The extraordinary feat Lee Hyunwoo had pulled off once again spread throughout the Academy like ripples on water.
The students and staff.
Even the civilians who worked inside the Academy—the kitchen staff, cleaners, public officials responsible for maintaining public order, and so on—came to hear about what Lee Hyunwoo had done.
Putting the professor who had taunted and mocked him firmly in his place was impressive enough, but what truly amazed people was his genius in reaching the First Circle at the young age of eight.
Several broadcasters with informants inside the Academy even reported the story on the news the very next day.
<Next is our latest story. At South Korea's Academy in Jinhae, South Gyeongsang Province, a student admitted this year has become the first person in the world to reach the First Circle at just six years old.>
Naturally, Hyunwoo refused all interview requests.
He had already suffered more than enough public attention in his previous life.
The internet news was also flooded with stories about Hyunwoo.
Likes 783 Dislikes 1
→Is that one dislike from the professor who picked on Hyunwoo? LOL
→Typical professor in this country. Thinks he's the greatest person alive. Reality: acts all high and mighty toward an eight-year-old kid and gets taught a proper lesson. LOL
And the person most shocked by this news was none other than Hyunwoo's mother.
His mother, Seong Yuram, had just finished an exhausting day of work and was on her way to the hospital where her husband was staying when she received so many calls and messages that her phone practically stopped working.
<Hello, Hyunwoo's mother. I'm Team Leader Park Jihye from the Golden Guild. If you have a moment, may I speak with you now? I'd like to make you a good offer!>
[Hello, Hyunwoo's mother. Since you haven't answered, I'm sending you a text. I'm from the Guiding Light Guild......]
Seong Yuram only belatedly learned that her son had appeared on the news and that he had reached the First Circle less than fifteen days after entering the Academy.
She barely managed to keep herself from fainting.
“Honey. What in the world is going on......?”
Seong Yuram stared down at her husband with an expression of utter disbelief.
But her husband didn't answer.
Only the life-support equipment responded at steady intervals.
Seong Yuram let out a sigh, turned on the television in one corner of the hospital room, and used the remote to switch to a news channel.
On the television, an anchor and a man who appeared to be a panelist were discussing the matter.
“Yes. Since he's still such a young child, excessive public attention could cause him considerable stress. And if that happens, it could affect his future development as well.”
“Yes. It's a different field, but there was someone like that in sports too, wasn't there? Player Lee Seungyoon, who once performed brilliantly on Barcelona's youth team but has now retired and runs a pork bulgogi restaurant. If things go wrong, could Hyunwoo end up like that too?”
At the anchor's serious question, the panelist went, “Pfft,” before laughing and nodding.
“Yes, yes. Of course. That's certainly possible. That's why people need to refrain from giving the child excessive attention. It would be best to quietly watch and see how he grows.”
As she watched the news, Seong Yuram laughed in disbelief.
“Honey. Are you watching? I guess Hyunwoo really does take after you.”
After that, Seong Yuram continued watching the news for quite some time while holding her husband's hand.
***
Thick beads of sweat covered my entire body as I took deep breaths.
A mana exercise method far more efficient than blindly running for cardio.
I was sitting perfectly still, yet burning calories at the same rate as someone running one hundred meters in ten seconds.
And it wasn't just about calories.
I'd only been doing this for a few weeks, but my lungs were probably healthier than those of anyone else my age.
I was confident I could run a full lap around this enormous Academy without getting tired.
“Haa......”
I closed my eyes and recalled what had happened yesterday.
Reporters had suddenly barged into the classroom in the middle of class.
They had immediately shoved cameras in my face to get an interview, and although I was only at the First Circle, I'd driven them off with magic.
How could people be that rude?
After that, I rejected every interview request and thoroughly avoided the reporters.
Fortunately, the Academy also helped me by forcing the reporters out.
Yeowoo, who was always by my side, had become even more sensitive because of them.
<See?! I'm telling you, we never know what kind of people might suddenly barge in and kidnap our Hyunwoo!>
<......Then why are you looking at me, Unni?>
<Ah, no, it's just...... my eyes happened to wander that way.>
I brushed aside that fragment of memory and resumed my mana exercise.
***
Our final class of the day was taught by our homeroom teacher, Kim Jongseok.
The name of the course was [Virtues and Mindset Required of a Prospective Hero].
It was much more entertaining than boring English or the tedious specialized-subject classes, so once the break ended and class began, I focused on my homeroom teacher's lesson.
Everything Kim Jongseok said was fairly obvious, and the man himself was so stiff that looking at him was like looking at a boulder, but there was a strange charm to his classes.
Then, fifteen minutes before the lesson was supposed to end.
Our homeroom teacher arbitrarily ended class early and immediately began the closing homeroom.
“The reason I'm ending class early today is because the first and final joint practical training of the first semester has been scheduled.”
The students began murmuring at Kim Jongseok's announcement.
He didn't wait for them to quiet down before continuing.
