Ch. 60 - Masquerade Ball (4)

Chapter 60: Masquerade Ball (4)

The pace of progress for Team Baek Yu-Seol was quite rapid. They hadn’t encountered any significant obstacles thus far, and most of the riddles were quickly solved.

Despite encountering gates that seemed impossible to interpret, their breakthrough speed was remarkably fast.

But the question remained, would other teams fare the same?

With a determined expression, Hong Bi-Yeon trailed after Baek Yu-Seol.

"That way, you can lean against that statue. This stage seems to detect weight. The statue's dance is a waltz performed by two people. Since you're alone, the weight won't match."

"Ah! I'll do that!" Upon Baek Yu-Seol’s suggestion, other students followed suit and approached the statue, taking their positions.

When Baek Yu-Seol spoke, everyone agreed.

Hong Bi-Yeon herself was no exception.

Even now, wasn’t she resonating with his words without needing to think twice? There was no fault in his words, and she found herself in harmony with them before even pondering over them.

No matter how much she thought about it, she couldn't understand this aspect. It wasn't in his nature to seek attention so conspicuously.

If he wanted to stand out, he could have done so anytime in ordinary circumstances, and if he wanted to receive good grades, he could always get a perfect score.

Yet Baek Yu-Seol consistently maintained grades just above failing in most subjects. He didn't bother answering exams properly, never submitted assignments on time, and had a messy attitude in class.

But anyone who had come face to face with him could quickly realize it.

The knowledge in his mind was not at the level of a first-year student.

The moment he opened his mouth, specialized terminology poured out, and he effortlessly solved problems that even prestigious Stella students couldn't comprehend, devising strategies that others couldn't even conceive.

How was that possible?

Even in Stella, where geniuses gathered, how could someone possess such exceptional experience and knowledge?

It wasn't like her to ponder alone.

"Hey, do you know your place? I'll go that way."

As Baek Yu-Seol tried to head towards his place, she quickly grabbed him.

"Wait, commoner."

"Yeah?"

"There's something I'm curious about."

Hong Bi-Yeon’s red eyes settled calmly like a lake.

"Where did all your knowledge and experience come from?"

Upon hearing that, Baek Yu-Seol visibly flinched, and his expression wavered.

‘Oh damn, did I rush too much?’

He had thought it could catch her attention, but he didn't expect to hear it so directly. He averted his gaze and spoke. "Well, it's just... I've had these kinds of experiences... for a long time."

It wasn't a lie.

He was actually acting based on his experiences.

"I see."

Hong Bi-Yeon took it in a slightly different way.

His appearance made him look younger than the average 17-year-old student, but from his actions, speech, and knowledge, he didn't behave like a typical 17-year-old boy.

However, hiding his age and enrolling in Stella was impossible. Transformation magic, except for special species, could never be used to change one's appearance.

Achieving a high level and becoming younger was a concept known as rejuvenation, but maintaining a teenage appearance would require a 9th-class mage.

The legend of the time regression of the Twelve Divine Moons’ Silver Autumn Moon briefly crossed her mind, but she quickly dismissed it as too far-fetched.

In other words, he was indeed 17 like everyone else, but due to certain circumstances, had accumulated more experiences than his age would suggest.

Right.

‘Come to think of it, didn't Baek Yu-Seol’s hometown collapse under the control of the dark mages just before he enrolled in the academy?’

A remote village she had never heard of. It was part of the frontline for the ongoing battle against the dark mages.

‘Was that it...?’

She finally understood why Baek Yu-Seol lacked basic knowledge compared to others. However, he excelled in strategy and combat more than anyone else.

It now made sense.

Without even having the opportunity for basic education, he had always fought against the dark mages, constantly risking his life on the battlefield.

‘But…’

Although he was like that, he had never done anything conspicuous, maintaining the lowest grades until now.

‘Why is he suddenly working so hard?’

There had to be a reason. Whenever he acted decisively, there was always a reason behind it.

