I Became A Flashing Genius At The Magic Academy - Chapter 108

After waking up, he found he had a girlfriend.

Baek Yu-Seol was grappling with this utterly unbelievable situation firsthand.

"I’m your, um, what?" Thinking he misheard, he asked again, and Flame replied with a very apologetic expression.

"... Boyfriend."

Inside a cozy restaurant on Arcanium Street, Baek Yu-Seol found himself confronted with a bewildering tale over dinner.

He should have known trouble was brewing the moment someone offered him a free meal.

Baek Yu-Seol forgot about his spoon and asked, "No, why?"

"Well, you see, there was a bit of an urgent situation."

Rumors had been swirling around the academy all day. Baek Yu-Seol had heard that Jeremy was showing interest in Flame, and he immediately knew it was a bad sign.

Considering Jeremy’s path almost always led to a disastrous ending, Baek Yu-Seol had entertained thoughts of helping her. However, he never expected to assist in such a strange way.

"Well... I mean, if this helped, then I guess it's good."

"Yeah... Thanks. I'll treat you to meals often."

Having grasped the situation roughly, Baek Yu-Seol resumed eating and asked, "Why me, though?"

"I thought about Hae Won-Ryang for a moment, but it would’ve been awkward."

There were other male friends who could pretend to be her boyfriend, but none of them could handle Jeremy.

Hae Won-Ryang, while patient, harbored genuine feelings for her. She didn’t want to give him mixed signals and risk breaking his heart.

She wanted to remain friends with him, but to do that, she had to keep a clear line.

That was why.

Baek Yu-Seol was an excellent partner. He didn’t care about Jeremy, which made him the ideal candidate.

“Is that so?”

Just as she had hoped, Baek Yu-Seol didn’t seem too concerned, which was a relief.

“Will you cover my expenses for the part-time job of acting as your boyfriend?”

“I'll buy you meals frequently.”

“Hey, I’m not that cheap.” Despite his complaints, Baek Yu-Seol kept eating.

Flame rested her chin on the table and gazed at him absentmindedly.

A boyfriend.

Wasn’t that something out of fairy tales?

Even if it was all pretend, this was her first relationship. She had never experienced one in her past life either. “Anyway... I’m really sorry. You probably have someone you like. I’m just making things complicated for you.”

Mouth full, Baek Yu-Seol looked at her with puzzled eyes. “Like? Who do I like?”

He was originally 29 years old. If he had feelings for high school girls, wouldn’t that make him a criminal?

Even if he tried to brush it off, he simply couldn’t hold a proper conversation with people younger than himself.

Naturally, Baek Yu-Seol preferred interacting with those closer to his own age.

It was natural for Baek Yu-Seol, who didn't have anyone he liked at school, to express such doubts.

"Don’t you have someone you like?"

“There's no one I like.”

Flame was slightly taken aback.

‘Isn't it because of your love for Eisel that you returned?'

She had firmly believed that to be the case. Yet, hearing his answer now, she wasn’t so sure anymore.

It wasn’t as if he denied having feelings for someone specific. He simply claimed there was no one.

Flame wanted to dig deeper and ask whether that was really true, but an invisible wall stood between them. They had made a pact… to only share half the truth with each other.

Even though they seemed so close now, they were unable to reveal their true feelings to each other.

Since Flame, as a reincarnated character, had some sort of restriction, Baek Yu-Seol, as a regressor, certainly had his as well. She was dying to ask, but she had no intention of crossing the line.

"Anyway, just bear with it for about a month. I'll be counting on you."

Since they had agreed to date for now, it would be best to pretend to be a real couple even if they later came up with various excuses for breaking up.

That way, they could completely remove the seeds Jeremy had sown.

Love.

Whether it was Baek Yu-Seol or Flame, it was undoubtedly a delicate aspect.

***

The next day, during lunch.

While eating together, Flame asked first, "Old man, what do high schoolers usually do when they're in a relationship?"

"How would I know?"

If only she were an adult, things would’ve been simpler. They could at least go out for drinks.

But dealing with high school relationships? Baek Yu-Seol had no clue where to even begin.

Still, shouldn’t they just follow what others did?

"Can't we just casually eat together?"

"Old man, you should never date, not even later. It'd be too much of a pity for the woman."

"Even if I wanted to, I can't."

"That's a bit heartbreaking."

"But do we really need to act like a couple?"

"As long as we pretend to date for at least a month without getting caught in the lie."

After that, all the groundwork laid by Jeremy would be in vain.

"Ugh. What a hassle."

Baek Yu-Seol grimaced as he felt the piercing gazes surrounding them.

Ever since the shocking rumor about Crown Prince Jeremy’s relationship spread like wildfire, even more eyes seemed fixed on them now that Flame was claiming to be dating someone else so soon after.

‘Why would they be so interested in just two ordinary commoners dating?’

Unaware that she wasn't really an ordinary commoner, Flame couldn't quite understand it.

