Ch 54-60 - Online Story Read Mode

Chapter 54 Battle Survival (1)

This year is what you could call a "Golden Generation."

That's because a swarm of geniuses from across the globe has entered Union Academy.

Lee Siwoon, the prodigy of the SL Group.

Baek Yoorin, the granddaughter of the "Ten Swords'" greatest swordsman.

Kang Daehan, the bloodline of the legendary hero Kang Cheoleun.

Yoo Seolhyun, the granddaughter of the genius of creativity, Yoo Gamyeong.

Yuliya Troyanova, the disciple of the Archmage, and so on…

The midterm exams this time around attracted much more attention than in previous years because of the sheer number of geniuses.

Furthermore, it was a gathering where the heirs of Korea's most inﬂuential corporations, the owners of massive clans, and the bloodlines of legendary heroes were all being evaluated together. It was obvious that the competition would be ﬁerce.

For the students, this midterm was a great opportunity to prove their value and abilities to the people of Korea.

After all, making a name for oneself at Union Academy was a world apart from gaining fame in a small town during middle school.

If you could stand tall among these geniuses, no one would dare deny your worth.

As the midterm exams, which spanned several weeks, unfolded, people were eager to see who would stand out.

Many speculated about names like Lee Siwoon, Kang Daehan, Baek Yoorin, Yoo Seolhyun, Goo Hancheol, and Kim Joon, engaging in heated debates.

All of them were hero candidates who had been rumored to be exceptional since their youth.

Some even placed bets, similar to sports lottery tickets, on who would rank the highest.

But what was this?

An unexpected ﬁgure was starting to make a name for himself.

That person was none other than Lee Jinhyuk. [Author: novel***

Title: What's up with Lee Jinhyuk? Why is his overall score so

high?]

[Reply: Didn't he barely make it into the academy?] [Reply: Really?]

[Reply: My friend attends Union Academy, so I know.] [Reply: Your friend goes to Union? Yeah right, then I'm attending Seoul National University, idiot.]

[Reply: Oh, right. Isn't he one of the kids who caught that Black-Handed Long-Armed Monkey at the academy? I heard he even received an award for it.]

[Author: munp***

Title: Breaking News: Lee Jinhyuk's team just set the highest score in the Hostage Rescue exam, lol]

[Reply: ??? Really?]

[Reply: He scored higher than Lee Siwoon's team?] [Reply: Isn't that guy a non-ability user?]

[Reply: Talentless guy overcame prodigies, lol.]

[Author: joa***

Title: Isn't Lee Jinhyuk just riding on his team's coattails?] [Reply: He'll probably get wrecked once the individual exams start.]

[Reply: Isn't today's exam Battle Survival? Then Lee Jinhyuk's going to get destroyed, lol.]

[Reply: Yeah. Battle Survival places importance on individual abilities.]

[Reply: You never know. He might set a high score again, lol.]

[Reply: Let's go for the underdog win!]

The internet community was buzzing with talk about Lee Jinhyuk.

And for good reason—no one expected a student who had been nearly at the bottom to outperform prominent geniuses in the ﬁrst midterm exams and achieve such high scores.

It was almost unheard of for an ordinary(?) student like Lee Jinhyuk to stand out among geniuses who had been famous for a long time.

After all, Lee Jinhyuk's combat abilities were abysmal, and he hadn't even awakened any special abilities. He was a defective product.

Besides having decent theoretical scores, he wasn't particularly noteworthy.

On top of that, he had barely been admitted to Union Academy, almost at the bottom of the list. This was a sign that he lacked the qualities necessary to become a hero.

So, what was going on?

How could he achieve such high scores in dungeon conquests, hostage rescues, and the Hero vs. Villain exams?

In the dungeon conquest, he set an astonishing record for the shortest completion time, and in the Hostage Rescue exam, he practically toyed with the opposing team with meticulous strategies and tactics. In the Hero vs. Villain exam, he persistently exploited his opponent's weaknesses to secure numerous victories.

It wasn't as if he had won purely by his own power, but he had fully utilized the team-based format to achieve victory through extraordinary tactics and leadership, which drew the attention of many people.

Ordinarily, the outcome of such exams would be determined by the one-man show of a powerful ability user.

But Lee Jinhyuk used strategy and tactics to make up for his lack of brute strength, proudly outsmarting the geniuses who had always reigned as victors since they were young.

In some ways, Lee Jinhyuk was more like an unusually clever ordinary person, which naturally made him the subject of much discussion among certain people.

His actions were a breath of fresh air for other hero trainees who had been subtly looked down upon as incompetent because they lacked abilities.

"Ah~ This guy Lee Jinhyuk is quite famous these days, isn't he?"

But gaining fame isn't always a good thing. "He seems pretty smart too."

Because it wasn't only ordinary people and heroes who had taken an interest in him. Villains were watching too.

Even the worst of them, who were always lurking, waiting to prey on Union students.

"What do you think, Seong Yura?"

Yoo Dahee, who had smoothly brushed back her bleached white hair, sat on the sofa with a bored expression as she scrolled through a hero community site.

Yoo Dahee was the leader of the villain group Rebellion and was currently with Seong Yura.

Her talent and power were so overwhelming that they could shake the heavens and the earth.

If Yoo Dahee had walked the path of a hero, people like Lee Siwoon, Kang Daehan, and Yoo Seolhyun wouldn't have even been able to hold a candle to her.

She was already far stronger than most regular instructors.

"Why? Are you thinking of making Lee Jinhyuk another one of your prey?"

"Hmm… not really."

Yoo Dahee shrugged at Seong Yura's question.

Even though Lee Jinhyuk seemed to be performing well in team-based exams, he was a non-ability user.

Such individuals had clear limitations as heroes. Without a team, they were nothing.

So Yoo Dahee wasn't particularly interested.

"Not really? Since he's a non-ability user, I'm not very interested."

"Oh, really?"

Rather than someone like Lee Jinhyuk, she was more interested in other hero trainees.

Those who had the skills and talents worth crushing.

Like Lee Siwoon, Kang Daehan, Joo Jiyeon, Goo Hancheol, and so on… There were plenty of them.

"By the way, Seong Yura, are you all set? Today's the day we're going to cause chaos at the academy."

"And you?"

"Me? I'm all set." Yoo Dahee chuckled.

"A lot of discontented losers from society have joined in as mercenaries."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Unlike our Rebellion members, they're just third-rate villains, but since there are quite a few of them, they can at least serve as bait or hunting dogs."

Their role was to delay the security forces and to hunt down and contact the targeted students for Yoo Dahee.

"They're trash who couldn't adapt to society and just whine about it, but at times like these, they can be surprisingly useful."

"Is that so?"

"Yeah. These third-rate lives, you see, they have no future. None at all."

After all, they were beyond salvation, with no way to turn their lives around.

"They're ﬁlled with anger and want to vent their frustrations immediately, but they're too scared to do it alone. So I just gave them an opportunity to join in."

"But to think they would participate in such a plan. I really don't understand."

"Kik. These third-rate lives just want to watch the world burn. They ﬁnd joy in trampling on others' happiness."

Yoo Dahee suddenly tilted her head up.

"Of course, since they don't respond well to words alone, I had to borrow a little help from a self-proclaimed hero maniac."

"Oh, that guy who's always smiling? I've only seen him a few times."

Seong Yura suddenly recalled the face of a man.

A man who, within the villain organization Rebellion, had an oddly benevolent attitude toward heroes.

Of course, it wasn't a normal kind of benevolence. It was a twisted fascination and affection, but it seemed genuine in its own way.

Well… the heroes who received his attention didn't fare too well in the end, though.

"That guy's ability… wasn't it mind control?"

"To be precise, it's not exactly mind control, but it's similar."

It wasn't exactly mind control but rather an ability that stimulated human emotions.

By provoking and amplifying negative feelings like inferiority, desire, anger, and resentment, controlling a person became incredibly easy.

Especially if the person was a piece of trash, a third-rate thug drifting in the back alleys ﬁlled with resentment toward heroes and society.

"Anyway, it's good to see that everything is set, Yoo Dahee."

"I would've liked for more of our members to join, but they didn't seem to be interested."

Yoo Dahee clicked her tongue in disappointment.

"I wasn't planning on making a move until the ﬁnals or the training camp, but you went ahead and made the ﬁrst move, so I decided to join in. You really don't like that nun, do you, Seong Yura?"

"It's not that I particularly hate her. Also, this time, it's not just about bothering her, it's about testing her."

"Oh, is that so?"

Yoo Dahee chuckled and rolled her red eyes.

"Well, ﬁne. Let's both do our best to achieve our own goals." "Yeah, Yoo Dahee. You and I are after different things." Different goals.

Yoo Dahee's goal was to crush the academy trainees and spread chaos through the media, while Seong Yura's goal was to attack Roxanne and those around her to uncover any hidden connections.

The two were cooperating solely for their own purposes.

"Today's test is Battle Survival, right? Kik. It's going to be a real survival out there."

It might be a third-rate rabble, but with so many villains joining in, won't it be a good experience for the hero- trainees?

Of course, for those who have the misfortune of running into Yoo Dahee, it will be the worst experience, kik.

***

Battle Survival. "Huff, huff, huff."

"Hey, hey! Lee Jinhyuk! You! Stop right there!"

Battle Survival is an exam held outside the academy to evaluate the students' survival skills, combat abilities, quick thinking, interpersonal combat skills, large-scale monster combat skills, tactical abilities, and more.

The goal is to survive for a total of ﬁve days in a vast mountainous area.

The forest is a world of survival of the ﬁttest.

Numerous traps, items, and artiﬁcial monsters are scattered throughout, and students can earn points through competition. The more points someone collects, the higher their score.

There are two main ways to earn points. The ﬁrst is by defeating artiﬁcial monsters.

The second is by ﬁghting other students and stealing their points.

Each student is equipped with a smart watch that allows them to steal or trade points.

This smart watch also includes a basic map function and a surrender function. If a student wants to give up, they just

need to hold down a button.

