"Clench your teeth tight!"
The Academy's best healer, Health Instructor Jang Jin-won, made Su-hyeon's arm glow with bright light as his burly forearm muscles flexed.
'Hmm.'
Su-hyeon's bone endured the searing hot pain and connected to itself as if magnetized.
"That should do it! The minor pain will disappear in a day or two!"
"Thank you."
"Of course! Good attitude! Always remember your gratitude and respect for the medics who treat your recklessness!"
As he struck a bodybuilder pose, the applicants sent him admiring gazes.
"Look at those magnificent lats. What do you think?"
"Ex, excellently beautiful."
"Listen well, rookies! Treatment is dedication!"
Jang Jin-won, getting excited, changed his pose to highlight his biceps and triceps.
"How can one who cannot devote care to their own body devote care to another's body!"
"Ohhh!"
"Indeed. I've gained great enlightenment."
"As expected of someone called EFAC's treasure."
Indeed, a high-level healer like Jang Jin-won would be treated like nobility wherever he went.
"Did you see how he fixed a broken arm in an instant?"
"It's a miracle."
"They say he could even revive an undercooked chicken back into a live chicken."
"That's a bit..."
Nam Tae-hoon approached Su-hyeon, who was checking his left arm by massaging it, and gave him a thumbs up.
"I didn't think we'd actually pull it off. That was fun."
Su-hyeon nodded as he saw his grinning smile.
"You did well. Though your face is the most intact here."
"Hey now, I've got my delicate body to think about. One hit and I would've been out cold."
Next to Nam Tae-hoon, who was joking around, Kang Geon-woo, who had released his beast transformation and returned to his innocent face, expressed gratitude to Yu-jin.
"Thanks to you, I think I'll get a good score. Thank you."
"..."
Yu-jin, who looked at Su-hyeon with a complicated expression, forced a smile at Su-hyeon's look that seemed to say not to worry about it, and said.
"It's thanks to you performing your role well. Especially that one-armed throw was excellent."
"You know your stuff."
"Kang Geon-woo of Gunwoong-gwan is famous in judo circles, right?"
"Haha! Not as famous as the Sword God's granddaughter!"
Yu-jin, passing by a happily laughing Kang Geon-woo, also spoke to Go Do-il.
"You had the toughest job but carried it out diligently. Thank you."
"!"
Go Do-il, who had a stiff expression, nodded shyly.
"I'm glad I could help."
Su-hyeon quietly left as he heard their conversation.
Yu-jin, who noticed him leaving, immediately approached Su-hyeon.
"Hey, thank you. And I'm sorry. I don't know how to express my gratitude..."
It was clear that if Su-hyeon hadn't appeared in time, she would have retired on the spot.
Not only did Su-hyeon save her, but he also made it appear as if Yu-jin had led the unprecedented event of teaming up against an instructor and winning.
For Yu-jin, it felt like she had not only received a favor but also imposed greatly on him.
"No need to thank me."
Su-hyeon lightly dismissed Yu-jin's sentiments.
"I couldn't have gathered those guys to fight without you in the first place."
"That's..."
Though she couldn't explain it well.
Yu-jin's heart was heavy with the thought that it wasn't due to her ability but thanks to her grandfather's reputation.
"And without your penetration sword ability, we wouldn't have had a chance to deal damage to the instructor. You were the key."
Su-hyeon genuinely thought so, but.
"Thank you for saying that."
Yu-jin finally smiled at Su-hyeon's words, who not only led this whole affair but was trying to ease her mind rather than boasting.
"Anyway, I won't forget this. I'll definitely repay you."
"There's no need for that, I'm telling you."
Despite Su-hyeon's words, Yu-jin's stubbornness didn't waver.
"Still, all of this without you, Su-hyeon..."
She made an 'oops' expression after speaking.
"Is it okay to call you by name?"
"Sure, whatever."
Su-hyeon shrugged his shoulders.
"We'll be meeting as classmates in two weeks anyway, right?"
Yu-jin smiled brightly.
"Yes."
❀⋆｡°✿☆❀✿°｡⋆❀
Around that time.
"Haah, haah."
Hwang Ji-su had successfully reached the finish line after barely shaking off the pursuit of six assistants in a tense battle that made her palms sweat.
'I did it! I'm the top student!'
The faces of the annoying Seo Jun-seong and Lee Yu-jin flashed by like afterimages.
'Stupid fools. Just make sad faces looking up at me from down there.'
A beaming smile appeared on her cold face covered in sweat.
[Everyone freeze! The exam is over.]
The instructor's voice that came just then seemed like a declaration of her victory.
