Chapter 52: Treasure Vault (part 1)

Dinua had destroyed Syrah’s artifacts and eliminated her, yet her attitude remained so proud.  

“Hey, didn’t we have enough to win…?”  

“…But why would you just eliminated her like that?”  

“Oh, she would have betrayed you anyway! You can’t trust her!”  

“No. Syrah wouldn’t do that..”  

“Look…! You’ve already fallen for that viper-like girl!”  

Dinua, horrified by my words, began accusing Syrah. Claiming I had been influenced by her, she started shaking me, urging me to come to my senses quickly.  

‘No, why would I be obsessed with Syrah?’  

It didn’t make sense. She wasn’t some legendary nine-tailed fox capable of enchanting people. However, now that Syrah was gone, it felt wrong to keep her with us.  

Dinua, Noah, and even Stella—who had regained her summoning abilities—were all looking at me with cold eyes.  

“…Fine, as the old man said, I must have misunderstood.”  

“See, isn’t that the case?”  

“Yes. Let’s forget about Syrah and start looking for others.”  

Saying this, I grabbed the radar in my hand. 

A target wasn’t far away. I was already excited about what kind of treasure I might find in the Imperial Treasure Vault.  

***

There wasn’t a single cadet capable of stopping our group of four 3-star Summoners.  

It was rare for 3-star Summoners to team up in the first place.  

Most 3-star Summoners were heirs of prestigious families and future rulers of estates. It was nearly impossible for such individuals to form alliances. After all, there could only be one winner in the test, and eventually, someone had to bow to another.  

‘I don’t have such concerns.’  

Unlike others, I wasn’t bound by those restrictions. 

Dinua and Noah were either commoners with no family ties or people who had distanced themselves from their families. As for Stella, it didn’t matter if she changed her mind and aimed for the championship.  

‘If Stella betrays us, I can deal with her by force.’  

No matter how strong Stella was, she couldn’t stand against three 3-star Summoners alone. Her betrayal posed no real threat.  

Thus, the test ended in my victory without any major incidents.  

“Everyone, thank you.”  

“Ugh, it’s nothing…”  

“If you’re grateful, buy me a meal!”  

“…I didn’t really do it for you.”  

By the second day of the exam, we had eliminated all cadets from the test hall. As the last of the artifacts were destroyed, the testing ground began to collapse.  

When the world crumbled away, I found myself in a pure white void. A mage appeared before me, scratching his cheek awkwardly as he looked at me.  

“Ah… You’re done already.”  

“What?”  

“The exam was supposed to last three days. But if you’re done now, you’ll have to return two days early…”  

“What…?”  

“Well, there’s no helping it. Congratulations, anyway. Ian Clark, right? You’re number one.”  

The mage declared the result after completing the test in two days. As the white world dissolved, I opened my eyes.  

It was reality.  

“…What is this?”  

Not just me, but the other cadets began to awaken in the auditorium.  

“Uh? Why are we still here?”  

“I thought I’d been eliminated…?”  

Listening to the confused murmurs of the cadets, I pieced together what had happened.  

‘We all woke up at the same time, but our memories reflect different timeframes?’  

It seemed the minds of eliminated cadets had been trapped within the magical space.  

The implications of such magic, depending on its use, sent a chill down my spine. While I was still reeling, the principal tapped the microphone on the podium.  

“Ah, you’ve all worked hard.”  

All eyes turned to the stage as the principal began announcing the results.  

“Although it’s unusual, this test was completed in just two days.”  

A wave of murmurs spread through the auditorium.  

For cadets eliminated early on, hearing that two days had passed in what felt like mere moments was a shock.  

After the noise subsided, the principal made eye contact with me and smiled lightly.  

“First, let me announce the top scorer for this test. Ian Clark, please come forward.”  

As I stood, the eyes of every cadet fell on me. Many were those I had defeated during the test, their stares heavy with resentment.  

Ignoring the unease creeping up my spine, I walked to the podium. The principal congratulated me.  

“Congratulations, Ian.”  

“No, it was nothing.”  

“It’s not nothing… His Majesty the Emperor himself is interested in this test.”  

“…Excuse me?”  

Had I misheard her?  

The principal continued nonchalantly.  

“Ian, congratulations. His Majesty says he will personally reward you.”  

“Wait, what?”  

I hadn’t misheard. Checking my quest window, I saw the phrase “The Emperor’s Interest” glaring back at me.  

‘What kind of madness is this…?’  

This would be my first time meeting the Emperor.  

---

Goblin: Want to read more? You can become a My Summons Are Special ($5 per month) member at Patreon for only $5 per month. Member of this tier will get Five or More Advance Chapters (parts) immediately, and will stay 5 or more chapter parts ahead of the regular release for the month! You can become a KR WN Bundle ($10 per month) member and have access to all the Korean webnovel advance chapters on goblinslate. You can support me by sponsoring chapters at BuymeaCoffee or Patreon Shop.

Check out my other projects: Rehabilitating the Villainess, Pushover Extra Trains the Villainesses, I Picked Up an Amnesiac Witch, My Wife is the Devil, Transmigrated as the Butler of a Defeated Heroine