The Hero’s Brother Is Bound To Be Depressed - Chapter 214



215 – Butterfly Effect

It was cloudy from morning today. The sky was full of dark clouds, but it didn’t rain lightly. I feel like I would rather have rain.

I don’t know if it’s the weather that makes people depressed, or if it’s because the promotion exam is just around the corner. I felt that the atmosphere at the academy was more serious than usual.

Even the atmosphere in the club room was different. Aria and Kane, who were the loudest, were quietly studying for their exams, so a quiet atmosphere was maintained. For some reason, I felt like I was floating around, unable to blend in with the atmosphere, and for the first time in a long time, I felt left out. It’s a little welcome loneliness.

Unlike other club members, I wasn’t particularly nervous about the exam. I wasn’t very confident that I could get first place in the promotion test, but that didn’t mean I had the skills to worry about repeating a grade.

Not only did I get extra points by participating in the triathlon and jointly winning, but I was confident in my practical evaluation even without using space magic.

However, I couldn’t break the atmosphere of concentration I had felt for the first time in a long time, so I returned to the island beyond the closet alone. Even if I didn’t study for the promotion exam, I couldn’t waste my time being lazy. The things I had to do piled up. Coincidentally, the materials to make the improved portal that I had requested from Estelle arrived in the morning and were moved to the house.

After opening the box and taking out the ingredients, he began making an improved portal following the magic spell written in Fatulga’s magic book.

I calculated the horsepower consumed and set up the circuit as I had practiced in my head beforehand. We installed an artifact to fix spatial coordinates, entered the runes written in the magic book in order, and adjusted the arrangement of the passages.

At first glance, hundreds of lines look like cotton. The most important part of the procedure is over. The rest is a tedious repetitive task of connecting the drawn lines using magic.

Because it was a prototype, time-consuming design elements were excluded and the focus was simply on efficiency. It may look clunky, but its performance will be solid. As I was about to make another one in the same way, someone knocked on the door.

“Ross, do you want to go to dinner?”

“huh. “I’ll leave right away.”

I dropped all the things on my desk, put them into the space storage room I had summoned on the floor, and got up from my seat.

***

The next day.

After all classes were over, Lycan appeared for the finale and knocked on the lectern, attracting attention.

“This is about the promotion exam, so everyone should pay attention and listen. This promotion test will be conducted differently from last year. Simply put, there will be changes to the exam.”

The quiet classroom became noisy in an instant at Lycan’s sudden words.

“Gap, what is that all of a sudden…” ! “Shouldn’t we have given notice at least a few weeks in advance?”

One male student shouted that this was nonsense. If you are a student who practiced based on last year’s promotion exam, the sudden change may be unfair. As if sympathizing with the male student, several people in the classroom voiced their dissatisfaction.

bang—!!!

The teaching table was shattered by Lycan’s fist. It was completely shattered beyond repair, to the point where it felt like it was broken like that.

“What do you guys think of the promotion test?!!!”

The classroom suddenly became quiet due to Lycan’s strong shout. The male student who had stood up and shouted quietly tried to sit back down, but there was no way the Lycan, with his massive muscles and tenacity, would miss.

“Arekh! “You’re not going to answer!”

“Well, that…” .”

The male student named Arek was embarrassed and didn’t know what to do. As a disciple of Lycan, I would like to give you a tip. In times like this, the best thing to do is to quietly ask for help. Pointless excuses only lead to more longing. But Arekh didn’t seem to know that.

“B, but there has been no change in the progress of the promotion test in the meantime. The seniors in the club all said it was a good idea to study for last year’s promotion exam! “They said they prepared for the promotion test that way too!”

Lycan smiled at Arek’s words. I instinctively knew that it was a dangerous smile. My experience of being assaulted every day under the pretext of training serves as a warning. Sure enough, the Lycan grabbed Arekh by the collar and lifted him into the air.

“The promotion test is an important test that evaluates a student’s year. This is not a test for petty tricks! “It is an important opportunity to check if you are ready to move on to the next grade and learn!!!”

While Lycan turned his head and glared at the other students with dangerous eyes, Arekh’s head swayed helplessly from side to side. Could it be that he fainted from the shouting… ?

“Even if the type of test changes, the knowledge you have learned and the sweat you have put in will remain intact. “Anyone who can say something weak just because the test method has changed is not qualified to take the promotion test!”