Lost in deep thought, she suddenly recalled the argument between Flame and Jecky.

The discussion about whether this persona gate training was the real deal.

‘Could it be…?’

If that were the case, all the doubts she had so far would be resolved.

To directly conquer the persona gate that was deemed dangerous, he gave up behaving quietly as usual and openly revealed his strategies.

This deduction sufficiently supported the previous hypothesis.

"Tell me. Is the persona gate we’re currently facing the real deal?"

Baek Yu-Seol’s expression stiffened for a moment at her words, and then he smirked.

"You've become sharp, Hong Bi-Yeon."

If she were still the original Hong Bi-Yeon Adolevit, she wouldn't have realized it until the very last moment.

But during that, how much did she interfere with Eisel’s actions, greatly increasing the difficulty of the conquest?

Yet she noticed it before even reaching the boss room.

The future had changed significantly, but he didn't feel too bad about it.

Hong Bi-Yeon was distancing herself further from the path of villainess. And that was why Baek Yu-Seol could smile.

“Yes, this place is real. You can get injured, you can die, and if we don't clear it, an otherworld synchronization phenomenon will occur outside.”

"Is that so..."

"From the beginning, the goal of the first-year training session is 'how to interpret and conquer a persona gate.' There's no way they would create a gate that can't be interpreted and expect you to deal with it. Maybe if we were in the second year, it might be possible."

Jecky’s argument was nothing more than nonsense that completely disregarded the academy curriculum. That was what Baek Yu-Seol was saying.

'So… that’s how it was. He’s been hiding his abilities until now and started moving properly to resolve this crisis.’

Baek Yu-Seol had a secret. There was something he wanted to hide even to the extent of erasing his own past completely.

That was why he concealed his intelligence and hid his presence by achieving the worst grades.

But this time, the situation was different.

‘A real crisis.’

For students with limited experience, this place was excessively difficult to conquer. Even Hong Bi-Yeon found it challenging to interpret.

Perhaps if they had proceeded normally, quite a few students would have been injured or killed.

Among those casualties, Hong Bi-Yeon herself might have been included.

That was why it was like that.

Whenever Baek Yu-Seol moved properly, he always had a reason.

"Well then, let's hurry."

There were things to confirm, after all.

On the other hand, the other three teams weren't in a favorable situation.

Flame roughly untangled her black frilled dress that was in disarray. The top part above her knees was slightly torn, but there was nothing she could do.

"Phew, this dress is getting in the way of the fight."

“I'm sorry."

One girl who was sitting in a corner apologized, lowering her head in a crouched position.

Flame weakly smiled and shook her head.

"It's okay. It got resolved, didn't it?"

During the strategy, something went wrong.

Flame had some knowledge of the strategy for this gate and was well aware that the keyword was dance, so she started giving orders.

Figuring out the strategy itself wasn't particularly difficult.

However, one of the team members who wanted to achieve their own score, disregarded Flame’s strategy, causing a hitch.

When the strategy failed, the knight statues suddenly started moving without reason. At first, the students didn't think much of it, but the moment they were struck by the sharp blades of those statues, chaos ensued.

Real pain.

Real wounds.

"What... What is this…?"

After the battle was over, one male student sniffled and stammered through tears.

They thought it was just training.

They even thought this complicated situation was the professor's intention.

This persona gate was supposed to be fake.

"But why…? Why does it hurt so much, damn it…?"

Flame couldn't hide her own mixed emotions while treating the students' wounds.

In the end, she knew it would come to this. She had put a lot of effort into making them aware of the truth, that it was supposed to be real. 

All of that effort was rendered futile because of a single girl named Jecky.

Jecky’s words, which had sounded like the truth, turned out to be lies, and Flame’s words, which were thought to be nonsensical assumptions, were true.

Only after experiencing it firsthand did the students realize.

‘Let's consider it fortunate that they know now, even though it’s a bit late.’

From now on, they just needed to be careful. Although the difficulty was significantly higher than the students' average level, they could clear it without any issues as long as Eisel was there.

