Truthfully, Cha Eunsol held no particular sense of belonging toward the class she was in.
She disliked being tied down, and though she had a family, she regarded them as nominal at best, living entirely as she pleased.
Deep down, she even harbored a desire to live a far more leisurely life than her current one.
To someone like her, the class she belonged to could never hold any special meaning.
At best, it was a place to sleep?
And even that, she only attended to fulfill her attendance quota because she couldn’t defy her family’s orders.
If her family hadn’t forced her, she would have been holed up in the dormitory.
No, she wouldn’t have even enrolled in the Academy in the first place.
Given her position, the Class Tournament was none of her concern.
For the homeroom instructor in charge, it was nothing short of a headache.
“Eunsol, sorry for waking you up while you’re sleeping so soundly, but could you perhaps participate in the Class Tournament?”
“Mnya… Class… Tournament…? What’s that?”
“What the Class Tournament is…”
“No, I don’t want to.”
“…I know how you feel, but what can I do? Everyone in the class has to participate.”
“Still don’t want to. I’m busy.”
“What could you possibly be busy with?”
“I’m busy eating, sleeping, and pooping.”
“….”
“And I’m scheduled to be sick that day. I’ll take sick leave.”
“Do you even know when that day is? Do you think I’d allow malingering, Eunsol?”
“…Then I’ll switch classes.”
“Sorry, but all classes are participating, so switching won’t help. Besides, aren’t you being too quick to say you’ll switch? Eunsol, you’re hurting your instructor’s feelings.”
“That’s mean….”
“You’re the one being mean.”
The grades and futures of homeroom students affected their instructor’s standing and performance record.
Therefore, for the sake of the students, and for his own sake as well.
Cha Eunsol’s homeroom instructor couldn’t leave her alone.
Though her lazy disposition was a problem, her skill and potential were undeniable.
Not just among the first-year Spirit Art system, but across all grades in the Spirit Art system, she was virtually recognized as the best. If she functioned as a full combat asset, victory was all but guaranteed.
They would be able to secure a top ranking.
Thus, the homeroom instructor didn’t hesitate to offer unprecedented conditions to recruit her.
“You don’t have to participate in training. Just move according to the class representative’s orders.”
“No. It’s annoying.”
“I’m not done talking. If you do just that, Eunsol, I’ll treat you to jajangmyeon. I promise to buy it for you every time we win. Do you know what’s even more amazing?”
“…What is it?”
“My class is boring, so you’re always just sleeping and getting hungry, right? I’ll let you eat during class. You just need to attend my class while eating with your classmates.”
“….”
“How about it? Doesn’t it whet your appetite?”
“*Gulp.* …Really? I can really eat jajangmyeon during class?”
“Shall I leave it in writing for you?”
“Yes, please write it right now.”
“Hah, really… Don’t you trust me too little? Fine. I’ll write it down, no big deal.”
“But what about dumplings? Sweet and sour pork? Can’t I have jjamppong? Fried rice is good too….”
“Order whatever you want. It doesn’t have to be Chinese food. You can order whatever you want to eat every day. Every time we win in the Class Tournament. Call? Deal?”
“Call, deal. I think I like your class too much, Instructor. I want to stay in this class until graduation.”
“…Go to a better instructor next year. Let’s just do one year, just one year….”
Heavens, to think I can eat jajangmyeon during class every morning!
For Cha Eunsol, who lived faithfully by her instincts, it was an offer she couldn’t refuse.
Swallowing her drool just at the thought, she immediately filled out the contract offered by her homeroom instructor.
And so, the curtain rose on the first match of the Class Tournament….
“I-impossible….”
“How can something like that exist….”
Leading a legion of spirits, Cha Eunsol charged into the enemy camp and neutralized the enemies in an instant.
Swept away by natural disasters before they could even properly resist, they couldn’t hide their dumbfounded expressions.
The classmates who participated in the siege with her felt more or less the same.
Regardless, she pulled out the flag and handed it to a classmate, muttering in satisfaction.
“With this, one bowl of jajangmyeon… No, one order of jajangmyeon.”
I should add orders of sweet and sour pork and sweet and spicy chicken, and ask for free dumplings as service too.
Having expended calories by exerting herself for the first time in a while, Cha Eunsol peeled open a sausage and ate it.
Since it seemed she wasn’t putting on any belly fat, she decided to eat a hearty lunch as soon as she exited the Gate.
Though she always ate heartily anyway….
Just as the match completely ended and she was about to exit the Gate.
She stopped in front of the Gate.
