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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 1
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I urgently opened my mouth.
"Um, I'm really sorry… Sister. C-could I get retested?"
"Haa…"
The female employee sighed so heavily it seemed the ground would cave in, her eyes looking as if she'd seen hundreds of guys like me before.
"I'm sorry. It's very rare for an attribute test result to change even if you get retested. And if you go for a retest, there will be an additional fee. Is that alright?"
As she spoke, her gaze swept over me from head to toe, and I instinctively flinched.
—Additional fee.
I knew what that meant.
And I also knew that the employee's words about the results not changing were entirely true.
...Yet, I found it incredibly difficult to accept the test results.
[Spearmanship Lv.1]
Among many attributes, getting Spearmanship could be seen as not a bad result in some ways, but...
No, it was bad.
To me, it was almost the worst possible outcome.
"I'll pay the additional fee."
I bit the bullet and paid the additional fee.
"...Alright, then please step back onto the altar."
Receiving the female employee's pitying gaze, I stepped forward once more.
I had no choice but to request a retest, clinging to it like a drowning man grasping at a straw.
Because my entire life hinged on this attribute.
If there was even the slightest possibility to hope for, I had to take it.
Thump.
As I straightened myself on the circular altar, a pristine white light began to envelop me once more, following the employee's gesture.
Watching the radiant light, I desperately wished.
'Please, a magic attribute! Please!'
In this world, magic attributes were the most highly valued. And melee attributes were truly hopeless.
Ding!
*
----
Name: Han Cheon-seong
Gender: Male (20)
Title: None
Height · Weight: 178cm 67kg
Current Continental Influence: 5
*Stats.
[Strength 3]
[Agility 8]
[Stamina 9]
[Magic Power 2]
[Luck 5]
*Owned Attribute [1]
[Spearmanship Lv.1]
*Skills [0]
----
*
Seeing the status window, utterly unchanged from the first time, I felt my strength drain away as if I were collapsing.
"Um, excuse me…? I understand you're very distressed right now. But other people are waiting for their attribute tests."
As the female employee took my shoulder and helped me up, I dazedly rose, my vision blurry.
'How could this...'
Suddenly, it felt as if I couldn't see what was in front of me. It was as if someone had blindfolded me.
What I had just undergone was the 'Attribute Test,' which one could only receive upon becoming an adult.
It was no exaggeration to say that one's entire life was determined by this single attribute test.
But it was.
Ruined.
Completely ruined, at that.
Thump.
Thump.
As I dazedly walked towards the exit, I rubbed my eyelids.
Moisture welled up in my eyes, and a gloomy feeling filled my chest.
"Oh dear."
"What a shame."
"Spearmanship… Has anyone ever succeeded with Spearmanship?"
It seemed my pathetic display was visible to everyone in line, as the words I heard from those waiting for their tests felt like daggers piercing my chest.
Haa.
Letting out uncontrollable sighs, I left the attribute test center.
My wallet, which had been somewhat hefty, was now completely empty, making my heart feel even emptier.
"Damn it…"
Standing idly in the street, muttering curses, all my motivation vanished.
'How am I supposed to make a living with Spearmanship?'
I resented the harsh reality that seemed utterly unwilling to help me.
I was existing within the novel I had read.
It was the kind of event that happened at the beginning of a dime-a-dozen fantasy novel.
Incredibly, it was happening to me.
Whether I had committed some great sin, or done something unknowingly, I didn't know, but the deed was already done.
"…"
Even now, in a corner of my vision, I could see the Academy building soaring high into the sky.
Seeing the Academy's magnificent exterior, like that of an imperial palace, made the reality sink in anew.
That I was in this world, .
I remembered reading through it smoothly, with its charming heroines of various hair colors and the typical academy-genre plot where the protagonist hogged all the glory.
But based on that knowledge, what I needed to do.
Even if I thought about a way back, nothing came to mind.
From the start, I wasn't the protagonist, nor even a supporting character.
I was just 'me.'
In other novels, people would be transmigrated into good characters, or nobles, but I didn't even have that.
I was just an insignificant person who had somehow intruded into this world.
Like an impurity.
Still, I somehow adapted to this world. Since I didn't have a status window visible to me right away, I went into an inn and did odd jobs, like menial tasks, to save up the money needed for the attribute test.
Harboring a vague hope that I too could live well in this world, just like the protagonist or supporting characters who showed outstanding performance.
The attribute test, which one could receive upon becoming an adult.
If it turned out well… there was no reason I couldn't perform like the protagonist.
"Some bastard once said. You get betrayed because you expect things…"
Muttering a phrase I'd seen in the past, only a foolish laugh escaped me.
If you hit the jackpot on the attribute test, your life changes. How could one not have expectations for that?
"Mom, that mister. He's weird."
"Oh dear. It's best to avoid people like that and not go near them, okay?"
"Yeah. Okay!"
...At the strange whispers of the passing people, I found myself staring at a mother and child with a disgusted expression.
'Mister,' they called me.
