Chapter 20 - I Became the Daughter of the Academy’s Villain

Chapter 20 20 - Follow Me with Trust <20 - Follow Me with Trust> “As we prepare to begin the exam, we shall open the detection device to locate everyone's position and proceed with the scoring. Everyone, please take out your tickets and attach them to your wrists.” The ticket squirmed and began to take shape, eventually solidifying like a metal ring and wrapping around the wrist. “This is your Ticket Watch, which will aid in your evaluation. The Ticket Watch will send a distress signal to a nearby referee should the wearer sustain a critical injury that renders them unable to continue with the exam.” Of course, relying solely on that thing could get you killed in no time. Sending out a distress signal doesn't guarantee it'll save your life. Furthermore, there's a blind spot to the watch. What happens if the wrist or arm wearing the watch gets severed? You could end up dead before anyone notices, with no chance to recover the body. “Therefore, I urge all participants to be as careful as possible with your own safety, and if you judge that it is too burdensome to continue the test, please declare <Withdrawal> immediately.” “As you possess at least a Gold Ticket to participate, you can take the lower-level exam even if you forfeit or fail this advanced exam.” “Likewise, holders of the Platinum Ticket can forgo their Platinum privileges in exchange for a chance to take the final intermediate exam.” Wow, insane. Was there such a fallback plan? Honestly, it’s quite surprising. There were always a couple of characters that would pop up from the lower divisions after failing the exam, which made me wonder what was up with that. It turns out, there was this kind of gimmick all along. As someone who’d always passed the advanced exams with superior specs and veteran knowledge, it was a feature I was completely unaware of. ‘Being in reality sure makes the information oddly friendly.’ Grandmaster Myungho gave the last precautionary advice. “This exam is ultimately to determine the suitability of students for the upper echelons of Gift Academy. While conflict between participants is permitted, death will result in significant penalties for the involved examinee.” “If excessive slaughter is detected, the examiners may arbitrarily revoke the right to participate, and the examinee may be banned from reexamining for up to three years.” It’s actually all pretty obvious stuff. Don’t put a child in a washing machine. Don’t feed chocolate to dogs. Don’t iron your thighs. It's the kind of obvious advice you’d think no one would need. But the ethos of this game is closer to America than Korea. All this ridiculous sounding legislation exists because, in reality, such incidents have occurred. ‘In the iterations I played as a character in the wartimes, things happened that this monk couldn’t even imagine.’ Fortunately, looking over the faces of the participants, it doesn’t seem to be a particularly vicious generation. If there’s a war, important characters who'd otherwise not appear in the academy entrance exam would be revealed. Since the Northern Grand Duchess Irene appeared, there’s no <Demon Race Early Invasion> regional event, and since the swordsman Shing from the Eastern Empire is participating, there's no <Invasion of the Eastern Empire> event either. Confirmed appearances from key NPCs from the west dispel <Western Civil War>, and sighting key NPCs from the south rules out <Attack of the Southern Pirate King>, making all directions a ‘clean’ iteration. “Now, we will begin the first stage of the examination.” In short, it's an iteration free of major antagonistic bias. All I need to do is perform well. * * <First Stage Pillar Stacking Event> Stack as many rocks as you can, as high as you can! The time limit is six hours. Stacking the pillars isn’t difficult, but whether you can protect your stack until the end of the exam is an entirely different matter. Whether you defend your own tower, destroy others', or sneakily build your own in secret, the mode of engagement in the exam is yours to choose! Challenge the first stage in your unique way. I wonder if the entrance exam is actually a test of character. The world is full of people who take greater pleasure in seeing others fail than in succeeding themselves. Succeeding is challenging and difficult. It calls for effort. Destroying others is easier. Violence can effortlessly ruin everything. The role of the law is to protect people who earnestly work hard from such violence, but regrettably, the examination hall is a lawless land. It is beyond the jurisdiction of any country’s laws. It’s the perfect place for trolls to run rampant. “It’s the Northern Grand Duchess, Irene!” “That high-nosed wench refused our faction’s invitation?” “Let’s teach her a lesson.” Named NPCs typically have many enemies. Northern Grand Duchess Irene, particularly due to her cold disposition and haughty attitude. No sooner had the exam began than the troublemakers who had interfered by throwing stones at Irene’s stone tower swiftly appeared. Crack Crunch “Huh?” “What?” “The stones have frozen in mid-air?” Son Ocheon, the monkey beastrider, exclaimed in admiration with an “Oh.” I grabbed him by the cuff of his pants. “What are you gaping at? We need to run.” “You’re really scared, huh? Aren’t you curious? We might be seeing the powers of the strongest candidate in this batch.” “You mean the New Top 3.” Giselle chimed in familiarly. “Northern Grand Duchess Irene, who’s experienced wars with the northern tribes since her youth. The Holy Knight Jedas, famed across the Three Western Kingdoms. Hector, the son of the renowned Southern General Heather.” “Are they stronger than me?” “I’m not certain of Mr. Son Ocheon’s capabilities, but none will be an easy challenge.” I don’t care. I said. “Hm? Why has the temperature suddenly dropped?” “Oh, this is... Look at the sky!” Late to realize something was amiss, Giselle alerted us. Dew on the trees began to freeze, turning into icicles. The