NOVEL WEB Chapter 4 - The Entrance Ceremony (2)
The entrance ceremony appeared to proceed smoothly.
Starting with Principal Ma Dong-cheol, the introductions of the instructors followed one by one.
“Next, we will have a welcome speech from the student council president… No, the vice president.”
Just like in the novel.
The student council president probably passed the duty to the vice president because he found it bothersome.
In the story, the student council president rarely appeared at official events as he liked to maintain an air of mystery. Besides, the student council president was also a ‘fictional character.’
The vice president’s ordinary welcome speech concluded, and the host took the microphone again.
“Next, we will have the freshman representative’s oath. Freshman representative Choi Kang-ho, please come forward.”
A handsome boy with sharp features walked onto the stage.
When he smiled at the freshmen, happy squeals echoed from the female students.
“Is that Choi Kang-ho, the guy with the monstrous talent who surpassed even Lee Do-hyeok? Rumor has it he beat the instructor during the entrance exam.”
“No way. How could he beat the instructor? The academy instructors are at least B-rank or higher. It must be an exaggeration.”
Kim Baram heard murmurs about Choi Kang-ho from around him. Although the specifics of the entrance exam weren’t detailed in the novel, it was probably true that he defeated the instructor.
At that point, Choi Kang-ho, whose name meant strongest, was undoubtedly the most powerful among the freshmen.
Kim Baram looked at Choi Kang-ho, who was reciting the oath, with a complex expression.
“Hmm… Let’s not worry about Choi Kang-ho for now. There’s nothing I can do anyway… Besides, we’re in different classes and probably won’t cross paths much.”
“Next. We will hear from Principal Ma Dong-cheol of the Korean Player Academy.”
After Choi Kang-ho’s oath, Principal Ma Dong-cheol’s speech began.
Kim Baram watched him with a tense expression and gripped the pen in his pocket tightly.
Ma Dong-cheol stood up. Then, he moved to the front of the stage and looked over the freshmen.
“I dislike empty words. I’ll be blunt. The academy’s training program is harsh enough to cost your life. If you’re scared and want to quit, leave the auditorium now.”
The auditorium fell into a silent hush at Ma Dong-cheol’s words. None of the freshmen moved to leave. Instead, they stared at Ma Dong-cheol with determined eyes.
Seeing this, Ma Dong-cheol smiled broadly and spoke again.
“I hope you keep the resolve you have in your hearts throughout your three years at the academy. That’s all.”
With Ma Dong-cheol’s short but powerful speech, applause began to spread among the freshmen. The clapping grew louder and soon filled the auditorium.
Watching the scene, Ma Dong-cheol picked up the microphone again, and the room fell silent once more.
“As some of you may already know, I’m a firm believer in meritocracy. I’m curious about the level of this year’s freshmen. So, the first seven students to come up on stage will receive a special gift prepared by me.”
As soon as Ma Dong-cheol finished speaking, an immense pressure enveloped his entire body. The pressure was so overwhelming that even breathing became difficult.
“Crazy… Is it this intense? I expected it, but not to this extent…”
The traditional rite of passage at the 2045 entrance ceremony was always the same.
You had to get on stage.
However, this was under the assumption that you could withstand the pressure exerted by Ma Dong-cheol.
Most cadets couldn’t even move, let alone stand up.
Step! Step!
Kim Baram said ‘most,’ not ‘all.’
There was a hint of surprise in Ma Dong-cheol’s eyes.
In what felt like less than 10 seconds, two people had made it onto the stage: Choi Kang-ho and Han Suyeon.
Choi Kang-ho wore a relaxed expression, while Han Suyeon looked indifferent. Those two were expected since they were both monsters.
He scanned the stage, trying at least to move his arm.
‘Please move. I must be among the top seven.’
About three minutes passed when someone staggered onto the stage.
It was Lee Do-hyeok. He tried to maintain a nonchalant expression despite his body trembling violently.
‘As expected, Lee Do-hyeok is the third, just like in the novel. I expected this. I don’t aim for the top ranks. I just need to be in the top seven.’
Despite Kim Baram’s desperation, he couldn’t move or even breathe properly.
Meanwhile, two more students joined Lee Do-hyeok on stage. One was a male student with half-closed eyes, and the other was a short female student with brown hair.
The male student used his unique ability, [Teleportation], to teleport onto the stage but immediately fell backward.
The short female student, like Lee Do-hyeok, struggled to climb the stage, trembling all over.
“Only two spots left.”
Growing anxious, Kim Baram grunted and tried to move. However, his feeble body couldn’t adapt to Ma Dong-cheol’s pressure at all. Only his mouth could move…
‘Wait. My mouth?’
Realizing he could move his mouth, he bit down hard on his tongue without hesitation.
Crunch!
“Argh!!!”
The stinging pain in his tongue made him scream and clutch his mouth with one hand. The taste of blood filled his mouth.
