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Chapter 67

“It should start in a bit, right?”

And in Borsippa’s bustling academic district, that was the case as well. A crowd had gathered below the hills, each member managing to find their own spot beyond the barricades as they looked up toward the peak.

The atmosphere was bustling like the one before a festival, with that strange warmth swelling as time passed.

Fwiiing-

Suddenly, a faint sound resounded, and seven trails of flame shot up from atop the hill. Seemingly about to disappear into the night sky at any moment, each soared high until they converged at one point.

And then, when the tremendous mana began bursting forth from within—

Boom!!!

Colored fireworks vibrantly dyed the sky.

“It’s starting!”

“Quick, take a picture!”

The crowd cheered, seeing that the anticipated event had begun.

Boom! Boom!

Following the first explosion, more explosions soon followed, the resulting fireworks overshadowing even the starlight in the night sky with their brilliant sparkles.

The launched fireworks were chain explosion fireworks, won through fierce bidding by the Department of Enchantments. The professors, teaching assistants, and students had poured their hearts and souls into improving them, and right now, they were bursting endlessly in the sky with dazzling colors.

“The fireworks are so pretty...”

“How can mana burst so clearly? That’s insane...”

“How long does this go on?”

While everyone was able to see the brilliance of the fireworks, only those with sufficient ability could notice the overall structure of the mana contained within. Moreover, only those who had seen the exact price knew about their terrifying cost.

Regardless of why, everyone was captivated by the fireworks display. Unfortunately, it came to an end before long.

Wizzz-

The fireworks began to fall downward, exhausted of their strength. But, before the crowd could truly feel disappointed that it had ended already, the sky was illuminated once more.

Flash!

A thousand rays of light that were shot from the hill began to mix with the remnants of the dispersed fireworks, soon moving vividly across the night sky like living creatures. Captivated by the new sight, the crowd’s gazes naturally followed the lights to reveal the building now atop the hill.

“So that’s the Shangri-La.”

“That building really is no joke...”

The now-revealed white mansion shone like a star thanks to the thousands of lights. This mansion was Borsippa’s landmark, the large banquet hall—also the world’s most glamorous one—where various events at Babel were held.

“This year’s first Noblesse is no joke. How much have they already spent?”

“Well, the third-years managing the event this year are no joke. Plus, with those freshman this year, they must have received proper funding.”

“I wish I had been invited...”

Unlike the outsiders who were there to simply enjoy the following event, the students of Babel looked toward Shangri-La with a mix of jealousy, envy, and admiration.

The Noblesse—the banquet organized by those at the very top of Babel and the hero industry—had now officially begun.

Meanwhile, from inside a limousine driving by, Se-Hoon was utterly dumbfounded by the fireworks show. He couldn’t understand why they would spend so extravagantly on merely the eve of an event; it was just a place where students gathered to simply chat. He couldn’t even begin to guess the budget they had to have to even make it possible.

There’s still the decor of the inside too... I can’t even imagine it. They might as well just go all out and bring all sorts of expensive items to brag about and show off like an exhibition.

“What do you think?” Erika asked in a calm tone, breaking him out of his thoughts.

Erika, sitting opposite him, was dressed in an elegant black dress in accordance with the dress code. Tonight, she seemed more mature and imposing than usual, perhaps due to the outfit.

“About what?” he asked back.

“The eve ceremony. How was it?”

Wondering if she was just curious or asking as an insider, he answered honestly.

“It was impressive.”

“Really?”

“Really.”

He nodded without hesitation and looked outside again.

“What kind of crazy people could come up with such a creative idea to waste money? While the mere fact that they could come up with such an idea is impressive, their execution of it is just as impressive.”

The fact that they put on such a large-scale event solely to flaunt their power showed that they weren’t bound by money and were fundamentally different from others.

“I wish they would sponsor me. It seems like they’d lob money my way if I hinted that I needed it, right?”

He pondered whether he should seriously give it a try. Seeing him do that, Erika, who had been quietly watching, spoke up.

“We did it.”

“Hm?”

“The planning of this eve ceremony. Our family handled it.”

An awkward silence filled the limousine.

A moment later, Erika intently looked at him and calmly asked, “Do you want me to sponsor you?”

“No. It’s okay.”

When he realized that he shouldn’t discuss spending money in front of her, the limousine smoothly finished climbing the hill and pulled in front of Shangri-La\'s main building.

Click.

Stepping out the door an employee opened, Se-Hoon looked at the mansion before him.

