I Was Just Having Fun With The Time Limit - Chapter 188
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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I thought school life would be enjoyable.
But it seemed life didn’t flow according to my wishes.
“….”
The students didn’t even acknowledge my existence.
They acted as though I were invisible.
‘Hmm.’
It was like some kind of ghost game.
I’d only seen this in dramas, but experiencing it myself was far more melancholic than I’d imagined.
I spent the entire day barely exchanging any words before returning to the dormitory.
I had originally been assigned a single room, but through my insistent demands, I ended up in a shared dormitory—though it proved meaningless.
I tried speaking to my roommate lying on the adjacent bed.
“Olsia.”
“….”
No response came.
She acted as though I didn’t exist in this room.
“Hmm, this is sadder than I thought.”
I could see Olsia’s body flinch beneath the blanket.
Olsia had been deliberately avoiding my gaze, but her eyes trembled so much that it didn’t seem voluntary at all.
“Olsia. This is my first day here, so could you at least show me around the dormitory?”
“….”
Still, no response came.
“I don’t understand the exact reason why you’re treating me this way.”
I simply wanted to make friends.
With less than a year remaining, I just wanted to experience an ordinary school life.
That seemed to be too much to ask for.
I attended classes alone and ate alone.
During breaks, I was alone the entire time.
But there was another person who was alone throughout—just like me.
That was my roommate, Olsia.
‘Hmm.’
To be honest, I felt only somewhat sad and disappointed, not tormented or suffering from this situation.
But Olsia seemed to be struggling greatly.
I was being ignored by my peers, while Olsia was being bullied.
Over the past few days, I learned new truths.
‘On the surface, it’s equal.’
The University was a place where family background and social status didn’t matter.
That was the value the University pursued.
All students of the same year spoke casually and wore the same uniforms.
‘But that’s just theory—reality is different.’
The University program varied by department, but typically lasted four to six years.
Once that period ends, I’ll eventually have to enter society.
If I catch the attention of children from high-status families during my university years, my entire life could become exhausting.
Inevitably, invisible hierarchies and power structures formed even within the university.
‘Looking closer, Olsia’s uniform is rather worn compared to the other kids.’
It seemed Olsia wore only the single school uniform provided by the university.
The other kids had several identical uniforms and changed into fresh clothes whenever they perspired even slightly.
Some of them even applied magical treatments to make their uniforms gleam and shine.
Compared to those kids, Olsia’s uniform looked shabby and worn.
“Who wants to pick up their spoon before me?”
From what I could see, Reina was the one leading the harassment of Olsia.
“You’re eating soup with money I paid for.”
“….”
Reina raised her voice beside Olsia.
As if making sure everyone else could hear.
“But I haven’t picked up my spoon yet, and you’re eating first? Haven’t you come to your senses?”
“…I’m sorry.”
Olsia couldn’t even meet Reina’s eyes.
She kept her head bowed low, trembling slightly.
“If a beggar enters this school, she should know her place, shouldn’t she?”
Reina lifted Olsia’s food tray.
And set it down on the floor.
I realized what she was doing—she was telling Olsia to eat while lying on the ground.
“A spoon is wasted on someone like you.”
Reina took Olsia’s spoon as well.
Olsia offered no resistance, merely keeping her head lowered.
“The meat side dish is wasteful too.”
“…I understand. I won’t eat the meat.”
“Now you’re finally understanding.”
Reina stroked Olsia’s head gently.
And spoke to her as one would to a pet dog.
“Eat.”
“…Thank you.”
Olsia began eating while lying on the ground, without a spoon.
“Reina. Isn’t that going too far?”
I bent down and lifted Olsia’s food tray, placing it back on the table.
But Olsia, without any particular reaction, set the tray back down on the ground.
Olsia continued to act as if I didn’t exist.
‘So Reina is the one with power here.’
Everyone was busy watching Reina’s mood.
Reina waved her fan and muttered to herself.
“That’s strange. I hear a voice I don’t recognize. Must be an auditory hallucination.”
With that, he walked away leisurely.
When I returned to the dormitory, Olsia was hidden beneath her blankets, crying silently.
* * *
Deep into the night.
I spoke to Olsia, who was still crying quietly.
“I think I’m beginning to understand why you all reject me.”
I didn’t think their actions were right, but I could see their perspective to some degree.
For them, this university is a matter of life and death.
They endured brutal entrance exams to get here, and they compete fiercely even now.
But I enrolled here simply because I wanted to enjoy my school days.
