“Sir,” Han Sora said.

“What is it?” I[1] asked.

“They left,” she said.

“

Huh?

What did you say?” I asked.

“Didn’t you hear the news? The guys you did the mock battle with yesterday. Gilmore and some of his party members… eventually left the academy. After the mock battle, he stared off into the distance for hours… and then he submitted a request to leave before leaving on his own,” Han Sora answered.

“

Ah

, the leader of the opposing party? He left just because of that? He just needs to think that this experience is part of life, and if he doesn’t graduate from the academy, how is he going to survive this harsh continent of Rohen?” I questioned.

“Everyone in Squad 1 submitted a request to leave,” Han Sora added.

“...”

Now I feel bad.

“...”

If I were in their position…’

It would be a traumatic experience for me as well.

They heard loud noises nonstop without having any idea about where the spells and arrows were coming from. The guys reinforcing them were eliminated amidst their agonized screams. They didn’t suffer any major injuries, but I had basically bullied them.

Of course, the audience was unaware of it, as they could see my bluff, but what Squad 1 had experienced was different.

They experienced a type of fear that was drastically different from what one could feel from Han Sora and Woo Hyo-Yeol. The summoned beast or the incomprehensible power Woo Hyo-Yeol possessed instilled a type of fear that they had never felt before.

One could say fear of the unknown was scarier than fear of something that could be seen. Some of them were still adapting, and I was sure just hearing the word "battle" was enough to make them feel nervous.

‘But Gilmore seemed like he had the basics down.’

“And… you received over a hundred invitations so far,” Han Sora said.

“

Hm…

”

“You’re going to join the Flower and Fertility Familia, right?” Han Sora asked.

“Well, I’ve been thinking about it… but I haven't really thought about which familia to join…” I told her.

“Then should I not accept the other invitations?” Han Sora asked.

“Pick five places for me,” I answered.

“Okay.”

‘She has a strong sense of pride as well.’

While we were doing our morning meeting, I noticed that Han Sora’s eyes were swollen.

‘She must have thought that it was really unfair.’

I could tell that she cried last night. She was pretending like nothing happened, but who would be happy about losing? She lost at the last moment, so it was highly likely that she vented her anger by crying.

“But… don’t worry too much, Miss Sora,” I said.

“What?”

“He’s a regressor. I’m sure he had a trick up his sleeve. It's not strange for him to be strong… and it’s because you lack experience in a real battle. I’m sure—”

“I’m not worried about it, sir,” Han Sora interrupted me.

‘Yeah, right.’

“It doesn’t always go like you planned when you’re on the battlefield. There’s bound to be variables,” I told her.

“...”

“...”

“...But things always go your way,” Han Sora commented.

“It doesn’t always go my way. It seems that way, but there are many flaws. Also, regarding Christian, it would have been a lot better if that idiot hadn't been in your party,” I told her.

“I… won’t deny it,” Han Sora mumbled.

‘He took it a little too far.’

“Anyway… aren’t you worried?” Han Sora asked.

“Well, I’d like to crush him if I could…” I paused.

I couldn't say that it would be easy to do so. Of course, the basic template already gave me a huge advantage. If I were to use those annoying tactics, which annoyed me even with tactical Kim Hyun-Sung on the field, I would definitely have a massive advantage. I could also use what I learned from those mock battles with Jin Cheong.

The Regressor Instruction Manual wasn’t even connected to Woo Hyo-Yeol.

It seemed like he could instinctively read that battlefield, but he was nothing more than a beast running around. The problem was that he was a huge beast, and I had no harpoon to use to hunt him.

“Isn’t it better to have two useful resources?” Han Sora asked.

“Lim Cheong-Ha and Han Seung-Yoon are there—

Ah

, among the mages, there’s one mage who received special training. But to be honest, they’re not strong enough to face Woo Hyo-Yeol… If they use what they learned during training, they’ll exchange a few moves before cowering, but I’m not even sure if they can do that.

"You were the same, Miss Sora. Didn't you also think that it's better to avoid an encounter with him?” I asked.

“That’s right,” Han Sora answered.

“I would’ve done the same thing,” I said.

“So I didn’t make the wrong choice,” Han Sora said.

“Yeah, the wrong choice you made was not handling Christian properly. The rest was okay. I certainly thought you were going to win until the middle part of the battle. Anyway…

ahem

… isn’t it time to head out?” I asked.

“Yes, you have to go and prepare. Make sure to encourage your party members,” Han Sora reminded.

“Thank you for your hard work, Miss Sora,” I said.

After nodding, I opened the door to the waiting room, and I heard voices everywhere.

“Mr. Lee Ki-Young! I’m from the Slender Tentacle Familia!”

‘You guys can leave.’

“Mr. Lee Ki-Young! Do you have a moment to talk? I’m from the rising familia…”

“Mr. Lee Ki-Young! Mr. Lee Ki-Young!”

These recruiters filled the corridor that led to the stadium, and they were yelling nonstop. Things were out of control, but the members of the Family and Fertility Familia were helping me, which was nice.

They stayed close to me as if they were my bodyguards, and they pushed the recruiters away, making them very reliable.

‘Maybe I should just join the Family and Fertility Familia.’

While the recruiters were talking nonsense, my party members exited their waiting rooms.

“Ki-Young, I’ve been pretty upset recently. I know you were meeting your girlfriend… but how could you treat me like a third wheel?” Lim Cheong-Ha complained.

“It’s not like that, Cheong-Ha noona. Sora noona and I were just really close...” I told her.

“Is that true? I can trust you, right?” she asked.

