Chapter 72
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Translator: True Detective
Chapter: 72
Chapter Title: 70. Overseas Cadets
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I started attending the academy again today.
Ever since that team battle fiasco, Hansung Academy had been slapped with the villain academy label and was now under direct management by the association.
In the process, they purged all the cadets who'd snuck in pretty much illegally, ignoring the rules.
Sure, the academy dean had accepted them just to pad the numbers, but with the Seven Deadly Sins involved, they swept out all the privileged kids.
Which brings me to my question.
"Why wasn't Blazing Bat cut?"
The cadets burst out laughing, clutching their stomachs at my question.
No, I'm seriously curious. She's never taught a proper class because it's a hassle—she just hands it off to experts in each field. I've never seen her actually do anything instructor-like herself.
"What'd you say, you little bitch?"
"I mean, come on. I've never seen you act like a real instructor. You dumped the Kim Seung-jun incident on me, your intro class was a disaster, you don't say a word when cadets openly smoke in the training grounds. You just hit self-study and bail all the time."
Thinking about it, she's utterly unqualified as an instructor. Why the hell is she still here at the academy? She'd fit right in beating up randos in back alleys.
"We needed to fill the instructor slots first."
"You're brutally honest."
"Plus, she's strong. That's why she got Class A."
"Huh?"
I know Blazing Bat's strong and all. But shouldn't the elite class have an elite instructor? Why her, of all people—this brutish woman?
I almost said it out loud, but shut my mouth when I imagined her swinging that bat. Too much hassle.
"All the kids who got in on parental connections or to pad numbers are gone. Only the skilled ones remain."
"Yeah."
"Those skilled ones? They don't really need teaching. Send 'em straight to guilds to jump into the field. No point in basic academy training. Hell, even you—the guilds are drooling over you. I'd ship you off in a heartbeat."
"So basically, from Blazing Bat's perspective, she lucked into a class full of no-effort prodigies."
A class of nothing but strong kids means no need to bust her ass teaching. Brutally pragmatic logic.
I want to argue, but Class A really is stacked with powerhouses now. Her point isn't wrong.
"Don't make me sound bad."
"That's why your oppa hates you."
It's got nothing to do with it, but Blazing Bat adores Yoo Jin-seok beyond her filthy mouth. She turns into a total simp around him.
Future spinster confirmed.
"Ever gotten your ass beat by Blazing Bat?"
"Oppa hates unfair violence the most."
Kim Ji-hye picks up her bat at my words, then sets it down.
"Anyway. We lost spots from the purge, so we fast-tracked some new cadets. Special circumstances because of the Seven Deadly Sins—Hansung's under heavy association oversight, so we're bringing in overseas transfers. Get along with them, everyone."
Blazing Bat drops that bombshell and hauls in three girls from outside the classroom.
Two have black hair, one blonde.
I have a vague idea who they might be.
"I'm Shinohara Kotone. From Kumamoto. Nothing I hate in particular, love tomatoes. Big interest in Korea. Nice to meet you all."
Shinohara Kotone?
"Shinohara, huh."
"That Shinohara shogunate?"
The cadets murmur among themselves. Shinohara's a big name.
But Kotone? No such character in the original story.
Well, there's Shinohara Mariko, so Kotone could exist. But she never shows up at the academy.
Hold on. Isn't this Shinohara Yuzuki?
"Rosemary here. Hobby's collecting dolls, love dolls, hate anything not cute. Nice to meet you Koreans."
"...Ping Tao from China. Affiliated with the Zhonghua Guild. Here at Hansung Academy to broaden my horizons. Please take care of me."
Beer name vibes. Almost cracked a joke but held back. She's a heroine, after all.
"Alright, we've got a ton of overseas transfers this time. You know these girls are famous in their countries, right? Be friendly."
Staring at the new transfers, I zoned out for a bit.
Assuming Kotone is Yuzuki, that's three heroines dropping in blatantly.
Dollmaster Rosemary. Yellow River's Warhammer Ping Tao.
Rosemary controls dolls, Ping Tao wields an axe.
Rosemary's cute but creepy. Ping Tao's a brainless girl with Han Chinese superiority complex.
Creepy heroine, airhead heroine, in one word.
"What the fuck."
They don't show up here originally. Rosemary and Ping Tao visit the academy eventually, but not now.
Because the Seven Deadly Sins popped up early?
Even if I mismatched original plot timelines with reality, all overseas heroines at once? Doesn't add up.
And besides...
I glanced at the pure, ethereal girl by the window.
Shoulder-length hair, perfect features. Classic Japanese beauty.
She said Kotone, but no doubt Shinohara Yuzuki.
How am I so sure? Call it intuition. Feels like Yuzuki. Stuff I think about matches the novel's descriptions.
Unlike Mariko, who's a Shinohara retainer, this girl screams Yuzuki.
Her abilities would confirm it.
Not planning to approach her now anyway.
"Ugh, stop staring. Gonna tell your mom? Don't you feel bad for Rei?"
"Oh, yeah."
Look away a second, and Reina or the others interfere. Especially Reina nagging about Rei—feels like I'm some cheating mom with kids at home.
No, Rei's technically just a mana lifeform born from merged mana.
I don't plan to bang them all. But Shinohara Yuzuki's from Japan's power family, creepy doll girl's got doll fetish vibes, and beer girl's steeped in Chinese supremacy—pass.
