“It’s better to use defensive forms like walls or pillars for secondary forms, rather than offensive ones like spears, swords, arrows, spikes, or orbs.”
Morning specialty class.
In the wide manifestation training ground, students sat on the floor, listening to Lee Hee-young’s lecture.
Some students looked bored and chatted quietly, but I listened attentively to Lee Hee-young’s lesson.
“……So here’s a question. What criteria can you use to determine the right secondary form for yourself?”
I raised my hand quickly.
Lee Hee-young looked at me with a proud gaze.
“That’s right. Our current top star, Sunwoo. Go ahead and answer.”
At her joke, a few students chuckled.
Even Yoo Ara, who was sitting next to me, laughed quietly. If she’s laughing, then it must actually be funny.
“Your primary attribute and form.”
“Very good. ……Though, wasn’t that an easy question everyone already knows?”
“Yes!”
At the students energetic reply, Lee Hee-young smiled again.
“But this kind of proactive attitude in class is always great. I hope other students take note. Sunwoo, you can put your hand down now.”
I lowered my hand and turned to look at Yoo Ara. She seemed to sense my gaze and glanced back at me.
“What?”
“……Nothing, just wondering what you were laughing about.”
“I wasn’t laughing.”
She suddenly played dumb.
Even though she clearly laughed.
“……”
I didn’t have anything to say, so I turned my attention back to Lee Hee-young.
Then Yoo Ara spoke again beside me.
“But do you actually use secondary forms?”
“No.”
Secondary forms typically involve large-area shapes like walls or pillars.
Because they need to be materialized in large sizes, they can be used defensively without paying special attention to emission or manipulation.
However, the downside is that you have to focus more on their construction, making them more difficult.
Also, since adapting to the shape is challenging, it requires a lot of imagination and consumes significantly more mana.
Previously, I didn’t have enough mana, so I never practiced secondary forms. Though it’s not like I couldn’t use them at all.
“Really? That’s unexpected. You seem so versatile, but there are things you’re not good at. You’re not exactly normal, are you?”
I shrugged.
“I just never felt the need.”
But I’m starting to think it might be a good time to properly learn secondary forms.
I’m no longer low on mana like before, and I might have to handle a variety of attributes in the future.
“Then want to practice secondary forms together after class?”
“Huh?”
I turned to Yoo Ara. She frowned slightly after looking into my eyes.
“What’s with that face?”
“Just wondering if we really need to practice together. I could just do it alone.”
“We can give each other feedback. That’s good, right?”
Now that I think about it, she has a point. And training with a genius like Yoo Ara could be motivating.
Just then, Lee Hee-young’s voice rang out loudly.
“……We’ve gone over secondary forms now, but it’s still too early for all of you to learn them. It’s not too late to start once you’ve fully mastered your primary form.”
Hearing that, I paused in thought and then spoke to Yoo Ara.
“Never mind.”
“What?”
“Didn’t you hear the teacher just now? It’s too early for secondary forms. You should focus more on your primary form.”
Yoo Ara narrowed her eyes slightly and let out a long sigh.
“……Is that so?”
She sounded a bit dejected.
“You’re doing fine as it is, so why be greedy?”
“Well, I’ve been feeling kind of limited lately.”
“Limited?”
“I’ve been thinking that my magic is too focused on offense these days. Like, I don’t have a proper way to block someone if they get close.”
“Then just use your sub-specialty.”
“Sub-specialties are too hard.”
“……”
I’d momentarily forgotten. Yoo Ara has no real talent outside of the manifestation field.
Even in the original story, she overcame her weaknesses by pushing her manifestation skills to the extreme. Through diverse secondary forms. And her monstrously innate mana.
Secondary forms, huh……
I paused in thought for a moment before saying,
“Then let’s practice together this weekend.”
The bell rang, and the morning manifestation class came to an end.
The students busily prepared to head back to the classroom. I also stood up and quickly gathered my things, following the others.
Just as I was about to leave the training ground, Lee Hee-young called out to me.
“Sunwoo!”
“……Yes?”
“Can I talk to you for a moment?”
I wasn’t sure what it was about, but I nodded anyway.
“Sure, that’s fine.”
“It’s nothing serious. You know Hanseong Pharmaceuticals, right?”
The moment she said Hanseong Pharmaceuticals, I instinctively realized what this was going to be about.
“Hanseong Pharmaceuticals is offering scholarship sponsorships for students. It seems you’ve been selected as one of the recipients, Sunwoo.”
I figured this kind of thing might happen. I probably won’t be able to avoid a meeting and will end up facing Han Se-yeon while looking like Kim Sunwoo.
Not sure whether I should be happy about that or not, I hesitated, and Lee Hee-young continued.
“Also, you made it into the special class for the second semester.”
“Oh.”
The special class.
It’s an advanced class offered in the second semester to students who either achieve high grades or show special talent.
“Is that so?”
“Yes, it was a unanimous decision from the teachers. You’re really amazing, Sunwoo. You’re like a completely different person compared to the first semester. You even overcame your mana shortage so quickly.”
Hee-young chuckled. I could tell she was genuinely happy.
“Solving a mana shortage takes incredible effort. I know how hard that is.”
Even though I benefited a lot from stat points and traits, I had trained diligently after class, so she’s not wrong.
“Thank you.”
“Oh, and have you thought about it?”
Lee Hee-young asked in a slightly coaxing tone.
“Thought about what?”
“Your practical guidance teacher.”
“Oh.”
I nodded.
“Yeah, I have.”
Then Lee Hee-young looked at me with eyes full of both concern and hope.
“……Who?”
“You.”
