chapter 3
3 – 2. Beast Hook
[Welcome to the entrance exam!]
“It’s a plague, too.”
I muttered, far away from the crowded school gates.
I should have entered that way, but there were too many people and the damage was so deeply embedded in my mind that I couldn’t dare to go in.
There were things I had to do more than anything.
[Determine the player’s name and appearance!]
It was only in the game that the entrance exam started without being decided, but the entrance exam starts only when you enter the school gate, so it seems like you’re just doing it here.
… … name and appearance. Commonly known character making is one of the most important parts of a game.
But that’s the story of the game.
“as it is.”
[Would you like to set the name and appearance as they are?]
“okay.”
To be honest, it’s funny to seriously choose a new name and look after getting caught up in something like this.
In the first place, the name and appearance were just factors that the player would be satisfied with, because they had no effect on the gameplay.
My name and my image are enough. What else do you mean?
[Setting has been completed for player ‘Namgoong Min’!]
[You who will go through the romance academy! I hope this small gift will be of great help!]
In <Romance Academy>, after character creation was completed, basic items were provided according to the job and gender.
It was meager performance just for starting the game, but it’s still better than nothing.
I grabbed a pair of white gloves that floated in front of my eyes.
[ <White gloves for novice fortune tellers>
Always clean your hands before fortune telling!
* Increases the hit rate of ‘Tarot Card’ by +1% when equipped!
* When equipped, the general skill ‘Clean’ is activated! (This skill does not fill skill slots.)]
“It’s just… that’s right.”
Aside from the strangely upsetting performance that the hit rate of tarot readings goes up by just 1%.
The only good thing was the general skill ‘cleanliness’.
Above all, it doesn’t take the place of a normal skill, so there’s nothing to lose.
As I put on the white gloves that fit my hands perfectly, a status window popped up in front of my eyes.
[ Normal Skill: <Cleanliness>
Everyone likes clean people!
Above all, let’s live a clean life for our health!
* A weak correction is added to the first impression of all characters!
* The whole body is always kept clean!]
Just a normal normal skill.
It’s okay, but compared to other general skills, its performance is low, so it was a skill that was used only in the beginning and then quickly abandoned.
Honestly, even if the whole body gets clean in the game, how would a gamer know that?
Even so, I wore white gloves, so I was able to see a little bit of myself.
‘This seems to be the basic attire of a fortune teller.’
A dark red shirt, white tie with decorations, and a black suit wrapped around it all.
Since he was wearing white gloves, he seemed a bit professional.
“There is nothing more to do.”
There is still quite a bit of time left on the status window, but I don’t know how to use that time effectively.
In <Romance Academy>, the entrance exam was a tutorial, literally the basic of the basics that explained the game play.
Of course, activities outside the academy and various events will be held only after clearing the entrance exam, so there’s nothing you can do.
… … Suddenly, when I look around, only peaceful daily life comes into my eyes.
Children walking hand in hand with their parents, salesmen eager to solicit customers, people hanging out at the school gate, passers-by crying and laughing about what is going on.
Even more so, all the sensations of breathing, walking, and feeling.
No matter how you look at it, it is real and real. That status window pops up in front of me, but even if I sat down, I would have believed that I was reincarnated in a fantasy.
“…”
As I thought so, many worries came flooding back.
I’m graduating soon, so I need to fill up my credits. There was also a police bond in the second half. In a few weeks, I have to hold a memorial service for my parents.
I still have to ask the company to investigate the pseudo-fortune teller. A game developer would have to send living expenses to his younger brother, who always eats ramen.
‘… … Jisoo, did you really do this?’
Namgung index. Even though I was stunned whenever I did something, I complained a lot, and I ran out of the house on my own and was very upset.
Still, he is my only blood relative, secretly working part-time jobs to buy me birthday presents, and always trying to make me laugh whenever I was stressed out in college.
My little brother.
Even though they usually try to hit me often, and there have been times when we have fought sincerely with each other. Still I believe
At least Jisoo is not a crazy b*tch who suddenly throws Ji oppa into a game like this.
… … Probably not.
“Let’s see when we get back.”
I don’t know why you threw me here.
Still, I was the only user who cleared <Romance Academy> 25 times.
I believe that I will be able to go to catch you by the collar without fail after seeing the ending.
