====
[System: Point feature has been activated.]
====
The system message appeared, like when I had mastered extreme magic, at the same time as obtaining a Curse Name.
With each advancement in my magical prowess, various features were gradually added to the forum.
Upon a quick inspection, it seemed that points were accumulated based on the user’s posts, comments, conceptual posts, and the number of received recommendations.
I decided to think about what I could do with them later and focused on putting out the fire first.
“Oh, no! Our only hiding place…!”
“Clark! Fetch water quickly!”
“Water? Weren’t you a high-level wizard?”
“How can a member of the Haeju School use magic to put out fire…! Hurry up and get some water!”
Although there were three magicians present, it was Prina and her beverage and my makeshift water magic that extinguished the fire.
It wasn’t until the flames had almost consumed the carpet and walls, leaving them charred, that the fire finally died out.
Coughing up smoke, the two of them looked at me strangely, then started whispering among themselves.
‘Do we need to report this? That guy’s insane…!’
‘What does it mean?’
‘What will we do if we become famous as curse magician later?’
‘No way… … Are you saying that the seeds of a new disaster have been born here and now?
‘Alright, alright, let’s calm down. I heard that Magic Tower Detention Center also serves good food. or not…’
The room was so cramped that every sound echoed.
Who are we treating as a potential villainous curse magician who will become a public enemy of the continent in the future?
Ironically, I felt even more aggrieved because I never expected the ‘Administrator’ to carry such weight.
I always prided myself on being a clean-light user.
I diligently managed the forum wrote announcements with respect, and hardly caused any trouble for others.
Occasionally, I wore a different mask to relieve stress, but that was a form of self-discipline, a sort of Dark Knight activity.
There were times when evil had to be suppressed with evil.
But were the magicians of the Magic Tower really treating such a presence named ‘Administrator’ with such monstrous disdain?
It was clear that the forum users who knew my innocent and upright nature would never agree to such treatment.
====
[Feeling bored, want to engage in trash talk battle?]
Ever heard someone say to me, ‘You’re sometimes more wicked than I am’?
— You win.
— Surrender.
— This trash isn’t even worth recycling, lol.
— I can’t imagine enduring worse treatment than that.
— What are you doing besides not committing s*icide? lol
====
====
[Thinking about it, wouldn’t it be better for the forum to regain peace without the Administrator?]
In all my time digging, I’ve never seen anything as evil as this.
Sometimes Gonics come in, but there are rarely villains. Is it because of the mood?
— Yeah, there were a lot back in the day~
— Aren’t all those who attempted now at the top?
— They’ve all changed into something worse~
— SuperGeniusBlondeGirl: (2/10)
ㄴ Don’t vote in agreement lol
ㄴ Raid collection? Lol
ㄴ Keep going for another year then.
====
====
[Don’t mess with the Administrator]
The Administrator is a necessary evil.
Without him, the forum would collapse, and there are countless villains suppressed because of him.
What if the Administrator doesn’t show up for more than 4 hours for any reason?
That’s when the forum’s doomsday arrives.
— Seriously, there’s no one better at managing than him.
— Even when everything breaks down, he stays strong.
— Without the Tower Master, there would be no Magic Tower.
— Those who are deemed villains usually have an underlying fear rooted in their subconscious, so they struggle.
ㄴ True, I’ve been directly warned by the Administrator before, and since then, I’ve had insomnia. It was really scary.
====
Or something like that. Anyway.
“Well, sorry about that. Congratulations on joining the Haeju School again.”
As I was checking the Witch Note, the two who had just finished their meeting approached me.
Fortunately, it seemed like they hadn’t decided to sell the only new recruit who had entered this year to the Security Department. I
nstead, they made an unexpected proposal.
“Clark, do you happen to have any plans to participate in the Magic Festival? I mean, with Prina.”
The Magic Festival.
It was a battleground for magicians held every five years at the Magic Tower.
nly those belonging to the ‘Lower Levels’ could participate, forming teams of two.
It was a place where each school introduced new magic developed or notable newcomers.
Among them, there were quite a few who hid their identities to test their abilities.
“We are currently making various attempts to change the perception of the Haeju School at the Magic Tower. There’s no better way than achieving high scores in the Magic Festival.”
“I haven’t learned anything yet?”
“Even if you just master basic Haeju magic, your talent should be enough. It’s not even about aiming for victory.”
Surprisingly, opportunities for magicians to fight each other were rare at the Magic Tower.
So, while it might be an exciting event for someone, for me, who was solely focused on quick advancement, Rupert’s suggestion didn’t sit well.
Even if I were to win at the Magic Festival with the Curse Name ‘Administrator’, it wouldn’t make my Mystery any stronger.
As I pondered, Prina spoke up.
“I advise you, it’s better to just go along with it.”
With one cutting remark from Prina, who revealed her face for the first time as her robe burned while extinguishing the fire, her bare face was completely different from what I expected.
Trimmed hair and avoiding eye contact with her black pupils.
But despite her lack of confidence and her deflated posture, she had a rather cute demeanor.
Covering the freckles on her nose with her hand, she explained to me why I should participate in the Magic Festival.
“You, you won’t be able to move up if you don’t participate in this.”
“Why is that?”
“From the 3rd to the 9th floor, it’s all about commission missions. And even more so if you’re in a party, with a minimum of 4 people. Cooperation is the most important thing in the Great Labyrinth.”
This was the reason why trainees worked hard to enter large schools.
