Chapter 279

The Academy Competition is just a day away.

Students staying at the Aquila Hotel opened the curtains and looked out the window.

Broadcasting vehicles started to arrive one by one, stopping neatly in front of the hotel along the dark night road.

From tomorrow, fierce battles will be broadcasted nationwide, perhaps even worldwide.

Whether it’s students participating for the first time or those who have already been through the competition several times, they were all feeling anxious.

During this restless time when sleep wouldn’t come,

a group of students sat around the sparkling hologram projector, focused.

“Last up is the 5th ranked participant, No Name. She’s a 2nd grader from elementary school, competing as a candidate from the middle school division. She was originally scheduled to watch from the audience but looks like she ended up as a substitute somehow.”

“No matter how many times I see her, she’s so cute!”

“Focus, focus.”

“Can’t I be substituted in the early part? I just can’t hit a child no matter what…”

“We have to guide her to use all her mana somehow.”

The 3rd-year middle school students from Altear, representing the golden generation that has aimed for an 8-year continuous championship, were preparing.

Despite slight changes in their five-member lineup each year, they had never once experienced defeat since participating in the competition.

“Don’t let your guard down. No matter how I think about it, that unique magic of Name’s… it’s not ordinary.”

“Are you thinking the same thing?”

“She might have foreseen this from the moment they registered an elementary student as a candidate.”

Putting an elementary student in a middle school candidate spot to gain experience was a common strategy used by Altear Academy.

However, that only works when there’s a significant disparity in strength and one can afford to do so.

“This year, the teachers aren’t providing much coaching or help.”

“Hey, shh! What if there’s a recorder here?”

“What if I whisper? Like this?”

“That might be better.”

As soon as they met, the kids started bickering again and refocused on the video materials.

[Attachment 1: ‘Katsuhata Emika’ Demon Lord’s Horn Demonstration]

The only variable they thought of was Name’s unique magic.

“I still can’t understand it no matter how many times I see it. I can’t grasp what kind of magic it is.”

“It’s probably… support-type magic, right?”

“Let’s think of it that way for now.”

The Academy Competition follows its own rules and does not adhere to the International Magic Sports Federation’s regulations, considering the safety of the students.

The matches, conducted in a 2v2 format, not 1v1 or 5v5, allow for a single substitution as long as at least 50% of the aura barrier remains for each participant, making it somewhat like a winning streak competition.

In 2v2 matches, the combination of melee aura users and ranged magic users has seen the highest win rate expectation.

“Is it a firepower pumping type? Hmmm… But it doesn’t look like that to me.”

“Then let’s skip to the next video.”

[Attachment 2: ‘World of Arseria’ Gameplay Scene]

[NoName Official]

[Theory #WorldofArseria (5/5)]

[19:34]

The Demon Lord’s Horn had been a magic that Name had been using for a long time.

[If you call me the Demon Lord, go ahead and do it all you want.]

“Wow, this is so cool…”

The kids, still in their adolescent phase, couldn’t help but express their amazement.

[Casting: Glacius Astara]

A woman with remarkable growth jumped into the air and summoned a spear as tall as a streetlight, hurling it towards Mephisto’s heart.

They subconsciously noticed that her horn glowed slightly during the process, but they couldn’t figure out the effect of the unique magic.

“Name is likely hiding her unique magic until right before the match. So what we need to do is simple: eliminate the people in front of us decisively from the start.”

“If we eliminate four quickly, Name will be left powerless, right?”

“Exactly. Even if that unique magic is combat-related, we can’t bring in wooden swords shaped like battle weapons, so we won’t be caught off guard.”

“What if, say, Name charges into melee first?”

“That’s the biggest problem…”

[Attachment 3: Korea University Dojo Breaking Edition]

Name had defeated student council president Shin Yeon-ho in a casual spar, marking a legend of Altear Academy.

Of course, the rules were overly advantageous for Name, and it was evident that Shin Yeon-ho was looking the other way in many instances, but the girl’s combat sense could not be ignored.

“It seems she’s thoroughly mastered the coordinate transformation, and the power of 2nd circle magic is terrifying. With water-type magic and lightning magic like that, will the aura heart not break?”

Dukjae, wearing round glasses, pointed out each scene from the front while explaining it to other students.

Seeing Name deflect Raon’s spear with a clean roundhouse kick made a girl rub her eyes.

“Wow, look how flexible her legs are! Seungmin, can you do that?”

“If I practice.”

“That sounds fun! I can’t wait for tomorrow’s match!”

“Yawn, I’m sleepy, so I’m off to my room now.”

Losing interest quickly, the kids all left Dukjae’s room.

Dukjae, still sitting in front of the blinking hologram, adjusted his glasses.

“The Demon Lord’s Horn. Such an intriguing magic. No Name, no matter how thoroughly you hide, I will find your weaknesses before the match.”

The night was still long.

Dukjae, having taken out a can of coffee and a Monster Energy drink from the fridge, smirked as he started replaying the video from the beginning.

After the second hand of the clock had spun hundreds of times, he collapsed onto the carpet, falling into a light sleep.

Warm morning sunlight streamed in through the curtains.

Dukjae jolted awake at the cooing of a pigeon, startled.

Glancing at the clock indicating 8 AM, he hurriedly grabbed his toothbrush.

“Why didn’t anyone wake me up!”

His messy hair couldn’t be helped.

At the very least, he dressed in his neatly ironed school uniform and hurried out of the hotel.

The path to the comprehensive training hall from the hotel was packed with families and acquaintances of the participants.

In various places, staff from the broadcasting company carrying large cameras sought interviews.

Visitors came as families, like they were on a picnic.

“Mom, mom! If I go there, can I have that on my head too!”

