novelraw Chapter 39 : Chapter 39
Chapter 39 : Chapter 39
Chapter 39: Midterm Exams (4)
"Look over there! Kim Su-hyeok is out!!"
In the cadet spectator section of the practical exam sparring arena, Ha Eun-ha was making a racket while watching Kim Su-hyeok.
However, her boisterousness did not last long.
"Oh! It is about to st—"
"Quiet."
This was because Ju Ha-yeon, who was sitting next to her, immediately silenced her.
Ha Eun-ha glanced at Ju Ha-yeon and made a gesture of zipping her lips with her hand.
"Yes, ma'am."
"…Sigh."
Ju Ha-yeon let out a sigh at that reaction but did not say much else. It was a reaction born from knowing that Ha Eun-ha was not the type to listen even if she was scolded.
Besides, Ha Eun-ha was not the only noisy one.
Thinking that, Ju Ha-yeon quietly looked at the two cadets sitting on the other side of Ha Eun-ha.
"Hmm, that is definitely like Kim Su-hyeok. I did not think he would charge in like that from there."
"He fights well. But why did he do that just now?"
"Ah, that is because……."
The two had started by sharing a few words, but now they were practically providing continuous commentary.
One was Oh Jin-eon, with whom she had conducted collaborative training before, and while she did not know the other well, his name tag said Do Gang-ho.
Looking at those two, a sigh almost leaked out again.
'Why did they have to come to where I am sitting?'
At first, she was sitting alone, but then Ha Eun-ha suddenly came over and took the seat next to her without a word.
Shortly after, Ha Eun-ha spotted those two and called them over in a loud voice, giving them the adjacent seats.
…As expected, Ha Eun-ha is the problem. Her damn meddling nature.
'Whatever. Let's just ignore them.'
Even if it were not those three, someone would have eventually sat there.
Of course, they were "a bit" noisier than other cadets, but Ju Ha-yeon decided not to care.
It was a clear fact that she would only get stressed if she paid attention to them.
More importantly, another task was waiting for her.
'Let's see.'
Ju Ha-yeon distanced herself from the trio shouting, "Crush him, Kim Su-hyeok!" and rummaged through her bag to pull something out.
What she pulled out was a tablet slightly smaller than a laptop.
She immediately checked the information on the tablet.
[Observation Report - Choi Yu-seong]
"Hehe. Their working speed is certainly fast."
Ju Ha-yeon hummed a pleasant laugh while looking at the observation report on Choi Yu-seong that she had ordered previously.
In her view, Kim Su-hyeok was already a player who had surpassed potential and reached a certain level of completion.
Therefore, rather than focusing on Kim Su-hyeok’s duel, Ju Ha-yeon decided to look over the information on Choi Yu-seong.
The moment she flipped to the next page of the report with a pleasant expression.
"What is this?"
Ju Ha-yeon’s brow furrowed slightly.
The reason was the content written in the report.
[Past actions are vague. Related information could not be found.]
"What do you mean……?"
She had sent them to investigate, and they could not find any information?
It was not as if she had asked them to look into the child of a famous family.
She had just praised their working speed, so how could they handle the task like this?
"Sigh, I will have to say something to them later."
Ju Ha-yeon massaged her temples to suppress her anger.
If it were the past, she would have called immediately to yell at them, but she had grown old enough to be mature now.
Besides, there was no way they would have sent only this as a report, right?
Therefore, Ju Ha-yeon calmly turned the page of the report.
[Month X, Day X. Captured circumstances of Choi Yu-seong leaving Glory. Observation commenced accordingly.]
"Hmm?"
Ju Ha-yeon expressed surprise after seeing the date while reading the report.
That was definitely the day she had instructed them to look into Choi Yu-seong.
And that day was…….
'Was that not a time when the academy was extremely sensitive?'
Normally, an outing permit would never be issued.
While thinking about the reason, Ju Ha-yeon naturally checked the next page.
[Evening X:XX PM. Contact with an external figure who is not a Glory official.]
"An external figure?"
Ju Ha-yeon frowned slightly after reading the content.
An external figure during that period? How, when he does not even have any backing?
However, what made Ju Ha-yeon frown even more was the sentence that followed.
[The contacted individual is expected to be a player. Also, based on the circumstances of the conversation, he is presumed to believe in a cult.]
[The content of the conversation is listed below.]
"What kind of nonsense is this?"
"Huh? Ha-yeon, what did you say?"
"…Quiet and just watch the duel."
Harsh words and a loud voice had slipped out unintentionally.
Ju Ha-yeon redirected the attention of Ha Eun-ha, who had reacted to her, and thought about the report again.
'No, why a cult all of a sudden?'
He went out during a time when the academy was extremely sensitive, and then an external player contacted him in violation of academy regulations.
But the next thing it says is, "presumed to believe in a cult"?
Is this not something that cannot be understood with common sense?
Therefore, Ju Ha-yeon scanned the conversation content written in the report.
"Brother, a predestined encounter, purpose, value, Saintess……."
…Just what on earth does this mean?
Putting everything else aside, what is this about a Saintess……?
The list of conversations, which were impossible to understand, disoriented Ju Ha-yeon’s mind.
But who was Ju Ha-yeon?
Was she not the eldest daughter of the Hoyeon Group, which had practically monopolized the player market?
Ju Ha-yeon quickly regained her shaken composure and calmed herself.
"Y-Yeah. That could happen."
First, judging by the conversation, it seemed true that he believed in a cult.
If not, there is no way a word like 'Saintess' would appear in a conversation, right?
'…Still, it is on the better side as far as these things go.'
The world of players is originally a place where all sorts of strange people gather.
