I Entered an Academy in a Ruined Game

Chapter 18 : Academy Cadets Have Many Things to Do (1)

While cadets were busy preparing for morning activities after the hellish morning roll call ended.

"It seems Seo Jun-seong will be the top student in this year's class."

The instructors gathered in the faculty office were having coffee time, discussing the cadets they were keeping an eye on.

"So it's Min Hae-na for the second year, and Seo Jun-seong for the first year."

"I rate Lee Yu-jin higher. The skills she showed during the entrance exam were definitely exceptional."

"I acknowledge that, but in a one-on-one match......"

"No, in terms of versatility and suppression ability, Hwang Ji-su......"

As usual with these types of conversations, it eventually devolved into an argument about who was better.

"But wouldn't Instructor Kim Cheol-han, who guides them most closely, have the most accurate judgment?"

At someone's comment, all the instructors' eyes turned to Kim Cheol-han.

"It's too early to make that judgment."

Kim Cheol-han tried to avoid answering with a standard response, but.

"That's true, but wouldn't it be fun to compare whose intuition was right later on?"

Oh Chang-seong joined in with a smirk.

"Instructor Oh."

"Hey now. I'm just curious. It's not just anyone's insight, but Instructor Kim Cheol-han's."

Kim Cheol-han exhaled deeply at Oh Chang-seong's brazenness, unlike the other instructors.

"In terms of current power, Seo Jun-seong is probably the most well-balanced cadet."

"That's certainly true."

Psychokinesis was an ability that could be used for everything from long-range attacks to high-speed movement, flight, area attacks, and subduing individuals.

Moreover, Seo Jun-seong's output and control were truly in the realm of innate talent, and his mentor father was Seo Dong-jin, the greatest hero of the Execution Force.

In terms of both environment and aptitude, Seo Jun-seong could be called an outlier.

"From the perspective of personal training level and characteristic combination, Lee Yu-jin is also excellent, and Hwang Ji-su's ability and sense are outstanding. Besides these three, I also value Hong In-hyeon's operational capabilities highly."

But.

"If the question is who will be at the top when they graduate...... I think Jeong Su-hyeon is also a candidate."

"Excuse me? Who?"

"Jeong Su-hyeon?"

Everyone responded with surprise at Kim Cheol-han's words.

"Is that friend that good?"

"His estimated grade was only D initially, and compared to other cadets, he doesn't seem particularly special."

'Hmm.'

However, Oh Chang-seong and Kang Jun-man, who had actually experienced Su-hyeon firsthand, had somewhat different reactions.

"That guy is a bit unusual."

Kang Jun-man said.

"He made quite an impression yesterday too."

"Are you referring to the practical training?"

"No. I heard he got into a fight with a kid named Park Chang-jun in the evening."

"Oh, really?"

Instructor Oh Chang-seong whistled.

"Incidents just keep happening. That Park Chang-jun ranked 8th or 9th in the entrance exam, right?"

"Yes. He has a decent characteristic too, but regarding his personality, I don't hear many good things."

"So what happened?"

"Well, I heard Jeong Su-hyeon won, but I don't know the details exactly......"

"Let me explain that."

Instructor Kang Jun-man, who had heard the whole story from Kim Cheol-han, clicked his tongue.

"That Park Chang-jun. He was quite pathetic in my class too."

Park Chang-jun had thoroughly impressed seniors, assistants, and even instructors, despite having enrolled only recently.

"Oh, and about today's roll call."

The instructor who had conducted the morning roll call said.

"That Jeong Su-hyeon kid came out without getting a single drop of water on him this morning."

"Really?"

"When I asked the second-years, they said he was already up and had even made his bed."

"Was he in the military or something?"

"Plus, he held out until the end during the morning training."

"Huh."

Even the instructors who had questioned Kim Cheol-han's high evaluation couldn't hide their admiration at that point.

"Isn't that training one that even werewolf or body enhancement type cadets drop out of?"

