I opened the door and stepped into the training ground.
A space of pure white.
Even though cadets had been unleashing spells here just moments ago, it looked pristine.
In the game, I figured it reset every time you left and came back, but seeing it happen in reality was something else.
Maybe some special magic was applied to keep it that way.
Anyway, this place felt familiar.
It was a spot I frequented in the game whenever I played as a magic department character, to practice skills or warm up.
I examined the control panel mounted on the training ground wall.
A strangely nostalgic feeling washed over me.
'The interface is exactly like the game.'
Just like in the game, I could freely set the enemy types, placements, terrain, and more.
I reaffirmed my goal once again.
The objective: without moving from my spot, take on the strongest and most numerous enemies possible.
'In [Stella Academia], it would be like this...'
I boldly placed my hand on the control panel.
***
At the same time.
The magic department cadets were watching the live feed from outside.
All their attention was focused on one guy.
The cadet with snow-white hair: Jeron Airgia.
Jeron. He was currently the hottest topic at Stella Academy.
Of course, this year's intake at Stella was a legendary golden generation packed with monsters like the "Crown Prince," the "Saintess," and the "Sword Saint's Daughter."
Compared to them, he didn't carry as much weight yet, but at least among the 1st Year magic department, Jeron was right at the center of the buzz.
Dead last in the entrance exam, dozing off through every class—an epitome of laziness.
Yet he'd crushed a top-ranker in three seconds, seen through the headmaster's illusion magic, and stayed utterly calm before a Giant Death Worm.
If he'd only had the laziness or just the extraordinary talent, he might've drawn some fleeting interest at best.
But that bizarre duality was insanely piquing the cadets' curiosity.
"What kind of magic will he show us this time?"
"Has to be... that reflection spell, right?"
"Makes sense. If I had a spell like that, I'd wanna show it off too."
"I still don't get how he pulled it off back then. Are we finally gonna see it properly?"
The screen showed Jeron manipulating the control panel.
His indifferent violet eyes stared at it for a moment, then his fingers danced across it like he was playing piano.
The result?
"...!?"
Five swordsman combat puppets up front.
Three mage combat puppets behind them.
And even an assassin combat puppet at the very rear.
A total of nine combat puppets summoned.
The classic party setup of swordsmen, mages, and assassin.
They were even arranged in front, mid, and back lines.
A combination way too unreasonable for one person to handle alone.
Doubt crept into the cadets' eyes.
"Isn't that setup meant for like five people?!"
"...Isn't that pushing it too far?"
"No matter how amazing Jeron's reflection magic is, can he really take all that?"
Just then, a grumpy voice cut in.
"Hmph, obvious trick."
It was a male cadet.
"He's deliberately setting up impossible enemies to justify failing, right?"
"Jeron only beat Kaiser 'cause he pulled some sneaky move. Think about it—that's all he's shown: just reflection. And even that's suspicious as hell if it's real magic."
"The Death Worm illusion? Probably just froze up in fear—who knows?"
"Now his true skill's finally gonna get exposed."
"Tch, with that pretty-boy parasite face of his...!"
A few cadets echoed his snide remarks.
They were the ones insisting Jeron was a cheating fraud.
Kaiser, however, stayed focused solely on the screen.
Artel listened to them but silently believed in Jeron.
Yuria watched with bated breath, hands clasped tightly in front of her chest.
That was when it happened.
Whirr-!
Red lights flickered on in the summoned combat puppets' eyes as they activated.
The five frontline swordsman puppets moved first.
Tadadadot!
Their speed and movements were leagues beyond standard puppets.
They even gripped sharply honed swords.
They charged in formation, fierce and unrelenting.
But Jeron just stood there, staring at them with empty eyes, making no move.
Everyone held their breath as the swordsman puppets closed the distance in an instant.
Then Jeron finally stirred.
...
But could it even be called moving?
He merely raised two fingers.
Index and middle, pressed straight together.
Then slashed the air.
No warning, no prelude—just a simple gesture.
