Chapter 368

The students taking this exam can roughly be divided into three categories.

First up, we have those who are obsessed with the theme of treasure hunting. They’re all about exploration over combat.

Even just exploring brought them excitement, and the sense of achievement when finding treasure through clues was beyond words.

Not that there aren’t people after the treasure; they’re just more focused on scoring points while dodging attacks.

The second category consists of students who specifically target those who found treasures. These students are bound to clash with others.

With the high likelihood of conflict, the chances of getting a death sentence also skyrocketed, and aiming for treasure became more like gambling.

Finally, we have the students who do both. These folks will do whatever it takes to snag treasure.

Because they focus solely on acquiring treasure, they tend not to avoid fights at all.

In fact, they tend to target even those who’ve only found clues and not treasures. This usually results in one of two situations.

Either they are powerful enough to be considered public enemies or they can manage things quietly.

“Hmm… I wonder if I should go this way?”

A woman lugging a massive battle axe scanned the area around her. It was Reina, the princess of Frozen.

She was wandering alone in a small village characterized by its fountain. Obviously, she was there to look for treasure.

By chance, she found a note with clues and followed it right to the village. Just for reference, she discovered the map prior.

‘This clearly indicates a fountain…’

The clue suggested something like this: The water stretching up to the sky is destined to return to the pond.

At first, she thought, “What kind of nonsense is this?” But after thinking a little more, she figured out it referred to a fountain.

She eventually arrived in a village with a fountain, but she had no idea where the treasure was located.

It seemed there must be another clue near the fountain. Reina approached the fountain.

‘The academy is quite fascinating. I can’t believe the examination ground is this spacious.’

Reina admired the size of the academy while carefully inspecting the fountain. She was hoping to find a clue.

Eventually, her eyes lit up as she found a tiny box inside the fountain. That had to be the treasure.

-Clunk

“Ugh.”

However, despite finding the treasure box, she couldn’t hide her disappointment. The box was completely empty.

Wondering if there were any other mechanisms, she looked around but found nothing.

It seemed someone had taken the treasure. Must have been returned to trick her again.

“Ugh…”

Feeling like she struck out, Reina sat down on the fountain, her shoulders slumping in disappointment.

She repeatedly opened and closed the empty treasure box, then lifted her gaze to the clear sky.

‘I really want to gather that treasure…’

Reina sighed. Even though there was still plenty of time left, she felt anxious.

If the exam’s reward were anything ordinary, she wouldn’t be putting in this much effort.

She might have just enjoyed collecting treasure or not worrying about it if there wasn’t any.

But this exam had a prize so amazing it was hard to even describe.

Although it came with some tough conditions, it was undeniably tempting.

‘Will it really grant my wish?’

Reina set the battle axe she had carried from Frozen beside her. It was her cherished weapon.

She hadn’t brought it to practice, but it was for this very exam.

‘When will I gather all seven…’

Reina felt troubled. The moment she gathers all the treasures, her one wish will be fulfilled.

That wish was to advance to the second year with Sivar and maybe even end up in the same class together.

The reason behind wanting to make this wish was obvious. She was currently standing out in her class.

Without a single friend to rely on, she could only focus on her studies, making her feel incredibly lonely.

She at least spoke to Diana occasionally, but with her terrible communication skills, that was tough too.

After all, Diana had no shortage of people to talk to, with or without Reina.

‘It’s tough to eat alone, too…’

What bothered Reina the most was lunchtime. She could only eat alone every day at noon.

If possible, she wanted to have lunch with Sivar, but sadly that was tough.

She felt it might bother Sivar, and on top of that, their schedules just didn’t align.

So, for Reina, it was imperative to advance to the second year through this exam.

No matter how optimistic she was, loneliness and solitude were pains she had never felt before.

‘Being with senior Sivar brings me comfort.’

Just being able to communicate with him was already a level of comfort for Reina that she had never experienced before.

Despite struggling to learn language due to her dyslexia, she had been improving little by little thanks to Sivar’s help.

However, it was still difficult to bond with her classmates. They always said first impressions matter, and now it felt too late.

That’s why joining Sivar’s class was the best option for her. She couldn’t afford to let comfort slip away during her school life.

‘When will I collect all the treasures?’

The exam lasts a staggering three to four days. Within that time, she had to collect seven treasures.

The problem was, one of the treasures was with Sivar and the assistants. In other words, there was a high chance she would have to fight Sivar.

“Phew…”

The thought of a confrontation with Sivar made Reina exhale oddly.

She felt both anxious and excited at the same time. The rumors about Sivar were varied, but the notion of him being “strong” was common.

Particularly interesting was the rumor that he taught humans’ techniques to a gorilla. Gorillas were physically stronger than humans, after all.

How strong would he really be? Could she win even after collecting all the treasures? Or would he be surprisingly just physically strong?