When the lycan tapped the unconscious Arekh on the cheek, only then did he regain strength in his weakly tilted head.

“Are you planning on giving up on the test just because the test method has changed?”

“Oh, no… !”

Lycan sighed and loosened his grip on Arek’s neck as he desperately shook his head, shaking his arms.

“I didn’t think there was a need to inform students that it was different from the existing test. Because coping with variables is also a skill. However, other professors have different opinions, so I will be fair and briefly explain to you how the promotion test has changed.”

Everyone seemed to have decided to accept it, nodding their heads and beginning to focus on Lycan’s words.

“The written exam will proceed as scheduled. What has changed is the practical test. The special practice conducted in the first semester was well received, and this time, students will also be evaluated in individual dungeons using snow globes. All you have to do is get out of the dungeon using the theories you learned in class and your own experience and skills. There is a time limit, and you will wait in the order in which you cleared the individual dungeons, and when the number of players is met, you will enter the cooperative dungeons right away. First-year combat students take notes in the morning of the first day. On the second day of the promotion test, the practical exam will be held in the afternoon. “Do you have any questions?”

After finishing the long explanation, Lycan asked, and the students around him raised their hands as if they had been waiting. When Lycan gestured to one of them, the female student lowered her hand and asked.

“So the existing group battles have been replaced with cooperative dungeons?”

In response to the female student’s question, Lycan smiled and looked at me for some reason.

“Yes, the principal took action to prevent everyone from failing due to one person’s overwhelming skills like in the last survival test. “Because a year-long evaluation cannot end in vain.”

The eyes of the surrounding students focused on me. For some reason, the look was like, “Is it you again?”, so I couldn’t help but scratch the back of my head. It was a car that I was confused about because it seemed like a bit of a change from the previous trend. It seems that my actions have become a variable in the flow.

Rakar, who was sitting next to him, said, “As expected, Manager…” “You even changed the test,” he muttered, and out of shame, he quietly turned his head and pretended not to hear him.

There were still many students who raised their hands to ask if they had any other questions. Probably because it was a test related to repeating a grade, everyone seemed focused.

Surprisingly, the one chosen by Lycan was Rakar, who did not seem to raise his hand. He was a guy who didn’t usually ask questions, so he was a little surprising.

“What exactly is a cooperative dungeon?”

Lycan shrugged his shoulders in response to Rakar’s question.

“I don’t know because the information hasn’t been released yet. Professors don’t know everything. However, since there is a cooperative score on the evaluation sheet, I think it is possible to form a party and clear the dungeon like during special training.”

Someone suddenly asked a question even though they were not chosen by Lycan.

“You said that you enter the cooperative dungeon in the order in which you cleared the individual dungeon, but wouldn’t that put the person who clears it later due to lack of skill at a greater disadvantage? “Similar latecomers will be grouped together, right?”

That’s an excellent point. I was a bit excited to see what kind of answer Lycan would give.

After hearing the question, Lycan answered straight away with an expression on his face that said it was obvious.

“So you have to work hard. Don’t be mistaken. It doesn’t matter if latecomers are grouped together. This test is not a competition with others, but an absolute evaluation. Just because you pass first doesn’t mean you’ll be given anything special. You can feel proud. Latecomers will only fall behind if they lag behind the standards set by the Academy. “The consequence of failing is a paid exam.”

Lycan clapped his hands as if to lighten the heavy atmosphere and added.

“There is absolutely no need to be nervous about looking at the backs of others who are ahead. It’s an important test to see each step you take. “If you’re the one watching, you don’t have to worry about getting paid, so you just have to make fewer mistakes.”

I smiled bitterly. Ultimately, Lycan means survival of the fittest. But everyone here entered the academy that way. There will be no one who cannot adapt.

After the bell ceremony, Rakar and I were about to leave the classroom and head to the training ground. Someone blocked my path.

This is Estelle, a small girl whose top of her head is clearly visible due to the height difference.

“Roh, Ross… It’s urgent. It’s urgent. Sleep, talk for a moment… .”

Estelle, who was stuttering with a red face, probably because she was having trouble breathing, looked really urgent. I told Rakar, who was looking at me and Estelle with her suspicious eyes, to go to her training ground first, and she went in to find an empty classroom with Estelle.

After checking that no one was in the hallway, I closed the door and turned around. Estelle, who had taken out a black cat mask from her pocket and put it on, spoke.

“The vacant Confsion position has been filled.”