20
······The second Monday of the Internity Academy, following the weekend, began at the sports field.
“Everyone, did you all drink fresh mana in the early morning?”
“Yes!”
“Good, unleash a powerful shout for 3 seconds ahead!”
─Waaah!
“Stop! While resting, circulate your mana.”
Due to the conclusion of the mine incident, Hajinwoo was absent, and instead, the physical education instructor took charge.
By the way, mana is freshest in the early morning and at night.
The students’ sparkling eyes were due to them consuming ample fresh mana since waking up in the early morning. Mana circulation was the process of absorbing it. Envious little rascals.
“Ugh… I’m dying.”
I frowned. There wasn’t a spot on my body that didn’t ache.
The aftermath of hunting demons in Bukhansan all weekend had caught up with me on Monday morning.
Fortunately, my strength had somewhat recovered, or else attending school today would have been touch and go.
Though I had to endure the grueling work to earn 1,640,000 won…
By the way, I exchanged numbers with Sindonghoon before parting ways. He was essential as a guide when dealing with demon corpses during hunts, and his skills were satisfactory. I should at least thank Amelia.
‘It’s about time to get started.’
As seen from Eungaye, it was evident that the main characters of Internity faced a ‘death line’ that was hard to escape without player intervention.
If Han Seyeon’s mana explosion was a death line, then so was Amelia’s. And following them, it would be Amelia who would face the death line.
I glanced at Amelia, who was circulating mana.
In a white tracksuit with black stripes, her golden hair fluttered in the wind. Even wearing just sportswear, her everyday life looked like a photoshoot.
Amelia, who seemed to sense my gaze as she finished mana circulation, turned towards me.
For some reason, she approached me when I tried to avoid her gaze discreetly.
“Did you have a good time at Bukhansan?”
“Yes, thanks to you. I had a great time. Thank you.”
I meant it. Only Amelia had supported me in Internity, sending me a text in the morning and providing a guide in a luxury car with a driver.
“But why did you go to Bukhansan?”
“To earn money.”
“······Hmm, I’m curious, but if it’s a sensitive reason, I won’t ask.”
“It’s the truth.”
Although I emphasized repeatedly that it was the truth, Amelia remained unfazed.
Well, to Amelia, who played around in the mana zone, Bukhansan, where demons appeared, probably seemed like a ‘beginner’s hunting ground.’ There would be even less reason for her to earn money there.
For me, with my physical abilities at rock bottom, it was just a safe way to hunt demons without anyone to cover me upfront. Collecting mercenary rewards was quite satisfying. It also earned SP, which was subtly sweet.
“Let’s talk about it later.”
“Sure.”
I observed Amelia engaging in conversation with a man who had approached her.
There was a slight frown on her face, a rare sight for the usual Amelia.
Even the formal smile she never failed to show when facing someone was absent.
But then again, conversing with Amelia was always a bit different for anyone.
I shifted my gaze towards Emerson Romano, who had a pale, troubled look with white skin similar to Amelia’s but with rough blond hair.
With an unsavory expression and eyes that slanted upwards, Emerson Romano, Amelia’s cousin, was quite a character.
“And quite the famous troublemaker, too.”
Emerson, the only one from the renowned Romano family to give up and drop out, even though the school was known for producing elites.
Entering Eternity Academy didn’t mean he lacked skills or had poor grades.
He was talented, achieved decent grades, but couldn’t grasp the right timing for things, often causing trouble due to his lack of judgment. He was a troublemaker who went around stirring up incidents.
Because of him, the damage caused to the school’s reputation was no small matter.
Hence, it was only natural for Emerson to be estranged from his family’s favor.
Yet, reluctantly, Amelia was still looking out for him as her cousin.
Amelia may have been one to take “meritocracy” for granted, but surprisingly, she was weak when it came to matters of the heart.
In short, it was a combination of one who creates messes and one who cleans them up.
The issue was that the mess had spread so much that it led to Amelia’s own demise.
“Poor guy, he’s really been through a lot.”
Amelia’s tired expression as she listened to Emerson’s exaggerated stories was quite evident.
Watching the two of them, it was clear that the time for the magical circulation had come to an end.
“It’s nice to see everyone so lively from the morning. I’ll jog around the field ten times to freshen up before going in.”
The physical education instructor, who seemed to add training sessions at will without knowing the definition of regulations.
I have no idea how jogging ten laps around a field as big as this one could be considered refreshing.
By the way, can’t I be exempt from this?
***
Of course, there was no exemption. Exemptions were at the discretion of the instructor, who seemed to see me as some kind of “lazy genius.”
Fortunately, perhaps due to increased stamina, I managed to run about ten laps despite my exhausted body. My condition was at its worst.
“Ah…”
From Noble mtl dot com
Entering the classroom and sitting down, I slumped down like wilted kimchi.
As I lay there dazed, Lemona appeared in front of me.