If you go to a place like Glesia, you can find all kinds of support and colleagues within the school to move up with you.
On the other hand, what about unpopular schools of thought?
What if you’re a wizard who doesn’t even know how to extinguish an ember from a fireplace?
“Do you think the Haeju School can find a party? Want to check the mission board?”
I didn’t need to bring out the Witch Note to know.
The only time one searches for the Haeju School within the forum is when they want to curse someone.
“As long as you win at the Magic Festival, you get a free pass to the 9th floor. Well, it’s like proving your ability to enter the labyrinth alone.”
“No matter how you put it…”
“Or do you have a lot of friends?”
“…”
At Prina’s piercing words, I simply decided to participate in the Magic Festival.
Since I had sent all my classmates five years ago, I didn’t know anyone on the starting floors except for Mariel.
*
“Where have you been? I’ve been looking for you for ages!”
As I met Shien waiting on the stairs to the first floor, I explained everything.
She was surprised to hear that I was participating in the Magic Festival.
“You’re going there? You’ve just acquired your Mystery.”
“So, my senior said that he would teach me the magic of the Haeju School separately. But I shouldn’t expect more than half a serving anyway.”
The area classified as the lower floors of the Magic Tower extends up to the 40th floor, and Prina was currently staying on the 27th floor.
As she was a mage of a completely different hierarchy compared to me, she seemed somewhat annoyed, but there was no reason to refuse when the seniors willingly teach magic.
Upon hearing me, Shien pondered something deeply, lowering her head.
“I see. Finally….”
“What?”
“Nothing. But do you have confidence to win? To skip the initial floors, you need to be within at least the top four.”
It would not be easy for just me and Prina, who are on the 2nd and 27th floors, to deal with the mages who are about to step onto the middle floors.
However, I had one thing in mind.
Without needing to ask, Prina’s curse name would be her forum nickname.
So, the more attention she received within the forum, the more adept she would become at handling her Mystery.
The newly introduced point system.
Thinking of ways to utilize it, I returned to the dormitory and wrote a post on my Witch Note.
====
Administrator
[Hosting a small event for year’s Magic Festival]
You can predict the outcome of each match in the voting section at the top of the forum.
You can participate in betting using the points you have, and we plan to use the points in the future.
If you participate, please write down your nickname and you can receive some additional dividends.
Thank you
====
These points can be considered a kind of power meter.
Users who confirmed that their previously worthless posts were converted into scores next to their IDs were in an uproar.
====
(1,204,325P)
[I’ve always believed in you!!!]
All the efforts I’ve made so far, the days I struggled not to be banned, weren’t in vain.
I’ve always believed that I, who sincerely love the forum, would never be denied!!
— Wow hahaha 1.2 million hahaha
— Instead, it feels like being unfairly treated in reality?
— Get outside a bit, will you?
— Is this true? I’m barely at 130,000
— How much do you have to do to accumulate that?
====
====
[So… if you want to earn more points, you have to show your face and participate in the Magic Festival, right?]
It’s not easy haha
— Just hide your identity and participate, what’s the big deal?
— Right, anyway, those from closed schools come out all covered in perception-disrupting magic
— But wouldn’t this put those in the intermediate levels or higher at an advantage? Even if you want to go out, you can’t
ㄴ If you don’t like it, graduate~
====
====
[A date voucher with the Administrator]
Would you buy it for 100,000,000 points?
— Bought it immediately
— Didn’t hesitate for even a second, put all my assets into it
— Come to think of it, I could sell a veto right with points later on
ㄴ Are you a genius?
ㄴ SuperGeniusBlondeGirl: I’m putting it out right now.
====
====
[Teachers… My hands are shaking right now]
Administrator (9,321,323,654P) <- Is this displayed incorrectly?
Scary…
— WTF what is that
— Is it fake? People can’t be like that
— What’s surprising is that it’s not the only account.
— From now on, I should just always listen to the Administrator; it’s not at a level I can comprehend anymore
====
====
(6,632P)
[But isn’t this a good thing?]
Even though it’s points, it’s not something you can use right away, and I’m worried it might be abused for no reason.
What if Administrator receives points to remove blocks on users?
— Hmm… since it’s a word from a 6,000 tier, it’s not worth listening to
— Logically, would the Administrator with 9 billion really release bans after receiving points?
— The forum’s operating principles seem very sturdy, so there’s no need to worry
ㄴ I’m more worried that he won’t even unblock even after receiving them, damn haha
ㄴ Seriously, what a malicious person lol
====
While some expressed concerns, most welcomed the addition of a new element to the forum.
As I didn’t want the forum to be overrun with gambling, I planned to conduct betting only during the Magic Festival.
Unless you were a hardcore fan, there wasn’t much merit in revealing your ID and participating in the matches.
But it was different for Prina, who had a Curse Name.
“Let’s see… huh?”
Late into the night, as I checked the posts on the forum, one post caught my eye.
Judging by the points, they were a complete newbie.
====
(212P)
[But how do they manage the voting and tallying of participants?]
There are not just a couple of teams participating in the Magic Festival, and there are over a hundred branches under the Seven Schools.
You’d have to keep up and manually fill out the brackets.
Nobody’s going to do all that without the cooperation of the Tower administration, right?
====
To the one asking the obvious, I kindly replied in the comments.
====
— Administrator: Sub-Managers
====
Immediately after, a scream echoed from the direction of the Marylin Hall’s Female Dormitory towards the supervisor office.