“Of course, it’s true. You think I’m lying? Do you not trust me as well, hyung?” I asked.

“You’re the only one I trust,” Han Seung-Yoon replied.

“You said you were upset yesterday as well! You kept talking about how she was going to take Ki-Young away…” Lim Cheong-Ha revealed.

“When did I say that…” Han Seung-Yoon mumbled.

“You said that right after the mock battle,” Lim Cheong-Ha said.

We passed through the passageway while having a meaningless conversation. As soon as we appeared on the stage, I heard cheers.

“

Woooo!

”

‘Are they here to watch some sporting event?’

There were so many people that I couldn’t believe this mock battle was between rookie adventurers. I heard loud cheers everywhere as if they were cheering on their favorite team. The representatives of the major familias did the same and were applauding for the players.

I was sure they were just expressing their excitement. Obviously, the GENIUSES were excited as well, and it was to the point that someone could misunderstand this as some kind of mainstream event.

“Lee Ki-Young! I love you, Lee Ki-Young!”

“Ki-Young! This noona loves you a lot! Ki-Young!”

“Ki-Young!”

“Lee Ki-Young is a genius! He’s a nobleman!”

One's image was paramount.

As soon as the mock battle started, I walked around the map as if I were taking a stroll, and the fans touched by the sight screamed at the top of their lungs.

It was only natural for me to receive attention, as this was a performance I had decided to include for the sake of ensuring that people would focus on me more than anyone else. The end result was perfect. Unlike Woo Hyo-Yeol, who couldn't achieve a clean victory, the ultimate winner of the quarterfinals was going to be me.

‘I’m really popular.’

My elegant gait probably added to that. Who could have known that practicing to walk like a noble before the revolution of the Democratic Country would come in handy? My value had to be high, and of course, Woo Hyo-Yeol found this situation absurd.

As expected, he was looking at me.

I had no idea what he was thinking, but I had no energy to worry about him.

I needed to take care of my party.

“Are you all nervous?” I asked.

“H-How could we not be nervous, Ki-Young? I feel like my heart is going to burst… T-The atmosphere is so different from yesterday,” Lim Cheong-Ha answered.

“You just need to apply the things you learned during training and do what you normally do,” I reassured her.

“Easier said than done…” Lim Cheong-Ha commented.

“I told you this at the start, right? If you’re not sure, just trust me,” I reminded her.

I smiled brightly while looking at the 50-something party members.

“It’s a mock battle anyway. It’s a rite of passage we must go through if we’re going to live on this continent as a player. We’re not fighting actual enemies, and we’re not putting our lives in this battle. Think of this as a test to show everyone our potential,” I said, acting with determination and energy.

I pretended to be an innocent child who had no idea that he was a genius.

I looked at everyone and cheered in an innocent way that made me appear as if the world had yet to corrupt me, and I was sure they noticed that.

My arm was also shaking timidly as I raised my clenched fist. I was only human. I was dragged to the Rohen Continent in my early twenties, and I still had no idea what was going on, but I had to fight people to show my worth.

I was also under immense pressure, as many people had high expectations of me. I also had the responsibility of taking care of my party members and leading them to victory.

They were probably questioning why I wasn’t nervous as well as how a genius like me was always so confident and calm.

‘That’s… what everyone is probably thinking, right?’

'Right? They’re sympathizing with me, right?'

“Cheong-Ha noona,” I said.

“Yeah?”

“Seung-Yoon hyung,” I said.

“Yeah.”

“Merkel noona,” I said.

“Y-Yeah, Ki-Young.”

“Hirose hyung,” I said.

“Yeah, kid?”

It was short but long. I called out the names of my party members. Of course, I had forgotten the names of some of them, but I activated Mind's Eye before calling out their names.

Everyone looked like they had the desire to achieve something—the desire to do something for me, as I had been working day and night for them. They had that kind of desire, right?

“You’ve all done well. My words might’ve been hard to believe, and despite not having any reason to follow me, I’m really grateful that you stuck with me,” I said.

“Hey… don’t say it like that. You’re talking as if we’re not going to see each other after the mock battle,” Han Seung-Yoon said.

‘Yes, that's right.’

“What?! No, that’s not what I meant!” I denied it clumsily.

“It was a joke, kid. I know you won’t abandon us.

Haha

. We should be the ones thanking you. I feel like you've been working hard recently because of us,” Han Seung-Yoon laughed.

“Hyung…” I mumbled.

“Seung-Yoon oppa is right. We should be thanking you, not the other way around,” Lim Cheong-Ha chimed in.

“Cheong-Ha noona,” I mumbled.

“Thanks. I learned so much from you, and not just sword techniques. You taught me about life. You also taught me how to look at this continent in a positive way, and you taught me more… about myself as well,” Hirose said.

“H-Hirose hyung,” I stuttered.

“You’re pretending to be calm, but we know you’re the most anxious out of all of us. We know how worried you’ve been about this mock battle. Do you really think that we won't notice? You can let go of some of that burden. A-At least this time… we’ll fight for you,” Hirose said.

“Y-You guys…” I mumbled.

I started crying, and everyone finally became one.

Their eagerness and determination were so passionate that I felt it burning in my heart.

‘Their morale has increased.’

I felt like they could go beyond their limits under this kind of atmosphere.

“Don’t cry, kid.”

‘Stop patting my head, damn it.’

“That thug that you’re so worried about… Cheong-Ha and I will stop him even if it kills us,” Han Seung-Yoon said.

Each and every member patted my head as if they were touching a lucky charm. As the clumsy genius, the only thing I could do in this touching situation… was lower my head.

1. Lee Ki-Young’s POV ☜