Chapter 383

The treasure hunt exam, filled with ups and downs, has finally come to an end. Leaving behind nothing but a feeling of emptiness.

If they say it’s my fault… well, they’re right. It ended with me doing some weird stuff without properly checking things out.

Wasn’t there a shortage of time? Sure, a little, but it wouldn’t have been a huge issue.

It all started with giving students plenty of time, which was just an invitation to take it easy and end up getting blindsided.

“What happens to the scores if there’s no winner?”

“But, in the end, the assistants took all the treasures.”

The burning question was about the scores. As soon as the exam ended, the students approached the professor with their inquiries.

I might have had the most treasures, but ultimately I’m still just an assistant.

It would be tricky to grade that. Hence, Dis opted for a non-answer.

“We’ll discuss the scores among the professors. We’ll grade fairly, so don’t worry too much about it.”

“So, does that mean a score of 0 for everyone…?”

“Since no wishes were made, it’s as if it never happened.”

At that, sighs of relief echoed through the crowd. Were they that terrified?

Well, I only joked about giving a score of 0. In reality, I would have taken Reina.

‘Guess that means I can’t take Reina now.’

I turned my gaze around for Reina. Her blue hair made her easy to spot.

She looked like she’d taken quite a beating in my tussle with Kara, her eyes swollen like a raccoon. She was rubbing them like they were allergic.

On the other hand, Kara seemed to be in decent shape. After nearly a year of training, it was not surprising.

‘Beating Kara is going to be tough.’

I held back considerably when we fought. Still, it wasn’t entirely without gains.

For some reason, I realized that Reina had received the choice of chaos. Rize would have been moved if she’d seen it.

“Everyone worked hard during the exam period. This week there won’t be any classes, only autonomous training. Feel free to rest if you need to.”

Anyhow, the exam was done. The students began to disperse one by one.

They didn’t forget to shoot me glances as they left. They’d probably be a little wary of me after this.

The carefree banter around me would likely decrease. I’m looking forward to my assistant life ahead.

‘But first…’

There was still something I needed to do. During the dispersal, I approached Dis.

Coincidentally, Dis had something to say to me as well, wearing a proud little smile.

“You did an excellent job running the exam, Sivar.”

“Thank you.”

“I just hope you can work on your strength control. Do you have any idea how shocked we were when you lifted the ground?”

Hmm. That was indeed dangerous. I nodded in agreement.

But there was someone here who knew me well. Just then, she placed her hand on my shoulder and spoke.

“That was a form of strength control, wasn’t it? Right?”

It was Kara. She flashed a grin my way.

There were scratches on her from fighting Reina, but they would heal quickly.

“Maybe?”

“Maybe? What do you mean maybe?”

Kara responded with a giggle. No, I genuinely didn’t know.

I was just trying to be playful by lifting like that.

Still, since I lifted it with one hand, I guess it’s fair to claim it was a kind of strength control.

“Anyway, do you have something to say to me?”

“Yes.”

“What is it?”

“Treasures.”

“Treasures?”

At the mention of treasures, Dis tilted his head. It seemed he hadn’t realized yet.

But Kara was already on it. With a mysterious expression, she hinted at what I wanted.

“You’re not asking for treasures, are you?”

“That’s right.”

“What color?”

Naturally.

“Purple.”

Yes, it’s purple. Besides purple treasures, I don’t particularly crave anything else.

But I knew it was a long shot. It was an event-type item, and the academy owned it.

Still, I figured it was worth a shot to ask. There’s a higher chance than not asking at all, right?

“Hmm. I’m sorry, student. The purple gloves are property of the academy, so I can’t give them to you. They are bound by a contract.”

“Tch.”

I clicked my tongue and gave up right away. I wouldn’t mind if I could buy it, but tied by a contract, apparently.

Still, there was a glimmer of hope. Seeing my disappointment, Dis chuckled and offered a piece of advice.

“If you really want to buy it, you could commission Santiago. It’ll cost a fair bit, though.”

“Santiago? By the way, didn’t Jane mention she was from Santiago?”

“Yeah.”

“Then I can ask her for help!”

Well, Jane is talented in engineering, but she’s still at the beginner stage when it comes to magic.

Godin is helping her out now, but there are still a lot of gaps. But it’s not a bad choice.

Jane is the kind of genius who picks up ten things after learning one. It should be fine to ask her later.

“In that case, allow me to gift you something else. You two have solved the toughest challenge.”

“Huh? What do you mean?”

“What do you mean, what do I mean?”

Dis nodded at Kara’s confusion. Following his indication, both of us turned our heads.

In the direction we looked, students were flocking together. The surprising part? They were mingling quite well.

Normally, the Hwan Empire and the Federation would stay apart, but now they had mixed quite a bit.

Of course, just seeing them together doesn’t mean they’ve become friends yet. But it’s progress, that much is true.

“Though there’s a long way to go, this is a good start. Very impressive.”

“Thank you?”

“I should thank you more. So I’m going to give you this.”

“What is this…?”

I gazed at the treasure Dis offered. It was a treasure that’s two-fold, the Orange Ring.

A device that allows communication when infused with magic power. I looked up at Dis.

Dis had a weirdly pleased yet somewhat mischievous expression on his face. Like a cheery uncle.

“This should be enough. It looks like you two are pretty close, right?”

“Yeah. We are.”

