In a corner of the dormitory room, I woke up, hastily got dressed, and went outside to do my morning exercise.
The cold air had grown mild. A faint warmth permeated the cool breeze.
It was truly spring.
I headed toward the walking path, gently warming up my body. In the distance, Yoo Hana was running toward me.
I was glad I had decided to walk while warming up. When she was almost close enough, I began to run.
And a few minutes later:
“Haa…”
We stopped, catching our breath.
“New record, isn’t it?”
Yoo Hana stepped closer and held out her watch.
The soft scent of sweat passed by subtly. It was a deep, oddly alluring fragrance wafting from her flushed skin.
Instinctively, my breath momentarily paused, my gaze wavering from the watch.
Unaware, Yoo Hana pointed at the screen, her face bright.
“Look, we definitely got faster, right?”
I exhaled softly and averted my gaze.
“Yeah.”
This was also one of the reasons why I enjoyed morning exercise. You’d always improve with consistent effort.
After catching our breath briefly, we slowly began to stroll.
When we reached a fork in the path, we naturally stopped.
“See you later.”
“Mm.”
Yoo Hana waved her hand lightly and headed off in the opposite direction. I stared at her retreating figure for a moment before turning back toward the dormitory.
I returned to the room and finished showering. The warm water flowing down my skin seemed to clear my mind, even if only for a moment.
After drying my hair roughly with a towel and changing clothes, I habitually glanced at the mirror, straightening my clothes before checking my watch.
The routine was familiar. It was an ordinary, everyday morning. It was hard to imagine the events that occurred just yesterday.
However, the reflection in the mirror revealed my trembling fingertips.
Unconsciously, I clenched and unclenched my fists. Confirming the clear sensation in my fingertips, I exhaled quietly.
“Phew…”
Only then did the trembling stop.
Acting as if nothing was wrong, I opened the door and stepped out of the dormitory.
The path to the classroom.
Although I’d missed several classes last week, it was all for reasonable reasons, so there was no chance of being marked absent.
I opened the rear door and cautiously made my way to my usual seat in the corner.
As I sat and waited for class to start, the front door opened, and someone entered. It was Johan.
I hadn’t seen him since I roughed him up in our last sparring session. It’s been a while.
‘He seems fine.’
He looks fine on the surface.
That day, I don’t even know why I acted that way—suddenly losing control…
His gaze briefly lingered on my direction before swiftly turning to rejoin his group.
I also averted my eyes and looked up at the ceiling, lost in thought.
An attack by the Demon in three weeks.
A little over a month until the exchange competition. Ultimately, I have to prepare for both events simultaneously.
Of course, if you prioritize them, the former is clearly more important.
Meanwhile, I’ll focus internally on Yun Chae-ha’s growth to prepare for the exchange competition and externally prepare for the Demon’s attack.
If I give my best effort on both fronts, it should be somewhat manageable.
Just as this thought ended, Professor Do Han-seong entered the room.
“Ah…”
As soon as he walked in, sighs erupted from the students.
‘Why is it like this?’
Did he assign some homework last time? I was lost in curiosity as I stared ahead.
Instructor Do Han-seong was standing at the front with an annoying smirk as he glanced at the digital clock hanging on the wall to the left.
The clock precisely indicated 9 a.m.
After checking the time, he spoke casually.
“Students, please check Gaon’s database.”
The students’ sighs grew even deeper.
“According to the announcement last class, today is the day we reveal midterm exam written scores.”
Ah, that’s what it was.
Practical exams are combined with the final grades, but written scores are evaluated separately.
I also turned on my watch to check my results.
Gaon is cruelly honest, displaying the results in an unmistakable rank order.
And that ranking is visible to all.
There was no need to scroll any further.
I could easily find my name near the top.
[1st Place] Kang Ah-rin
[2nd Place] Jung Hae-in
…
[6th Place] Johan
…
[10th Place] Shion
…
[18th Place] Yoo Hana
…
[27th Place] Cheon Yeoul
As students hurriedly turned on their watches, the instructor spoke calmly.
“I must say, the students under my supervision are doing well. Three of you are within the top ten.”
The students’ attention shifted to those three individuals.
However, I had become distracted by something else.
“Huh?”
What startled me was something else entirely.
Kang Ah-rin, me, Shion, and Yoo Hana—each was appropriately ranked.
But Cheon Yeoul?
“27th place? Seriously?”
Frankly, her position among the top ranks was hard to believe.
Without even thinking, I turned my head to look for her.
Seated far away, Cheon Yeoul gave me a “V” sign.
