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One cannot properly handle magic within a magic suppressant.
Hence, even blocking a single iron bead, which would normally be of little concern, was challenging within the suppressant.
The purpose of this magic control test was to demonstrate how powerless a mage becomes when unable to wield magic, emphasizing the importance of magic control.
Even first-year students found it difficult to block more than 20 beads in 3 minutes, and even Instructor Shin Oh-jun himself struggled to block 30.
“…But what’s that?”
Whirrr!
The iron beads kept flying endlessly.
It had been a while since surpassing 20 or 30, and Shin Oh-jun had even forgotten to count.
And as the multitude of beads reached near Ihae-sol, their speed drastically slowed down, as if caught in a spider’s web, before bouncing off and scattering away.
Tadadadadadang!
The beads that should have bounced off in all directions were hindered by the blackboards on both sides and fell down slowly.
“…”
The hall was engulfed in silence.
Even the students who were moving the blackboards or those who were cheerfully discussing the number of beads they blocked after the test couldn’t say a word.
Watching this scene unfold beside him, Shin Oh-jun stood with his mouth agape, staring blankly at the rolling beads.
“Instructor, it’s over.”
“Huh? Ah, yes. Th-That’s right.”
At Ihae-sol’s words breaking the silence, Shin Oh-jun belatedly came to his senses.
“Rotation! Graduating students, leave the magic circle, and the next group, enter!”
As the assistant shouted the command, Shin Oh-jun’s eyes trembled fiercely as he looked at the score displayed on the scoreboard.
[58 beads]
“Ugh…”
Shin Oh-jun calmly recalled the recent situation. The blocked and bounced beads. Trying to relate it to magical knowledge, Shin Oh-jun suddenly remembered Ihae-sol’s words while setting up the blackboards.
─If you don’t secure this properly at the start, it’ll be chaos.
“…It was using counterforce.”
Only then did Shin Oh-jun’s mind seem to clear, understanding the entire situation.
Magic inherently tends to disperse. It was natural that when this magic was concentrated to an extreme, it would burst out.
The bursting magic caused the beads to bounce off. Hence, it was possible to explain why the beads that were shot out slowed down.
When magic is concentrated, the density of magic around it also rises significantly, creating ‘resistance.’
There was no need to ponder why, despite the dense magic being concentrated, it couldn’t be felt.
The unseen mana was indeed the ‘gift’ that Yihaesol possessed.
“But, it’s truly impressive that you managed to gather the mana without it exploding.”
To forcibly gather the mana that was about to burst required a tremendous amount of endurance. It was a task that demanded an immense level of concentration.
For Yihaesol, who effortlessly achieved such feats, blocking a marbles was nothing but a trivial matter.
“Starting with 10 seconds left, was it because you had an abundance of leisure?”
Sin Ojun, who realized everything, clicked his tongue.
Meanwhile, emerging from the magic circle, I wiped my chest.
“Phew, that was close.”
Blocking marbles was easier for me than walking on land and swimming.
Once I unleashed my energy, it naturally bounced off.
However, I struggled to prevent the marbles from spreading by setting up a blackboard.
With only three minutes left, I ended up spending all my time fixing the blackboard.
In such a situation with 10 seconds left, I frantically clicked the button, only to realize belatedly that I hadn’t unleashed my energy, unfolding it in a really precarious manner.
I narrowly avoided becoming a marble meal, shaking my head and moving on to the next test.
***
If deflecting the flying marbles was a test of agility, the second test was one of endurance.
Gathering mana in the empty space of both hands, the test was to support five thick books for over 30 seconds.
Regardless of the number of attempts made, the time taken to pass the test was used to determine the score.
“···Yihaesol, you can put down the books now. You passed.”
At the assistant’s words, I put down the books and looked around.
The lecture hall was in an uproar with the sound of books falling everywhere.
“···Huh? Ah! Ouch!”
Eungaye, who seemed to be doing well, dropped the books with a thud, frowning.
