Chapter 44 Part 14: Connivance.

Since then, my days have been as busy as I expected.

I thought they might let us study soon since the midterm exams were approaching.

But no, they said we were prospective heroes and hunters, so we couldn’t skip training, no matter what.

They said that while a student’s duty is to study, our duty is to train.

Thanks to that, nothing changed in my schedule.

We exercised during night self-study, just as we did during night self-study.

And we sparred during special training sessions, just as we did during special training sessions.

If I had given up on studying, it might have been different.

But since my goal was to get a decent score, it was literally hell.

I mean, my appearance already makes me look like a delinquent, right?

This was a golden opportunity to cultivate a model student image amidst all the unsettling rumors.

So, I couldn’t let it go, and I stayed up a little each night to study, resulting in chronic fatigue.

But still.

“Huhu…”

The grades I received after all that hard work were truly satisfying.

“Jinhoo, can you see? The average score of 99 clearly written here.”

“Yeah, I can see it clearly.”

“Praise me more. Tell me I worked really hard.”

They said that even though it was just preliminary scoring, the scores wouldn’t change much from this.

So with this score, I could aim for the top 10 in the school.

Hey, there’s no way someone who trains every day like me could get this score, right?

“An average of 99 in seven subjects, you really did work hard.”

“I only got points deducted for partial credit. Let’s just call it a touch of humanity.”

“Yeah, you worked hard.”

“Wait, why are you hiding your report card?”

I quickly grabbed Gong Jinhoo’s arm.

And I saw it. The number 100 clearly printed there.

“…Kugh.”

An indescribable sense of defeat welled up inside me.

Not only is not same as my 17 years old, he studied twice as long as me.

It goes without saying that my previously elated mood instantly deflated.

If he had at least bragged, I could have laughed it off, but Gong Jinhoo didn’t.

He saw that I was clearly feeling down, so he carefully folded his report card and changed the subject.

Thanks to that, I felt like I had lost twice, and my mood worsened even more.

“Yeji, the competition will be starting soon… What do you think about that?”

“What do I think? I don’t have any particular thoughts.”

I was being sincere when I said I didn’t have any particular thoughts.

Or, to be more precise, it felt like I shouldn’t have any particular thoughts.

The reason was simple.

The academy’s sports competition was held much more grandly than those of other schools.

It wasn’t just a small event held at school, but something like a youth Olympics, to put it metaphorically.

Of course, there were preliminary rounds.

And of course, they were broadcast live on various channels.

“Haa…”

“What’s wrong all of a sudden?”

“Just things.”

I had seen it several times before.

They fought fiercely against each other on a square sparring stage.

Well, it wasn’t like I particularly disliked being on TV.

But given my circumstances, I wanted to avoid media exposure as much as possible.

Still, since the life I wanted was inevitably intertwined with the media, I felt like I had no choice but to adapt.

“Could it be that you don’t want to be on TV?”

Gong Jinhoo asked, as if it were unbelievable.

Instead of answering, I raised my eyebrows, and a justification that wasn’t quite a justification came back.

“Well, I just thought you’d enjoy being on TV.”

“I get a little dizzy thinking about my preliminary match being broadcast nationwide.”

“Don’t worry. You’ll be facing other first-years in the preliminaries.”

“You’re saying that as if I’m going to lose.”

“Haha, I can’t even imagine you losing.”

Gong Jinhoo said that and showed me his smartwatch.

It felt like it had been a while, I thought briefly.

There were two familiar names on the screen.

Lee Yeji. And Kim Aram.

It seemed like the two of us would be opening the first match of the preliminaries.

Since it was the main event of the competition, everyone would probably give it their all.

I thought up to that point and then collapsed on my desk.

That was something to think about later; for now, I intended to kill some free time.

***

The alarm rang, signaling 6:30 AM.

Kim Aram rubbed her sleepy eyes and half-raised her upper body.

And she turned off the alarm on her phone before anyone else woke up.

Well, it wouldn’t matter if she turned it off late.

Jang Yuna and Lee Yeji were hard of hearing and couldn’t hear the alarm well.

Kang Xia woke up 30 minutes earlier than her without an alarm, so the alarm was really only necessary for her.

“Umm…”

As she stretched, she felt the illusion of lingering fatigue falling off her body with a thud.

There was no need to wake up early today, but maintaining regular habits was important.

Moreover, today was the day of the preliminaries, so it was even more crucial to get her body in top condition.

“Everyone’s sleeping soundly.”

Kim Aram murmured briefly as she sat on the edge of her bed.

Lee Yeji looked like she was dead, and Jang Yuna looked like she was drunk; both of them were sleeping without moving a muscle.

Chuckling at that fact, she stared at Lee Yeji’s face again.

Previously, she had thought of her as a somewhat unique friend, but not anymore.

Unlike her, Lee Yeji was full of a sense of justice.

She had the courage to act even knowing she might die.

She must have honed her abilities to their limits, prepared for death.

Unlike her, who had cowardly avoided honing her abilities until now.

Kim Aram sighed.