"Yes. On the first day, it's almost guaranteed that everyone drops out. It was the same last year."

"That's impressive."

"What's even funnier is what he said to me afterward. Do you know what he asked me?"

He gave a hollow laugh as if still finding it unbelievable.

"He said he wants to pair with Kang Geon-woo next time."

"Isn't that friend a were-ape? I remember he was huge."

"Yes. He says he wants to switch because he wants to lift more weight."

"Hehehe......"

The hollow laughter spread like a contagion.

"What exactly is Jeong Su-hyeon's characteristic?"

At one instructor's question, Kang Jun-man nodded vigorously.

"I'm curious about that too."

"Is it some sort of body reinforcement type? It doesn't seem like he fights relying only on his own strength. I took a solid hit to the stomach from that guy."

As Instructor Oh Chang-seong rubbed his abdomen, Kang Jun-man went one step further.

"Instructor Oh got hit in the stomach? I almost lost the ability to have a third child."

"What an immoral kid."

"I was actually going to mention that."

Kim Cheol-han, who had been quietly listening, said.

"I heard directly from Jeong Su-hyeon during our meeting yesterday."

"Oh! What is it exactly?"

"He calls it 'Unlimited.'"

"Unlimited?"

"In his analogy, it's an ability that allows him to become faster than a cheetah or stronger than a bear just through endless training."

"Hmm."

"That's interesting."

The instructors fell into deep thought.

"It could potentially be a truly remarkable characteristic."

"Specifically, how to utilize it......"

"It seems like a characteristic that depends on the awakened person's development capacity."

"The growth potential is what we should focus on."

Kim Cheol-han said.

"From my assessment, he knows how to fight well, and his way of thinking seems open-minded."

"I agree with that point."

Kang Jun-man added.

"One thing's for sure—he's interesting to watch."

Oh Chang-seong added with a grin.

"Hmm."

"If the three of you say so......"

The instructors were intrigued by the endorsement of the three who had met Su-hyeon directly.

"I'm reaching the point where I'd like to personally instruct that guy if the opportunity arises."

But at Oh Chang-seong's words, everyone's expressions suggested they thought he was exaggerating.

Of course, their concerns were somewhat justified at present.

'For now, his characteristic seems modest compared to other cadets.'

'Strengthening the body through training? Even so, body enhancement type awakened or werewolf type cadets would be far more efficient and effective.'

'Couldn't this end up being neither here nor there?'

Among them, only Kim Cheol-han, Oh Chang-seong, and Kang Jun-man had even a vague understanding of Su-hyeon's true value.

And one more.

'Jeong Su-hyeon?'

One instructor who had been quietly listening to their conversation from the corner slightly raised the corner of his mouth.

'An interesting kid.'

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The first-year cadets, who had been struck by a bolt from the blue early in the morning, spent the morning hours in a daze before finally reaching the fourth period.

Unlike the first three periods, the fourth period was always designated for major theory classes, and today's class was [History of the Gate Era].

'I'm hungry.'

They say it's an age where you're always hungry no matter how much you eat.

After working the body hard since morning, it felt like breakfast had already been completely digested.

Click-clack-click-clack.

The sound of high heels approached from a distance.

Thud.

The front door opened exactly as the clock struck 11 o'clock.

"Nice to meet you all."

Her expression didn't show any trace of pleasure.

"My name is Lim Ye-sun. I will be teaching you major theory this semester."

Lim Ye-sun was a tall, skinny female instructor dressed in a black setup suit.

She wore large-framed glasses, and her long hair was carelessly tied in a ponytail. The deep dark circles under her eyes exuded the smell of overwork.

'I don't think I've ever seen those dark circles disappear from her face.'

Lim Ye-sun was a character synonymous with being a workaholic.

"The subject I'll be teaching you is the history of the Gate Era."

Instructor Lim Ye-sun, who had written the class name on the board in a clean, even pristine handwriting, looked at the cadets broadly and said.

"Through this class, you will develop the right values regarding your position and duties as members of the Execution Force."

