Chapter 787

Do Wonwoo recited his graduation speech with composure, unlike when he had received his Academic Achievement Award.

His speech encapsulated the three years spent at Eungwang High.

The graduates listening to Do Wonwoo’s words laughed and cried, reminiscing about the past three years.

Do Wonwoo didn’t attempt to change the solemn atmosphere; it felt like he had accepted that parting, no matter how it was packaged, was sad, and he took it with grace.

As he expressed his gratitude to the faculty and his juniors, it seemed that other third-year students had also prepared themselves to accept the farewell.

“The journey of three years has ended, and a new beginning awaits. I will cherish the time and relationships I’ve made at Eungwang High as I move forward.”

With Do Wonwoo’s heartfelt closing remarks, his speech ended.

Amid applause, Do Wonwoo returned to the graduates' side.

Do Wonwoo had an expression that showed he had let go of any lingering attachments.

From today onward, Do Wonwoo would take another step forward.

Do Wonwoo moved on, but I couldn’t say the same.

‘Will Do Wonwoo truly be happy?’

Do Wonwoo’s happiness was singular, and there was nothing I or he could do to obtain it, which left me feeling helpless.

Next was the graduation song, "Auld Lang Syne."

As customary, the music clubs and sub-clubs' presidents led the performance.

Under the direction of the orchestra club president, an unexpected combination of instruments—piano, taepyeongso, electric guitar, cello, French horn, maracas, and a gong—began playing.

‘At Flama High, the presidents would either have passed away or been incapable of performing, and they’d just play a recorded song and end it.’

I had that thought as I listened, perhaps because the performance was of such high quality.

Or maybe it was because the high pitch of the “Old Friends” section caused many to falter and make high-pitched errors.

Though it was a very sad song, I sang along with a smile.

We finished the song with the line "Let’s sing for the day we meet again," and sang the school song afterward as well.

"Once again, congratulations to all the graduates. Graduation is also a new beginning. I wish all the Eungwang High graduates a successful journey ahead."

As the emcee, Jegal Jaegel gave the final remarks to the graduates.

Upon hearing his words, the graduates, who had dried their tears, seemed on the verge of crying again.

Jegal Jaegel smiled, soothing the graduates as he concluded the ceremony.

"Finally, we will finish the graduation ceremony by tossing our caps."

As the third-years removed their caps, Jegal Jaegel wrote something large in the air.

The graduation congratulation message, written by invoking an incantation, floated up to the ceiling of the Merchant’s Hall, glowing warmly.

The straight letters, characteristic of Jegal Jaegel’s sincere nature, hovered high above the graduates.

The invocation was not just a celebratory performance; it was also a safety measure.

‘If we hadn’t prepared, the Merchant’s Hall might collapse, and there could be injuries.’

While it was called tossing caps, it was no different from throwing weapons with 500 players simultaneously.

Even in ordinary graduation cap toss events, injuries had occurred, and some places had banned it, so there was no question it could be dangerous for a player’s graduation ceremony.

Jegal Jaegel had taken precautions, ensuring safety with his invocation.

The graduates, trusting Jegal Jaegel’s power, prepared to toss their caps high into the air.

"Three, two, one...!"

As the countdown from Jegal Jaegel ended, the moment the graduates tossed their caps into the air, the person I had been watching made a strange move.

Woo Gi-hwan sent a signal somewhere with a deranged look in his eyes.

‘Woo Gi-hwan is trying to do something. The main forces of Eungwang High are all here. Is he really going to cause trouble here?’

It seemed that I wasn’t the only one paying attention to the seniors from class 3-0. Other keen players appeared to have noticed something was amiss.

I saw Hwang Jiho, disguised as Hwang Myeongho, and Lim Yeonhwa, raising their energy powers from the faculty section.

But strangely, nothing happened.

Waaah!

Amid the cheers of the graduates and guests, all sorts of caps floated up into the sky.

Some graduates threw their caps with energy-based powers, and the Merchant’s Hall was flooded with colors of light.

Ji Myeongsoo collected the "Floating Gift" from Gwanglim, and the caps that had been around him slowly floated back down to the ground, marking the end of the graduation ceremony.

Woo Gi-hwan was still glaring around, his eyes darting as if something unexpected had happened.

It seemed like something had almost gone wrong.

‘Did someone stop the seniors from 3-0?’

Then, I heard Do Sihoo and Jang Namwook talking.

The two of them were looking at the ceiling of the Merchant’s Hall, beyond Jegal Jaegel’s invocation.

"Namwook, what’s over there?"

"Yeah."

For a moment, Jang Namwook’s eyes flickered with starlight.

It seemed like he had seen something with his ‘maiden’s eyes.’

"It’s actually something outside. Looks like something big happened."

"Let’s go check!"

Curious about what had happened, Do Sihoo proposed heading outside.

Yoo Sanghoon was reluctant, but eventually followed.

At this point, the graduates were busy taking photos, so there was no one to meet immediately, leaving us with a little time.

So, we headed up to the roof of the Merchant’s Hall.

When the rooftop door opened, we saw the floating garden.

"Oh, Eungwang High even has a floating garden. I couldn’t see it from below."

"This looks like it was created with energy abilities..."

Seeing the floating garden in the air, the two military academy cadets casually made comments.

This floating garden wasn’t something Eungwang High had installed.

It was a decoy the third-year 0 class had created when they monopolized the cosmic energy, isolating other students.

"Oh, the suspicious vice president is here. Everything’s already been wrapped up well!"

From the floating garden, Moon Saeron jumped down with an exuberant look on her face.