‘I guess I'll have to give up on just leisurely going along. People are conscious of the attention, so I'm fated to stick close to him like a gluttonous rice cake.’

She sat across from him, flipping through a book, occasionally glancing up to watch Baek Yu-Seol eat with one hand.

He often wore glasses while studying, and oddly enough, they suited him well, giving him an unexpectedly refined look.

‘Well, it's still a hundred times better to be rumored to date this guy than Jeremy.’

Of course, Jeremy wasn’t without his positive traits. If her classmates heard her thoughts, they’d probably criticize her for being too full of herself.

After lunch, Flame, who had parted ways with Baek Yu-Seol to attend different classes, happened to have a class with a friend who had a boyfriend.

"What do you usually do with your boyfriend?"

"Uh."

"Just hold hands and take a walk. The eastern garden is full of flowers."

"Is that fun?"

"Huh? Is it fun? That's a strange question. Just being together is nice."

‘It is? Taking a walk in a flower garden? Love is complicated...'

There were things in the world that couldn’t be solved with money. It seemed that capitalist society was still not all-powerful.

"I found it’s nice to just look at each other quietly."

"Yeah. On days when class ends early, we go to Rodeo Street on dates. That's fine too. We don't have to go far."

"Rodeo Street?"

Rodeo Street, which could be considered similar to Korea's Daehak-ro, was filled with high school couples, but it was also an area that Flame dared not step into.

Still, if she wanted to keep up appearances with Baek Yu-Seol, it might be a good idea to make it seem like they went on dates to places like that.

"By the way, Flame."

"Yeah?"

One of her friends said with an ominous smile, "You always act like you don’t care about guys, but suddenly you managed to catch an A-level one? How did you pull that off?"

“C-Catch? Catch what? What are you even saying?”

"Baek Yu-Seol doesn't seem like the type to confess first. Did you make the first move?"

"No way!"

"Wow, if that's the case, did Baek Yu-Seol confess?"

"Wow, I never thought he'd do that."

"I'm envious."

"But honestly, watching you two, you’re both so innocent. Doesn’t it feel weird watching kids in love?"

"Yeah, you're right. I thought the same!"

"I saw them together earlier, and they both looked so fresh and cute."

‘What are they saying? Little kids.’

Flame sighed and thumped her head on the desk.

‘Damn Jeremy…’

To be dragged into this mess because of that brat… she swore to herself that one day, she’d make him pay.

***

The time for magic combat practice had come.

This time, without joint training with other classes, the Class S novices were going to spar with one another.

By sheer coincidence, Baek Yu-Seol’s opponent turned out to be Hong Bi-Yeon.

Swish!

The command to begin hadn't even been given yet, but for some reason, Baek Yu-Seol felt as if flames were roaring all over his body.

Wiping away the cold sweat forming on his brow, he cautiously glanced at Hong Bi-Yeon.

Even in the game, she was always in an angry state, so much so that she would have nicknames like 'Always Angry' or 'Angry Hong Bi-Yeon’.

But today, her rage felt even more intense, as if it was about to boil over.

‘What’s gotten into her?’

Whatever the reason, it wasn’t really his concern. The problem was that, for some unfortunate reason, he had become the target of her fury.

The sheer unfairness of the situation left him speechless.

"Greetings between opponents."

Holding her staff vertically against her chest, she bowed slightly.

"Prepare your weapons!"

They pointed their weapons at each other.

"Begin!"

As soon as the command was given, Hong Bi-Yeon explosively drew in her mana and haphazardly summoned small fiery orbs.

A dazzling display of flames filled the air, showing that Hong Bi-Yeon’s strategy was focused on overwhelming her opponent with sheer quantity from the start.

She had observed and analyzed Baek Yu-Seol’s battles extensively, so she was well aware of his style.

His swordsmanship could deflect spells with ridiculous precision. His strikes were powerful enough to cut through massive waves of magic.

On top of that, his agility rendered distance meaningless. He could close gaps or evade attacks almost effortlessly, making counterattacks near impossible.

"It won’t go the same way as last time, commoner."

Recalling the beginning of the semester, Hong Bi-Yeon fired off dozens of fireballs at Baek Yu-Seol.

Boom! Boom!

If brute force failed to overpower him, then perhaps quantity would do the trick. She figured that even if he could dodge or parry large-scale spells, a relentless rain of smaller ones might finally pin him down.

"Ha!"

But Baek Yu-Seol was unfazed. Spinning his sword like a windmill, he deflected each fiery projectile as though they were no more than sparks from a campfire.

‘You’ll have to try harder than this. These fireballs are nothing but child’s play.’

While Baek Yu-Seol was busy defending against her magic, she had positioned flaming arrows all around.

The plan was to provoke Baek Yu-Seol’s evasive movements by sending three arrows at a time, then immediately striking with another arrow where he moved.

Whoosh! Boom!

As expected, Baek Yu-Seol flashed to find a gap and dodged the flaming arrows.

