[We sincerely welcome the visit of the academy students.]

""...""

The students, who had finished their meals and showers, let out a low sigh as they looked at the small banner hanging in the lounge.

"Haa... I seriously want to tear it down."

That refreshing phrase felt unlucky today for some reason.

"..."

Luin, with a towel on his head, looked at the phrase and unclenched his fist. It was because he had the ominous thought, 'If I tear it down, I'll die.'

"Haa..."

If he had his way, he would have wanted to tear down a banner that said, 'Welcome to hell,' but Luin decided to endure it, fearing the consequences.

Six hours of rolling in the sand.

Three hours of his mentality being broken by Hans.

A total of nine hours.

'This is dogshit.'

It still felt like there was sand in his mouth.

* Student Luin. When are you going to finish?

* ...Heok... heok.

* Schuen, your junior, came out four hours ago.

* Shut up...

"Damn it."

Luin clenched his fists as he recalled Hans's sarcastic face. He couldn't concentrate on the task because that guy was chattering next to him. Of course, his own lack of ability was the biggest factor, but he felt like he would be more at ease if he made an excuse.

'Still, at least I'm not last.... If I were last, I wouldn't have been able to sleep.'

Luin looked at the other magic department students sitting in the lounge with a gaunt appearance and smiled faintly. They were the grateful friends who had protected his pride.

* Are you here for a picnic? Don't lie down.

* Heok... heok... my mana is depleted.

* Do you want to be unable to use it for the rest of your life?

* Hiiiik...!

Luin, who felt a sense of pity, spoke to the sniffling female student. With the intention of thanking her for saving him from being last.

"You've worked hard."

'Airi', a first-year student from the magic department who heard Luin's words, blushed and smiled.

"Thank you, sunbaenim...!"

Because she had received encouragement from the senior she had only heard about in rumors. Even though his reputation had worsened, his looks were still shining.

'Luin-sunbae told me I've worked hard...!'

It was a hellish class, but at the moment Airi thought that this time wasn't so bad and let out a cry of joy.

"Algae-sunbae. What did you do so well to be smiling?"

"Al... algae?"

"If you were a little later, it would have been past midnight. It takes more than an hour to put curls in my hair."

"Wait a minute, you just called me al..."

Schuen, who was drying his hair, retorted to Luin with an annoyed voice.

"The main culprit of water pollution, shut up!"

"Ha... now every Tom, Dick, and Harry is calling me algae."

"Algae don't understand the pride of a noble! Rolled hair is the pride of me, Schuen!"

"Haa... whatever."

Luin let out a sigh at Schuen's appearance of taking care of his hair even when he was about to die of exhaustion and gave up on talking.

It seemed like he would get more tired if he talked more.

Luin turned his head, ignored Schuen, and continued to talk. Since he was a senior, there would be things he had to take care of.

"What was difficult?"

"Well... I haven't learned about barriers."

"You can break a barrier by figuring out the formula. You can find its weakness and hit it with powerful magic."

"Sunbae...."

In the past, he would get annoyed when he saw students with no talent, but Luin, who had realized how great the sorrow of not being able to keep up was, put the towel on his neck and said in a calm voice.

"Let's work hard tomorrow too."

"Thank you... because of me, we finished late...."

"It's okay. You can do better next time."

"Still...."

Luin offered words of comfort to the discouraged female student to cheer her up.

"Algae, don't pretend you know!

Of course, to Schuen, who had come out four hours earlier than Luin, it looked like a child who had just learned to flip over was teaching someone to walk.

"That's really...!"

"Sunbae..."

Airi said in a low voice to comfort Luin. Without knowing what kind of repercussions those words would bring.

"Still, I think our magic department has the hardest class..."

The moment the thoughtless magician's words spread throughout the lounge, a silence fell, and blatant gazes began to be fixed on the back of Luin's head.

"Uh...?"

Especially Yuria.

"..."

Luin, who saw hostility revealed in the eyes of Yuria, who had only shown a passive side, slowly turned around and looked at them.

It was chilling.

The atmosphere in the lounge seemed to become as cold as ice, as if encouraging him to say one more word.

"...Wait a minute."

"Pardon?"

"Quiet."

"Pardon? Yes..."

Whispers were heard.

The voices of the healing department members whispering with laughter began to sound eerie in Luin's ears.

"Khehehe... kheuk..."

"Kheuk... shall we ask the teacher to throw us into a demon's den?"

"That seems like a good idea."

The students who had been chattering in Elysia's class were glaring at Luin with strange laughter.

'What's with them?'

He had only muttered to himself, but he couldn't understand the students' strong reaction.

-Staaaaare.

At Yuria's eerie gaze, which was looking at Airi with a hostile expression, Luin's mouth naturally closed. Their expressions, filled with all the suffering in the world, were overwhelming.

'What happened....'