Then, a security oﬃcer on standby will arrive to safely escort the student out, at the cost of failing the exam.

Of course, the surrender button requires ﬁngerprint recognition, so it's useless unless the student presses it themselves.

Oh, well, you could always knock someone out or threaten them to press it themselves.

"Huff, huff, damn it, Jinhyuk, you're making this way too tiring."

"You guys are persistent… to have chased me all the way here."

I caught my breath for a moment and looked at the students who had been chasing me.

Kim Yuseong and two extras were panting heavily as they glared at me with hostile expressions. Wow, those are some ﬁerce eyes.

"Guys, isn't teaming up on the ﬁrst day a bit much?" Teaming up.

It's when people form alliances, like those three. "If you don't like it, why don't you do it too?" "Hmm? Then will you let me join?"

"No."

"Aww, that's too harsh. Where's the camaraderie? We've known each other since middle school, right? How about we take it easy on the ﬁrst day?"

"Nope, not happening." Kim Yuseong smiled slyly.

It was a smile that belonged to a truly despicable villain. It was the look of a predator eyeing its prey.

Although I had been doing well in the exams so far, it was only because I had skillfully utilized my teammates.

In terms of individual combat ability, I was among the lowest.

Kim Yuseong was well aware of that.

To him, I was nothing more than a rat trapped in a jar. "Sigh. Yuseong, can't we just talk this out?"

"The only thing left to do is to ﬁght."

"Sigh. You really are impossible to communicate with. No wonder your theory scores are so bad."

"What did you say, punk?"

Kim Yuseong snapped.

It seemed he was well aware that he wasn't the brightest.

In the game, he wasn't a character who particularly liked me.

After all, his role was to secretly bully me to suck up to Lee Siwoon.

Right now, our relationship wasn't exactly good, but it wasn't bad either.

Unlike in the original story, I was maintaining a normal relationship with Lee Siwoon.

Besides, I had broken up with Soyeon and was getting along well with someone like Yoo Seolhyun, so Yuseong probably didn't feel the need to mess with me.

'Kim Yuseong's freshman ranking is in the upper-middle tier, but… his close-combat ability is said to rival those in the upper ranks.'

I wasn't sure how strong the other two were, but it's not like I could handle them anyway.

My combat abilities were really terrible.

If I were to ﬁght any of them one-on-one, I wouldn't stand a chance.

"Then get ready, Lee Jinhyuk." But that's ﬁne.

Why?

Because, as I mentioned earlier, this forest is full of hidden traps and items.

"Don't hold a grudge."

Ah, of course, I don't know the exact locations of the traps and items.

In the game, the forest appeared in a much smaller scale compared to reality, so many things were different.

It's not like I had obtained special information beforehand, like during the Youngdeung Mountain Dungeon, and the location wasn't as conﬁned as a dungeon.

Finding the exact locations of traps and items in this vast forest would be incredibly diﬃcult.

But that doesn't really matter. Why?

Because when it comes to traps…

I can just set them up myself, right?

I secretly smuggled in all sorts of traps and items through the Space Ring.

So, I can easily set up simple traps. Hmm.

For example, something like a landmine? "Well then…?"

The moment one of the male students, who looked like an extra, took a step toward me, there was a clicking sound followed by a loud bang as the ground exploded.

It was an explosive booby trap that I had set up. Ah, gotcha.

"Ugh, aah!?" "What the hell?!"

"A trap! That bastard lured us into a trap!"

Because the academy had explicitly warned us to be cautious of traps, items, and monsters, the kids didn't seem to suspect that the trap was something I had set up myself.

Just in case, I had set up traps that were similar to the ones the academy had laid down.

To avoid getting into trouble later.

Of course, the locations of the traps differed somewhat from the original ones, but it wouldn't be easy to compare them all.

Ah, there's always a possibility that a security oﬃcer on standby could catch me, but the forest is really large.

It's impossible to monitor everything.

Also, even if you press the surrender button on the smart watch, it takes quite a while for a security oﬃcer to arrive.

And, well… I had scouted out places where security oﬃcers wouldn't likely be and set up the traps there.

"Hey, hey! Snap out of it! Let's take him down ﬁrst…!" Swoosh!

I immediately shot a practice arrow.

My target was the guy who had stepped on the booby trap.

Under normal circumstances, he could have easily blocked or dodged it.

But since he was still disoriented from the booby trap, my arrow hit him dead on, and he tumbled to the ground.

Oops, if he rolls that way… "You bastard… Ugh, aaahhh!" Boom!

Unfortunately for him, he rolled right onto another landmine.

With a satisfying explosion, the male student slammed his head into a tree.

He was a hero-in-training, so he should be ﬁne, but since he got hit on the back of the head, it looked like he passed out.

Oh, nice.

One down.

"Ga, Kang Jihoon!"

Ah, so his name was Kang Jihoon? I didn't know that.

I can't remember the names of every unimportant character from another class in the game.

"Damn it, how many traps are there here?!"

Yeah, there are a ton. This place is a mineﬁeld.

I've set up a lot of traps here.

Of course, the traps aren't just mines.

Just in case there were kids like you who wanted to gang up on me, I've prepared a lot of fun traps.

Chapter 55

Battle Survival (2)

Eventually, some time passed. "…Phew. That was exhausting."

I wiped the sweat trickling down my temple and cautiously surveyed my surroundings.

There, I saw a group of kids lying on the dirt ground, looking like a ragged mess. Each of them seemed to have ended up in a miserable state, their situations clearly not good.

One had stepped on a mine and exploded(?), another was hanging unconscious from a snare, and then there was…

"Ugh, ugh… J-Jinhyuk, you… you…" Kim Yuseong.

Not far away, Kim Yuseong was breathing heavily, glaring at me with hostile eyes like a trapped beast.

But it seemed he couldn't move. His body wasn't responding to his commands. He looked like he desperately wanted to stand up, but he couldn't budge an inch.

It was only natural. A greenish, sticky substance was clinging to his entire body, restraining his movements.

'Well, that's what happens when you're hot-headed. A few taunts and he charges at me like a wild boar.'

An enraged Kim Yuseong tried to bulldoze through the mineﬁeld recklessly.

Sure, with his tough body and special abilities, he might have managed to withstand it somehow.

But Yuseong, you shouldn't have assumed that all the mines were just explosive. I even laid down binding mines speciﬁcally for someone like you.

"Wasn't that a bit too reckless? You're no Sunari. Charging in blindly was kind of stupid."

"Ugh, J-Jinhyuk, you—"

"And that's why you ended up getting bound and treated like a target."

Taking down the now immobile Kim Yuseong wasn't diﬃcult.

All I had to do was shoot arrows at his vital spots from a distance.

No matter how tough Kim Yuseong was, it was impossible for him to endure magic arrows for long.

Besides, he had already stepped on several explosive mines, accumulating damage.

If it were someone like Sunari with an extreme body enhancement ability, it might have been different, but at Kim Yuseong's level, he wouldn't be able to last for long.

"Well then, sleep tight, Yuseong."

"W-Wait! Wait a sec, Jinhyuk—kwek?!" "Ah, whatever."

I raised my practice sword high and slammed the ﬂat of the blade against Kim Yuseong's head with all my might.

With a satisfying clang, Kim Yuseong let out a short death throe, his head wobbling for a moment before his eyes rolled back, and he slumped forward.

It seemed like he had passed out.

'Kim Yuseong and two others… Well, I managed to take them down somehow.'

If it had been a fair ﬁght, I would never have won.

But by using various traps and items, I was able to defeat them. If they were active heroes, these tricks wouldn't have worked, but the students were still just hero trainees.

'Good, now let's take their points.'

I approached the unconscious kids and manipulated their smart watches to steal the points they had.

I managed to obtain a total of 300 points.

Since all the trainees start with 100 points each, I now had 400 points.

'Should I press the elimination button to completely retire them, or should I hold off?'

I pondered for a moment but soon shook my head.

Security oﬃcers or instructors might come here and question the traces of the activated traps.

I had no choice but to hold off on eliminating them for now.

Well, that's good for you, Yuseong. Since it's the ﬁrst day, if you try hard enough afterward, you might avoid failing.

I mused to myself with some pointless thoughts, then stretched my back with a wry smile.

Hmm… I've caused too much of a commotion in one place for too long.

The forest had echoed with loud explosions repeatedly. Some of the other kids might have heard it. They could already be on their way.

'I should get out of here before I'm discovered by other kids.'

Now that my business here was done, I decided to make a quick exit.

Most of the traps I had set up around here had been used up, so if I ran into other students, it would be very dangerous.

Although I was conﬁdent I could escape to the next trap- laden area.

'I hope I can run into Soyeon quickly.'

Although the forest was vast, the initial positions assigned after teleportation were determined by the order of entry.

In other words, if I knew the entry order of the key characters, I could roughly guess where they were positioned.

Based on what I knew about the entry order, there was a high possibility that Jin Soyeon, Lee Siwoon, Roxanne, and other key ﬁgures were in the vicinity of Area B-1.

By considering their movement speed and range of action over time, I could make a more accurate guess about their locations.

If I used the illegally smuggled satellite map and portable radar from my Space Ring, it would be even easier to pinpoint their positions.

'If I meet Soyeon, I could ask her to cooperate.' Soyeon would be an excellent ally.

She had good abilities and wasn't the type to betray others.

And if I allied with Soyeon, there might be a chance to recruit Lee Siwoon if we ran into him.

Lately, things had been a bit awkward between Soyeon and Siwoon, but no matter what, it's unlikely that Siwoon would recklessly attack her.

If Soyeon persuaded him well, we could probably form an alliance with Siwoon.

Hmm.

If I could team up with Soyeon and Siwoon, this exam would be a breeze.

'Well, things probably won't go that smoothly… but you never know, right?'

I took a sip of kimchi soup in my imagination and slowly started walking.

And just then. "Lee Jinhyuk."

From afar, a man's voice calling my name echoed through the rustling bushes, as if gripping my ankles.

Ah, who's here already?

