I was quietly waiting in front of the tent.
If I waited here, pretending to be vigilant, the professor would surely be satisfied.
If I carelessly left my post and offended the professor, I would definitely get hit again later.
While I was setting up the tent, quite a few people had gathered.
There must have been at least a few thousand.
And still, more were coming through the door.
With this year’s new students surpassing ten thousand, it meant that twice this many wizards were gathering in one place.
I had never seen so many wizards gathered in one place.
Even in the university city where the school gates were located, the number of wizards had never exceeded a thousand.
The outskirts of the slums were the same.
But to see so many wizards gathered like this… And most of them were probably more skilled than me.
I could feel my body tense up slightly from the nervousness.
I checked the time; it was a little past 10.
The admission letter stated to enter the university gates by 12:00 noon, so there was still plenty of time until the ceremony.
‘Should I observe the people until then?’ I thought as I carefully scanned the open area.
To my surprise, the people were grouped together.
Like me, they had decorated parts of the open space in different ways.
Among them, the most impressive was a huge mansion.
The beautiful mansion, crafted from ice, was so well-made that even from the outside, you could clearly see inside.
Inside the mansion, many people had gathered and were talking.
There were many people surrounding the mansion.
But no one could easily approach it, thanks to the guards stationed around it.
They were all powerful wizards, easily identifiable at a glance.
To think they employed such powerful wizards as guards… ‘Did some high-ranking people arrive?’ I wondered.
Then I felt someone’s gaze on me.
Curious, I focused my magic to pinpoint the owner of the gaze.
It was Hong Ryeong.
I hurriedly stood up and bowed my head in greeting.
Hong Ryeong nodded slightly and then began talking to the people next to him again.
I quickly turned my gaze away.
The memories of the test still haunted me.
Sometimes, his face, filled with disgust, would appear in my dreams, and I’d wake up startled.
It was better not to give him any more attention.
Seeing him there made it clear that the powerful families were gathered over there.
It was a completely different world from mine, and there was no need to worry about them anymore.
I continued observing the different groups of wizards.
They were each creating their own factions even before the ceremony had started.
While I was looking around, someone poked me in the shoulder.
I hadn’t felt any presence at all.
Startled, I turned around, and there stood Aileen, wearing her usual smile and waving her hand.
“Hello.”
“It’s been a while, Aileen-nim.”
“Heh, long time no see.”
She glanced at the tent.
“Who’s inside?”
“Our professor is there. Another professor came by, so I came outside.”
She seemed surprised for a moment.
After staring at the tent for a while, she turned to look at me.
“Was what you said during the exam true?”
“How could I lie?”
I smiled softly and manipulated my magic.
A puppet appeared in front of us, bringing out a chair and a table.
She sat down, and the puppet gently slid the chair forward to her.
The puppet then poured her a cup of tea and placed it in front of her.
It was the same tea she liked to drink during the exam.
When Aileen took a sip, a smile deepened on her lips.
“It’s even better than before.”
“Yes, I’ve improved the magic a bit.”
We both sat in silence, drinking our tea.
After finishing her cup, Aileen finally spoke.
“Did you see Hong Ryeong?”
“Yes, I saw him inside the mansion talking with others.”
“Then what about the Shaking rope?”
Her voice dropped, and I could sense her interest growing.
I was startled.
The Shaking rope? Was she here? I had been watching the area carefully, but I hadn’t seen anything about a Shaking rope.
“No, did she pass?”
“Yeah. She’s hiding among the other witches right now, keeping an eye on Hong Ryeong. She’s being very careful, probably trying not to be noticed. Heh, it sounds interesting.”
A wry smile formed on my face.
This was why I had been so cautious not to make enemies during the exam.
Hatred always lingers stubbornly. Just like in the case of the Shaking rope.
Of course, Hong Ryeong wouldn’t care about such things.
He was from a powerful family, after all.
For people like me—wandering souls—this was a matter to be careful about.
In that sense, the Shaking rope’s passing was very unsettling.
To pass in such a disadvantaged position meant that her talent was extraordinary.
“I’m glad she passed. Did you see Mr. Sigyeo?”
