Wednesday afternoon.
I was blankly thinking about the upcoming schedule.
The Eunwol family, dismantling the illusion barrier, dungeon raids, final exams, and so on…
Too busy. Far too busy. Just these alone are enough to completely pack the rest of the year.
Sometimes I wonder if I’m going to drop dead from overwork.
And on top of that, I still need to train personally, and earn points too.
There’s a mountain of things to worry about.
Sigh.
“What’s with the deep sigh?”
In front of the dungeon training ground behind the Mage Academy.
Standing beside me, Yoo Ara looked at me and asked.
“I’m just a bit mentally tired.”
“You do look a bit worn out. I’ve thought this before, but aren’t you pushing yourself too hard?”
Pushing myself too hard, huh.
She’s not wrong.
I’ve barely had any days off.
Plus, with less sleep, I haven’t even been feeling the effects of the music box properly.
Maybe I should cut down on training time?
“Alright, we’ll now begin the dungeon entry. Teams are in groups of six. Scores will be awarded based on clear time and the team member adjustment system.”
Today’s training had begun.
It was the Mage Academy’s monthly scheduled dungeon raid training.
What made today different was that it was done in teams of six.
My team included me, Yoo Ara, and four extras I didn’t really know.
“Let’s work well together!”
“Oh, Yoo Ara and Kim Sunwoo? That’s a guaranteed second place at least.”
Our teammates looked at Yoo Ara and me with wide smiles. At this point, my reputation seemed to have become a kind of guarantee of solid performance.
I was used to this kind of reaction by now, so I didn’t pay it much mind.
Flash!
With that, we entered the dungeon through the training portal.
As the space changed into a dark cave, I informed everyone,
“We’ll be moving quickly, so keep up.”
Dungeon raids include something called a team member adjustment score.
It’s a system where the average rank of the team affects how many bonus points you get—either more or less. Since Yoo Ara and I were in the team, our average was high.
In other words, we were at a disadvantage for bonus points, so we had to aim for a dominant first place to make up for it.
“We don’t have time to waste. If we want first, we need to move now.”
Yoo Ara, always competitive, seemed to understand and took the lead.
“Let’s go.”
We began pushing through the dungeon swiftly.
Yoo Ara, who specializes in wide-area combat, cleared the dungeon monsters, and I accelerated our progress by quickly disabling traps and barriers whenever they appeared.
Boom! Boom! BOOM!
─Screeeeech!
BOOOOM!
─Screech!
“…Those two are insane.”
“Their coordination’s no joke.”
“The top rankers really are on another level.”
Voices of admiration for Yoo Ara and me came from behind, but we ignored them and focused on clearing the dungeon.
Time flew, and before we knew it, the raid was over.
When we stepped outside the dungeon, Jang Ancheol looked at us with a dumbfounded expression.
“…Team 5. A dominating first place.”
“Whoa!”
“Kim Sunwoo and Yoo Ara really carried us.”
Our teammates jumped up and down in place, thrilled with their scores.
I gave a small smile and looked at the dungeon status board.
The first thing I noticed was Lee Seo-jun’s team, currently clearing the stage we had finished about 20 minutes earlier.
Even with the adjustment score factored in, this was a guaranteed first place.
Looking back on it, Yoo Ara and I made a pretty solid team in dungeon raids.
Her fierce competitiveness also made for a good match.
“Good work. Looks like first place is a lock.”
I tossed the words casually to Yoo Ara, who smiled in satisfaction.
As always, she was probably pleased to have outperformed Lee Seo-jun.
“Yeah. You too—nice work.”
After all the training and classes at school were finished.
I headed to the Seoul Mage Association with Lee Seo-jun.
There was an award ceremony related to the demon we defeated during the second midterm and again last week.
Honestly, it was far away, and I didn’t really care about getting some award. But since attention from people meant more points, I had no choice but to attend.
“This is a pain.”
When I muttered to myself, Lee Seo-jun chuckled.
