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Chapter 42: Do you happen to have anything you like?
There are benevolent black mages in this world.
For one, Cheon Juyeon had never committed even the slightest crime in her entire life.
Thanks to her innate wealth, she had never needed to steal snacks from a supermarket, and thanks to her natural strength, she had never had to resort to violence against anyone.
"Wow, if I had that face, seriously..."
"…People like that shouldn’t even be allowed to awaken, out of fairness."
"Looks like the Earth server balance is ruined again this year."
She simply lived a life others admired.
Her outstanding looks, her figure, her abilities, her impeccable character and smile, and the extraordinary background that supported it all—
among all her peers she met while traveling the world, none could compare to her.
Destined to become the next Supreme Leader of the Yeongnak First School, Cheon Juyeon was simply exceptional.
She was what you would call an Alpha Female.
To some, she was an ideal worth aspiring to.
To others, she was a super-elite talent expected to lead the future of the world, the country, and the martial sects.
Her top-rank admission to the Seoul Academy of Supernatural Abilities was backed by her overwhelming talents and skill as a black mage.
With a life this perfect, why would she need to do anything bad just because she was a black mage?
There was a time, a century ago, when black mages had led the First and Second World Wars,
but that was ancient history now.
Even the former head of the Yeongnak First School had once revealed himself while sealing an ultra-dangerous dimensional rift.
Cheon Juyeon was, in truth, a flawless black mage with nothing to be ashamed of.
Just as there are white-hat hackers, she was expected to become a white black mage—a great asset for the future.
"All hail the Supreme One."
She was universally praised by society.
Likewise, the Yeongnak First School—an arcane organization of the black magic lineage that had resumed some activities after emerging from isolation—
was even selected among Korea’s 100 most transparent organizations.
Truly a model black magic sect, and she, a model heir.
Too honest and powerful a group to suffer misfortune simply for being black mages.
Even so, there was a clear reason why she had lately been focusing on a certain individual.
BOOOOMMMM────!!!
Because disasters don’t discriminate based on wealth, occupation, or ability.
Too intense a light could erase even the shadows without a trace.
The new star who ranked first in the level tests—
Shin Yuseong.
Though Juyeon's supernatural vision blurred people's faces, there was no mistaking him.
Around him shone a pillar of light so dazzling that even gazing at it felt burdensome.
It was as if transcendent magic and strategic weapons were dropping in real-time; his surroundings constantly overflowed with radiance.
Since late last year, that pillar of light had been burning into Cheon Juyeon's eyes.
At the entrance ceremony, every time their eyes had met through that light,
she had struggled not to show any reaction.
It wasn’t just that it flashed—
it felt like just brushing against it might actually kill her.
Rather than thinking about how to approach it, the first thought flashing through her mind was always: don't mess with that.
—To be student council president, first you need to dominate as a department rep...
—I'm canceling all my plans.
—...Excuse me?
That was why Cheon Juyeon, who had entered the Seoul Academy with plans to make a name for herself, was instead lying low.
All her grand strategies—
to evolve into a national figure, an influential societal leader, and a power in the shadows—were scrapped.
Every time she faced that light pillar monster, a chill ran down her entire body, making her realize that the smartest move was to never even give him an excuse.
There were some whispers within the sect about her sudden reclusive behavior,
but she knew her decision was right.
Following the total massacre at the auction house, another catastrophe had occurred.
Though estimates were still incomplete, the scale seemed even larger than last time.
—Apparently, almost all the missing ones are dead.
No one knew exactly what had happened.
Only that a group of black mages had gathered at Seoul's Blue Magic Tower and had all lost contact.
In shock, the sect even held a ritual to divine their fates—
and the results showed that most of them were either dead or completely gone.
Among the missing were those considered powerful enough to seize a major share of the world’s black magic scene.
These were supposed to be key competitors within Korea,
and yet, they had vanished in a meaningless, contextless way.
—If you’re a black mage, never go to the Blue Tower.
—If you go there, you're dead.
Even black mages who had no idea what was going on became wary after rumors spread.
The best of the best had been annihilated recently,
so even unconfirmed rumors made them hesitate to approach the Blue Tower.
Those who knew even fragments of the truth were even more cautious.
Especially for Cheon Juyeon, who could see the pillar of light.
To her, it was like watching moths burn themselves against a lethal flame.
She didn’t know why they were doing it.
But shadowy figures kept approaching that pillar of light,
only to end up fueling its growth.
Over a few days, the pillar had clearly grown thicker—
and watching that, Cheon Juyeon had even felt nauseous.
It had always been uncomfortable to look at,
but now the light’s intensity had become overwhelmingly greater.
'...That’s a force even the Supreme Leader of our sect couldn't dare to rival.'
Having fully withdrawn her ambitions, Cheon Juyeon didn’t even think about confronting Shin Yuseong.
