Finding the Landmarks
Saturday morning, when we normally would have been off at club activities or relaxing comfortably in the dormitory.
Dressed in our uniforms, we found our assigned classrooms and took the year’s written exam.
The lecture hall where the exam ran for one hundred minutes was endlessly solemn.
As I worked through the problems, all I could hear now and then were the sounds of Hong Yena and Yu Noeul walking around, pens scratching, and test papers being turned.
‘I’ve seen this formula before… Where was it again?’
Since this was an exam administered to every first-year student in the combat division, the questions were difficult, broad in scope, and yet asked about highly specific details.
Because of that, I couldn’t simply breeze through without getting stuck.
To find the answers, I had to desperately rummage through my memories, rack my brain, and at times leave things up to luck.
Fortunately, many of the predicted questions Yeon Haneul and Min Arin had told me were likely to appear on the exam proved helpful.
‘Ah, right. Haneul said this one was important. Then if I use this formula here… Got it.’
I had known for a long time that Yeon Haneul had a high hit rate with predicted questions, but I hadn’t expected it to rise this much once Min Arin’s advice was added on top.
Silently thanking the two of them, I managed to fill in the answers one by one.
“Exam time is over, everyone. Take your hands off your papers now.”
“Anyone who touches their paper from this point on will be considered to be cheating. The person at the back of each row, stand up and collect the papers.”
Before I knew it, the results had left my hands, never to return.
All I could do was pray that my grades came out well.
After that, ahead of the practical exam for the year in the afternoon, I went to eat lunch with my friends.
The cafeteria on campus was obviously going to be chaotic with students who had just finished the exam, so we decided to take care of lunch by the nearby lake.
“They said it’s more comfortable to eat outside during exam period. I’m so glad I asked a senior I know, just in case. This is all thanks to my excellent foresight!”
“But there seem to be a lot of people here too. Will we be able to get seats?”
“Hmm… You’re right. I think we should find a spot quickly. Could a few people bring the lunch boxes? If you tell the café my name, you should be able to get them.”
“Right, got it! I’ll think of it as light training and run over to get them!”
“Eunbi-kkabi! I’ll go with you!”
“Somehow I’m uneasy with just those two… Haerang has no sense of direction, and Yuri is Yuri, so I think one more person should go with them…”
“Yam.”
“…You’re unreliable too, so stay still.”
“Nice. I was feeling lazy anyway.”
“Sigh… I guess there’s no helping it. Gold, Silver, Bronze. You guys go get them.”
“Why us again!?”
“Send the people who said they’d go!”
“This is too much! Seriously too much!”
“Ssseup.”
“Loyalty! Loyalty! We’ll bring them back quickly before they get cold!”
The Silver Lake near the academic building was crowded with people who had arrived before us.
While I, Yeon Haneul, and the others prepared places to sit, the triplets brought lunch.
Lunch was the boxed meals Go Eunbi had reserved the day before at Brilliant Café as our representative.
We ate the well-filled lunch boxes while enjoying the scenery of the lake.
Naturally, the topic drifted to the written exam we had just taken.
Since most of us had good heads for studying, there was a certain enjoyment in checking the answers.
For instance, when I brought something up.
“Come to think of it, wasn’t the function problem where the result changed when you inserted the formula difficult too? Because of that, I…”
“Wasn’t the answer to that number 3?”
“It was number 3. That’s what I got too.”
“Hmph, it was number 3 without any need to think about it. Was there anything difficult about that?”
“Gyeonu, Gyeonu! You didn’t even know that? Of course only number 3 could come out!”
“Yam. I guessed without looking… If I remember right, I picked number 3.”
“I probably chose number 3 too. When I thought about it intuitively, it came out.”
“I got number 3 too. I had space left, so I went through the calculation process twice, and the numbers came out cleanly…”
“Mine was number 3 as well. It was quite an interesting question, so I remember it.”
“…”
In that manner, my friends would tell me the correct answer.
‘By the way, Haerang got it right too…’
Yong Haerang, whose brain seemed likely to be made of muscle, appeared to have intelligence after all, contrary to appearances.
Having chosen the wrong answer, I couldn’t help but feel needlessly complicated.
At least I could take comfort in the fact that Go Eunbi and the triplets had also gotten the question wrong.
Meanwhile, there were also cases where arguments broke out when the answers people had chosen differed.
In particular, Yeon Haneul and Min Arin, who were confident in their grades, clashed at the drop of a hat.
“You have to consider the conditional statement in the question too. That’s why I’m saying it’s number 2.”
“The premise of the situation itself changes completely, and you considered that? The conditional statement should only be used when finding the error at the start. I think you’re wrong. I’m telling you, it’s number 4.”
“No. It’s number 2. The conditional statement…”
“It’s number 4. Number 4.”
“It’s no use insisting like that. The answer can only be number 2.”
