Chapter 31: Midterm Exam (1)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 31: Midterm Exam (1)
The old man sat before me, his hand on his chin, lost in deep thought.
“So you absorbed a Fragment…” His voice was a mixture of awe and suspicion.
“It doesn’t seem to be a problem. The tests that Gwang-cheol fellow ran didn’t show any issues.”
I explained to the old man how I had absorbed the Fragment.
I left out the part about traveling back in time and staying in the past for seven days, of course.
I just gave him a vague story.
A moment of silence passed.
“Who else knows?”
An image of one person came to mind.
Kang A-rin.
She knew I had absorbed the Fragment.
Though I had no idea where she was now.
“Kang A-rin. Kang A-rin knows.” I said her name aloud.
“Kang A-rin? From Glory?” Park Gwang-cheol, who had been listening quietly from the side, reacted.
I nodded at him.
This is going to be a hassle~
He muttered.
The old man kept his eyes closed, as if organizing his thoughts.
The silence stretched on, filling the room. Then, slowly opening his eyes, he spoke with a deep sigh.
“…In any case, it was only a matter of time before you were revealed to the world.”
His voice was a mixture of resignation and resolve.
“I suppose… it’s time to accept it.”
With that, the old man rose from his seat.
He walked to the door with heavy steps, opened it, and glanced back at me.
“Be careful on your way out.”
I quietly watched him go.
I could understand how he felt.
He had lost his daughter—Sion’s mother—to the Mines.
She had been a hero of brilliant talent.
But the Mines feared her potential and, in the end, they killed her.
The old man changed after that day.
While he trained Sion and me, helping us grow stronger, he never exposed us to the outside world.
He had even been vehemently against me enrolling at Gaon at first.
But in the end, he had bent his principles and accepted it.
A heavy silence lingered in the room long after the door closed.
It was Park Gwang-cheol who spoke first.
“You heading back to Gaon?”
I gave a short reply.
“Yeah, that’s the plan.”
He didn’t react to my answer.
Then, out of the blue, he asked, “Hmm… Midterms are coming up soon, aren’t they?”
Considering the time of year, that was probably right.
“Yeah.”
At that, Park Gwang-cheol’s lips curved into a slight smile.
“Right. Got it.”
There was something strange about that smile.
*
I returned to Gaon.
[Sion]: Hae-in, I heard from Ara. She said something happened?
I was at my dorm room door.
My watch vibrated.
I checked Sion’s message and sent a quick reply. At the same time, I opened the door.
But the moment I stepped inside the room…
“Ah, fuck…”
On the day I’d climbed Baekdusan, I had received the Dongbaek Sword from the Association and left it on my floor.
And now, that very sword had taken root in the middle of my living room.
Red vines sprouted from the blade.
They covered every corner of the interior, turning the room into a veritable jungle.
The furniture was so entangled in vines that it was unrecognizable, and a web of tangled branches hung from the ceiling like the canopy of an arboretum.
I sighed and grabbed the spear I had leaning against the wall.
“How am I supposed to clean all this up…”
I hacked away the vines blocking my path and approached the center of the living room.
There, embedded in the middle of the floor, the Dongbaek Sword was sparkling as if it were in a good mood.
And then,
Shhhk!
I pulled the embedded sword out, scabbard and all.
As the roots connecting to it snapped one by one, the hanging vines withered as if their life had run out.
I need to give this to her soon.
This wouldn’t happen if it found a suitable owner.
I thought, looking down at the sword.
I had agreed to do partner training with Yu Hana, in addition to our morning runs.
I checked the time. 11 PM.
It was too late to meet her now, so I decided to schedule something for tomorrow.
I opened my watch and sent a short message.
[Jung Hae-in]: Hana, are you free for partner training tomorrow?
I was about to close my watch and start picking up the withered stems when—
Ding!
A message arrived less than ten seconds later.
[Yu Hana]: Partner?? What partner?? But I’m in.
That was fast.
I replied immediately.
[Jung Hae-in]: The partner training we talked about before. I also have something to give you.
[Yu Hana]: Oh… I remember now. How about tomorrow at 6 PM in Training Ground B?
I sent a quick "Sounds good." and closed my watch.
Training Ground B was the closest one to the dorms.
But how was I supposed to give this to her?
No matter how you looked at it, the Dongbaek Sword was no ordinary object.
Knowing her personality, I doubted she’d just accept it without question if I offered it…
Wait a minute.
Wasn't this a completely pointless thing to worry about?
On second thought, I could just force it into her hands.
I dangled the sword from the ceiling light.
At least this way, it wouldn’t take root again.
It was already 11 o’clock.
I should just get some sleep.
