Prologue Story

The sports day ended, and the exam period arrived.

As soon as the exam period began, the kids in the class stopped chattering excitedly in sports day mode and got down to studying hard…or at least, they were supposed to.

The students still chattered loudly, only thinking about playing.

It was rare to find a child quietly sitting down and studying for the exams.

Not a single student even attempted to do any magic training, not even on the day before the exams.

While I was reading my textbook and studying, I looked at everyone playing and chatting with a puzzled expression.

Why weren’t they studying? Today was the day before the exam.

Even some of my friends were part of the group playing around.

Then, it suddenly dawned on me.

Oh, right. They’re just elementary school kids…

Only then did I realize the reason for this strange feeling and let out a deep sigh.

That’s right. These kids were first-graders in elementary school.

No wonder they weren’t doing much studying for the exams.

There were some kids seriously working on problem sets, but it was probably because their moms made them do it.

Today, with the exams coming up tomorrow, I was the only one quietly reading my textbook in an attempt to study.

Even In-ha didn’t seem interested in studying, as she either just glanced at a book or chatted quietly with friends.

Sure, magic ability was the most important thing in this world, but shouldn’t they still put in a basic level of effort in theory too?

Even if it was uncomfortable to prepare for the practical exams in the classroom, why were there only two or three kids even reading their textbooks?

After some thought, I decided to study hard on my own.

If I didn’t get good scores on something as simple as elementary school first-grade exams, I’d definitely feel a scratch on my pride.

I read the textbook carefully.

Language Arts, where all I needed to do was read, and math, which only included addition and subtraction, weren’t a problem.

The real challenges were magic theory and social studies.

Social studies here was quite different from the subject in my old world, so I focused most on reading magic theory and social studies.

“What are you doing?”

“…”

“Why are you reading your textbook?”

Without lifting my gaze from the textbook, I answered Han-soo’s question.

“It’s the day before the exam. I’m just doing the basics.”

When I set my mind to something, I did it, and if I focused, I would definitely accomplish it.

Everyone looked at me with puzzled expressions.

“Are you aiming for the top score or something?”

“What? I’m just reading my textbook like anyone should on the day before an exam. Why would you even ask that?”

I looked around at everyone with a surprised expression.

Thinking it over, I realized these kids really didn’t seem to understand even the basics of studying.

They were just cramming things into their sharp little heads by listening and looking, without knowing how to preview or review.

Moments like these constantly reminded me that my friends were still children, and that, as their friend, so was I.

I frowned and turned my gaze back to the textbook.

Fine. I’d just study hard by myself.

After that, more questions came my way, but I brushed them off with short answers.

Even though I sensed In-ha and Han-soo watching me with puzzled expressions, I pretended not to notice.

“Wow, what’s up with Eun-ha? She usually listens to us when she’s not reading, but now…”

The voices continued chattering beside me.

Trying to ignore them, I read my textbook.

In the end, I plugged in my earphones and played some music from the files on my student ID.

The chattering faded away, and I could hear music in my ears.

Now, I could finally study in peace. I was feeling a bit desperate.

Whether it was fortunate or not, in this world, most schools in the country held exams twice a year.

Once in the first semester, and once in the second semester.

It was partly because the exams were meant to focus on the development of magic skills, but more importantly, because the mage rank exams were considered much more important than school exams.

Many schools held the first semester exams at the end of the semester and scheduled the second semester exams mid-semester to avoid the rank exam period.

For reference, until students were in their third year, which was the age eligible for the rank exam, our school held both semester exams at the end of the term.

The mage rank exam was a universal qualification exam that graded mages worldwide based on their abilities.

Now, it had become the most important criterion to prove one’s status as a mage.

In a way, the mage rank exam was this world’s equivalent of the college entrance exam.

Though the system was different, you could compare them in that sense.

For adult mages, the rank exam was a life-defining test.

Still, there was something similar to the college entrance exam from my previous world.

Only those needing degrees, like teachers or doctors, took a separate entrance exam for universities.

This exam was also held nationwide on a single date, and it was called the College Ability Test, or CAT.

Well…despite all that, school exams still mattered.

Especially to elementary school students, who wouldn’t be affected by the rank exams for a while.

Watching the kids who weren’t even considering studying gave me a headache.

Of course, that didn’t mean classes were so difficult that we had to study intensely.

It was still just first-grade elementary level.

Even without studying, we probably wouldn’t get low scores.

Still, I was studying seriously because of my pride, and because my past life’s knowledge filled most of my memory, making the new material here confusing.

Regardless, today’s schedule hadn’t changed even though tomorrow was the exam.

Today was a day with ability-grouped classes.

As I squeezed out some time from studying to focus on magic training as usual, some kids took the opportunity to chatter away.

“Eun-ha will definitely be our grade’s top scorer in the practical exam, right?”

The second grade’s top would probably be either Inho Oppa or Yoo-jung Unnie.

When Min-hee spoke, I looked up with wide eyes and saw everyone nodding in agreement.

Even the teachers seemed to think so.

