In the early morning of cold winter, the melodious song of birds echoed in the Arcanium.

The Stella Academy’s territory was considered vast even in the Arcanium, and with all of the necessary arrangements, students did not have to leave the premises for the entire academic year.

The academy also housed many private spaces for nobles.

A lonely, dark room.

Hong Bi-Yeon was sitting on her knees. Hong Yi-el, a natural flame-element professor known as ‘Silver Thorn,’ stood before her, and her piercing gaze pried on her.

“Three incorrect questions?”

“……..”

After receiving that cold expression, Hong Bi-Yeon bowed her head, causing the shiny silver hair, which were the object of envy of all the female students, to fall chaotically.

{Hong Bi-Yeon POV}

No excuses were spoken. My mother always used to say, ’If a problem is not solved correctly, it must be my fault for not studying properly.’

Slap.

Accompanied by piercing sound, three more slaps echoed in a row.

“Lift your head.”

Mother slapped the test paper on my face!

Some scattered while some flew hard enough to hit me in the face, but she did not seem to care.

“Do it again, until you understand it properly. From beginning to end.”

It was a disgrace.

This Placement Test was strangely difficult.

Even for the three questions that I got wrong, the correct answer rate was less than 10%, so there was nothing to be ashamed about failing to do them.

However, it was disgraceful.

The other S class students, who could be said to be my rivals, answered one or two of these questions correctly, but the three students who answered all three questions were very ordinary, and did not have prior study or preparation at a magic academy.

“Even Princess Eisel of the fallen Duchy of Morph got two questions right. If you can't get the question right, which even those bugs can, it means you’re no better than them. Do you understand? Think of yourself as a bug, and try to solve the problem again.”

“Yes, Mother.”

I looked back at the examination paper with blank eyes.

This exam, which tested creativity, logical reasoning, and thinking ability, was full of questions that my head could not comprehend.

‘Problems made up of unknown recipes, unknown spells, and unknown formulas.’

How the hell was I supposed to solve these problems?! I just lived according to what I was taught, and I just interpreted what I had learned.

“Do you find it harsh? It’s all for your own good. You, you shouldn’t be like me. If you grow up to be the shame of the kingdom like me, who was kicked out, and has to become a puny professor. No, absolutely not.”

Even though it was a disgrace to the kingdom, not everyone could be a professor at Stella Academy. It was an academy of the best mages.

However, my mother wanted more than Stella’s professorship.

For example, the Adolevit kingdom.

It was impossible for my mother, Hong Yi-el. Because she lacked talent.

So, she took care of me.

Since I had a beautiful talent, something that she did not have. It shone like a diamond.

“I am doing this for you. You… You have to become better than your sister. Huh? Do you know how your mother feels?”

'I do not know.'

“Okay, Mother.”

Nevertheless, I replied that I understood.

Even after my mother left, I still could not understand the problems.

So, the question arose.

What was the identity of the students who solved the problem? How could there be a mage in the kingdom who could solve a problem even I couldn’t solve. Someone, who had been studying magic since three years old?

'So, why am I tormenting myself?'

Burying a resentment deep in my heart, I grabbed the test paper with my slender hands.

‘If I don’t solve this problem today, I won’t be able to get out of this dark, private room with only dim lighting.’

Baek Yu-Seol’s POV.

I'm not proud of it, but in my previous life, I had been pretty good at hanging out with people.

So, when I entered the Stella Academy, I tried to build a good relationship with my classmates. Anyway, it was a new life, and I might not be able to go back, so I should try to live to the fullest possible.

But, I was in class S.

Class S was full of oddballs who did not show any signs of sociability.

My efforts were ruined from the start.

“Phewww…”

A sigh came out.

Unlike Class F-A, where there were several classes in one grade, Class S only had one class. Out of 1,141 students, only 41 of them were in the S class, so I thought it was logical.

When I opened the classroom and entered, more than half of the students were self-studying. I felt as if I was going crazy from the gloomy atmosphere.

'Don't study so hard. Hang out and have some fun. Just take me for an example…'

I quietly went to the back seat, sat down, and slowly looked around.

There were many faces I knew. Characters that were only seen as animation productions on 2D or 3D screens became real people.

Moreover, since most of them were popular in the game, each of them was going to become a famous celebrity in 5 to 10 years.

The Crown Prince of the Skalben Empire and the Heir to the Twilight Tower, etc.

Of course, not all were famous in a positive sense.

There was a possibility that the five or so mages sitting here, including Mayoseong, would betray the magic world and turn against them in the future. He would become a feared enemy since he had the ability.

‘I think it would be better if the female lead stopped that, but…’

'Who knows what will happen?'

I glanced at the black-haired girl sitting in the back-right corner. She was induced in self-studying. I had to forget the Edna I knew. That girl over there was the original Edna, who was never confronted by other players.

I did not even know what future she would create. All I knew was information about fragmentary events in the future.

‘It’s not good to catch her attention, who still thinks this world is just a normal romance fantasy novel.’

If I start taking a step different from the original novel, she would become aware of my existence.

‘By the way, you look really good.’

Some students in S class also glanced at me as I observed them.

Why did an inferior student named Baek Yu-Seol get admitted to S-Class? They must have raised questions about me. They were here trying their best, but it could be annoying if someone like me mixed in without any clear efforts.

“…… Is that him?”

“That’s why he looks a little nerdy…”

“No, my father contacted the faculty and asked them himself. It must be the girl in the corner with him."

“Hmm… Maybe they are a little intelligent?”

I was annoyed by the look on their faces. It appeared like they were going to skin me alive, what should I say?

‘It’s like being suppressed……?’

'It can't be. Is it a problem that I’m in class S?'