I Became A Flashing Genius At The Magic Academy - Chapter 11

Stella Academy’s campus buzzed with excitement, with everyone focused on a single topic.

“Did you hear there are two students this year who resonated with upper-intermediate-grade staff?”

"That's insane. There were only five of them in history, and now two more have been added?"

“I heard the five of them went on to become grand mages…”

The two mentioned by them were none other than Ma Yu-Seong and Baek Yu-Seol.

“By the way, did you hear the story of Baek Yu-Seol?”

“He was said to have used Flash in the magic demonstration test. Isn’t that just foundation magic?”

“I didn’t even learn Flash. My parents said it's worse than not knowing magic at all. They call it a worthless magic with a death rate of over 99.99% for its users.”

“I didn't learn it either. Isn’t it true that none of the professors teach that kind of magic anymore? Recently, all uncontrollable magic has been labeled as forbidden magic.”

“…”

Hearing such rumors, Flame continued to rush through the hallway.

After academy hours, the Self-Study Hall building bustled with students heading to the training grounds and reading rooms. Yet, the conversations remained centered on Ma Yu-Seong and Baek Yu-Seol, which irritated her.

“Flame! Are you going to self-study too?”

Hearing a familiar voice, she quickly masked her irritation and turned to see several girls approaching her with bright smiles.

Flame said with a mischievous smile, “You little brats, do I look addicted to studying?”

“Isn’t that the case? You always study as if you have nothing else to do.”

“I can’t believe it. These little brats have the guts to confront me.”

“We got it, right?”

“Ahaha! But why do you always call us brats, Flame? We’re the same age.”

The comment hit Flame unexpectedly. She froze for a moment but managed to recover, responding with a gentle smile.

“Well, maybe it’s because I’m used to being the big sister back home.”

Ever since realizing she had been reincarnated into the world of a novel, she found it difficult to act like a child.

“Then are you going to study alone today?”

A slightly taller girl asked. Flame glanced at her. The girl, Jecky, was someone Flame had known briefly in middle school. Upon entering Stella, they became fast friends, as both were commoners.

‘Why is she copying my style?’

Flame remembered Jecky as a timid girl with messy hair and glasses. But now, Jecky had begun mimicking her hair, tone, and fashion. It made Flame uneasy, though she dismissed it as a phase.

“Well, there’s no end to studying. I’m not alone,” Flame said. “There’s a special remedial session, so I’ll attend it.”

“R-remedial session? You work so hard…”

“Anyway, I’m off.”

“Yes. Let’s go to a cafe together next time!”

After parting ways with the girls, Flame turned to leave but accidentally locked eyes with someone.

It was Hae Won-Ryang, a boy with sharp features, black hair streaked with red, and striking purple eyes.

He was the heir to the Class 9 Master Mage, the Tower Master of the Full Moon Tower, and an excellent mage on par with Ma Yu-Seong.

As soon as he found her, he came over right away.

“Are you going to self-study?”

“Yeah...”

“You don’t look good. What’s going on?”

It was rare for someone to show her genuine concern.

“Well, nothing really.”

Flame shook her head nonchalantly. Then, by chance, as she turned her head, her gaze happened to fall on a girl who had not yet left and was poking her head out of a wall to pry.

It was Jecky.

‘Hmm? Why is she still…?’

Jecky vanished so quickly that the eye contact felt like a short-lived dream. Flame, who was about to call her, awkwardly summoned back her outstretched hand and stroked the back of her head.

Left with no choice, she walked alongside Hae Won-Ryang, chatting about trivial things.

This hallway they were in was called the ‘territory of Class S’ by the students as a joke because there was a dedicated Class S self-study hall and training grounds.

"Are you heading to the training grounds?"

“You should not neglect your daily training.”

“You’re needlessly diligent. Live like that, and you'll burn out early.”

“I don’t intend to live long.”

“Is that so? If you die, don’t call me to the funeral.”

“… Why?”

“I don’t like Yukgaejang(Spicy Beef Soup). Prepare Sogogi Gukbap(Beef Soup with Rice) instead.”

“…I’ll make sure of it.”

With that, Hae Won-Ryang disappeared into the training grounds. Many students skipped remedial sessions, viewing them as a haven for underachievers or bookworms uninterested in battles.

Of course, Flame did not go to the special remedial sessions just to study.

Princess Hong Bi-Yeon and Eisel were scheduled to attend the remedial sessions, hinting at a possible confrontation between the protagonist and the villain. Besides the drama, Flame had another reason to be there.

This was because a new character, Baek Yu-Seol, who did not appear in the original novel, was scheduled to appear there.

‘Baek Yu-Seol…’

A boy who became a hot topic after conquering an upper-intermediate grade Teripon and a character that did not exist at all in the original novel.

‘Who the hell is that kid?’

Having read the original novel three times, she knew its settings inside out.

However, the name Baek Yu-Seol did not appear even once in the story.

Even the Teripon was described as having no owner in the original.

Also, the boy got the so-called devil's three questions right too easily.

‘As if he was trying to show off to someone.’

‘… Maybe it was meant to be shown to me.’