“No, that old man probably failed.”
Aileen shook her head.
It seemed like the old man had failed, just as I had expected.
He was the only one from our group to fail.
On the other hand, it meant that four of us had passed.
Should I be happy that there were familiar faces around? But, looking at the case of the Shaking rope, it wasn’t necessarily so.
***
We continued to drink our tea and idly watch the open space.
Hmm, maybe now is the time.
There was no one around, and Hong Ryeong wasn’t paying attention to us either.
“Aileen-nim, aren’t you going to that mansion over there?”
I casually poked at her, but her reaction was immediate.
The smile vanished from her face.
She narrowed her eyes and coldly stared at me.
In that instant, the air seemed to freeze, and her magic, like a rope, began to constrict around my body.
“Hmm, I’m not going.”
She leaned forward, resting her arms on the table, bringing her face closer to mine. Her sharp gaze ran over my face. I forced a wry smile and endured it. The smell of blood thickened in her magic.
“Who told you that?”
She whispered, her voice laced with a sharp edge.
“Hong Ryeong. He told me when the exam ended.”
“Heh, so that young master said that, huh?”
A smile slowly crept back onto her face.
But this smile felt distinctly uncomfortable.
I couldn’t tell what was hidden beneath her smile, but the murderous aura had dissipated.
That coldness was now directed at Hong Ryeong instead of me.
I breathed a sigh of relief inside.
I had no idea what kind of relationship these two had or what intentions they had for approaching me.
The only thing I could do now was either hide everything or reveal everything.
Both were risky choices.
I chose to reveal everything.
I thought it would be the safest path.
If Hong Ryeong came over, I’d share this with him as well.
The more I kept hidden, the more I would become a target.
If I laid everything out from the start, there would be no room for suspicion.
The mood settled again, and we began talking about everyday matters.
After telling me how she had spent the past month, Aileen naturally began talking about a wizard she had killed—one who had passed the university entrance exam.
“Heh, you sure know how to joke.”
I laughed off her words as if they were just a joke.
But there was cold sweat running down my back.
I had no idea why she was bringing up this story.
Had I become some useful tool for her? If that was the case, then at least I would be safe.
Being used as a tool meant she wouldn’t kill me.
I had to quickly change the subject.
If I got any more entangled in this, I might naturally end up involved in her work as well.
Right now, what she was most interested in was tea.
So, I began to embellish and explain how I had developed the magic of brewing tea over the past month.
I didn’t just talk; I showed her the changing colors and scents of the tea.
Soon, several cups began to line up on the table.
Her eyes followed them, and they began to sparkle.
I had finally caught her attention.
With a small sigh, I served the tea with a story infused in it.
As I was speaking, I noticed the empty lot beginning to buzz with activity.
People were starting to fill the area around us.
Even here, on the outskirts, people had started to show up.
I checked the time—it was almost midnight.
“Time’s up.”
As soon as I spoke those words, the shadow covering the tent was sucked into the ground.
From within, Professor Heisen slowly walked out.
I quickly stood up and bowed my head to greet him. He glanced at me before melting back into his own shadow.
“Is that your professor?”
Aileen asked.
I shook my head slightly.
“No, he’s here to see our professor. He’s Professor Heisen, they say.”
Just as I was explaining, Professor Irien came bursting out of the tent.
I didn’t know what had been going on inside, but she was grumbling with exhaustion.
I whispered quietly to Aileen and stood up.
“This is our professor.”
I quickly approached her and bowed.
“Have you come out?”
She looked at me and pouted.
Her face was full of dissatisfaction.
“You, make sure you sign up for his class. It’s already been decided.”
“For the class?”
I widened my eyes in surprise.
She glared at me with a fierce gaze.
That was a mistake.
I shouldn’t have spoken back to a professor who looked so displeased.
If it had been any other time, I would have been slapped immediately.
“Yeah. What, are you unhappy about it?”
“No, I’ll sign up right away.”
I had no idea what class she was talking about or how to sign up.
But I didn’t say a word.
If I added anything here, I was sure a punch would be the least of my worries.