“Please forgive me if I curse at you sometimes.”
After all, you are the one who put me here.
I stepped towards the school gate with a wry smile.
It was time to clear the tutorial.
*
“Jeong-suk, Jeong-su woo woo woo woo woo!!!”
bang!!
shouted the muscular man who had made sure that the last person qualified to take the entrance exam had crossed the school gate.
As he shouted and stomped his feet strongly, the iron bars of the Romance Academy gate slowly began to close.
“Only those who will take the entrance exam this way! Others are not allowed to enter!!”
“Son! Hold tight! I will believe you!!”
“Baby! I’ll wait until you call!”
“Don’t worry! I’ll definitely pass and go back!”
“Mom! Heuuu!!”
“……It’s f*cking true.”
It wasn’t something I couldn’t see for the rest of my life, and I was dumbfounded when I saw people hugging or showing affection while shedding tears and runny nose behind bars.
Well, that’s because it’s me, so there’s no inspiration. Considering the basic settings of this game, it was worth being overly immersed like that.
Yes, this is a city in the air.
If you are not a new student, you will be kicked out to the ground, but the reservations for this floating city will be full, so it will take several months to meet you next time, so it must be like that.
Because there were many motives who cried or were sullen because they couldn’t meet each other for a month at the army training center.
It’s a meaningless setting from my point of view, since there’s no one to come see me or go see me anyway.
‘… … Wait, what did I do before I came here?’
It’s not like it just popped out of thin air.
Do you have your own settings?
Or is it binging? Do you have an original body owner?
Lost in thought, I was following the hundreds of people in front of me along the garden path. Soon after, the muscular man who had closed the school gate stopped leading and turned around.
“Greetings, gentlemen who are qualified to take the entrance exam for the Glorious Romance Academy today. I am Charles Teddy Bear, who is in charge of the Glorious Romance Academy’s admissions officer.”
“Sir, I didn’t expect it, but it’s really a teddy bear…!”
“Awesome…to see a real hero of war!”
“As expected, it’s a romance academy!”
‘How can someone’s name be Teddy Bear?’
Those who were surprised by the stern face and bloated muscles soon exclaimed in admiration.
Charles Teddy Bear. It’s a surname that doesn’t match the appearance at all, but… … That’s what he changed his name to.
It’s a tearful story of fatherly love where he and his daughter changed their surnames for their sick daughter who liked teddy bears, but since that was revealed later in the game, I couldn’t concentrate because of the surnames that didn’t suit me. No, how can I be called a teddy bear instructor with that face?
But you can never look at it funny. As befits the setting of a war hero, teddy bears were strong enemies that even combat-type players could not easily defeat.
‘A fortune teller would do more.’
“Do you see the building behind it? Hey, do you know what kind of building it is?”
“…Yes, it is the entrance examination hall for the glorious Romance Academy.”
“Yes. It’s small compared to the main building, but it boasts the world’s best facilities.”
is that small?
First of all, even ignoring the glorious romance academy, the size of the entrance examination room was the size of a sports stadium.
‘It was just a building in the game, but seeing it in real life like this makes me feel overwhelmed.’
The romance academy, which is a floating city in the setting and is called the world’s best educational institution, is a term that encompasses the entire floating city.
So, inside the school gate is also a romance academy, and outside the school gate is also a romance academy.
However, outside the school gates, families of academy cadets, sponsors who have sponsored large sums of money, and specially selected people can stay, while only romance academy officials can enter the school gates.
‘The size of the city in the air is probably… … I thought it was the size of several Yeouido Islands.’
I didn’t want to know at all, but sometimes my sister would release all kinds of tmi about the romance academy, and I remember hearing it at that time.
Yes, in a floating city several times the size of Yeouido, a building of that size would be on the small side.
After some time passed and the murmur gradually subsided, the teddy bear spoke again.
“The entrance exam begins as soon as you set foot in the exam hall. Each of you will receive an appropriate test according to the job you submitted in your self-introduction letter, so be prepared!”
“”””yes!””””
While the participants, regardless of gender, answered, I was the only one who was in trouble.
Most of the jobs at Romance Academy are jobs held by other students as well. Whether it’s a ‘combat mage’ or a ‘professional’, it’s not just the main character’s job, so of course, the entrance exam was also taken between those with the same job.