However.
"...What?"
Before long, she realized that no one at the exam site was paying attention to her.
"Why is no one interested in me?"
It was embarrassing to the point of absurdity.
Her bewildered gaze searching for the cause finally turned toward Yu-jin, who was surrounded by instructors and applicants, receiving countless handshakes.
'That girl.'
Something was seriously wrong.
'...What on earth did you do?'
After the exam, applicants were busy either quickly leaving or getting their injuries treated.
But their interest was all focused on Yu-jin and Su-hyeon's final battle.
"I was really surprised. Not only challenging that instructor but even succeeding in subduing him..."
"The tactics were good. They built a bunker with Go Do-il and Kang Geon-woo, then attacked with three people to drain him."
"Amazing, Yu-jin. Blood really doesn't lie, huh?"
"Wasn't he amazing too? Jeong Su-hyeon."
"His movements were extraordinary. He didn't get hit even once, right?"
"Yeah, except at the very end."
"That was him taking the hit on purpose."
"Damn, so we need to do something like that to pass."
"I tried hard, but this isn't my path I guess. Frustrating."
From today's events, the applicants could easily sense that there would be a tectonic shift in this year's cohort, which had been expected to be dominated by Seo Jun-seong.
"Yu-jin was amazing. If she keeps showing performances like today, even Seo Jun-seong might be in danger."
"Then who becomes the top student?"
"In overall score, wouldn't it be Seo Jun-seong?"
"With this, Yu-jin could be the top student too."
"What about Hwang Ji-su?"
"She did well, but seems to have been a bit overshadowed."
Whether his name was mentioned around or not.
Seo Jun-seong, sitting blankly, was quietly recalling Su-hyeon's face.
'Lee Yu-jin, and Jeong Su-hyeon.'
The result created by the two made him feel defeated.
In his opinion, his judgment wasn't wrong at all.
'Following the doctrine I learned from my father, I tried to create distance from Instructor Oh Chang-seong and attack from long range to bind his feet.'
Of course, he couldn't have stopped Oh Chang-seong if he came at him with full force.
But, presumably, that was the nature of the test.
Therefore, just making that judgment and implementing it qualified Seo Jun-seong to receive a higher score than anyone else here.
'I definitely chose the right answer. It was a rational and tactical action. But...'
Even he couldn't deny that Yu-jin's actions and achievements were far superior.
'I didn't know Yu-jin had that level of skill.'
It would take a bit more time for Seo Jun-seong to realize who his true rival was.
"The more I think about it, the more surprising it is."
Kim Cheol-han, who was reviewing the entrance exam while supervising the assistants busy with cleanup, muttered.
'That guy Young-hwan, was he actually understating it?'
Of course, the opponent was Oh Chang-seong wearing restraints and not even in beast form.
He didn't use powerful weapons like claws and teeth, and since it wasn't a battle to the death, he showed considerable leniency.
'That was the only way to narrow the overwhelming power gap.'
If he had used his full power, even applicants like Seo Jun-seong and Hwang Ji-su couldn't have shown such varied responses.
'Before an overwhelmingly powerful enemy, humans tend to be helpless.'
Nevertheless, it was also true that Oh Chang-seong's force was at a level that could crush the applicants.
'No matter how skilled in combat Jeong Su-hyeon was, alone he would have merely bought a little time.'
But what was the result?
Su-hyeon, who put forward Lee Yu-jin—a teammate more famous than anyone—as the leader, turned around the desperate power difference through a properly organized team-up and made Oh Chang-seong acknowledge defeat.
Wasn't this precisely the virtue that the Academy aimed to teach?
"Hmph."
Therefore, he agreed with Oh Chang-seong's decision to give Su-hyeon the second-highest bonus points after Yu-jin.
'Jeong Su-hyeon. I won't deliberately expose your true intentions to everyone.'
He thought that would be more interesting.
"An interesting guy has come in."
❀⋆｡°✿☆❀✿°｡⋆❀
A week later, an acceptance letter stamped with EFAC's seal arrived at home.
[Congratulations on your acceptance.]
Below that, this sentence was written.
[Your rank is 6th.]
'They even blatantly reveal the rankings.'
Cooperation and competition.
It was EFAC's principle that true talent cultivation couldn't miss either one.
'The ranking is just right.'
As expected, Seo Jun-seong would be first, Yu-jin second, and Hwang Ji-su third.
If I hadn't intervened, second place would have gone to Hwang Ji-su.
But Yu-jin, who gained significant bonus points through teaming up with me, reversed the situation.
'She must be somewhat bitter.'
