I Became the Academy’s Hidden Skill Master – Chapter 91

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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Mod7
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–Thump! BAM! Thump! BAM!

Solar plexus. Flank. Solar plexus. Flank. Solar plexus. Flank.

The relentless barrage continued.

“Stop insulting me!”

Arak, desperate to break free, unleashed a surge of power, but it was futile.

“I don’t have to fight you.”

–BAM!

Lee Seok-hyun channeled all his strength into Flash of Insight, driving his fist into Arak’s heart before he could fully unleash his power.

In a real battle, such a blow, powerful enough to be life-threatening, wouldn’t have stopped Arak. He would have continued fighting, regardless of the injury. However…

“No! This isn’t…!”

…this wasn’t a real battle.

The automated system, designed to prevent fatalities, immediately eliminated Arak. He hadn’t even had a chance to unleash his full power.

His followers, who’d blindly charged into battle, trusting their leader implicitly, were now stranded, like ducks without a pond.

‘They must think I completely overpowered him.’

By exploiting Arak’s momentary lapse in concentration, Lee Seok-hyun had created the illusion of a swift and decisive victory. He’d eliminated Arak before he could retaliate, solidifying his image as an overwhelming force.

This carefully orchestrated display would serve as a powerful deterrent, discouraging further resistance.

In reality, if Arak had fought seriously, Lee Seok-hyun would have likely been defeated. Despite his recent growth, he wasn’t strong enough to defeat an academy representative in a fair fight.

He’d pushed himself to his limits in the early game, but the inherent advantages of those born into power would eventually catch up.

‘No matter how quickly I grow in the early game, they’ll eventually surpass me.’

He’d been born at a disadvantage; he had to rely on strategy and cunning to compensate for his weaker starting point.

“You might as well surrender now. You can’t win.”

“…I’d rather surrender than be humiliated by you any further.”

–Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh.

As soon as he spoke, Arak’s entourage activated their escape scrolls, vanishing from the arena.

This was precisely why Lee Seok-hyun had chosen to humiliate Arak rather than simply eliminating him quickly. He could have targeted his head, heart, or brain for a swift kill, but…

He’d deliberately toyed with him, creating an image of overwhelming dominance, hoping to discourage further resistance.

The greatest victory was a victory won without a fight.

‘Minimal casualties on our side, complete annihilation of their command structure. Not a bad outcome.’

This strategy had worked because this was a first-year competition. If the students were older, more experienced, and had a more decentralized command structure, it wouldn’t have been so effective.

He was doing the best he could with the current situation.

“Let’s go back.”

“Huh? Go back? Now?”

Woo Do-hyun was confused. They hadn’t even captured the Tanteroi flag. Why retreat after such a decisive victory?

The others shared his confusion, their faces etched with questions.

Lee Seok-hyun explained.

“Arak was eliminated, but there was no announcement about the Tanteroi representative being defeated. That means he transferred his position to someone else before he was eliminated.”

If Arak had been eliminated as the representative, a system message would have appeared.

The lack of such a message meant that both the Tanteroi representative and their flag were still in play.

“We could press our advantage and continue the attack, but controlling multiple territories early in the game is a disadvantage.”

A smaller force pushing deeper into enemy territory risked being cut off from their base camp, increasing their vulnerability.

And even if they succeeded in capturing the territory, managing a large area with limited resources was incredibly difficult in the early game.

“If we capture two territories, we’ll have to divide our forces even further, making it harder to maintain a strong mobile unit.”

With limited manpower and the need for sustained combat, careful resource allocation was essential.

“It’s better to let Tanteroi realize they’ve been attacked and then watch as the other academies fight over their territory, depleting their resources.”

They would take the most valuable part—the metaphorical strawberry on top of the cake—and leave the rest for the others to squabble over.

Like taking a bite of the delicious red tip of a watermelon popsicle and discarding the rest.

“…I see.”

His teammates, finally understanding his reasoning, nodded and turned back towards their own territory.

Even so, they couldn’t help but glance back at the Tanteroi camp, a hint of regret in their eyes. Lee Seok-hyun understood their feelings, but he couldn’t afford to indulge them.

‘Greed is a dangerous thing, especially in situations like this.’

Having achieved their initial objective, the best course of action was to reassess the situation and plan their next move.

‘And there’s another reason, one I can’t tell them about.’

While this was his first time participating in the inter-academy exchange competition inside the game, he had plenty of experience with the event from his countless hours playing Final Destiny.

He could anticipate the general flow of events, the predictable patterns of attack and defense. However, that didn’t mean he could foresee everything. There was always the possibility of unexpected events, of game-breaking glitches, of unforeseen circumstances.

Therefore, he too turned away from the Tanteroi camp, suppressing his own desire to press their advantage.

“Let’s head back and rest. We’ll hunt something for dinner.”

“Meat? Should we have meat? I’ll cook, Seok-hyun.”

“Seok-hyun, piggyback ride.”

Amidst the cheerful chatter and banter, their first invasion concluded, a resounding success.

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Ruamos Academy meeting room.

As soon as they arrived in the forest territory, they’d created a makeshift meeting room.

“Mirinae Academy has decimated Tanteroi’s command structure.”