There are things you say, and things you don't.
Even though my mood sank further, I still moved my feet.
"...Still, I should try, right?"
Even so, applying for Academy admission was still possible.
Because anyone who received an attribute test could apply for Academy admission.
Assuming this world had a medieval setting with social classes, the Academy could be seen as a ray of hope.
"Will it be possible if I just work hard?"
Muttering to myself, a habit formed from living alone, a small sigh escaped me.
If one could distinguish themselves at the Academy, noble families or even the Imperial Palace would take them in.
That was precisely the kind of life I wished for.
Of course, I had once hoped for a comfortable life, perhaps tagging along with the overwhelmingly talented protagonist or a supporting character, but my most average expectation was for a 'life with a guaranteed future.'
I just wanted to do my part and live without any issues.
"…"
Sighing, I opened the detailed window for my Spearmanship attribute.
Ding!
*
----
Attribute Name: Spearmanship
Grade: Common
Current Attribute Level: 1
Description: Grants a 'modifier' to proficiency when handling a spear.
----
*
The description was so simple it made me wonder if that was all there was to it.
At first glance, one might wonder how important gaining a 'modifier' could be, but there was an indescribable difference between having that modifier and not having it.
"…Common."
Although the attribute's grade was what I had expected, seeing it in reality made my heart feel even more complicated.
Furthermore, in this world, being granted a melee-type attribute—a physical combat attribute—was virtually a 'disaster.'
Almost all monsters possessed overwhelming resistance to physical attacks.
Even a mere goblin had thick skin, making it difficult to wound with ordinary weapons, and even if one managed to kill a monster, maintaining and repairing a weapon's blade incurred immense costs.
Moreover, according to the information I knew, there were no instructors at the Academy who taught spearmanship.
"If I hadn't known anything at all, I might have at least had hope."
Knowing too much about the world of the Grand Royal Academy was, ironically, a source of resentment now.
Then, I shook my head.
'Only two months left.'
Time was short until the entrance exam.
...I didn't even have time to blame my attribute.
I had to get my hands on an iron spear right away and somehow raise my attribute level.
At the very least, I needed to get into the Academy for any opportunities to arise.
Thud.
I immediately turned towards the blacksmith.
***
Two months passed.
"Haa… Haa…!"
My chest felt like it was about to burst.
Roughly exhaling the breath that had risen to my throat, I leaned against the spear I clutched and stared into the air.
Then, the status window appeared in my vision.
*
----
Name: Han Cheon-seong
Gender: Male (20)
Title: None
Height · Weight: 178cm 67kg
Current Continental Influence: 5
*Stats.
[Strength 5]
[Agility 10]
[Stamina 13]
[Magic Power 2]
[Luck 5]
*Owned Attribute [1]
[Spearmanship Lv.3]
*Skills [0]
----
*
"Damn it."
Even as I swore, a smile formed on my lips.
I did it.
I wanted to shout loudly, but just exhaling the breath that had reached my throat was already my limit.
After two months of effort, I had managed to raise my attribute level to 3.
Although several other stats had increased as well, what was most encouraging to me was the rise in my Spearmanship level.
"This should be enough to pass."
In the novel, the average attribute level of Academy entrance exam applicants was 2.
While it was said that those with truly cheat-like attributes could bypass admission even with attribute level 1, my Common-grade Spearmanship attribute certainly wouldn't have that.
That's why, over the past two months, I had put in truly grueling effort to raise my attribute level.
"Haa…"
I continued to exhale deeply, wiping away the sweat that streamed down my cheeks.
As I did so, I couldn't help but notice how my body had changed.
'I really worked myself to the bone, didn't I?'
Two months had passed. My body had indeed changed from forcing myself to train.
Considering that my stats, which had been stubbornly low, had increased by an average of 2, it was truly a remarkable improvement.
Thud.
As I pushed my weary body up and moved to take the exam, my gaze flickered towards a corner of the training ground.
—! —!
As it was one of the training grounds in the city center, I could see countless people engrossed in raising their attribute levels.
And among them, there was one woman who stood out.
With blue hair that reached her waist and sparkling eyes that seemed to hold stars, it was immediately clear that the woman was no ordinary person.
...Because when she swung her sword,
Whoosh!
Such a fierce wind erupted that I couldn't help but stare.
'What kind of attribute could that possibly be?'
A basic attribute like [Swordsmanship] wouldn't generate a wind like that.
This world was intensely based on talent and lineage, so such a thing couldn't possibly appear otherwise.
Attributes with fancy names, like the [One Sword of Azure Sky] attribute held by the protagonist of this Grand Royal Academy, were what truly existed.
The blue-haired woman I was watching now must surely… probably possess that kind of exceptional attribute.
At the very least, I guessed it was a Rare-grade attribute.
Flick.
"...?"
Then, when she suddenly looked at me, I figured it would be rude to just avert my gaze, so I lightly waved my hand.
Flick.
At that, she immediately turned her head away. I was left dumbfounded mid-wave.