610

[Chapter 162]

[Belonging Nowhere (7)]

The comprehensive division tournament ended.

As everyone expected, without any upset, <Quick-witted > Noh Eun-ha became the tournament champion.

"─Congratulations. Keep doing that, I hope you become a player who contributes to this country."

"...Thank you."

Comprehensive division tournament awards ceremony.

Eun-ha shook hands with the academy dean who extended his hand.

After nearly 6 years since entering the academy.

Eun-ha who met the president he would rarely ever meet for the first time awkwardly faced him.

On the other hand, the president consistently smiled and tried to show a friendly appearance to the photographers taking pictures.

"Even if you graduate from the academy, don't hesitate to tell me anytime if you need my help."

Then the president whispered so only Eun-ha could hear.

Eun-ha grasped the president's intention.

He was trying to maintain a connection with him in the future.

It was also beneficial for Eun-ha.

Judging there was no particular harm, Eun-ha nodded slightly.

[Then we will have the trophy presentation.]

And soon after.

Eun-ha received the comprehensive division tournament championship trophy from the president.

In principle, Eun-ha was now given the qualification to possess the trophy until the next cultural festival was held.

Of course, most winners returned the trophy to the comprehensive division tournament management committee for management after receiving it once.

Eun-ha planned to do so too.

But before that, he should use the magic imbued in the trophy once.

Looking forward to tonight.

Eun-ha held the golden trophy and waited for the next award.

Students who received awards in the comprehensive division tournament also received artifacts along with certificates.

"...The above student honed his abilities for humanity and the country, and won the 31st comprehensive division tournament, so we present this certificate."

The academy president handed over the certificate.

Eun-ha quickly received the certificate, and then received an artifact contained in a palm-sized box.

Before the regression, this was the artifact received by On Tae-yang who finally defeated Min-ho in front of people.

The artifact in the box was a red tassel (紅條穗兒) hung on the end of a sword hilt.

The artifact's name was Purification Knot.

The red string decoration was used to tie around the wrist to not lose the sword when swinging.

In addition─.

─It could heal poison created by 5th rank or lower monsters, but could only be used once a day.

For me, I won't be affected by most poisons thanks to Virulent Venom even without using artifacts...

But since it can be used on other people too, it's better to have it than not.

The Purification Knot was a useful artifact for players graduating from the academy and entering the world.

Of course, it wasn't a particularly necessary artifact for Eun-ha who didn't fall into the category of rookie players.

Eun-ha decided to use it moderately and pass it on to his friends when he obtained a better artifact.

☆

Evening of the 4th day of the cultural festival.

It was the last night of the cultural festival, and essentially the last day.

Tomorrow the cultural festival ends in the morning, and even then most booths will be cleaning up from the morning.

The only event left tomorrow is me fighting that crazy squid kid.

But surely many people will still come to see the cultural festival tomorrow.

Eun-ha sighed thinking about fighting <Yama > Kang Hyun-chul of the Twelve Zodiac in front of people tomorrow.

Though fighting in front of people wasn't that burdensome, just the thought of crossing swords with Kang Hyun-chul gave him a headache.

...Let's forget it for now.

I'll think about tomorrow's matters tomorrow.

He decided to shake off the unpleasant thoughts.

And he decided to focus on and purely enjoy this moment.

Bang! Bang!! Bang─!!

The highlight of the academy cultural festival was of course the fireworks.

Fireworks planned by students supporting the caster and supporter divisions racking their brains, and created by combining forces of cresters who create magic formulas and maestros.

The phenomenon incorporating magic and artifacts could be said to be the crystallization determining the students' skills that year.

Boom boom boom!!

That crystallization was exploding now.

Though Seoul's night was so bright that stars in the night sky were faintly visible, the fireworks shot up by students were so much brighter they put Seoul's night sky to shame.

Flowers of various colors bloomed one after another in the sky.

"Wow, so pretty..."

Hundred flowers in full bloom.

And hundred flowers in brilliant disorder.

Flowers that bloomed for an instant and withered instantly scattered.

It looked just like flower petals in full bloom fluttering in the wind.

Though it was like this every year, this year was especially spectacular.

After getting permission from Shin Seo-young in advance, Eun-ha and his friends who secretly set up a makeshift tower in a place with little foot traffic marveled looking up at the night sky.

Jung Ha-yang and the other female students were all staring blankly at the night sky.