Just as Luin, who didn't want to get involved, took a step back to avoid a fight, the voice of another magic department student began to ring in his ears.

"What did the healing department even learn."

A prestigious noble.

'Adrian Flückner', a second-year student in the magic department, began to sneer at the whispering healing department student.

Luin glared at Flückner and whispered softly.

"Shut up."

Shut up if you want to live.

If there was one thing that Luin, who had fallen into the abyss, had learned the most, it was the 'survival instinct.' Luin's intuition was desperately shouting at him to shut that guy's mouth, but.

"I can't do that, sunbaenim."

The vigorous Flückner simply refused Luin's wish. He was also one of the arrogant magicians who had fallen for magic supremacism.

"While we were trapped in the barrier all day and suffering, the healing department students were probably sitting in chairs studying theory...."

"Shut up, you son of a bitch..."

"If the healing department guys had received the same class as us, they would have run away crying."

-Saaaaa...

Luin had a feeling.

"Haa...?"

That it was too late to turn back.

"What did you just say?"

"Did I say something wrong?"

"You wouldn't say that if you had been in that hell for 10 hours."

"There's a limit to lying."

A childish fight over who had it harder had begun.

"Don't talk until you know how hard it is to break a barrier. You're worse than a potion, healer."

"Watch your mouth. If you get hurt now, we're the only ones who can heal you."

"It would be useful if you could hurt me."

"You son of a bitch...!"

Just as harsh words were exchanged and the students' fight was about to turn into a fight between departments.

"Stop."

Malik, with a towel on her head, calmly walked between the students and began to calm the agitated atmosphere.

'Is he trying to mediate because he's a senior director....'

The moment Luin's evaluation of Malik was about to rise in his mind.

"We had it the hardest, so be quiet."

Malik began to engage in the childish game.

*

At the time when the students were having a sharp war of nerves.

In the basement of the mountain cabin, I was talking with the kind teachers with a small smile.

"How was the class today?"

Hans replied with a small smile.

"They seem to be following along better than I thought."

"Is that so? I thought Luin would have interfered."

"Just as you said, Saint, I poked him a little, and he reacted right away."

"He's an easy person to handle."

A small smile formed on my face.

It wasn't a bad story that the class was going well. Although it was surprising that that algae guy was following along well.

"What about you, Elysia?"

"The students are nice and are following along well."

Elysia replied with a faint smile. That there were no problems.

"Oh, by the way, Saint, what do you think is the difference between a potion and a healer?"

The difference between a potion and a healer....

After thinking for a short time, I gave Elysia the answer I had thought of. To be honest, there wasn't a big difference.

"I think it's a weapon with high versatility."

"May I ask why you think so?"

"A healer is an undead crusher, isn't it? Besides, a skilled healer can even reattach a severed part. Potions are overwhelmingly better in terms of portability, but in irregular situations, a healer demonstrates overwhelming skill."

Elysia, who heard the answer, nodded her head in admiration, as if she were looking at a student who had answered a descriptive question correctly.

"As expected of the Saint."

"Thank you for the compliment... but why did you suddenly ask such a question?"

Elysia replied with a faint smile. At Elysia's smile, who was laughing like a mischievous child who had played an interesting prank, I felt a chill run down my spine.

"I asked the students."

"Pardon?"

"What the difference between a potion and a healer is."

"I bet the reaction was no joke."

Elysia smiled faintly and said nothing. Seeing that she was saying nothing, it probably wasn't a very good reaction, but I thought it was better to stop asking. I didn't think it was necessary to have unnecessary thoughts about someone I didn't need to worry about.

I stretched slightly and asked Hans and Elysia.

"What are you thinking of doing for tomorrow's class? I'm thinking of pushing them into an orc's den."

Hans, whose eyes shone as if he were impressed by my words, gave a disappointed expression and replied.

"I'm thinking of doing the barrier class one more time. I think the students will like it if I proceed with two levels higher...."

"I see."

"Saint, if it's not too much trouble, may we also use the orc's den in the next class?"

"Of course. If there's a specific individual you want, you can tell Elysia and she'll take care of it."

"Elysia...!"

At the sight of Hans looking at Elysia with impressed eyes, Elysia smiled slightly and nodded her head.

"I'm thinking of putting them in a group of ghouls this time."

"...Ghouls?"

"Today, we built up their basic combat skills with relatively weak skeletons, so I think it's time to build up their courage."

They all seemed like tough people.

So much so that I thought I was the most normal one among them.

It was then.

-Get out, you lying healing department!

-You guys who were lying down in the barrier, get out!

-You won't understand the sorrow of the swordsmanship department until you've fainted all day.

The sound of the students who had refused to rest causing a commotion was heard.

I looked up at the ceiling and smiled slightly as I looked at Hans and Elysia.

"It seems like they're fighting."

"It does."

"Youth is a wonderful thing."

