Chapter 38 – Rule 18. The Leader Thwarts the Villain’s Plan (2)
Recalling the details of the game was no easy task.
Especially since the attack on Ahsung High School by the Six Sinners wasn’t linked to any storyline or event.
I could only barely remember what the in-game news anchor had said.
So, I considered it remarkable that I remembered the incident would happen at all.
‘I feel uneasy…’
The growing tension was inevitable.
It wasn’t that I knew nothing; rather, it was because I had such incomplete knowledge of future events.
I just hoped everything would go smoothly…
‘Did that guy know the practical evaluation would take place here?’
I was talking about the necromancer.
Even I didn’t know where Ahsung High School’s practical evaluation would take place this semester in advance.
The evaluation proposal I approved only described the structure and features of the location.
As the Disciplinary Committee Leader, I too had to participate in the practical evaluation, so only minimal information was provided to ensure fairness.
It was only today that the students were informed of the location and method of the practical evaluation. It was even a newly developed area this year.
Being a supervisor as part of the Disciplinary Committee didn’t grant me any significant advantage in the test site.
The evaluation mainly focused on assessing magical control abilities. After each evaluation, the targets would automatically move for the next evaluation, and it could be practiced at the academy as well.
‘The necromancer plans to attack at a site even I couldn’t know….’
Why?
There were two main possibilities.
Either the necromancer didn’t care about the location for attacking Ahsung High School.
Or she had some sort of connection with a staff member who could leak the information.
Assuming the latter, it was hard to trust anyone. So, I only shared the information that the Six Sinners might appear during the practical evaluation with the committee members. Although it sounded like my baseless speculation, everyone thought there was no harm in being cautious.
‘Please… let them get caught without any incident.’
The responsibility of capturing the Six Sinners while ensuring the safety of the students weighed heavily on my heart. It must be the sense of responsibility.
Even knowing this practical evaluation was a chance to capture the necromancer, I couldn’t easily dismiss these emotions.
Knowing game knowledge had its problems.
“Leader.”
At that moment, Vice Leader Oh Baek-seo approached me.
“Are you nervous?”
“!”
No way.
Had she read my mind again?
“No, no way. A Disciplinary Committee Leader being nervous about catching a villain would be absurd.”
“Yes, it would be.”
Feigning indifference, Baek-seo nodded with a gentle smile.
“After all, Kim Dalbi might have been lying. Even if she was telling the truth, the practical evaluation could go smoothly.”
“I hope she’s lying. I hope nothing happens.”
The night sky, studded with stars like salt sprinkled over a high navy blue sky, was serene.
We gazed at the test site together.
It was a practical evaluation location quite far from Ahsung High School.
A massive test site constructed by modifying a forest, filled with artificial structures.
It was developed by the entire Ahsung Academy, known as the ‘Ahsung Comprehensive Academy,’ and boasted a maze-like complex structure.
‘Building something like that for educational purposes…’
Major academies sure knew how to go big.
Anyway, today was the practical evaluation day for first-year students.
The second-year Disciplinary Committee members were assigned as supervisors.
Meanwhile, the highly skilled committee members (except Park Minhyuk) were decided to supervise on different days regardless of their grade. I volunteered to take on multiple days as a supervisor.
However, Oh Baek-seo insisted on following me. She said she would work with me on all the days I participated as a test supervisor.
She claimed she couldn’t let the leader bear the burden alone as the vice leader.
Given the possibility of a villain among the students, she argued that safety was paramount, leaving me with no grounds to refuse.
‘Having Baek-seo help is a relief.’
Having someone like Baek-seo with me was reassuring.
She was quite dependable.
“It looks like it’s about to start.”
First-year students, lined up in groups at the plaza, began moving towards the test site under the supervisors’ guidance.
They would enter the test site from different locations to take the practical evaluation.
“It’s time to part ways. Leader, be careful.”
“You too. Take care.”
“Yes.”
We separated.
We had agreed to tail our primary suspects among the first-year students, believed to be the necromancer, each taking a different target. Naturally, as supervisors.
The primary suspect I focused on was the expressionless junior, Han Seo-jin.
But I couldn’t just watch her alone.
With multiple suspects, I had to keep track of everyone’s positions.
The practical evaluation participants wore bracelets.
These bracelets could be tracked via a smartphone app.
So, I planned to monitor the suspects from a distance.
‘Expressionless… I hope it’s not you.’
I sincerely hoped that the promising student I had somewhat grown fond of wasn’t the villain.
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