icicles broke off, becoming spikes of ice, and these spikes lined up, directing their sharp edges towards the ones who had attacked her wall of stones. “Run!” “Aaack, we didn’t attack!” “Don’t come this way, you crazies!” The very examinees who had provoked Irene were inescapably impaled by the rain of ice spikes, bleeding profusely as they fell. Those who’d managed to hide within the crowd barely escaped injury, but those caught up in the commotion weren’t about to let it slide. “This crazy fool, causing all this trouble!” “You nearly got us disqualified too!” Competition requires a matching level—before the battle-hardened Northern Grand Duchess, everyone was desperate not to catch her eye out of fear. The young lords and ladies who carried themselves with unwarranted haughtiness despite not knowing their actual place were predominantly eliminated—either impaled by the ice spikes or caught up in the attacks of others who'd barely escaped disqualification themselves. "It's dreadfully cold." "You took that with your body?" True to his brute monkey beastrider nature, Son Ocheon used his spear to fend off most of the spikes, but one that he failed to block he simply absorbed with his body. While others suffered puncture wounds or fretted about their wounds freezing and causing necrosis, he merely had a thin layer of frost on his outer skin. His robustness is indeed commendable. "What's that cloak all about?" "It's the triumph of civilization. It's also called a frost cape, optimized for blocking frost attribute attacks." "Are you seriously going through the test relying on gear?" "There was no rule stating one couldn't win through gear." "That’s so damn unfair." Giselle and Son Ocheon argued as they glanced around them. "But where did the little one go?" "Miss Oknodie? Are you there?" "Right here." I poked my head out in response to their search. [I avoided the wide-area attack by hiding under tree roots.] [Stealth Experience +3] [Quick Movement Experience +1] Emerging from beneath the roots only after they called for me, I was met with a mix of shock and awe. "You're not even a mole-man." "Good heavens. You were right beside me before the ice started flying. When did you manage to hide down there? You truly excel at concealing yourself." "It’s all thanks to my regular practice." All that diligence in hiding here and there has paid off. Indeed, the Hide skill is a top value for money. It never betrays you once leveled. "Regular practice, you say?" "I often hide in preparation for times like these." "What sort of times are you talking about?" "What do you mean by 'what sort of times'? Like when you’re bombed by magic or chased by an assassin?" "So you’re telling me you've been practicing hiding from assassins and magical bombings since you were barely ten years old?" "Ugh, I'm not ten, okay? I'm much older than what would surprise you, sir." Originally, I was over twenty years old. My words seemed so unbelievable that Giselle ended up fumbling with words before placing a hand on his forehead. “There's a lot I want to say to that butler and maid of yours.” “Why?” “Nevermind. Let’s get out of here before we're attacked. It's safer that way.” With a frosty gaze warning anyone else to make a move if they dared, Irene surveyed her surroundings. No one seemed keen on drawing her attention. ‘Tch. I guess I’ll have to give up on that side quest.’ Incidentally, at the top of the stone tower Irene was constructing, there was a 100% chance of a stat stone appearing. Such a guaranteed spawn for a stat stone is rare, but it's practically inaccessible unless you're related to the North. Lingering around one of the New Top 3, capable of wiping out dozens of examinees, with no acquaintance would be insane. “This area is claimed by our Western Mercenaries Alliance. Go away if you don’t want to get hurt." “We have no intention to welcome a country bumpkin who can't even make a name for themselves in high society into our noble alliance. Just keep moving on." The other territories nearby were occupied one by one by those pushed out by Irene. While the larger groups at least gave a warning, the smaller yet powerful individuals didn't even bother with that. “Isn't a blockhead made up of the same stone? No? Yes?” “Argh, you're insane!” "Don't run—just stand still." A lunatic aiming to use live individuals as materials for his stone pillar. "Well, if I knock them all down, there will be no one left to bother me." "Please, no! We have no interest in antagonizing you!" A belligerent spearman charging at every examinee in sight. One after another, these vicious characters are on a rampage. “Do I need to go up that mountain and hurt my pride? The crowd looks easy to handle, and those alone look tempting to challenge." Son Ocheon appeared bothered by the thought of having to climb a mountain. It was quite a feat that someone as aggressive as him, who would even pick a fight with the advanced exam proctor Michael, had held himself back this long. Fleeing from Irene's area attack signified a loss of face, but it seemed his pride was seriously dented facing the others. "Trust me and follow. Most of the stones at the foot of the mountain are nothing more than pebbles, aren't they?" Strong individuals and arrogant groups relying on their numbers typically set up camp at the entrance to the rock mountain, while weaker individuals or groups lacking in force ventured up the slopes. However, climbing the mountain did not necessarily equate to being at a disadvantage. "Don’t take the advanced exam too lightly. If it was enough just to protect a spot and set up a stone pillar anywhere, would it even be worthy of calling an academy entrance exam?" In this event... There’s a gigantic surprise that first-timers, who have only lived life once as NPCs, aren't aware of. 'It’s in five hours, right?' The rock pillar stacking event on the rock mountain. Here, an hour before the exam concludes, a landslide occurs. Author's Note (Postscript) The MVP of toppling carefully built towers is the proctor.