“Unless she’s hiding it, she’s undoubtedly the best. Who else in your grade can handle magic as well as her? She’s one of the best in the whole elementary school.”

Feeling embarrassed by such certainty, I scratched my head and ran my fingers through my hair.

“Well, I guess that’s true. Eun-ha’s got the strongest mana, the best spells, and the best mana control out of all of us.”

Min-hee clapped her hands with a wide smile at Han-soo’s words.

“Yep, yep. That’s totally true, right?”

“Hmph. It’s Eun-ha, so obviously.”

In-ha puffed up her chest proudly with a beaming smile.

Han-soo frowned at this.

“Kang In-ha, you’re not the one to brag about it, you know?”

“…Hmph.”

Han-soo and In-ha glared at each other, resuming their silent battle.

Watching them, I scratched my cheek.

Well…if I had to admit it, that was true.

Among us, I was indeed─the most skilled at magic.

Setting aside strength, that was a fact.

‘Hmm…’

The burden of such expectations made my chest feel heavy, so I decided to change the mood by practicing a newly learned barrier magic technique.

First, I floated several fist-sized square barriers in the air.

I spread them out over a range of a few meters.

I assigned attributes to the barriers.

Since I was relatively sensitive to mana and had good control, I was pretty adept at attribute conversion.

Soon, silver-colored lightning crackled and flickered around the barriers.

I guided the path of the lightning to connect the small square barriers with lines.

The six points connected into a cube-like form, each square barrier linked along a line, forming a curtain along that path.

Soon, I’d created a large barrier I hadn’t been able to form before—nearly big enough to fill one-fifth of the classroom.

Lightning flickered menacingly along the barrier’s surface, and everyone looked impressed.

Hyun-ho clung to my shoulder from behind and asked.

“Wow, that’s amazing! Hey, hey, is this something new you developed?”

Hyun-ho’s eyes sparkled as he looked at me.

I grinned and nodded.

By the way, asking if it was something new I developed didn’t mean if I’d created a new signature spell.

It meant if I’d managed to expand the range of possible uses for my existing spell.

I nodded.

“Yep. By connecting it like this, I can create barriers with much less effort.

Oh, and before, I only controlled magic within the barrier, but now, I wrapped it around the outside. What do you think?”

“Well, even if you ask…”

“Hmm…”

Everyone murmured with puzzled expressions, glancing at the teacher.

Teacher Joon-hwi observed my magic for a moment and then said,

“It’s not just decent, it’s incredible.

More than anything, a concept like this would be hard to imagine at your age.”

He patted my head, and I smiled bashfully.

It was the result of reading lots of novels and comics, an experience of sorts.

“Plus, your strength keeps increasing…tsk, you might truly be number one in the whole elementary school.”

At Teacher Joon-hwi’s words, Teacher Min nodded.

“Seriously. You said barriers are the hardest, but you’re improving daily.

Didn’t you mention that you succeeded in influencing the brain with your illusion magic in a limited domain?”

“Oh. Things like the dream world, I’ve been succeeding with that.

But, well, it still works only half the time.”

“That’s already impressive.”

“That’s true.”

Listening to that conversation, In-ha looked at me with a somewhat hesitant expression.

When our eyes met, In-ha lowered her gaze momentarily and pressed her lips together.

However, she soon looked at me as usual.

I smiled at In-ha.

In response, In-ha smiled back, though I felt a strange sense of unease in that smile.

But that feeling of unease was only brief.

As soon as the kids began chattering and talking to me, it disappeared.

We laughed and chatted as usual.

Even so, we continued to focus on our magic training until the end of class.

After school, I continued studying because it was the day before the exam.

I read the textbooks I hadn’t finished and underlined the parts that confused me.

—

The day of the exam arrived.

I faced the test papers with a tense expression.

Of course, it was my first time taking an exam in this world.

We would take the written test first, followed by the practical exam at the very end.

Watching the clock with a serious expression, I then lowered my gaze.

The written exam, focusing on subjects like Korean, Math, Social Studies, Science, and Magic Theory, had begun.

The test wasn’t that difficult.

Given the level, it was actually far too easy for me.

After finishing the written test, I reviewed my answers, scoring high across the board.

I was confident that I’d scored 100 in Korean and Math.

Phew, despite my usual struggles with math since middle school, I couldn’t let myself mess up on first-grade-level questions.

The test was full of simple subtraction and addition questions—there’s no way I wanted to get those wrong.

So, the part I really needed to focus on was the practical exam.

Unlike during the written exam, the kids’ reactions were noticeably different with the practical exam looming.

The air around the kids was filled with tension and a sense of quiet.

The format of the practical exam went like this:

The teacher created a door next to the classroom’s chalkboard, connecting to a room we didn’t know.

Each of us would go in one by one to take the exam.

We would be informed of the test’s contents once we entered.

The only thing we knew in advance was that there would be a 10-minute time limit.

The exam would be evaluated by our homeroom teacher and two assistant teachers.

The order of the exam was determined by our assigned student numbers.