With that personality, she might not even be able to sleep.
'It's a good thing.'
I knew well that the current rankings would have a positive impact on each character's growth.
'Hwang Ji-su will whip herself, angry at the fact that she lost not only to Seo Jun-seong but also to Yu-jin.'
Conversely, Yu-jin will improve her self-confidence, which was lacking compared to her skill, and receive good motivation.
Above all, it was advantageous for me to have the top three, including Seo Jun-seong, acting as umbrellas, taking all kinds of checks while at the front.
"6th place? Not 60th, but 6th?!"
Unlike me who had already anticipated the result, Park Min-cheol was amazed at my rank as if he might faint from shock.
"What's the big deal about 6th place."
"Entering EFAC in 6th place means you're the most outstanding Awakened in your generation, how can you not make a fuss?"
When I still showed no reaction, Park Min-cheol rubbed his chin and pondered.
"Wow... did that glutinous rice cake really have an effect?"
"Can't discount it."
"To think that just two months ago, this guy was processing demonic beast corpses with me. How were you hiding your strength? If it were me, I would've been bragging all over town."
Well, he wasn't quite normal even back then, Park Min-cheol said as he smacked his lips.
"Anyway, congratulations. You're going to be big."
"Thanks."
"I should be thanking you. Thanks to you, I'm getting proper motivation too."
That was true.
Park Min-cheol is a character who, depending on the protagonist's play, can remain a simple supporting role 1 or become a highly successful businessman.
'Like a canary, I suppose.'
As my play rounds increased and I succeeded in clearing higher points, this ordinary man's reputation and status also rose.
Thanks to that, there was even a joke that Park Min-cheol's bank balance was a measure of the player's success.
But I didn't think that was coincidental.
'He's a man who knows how to turn admiration and envy into his own driving force rather than consuming them as jealousy.'
Right now, there were only two people who would congratulate me on my acceptance.
One is, of course, Park Min-cheol.
"Congratulations, Su-hyeon!"
The other is Execution Force Team Leader Song Young-hwan, who wrote the recommendation letter.
"I heard the whole story! It was truly remarkable!"
Perhaps he's the person most happy about my acceptance.
'After all, the nameless orphan he recommended not only got accepted to EFAC but also achieved 6th place.'
He might be treated as a prophet right about now.
"As expected, my judgment wasn't wrong. No, I might have been underestimating myself too much."
"..."
"Just kidding, just kidding. By the way, did Su-hyeon really subdue Oh Chang-seong?"
"It was merely a performance made possible by the various considerations he gave us. And it wasn't something I did alone."
"Hmm. The Sword God's granddaughter was more impressive than I thought. But there's no need to be too modest. Oh Chang-seong was famous even in his active duty days."
"Is that so?"
"Of course! By the way, the Academy side seems to have received quite a good impression of you too. I have a friend who's an instructor there..."
'He's talking about Kim Cheol-han.'
I pretended not to know and listened to the evaluation from the instructor presumed to be Kim Cheol-han.
"Above all, they say you have the qualities of a staff officer, perhaps even a leader. That's remarkable. Not everyone can have the commander's aspect of appropriately forming a team and carrying out missions."
'Well, sure.'
Edge of Gate is a game where deck-building skill is an essential virtue for veteran players.
"It was all Yu-jin's doing."
"It doesn't quite seem that way though?"
"..."
When I kept my mouth shut, Song Young-hwan also pretended not to notice and changed the subject.
"Hehe, anyway, congratulations once again. I'm looking forward to seeing how far Su-hyeon will have grown in three years."
"Thank you."
"Yes. When that time comes, be sure to come to me. I'll make a position for you by any means necessary."
"Haha."
Well, that remains to be seen.
❀⋆｡°✿☆❀✿°｡⋆❀
The biggest reason Edge of Gate was called a ruined game was, above all, the fact that no one had succeeded in clearing it.
Then why was clearing it impossible?
'Because the final boss is ridiculously strong.'
To use an analogy, it's like while others were grinding to levels 60-70, you grinded to 120-130, only to find the boss was something like level 7413.
There's a limit to how much skill gap can be overcome with control and strategy.
It's like trying to stab an aircraft carrier with a bamboo spear—at most, you'll scrape some paint off.
So the only way to build up some strength in numbers was to save as many named characters as possible and bring them along.
'The player getting strong alone is meaningless.'
Therefore, going forward, I needed to not only strengthen myself but also pay close attention to nurturing the named characters who would play lead roles in future scenarios.
For that reason, I couldn't waste even the week left until enrollment.
'The real beginning starts now.'