Chapter 50 Part 20: Connivance.

My head instantly felt like it was on fire.

I barely had time to wonder why the Trickster was here.

My body was already tensing up, preparing for what might happen next.

‘If he tries anything funny, I’ll take him down immediately.’

Just as I decided that and was ready to jump out at any moment, he grinned.

“Yeji, what’s wrong?”

“…Get to the point.”

“Hey, do we really need a ‘point’ between us?”

“Just tell me why you’re here.”

No matter how much I thought about it, I couldn’t imagine he came here to have a friendly chat.

He must have come to demand something from me.

Whether it was to blackmail me using what happened a few days ago… or to try and coax me… it would be one of the two.

I remembered what he said last time.

That analogy… about how even dipping your pinky finger in could drag you into a quagmire.

“If you don’t tell me, I can’t guarantee your life.”

With those words, I showed clear hostility.

This wasn’t a joke, it was a sincere statement.

I had no qualms about beating a criminal to within an inch of his life.

…Of course, I had no intention of attacking him right now.

Even though no one was around at the moment, there were too many eyes within the academy.

And I wasn’t even sure if the Trickster in front of me was real.

If I got caught up in his ability while I was emotionally agitated, it would end in more than just a headache.

This was… a kind of warning.

A warning that he’d regret it if he tried any cheap tricks… though I didn’t know if it would work.

Fortunately, the Trickster didn’t show any particular reaction.

He just stood there quietly… and then spoke.

“Yeji, shall we… resolve this with a conversation?”

“….”

“I can’t help it if you dislike conversation… but from what I know of you, you’re not one to refuse a conversation.”

The Trickster, after joking around like that, added.

“That drive we had the other day was fantastic.”

“Ha….”

“I’m just kidding. It’s not like we can’t say things like this to each other, right?”

“Get to the point… this is the third time I’m asking.”

“Well, it’s simple. It seems like you need medication to stabilize your mental state… how about a trade?”

“….”

Rationally….

Yes, rationally, it was the right thing to refuse.

The medications my aunt used to make required highly specialized knowledge.

No matter how great a criminal the Trickster was, it seemed unlikely he could just whip up such medications.

Even if he could, it was a problem.

The moment I received medication from him, I would no longer be able to refuse him.

So, this was a deal I had to refuse.

I should have frowned, told him to stop talking nonsense, and chased him away.

But… I couldn’t help but hesitate.

“I’ll give you plenty of time to think. Five minutes should be enough, right?”

“….”

I couldn’t easily open my mouth.

I was worried that I might be fooling myself into thinking I was okay… and that I might mess things up.

I thought I had managed to get by without medication so far, but it was also true that I couldn’t shake off the PTSD without it.

Yes, I had to admit it.

“…Sigh.”

A sigh escaped me, but it couldn’t be helped.

“…I’ll decide, after seeing the results.”

As soon as I said that, the Trickster smiled.

It felt bad, like I’d given him the answer he wanted, but it really couldn’t be helped.

I… didn’t want to reveal to anyone that I had this… painful past.

If I could just not get caught… I wanted to live as a normal person, pretending to be normal, and then die.

“But if you try anything funny, I won’t let you get away with it. You know my skills, right…?”

“Understood. Yeji, then I’ll visit you soon.”

I paused for a moment, then nodded.

Right after that, the Trickster’s form began to blur.

In a few seconds, there was nothing left in that place.

It was spooky, but not particularly strange.

He probably used the ability of someone under his command.

So, for now, it seemed better to focus on other things.

It was true.

As Gong Jinhoo had said, there were some preliminary matches that we couldn’t hold… because of the field training.

How many preliminary matches did we fight, knocking down countless students?

When I came to my senses, several days had passed… and it was the day the preliminary matches were being filmed.

Actually, there wasn’t much difference between filming and normal days.

It was just students clashing with each other, and then a winner and loser were decided.

Because of that, I was just spacing out… but maybe he found it strange, because Gong Jinhoo spoke to me with a puzzled expression.

“Aren’t you nervous?”

“Not really.”

“You have a match today.”

“…Ah?”

“With the finals approaching, the media’s attention is focused… are you really not nervous?”

“…I guess not.”

I had no intention of standing out, so I was going to take it easy.

No matter who my opponent was, I planned to just spar and finish it.

But… my opponent said something strange.

“Hey, you there! I’m going to crush you so badly, you won’t even be able to show your parents!”

My opponent’s arrogant face appeared on the giant screen.

He probably threw out a low-level provocation to attract attention… but how should I put it.

