I Became A Flashing Genius At The Magic Academy - Chapter 16

Starting from the upper division of the magic academy, students officially begin practical training.

There were various types of practicums, but without question, the most anticipated by the students was actual combat.

Among them, dungeons - filled with anomalies and swarming with monsters, yet overflowing with treasures and opportunities - are the ultimate dream destination for any adventurer.

Early in the morning, Flame surveyed the students of Classes A and S gathered in the Stella Dome.

‘A total of 141 people…’

Class A-1 and Class A-2 had 50 students each, and Class S had 41 students.

However, in the original story, the total number of students in Class S should have been 39. Flame expected 40 people including herself, but she did not know one more person would be added here.

'Where on earth did Baek Yuseol come from?'

The original novel had 1,140 first-year students, but now that number has increased to 1,141, including her.

In other words, Baek Yu-Seol had always existed in the original story.

The problem was that Flame had never heard of that name even once.

‘I’ll figure it out eventually. I can work it out.’

After all, she was the only person in this world who knew the original story.

Flame paused her observation of the students and looked at the surrounding scenery.

It was a space that felt truly realistic.

The grass swayed in the breeze, and the vast field stretched so far that the horizon was visible, making even a stifled heart feel liberated.

However, this space, Stella Dome, was not real.

Stella Dome was a place similar to a subspace installed deep within the Stella Academy’s grounds. It could be manipulated at will to expand it or change its structure.

Thus, it was used for various sports and events, as well as practical training involving dungeons, gates, and monsters.

In short, most of what could be seen and felt here was artificially created.

“Young Master Jeremy, have you completed the course registration?”

“Yes. Of course.”

“Since you took the Soft Magic Exploration course, I also took it.”

“Really? Let’s do our best together.”

Hearing the voices nearby, Flame subtly turned her head to look.

Crown Prince Jeremy.

In the original story, he was a wicked and tragic second male lead obsessed with Eisel, but in the end, he was abandoned, never receiving her affection.

‘He's handsome.’

Jeremy was a perfect embodiment of charm. Tall and elegant, with a warm demeanor and a constant, radiant smile.

He was competent, kind, innocent, well-mannered, and witty, and his talent didn’t pale compared to Ma Yu-Seong. 

Combined with his status as the crown prince of the Skalven Empire, he was simply perfect.

Those innocent eyes could stimulate the protective instincts of many women, and the occasional playfulness he showed was one of his charming points.

However, all of it was meticulously calculated for his public image.

‘This facade won’t fool me.’

Even knowing it was all an act, Jeremy’s perfection still made her heart flutter... but Flame, who saw through his pretense, had no intention of getting close to him.

As she stared intently at him, Jeremy turned to make eye contact with her.

“Ah.”

Jeremy's expression betrayed his surprise. He waved his hand toward her with his dazzling signature smile.

‘Ugh!’

He was disgustingly handsome. Flame quickly averted her gaze, but the lingering impression from their brief eye contact didn’t fade easily.

If she let herself be swayed, her life would be ruined. She absolutely couldn’t afford to falter.

‘I understand why those kids flock to Jeremy like that…’

***

As absurd as it seemed, even this academy had factions, or cliques.

Though students might appear equal in skill, the reality of who would rise to prominence after graduation was already apparent. 

Students at this prestigious academy grasped this reality as early as their first year and rushed to associate with the right people.

Among those factions, the most notable was the faction of Crown Prince Jeremy.

Not only were high-ranking young masters gathered there, but even students who had abilities that could invoke respect wherever they went.

Regardless of gender, Jeremy’s charm and status were like a magnet that drew everyone in.

Flame was not part of any faction, but she made as many connections as possible.

After all, she had reincarnated into this world to live a new life, and she would live here until her death, so she needed to prepare for her future.

‘Then, there’s Baek Yu-Seol…’

Flame glanced over at him. Black hair, black eyes, and a warm and pure white complexion. A face that suited the word cute rather than handsome and a somewhat relaxed smile that did not fit such a youthful appearance at all.

From an outsider’s perspective, he seemed likable. Many students had tried to form a faction around Baek Yu-Seol, but he had turned them all down.

Thanks to that, there was no one around him.

‘Why do you have to be alone?’

Someone approached Flame, who was observing Baek Yu-Seol absent-mindedly.

“Flame, will you join us during this practicum?”

It was Jecky. 

Lately, they had often run into each other at gatherings of commoners. Even so, Jecky still felt awkward and distant when they were alone together.

“Sorry. I already planned on training alone this time.”

“Ah, I see. In this practicum, the scores are shared among team members, so there’s no helping it, right?”

"Yeah... I guess?"

Jecky said the obvious, but somehow, it sounded like she was saying, ‘You’re doing it alone because we’re obstacles.’

‘No way.’

Assuming that it was her grandiose delusion, Flame tapped Jecky on the shoulder.

"Let’s team up next time for sure."

At Flame’s words, Jecky led the group to another place. 

Flame watched Jecky’s retreating figure for a while. Even Jecky’s smile as she walked with her friends reminded Flame of someone, leaving her with a strange feeling.

‘Heh. It’s puberty. It’s puberty. It’s the age where you want to follow your idol.’

Flame struggled to get rid of her thoughts.

“Attention.”

The sound of raucous chatter stopped at once.

A single word from the instructor in charge of Class S, Lee Han-Wol, calmed the hall. Next to him were the professors, instructors, and assistants of Class A, and among them, Lee Han-Wol’s spirit was the most prominent.

“Before starting the class, we have to conduct a brief training. It can be seen as a kind of test. We need to evaluate your level so that we can properly educate you. Is that understood?”

““Yes, sir!””

“Your enthusiasm doesn’t impress me. They say this batch is full of promising talents, but it seems that’s just a baseless rumor.”