I clicked my tongue inwardly and slowly turned toward the source of the voice. I didn't know who it was, but it didn't matter. I had an escape item, so I was conﬁdent I could ﬂee to the next trap-laden area.

…As long as it wasn't a monster like Lee Siwoon. Lee Siwoon.

There was a high probability he was nearby.

But seriously, what are the chances I'd run into him? Right?

"Did you do all this?"

From a distance.

A man stepped lightly through the underbrush, his gaze questioning.

"Kim Yuseong… shouldn't have been someone you could defeat."

With sharp eyes reminiscent of the cold Northern winds and blue hair, the handsome man slowly parted his lips as he looked at me.

"Not just Kim Yuseong, but the other kids too…"

The male student glanced at the fallen kids and then spoke to me in a low voice.

"…It looks like you used traps or something. I'd better not let my guard down."

Lee Siwoon, holding a practice sword, was staring at me with calm eyes and a cold expression.

No way, it's really Lee Siwoon? Why does it have to be him?

I just realized that I was completely screwed.

And for good reason—there were only a couple of traps left in this area, and I had no chance of winning if I fought that guy directly.

Escaping would also be diﬃcult.

Someone as skilled as Lee Siwoon would deﬁnitely send a Sword Qi Wounder ﬂying at me the moment I turned my back.

***

Lee Siwoon.

The male protagonist who represents the Romance Hero Academy.

He was one of the undisputed top geniuses and a so-called growth-type character who became stronger the more danger he faced.

A good background, outstanding appearance, exceptional talent, powerful special abilities…

He had every advantage and was destined to face countless trials and tribulations alongside Jin Soyeon as her ally.

Lee Siwoon was the other protagonist of Romance Hero Academy.

Unlike me.

'Of all times, I had to run into Lee Siwoon when most of my traps were used up. This is bad…'

In terms of talent, ability, appearance, and background, I couldn't compare to Lee Siwoon in any way.

At best, I was just a character created to be bullied by NPCs and then quietly exit the stage as a sacriﬁcial lamb.

I didn't even have anything to lean on.

"I've actually been curious about your skills since the practical assessment."

Lee Siwoon tilted his practice sword at a slight angle toward me.

"After your arrow hit the Black-Handed Long-Armed Monkey, its movements noticeably slowed."

If Lee Siwoon swung that sword, it would turn as sharp as any blade.

"The other kids seemed to overlook it, but Yoo Seolhyun was watching you closely."

"…She was?"

"Yoo Seolhyun once said that underestimating you could lead to trouble."

"Yoo Seolhyun said that?"

Seriously, what has Yoo Seolhyun been saying?

"I found it strange when she insisted on taking you to the Youngdeung Mountain Dungeon. No matter how good you are at strategy and tactics, you're still just a trainee."

Well, that's true.

"Your strategic abilities alone don't explain everything." He was right.

Even if I were in Lee Siwoon's shoes, I'd ﬁnd it odd.

Taking a mere trainee to a dungeon where even pro heroes had failed.

"I ﬁgured you were hiding something. And Yoo Seolhyun must have noticed, which is why she took you along."

No, it's just that Yoo Seolhyun mistakenly thought I had a future vision ability, so she took me along…

"The Yoo Seolhyun I know dislikes incompetent people. But seeing how close she is to you, I have some ideas."

"No, that's…"

"The tactical prowess you've shown in this exam was certainly impressive, but that alone doesn't explain how you dealt a critical blow to the Black-Handed Long-Armed Monkey."

Even if I said it was because I knew the Black-Handed Long- Armed Monkey's weak spot, he wouldn't believe me, right? And even if he did, he'd probably ask how I knew about its weak spot, and I wouldn't have an answer.

Moreover, if I told him that its weak spot was something like an allergy to apples, he'd probably think, 'Is this guy making fun of me?'…

"So, I was curious if you were hiding something else."

"Lee Siwoon."

His resolve seemed to be ﬁrmed up as he looked at me with eyes full of hostility.

"And whether you're someone worthy of being by Soyeon's side."

"Hey? What are you suddenly talking about?"

"Well, it's just my personal opinion, Lee Jinhyuk. So…" With a lofty voice, he declared.

"…Take up your bow, Lee Jinhyuk. Let's have a match."

Chapter 56 Battle Survival (3) "..."

"..."

The two of us fell silent for a moment. A serene stillness settled between us.

The wind tousled the strands of hair that fell across my forehead.

Through my scattered hair, the sharp gaze of Lee Siwoon remained clear.

His eyes were serious and intense—so much so that I couldn't blink.

Our eyes met suddenly, locking in a gaze. Our stares tangled and intertwined.

The cold, hardened expression on Lee Siwoon's face was vivid.

Though his expression was expressionless, there were faint traces of emotion.

Emotions that were a mix of many things.

"At this point, talking isn't going to help, is it?" "Yeah. Lee Jinhyuk, I want to see your skills."

I wanted to resolve this with words if possible.

However, in a situation like this, it seemed impossible to persuade him.

What Lee Siwoon desired wasn't to chat and laugh, but to clash in a battle of blades.

"Honestly, ﬁghting you is a bit daunting." Should I run?

Should I try to escape now?

I brieﬂy considered it, but it was a ridiculous thought. There's no way Lee Siwoon would let me go easily.

I hate to say it, but he's on a completely different level from Kim Yuseong.

If I acted the way I did with Kim Yuseong, I'd only end up with my back slashed.

Lee Siwoon and Kim Yuseong, who was at best mid-tier, couldn't even be compared.

Lee Siwoon was currently the top student of Union Academy, a place often referred to as the cradle of geniuses. He was the best of the best.

Of course, if we're only talking about pure swordsmanship, Baek Yoorin might be better, but that's beside the point.

I let out a deep sigh inwardly.

I had anticipated that I might run into Lee Siwoon, but to think I'd end up ﬁghting him this early.

If we were going to ﬁght, I thought it would be in a place ﬁlled with traps.

'Well, even if we ﬁght now, I won't be able to win.' I readily acknowledged it.

The difference between Lee Siwoon and me.

We weren't even on the same level to begin with. But that's okay.

Because, you see…

There's no need for me to actually win this ﬁght. "Alright, Lee Siwoon."

I tightened my grip on my bow and slowly started moving, subtly guiding Lee Siwoon toward the direction where the landmines were planted.

As soon as he stepped into that area, he'd trigger a mine.

Considering Lee Siwoon's personality, he'd likely approach head-on. If that happens, boom!

"Let's do this, just like you said."

"Sure."

I hurriedly drew my bow.

I nocked several arrows onto the string.

I aimed at Lee Siwoon, but he didn't budge.

I then launched multiple arrows at him. Whoosh! Four arrows shot through the air, precisely targeting Lee Siwoon.

But… Swoosh!

In an instant, Lee Siwoon's ﬁgure vanished before my eyes.

The arrows thudded into the tree behind where Lee Siwoon had been standing.

Cloud Step.

It was one of the movement skills from the game. A footwork technique that allowed the user to close in on the opponent in an instant.

'What the… Already?' He was incredibly fast.

There wasn't even time to reload another arrow.

By the time I blinked again, Lee Siwoon was almost right in front of me.

It was so fast, it was like lightning.

I could barely keep up with him with my eyes.

He was much faster than during the practical assessment. How could he have grown so much in just a few months?

'As expected, he came straight at me. Planning to cut me down before I can shoot again?'

But Lee Siwoon…

If you charge in a straight line, you'll have no choice but to step on it.

The explosive landmine I planted right in front of me. 'Good, that direction… Gotcha!'

As Lee Siwoon dashed toward me like a streak of light, he stepped on the landmine I had planted.

With a click, a deafening explosion roared through the air.

Rocks and branches scattered in every direction, and a cloud of dust billowed up.

He must not have anticipated that there would be a landmine, given that he didn't know how I had fought Kim Yuseong's group.

But Lee Siwoon…

"…Was it a landmine? I thought I heard an explosion earlier."

He remained completely unfazed.

Even though he had stepped on a landmine, he looked completely unharmed.

I cautiously observed Lee Siwoon's condition.

He was protected by a bluish barrier, like a shield. Protective Force Field.

The moment he stepped on the mine, he had formed a magical barrier to negate the impact.

'He managed to cast a Protective Force Field in that brief instant?'

Other kids were caught completely off guard.

But as expected of Lee Siwoon, one of the top geniuses in the story.

To think he could react in that split second. Well, I had anticipated this.

Of course, he would block it.

What was important now was that the landmine had stopped Lee Siwoon in his tracks, and even though he was protected by the Force Field, his ankle had taken some damage.

That means…

It's time to make my next move.

"Lee Siwoon!"

I deliberately called out his name.

To make sure his gaze was focused on me. I quickly drew my practice sword.

A bluish sword aura ﬂared up.

I charged at Lee Siwoon with all my might. I wasn't planning to use my bow anymore.

There was no way my arrows could pierce through that Force Field.

But a sword could. No, to be precise, it could penetrate if I made direct 'contact.'

"..."

Lee Siwoon watched me with calm eyes.

He raised his sword at an angle, focusing a considerable amount of mana into it.

A deep blue light shimmered, like a mirage of mana.

He took a stance for a horizontal slash and was about to swing his sword at me. Sword Qi Wounder. He was probably about to use Sword Qi Wounder.

'Alright, now!'

I immediately activated the Space Ring. Ah.

Why the Space Ring all of a sudden, you ask? Well, I've mentioned it before.

Unlike in the game, in reality, this ring can be used in various ways.

Just like this. "…?"

In an instant.

One of Lee Siwoon's feet sank deep into the ground. As if he had stepped into a sticky swamp.

Beneath Lee Siwoon, the ground had cracked like a ﬁssure, and his foot had sunk into it.

Since his foot suddenly sank into the ground, even someone like Lee Siwoon couldn't maintain his balance properly.

"What the…?" 'An opening!'

The reason Lee Siwoon's foot sank into the ground was because I used the Space Ring.

You see, when I use this ring, I can open and close a dimensional entrance within a six-meter radius.

To put it simply, I created an entrance to the dimensional space right under Lee Siwoon's foot, making it sink like a trap.

