Chapter 786

"Now, we will begin the graduation ceremony. First, we will have the national anthem."

The graduation ceremony was being hosted by the Dean of Faculty and the school’s promotional ambassador, Jegal Jaegel.

As soon as Jegal Jaegel spoke, the students of class 2-0, who were seated on the opposite side from me, began taking pictures.

It seemed like those seniors weren’t here to celebrate the graduation but to take pictures of Jegal Jaegel.

It made sense that they wanted to take photos, as all the faculty were dressed more neatly than usual for the ceremony.

I, too, planned to take many photos as part of the newspaper club.

"Next, we will present the diplomas to the graduates."

Since Eungwang High has a large student body, the class president from each class receives the diploma on behalf of the students.

At Jegal Jaegel's words, Woo Gi-hwan, the class president of class 0, and the class presidents from classes 1-10 walked up to the stage in turn.

Seeing them on stage, I could get a good look at the third-year students' outfits.

All the third-year students were wearing their school uniforms with graduation gowns, but their hats had different designs.

Most of them wore square caps, but some students wore things like Ayaam, Samo, or even baseball caps with tassels that seemed to be coordinated for the class.

Seeing them all together, it hit me once again how free-spirited the culture at Eungwang High was.

"I was worried they wouldn't accept the diplomas since they said they weren't going to graduate. But the class president of 3-0 is wearing the square cap well, and he’s behaving respectfully during the ceremony. Thank goodness."

"...He’s not that kind of person."

As Woo Gi-hwan calmly received his diploma from Principal Hwang Bo-yoon, who half-covered her face with her hair and scarf, Jang Namwook and Yoo Sanghoon whispered to each other.

Personally, I agreed with Yoo Sanghoon’s comment.

I couldn’t let my guard down around the seniors from class 3-0 until the very last day.

I observed Woo Gi-hwan closely until the diploma award ceremony ended.

‘He seems like he’s up to something.’

Although Woo Gi-hwan was wearing a typical expression with a common face, I knew that his mind was probably not as simple as it seemed, so I had to stay cautious.

Fortunately, nothing unusual happened when the award ceremony for the certificates began.

"Next, we will proceed with the award ceremony. We will be presenting awards in four categories: Diligence, Model Student, Academic Achievement, and Special Contributions."

The Diligence award was determined based on attendance.

This is what people commonly refer to as the perfect attendance award.

Since Eungwang High allows students to graduate without worrying much about attendance, it’s rare for anyone to get the perfect attendance award for all three years.

In our class, where attendance wasn’t as good, I figured Han-i was the only one who might win this award.

In other classes, most students had good attendance, although some missed classes due to other reasons, like participating in otherworldly expeditions or studying abroad.

"We will now present the Diligence Award. Perfect attendance for all three years..."

Jegal Jaegel mentioned only three names.

It was hard to believe that only three students had perfect attendance for three years.

No, should I say, it's surprising that there were even three?

None of the three students were people I knew.

‘My playable character tends to get involved in events, Seong Siwan often goes on otherworldly expeditions, and the newspaper club seniors go for interviews when they overlap with classes. As for the seniors from 3-0... Well, they are who they are.’

The three students proudly walked up to the stage, looking satisfied.

Perfect attendance for all three years at Eungwang High was definitely something to brag about.

Next, the Model Student award ceremony proceeded.

The Model Student category had five awards: Contribution Award, Model Student Award, Volunteer Award, Acts of Kindness Award, and Filial Piety Award.

‘Only students with no disciplinary issues over the past three years can receive the Model Student award. There are probably a lot of seniors who would get filtered out in this category.’

For example, Oh Hyeji.

Oh Hyeji was an excellent student and the head of the student leadership, but due to the influence of her family, she got into trouble a lot in her first year.

As expected, Oh Hyeji’s name was not on the Model Student award list.

‘But there are a lot of familiar names this time.’

The Contribution Award was given to students who had raised the school's honor or contributed to its development through activities inside and outside of school.

I knew two of the students who received the Contribution Award.

One was Do Wonwoo, and the other was Seong Siwan.

Do Wonwoo had always been first in his class, so he was certain to receive the Academic Achievement Award, but considering his performance during his time at school, especially around Christmas, receiving the Contribution Award was just as deserved.

Seong Siwan was the top player in the school’s otherworldly expeditions and frequently appeared on the list of top contributors.

I figured Seong Siwan would likely get the Academic Achievement Award in the next category too.

"Wow, Hyung Do Wonwoo got an award!"

"……."

Do Sihoo, who had joined us without even signaling, clapped leisurely as he spoke.

Yoo Sanghoon frowned when he saw Do Wonwoo receive the award with a perfectly composed expression.

When he saw the next award ceremony, Do Sihoo made another tactless comment.

"Sanghee Unni is getting an award. Hahaha!"

"Do Sihoo, was that a joke?"

"Probably. Just ignore him, Sanghoon."

Yoo Sanghoon’s mood got worse, and Do Sihoo sulked, while I and Jang Namwook turned our attention to congratulating Yoo Sanghee.

Yoo Sanghee received the Volunteer Award for her frequent participation in volunteer work, using her healing abilities.

The Acts of Kindness Award was also given to my playable character.

‘Thanks to Ji Myeongsoo, the student council has been running smoothly. Do Wonwoo had a lot of trouble focusing on schoolwork because of his family issues.’

Ji Myeongsoo was well-liked by everyone, and his applause was louder than usual.

Finally, after the Filial Piety Award ceremony, the Academic Achievement Awards were presented.

The criteria for Academic Achievement Awards vary slightly by school, but at Eungwang High, it’s based on the top 1% of cumulative grades over three years.