Hong Bi-Yeon released an arrow at the spot where he reappeared.

Anticipating that, Baek Yu-Seol deflected it all.

Her strategy - one she had carefully devised - amounted to nothing more than child’s play in his eyes.

And she knew it.

No matter how much she trained and how strong she became, she couldn't defeat Baek Yu-Seol.

Still, for some reason, maybe it was because of the rumors going around, she found herself getting increasingly angry with him and wanted to attack with all her might.

"Ah!"

Swoosh!

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Fireballs fell from all sides, exploding upon impact. Columns of fire erupted, cutting off his escape routes, while flaming arrows rained from 36 directions, relentlessly disrupting his swordsmanship.

Whenever he managed to catch his breath, another wave of flames roared toward him, leaving him no chance to recover.

‘Ahh! I can't stop this!’

Unknowingly, her level had surpassed Class 3 and was heading towards Class 4.

Her former lack of creativity had vanished, replaced by sheer destructive force that was as unpredictable as it was terrifying.

'If I had at least ten seconds… No, even five seconds!'

Due to the barrage of random attacks from the very beginning, he didn't even have time to activate Tae-Ryeong's Godly Technique and was forced to flee in a hurry.

He tried to concentrate his mana and deflect at least one fireball, but it was impossible.

Without using Tae-Ryeong's Godly Technique, both his offensive and defensive capabilities significantly declined.

"I surrender! I surrender!"

In the end, Baek Yu-Seol’s body was engulfed in flames, and he fell to the ground, waving his hands in surrender.

The duel was over.

"Huh?"

Only then did Hong Bi-Yeon snap out of her trance and look at Baek Yu-Seol, who was patting down the lingering flames with a bewildered expression.

‘I won?’

Due to the protective effect of Stella Dome, Baek Yu-Seol was hardly injured, but his uniform was charred black.

"Are you okay?"

"Sigh, I won't die, I guess."

"You don't have to go to the infirmary, right?"

"I feel like I might drop dead at any moment."

"Yeah. You should definitely go to the infirmary."

After Baek Yu-Seol left, Hong Bi-Yeon reviewed the recent duel.

Members of her faction who had been waiting rushed over and praised her.

"As expected, you're amazing!"

"Baek Yu-Seol is no match for the princess."

Yet, despite their enthusiastic words, Hong Bi-Yeon’s expression remained far from pleased.

Arshuang, who noticed this, cautiously asked, "Princess, aren't you happy about winning?"

"No, I'm annoyed."

"Wh-What's wrong?"

She addressed the faction members with a look that seemed to say, “Can't you see it for yourselves?”

"Can't you tell just by looking? He let me win."

"What?"

"Last time, that commoner displayed swordsmanship to the point of cutting through waves. But this time, he didn't even properly swing his sword and just ran away and surrendered."

"Oh, now that you mention it..."

Only then did the faction members recall the duel between Baek Yu-Seol and Yuslek that they had witnessed.

Of course, Yuslek wasn’t on Hong Bi-Yeon’s level, but he was still a skilled mage.

Baek Yu-Seol’s combat style, which perfectly countered his magic and exploited his weaknesses, was certainly threatening.

But this time, there was none of that.

If he had swung his sword like he did back then, wouldn't he have easily cut through the flames, which he didn't even attempt to do now?

‘It was the same back then.’

Even during the dungeon practicum when they dueled, Baek Yu-Seol went easy on her.

This meant that ultimately, whether then or now, she hadn't changed.

Was she still someone whom he had to go easy on?

"Princess, maybe that's not it?"

"...?"

"Baek Yu-Seol follows the path of chivalry, right? I read an old book that said knights in the past always showed absolute consideration for ladies."

"Oh, that's right, I remember."

"Come to think of it, wasn’t that a thing?"

Knights of legend upheld the principle of ‘ladies first.’

But it was not that simple.

Knights dedicated themselves to ladies and never pointed their swords at them, no matter what happened.

"But he hits other female students just fine, doesn’t he?"

"Could it mean he won't attack anyone he recognizes as a lady?"

"Hmm..."

Their speculations started to sound more convincing by the moment.

In truth, Baek Yu-Seol might very well be a modern embodiment of the old chivalric code. If so, it wasn’t entirely unreasonable to think he was simply abiding by the ‘ladies first’ principle.

In other words, Baek Yu-Seol acknowledged Hong Bi-Yeon as a lady.

"Nonsense. Let's just go back."

Despite her dismissive words, Hong Bi-Yeon turned away with noticeably softer features.

And Arshuang, who stood closest to her, didn’t miss it.

Her expression had relaxed.

For the first time, she looked less like an untouchable princess and more like… an ordinary girl.

Arshuang couldn’t help but smile to herself.

In the world, could any man handle Hong Bi-Yeon’s emotions as freely as this?

‘I think she would be more suitable as a princess than an ordinary commoner girl…’

Chuckling at the thought, Arshuang quietly followed behind Hong Bi-Yeon, her steps light and amused.