The Academy Lobby and the Unyielding Gaze
The dump truck accident was resolved with lightning speed the moment the police arrived.
The cause was declared an AI malfunction, and the lawyers from the AI dump truck company even promised to cover the compensation.
Given Kang Seojun’s status as a first-year cadet at the Korea Hunter Academy and Jin Serin’s position as the Sungjin Group’s heiress, the matter was resolved far too easily.
His school uniform was a little dusty, but he had simply tripped once on the road; shaking the dust off was enough—he didn’t need to change.
After what felt like an eternity of morning commutes, Kang Seojun and Jin Serin finally stepped into the main building of the Korea Hunter Academy.
The academy lobby felt like a luxurious hotel lounge or high-end office atrium.
The space was vast, easily half the size of a sports field, with ceilings soaring over ten meters high.
On the left stood rows of benches and tables where students could rest, while on the right several snack bars offered quick bites.
Looking upward, the ceiling had a massive open section that pierced straight through to the sky, creating an airy, almost floating effect.
An indoor terrace curved around the entire space, layered and ascending all the way to the top. People moved busily on the upper levels.
The scale and design were on par with the grandest department stores, leaving nothing to be desired in showcasing Korea’s hunter industry.
On the benches of the main lobby, the early-arriving cadets sat in small groups, chatting before the class bell rang.
Since it was the first day, they were still getting used to their assigned class and had split off to talk with friends from other groups.
[The Eye of Providence provides rudimentary auditory support.]
The Eye of Providence displayed the surrounding conversations in the form of a chat log in Seojun’s vision, completely independent of his will.
“Yeah. Over there. It’s Jin Serin.”
“Whoa. Her face is so pale.”
“She looks like a newcomer who’s already evolved two or three steps beyond us.”
“Her genes are so enviable.”
Jin Serin was a celebrity in the public eye, drawing attention wherever she went.
After all, she was one of the promising young talents who would lead Korea’s hunter world in the future.
Of course, the fact that her growth stagnation was still a secret made the praise possible.
“But who’s she walking with?”
“Just someone asking for directions, probably.”
“Damn. But he looks pretty rough.”
“Slave? Summon? Is that a monster?”
“Undead or insects would still be prettier than that…”
“The clothes they’re wearing make my skin crawl.”
The comments that followed were all about Seojun.
Seojun felt like crying inside.
[The Sympathetic Hermit sends Dimensional Currency as a gesture of consolation.]
Still, thanks to The Favored One, even this situation ended up being a net positive.
Jin Serin and Seojun boarded the academy elevator and headed toward their classroom.
Their assigned class was 1-A.
It was fortunate that they ended up in the same group.
Seojun opened the classroom door first, and the chat log updated instantly.
“Whoa. What’s that?”
“Eh! I know that guy! Willpower A+ rank. That’s him.”
“Oh. So that’s the one? If we were in the same group, we wouldn’t have been able to eat lunch that day.”
“Damn… But he’s in the same class as us?”
“Whoa. The visuals really live up to the rumors.”
“The guy behind him is going to be in hell for at least a month. He has to look at that skin every single day.”
[The Sympathetic Hermit sends Dimensional Currency as a gesture of consolation.]
Seojun shuffled toward the middle of the window-side seats.
Jin Serin followed behind him and closed the door behind them.
*Click.*
“Whoa. Perfect timing. Instant eye candy.”
“We’re in the same class as Jin Serin? Big win.”
“Yeah. This is the right balance.”
Seojun and Jin Serin’s evaluations were polar opposites.
Yet when the cadets saw Jin Serin sit down right next to Seojun without hesitation, they all let out a collective gasp.
“Eh?”
“What the heck?”
“Seojun, do you have extra uniforms? Want me to order one for you?”
“If you do, I’d be grateful.”
“Got it! And for lunch today…”
Even treating her like an old friend, the conversation turned cozy.
The chat log continued to flood Seojun’s vision.
“What? They look pretty close.”
“How? Does she have some kind of background?”
“No idea.”
“Damn. Now I’m curious.”
“He’s too close to Jin Serin. That’s so unfair.”
Seojun swept the endless chat log aside.
Only one message stood out. He pulled it up and enlarged it.
[Park Sinhu: That bastard… Why is he sitting right in front of me?]
He turned his head. Park Sinhu was sitting in the very back by the window.
[Even in The Grand Hunter Academy, Jin Serin and Park Sinhu were always in the same class.]
Surrounded by his own group, Park Sinhu glared at Seojun from the gap in their formation.
Seojun met the glare without flinching and licked his dry lips once.
*‘He’s going to try something, isn’t he?’*
He had already burned Time for Counterattack on the dump truck earlier, so starting a fight now would be inconvenient.