"......."

The strictness evident just from her handwriting made the cadets tense.

"Let's start right away."

She drew a straight line on the blackboard without a ruler, then divided it into three parts with two slashes.

'Wow.'

It was an excessively accurate straight line and proportion for something drawn by human hand.

"Now. Look everyone. In academia, it has become established theory to divide the flow of the post-Gate era into three major generations. This is not simply a division by 30-year units, but because the flow of each generation was drastically different. Therefore......"

"......."

Though this was their first meeting, the atmosphere suggested that if anyone tried nonsense like small talk or first love stories as in ordinary schools, they'd end up hanging upside down outside the window.

'She hates idle chatter that prevents progress with the curriculum the most.'

Though ironically, she was also the type who would make students self-study and chat aimlessly herself if she finished the curriculum early.

In any case, judging by first impressions, she was the type who intimidated cadets no less than Kim Cheol-han.

"Hmm. Before getting into the main discussion, let me ask a light question. Can anyone tell me why, after the second generation, awakened individuals were divided into Hunters and the Execution Force?"

Among the cadets looking around nervously, the first to raise her hand was, of course, Lee Yu-jin.

"It was because of the existence of the Ma-in. They had completely different behavior patterns from demonic beasts, especially possessing intelligence, making them difficult to respond to with existing tactics and fighting methods. The Execution Force was created to develop specialized response capabilities."

"Correct. To add more......"

Lim Ye-sun drew an arrow at the start of the long line and wrote 'Great Chaos.'

"Since the occurrence of a Gate in a now-vanished West Asian city, the infinite proliferation of Gates covering the entire world led to an unprecedented situation where one-third of humanity died within just two years. Even the Black Death that raged in the Middle Ages didn't kill so many humans in such a short period."

The demonic beasts not only killed humans but also destroyed all kinds of infrastructure and inflicted major damage on military forces that opposed them.

"However, humanity didn't just passively suffer."

Instructor Lim Ye-sun drew another mark slightly ahead of 'Great Chaos' and wrote 'Appearance of the Awakened.'

"Awakened individuals who gained special powers called characteristics began to counterattack simultaneously. They joined forces to reclaim and fortify major cities and facilities, then began a long war against the demonic beasts."

Lim Ye-sun's hand busily wrote.

"After decades of fighting, humanity finally drove the demonic beasts to remote areas and successfully rebuilt civilization and social systems. In the new society, demonic beast carcass by-products, magical stones, and the force of the awakened became the driving forces maintaining the new order."

Lee Yu-jin's grandfather, the Sword God Lee Un-hak, and EFAC's principal, Min Jeong-gap, were figures who emerged in the latter part of this era and built legendary feats of bravery.

"Now."

With a tap on the blackboard, Lim Ye-sun's explanation ended.

"This is the general flow of events that occurred during the first generation's 30 years."

'This is a setting commonly seen,' I thought.

"The beginning of the second generation started in a very hopeful atmosphere. Can anyone answer why?"

This was my specialty.

"It was thanks to the discovery that elucidated the correlation between Gates and 'dungeons.'"

Lim Ye-sun pushed up her glasses and asked.

"What specific role did that discovery play?"

"Until then, they could only respond passively by establishing containment lines to block the waves of demonic beasts that poured out after Gates appeared."

But, I continued.

"After discovering the existence of dungeons beyond the Gates, the situation changed. Gates no longer opened from dungeons where the crystals had been destroyed, thus enabling control over the seemingly endless creation of Gates."

"A very accurate answer."

"Hunters took this a step further. They left some useful resource-yielding dungeons intact and 'mined' them like quarries, securing resources needed for industry in a stable manner."

"Hmm."

Lim Ye-sun nodded with satisfaction.

Probably because my answer was so accurate that she could proceed without needing to give supplementary explanations.

"Correct. Consequently, by the second generation, demonic beasts were no longer adversaries to be fought for survival but fell to being mere hunting targets. It was during this period that the name 'Hunter' was attached to the awakened."

