The long-yet-short summer vacation had come to an end. The second semester of the second year had begun.
It was a period that Baek Yu-Seol dreaded the most.
For the second-year cadets at Stella, this was the time when most of their schedule was filled with field practice. Sending 18-year-olds to fieldwork might seem too early, but there was a reason why Stella graduates were regarded as elites in society.
Simply having a Stella diploma meant that graduates could immediately take part in dungeon expeditions, Persona Gates, dark mage subjugations, and monster eradications, all while taking on leadership roles.
Such elite individuals didn't emerge easily. To produce such outstanding graduates, the curriculum had to be packed and relentless.
Fortunately for Baek Yu-Seol, he didn't have to endure long hours of boring lectures at the beginning of this semester.
Over time, he had already gained notoriety for getting involved in numerous incidents, but this latest event was on a completely different scale.
The intervention of the Twelve Divine Moons.
It was the first case recorded in history since the dawn of the mage era.
Though the Twelve Divine Moons had occasionally revealed themselves in the distant past, they had never caused an incident of such immense scale before. And at the center of this incident was Baek Yu-Seol, who had managed to stop the Twelve Divine Moons, drawing the attention of magicians worldwide.
'How did he freeze the whirlpool?'
This was the first question on everyone's mind.
Mages rarely brushed off even the smallest curiosity. Many were dying to know how Baek Yu-Seol had controlled teleportation magic, but they couldn't directly interfere with him since he was under Stella's protection.
However, this time, the situation had gone too far.
A teenage mage, who hadn't even graduated from high school, had frozen the massive dragon cyclone in defiance of the Twelve Divine Moons. Even in a thousand years of magical history, it was an unprecedented and astonishing feat.
Knock! Knock!
The sequence goes like this.
During a lecture, there was a knock on the door from outside the classroom. The professor appeared visibly annoyed and reluctantly instructed someone to open it.
When the door opened, a mage, who usually wore a robe marked with the insignia of some famous magic tower, cautiously stepped inside.
Most of them were young. They were likely assistants or apprentices of some incredibly renowned mage. Sometimes, they whispered quietly to the professor, and other times, they spoke loudly enough for all the students to hear.
But whether they whispered or not, it didn't really matter. By that point, the entire class was already focused on them.
The message was almost always the same.
'Would it be alright if I take Baek Yu-Seol for a moment?'
There wasn't a single professor who ever refused. After all, this was on the orders of Elthman Elwin.
"...Go ahead."
This time was no different.
The professors at Stella were known for their immense pride. Yet, for a student to be pulled out of class in the middle of their lecture? That was practically an affront.
But when the one making the request is a high-ranking mage of extraordinary status, they could only regard it as an unavoidable natural disaster and agree to it.
"Cadet Baek Yu-Seol?"
"Yes. Let's go."
Baek Yu-Seol cheered inwardly but outwardly put on a thoroughly annoyed expression as he got up.
The reason for his feigned annoyance was simple: to maintain the image of an 'elite student who's displeased about having his studies interrupted.' When you're the center of attention as much as he's, managing one's image is crucial.
And it worked. Most of the assistants or apprentices looked sincerely apologetic toward Baek Yu-Seol.
Then, as he was escorted to the reception room, he would inevitably find himself face-to-face with a very famous mage whose name he had definitely heard at least once before.
Most mages regard time spent learning as sacred, so it was rare for someone to summon a student during class.
However, the fact that Baek Yu-Seol was called out during a lecture likely meant that the summoner considered themselves in the position of authority (the superior) and saw Baek Yu-Seol as subordinate (the inferior).
And, in a way, it made sense. Even setting aside the unbelievable feats Baek Yu-Seol had achieved, they were renowned mages from a colossal magic tower.
Why would they see a mere student as significant?
Truth be told, Baek Yu-Seol didn't mind skipping class, but as someone who loathed being treated as inferior, he always kept a displeased expression plastered on his face during such encounters.
"Hmm? Wait a moment. Malen, my assistant—I'm certain I told you to wait until the lecture ended before bringing him here."
"Ah, well... I didn't think it was appropriate to waste the great Mage Roberton's time over something as trivial as waiting for a mere student to finish class, so I brought him immediately."
At that, Roberton, the middle-aged mage, immediately roared in rage.
"You fool! Do you call that the proper attitude of a mage? For any mage, the time spent learning is the most sacred and valuable! And you dared to disrupt that? Can you still call yourself a mage after such an act?!"
"B-but... Even so, isn't he just a student? I mean, yes, he's accomplished something remarkable, but..."
[Jealousy, envy, resentment.]
Through the blessing of Pink Spring Moon, various emotions were laid bare. Even without the blessing's ability, such shallow feelings would have been easy to read.
Humans, in the end, are all the same.
