Chapter 4

Time passed, and it was the day of the Korean Academy entrance exam. I was rolling the magic stone in my hand, watching the people gathering like a swarm of bees.

“Whew. There are so many people.”

No matter how many times they were warned about the dangers, the number of applicants for superhuman status increased every year, just as they said.

“Well, I guess it makes sense.”

It’s a job that offers the chance to make a fortune.

Whether in the old days or now, in the Empire or on Earth, there’s an unchanging value, and that’s money.

Ultimately, what drives humans is desire, and the foremost desire is money. More precisely, it’s the desire to live in a better place, eat better things, and enjoy better things.

Some may point fingers and call it vulgar, but personally, I like this kind of desire.

Isn’t it all an effort to look good?

The effort one puts in.

How magnificent is that?

Clack, clack.

I rolled the magic stone in my hand while watching the endless line.

But, you know, it’s all good, but isn’t the attention a bit excessive?

Just because I stand out from the crowd, I can’t avoid the gazes, but the attention I’m talking about isn’t just these gazes.

“Hey, look over there. It’s really the youngest of the Sword Tiger family. He’s really here.”

“He’s a failure, so what nerve does he have to take the academy exam? Is he mocking superhumans?”

“Could it be that his mana void has been cured?”

“Nah, that’s impossible. If it were, it would have been on the news. ‘Sword Tiger family overcomes mana void! A blessing for Korea!’”

A stench of pettiness wafted through the air.

Envy, jealousy, hatred...

Like hyenas that have discovered a corpse, they bared their rotten teeth at me.

Honestly,

it’s ridiculous.

It’s good that they use me as a scapegoat to ease their anxiety about the exam.

Hiding one’s shortcomings by trampling on others is a human trait, so I can understand it.

After all, the fall of a famous person is more entertaining than a success story. From their perspective, I’m the perfect scapegoat.

I understand, I really do.

‘But there’s a limit. This is just too low.’

Here, the level isn’t about words or actions.

It’s about skill.

I was once the heir to the Black Tower. The talents I’ve mentored could fill this entire field. Of course, even a casual glance reveals the difference.

Between the rejects and the elites.

“Take that guy, for example.”

The one who was talking about me as a target. Yet he’s afraid to meet my gaze, sneaking glances at me. He’s a reject.

His physical condition is a mess; what more needs to be said?

“On the other hand, that one is quite impressive.”

The girl with the bronze skin, standing straight.

At first glance, she seems foreign. She’s quite skilled.

She looks like she’s from the Middle East, and her well-balanced physique shows she’s been well-trained since she was young.

“Yet, strangely, she has a regal aura of the Empire.”

Just then, our eyes met.

I smiled, and she smiled back.

Her quick thinking is good. Plus points.

As I watched the ridiculous hyenas and a few gems, time flew by, and before I knew it, it was time.

“Soon, the second round of the Korean Academy entrance exam will begin. Applicants, please gather here with your application forms. Once again...”

I followed the guide to the gate.

Yes, the gate. A real gate. An oval-shaped mana field made of blue mana.

Like the word ‘door,’ stepping through it revealed a completely different world.

“Wow, this is the gate.”

A dense forest.

All I could see were trees and lush greenery.

The forest, reminiscent of the ancient empire, welcomed me.

‘Dimensional travel? Spatial transformation? Either way, it’s not something humans created.’

Interesting. I can’t help but laugh.

Meanwhile, all the applicants had entered, and the guide stepped back, saying, “From now on, the proceedings will be...”

Kuaaang!!

The ground shook with a roar, and what emerged from the earth was...

a tree, a large tree.

- Welcome, everyone. I am Yggdrasil, the World Tree, overseeing this entrance exam.

The supervisor is the World Tree...

“Indeed, this world is fascinating.”

* * *

The guardian spirit Yggdrasil has protected Korea for the past 200 years.

She was at the forefront of the academy’s founding and played a decisive role in Korea’s rise as a superhuman power.

Every year, numerous talents who knock on the academy’s door meet her at the starting line.

The exam is simple.

Reach the World Tree at the center of the field.

The means and methods are free.

Just do your best to reach it, and the decision to pass is entirely Yggdrasil’s.

10 points out of 100.

Just 10 points are enough to pass.

Yet, despite the five rounds of the entrance exam, the pass rate is barely 10%.

The same goes for the graduation exam. The Korean Academy’s graduation exam is notoriously difficult, and at the center of it is Yggdrasil.

Yggdrasil, who has been with the start and end of countless talents on this land, found this batch particularly intriguing.

- It’s been so long since I’ve seen so many shining talents. It’s a joy.

A man who inherited the spirit of the tiger.

A girl chasing the flapping wings of a red phoenix.

A princess from the distant Middle East, a prodigy of the American Titan, and the youngest of the Jinryong family, representing Korea.

Ordinary batches would have been dominated by such brilliant talents.

Is this a trick of fate?

For Yggdrasil, who finds joy in watching rising stars, such a trick is always welcome.

The one who particularly delights her is...

Park Gi-hyuk

A member of the Sword Tiger family.

- It’s truly amazing. How can such an existence appear?

A miraculous physique, overwhelming strength.

Unwavering courage and clear judgment.

- Indeed, a tiger does not give birth to a sheep. Park Geun was outstanding, but his descendants are truly speechless.

Eight years ago, Park Su-hyuk scored 82 points in the entrance exam, showing remarkable talent.

And that’s not all. Park Min-ji, the second child of the Sword Tiger family, scored 80 points.

She was penalized for a lack of leadership, but even then, her extreme speed rivaled her older brother, Park Su-hyuk.

And now, the youngest!

What a truly remarkable lineage!

Yggdrasil trembled with excitement at this incredible talent passed down through blood.