“The Martial Arts Department and Magic Department will participate in the practical training together. It will account for one hundred percent of your practical grade for the first semester, so you can consider it an extremely important examination.”
Kim Jongseok continued explaining.
The exact date of the practical examination was Friday, two weeks from now.
The goals of the exercise were to teach Hero positioning, help students overcome their fear of monsters, promote teamwork between the two departments, and so on......
There were plenty of minor reasons, but in the end, it was all about ranking students by their grades.
The better your grades were from a young age, the greater your chances of becoming an excellent Hero.
And the Academy was an educational institution meant to produce Heroes.
“And your midterm examination is scheduled for a month from now, so make sure you prepare diligently for the written subjects as well. You all know the saying that you have to button the first button correctly, don't you?”
During the question period that followed, countless students raised their hands and began asking whatever they were curious about.
“How will the practical training work?”
“You'll be divided into teams of four. You'll fight model monsters inside a state-of-the-art training facility, and instructors will be stationed there for safety, so there's no particular need to be afraid.”
“How will the teams be decided?”
“I'll personally assign them after taking your entrance examination scores and individual dispositions into account.”
“There are still a lot of students in the Magic Department who can't properly use magic yet. What will happen to them?”
“You'll be graded as a team rather than individually, so there's no need to worry.”
“How will our scores be decided?”
“We'll evaluate everything comprehensively. Which team clears the exercise first. Whether there's any conflict between team members. Whether your positioning works properly together. Everything will be taken into account.”
Several other trivial questions went back and forth before the closing homeroom finally ended.
“Ughhh. Practical training.!”
As we left the classroom, Sia let out a miserable groan.
Then she looked at me and smiled brightly.
“Hyunwoo doesn't have anything to worry about, right? You've got a Circle now.”
“Hmm...... I'm not sure.”
In truth, I was just being modest.
A practical exercise for little kids?
I could probably clear the whole thing by myself.
“Unni must be happy. Hyunwoo was even on the news, and it looks like he's become super famous~”
“Hmph. Our Hyunwoo can't get famous.”
“Huh? Why not?”
“Because then more weird people will start targeting Hyunwoo.”
Yeowoo's burning gaze locked onto Sia.
Sia became flustered under her stare.
“Unni. Why do you keep looking at me whenever you say things like that......?”
“N-No. You were talking to me, so I looked at you. That's all...... I didn't mean anything by it.”
“It really doesn't feel like you mean nothing by it......”
“Hey! The Three Little Rascals!”
I turned toward the familiar voice.
It was Moon Mujin.
Curly hair, tanned skin, and a bright, carefree smile.
“Hyunwoo, you've gotten seriously famous. I heard a rumor that the professor is taking a leave of absence. Is that true?”
“I don't know. I don't care about stuff like that.”
Yeowoo answered in my place with a guarded look in her eyes.
Mujin gave a hearty laugh and nodded.
“Okay. Got it. Hope we end up on the same team for the practical. No idea if that'll happen, though.”
Once Moon Mujin walked away, Sia looked at me again with a suggestive glint in her eyes, dragging out the end of my name.
“Hyunwooo~”
“Huh? Whyyy?”
“You said that when you used your own method, you reached the First Circle in one minute, right? How did you do it? Can you teach me?”
“......Hmm. Come to think of it, I never got to ask either.”
Yeowoo also looked at my face curiously.
I scratched the back of my head before answering.
“It's nothing special. You just make the mana orbit.”
“Make the mana...... orbit? What's orbiting?”
Yeowoo tilted her head as she asked.
Sia answered in my place.
“It means making it go around. Right?”
“Yeah. That's right.”
I continued explaining as we walked down the hallway.
“Gather the mana together and make it orbit around your navel. If you keep doing that, a Circle forms. That's it. Easy, right?”
“......Huh? Really? That's all you have to do to make a Circle?”
“Yeah. That's how I did it in one minute.”
Of course, it probably wasn't as easy as I made it sound.
Anyone trying it for the first time would go through plenty of trial and error, and they'd definitely experience frustration along the way.
I could've given them more detailed tips, but if two more First Circle mages suddenly appeared one after another, the media spotlight would probably stay on us for quite a while.
So I decided not to.
More importantly, I'd practically shit blood learning this in my previous life.
They should suffer at least half as much as I did.
Ahem.
***
Once our regular classes ended, we headed straight to the Archery Club building.
After a brief introduction, we began learning how to shoot a bow under the guidance of the upperclassmen.
Unlike the Hunting Club, they actually let us shoot bows from the very beginning here.
I liked how proactive they were.
Yeowoo, Sia, and I stood side by side as the seniors instructed us.
Most of them were fourth- or fifth-year students, fairly grown-up seniors between sixteen and seventeen years old.
“Okay, Hyunwoo. Good. Pull the bow back just like that.”
“Yes, Noona. Hehehe......”
I'd been surrounded by little kids and awkward adolescents who still had baby fat on their faces, so being taught by a seventeen-year-old senior who actually had a fairly womanly air somehow filled me with energy and smiles.