Waving her fingers lightly, her expression seemed to ask, “Did I do well?”
I chuckled softly and gave her a small nod.
Even though I had conducted private tutoring with her, I hadn’t anticipated such a good grade.
If it had been easy to achieve, I wouldn’t have even attempted the private tutoring in the first place.
I opened the detailed scores. They were generally higher than I’d expected but didn’t quite meet the standard for top-tier performance.
Cheon Yeoul scored especially high in the subject of magical formulas—or divine law spells.
High enough to cover her weaker results in the other subjects.
And that topic was something I had personally taught her.
“Good job.”
I glanced at Cheon Yeoul again. From afar, she noticed my gaze and smiled with her eyes.
She’s really surprising me these days.
Accepting Paladin’s request outright counts as one example. She also seems to have done her fair share of studying, judging from her improved performance.
A rank of 27 wasn’t achievable without a lot of work—it was evident that she had put in the effort.
The lecture hall was filled with groans and cries from students checking their rankings.
“Everyone, there’s no need to be too disheartened.”
Instructor Do Han-seong continued speaking calmly.
“Since we still have ten more assessments, you can make up for it in the next one.”
“…”
What he said was probably meant as encouragement,
but the fact that there were ten more of these evaluations was anything but good news for the students.
I casually checked the time.
9:05.
Now that written score announcements were over, it was time to get into the main subject.
– Tap.
The instructor tapped the desk.
“Alright, let’s begin class.”
The students’ moans showed no sign of stopping.
*
After finishing lunch, it was unexpectedly a peaceful day.
Of course, my mind was in turmoil.
I stood in the hallway, looking at the club recruitment posters plastered on the wall.
It was most likely the final recruitment period this week. It had actually ended a while ago, but the period was extended for the exchange students from Realm who had recently arrived.
I need to join one. I have to do it. I’ve been procrastinating until now.
“Where should I go…?”
Densely packed lists of various clubs filled the poster.
Some names were familiar.
Frontier.
A club I declined before, so not that one. Johan might be in there.
This time, I needed a club to join with Yun Chae-ha.
I thought briefly and came up with a few candidates.
First, the Magic Research Club.
“Maybe not…”
Praise requires mutual applause; I don’t dislike magic. In fact, if pressed, I actually like it, but when it comes to actual research work, I’m absolutely not interested.
Yun Chae-ha would probably feel the same. She’s more inclined to enjoy intuitive thrills rather than diving into the specifics of study.
This wouldn’t be a club we’d last long in. Eliminated.
Second, the Archery Club.
Not terrible.
It would surely help develop the fundamental concentration required for a mage.
I also knew how to use a bow, so it could work…
But, I think Sion would yell at me a lot.
If you’re joining the Archery Club, she’ll probably insist on tagging along—there’s bound to be a whole lot of complaints from the start to the end.
Besides, Yun Chae-ha didn’t seem too interested either.
Pending.
The final third option:
Board Game Club.
[Lexium]
Board games in this world are different from what we’re used to. There are fundamental games like Chess and Snakes and Ladders, but it also includes games where dungeons pop out with augmented reality, akin to “Instant Dungeons.”
Though usually expensive, they’re within reach given the school’s club support budget at Gaon.
Yun Chae-ha would surely be interested. Plus, field chess or instant dungeons could help awaken her spatial awareness—a fundamental skill for mages.
If I use this to stimulate her competitive spirit, it could become a decent learning experience for her.
“This one.”
I confirmed the contact information for the recruitment on the poster and sent a message.
[From Jung Hae-in]: Hi, I’m Jung Hae-in from the first year. I’m reaching out regarding club recruitment. Would there be two spots available?
One for me, the second for Yun Chae-ha.
The option of Yun Chae-ha not following wasn’t even considered.
She entered the academy purely out of curiosity. She’d definitely come along for a club.
She did in the original story, too.
I turned off my watch screen.
That was it for procrastinated tasks for now.
With so much happening ahead, it’s been tiring from every angle. Still, if I get over this hurdle, the road to finals should be calm, at least on the surface.
Thus, getting over this hurdle was paramount.
I glanced at the ceiling and exhaled softly.
I can get past this.
Even as I tried to forget, the deeply ingrained memories of the tribulations remained, haunting me.
Aldebaran’s trial may have ended, but I was still undergoing my own trial.
That moment—
[明鏡止水 (Clear Mirror Water) has reinvigorated your spirit!]
The ripples in my mind began to fade.
The blurred vision became clear.
I took a deep breath and steadied my mind once again.
“Phew…”
There’s no doubt I’ll get through this.
No, I must get through this.