Among us, In-ha had the earliest number, so she was the first to be called by the teacher and went through the door.

And so, the exam began.

“Nngh… I’m a little nervous. Aren’t you?”

“Yeah…”

Perhaps due to the tension spreading among the kids, Hyun-ho and Min-hee, who were usually calm, stood beside me looking nervous.

But honestly, I wasn’t worried about these two at all.

The one who should really be nervous was Shia, who was standing beside us, tense and stiff.

Watching Shia, I mentally checked our test order.

Since our school assigned numbers alphabetically, the next one after In-ha would be Hyun-ho.

The order would go: In-ha, Hyun-ho, Han-soo, Shia, me, and then Min-hee.

Since Hyun-ho was near the beginning of the list, it wasn’t long before his turn came.

I half-pushed the reluctant Hyun-ho forward.

While the exam was taking place, the classroom was unusually quiet.

No sound came from the testing room.

Some kids pressed their ears to the door out of curiosity, but no sound seemed to reach them.

After Hyun-ho, Han-soo, then Shia entered the room and didn’t come back out.

As our classmates disappeared one by one into the room, Min-hee and I held each other’s hands tightly, filled with nerves.

Sweat formed in our palms.

Min-hee clung to my side, fidgeting anxiously.

Because of that, by the time my turn came, I was actually much calmer.

Min-hee was holding my hand tightly, and when my turn came, she let go with a reluctant expression.

I walked to the door calmly and stepped inside.

With a small *click*, the classroom door closed as soon as I stepped in.

Sensing a strange flow of mana, I looked up at the ceiling.

It seemed as if the entire room was tightly enclosed and protected.

Crossing just one door, it felt like I’d entered a completely different, isolated place.

‘This mana—is this… a barrier?’

The inside of the room was also quite unusual.

In a large, empty space, only one long, large desk sat in the middle.

Three people were seated at it.

One was our homeroom teacher, whom I knew well, while the other two were people I hadn’t seen before.

They were probably the assistant teachers.

I walked up to the three teachers.

When I stopped at an appropriate distance, the homeroom teacher began to speak.

“The test is very simple. Transfer the mana from the blue crystal orb into the white crystal orb.”

That was the extent of the instructions.

The teacher placed a differently colored crystal orb in each of my hands.

“As I mentioned, you have 10 minutes. Get ready.”

At that moment, a large digital timer appeared in front of the teachers.

It seemed to be an electronic stopwatch.

First, I glanced over the amount of mana in the blue crystal orb.

There was quite a bit of mana in the orb.

I focused, feeling a bit tense.

“All right, get ready…”

Begin!

At the sound of the word, I immediately began moving the mana.

I moved the mana from the blue crystal orb into the white crystal orb.

At the same time, I felt a strong sense of unease.

While transferring the mana, I glanced suspiciously at the crystal orb.

Yes, something was off.

By now, moving mana was as simple to me as moving my hand.

But this time, moving the mana felt unusually slow and heavy.

The mana, which should have moved effortlessly according to my will, even resisted along the way.

‘Strange.’

I wasn’t sure if it was my fault, a defect in the orb, or if this was part of the test, but I kept quiet and focused.

Though slower than usual, it wasn’t extremely difficult.

I continued pulling mana from the blue crystal orb, transferring it all to the white orb.

The entire process took 30 seconds.

After confirming that no mana remained in the blue orb, I raised my head.

I saw the three teachers staring at me with blank expressions.

I flinched, suddenly realizing the situation.

‘Oh… did I make a mistake…?’

I thought back to my actions.

Perhaps because I was nervous or because moving the mana had felt heavy, I had ended up taking the test with full power, as usual.

The time limit was 10 minutes, and I had completed it in 30 seconds.

No matter how I thought about it, this was…

“Hmm…”

The three teachers, after a moment of surprised silence, quickly composed themselves and began writing on the papers in front of them.

The only sound that filled the silent room was the scratching of their pens.

Standing there with my hands clasped, I waited nervously.

During that time, the timer at the bottom of the stopwatch continued ticking.

A few moments later, exactly 10 minutes after I’d entered the room, the teacher pointed to the door opposite from where I’d entered.

“You did well. That concludes the test. Head out through that door and wait with the others.”

Standing in place, I hesitated for a moment before quickly heading to the door, as if it were a lifeline.

The moment I exited through the door, I saw familiar faces.

My classmates, as well as In-ha, Hyun-ho, Shia, and Han-soo.

Seeing my friends, I smiled in relief.

In-ha approached me with a smile, and Hyun-ho waved enthusiastically.

“So? How was the test?”

Han-soo immediately scolded Hyun-ho for asking that.

“That’s something we should ask later when we’re alone.”

Shia agreed in a small voice.

At 10-minute intervals, our classmates emerged from the room.

Not long after, Min-hee also appeared from the room.

“Guys~!”

As usual, Min-hee bounded over to us, excitedly chattering about how nervous she’d been and how strange the test was, spilling out everything she wanted to say.

With a silly smile, she kept talking, so I patted her on the head.