I’m not usually the type to be swayed by this kind of provocation….

…But after hearing something like that, I can’t help but get angry.

So, instead of answering, I roughly threw aside the things that were in my way and climbed onto the stage.

I saw Gong Jinhoo, who was watching me from right behind, get startled, but I ignored him neatly and took a stance.

“My name is Park Seongjin! Remember it!”

“Alright.”

He said he would crush me miserably, didn’t he?

As soon as the starting signal went off, I planned to charge in and return those words to him exactly.

And that’s exactly what I did.

In just one step, with an explosive sound, I reached that damn bastard.

All that was left was a blow that utilized this speed, but for some reason, his eyes were shining.

It felt like he was saying, ‘I knew it…’.

“Where do you think you’re going!”

Yellow and white dough began to flow from his hands.

The dough instantly solidified, becoming as hard as a shield.

It felt like he was using freshly baked bread as a shield.

It was quite a novel ability… and its hardness couldn’t be underestimated.

I hit it with half my strength, and it didn’t even get a scratch.

“Ha, I told you! I’m going to crush you miserably!”

As soon as he finished speaking, he slammed both hands on the floor.

Simultaneously, dough began to overflow from his hands.

He probably planned to transform the entire arena into something advantageous for him.

Normally, I should have subdued him before he could do that, but I became greedy.

He said twice that he would crush me to a miserable degree.

If he said that and lost even after bringing out his full power, wouldn’t that be quite pathetic?

So, I didn’t do anything and waited for a moment… then I dashed forward.

A fortress of bread and sweets sprung up everywhere.

And inside, that guy hiding with spears made of sugar.

The situation was clear about what needed to be done.

If it was strength against strength, I wouldn’t be lacking either, so I intended to clash head-on.

I just ran forward.

Without regard for technique or anything, relying solely on my physical abilities.

Clenching my fist, I punched and smashed everything that blocked my way with all my might.

With a brutal sound of *crack*, the walls of the fortress began to break.

The fences and spears set up to prevent intrusion were instantly shattered, of course.

It was a bit sturdy for something made of bread and sweets.

He probably thought he could hold out by relying on this, but it seems he didn’t fully know my physical abilities.

I saw his face turn pale.

But even in that situation, he seemed to have some guts, because he regained his composure and prepared to face me.

“…Eek!”

With a short scream, he jumped out of the fortress.

At the same time, a huge amount of sugar syrup flowing from his hands gathered on his palm.

“I, told you!”

With those words, the sugar syrup on his hand formed a huge lance.

Without stopping there, he made a horse out of dough, climbed on it, and spoke again.

“I’m going to trample you miserably!”

Instead of answering, I kicked off the ground.

Instantly reaching a speed that half-transcended human limits.

Clenching my fist with all my might, I aimed at him and pushed off strongly.

At the same time, I saw him charge forward, holding his lance tightly.

Normally, I should have thrown a punch right then.

But… suddenly, a strange memory popped up.

Something that couldn’t be called from my youth as a man, nor from my youth as a girl….

I was reading a book.

From a newly gifted collection of world masterpieces, I picked out a book related to chivalry and my eyes were shining.

Don Quixote, The Three Musketeers, and other Arthurian tales.

Normally, this should have ended at the level of mere idle thoughts, but not now.

The half-broken sugar wall was momentarily confused with a glass window.

The sudden alarm that rang made my spine chill.

The guy rushing towards me didn’t look like a guy.

It looked like… something else I had to kill, and my body trembled.

Controlling my strength was impossible.

In such a situation, I knew exactly what to do, so I immediately adjusted my posture.

Instead of extending my fist forward, I could punch the floor as if breaking a roof tile.

“Damn…!”

Swallowing the curse, I struck the floor with all my might.

Because I had put all my strength into it, intending to kill for even an instant.

The arena, instead of withstanding my fist, shattered with tremendous wind pressure, scattering fragments everywhere.

For a moment, the protective barrier guarding the audience seats was activated.

Far away, I saw the guy fallen with a broken sugar spear, bleeding.

I also heard someone declare my victory.

“Ugh…!”

I retched involuntarily.

I didn’t even have the leisure to act like I was normal now, so I sat down.

It was just a trivial matter.

No matter how much I thought about it, there was no reason to go berserk like this.

But… why?

Why did confusion suddenly arise at this moment?

I didn’t know the details… but a few things were clear.

Now it might really be hard to control.

And… now I have to pay the price I’ve been ignoring all this time.