She seemed to be in a very good mood.

Not long ago, she had been fuming over the Joo Suhyeok and Ahn Dain situation, but now she seemed strangely friendly.

"What happened?"

"Of course, something happened. Let me explain now!"

Moon Saeron’s explanation went as follows:

The third-year 0 class had been planning something for the moment the graduation ceremony ended, specifically when the caps were thrown.

Before the ceremony began, they had created a distraction outside the Merchant’s Hall as a decoy.

They split into two groups: one group caused a ruckus outside, and the other summoned the floating garden, their secret weapon.

‘They took advantage of the strong barrier around the Merchant’s Hall to prevent anyone from sensing what was going on outside. They caught us off guard.’

Even though Hwang Jiho should’ve noticed, I wondered why he hadn’t intervened, but I would soon find out the reason.

Moon Saeron lowered her voice and gestured toward something.

"And the first ones to realize the 3rd-year 0 class's plot were these two!"

Up in the floating garden, there were Joo Suhyeok and Ahn Dain, completely lost in their own world.

Joo Suhyeok asked something of Ahn Dain with a serious expression, and Ahn Dain nodded, replying patiently.

It was a heartwarming sight just to watch them.

"Suhyeok liked that person, right? They really suit each other."

"They’re still not dating? It’s surprising."

Jang Namwook and Do Sihoo spoke as they watched the two.

Did these two know about the unofficial couple of Eungwang High?

Jang Namwook had gotten to know Joo Suhyeok through a basketball match, and Do Sihoo had been friends with Ahn Dain for a long time, so it made sense.

‘If those two intervened, it’s no wonder the third-year 0 class’s plan was thwarted. But was Joo Suhyeok okay?’

Recently, Joo Suhyeok had been getting strange whenever Ahn Dain was around.

Moon Saeron, noticing my thoughts, proudly explained.

The third-year 0 class had been planning to release a teaser video revealing their re-enrollment and the upcoming showdown with their strong homeroom teacher as soon as the ceremony ended.

The floating garden was a decoy designed to draw attention, and equipment was ready for that purpose.

‘It’s amazing they had equipment that could project a video beyond the barrier... it’s a harmless power, so the barrier couldn’t filter it out. But creating something like that couldn’t have been easy.’

Joo Suhyeok and Ahn Dain had been on external patrol at the time.

It wasn’t a coincidence.

The student council and the student leadership had deliberately timed their patrol, and Moon Saeron had been waiting to back them up.

Then, the two of them found the floating garden on the rooftop of the Merchant’s Hall.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

"The floating garden had all kinds of traps and energy powers to prevent intrusions," Moon Saeron said.

She had devoted herself to covering the floating garden, one of the third-year 0 class's hidden plans, and now Joo Suhyeok and Ahn Dain were in the process of tackling it.

The seniors were capable of dealing with a strong homeroom teacher, and even setting traps that could capture the True Bloods.

While the floating garden wasn’t as large as the one set up on Cheon Ik Mountain, it was said to have a considerable level of difficulty in its strategies.

"They were evenly matched, but it wasn’t during the floating garden's attack."

Ahn Dain showed overwhelming power.

They were both exceptional geniuses, but to Moon Saeron, Ahn Dain’s performance was so extraordinary that it made Joo Suhyeok’s brilliance seem faint in comparison.

There was no doubt about it.

Joo Suhyeok had been struggling mentally after the Bang Yunseop incident, and his mental state was affected by the misunderstandings Hwang Jiho had planted.

On the other hand, Ahn Dain...

‘She found a goal to become stronger, and she gained a family and a mentor.’

Ahn Dain had decided to repay her mentor, Kim Shinrok, and had met her true family, the Hojok couple.

Furthermore, the Hojok couple had been teaching her and helping her unlock her potential.

It was no surprise that the gap was widening.

"Seeing Dain's remarkable performance made Suhyeok come to his senses!" Moon Saeron said proudly.

Ahn Dain was someone Joo Suhyeok liked, but also a rival.

She always scored perfect marks in every subject and was often the top student, with similar physical prowess.

They were peers, and if things continued as they were, Joo Suhyeok would be left behind.

At that moment, Joo Suhyeok shook off his lingering worries and regained his clarity.

When the floating garden’s conquest ended, Joo Suhyeok immediately asked Ahn Dain something.

"Dain, after the graduation ceremony, will you..."

The moment Moon Saeron heard the word "will," she clamped her mouth shut, eager for the next part.

She had expected the word "date" to come next.

But the words that followed disappointed her.

"Will you spar with me?"

Ahn Dain readily accepted the invitation for a sparring match.

Moon Saeron was so stunned that she almost choked, but she said she was content for now.

‘Without me doing anything, the title hero overcame the crisis.’

As they talked, the misunderstandings about me would soon be cleared up.

Joo Suhyeok had not been able to understand anything I said until now, but I was confident he would now.

The cause of Joo Suhyeok's crisis was Ahn Dain, and the key to overcoming it was also Ahn Dain.

Just thinking about it made my heart swell with pride.

"I’ll handle the aftermath. The two of them deserve a break after handling the floating garden."

The suggestion came from Kim Yoo-ri, who appeared midway through the conversation.

I wholeheartedly agreed.

The student council members who had arrived with Kim Yoo-ri also agreed, leaving the two of them to enjoy their own world for now.

While we were leaving with a warm feeling, my device buzzed with a message that caused my heart to sink.

[Ju Suhyeom] I’ve arrived.

The message, from a person who seemed like a clueless relative of Joo Suhyeok, sent a chill through me.