Tower 1, 79th floor.

Meeting room.

Headmaster Archie Hayden opened his mouth while tapping the bookshelf with his fingers. "You failed, didn't you?"

Then, Professor Raiden of the New Moon Department of Magic, standing across from him, nodded his head while adjusting his eyeglasses.

"Yes."

"Tsk, the headmaster is going crazy again."

"I'm more worried about the Supreme Leader than the headmaster."

"You're naive. It's unfortunate that you failed, but there are other ways."

"...... You're planning to provoke Professor Maizen."

"That's right."

Although there were other ways, the failure would still be painful, so Archie Hayden took off his glasses and rubbed his forehead.

The real reason for opening the Persona Gate this time was quite simple: To deal with a student who was highly likely to attend the "Aslan Seminar."

The Aslan Seminar was something that only the elite of the world's greatest magical families could attend, or those selected as the "Rising Stars of the Twelve Constellations" every year.

The mages of Arcane Academy (Dark Mages Academy) didn't want Eisel Morph, who received the blessing of ice, to attend the Aslan Seminar.

If Eisel Morph, who received the Blessing of Ice, attended there…

"She’ll take away another fixed piece."

That was troublesome.

Moreover, the Morph family itself was quite a burden, so he thought it would be good to get rid of it quickly.

"I could have also dealt with three troublesome students, unfortunately."

"... Hmm. Well, that's true too."

The boy and girl who seemed to have fallen from the sky, and even the princess of Adolveit; they were all students with a high possibility of attending the Aslan Seminar.

"Oh, right. You don't need to worry about Baek Yu-Seol."

"... Is that so?"

"He's the one who boasts about not using magic in the first place. Society doesn't think highly of him either. It's not even a task to exclude him from the list. Rather, recently, the princess of Adolveit visited the council for the seminar matter."

"Hong Bi-Yeon... is not involved, I suppose?"

"That's right. That psycho came. What on earth is he up to? After aging as much as he has, is he planning to attend the seminar? Ridiculous."

Each of this year's incidents felt like a bomb. The world's greatest geniuses all enrolled at the same time, and the headmaster's plan started at this moment…

"As if it wasn't enough that the headmaster seemed to have caught a scent, it's really the worst. Is there anything else to report?"

"No, there isn't."

"Then go."

"Yes."

Raiden bowed his head and left the meeting room.

While walking through the corridor, he stopped for a moment and looked at the wall.

There was a mirror.

He adjusted his eyeglasses and neatly arranged his hair, styled into a clean bun. As a professor, he had to pay special attention to his appearance to maintain his image.

At that moment,

He stopped his busy hands at the sound of a voice coming from behind.

"Professor, long time no see. I almost didn't recognize you."

"....."

Raiden slowly turned around. It was a polite smile from a student welcoming him.

It was Mayuseong.

"......... It's you."

"Wow, you used to be like a complete savage based on my childhood memories, but now you're almost like a different person."

"Yes, that's how it turned out. If you have no business with me, I'll be on my way."

After saying that, as Raiden turned to leave, Mayuseong spoke.

"Professor, my friends almost got hurt this time. Is this also... the plan of that old man with a heavy burden on his back?"

At those words, Raiden turned to Mayuseong with a cold expression.

"No matter who you are, disrespectful behavior towards the Supreme Leader is unforgivable."

"Is that so?"

"And you mentioned 'friends'? Are you... excessively immersed in the life of a mage?"

Then, Mayuseong laughed sarcastically.

"Immersed, huh? Well, you know, I'm really enjoying this life."

Raiden had a momentary illusion that a thick aura surrounded his face.

Not a magical power.

Not a divine power.

Just an illusion from intimidation.

With a calm smile, Mayuseong approached Raiden and whispered quietly in his ear.

"... Professor, the world has truly become wonderful, hasn't it? You can even blabber such arrogant nonsense in front of me."

Raiden felt a cold sweat running down his cheek. His palms were damp.

‘The Spirit of the King.'

In this world, it was a characteristic that existed only in those who were born with the qualification to be kings.

Normally, it wouldn’t be revealed since Mayuseong didn’t have complete qualification as a true king yet, but due to his sharp senses honed by the experience in the wild, Raiden could feel it.

Soon after,

As if to pretend, "When did that happen?"

Mayuseong cleanly dissolved the tension in the atmosphere and stepped back three paces.

"It would be wise to be careful. For now, I'll stay still... but honestly, you all are really annoying."

After finishing his words, Mayuseong slowly walked down the corridor to the opposite side.

Step by step.

Even the sound of his footsteps fell in Raiden’s ears like an echo.

Even though he was simply moving away in this short corridor, it felt like an illusion that ages passed by.

Finally, when Mayuseong disappeared from sight.

Raiden calmly took a deep breath and looked at himself in the mirror again.

Intellectual eyeglasses, neatly combed white hair, and a sarcastic smile that was sharp yet composed.

It really didn't suit him at all, but it felt so strangely fitting, as if he had been like that since birth.

He felt awkward.

But it was okay.

… For the sake of Arcane Academy.

He could endure anything.

This weekend was scheduled for the members of the Gourmet Club to gather.

Well, Baek Yu-Seol expected it, but it fell through.

Eisel locked herself in the dormitory, claiming to relieve mental stress, and Mayuseong said he had other plans.

Baek Yu-Seol didn't seem to worry about Eisel’s stress. She would come to her senses in no time as she was Eisel who was obsessed with money.

Not only did she receive a huge reward for conquering the gate this time, but the rewards poured in were appropriately distributed.

After a long time, he went out to the Arcanium’s Rodeo Street and sat alone in a cafe, enjoying a cup of coffee.

It wasn't bad.

There were only couples on the street, and it was a bit annoying to feel lonely among them, but the harvest was quite decent this time.

As a reward for clearing the episode, he was promised a "special reward" again. If there was one question, it was what made this episode special?

Meaning, he did defeat the boss Blade Spider and inflicted a fatal blow on Lady Aeron, but was that really something special enough to deserve a reward?

In Baek Yu-Seol’s opinion, not at all.

However, he would be a fool not to accept what they offer, so he reluctantly agreed to accept it.

But what would he receive?

The Narrative Power was still limited, but there were so many skills and items he wanted to receive.

Then suddenly, along with the completion of the episode, a message came to mind.

[Artifact 'Vengeance Branch: Resentment is fully accumulated.']

Finally, the artifact that allowed him to inflict tremendous damage to the opponent was fully charged.

It was a shame that it was a disposable item.

‘Oh, wait. There were consumable items that allowed extra usage to limited-use items, right?’

However, it was a bit of a waste to receive a special reward as a consumable item. It would be much more useful to use this reward on his own equipment.

"Hmm, it's disposable...."

Then a sudden concern arose. Among the rewards he could receive at his appropriate level, the thought of an item that could provide insurance for his life came to mind.

"The Pendant of Marekan... Is it possible?"