"Come on, calm down. Isn't this way easier than you thought? I've been working on the strategy and an interpretation. I’ve roughly estimated the solution."

“What? Really?"

“Of course. Hurry up and get up. We need to move to the next stage.”

After helping the students up, Flame waved her staff in the air. Then, a series of subtitles that penetrated the essence of the persona gate were displayed in the air.

It was the guideline message that only appeared when a persona gate was perfectly analyzed.

[Congratulations! You have cleared the Dancing Chess Room.]

[Thanks to this stage, we gained a lot of hints. We were able to learn about Duchess Aeron’s dance preferences.]

[You are almost at the ballroom where the masquerade will be held. Please head to the next stage! You should be able to join your companions there.]

[If all the teammates have successfully overcome the obstacles, the source of the magical barrier blocking the Masquerade will be severed, and you can proceed to the Dancing Clock Tower!]

"What is this…?"

"Flame, did you really interpret this place?"

"That's impossible... I haven't even learned the complicated formula yet. How…?"

She had been preparing in advance, anticipating today's situation. As someone who had been reincarnated into a fantasy world, she couldn’t claim to know the future, so Flame changed the topic.

"Now you understand, right? You can do it. Absolutely."

Eisel had probably succeeded in interpreting it by now.

Despite not preparing as she did, she would awaken the formulas with her genius brain and change her perspective to interpret them.

And Hong Bi-Yeon probably hadn’t interpreted it yet.

It was not because her abilities were inferior to Eisel’s. She probably thought it was impossible from the beginning and didn't even attempt it. It was a character flaw.

"Alright, let's move."

At Flame’s words, the three students nodded with determined expressions.

Regardless of the circumstances, the fact that she succeeded in analyzing this place increased the probability of clearing it.

Creak!

A massive iron door opened, and the magical barrier broke, revealing a large hall.

According to Flame’s knowledge, there was nothing in this stage. It was a space where challengers could rest and a place to join other challengers.

"Oh?! Flame! You're here too!"

Coincidentally, Eisel’s team was coming in from the opposite side.

As expected, they swiftly completed the strategy with Eisel leading the way.

However, there were already three boys and a girl waiting there. It was Jecky’s team.

“They were much faster than I thought."

Flame quickly approached them.

"Is everyone safe? Where’s Jecky?"

"Well, Jecky suddenly disappeared."

"What? Jecky?"

"Yeah. We were able to come this far thanks to her, but she suddenly vanished after passing through the last door. We searched for a while, but she wasn't there, so we just came in..."

They had searched for a while.

That meant they progressed through the strategy much faster than Flame and Eisel.

‘Does that make sense?’

Flame had been preparing for this persona gate for a considerable amount of time. The speed was tremendous even though interpretation was difficult and finding the strategy was challenging.

Yet Jecky was faster than Flame, who knew the future, and Eisel, who possessed exceptional interpretive abilities within the world. However, that wasn’t all.

"Oh, we weren’t the first ones here either."

"What?"

"Look over there."

At the words of a fellow student, Flame turned her gaze towards a corner and couldn't help but widen her eyes.

Baek Yu-Seol and Hong Bi-Yeon stood there. They had arrived here long before.

“Wait, when did you guys come?"

"Just a while ago."

"That’s ridiculously fast..."

Flame’s words were met with unanimous agreement from the other students.

‘It’s understandable for Baek Yu-Seol to be like this. He possesses knowledge that’s incomparable to other ordinary students.’

"Did you, by any chance, see Jecky?"

Out of the 16 students, 15 had gathered, but one person had mysteriously disappeared.

Baek Yu-Seol sighed and shook his head. "I haven't seen her."

In fact, one reason Baek Yu-Seol hurriedly came here was to find Jecky’s whereabouts.

In the original game, if you followed the Dark Magic Jecky route, Jecky, who succeeded in clearing the challenge faster than Eisel, Flame, and the player, would disappear somewhere.