“Huh?”
Unmaterialized spirits visible only to those with spirit affinity.
The spirits who had lent their power to Cha Eunsol clung to her body.
They sent their thoughts.
Please, take us with you too.
“…Sorry.”
The spirits clinging to Cha Eunsol were bound existences that could only live within the Gate’s world.
Unfortunately, it was impossible for her to form a contract and take them outside.
She had no choice but to console them for a while and then exit the Gate.
“If I can come again next time… I’ll come back then. Goodbye.”
Really? It’s a promise, you must.
“Yeah….”
Of course, Cha Eunsol knew as well.
Even if she revisited the Gate someday, the spirits she met again would have no memory of her.
Because Gates reset.
Bound existences could not escape that natural order.
Unable to bear hurting the pure spirits by telling them the truth, she uttered a lie.
‘Sorry.’
It’s the natural order. It can’t be helped.
That was why she hated the world of Gates, which seemed to stuff and preserve souls and memories.
Because it denied death.
Having apologized to the spirits inwardly, Cha Eunsol soon exited the Gate.
* * *
Those born with a small amount of mana were inevitably vulnerable as mages.
Born into a collateral branch of the Oh Family of Black Magic and forced to become a black mage, Oh Junsik had to spare no effort to compensate for his deficiencies.
Underhanded tactics were something he learned in that process.
Even if he were cursed at as cowardly and underhanded, he never wanted to give in to reality.
Because of that.
“That’s how battles are supposed to be. Come at me as underhandedly as you want. I’ll fight underhandedly too.”
When he heard those words from Gang Hanbyeol before the Class Tournament match began.
Oh Junsik felt as though the path he had walked was being acknowledged.
“Yes, ambition is a good thing. So don’t be complacent, keep moving forward. Even if a wall of talent appears to block your path someday, don’t give up and keep striving. If you do, even if it takes a long time, the day will come when you overcome that wall. If your desire remains unchanged, you will surely bear fruit. Devils are drawn more to the earnestness of the soul than to talent.”
It was the first time since receiving acknowledgment from Oh Jinhyeok, the Golden Crow, head of the Oh Family of Black Magic.
Oh Junsik took a liking to Gang Hanbyeol.
Because of that, he wanted to lose to him even less.
He intended to reveal his true worth fully and fight with every trick he could muster.
And so, he did his best in the Class Tournament.
“Kuk!”
But as time passed, the tide of battle tilted toward Gang Hanbyeol.
While he faced Oh Junsik, the students of Class 12 destroyed the remaining watchtowers and entered the camp.
The students who couldn’t receive Oh Junsik’s commands were pushed back by their momentum and forced to retreat repeatedly.
‘I have to find a way out somehow.’
To change the flow of the battlefield, he needed to return to the main camp and command the students.
Oh Junsik sought an opening.
But Gang Hanbyeol, who had dragged him down from the watchtower, wouldn’t give him a chance.
With his feet tied by Gang Hanbyeol, he had to focus on the fight before his eyes.
In the end, the camp was breached.
“We took the flag! Everybody run!”
“…!”
A grand cheer was heard from behind.
Turning around hurriedly, he saw Class 12 students retreating while protecting the flag from the camp.
With a sense of defeat clouding his face, Oh Junsik tried to chase them quickly.
Gang Hanbyeol didn’t let him go.
“Where do you think you’re going? You have to settle things with me. Right?”
“Gang Hanbyeol….”
Charging in the moment he saw an opening, Gang Hanbyeol smiled triumphantly.
Oh Junsik let out a groan.
In the end, he couldn’t break away from the fight and had to settle the match.
But in reality, the outcome had been decided from the start.
As a black mage who had to fight while keeping a certain distance, he couldn’t directly clash with Gang Hanbyeol.
Rather, it was impressive he had lasted this long.
“I lost.”
Having run out of mana and become unable to continue fighting, Oh Junsik had no choice but to raise his hand.
The enemies who had seized the flag had already fled far to avoid pursuit, and his allies’ morale had bottomed out.
Reading the flow of battle, he acknowledged defeat.
Gang Hanbyeol, who had pressed a sword to the nape of his neck, curled up the corners of his mouth.
He sheathed his sword and held out his hand.
“Good fight. Thanks to you, I feel like I learned a thing or two from you.”
“No, I’m the one who learned. Good work.”
Though frustrated, he held no resentment.
Setting aside his regret, Oh Junsik took Gang Hanbyeol’s hand.
The two encouraged and praised each other.
