Since Shio-ram is an educational institution, it assesses and grades its students.

The most basic aspects are attendance scores and attitude scores. This is a common method that anyone can understand.

Just make sure to attend lectures and maintain a good attitude.

However, in terms of the overall percentage, these scores are practically negligible.

The bulk of the actual scores come from three major evaluations.

The first is the regular assessments taken at the end of each lecture session.

Just hearing the name makes me shiver; it’s the main reason I struggle to keep up with the coursework.

Assignments and tests are thrown at me from a syllabus I haven’t fully caught up on, making it a nightmare.

Looking at my report card, it’s clear that my early grades were particularly poor…

I should be grateful that, being at the beginning of the semester, there aren’t many assignments.

Probably after the break, starting next semester, assignments will pour in like snow as lecture hours decrease.

The second major evaluation is the common assessments like dungeon practice or tower entry.

This section also carries a lot of weight in terms of points. Fortunately, I did fairly well in this area.

Last time in dungeon practice… if you overlook the magic issues, I did quite well and received decent scores.

In the tower, a series of fortunate events led me to receive scores higher than my actual abilities.

The third major evaluation is the midterm exam, held once every semester.

These three evaluations make up the majority of the grades.

And the schedule set for two weeks from now is the midterm exam.

Midterms weren’t a significant event in the original work.

They’re exams held once every semester, and they’re divided mainly into written and practical tests.

The schedule spans five days, from Monday to Friday. The first two days are for written exams, and the remaining three days are for practical tests.

Since I’m receiving combat major lectures from Professor Atra… no, my master, I’ll be taking the combat major practical exam, and I’ll probably enter the tournament as well.

Walking around the campus lately, I noticed the library and training rooms were packed with students.

Although it was always somewhat crowded, Shio-ram students rarely had low academic enthusiasm.

But as the midterms approached, the number of students increased, and their motivation was visibly higher.

Part of the reason is the high weightage of the midterms, but another reason is that unlike regular or common assessments, parts of this exam are open to the public.

I believe some practical tests and the tournament will be broadcasted.

In other words, it’s an event suitable for garnering reputation points.

Midterms don’t have a severe impact like the protagonist dying from one mistake or significantly hindering the player’s growth.

If I had to pinpoint, it affects the player’s growth evaluation and reputation points? Reputation points were something to be mindful of.

In the initial runs, I paid a lot of attention to reputation.

It was challenging to suppress tower invasions or high-level dungeon rampages alone.

My combat power was insignificant, and even if I were somewhat strong, there were limits to what I could do alone.

I always teamed up with strong characters like the protagonist.

So I put a lot of effort into side quests and tried to increase as many characters’ favorability as possible.

After Baek Ahrin betrayed me in the eighth run, I quickly abandoned that approach.

At that time, I was attached to the NPCs. Although I did side quests with the intent to clear the game, I wouldn’t have tried if it wasn’t enjoyable.

Baek Ahrin was a character I particularly cherished.

When that beloved character stabbed me in the back, causing the most successful run to end in futility, I was dumbfounded.

From then on, I changed my play style.

Getting betrayed by Baek Ahrin, who seemed unlikely to ever betray, made me suspicious.

If Baek Ahrin could betray me, what about other characters? It hadn’t happened before, but it might in the future. But Baek Ahrin was a character I never thought would betray me.

If a party member betrayed me at a critical moment and ended the run… I felt I wouldn’t be able to control my anger…

And I felt a turning point was needed.

So I abandoned managing favorability and the insistence on the good route. I grew tired of immersing myself in the player character and trying to save every extra NPC.

In the later runs, I didn’t pay much attention to reputation.

Of course, I managed it moderately since starting the run with a bad reputation would hinder growth.

But at some point, I even discarded that and wreaked havoc.

The run where this chaos peaked was the 11th ‘Diamond Warrior’ run.

A significant amount of high-level information, such as secret records of the three major families, locations and internal views of other mystical realms, was obtained while making a mess as the Diamond Warrior.

Anyhow, midterms weren’t a significant event in the original work. Making a mistake didn’t lead to any severe consequences later.

‘Still, I shouldn’t take it lightly.’

However, for Lee Hayul, a student at Shio-ram, it was a very important schedule.