“Is that true?”

“Unbelievable! How is that possible? Our reconnaissance magic didn’t detect any movement…”

They were actively discussing the unexpected news of Tanteroi’s devastating loss.

“That means Mirinae Academy is at its weakest right now. Shouldn’t we attack them?”

“Absolutely not! If we move now, Velutos will realize we’re vulnerable.”

“But how did Saintess Raymay even get this information? All magical communication is blocked…”

“You don’t need to know that.”

“Yes, Saintess.”

Raymay shut down the unnecessary questions and steered the conversation back to their strategy.

“We don’t know the specifics of their plan, but… it seems they’ve retreated.”

“Should we just… observe them for now?”

“I propose an alliance.”

“An alliance?”

Everyone looked at Raymay, puzzled.

An alliance at this stage of the competition? What was she thinking?

Raymay, sensing their confusion, clarified.

“Yes. Mirinae Academy must have suffered casualties as well. Therefore, forming an alliance with Velutos would be the most strategic move.”

“Why Velutos? Wouldn’t it make more sense to ally with Tanteroi, or at least contain Mirinae’s aggression?”

“That’s too risky. If we do that, Velutos could easily attack our base camp. They excel at long-range magic.”

‘Idiots.’

Raymay couldn’t believe they were even considering such a foolish strategy.

‘Don’t they understand that the strongest forces should stick together?’

Tanteroi and Mirinae had already revealed their hands; allying with either of them would be suicidal.

With Velutos, the most strategically advantageous academy, still holding a strong position, their priority should be avoiding a direct confrontation with them.

Why weaken themselves by siding with the underdogs?

This wasn’t a humanitarian mission; it was a competition.

Of course, they probably wanted to ally with Tanteroi and Mirinae because they seemed easier to control, but…

If they were truly easy to manipulate, they would have accepted an alliance offer before the competition even began. They wouldn’t have attacked in the first place.

“Contact Velutos. Propose an alliance.”

They would keep the strongest enemy close and observe the underdogs’ petty squabbles from a safe distance.

Raymay, phrasing her instructions carefully, relayed the message to her superiors.

‘That foolish commoner… Choosing the plains… He talked about a wager and some grand plan, and this is it? A reckless early-game attack?’

While the news of Mirinae’s initial success had surprised her, it wasn’t a significant threat. It seemed like a one-time tactic, a gamble that had paid off due to Tanteroi’s unpreparedness.

If he’d targeted Ruamos, his strategy would have failed.

‘Our seniors might have finished third last year, but this time will be different.’

With me leading the charge, Ruamos Academy will claim victory.

Raymay’s gaze drifted towards the mountains, where Velutos held their position. She imagined herself standing there, bathed in the cheers of the crowd, her voice carrying the beautiful hymn of Ruamos, and smiled.

It wouldn’t be long now.

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Mirinae Academy meeting room.

There was no need for a formal meeting room. Lee Seok-hyun simply gathered his team, declared a random spot their “meeting room,” and had them sit on the ground.

Meiri, after a moment of staring at the dirt, decided to sit on Lee Seok-hyun’s lap instead.

“…Ruamos is likely planning something along the lines of what I just mentioned.”

“Forming an alliance with Velutos?”

“Exactly. Two powerful forces joining together to pressure us, leaving us with no chance of escape once we’re isolated. They probably believe Velutos has a guaranteed path to victory.”

Mijuran looked uncomfortable.

‘Is she having trouble sitting cross-legged?’

She kept glancing at Lee Seok-hyun, her brow furrowed, clearly bothered by something. He decided to address her concerns later and continued.

“Therefore, we need to plant spies in both the Velutos and Ruamos camps.”

“Spies? How?”

“We’ll start with Velutos. They’re easy to infiltrate. They’re all nobles, obsessed with hierarchy and social status.”

Velutos Academy, with its exclusively noble student body, had a rigid social structure. Their power dynamics were clearly defined, rank and status dictating everything.

Elua’s influence stemmed entirely from her position as the headmaster’s daughter. That was her power, her authority.

“So, we send someone with even more power and influence to infiltrate their ranks. Someone who will claim to prefer the noble way of life, to reject our approach.”

And as if tailor-made for this role, there was one student within their ranks who possessed unparalleled power and influence.

“Commoner, you’re not talking about me, are you?”

“That’s right.”

Bellos Belon.

The fifth prince of the Skerian Empire.

Velutos, obsessed with power, had showered him with invitations and offers even before he’d enrolled at Mirinae Academy. If he were to defect to Velutos…

“Do you think they would question his motives? Not a chance. He just needs to sprinkle in some casual noble rhetoric, express his distaste for commoners, maybe even throw in a few insults towards that commoner hero, what’s his name… Litan? Playing up their shared noble background will solidify his position.”

Who would question a prince?

And even if they did suspect him, there was no way they would eliminate him outright.

“I have a plan. Just follow my instructions, Bellos.”

“Commoner, whenever you’re planning something, you have this… look on your face…”

Ignoring Bellos’s uneasy expression, Lee Seok-hyun explained his plan in detail.

‘With this much on the line, there’s no room for failure.’

His goal was a landslide victory.

Defeat wasn’t an option.

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