Why Is Everyone in This Dating Sim Trying to Kill Me?!

-----------------------------------------------------------------

Translator: Vine

Chapter Title: Midterm Evaluation (2)

-----------------------------------------------------------------

A few days later.

In the deep hours of dawn, when everyone was asleep.

Wooong—

The midterm evaluation began abruptly, without any warning.

Above the bodies of the students lying in their beds, a pure white magic circle appeared.

Geometric patterns rotated, their clothes transformed into comfortable athletic wear, and the surrounding scenery instantly shifted.

Into a vast open space, enclosed on all sides, with large glass windows on the left and right.

This was a grand spell that simultaneously affected all first-year students of Velvet Academy.

Who else could have pulled off such an absurd stunt?

'Who else but the Director...'

Thud! Thud! Thud!

The summoned students began to fall from mid-air, one by one.

Those who had been sound asleep suddenly landed on their butts, startled by the unfamiliar impact, and looked around bewildered.

"...Huh, huh!?"

"What the—!"

"This place..."

"Who the hell did this!!!"

Every student had a bewildered expression.

'No one could have expected the midterm evaluation to happen so suddenly.'

Just then.

"Jin Yu-ha!"

A hurried voice called out to me from beside me.

I turned my head to see Shin Se-hee, clutching a dog-shaped body pillow as large as herself.

"W-what in the world is going on...?"

She, too, looked flustered, clearly caught off guard by the unexpected situation.

Her appearance was radiant, even though she had clearly been summoned without any preparation.

'Her bare face looks no different from her usual self? And a dog body pillow... She has cuter tastes than I thought.'

As I briefly admired her pillow, Shin Se-hee cleared her throat awkwardly and, looking embarrassed, hid the pillow behind her back.

But the pillow was so large that the dog's face peeked out over her shoulder.

"It's the midterm evaluation."

I said, chuckling.

"...M-midterm evaluation? I thought it was scheduled for tomorrow, but it's now?"

"It's past midnight, so it's today."

When I spoke in a calm voice, Shin Se-hee's eyes widened as if she'd heard something preposterous.

All the students knew they would have their midterm evaluation today, but they had no idea how or where the test would be conducted.

That was only natural, as Director Lina was in charge of the midterm evaluation.

The midterm evaluation was conducted differently each year, and it was a tradition not to give any hints even to the instructors for secrecy, so it couldn't be helped.

'Of course, I knew.'

I remembered the CG cutscene from the game,

so I had a good grasp of how this midterm evaluation would proceed.

That's why, yesterday, the day before, I had waited for the summoning with a fully packed backpack.

"...Jin Yu-ha, that bag?"

Shin Se-hee, noticing that my attire was different from the other students, narrowed her eyes and asked.

"Oh, me? For tomorrow's midterm evaluation? I didn't know what would come up? So I was packing until dawn? Wow! Lucky me, huh?"

I said in a simple, natural voice.

Shin Se-hee narrowed her eyes further and glared at me.

"Are you seriously calling that acting?"

Hmm, my acting tone was perfect, how did she know?

"...If you knew, you should have told me in advance."

She grumbled with a pouty face, as if genuinely disappointed.

'That would be a problem, though.'

If I did, I'd be suspected, wouldn't I?

Everyone else would be empty-handed, but if only our party members were lugging around bags, the brat would get suspicious.

Shin Se-hee, who had puffed up her cheeks, let out a soft sigh.

"Still, it's a relief, at least. We have our subspace tattoos, and we always carry our essentials in them."

"Hmm, sorry, but... I don't think that'll work either?"

"Huh?"

"Check it out."

When I gestured with my chin, Shin Se-hee immediately activated the subspace tattoo on the back of her hand.

Wooong.

Fizzzt—

But the tattoo, after glowing, flickered out.

"Ah, it won't open! W-what happened!?"

"If we could use those, we'd have too much of an advantage."

Wouldn't Director Lina have taken something like that into account?

It was clear that when she summoned them here, she had also locked down the subspace tattoos to prevent their use.

Shin Se-hee tapped her subspace tattoo a few more times, as if disbelieving, then wore a look of despondency.

"...So, what's the test?"

She asked me, but I didn't answer.

Because our little brat would come out and explain it soon enough.

"Has everyone come to their senses?"

Speak of the devil, Director Lina's voice came from above.

Everyone's heads turned upwards.

Director Lina was suspended in mid-air.

She stood with her arms crossed, wearing a triumphant expression, like an elementary school student who had scored 100 on a dictation test.