There was nothing more to think about. It had been a very long day.
*
Today, too, I arrived at school at exactly 9:00 AM.
As usual, I opened the back door and headed to my assigned seat.
And there sat Cheon Yeo-wool.
I sat down next to her without a word.
“Hey.”
I offered a casual greeting.
Cheon Yeo-wool, however, just stared at me without replying.
Her gaze seemed to be scrutinizing every inch of my body.
And soon, elation began to fill her face.
“Nothing much happened in class yesterday, right?”
I started a conversation naturally.
But she still wore a rapturous expression.
After staring at me for a few seconds, she seemed to snap out of it and finally spoke.
“N-No…”
Cheon Yeo-wool kept her hands neatly folded, her head bowed shyly.
The girl who would normally strike up a lively conversation was now sitting close by, acting rather demure.
“What’s with you this morning?”
I tried to sound casual, but Cheon Yeo-wool still couldn’t meet my eyes.
Her fingertips fidgeted, as if she were mulling something over.
Then, at last, she spoke cautiously.
“It’s just…”
“Just?”
“You just seem… different…”
Cheon Yeo-wool secretly glanced up at my face.
Then she blushed and turned away again.
I tapped my fingers on the desk.
As expected, being a Saintess candidate, she had instinctively noticed the change in me.
After all, the energy of a Fragment and divine power shared a common thread.
But before Cheon Yeo-wool could ask anything more, the front door of the classroom opened.
Click.
It was our instructor, Do Han-seong.
He walked in with his usual calm expression and stood at the podium.
Then, with a deadpan face, he opened the attendance book.
“Kang A-rin.”
A brief silence.
She wasn’t here today.
Without another word, Do Han-seong finished taking attendance and began the lecture. It was nothing special—an in-depth theory class on various weapons.
While the theory itself was necessary, it wasn’t a particularly crucial part of the curriculum for weapon combat, where practical sense was far more important.
I let it go in one ear and out the other, just killing time.
Just as the atmosphere in the classroom grew lax and concentration began to wane, Do Han-seong turned his gaze to the students and slowly began to speak.
“As I mentioned on Monday, the midterm exam period begins next week.”
A stir went through the classroom.
The midterm exam.
Gaon’s first midterm was notoriously famous.
It wasn’t a simple academic evaluation.
The exam here was, in fact, a Value Evaluation Match.
Among students, this evaluation method was also known by another name: the Bidding Match.
Just as the name implied, the midterm results weren’t just simple scores. It was a system where guilds, organizations, or individual teams would observe the exam, evaluate the students, and then ‘bid’ on them.
Each organization would bid a certain amount of money to secure the student they wanted.
Students who were successfully bid on would form an automatic connection with that organization, gaining opportunities for hands-on experience through guild internships or special programs.
And the bid amount would, naturally, be reflected in the Gaon rankings.
A capitalistic system to its very core.
The students would become hell-bent on seizing this one chance.
It was an exam where you had to showcase your abilities to the fullest to receive a higher bid from the guilds.
It was like a student auction.
“As I’m sure you’re all well aware, this midterm will also be conducted as a Value Evaluation Match.”
Do Han-seong finished speaking, turned around, and began writing on the blackboard.
“Therefore, I will now share the list of major organizations participating in this evaluation.”
The major organizations were the students’ ultimate goal. While many non-major groups also participated, the students were fundamentally aiming for the big leagues.
All eyes in the classroom were fixed on him.
– Glory
That was a given.
They were the world’s number one guild, the strongest group in existence.
– Lotus
Same here.
They were the world’s second-ranked guild, right after Glory.
– Arcadia
Hmm…
It wasn’t common for the Arcadia Cult to participate.
They were probably looking to recruit a healing specialist.
After that, the names of several other major organizations were written on the board.
And just when it seemed the list was complete, Instructor Do Han-seong added one final name.
– Vanquisher
In an instant, the classroom began to buzz.
Vanquisher? For real?
Wow, they’re actually participating.
Seong Si-woo, who was sitting in the front row, even shot up from his seat to stare at the blackboard.
Murmurs erupted from all corners of the room.
And for good reason.
Vanquisher was famous for not recruiting new members.
Naturally, they almost never participated in the Value Evaluation Match.
But this time, their name was on the list of major organizations.
This had huge implications for the students.
Vanquisher participating in person meant they were determined to recruit at least one person.
But as for me…
Why are they here…?
I couldn’t help but be bewildered.
In the original story, Vanquisher never participated in the evaluation match.
Ah.
Hmm… Midterms are coming up soon, aren’t they?
Only then did I remember.
Park Gwang-cheol’s meaningful question and that smile he’d given me.
I pressed my hand to my forehead.