And with that one motion.
Slash-!
The five charging swordsman puppets were bisected all at once.
"...!!"
The cadets' eyes filled with shock.
***
A single strike maximizing the range and reach of [Magido Severing Strike].
It was incredibly effective.
Taking out five swordsman puppets in one go, after all.
'That's the stuff.'
Ah, this chilling, heavy sensation.
[Stella Academia]'s hit feedback was solid even in-game, but doing it for real was on another level.
Adrenaline surged, heightening the thrill.
Far from complacency, it sharpened my senses even further.
The fight wasn't over yet.
In the slowed world of [Keen Sight].
The swordsman puppets, waists severed by my strike, slowly flailed and collapsed.
Through that gap, three different spells flew in.
Fireball, Ice Spear, Thunderbolt.
A blazing orb, an ice lance, azure lightning—all hurtling toward me.
But all well within expectations.
I'd positioned the puppets so the spells would hit me simultaneously, calculating their speeds in advance.
'Low-tier Reflection.'
Wung-.
Violet magic circles formed in my palm, bouncing the three spells away.
'Time it right, and reflection magic can deflect multiple spells at once.'
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The redirected spells struck their casters dead-on, wiping out the three mage puppets.
But one remained.
Leap!
As if waiting for this moment, the assassin puppet darted into the gap, launching into the air.
But.
—Slash!
Caught off-guard by the sudden incoming severing strike at an unexpected timing, it was bisected midair, pathetically.
My hand still held the glowing violet magic circle of [Low-tier Reflection].
I hadn't even gestured at it with my fingers—yet it got hit anyway.
How?
'...Severing Strike cancel.'
I twisted the corner of my mouth.
'It works.'
More precisely, Severing Strike Motion Cancel.
Right after using Severing Strike, cast a specific spell like [Low-tier Reflection] and chain into another Severing Strike to completely skip the startup animation.
A trick possible because [Magido Severing Strike]'s cooldown was a mere 1 second, treatable like a basic attack.
This let me conceal the Severing Strike startup, and even more broken was—
'Reducing the Severing Strike cooldown to zero.'
The skill description said 1 second, but with 'Severing Strike cancel,' I could skip that entirely and fire off an instant double strike.
Severing Strike, Reflection, Severing Strike again.
The sequence overlapping seamlessly.
Sever-Reflect-Sever. Double Sever combo.
'Nice.'
Just confirming I could use this combo in real combat made today's class worth it.
It'd be a hugely useful weapon going forward.
Of course, I'd insured against mishaps.
Even if the cancel failed, I'd positioned the assassin puppet a bit farther out to give me that split-second reaction window.
Plan B was vet gamer basics.
Deactivating [Keen Sight], the world snapped back to normal speed.
The puppets' wreckage scattered everywhere with loud crashes.
Then, one large chunk hurtled toward my face.
I nearly reflexively dodged with my foot but thankfully just tilted my head, barely evading it.
'Whoa, damn. That was close...!'
My heart skipped a beat. Nailing everything perfectly, only to fail the quest over a stray debris piece?
Thank god my Agility was up to C-rank.
Suppressing my pounding chest, I feigned calm.
Then the quest completion window popped up.
Ding!
[You've brilliantly completed the sudden quest!]
[Sloth +300]
[Level up!]
[Current Sloth: 700]
[Level: 23]
'300, not bad.'
Satisfied as I eyed it, another window appeared.
[As additional reward, the 'Keen Sight' skill advances one stage.]
'...What's this?'
Skill enhancement.
Where skills gain various added options.
Normally done in magic classes like today's by investing materials and time.
But rarely, quests offered it—and here it was.
I immediately checked [Keen Sight].
[Skill]
[Keen Sight (Hero)]
See with the eyes of the mind.
Description: (Active) Upon use, dramatically boosts dynamic vision for an instant. (Cooldown: 10 minutes)
(New!)
Enhancement: Crisis Detection - Automatically activates when an unforeseen strike flies in.