Amelia, who seemed to have been hit on the head by a falling book, was rubbing her head and crying.
Hansuyeon, who postponed her attempts, gathered and released mana in practice.
Since this was also happening within the mana suppression field, everyone was struggling and unable to overcome it.
On the other hand, for me, who didn’t need to concentrate, it was a piece of cake. Just placing the books on top of my energy was enough.
“I wonder if Cheon Woojin is still waiting.”
Glancing at Cheon Woojin, who was waiting for his turn for the first marble test, I left the lecture hall after finishing all the tests.
Upon leaving, I was approached by Kim Juhyeok, who had been smoking in the Hero’s Hall smoking area, and he extinguished his cigarette before coming closer.
“Yihaesol, it is prohibited for students to leave the lecture hall during the test.”
“I have completed all the tests.”
“Huh, you’re saying you finished all the tests when it hasn’t even been 20 minutes since the start of the test?”
“Yes, why don’t you go in and check?”
Kim Juhyeok chuckled as if he couldn’t believe it.
To complete all the mana control tests and leave would normally take over two hours.
Blocking marbles was a 3-minute test, but to pass the second test of supporting books, it would take at least 1 hour and 30 minutes. If you failed once, you had to wait until your turn came around again, so the passing time would increase exponentially.
To finish it all in 20 minutes was unbelievable. However, Kim Juhyeok soon seemed to understand and nodded.
“I see.”
To give up and come out was still considered finishing it. If it was Yihaesol, there was a higher chance of giving up than anything else.
The magic suppression used in the magic control test was a method that had a severe impact on those sensitive to magic.
For someone like Yi Haesol, who had an innate talent for controlling magic, it was obvious that pulling out magic altogether would be difficult at first.
Kim Joo-hyuk was the one who strongly recommended inserting the magic suppression for this test, aiming for that very difficulty.
Unlike the instructors who only handled practical classes, Kim Joo-hyuk, who also covered written exams, had some influence within the academy, making it easy for him to get involved in such test matters.
Unable to hide his laughter at the successful outcome, Kim Joo-hyuk struggled to suppress his smile.
Struggling to hold back his laughter, Kim Joo-hyuk put on a pitiful expression.
“…Well, magic suppression must have been challenging for Haesol students. I understand.”
“Excuse me?”
“But that doesn’t mean you should be too disappointed already. If you do well in the second class, you’ll have plenty of chances to make up for it.”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean I’m rooting for you.”
“…Ah, I see.”
I found myself looking at Kim Joo-hyuk, who kept making strange remarks, with disbelief, shaking my head inwardly as I walked away.
Meanwhile, Kim Joo-hyuk, as if eagerly waiting for me to disappear, quickly entered the auditorium.
Approaching Shin O-jun, who was evaluating the students with his arms crossed, Kim Joo-hyuk spoke up.
“Instructor Shin O-jun.”
“Oh, Professor Kim Joo-hyuk. What can I help you with?”
Looking at Shin O-jun bowing his head respectfully, Kim Joo-hyuk subtly inquired with anticipation.
“Just now, Haesol finished the test and came out. What happened?”
Kim Joo-hyuk hoped to hear from Shin O-jun that Haesol had failed.
But when Shin O-jun mentioned Haesol, his expression suddenly brightened.
“Come to think of it, Professor Kim Joo-hyuk was in charge of Haesol’s magic studies, right?”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
“You’ve taught the student really well.”
“I’m sorry?”
Seeing Kim Joo-hyuk’s puzzled expression at the unexpected praise, Shin O-jun smiled broadly, accepting it.
“You don’t need to be so humble. Since Professor Kim Joo-hyuk is a good teacher, Haesol can also excel. Don’t you think so?”
“What do you mean…”
As Kim Joo-hyuk continued to be puzzled, Shin O-jun pointed to the scoreboard displaying the results.
——–
▶ 1st place, Haesol [58 points], [30 seconds].