Hunters were warriors of the new era, industrial workers, and heroes.

They became objects of everyone's admiration.

However.

"If human prosperity and glory had continued like this, you wouldn't need to be diligently taking notes during my lecture here now."

Lim Ye-sun sneered.

That's right.

Tragedy was sprouting alongside prosperity.

"The problem lay in the fact that the 'magical energy' that made demonic beasts what they were had the property of zoonotic infection. Magical energy accumulated in the bodies of Hunters who fought demonic beasts and were covered in their blood, eventually evolving into demonic nature."

It was the emergence of Hunters consumed by demonic nature—the Ma-in.

"Do you know why this problem wasn't discovered during the first generation but became prominent from the second generation?"

"It was a side effect discovered as Hunters' survival rate extremely increased and the number of demonic beasts they killed grew."

I answered again.

"Simply put, most died before becoming Ma-in before, so there was no way to know about this property."

"Indeed. A terrible irony."

Of course, even during this period, a very small number of Hunters became Ma-in, but they were often dismissed as having 'psychosis due to PTSD.'

Lim Ye-sun drew a line in the middle of the second generation and started writing.

"Demonic nature manifested two main properties. One was the urge to kill humans. The other was mutation of characteristics."

Ma-in wielding more ferocious, stronger, and trickier abilities emerged in droves, stabbing comrades in the back and massacring civilians.

"The middle of the second generation was thus another time of turmoil with great changes. While there weren't as many cases of states collapsing as in the first generation, there were equally terrible civil wars and riots."

However, humanity, having already overcome one great chaos, quickly found an answer.

"From here on, you all probably know the flow well."

Lim Ye-sun wrote the words 'Execution Force' in large letters.

"Not just in Korea but in every country, the early Execution Force was established by recruiting volunteers from existing Hunters. They were Hunters with characteristics specialized in countering Ma-in, or those with burning desires for revenge."

Of course, Lim Ye-sun added.

"These were organizations close to vigilante groups. It's not known who first gave them the name 'Execution Force.' However, just by looking at the meaning implied by the word 'execution,' one can easily imagine how savage the atmosphere was at that time."

It would still take time for the current doctrine, which focuses on suppression and isolation, to be established.

"They confronted the Ma-in with doctrines and tactics established at the cost of much bloodshed. The heroes of the Execution Force at that time greatly contributed to Korea becoming praised as having the most stable national system in the world."

At that point, attention shifted to Seo Jun-seong.

His father, Seo Dong-jin, and the older members of the current instructors were all people who were active during this period.

"......."

By the way.

"So, it was the activities of the Execution Force, effectively suppressing the rise of the Ma-in, that played a role in concluding the second generation. The most symbolic event was......"

'This person just doesn't stop talking.'

I was starting to feel like my ears might bleed.

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'That guy is quite knowledgeable.'

Hwang Ji-su frowned as she watched Su-hyeon answering the instructor's questions.

Of course, Su-hyeon, as a veteran who had mastered Edge of Gate's settings through hundreds of playthroughs, could engage in dialogue with the instructor at almost the same level.

But not knowing this circumstance, from her perspective, she could only think that he had either prepared extensively or originally had a lot of knowledge in this area.

'I can't let my guard down. If that guy surges ahead in written work like this......'

It was already not easy to score highly in practical skills against Seo Jun-seong and Lee Yu-jin, so having a competitor in the written domain as well was not welcome.

'Hmph. Still, the top position this semester will be mine.'

Her competitive spirit showed no signs of dying down today either.

'Senior Hae-na has held the overall top position since the first semester. I can't lose.'

Min Hae-na, who maintained an overwhelming top position among second-years.

She was Hwang Ji-su's role model, whom she admired and wanted to emulate.

'But why does Lee Yu-jin keep looking at Jeong Su-hyeon's face instead of the blackboard?'

For some reason.

Hwang Ji-su didn't like that either.