Of course, since the dimensional entrance opens rather slowly, I needed to stop Lee Siwoon's movement and distract him.

That's why I drew his attention like this. 'Take this!'

I was now right in front of him, and I immediately swung my sword.

With one foot stuck in the ground and his balance lost, could Lee Siwoon really block this properly?

"Such tricks won't work on me, Lee Jinhyuk." Clang!

The sound of metal clashing echoed as our swords collided. Sparks ﬂew from the collision of our sword auras.

Even though he had lost his balance, Lee Siwoon effortlessly swung his sword to block my strike.

As expected, this level of trickery wasn't enough to land a clean hit.

If it were me, I would've been completely caught off guard. "That trick with the foot… Is that your special ability?" "Who knows!"

But you see, Lee Siwoon.

I've already achieved my goal.

What I wanted was to clash swords with you like this! "I thought you didn't have a special ability…?"

Lee Siwoon suddenly stopped mid-sentence. His expressionless face showed a slight crack.

A faint emotion of bewilderment ﬂashed in his eyes.

That's because I had activated the artifact embedded within me.

Tears of the Moon.

An artifact that absorbs mana and releases it.

Right now, Lee Siwoon and I had our swords locked together. What happens if I use the artifact in this state?

The answer is that it will absorb all of the sword aura from Lee Siwoon.

"What? How can you absorb my aura?"

As his aura vanished in an instant, Lee Siwoon, unable to hide his shock, quickly retreated.

Due to the slight damage to his ankle from stepping on the mine, he couldn't use his footwork.

Not missing this opportunity, I took a deep breath and gathered my mana.

Then, pouring every ounce of strength I had into it, I swung my sword and unleashed Sword Qi Wounder.

It was a Sword Qi Wounder that combined my mana, Lee Siwoon's mana, plus a 1.5x power increase from releasing all the mana.

Even for Lee Siwoon, blocking this would be diﬃcult.

Moreover, Lee Siwoon was momentarily suffering from mana exhaustion due to having his mana drained.

In a situation like this, it would be nearly impossible for him to completely block a Sword Qi Wounder of this magnitude.

"Ugh!"

Startled by the sudden Sword Qi Wounder, Lee Siwoon quickly raised his sword.

He blocked the attack, but staggered backward.

The force of the Sword Qi Wounder was so strong that Lee Siwoon was pushed back several meters.

But that seemed to be all there was to it.

Because Lee Siwoon had managed to deﬂect the Sword Qi Wounder at an angle using the principle of "four ounces to move a thousand pounds."

As a result of the deﬂected Sword Qi Wounder, a few trees fell with a crash, but Lee Siwoon himself remained unharmed.

I had put all my strength into that attack.

And yet, I couldn't even land a single effective hit. Lee Siwoon really isn't just any protagonist.

But. "…Ah."

Crack, snap!

A crack appeared in Lee Siwoon's practice sword. Finally, with a clang, the sword split in half.

A practice sword like that couldn't withstand a Sword Qi Wounder with my mana, Lee Siwoon's mana, and a 1.5x power increase from releasing all the mana.

If it had been a sword suited to Lee Siwoon's level, it wouldn't have broken.

But the sword Lee Siwoon was holding was just a mass- produced item made for academy trainees.

'Phew. Thank goodness his sword broke.'

Yeah.

My ultimate goal wasn't to defeat Lee Siwoon.

Because how could I possibly beat a protagonist with talent like Lee Siwoon?

My goal was merely to break his sword and subtly hint that I was hiding some strength—enough to make him hesitant to continue ﬁghting without a weapon.

"..."

Lee Siwoon silently stared at his broken sword.

It would be disadvantageous for him to keep ﬁghting. Of course, if he continued, he'd win 100%.

But you don't know that, do you?

"Well, Lee Siwoon."

Sensing the moment was right, I deepened my voice.

I had used up all my strength, and I felt like I could collapse at any moment, but I managed to maintain a facade of calm and composure.

Suppressing the breaths that had reached my throat, I spoke in a steady voice.

"I think this is enough." "..."

"Not sure what you think, though." "..."

I sheathed my sword, signaling that I was done. I glanced at Lee Siwoon with slightly tense eyes. Could he attack me now?

Would he come at me again, declaring the ﬁght's not over just because I sheathed my sword? You wouldn't do that, right? You're a cool guy, right, Siwoon?

Thankfully, Lee Siwoon just looked at me with calm eyes.

Yeah, Siwoon. I trust that you're not the type to attack when the opponent has already sheathed their sword. Besides, your sword is broken.

Given Lee Siwoon's personality, the likelihood of him continuing to ﬁght was low. At least, that's the Lee Siwoon I knew. Well, if it were Kang Daehan, maybe.

You're not blinded by jealousy to the point of being irrational, are you?

You don't really want to settle this completely, do you?

'…But if he does keep coming despite my expectations, I'm screwed.'

I've got no energy, no mana, nothing. Honestly, I just want to lie down right now.

Even if Lee Siwoon fought me barehanded, I wouldn't stand a chance.

Heck, even if he fought me with one hand tied behind his back, I'd still get beaten to a pulp.

'Lee Siwoon, please don't attack. Please, just let this slide.'

That's why I pretended to be strong.

You don't really want to keep ﬁghting a guy who uses mysterious abilities and Sword Qi Wounder, do you? Of course not.

You'd feel a little embarrassed if you got eliminated this early too.

"…Lee Jinhyuk. Was your bow just a fake?" No?

I've spent ten years honing my archery.

Did my archery really seem like a fake to you?

"…And that awkward sword swing, was that just an act?" Awkward?

Wow, that's harsh.

I was doing my best, you know?

Chapter 57 Villain Emergence (1) "..."

Lee Siwoon silently gazed down at the broken training longsword with a calm expression.

The training longsword, which had been crafted robustly for hero trainees, lay split in half on the ground, now nothing more than a piece of scrap metal.

To think that Lee Jinhyuk could break this training longsword so thoroughly.

With just a single strike.

'That was Sword Qi Wounder, wasn't it?' Sword Qi Wounder.

One of the pinnacle techniques among swordsmen.

Many without talent spend their entire lives training but never manage to grasp the Sword Qi Wounder.

Even those with talent often need to endlessly hone their swordsmanship over a long period before they can use it—if they're lucky.

Only a very few prodigies, who have been nurtured with the highest-grade nutrition, trained under strict curriculums, and received massive support since childhood, can use it at Lee Siwoon's age.

It's a technique that's that diﬃcult.

'Among those my age, there are only a handful who can use Sword Qi Wounder.'

Even at Union Academy, which gathers countless brilliant minds, the number of students who can use Sword Qi Wounder is slim.

Lee Siwoon could count them on one hand.

But he had never imagined that Lee Jinhyuk could also use Sword Qi Wounder.

Moreover, Lee Jinhyuk's Sword Qi Wounder was quite powerful. If Lee Siwoon hadn't deﬂected it midway, things might have been dangerous.

Its strength could be said to surpass even Lee Siwoon's own Sword Qi Wounder.

Had he taken a direct hit without any defense, Lee Siwoon's Protective Force Field might have been shattered to pieces.

Of course, the reason Lee Jinhyuk's Sword Qi Wounder was that strong was partly due to Lee Siwoon himself.

Because Lee Jinhyuk had absorbed Lee Siwoon's mana, he could unleash an even stronger Sword Qi Wounder.

Naturally, Lee Siwoon was completely unaware of this fact. 'So using a bow was just a trick after all.'

There was no other way to think about it.

Lee Jinhyuk's archery skill, while not bad, wasn't particularly exceptional.

It wasn't enough to warrant admission into Union Academy.

Plus, Lee Jinhyuk was a master capable of using Sword Qi Wounder.

Even for an extraordinary prodigy, it's nearly impossible to train both archery and swordsmanship to such a high level. Clearly, the sword was real, and the bow was just a decoy.

'But why would he hide the fact that he could use Sword Qi Wounder?'

A question.

A slight doubt arose.

Lee Siwoon couldn't understand why Lee Jinhyuk had kept such a fact hidden all this time.

'No, that's not the only strange thing.'

The more he thought about it, the more Lee Jinhyuk seemed mysterious.

Using Sword Qi Wounder, making Lee Siwoon's sword aura disappear in an instant, somehow sinking Lee Siwoon into

the ground with a strange ability…

'I had a feeling he was hiding something.' But I didn't expect it to be this much.

He seemed to be hiding some sort of mysterious special ability, but Lee Siwoon couldn't even begin to guess what it could be.

An ability that scatters mana or sinks the ground in an instant.

Of course, it's also possible that he used something other than a special ability, like an artifact.

Artifacts come in a variety of types and abilities.

If Lee Jinhyuk used an artifact, it would be understandable. 'An artifact… Hmm.'

After a moment of contemplation, Lee Siwoon suddenly shook his head inwardly. No, it couldn't be. That's impossible.

Logically speaking, there's no way someone like Lee Jinhyuk could possess something as precious as an artifact.

Even the descendants of the SL Group, HanYoung Clan, or Gaon Nuri Clan have rarely even seen an artifact, much less owned one.

Artifacts are possessed by very few people.

And among those who own artifacts, even fewer have

artifacts useful in actual combat.

It's more realistic to think that Lee Jinhyuk, who comes from an ordinary background, is hiding some peculiar special ability rather than possessing a powerful and useful artifact for combat.

In fact, there are quite a few aspiring heroes who hide their special abilities.

Usually, it's because their special abilities are something they don't want others to know about, or because the conditions for using their abilities are tricky.

'In any case, I don't know why Lee Jinhyuk is hiding these things, but two things are clear.'

Lee Jinhyuk is a person with many secrets and is quite strong.

With so much hidden and deliberately kept under wraps, it's hard to accurately gauge his true strength, but after seeing him use Sword Qi Wounder, he can't be underestimated.

…There's no way Sword Qi Wounder is the only skill he has.

'Hah. This is a headache. At ﬁrst, it was just a bit bothersome because he was always sticking close to Soyeon.'

That's right.