Regardless, her anticipation didn’t wane. She didn’t have time to feel discouraged.

‘Yeah. Just sitting here doing nothing won’t help.’

-Clap! Clap!

With a determined heart, Reina slapped her cheeks with both hands. No time for feeling sorry for herself; she had to move.

It’d be best to search this village first. Even if there was no treasure, at least she could find clues.

Just as she was about to move forward with her battle axe on her back…

-Aaaaaah!

She heard a scream not too far away. Reina turned her head in the direction of the sound.

-Kyaaaaaah!

-Hyaaaah!

After the first scream, more screams followed, and there were even sounds like something bursting.

Something was happening over there. Given the screams, it seemed the level of destruction was quite significant.

Urgently, she dashed in that direction. Exiting the village, crossing the open plains, she arrived at another village.

“…What the?”

Reina was taken aback. The small village, consisting of only a few buildings, was completely devastated.

Not only had the rooftops collapsed, but finding any building that was intact seemed impossible.

Who could have caused such destruction? She had a rough idea of who it might be, but searching was her priority.

Fortunately, it seemed the culprit who turned the village into this state had vanished.

“Ugh…”

“Are you okay?”

Most of the students were shielded, but a few remained conscious. They were the lucky ones.

Reina hurried to one of those students. Judging by their appearance, they were from the Eastern Empire.

“Who are you? Who did this?”

Perhaps because Sivar had helped her, her pronunciation was surprisingly clear.

Even though she could only string together short sentences, it was enough.

The student struggled to open their eyes and then gazed at Reina with a look of relief.

“The… assistant…”

“The assistant? You mean senior Sivar?”

“Yeah… he took our treasure…”

“What?”

Reina’s eyes widened. If another student had taken the treasure, she would have brushed it off.

But the fact that the assistant did it was unusual. Because professors had said that assistants would “protect” the treasures.

She never imagined they would go around stealing treasures themselves. Maybe it was some kind of trick after all.

“Senior Sivar? Why? Why did he take the treasure?”

“I…I don’t know… there were other colors, too…”

“Other colors?”

“Orange and yellow…”

The fact that two treasures had already been taken was truly shocking news. So that meant there were three treasures in total with the assistants.

In less than a day, they’d already secured nearly half of the treasures. The situation wasn’t looking good at all.

‘So they’re collecting treasures? Why? Can assistants wish for something too?’

Even so, she couldn’t fathom what wish an assistant might have. The exam was taking a bizarre turn.

Reina laid the student down in a safe spot and asked one last question. This might be the most important one.

“What about your treasure? What color is it?”

“No need to tell you…”

“But the assistant is collecting them! We need to work together!”

“…”

Reina exclaimed urgently. Since Sivar had become a treasure hunter, teaming up was essential.

Yet beneath that urgency lay hidden motives. The moment Sivar collected all the treasures, he would take everything last.

It was a vicious and cunning scheme, but Reina desperately wanted to make her wish come true.

With one act of cowardice, she could enjoy a comfortable school life. The reward was just too sweet to give up.

“…Indigo.”

“What?”

“Indigo… it was.”

“…”

The treasure Sivar had seized was, in fact, indigo. Upon hearing that answer, Reina clenched her lips tightly.

But the issue wasn’t the color. It was about the treasure’s abilities.

The student let out a complicated sigh and quietly spoke.

“You’ll know the location.”

“What?”

“Knowing the locations of the other treasures. That’s the effect.”

“…”

“It’s all over now. That guy will collect all the treasures.”

An utterly despairing effect. Even without the power of the treasure, that person was already incredibly strong.

It’s like putting wings on a tiger. No, it reduced his movements to a minimum instead.

Reina found herself picturing Sivar, moving straight toward the treasures, and without realizing, she muttered:

“This is bad.”

“Yeah, it is.”

The student seemed to agree. Leaving them behind, she hurriedly moved forward.

This information needed to be known by everyone. Especially those holding the treasures; they had to be informed at all costs.

‘Time is of the essence…!’

The desire to make her wish remained. However, if Sivar made a wish first, it would all be in vain.

They had to either eliminate Sivar or forcibly extract the treasures from his grasp.

‘Besides, senior Sivar likes roaming around even at night, right?’

The worst possible scenario had presented itself.

*****

-Wheeeing

When she infused magic power into the indigo ring, an arrow suddenly floated up in the air.

The arrow pointed in a specific direction. It seemed following that line would work.

The indigo ring was a lucky find from the recent battle. Its ability was truly impressive.

‘I feel like it might end too easily.’

Staring intently at the indigo ring, I quietly slipped it off my finger and stashed it in my pocket.

I shouldn’t get too reliant on it. Besides, time wasn’t on my side.

‘This is just unfair.’

Why did they even include something like this? At the same time, I was curious.

‘What’s up with the purple one?’

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