Chapter 39 Part 9: Connivance.

It was the day of the regular sparring matches, but I didn’t feel anything special.

Other students were excited or nervous, but, um… how should I put it?

I just had this thought.

Ah, it’s sparring day. I won’t have classes today, that kind of feeling.

I didn’t have any thoughts about who I would spar with or what the outcome would be.

Because of that, I often received glares from other students who had sparred with me.

They said I looked so calm, asking if I was just saying I was nervous.

I had a bit of trouble making excuses to the students for a while because of that.

Well, it wasn’t something I couldn’t understand.

If the previous sparring and training were against teachers or external instructors.

The sparring and training from today onwards were against fellow students.

Since they’re about as strong as you are, their competitive spirit probably burns or something.

Or maybe they’re thinking of adding even one more line to their student record.

On the other hand, I still had no thoughts even as the sparring began.

“Oh.”

No, I take that back.

Seeing two male students fiercely exchanging blows, it was nice to see them so energetic.

“You bastard!”

One male student, who got hit in the nose, gritted his teeth and lowered his stance.

And then a wonderful tackle, rushing straight forward.

Thanks to that, the opponent, whose posture was shaken, fell, and the male student climbed on top of him and threw punches mercilessly.

The opponent, who initially maintained a solid defense, soon revealed his face.

After that, it was obvious.

After a few sounds of thuds, the student underneath fainted, and the winner was decided.

I watched it for a moment and then looked around.

Because the building was so huge, this wasn’t the only sparring area.

In other places, other students were already working hard to beat each other.

Was it because of that?

I often saw other medical staff and professors nearby being startled.

It probably means they didn’t expect them to be so enthusiastic.

Honestly, I felt the same way.

They’re all just first-years, and they probably don’t have a concept of fighting with other people yet.

I wondered if they even had a fighting spirit, but watching today’s sparring, it definitely seemed to be overflowing.

“Everyone’s working hard.”

I said that and turned my head.

But what came back was not an appropriate answer, but Kim Aram’s dumbfounded expression.

“It’s because of you, Yeji.”

“…Huh? Because of me? Ah.”

It was clear that what happened last time was the trigger.

The fact that I calmly dealt with the attack probably served as a proper stimulus for everyone.

I wondered why they were fighting so hard… I could roughly guess the reason.

Since they don’t know when or where a villain might appear, they’re probably working hard to protect their acquaintances.

Well, it wasn’t a bad thing.

So, I slowly nodded and was about to continue watching when Kim Aram grabbed my wrist.

“Why?”

“Let’s go, Yeji. We have to spar too.”

“I don’t have sparring today.”

“I know.”

“Can’t I rest a bit today? I’ve been sparring continuously for the past few days.”

“I’ll buy you a snack.”

I couldn’t refuse a snack.

Especially since I don’t receive any allowance.

So I slowly got up from my seat, and Kim Aram grabbed my wrist and started walking, opening her mouth.

“As I said last time, I want to achieve results in the sports festival too.”

“Sports festival? Can you do it?”

“You have to try to know. I’m confident, I am.”

“Okay.”

“I also have a secret weapon.”

I nodded.

Adjusting the time in my brain is definitely a useful ability, isn’t it?

So even if I face other seniors, I think I could be a sharp knife.

Of course, not now.

“Ugh! Why isn’t it hitting!”

Kim Aram, who swung her fist in the air, was panting.

A drop of sweat on her chin fell to the floor, and she rushed in again, but this time it was also obvious.

Subtle muscle movements. The direction of the foot that carries the power.

If you carefully observe those things, avoiding an attack wasn’t that difficult.

No matter how fast the time in your brain flows, if its utilization is insufficient, it’s like this.

“Aram, I told you. You shouldn’t try to do just one attack.”

“..Yes!”

Even the same motion could be completely different depending on the intention.

Simply thinking about swinging a fist and moving forward.

And moving forward while simultaneously drawing various motions in your head, there was a clear difference.

The former can only swing a fist, but the latter can choose and use various moves according to the situation.

So I told her to keep that in mind, but hahaha.

It seemed to be too much for Kim Aram yet.

It seemed like she got the feeling, but it’s a feeling that’s hard to understand unless you’ve been learning martial arts for a long time.

“Again, here I go!”

“Try hard.”

