Hospital Visit
The sound of something slithering through the darkness echoed softly. A man with the drenched, ghostly appearance of a water spirit emerged from the shadows. The moment she saw him, Hyun Sujin shot up from her seat and strode toward him.
Crack!
A black shadow writhed like a living thing before seizing the man by the collar.
“Hey, Kwak Hyuk. What the hell do you think you’re doing right now?”
“…”
“Are you kidding me? I had Han Jiyun tied down myself, and our kids were keeping that old fart Ma Hakjun busy. All you had to do was grab one damn kid. That was it. You understand?”
“…”
“And you failed. Are you seriously trying to tell me that right now? Huh?”
It was perfectly natural for Hyun Sujin to be furious. Two Elders had moved in to kidnap a single Academy student. She herself had pinned down the most dangerous enemy—an S-rank ability user, Han Jiyun. She had also made sure the annoyingly persistent Ma Hakjun couldn’t interfere. Under those conditions, Kwak Hyuk should have been physically incapable of failing his mission. No one capable of stopping him existed. And even if someone had, he should have been able to break through instantly. Failure was never supposed to be an option.
Crreeeaaak—!
Even more black shadows poured out, thicker and darker than before. They looked ready to swallow the water-spirit-like man whole at any second.
“…Hyun Sujin.”
Yet the man’s breathing remained steady. His face showed no sign of pain. Kwak Hyuk simply called her name in a perfectly calm voice.
“I had circumstances.”
“…Ha!”
It was so ridiculous she wanted to kill him on the spot. But the other party was an Elder just like her. Internal conflict was to be avoided whenever possible. And even if they clashed properly, victory would not come easily for Hyun Sujin. When ability levels were this close, their compatibility put her at a disadvantage.
“…Fine. Let’s hear what kind of ‘circumstances’ the famous Spear Ghost has to offer.”
The black shadows vanished behind her in an instant. Kwak Hyuk scratched his neck once, then slowly opened his mouth.
“One man stood in my way.”
“Obviously someone stopped you. A professor or a security agent! Haa… Are you talking about that old man Ma Hakjun?”
“No. Not him. Someone else.”
“Then who?”
“He said he was an examiner.”
“An examiner?”
“Yes.”
“So what? He blocked you. What about it!”
Hyun Sujin radiated the kind of killing intent that suggested she was ready to settle this with blood if he kept spouting nonsense. That was how important this operation had been to her…
“He took two direct hits from my spear and still lived.”
“…What?”
For a moment she thought she had misheard. The words that left Kwak Hyuk’s mouth were that shocking.
“Bullshit.”
“It is not bullshit.”
“That’s exactly why I’m calling it bullshit. An examiner? You mean one of those guys the Academy borrows? At best they’re on the same level as the teaching assistants. And some idiot like that took two hits from your spear?”
“I am only stating facts.”
“Be honest. Did you actually hit him properly? Not half-assed?”
At Hyun Sujin’s mocking tone, a grotesque light flickered through Kwak Hyuk’s eyes before vanishing. That single change was enough to shift the entire atmosphere.
“I have never once treated an opponent lightly. Not from the moment I take hold of my spear.”
“…Alright. I crossed the line. Sorry.”
Everyone had a reverse scale that must never be touched. Because she had one herself, she knew exactly what kind of emotion it would provoke. Hyun Sujin raised both hands in surrender and offered a sincere apology.
“Let’s organize this again. I handled Han Jiyun. Our kids kept Ma Hakjun occupied. You went to secure the target.”
“Correct.”
“But that examiner guy blocked your path. You swung your spear like usual, the examiner got hit and went flying. You assumed his entire body would have burst apart and he’d be dead, right?”
“Accurate.”
“Yet the guy got back up. So you sent him flying again, and he still got up?”
Kwak Hyuk nodded as if to confirm every word.
“…Ha!”
No matter how many times she thought about it, the story was complete nonsense. It was utter garbage, yet because it came from Kwak Hyuk—of all people—she knew it wasn’t a lie. He never exaggerated or downplayed anything. The man only ever spoke the plain truth. Knowing that all too well, Hyun Sujin felt her head begin to throb.
Does that even make sense? If he’d only been stabbed by the spearhead, maybe. But when a normal ability user gets struck by that guy’s spear shaft, their body should explode on impact. Yet some random examiner endured it twice? And then got up again and stubbornly stood in his way?
She could state it with certainty: that was impossible. It defied common sense by a ridiculous margin. Not even an A-rank ability user could pull that off. The only beings in the world capable of withstanding a direct blow from an Elder were one specific group.
S-rank…
Hyun Sujin’s mind began spinning at high speed. He had definitely said examiner. Rank and affiliation didn’t matter. The key point was that an examiner was ultimately a government civil servant.
Don’t tell me those bastards finally carried out that experiment and actually succeeded? And then disguised the result as a civil servant and planted him inside the Academy?