“Feeling tired?”
Turning to the side, Han Seyun looked at me with a bright smile.
Even after experiencing such a thing two days ago, he seemed unchanged. Well, he even seemed a bit brighter. Anyway.
“It’s good to see you’re okay.”
It was my idea for Han Seyun to make a contract with Morudo, but honestly, it was my first attempt at such a thing, so even though I was confident it would work out, there was still some concern. Morudo wasn’t your average Joe.
But seeing him perfectly fine after two days, it was clear that the contract was indeed successful.
However, considering the unfavorable public perception of Morudo’s abilities, it was difficult for Han Seyun to publicly reveal Morudo’s skills.
“But it doesn’t matter.”
Han Seyun was a hidden ace prepared for times of danger, after all.
The morning was filled with back-to-back theory classes.
Being dumbfounded by the absurd reality of having to study even after entering the game, I couldn’t help but accept it. To avoid failing, I needed to at least get the basic points.
As I stared at the ‘Runes’ densely covering the blackboard, I inwardly clicked my tongue.
“Writing must be even harder.”
In the fourth period, the instructor in charge of ‘Rune Studies’ was Kim Joo-hyuk, a 5th Circle magician affiliated with the Association who had previously conducted ‘Magic Training Classes’.
And this guy, unless showing off, seemed to have caught a disease where he would insist on writing explanations or sentences that could be replaced by Korean in Runes.
By the way, ‘Runes’ are a language of magic where the characters themselves possess power.
Unless one’s specialty was in magic, it was an ancient language of no use. Still, even if not able to write in Runes, one had to know how to read them to respond to magic as a swordsman or archer, making Rune Studies a mandatory subject.
It was somewhat like knowing the alphabet without knowing English.
Considering that, the only crazy professor who conducted all note-taking in Runes in Eternity was Kim Joo-hyuk.
It was quite impressive how he tolerated writing difficult characters just to show off. Anyway, that aside.
I gazed at the Runes being written on the chalkboard by Kim Joo-hyuk with a curious look.
Although I had seen them in the game, they were malformed characters that I couldn’t understand at all.
However, strangely, I could now read those Runes that I couldn’t read in the game.
It was as if a decoder had been installed in my head, allowing me not only to recognize the alphabet but also to understand the underlying meanings.
“Is this also a benefit for players?”
As I marveled at the Runes written on the chalkboard, it seemed like an insanely difficult task for the beginners.
“Can anyone interpret that?”
“I can’t even read it.”
Whispers of distress started to emerge from around me.
Ignoring the reactions of the beginners, Kim Joo-hyuk continued writing without a care. He would provide explanations after finishing it all.
Writing difficult sentences without explanations and then revealing the solutions at the end to bask in superiority. That was Kim Joo-hyuk’s teaching style and life’s pleasure. Of course, the process was not smooth sailing.
“Anyone willing to interpret this paragraph? Even an imperfect interpretation is fine.”
“······.”
The classroom fell silent in an instant.
Even the model student Nicolai hesitated to speak, indicating that Kim Joo-hyuk had probably written something incredibly challenging again.
“No one? Alright then. I’ll have to pick someone.”
After adjusting his glasses, Kim Joo-hyuk scanned the classroom and paused his gaze at a certain point.
“Student Haesol, would you please stand up and try to interpret this?”
“Ugh.”
It was clearly intentional.
Perhaps Kim Joo-hyuk believed I had caused him trouble during the magic training class, and since then, he couldn’t stand me.
The expression on his face openly displayed the disdain of ‘Do you dare to read this magnificent magical language?’ It was quite evident. Anyway, to think that such a person was a professor…
Anyway.
“What’s in it for me if I interpret it perfectly?”
Judging by the reactions around me, this seemed like an incredibly difficult problem.
Just by looking at Kim Joo-hyuk’s expression, it was clear that he had prepared this question to stump me.
But it’s not like I would fall for it that easily.
Kim Joo-hyuk seemed taken aback by my question.
“Are you saying you’ve already interpreted the whole paragraph?”
“Yes, it wasn’t that difficult. Why?”
It seemed like everything was visible, so what could possibly be difficult?
Kim Joo-hyuk appeared skeptical of my nonchalant response to such a trivial matter.
“Surely you wouldn’t write down something you couldn’t solve and ask someone else to do it, right?”
“Well, of course not.”
This guy, he was serious about this.
‘Conscience, anyway.’
The reward seemed like a lost cause. Who gives a reward to someone who openly admits they know the answer?
‘Kim Joo-hyuk isn’t that naive.’
But it turned out Kim Joo-hyuk was even more naive than I thought.
“Anyway, it’s fine. If you really interpret the whole paragraph, I’ll give you the reward you want.”
Kim Joo-hyuk, with a relaxed smile, seemed like he couldn’t believe that I had interpreted the whole paragraph. His smile was dazzling.
‘What’s this? An angel?’