"From now on, you will undergo your midterm evaluation."

At her declaration, the students began to grow noisy.

"Midterm evaluation...?"

"Like this, so suddenly?"

"I couldn't even bring what I prepared in advance...!"

Lina frowned at the chaotic atmosphere.

"Quiet! I will explain everything now, so everyone shut your mouths."

At that, the commotion ceased, as if everyone wanted to hear what she had to say.

"First, the place you are currently in is an airship."

Students whipped their heads around.

Below the dark windows on either side, buildings appeared as small as matchboxes.

Snap—

When Lina snapped her fingers, the students' heads were forcibly fixed towards her.

"Now, I will explain the test method. From today, students must survive on an uninhabited island for two weeks. The evaluation method is very simple. The person who acquires the most coins will receive a good grade."

"How do we acquire coins!"

A student raised their hand high and asked.

"I was just about to explain, so don't rush me!"

"Yes, ma'am!"

As Lina, frowning, waved her hand, a large map of the entire uninhabited island appeared in the air.

Then, ten areas marked 'SHOP' in red were displayed.

"Here, 10 shops. In these places, you can purchase necessities for island life with coins. And at the same time, you can exchange magic stones and byproducts from hunting monsters for coins."

At that, Shin Se-hee's expression stiffened.

Because earning coins through monster hunting was an extremely advantageous test for dealers.

Lina, as if not having forgotten that point, added.

"Yes, this wouldn't be fair, would it? Therefore, base coins will be distributed differently for each position. Dealers receive 50 coins, Tanks 100 coins, Specialists 500 coins, and Supporters and Healers each receive 2000 coins."

Ah.

At that, a light of understanding dawned in the students' eyes.

"In this midterm evaluation, forming parties of up to three people is permitted. Once a party is formed, it cannot be arbitrarily disbanded. Also, combat between students is prohibited for the first week. As for the remaining week, I don't need to tell you, do I? If you succeed in subduing an opponent, you can acquire 50% of the coins they possess."

At her words, the students began to look around, sizing each other up.

It goes without saying that the 2000 coins allocated to healers and supporters were a considerable sum.

Including a healer or supporter in a party would surely lead to a good grade.

Moreover, since they couldn't attack each other for the first week,

healers and supporters, who could buy necessities with coins, would become highly sought after.

However, they couldn't simply hold out indefinitely either.

Since combat between students would be allowed after a week, they would need to form parties with students who could protect them until then to ensure their safety.

In other words, this midterm evaluation was a test where forming the right party was truly crucial.

"Jin Yu-ha."

Shin Se-hee, quick to grasp that point, called out to me.

"Yeah."

"Can you form a party with me?"

"...I'd like to, but... Hmm, will we really land in the same place?"

"Huh?"

"Let's party up if we meet, but we also have to consider the possibility that we might not. If we don't meet after three days, let's find other people."

"Ah, so we're not all dropping together?"

Shin Se-hee, quick on the uptake, understood the implication and asked again.

I nodded slightly.

"Then, from now on, I will send you to the uninhabited island one by one."

Wooong—

The form of a student in front of her blurred, then vanished from their spot.

They must have been dropped somewhere on the uninhabited island.

At that moment, Lina's gaze fixed on me.

"...Jin Yu-ha, that thing."

She saw the backpack I was carrying on my back and opened her mouth in disbelief.

"Oh, me?"

I was about to repeat the same excuse I'd given Shin Se-hee earlier, but—

"...Jin Yu-ha, I think it's better if you just keep quiet."

Shin Se-hee poked my side and whispered in a low voice.

Hmm, it seemed this world wasn't ready to accept my acting skills yet.

"Seol-hee again...! She must have told you to pack everything in advance, just in case something happened!"

As I kept quiet, Director Lina, apparently misunderstanding as she pleased, exclaimed in a seething voice.

"Jin Yu-ha, are there any bladed tools or weapons in there? Or magic stones or food...!"

"No, there aren't."

Lina glared intently at my bag.

It seemed she was checking if there was anything suspicious inside.

But I had already removed anything that might get me caught by Director Lina, so I confidently puffed out my chest.

After reconfirming several times, Lina slowly closed her eyes.

"Hah. Honestly. Why on earth is she so worried about this one...!"

She was fuming and raging, but well.

Even if a little brat grinds their teeth, they're still just a little brat.

"Get out of here!"

I was summoned to the uninhabited island, along with my bag.