After a moment of silence, Elysia pointed at the ceiling with her finger and said with a benevolent smile.

"Shall we proceed?"

An eerie smile began to bloom on the three people's faces.

A plain in a deep mountain at the dead of night, when the moon is rising.

"Oh dear..."

I, who had called the students out, smiled faintly and looked at the huffing and puffing young generation.

-Keep your eyes straight when you walk.

-You keep your eyes straight. I'm not going to heal you if you get hurt.

-That...!

The sight of the high-spirited students made me laugh. In the midst of it all, Malik, who had secured victory, was smiling faintly.

-We won.

Still, perhaps they fought while keeping the line, as there were no seriously injured cadets, so I suppressed my anger. I looked at the students with minor scratches and began to mediate lowly.

"Was it fun?"

"..."

"Haha... I wish you had included me. Don't you think so?"

The mediation called power.

With my hands behind my back, I glanced at the students with their heads bowed and continued in a calm voice.

"I think I underestimated you all."

"..."

"I thought I had rolled you enough so that you could go to sleep as soon as you entered the dormitory... but to be fighting without even sleeping. Haha..."

"..."

"You must have a lot of energy left."

As my awkward laugh echoed through the vast plain, the students in front of me made a grim face and swallowed. They too instinctively felt that things had gone wrong.

"Aren't you all students from the same academy?"

"..."

"Your departments are different, but you are students of the same academy. If you cause a disturbance from the first day, won't it interfere with the classes in the future?"

The only answer to my question was silence with bowed heads. They too did not know that things would get this big.

Just thinking about that time made me want to laugh.

-Knock. Knock.

-...!!!

-Everyone, what are you doing at this late hour?

Their expressions as they looked at me in the messy lounge were so vivid.

Barely holding back my laughter, I looked at the student who was trembling with clenched fists and asked. Seeing his expression, it seemed like he had a lot to say.

"Student Adrian Folkner."

"..."

"Is there something you want to say?"

"..."

The 2nd year of the Magic Department, with his mouth tightly shut, was only clenching his fists without saying a word.

Has puberty come now? The smile began to disappear from Folkner's face, which looked like it was about to talk back at any moment. No matter what, you should answer when someone calls you.

"Adrian Folkner."

The moment I spoke without a title, Folkner raised his head and answered in a voice full of annoyance, like a rebellious middle school 2nd grader.

"Yes."

'...Oh ho?'

Does he not understand the situation?

Or is he really doing this because he feels wronged?

Following Rohan, the appearance of a new villain seemed to make my blood boil. It was thrilling to torment someone who wouldn't bend their beliefs.

I don't have a perverted taste for feeling pleasure in tormenting people, but still, feeling a certain kind of fun in trampling someone with strong beliefs, I took a step down from the platform and looked him straight in the eye and said.

"Are you upset?"

"No."

'Interesting.'

It was like seeing a second green algae head. His refusal to back down despite knowing he was in the wrong was a spitting image of the green algae.

Far from bending, I smiled at his gaze, which was looking at me with a triumphant expression, and asked Folkner once more. While contemplating how to break him.

"Student Adrian Folkner."

"...Yes."

"Is there something you want to say?"

"No."

"...But why are you opening your eyes like that?"

"I've always been like this."

"Ah...?"

"Are you saying something about my appearance now?"

"Hmm...?"

Thinking he had found a weakness, I smiled at Folkner's insolent words and silently endured his rebellion.

"I came here to learn."

"That's right."

"To gain experience I couldn't learn at the academy. I'm participating in this class by spending the time called 'vacation'."

"I know."

"It's true that we were wrong to cause a fight, but I think it's right to guarantee our sleeping time now for the sake of having a good condition for class."

"Student Adrian. Do you know that you're being scolded right now?"

"Yes. But we are adults too. We can resolve minor disputes through conversation."

Why is he suddenly talking like this?

Does he want to act smart?

Is he really doing this because he wants to sleep?

'...Ah.'

Having seen through Folkner's thoughts, I smiled at his brazen speech and nodded. It seemed like he was trying to incite the students who were dissatisfied with the high intensity of the class to put the blame on 'me'.

'Interesting.'

I smiled faintly and said.

"I see. This is my first time teaching someone, so I'm very lacking."

I deliberately spoke weakly to encourage him to dig his own grave.

"Could you tell me if there are any points that need to be improved?"

Adrian, thinking he had seized the momentum, raised his head stiffly and spat out his complaints.

"...To be honest, I."

As Folkner's words grew longer, Malik's expression began to harden.

-...Histania Hanna.

-Why, brother?

-This is scary.

-...Me too.

"I can't understand instructor Hans, who conducts classes with high intensity. It's not a class that can be done at the students' level. And he has a criminal record... I think it's degrading for a teacher who teaches proud academy students to be a criminal."

"I see."