“Just think of it as getting paid.”
“Eh, it’s not like they’re giving out much.”
“About 80 million won, I think?” *About 57,000 USD
“…What? 80 million?”
“Yeah. Pretty generous, right?”
“Hoho.”
That’s a good chunk of money. Probably because the demon’s rank was high?
The bounty for a B-rank demon was around 15 million, but with a few A-ranks in the mix, it jumped to 80 million.
I’ve gathered tens or even hundreds of billions before, but still—80 million won is no small sum.
“We’re here.”
Screech.
As we opened the auditorium doors of the association’s headquarters, we saw a large crowd of people.
Among them were association staff and what seemed like journalists.
I spotted a few familiar faces.
Kim Deokhyun from the special unit. Jung Hyunsoo. And that reporter in the corner—I’d seen him at the Mage Academy a few times.
Apparently, there was a mage education-related event happening at the association today, which must’ve drawn the crowd.
They were probably using this opportunity to hold the award ceremony and showcase us as student representatives.
“Seo-jun! A few words, please!”
As expected, when Seo-jun entered, the journalists’ attention shifted immediately to him.
Seo-jun smiled and responded to each one calmly.
Some turned to me as well, though most of their questions were about Seo-jun.
How I planned to compete against him in the final exams.
How we’d become close recently, as we were often seen together. That kind of thing.
Honestly, most of it was pointless.
[We will now begin the award ceremony.]
As time passed, the ceremony began.
Following the staff’s guidance, Seo-jun and I stepped onto the stage.
I could feel all eyes on us.
A sea of cameras aimed at the two of us.
“Hey, hey. Snap a pic.”
“Wow. These are the hottest names right now.”
[We’ve invited a special guest to present the awards.]
Clap clap clap clap.
With the sound of applause, an elderly man—whose face was familiar from the media—stepped onto the stage.
I was slightly startled the moment I saw his face.
The strongest mage.
Chairman Kim Jin-cheol, feared even by Jaun, the most notorious criminal organization in the world.
[Next is the award ceremony.]
Kim Jin-cheol accepted the award, then stood before me and Lee Seo-jun.
I stared at his face. Last week I met Chairman Han Dae-hyeon, and now, I was face-to-face with someone even more significant—Chairman Kim Jin-cheol himself.
The unexpected encounter with such a prominent figure made me a bit nervous.
Still, this was the first time I’d seen him up close.
Though his face looked like a friendly neighbourhood grandfather, I could sense the firmness of his body beneath his clothes—there was nothing frail about him.
“Grandpa.”
“Call me Chairman here.”
Kim Jin-cheol spoke with a gentle smile as he handed the award to Lee Seo-jun.
Then he shook his hand, and dozens of camera shutters flashed at once, nearly blinding me.
Now it was my turn.
Kim Jin-cheol picked up another award and stood before me.
“So, you’re Kim Sunwoo. I’ve heard a lot about you from Seo-jun.”
It was a bit surprising that Chairman Kim Jin-cheol knew my name.
“I had quite a few questions about you. Ilhyeon, that guy’s your personal instructor, right? You brushed off my teaching over summer break, tsk.”
“……”
Don’t tell me he was still holding a grudge over that.
“Anyway, I was pretty surprised when I heard. Ilhyeon’s not the type to teach anyone.”
“I was surprised too.”
I knew Choi Ilhyeon’s personality well enough, thanks to the original story.
He said he’d be busy with research and hard to meet, but lately I haven’t been able to contact him at all.
I’m starting to wonder if he just quit being a tutor and ran off.
If it were anyone else, maybe not—but if it’s Choi Ilhyeon, that’s a definite possibility.
Kim Jin-cheol handed me the award and extended his hand.
I grasped it.
I could feel the thick skin and the firmness of his grip.
Just from that simple handshake, I could get a faint sense of the life Kim Jin-cheol had lived.
