Chapter 25
Chapter 25
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 25
Chapter Title: Perfect Score
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Kang Hyun's time flew by faster than anyone else's. The CSAT, where not even the slightest mistake could be tolerated, loomed right before him.
"Ah... nosebleed."
Kang Hyun wiped away the blood trickling down with his hand.
Effort doesn't betray you. And geniuses aren't born without it. Kang Hyun was living these truths firsthand as the days passed.
His body ached, but there was a joy he could feel.
That joy fueled him further, filling him with passion and vitality.
After starting his senior year.
Even as the warm spring returned and the cherry blossoms fell, Kang Hyun still felt he had a long way to go.
'There's still a wall I haven't broken through.'
Pushing past it required nothing but time and effort.
Whenever that thought hit him, he gripped his pen tighter and forged ahead.
At first, he'd tear problems apart like dismantling them, chewing them over thoroughly. Then he'd spin his brain at top speed to solve them faster than anyone else.
Sometimes he'd memorize entire passages wholesale. Other times, he'd tackle problems from five different angles or more, hunting for the optimal quick-solving method.
Was it the fruit of all that labor?
At some point, Kang Hyun realized he was surpassing the genius abilities he'd gained after that accident on his way past the hagwon district.
It was the signal that he was on track for first place nationwide.
The greenery thickened, and summer rolled in.
While students used the heat as an excuse to head out in groups for trips or kick back and relax, Kang Hyun had no such plans.
His mother was still grinding away at work, and by month's end, when his allowance ran dry, he'd make do with triangular kimbap for meals.
Thanks to grinding through his studies in times like these, the results were finally coming into sharp focus.
"This mock exam was brutal."
"If the CSAT's this tough, we're done for. They trying to wipe out the mid-tier kids?"
Kang Hyun smiled faintly as he overheard students muttering while passing in the hallway.
Every grade on his mock exam score sheet read '1'.
And the score? Perfect.
'I've made it.'
After gnashing his teeth to shatter his limits, after efforts that felt like grinding his bones to dust.
He had finally reached the level he'd aimed for.
Unusually enough, right after the exam wrapped up, he even caught Yoon Haneul's shocked expression.
"You... got everything right?"
Students swarmed around as Yoon Haneul—not even from his class—approached with wide-eyed surprise, but neither of them paid it any mind.
This was the historic moment when he surpassed Yoon Haneul.
Kang Hyun nodded, and Yoon Haneul broke into the brightest smile he'd ever seen from her.
"Nice work. Congrats."
Her jet-black straight hair swaying alongside her startled eyes made that smile utterly beautiful. Kang Hyun beamed back at her.
The leaves fell in the blink of an eye, and the weather grew steadily colder. For Kang Hyun, it meant the defining moment of his life was closing in.
With less than two weeks to go until the CSAT, he headed to the library for his final shift.
"What's this?"
Han Hyun-ho stood before him, thumping his chest and laughing heartily.
"Good luck on the CSAT, man."
The chocolate wrapped in glaring red paper—totally out of character for him—somehow eased the inexplicable loneliness of Kang Hyun's last day.
Han Hyun-ho hadn't shown up at the library in ages.
He'd already snagged his certification and boasted about hustling to make bank and start a business. Seeing him actually put in the work made Kang Hyun trust him completely.
"Once you're twenty, let's grab a drink."
"You got it."
They faced each other with steely resolve.
They hadn't known each other forever, but by now words weren't needed—they just got it.
His final day.
Kang Hyun and his mother spent the evening in the living room.
They went out for a delicious meal after so long, chatted about everything and nothing. The time with her felt truly happy.
'Why didn't I realize this before?'
The house was falling apart, but tonight it felt like a luxury hotel. He was even grateful for how solidly it had sheltered them.
"Off to bed."
"You too, Mom."
Kang Hyun paused on his way to his room and shared the words he'd kept locked in his heart.
"I don't regret anything. I don't resent you."
"..."
"Thanks for always being by my side. Good night."
He said it without turning to look, so he couldn't see her face—but he felt it.
Love and faith.
The harvest of that was piling up bit by bit, now ready to come into view.
At last, CSAT day arrived.
The grand finale, where he'd unleash every ounce of skill he'd patiently honed for his great leap forward.
"Freezing out here."
"Let's crush it!"
"Fight!"
Examinees streamed through the gates amid cheers from teachers, underclassmen, and family. The encouragement was electric—some clutched fish cake skewers or steaming coffee.
Kang Hyun's mother couldn't see him off because of work, but carrying her warm wishes, he strode forward with purpose.
'It's finally here.'
He steadied his pounding heart and crossed the school grounds when a familiar voice called out.
"Kang Hyun!"
"...Prosecutor?"
"Yeah, took forever to spot you. Not answering your phone?"
Kim Jeong-min approached, sniffling, and pressed something into his hand.