The lips of some nobles twitched. Whatever Lee Han-Wol’s reputation, he was still a commoner. However, no one came forward because the students in Class S did not respond much.

"The training will proceed at my discretion. If anyone has any complaints about that..."

He glanced around the crowd and said with a smile on his face.

“Keep them to yourself. I have no intention of listening to your grievances.”

Of course, expressing dissatisfaction with any professor was not easy, even if it was not Lee Han-Wol.

Each semester, students were assigned a ‘total score,’ which professors had the authority to increase or decrease at their discretion. Losing too many points could lead to expulsion.

And being expelled from Stella Academy - regardless of a student’s noble lineage - brought such disgrace that complaining about it would be pointless.

‘Eisel used these points to drive Hong Bi-Yeon into ruin…’

After scanning the students once more, Lee Han-Wol spoke again.

“I’ll give you a short explanation of the training from this point forward.”

Flame already knew the details. This was a pseudo-dungeon practicum designed to mimic the anomalies, traps, and monsters found in real dungeons, providing students with practical challenges.

Defeating a Level 1 Risk monster would grant 4 points.

Defeating a Level 2 Risk monster would grant 8 points.

And obtaining a 'Point Stick' would grant 20 points.

"The top five students with the most points will receive prizes and rewards, while those with zero points or who are eliminated will have points deducted."

The mention of rewards caused the students’ eyes to light up. Stella Academy often gave out valuable magic equipment as prizes.

“If you are afraid of dropping out or not confident about working alone, you can form a team. However, make sure you know that points will be divided when you form a team.”

As soon as those words were finished, the instructors' appearances, including Lee Han-Wol's, became blurred. 

It wasn’t just that.

Grrr!

“Uh, huh?”

“What? What’s going on?”

The floor started to rise.

Flame understood the phenomenon right away.

‘Jack and the Beanstalk.’

The dungeon had transformed into a giant beanstalk.

The terrain rose high into the clouds, forming a massive stalk adorned with green branches and leaves. At first glance, the various swamps, rivers, rocks, and soil resembled ordinary land, but the area was vertically structured.

The beanstalk field wasn’t a wide-open area but a vertically expansive one, making it more advantageous for students proficient in long-range linear magic than in wide-area magic.

However, such advantages were situational. Training was about learning to overcome unfavorable conditions, as real dungeons rarely catered to a mage’s preferences.

When the bean tree finally stopped growing, Lee Han-Wol’s voice echoed.

"By the way, if you eliminate another student, you’ll gain all their points. That’s all, good luck."

For many reasons, it was better to form a team for dungeon practicum. It would be unlucky if one ran into students who had teamed up.

So most students would team up with nearby students immediately.

Flame, being in a bishop position, wasn’t ideal for solo play. However, thanks to her diverse arsenal of magic, this dungeon practicum posed no significant problem for her.

***

Flame did not encounter any monsters along the way.

Since these monsters were created with illusion magic, their intelligence was much lower than that of real ones, and they could only follow pre-programmed movements.

Using spheres of light, she shot down flying beasts. With nature magic, she subdued ground monsters. It was an easy task for someone with her skills.

Proficient in binding, destruction, defense, and healing magic, Flame handled the practicum with little difficulty.

Having studied dungeon combat since middle school, she was well-prepared.

“Whoa, I’m so tired.”

After about an hour, her score was 18 points, thanks to the fact that she had killed quite a few small and medium-sized monsters.

However, this was still less than what one Point Stick could offer. Though searching for one was risky, anyone lucky enough to find one could easily surpass her score.

A distant scream broke through the air.

Even for the elite students of Class A, this was their first real combat, so unexpected traps often caught them off guard.

The ground would suddenly cave in, and wooden whips would fly at you. Lightning would suddenly strike, arrows could come flying from all directions, etc…

They were outdated and old-fashioned traps tailored to the freshman level.

Most of the traps posed a little threat to Flame. She had quite a bit of wit to accompany her, so it was enough for her to occasionally spread a veil of light.

She sensed something and walked slowly in the direction. At first, she thought it was a monster, but it turned out to be a human being.

‘A student can hide his presence at this level?’

It was quite strange, but she was hiding a miracle. 

Thanks to her trait, [Harmony with Nature], in these forests, her movements were agile and it was easy to hide her presence.

If her target was alone, she could ambush them and claim their points.

As Flame slowly approached through the verdant branches, someone’s silhouette was revealed.

A boy with black hair and black eyes.

‘Baek Yu-Seol? Why is he here?’

One hand rested casually in his pocket, while the other held something familiar.

‘Point stick? He already got it?’

The number 20 clearly floated above his head, slightly exceeding Flame's score which she had worked hard on for an hour.

He was still walking leisurely and seemed to be looking for something as if he had not noticed her.

‘It’s all right. I need to test him.'

She needed to find out who he really was, what kind of magic he used, even just a small clue would be enough.

And if she could snatch the Point Stick while she was at it, it would be a double win.

'Light Cluster.'

A yellow-colored magic circle glowed at the end of Flame’s staff. It was a light-type magic used by celestial beings.

She used magic skills very aggressively.

‘Light bullet!’

A Class 2 light bullet was fired. The distance was approximately fifteen meters. At this distance, he would not be able to use a defensive technique, meaning he would take a lot of heavy damage and get eliminated.

Meanwhile…

“…!”

Baek Yu-Seol abruptly turned to meet Flame’s gaze after the magic was cast.

“Huh…?”

'How?'

Before her thoughts could finish, his figure vanished like a mirage.

The light bullet crashed into a pitiful tree and disappeared, while Flame sank to the floor with a ghostly look on her face.

Not even a trace remained of Baek Yu-Seol’s presence.