Even creating a non-existent transfer system to do so.
“But I won’t excuse it.”
“….”
“As you all think, I did want to experience school life. I had a longing for something I’d never experienced before. So I used underhanded methods to enroll here. I’m going to die soon.”
“….”
The kids clearly didn’t believe that I would die soon.
In fact, most people didn’t.
Narbidal’s Mark no longer manifests in people born into this world.
‘I’m not entirely sure, but… I’m probably the last person to carry Narbidal’s Mark, aren’t I?’
There were people in this world who bore Narbidal’s Mark, but they all disappeared because of Wilhelm’s conspiracy.
Some even claimed that Narbidal’s Mark was a fictional tale.
Narbidal’s Mark certainly exists, but people dismissed it as something that couldn’t possibly be real.
I understand that too.
Even in 21st century South Korea where media was so developed, there were so many people who suspected I was faking it, asking what kind of disease that even was.
It would be even more so here.
“Even if I concede a hundred times that you can treat me that way, I simply cannot understand how you treat her.”
“….”
Olsia didn’t open her heart to me.
It seemed the cadets, especially Reina, terrified her.
“Perhaps my coming to experience this place wasn’t just for my own memories.”
I’d only seen things like this in dramas or movies—never in reality.
I wondered if such bullying could really exist, but it did.
“I grew up in too bright a place.”
This world had been a gift to me.
It was such a beautiful place to me.
That’s what I thought.
But this Magic School made it clear that wasn’t the case.
This ecosystem is a microcosm of society.
“But it’s not all brightness, is it.”
“….”
“I won’t be getting close to you. I’m leaving anyway.”
“….”
“But I’m in a terrible mood right now.”
“….”
“So I’m going to vent some anger.”
Until now, I had held back.
Because I didn’t want my last memories to become distorted.
And there was something like a final pity I held for Reina.
“I’ve watched Reina since I was very young.”
Since those foolish days.
“I’ve shown her generosity from back then.”
Even when she demanded I hand over Kim Beolggwol.
Even when she falsely accused my precious friend Yuri and drove her away.
Even when she looked down on me so much during the Olympiad tournament.
Even when she looked at me with contempt in the Kingdom of Jirdel afterward.
Even when she scorned my family as barbaric.
I tried to understand Reina.
“Because Reina was young.”
Children grow up learning many things.
They don’t bear great responsibility for their mistakes.
Literally, they’re still young.
They still have so much to learn.
“But now Reina is no longer young. She’s an adult.”
She must now bear the responsibility she didn’t have to carry as a child.
Because she’s an adult.
* * *
The next day.
For some reason, Reina seemed to be in a bad mood.
And as always, Olsia was her target for venting.
Reina poured the fruit juice from the meal ration over Olsia’s head.
“Didn’t I tell you not to drink fruit juice? It’s because of lowlifes like you that my tuition keeps getting more expensive!”
I silently chanted a spell in my heart.
The fruit juice dripping from Olsia’s body floated up into the air.
And then it sprayed right back onto Reina’s body.
How does a juice splash feel?
“Y-you dare…!”
Actually, this is really difficult magic, and unfortunately, Reina didn’t seem to realize how advanced it was.
“You used magic to attack a student? How dare you!”
I didn’t know this was a violation of school rules.
I raised my right hand.
“That spell? I cast it. Want me to show you again?”
I flicked my fingers.
The incantation was already complete, so reconstruction was simple.
The juice that had drenched Reina splattered through the air once more.
‘Juice slap!’
And I gifted her another juice slap.
Reina, absolutely furious, attempted to attack me with some incomprehensible magic.
But the caliber of her magic was so crude that I tilted my head in confusion.
‘What kind of magic is that?’
Wait, is that even magic?
I have no idea what she’s doing.
So I simply cancelled her spell activation.
And then I gifted her another juice slap.
Splash—!
This time, I heightened the mana resonance.
It probably hurt a bit more.
“Aaaaaaahhhhh!”
But it shouldn’t have hurt that much.
Just from taking this, her eyes were glistening with tears?
‘How strange.’
Her internal mana should have mitigated some of the pain.
For her to suffer this much from something so trivial was peculiar.
But then, a voice rang out.
“What is the meaning of this!”
It was the voice of this school’s principal, Principal Lugeltter.
He came rushing toward us in a frenzy.
‘When Olsia was being tormented like that, no one was around. Now suddenly someone appears. The timing is remarkably convenient.’
Was this a coincidence?
I suspect not.
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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