It's the last fireworks we'll see as academy students.

Eun-ha was the same.

Eun-ha smiled watching his friends absorbed in the fireworks blooming in the night sky while leaning on the railing.

Then he tightly held Jung Ha-yang's hand.

"It's pretty. Right?"

"Yeah. Really pretty."

"I'm really glad we could all watch together this year. Strangely, until now our schedules never matched so we couldn't all watch together."

"Yeah... It's fortunate we can all watch together at the end. Like you said, it seems like it'll become a good memory."

Jung Ha-yang sparkling alone under the brightening night sky.

She smiled following Eun-ha.

The two pressed their bodies close together.

The gazes they exchanged were hot.

"─Ugh... Look at them doing that when we said let's make memories. Why did you have to drag us along, just watch by yourselves."

"Strangely, everyone's schedules didn't match until now. But it seems that was mostly because of you guys, no, because of Eun-ha..."

Just then Kim Min-ji who turned from the railing shuddered as if getting goosebumps.

Cha Eun-woo chimed in too.

She who had been filming a video pointed her smartphone at the two and tried to film them.

"I shouldn't have trusted Noh Eun-ha. I should have known from when he asked to make the firework sounds louder. Make people's attention go elsewhere, and they'll deploy a soundproofing magic to have their fun? I can't even stab these guys with a bamboo spear..."

"Yeah. It's a bit irritating to see today, right? Si-hyung oppa, hurry and go separate those two."

"Seo-na, why are you telling me to do it? Eun-hyuk is over there too..."

"Ah, don't touch me. I feel like I'm about to gain some huge realization right now. So don't touch me."

All the friends' gazes focused on the two.

Bae Su-bin crossed her arms with a disgusted attitude.

Jin Seo-na agreed with her words and specifically pointed out Kang Si-hyung who was far away.

Kang Si-hyung who had been quietly appreciating the fireworks made a wronged face and subtly passed it on to Choi Eun-hyuk.

Then Choi Eun-hyuk made a lame excuse and pretended not to know.

"They're making a fuss just because we held hands once."

Eun-ha was dumbfounded.

He grumbled.

Jung Ha-yang smiled awkwardly next to him, but still tried not to let go of Eun-ha's hand until the end.

Just then─.

"─Come on, kids! Stop fighting and let's drink already! I'll show you exactly what trophy beer is...hic!"

"Me! Me! Me! I want to pour the beer!! I'm confident I can make delicious alcohol! Quick, pass the glory of victory to Ariel!"

"Ariel. Please stop making a fuss and stay still... Why are you suddenly passing this to me?"

"Honey, I think I know why. I think they're telling you to hold it? I'll pour the alcohol."

A chaotic scene unfolded.

Suddenly Jin Pa-rang picked up the comprehensive division tournament championship trophy placed to one side and drew everyone's attention.

Ariel's eyes instantly sparkled and she body slammed Jin Pa-rang.

Then she quickly snatched the championship trophy and lifted up an armful of beer bottles placed on the ground.

But it seemed difficult to hold in both arms, so she suddenly passed the trophy to Hoshimiya Kaede.

Kaede who received the trophy in a daze asked with a puzzled expression, and Ariel silently opened beer bottles, while Bong Gu-rae next to her answered instead.

"I'm not sure if we should really pour alcohol into a trophy with history and tradition..."

Mok Min-ho rubbed his temples as if he had a headache.

But no one paid attention to his lament.

Soon after, Ariel poured beer and soju she was holding in both hands into the trophy while grunting.

"Is this the right ratio for somaek? Aren't you putting in too much soju? Somehow it feels more like a penalty drink than a championship trophy drink..."

Jo A-ra approached Kaede's side.

She made a dubious expression watching the alcohol gradually filling the trophy.

She even sniffed it.

"Who cares! As long as we drink in a happy mood, it's all the same. The color looks great to me?"

"I think that's because the trophy is made of gold..."

Yoo Do-jun didn't mind.

He was already licking his lips saying it had been a long time since he drank alcohol.

Soon Lee Cheon-seo who had been watching for a chance to join the conversation showed reluctance.

Anyway, the championship trophy drink was completed.

"Noh Eun-ha."

"You didn't need to give it to me, you could have just done it yourself..."

"How could I do it when I'm not the owner of this trophy?"

The alcohol sloshes.

Kaede licked her finger that got wet with alcohol spilling out of the trophy.