Then Gang Hanbyeol spoke.
“So you remember the bet we made?”
“Ah….”
“Thanks, I’ll take your staff.”
Gang Hanbyeol’s eyes sparkled with an expectant face.
Oh Junsik, recalling the bet with him belatedly, gave a bitter smile.
He didn’t like it, but it couldn’t be helped.
As one of the Oh Family of Black Magic who knew honor, he had to keep his promise.
Oh Junsik had no choice but to hand over the staff he had used for several years.
“Here, take it. I’ll get an earful from the family. The Family Head told me not to lose to you… but since I lost, it can’t be helped. I’ll just have to take the scolding.”
“Sorry about this. Still, I’ll take it gratefully!”
“You could at least hesitate a bit….”
“I learned that not standing on ceremony with one’s master is also proper etiquette!”
“…Don’t lose it and keep it safe. I’ll challenge you again and take it back.”
“Sure! I’ll accept your sparring request anytime, so try to beat me.”
“You really are a detestable brat….”
Watching Gang Hanbyeol snatch the staff away.
Feeling as though he’d been robbed by a highwayman, Oh Junsik clicked his tongue.
Finding it absurd, his shoulders shook, and he soon composed his complicated emotions.
Then he offered advice.
“If this gets out, you’ll probably have quite a headache too.”
“Why? Because of this?”
“That’s right. Just like the previous Do Seungu incident, more and more people will take an interest in you. Many will pick fights with you, half for fame and half out of interest.”
“Sounds like a good thing to me? Let them come anytime.”
“There will definitely be people from my clan among them. Here… there would be Junsu hyung. Try not to get entangled with him as much as possible.”
“Junsu hyung? A senior, I see… Why? Because he’s strong? That’s good, isn’t it?”
“He’s a second-year senior who represents the collective will of the black magic system. He’s strong, but… it feels like spitting on my own face to say this about a relative, but his character isn’t good. Very much so.”
“….”
Oh Junsik sighed.
Gang Hanbyeol, having received serious advice from him, narrowed his eyes.
“Not just in the black magic system, but he acts like a delinquent king throwing around the authority of the Oh Family of Black Magic… He’s a shameless, rotten bastard. If you get on his wrong side, your academy life could get annoying.”
“Someone like that needs to be taught a lesson….”
“I don’t know what you think, but there’s nothing to gain by antagonizing him needlessly. It’s one thing if he approaches you, but don’t try to approach him first.”
“Got it, I’ll keep your words in mind. Thanks for worrying about me!”
“Yeah, that’s a wise choice.”
The Black Feather of the Oh Family of Black Magic, Oh Junsu.
Gang Hanbyeol decided to remember that name.
Meanwhile, at that time.
“…No one else is around, right?”
Lisa, who had returned to camp with the Class 12 students who had captured the flag, secretly found a secluded spot.
Looking around and hiding her body in the woods, she took out a foundation compact from her bag.
Opening the lid, she gazed at her face in the mirror inside.
“This is embarrassing, really….”
After checking her surroundings once more.
Lisa reflected her face in the mirror inside her foundation compact and struck a ridiculous pose.
Just as she had once shown Do Gyeonwoo, she winked with one eye, stuck her tongue out long, and made a V sign with one hand.
It could be called the price for borrowing power from Libiwa, the 3-Star Angel.
For every time she used Shining Wave, she had to show the gesture Libiwa specified to another being.
‘Ugh… Libiwa is so mean.’
Lisa could only resent Libiwa, who took pleasure in watching her feel embarrassed.
Still, if there was one saving grace, it was that “another being” included herself.
After several trials and errors, she discovered that the price could also be paid to her own reflection in the mirror, which at least lessened her shame somewhat.
And because of that.
“I really hate Gyeonwoo too…”
Do Gyeonwoo, the only one who had glimpsed her like this, felt all the more detestable.
Lisa puffed out her cheeks, blaming the innocent boy for no good reason.
If he had been there, he would surely have protested his innocence.
* * *
Unfortunately, no miracle occurred.
Go Eunbi, who had secretly infiltrated our class’s camp and stolen the flag, returned safely to her base.
And so the first match of the class competition ended in our class’s defeat.
‘It’s disappointing, but there’s nothing we can do about it.’
The students in our class, who had trained hard for several days for today, were full of disappointment, but fortunately, the competition did not end here.
Our class, which would now be placed in the losers’ bracket, still had several matches remaining.
So all we had to do was make up for it in the remaining matches and raise our results as much as possible.