- But, didn’t someone say this child can’t use mana?

What just shattered the illusion magic?

- It looks like magic to me.

* * *

I live for style and die for style.

I hear the trend nowadays is a protagonist who hides their strength, but that’s not the style I pursue.

Hiding is just a way to lose your cool.

The style I pursue is...

Unwavering.

Crack!

No hesitation.

Crunch!

The confidence to unleash full power.

Boom!!!

This is what I consider style and coolness.

Thud.

As the broken doll’s remains fell to the ground, I immediately leaped.

The target was the goblin dolls.

They move in groups and shoot paralyzing darts, perfectly recreating goblins.

But to me, they’re just a mouthful.

Crunch!

The one in the lead was shattered in one blow. Wood splinters flew instead of blood.

The dolls are satisfying to hit.

Goblin dolls falling like autumn leaves.

In no time, I cleared the goblin dolls, and now the orcs were blocking the way.

Wielding brutal clubs.

This guy... I like him!

“Let’s have some fun!”

Crack, crunch! Boom!

I smashed, punched, and shattered them.

Using my hands, feet, knees, elbows, shoulders, head, and every part of my body to crush all the enemies in my path.

Orc dolls, dire wolf dolls, troll dolls, wood golems...

Various dolls created by Yggdrasil blocked my path, but I advanced without hesitation, again and again.

This reminds me of the old days.

The first mock battle with the mentor. In a clash of thousands of skeletons, I charged to the front and smashed the skull of a skeleton with an axe.

The mentor’s face was priceless. The necromancer fought like a seasoned mercenary, how absurd must it have been?

I got a lot of scolding.

He only wanted me to learn strategy, not to personally smash skulls! Kid, fight with dignity! For heaven’s sake, don’t tear things apart! Use dark magic, you troublemaker!!

The mentor was taken aback by my fighting style.

But so what?

This is my style.

A mage who doesn’t hide and leads the charge.

Fighting fiercely at the forefront and desiring victory more than anyone else.

The Demon of Struggle.

This is who I am.

“More! More! No more!!”

I roar amidst the surging fighting spirit.

The forest shakes in response, and more dolls appear.

Good. Really good.

I bare my teeth and charge again.

The target is the one leading the charge.

I leap and split him in two.

At that moment.

“Huh?”

Something’s off?

I tilt my head and split the next one’s waist.

Still off?

The sensation at my fingertips is subtly twisted.

I deliberately left an opening.

The dolls charge madly, and attacks from all sides hit my body.

The pain I feel amidst the onslaught is different.

Clearly, it’s pain, but the sensation is off.

Based on my long experience, there’s only one possibility.

“It’s an illusion.”

If there’s any doubt, the pain will instantly become ‘reality,’ a rather high-level illusion magic.

Conversely, if I firmly believe it’s ‘false,’ the illusion can never become real.

I steady my breathing.

“Phew...”

Suddenly, the dolls’ attacks pass through my body. I ignore the dolls clinging to me and move forward.

No matter how much I love fighting, I’m not foolish enough to punch an illusion.

That said, this is quite interesting in its own way.

The manifestation rate, the immersion, it’s a well-crafted illusion.

One thing is certain: this illusion magic is far beyond the level of an entrance exam.

In other words,

“I seem to have caught attention.”

Yggdrasil, I believe, has noticed me.

And it seems my thoughts were read.

Suddenly, the world changed.

The ground beneath me flipped. The world inverted, and what appeared was the sea?!

Yes, the sea with fish swimming. I was standing in the middle of the vast ocean.

The waves lapping at my feet.

Fish swimming beneath the transparent sea.

Of course, if I doubt this is ‘reality,’ the illusion will become real, and I’ll plunge into the water.

“Come on, let’s be reasonable. A bit.”

You’re overstepping on our first meeting.

That said, I don’t just stand there and take it. I have something to show.

Have I mentioned before? About mages who, due to unavoidable circumstances, have their mana holes shattered.

Can mages who can’t accept mana due to unforgivable sins or injuries from battle easily give up magic?

I can assure you, they can’t.

There’s no case where a mage gives up magic.

Those who have experienced the miracles of magic can never give it up.

“Magic is like a drug.”

I hold three magic stones in my hand. These stones, drained of all mana and no different from pebbles, have been imprinted with ‘me’ after handling them all day.

Overcoming the curse of the mana void was the key.

“Awaken.”

The stones glow. Mana surges into the empty stones, and they float.

Three stones floating in the air.

Suddenly, my vision, which was just an illusion, reversed. A world of galaxies made of points and islands.

The space of mana.

“Contact is complete.”

Let’s start.

The target is the illusion magic.

The mana, long absent, greets me warmly.

My task is to find the illusion in the language of mana.

‘Found it.’

It’s here.

The layout and structure are intricate. Most people probably can’t even touch it.

But that’s only by Earth’s standards.

For me, the Demon,

“It’s an easy task.”

I track it.

Reverse engineer it.

Turn the magic back into mana.

Return it to nature!

Though it’s just a handful of ‘mana holes’ made from three walnut-sized magic stones, if the resonance is good, it’s possible...

“To break it.”

A gap appears in the middle of the sea.

A gap just big enough for one person, the limit of what I can do now.

But don’t be disappointed.

This is just the first step.

As I take a step forward,

The world reverses again.

What’s in front of me is...

A tree.

A tree so massive it can’t be compared to the one I saw before the exam.

The World Tree fills my vision.

“Is this your true form?”

The answer to my question comes from behind.

“Yes, that’s correct. This is my true form, the true form of Yggdrasil.”

A woman wearing a laurel wreath smiled brightly.

“Welcome, Park Gi-hyuk.”