▶ Calculating…
▶ Calculating…
▶ Calculating…
——–
“…”
Kim Joo-hyuk, blinking in confusion, finally grasped the situation and opened his mouth in astonishment.
***
On the other hand, having left the Hero Hall, I entered the “Hall of the Giants,” where the second class, “Recognition of the Instructors,” was taking place.
The Hall of the Giants, where the statues of academy graduates who had made it into the top 100 of the historical giants ranking were displayed on both sides.
Wiiiiing!
A menacingly bright blue light illuminated the entire hall where I set foot.
I read the contents of the exam written on the bulletin board at the entrance of the hall.
——–
【Recognition by the Instructor】
[Find the coin hidden somewhere inside the giant’s crown and bring it to me.]
*You must detect the magic within the coin.
[Deadline: 2:00 PM]
-Gym Instructor, Kwak Jin-ho-
——–
“Ruthless.”
Seeing the blue light illuminating every nook and cranny of the hall, I clicked my tongue.
It wasn’t just a simple light; it was light radiating magic.
Upon contact with the skin, it would deliver a blow, requiring the expenditure of magic to endure it.
From Noble mtl dot com
Lacking magic, I would inevitably suffer continuous damage upon touching that light.
Sure enough, just lightly touching it made my skin turn red and blister.
Crackle!
A blue flame rose from the flesh. Then, like a lie, the skin healed.
If it were a one-time injury, I could endure it with the phoenix’s regenerative power, but with this continuous damage, enduring it was possible thanks to the phoenix’s regenerative power.
Still, I didn’t want to enter the hall. Finding the coin was even more unreasonable.
The hall was so vast. If I couldn’t detect the magic, finding a coin here would take ages.
Of course, I didn’t need to go through that trouble. I immediately summoned the phoenix.
[Squawk?]
I presented the example coin hanging on the bulletin board to the phoenix who tilted its head.
“Find it.”
This little one is good at finding things like this.
***
Kwak Jin-ho sat in the top room of the giant’s hall, arms crossed.
He thought that it would be at least 1 p.m. before the first successful candidate emerged.
By around 10 a.m., the first period would end, and the students would gather at the giant’s hall.
The reason he judged that the first successful candidate would emerge around 1 p.m. was due to the magic that dominated the hall.
Finding a coin under the continuous damaging magic light was no easy task.
Finding the coin, depleting magic, leaving the hall to replenish magic, and attempting again were the only ways to succeed.
After going back and forth several times, he could find the coin.
Even if he found the coin, to pass, he had to reach the room at the end of the hall where it was. But…
“Oh.”
A student walked steadily through the blue light.
Kwak Jin-ho glanced at his watch.
[9:36 AM]
“…Is the watch broken?”
For a moment, Kwak Jin-ho, who had been tilting his head, stood up from his seat, loosening his shoulders.
“Well, it doesn’t matter.”
***
Indeed, the Phoenix, showing off its abilities fiercely, dashed around the arena and swiftly pecked at the coin.
As a response, I tossed a Red Jasper and walked into the arena with the coin in hand. As soon as the light touched me, my skin rapidly turned red.
Whoosh!
Blue flames engulfed my flesh, but in an instant, my skin returned to its original state.
It was Phoenix’s ability, 【Rapid Regeneration】.
Relying on rapid regeneration, I reached the room where Kwak Jin-ho was and handed him the coin when he said…
“Try to stop this.”
“What?”
Suddenly, Kwak Jin-ho began rotating his arms.
With each rotation, the mana accumulating on his arms increased exponentially.
3 rotations… 8 rotations… 12 rotations…
A massive cluster of mana swelling up.
I stood still, simply watching.
It was understandable since I didn’t sense any particular malice from Kwak Jin-ho.
If there was an intention to attack, Kwak Jin-ho’s soul reflected in my soul’s eyes should have been dyed black, but his soul remained white.
And then…
Vroooom!
As Kwak Jin-ho’s arm spun and shot out, it stopped right in front of my face.
“Wow, impressive.”
…What does that mean?