‘There are exceptions.’
However, in the case of special jobs such as ‘the royal family’ or ‘traitor’, only certain people can have them. If the player chooses it, it is called a dedicated test and is tested separately.
But does fortuneteller belong to that ‘special job’?
“no way.”
Speaking of special jobs, there was a uniqueness and uniqueness that could be felt from the name. How many jobs are there even if there are jobs like ‘royal family’ or ‘saint’?
On the other hand, if you say ‘fortune tellers’, there will be so many of them that you would get hit by your feet even if you just went out of the school gate right away.
My concern was whether there would be a fortune teller among those taking the entrance exam.
In fact, if you’re doing it alone, you won’t get any help or advice.
I had no idea what kind of test this fortune teller was going to take.
“First of all, before entering, we will select those who will undergo a dedicated test.”
“How many will come out?”
“First of all, the prince and the princess are unconditional. There are other candidates besides that…”
“Isn’t the saint also here?”
“It’s definitely been a rough year.”
“Quietness!! So that the person called out can come forward.
‘The royal family’, Prince Kim Seong-il.
‘The royal family’. Princess Kim Eun-ha.
‘The Great Wealth’ Liu Yan.
‘Mage’ Lucas Arthur.
‘Psychic’ Lane Arthur.
‘Hero’ Abel Legion.
‘Saint’ Rafael Martina.
‘Fortune Teller’ Namgoong-min. It’s over!”
“……hmm?”
It’s the 25th time I’ve heard it, but it’s still at the end of the naming ceremony that makes my hands and feet tingle.
Wasn’t there a strange job that didn’t go well with people at all?
“So that the above 8 dedicated test takers can come out on the side.”
“Wait a minute, wasn’t there something in the back?”
“After the saint? Huh?”
As if I wasn’t the only one, seven men and women walk out of the crowd.
The two royal families who are the golden jade leaves of the imperial family of the unified Korean Empire.
A rich man who earned a huge amount of money through one of the best fortunes in the world.
A brother and sister from Europe’s oldest magical family.
A blonde American on a mission to save the world.
A boy called God Blessed by the Catholics.
This is the explanation in the game of the special job holders that I remember, who appear regularly in every episode.
Honestly, most of the people who bought Romance Academy must have been filtered out here. The petals of that bastard flutter on the screen and the characters walk out one by one, and there was even a cheesy explanation, so many users wisely turned off the game.
Because I was seriously thinking about getting a refund.
“‘Fortune teller’ Namgoong-min, hasn’t he come out yet?”
“…Here it is.”
… I can’t keep running away from reality.
As I make my way through the crowd, the eyes of the numerous crowd and those who have already walked ahead are focused.
okay. Didn’t I come in as the main character in this bloody, petal-covered game for women?
In a way, it was the expected result. A story about a protagonist who has a seemingly insignificant job and is accepted by an elite group while being despised. It will surely be popular as a novel.
So, you have to eat hard.
They are the main characters in this game, and they are the ones I must unconditionally connect in order to see the ending.
let’s remember It’s easy to be despised, but it’s never easy to be recognized there.
“Hello, this is fortune teller Namgoong Min.”
“…….”
“………….”
“……under.”
No one responds to my polite greeting. They are the uppermost class of society, people who have been given jobs and have been interacting with each other ever since they were young. I must be an uncomfortable being among them.
But don’t be discouraged by that.
pretend to be relaxed Speak softly and don’t show embarrassment.
You did well, Namgoong Min. keep old memories alive
“If you have any troubles or concerns—”
A fortune teller must be a mysterious being.
A being who is not frivolous, does not talk too much, and has to be careful and reclusive.
But that’s not my story as a ‘student’ as well as a ‘fortune teller’.
You can’t always maintain such a mysterious concept while attending <Romance Academy>. I am an ordinary person who gasps when something goes wrong and puts on an unsightly expression when something fails. More than anything else, if you keep that kind of atmosphere, even if you make a mistake, it’s over.
Then what should I pursue?
“──Please tell me anytime.”
A friendly yet talented student who knows the subject but clearly keeps the line.
I have to be such a fortune teller.
“Thank you very much, everyone.”
will definitely become