“You… Are you looking down on me right now!? Yeon Haneul, just because you entered as the top student, you think you can teach me…”
“…”
Yeon Haneul usually let things pass amicably even when someone’s opinion differed from hers.
Yet for some reason, when Min Arin was her opponent, she revealed her fighting spirit.
The sight of her putting strength into her red eyes and engaging Min Arin in a battle of wills was both fascinating and bewildering.
‘They’ve been doing this a lot lately.’
It was like watching a bad-tempered rabbit and an eagle fight.
Somehow ending up eating lunch between the two of them, I naturally let out a bitter smile.
Just then, the gazes of both of them suddenly turned toward me.
“Gyeonu, what do you think?”
“Yeah, exactly. Whose answer do you think is right?”
“…”
Why were they really doing this to me?
All of a sudden, I was the only one in an awkward position where I had to take someone’s side.
If I carelessly sided with one of them, I might make the other feel hurt.
‘Of course, I’m on Haneul’s side…’
Even so, I couldn’t blindly agree with Yeon Haneul’s opinion.
In order to keep a party running smoothly, one had to know when it was acceptable to do so and when it wasn’t.
In a way, the tension between the two of them could be seen as magicians of the same system trying to determine their hierarchy.
As someone unrelated to the magician system, I shouldn’t rashly invade their territory.
I wasn’t foolish enough to be unable to read the room.
So I had to handle this carefully, but there was no need to worry too much.
Because the person who mediated relationships at times like this was none other than Go Eunbi.
As it happened, she couldn’t stand watching any longer and intervened.
“Guys, let’s stop fighting already! So what if the answer is number 2, and so what if it’s number 4? We’ll know when the answer sheet comes out after the exam. Let’s talk about enjoying our food instead!”
Yeon Haneul and Min Arin probably had no intention of truly fighting either.
As proof, the two of them obediently backed down at Go Eunbi’s mediation.
Soon, she looked around at us and changed the subject.
“Guys, let’s make just one promise.”
“A promise?”
“Yeah. In the practical exam for the year that’s coming up soon, even if we compete in good faith, let’s not put each other at a disadvantage. I mean, let’s not do anything that would hurt each other’s feelings. If there’s something you don’t like, complain about it at the after-party once the exam is over. Okay? What do you think? I don’t like friends fighting. I want to stay with you guys for a long, long, long time.”
“…”
With a serious face, Go Eunbi made the proposal and held her hand out toward the center.
It wasn’t an atmosphere where one could bring oneself to make a joke about Ttoreore.
After staring at one another for a moment, we burst into laughter out of sheer awkwardness.
“I’m in favor. Let’s not fight among ourselves!”
“I’m in too. Fair competition sounds good. There’s nothing to gain from fighting you guys anyway.”
“Yeah! Great! This is interesting too, so even if I run into you, I won’t eliminate you!”
“Yeah… I feel the same as Eunbi. I don’t want to fight you guys.”
“That’s a good idea. That is what loyalty means! And how about we also agree not to ignore someone who’s in trouble! When that time comes, I, Yong Haerang of the chivalrous Yong family, will definitely come to save you no matter what happens!”
“Me too. Let’s help each other. There’s no reason for us to fight among ourselves.”
“Hmph, I suppose there’s no helping it. The arcane Min family is not coldhearted. If repaying harm double is our way, then repaying favors double is also the creed of the arcane Min family. If you need my help, then at that time, I will ‘specially’ help you.”
“Yam… Put your hand up instead of talking. I can’t put mine up because of you. Let’s just not be a bother to each other.”
“Of course we’re in!”
“Let’s compete fair and square!”
“From this moment on, an alliance is formed!”
Gang Hanbyeol, Park Sagun, Nam Yuri, Yeon Haneul, Yong Haerang, Risa, Min Arin, Cha Eunsol, and the triplets placed their hands on top of one another in order.
I, the last one remaining, also followed them and placed my hand there.
“That goes without saying.”
* * *
The Dimension Hall where the practical exam for the year would take place was bustling with people who had arrived before us.
After finding seats among them, we waited for the exam to begin.
A little while later, the instructors climbed onto the stage.
Among them, Su Hoguk stepped forward holding a microphone and opened his mouth.
[From now on, I will explain the first-year first-semester midterm, the year’s practical exam.]
At that moment, the screen rose upward, revealing the artificial Gate that had been hidden behind it.
The dimension filling the Gate shimmered with a deep orange light.
[Inside the Gate, thirty landmarks have been installed. The exam is to find those landmarks. Therefore, before entering the Gate, make sure you do not forget to take one of the artifacts here.]
Several instructors placed boxes down one by one in front of the stage.
Su Hoguk reached into a box and took out a necklace with a cord threaded through a metal plaque.
He raised the necklace high so the others could see it.
