ReLife Player

ReLife Player 091

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Bibell

[What to Believe (3)]

To a large extent, the Secondary Academy was an institution that did not produce players, but rather players who were trained to be players.

The entrance exam for the Secondary Academy was not centered on identifying the qualities of the candidate, but on whether the candidate had the ability to be a player.

It didn’t make sense to give a test to children who didn’t know what their qualities were, and to ask them to demonstrate the qualities of a player.

It’s not uncommon for students to enter the Secondary Academy with a good handle on mana, and it’s not uncommon for students to transfer to a regular middle school while still in the Secondary Academy.

Therefore, the chances of a candidate failing the Secondary Academy entrance exam were not very high.

As Eunha mentioned, it wasn’t as difficult as she had thought.

For some reason, Euna didn’t think the entrance exam for the Secondary Academy was difficult.

In fact, it was too easy. She’d been learning the mana language since she was a child, and now that she was being tutored by Seoyoung, she didn’t find the test difficult.

Shin Seoyoung must have been expecting her to feel that way.

Euna remembered a task that Seo-young had given her the day before.

‘Don’t use mana during the test. If you really need it, that’s fine, but I don’t want you to use it.’

‘Why? Don’t you have to be good with mana to be a player?’

‘You’re right, Euna, a player should be able to handle mana properly, because the difference between a player and a normal person is how they handle mana.’

‘Then why can’t I use mana….’

‘But Euna, you rely too much on mana.’

Until she heard those words from Seoyoung, Euna hadn’t realized that she was dependent on mana control.

But Seoyoung was right.

Looking back, she had been using mana whenever she could.

In particular, she tended to rely on it when she was in a critical situation. There were more than a few times when she just threw mana around.

It was unavoidable.

From a young age, Euna was told that she had more mana in her body than other children of her age.

She subconsciously trusted her body’s mana because she didn’t feel tired whenever she used magic.

‘A player who knows the limits of their mana won’t consume it recklessly.

But you and I have abnormally different levels of mana than others, don’t we?

As a player, you should be able to anticipate when you’re at a disadvantage and deal with it in advance.’

That’s why Eunha approached the test without using mana. Even without using mana, it wasn’t difficult for her to take the lead with her well-trained physical stamina since she was young.

However, she didn’t expect someone else to run without using mana like her.

She’s really fast! Even faster than me.

Euna couldn’t help but be amazed.

In the end, she had to finish the track without surpassing Ryu Yeonhwa.

«You’re really fast! I didn’t know someone could run without using mana like me!»

Euna felt a sense of friendliness towards Yeonhwa. She approached Yeonhwa, who was drinking water from the water dispenser, and started a conversation.

Yeonhwa glanced briefly and then averted her gaze. Silently nodding her head, she passed by Euna without saying a word.

«She seems distant.»

Euna turned to look at her passing by and simply shrugged her shoulders.

Strangely, she didn’t feel any discomfort from being ignored.

Instead, she felt an urge to strike up a conversation for no particular reason.

☆

After the examination in the second training center, the students ate snacks provided by the secondary academy to satisfy their hunger.

The children who had been running early in the morning couldn’t even properly eat their snacks. Perhaps because they were not accustomed to using mana, their stomachs weren’t feeling well. Some sat on the ground, passing the time, while others lay down and took short naps.

«Well, this isn’t a big deal.»

Heeji wasn’t feeling well either. Due to mismanaging her pace while depleting mana, she had used up a considerable amount.

The more she struggled, watching Yeonhwa and Euna taking the lead, the more anxious she became, resulting in several mistakes.

Mmm, it tastes good!

On the contrary, Euna received another snack. The bread, coated with sugar, quickly disappeared into her mouth.

After finishing their snacks, the children moved to a less crowded area.

Although snippets of conversations between the children and Heeji could be heard, she didn’t show interest and focused on meditating to refine her mana.

While Euna occasionally stored mana during her free time, she found that refining her mana was sufficient.

Glancing around the training ground, Euna noticed that Yeonhwa also had her eyes closed, meditating.

«Morning class A examinees, please wait in the third training hall!»

The break was over.

The examinees rose from their seats and followed the proctor to the third training room.

At the door to the third training room, the proctor explained the final test.

The candidates will have to escape from the maze set up in the third training room.

The structure of the maze changes every hour, and the candidates are randomly assigned a starting point from the entrance.

«At certain points in the maze, the assistant supervisors will provide drinks and refreshments, so you can take breaks as you see fit.

If something doesn’t feel right, please tell the assistant proctors.

You may or may not cooperate with each other. Feel free to use weapons or mana as needed.