At the Staff Inheritance Ceremony, why had he spoken to her? What lay behind that calm, almost mischievous expression?

With that in mind, she arrived at the lecture hall where the special remedial sessions were being held. More than fifty students were already gathered there.

She slowly looked around.

The study session was organized by Kyle, a 17th-ranked boy who was theoretically among the top students in the academy.

Though Kyle’s remedial sessions were meant for struggling students, the presence of many Class S students made him visibly uneasy. Sweat beaded on his forehead, dripping onto his signature glasses, which shone so brightly that Flame couldn’t see his eyes.

‘… Even Ma Yu-Seong is here?’

Ma Yu-Seong sat next to Baek Yu-Seol, whose bored expression stood out. Eisel occupied a corner seat, while Princess Hong Bi-Yeon maintained her regal posture on the opposite side.

Perhaps Hong Bi-Yeon came here to learn about the devil's three questions, and Eisel solely intended to study.

'I never thought that Ma Yu-Seong would come all the way here…’

If there were a male protagonist in this setting, fans would undoubtedly say it could only be Ma Yu-Seong, a figure blessed by the world itself.

Yet, despite his grandeur, Ma Yu-Seong seemed unusually interested in Baek Yu-Seol.

‘It’s not a coincidence.’

It was obvious that Baek Yu-Seol was acting with deliberate and meticulous intent.

Even his act of demonstrating resonance with Teripon appeared calculated, as though he was specifically aware of her presence.

‘Besides, I heard that he did not touch any other questions except for the three questions in the Class Placement Test…?’

'How did he know that he could enter Class S by solving only the devil's three questions?'

‘He’s dangerous..’

With that unsettling thought, she took a seat, watching as Kyle adjusted his glasses to begin the session.

‘Damn, why are these monsters in the special remedial sessions?'

Though Kyle was a commoner, he had achieved a remarkable rank through sheer effort. By tutoring nobles from lower-ranked classes, he had solidified his influence.

However, five students from Class S ended up attending the lecture.

‘… No, it’s not a bad thing. Rather, it is an opportunity.’

Among the five Class S students, that young boy, Baek Yu-Seol, especially stood out. He was known to have received the worst score in the class placement test.

His poor performance made it incomprehensible why he was placed in Class S at all.

Kyle realized that if he could prove his ability to teach even Class S students, he would gain undeniable recognition.

With that kind of ambition in his gaze.

'Phew..’

Baek Yu-Seol exhaled a sigh. Next to him, Ma Yu-Seong pretended to be humble and spoke in his usual friendly tone.

“Yu-Seol, why are you here?”

Baek Yu-Seol did not want to come here either.

"You don’t need to attend something like this. There must be a reason, right?"

There was no such thing.

Baek Yu-Seol was compelled to attend because it was a warning to low-ranked students who performed poorly on the class placement test.

'This is not the time…’

The [Episode 3 Staff Inheritance Ceremony], which started suddenly, was completed in a very unique way, and receiving a lot of EXP was good news.

However, the worst thing was that it attracted unnecessary attention from the people around him.

Baek Yu-Seol’s peaceful academy life had been ruined. 

What was even more annoying was that damn Teripon, which had put the limelight on his head, was now completely useless. 

‘Why did you even come to me?’

Baek Yu-Seol had never encountered a case where Teripon’s owner wasn’t Flame, leaving him clueless about the staff’s intentions.

“Alright, let’s stop chatting and begin the session,” Kyle announced, tapping the blackboard.

Some commoners perked up, ready to take notes, while nobles showed mild displeasure. Still, no one challenged Kyle, as he had the professors' backing.

“Today, we’ll be reviewing and re-solving the placement exam questions. As you know, this exam featured the devil’s three questions. The problem, already infamous for its difficulty, has been released. And I managed to solve one of them.”

Hong Bi-Yeon’s eyes twinkled at those words. It was the only reason she came to this place.

To learn how in this world someone had solved the ‘Devil’s Three Questions.’

With no one else to ask, and a student who had successfully solved the problem willing to explain, she had rushed to attend.

The other students were also quite interested in the matter, so they too focused on Kyle. He was very satisfied with all the attention and raised his specs.

“Then, I will show you how to solve the problem first. This problem is actually close to a trap. It was created to induce incorrect answers by accident, but first of all…”

Some students took their notebooks and started taking notes, and Kyle’s solution was very plausible.

However, it was only plausible and not a proper solution. Ma Yu-Seong caught that point, blinked his eyes, and quietly tapped on Baek Yu-Seol’s shoulders.

“What do you think? Do you think that’s right?”

Baek Yu-Seol could not tell if that explanation was correct because he was not wearing Sentient Specs. 

‘The devil’s three questions? What the hell is that?’

His lack of interest in studying left him unable to follow the discussion. Still, he gave a nonchalant answer.

“I’m not sure.”

Baek Yu-Seol spoke softly, but the room was so quiet that most students heard him.

‘Who is he?’

‘It’s Baek Yu-Seol.’

‘Ah… Him?’

The strange student who got all the other questions wrong but only got the devil's three questions right.