I comforted the students who had gathered to leave the gate.
Meanwhile, Min Arin, who had commanded the defensive unit, seemed to have suffered no small shock.
“Stop, stop, please stop now… I was wrong, so don’t hit me. Put away the hammer, please…”
“…”
“I’m not rice cake, I’m not rice cake… So don’t pound me, stop pounding me… It’s not like I’m some glutinous rice cake…”
According to the students who had gone to find Min Arin after she was beaten by Yeon Haneul’s clones and sent flying far away.
She had apparently been like this, out of her mind, ever since they found her caught in a tree.
‘Just how badly did she get beaten…?’
I was dumbfounded as I watched Min Arin keep messing up her hair.
Then I looked at Yeon Haneul beside me.
When our eyes met, she smiled brightly and tilted her head.
“Why?”
“…Nothing.”
What on earth could someone this pretty do to make Min Arin end up like that?
Wasn’t there a saying that a woman’s transformation was innocent?
That phrase suddenly came to mind.
I wondered if Yeon Haneul’s transformation might not be innocent at all.
After thinking a series of completely contextless thoughts, I decided to be careful not to provoke her for no reason and end up like Min Arin.
I had no desire to become rice cake.
‘Still, Arin should be all right.’
Min Arin had grown mentally through the incident at the Thorn Vine Spire.
The shock of what Yeon Haneul had done to her seemed so great that she had yet to come to her senses, but she would probably regain her composure before long.
In my head, I could easily imagine her fuming as she said, “I lost again? Me, Min Arin? Yeon Haneul… Just you wait. Next time, I’ll definitely beat you.”
I decided not to worry too much.
‘Stay strong, Arin. No, wait, should I call you Min Arin Dynamite from now on? …That’s cool. Should I add something to the end of my name too? Like Do Gyeonwoo Thunder… Not bad.’
Do Gyeonwoo Thunder.
It was out of nowhere, but I thought it sounded much better than Blue Brat.
As I half-seriously pondered it, I wished Min Arin a swift recovery.
Soon, I decided to lead the class students outside in her stead.
It was just then, as I was about to walk over to them, that Yeon Haneul spoke to me.
“You remember the bet, right? The loser grants the winner’s wish.”
“…There was something like that, wasn’t there.”
“Huh? You’re not trying to quietly gloss over it just because you lost, are you? You can’t do that. I’ll scold you.”
Yeon Haneul spoke with a beaming smile.
Turning my head, I recalled the promise I had once made with her, Min Arin, and Go Eunbi.
Judging by the look of it, she had been looking forward to the bet quite a lot.
‘Did she want to order Arin around that badly?’
It seemed another humiliating event would be added to Min Arin’s list.
As someone who would have to grant Go Eunbi’s wish, I could only smile bitterly.
But what Yeon Haneul said next was different from what I had expected.
“You’ll grant my wish, right?”
“Huh?”
“Mm?”
“I’m granting your wish?”
“Isn’t that obvious?”
“I thought Arin was going to grant it…”
“I was planning to tell you my wish from the start, though? In any case, the loser grants it, right?”
“…You’re right about that.”
Damn, I must have jumped to conclusions.
Faced with an unexpected situation, I grew tense inwardly.
‘What is she going to ask me for…?’
What was Yeon Haneul thinking?
I couldn’t imagine it at all.
I felt a little afraid too.
Even so, since I had lost the bet, I decided to obediently follow her wish.
Then, as if she had been lost in thought, she opened her mouth.
“Mm… Actually, I thought a lot about what I should ask you for… We haven’t been able to see each other much lately because we were preparing for the class competition, right?”
“All we did was briefly see each other at night and take walks.”
“Yeah, so… I decided to make my wish that.”
“…”
Yeon Haneul fidgeted with both hands.
With a gentle smile on her face, she continued.
I doubted my ears.
“Spend the next twenty-four hours with me as much as possible.”
“…”
“That’s my wish.”
“Wasn’t this supposed to be a wish from a bet that doubled as a penalty? This doesn’t feel like a penalty to me. It feels more like a reward… I mean, I’m totally fine with it.”
“What? You’re so funny, seriously.”
…I hadn’t said it as a joke.
I let out a wry smile as I watched Yeon Haneul giggle.
“Starting from when we leave the gate, spend twenty-four hours with me. You’ll do it, right?”
“Of course.”
For me, who had barely been able to see Yeon Haneul lately, it was truly no different from a reward.
With no reason to refuse, I readily nodded.
I Became the Childhood Friend of the Mid-Boss