When there are players whose hobby is skewering villains, what does a cult matter?
Yeah… as long as there are no big social problems, it is fine. It is fine…….
"I will just take note of it for now and look into it more later."
With that thought, Ju Ha-yeon entered Choi Yu-seong’s name into her notebook.
[Choi Yu-seong: An individual who needs to be watched for the time being. Reference: Cult -1 point]
Unlike her words, she deducted one point because of the cult aspect.
***
Before I knew it, Kim Su-hyeok’s duel was over.
The winner was naturally the Swordsmanship Instructor, but that did not mean Kim Su-hyeok had performed poorly.
'His growth speed is truly insane.'
I thought back to the collaborative training we had before.
Even up until then, his skills were clearly far below the performance he showed today…….
I could feel once again that not just anyone can be a protagonist.
"Next cadet, please get ready."
While I was thinking about Kim Su-hyeok’s skill, I heard the voice of a staff member.
At that voice, Ryu Jin-oh, who was sitting next to me, began to stand up.
I could not help but smile inwardly at that sight.
'Somehow, even just standing up is not ordinary for him.'
He simply stood up from his seat, but what can I say? I felt a sense of nobility and aristocratic aura.
Well, since he has lived the life of a young lord from birth, I suppose it is natural?
It was then.
Zing.
I felt a sharp gaze from somewhere close by.
When I shifted my vision toward that gaze, Ryu Jin-oh was looking at me again.
'No, why has he been doing that since earlier?'
I wondered if I had made some kind of mistake, but no matter how much I thought about it, there was nothing.
Unless Ryu Jin-oh could read minds, I could not have done anything wrong.
And it was not as if he could actually read minds.
'But why on earth is he doing that?'
I thought about it once more, but as expected, nothing came to mind.
Fortunately, this uncomfortable time did not last long.
"Next cadet, you may go now."
At the staff member’s words that were heard once again, Ryu Jin-oh averted his gaze from me and walked away leisurely.
Only after Ryu Jin-oh’s figure had completely vanished could I relax my tension.
'Phew, he is a difficult person to deal with, so I cannot even speak carelessly.'
If it were someone else, I would not have been this nervous.
However, Ryu Jin-oh was not only a difficult person to deal with but also the child of the Ryu Family, one of the prestigious families in this world.
If I blabbered carelessly, I might not just be targeted by Ryu Jin-oh, but I could be wiped out by the Ryu Family.
Therefore, it was always necessary to mind my tongue in front of Ryu Jin-oh.
'Still, unlike his nasty personality, he certainly fights well.'
Not long after Ryu Jin-oh left, footage of him appeared on the screen in the waiting room.
The opponent player was an A-Rank player, just like Shin Yu-hwan.
He was probably a member of the Ryu Family or someone invited with money.
'It is certainly a battle worthy of Ryu Jin-oh.'
In the video, Ryu Jin-oh continued the duel while employing his own sword style.
If Kim Su-hyeok’s sword style earlier was a refreshing Swift Sword, what Ryu Jin-oh was displaying now was a Strong Sword that pushed through with power.
Their styles were different, but Ryu Jin-oh’s skill was also not to be underestimated.
'But Ryu Jin-oh is still lacking.'
It is a bit funny for someone of my skill to say this, but the truth is the truth.
Ryu Jin-oh’s talent has not blossomed yet.
'I recall Ryu Jin-oh’s talent was definitely [Reincarnation of the Sword Demon].'
Since it is a Sword Demon and not something like a Sword God or Sword Saint, it might feel cheap, but that is not the case at all.
Reincarnation of the Sword Demon is an S-class talent, and a growth-type one at that.
Thanks to that, Ryu Jin-oh was the type to continuously become stronger the more experience he gained.
That was why I said he was still lacking.
'But his appearance definitely changes drastically when he fights.'
I kept watching Ryu Jin-oh’s duel without taking my eyes off the screen.
It was not a fight that exuded the nobility of a young lord, but a fight like a Yaksha who does not know a way back.
Absorbed in that fight, I continued to watch Ryu Jin-oh’s duel without moving an inch.
BOOM!!
The moment the A-Rank player’s sword and Ryu Jin-oh’s sword clashed spectacularly.
"That is enough! Duel ended!"
Before a winner could be decided, the host immediately announced the end of the duel.
'…I feel like I stopped in the middle of a bowel movement.'
Still, it cannot be helped.
The fact that they did not go as far as showing one side being defeated was probably due to the reputation of the Ryu Family.
It would be a bit awkward for an A-Rank player to lose on purpose, and they would not want to show Ryu Jin-oh losing either.
It was just as I was shaking off the remaining lingering regret.
"Next cadet, please get ready. I will call you again in 30 minutes."
As if I were no exception, the staff member delivered the same words as before Ryu Jin-oh had left.
At those words, I naturally could not help but be nervous.
It was natural since the opponent was none other than Shin Yu-hwan.
However, since I could not step onto the sparring arena while being nervous, I took a deep breath.
"Phew. Haa."
"Next cadet, you may go now."
"…Huh?"
Thirty minutes had vanished as if by magic.
'No, were thirty minutes always this short?'
I thought I had only taken one deep breath.
Was it because I was so nervous? The time just melted away.
'Well, still. In a way, I also had a desire for it to start quickly.'
My nerves still had not quite settled, but it was also true that I was looking forward to this duel.
A duel with the hero I admire—that alone was enough to make me excited in many ways.
"Phew. Then, shall I go?"
I was ready.
Now was the time to pour out all that excitement and tension.
Thus, I slowly moved my feet toward the sparring arena while touching the sword hanging on my left waist.