—
A period of getting mercilessly beaten by the Heavenly Demon.
Most of it was filled with one-sided violence.
Still, I didn’t come away empty-handed.
“Heavenly Demon, how do you use the death beam?”
“I’ll beat you up until the name changes. For now, let’s say you’re enhancing your arms.”
The Heavenly Demon raised his hand, pointing his fingertip at me.
“You’re also sending Qi energy from your heart to the desired area and back to your heart, right?”
“It’s magical power, not Qi. Why don’t you use the term ‘magical power’ if it’s also Chinese?”
“It’s a profane word! Anyway, think of it like this: some of the Qi flow from your fingertip is leaking and not circulating back.”
Whoosh!
As soon as he finished speaking, a small wisp began to rise from the tip of the Heavenly Demon’s finger.
That wisp seemed to condense more over time, becoming thicker.
“So, every time the Qi flows, it would keep leaking out, right?”
“Exactly?”
“You can gather the leaked Qi and release it through your sweat glands.”
“Then those without sweat glands can’t use it, right?”
A surprisingly practical yet unrealistic condition.
However, the Heavenly Demon said it’s not entirely impossible.
“In that case, you can make a hole in your fingertip to let it out. But the efficiency would be terrible.”
“Drill a huge hole in my palm and fire it away? That sounds like a repulsor gun.”
In that moment, the mention of a repulsor gun caught the Heavenly Demon’s attention.
“Are you talking about that Steel Man? I don’t think highly of him.”
“Why not?”
“Isn’t he just a childish rookie who doesn’t understand his opponent in the movie where he fights the American general?”
A scornful assessment of Stark.
This was something I couldn’t forgive.
“Do you expect an understanding from someone who sided with his parents’ enemies? Are you out of your mind?”
“Ah! He was a lost cause from the start!”
“F*ck, let’s go again. Don’t slander Stark!”
“I will prove that the American general was right.”
Thus, we returned to the sparring ground and fought desperately.
Of course, I lost, but since I bit off an ear, it was counted as a tie.
Anyway, the violent personal lessons with the Heavenly Demon ended here.
Coincidentally, the last day with the Heavenly Demon was also the day of the Elf candidate voting.
As soon as the practical training ended, Hyeji, Jeong Ahyeon, and I moved to the polling station.
It was evening, and there seemed to be nobody around, only a sleepy polling supervisor.
We succeeded in the ninja game.
[No need to wait uselessly.]
‘Even late lunch is a gain, voting is similar.’
As soon as I got the ballot, I entered the voting booth—without hesitation, I marked ‘Approve.’
Just as I was coming out, Jeong Ahyeon was coming out, too.
However.
“……When will you come out?”
“You have many concerns, so understand.”
Hyeji didn’t come out of the booth for a long time.
It was undoubtedly due to the conflict from two opposing emotions.
The rationality of wanting to make Lucian’s ear goblin suffer.
And the hatred stemming from her magnificent breasts.
After a while.
Finally, Hyeji stepped out with a grim expression.
She probably voted in favor.
My heart ached seeing Hyeji hate her own breasts.
All breasts are precious.
Whether large or small.
‘People without breasts aren’t treated as humans, but Hyeji should be an exception.’
[If I say this out loud, I’ll die.]
*
The next day.
The overall voting results were disclosed at the academy.
Not just posters everywhere, but there were also notifications on the academy app.
At the same time, research students were crawling out of the polling station.
They were moving toward the research building, swaying as if they had pulled an all-nighter.
It was clearly a human rights violation scene forcing them to count votes and conduct experiments.
[…I’ll just consider the professor a piece of sh*t.]
‘I should behead him as the Professor Slayer.’
To get straight to the point, the voting results were overwhelmingly in ‘Favor.’
First, the negative image of Lucian due to remarks about the World Tree had a major impact on his reputation.
It was only natural that the opposition led by Lucian suffered greatly.
Moreover, the anti-campaign wasn’t normal either.
Despite numerous complaints, they acted recklessly without improvement.
As a result, even those who were not inclined to support ended up voting ‘Yes’ out of anger.
[You idiots! If you’re going to incite, do it properly.]
‘At this rate, even Goebbels couldn’t handle it.’
The voters were diverse.
Elves, academy students, professors, and even staff.
Of course, research students were excluded.
They weren’t considered people and thus couldn’t be given voting rights.
[Isn’t it better not to give voting rights to that bald-headed Professor Pilyong?]
‘That’s a sensible comment. After all, isn’t it weird for a bald guy to be voting?’
In that moment, I spotted Lucian from afar.
He was desperately trying to tear down a poster, shouting in disbelief at the results.
He seemed completely deranged.
Then, just to be sure, he checked his phone, probably hoping for some glimmering support on the academy’s anonymous board.
That’s when a brilliant thought struck me.
Without delay, I opened the academy app and started typing.
The posting location was the anonymous board.