The fact that Baek Yu-Seol said, ‘I’m not sure…’

‘That right now…’

‘…Is he implying Kyle’s solution is wrong?’

That’s what everyone assumed.

In fact, Baek Yu-Seol got all three questions right, and although Kyle entered the academy with a perfect score in theory, didn’t he get only one question correct out of the three devil's questions?

Snap!

Kyle accidentally crushed the chalk he was holding.

Baek Yu-Seol looked at Ma Yu-Seong with complicated eyes. Although he was the one who created this atmosphere, he was smiling with his eyes, pretending not to know anything.

‘You bastard, did you do that on purpose?’

That was just how Ma Yu-Seong was. He probably didn’t like seeing Kyle take center stage.

So, he had intentionally created this atmosphere.

“Is my solution incorrect, Baek Yu-Seol? Why don’t you explain it yourself?”

“Sigh…”

Baek Yu-Seol had seen this coming. Shooting a glare at Ma Yu-Seong, who feigned innocence, he reluctantly put on his Sentient Specs.

The devil's three questions.

Although they had been nicknamed as such, they were very close to being nonsensical.

To put the problem mildly, [The mage says, ‘Oh Land, shed your tears!’ When he chanted this spell, the earth's mass doubled. What is the reason?]

The answer to this question was simple.

When the land cries, it says ‘Dirt, Dirt.’

And so, the land doubled.

It sounded absurd, but that was all there was to it.

However, Kyle had taken a highly analytical approach. His solution involved complex theories about soil scattering, erosion, spirit activity, and volcanic eruptions, all leading to a doubling of the earth’s mass.

Sure, as long as the answer is correct, the method doesn’t matter.

It was a solution that would definitely help solve that one problem right away. However, the issue was that it would bother them again if a similar problem came up another time.

“I can’t show you how to solve it; I can only point out the mistakes.”

“… What?”

With the help of Sentient Specs, he pinpointed the mistakes in Kyle’s solution.

“The question was about soil. But what if the problem involved water or wind? Would your formula still work?”

“That’s… Well, you could apply a different formula in that case.”

“That’s exactly the issue. Why rely on separate formulas for similar problems? Your approach isn’t versatile.”

"Your solution was purely coincidental. Honestly, it doesn’t align with the question setter’s intent at all."

Baek Yu-Seol, who knew little about magic, focused only on pointing out the critical flaws highlighted by the Sentient Specs.

"If I change this part, your solution completely falls apart. How would you explain that?"

He didn’t need a complicated explanation. All he had to do was prove that Kyle’s solution was wrong.

"Now that you mention it... you’re right..."

The more perceptive students grasped the implications of Baek Yu-Seol’s words and began taking notes, their curiosity piqued.

Flame, watching silently, was surprised but maintained her composure. Instead of focusing on Baek Yu-Seol, her gaze shifted to Eisel and Hong Bi-Yeon.

‘…Weren’t they supposed to clash?’

In the original storyline, Eisel and Hong Bi-Yeon were meant to have a heated argument here. However, distracted by the complexity of the problem Baek Yu-Seol had just exposed, neither seemed inclined to quarrel.

‘…No, let’s think positively.'

Kyle stood there in shock, his mouth hung wide open.

‘Am I… wrong…?’

His pride was shattered, and he finally realized his solution was flawed. Kyle hung his head in defeat.

And he honestly admitted it.

“Your words… You’re right."

“Is that so?”

Even though his method had been utterly dismantled, Kyle didn’t react with anger. Instead, self-doubt overtook him.

“Maybe I was lucky enough to solve this problem…”

The special remedial sessions were over shortly after that, and Baek Yu-Seol left the classroom faster than anyone else.

Not only did he not want to be in this stuffy and damp space anymore, but being with Ma Yu-Seong was too burdensome.

“I’ll see you tomorrow!”

Leaving behind Ma Yu-Seong’s energetic farewell, he walked down the tattered hallway.

‘Ugh, how did I end up entangled with someone like Ma Yu-Seong?’

The situation had spiraled out of control, all because of that cursed staff, Teripon.

As people slowly became scarce, Baek Yu-Seol was about to return to the dormitory, but in the corner of the hallway leading to the men’s dormitory, someone was standing with her back leaning against the wall.

… It was Princess Hong Bi-Yeon Adolevit.

‘What now?’

Baek Yu-Seol tried to pass by, pretending not to know her, but she stopped before him.

“What?"

“Back there, why didn’t you explain the solution?”

It was not that he did not want to explain it. It was just that he couldn’t. 

‘How on earth does someone logically explain such a nonsense question?’ 

The truth was, the method he had hinted at couldn’t be applied universally to other problems.

“I just didn’t have anything to say…”

“I see. I understand. You didn’t want to reveal your solution in such a place, did you?”

'Eh.'

That wasn’t the case at all. But Hong Bi-Yeon, interpreting his silence as agreement, nodded as though she had figured it all out.

"Fine. You want compensation, don’t you?"

"What? Compensation?"

"Yes. Compensation," she said, tapping herself on the head.

"I’ll pay you a fair price. Show me what’s in your head, too."