<45 - The Entrance Ceremony is Fun>
Finally, the preparation period for enrollment has ended.
The much-anticipated entrance ceremony.
Over two thousand new students have gathered in the gymnasium, which was closed for the past week, creating a chaotic order amidst a sea of noise.
‘Is this what the line looks like? It’s a complete mess.’
Groups have formed around friends and acquaintances, creating circles of varying sizes.
As the shining main and supporting characters formed larger groups, the minor roles hovered around the edges, trying to squeeze their way in.
Extras couldn’t even do that, glowing like lonely asteroids floating in space, looking just pitifully lonely.
Who would have thought I’d envy that loneliness one day.
“Hello, Oknodie!”
“Why didn’t you join the morning run?”
“Hmm. I should’ve worn those dolphin shorts Oknodie likes, huh?”
“Oh my. Oknodie liked dolphin shorts?”
“I wore my school uniform just for today, but maybe I should have just come in dolphin shorts?”
With her long hair swaying, she flashes a wink while caressing her head, and it leaves me dazed.
When I finally snapped out of it, I found five flowers that the new students had picked from the garden stuck in my hair, and I was loaded with snacks.
“Must be nice being popular.”
“I wish this popularity would just fade away.”
“Stop it. You’ve become their emotional support now.”
Isabel’s words made sense.
Even now, I could feel the group B students glancing our way, their eyes fixated on group A.
Central and border.
Empires and kingdoms.
Civilized and barbaric.
These folks couldn’t get enough of proving their superiority over others by endlessly validating the inferiority of others.
“I wanted to touch it too.”
“It really looks cute, doesn’t it?”
Chirp! Chirp!
[I accurately identified the conversation between two people far away in the crowded room.]
[Focus Experience +3]
…But listening in brought out other unsettling meanings.
Such reactions are but a small fraction of what’s going on.
“That kid is the top student of group A who cornered Lotto… definitely too talented to be stuck in the border.”
“A girl’s achievement outshining her family’s apprentice knights? Is that what innate talent looks like?”
“Still just a powerless commoner. To repay the grace of Her Highness, everything that annoys must be swept away. Even if that’s the top student of group A.”
Snowville, a disciple of the Blue Mage Tower, known as Irene, a rival of the Northern Grand Duchess.
A strong contender on par with Eastern Swordsman Sing, Hyukmurin, a fallen noble who pledged allegiance to the Holy Central Empire.
Anya, a follower of the Second Princess of the Holy Central Empire, who entered the academy with her faction.
‘She’s definitely being hated hard.’
Perhaps it was because she made enemies of the empire’s nobility, but Anya’s gaze reeked of something unusual.
The event [Challenge of the Attendant] is guaranteed to trigger.
But my keen hearing wasn’t just tuned in to hear the voices directed at me.
Ding ding!
The sound of a bell ringing in my ears.
It’s time.
The entrance ceremony is starting.
‘Here we go, the highlight of Gift Academy.’
The instructors positioned throughout the gymnasium.
Their eyes sparkled as they surveyed the new students, all drawing out their notebooks and pens.
Scratch scratch scratch scratch
With pens moving aggressively, their gazes sharpened to miss even the slightest flaw.
“Okn…”
“Shh.”
I warned Isabel, who was obliviously trying to speak.
In that split second, three instructors turned our way.
“Can’t you just give us a break just this once?”
With that look I shot, the instructors turned away.
I could totally get away with this now.
Back in my muscular male character days, there was no way that would have worked.
“Hey instructors, what have you been writing since earlier?”
“We keep looking over here.”
Though no word of caution was offered, the buzz gradually quieted down.
The frantic pen dance on the notebooks came to a halt as all the students shared looks that seemed to say, “Did we just screw up?”
-You asked me to gather the world’s greatest talents, yet this batch seems to have come straight from a band’s group trip, jabbering like the world’s greatest bard!
A flash of light struck the stage.
With the students’ screams, a massive dragon’s head filled the platform.
“It’s a dragon!”
“A d-dragon!”
“Oh my!”
A transcendent being greatly interested in the mundane affairs.
The only dragon to intervene in the human world.
It was the appearance of the principal of Gift Academy.
-Although your ears might be dull, your eyes remain as sharp as ever. Yes, your principal is the strongest transcendent being in the world, the only dragon active in this realm.
The students went wild.
To see a dragon that was merely a legend come to life.
The emotion was overwhelming, but…
These folks seemed to have forgotten something important.
Though dragons from folklore have various traits based on time and nation, they all share one unchanging commonality.
-And I’m a tyrant who can deduct a million points from dumb chatterboxes and latecomers. In this academy, I am the law.
“……”
It’s known that dragons have bad tempers!
-Joking! For students who barely passed the point threshold, deducting a million points would be far too cruel.
