---Shin's pov---

The next day, I walked into class feeling sore all over. All that running has finally caught up to me and I suspect it will stay for a few days. That or I get a healing pill or spell. I had considered doing so. What stopped me was the fact that it would be very costly. In the short term, I can manage, but the cost would rack up over the year. Was I supposed to spend money after every class? I would run out after a few months. And after that, I would be forced to deal with this problem. Since I would only be delaying the inevitable, I might as face it now and save myself the trouble.

I sat down next to Sylvia and noticed that she was moving awkwardly.

"I guess you really did a number on yourself."

"It's fine. I can push through it."

"I really don't understand why you push yourself so hard."

"How else can I keep up with you monsters."

I see. She doesn't want to fall behind. She is determined to give her all. That way, there are no regrets. She kind of reminds me of a side character in a novel. They try to do everything they can to remain relevant to the story because the author needs something to write about. They work harder than everyone, yet they are limited by their talent. Eventually, the main character outgrows them so much and they become irrelevant to the story. It's a sad fate for such a lovable character.

I hope her life doesn't turn out that way. No one that works so hard deserves such an end. It's like spitting on all their hard work and making a mockery of everything about them. Though I do feel bad that she's trying to compare herself to us. This is such a blessed and cursed generation to be in.

Above her in rankings, there is Danny Hunter, a genius with the bow. His grasp of the weapon was enough to completely suppress her during the entrance exam. I think she feels overwhelmed by this, but she should not take that to heart. Very few people have mastered physical combat and I don't need to elaborate on the advantages of such a style. 

Then there is Emy. Despite her small build, she has an uncanny instinct. In the midst of battle, she always manages to make the best decisions. With this combat talent, she was able to rank high despite being weaker in stamina than Sylvia. Things just never get to the point where that becomes a problem.

And above Emy, there is me. I am practically cheating so it doesn't make sense for her to compare herself to me. The one she should be worried about is Gosen, the top ranker, and Professor Mordesin. Gosen's talent with his spells is something else. If I didn't know better, I would think he has some kind of cheat as well.

Then there is the professor. I don't know much about his magic abilities, but his knowledge and physical powers are enough to make him a tough opponent. And I highly doubt he has any weakness in the area of magic since he can multitask to a crazy extent; just that one demonstration of rune overloading was enough to make him very tricky. Seriously, how can he be so broken? There's no way he has a cheat as well, right?

As I was lost in thought, the professor clapped his hands to start class.

"I want to start this class by talking about hiding information. What does it mean to hide something? Is it making sure no one sees it? Or as hard to decrypt as possible? No. For me, the core of this class is to transmit information without anyone noticing. Subtlety. Why do I say subtlety? Because why does it matter if someone gets the information if they expose themselves in doing so?

Let me give you an example. Imagine you are a spy and the only way to receive orders is through a note encoded by some secret system. So secret that only you and one other person know about it. So you would pick up this note at places mentioned in the previous note and take it home to decrypt it. Even if you burn the paper afterward, you still left a trace. All it takes is someone to find the note before you or an overly paranoid person to stalk you to expose you.

And for those of you who think such people don't exist, I have a wake-up call for you. We are mages. We live a long life. We think a lot. And people that think a lot become paranoid. And do you really think you can deceive those old fossils that have lived so long? Who are you trying to kid? All it takes is a small mistake and all your hard work goes up in smoke."

He projected something onto the board.

"Let me show you an example of a technique. On the board is a picture. A seemingly normal picture. Everyone agree on that?"

Yes. It looks like an everyday picture of a flower. It's very clear, but that can be chalked up to good equipment. though, if he is mentioning it, it must be different. So what makes this stand out?

"If you are trying to figure out what is off about this picture, then you are looking at the wrong thing."

That doesn't help you know? Even if we are told the picture is not the problem, how are we supposed to have any idea? He gave us a few more minutes to give him blank stares before he started talking again.

"Alright, I won't mess with you anymore."

He walked over to the boards and PEELED it off?!?! Then he turned off the projection.

"As you can see, the flower still remains on the board despite the projection being off. That's because I covered the board with a black film that becomes transparent when light is shined on it"

Did he? I didn't even realize.

"Now I hope you didn't think that was all."

There's more?

He opened up a cropping software and started breaking the petals apart. It seems like a version of Photoshop, but with magic. He stacked a petal on the biggest one and started distorting it to fit the first one. After turning it semi-transparent, he repeated the process for the other petal. Soon, all the petals are stacked. I rubbed my eyes. How is that possible? The entire petal turned into a light purple color. It's completely even with no irregularities. Like everything was meant to be.

