What the Hell Is He?
Meanwhile, after parting ways with Kang Hana, Kim Suhyun was displaying a rare burst of anger. To an outside observer, it might have looked less like rage and more like her simply staring, but regardless—Kim Suhyun stood beside Baek Seojin, seething with fury.
And the reason for it was…
Silver Rank Examination
“Let’s begin, Examiner Baek Seojin. Silver rank examination.”
“You seem confident, Student Jeong Yuhyeon.”
Jeong Yuhyeon. Student Council Vice President. And the very person who had dueled Baek Seojin yesterday.
‘The one who said such horrible things to the examiner. The one who hurt him.’
A tiny spark of flame flickered in Kim Suhyun’s eyes. Neither Baek Seojin nor Jeong Yuhyeon noticed it.
“I’d appreciate it if you didn’t take yesterday’s events lightly.”
“When I think about yesterday, I can’t help but take it lightly.”
“If it weren’t for the Student Council President, I could have done much more.”
“If it weren’t for the Student Council President, I could have beaten you much harder.”
True to his days dealing with malicious complainants as a civil servant, Baek Seojin verbally dismantled Jeong Yuhyeon. Even Jeong Yuhyeon, biting his lip, realized he couldn’t win with words. His belief that the man was still beneath him hadn’t changed. He had simply added one more note: he couldn’t afford to let his guard down.
Even a rat can bite a cat. Even a lion must hunt a rabbit with full effort.
‘There won’t be a repeat of yesterday. Today, I will crush him completely.’
And soon, your entire life will be crushed as well.
Jeong Yuhyeon smiled inwardly and glanced at Kim Suhyun.
‘The granddaughter of Kang Minsung.’
From Jeong Yuhyeon’s perspective, she was an extremely awkward opponent. In terms of background alone, he could dismiss her as nothing more than ‘that kind of person.’ Yet her actual skill was even lower than the Baek Seojin standing over there. Ignoring her risked drawing the ire of a giant he couldn’t handle, but bowing his head like Kang Hana would wound his pride too deeply.
‘I don’t know why she’s staring at me like that…’
What mattered right now was trampling that damn bastard. He would repay yesterday’s humiliation. He would shake off the Bronze rank in a single day.
“Shall we begin, then?”
The moment Baek Seojin spoke, Jeong Yuhyeon leaped backward, creating distance. It seemed yesterday’s lesson—that striking first guaranteed victory—had left quite an impression.
“Yesterday was just a spar, so I felt a bit restrained. Today is an official examination, so I feel much more at ease.”
Yet Baek Seojin simply stood in place, radiating composure. Never mind that yesterday he had taken a clean punch to the face the instant the match began. Today he was acting as if he held absolute superiority.
Grind—
Jeong Yuhyeon clenched his teeth and nearly charged in without thinking. He wanted to stomp on that repulsive bastard’s mouth right this second.
“…Huu.”
But he quickly steadied his breathing and calmed his mind. Gold rank wasn’t something you earned just by having slightly stronger abilities.
‘He’s not taking the bait.’
Baek Seojin had expected him to rush in after that level of provocation. Still, the guy had been Gold until yesterday—he was living up to the rank, at least a little. Clicking his tongue inwardly, Baek Seojin finally prepared for battle in earnest.
What Baek Seojin readied wasn’t a sword or any other weapon. It was a single shield.
Gripping the dagger hidden in his sleeve, Jeong Yuhyeon observed his opponent and thought,
‘That guy’s support class is detection and measurement, right?’
At first he had assumed combat or martial arts type. Every examination he’d seen the man conduct had followed a similar combat style. He used a sword, and sometimes even suppressed students with hand-to-hand techniques.
But that had been a misunderstanding. Come to think of it, support classes could wield weapons or martial arts just fine. The difference was that they didn’t possess any special trump cards like pure combat classes did. Naturally, they would always fall short compared to dedicated weapon or martial arts users.
That was why support classes had become the biggest users of shields. After all, support ability users were the farthest from actual combat. It only made sense to hold out until allies arrived.
The shield Baek Seojin held was just large enough to cover his torso. It wasn’t huge, but it could easily deflect incoming daggers. It looked like something he had prepared after reflecting on yesterday’s duel.
‘Is he hoping I’ll get caught like yesterday?’
If dagger throws were blocked, the only option left was close combat. Then, just like yesterday, he would snatch his opponent in an instant and end the fight. That was how it looked to Jeong Yuhyeon.
‘Not a chance. You’ll regret picking up that shield.’
Yesterday’s duel had taught Jeong Yuhyeon something as well. This wasn’t a fight against villains where surprise attacks were the standard. In real combat, you prepared as lightly and stealthily as possible, then struck with a decisive blow. Because it was an ambush. That was his greatest strength.
But not today. He couldn’t use that advantage. And he didn’t need to force it, either. If he couldn’t launch a surprise attack, he would simply abandon the idea.
Shuuak—!
For a split second, Baek Seojin’s expression hardened. The sound of something slicing through the air was different from yesterday—heavier, sharper, and above all, louder.
Thud—!Thwack—!
What Jeong Yuhyeon threw wasn’t ordinary daggers. They were larger and heavier than the ones he usually used. They were absolutely not suited for surprise attacks. In fact, they would be incredibly cumbersome. Difficult to throw, difficult to swing. And because they were so big, it was relatively easy for an opponent to block or deflect them.
