The Awakening Academy (3): The Thunder Emperor's Return

The whispers spread like wildfire through the lecture hall.

“Hey, isn’t that Kang Taejun?”

“Yeah. These days, if you go on HunterNet, it’s nothing but articles about him.”

“Lucky bastard. Look at his trait—Sword Genius. Even from here he looks like a big shot.”

“There’s already a Spear Genius, right? That hunter hit A-class already and they say he’s gunning for S-class soon.”

“Some of us came here just to kiss ass, but that guy can pick any guild he wants. Guess I can kiss first place goodbye.”

“You were aiming for first?”

“No, I’m just saying. Huh? He’s coming this way.”

The crowd held their breath, watching Kang Taejun’s every step.

People who had been nervously wondering if he was heading for them watched him pass by, one after another, until he stopped in front of a single man.

The one person in this room receiving nearly as much attention as Kang Taejun ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠himself.

The guy everyone called by his trait instead of his name.

Link? Did that guy actually know Kang Taejun?

Must be nice! I’m so jealous!

Is he riding his friend’s coattails? Maybe Kang Taejun’s going to ask his guild to take him too? No wonder he bothered showing up here. He had an ace up his sleeve after all.

All sorts of wild theories flew around—until Kang Taejun opened his mouth.

“Shin Yuseong?”

“Yeah.”

“So? How are you feeling right now?”

“What do you mean?”

“I’m asking if you’re regretting coming here for no reason.”

Confusion rippled through the crowd.

That doesn’t sound like they’re close. If anything, it feels like bad blood. What the hell is with that conversation?

Kang Taejun’s arrogant posture and mocking tone made it obvious—he was picking a fight.

Shin Yuseong noticed it immediately. There was no way he wouldn’t.

“Why would I regret it? And did you really come all the way over here just to ask me that?”

“Heh heh. If not, then never mind. I’m just saying—if you need any help, let me know. Seems like… you might have a hard time on your own. Especially with a trash trait like that.”

Kang Taejun reached out and pressed a finger against the sticker on Shin Yuseong’s chest, sneering.

Whoa, that guy’s screwed. Looks like he got on Kang Taejun’s bad side.

The onlookers expected Shin Yuseong to panic and flounder. That’s what they would have done. After all, getting on the wrong side of someone who was clearly going to become a major hunter would keep anyone up at night.

But instead—

“Really? Then could you buy me a case of cola? A famous guy like you should be able to manage that much, right? I’m really craving one right now.”

Shin Yuseong flashed a bright smile, pulled a single thousand-won bill from his pocket, and dropped it at Kang Taejun’s feet.

“What?”

“I said, buy me a case of cola. Oh, and you can keep the change as payment for the errand.”

A thousand won wasn’t even enough for a single can, let alone a whole case—and he was telling him to keep the change as a tip?

By sheer coincidence, those words stabbed straight into Kang Taejun’s middle-school trauma of being the class errand boy.

“You son of a—!”

He growled under his breath, but Shin Yuseong just kept smiling that infuriating smile.

“What are you waiting for? You said if I needed help I should ask.”

The smirk on his lips was so nasty it looked like even a saint would want to curse him out. And Kang Taejun, whose personality was still half-formed at best—

“Have you lost your damn mind, you bastard?! You think trash like you can disrespect me?!”

He exploded, grabbing Shin Yuseong by the collar.

That was the moment.

Wh-what the…?

Shin Yuseong’s eyes were completely indifferent.

But the moment Kang Taejun met that gaze head-on, he felt as if he were standing naked in front of a predator. His entire body froze solid.

A murderous aura so thick it felt like it had slaughtered countless lives.

Thankfully, it lasted only an instant.

His body moved normally again, as if nothing had happened.

What the hell was that? No way… I actually got scared of this guy?

Kang Taejun desperately tried to erase the possibility from his mind. There was no way. What could this loser possibly do to him?

He neatly ignored the warning his instincts were screaming at him.

Then the rage came flooding back.

Just because he awakened some worthless Link trait, he dares to mess with me—someone whose future is already set in stone?!

And worst of all, everyone had seen him get humiliated.

It was mortifying. He felt like he’d been thrown back into his miserable middle-school days.

The memory that he had been the one to start the fight had already been conveniently erased from Kang Taejun’s mind. The pathetic version of himself from the past no longer existed. It could never exist again.

Ever since awakening his trait, he had basked in everyone’s envious stares. Massive guilds practically begged him to sign with them.

The people who had wronged him in the past had already apologized, claiming they had committed mortal sins, after seeing his name plastered across the news every single day. He had personally beaten them to the brink of death. Now the tables had turned—those same people came running the second he called, terrified.

And now someone like this had the nerve to humiliate him again.

Especially a worthless Trash-class trait holder who had already been marked by both Taeseong Guild and Han Yura.

“Hey! What do you two think you’re doing?!”

An instructor’s shout came from across the room.

“You. I’ve memorized your face. Consider your life over from now on.”

Awakened individuals were forbidden from using their abilities recklessly. The International Hunter Laws imposed heavy penalties for violations.

That was the only reason Kang Taejun had barely managed to regain his senses and settle for a verbal warning.

“I’m not scared of someone who can’t even buy a case of cola.”

Shin Yuseong gave one last dig, smiling the entire time. Kang Taejun shot him a murderous glare before finally sitting back down.

The awakened watching the whole thing held their breath in the suddenly icy atmosphere.

I was growing increasingly suspicious of Kang Taejun.

No matter how I look at it, that bastard definitely has some kind of connection to Taeseong.

It wasn’t a baseless guess. The way he had been whispering with the Taeseong representative before coming over to provoke me only confirmed it.

I had no way of knowing whether he would end up joining Baekho Guild like in my previous life or sign with Taeseong instead. But one thing was certain—I wasn’t about to let his provocation slide.