To be honest, the reason Lee Siwoon picked a ﬁght with Lee Jinhyuk was that he was always by Soyeon's side.

Even though they were ex-boyfriend and girlfriend, Lee Jinhyuk always sticking close to Soyeon made Lee Siwoon uncomfortable in many ways.

It wasn't that he hated or despised Lee Jinhyuk, but seeing him laughing and chatting with Soyeon always left a strange, uncomfortable feeling.

After all, hadn't they broken up?

Lee Siwoon knew they were childhood friends who had been together for over ten years, but seeing ex-lovers hanging out as if nothing had happened was unsettling to him.

He had heard that Lee Jinhyuk and Jin Soyeon had agreed to remain just friends since they didn't see each other as romantic partners, but their actions often seemed ambiguous.

When he watched them from afar, he sometimes couldn't tell if they were really interacting as just friends or something more.

Moreover, the occasional glances Jin Soyeon gave Lee Jinhyuk didn't seem like those of a mere friend.

Whenever Lee Jinhyuk was with another woman, Jin Soyeon would often glance over, looking slightly bothered or displeased.

While Lee Jinhyuk seemed to be trying to keep his distance from Jin Soyeon, Jin Soyeon, on the other hand, seemed to be getting closer to him.

Watching them like that… Really…

How should I put it?

'Ah. Right.'

Suddenly, Lee Siwoon let out a bitter smile inwardly. 'Jealousy… is it jealousy?'

It was a bit embarrassing to outright admit the emotion that had been writhing inside him. It was like exposing his raw, unﬁltered self.

Perhaps the reason he approached Lee Jinhyuk and questioned whether he was worthy of being by Soyeon's side was a childish act driven by jealousy.

No, it deﬁnitely was.

But Lee Jinhyuk, as if to prove his strength and position, conﬁdently broke Lee Siwoon's sword and neutralized him(?).

'His sword stance and movements seemed rather clumsy, but if that too was a ruse to make me drop my guard…'

Honestly, Lee Jinhyuk, you…

Lee Siwoon unconsciously tightened his grip on the hilt of his broken sword.

It wasn't the dark, murky feelings of jealousy and envy like before, but rather, as a fellow swordsman, a competitive spirit started to stir within him.

Because he couldn't fully discern Lee Jinhyuk's true abilities, his curiosity and competitive spirit seemed to be boiling over.

He was someone who had deliberately(?) entered Union Academy almost at the bottom and hid much of his true

abilities.

And the mysterious special ability was also something that bothered him.

'If I don't give up now and decide to ﬁght further, what will happen?'

The sword was already broken.

It was impossible to know what else the opponent was hiding.

To continue the battle would be tantamount to suicide.

But even so, why was the grip on his sword hilt tightening?

This desire to gauge the opponent's skills and clash swords was something he rarely felt, except when facing Baek Yoorin or Kang Daehan.

And yet, right now, Lee Siwoon…

"Looks like you're hiding more than I thought, Lee Jinhyuk." "..."

"You're still not going to tell me honestly, huh? Well, ﬁne. It doesn't matter."

"..."

What are you thinking right now, Lee Jinhyuk? Lee Siwoon, staring at the expressionless Lee Jinhyuk, slowly parted his lips.

"Lee Jinhyuk, I…"

And then, at that moment.

"Hehe, how cute. Are you two kids planning to have a little duel?"

A voice suddenly interrupted, drilling into the ears of both Lee Siwoon and Lee Jinhyuk from a short distance away.

Lee Siwoon furrowed his brows slightly.

He had been so focused on Lee Jinhyuk that he hadn't noticed someone approaching.

But who was this man? He was an adult.

At ﬁrst, he thought the man might be one of the exam instructors or security personnel, but judging by his words, actions, and attire, he deﬁnitely wasn't from the Academy.

The man was wearing tattered, shabby clothes and had a half-burned, twisted rabbit mask tilted on his head.

Moreover, the man's sneering laughter reminded him of a common thug or a wastrel.

"…Who are you?"

This forest was being managed by the Academy.

To prevent the media and any unauthorized individuals from entering, numerous security personnel and instructors had been stationed around.

Additionally, a barrier was in place, making it impossible for ordinary people to enter.

In other words, this man was not just some lost civilian. "Me? Heh. Who knows?"

The man, who looked to be in his early to mid-thirties, shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly.

"I'm just a ﬁrestarter, a ﬁrestarter." Step, step.

There were more faint sounds of movement from beyond the bushes.

Soon, two more people emerged from the thicket.

These individuals were also adults, and judging by their attire and demeanor, they were clearly not ordinary folks.

"I've even been on the news a few times."

With a repulsive laugh, the man adjusted his half-burned rabbit mask.

Lee Siwoon furrowed his brow. That man's twisted rabbit mask—it sparked a memory.

Where had he seen it before?

He was sure he'd seen it on TV a long time ago…

"Lee Siwoon! That guy is the Pyromaniac, Kim Hwaseung! The Fire Rabbit of Hajeong Mountain!"

"...!"

"Hah! There's a kid who remembers me!"

With Lee Jinhyuk's exclamation, Kim Hwaseung conjured a ﬁery orb and hurled it straight at Lee Siwoon and Lee Jinhyuk.

Chapter 58 Villain Emergence (2)

'Wow, damn!'

Fire.

A blazing ﬁreball was hurtling toward me.

The human head-sized ﬁreball radiated intense heat as it rapidly closed in, forcing me to attempt a hasty evasion.

But what was this?

My body felt as heavy as lead.

I couldn't move well, like a soaked cotton ball.

Suddenly, an inexplicable sense of helplessness took over my entire body, and my legs trembled uncontrollably like aspen leaves, half-drained of strength.

What, what's going on?

Why am I like this all of a sudden? 'Ah, that's right.'

I had used up my stamina and mana all at once to perform Sword Qi Wounder.

I remembered that I had used up almost all my stamina and mana to unleash the Sword Qi Wounder at maximum output just moments ago.

It was like that feeling of trying to move hastily without properly stretching after an intense workout.

While standing still, it was bearable, but the moment I tried to move urgently, it felt like my muscles were going on strike, refusing to work any longer.

Of course, if I forced myself, I could still move. But it was too late.

While I hesitated for a moment, the ﬁery mass had almost reached me. At this point, there was no way to avoid it.

'Ah, damn it, what should I do…?' Just as I was thinking that— "Hoo."

Lee Siwoon swiftly reached out and swung his broken sword.

Then, the ﬁerce ﬁreball, which had been rushing at us, gently veered off course along the path of Lee Siwoon's sword, eventually ﬂowing past us in a different direction.

It looked as if a stream of water were ﬂowing along a riverbed.

That technique seemed to be Flowing Water. A defensive skill that appeared in the game.

According to the world-building, it was one of the techniques taught by the master swordsman who was known as the best in the peninsula…

'To think he could do that with a broken sword. Lee Siwoon is truly incredible.'

I let out a short sigh of admiration inwardly.

Of course, he didn't block the ﬁreball for my sake.

He likely just moved to get rid of the danger approaching him. But even so, he was reliable. It felt overwhelming when I was ﬁghting him earlier, but now that Lee Siwoon was on my side, I felt reassured.

"Wow, for a kid, you're pretty impressive." "..."

The man in the distorted rabbit mask reacted with mild surprise, while I quietly stared at his face.

His name was Kim Hwaseung. A typical pyrokinetic.

He could create ﬂames even without any fuel necessary for combustion.

He could control the ﬂames freely, and because they were highly lethal, using them required caution.

However, Kim Hwaseung had no such reservations about using his powers.

That's because he had been fascinated by his own power and ﬁre since he was young, experiencing an inexplicable pleasure and exhilaration from watching things burn.

Later, as an adult, Kim Hwaseung satisﬁed his desires by setting ﬁre to cultural assets, forests, buildings, and more, dozens of times.

Until he was eventually caught by a hero and sent to prison. But had he already been released?

'Kim Hwaseung… He may have a dangerous special ability, but according to the setting, he's just an arsonist.'

An arsonist is still just an arsonist.

He hasn't undergone combat training for battles against humans or giant monsters.

Due to the lack of professional training, his actual combat power is relatively low compared to his abilities. After all, he was merely a hedonistic ﬁrestarter.

Even as a villain, he was closer to an ordinary person who ran around committing arson with his special ability, rather than someone who fought directly against heroes. In fact, he often avoided heroes and CCTV to avoid detection. That rabbit mask was a kind of calling card he left at the scenes of his arson.

So, as long as I paid attention to his blazing pyrokinetic abilities, I could deal with him.

'…I've actually defeated him a few times in the game. So I know quite a bit about him.'

I suddenly recalled that Kim Hwaseung was quite popular among gamers as an extra NPC villain.

But wasn't it too early for Kim Hwaseung to appear?

Why was he suddenly in the survival test area for the midterm exam?

From what I remember, he was supposed to appear after several more main storylines had progressed…

'Anyway, let's check out the other guys besides Kim Hwaseung ﬁrst. As for the others…'

I glanced sideways at the two men standing behind Kim Hwaseung.

They also seemed like villains, but to be honest, they reminded me of third-rate thugs from the backstreets.

To put it bluntly, they seemed like small fry.

Moreover, those two looked a bit taken aback after seeing how Lee Siwoon deﬂected the ﬁreball with just his swordsmanship.

"Wait, didn't they say that kid is named Lee Siwoon?" "Lee Siwoon…? Could he be that swordsman's disciple?"

"They say he's the top student at Union. Should we just call for backup and wait?"

"Yeah, maybe we should."

The name Lee Siwoon seemed to make them uneasy.

It appeared they were surprised to encounter someone of Lee Siwoon's caliber so soon. Unlike Kim Hwaseung, there was no information on those two. But—

'If they're that intimidated by Lee Siwoon, they probably aren't very threatening villains.'

If they were villains who had fought active heroes, they wouldn't be so ﬂustered just by hearing Lee Siwoon's name.

No matter how much of a prodigy Lee Siwoon might be, he was still just a student at Union Academy.