Since there are slightly more than 500 students per year, only five students could receive this award.

‘Anyway, Do Wonwoo and Gi Hwan will definitely get first and second place, so there are only three spots left. The selection for the Academic Achievement Awards must have been quite competitive.’

The top two were fixed, but the rankings beneath them were said to have been fiercely contested.

The names were read off in order of their grades.

And among the five students, Yoo Sanghee’s name was called!

I hadn’t been particularly excited about Do Wonwoo receiving his award, but when Yoo Sanghee’s name was announced, I couldn’t help but smile.

When the five Academic Achievement Award recipients went up to the stage, the Merchant's Hall fell silent for a moment.

It seemed like everyone was in awe of the presence of the top students of Eungwang High.

‘It seems like Do Wonwoo is nervous.’

He was calm when receiving the Contribution Award, but now, for some reason, he seemed nervous about the top position he had always held.

After observing briefly, it seemed that it wasn’t because of the award.

It looked like he was feeling self-conscious about standing next to Yoo Sanghee.

Even though it was in front of people, it had been a while since the two of them had stood this close together.

Thanks to Jegal Jaegel’s smooth handling of the ceremony, there were no major issues, but I saw Do Wonwoo sigh quietly as he came down from the stage.

"Sigh."

Yoo Sanghoon sighed as well, but his sigh was drowned out by the anticipation for the next award.

The ceremony continued with awards for athletic ability, the Player Achievement Award for abilities in combat, the Entertainment Award for excellence in media, and the Functional Achievement Award for fields like science and technology.

As expected, Seong Siwan won the Player Achievement Award, and although I had expected it, I wasn’t thrilled about the person who won the Entertainment Award.

"The Entertainment Award goes to 3rd-year 0 class's Jeong Hae-su. This student has shown exceptional talent in the entertainment field…"

The 3rd-year vice-president, Jeong Hae-su, a haegeum player, won the Entertainment Award.

It made sense, as he was a skillful musician, even offering his abilities to the True Blood leader. But considering who he was, it still didn’t sit right with me.

I still remembered how he had loudly proclaimed he would re-enroll to be in the same class as Dokgo Miro.

Finally, the Special Achievement Award ceremony took place.

‘The Special Achievement Award is given by people outside the school. Probably the head of the Player Association and the president of the university with player-related programs.’

Most of the awards in this category were given based on career achievements.

Oh Hyeji received the award from the president of the university she was planning to attend, and as a result, she avoided the military draft.

After the awards ceremony ended, the chairman of the board delivered his congratulatory speech.

‘Normally, the school principal would give a speech, right? It seems Principal Hwang Bo-yoon didn’t want to deal with people.’

While the principal had given out the diplomas and certificates with due respect to the graduates, it seemed there was no will to deliver a speech.

Instead, since the chairman was handling the event, it wasn’t a big issue.

After Jegal Jaegel introduced the next speaker, Hwang Jiho, in the form of Hwang Myeongho, stepped onto the stage.

"Good afternoon, graduates of Eungwang High School. I sincerely congratulate you on your graduation."

Hwang Jiho’s deep voice spread through the microphone, and he smiled widely, likely for the public’s benefit, as he slowly looked over the audience.

He appeared at ease as he glanced at the third-year students, their families, and other distinguished guests.

It felt like he might have even made eye contact with me.

Although he looked like an old man, his eyes seemed sharp.

Hwang Jiho’s speech was formal, yet refreshing, and he delivered it smoothly before stepping down from the stage.

Everyone clapped, but one person didn’t.

"...Am I seeing things?"

Jang Namwook looked utterly confused as he watched Hwang Myeongho’s entrance and exit.

He fiddled with his glasses, blinking several times before muttering to himself.

‘Could it be that even in Hwang Myeongho’s form, he still looks like Hwang Jiho?’

Jang Namwook had the "maiden’s eyes."

When he first saw Hwang Jiho in his twenties through those eyes, he had called him Hwang Jiho without caring about his appearance.

Would the 60-year-old version look no different through those eyes?

When the old man left, he glanced briefly at Jang Namwook, and maybe he realized that he had been pierced through by those eyes.

‘He must’ve known Jang Namwook was coming, but if he had planned to hide, he would’ve made Principal Hwang Bo-yoon forcefully stand in that position.’

Hwang Jiho likely didn’t see Jang Namwook as a threat since he liked him enough to engrave a magic circle on his glasses. So it probably wasn’t a big deal.

After the chairman’s speech, it was time for the current student body president, Yeom Junyeol, to deliver his speech.

When Yeom Junyeol stepped onto the stage, gasps of admiration erupted from the crowd.

Since Christmas, Yeom Junyeol had grown stronger, and as a result, his popularity had also increased.

“First, I would like to express my gratitude to everyone who has come to celebrate the new beginning of our seniors.”

Yeom Junyeol’s speech began with words of thanks.

He expressed his gratitude for the people who had supported the students and his respect for the seniors who had led the way.

There was a faint sadness in his words about saying goodbye to the seniors.

And when he spoke about his responsibilities as a remaining junior, his words conveyed courage.

‘Yeom Junyeol’s speech is bright and full of energy, but some people seem to be crying.’

Listening to Yeom Junyeol’s speech made it feel real that the seniors were actually leaving Eungwang High.

Tears started flowing from several students among the graduating class.

There were also guests in the audience who were crying.

Most of them were family members of the third-year students, but it seemed like there were some from the dragon clan and Red Lion team who were moved by Yeom Junyeol’s bold presence.

Even after Yeom Junyeol’s brief and heartfelt speech, there were still some who couldn’t lift their heads.

"Next, we will have the graduate representative's reply."

In the somber atmosphere, Do Wonwoo stepped up to the stage.