“Me?”
“Yes, of course. Lee Hee-young, you.”
Upon hearing my answer, her face instantly lit up.
“Oh my, really? Are you sure? The list of outside instructors hasn’t even been released yet.”
“Yes, I’m sure. I’m not particularly interested in anyone else. And you’re more than capable as a teacher.”
Lee Hee-young beamed at my words.
“Right! Then let’s do our best together, Sunwoo.”
Lee Hee-young returned to the faculty office with a bright smile on her face. The other teachers’ gazes naturally turned toward her.
“Is something good happening, Hee-young?”
“Yes. A student I wanted to mentor for combat training said they want to work with me.”
From that alone, everyone could guess who it was. After all, even among teachers, Lee Hee-young was known as a diehard fan of Kim Sunwoo.
“Sunwoo said he wants to work with you?”
“Yes, that’s what he said.”
A variety of reactions immediately burst out among the teachers.
“Wow, Ms. Lee really became a successful fan.”
“What’s a successful fan, teacher? Snrk snrk.”
“Ah, but that’s a bit disappointing. I wanted to try teaching Sunwoo too.”
“Right? Teaching a student like him is a huge merit on your record.”
“Oh? Teacher, are you saying mentoring a particular student is for your own résumé?”
“Ah, no, no, I didn’t mean it like that…”
Just then, one teacher suddenly spoke up as if remembering something.
“Seo-jun and Ara will be paired with external instructors, right?”
As soon as those proven geniuses were mentioned—unlike the newly-risen star Kim Sunwoo—the mood among the teachers turned serious again.
“Most likely. I heard 30% of the external instructors coming in are aiming to teach those two.”
“Whew~ That means we’ve got some big names coming in this time.”
“Well, this second-year class is the strongest batch in history, even on a global scale.”
“Exactly.”
As the conversation continued, the faculty office door burst open and a young teacher waved a piece of paper in the air.
“Everyone, the list of external instructors is out!”
“Oooh, let’s see!”
The teachers quickly gathered around and began reading the list with focused eyes.
“Elena Green… Seong Wonsung…”
Then, a few teachers suddenly reacted in shock at one particular name.
“Huh?”
“Wait—what the hell is this?”
“Is that… really that person?”
“…Choi, Choi Ilhyeon?”
7 PM—after all classes at the Mage Academy had ended.
A man was walking down the empty hallway with no other students in sight.
He wore a casually unbuttoned suit, but it looked quite worn out. The fabric was all wrinkled, as though the outfit had seen better days. His curly hair was long and messy, and the beard on his chin looked like it hadn’t been trimmed for weeks.
He looked like he was in his late 30s, but in truth, he was over ten years older than that.
In one hand, he held a student’s file. On the name line, it read: Kim Sunwoo.
“Haven’t been here in a long time. What, almost 20 years?”
He muttered to himself, briefly lost in nostalgia.
Like he was recalling distant memories. But eventually, his gaze dimmed with a hint of sorrow.
There had been many fond memories at the Mage Academy, but in the end, they had all become painful.
“…Tsk.”
He shook off the thought and continued walking down the hallway.
That’s when he spotted a machine emitting a faint blue glow at the end of his gaze.
A natural mana diffuser.
“Kids these days really live in a blessed era.”
Back in my day, we didn’t have anything like this.
He paused and leaned against the window of the hallway.
A cool breeze brushed against his hair. The gloomy feeling in his chest lifted for a moment, only to be replaced by irritation.
“Sure, the facilities are nicer now, but…”
Choi Ilhyeon grit his teeth.
“Damn it, what kind of school doesn’t have a smoking room?”
After finishing my personal training, I returned to the dorm and was now playing Jenga with Gretel.
The wooden tower had been reduced to a fragile skeleton. It looked like it would collapse with the slightest breeze—completely unstable.
I gulped.
With tense eyes, I watched Gretel’s fingers.
Gretel, calm and collected, slowly pressed at a central block with composed hands.
Tok. Tok. Tok.
Repetitive, but rhythmic and graceful gestures. I could feel incredible skill behind them.
…No way. She’s actually going to pull that out?
Tok.
The wooden block fell to the floor.
But the tower didn’t collapse. As if nothing had happened, it stood tall and elegant in its place.
“…”
Even though she was my opponent, I couldn’t help but feel admiration and respect for those skillful hands.
Gretel gently placed the block on top of the tower.
Then, she turned to me and gave a soft smile. A smile that said, “Your turn.”
“Goo goo ga ga.”
“You’re amazing…”
It was my turn now, but there was no way to save this. The structure was at its limit.
The moment my finger touched it, the tower crumbled completely. It was exactly what I expected.
No, actually, she was so overwhelmingly good that I didn’t even feel disappointed.
“Gretel, you’re seriously good at this.”
Gretel beamed again. Even though I’d lost, her smile made me feel happy too.
I chuckled and patted her on the back.
“Let’s take a break.”
Gretel nodded and began cleaning up the Jenga pieces.
I stood up and plopped down onto the sofa. Then I opened my interface to check my points.
[Current Points: 118,000]
118,000 points.
With the results released today, I had earned an extra 15,000 points.
Now it was finally time to purchase a trait.
The reason I’d been saving this whole time without buying anything was to wait until I reached 100,000.
Hmm, what should I get?
Should I go for a trait? Or maybe a skill?
I’ve got enough points, so I’ve got plenty of options.
“Hmmmm…”
Alright, let’s enter the point shop first and decide from there.
I immediately activated Outsider’s Privilege.
[Entering the Point Shop.]
[Would you like to check this week’s special discounts?]
“…Huh?”
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