"Honestly, I'd like to report him to the imperial army right now..."

Cutting off Folkner's excellent speech, I smiled and said to him.

"In conclusion..."

"..."

"Student Adrian's words mean that 'the quality of the class is low'."

"That's not it..."

"No. There's no need to change your words now. It's right for a student to confidently assert their right to learn."

Folkner's face gradually began to turn pale. I don't know what his original intention was, but it was clear that things were not going as he had hoped.

"Angry to be taught by a competent ex-convict..."

"..."

"I'm truly sorry, but I don't think I can do anything about this part. In my standard, the right person to teach you all is the teacher who committed the 'crime' that student Folkner mentioned."

"..."

"I wanted to persuade you all to attend class tomorrow with a good attitude... but to think the discord was not caused by the students, but directed at us..."

I looked at Folkner, whose expression was hardening, and made a grim face.

"It's truly regrettable."

The air began to turn cold.

In this place where darkness had fallen, the angry voices of those whose 'God' had been insulted began to be heard.

-Thud...

I don't know what 'I' was to them, but seeing me in a difficult situation must have been an eyesore to them.

-Thud.

"Teacher Hans."

The moment his name was called, Hans, who appeared with the darkness, bowed his head and offered me an apology. He kept his head bowed, conveying his will that he was truly sorry for making me hear such words because of him.

"I am sorry, Saint-nim."

"Haha. It's alright."

"But..."

"I expected something like this to happen. Of course, I don't dislike Hans-nim. I want to keep competent people by my side."

"Saint-nim...!"

Folkner's eyes were trembling.

The moment they met Hans's eyes, he too had a premonition of his future.

It wasn't just Hans.

"A cute provocation."

Elysia, who appeared with the distortion of space, was also smiling faintly and looking at Folkner.

I patted Folkner's shoulder and smiled faintly. With comfort, telling him not to think too deeply about the resentment he would receive in the future.

"I will repay you with a good class."

I offered him my support.

Elysia, standing next to me, smiled faintly and said to me.

"I'm ready, Saint-nim."

"Haha.. then shall we begin?"

"Understood."

I clapped my hands and said to the students in a gentle voice.

"From now on, we will begin the 2nd day of class."

"What?!"

"What about sleep..."

"Ah... please..."

Malik, wearing a sheep-shaped towel on his head, showed complicated emotions and made an awkward expression.

"This is big trouble."

"Why?"

"I want to go home."

With Malik's words, my vision began to change.

*

10 hours later.

"Director!!!"

"Sigor Look. Hold the line!!!!"

"Ugh... ugh..."

I, sitting in the lounge space created by Elysia, sipped my tea and watched the students attending the class.

-Don't rest and use bombardment magic..!

-I'm out of mana...!

-Shut up and shoot!

It's a good scene.

The pouring undead army was like a wave.

"It's a good sight."

"Thank you, Saint-nim."

"I wish the students would work together..."

I looked at Elysia, who was controlling the undead army, and asked. Where she had learned necromancer magic.

"Elysia-nim."

"Yes, Saint-nim."

"Did you also have the ability of a necromancer?"

"Ah..."

"I want to learn it too."

At my question, Elysia, smiling as if embarrassed, shook her head and gave an honest answer.

"These are soldiers I kept in a sub-space to prepare for the battle with Temperance."

"Then those undead are..."

"Yes, I caught them in a dungeon and stored them."

"I see."

"I don't need them anymore, so it's fine to use them however I want, right?"

Looking at the endlessly 나오는 undead horde, I asked Elysia with honest curiosity.

"How many are there?"

"Um..."

Elysia, laughing awkwardly, mumbled her answer.

"Can I keep it a secret? It's a number I'm embarrassed to say..."

It didn't seem like a normal number.

-Rear guard!!! Don't get pushed back!!!

-No, the barrier...!

A familiar scene was unfolding.

The blue barrier that was gradually shrinking like the magnetic field in a survival game I had played in my past life was my idea.

"Hans-nim is also working hard."

It was blatantly obvious.

-Luin-sunbae!! The large undead are heading your way...!

-Kugh...

-Adrian-sunbaenim's side too!!

-Everyone shut up-yot! Shuen-gel...!!!! Mini Meteor!!!

"When do you think they'll team up?"

I smiled faintly as I watched the students fighting scattered with persistence. No matter which side had the upper hand, they were bound to team up eventually.

Elysia and Hans shook their heads and gave a negative answer.

"Don't you think they'll team up if we roll them for about 4 more hours? The Magic Department is starting to run out of mana."

"That's probably right. The Swordsmanship Department is the most dominant, but it will be physically difficult for them to hold out."

"The Healing Department students..."

-Kuhahaha!!!!

-The undead are melting, Yuria-sunbae!

-I'll melt more!!!

I kept my words to myself as I watched the berserkers who had lost their minds.