It worked! He could move now.
Though his tongue felt numb, he could move his hands.
He grabbed the pen he had prepared for the entrance ceremony test, and without hesitation, he stabbed it into his thigh with all his strength.
Thud!
The sharp pain traveled through his thigh and jolted his brain. He sprang up from his seat.
Kim Baram’s strategy was simple. To escape Ma Dong-cheol’s pressure by inflicting pain on himself to regain control of his body.
He hadn’t anticipated that his hands would freeze, but improvising worked out somehow.
This method was originally used by Majin seok in the novel to pass the entrance ceremony test.
Though not exactly like him, Majin seok had punched himself hard in the face to regain control of his body.
*Crash*
A loud noise echoed from behind him.
That sound was probably Majin seok hitting his face so hard that his chair toppled over.
Whether he saw Kim Baram or followed the novel’s storyline, Majin seok began stomping toward the stage.
Majin seok making it to the stage meant the seventh person in the novel would also soon start moving.
Growing impatient, Kim Baram endured the searing pain in his right thigh and placed his hands on the stage in front of him.
Given Kim Baram’s meager stats, the time he could move his body using this trick wouldn’t last long.
So, instead of taking the stairs beside the platform, he chose to climb directly onto the platform in the shortest way possible.
“Huff…!”
Grunting and straining, he hoisted his left leg onto the platform.
Just a bit more…
Then, a loud scream erupted from behind.
“Argh!!! The last spot is mine!!”
Glancing over, he saw the cadet who had screamed was struggling to walk toward the platform.
It was Shin Hae-seong, the only son of the guild master of Geumseong, one of South Korea’s top eight guilds.
He was a unique ability holder with the power of [Adaptation]. He could adapt to almost any environment given enough time.
In the original novel, Shin Hae-seong used this unique ability to secure the last of the seven spots.
But this time, Kim Baram wasn’t going to let him.
‘I can’t give up the reward from Ma Dong-cheol and the VP that comes with the glory of the top seven; they’re crucial for my growth.’
“Urgh…!”
Kim Baram was so focused that he didn’t notice the blood dripping from his mouth as he squeezed out every ounce of strength to lift his right leg onto the platform.
Finally, he managed to pull his right leg up and collapsed onto the platform in exhaustion.
“Ha… Ha… Spit…”
“That’s cheating! Principal, he didn’t use the stairs to get on the platform. That should be invalid!!”
Reaching the front of the stairs but failing to be among the top seven, Shin Hae-seong protested to Ma Dong-cheol about Kim Baram’s actions.
Ma Dong-cheol listened with a nonchalant expression and responded.
“I only said to get on the platform. I don’t recall specifying how. By your logic, isn’t he cheating too?”
Ma Dong-cheol pointed to the male student with half-closed eyes who had used [Teleportation] to get onto the platform.
“Ugh…”
Unable to refute Ma Dong-cheol’s words, Shin Hae-seong fell silent.
Ma Dong-cheol continued.
“Winning is important, but accepting the results gracefully and reflecting on your shortcomings is equally important. I hope not only you but also the other cadets take this to heart.”
Ma Dong-cheol addressed all the cadets who hadn’t made it onto the platform.
With that, he released the pressure that had been weighing down on everyone.
Finally, Kim Baram could breathe.
As the pressure lifted, sharp pains surged from his tongue and right thigh.
‘Forget what I said about feeling better.’
‘Being in the top seven is great, but I’m worried about my future. At this rate, my body won’t hold up. I need to grow stronger quickly.’
As he resolved to prepare for the future, a series of new notifications appeared before his eyes.
Ding!
[Player ‘Kim Baram’s unique ability
[You have passed Ma Dong-cheol’s test as one of the last seven. You receive 800 VP.]
[You have gained the favorability of the character ‘Ko Joo-yeon.’ You receive 100 VP. Ko Joo-yeon’s current favorability towards Kim Baram is ‘Interest.’]
[You have gained the favorability of the character ‘Ma Dong-cheol.’ You receive 100 VP. Ma Dong-cheol’s current favorability towards Kim Baram is ‘Interest.’]
[You have gained the favorability of the character ‘Majin seok.’ You receive 50 VP. Ma Jin-seok’s current favorability towards Kim Baram is ‘Interest.’]
[You have lost the favorability of the character ‘Shin Hae-seong.’ You receive 50 VP. Shin Hae-seong’s current favorability towards Kim Baram is ‘Distrust.’]
[The protagonist ‘Han Suyeon’ is paying attention to you. You receive 500 VP.]
Lying there and staring at the notifications, Kim Baram must have relaxed too much because he lost consciousness.
Kim Baram’s vision went black.
Name: Kim Baram
Age: 17
Attributes:
Strength: 9
Agility: 9
Stamina: 9 (-7)
Magic: 1
Charm: 39
Luck: 50
Skills:
Unique Abilities:
Current VP: 6750 VP