“Alright, there are lots of people, so you might get lost, hold my hand, okay?”

“Okay!”

A five-year-old boy tugged at his mother as they headed toward the bustling open space.

Dukjae’s gaze turned to where they were headed.

Eventually, he saw a shabby wooden booth set up in the middle of the open space and gasped.

“What is this!”

[‘Experience the Demon Lord’s Horn! 8 hours of free usage! (made by BioAkashic)]

Everyone coming out of the booth had black horns on their heads.

Not just one, but dozens of them.

“Limited to the first 100 people! Not much time left!”

The booth was being run by none other than No Name herself.

“Hey? Are you here to experience it too, big brother? Don’t be shy, come here, and I’ll put it on your head.”

“Wasn’t it a unique magic for the finals?”

That moment, everything Dukjae had analyzed overnight became useless.

* * *

There’s a concept in marketing called a free trial.

When a new product is released, it is promoted for a certain period for customers to try it out for free.

This contributes to enhancing the brand image and spreading word of mouth quickly.

Among the families of the academy’s students, there were many so-called ‘high-ups’ who supported Korean society.

“Actually, my child is at Altear Academy; can I get one for myself too?”

A seemingly friendly man in a suit asked.

Surrounded by curious onlookers, he remained undeterred.

“May I ask what grade your child is in?”

“6th grade in elementary school.”

In the 6th grade of elementary school, he would be up against both Pikachu’s sister and Flame Fist brother.

“Then, if you promise to cheer for Seviron Academy during the 2nd grader and 3rd grader match, I will gladly provide it.”

“Haha, alright! I promise!”

“Great, just come back to me after obtaining your slate and business card here.”

I elbowed the person beside me gently, and immediately a response came.

“Hello! I am Baek Ho-chan, representative of BioAkashic Corporation. Here’s my business card.”

“Oh, I see! So you’re the representative! But you look much younger than I expected!”

“I often get told I look young. Haha.”

“By the way, may I ask what function the Demon Lord’s Horn has?”

“Of course! The product we offer today is equipped with a function that visualizes the flow of mana into visual information.”

“Oh really? Is it like VR glasses?”

“No! It feels like being directly hit on the head, providing much more intuitive information.”

“I guess I have to try it out to get the hang of it.”

“Yes, we’ll prepare it right away!”

Since they were short-staffed, Baek Ho-chan brought along five subordinates he could make work like slaves.

Even though it was fairly cool weather, the staff struggling to carry heavy mana stones were a pitiful sight.

Whenever I tried to help, the response was always the same.

“No, it’s fine! Name has an important match today. Save your strength. I really appreciate your kindness!”

Thus, I sat in the center of the booth, playing the role of a mascot.

“Big sister, look at the wind swirling in the sky! It’s so pretty!”

I attached a petite horn the size of a pinky finger to a friend two or three years younger than me.

That little one must be seeing the ‘turbulence’ of mana now.

Mana, which usually flows steadily, often creates such phenomena when it meets artificial structures like the massive barrier surrounding the academy.

People who have never experienced aura hearts, especially young children, tend not to feel mana itself well.

Therefore, these horns would provide a more thrilling perspective for the sparring scheduled for today.

“Hello, No Name. Do you remember me?”

At the moment I was resting after being exhausted from countless handshakes, someone with a press badge approached.

I wasn’t too fond of reporters.

“…? Who are you?”

“Oh, I’m Chang Seong-moon, a reporter with QBS. It was in a virtual reality press conference, but I saw you back then.”

“Oh…! Now that you mention it, the avatar looks the same. Yes, I remember you, reporter Chang Seong-moon.”

Unlike reporters who write malicious articles, he was someone who only wrote friendly pieces, so I lowered my guard a bit.

“Are you not using the Demon Lord’s Horn in today’s match?”

“No, I have to use it. I even participated in the competition to promote this.”

“Is it really okay to distribute it like this?”

“Reporter, do you know how long it takes for a newborn to open its eyes after being born?”

“Um… I’m not sure.”

“It takes about two days after birth for the pupillary reflex to set in, and it takes about two weeks to be able to distinguish brightness and darkness. Even then, until the age of four months, they can’t really distinguish far-off objects.”

“Oh, I didn’t know that.”

“It’s the same for the horn. After only eight hours, you can just barely see mana.”

Feel free to analyze it.

It took me several years in a previous life to elucidate the structure of this horn, and just watching casually doesn’t mean anyone can figure it out.

“Actually, I came to interview participant No Name. How do you view this Academy Competition?”

“I see it in 4D.”

“Pardon?”

Reporter Chang Seong-moon looked puzzled.

Oh… I really need to stop blindly trusting internet culture.

“… Never mind, forget it. How I view this competition…”

I cleared my throat before pondering for a moment.

To express my gratitude to Principal Gu On-yu by leading us to victory in the competition.

To promote the Demon Lord’s Horn and elevate the reputation of BioAkashic.

I could come up with a hundred reasons, but what I said directly into the camera was simply how I felt as it was.

“To confirm the academic level of our seniors, this junior has made her way up from elementary school. If you underestimate me, you might end up with a broken nose, so everyone should be prepared.”

Pyuuyuuw-

As I finished my words, a huge magical firework exploded in the sky.

On the left was the shape of an hourglass, and on the right was the shape of an eagle.

The symbols representing each academy spread out widely, painting the sky in vibrant colors.

‘You mustn’t get hurt, Name!’

Suddenly, I heard the familiar and endearing voice of a woman, buried in the sound of the fireworks, and I couldn’t help but smile.

Seriously, why worry about me?

This year, the Academy Competition will be hosted by this No Name.

I looked up at the lofty autumn sky, uttering words within myself that could not reach you.