[This necklace stores the information of the landmarks you find. The process is automatic if you place it on the landmark for ten seconds. Therefore, within the twenty hours during which the exam is conducted, you must exit the Gate with a necklace that has collected the information of all the landmarks. At this time, the shortcut of seizing an opponent’s landmarks and making them your own is not permitted.]
“…”
[However, resetting the information stored in an opponent’s necklace is permitted.]
Su Hoguk looked around at the audience and paused for breath.
Then he reached into the box again and took out another necklace.
[The method of resetting is the same. Place it over the necklace you intend to reset for ten seconds. I hope none of you confuse the positions and reset your own necklace by accident.]
“…”
[Meanwhile, information taken from an opponent will exist separately within the necklace. In other words, even if the opponent’s necklace contained information on a landmark you have not yet found yourself, it will not be reflected as something you collected. Then what advantage is there to information taken from an opponent… One, I’m sure you can understand without my having to say it.]
Including me, most of the students nodded.
In a situation where we were competing with one another for grades, the advantage gained by resetting an opponent’s necklace was obvious.
It was to interfere with the exam and lower their score by delaying the time it took for them to collect landmarks.
‘And they’ll probably receive a separate penalty too. Conversely, the person who resets an opponent’s information will get bonus points.’
It was easy to guess.
So I paid attention to the other advantage Su Hoguk was about to mention.
[Inside the Gate, there will be temporary shops run by the instructors. At these shops, you can use Gg points to purchase information, tools, food, and the like necessary for the exam. As for information, you can learn a specific person’s location, field information, the location of nearby landmarks, and so on.]
“…”
[These Gg points can be obtained by selling mana stones, spell stones, artifacts, and other valuable items acquired within the Gate at the temporary shops. You can also obtain them by resetting an opponent’s necklace, according to the amount of information stored in it. Its value can be confirmed at the temporary shops. Lastly, after the exam ends, remaining Gg points will be converted into bonus points.]
Those who were quick-witted must have realized it.
Gg points had more than enough potential to become a variable in the exam.
We did not forget to take notes in our memo pads.
Before long, the explanation was nearing its end.
[The location of the Gate that leads outside will change from time to time, and it will only be conveyed to those who have collected all the waymarks. So if you wish to earn a high score, it will be to your advantage to collect as many Gg points as possible and exit the Gate as quickly as possible.]
“…”
[That concludes the explanation. The exam will now begin immediately.]
* * *
The students lined up according to the instructors’ directions to enter the Gate.
After taking our necklaces from the box, we followed them.
The line shortened quickly, and before we knew it, our turn had arrived.
“You all remember our promise, right? If you break it, that’s betrayal! We’re done as friends! So keep your loyalty!”
Standing before the Gate, Go Eunbi gave a playful threat.
Standing side by side, we burst into laughter and promised to meet again inside the Gate.
Unless we entered while in physical contact, our summoning locations would be assigned at random.
“You lot, the people behind you are waiting, so stop filming a drama and hurry on in.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Just then, Hong Yena scolded us.
At that, we returned to our assigned positions and each stepped into the Gate.
My vision turned entirely blue-orange.
[You have entered the Gate.]
[Yellow: Forest of Delusion V]
By the time the message appeared, my vision had returned to normal.
Standing alone in the forest, I slowly looked around.
[This is a Gate that has already been cleared.]
After spreading out my sensory net and checking, it seemed there were no other presences nearby.
Judging that I had secured my safety, I turned my eyes to the Gate Watch to check the location of the waymark.
A notification had arrived just in time.
[Geographical information of the field has been added.]
[The location of the 1st waymark will be conveyed. The 1st waymark is designated as the nearest location.]
The location of the waymarks would be provided at random, starting with the first notification and then each time information was stored in the necklace.
I tapped the message, brought up the map screen, and checked the location of the first waymark.
It seemed to be roughly 1 km away from my current position, in the two o’clock direction.
“1 km isn’t far.”
I moved at once.
Manifesting the mana within my body, I ran across the ground and was able to reach the target point before long.
‘Is that it?’
A pillar shaped like a black stake, jutting out through the undergrowth.
After sensing that there were no other presences nearby, I advanced toward the pillar.
On top of the pillar was a groove that looked as though a metal tag would fit into it.
‘One, two, three, four, five…’
I inserted the necklace into the groove and counted inwardly.
Exactly ten seconds later, the metal tag flashed with light for an instant.
At the same time, a message was transmitted to the Gate Watch.
[Waymark recognized.]
[The location of the 2nd waymark will be conveyed.]
There were now 29 waymarks remaining.
Having stored the waymark without difficulty, I decided to check the next location.
Soon, my brow furrowed on its own.
‘It’s 10 km west from here…’
Ten kilometers was the distance you’d get by drawing a straight line from Jongno District to Nowon District.