– Title: IS THERE A WAY TO OVERTURN THIS VOTING RESULT!!!!
– Author: Crazy Guy
(Random GIF of a reverse betting article)
There’s none, ear goblin!
The big tree you chose!
The f*cked-up voting!
Absolutely!
I WON’T overturn it, ear goblin!
As long as I’m fine~~~~~!
As soon as I finished writing, countless notification alerts started buzzing.
Of course, I didn’t check.
I could guess what would come up.
Thanks to my earlier actions, I couldn’t hold back my laughter.
With a broad smile, I headed to class and flung the door open wide.
Hyeji and Jeong Ahyeon shot me worried glances upon seeing my face.
“I guess it’s finally time for Shinwoo.”
“Master… it was enjoyable.”
“No, you little sh*ts. I’m not dead yet.”
I was about to rush to put on a serious face, but the moment I caught their reactions…
However, Hyeji seemed lost in her thoughts, mumbling with a dark expression.
“Don’t worry, Shinwoo. I’ll kill you and then follow.”
“No, f*ck. Please don’t go down the ambiguous yandere route. I don’t want to add taglines.”
“……As long as it’s not ambiguous, right?”
“Is that your thing, Master?”
“F*ck, seriously.”
I simply explained why I was smiling.
At that moment, Hyeji and Jeong Ahyeon sent relieved expressions.
“I thought Shinwoo had crossed the river of no return.”
“Me too.”
“What do you normally think of me?”
Then Hyeji and Jeong Ahyeon tilted their heads in unison.
As if asking why I’m questioning something obvious.
“You’re a crazy bastard.”
“You’re a crazy bastard.”
[You’re a crazy bastard.]
“You little bitches.”
Hyeji, Jeong Ahyeon, and my inner voice echoed in unison.
As if everyone shared the same mind.
Soon, Hyeji and Jeong Ahyeon exchanged fist bumps as if celebrating their newfound understanding.
‘At least Jeong Ahyeon was normal. But she’s starting to get weird.’
[…I feel like you’re the mastermind behind this.]
Just as I felt a slight despair at the inescapable reality, the classroom door opened quietly.
The class was noisy, and there was no sign of it quieting down.
Perhaps it was to be expected.
There hadn’t been a sound until that door opened.
But at the moment someone walked through the gap, it was as if cold water had been poured, and the classroom began to quiet down.
Two people entered through the gap.
One was a blonde elf who had delivered the death sentence to Lucian.
The other, slightly behind, seemed to be an escort.
And the other was a pink-haired elf who had become the representative for welcoming the World Tree.
With attire and appearance identical to the poster.
The pink-haired elf walked gracefully to the center of the podium and began to slowly scan the classroom.
Had she seen everyone?
Shortly after, the elf opened her mouth, and a very gentle voice flowed out.
“Hello, everyone. I’m Ershiana, the representative who will be welcoming the World Tree.
First of all, I want to thank you all for your precious vote that helped me win.
Though I’m inexperienced, I will strive to be an elf worthy of the title of World Tree representative.
Once again, thank you all so much.”
As she finished speaking, Ershiana gave a graceful bow.
Her movements were slow yet elegant, exuding grace and beauty like a piece of art.
[This is on a whole different level compared to that ear goblin.]
‘That one was just a beast kid. Even in constant heat.’
After her greeting, as Ershiana lifted her head, she was met with a multitude of cheers and applause.
Hyeji was clapping half-heartedly with a sullen face, while Jeong Ahyeon was nodding.
However, Ershiana’s actions were somewhat unusual.
Ignoring the uproar, she was moving her head side to side.
It looked like she was hurriedly searching for something.
When she seemingly couldn’t find what she was looking for and appeared slightly dejected, the escort elf whispered something in her ear.
Soon, Ershiana’s gaze turned toward me, and she began beaming brightly.
“Oh, it’s you! You fought and defeated Lucian, right?”
“Yes, that’s correct. I’m Kim Shinwoo.”
“I really wanted to see you. I’ve been curious about who you are.”
At that moment, a number above Ershiana’s head ticked up by one, and a mirror fragment appeared.
The same happened with the escort elf behind her, who also had a number increase above his head.
Unfortunately, the escort elf was awkwardly far, so no mirror fragment emerged.
But something felt off.
The escort elf, who was alternating his gaze between me and Ershiana, smiled subtly.
On the other hand, Ershiana seemed momentarily dazed, staring blankly into space.
She quickly snapped back to reality and turned her attention back to me for introductions.
“Hello, Kim Shinwoo. I’m Ershiana.”
With a gaze full of desire, Ershiana stared at me.
After a brief moment of silence, Ershiana’s mouth opened.
“Please call me Elcia.”
Suddenly, Elcia took my hand with both of hers.
Caught off guard by the unexpected contact, my face started to flush.
But the moment Elcia beamed and spoke.
“Master.”
My world momentarily stopped.
—
