The Conjurer of the Academy

Chapter 45

Practical Exam.

True to Babel’s emphasis on real-world experience, the first practical exam fully embodies this principle.

“To think they’d actually build an entire arena just for exams. The scale here is on a whole different level.”

The place where I’m standing right now is the A Building’s testing ground. It’s as large as a sports field, but it’s still a building constructed within the school. Considering there are also B and C buildings, it seems they’re genuinely serious about student development.

“Did everyone get a good night’s rest?”

With 300 students gathered around, Faust addressed us through a microphone.

‘It’s her again.’

Because she’s the homeroom teacher of the main character’s class, Faust is quite well-regarded in the storyline.

As proof, whenever there’s an academic event, it’s always Faust who takes the microphone.

“Today’s practical exam for all of you is none other than an ‘escape room’.”

Escape Room.

If you imagine the fun, paid escape rooms, you’ll be in for a rude awakening. Although it’s called an escape room, it’s practically a survival horror scenario.

“Let me explain further.”

Faust snapped her fingers.

Then, a magical device that looked like a mirror ball floated into the air. Soon, it began to spin, projecting a three-dimensional image beneath it.

The image soon created the view of a city.

“This is the ‘maze’ you will be escaping from.”

Indeed, the entire city shown in the image is a maze. The city map was dotted with numerous blue points.

“You will all be divided into three groups of 100, and each group will take their exam in zones A, B, and C respectively. The 100 blue points you see represent the random locations where each of you will be placed.”

There, a single golden star symbol shone brightly at the center of the city.

“And there is only one exit. Your task is to be the first to find the exit and escape. The exit will have a large golden star sticker, so it should be easy to spot. Sounds simple, right?”

Faust smiled pleasantly.

Those who escape first will receive higher scores. The lack of elaboration on certain details makes it even more frightening. With no restrictions, every action is justified.

“If the mana in the Protector you’re wearing is fully depleted, you will be automatically disqualified.”

The fact that Protectors are provided indicates numerous threats to personal safety. Unlike simulated subjugation, this is not a team play but an individual effort.

The groups of 100 are completely random, and you will have to navigate this entirely on your own.

“Any questions?”

Faust looked around. A student raising their hand could be seen in the distance.

“Professor, I have a question!”

With a robust upper body and a powerful voice, it was easy to identify Han Yu-seong from behind.

“So, will we be transported to the exam area via warp gate?”

“Good question.”

Faust snapped her fingers again,

Boom-!

The ground shook.

“In fact, you are already in the exam area.”

The sound of gears interlocking could be heard, and the ground began descending rapidly.

“It’s like an elevator!”

Excited, Han Yu-seong looked around. The ground descended hundreds of meters swiftly, soon reaching a massive underground cavity.

“This is the waiting room. From here, you will be transported to your respective exam zones. Please check the screen on your Protectors.”

Following Faust’s instructions, the students all lowered their heads to look at their screens. I did the same.

【B.】

I was assigned to group B. Due to the large number of students, it was impossible to pair up with friends like during the mock subjugation. If anyone did try to form groups, it would be unfair.

‘In that sense, the exam…’

Had already begun.

Whoosh—

With a loud hissing sound, large amounts of gas began spewing from the walls.

“What is this?!”

Some of the startled external students waved their hands at the dispersing gas. But soon, the gas filled the entire massive cavity.

“Don’t worry too much. It’s harmless to the body.”

Faust now wore a gas mask. This was a special sleep-inducing gas that Faust had developed herself. Unless one had significant resistance…

‘Ah, damn it.’

My eyelids grew heavy. Sleep was overtaking me. Resistance was futile.

“Good luck with the exam, everyone.”

With Faust’s cheerful voice as the last thing I heard, I lost consciousness.

* * *

【Aaah…】

Flash.

A sudden machine sound woke me up. I assumed it was the same for the other students.

【Alright, everyone, time to wake up.】

I looked around first.

‘Looks like I’m in a room.’

A shabby, moldy, narrow room. It was probably one of the random starting points and not a bad one at that.

‘I could have started on the streets or next to a garbage heap.’

As expected, there was no one around. The voice was coming from a speaker in the ceiling.

【The exam will start now. You have 3 hours to find the exit. Good luck.】

With that, the broadcast was cut off. The task was simple: find the “exit” faster than anyone else.

The issue was that the area to search was this entire city. Plus, I’d have to thoroughly check inside the buildings where the exit could be.

‘If I moved as a team, we’d find it quickly…’

With all the classes mixed and 100 students per group, it was hard to find allies. Plus, since scores were based on who finds the exit first, there’d be conflicts even within teams.

“If only Han Yu-seong or Shin Seo-ha were here, I could team up with them comfortably.”

I need to stop feeling sentimental. It’s not like this would be difficult.

‘Group B. Urban area.’

I already know where the exit is. It would have been nice to start on a rooftop to get a better sense of my location, but it’s not a big deal.

“Yomi, wake up.”