“Just as I thought. You’ll find it quite useful in the future. Anything up to blue can be gifted at my discretion since it’s not bound by a contract.”

“Thank you.”

Kara didn’t ask if Dis was going to give her one. He was too busy slacking off, so he was obviously out of the loop.

Kara and I received the Orange Treasure from Dis and instinctively put it on. Specifically, on our left ring fingers.

At that, Dis’s expression grew even more mischievous. Noticing that, Kara seemed to sense something and responded with a curious look.

“…Why do you have that expression?”

“Oh, it’s nothing. Really, you don’t know?”

“What is it?”

“Never mind. You’ll find out later.”

This guy… such a rascal. Clearly doing it on purpose.

But I can’t say anything. If I acted like I knew, I’d be on the losing end.

The best strategy is to pretend I know as little as possible. Why do I have to pretend to be a wild man?

‘Because I have to survive.’

Otherwise, I could really end up dead. Just then, Kara genuinely didn’t know.

I was just doing what Eli taught me. Gifting something precious to someone precious.

With that self-justification in mind, I stepped out of the examination ground. Kara was curiously inspecting the gift on her left ring finger.

“The orange color is pretty, though. I would have preferred red or green.”

“Do you like those colors?”

“No, I like green.”

I looked at Kara’s face upon hearing that. Coincidentally, Kara was also meeting my gaze.

Her emerald-like eyes sparkled as they mirrored my face.

Kara flashed her signature bright smile and pointed at my eyes with a grin.

“Red is you. It suits you best.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. Your magic power is red, right?”

Isn’t that a bit too simplistic? But if Kara likes it, then that’s good.

“Now that the exam is over, we’re slowly heading back to our country.”

“Yeah.”

“I really hope nothing goes wrong…”

As we stepped outside the examination ground, Kara voiced her worries. Her face was filled with anxiety.

For Tartar, the experiential learning event is very important.

If anything went wrong, it could tarnish the country’s reputation.

Especially since it’s a newly formed nation, first impressions are vital. I understand why Kara is worried.

“Kara.”

“Yeah?”

“It’s okay. It’ll go well.”

Kara blinked at my blunt reassurance. Then she chuckled and pinched my cheek.

It seems she took my reassurance as just that, simple comfort. But I would help in any way I could.

“Right. If you say it’ll be fine, it probably will be. If not… well, that’s just how it is.”

“It’s bound to work out.”

“There’s no such thing as guaranteed. You’re young, so you wouldn’t understand.”

Now she’s treating me like a kid… I can see why that might annoy me. I kept my lips tightly shut.

My reaction seemed to amuse Kara, who giggled. It felt like a bit of the unease in my heart faded away.

“But, Kara.”

“Yeah?”

“When we get there, the princess will…”

“Ah! Don’t! Stop it!”

Is it enough to get her riled up just by calling her princess? I looked at Kara, who was trembling and hugging herself.

Then she exhaled deeply, massaging her nape gently.

“It feels too distant. I wish I could be called something comfortable over there.”

“I’ll only call you that in private.”

“What? So you’ll call me princess in front of others?”

“It’s manners.”

That seemed like the polite thing to do. It might be fine for us, but it could be displeasing for the people of that country.

Kara stared at me, dumbfounded, as if she was processing what I said. After a moment, she nodded and spoke.

“That could… look like I’m disregarding authority, huh? Since I am a princess.”

“That’s right.”

“Sivar, you’re really… something else, huh?”

I shrugged. Honestly, someone else would have pointed that out too.

This certainly feels immature. Instead of just a warrior, I need to carry myself as a princess.

This applies not just to Kara but also to Hector. Father and daughter seem to be undergoing a kind of transition.

“There’s so much to learn. Being a princess is harder than I thought.”

“Hang in there.”

“Yeah. I need to. See you tomorrow.”

“Okay.”

Kara and I parted ways. Yet, even when we were apart, the Orange Treasure remained on our left ring fingers.

-Crackling

[Did you make it in?]

“I’m at the entrance now. How about you, Kara?”

[I just came in too. Gonna start washing up shortly.]

This means we can communicate like this.

Not quite a beeper… more like a phone that can only call.

I chatted with Kara about various things as I opened the door. Right as I opened it, a very familiar face welcomed me.

“Sivar!”

It was Grace. She rushed over with her purple eyes sparkling.

It felt like a wife welcoming home her husband who’d been on a long business trip. Not that it was, but that’s the vibe.

However, that feeling didn’t last long. Grace’s expression lit up for a moment before she noticed my left hand, and her face froze.

Then, it turned to stone, and with trembling eyes, she slowly raised her hand.

“Wha-what is that?”

“Huh? What do you mean?”

“On your left hand… that…”

“This?”

I showed her the ring on my left ring finger. The treasure sparkled in orange.

That alone was enough to shock Grace, but there was still more.

[Sivar. Are you there? Are you having dinner alone?]

“Th-that voice is…!”

[Yeah. A familiar voice… Ah!]

Did Grace hear the voice? Kara cheered, then shouted with excitement.

[Is that you, Grace? Wait, it looks like I’ll be having dinner with you both.]

“…..”

[No, I’ll just eat alone. You two enjoy yourselves. Bye!]

-Whoosh

That was such an innocent, unaware voice.

The instant the communication was cut off, I glanced at Grace, gauging her reaction.

“…..”

Grace’s eyes… were filled with an expression that couldn’t be put into words.

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