It was the same now.

As much as she’s been learning martial arts at school, her posture was good, but that was it.

It seemed to be too early to bring out other moves in response to my movements.

Well, this time, it’s a relief that she brought out at least two.

How much time had passed?

Kim Aram, who had been making useless movements for tens of minutes, handed over a bill and lay down on the floor.

Normally, she would go to the snack bar with me and buy it, but it probably means she’s too tired to do it today.

So I briefly checked her condition and expressed my gratitude.

“Aram, I’ll enjoy it.”

“…Do it again tomorrow.”

“If you buy me a snack.”

“I’ll buy it, so do it again!”

I nodded appropriately and left her alone, heading to the snack bar.

And after buying and eating a snack, I spent some time and then headed to the dormitory.

Time flew by, and it was already the next day.

And on the next day, sparring began with a different composition.

Instead of classes, there was a report assignment, and unlike yesterday, there were students from other grades, perhaps because of that.

The fairly large stadium building was packed with people watching the sparring matches.

I watched the crowd alone for a while and then came to my senses belatedly.

Thinking about it again, it seemed like today was my sparring day.

It was a real relief that I came wearing a tracksuit without thinking.

“Let’s see…”

Looking at the match schedule, I saw a familiar name.

“Ugh.”

It seems like today, starting with sparring with Gong Jinhoo, I’ll have to fight a few other students.

It wasn’t a pleasant thing to fight him since I’ve already seen him a few times, but I couldn’t help it.

So I just watched the sparring progress for a while.

I kept thinking about what would happen if I fought those people.

A hypothesis of going all out was meaningless.

If I really tried to kill someone, I could kill them.

So, I thought about what would happen if I gave myself some leeway, and then I moved to the sparring area.

“Ah, you’re here?”

Gong Jinhoo, wearing a tracksuit, smiled kindly.

I smiled back and then slowly walked into the sparring area.

Was that some kind of signal?

At the same time as the fierce cheers from all sides, Gong Jinhoo also entered the sparring area.

“Yeji, shall we start on the count of three?”

“Do as you please.”

“Okay. One, two…”

“Three!”

I shouted like that and kicked off the ground.

Since I’ve already had enough sparring, I wanted to finish the regular sparring quickly.

A straight punch thrown in the blink of an eye.

I was going to hit him in the chest and then throw an uppercut with the same hand, but it was useless.

Gong Jinhoo, who blocked the straight punch by crossing his arms, reached out and grabbed my wrist.

I thought he would, so I pulled my wrist, and now, as if he had predicted that too, I saw him quickly let go of my hand.

“How was it?”

Gong Jinhoo smiled awkwardly, as if expecting an answer.

“Not bad.”

I said that and then thought for a moment.

The cheers from all sides became even more intense.

I thought about playing along a little… but honestly, it was annoying.

There are already many students who recognize my face, and if they recognize me more, I won’t be able to walk around the academy.

So, I felt sorry for Gong Jinhoo, but this time, I decided to settle it in one move.

With that thought, I kicked off the ground.

An incomparable speed to before.

It was a level that a student could never predict, but Gong Jinhoo was not.

“Aha!”

As if it hit as expected, Gong Jinhoo smiled and put the fist I threw right into his side.

Since the speed didn’t go anywhere, there was quite a bit of impact in the process, but it seemed like he endured it well.

I was stunned for a moment, wondering if he had expected this too, when Gong Jinhoo exhaled at me.

With a whoosh sound, an illusion appeared, blocking my vision.

I was a little flustered by that fact, and at that moment, I felt a clean pain piercing my side.

Fortunately, I reflexively counterattacked and sent him flying, but I was a little dazed.

Apart from winning, it was a very strange feeling.

There was also a reason why I looked down on Gong Jinhoo, but suddenly, I wondered if my skills had rusted.

It’s natural for skills to rust, but it wasn’t for me.

The reason other people can’t touch me is because I’m strong.

They know that if they do something foolish, they’ll die miserably, so they leave me alone for a while.

But if they found out that I had become weak, it was clear that they would bare their teeth from all sides.

…The 고민 wasn’t long.

I roughly checked the condition of the fallen Gong Jinhoo and then headed straight to the homeroom teacher.

It seemed like I needed to check whether my skills had rusted or not through sparring that was disguised as actual combat.