Screw up with Japan's elite, and you're leg-shackled. Family politics. I could take Shinohara, but no point stirring shit like an idiot.
I snuck a peek at Choi Sia, who came with Choi Si-woo (?).
Sia's unstable.
Lust keeps surging more. Basically, the original owner—the Black Flame Dragon Choi Si-woo—is dormant inside her.
With that mess to handle, no time for other heroines.
Heroines' episodes aren't huge risks anyway.
Ping Tao maybe.
She's dumb as bricks, her nationalism dooms her to loner life. Japan's meddling in Korea's Seven Deadly Sins, so China's tagging along.
Government sends her under "study abroad" pretense to avoid interference claims.
All three are infiltrators. Youngest hunters, already skilled.
Yeah. Whatever.
I've still got enemies. Can't deal with them yet.
First, prevent Seven Deadly Sins from surfacing here. For their sake too, gotta block it.
Right as I decide to draw lines...
"Yoo Eun-ha?"
Shinohara Yuz—er, Kotone approaches me.
"Oh, uh. Shinohara?"
"Fellow cadet. Call me by name, casually."
Problem is she's Japan's power player.
Play dumb. Act like I know her identity, and Yuzuki'll get wary.
Pretend ignorance, keep distance.
"Then Kotone for you too. What's up?"
"Just wanna get close to Eun-ha."
"Me?"
If it's consensual, I'd carve out time for Japan's top sushi girl.
But Yuzuki ain't easy.
"Yeah. You're the one who carved out a Seven Deadly Sins fragment, right? Curious."
"Curious about what?"
"Heard the fragment was pea-sized. You extracted it precisely. Wanna see that swordsmanship."
Ah, got it.
Shinohara Yuzuki wields sword skills.
Samurai vibe, pure Japanese archetype. That's why she's questioning my fragment feat.
Not personal friendship. She's here spying on Sins in Korea. Needs intel.
"Nothing special. My bro's the Divine Sword. Picked up some basics from him."
Mixed truth with lies.
Would've burned the whole thing if I couldn't extract it. War God timed his sword lesson perfectly, let me hand it to the association.
"Still, without your base talent, training's pointless."
Original and reality differ big time, I realized again.
This Yuzuki—Kotone now—was quiet and graceful. Wrong.
"Blah blah blah."
Sword talk turns her into a chatterbox. Like Choi Si-woo geeking on one obsession—woodpecker mode.
Blazing Bat bails for self-study, Yuzuki yaks all day.
Reina and Han Su-ji sulk over it.
Not my fault. At least Ping Tao and Rosemary don't bug me. Rosemary glances curiously.
Oh yeah, time to use Choi Si-woo. Need mana stones too.
"Choi Si-woo. Come with me."
"Sure. Oh, yeah."
"Playing with Si-woo? What about us?"
Han Su-ji and Reina pull puppy eyes. Nope. I'm top dog, they're not. My rules.
"Play shashasha or whatever."
Can't tell Sia and Si-woo apart at academy. Cadets know Si-woo's a girl now, not the dual personality.
Reina and Su-ji know the deal, so no bitching about me taking her.
I drag her to the Internet Broadcasting Club room.
"Lust surging nonstop?"
"Not lust, it's Si-woo. Master."
"Same thing. Anyway, c'mere. Got mana stones."
Can handle Lust, but to suppress better, set up my advantage.
She'll probably use Sin powers to jump me.
I hug her tight, pull her face close, kiss.
*Smooch*
Form mana stone inside, pass mouth-to-mouth.
"Heehee... hihi♥"
"Crazy bitch. High as a druggie. My mana stones that good?"
Touch below—she's soaked. Dripping like incontinence.
Choi Sia devours my demon mana stone, lost in ecstasy. Drug addict in another sense.
Plan: addict her more, make her body crave only me. When Si-woo awakens and Lust pounces, that's when I set the hierarchy straight.
Big picture.
"Yessshh~ Love master so muuuch♥"
"Horny all sudden. Spread 'em."
Love the dumb face. Fun pounding her at academy. About to kiss and bend her over the sofa...
"Yoo Eun-ha!"
"Fuck."
Who the hell's interrupting?
"Do that shit later. Gotta flaunt your lesbian stuff at school?"
Why'd Blazing Bat show up here?
"What? Spinster. Wanna lose your cherry to pussy instead of dick?"
Still got her hymen, but fuck it. How to wreck her?
"God, you're getting worse. Ugh, fine."
"Ruining the mood when it's hot. Happy now? So, why'd you call?"
I'm pissed as hell.
Can't tell? Pussy's wet and ready for Sia, and this spinster drags me away.
"Wanted you to buddy up with Rosemary. No funny business. Diplomatic shit involved."
Befriend Rosemary?
That creepy Yankee doll bitch?
Face like a doll, so not impossible.
Blazing Bat doesn't grasp my idea of "friendly" yet.
"Fuckin' gonna grind her raw."
"Why so twisted? Puberty raging or what? Openly fucking at academy."
What's wrong with banging?
"Behave, or I'll fuck you up. Quiet."
"Sigh. Got it. Told Rosemary too. Handle it."
Shouldn't she bring Rosemary herself?
Or have the bitch come to me.
Creepy girls need creepy treatment.