Thud— Thwack—!
That was exactly what Jeong Yuhyeon was aiming for. The larger, heavier blades kept embedding themselves in the shield. Naturally, the shield’s weight increased with every hit. It had to become a burden. Pulling them out would be difficult since they were lodged deeply. And of course, there was no way his opponent would just stand there watching.
‘Keep blocking. After two or three more, see if you can even lift it.’
This wasn’t a surprise attack meant for real combat. This was a thorough plan to bring down a single target. There was no need to cling to his usual patterns.
Spinning the dagger in his hand once, Jeong Yuhyeon waited. The moment the shield lowered, another dagger would fly. Holding it would only make it harder to handle. But abandoning the shield would mean throwing away the very advantage he had created.
‘How does it feel to take one on the chin, you pathetic fool?’
He probably never imagined that someone who specialized in ambush tactics with daggers would fight like this. This was exactly why he could never reach Silver. His focus narrowed to a single point. He had only thought of daggers as his main weapon and brought a shield as a counter—never realizing that very counter would become his weakness.
Jeong Yuhyeon continued circling around Baek Seojin. More than ten daggers were now stuck in the shield. Every time Baek Seojin tried to shift the shield or reach for the embedded blades, Jeong Yuhyeon made a throwing motion, forcing his opponent to waste stamina pointlessly.
‘It’s not going in. He’s just stalling like this.’
With sharp eyes, he continued monitoring Baek Seojin for any change. After several minutes, Jeong Yuhyeon finally spotted an opening. Perhaps the strain had finally caught up despite all the pretending. The arm holding the shield trembled—just for a moment.
Even if the daggers weren’t that heavy individually, having so many dangling from it was bound to take a toll. Especially since he had deliberately chosen the largest ones possible. The effect was clear.
Should he go in now and finish it? Or wait a little longer?
Jeong Yuhyeon hesitated. It could be a trap. He needed to observe more. One loss yesterday was already enough. He could not afford another. He would wait for the perfect moment and take down that examiner in one—
“Hup!”
A glint flashed in Jeong Yuhyeon’s eyes as he kicked off the ground. Baek Seojin had apparently decided he could no longer hold the shield and had lowered it. Thanks to that, his reaction was noticeably delayed.
Without the slightest hesitation, Jeong Yuhyeon charged straight in. Baek Seojin didn’t have time to respond. He had closed the distance precisely during the moment the shield was being lowered or moved to the back. Even if he tried to defend now, Jeong Yuhyeon would already be right in his face—
Grin—
‘…Ah.’
Jeong Yuhyeon saw it. He saw Baek Seojin smiling now that the distance had closed. He saw the arm that had been trembling just moments ago now swinging with tremendous force. And he saw the shield—which he couldn’t tell was being lowered or moved to the back—
Whoooosh—!
Flying toward him with a terrifying sound.
‘It was a fake, you idiot.’
That was what Baek Seojin was thinking as he brought the shield crashing down on Jeong Yuhyeon’s shoulder. He had broken the man’s ribs on the first day and nothing serious had come of it. In an ability user academy, minor and major injuries happened all the time. It couldn’t be helped. That was simply how things were. It would only get worse once they graduated.
‘So a cracked shoulder should be fine, right?’
Baek Seojin had not forgotten the mother-related insult.
Crack—
“Aaargh!”
That was it. Jeong Yuhyeon collapsed, clutching his shoulder. His arm wouldn’t respond. Sharp pain surged through him in waves. He nearly abandoned all pride and screamed outright.
“Student Jeong Yuhyeon. Are you alright?”
Baek Seojin walked over and asked the question while standing in front of the fallen man. His expression might have looked like concern for a student, but his eyes were clearly those of someone mocking his opponent.
At that moment, Jeong Yuhyeon realized something. Just now, the strike could have targeted his neck or head instead of his shoulder. If this had been real combat, an injury like this would never have been the end of it.
“If it’s hard to move, I can help you to the infirmary.”
“I don’t need it!”
Jeong Yuhyeon shot to his feet with a snarl and spun around, teeth grinding. He was so furious he thought he might go insane. To lose to a guy like this again. He barely held himself back from drawing a dagger and slitting the man’s throat on the spot.
“Silver rank examination—failure. Student Jeong Yuhyeon.”
“…”
“Try harder. Bronze.”
As if he could read every thought running through Jeong Yuhyeon’s mind, Baek Seojin poured salt into the wound.
Grind—
Clenching his teeth so hard they nearly cracked, Jeong Yuhyeon turned and stormed out of the examination hall.
‘Yeah, go ahead and laugh, you son of a bitch. In two days—no, by tomorrow—you’ll be finished.’
He had already received word that preparations were complete. Since he had made a special request, things had moved incredibly fast. They reported that the main scenario would revolve around “civil servant sexual harassment.” The actors were already in place, and they would cast the net as soon as confirmation was given.
Soon that arrogant orphan would be sobbing, desperately proclaiming his innocence until he collapsed from exhaustion.
‘I’ll teach you that the world isn’t so kind. You orphan bastard.’
With a bitter smile on his face, Jeong Yuhyeon clutched his shoulder and headed for the infirmary.
*
And then nothing happened.