A wrapped glutinous rice cake.
"I'm repping the department. Everyone fought over who got to come—even did rock-paper-scissors. Guess who won."
Trying to loosen him up, Kim Jeong-min cracked wise.
"If something feels off, skip it quick and hit the next one. You'll nail it anyway... Good luck on the exam."
Kang Hyun had first seen him as cold and calculating, but Prosecutor Kim Jeong-min brimmed with humanity the more you knew him.
Grateful, he nodded vigorously and bowed.
"See you next time as a senior."
"Haha, count on it. Go get 'em!"
Kang Hyun watched him go after a friendly pat on the arm, then entered the exam hall with lighter steps.
'For the people cheering me on.'
A touch of nerves, heart racing.
'And for me.'
Savoring the thrill, he surrendered himself to the clock.
[This year's CSAT drew expert praise as the toughest ever, especially as the final one before the new curriculum rollout...]
Even Kang Hyun's iron nerves trembled at the moment of self-grading.
Forget punching scores into some site—he wanted to grab a pen and check each one himself.
He craved the slow savoring of the sweet payoff from months of endurance.
'Looking good so far.'
Each checkmark brought a surge of pleasure and exhilaration.
The tricky ones, the ones he'd second-guessed for logic flaws—they were just paranoia after all.
The instant he confirmed his mistake worries were baseless, his face lit up brighter and brighter.
Thump-thump.
'Everything right?'
He nearly leaped from his seat.
"Ah!"
One problem had tripped him up. He'd sworn it was 3 on the multiple choice, but the famous answer key said 1.
"So close..."
He shoved down the wave of emptiness and calmly reworked it.
"No... I think I'm right."
Kang Hyun cocked his head.
Ring-ring-ring.
Right on cue, Yoon Haneul called.
She was usually so composed, but her voice buzzed with excitement as she blurted:
"It's not 1—it's 3, right?"
His nagging doubt cleared in a flash.
"...Pfft. Yeah, looks like it."
Her reaction drew a laugh out of him.
Nothing made him happier than her thinking the same.
"Whew... had me worried."
Yoon Haneul sighed in relief, then shared her joy.
"I'm happy. One wrong, but I hit the minimums."
"Nice one. Just like you."
She was going early admission on her student record, so CSAT minimums were all she needed. One miss across every subject? Incredible.
The payoff of her dogged persistence.
Yoon Haneul asked tentatively.
"How about you...?"
The real question mark was Kang Hyun.
He'd started studying too late for any student record to save him.
All he had left to trust was this final, frenzied CSAT sprint.
"Hoo..."
Kang Hyun drew a massive breath, let it out slow. He scanned the paper once more, then shot to his feet, joy exploding.
"All correct!"
He'd done it.
National first place.
Something he'd never even dreamed of back then. But this was no dream. Still clutching the open line, he told Yoon Haneul.
"Haneul, I aced it all!"
"For real?"
No prior agreement, yet they both cracked up at once.
They knew exactly how the other had clawed through the grind—they could laugh from the heart.
"I knew you had it!"
"Thanks!"
She celebrated with him, genuinely thrilled.
'I did it!'
Right then, Kang Hyun swelled with pride and fulfillment.
And with that overflowing heart, countless futures unfurled before him.
The foundation for his grand ambitions locking perfectly into place.
Korea University.
The undisputed pinnacle among every school in the Republic of Korea.
And within it, the Law Department—the oldest college, badge of the top 0.01%.
The law building towered atop a modest hillock that students had to hike up quite a ways on this sprawling campus.
The Korea University Law School (its JD program) had triggered a slow procedural wind-down, but the department's prestige stood utterly unshaken. It was still seen as the "pure-blood" pipeline to the Law School.
Atop that building's highest floor sat the department's undisputed kingpin, wielding enough clout to sway the entire Korea University foundation board.
Law Department Dean Kim Jong-hwan, who also chaired the faculty meeting.
"Heard we got a solid new kid this time?"
Full-time professor Cheon Ung-jae set down his coffee and spoke from across the desk.
"Yeah. Prosecutors are pushing him through the prosecutor talent track, and word is he's the only perfect CSAT scorer? Sharp one, from the looks of it."
"Intriguing."
"Not sure he'll fit in, though. Doesn't seem like he grew up cushy."
Cheon Ung-jae voiced his concern—having somehow dug into Kang Hyun's background—with a furrowed brow. Kim Jong-hwan tsked pityingly.
"That's what makes those types dangerous, Professor Cheon. Wanna bet? That kid's heading student council president, straight to Law School."
"Come on, in a crowd that judges by pedigree..."
Cheon Ung-jae waved it off. Kim Jong-hwan clicked his tongue, lifted his coffee cup, and focused on its aroma and flavor.
"He'll make it."
Expectancy lit his face as he gazed out the window with a relaxed smile.