However, their reaction gave me a clue as to their level of ability.

'But wait, who are they planning to contact? Is this the work of Rebellion?'

Rebellion.

The villainous organization that will threaten the protagonist and his companions.

They are a small but elite group, strong enough that the protagonist's team couldn't possibly handle them right now.

'This situation feels similar to the main episode, the Training Camp Assault. Could it be…?'

The Training Camp Assault is an episode where the Rebellion members attack a Union Academy training camp, marking the ﬁrst time they spread their infamy across the world.

The Rebellion members each possess unique special abilities and immense power, but they suffer from a lack of numbers.

Because of this, one of the Rebellion members, a villain known as Hero Mania, used his special ability to brainwash third-rate villains he found wandering the streets into attacking the training camp alongside them.

They were used as mere bait or hunting dogs.

Originally, this episode was supposed to occur after the ﬁnal exams, so is it happening now because of me?

It's possible that my actions so far have caused a butterﬂy effect. Maybe not, but it's still something to consider.

If this is the reason the story has been twisted… Damn it.

'Anyway, I'll ﬁgure out the details later. First, I need to deal with these guys.'

I don't have the luxury to think about it with villains right in front of me.

It's best to put out the immediate ﬁre ﬁrst.

I gulped and cautiously picked up the bow that had fallen to the ground.

"Idiots. Are you seriously scared of some kids?" "What?"

Kim Hwaseung sneered at the two hesitant villains.

"You cowards, I'll take care of Lee Siwoon, so you two handle that brat. That kid is becoming pretty famous these

days, but he's just a non-special. You're not afraid of him too, are you?"

"That guy? Well…"

"I saw him on TV. They say he's some archer, but his skills are just so-so."

The villains turned to me and Lee Siwoon, taking up ﬁghting stances.

I then swiftly tossed the sword hanging at my waist to Lee Siwoon. He caught it reﬂexively.

"…Why give it to me?"

"Your sword broke, didn't it? You should use it." "What about you?"

"I've got this."

I waved my bow slightly. "…Are you sure?" "Probably?"

"..."

"You're better with a sword than I am." "Well… alright. Thanks, Lee Jinhyuk."

Lee Siwoon hesitated for a moment, looking at me, then nodded.

Ah, Lee Siwoon, do you really think I'm a swordsman and not an archer?

Well, it would make more sense to think that, especially after I used Sword Qi Wounder, but seriously, I'm an archer.

I even practiced archery in my previous life.

So please don't look at me with those slightly guilty eyes as if you feel bad for taking the sword.

"Lee Siwoon, it seems that ﬁrestarter has chosen you as his target."

"Yeah."

"I'll handle the other two, so take care of that ﬁrestarter for me."

"Got it."

Lee Siwoon glanced at me brieﬂy before speaking.

"…I'll take him down quickly and come help you, Lee Jinhyuk."

"Uh, yeah. That'd be great."

Sorry, Siwoon.

I'm actually dumping the tough job on you.

That ﬁrestarter is probably stronger than those other two.

I might have to take them down quickly and come to help you instead.

"Hehe. I wonder if the ladies will still like that handsome face after I burn it."

"..."

Kim Hwaseung suddenly spewed ﬂames at Lee Siwoon, threatening him. But Lee Siwoon calmly swung his sword and advanced.

As for me and the remaining two villains…

"Hey, kid, you've been getting famous lately, haven't you? Even without a special ability."

"How pitiful. You worked hard to get into a place like Union, but now look at you."

They were chatting away as if they had already won.

Well, I'm a non-special, and the bow and arrows I'm holding are just training tools, so they probably think they have the upper hand.

But do you know what?

I've got a ton of items in my Space Ring.

Like special arrows for large monsters, enchanted scrolls, explosive talismans, nets for capturing major villains, electric shock guns, sleep powder, paralysis gas grenades…

Fights with small fry are usually decided by who has the better items, right?

It might be tough if I fought barehanded, but with all these items, I don't think I'll lose.

Probably.

Somewhere in the forest.

The once quiet forest was now ﬁlled with the smell of blood.

The air was thick with the scent of iron, and the groans of the wounded echoed through the trees.

"Ugh, ugh. You, you bastard…!"

"Ah, what's this? Is this the hope of South Korea? You're weaker than I thought."

Yoo Dahee, with her long white hair ﬂowing down, reached out and grabbed a trainee by the neck, lifting him into the air.

The trainee she held by the neck was Kang Daehan.

He was one of the top spearmen, standing shoulder to shoulder with Lee Siwoon, but now he hung limply from Yoo Dahee's grip.

As Kang Daehan's consciousness began to fade, a thought crossed his mind.

This woman is a monster.

She toyed with him as if he were a child.

Not just him—Kang Daehan slowly glanced around. Scattered around Yoo Dahee were many others, lying helplessly.

They were security personnel and Union trainees.

None of them seemed dead, but all were in dire condition. Most had broken legs, shattered ribs, or were coughing up blood.

The security personnel were all former heroes, boasting impressive skills, yet they were all helpless before this white-haired girl.

She looked to be about the same age as the academy students.

How could she possess such power?

It was as if he were witnessing the childhood of legendary ﬁgures who once ruled South Korea. No, perhaps she was even more powerful. Even the likes of the swordsman and Kang Cheoleun weren't this strong at her age. Why did such monstrous talent have to belong to a villain…

Chapter 59 Villain Emergence (3)

I can't breathe.

I can't breathe properly. "Grr, ugh, ugh…"

Kang Daehan groaned, his face contorted like a crumpled piece of paper, as he glared menacingly at the white-haired girl.

With his neck ﬁrmly gripped, there was nothing Kang Daehan could do.

Struggling pathetically would only fuel Yoo Dahee's mockery.

'Damn it. What the hell is with this girl?'

She's strong.

Incredibly strong, far beyond what her age suggests.

Is there anyone around this age who is as strong as her? Kang Daehan couldn't think of anyone who came close.

Even Lee Siwoon, hailed as the greatest genius of Union Academy, probably wouldn't stand a chance against this wretched girl.

She's almost at the level of a high-ranker, maybe even beyond.

Under normal circumstances, such a thought would have drawn a scoff from him, but after facing her ﬁrsthand, it seemed entirely possible that she was as powerful as a high-ranker.

It was beyond frustrating. "Don't worry, don't worry."

Yoo Dahee's slender ﬁngers gradually tightened their grip on Kang Daehan's neck as she slowly curled her lips into a smile.

She giggled like a mischievous child.

On the surface, it seemed like a sweet smile, but with a face smeared with blood, it was nothing short of terrifying.

"I don't intend to kill you." Yes, that's right.

It's not a joke; I really don't plan to kill you.

Death is too simple for what Yoo Dahee desires. She just wants to see you utterly broken.

"I'll only ensure you can never dream of becoming a hero again."

With a sinister grin, Yoo Dahee raised her hand.

Malicious, ominous mana began to concentrate at her ﬁngertips.

It was an enormous amount of mana. Kang Daehan swallowed hard.

Is this girl planning to destroy his mana core…?

"So just sleep…"

Suddenly.

Shadowy blades shot up from the ground.

The shadow blades split into ﬁve directions, aiming for Yoo Dahee's neck, arms, legs, shoulders, and torso.

What's going on? They're fast! Yoo Dahee quickly stepped back.

In doing so, she let go of Kang Daehan, but she managed to evade the shadow blades completely. Ah, was this done to save Kang Daehan from the start?

"Prioritize rescuing the injured and the students, hurry." "Yes!"

Tilting her head slightly, Yoo Dahee noticed about a dozen heroes nearby.

She hadn't realized they had approached so closely. Hmm.

They seem pretty skilled.

And they don't look like security personnel. "Ah… I'm alive…"

"Why did you take so long…?"

"Oh, it's Hero Oh Hangyeong. Thank goodness." Ah, Oh Hangyeong.

I remember him as a mid-upper-tier hero who specialized in shadow manipulation.

I heard he's been working with the Academy's security team since retiring.

Is he here already? Damn.

Have I dragged this out for too long?

"If you surrender peacefully, we'll show you some mercy." "..."

Yoo Dahee glanced over at the security team members. There were quite a few of them.

Considering this is a security team that specializes in dealing with major villains, they're not to be underestimated.

So, what should I do?

It looks like it'll take some time to deal with all of them individually.

And honestly, I might even get hurt.

– Beep.

Just in time, a message arrived. It was from Isabelle.

She's a sensory-type ability user.

She can detect and track the presence of someone she's seen once.

She had been told to send a message whenever she detected the presence of any targets.

It seems Isabelle has detected someone again. Yoo Dahee glanced at the message.

And then…

– Area B-1. Northwest direction. Detected the presence of Lee Siwoon, one of the targets.

"Hmm."

Lee Siwoon, Lee Siwoon…

As the top student at the Academy, I'd like to mess with him at least once.

But if I waste any more time here, other heroes might swarm in, so Yoo Dahee decided to leave this to the man.

"Mr. Ryan, I'm sorry, but can I leave this to you? I want to check out Lee Siwoon."

"…Alright."

The large man who had been sitting quietly until now slowly nodded and sluggishly got to his feet.

His face was hidden under a deeply pulled hood, but his massive muscles and towering frame—one or two heads taller than the average adult male—naturally exuded an intimidating aura.

His bulging muscles twitched as if alive, reminding one of a macho body builder.

"Well then, Mr. Ryan. I'll head out now. See you later." "Where do you think you're— Ugh?!"

Oh Hangyeong quickly extended his shadow toward Yoo Dahee as she prepared to leave, but a massive ﬁst suddenly smashed the shadow.

What the—? He did that with just his bare hands?

All he did was swing his ﬁst, yet with an ear-piercing sound, the shadow shattered like clay.

A ﬁerce gust of wind blew, sending leaves and dust swirling in the air. It was an immense display of strength.

"What… what is that?" "How strong is he…?"

"Is he an enhancement-type ability user?"

"If he's that strong, he might be at least mid-tier." The security team members murmured in shock.