Illuminated from all sides, the grand mansion shone brilliantly white. And now that he was up close, he could see a rainbow subtly adorning it.

It’s already impressive even though it hasn’t even been fully activated.... Ordinary bunkers wouldn’t stand a chance if they were compared.

The grandeur was probably because the mansion had been built to welcome distinguished guests and high-ranking individuals from all over the world.

Inspecting the surroundings, they approached the entrance. Soon, a staff member naturally came forward and bowed.

“Welcome, Miss Erika. May I check the invitation ticket of the person accompanying you?”

“Yes.”

Seeing Erika’s glance, Se-Hoon handed over the invitation he had prepared in advance.

Receiving it, the staff member lightly scanned it with mana to verify its authenticity before nodding and stepping aside.

“Welcome to the Noblesse. We hope you enjoy your time.”

Along with that greeting, the front doors smoothly swung open, revealing a circular central hall shining with chandeliers past the lavishly decorated grand doorway.

Is that where the social gathering is held?

He took a step inside.

Whoosh-

And an endless corridor appeared before him.

***

Every group had its traditions, no matter trivial, and the Noblesse was the same. Their initiation tradition, Labyrinth, forced the attendees to wander through endlessly connecting corridors that were formed using the spatial magic imbued throughout the Shangri-La mansion.

At first glance, it seemed like a pointless prank, but it had its practical reasons.

“What, where did everyone go?”

“This is...”

When first put into the maze, some frantically looked around in confusion, while others quickly grasped the situation and started to dispel the spatial magic. And watching all that unfold on their own floating panels were the members of the Noblesse who shared their opinions with each other.

“Hm. This guy is a bit slow, but he has good senses. He should be useful with a bit of investment.”

“That guy is quick-witted but lacks talent. It seems like we overestimated him.”

With Labyrinth, they could re-evaluate the potential and abilities of the promising students they had been keeping an eye on. Or, in other words, they could appraise the value of the attendees.

“Hey, this guy isn’t bad.”

“Let me see.”

While those thirsty for talents busily flipped through their panel hoping to find promising individuals, others deliberately chose to watch only the most hopeless students and enjoy themselves.

And among these diverse individuals, was a young man with neatly combed blonde hair and a dependable appearance sitting quietly—Vier Barmuth.

“...”

Unlike the others who were proactively scanning through their panels, Vier wasn’t even glancing at his.

Seeing this, Carter Douglas, the burly young man sitting next to him who was also the top-ranking second-year student of the Department of Blacksmithing, cautiously asked, “Um... sir, maybe you should take a look at some of the others...”

“Shut up.”

“Yes, sir.”

Carter Douglas quickly silenced himself upon Vier’s command, knowing all too well that unnecessary comments could bring trouble upon himself.

“Hans.”

“Yes, yes! Sir.”

“Are you certain that Se-Hoon is participating?”

Hearing Vier’s question, Hans immediately wore a noticeably tense expression,

“Most likely. While he did refrain from using mana during classes, he didn’t seem to be in poor health...”

“I asked if you’re certain.”

“Th-that’s...”

Under Vier’s indifferent gaze, Hans started sweating bullets.

Why is he making a fuss with me...

He had hardly interacted with Se-Hoon during classes, and recently, it had become even harder to see him since he submitted all of his assignments early. How was he supposed to confirm whether Se-Hoon was attending the Noblesse or not?

He’s so petty and nasty...

Although they were originally competitors for successorship, and thus never on good terms, when he lost the top-ranking position and lost the right to successorship, Vier treated him like a servant. However, even though the situation made Hans feel a rush of bitterness, he couldn’t utter a word because that was just how the Barmuth family was.

“So...”

“Ah. Sir. He’s here!”

Unintentionally saving Hans from having to muster up some excuse, Carter Douglas, who had been intently watching his panel, quickly brought up a feed.

What appeared on the panel was a young man with a sharp expression that was just about to enter a red corridor. He was dressed in a black suit, seeming more like a hitman vibe than a student, and drew gasps from those also watching.

“I’m telling you, that guy has surely murdered someone before.”

“Is he really a blacksmith?”

“He definitely deserves to be the honor student; it seems like he’s been on a different level since the start.”

With the appearance of Se-Hoon, every single person in the room switched their feed without hesitation, and soon, every panel was displaying just one person. It was clear who the main character of this year’s Noblesse was.

Vier, too, had picked up his panel to watch Se-Hoon intently.

“Hm...”