"Cadet Baek Yu-Seol... I want to sincerely apologize to you. I deeply regret taking up your precious time."
"No, it's fine."
Baek Yu-Seol flashed a wide grin.
By this point, Roberton's favorability toward him had already surpassed +100.
Not only had he been spared from the frustrating lectures, but Roberton's attitude as a mage was truly admirable. He didn't treat Baek Yu-Seol as an inferior but regarded him as an equal, a perspective that Baek Yu-Seol greatly appreciated.
"To be honest, I wouldn't say I haven't been annoyed by being called out of class so frequently lately... But considering the one calling me out is the respectable Mage Roberton, I'm more inclined to feel grateful."
"I'm glad you're so understanding. Do you know my name, then?"
"How could I not? You're one of the few great mages studying the enigmatic 'chemical attribute' magic. I've memorized all your research papers."
"Haha. Hearing you say that makes me feel embarrassed."
"I've always been interested in alchemy, and I think chemical magic is deeply intertwined with alchemy."
Alchemy was, in fact, the only subject Baek Yu-Seol genuinely enjoyed.
While most magical studies left him baffled and unmotivated, he had taken it upon himself to study alchemy diligently in his spare time, refusing to rely solely on his Sentient Spec.
This had become Baek Yu-Seol's recent routine. Even after classes, he barely had time for training.
Mages from various fields sought him out, demanding meetings. On occasion, he even skipped entire lectures to attend symposiums or magical debates featuring high-ranking magicians.
And each time, Baek Yu-Seol delivered results worthy of the invitations.
While he couldn't reveal the truth behind his spell that froze the whirlpool or the secrets of his Flash magic, he always provided clear and insightful answers to the questions posed during the discussions.
As a month passed, Baek Yu-Seol's status had transformed.
He was no longer seen as an ordinary student. His image had grown to rival that of a great mage, and no one dared interrupt a class to summon him anymore.
Although Baek Yu-Seol hadn't yet obtained his official mage's license, he had received the Honorary Grand Mage Medal from the Association. This recognition granted him unrestricted access to every seminar and magical exhibition reserved for high-ranking mages. Furthermore, it had become routine for him to receive invitations from mayors or lords wherever he went.
… Baek Yu-Seol couldn't help but feel uneasy about how much he enjoyed this lifestyle.
It was a busy, yet fulfilling routine. However, his training time was becoming increasingly scarce, and while he busied himself with these engagements, he knew that somewhere out in the world, events were unfolding without his knowledge.
But what troubled him the most was this:
'This… isn't my power.'
At some point, an overwhelming sense of emptiness began to weigh heavily on his chest.
The glasses he called Sentient Spec were undeniably incredible. They were akin to a portable supercomputer, capable of analyzing and recording magic far superior to that of contemporary mages.
But why?
Why had these miraculous specs been handed to him so easily?
Where did this incredible capability of the Sentient Spec come from?
Within them seemed to lie the secrets of the world itself. They contained unaltered records of events from the distant past, devoid of historical distortions, as well as insights into countless possible events of the future.
Baek Yu-Seol vividly recalled an event from a month ago.
The moment when the Sentient Spec had abruptly synchronized with his vision.
While riding a carriage back to Stella after finishing a seminar, he stared blankly at the specs in his hand and muttered quietly.
"Synchronize."
[...]
Nothing happened.
But back then, without even wearing the specs, everything had appeared as clearly as if he had them on.
'Back then... They definitely said I had some kind of trait.'
Baek Yu-Seol still remembered that moment.
He had been told that a mysterious trait labeled as [???] had allowed his synchronization with the Sentient Spec. Yet no matter how thoroughly he examined his status, such a peculiar trait was nowhere to be found.
Occasionally, Baek Yu-Seol felt a strange sense of familiarity when observing certain spells. A sensation akin to déjà vu… experiencing something for the first time, yet it felt as though he had encountered it before.
It didn't happen often.
But on rare occasions, when he came across certain spells, he almost instinctively began interpreting them without the aid of the Sentient Spec.
Of course, his attempts at interpretation failed. While he could understand the structure of the magic, he lacked the equations to unravel it.
But what if Baek Yu-Seol had known the equations at that moment? What if he hadn't spent his class time dozing off, unlike the other students, and had instead studied the equations?
If he had mastered all the formulas that went into the magic, he might have been able to analyze those spells just by looking at them.
But that wasn't an easy task by any means.
Even for a grand mage, interpreting a large-scale spell required them to sit down, scribble calculations for several minutes, and draft an interpretation formula.
"Hmm."
Baek Yu-Seol rubbed his forehead and closed his eyes. He had been severely sleep-deprived lately and felt utterly exhausted.
'Is there any point to wandering around like this?'