She had entered the academy dreaming of becoming a hero, but as time passed, only one fact became clear.

She wasn’t properly prepared yet.

She didn’t have the sense of justice to throw herself in front of a gun or engage in vigilante activities.

She wasn’t strong enough to not tremble in front of a gun.

So she wanted to become stronger.

If she could become as strong as her friend Lee Yeji, obtaining a professional hero license wouldn’t be impossible.

‘I have an advantage anyway.’

Beastkin could drastically enhance their physical abilities through manifestation.

Moreover, unlike Lee Yeji, who was merely a beastkin, Kim Aram was both a beastkin and possessed another ability.

If she used that ability, wouldn’t things somehow work out?

With such vague thoughts in her heart, Kim Aram got out of bed and started her day.

She exchanged places with Kang Xia, who had just finished washing up, and entered the bathroom, drenching herself in cold water as she steeled her resolve.

‘I’ll definitely win this time.’

Kim Aram muttered, looking like a drowned rat.

She had no intention of repeating her past mistakes.

She was determined to achieve a completely different result, especially for her family who had come to watch.

Her consciousness began to sharpen.

Her body, preparing for battle, honed its muscles and bones on its own.

She continuously replayed the past sparring matches in her mind.

Time flew by.

When she suddenly came to her senses, she was already standing on the sparring stage.

Kim Aram shifted her gaze beyond the audience seats.

Beyond the crowd gathered to watch the competition preliminaries, she could also see cameras and other equipment.

Lowering her gaze, she saw Lee Yeji standing on the opposite side.

Her dignified attitude, like a demon king from a fictional story, stimulated her competitive spirit.

“Ready, be… gin!”

The referee’s voice signaled the start.

Before the sound of the gunshot and the smoke from the gunpowder faded, Kim Aram kicked off the ground.

The first thing she chose was a punch.

Lee Yeji had a habit of minimizing her movements and sizing up her opponent at the beginning of a sparring match.

And when she felt she had finished sizing them up, she would start her full-fledged onslaught.

That short time spent sizing up the opponent.

Kim Aram’s winning condition was to overwhelm her to the point of confusion during that time.

“Brace your… self!”

With that shout, her heart began to beat fiercely.

Kim Aram clenched her teeth and used her ability simultaneously with her manifestation.

A brief moment of fear, as if daring to confront a predator.

Her lungs, expanded to their limits, diligently brought in oxygen.

Her heart, beating vigorously, began supplying blood to her entire body.

Her heated muscles moved beyond what she desired.

Kim Aram, having traversed the several-meter distance in just one second, clenched her fist.

And calmly, she began to land a series of blows, starting with the liver.

The first blow was blocked. The second was countered. The third was dodged, and the fourth was deflected.

And the fifth punch narrowly missed Lee Yeji’s body.

“Aren’t you overdoing it?”

Lee Yeji taunted, leaning back to dodge the punch.

Kim Aram clenched her fist at the sight.

“…I’m not, overdoing it!”

If she couldn’t seize the momentum in the beginning, she couldn’t win.

She didn’t have the toughness to withstand Lee Yeji’s onslaught.

So, as she was about to continue the momentum, she saw Lee Yeji’s punch.

It was a blow that was clearly thrown carelessly, thinking it could be easily blocked.

But even though she immediately defended, she ended up rolling several laps on the sparring stage.

“…Keugh!”

Her arm throbbed with intense pain, and her head spun.

Kim Aram barely managed to get up and glared at Lee Yeji.

Lee Yeji’s face, which seemed surprised that she had been sent flying so far, seemed to be turning into a sneer.

“…Aren’t you overdoing it?”

“I told you, I’m not overdoing it!”

Kim Aram shouted and once again adjusted her internal time.

And she ran across the sparring stage twice as fast as she normally could.

But Lee Yeji skillfully caught her position.

Before long, Kim Aram’s arm was caught.

In the moment of panic, Lee Yeji immediately pulled her arm and took a stance.

‘A shoulder throw…!’

Kim Aram opened her mouth.

It was already too late to react the moment she thought of it.

Lee Yeji clearly intended to finish her with this one blow.

With a loud thud, Kim Aram was slammed hard onto the floor.

With a force incomparable to the previous one, she convulsed several times on the ground.

For a moment, her mind went blank, and her senses disappeared before slowly returning.

She could hear the referee counting in the distance.

She could also see Lee Yeji’s face looking down at her with concern.

Kim Aram bit her tongue.

She barely managed to raise her body and, even while doing so, stared at Lee Yeji.

Since her family had come to see her, she couldn’t be eliminated in the preliminaries.

Even if they fought now, she would probably lose seven or eight times out of ten.

But if she used her trump card, she could probably increase her chances to five.

A fifty-fifty chance?

It was enough to risk her life.

“…Are you okay?”

Lee Yeji asked.

Kim Aram immediately nodded and took a step.

The step soon became a run.

Right after, she charged at Lee Yeji with all her might.

Her trump card, hidden even from her closest friend whom she had known for half her life, flashed.