Most of the villains who had invaded, except for the white- haired girl, were third-rate at best, but this guy didn't seem to be one of them.

'…Ah. Ryan, he said his name was Ryan, didn't he? Then could it be…?'

Oh Hangyeong swallowed nervously and muttered unconsciously.

"…The Crusher, Ryan Jones?" "…"

The large man said nothing, simply raising his right arm.

He clenched his ﬁst, but the overwhelming pressure he exuded was unmistakable.

At the mention of Ryan Jones, a few of the security team members unconsciously took a few steps back.

'Is he really that Crusher?'

A villain who was active a few years ago.

A monster who tore apart more than a dozen mid-tier heroes with his bare hands.

As an enhancement-type ability user, his strength, durability, and recovery abilities were so outstanding that

conventional physical attacks were almost useless against him.

He was ridiculously strong, tough, and had high recovery abilities.

It was a simple ability, but it made him incredibly powerful. High-rankers had to team up to capture him.

I heard that about a year ago, the vehicle transporting him was attacked, and he was freed. But I never imagined he would storm Union Academy.

The Crusher probably doesn't hold any grudges against Union, so why would he do this?

"Team 2, take the students and the injured and retreat. Team 1 and I will buy some time."

"…Yes!"

"Stay alert. That big guy might really be the Crusher." "..."

We don't know what he's thinking, attacking Union with a group of third-rate villains, but one thing is certain—this is no ordinary situation.

Union Academy is the cradle of South Korea's heroes.

If the news that this place has been attacked by villains spreads through the media, the reaction will be explosive.

Especially if there are any casualties…

'There better not be any more villains of that level lurking around.'

No matter how many third-rate villains there are, they wouldn't pose much of a threat to the students. But if there are more villains of the caliber of the white-haired girl and the Crusher, the lives of the students are at risk.

That's because they are not villains that the students can resist.

***

"Heh, hehe… Just because you were born to the right parents…"

"..."

"Raised in a greenhouse with all the beneﬁts… but you think you're something, huh?"

"…Shut up and answer the question."

We had already taken down the remaining villains and bound Kim Hwaseung tightly with wire, interrogating him.

Lee Siwoon opened his mouth.

"How many villains have inﬁltrated the test site, and what is their purpose?"

"Heh, hehe. Who knows? I'm not really sure myself." "What?"

"I never really paid attention to that sort of thing." Lee Siwoon frowned slightly.

"I don't know the exact number, but from what I saw, it seemed like there were more than a hundred."

"…That many villains attacking in an organized manner? What could their goal be?"

"As for me, I just wanted to burn you hero wannabes. But as for the others, who knows."

"..."

Lee Siwoon's expression grew colder.

"Kukuku. Kid, you'd better run away from here quickly. There's a scary villain targeting you."

"..."

"If you get cocky just because you took down a third-rate villain like me, you're going to get in serious trouble, kid."

"…I see."

"So, kid, if you don't want to die, you better hurry—" "Enough. Shut your mouth."

Finally, Lee Siwoon struck the back of Kim Hwaseung's neck, knocking him out.

I stared down at the unconscious Kim Hwaseung and pondered.

If Rebellion really is the mastermind behind this incident, their goal is probably to attack Union Academy, instill fear and helplessness in the aspiring heroes, and spread chaos and anxiety in society.

The third-rate villains aren't a big deal, but there's no telling how many Rebellion members are involved.

Rebellion members are the main antagonists of the protagonist and his companions, monsters with absurd talents.

'Damn it. Normally, this kind of event would happen after the protagonist's group has grown more… Why now…?'

The protagonist's group is still in the middle of growing, but those guys are already complete villains.

How are we supposed to ﬁght them now?

Even during the Training Camp Assault episode, when the protagonist's group was stronger, they couldn't handle the Rebellion members.

They're mostly mid-boss level or higher, so ﬁghting them head-on is practically impossible.

'Yoo Dahee is deﬁnitely participating… If she's targeting high-proﬁle individuals, then…'

I glanced at Lee Siwoon. "…Hmm."

Lee Siwoon.

The top student of Union Academy.

As a member of the SL Group, he would be a prime target for Yoo Dahee.

It was the same in the game.

Chapter 60

Villain Emergence (4)

"…Lee Jinhyuk, do you have something to say?" "Huh? Oh, no, nothing. Don't mind me."

"…?"

Noticing something strange in my gaze, Lee Siwoon tilted his head slightly and asked.

A tiny question mark seemed to ﬂoat above Lee Siwoon's head, so I coughed a few times and shook my head to clear my thoughts.

Let's stop thinking unnecessary things and focus on more practical matters.

I can't just leave Lee Siwoon behind and run away, can I?

'In a situation like this, it would be more dangerous to act separately.'

If I were to split up with Lee Siwoon and then run into Yoo Dahee or another strong villain alone?

Haha, just thinking about it is a nightmare.

It's unlikely, but you know I've always been pretty unlucky. Unfortunately, that's just how life has been for me.

'If I leave Lee Siwoon alone and he runs into Yoo Dahee, that's a problem too.'

Yoo Dahee might not kill him, but she'd deﬁnitely try to break him down with that twisted smile of hers.

To the point where he could never be a hero again. 'Considering the future, I need Lee Siwoon.'

Lee Siwoon has to keep growing and, along with Soyeon, take down a lot of villains in my place.

Right, let's not pretend otherwise.

I just want to catch a ride on the bus, that's all. I can't afford to lose Lee Siwoon so easily.

Especially considering the future events that will unfold.

'I have something prepared for a time like this. As long as I stick with Lee Siwoon, we should manage somehow.'

What did I prepare, you ask?

Hong Daye, of course—the high-ranker Hong Daye.

The reason I risked the danger during the practical evaluation and helped take down the Black-Handed Long- Armed Monkey with the kids was because of Hong Daye.

It was to seek her help if something happened at the Academy.

Originally, she was supposed to be gravely injured from the joint attack of the Minotaur and the Black-Handed Long- Armed Monkey and would have been hospitalized for a long time.

But thanks to our help, Hong Daye was able to continue her duties as an instructor without any serious injuries.

Hong Daye is an incredibly powerful ﬁgure, once considered a candidate for the top 10 strongest. She wouldn't be an easy opponent for Rebellion members.

'…I need to use the Space Ring to take out my phone. Oh, sure, I could secretly take it out when Lee Siwoon isn't looking, but considering the situation, I'll probably need to use a bunch of other items too. It's better to just reveal it upfront.'

After organizing my thoughts, I discreetly created a rift in the air and pulled out a satellite phone from within.

Lee Siwoon's eyes trembled slightly.

A dark rift had suddenly appeared in midair, and something like a satellite phone dropped into my hand.

"Lee Jinhyuk, what is that?"

"It's my special ability. I didn't want to reveal it if possible, but the situation isn't exactly ideal."

"…I see."

Lee Siwoon nodded slowly without further questioning.

I don't know if he truly believes me or if he's just not interested in prying, but it doesn't really matter.

I quickly dialed Hong Daye. "Who is this?"

"It's me, Lee Jinhyuk."

"Ah, but aren't you in the test site right now? How are you calling…?"

"I stole a phone from one of the villains! But that's not important right now, is it?"

"…Right, of course."

I deliberately acted as if I was in a hurry.

Being a test instructor, she seemed to have a rough idea of the situation, so she quickly accepted my explanation.

"We're with the kids right now, and they're all severely injured! Please help us, teacher!"

"…Where are you located?"

"We're in Zone B-1! Please hurry before more villains show up!"

"Alright. Oh, and if you encounter a white-haired girl or a large man, don't resist them too much; just try to stall for time, understood?"

The white-haired girl must be Yoo Dahee, and the large man must be the Crusher, Ryan Jones, right? I hope we don't run into them before Hong Daye arrives.

"Yes, teacher!"

With that, I ended the call.

I didn't give the exact location within Zone B-1, but someone as skilled as Hong Daye should be able to roughly pinpoint our position as long as we stay within the same zone.

"Alright then… Hey, Kim Yuseong, wake up. Hey."

I slapped Kim Yuseong, who was blissfully unaware of the situation and sound asleep a short distance away.

In a situation like this, Kim Yuseong is also a valuable asset.

I can't just let him sleep away while the world is falling apart.

"Huh, huh? What?"

"Hey, Kim Yuseong, get a grip."

"Y-you're Lee Jinhyuk…? Ah, what…?!"

As the dazed look in his eyes cleared, Kim Yuseong, who had just come to his senses, leaped to his feet and pointed at me.

He seemed furious, probably because he had fallen into my trap earlier.

"Y-you, you bastard! I'm not going to let this slide…!" "Calm down, Kim Yuseong."

"Si-Siwoon? Why are you here?"

At that moment, Lee Siwoon intervened to stop him.

"This is an emergency. I'll give you a brief summary, so listen carefully."

"H-huh…?"

Lee Siwoon and I forcibly woke up the other two unconscious trainees and explained the current situation to them brieﬂy.

The kids blinked in confusion for a moment.

The sudden mention of a villain attack must have been quite shocking.

But when they saw the three unconscious villains, they seemed to grasp the reality of the situation.

"Villains attacking the test site… What the hell is going on."

"W-what should we do then? Shouldn't we wait for the security team to arrive?"

"Well, with Lee Siwoon here, we should be alright. Just look at those villains lying over there. Lee Siwoon took them down."

The three kids each reacted in their own way.

They seemed incredibly anxious, confused, and nervous about the unexpected situation.

Well, that's understandable.

Even though they're aspiring heroes, they're still just trainees.

And they probably haven't had any real combat experience before, so it's only natural to feel uneasy.

But you know…

Shouldn't we at least try to ﬁnd Soyeon?

I know it's a bit selﬁsh, but I'm too scared to search for her alone, so I'd like you guys to help me.

"Lee Siwoon."

"What is it, Lee Jinhyuk?"

"Before I fought you earlier, I saw Soyeon not too far from here."

Of course, that's a lie.

I hadn't even caught a glimpse of Soyeon.

"She might be alone right now. Should we go look for her together?"

"..."