On their panels, Se-Hoon seemed completely calm even upon being put in the maze; he even seemed to have been expecting this. He just carefully surveyed his surroundings.

“How is he so relaxed?”

“I know, right? Maybe he was tipped off.”

“That might be it.”

While the maze was meant to be kept a secret, given the somewhat lax atmosphere of the Noblesse, there had been instances when attendees were given a heads-up to make their sponsored student stand out.

And considering that Se-Hoon had received an invitation from the Inoue family, which wielded significant influence in the Noblesse, it wouldn’t have been strange at all if he received a tip. However, there was something odd about his demeanor.

Those who are tipped off usually can’t hide it... but he seems different.

Rather than just knowing about it, it feels like he’s simply familiar with the maze itself...

Starkly contrasting other students who were eager to showcase their abilities, his calm, indifferent attitude stood out. Even without doing anything special, his presence drew everyone’s attention. Suddenly, he started making unexpected actions—he started knocking on the walls.

“Here... hm. Not here...”

Watching Se-Hoon meticulously examine and tap the walls, looking for a hidden entrance, the previously noisy room fell silent, only to be filled with the sound of deflating laughter soon after.

“What a letdown. I thought he was onto something big...”

“Figured as much.”

The maze could only be solved by those with a keen sense of spatial magic, and simply at that; they just had to infuse a bit of mana into the gaps to unravel it. So, Se-Hoon’s persistent knocking on the walls implied that he either had dull senses or issues manipulating his mana.

“Given his previously impressive sensing abilities, he must be injured.”

“Although I really want to see his skills, there’s nothing to see if he just keeps doing that.”

Seeing him continue to knock on the walls, the viewers gradually switched to a different feed, leaving only those who were mocking his seemingly confused state.

Unlike them, however, Vier just kept his eyes on the panel, silent. Meanwhile, Hans and Carter Douglas were cautiously observing his reaction, waiting.

Then, a moment later, he finally said, “It’s over.”

Though he felt like Se-Hoon was onto something, it seemed to be meaningless after all. Thinking about Se-Hoon’s persistent actions, Vier’s gaze narrowed.

Was his injury more severe than I thought? If that’s the case, there’s no need for me to take such risks. I’ll just ask for assistance from Dawn...

He reassessed some of his plans in his mind.

Click-

Suddenly, an unusual sound came from the panel. But when Vier looked toward it this time, he only saw an empty corridor.

“What?”

As long as the maze persisted, there was no way that an empty corridor would be shown because if Se-Hoon had escaped, it would have been deactivated immediately. So then, where was Se-Hoon?

“What’s going on? Lee Se-Hoon disappeared.”

“Did he use some sort of invisibility spell?”

“Why would he suddenly use that? And he’s a blacksmith, remember?”

The sudden turn of events stirred up commotion inside the observation room, and those who had switched their feeds away immediately switched back to the now-empty corridor. However, even when they watched for a while, Se-Hoon still remained unseen.

Suddenly, Vier stood up, putting down the panel he had been quietly observing.

“Sir?”

“We’re heading to the corridor. Follow me.”

Determined to see for himself what trickery was at play, he approached the door. However, before he could open it, it opened from the outside.

Creak-

And Se-Hoon, who had vanished from the corridor just now, poked his head through.

“You...”

“What? It’s not here either, huh?”

Realizing he hadn’t arrived at the banquet hall, Se-Hoon withdrew his head, looking somewhat deflated. At that moment, he finally noticed Vier.

“Tsk, tsk. So creepy,” he remarked disdainfully.

Leaving behind those words, he clicked his tongue in disdain and closed the door.

Thud!

When the door shut, Carter Douglas and Hans, who had witnessed the scene alongside Vier, started mumbling in confusion.

“How did he get up here...?”

“He shouldn’t have been able to enter without a pass. What on earth...”

They were completely mystified, unable to believe what they had seen.

Regaining his senses, Vier belatedly yanked open the door and quickly surveyed the corridor outside. But all he saw was an empty corridor, just like on the panel moments earlier. But this time, he realized what Se-Hoon had done.

Did he figure out the structure of the spatial magic imbued throughout Shangri-La and use it for himself?

The knocking on the walls he saw Se-Hoon doing through the panel wasn’t meaningless at all; Se-Hoon had been searching for a gap he could exploit.

However, understanding it in theory and actually daring to execute it needed completely different levels of skill.

Recalling Se-Hoon’s effortless display, Vier’s eyes grew cold.

“So creepy.”

Gnash-

A chilling sound echoed in his mouth as his teeth clenched.