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[Top scorer in practical exam!]

The top spot in written exam is already in the bag!

Let\'s aim to be the all-around best in practical exam too!

[Reward: All heroines\' Affection +1]

It\'s the only quest among those sent to me that I haven\'t completed. No wonder I haven\'t been getting quests lately; it seems the judgment for this quest hasn\'t concluded yet. But it said quest completed earlier? Wait…

"Hey! The grades are out! They\'re posted in the central corridor!"

"Ah! Grades!"

"Jisoo, let\'s quickly go check our grades."

Most freshmen headed outside, and a sense of unease began to overwhelm me.

"Uh, I\'m really sorry. And… sniff…"

But I couldn\'t leave Lucy, who was apologizing and shedding tears, alone. She\'s an important heroine too.

Eventually, after listening to her for a few minutes and calming down a bit, I went to check the grades.

"Wow, Lee Hoyeon, 1st place in all three exams, is this for real?"

"This is insane. Isn\'t he the first in the academy?"

"The first in all subjects is the student council president, but Lee Hoyeon is the first in the first-year exams for all three."

Where did this start? Why? But no matter how much I deny it, reality is harsh.

[Written Exam]

1. Lee Hoyeon.

2. Alice.

.

.

.

[Practical Exam]

1. Lee Hoyeon.

2. Nam Daeun.

.

.

.

[Special Exam]

1. Lee Hoyeon.

2. Alice.

.

.

.

I don\'t know where it went wrong. The grades are already out.

Wait, where\'s Nam Daeun? From the classroom to the central corridor, there\'s no sign of her anywhere.

Thump. Thump.

Anxiety and tension made my heart race.

"Look, you\'ve changed history." At that moment, a familiar voice of a guy next to me was heard.

"Hey… Did you see Nam Daeun?"

I didn\'t see her as I was focused on Lucy, but if it\'s Kim Younghan, he might know something.

"Nam Daeun? After she checked the grades earlier, she grabbed her bag and went somewhere."

"…"

"By the way, being first place three times, your market value in the guild will skyrocket…" Kim Younghan kept talking beside me, but I didn\'t hear anything.

The innocent face of Nam Daeun, who was happy to receive the wallet yesterday, flashed before my eyes. She wanted to brag it to her little sister.

And earlier, she was contemplating where to go with the outing ticket she got as a reward for being the top scorer.

The pure expression clashed with the image of Nam Daeun, who slaughtered her guild members and committed suicide for a bad ending in the original game to protect her chastity.

"Oh, fuck. This is bad." I rushed back to the classroom. It\'s not the time to be at the academy now.

***

"Lu, Lumi… Did I mess up too much?" Lucy, seeing Lee Hoyeon rush with a determined expression, buried her face in Lumi\'s chest.

"It\'s okay, Lucy… You know Hoyeon\'s personality. He won\'t harbor any ill feelings."

Since Lumi was thankfully in a composed state, she comforted Lucy. Naturally, she also knew that Lucy was in the wrong, but now wasn\'t the time to point that out. Though occasionally mischievous, knowing Lee Hoyeon\'s kind and gentle nature allowed Lucy to soon calm down.

A while later, Lee Hoyeon burst into the classroom. He began putting his books that were on the desk into his bag.

"Ho, Hoyeon, what are you doing?"

"Something urgent came up. I need to go."

"Right now…?"

"Yeah, I can\'t attend the afternoon class."

Lucy, who was planning to suggest going to the café together after class, couldn\'t hide her surprise when she saw Lee Hoyeon packing suddenly.

"Th-then, how about we go to the café together after class tomorrow? There\'s a rumor that the academy café has delicious cakes…"

"Sorry… I might be busy for a while. I\'ll talk to you as soon as I have time." Lee Hoyeon left the classroom immediately after leaving those words.

Left alone, Lucy turned her head to look at her sister, "Lumi…"

"I-It\'s okay, Lucy. There won\'t be any hard feelings… I\'m sure."

Lumi, too, saw Lee Hoyeon in such a state for the first time. Even during the survival test, he always seemed relaxed, so she was puzzled about what urgent matter could make him wear such a desperate expression. It seemed like something really urgent had come up.

But… We\'ll still do the secret friend activity, right?

While comforting Lucy, Lumi made sure to firmly protect her own emotional space.

***

"Sigh…"

Untangling a knot from who knows where is truly a bothersome and difficult task. After skipping the afternoon class, I rushed back to the dormitory.

I\'m a bit worried about Lucy, but there\'s nothing I can do right now. It may be harsh, but her life isn\'t in danger, and her mental state can be somehow restored. It\'s different for Nam Daeun. I really don\'t know what might happen.

As it was time for the afternoon class, there was no one else wandering around the academy except for me.

I arrived at the dormitory and opened the door.

"Huh? What?" Liliana, who was lying on my bed watching videos on her smartwatch, abruptly sat up. "Why are you here so early? Isn\'t it class time now?"

"Yeah, but something urgent came up."

"You shouldn\'t skip class. When I was a student, my mom used to beat the crap out of me if I skipped class to play games."

