rose.
It was a pretty unfair situation for Red Players. Who'd have thought they'd run an event that nullified the Red Player penalty?
"Haaah!"
But it wasn't all bad. Hunting down people for points was a hassle anyway. Now they were coming right to her, making it easy to stack points.
They were just cannon fodder in numbers.
Puk!
[You defeated 'Kim Hyuk-su.']
[You gained 300 points!]
"Ugh! They'll never stop!"
Whooong!
Finally, overwhelmed by the endless assaults, Lily decided to fall back for now.
She spotted Lee Seojun's friend, Shin Young-jun, charging from afar. As far as she knew, he was third at the Korean Wizard Academy.
Fighting him in her current state meant a high chance of defeat.
"Tch!"
Lily poured all her mana into her legs and bolted forward with everything she had.
Paat!
She shot off at tremendous speed, leaving the pursuing students staring dumbfounded at her back.
"Huh? She's running!"
"Damn, how is she that fast?"
How long did she run?
Lily shook off her pursuers and found herself alone again.
She leaned against a massive tree, calming her pounding heart.
"…Whew. Thought I was done for."
Her watch read 3:00 AM.
About 4 hours left in the event.
But with all the points she'd stacked, this chaos wouldn't end even after.
No helping it. She'd prepared for this.
Lily checked her score on the Smart Student Handbook.
[8,450 points]
"Jackpot."
It had jumped to 8,450 in no time.
Unless Lee Seojun reached the 30th floor, first place was hers.
"…Can't let my guard down."
She'd ditched them for now, but Red Players' locations were constantly shared via Smart Student Handbooks.
She couldn't relax—who knew what other powerhouse might come for her.
That's when it happened.
Lily's hairs stood on end. A chill hit her, her instincts screaming danger. She twisted her body sideways on pure reflex—no conscious command.
Kwaaaang—!
The tree she'd been leaning on exploded from some impact.
Caught off guard by the sudden ambush, she snapped to and dashed sideways.
Kwang! Kwang! Kwaaaang!
Spells kept firing from the darkness. The precise control in them put her on edge.
Who the hell? Who can cast like that…
"Haaah!"
Lily dodged the magic orbs at high speed and charged toward the mystery attacker firing from afar.
Spells kept coming, but she swung her mana-infused sword to deflect those headed her way.
She closed in right up to his face.
She slashed at the figure whose face was shrouded in darkness.
Whoooong!
But she missed.
He evaded with close-quarters skill unbelievable for an evocation mage.
Shooo…
Then a new magic orb formed in his hand. Pure mana, no attributes.
As he thrust his hand out, Lily anticipated the release and moved to dodge.
But.
He didn't fire.
"…Huh?"
He just pressed the orb against her body.
Her timing thrown off, she was wide open.
An explosion erupted around her stomach.
Kwaaaaang!
"Kyaaak!"
Lily tumbled across the ground with the shockwave.
She'd wrapped herself in a protective aura with all her mana just before the blast, avoiding the worst. But the excruciating pain in her gut was unavoidable.
"Kuh!"
Lily looked up to see her attacker.
His face was still hidden in shadow.
Then clouds parted, moonlight revealing him bit by bit.
Lily's eyes widened in shock.
A man she never expected stood there.
"…Kim Sunwoo?"
Lily stared in astonishment at the man in the darkness, Kim Sunwoo.
Her mind reeled.
By her memory, Kim Sunwoo was 60th overall at the Korean Wizard Academy.
But the combat prowess he'd just shown was nowhere near 60th level.
"…You, you, what are you?"
Too stunned, Lily didn't even notice her stuttering.
Kim Sunwoo looked down at her and said casually,
"What do you mean? I said we'd see each other soon."
"N-No, that's not what I— Aren't you 60th? How are you 60th with that skill?"
To Lily's question, Kim Sunwoo replied,
"That's why I'm here to take you down and climb the ranks."
"What kind of nonsense—"
"Sorry, but I've only got 20 seconds left."
"…Huh?"
Kim Sunwoo raised his hand.
Intense mana swirled above it, forming a round orb.
He thrust the orb-topped hand toward Lily's head.
Blinding light flashed.
A deafening explosion followed, a nauseating pain like her head was vanishing.
The pain faded fast, like reverting to her uninjured body.
Lily slowly opened her tightly shut eyes.
A pure white space filled her vision.
A familiar room. She realized where she was instantly.
1st Floor Stage.
And she instinctively knew.
"…I died."