Chapter 81 – Teamwork (2)

Kim Suho walked to his room under the faint moonlight. He suddenly burst into laughter on the dark road. The previous fight flashed before his eyes. Kim Hajin had easily blown him away when he closed the distance. Even now, he couldn’t understand what attacked him. Was it a physical attack or instantaneous magic power? Either way, a mysterious force had struck him, and Kim Hajin dealt a valid blow.

I thought I was the only one hiding my power.

Abnormally high strength attracted unwanted suspicion. As such, Kim Suho only revealed enough to maintain first place for his family.

So someone else thought the same as me.

Kim Suho didn't go easy against Kim Hajin. Still, Kim Hajin had managed to avoid his attacks. Even now, Kim Hajin’s movements felt completely mysterious. It appeared mindless and lacking in foundation. He looked slow and full of openings. However, Kim Suho could only graze or miss as Kim Hajin escaped with incomprehensible acrobatics. It seemed like an easy victory, but he couldn’t close out the fight and couldn’t even gauge Kim Hajin’s true strength. Kim Hajin perfectly hid his power.

“Hmm?”

Kim Suho heard a sword cutting through the wind. He could also hear a small shout. The sound came from the park near the dorms. He curiously headed over and spotted Chae Nayun swinging.

“What are you doing?”

“Hyak!”

Chae Nayun threw the sword away in surprise. It flew like a baseball bat and struck a window. Thankfully, the window didn’t break, but the cadet inside turned on the lights and woke up.

“Wh, what!”

“Why are you so surprised?”

“…”

Chae Nayun glared at the uninvited guest.

“Were you practicing the sword?” Kim Suho smirked and asked.

“Just stamina training.”

Chae Nayun unleashed her magic power and the sword flew back into her hands. She dusted off the dirt and pointed at Kim Suho.

“Where are you coming from?”

“Me? I met with Kim Hajin,” Kim Suho honestly answered.

Chae Nayun’s eyes widened. “Kim Hajin?”

“Yep.”

“What for?”

Chae Nayun asked as she tucked her hair behind her ears, pretending to be unconcerned. Kim Suho had a mischievous thought.

“We talked about you.”

“Wha, wha, what. Bu, bullshit.”

She reacted rather strongly. Her face flushed to her ears, and she couldn’t stop fidgeting. Kim Suho shook his head while laughing.

“I’m joking. We sparred.”

“Sparred? You and Kim Hajin?”

“Yeah.”

“Who won? No, you must have won. But why?”

“You don’t need to know that.”

Chae Nayun frowned. Then she turned around and focused on her sword practice. Whish. Whish. She swung her sword with too much strength. Kim Suho stepped in, unable to bear it.

“You can’t hold a sword like that.”

“What.”

“You won’t be able to properly cut your target if you grip it so tightly.”

Kim Suho pulled out his wooden sword and demonstrated. He held it lightly, yet firm enough to change his grip at any moment. Kim Suho swung and drew a clean arc in the air. The wind touched Chae Nayun’s hair and scattered. Her unenthusiastic attitude immediately changed. She carefully watched and copied Kim Suho.

“Like, like this?”

Her lesson with Kim Suho continued until midnight.

***

Chae Nayun video called Hazuki when she returned to her room to finalize their team. She made Hazuki vice-leader and selected an average supporter and sharpshooter. Two warriors, one support, one sharpshooter, and one magician. The higher ranked magician from Seoul Magic Academy would help balance the team. Furthermore, Chae Nayun could act as both a warrior and sharpshooter. Her team could undoubtedly be considered one of the best.

— Ah… then is Hajin not joining us?

However, Hazuki murmured regretfully on the video call.

“Uh, well, I can bring him if I wanted, but then I’d feel bad for Rachel’s team. Everyone on that team is only average besides Rachel.”

Chae Nayun loudly replied. Team Rachel wasn’t particularly outstanding. Their team consisted of three warriors and no supporter. The magician named Tomer also seemed below average.

— But…

“Let’s not think about them. I’m going to submit the final team list, okay?”

— Y-Yes.

Chae Nayun hung up and jumped in bed, but she didn’t feel sleepy. Frankly, she felt frustrated and annoyed. She would’ve asked Kim Hajin earlier if she knew this would happen. They would’ve obtained a good score in theory too. Rachel ended up taking him because she kept hesitating.

“Am I going to lose again?”

She still remembered her defeat during the midterm. Her loss then also contributed to her changing weapons. Chae Nayun recalled the bitter memory under her blanket and suddenly shot up. She simply couldn’t sleep. She picked up the helmet next to her bed and played some games to relieve her stress.

[Gladiator of the Century]

This famous virtual reality game frequently aired on public broadcasts because it helped with image training. Heroes and cadets enjoyed it all over the world. The media always featured the rank 1 player of each season.

[Nayunjajangman] [98 wins 17 losses]

Chae Nayun felt extremely proud of her win rate.

“Hm.”

Unranked matches seemed better than ranked matches for relieving stress. Chae Nayun found a suitable opponent nicknamed Extra7. He belonged in the platinum league with 43 wins and 43 losses. It would be an easy victory.

[You have challenged Extra7 to a duel.] [Extra7 has accepted your challenge.]

“This guy is quite bold.”

Chae Nayun grinned as she focused. This game didn’t have any stats or items. Only battle sense and superior control determined victory or defeat.

[Start!]