He didn't want to squander the opportunities he had been given. Becoming a powerful mage would undoubtedly be beneficial for his future, but that wasn't the reason he was doing all of this.
Someday, in the distant future... No, perhaps in the near future, a monumental event would occur.
And when that time came, Baek Yu-Seol wanted to have enough influence for people to take his words seriously.
Until now, it had been impossible to do much, so Baek Yu-Seol had lived as an ordinary student. But now that the opportunity had presented itself, establishing such influence was a relatively easy task for him.
'… It's better than doing nothing.'
As he arrived at Stella Academy, the sun was setting, painting the sky with hues of orange and red. It wasn't too late yet, so he figured he could head back to the dormitory, take a quick shower, and then make his way to the training grounds.
Recently, his skill in handling the blessing of Silver Autumn Moon had grown significantly, and he was beginning to see the possibilities for controlling Flash.
If he were to achieve full control over Flash, Baek Yu-Seol's abilities would no longer be classified by the 'classes' used to rank mages.
It would be something entirely different. Perhaps something like…
'A Sword Master, maybe.'
The thought, which started as a joke, felt absurd and childish to him.
A Sword Master? What an outdated term. Who even used such expressions anymore?
'Then again, aren't classes kind of similar?'
After all, Sword Master was a real title at one point. Whether it was the Class 9 or a Sword Master, they both felt more or less the same to him. He couldn't even tell the difference.
Dragging his tired body back to the dormitory, Baek Yu-Seol quickly showered, changed into his workout clothes, and grabbed a steel bar resting on the wall's display rack.
The lightweight wooden swords available at Stella's training grounds no longer gave him the satisfaction of a proper swing.
Shouldering the steel bar, he was about to leave the dormitory when he noticed someone waiting at the entrance.
It was Hong Bi-Yeon.
"Oh, hi."
There was no reason for someone to go out of their way to wait at the exit of the boys' dormitory unless it was for Baek Yu-Seol. So, he didn't bother asking the obvious question, "What brings you here?" as he might have in the past.
"Your face is getting harder to see."
She seemed even more mature than she had a month ago. Although they still met briefly once a week to cool her fever over the weekends, those encounters had been so rushed that he barely had time to notice.
Now that he had a moment to really look at her, she gave off an even more refined and mature aura.
"I've been busy lately."
"I know."
"Judging by the way you're here, it doesn't seem like this is just a casual visit."
"You've gotten sharper."
"I've always been sharp."
"..."
At that, Hong Bi-Yeon's eyebrows twitched slightly, but she soon let out a small chuckle.
"I wonder if it's okay to bother such a busy celebrity like this. Here, take this."
She stepped closer to him and handed him an elegant red envelope. Baek Yu-Seol examined it curiously before tilting his head.
"A love letter? You could've just told me directly."
"It's not!"
"Whoa! No need to yell."
"..."
Hong Bi-Yeon shot him a glare before lightly tapping the envelope against his chest.
"It's an invitation to the Adolevit Ball."
"A ball...? Oh, right, that's a thing."
"You haven't attended one before, have you?"
"...Of course not."
What seemed like an odd question to Baek Yu-Seol appeared to be quite significant to Hong Bi-Yeon.
"Honestly, I wanted to invite you before you got so busy, but the timing never worked out. If you don't have the time, it's okay not to come."
Baek Yu-Seol tore open the envelope and checked the date.
'October…'
Unfortunately, the day of the ball happened to be packed with three separate appointments, making it an incredibly busy day for him.
"Not busy at all. That day's completely free."
Baek Yu-Seol slipped the invitation back into the envelope.
At his words, the corners of Hong Bi-Yeon's lips curled into a faint smile.
"Good. Make sure to dress properly. Don't embarrass me as my guest."
"Isn't my school uniform stylish enough?"
"...If you show up in your uniform, I'll throw you out immediately."
"Relax, I'm joking. You're really intense about this."
Hong Bi-Yeon glared at him with narrowed eyes, as if to make absolutely certain he didn't even think about it, then turned and walked away.
Baek Yu-Seol fiddled with the envelope and let out a deep sigh.
'...It was supposed to be an important seminar, but oh well. I guess it doesn't matter.'
The whole reason he'd been running around so busily was to protect people like her. If that situation were reversed...
'It'd be meaningless. Yeah, I'll go to the ball.'
He thought to himself as he headed toward the training grounds.
In the past, the idea of dressing up for anything would have felt incredibly bothersome, but things were different now.
Since it was a ball, he wanted to make an effort to look decent. More importantly, he definitely didn't want to leave a bad impression on Hong Bi-Yeon.
'Looks like... I'll have to spend some money for once.'
Not knowing what counted as stylish clothing, he decided on his usual approach: buy the most expensive thing available. That was Baek Yu-Seol's style.