“Phew.”
-As the principal of the world’s greatest academy, I’ll show mercy. A hundred thousand points will be deducted.
A latecomer inquired.
“Is this also a joke?”
-Even if you deny reality, the fact remains that you face bankruptcy with deductions amounting to ten times your entire fortune, little inferior student!
“……”
The massive head roared, shaking the very essence of its voice.
Seeing my new student classmates, stunned by beginning an academic life starting with bankruptcy, somehow made everyone seem equal, disregarding status and strength.
It seemed the fact that one could go bankrupt from a single chat and a single tardiness held more weight than the dragon’s presence.
‘Staying quiet was a good choice, huh?’
‘Thanks to that, I survived.’
Isabel should know that she survived because of me.
The shock of players who ended up with penalization during the entrance ceremony after befriending a loudmouth.
Curiously, that very friend probably received penalties because of you, causing their favorability to plummet right after the entrance ceremony.
‘Most options that break the rules lead to these ridiculous traps.’
By the way, sneaking into the guard post is one of the grounds for penalization.
Having evaded it with the [Hide] function, I suddenly realize how incredible the hide mechanism is.
[Graduating from the academy with luck.]
One of the absurdities of the game is to figure out hidden rules.
If one accidentally violates the rules, the next most important thing is to avoid getting caught by the instructor!
For the hide skill, it’s a fundamental ability that is crucial for graduation from the academy at any time.
-1 minute 19 seconds. That’s how long it took for you to shut your mouths. You’re in the rankings against all past batches.
“Did we manage to close our mouths quickly?”
-Indeed, take pride in it.
“Eh heh.”
-If it brings you joy to have reached the historically worst batch in the academy’s records, then wear it with pride.
“……….”
The foolish new students began to tear up.
One cannot truly understand the humiliation of being called the stupidest in history by a transcendent being of the world.
-You must be curious. Why is a dragon serving as the head of the academy? What I might teach you moving forward. Humans are curious beings.
-Here’s a good piece of information. I have learned beneficial cultures from human civilization, and I’ve brought them to this academy. It’s the currency system.
“??”
-A nation that clutches capital is bound to become the strongest in the world. To become the world’s greatest talent, gather the academy’s currency, [Points].
-You will gain permits for possessing and using items brought from outside the academy, access to facilities, and entry to special facilities—all granted to those holding [Points].
The dragon principal declared boldly.
-By the way, if you ask your main house for help and bring back gold coins, I might exchange them for points!
Among the empire’s two princesses, the gentle-natured third princess raised her hand with a dazed expression.
“Are you saying you want bribes?”
-Of course. This academy exists to receive your meager mortal treasures. Producing the world’s greatest talents is simply a side job!
At this shocking speech from the principal, noble princesses and numerous power holders from organizations and institutes stood there, slack-jawed.
In this moment, all new students thought with one mind and heart, regardless of rank or affiliations.
Is it really the right decision to be educated under a principal who discards professional ethics?
-Students of the academy, only think of [Points].
-Actively participate in activities that grant points and do not violate any taboos that deduct points.
-Those who follow gods and demons, those who follow mysticism and wisdom, those who follow cold weapons and firearms, and even those who follow any secretive organizations are not exempt.
-There exists no truth or wisdom under this academy more honorable than my greed and my currency.
The dragon principal emanated a presence so vast it felt like a mountain.
As I sensed the overwhelming pressure of mana that could crush one’s soul, I caught a glimpse of the principal’s gaze landing on several talented individuals.
‘In the original game, those called upon here were the leading characters, right?’
The leads strive to become the best talents, fueled by the motivation of the entrance ceremony, while the side characters either envy them or revere them.
The minor roles scramble just to catch up to the side roles, and the extras simply hope to avoid being held back.
Nevertheless, it’s just an event for NPCs.
I had lightly thought it was a distant tale, far from the player’s perspective.
Gasp.
Cower.
The chosen leads flinch in stiff reaction as they acknowledge the principal’s message.
The dragon principal started to disappear in a light engulfing him.
Amidst it, I experienced emotions I couldn’t quite pinpoint—whether it was disappointment or relief—of being put in the same position as the students screaming from the overwhelming brilliance without being called.
-Waihmhai Foundation’s mischievous child, don’t forget that you’re the same.
“!!”
For a brief moment, it surely lodged itself within my mind.
The dragon principal’s gaze had landed on me, and the words intended for the leads were shared with me.
Twenty-four chosen children.
Playable characters of the lead level.
In that lineup, I was named as the 25th child, a character who never existed in the original game.
Swish!
As the dragon principal vanished, the entrance ceremony came to an end.
Amidst the dazed new students turned into school kids, I thought to myself.
‘Mischievous… Did I get exposed? Did they find out I stole the stat stone?!’