It was common knowledge that villains had been eyeing the Academy with greed for a long time. Until now, the Academy’s internal forces had been too strong and the villains themselves had never cooperated, so nothing had come of it. But the government might have already prepared countermeasures.
Those bastards… they really went and did that cursed experiment!
Grind—!
A pitch-black aura erupted from Hyun Sujin’s body as she clenched her teeth. It was something so ominous that merely looking at it would send chills down anyone’s spine. This was the reaction that always occurred whenever someone touched her reverse scale.
“So what now?”
“…What do you mean, what now?”
“Will you target the Academy again? Or are we changing the plan to secure the target?”
At Kwak Hyuk’s question, Hyun Sujin flashed a bright, refreshing smile. Then she answered.
“Are you insane? Have you lost your mind?”
They had gone all-in assuming success. The fact that Kim Suhyun was the target was already known to the other side. Charging in again? That would be like sticking your head into a tiger’s open maw.
“I heard that woman showed up at the Academy.”
“…”
“Think you can handle her? That crazy yellow bitch?”
The moment news of the Academy attack reached them, the highest-level combatant had been deployed immediately. Among South Korea’s S-rank ability users, she was unquestionably the strongest. Even among the S-ranks scattered across the world, she ranked at the very top—a powerhouse among powerhouses. Even for an Elder, facing her head-on was something to be deeply reluctant about.
“It pisses me off. Why couldn’t her parents have stayed in their own damn country instead of naturalizing here?”
“She claims she’s Korean.”
“With that yellow hair and blue eyes? Please.”
Hyun Sujin scratched her head irritably and bit her lip.
For now, I need to investigate that examiner first. If he really is one of the survivors from that experiment…
The conclusion would be one of two things: recruit him, or eliminate him. Secretly, Hyun Sujin hoped it would be the first option.
Three days have passed since the incident.
“Thankfully there are no serious injuries. No damage to bones or internal organs either. It’s quite remarkable—your patient’s physical condition is incredibly stable. Hmm… He should be able to be discharged in about three days.”
Doctor. What the hell are you saying? Discharge? Already? Why are you doing this to me? You can’t do this!
I told you I got hit by an Elder!
I was hoping I could lie in bed for at least a month. I could have processed it as an injury sustained during official duties. The villains had invaded, and I had fought them off. The optics would have been perfect. I was even imagining legally collecting a hospital salary like a professional loafer, but…
“I heard you’re being discharged. Since there’s nothing wrong with your body, we’ll keep your Academy examiner dispatch active. Don’t complain to me. It’s an order from above, so just do as you’re told.”
That was what my old-fashioned superior said when he came for a hospital visit. I couldn’t tell if he was actually worried or just here to stress me out. Thanks to him, I was already worrying about going back to work after only three days of hospitalization.
Still, the reaction is a lot colder than I expected.
I had secretly held some expectations. After all, I had blocked an Elder and survived his attacks. I thought they might immediately ask what my true identity was, so I had even prepared answers in advance. But no one even mentioned that part.
That leaves two possibilities. Either they’re deliberately hiding information… or…
Or they simply think the Elder was just toying with an ant and got bored halfway through. Honestly, most people would probably nod at the latter explanation. Even if I had heard the news myself, I would have assumed the Elder hadn’t taken the opponent seriously. Still, they must have acknowledged my efforts somewhat—my hospital room was a private single room. The cost wasn’t cheap. When I asked out of concern, they said the Academy was covering everything. Thanks to that, I could relax and enjoy this spacious, comfortable space to my heart’s content.
“Shall we see what’s happening outside?”
I picked up the remote and turned on the TV. The first thing that greeted me was a flood of news reports. As expected, they were focusing heavily on the Academy raid from a few days ago.
On the screen, Han Jiyun and Principal Ma Hakjun looked incredibly busy. I had felt a little hurt that neither had come to visit, but now I understood why. They were probably still swamped with reporters to the point of losing their minds.
[Meanwhile, a joint funeral for those who lost their lives protecting students during this catastrophe will be…]
Watching the news finally made it feel real. What the hell had I done? At the time it had felt like I had no choice but to step forward, but looking back now, it really had been insane. It was a miracle I hadn’t died.
Let’s think positively. Yeah. I saved Kim Suhyun and prevented a tragedy that would have killed and injured over five hundred thousand people.
I hadn’t done it for social recognition or attention. I had simply done what any decent human being should do. I had simply acted in a way that didn’t prick my conscience. That was all.
…Still, I would have liked to hear someone tell me to rest a little longer. Being told to return to work in three days is a bit much, don’t you think?
Knock knock—
“Um… Examiner Baek Seojin?”
A woman’s voice came from beyond the door along with a knock.
“It’s me, Kim Suhyun! I came to visit! May I come in?”