For the record, it doesn\'t matter at the academy. After the midterms, the minimum attendance score is filled. It\'s when Nam Daeun starts missing classes, but that\'s not important right now.

"It\'s okay, don\'t worry."

I took a bead from the subspace pouch hidden in my desk. It\'s a \'request token\' received from Alice. It\'s said to contain a direct contact number to submit the request to the Iris Guild guildmaster. I haven\'t checked it yet because if I open it and don\'t contact within an hour, the number will be destroyed.

Without hesitation, I opened the bead. Inside, there was a phone number written. I dialed the number, and the ringing tone came out.

"What\'s that? Who are you calling?"

"Wait, be quiet for a moment."

"Hmph."

I closed my hand to Liliana, who was lying on the bed and mumbling, trying to bite my hand. While nibbled on my hand and played with it, I answered the call.

Beep

The sound of the call being connected was heard. But there was no sound, so I spoke first, "Hello, I have a request."

[We only accept requests in person. If you wait at the academy tomorrow morning, I\'ll come to you directly.]

Beep

A distorted voice, whether it was a woman or a man, was heard, and the call ended immediately.

"No, these bastards are unbelievable."

I\'m in a hurry, and what are they doing now? As important as security is, this is too much.

I\'m in big trouble. The plan has gone awry.

Originally, I planned to slowly gather information about Nam Daeun with the request token from Alice, but the situation became urgent because I ranked first in the practical exam. But come to think of it, it\'s strange that the formidable Iris Guild leader, The Night Emperor, accepts a job at a moment\'s notice.

"Now what… Ugh, Liliana, stop it, it hurts!" I pulled my hand away from Liliana, who was chewing on it persistently.

Maybe I should infiltrate the girls\' dormitory myself in case Nam Daeun is there?

While pondering seriously, I felt the familiar movement of mana.

"Oh! Scout\'s here."

Something quickly entered through the slightly open window, descending from the ceiling. Scarlett, who dropped from the ceiling, greeted me as she looked at me.

"Hello, Hoyeon. You came early today. Luckily, I have something to report. And, uh.. sometimes, a little deviation is necessary."

Normally, I would have pointed out not to come through the ceiling, but today\'s an exception. I saw a glimmer of hope in Scarlett.

"Scarlett… You are the hope."

"Huh?" Scarlet raised a question mark at the sudden declaration.

"There\'s something you need to do. Infiltrate the girls\' dormitory and check if there\'s a girl named Nam Daeun in her room."

"Right now? I also have something to report about Miss Alice…"

"This is more important right now."

I\'m really curious whether Alice masturbated to my video or not, but that can wait.

"Understood. It won\'t take long; I\'ll go and come back immediately." Fortunately, Scarlet listened to my words and immediately stuck to the ceiling before going outside.

"What\'s going on? I want to play with Scout."

"Instead, I\'ll play with you. Just be patient for a bit."

"Really? Yay! Then let\'s order some chicken."

"Go ahead…"

Even though playing and eating chicken have no apparent connection, if that makes her happy, why not? While Liliana was humming a tune and choosing the chicken, Scarlett arrived.

"You came quickly."

"It was a simple task. There was a freshman named Nam Daeun in the first year, but there were no signs of anyone entering her room since she left in the morning."

"Really…?"

This is really serious. If that\'s the case, there\'s a high chance she went to the Buyer Guild. Whether she went on her own or was summoned, the reason doesn\'t matter. What matters is that Nam Daeun is in danger.

I can\'t go there myself. If I barge in recklessly, not only will I not find her, but I\'ll also arouse suspicion.

"It seems like someone important to you, Hoyeon."

"Yeah. Scarlett, do you know about the Buyers Guild?"

"Um… I\'ve heard of it, but it\'s not that famous, as far as I know."

That\'s right. The Buyers Guild just happened to take in Nam Daeun by chance; it\'s a relatively small and unknown guild. But behind it, there are tremendous forces. It\'s a place that handles tasks such as money laundering, underground dealings, murder, and robbery that large guilds can\'t directly handle.

Scarlett wouldn\'t know much about it unless she\'s thoroughly familiar with domestic information.

"Scarlett, check the inside of the Buyers Guild. I need to find out if Nam Daeun is there. But your safety is the top priority. If it seems risky, come back immediately. Understand?"

"Yes, I understand."

"Hmm, wait, never mind that. I\'ll go as well. I\'ll wait in front of the guild building."

I can\'t just wait quietly for Scarlet to bring back information. Even if there\'s nothing I can do, it\'s okay. I can receive information as quickly as possible, even if it\'s just for a second.

"Alright, I\'ll leave first. I\'ll meet you in the front of the guild building." Scarlet nodded, then promptly went out.

"What\'s your favorite, seasoned chicken?"

"Whatever. Order some and play for a bit. I\'ll be back within a few hours."

Going to the guild dressed in a student uniform would draw too much attention. I changed into casual clothes, applied a slight perception distortion barrier, and left the dormitory.