“Hmm. I think I understand why Ilhyeon took an interest in you. And why Seo-jun’s conscious of you too.”
“…Excuse me?”
The sudden remark made me tilt my head in confusion.
“You possess various types of magical energy for someone so young. And it seems you’re just as ambitious as Ilhyeon.”
“……”
In that moment, I realized what he was doing.
One of his traits—Mana Scan—had activated.
Just by briefly touching someone, he could roughly discern the kind of magic they used.
“Heh. Interesting.”
With that, Kim Jin-cheol released my hand.
Another round of applause erupted from the audience, and the cameras flashed again, dazzling my eyes.
[That concludes the award ceremony.]
Meanwhile, on a deserted island somewhere in the Pacific Ocean—
This place, crawling with monsters, was known as “Rain Island,” said to be under the constant downpour of mystical rain.
Under the trees, a group of people gathered to avoid the rain.
They were Jaun.
“Ugh, where the hell is it? I’m soaked and about to lose it.”
“Be quiet. Why are you so impatient?”
When Natasha cut in, Scar pouted.
“Huh? Is that it?”
At that moment, Baek Eun-seong pointed with his prosthetic arm toward a patch of forest.
It was a small wooded area located in the center of Rain Island.
It was also the known habitat of a disaster-class monster—the Red Rain Beast.
Today, their plan was to defeat the Red Rain Beast and obtain a mysterious material: the Heart of the Beast.
Of course, even for Jaun, a disaster-class beast wasn’t something to take down easily.
And monsters like this, with an environmental advantage, become exponentially more powerful—making them even harder to defeat.
That’s why they had come prepared with a sacred relic and ancient weapon: the Grand Mage Purifier Device, powered by the Mana Core.
“Hey, Baek Eun-seong. You getting used to that arm now?”
Ska asked, glancing at Baek Eun-seong’s left prosthetic. He looked down at it.
“This thing?”
Baek Eun-seong’s left arm was made of a special silvery material.
It was a new arm, temporarily attached using mystical power, after he lost his original in Atlantis to some unknown man.
“Used to it? Not at all. Honestly, it’s practically useless.”
When he muttered that quietly, Bert responded.
“Just bear with it. We’ll get you a better one later.”
“Ugh. If it weren’t for that damned Rune Clan guy…”
The memory of the bearded stranger who took his arm made Baek Eun-seong’s right hand tremble in anger.
Eventually, Jaun made their way deeper into the center of the forest.
But still, there was no sign of the Red Rain Beast.
That’s when it happened.
A faint presence was felt somewhere nearby.
On an uninhabited island, that was far from a normal occurrence.
“…What the. Is someone here?”
Ska muttered uneasily. Baek Eun-seong smirked.
“Whoever it is, we will just kill them. Why worry?”
“Don’t let your guard down. Something feels off.”
Bert spoke with a stern face.
“Yeah, if there’s a presence but no visible enemy… it’s not someone to take lightly.”
Then Baek Eun-seong’s expression hardened.
“No way… Could it be the guys from Atlantis?”
“There’s a chance, right? You said they had some mystery tied to the prophecy?”
“Yeah. That’s how they followed us to Atlantis.”
Natasha grinned.
“If they followed us all the way here, then we’ve got to make sure they die for good this time.”
And just as the Jaun crew, brimming with confidence, pressed forward—a man appeared before them.
He looked like an explorer, holding a map and a compass.
Seeing him, the Jaun crew froze in shock.
It was someone they never expected.
Someone they absolutely didn’t want to run into—not counting Kim Jin-cheol.
“……”
The man also looked slightly surprised to see Jaun before him.
He casually stroked his messy beard.
“You guys… Jaun, huh?”
Despite having the world’s most dangerous criminal group before him, the man looked completely relaxed.
Baek Eun-seong, staring at him, muttered with a trembling voice.
“…Choi Ilhyeon.”
TL : Thanks to MarketResearchReading114, Devil Heart and drunkerino for leaving a review.