Eun-ha who received the trophy from her nodded as if he had no choice.

Whoosh

Eun-ha manifested his internal mana.

When he imbued mana into the championship trophy, the magic inherent in the trophy activated.

Though the outside of the trophy remained the same.

The inside of the trophy cooled rapidly, making ice cubes float in the alcohol filled inside.

""""Wow....""""

Friends who saw the secret of the championship trophy for the first time let out exclamations.

Friends who liked alcohol were already swallowing saliva seeing the alcohol with thin ice floating.

"Everyone has glasses, right?"

""""Of course!!!!""""

"Come to Eun-ha one by one to receive! We'll all toast together, so don't drink first, okay?"

Eun-ha raised the trophy high.

His friends were already holding paper cups waiting for him to pour alcohol.

Jung Ha-yang had the friends line up so they could receive alcohol from Eun-ha without any disputes occurring.

"To think there's still this much left even after pouring a full glass for everyone..."

With Jung Ha-yang last.

Eun-ha poured alcohol into all his friends' glasses.

Nevertheless, there was still a lot of alcohol left in the trophy.

It seems <Divine Spear> Nam Gung Seong-un who made this trophy was quite a heavy drinker.

It was then.

"Of course the tournament winner should do a bottoms up, right?"

""""That's right, that's right!!!!""""

Suddenly Kim Min-ji manipulated public opinion.

The friends agreed with her assertion.

Eun-ha who had planned to just take a moderate sip smiled bitterly.

"Alright, I'm in a good mood today so I'll drink everything in here."

Eun-ha declared grandly.

His friends teased Eun-ha as if it was unusual.

"Then Eun-ha, you give the toast. You brought us this far, so of course you should do it."

The fireworks were still exploding.

Jung Ha-yang spoke to him representing the friends.

To this, Eun-ha opened his mouth.

"─Thank you for following me until now. I think I was able to make happy memories at the academy thanks to you guys. And... I want to keep making memories with you even after graduating from the academy."

He was fully aware it was cringeworthy words even to himself.

Nevertheless, Eun-ha thought to show his honest feelings using this occasion.

Also, he judged it appropriate to convey his will to his friends here.

""""..."""""

Eun-ha carefully scanned his friends' eyes.

All their gazes were directed at him.

Also, their gazes seemed to sparkle as if expecting something.

Eun-ha opened his mouth again.

"─I'm going to create a completely new clan that doesn't belong anywhere and isn't interfered with by anyone."

Eun-ha's declaration.

The corners of his friends' mouths raised.

Seeing them trying to hold back smiles, the corners of Eun-ha's mouth raised too.

"I'd like all of you to join the clan I'll create."

Just as Eun-ha had been receiving recruitment offers from prominent clans.

His friends had also received various offers.

Nevertheless, they politely declined, and sometimes put their offers on hold, waiting for Eun-ha to make a firm decision.

And finally, Eun-ha confessed.

His friends who had been endlessly waiting for him to say those words until now all spoke at once.

Boom boom boom─!!

Though the firework sounds were so loud.

Eun-ha could hear their answer very clearly.

☆

"─Really?"

"That's what I'm saying? Looking at the posts coming up, it says Eun-ha taught a lesson to the people he met in matches, and proudly won the championship?"

"That's really great."

Lee Yu-jeong heard from Lee Yu-cheon that Eun-ha finally won the championship in the tournament.

She was happy as if it was her own achievement.

Then after Yu-cheon left the room, loneliness came over her.

She spent time blankly leaning her back against the window.

I wanted to go to the cultural festival too...

She had wanted to see Eun-ha's performance with her own eyes.

But it was a wish that couldn't come true.

She who couldn't fix her eyes even with the elixir had to give up in the end.

At that time, she didn't mind.

She who had been unable to see since birth came to feel such a life was natural.

But after meeting Eun-ha, she sometimes had fantasies.

It would be nice if I could see...

Before meeting Noh Eun-ha.

Despondency was an unfamiliar emotion to her.

But after meeting Noh Eun-ha.

She came to feel dissatisfaction with her life.

It was an unpleasant emotion.

Fortunately, she was able to learn how to shake off this emotion.

It was an easy thing.

Just don't meet Eun-ha.

However─.

─Strangely... I keep wanting to meet him. Even though I know I shouldn't meet him, I'm drawn to him without realizing.