I’m currently in the middle of an evaluation that will decide whether I get into Saint Guild. If that guy really is affiliated with Taeseong, I can’t afford to look weak in front of him.

Struggling against Han Yura back then had been unavoidable because of the overwhelming gap in our power. But if I cowered before a bloodthirsty brat like this, how could I possibly save the world?

There was only one path left for me now.

In that case, I absolutely have to succeed in learning the Heavenly Demon Primordial Mind Method!

After calculating that no one would dare bother me anymore, I quietly closed my eyes and began training the mind method.

It would be less efficient without assuming a proper lotus position, but it was still possible.

When I finally finished my training and opened my eyes again—

“…This will definitely be on the test. Alright, next topic is…”

Ah. I trained for too long.

The class was already well underway.

I looked around. It seemed like I had missed an entire test question, but there was no one I could ask. The moment I made eye contact with anyone, they quickly looked away.

All because of that damn Kang Taejun.

I scratched the back of my head.

I’ll have to cut my mind method training sessions shorter during class from now on.

Since the written exam was important too, I decided to focus on the rest of the lecture.

Still, I had studied hard for three days before entering the training center, and I had my past-life experience. I was confident I could at least handle the basics.

“What? That Shin Yuseong guy entered the Awakened Training Center?”

“Yes. It seems he couldn’t let go of his lingering attachments. It’s obvious. He probably linked with something completely useless. He received praise from the Master for having a good eye, so he must be ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠holding onto the vain hope that if he shows something at the training center, he might be able to join even a mediocre guild.”

“Haha! I knew it! He should have accepted my offer when I gave it to him. Who does he think he is?”

Han Yura burst into pleasant laughter.

“Hahaha! Exactly. He didn’t know his place and ignored the Master’s goodwill. Serves him right.”

Her secretary laughed along with her. This was simply how office politics worked.

The secretary was one of the few people who knew exactly how to soothe Han Yura when she was in a bad mood, and he was even better at inflating her ego when she was happy.

That was why he had managed to keep his position this long.

Every moment is dirty, exhausting, and nauseating, but the pay is great!

After carefully reading the room, he decided now was the perfect time to flatter her even more.

“Thanks to the Master’s decisive judgment, we’ve secured Kang Taejun, and we’ve also landed a major sponsor. I just received the list of everyone who registered at the training center today, and there isn’t a single person who could possibly threaten Kang Taejun.”

“Really?”

“Yes. Once Kang Taejun puts on a dazzling display of his abilities, all we have to do is have him sign the contract with Taeseong right there on the spot…”

“We keep the promise to recruit Kang Taejun and squeeze the sponsor dry at the same time, right?”

Squeeze the sponsor dry…

The secretary thought her choice of words was rather cheap, but he nodded vigorously anyway.

“Exactly! We can squeeze them properly. It’s all thanks to the Master’s brilliant decision!”

The sponsor plan had ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠actually been his own suggestion, but the secretary gave Han Yura all the credit.

“Good. Everything is going perfectly. Let’s use this chance to leave Baekho Guild in the dust.”

Baekho Guild was currently competing with Taeseong for first and second place. If this succeeded, they could widen the gap significantly.

“It will definitely happen! How could any plan devised by the Master possibly fail?”

“Hmm~.”

Now in an excellent mood, Han Yura began humming a little tune.

Sigh, corporate life is such a pain.

Of course, it wasn’t all bad.

“Here, a special bonus. I’m giving it because I’m in a good mood today, so keep up the good work. I’ve been quite satisfied with your performance lately.”

“Gasp! Thank you, Master!”

The monetary reward he received in exchange for selling his liver and gallbladder was so sweet it felt like his teeth would rot.

“Alright, as announced earlier, we’ll be taking a short test. It will be reflected in your final evaluation, so don’t take it lightly.”

“…?”

After the day’s written lecture had ended, I was the only one caught off guard while everyone else calmly prepared for the test.

When had they announced this…? Ah.

It must have been while I was ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠training the mind method!

I hadn’t just missed a few questions—I had apparently missed several announcements as well.

Well… was I screwed?

The test papers were handed out.

“Ah…!”

Sighs erupted here and there. It seemed most of the questions were subjective. Oh, but they were actually pretty doable?

Most of the problems were indeed based on what had been covered in today’s lecture.

But there was one question—

Was this the one I missed earlier? It doesn’t seem like it was mentioned in class at all.

Thankfully, it was a general knowledge question.

I wrote the answer with confidence.

Since my practical score was going to be abysmal, I needed to do well on the written exam. So far, things had been going smoothly.

The examiner in charge of grading the Awakened Training Center tests paused while marking one particular answer sheet.

The answer was technically incorrect according to the textbook.

But it presented a completely different perspective from anything currently known.

The currently accepted answer was:

When a crack appears in a gate, a Dungeon Break will occur within three days. A raid party must be dispatched immediately to stabilize the dungeon. Be cautious as frenzied monsters will appear.

However, this answer read:

Place a thin piece of cloth at the entrance of the gate. If the cloth is slightly sucked toward the gate, the gate is stable. If the cloth is slightly pushed outward, it is an early sign that a Dungeon Break will occur within 30 days. If a raid party is dispatched before cracks form and monsters go into a frenzy, stabilization can be achieved without much difficulty.

Is this even possible? No—if this is true, it could drastically reduce casualties.

If they could predict a Dungeon Break a whole month in advance and clean out the dungeon before the monsters went berserk…

The examiner checked the name of the person who had written such an answer out of curiosity.

Shin Yuseong

It wasn’t a name he had heard before.

There was a chance the student had simply scribbled nonsense, but…

After much deliberation, he placed a star next to the question.