But as our pure-hearted Lee Siwoon, who has a crush on Soyeon, he wouldn't be able to ignore such a statement.

"…Where was she?"

"I can't say for sure, but I can roughly ﬁgure it out using this."

I pulled out a portable radar and showed it to him.

It was a product of magical technology and quite expensive.

It could detect the location of people within a few kilometers' radius.

Of course, it couldn't differentiate between individuals, so there was a chance of running into villains.

That's why I felt a bit nervous to use it alone, and I needed help from Lee Siwoon and the other kids.

"Alright, let's go ﬁnd her together."

"Good. What about you guys? Are you going to stay here or come with us?"

"Uh, well…"

Kim Yuseong seemed to hesitate for a moment.

He scratched his chin and bit his lip.

Then he lifted his head and looked back and forth between Lee Siwoon and me. Finally, he nodded slowly, indicating his agreement.

"Haa… It's Soyeon we're talking about. She's helped us a lot before… I'll come along too."

"Y-Yuseong."

"We can't just sit here and wait like cowards. And you said there was a ﬁght with villains here earlier, right? It must have been pretty noisy. Staying here would be dangerous."

"Y-yeah, you're right."

The kids quickly nodded in agreement.

"Th-then we'll come too." "Alright."

Those two won't be much help, but the more people we have, the safer we'll be. That's a universal truth.

There's a reason why herbivores stick together in herds.

Unless they're dealing with a particularly dangerous villain, most would hesitate to attack a large group.

"Don't worry too much. I've already contacted Instructor Hong Daye and told her we're in Zone B-1. As long as we stay within this area, she'll ﬁnd us soon."

"R-really?"

"Yeah."

With that, the ﬁve of us quickly moved out.

Since I told Hong Daye that we were in Zone B-1, we couldn't move too far away.

I secretly took out the Giant Crow Bow for Large Monsters and the Vigilante's Sword from my Space Ring and thought to myself.

Given the circumstances, I'll have to go all out.

I might get questioned about it later, but I'll worry about that in the future.

Right now, securing Soyeon's safety is the top priority.

***

In an open area of Zone B-1.

"Huff, huff… Roxanne, are you still… holding on…?"

Jin Soyeon panted intermittently as she quietly wiped the blood trickling down her temple.

She held her sword upright, but the long battle had left her exhausted.

Her arms, her arms… they barely move…

Her once beautiful hair, which had cascaded like a waterfall, was now matted with dirt and blood.

Drops of blood dripped from the ends of her hair, quietly soaking the ground.

And her clothes…

The neat uniform she usually wore was in tatters, her outer jacket and shirt half shredded.

The bra strap along her shoulder line was exposed, and the hem of her skirt and her protective shorts were slightly torn, as if scratched by a beast's claws.

She was a complete mess.

"Y-yes… Huff, huff, I'm ﬁne… but the others…"

From Jin Soyeon's perspective, Roxanne didn't look ﬁne at all.

Roxanne's once elegant attire was disheveled, with many damaged areas.

Her large chest heaved up and down continuously, indicating that her stamina had almost reached its limit.

"Is there… no more support…?"

"N-no… it doesn't seem like it…"

Originally, they had been moving together with a group of about a dozen trainees and security personnel, but the attack from the exceptionally skilled villains had left many people injured and lying on the ground.

The villains who had ambushed them wore strange face masks, but their movements were anything but ordinary.

They were nothing like the third-rate villains they had encountered before.

Those villains had been easily taken down by the security personnel, but these new ones were overwhelmingly powerful.

They had nearly taken down all of the security personnel, who were former professional heroes.

'…I don't think we can hold out any longer. This is bad. What should we do now?'

There were only four villains, but they had nearly incapacitated the entire group.

Although Jin Soyeon and her team had barely managed to neutralize one of them, the situation was still dire.

'…Those people are almost at the level of mid-tier heroes. With my current skill, I can't do anything.'

Jin Soyeon bit her lower lip slightly.

A drop of blood rolled down from between her lips.

There were only ﬁve people left who could still ﬁght. If Jin Soyeon, who was holding the front line, were to fall, the others in the rear would be in grave danger.

She couldn't afford to collapse.

If Jin Soyeon falls, what will happen to the rest?

'Is there no way out? Isn't there some brilliant plan…?'

No matter how much she thought about it, no good ideas came to mind.

Is this really the end? Is it really?

'…If it were Jinhyuk instead of me, he would have found a solution.'

Lee Jinhyuk's command and strategy-making abilities were exceptional.

If he had been here, they wouldn't have been driven into such a situation in the ﬁrst place.

The reason they were pushed to this point was not only due to differences in skill levels but also because of the lack of a clear command structure.

'I miss Jinhyuk for no reason. I shouldn't have such weak thoughts, but…'

He was always reassuring in situations like this.

Jinhyuk's calm eyes, warm touch, and conﬁdent voice always gave Jin Soyeon great strength.

When she ﬁrst encountered monsters at the Academy and was trembling like a coward, it was Lee Jinhyuk who brought her back to her senses.

He never gave up in the ﬁght against the Black-Handed Long-Armed Monkey, which she had thought was impossible to defeat, and in the end, he took it down.

He was always the light that guided her through the darkness.

Whenever she found herself in danger, he would appear like a comet and save her from the crisis. She was too shy to say it directly, but he was always her hero. Ever since she was a child.

The reason Jin Soyeon decided to help people was because of Lee Jinhyuk.

'…Ah, if I had known it would turn out like this, I would have properly apologized.'

She wanted to apologize for not realizing that he liked her and for asking him to be her fake lover.

For hurting him and for him silently enduring the pain she caused, she felt truly ashamed.

'…Jinhyuk.'

Silently calling his name, she was beginning to let go of the last thread of hope.

Whoosh.

Something fell among the villains. It looked a bit like a grenade.

Huh? A grenade? Wait, what? Then—BOOM!

"…!"

"…Ugh?!"

The deafening explosion and blinding ﬂash of light temporarily robbed everyone's vision and hearing.

What, what's going on? A ﬂashbang?

Jin Soyeon was startled. Who set off a ﬂashbang? Whoosh! Whoosh, whoosh!

Immediately after, several arrows and various spells ﬂew out from beyond the bushes toward the villains.

Even though they had lost their hearing and sight, the villains instinctively dodged, avoiding the arrows and spells.

But then Lee Siwoon, Lee Jeonghoon, Han Dongwon, and the others dashed out like lightning and ambushed the villains.

One of the villains failed to avoid the attack and had his shoulder slashed by Lee Siwoon's sword.

The villains retreated to reorganize themselves.

"Ah, damn. They almost dodged everything. Even with Han Dongwon's acceleration ability and Yoon Sangyeon's ability to mask our presence."

"J-Jinhyuk?"

A man slowly emerged from the bushes, gripping a black bow tightly—it was none other than Lee Jinhyuk.

No way… did he actually show up at this exact moment?

While Jin Soyeon was still in shock, more people started to emerge from the bushes.

There were quite a few trainees.

Lee Jinhyuk, Lee Siwoon, Han Dongwon, Yuliya, Lee Jeonghoon, Kim Yuseong, and others…

At a glance, there seemed to be more than twenty of them.

They were all students who had joined up after using the radar to search the area for Jin Soyeon.

"Soyeon, are you okay?"

"Y-yeah. I'm okay. Thank you…"

"Here, let me lend you my jacket. You should wear it." "Huh, what?"

A jacket…?

Jin Soyeon tilted her head slightly, then realized her own condition.

Ah, right.

My clothes are a mess, aren't they?

With her clothes torn here and there, she was showing a bit too much skin, so Jin Soyeon blushed slightly and quietly accepted the jacket.

Looking down, she noticed that the chest area of her shirt was torn quite a bit, revealing her bra.

Ah, how embarrassing…

While Jin Soyeon was feeling embarrassed, Lee Jinhyuk hesitated slightly. Will Lee Siwoon look at me unfavorably for giving Soyeon my jacket?

But it's just a jacket, right? Her clothes are torn, so it's reasonable to lend her a jacket, right?

"…Soyeon."

"Siwoon, you came too."

Lee Siwoon subtly checked Jin Soyeon's condition.

She was covered in wounds as if she had been through quite an ordeal.

Unconsciously, Lee Siwoon's grip on his sword tightened. He didn't even notice the jacket that Lee Jinhyuk had given her.

Were all those wounds inﬂicted by those villains?

But he couldn't just rush in blindly. They were formidable opponents, far more dangerous than someone like Kim Hwaseung.

They must be real villains.

"Lee Jinhyuk." "Yeah, I know."

Lee Jinhyuk nodded lightly.

Those guys don't seem to be Rebellion members, but they're still strong.

'Still, with this many people, we should be able to hold out until Instructor Hong Daye arrives.'

There were many strong individuals present, including Lee Siwoon, Yuliya, the apprentice of the Grand Sorcerer, rookie top-ranker Lee Jeonghoon, Han Dongwon, Kim Yuseong, and others.

Not to mention Jin Soyeon and Roxanne as well.

…Wait. Hold on. Roxanne?

Oh, right, Roxanne is here too.

The fact that Roxanne was with them made Lee Jinhyuk uneasy.

Could those guys be Seong Yura's subordinates? Did they send them speciﬁcally to target Roxanne…?

"Ah, ﬁnally found you. So, this is where you've all been hiding."

In that moment—

Lee Jinhyuk's heart sank.

That voice shouldn't have been heard in this place.

I thought I was lucky to have reunited with Soyeon safely, but I guess my luck ran out, damn it.

The tense atmosphere shifted as a girl with snow-white hair ﬂuttered down gracefully, her gaze sweeping over Lee Jinhyuk and the others.

"Let's see… Lee Siwoon, Yuliya, Lee Jeonghoon… What? Even Roxanne is here?"

The girl's name, her snow-white hair now stained with sticky blood, was Yoo Dahee.

In the future, she would become the strongest in the world of this Romance Hero Academy and also be Jin Soyeon's antithesis.

…But seriously, when is Hong Daye going to get here?

Chapter 9 - Ch 54-60