Just how was this made? 

Then he pulled up the original image and made the petal transparent. Next, he expanded it so that it covered the whole picture. When he did so, I could faintly make out the words "Seat 41."

That's somewhere along the first row. I looked around and settled my eyes on an empty seat. I walked over and looked around. Nothing. Is there supposed to be something here?

"Don't bother looking. That's just another layer."

What do you mean? 

He opened the color wheel of the filter and pushed it to the other side, changing it to yellowish green. When that happened, the text changed to "Sit down, you look dumb right now."

A trap? I guess I do look like a fool right now. When I returned to my seat, I heard Sylvia giggling at me. 

"That's just one example of hiding information. As you can see, it's unexpected."

"But sir, what happens if someone holds a tinted glass up to it? Wouldn't the secrecy of it be revealed?"

He only laughed at that question. I wonder why he is laughing. The student makes a good point.

"And why do you think that was important information?"

"Isn't it?"

"No. That was simply random instructions."

"But still. Wouldn't the information be easy to figure out?"

"I think you are forgetting something."

"What is it?"

"If there was one red herring, why can't there be more?"

"What do you mean?"

He walked over to the film that was on the floor and picked it up. 

"Mary, if you will."

She nodded and got up from her seat. Then she took one end and they started moving in opposite directions until the film is taut. 

"Why don't you come down and read what's one this out loud."

From my angle, I can see that there are some letters on the film, but I am too close to tell what is written. The student shuffled out of his row and started walking down.

"The most important information is hidden in the most obvious place."

"See? Not that hard. People will be paying too much attention to the picture that they neglect the initial disguise. A classic misdirection."

"But what if people see that? It is pretty likely that someone looks at the film when they rip it off."

Deverick shook his head. 

"Why do you keep thinking the simple statements are the secrets?"

They're not? But it clearly said-

"I said it was a misdirection, but I never said that was the only misdirection. Like seriously, you people need to stop thinking I will only use a trick once. How many times have you fallen for it and yet you keep believing that you got the answer? If that really is the case, then aren't you a little too arrogant? And right after I told you to not underestimate the intelligence of others at that."

"Then what is the secret message?"

Another sigh. 

"I had initially planned for this to be extra credit so are you sure you want me to reveal it?"

The student hesitated. 

"We're fine with it. Since we are here, we might as well see what you have planned," another student yelled out.

"Yes, I agree."

"Come on, reveal it."

"Very well. But let me give you a hint first."

He pointed to the film. 

"That sentence is the hint."

Huh? Isn't that as good as nothing? The most obvious place? Where is that? People started looking around the room in hopes of discovering the message. After a few minutes, they are still as confused.

"Just tell us, professor."

"Yeah, stop teasing us."

"Very well, it's right here."

He pointed at his shirt. To be more specific, the words on it. I looked closer at it and read them out loud.

"The secret code is banzo"

That's it? Everyone looked at him with newfound disbelief.

"Quite effective, isn't it? But do you know why it worked so well?"

It's because-

"It's because it's too obvious. So obvious in fact, that you ignored it. Despite me telling you it is in the most obvious place, you refuse to believe it. So you looked somewhere else to try to find a trick that doesn't exist. And do you know why you thought that way? It's because you had this impression that a hidden message needs to be complicated to decode. To ensure that no one but the intended receiver can understand it. To make sure that it is hidden as well as possible behind many complex techniques."

He got us there. We completely played into his trap again.

"So let me ask again. What does it mean to hide something? The answer is still subtlety. Then what is subtlety? It's being neglected when people look at it. It's being ignored when you tell them it. It's to make sure that no one but the intended receiver can understand it. That's being subtle."

Hiding in plain sight. That's what it's called.

"Since we are on this topic, let me talk about other subtle ways to tell someone. You couldn't have expected that clothes are the only way, right? I only used this example because it is the easiest for you to tell. There are a bunch of ways to get the message across. For example, you can talk about what you had for lunch, and the keywords you say have different meanings. Or girls, the number of times you twirl your hair in the conversation. As long as you hide it in everyday life, it will be hard to notice.

That's why, for homework, I want you all to pair up with someone and develop a method of misdirection while revealing a secret. Next week, you will present it in front of the class and try to deceive as many as you can. And for some incentive, I will be offering the winners documentation of some niche methods that I will not be covering in class.

That was all it took to send the class into a craze.