Her mind was instead completely focused on how to win his favor.
The news that Shin Yuseong's birthday was coming up was truly a welcome one.
...Someday, if things ever went badly, she had to be on good terms with him!
Thus, Cheon Juyeon had secretly tasked Emir, embedded into their group project, with preparing a birthday present for him.
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* * *
'...I've never prepared a gift for a guy before.'
Naturally, for the person tasked with carrying out the command, it was a major headache.
Huuuu-.
Emir, a Guardian of the Doctrine and a spy who had infiltrated the group activity, let out a deep breath.
Somehow, she had ended up disguised as a male student, but the doctrine only had young ladies, no young men, so there had never been a need to prepare a gift for a man.
In other words, she was unfamiliar with this sort of thing.
According to internet searches, high-end cosmetics, dolls, or bags were supposedly safe choices.
“Wow, that cloud looks like poop.”
From what she had observed over the past month, this person, Shin Yuseong, was a man with such strong abilities and easygoing personality that one might even mistake him for a woman.
In a way, he was a really charming man.
Since she had been entrusted with the doctrine's mission, and because the next Supreme Leader had pleaded anxiously, there was no way she would fall for him.
Still, it was understandable why other women looked at him with starry eyes.
It was a slightly blasphemous thought, but she wondered if turning the next Supreme Leader, Cheon Juyeon, into a man and raising her stats would give a similar impression.
‘This guy doesn’t seem to be pretending to be easygoing for strategic reasons—it's probably just his real personality.’
Because of the top-secret mission, she had to be prepared for all sorts of possibilities.
While quietly observing Shin Yuseong’s face and thinking, she soon spotted Sephine wriggling around like a dog that needed to poop and let out another breath.
Man, she’s struggling too, huh.
It might be for slightly more personal reasons, but what she wanted to ask seemed similar.
Clicking her tongue, Emir decided to just go ahead and draw her wand first.
“Hey, Yuseong? Do you have anything you like?”
“...Hm? Things I like?”
It felt like a question that revealed too much, but he only tilted his head with a blank expression.
“Hmm, I like games, and food—hamburgers? Pork cutlet? I also like sushi.”
“What about objects? Like something material?”
“Hmm, not really sure.”
His attitude was so casual, it was like he had even forgotten his own birthday.
Trying to judge the sincerity of his response, Emir narrowed her eyes and started bouncing her leg.
Since he said he liked games, would it be best to buy a gaming device?
But is it appropriate to give a man a game console as a birthday gift?
Maybe having a similar dilemma, Sephine Alavad across the way also began nervously biting her thumbnail.
“Sushi is best in Japan, of course!”
“Never been to Japan.”
“Well, then we’ll just go eat there next time! A flight doesn’t take that long, you know?”
Maho, the Japanese exchange student, replied nonchalantly, but for those harboring other intentions, this was a time of serious thought.
* * *
Today, the four of them finally gathered and jumped into the magic dungeon again, exploring an underground dungeon and defeating even a two-headed Minotaur.
Two cow heads.
A double event.
‘I’ve never seen such a bizarre creature, not even on a demon planet. Hmm, should I call it a Twin-Headed Minotaur?’
Its bizarre build and power were matched by speed, and it even snapped Sephine’s steel puppet in half, making her tear up.
These unfamiliar monsters would show up from time to time during lessons, adding a fresh twist, but somehow their group’s difficulty level seemed skewed—the frequency of mutated or elite monsters kept increasing.
‘Clearing a game and making one are totally different things, but so far, it’s showing great design.’
Recalling what the professor had said today, it felt like they were observing him closely as if planning to recruit him into graduate school.
That must mean he appeared to be an excellent student or someone who paid good attention in class.
“Feels like almost every professor looks at me like that.”
[The goddess nods proudly, saying the hero who’s caught the professors’ eyes is someone to be admired.]
Indeed, being favored by the professors was a good thing.
Of course, he didn’t actually plan to go to grad school.
Like how a delinquent boy gets sent to juvie, grad school felt like getting dragged somewhere against your will.
[The goddess gasps in surprise, asking if that’s really what it’s like.]
‘Well, calling it a crime might be a bit much. But if being noticed by professors is a sin, then I guess I’m guilty.’
So maybe he needed to be more cautious.
Professors like Shin Arin or the one from World History looked at him with increasingly gleaming eyes.
He’d probably need to give just enough of a performance on the upcoming midterms to avoid being dragged off.
It had been twenty years since his last test, after all, so his actual grades might be a disaster.
‘Right. Twenty years, huh.’
He’d wandered a long time in that other world.
While trudging home from the shuttle bus, he happened to glance at a poster on the wall of a fast-food joint.
[Maximum Ultra Burger Set Released!]
[Special gift for customers whose birthday is today!]
“Oh, right. My birthday’s coming up.”
He had forgotten.
Maybe for a very, very long time.
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