[Yawn… ]

Yomi rubbed her eyes.

‘She didn’t even inhale the gas, but she slept soundly.’

I wish I could sleep too, but that’s not an option. I took out the Sain-gum I had holstered at my waist and held it out in front of me.

“Let’s get going.”

Creeeak.

The old hinges groaned as the door opened. Seeing the hallway, it seemed I was inside a building.

‘I need to figure out my location first…’

I had to get to the rooftop. Everything starts from there.

“There doesn’t seem to be anyone around.”

Thankfully, I didn’t sense any presence or spiritual energy. Even though I knew the gimmicks, I needed to know where this building was. I cautiously took a step forward,

Rumble—!

The moment I stepped into the hallway, the entire building shook.

‘Starting already?’

I had a rough idea of what this pattern was. It seemed I had to retract my earlier thought about this being a suitable starting point.

Crash!

The floor began to collapse.

【Case 42: Floor Collapse.】

A recorded voice came from the speaker. The number indicated the classification of the scenario, and floor collapse was an unexpected situation that frequently occurred in real-life scenarios.

‘Why do I have to experience so many falls here?’

As if to mess with me, the lower floor of the building was completely hollow. If I fell like this, I would plummet straight into the basement.

“Baek-ah!”

Mist emanated from the Sain-gum.

In a split second, I looped the mist around the doorknob and hung on.

“I would’ve been disqualified if I got caught in that.”

I sighed in relief.

Now that the exam had begun, I couldn’t afford to let my guard down.

“No choice, then.”

With the floor collapsed, moving through the building was impossible. I returned to the starting room and opened a nearby window, leaning out.

[Planning to go rock climbing?]

“Correct.”

I decided to climb the exterior of the building. Luckily, each floor had balconies and railings, making the climb manageable.

“Whew, this school is really crazy.”

Hanging from the wall, I surveyed the surroundings. The sun had been replaced by artificial lighting in the sky, and I wasn’t the only one in trouble; smoke from collapsing buildings and fires filled the air.

Not only had they built a realistic cityscape underground, but they were also blowing it up.

‘That Lee Dohak really is something…’

The founding principal, Lee Dohak.

While early hunters amassed fortunes, Lee Dohak invested most of his earnings into establishing Babel. Just from its scale, one could tell how dedicated he was to education.

[So, have you figured out your location?]

“More or less. If I had known, I would’ve exited through the window initially.”

Who would choose to climb out a window when there was a perfectly normal door available? Of course, windows might also have booby traps, making it a fifty-fifty chance.

‘It seems like I’m somewhere in the east.’

I triangulated my position using a transmission tower at my 4 o’clock and a tall tower palace at my 9 o’clock. Now that I knew where I was, I had two choices:

I could either walk to the destination, which was safer, or take a shortcut, which was faster but riskier.

‘It’s probably better to take the sure, safe route, even if it means going a bit out of the way…’

Suddenly, an idea crossed my mind. What if Han Yu-seong or Shin Seo-ha ended up in the same group as me? How would I find them if I wanted to join forces?

Knowing those two, they’d probably be taking the most difficult path, driven by some sort of inevitable instinct. For some reason, I felt sure they would be walking through a metaphorical bed of thorns.

“I’m heading to the transmission tower.”

So, I decided to take the shortcut.

* * *

Let’s think about this.

You release 100 highly competitive students into a sprawling urban landscape with minimal rules. Add the fact that scores are awarded based on who finds the exit first. What do you think would happen?

“Found it!”

“W-wait a second!”

“Please, just this once! I can’t get disqualified now—”

“Shut up!”

Bang! Boom!

With a loud explosion, chaos erupted in the alley.

“Ugh…”

The students caught in the blast were ensnared by none other than their own classmates. A bald guy with a soot-covered face, holding something like castanets, had caused it.

Thud.

The cornered students fell to the ground, unable to mount any significant resistance.

Beep, beep, beep—!

The warning sound from the Protectors blared, signaling the disqualification of the fallen students.

“Trash.”

Of course, the person who disqualified multiple classmates wouldn’t face any penalties. In fact, the system was designed to encourage such behavior.

“Are you the famous Seo Yun-seop?”

“…Are you talking to me?”

However, cooperation can occur at any moment.

“Would you consider teaming up with me?”

“And who are you?”

The guy, with a skinny body and a thin face, chuckled quietly as he addressed Seo Yun-seop.

“My name’s Kim In-seong. I know where the exit is.”

“So, why not I just beat you senselessly to make you spill the information instead of teaming up?”

Kim In-seong clapped his hands dramatically at Seo Yun-seop’s response.

“I like your style. Don’t worry; I don’t plan to escape anyway.”

“Then what do you want?”

“I’m looking for someone. If you help me find and disqualify him, I’ll tell you where the exit is.”

Eliminating someone.

That was a phrase that could excite the hunting instincts of the strong.

“That sounds interesting.”

Cooperation can happen readily.

The problem is, that it can also occur among villains.