Lee Yu-jeong couldn't shake it off.

So her depression deepened.

She felt despair at the reality of not being able to go to the cultural festival because she couldn't see.

...It's okay.

I'll be fine when I wake up after sleeping.

She decided to lie down on the bed.

Of course, she knew that fundamental problems wouldn't be solved just by sleeping.

But she felt like escaping to dreams rather than reality.

Just then─.

[─I'm fine!]

The smartphone made a sound.

A call was coming in.

She who was about to head to bed turned her body and found the smartphone on the desk.

Lee Yu-jeong answered the phone.

"He...llo?"

Who could be calling?

She listened carefully to the sound coming through the smartphone.

But she couldn't hear any words, just some chaotic sounds.

[Phew....]

"...Eun-ha?"

Then Lee Yu-jeong caught the breath sound heard amidst the noise.

Even she couldn't identify someone by their breath sound.

But somehow, she felt it might be Eun-ha.

No, she hoped it was Eun-ha.

[Yeah, it's me. I won the tournament.]

"Ah, it really is Eun-ha... Yeah, I heard from oppa earlier. Congratulations on winning."

[Thanks. What are you doing now?]

"Um... I was thinking of reading a book. What are you doing?"

Realizing the other person was Noh Eun-ha.

Lee Yu-jeong's expression instantly brightened.

She spoke in a cheerful voice as she conversed with Eun-ha.

Then she lied.

For some reason, she couldn't tell Eun-ha that she was about to go to sleep because she was feeling depressed.

She didn't want to show a depressed appearance to Eun-ha at all.

She wanted him to feel that she was an attractive person.

For instance, she hoped he would feel that his mood improved when talking to her on the phone.

That way, he would keep calling her.

[─I'm watching the fireworks with everyone now. I told you before, right? That the cultural festival fireworks are amazing.]

"Ah, I see... It must be pretty..."

But Lee Yu-jeong felt like she was falling into an abyss while talking with Eun-ha.

She couldn't control her emotions for a moment.

She regretted answering the phone today.

She forced a bitter smile while trying to respond to Eun-ha's words.

[So we're using the championship trophy to...]

"...Sounds fun. Well then Eun-ha, I hope you have a good time with everyone."

[Ah, wait! Don't hang up for a moment.]

"..."

She really wasn't in the mood to talk on the phone.

Lee Yu-jeong tried to hang up on Eun-ha, unable to overcome her depression.

At that moment, Eun-ha urgently held onto her through the smartphone.

[Can you hear the sound now?]

"...Sound?"

Lee Yu-jeong asked back.

And focused on the smartphone sound.

Mixed with Eun-ha's voice, she could hear something exploding repeatedly.

[You said before, right? That you wanted to see fireworks once.]

"...Yeah."

[So I thought hard about it. How I could show you fireworks.]

"..."

[Then I thought if I can't show you this scene, I want to at least let you hear the sound.]

"Ah..."

[I asked Su-bin to make the firework sounds a bit louder this time, how is it? Can you hear well?]

Hearing those words.

Lee Yu-jeong couldn't control her emotions.

She couldn't say anything.

She just wiped away the tears flowing down and tried to focus on the sound coming through the smartphone.

─Yes... I can hear it.

But Eun-ha seemed to misunderstand her silence.

[Su-bin, can you deploy a magic that amplifies sound around here?]

[How much louder do you want it? Are your ears not working? Or are you trying to do something strange with a hidden lover?]

[Yu-jeong. I made the sound louder, can you hear better now?]

Bang, bang, bang.

Intermittent exploding sounds.

Lee Yu-jeong who had been listening to Eun-ha arguing with someone called Bae Su-bin nodded.

"Yeah, I can hear really well. It's so nice."

Trying hard to stop crying.

Lee Yu-jeong expressed her honest impression.

Then she approached the window and opened it wide.

Somehow, it felt like she could hear the sound better.

Bang!

In reality, she could only hear the sound of something exploding.

Nevertheless, she tried to imagine fireworks within the range she knew while savoring the sound.

"Thank you, Eun-ha. For remembering that I wanted to see fireworks."

[How could I forget something you said?]

A warm word.

Lee Yu-jeong tightly clenched her hand over her chest while recalling Eun-ha's words.

A warm feeling warms her body.

It slowly spreads out.

Lee Yu-jeong wanted to cherish this moment's emotion forever.

─Thank you, really.