Anything that amounts to killing is prohibited, and if this happens, we will fail you for any reason, and we will deal out severe punishment in the name of the Korean Mana Management Organization.»

The maze changes every few hours.

And you have to find the exit from a randomized location.

The candidates were understandably nervous.

They glanced at each other. Some of them had gotten to know each other at the test center, some of them had gone to the same elementary school, and some of them were whispering about cooperating with each other.

I knew it.

Heeji smiled inwardly.

The test at the second training center had gone against her expectations, but the test at the third training center would not.

Beforehand, she had heard from her sister, who was enrolled in the Secondary Academy, that the test in the Third Training Ground would be the most difficult.

She was also advised that she would need to be able to read the flow of mana to pass the test, and that she would need to be on the same side as other students who had a good sense of mana.

I’m glad I’ve gotten along with the kids.

This was the reason why Heeji approached them and talked to them a little bit.

She was looking for kids who could help her pass this test.

This allowed her to offer her cooperation to the children she had been eyeing since before she entered the Third Training Ground.

Euna should be recruited.

I may not like her, but she’s capable, and she’ll be easier to deal with.

«Euna, what are you going to do? Do you want to cooperate with us?»

Heeji had been eyeing Euna since she first saw her.

No one in her elementary school was as pretty as her.

She also had a charming smile.

She was absolutely mesmerizing.

She naturally caught people’s attention.

She wasn’t the only one, but all the candidates would steal glances at her.

Moreover, she was not only beautiful, but also quite capable. Her results in the second training center were undeniable.

It was fortunate that she had made friends with her early on.

Heeji chuckled inwardly at the envy of those who missed the opportunity to approach her.

«Well… sure! But won’t we all scatter once we enter the test area?»

«We’ll cooperate if we meet in the maze. After entering the test area, everyone will try their best to achieve good scores, so let’s promise to have friendly competition among ourselves. Right, guys?»

«Yes, that’s right.»

«Let’s meet in the test area.»

«Let’s do our best.»

The children who promised cooperation along with Heeji raised their voices.

«Sure, let’s do that. Let’s meet in the test area.»

Euna nodded without much hesitation.

Should I ask Yeonhwa as well?

Euna became interested in Yeonhwa, who had remained silent throughout the test.

So she was worried about Yeonhwa, who didn’t seem eager to socialize with the other children.

Euna was drawn to Yeonhwa’s captivating beauty and the skills she demonstrated at the Second Training Ground, and she wanted to enter the Secondary Academy together with her.

«Yeonhwa, want to join us?»

Thus, she approached Yeonhwa, who was leaning against the wall, observing the entrance to the test area.

It was natural that the attention of the other candidates focused on the two of them.

Everyone was paying attention to the two who had shown astonishing skills at the Second Training Ground.

«I’m fine.»

Yeonhwa turned away from Euna’s extended hand.

«Really? Can you do it alone?»

«I can do it alone.»

Euna wasn’t discouraged or hurt by Yeonhwa’s refusal.

She was genuinely concerned about Yeonhwa’s decision to take the test alone.

«Oh my, what should we do about her?»

«She’ll feel left out.»

Meanwhile, the candidates who had been observing the two secretly sneered.

None of them wished to see the two holding hands.

Deep down, some of them were even envious of the two.

Of course, there were also negative glances directed at Yeonhwa.

«Acting all high and mighty alone.»

«Why is she so arrogant?»

«Who does she think she is?»

Especially the children who had promised cooperation with Euna exchanged words while eyeing Yeonhwa at the end of the corridor.

It was a whisper that could be heard all the way to the corridor’s end.

Although Yeonhwa must have heard the sound, she showed no reaction.

She simply closed her eyes and waited for the test to begin.

«Euna, are you okay?»

«She’s really mean.»

«She probably doesn’t have any friends at school.»

Heeji and the other children comforted Euna.

But Euna didn’t pay attention to their words of comfort.

Unlike in the past, she knew that the test-takers were watching and restraining each other.

She also knew that their words of comfort held no sincerity.

That’s why she became even more interested in Yeonhwa.

Yeonhwa, who showed her genuine self without any pretense.

It was like looking at a clear and pure crystal.

She was strangely drawn to her.

And she knew exactly what that attraction was.

She felt like she could become close friends with Yeonhwa.

It was a familiar allure that seeped in whenever she made close friends.

And a moment later, the final test began.

«We will now enter the Third Training Ground!»

Euna stepped into the dark space.

☆

«There are so many candidates this year.»

«There’s no problem with that. Next year, we’ll have to hire more proctors and secure more examination centers.»

The chief supervisor sighed.