“Unni. Can't you teach me instead?”
“Huh? Why? Don't you like that senior?”
“No, that's not what I mean......”
Yeowoo pouted at the senior teaching me with an expression that looked ready to burst with complaints.
Then she sighed and lowered her head.
“N-No. It's fine. I'll just keep going.”
“Oof. So you don't like me.”
“N-No, that's not it.”
When the male senior teaching Yeowoo groaned jokingly, she became flustered and didn't know what to do.
I watched them with amusement before pulling the bow back under the female senior's instruction.
“Oh? Your posture is pretty good.”
Of course it was.
The thing I was holding was a children's bamboo bow.
The arrow was as thin as a long chopstick, and there was a plastic suction cup attached to the tip for safety.
People in this country usually used things like this for games during holidays.
“Okay. Now nock the arrow on the string.”
“Like this?”
“Yeah. Good job! Hyunwoo, you're doing so well~”
I'm going to shoot this arrow straight into your heart, Noona.
I barely swallowed the pickup line that had risen to my throat and diligently followed the senior's instructions until I reached the stage where I could draw the bowstring.
“Okay. Now release the string just like that. Think of it like firing a slingshot!”
Following the senior's instructions, I released the bowstring.
The suction-cup arrow flew quickly and struck the head of a doll sitting on a table.
The cute duck doll took the arrow right in the head and toppled backward.
“Wow. You did so well! High five!”
The senior beamed and held both hands out toward me.
I put down the bow and repeatedly high-fived her.
SLAP, SLAP, SLAP.
At that moment, Yeowoo and Sia, who had been drawing their bows beside me, turned their heads in my direction almost simultaneously.
“Huh? What's wrong, Yeowoo? You can't turn your head while shooting a bow~”
“Sia, focus! It's dangerous if you turn your head!”
“......Yes.”
The two little kids, both wearing somewhat dissatisfied expressions, turned their heads forward again and focused on shooting.
Ah, this is a little disappointing.
I didn't join this club because I wanted to shoot toys like this.
So I carefully asked the senior,
“Can I shoot a real arrow instead of this?”
“Huh? A real arrow? Why? It's still too dangerous for you, Hyunwoo.”
“I just want to try it once. I can do it well.”
“How about next time? Right now, you're still at the practice stage~”
Good grief, this is frustrating.
I'd shot bows until I was sick of them in my previous life.
I'd hit circles smaller than my fingernail on targets plenty of times, and even though I was a mage, I'd also ridden horses out onto the plains and hunted with a bow.
Compared to that, this toy bow was literally nothing more than a toy.
I was itching to shoot properly, so I practically begged the senior.
“Noona~ Just once. Please? Please?”
The senior kept refusing, but eventually surrendered to my persistent pleading and brought over a small bow and arrow.
“It's dangerous, so I'll be watching you. Got it? If it looks like you might get hurt even a little, I'm not letting you shoot anymore.”
“Okay! Thank you.”
Why did my side suddenly feel so cold that it seemed like something might pierce straight through it?
It must've been my imagination.
I raised the bow with proper form and nocked the arrow on the string.
Then I pulled the bowstring......
It wouldn't draw all the way.
“Nngh!”
No matter how hard I strained, I couldn't pull the bowstring all the way back.
Of course.
This body was still far too young to handle a real bow.
The senior apparently knew that as well, because she chuckled and stroked my head.
“See? It's difficult, right? That's because you're still not ready to handle a real bow, Hyunwoo. Don't be too disappointed~”
“......Hmm. Wait a second, Noona. Let me try one more time.”
“Sure. Give it another try.”
Apparently finding me cute, the female senior stretched my cheeks out and squished them around.
“Ow. Don't do thaaat.”
“Hehehe. Okay. They're just so soft.”
“......Ugh.”
Yeowoo let out a groan.
It looked like she was having trouble getting the bow to work the way she wanted.
“......Haa. Ah, this is annoying.”
Sia grumbled as well, apparently in the same situation as Yeowoo.
I took a deep breath and focused on the bow.
I concentrated the mana inside my body into my arms, hands, and back, then pulled the bowstring again.
This time, it drew all the way back.
“Huh? H-How?”
The female senior beside me raised her voice in surprise.
I didn't stop there.
I released the bowstring and fired at the head of the penguin doll I'd chosen as my target.
TWANG—!
The arrow struck the penguin doll dead on, pierced straight through its head, sent it flying through the air, and left it dangling from the wall far in the distance.
The female senior who had been instructing me, along with several others who had been watching, approached with stunned expressions after witnessing the incredible sight.
“H-How did you do that?”
I responded to their reactions as dryly as possible.
Coolly.
“I just shot it, and it worked. Maybe it's because I'm a mage......?”
As it happened, most of the seniors were students from the Martial Arts Department.
Standing among them, I proudly tugged on my Magic Department robe.
Even to someone like me, who couldn't feel even a shred of the romantic appeal of magic, the department's robe was still pretty cool....