The duel began. Chae Nayun wanted to take things slow and test the waters. However, the opponent acted unexpectedly. Before she could adapt, her character floated up and consecutive strikes tore her apart. Her vision turned red before she realized what happened.

“Eh, what? A-Ah!”

She seriously tried, but her HP fell too low. She lost after just three minutes. [Defeat] Chae Nayun blankly stared and frowned.

“Argh, this sly piece of crap!”

***

[Victory]

I won again in a game called [Gladiator of the Century]. It felt quite realistic in terms of graphics and movements, so I’ve been playing it recently to image train.

“So it works on this too.”

The number 37 flashed on the console helmet. The Random Consolidation System also applied to it.

[Random Consolidation System] [Low rank] [Spirit attribute] — Random Consolidation: Will enhance the scanned equipment by 1-44%. The consolidation will last for 24 hours, after which the boost percentage will be randomized once again.

My enhanced game console became something else. Not only did the console’s performance increase, but the speed of my thoughts and feelings also increased by 37%.

“I won seven times in a row.”

Thanks to my new gift, I defeated a veteran seven times in a row. Of course, the unranked matches didn’t affect my ranked stats.

[Nayunjajangman requests a rematch.] [Nayunjajangman requests a rematch.] [Nayunjajangman requests a rematch.]

“This kid sure is tenacious. Well too bad for you, I have to sleep now.”

I turned the game off and put away the helmet. I caught Evandel in the corner of my eyes.

“Yummy. So yummy.”

She fell asleep when I got home, but soon woke up when I started to play the game. Now she fully woke up and munched on the cake. She had eaten half of it. Was she allowed to eat that much? I felt a bit concerned, so I confiscated the cake.

“Ah, aan! W-What ish it!”

“Let’s save the rest for later.”

“Why, why!”

“It’s not good for your health.”

Evandel hopped and tried to grab the cake. However, I coldheartedly put it away on the fridge’s topmost shelf. Evandel placed her hands on her waist and frowned. It looked like she was disgruntled at the entire world.

“I want more! I want more!”

She had even learned how to complain. I placed my index finger over my lips.

“Shh. You should only eat a little after meals. Also, you can’t be loud at night.”

“…”

Her tiny hands trembled even though she quieted down. I held her up.

“You can eat the rest of it tomorrow, okay? I’ll buy even more delicious food.”

“Really?”

“Of course. Have I ever not kept a promise?”

She seemed appeased as I stroked her head. Not long afterward, Evandel fell asleep and I tucked her into bed. I noticed that Kim Suho sent me a message two hours ago.

[Second week of August on Friday. Let’s meet then.]

“Whew.”

It seemed like he recognized my skills, all thanks to the modified cadet jacket. Kim Suho didn’t seem to suspect anything either. Of course, he had no reason to suspect his own jacket. Moreover, an unknown force had pushed him. Kim Suho would never figure out what happened.

***

Today’s Wednesday class would be the first since teams formed. We would undergo a combat training called dungeon investigation. Normally, heroes would dispatch an advance party first after they discovered a dungeon. The advance party would scout and gather information about the dungeon’s interior. In this combat training, cadets would act as the advance party.

“Ah, it’s so cold.”

“Auuu, aren’t you cold, Hajin?”

My team had entered a dungeon covered in ice. The five of us shivered as we walked forward. The road suddenly forked into five branches after about 20 minutes.

“It’s here.”

Tomer suddenly pointed at the rightmost path. I stared in the direction she pointed. As expected, it contained a trap.

“No, that’s the wrong direction.”

“What? No, it isn’t.”

Tomer wanted to lead us into a trap. I didn’t think a djinn waited there, but it must be life-threatening.

“In a dungeon investigation, it’s common sense to listen to your sharpshooter.”

“…”

Tomer stared at Rachel. Too bad for her, Rachel was also on my side.

“Let’s go as Hajin says.”

“Don’t regret it later.”

Tomer acted like a sore loser.

“There’s a yeti up ahead.”

A yeti slept on the path I chose. We advanced with our guard up. Tomer continually tried to lead us, especially Rachel, into a trap. However, I always prevented her.

“I think it’s this way, for real this time. If you see the traces of ice around there…”

“No, it’s not.”

“No, just trust me this once. Rachel, come with me. Wouldn’t it be more efficient to split into two groups?”

“No, we can’t.”

I had to commend her constant efforts, but that didn’t mean I could allow her to do as she pleased. I grabbed Rachel by the wrist and led her. Tomer grew more irritated as time passed.

“Um…”

My thousand-mile eyes pinpointed the shortest path through this maze-like ice dungeon. We didn’t experience any obstructions or difficulties. Finally, we caught a glimpse of the instructor at the exit. Rachel spoke uncomfortably.

“Um… Hajin.”

“Yes?”

“This…”

Rachel glanced at her wrist. I held onto her, thinking Tomer might take her away.

“Oh right, sorry.”

“No, you don’t need to be…”

“Team Rachel!”

The instructor shouted as he spotted us. We ran up to him.

“Your findings?”

“Yes. A yeti, snow beast, white calamity, white drake…”

Rachel recited the results of our investigation. The instructor listened as he compared it to a list. Then he faintly smiled.

“Based on the monsters’ ranks, the dungeon boss is likely to be at least intermediate rank, grade 3.”

“Good. Team Rachel, perfect score.”

Rachel’s face lit up along with the other team members. They happily celebrated our perfect score.

“Dammit.”

Meanwhile, Tomer kicked a rock out of frustration.