The competition for admission to the secondary academy averaged is 3:1, and the entrance exam was 1.5:1, excluding candidates with poor life evaluations at the paperwork stage.

This year, however, the number of applicants alone was 10:1, and the competition rate for the entrance examination was reduced to 3:1.

The cohort entering next year consists of 300 students, but there are over 900 test-takers taking the entrance exam.

To make sure the test runs smoothly, they split the candidates into morning and afternoon classes, and divided each class into A, B, and C groups.

It’s still a morning exam.

The supervisors were tired from observing the test-takers since early morning.

«Their skills are commendable, but this is still too much.»

«Exactly.»

«Does anyone get out of here for even half an afternoon?»

The chief supervisor asked the proctors who were resting in the monitor room.

Those who raised their hands were already exhausted. Several were rubbing the corners of their eyes to relieve the fatigue.

Maybe we should ask for a bonus.

The chief supervisor understood their frustration; he, too, had an afternoon of proctoring ahead of him and was sighing.

As soon as the exams were over, he was going to propose an additional allowance to the Secondary Academy.

The Player Academy was a free institution, but it wasn’t like they didn’t charge a fee.

There were a lot of candidates this year, so they must have filled their coffers.

«Morning session. Bring in the outstanding ones so far.»

«In group C of the morning session, student number 25, Mo Minseok, student number 63, Choi Hyunjeong, student number 89, Park Hyoseok, and student number 103, Han Jaehui, have shown excellent performance.»

«In group B of the morning session, student number 8, Kang Jinmin, student number 26, Han Jinhyeok, student number 67, Jung Yeonim, student number 100, Han Changjin, and student number 115, Lee Daseon, possess notable qualities as players.»

«In group A of the morning session, student number 39, No Euna, and student number 40, Ryu Yeonhwa, stand out among the test-takers.»

«Group A?»

The chief supervisor, leaning back in his leather chair as if sinking into it, stroked his chin.

He also remembered the remarkable performance of the two individuals from group A in the morning session.

«Group A of the morning session. What are they doing now?» «They are currently taking the test in the third training facility.»

«Ah, that test.»

The chief supervisor recalled the content of the test conducted in the third training facility and couldn’t hide his interest.

The test conducted in the third training facility was the Mana Detection Test, which was considered the most important among this year’s entrance exams.

«Assign all the available monitors to group A of the morning session.»

The Mana Detection Test required test-takers to demonstrate their talent for mana detection and how they dealt with the changing maze at regular intervals.

The maze, whose structure changed periodically, could not be escaped without using mana detection.

They should not be fixated on what they see.

As players, they had to be able to perceive things that were not visible.

Of course, the entrance exam did not expect test-takers to have the ability to read the flow of mana in great detail.

Therefore, the maze was designed in a way that could be easily escaped as long as they could detect mana.

«It sounds easy in words. But can the children who have lived as if the unseen is natural really focus only on the unseen?»

To read the flow of mana, they had to detect mana throughout the test.

The maze changed its structure at regular intervals, and there were countless intersections.

And there was another factor that caused confusion among the candidates

«You shouldn’t trust anyone.»

The assistant supervisors stationed at specific points would subtly guide the candidates down the wrong path, relieving the candidates’ vigilance from mana detection.

Can the candidates truly doubt whether the paths shown by the assistant supervisors are incorrect?

If they know how to see mana, then the answer would be clear.

However, they were not players but rather test-takers striving to become players.

Again, can those who have lived thinking the unseen is natural truly believe in what they couldn’t see?

In the end, there were two things necessary to pass this test.

One is to perceive mana that is not visible.

The other is to clearly determine what to believe in.

If one truly wants to become a player, they must know how to clearly determine what to believe in.

If what should be believed is not clear, then no one should be trusted.

In any situation, there was only one thing that could be trusted, and that was oneself.

In the world of players, life and death were always close at hand.

The only one who could take responsibility for it was oneself.

«What about those kids?»

The chief supervisor was curious about the movements of the two individuals who showed outstanding skills among the candidates for next year’s admission.

«Student number 40, Ryu Yeonhwa, is progressing confidently.»

«And student number 39, No Euna… um…»

The supervisors all had a stern expression.

Some supervisors expressed their disappointment.

It’s regrettable.

The chief supervisor couldn’t hide his disappointment either.

The admission of student number 39, No Euna, and student number 40, Ryu Yeonhwa, was already a predetermined fact.

However, student number 39, No Euna, would not be admitted with excellent grades.

«It seems she won’t be able to enter on time like that.»

No Euna, student number 39.

She was listening to the instructions of the assistant supervisor.