Fortunately, for whatever reason, Park Sinhu showed no intention of picking a fight.
The past few weeks of sleepless nights had left almost no fatigue from yesterday’s training, but Seojun still wasn’t at full strength.
He also felt a chill running through his body occasionally and an unfamiliar stomachache he’d never experienced before.
Even though he had charged into battle with his full group at the peak of his ability, he still couldn’t handle the opponent. So there was nothing he could do about it now.
*‘I’ll tolerate him for now. Sooner or later I’ll stomp him flat and show everyone who’s stronger…’
Yet the core of Park Sinhu remained unchanged.
*‘Whether it’s ability or background, it doesn’t matter. The moment I finish preparing, I’ll crush you. The Fruit of the Sun belongs to me.’*
For two weeks, Park Sinhu had been thinking of ways to counter Seojun’s mysterious counterattack technique.
A few days ago, he had settled on a plan and begun thorough preparation.
Seojun’s greatest advantage was evasion and counterattack.
Among the many methods to break that, Park Sinhu chose to trade flesh for bone.
*‘Raise spirit affinity with a precious medicine and sign a contract with the Earth Spirit. Then I can gain a defensive skill that can withstand one of his counterattacks. At that moment, I grab his arm so he can’t run and strike his vital point.’*
That was Park Sinhu’s plan.
But Time for Counterattack applied to all close-range attacks, and grabbing someone was still a valid target for it—something Park Sinhu didn’t realize.
He also didn’t know that if he succeeded in obtaining something like Spirit Affinity, Seojun might simply take it without a fight.
Soon, Seojun would obtain Spirit Affinity.
*Swish.*
After readjusting his plan, Park Sinhu turned his gaze to Seojun again, then to Jin Serin.
*‘And what about her… When did she start contacting him?’*
The only daughter of the Sungjin Group, a rival corporation to Taesan Group.
*‘Or did they know each other from the beginning…’
As he wondered what kind of relationship they shared, Park Sinhu’s mind turned quietly.
*‘He’s behaving now. Good.’*
Seojun, sensing that Park Sinhu had no real intention of starting trouble, turned his attention away.
Then he felt another gaze and met it again.
Thick, glossy brown hair and eyes filled with a vivid, unnatural green glow.
Because of that strange eye color, he immediately recognized her.
Lim Chaewon.
A playable character and heroine from The Grand Hunter Academy.
The daughter of the most influential large guild in Gangwon-do, the hot spot for rare materials and precious medicines.
She sat in the middle of the front rows, staring fixedly at Seojun.
Seojun endured the uncomfortable gaze and turned his eyes toward the window.
*‘Why is she staring at me like that.’*
As someone who knew her background, Seojun found it strange on multiple levels.
She was the kind of person who showed little interest in anything unless it related to her hobbies.
A determined, ambitious woman who only looked forward and ran.
To such a person, Seojun was nothing more than passing background noise.
*‘Hm. It’s not because of my appearance; she must have seen me with Jin Serin.’*
He looked out the window, considering possibilities, then dismissed it with a casual “Whatever.”
His guess was half right, half wrong.
*‘I never expected the girl sitting next to her to be Jin Serin.’*
Seojun was aware that Jin Serin was with him.
But the awareness carried no curiosity toward him—it carried caution toward Jin Serin.
Who could have guessed the Sungjin Group would make the first move?
*‘And her appearance…’*
She was so fixated on Seojun’s appearance that she couldn’t look away.
Even from a distance, the hunched back and red skin were noticeable, but up close the condition was even more severe.
Not just his back—his legs and arms were also twisted, and his body was so thin that it seemed like there wasn’t even enough muscle to begin with.
*‘How could someone with a body like this produce such power…?’*
Even the mana he exuded felt incredibly weak.
A dump truck obliterated in a single strike. A body so decayed it was horrific. An aura so faint it was almost nonexistent.
The disparity left Lim Chaewon’s mind in chaos.
Yet soon her thoughts reached one conclusion, and she shook her head.
*‘I’ll figure it out starting now.’*
What was the background behind that absurd ability?
Who was he exactly?
What was his relationship with Jin Serin?
Countless questions would be answered one by one through direct, ambitious pursuit.
After making up her mind, Lim Chaewon began planning exactly how she would approach Seojun.
*‘No matter what it costs, I have to recruit him into our side. With power like that, all our plans become so much easier.’*
What conditions would the Sungjin Group offer?
Money? Relics? Or perhaps influence inside the guild?
*‘Whatever condition they offer, I can give them more.’*
The Sungjin Group had massive capital, and Lim Chaewon had brilliant vision.
But the conditions Jin Serin had offered Seojun were far beyond Lim Chaewon’s expectations.
They were the strong bond of best friends.
And beyond that, the only thing that could surpass it was…
Best Lover.