But what if they could join forces with Jecky midway and reveal her true identity in advance? Perhaps the heroines could clear the episodes easily without facing any danger.

With such a mindset, he did his best to arrive here on time, but it was ultimately futile.

Jecky had disappeared when her team got here.

‘There's nothing we can do.’

In this situation, all they could do was provide the maximum help possible to ensure the heroines could clear the stage safely, just as in the original storyline.

Now, only one boss stage remained, but the students decided to take a short break in the hall.

Baek Yu-Seol’s team never engaged in a single battle, but the other teams had triggered traps or failed in their gimmick strategies, requiring them to fight.

"Princess, you're truly amazing. You arrived first."

"I never thought of you as a fellow first-year student."

Beside Hong Bi-Yeon, students who wanted to join her faction gathered and flattered her.

They were called followers, students who hadn't officially joined her faction but still trailed after her.

"What did I do that's so great?"

"H-Huh?"

She rummaged through her pocket, took out a ginseng candy, and put it in her mouth.

She then gazed at the ceiling silently and said, "From the strategy to a stable guide, Baek Yu-Seol did everything alone. I haven't done anything."

"Ah, y-you're being humble."

"Right. Princess...?"

"Huh? I'm not being humble. I haven't actually done anything."

Upon hearing this, the followers trembled in contemplation.

"W-We're sorry! But we really feel that you're amazing, Princess..."

"Yeah, I’m aware."

“Huh?"

From saying she wasn't amazing, she elegantly swept her hair behind her shoulder and confidently said, "Stop flattering me and tell me honestly. Among the first-year students, there are hardly any mages as amazing as me, right?"

"Yeah, that's right! Compared to you, Princess, Ma Yu-Seong and Eisel are mediocre."

"Exactly! You might be able to compete with second- and third-year seniors."

"Yeah."

She clasped her hands around her knees and stared into the distance.

“Among the students, I’m exceptional. There's no need to compare myself with someone who's not an ordinary student."

"That's right!"

"I see, Princess. Were you comparing yourself to veteran magical warriors?"

"Even though veteran mages might seem impressive now, once you gain enough experience, you’ll catch up to them in no time!"

"I think so too."

That was why Hong Bi-Yeon could remain calm. Even when she saw a student who displayed talent far superior to her own at the age of just 17, she could remain unfazed.

Baek Yu-Seol was not an ordinary 17-year-old first-year student.

Hong Bi-Yeon was certain of that.

‘He definitely came to school with a purpose.’

A boy with a blank past that even the information network of the Adolevit Kingdom couldn't uncover.

Someone who walked the path of a knight without using magic. A truly unique mage in the world.

"You guys."

"Yes?"

"Talk to us, Princess."

"How does Baek Yu-Seol seem to you?"

Her followers sat at a distance and observed Baek Yu-Seol who was conversing with Flame with a serious expression.

"Well... he looks a bit young."

"Yeah, he seems really youthful, doesn't he?"

"Not like that."

"Oh, I see. You're talking about his abilities, right? He does seem truly impressive. Like when he hunted down the necromancer and during the simulation battle with the monsters the other day."

"He not only fights well but also uses his head incredibly well, doesn't he?"

"Yeah, I think so too."

He used his head well.

Those were the right words.

During the necromancer's ambush, he captured a high-ranking skeleton without killing it and then located the main body.

During the simulation battle, he effortlessly manipulated five intermediate monsters to fight one another.

In the persona gate, he quickly found strategies with his extraordinary observation skills and unconventional thinking.

Most of his strategies were derived from experience. 

Experience.

While the nobles studied magical formulas and theories safely inside their secure mansions, he fought on the actual battlefield with only a single sword in hand.

That was why, despite receiving the lowest score at the entrance ceremony, he was able to rise rapidly with his exceptional intellect and unconventional ideas.

No one except her would have noticed his true worth.

"Well, that's how it is..."

"Why do you say that, Princess?"

"Nothing, really."

She shrugged off the topic and stood up. It was time to move on to the next stage.

Comments