It was too far to move just to find a single waymark.
I couldn’t ignore the possibility that I might pass by other waymarks on the way to the destination.
Moreover, I also had to consider the case where the third assigned waymark might be in the opposite direction.
Since time was important in this exam, I needed to plan my route efficiently.
‘But I can’t just blindly search the area without any information either…’
I couldn’t easily make a decision.
Then, suddenly, a thought crossed my mind.
‘Wait… It’s not like there’s no way.’
I spread my sensory net around me and searched for people approaching this place.
Then I quickly hid myself in the grass, held my breath, and concealed my presence.
Before long, students arrived one after another and stored the waymark’s information.
‘Among them, there should be someone who received the location of a nearby waymark.’
There was an easy way to check.
All I had to do was barge in while they were off guard and subdue them by force.
But a wiser method than that was…
‘To find Do Seung-u’s lackeys.’
I would find the students who had joined Do Seung-u and tail them.
If they had received the exam information in advance, they should have memorized the locations of the waymarks scattered throughout the field.
If so, I could plan my route efficiently.
‘It might look a little underhanded, but it’s not like I was the one who leaked the exam information anyway, right? I’m just making use of them without knowing anything myself. Can you really call that cheating?’
I swear to the heavens, I am innocent.
I am not some shameless cheater who commits fraud.
Having proven my innocence to myself, I quietly waited for Do Seung-u’s group.
Eventually, some familiar faces and a few others appeared on the scene.
‘Quite a lot of them came.’
Two students from swordsmanship clans who had hovered around Do Seung-u at the Prestigious Families Association.
And eight students who seemed to be receiving the support of the Divine Sword Do Family.
Having gathered from different directions, they exchanged a code phrase I could barely hear, then lowered their guard.
After that, they took turns registering the waymark’s information in their necklaces.
I observed their movements.
‘Does that mean not all of them know the exam information was leaked?’
Judging from the snippets of conversation I could hear, the sponsored students did not seem to know much.
It appeared they had simply been ordered beforehand to follow the students who had direct friendships with Do Seung-u.
On the other hand, the students from the swordsmanship clans seemed to know the circumstances.
That seemed to determine the hierarchy among them.
When the students from the swordsmanship clans gave some sort of command, the other students showed an attitude of acceptance.
‘They’re moving.’
The students from the swordsmanship clans chose a direction without hesitation and kicked off the ground.
The other students followed behind them.
I, who had been secretly watching them, did not miss that moment and ran after them.
‘As expected, I was right. Those guys know the locations of the waymarks.’
There was no hesitation in the students from the swordsmanship clans running at the front.
They were finding their way without stopping midway.
As my expectations proved correct, I raised the corners of my mouth and tracked them while suppressing my presence so they wouldn’t notice.
But at some point, the cover decreased, and my presence could not help but be discovered.
“Someone’s following us!”
“That blue bastard! It’s Do Gyeonu of the Divine Sword Do Family!”
“Why did it have to be him…”
The students’ voices from up ahead were carried to me on the wind.
‘…Who called me a blue bastard?’
Naturally, my mood soured.
Biting my lip lightly, I glared at the guys ahead.
The ones who realized my identity were flustered and thrown into confusion.
From that, there were two patterns I could predict.
One was for them to ignore my presence as it was and continue moving forward.
‘The kids connected to the Divine Sword Do Family won’t recklessly try to touch me, a direct descendant. If they do, they might end up suffering retaliation from the family.’
If they were capable of thinking normally, they would surely act that way.
There was nothing good for them in making an enemy of me.
However, those guys chose the other pattern—one that normal people would not choose.
They chose to antagonize me.
Sasasak!
‘So that’s how you want to do it? You’re choosing Do Seung-u over me until the very end?’
The students who had been sprinting in a spear formation gradually slowed down and each widened the distance between them.
Soon, starting from the very back row, they turned around and took positions facing me.
An encirclement formation was being made.
Knowing what that meant, I raised my hand to the Navy-Blue Sword.
‘I’ll have to teach them who their master is.’
A dog that bites without knowing its master needs to be beaten before it comes to its senses.
I gripped the hilt and gauged the distance.
I caught my breath and stepped forward with my right foot.
Before long, the moment the distance narrowed, faster than the moment they could swing.
Crackle!
Drawing the Navy-Blue Sword in one breath, I traced an arc.
Blue currents of electricity flared up fiercely.
“Still, I won’t kill you.”
I intend to make them regret their lives just enough to think they’d rather die.
I can’t be any crueler than that.
Because…
‘I’m kind.’
Objectively speaking, aren’t I a hundred, a thousand, ten thousand times better than Do Seung-u?
If Yeon Haneul had been here, she would have definitely agreed that I was right. What a shame.
I Became the Childhood Friend of the Mid-Boss