There are no students who get held back at Shio-ram. Unless they cause serious trouble, they don’t get expelled either.

But that doesn’t mean there’s any reason to take the midterms lightly.

Given my situation, it’s clear what would happen if I took it lightly.

So I’ve been staying up for days, preparing for the midterms.

I ditched the habit of ‘opening a book and reading’ to maintain some semblance of human behavior.

I just crammed the information into my head using the power of observation. I put off understanding for later and just stuffed the information into my head.

My head throbbed in pain, but it only resulted in a slight nosebleed. It even felt like my brain capacity was growing.

I needed to prepare for more than just the written exams.

In fact, the practical tests, which carried more weight, needed more preparation.

I had to prepare for practical tests in several subjects and also for the tournament…

The schedule made me sigh.

Despite that, my mind was quite alert.

After hearing my master’s past and establishing our teacher-student relationship, I slept for a few hours straight.

When I came to, the major lecture was over.

Reluctantly, I had to get up from my master’s embrace.

.

.

.

The Second Natural Park, located on one side of Shio-ram’s grounds.

Sitting on the grass, which was covered in a cool air, I poked at the blue light balls floating before me.

The spirits fluttering around me trembled as if ticklish and rubbed against my fingers.

There was no warmth, but instead, a subtle softness transmitted to my fingertips. It might have been an illusion, but they seemed to be in a good mood.

“Spirits are really fascinating. I thought they were just natural energies, but they’re so playful.”

[Indeed]

“Or maybe it’s just you they’re playful with…”

The ‘Understanding Spirits’ lecture.

Unlike the first day, which ended with an affinity test, from the second day onward, the proper lectures began.

Liana used her contracted spirits to demonstrate what we learned in theory.

She explained how to assist in collaboration with a spirit master during practical situations and how to counter and exploit weaknesses when facing a spirit master, emphasizing practical applications.

Given that Liana herself was a hero who had fought on the African frontlines, the information’s reliability was unquestionable.

Despite continuing with the lecture, I received special treatment.

That’s because I was a student confirmed to have spirit affinity. It was practically certain that I would eventually delve into spirit arts.

The other students seemed to understand this.

Moreover, I wasn’t the only student receiving special treatment.

During the short break, Elia, sipping on water, patted the spirit with a curious expression… she was touching it.

Surprisingly, Elia also had confirmed spirit affinity.

While the exact level of affinity wasn’t measured, it was generally considered quite high.

That meant Elia would become a noble among nobles, possessing a recovery-type unique ability, decent magic skills, and spirit arts.

“Hayul, are you using the necklace well?”

As I was recalling this morning’s theory while playing with the spirit, Elia, who had been poking the spirit, glanced at my necklace and asked.

[Yes, I’m using it very well. I can control it well now, so there’s no need to worry.]

That was sincere. Although there were still some parts where control was tricky, I was really using it well.

Losing one hand made me think hologram chatting would be difficult, but thanks to this necklace, the voice issue was practically resolved.

When I repeatedly thanked her, Elia finally nodded in relief.

As I was about to observe the spirit again, a now-familiar presence approached quickly.

“Hayul, Elia? If you’re free this weekend, would you like to study together to prepare for the midterms?”

Baek Ahrin approached quickly and made a sudden suggestion.

“If it’s the weekend… I’m fine with it.”

Despite the sudden suggestion, Elia nodded without much thought.

Baek Ahrin’s gaze turned to me.

‘Hmm…’

Feeling her gaze, I fell into brief contemplation. Studying together on the weekend…

‘…Do we really need to?’

I felt it might be better to study quietly alone. While some people might find it easier and better to study with close friends, I don’t think I’m one of them.

Or am I? Considering Baek Ahrin is the top student, studying with her might make studying easier.

‘What should I do…’

While contemplating whether to accept or decline, I noticed Baek Ahrin subtly gesturing.

The angle made it invisible to Elia, who was standing nearby.

Her hand pointed to her own ample chest.

What could that mean? As I tilted my head in confusion, Baek Ahrin smirked playfully and mouthed the words.

– That time, apology, compensation

The power of observation naturally interpreted her lip movements.

[Sorry]

[Yes]

[I’m okay too]

…After a brief contemplation, I accepted.

Thinking it might be better to learn from the top student.

End of Chapter