This Isn't It...? (3)
This Isn't It...? (3)
"...we intend to proceed."
The head of Academic Affairs, Choi Min-sik, lowered the documents in his hand and looked over at the assembly.
"See that you do."
"Ah... yes. We'll proceed accordingly."
The person who had been standing there with a thoroughly tense face let out a relieved sigh and took a seat.
"Any remaining agenda items to move forward with."
"That was the last one."
Kim Seong-won, seated beside Choi Min-sik, answered cautiously.
"Any departments with additional suggestions."
"......."
The faculty members sat with their backs held straight and remained silent.
No one appeared to be sounding out the room's reaction, so there didn't seem to be any particular issues. And even if there were, Kim Seong-won would handle them on his own.
"We'll conclude the meeting here."
"Thank you for your hard work."
As I rose from my seat, Kim Seong-won bowed his head in a restrained but respectful greeting.
I waved a hand wordlessly and exited the meeting room.
'Claire's presence carries more weight than I imagined.'
The number of applicants for this year's entrance exam had reportedly risen by about thirty percent compared to last year—a highly significant difference for Arena Academy, which receives applications in the tens of thousands.
Considering that the barrier had ceased functioning for nearly a month, students had evacuated, and the atmosphere had remained considerably unsettled, the increase in applicants made it clear just how much Claire's presence was worth.
'...If only her cooking had improved a little too.'
A small laugh escaped me as I recalled her still being clumsy with everything except stew.
Ding.
I stepped onto the elevator and pulled out my smartphone.
PM 2:27
Before the meeting started, it had still been before lunch. Now that it was over, lunchtime had long since passed.
-Huff, huff, huff...!!
I focused my mind and checked Baek Ha-na's condition through the ring.
She was thoroughly exhausted, but still darting around, dodging Crystal's attacks.
Ding.
I opened my eyes at the sound of the elevator.
Perhaps because lunch break had ended, the first floor of the main building was quieter than usual.
I waved lightly at the students who unnecessarily shouted their greetings at me and stepped outside.
'Even if it takes a bit longer, that'll be the better choice.'
If I hadn't gotten through the morning on nothing but sad frozen food, I would've just bought something quick and headed back. But to push through the afternoon's training properly, a real meal was necessary.
'...I wonder if there are any ingredients left.'
Ever since Claire had started staying over, she'd taken charge of the kitchen, so it was hard to know what food supplies were left.
'There'll be meat, at least.'
Vegetables I wasn't sure about, but meat was one of the ingredients that Claire kept stocked for Baek Ha-na and the other kids.
"Hm."
I briefly considered contacting Claire, but this was around the time she'd be looking after the Enhancement-type students.
'...I should buy chocolate too.'
I turned my steps toward the central area where the grocery store was.
**
Thump-thump—! Thump-thump—!
Kang Seok-ho tried to soothe his uncontrollably pounding heart and focused on the scene before his eyes.
-Don't let your core collapse.
-Y-yes, ma'am!!
On the other side of the large screen, one of the upperclassmen stood holding a shield, receiving instruction from a beauty with a cool, sharp look.
-You can't rely on mobility, so even if it kills you, you have to hold the front line and endure.
-Understood!!
-I'm coming again. Hold steady.
The moment the flat, uninflected voice finished speaking, a deafening roar—like a fire-type spell detonating—blasted through the ceiling-mounted speakers.
-That was better than before. But your shock distribution is still uneven.
-Haa, haa....
A single light kick had caved in the large shield the upperclassman was holding.
'Is she seriously only using the same level of power...?'
She'd said she adjusted her strength to match each student's level, but honestly, watching the screen made it impossible not to doubt that.
She hadn't even sprinted in at full speed and kicked.
She'd just casually taken a step forward and—thwack!—kicked, and a large shield made from a superalloy had caved in.
Which, in a way, meant the upperclassman receiving instruction right now could theoretically do the same someday.
-You're putting too much force into your back leg to keep from being pushed back. If you don't want to regret it later, starting now, consciously work on distributing the shock evenly into both legs.
-G-got it!!
A few more pieces of advice followed, and then the invaluable session—the kind you couldn't buy with a fortune—came to an end.
"Huff, huuu... huaaah...!!"
The upperclassman who'd just finished his instruction trudged out, wiping his sweat-soaked face with his sleeve.
-Kang Seok-ho.
"Yes, ma'am!!"
Finally, his turn had come. Kang Seok-ho scrambled to his feet and entered the training room.
"Kang Seok-ho."
"Yes, ma'am!!"
"You don't have to answer so loudly."
"Ah, yes."
Under that cold gaze, which made his heart drop, Kang Seok-ho clenched both fists tightly and swallowed hard, his throat dry.
"Before we begin, I want to ask you. What exactly do you want to become?"
"What... do you mean?"
"Depending on how it's used, your ability suits a tanker. And based on how you've actually been using it so far, you're much better suited to a tanker role than a dealer."
"Th-that's...."
Kang Seok-ho could more or less guess what data Claire was looking at on her smartwatch. His face reddened further for no good reason.
"I-I want to be a dealer... a swordsman!"
"Understood."
Claire drew the wooden sword from her waist.
"I'll give you all the time you need. Come at me with everything you have and land one strike."
"...Yes."
Kang Seok-ho drew the sword from his own waist.
"Huu...."
Excessive tension was a bad thing.
Kang Seok-ho steadied his breathing several times, loosening the tension in his body.
Woooong—!!
The mana that began to revolve through his body flowed along his circuits, reinforcing his entire frame.
Crrrunch!!
"Uwaaaaah!!"
With a thunderous battle cry, Kang Seok-ho raised his sword high and brought it straight down.
Tap.
But the sword he'd swung with all his might simply stopped against the tip of a wooden sword held at a slight angle.
"......?!"
His eyes went wide at a sight he couldn't believe even as he saw it with his own eyes.
"You."
"......Y-yes?"
Kang Seok-ho, half-dazed by the sword that wouldn't budge no matter how much strength he applied, snapped back to attention at the cool voice.
"Did you not receive separate instruction from your family?"
"N-no, I did... I received instruction."
"Then why...."
Claire shook her head and closed her mouth mid-sentence.
"Tch. Watch closely."
"Y-yes, ma'am!!"
Hwoooong.
Along with Claire's wooden sword, the arm gripping it began to glow softly.
"This light shows the mana I am currently using."
The gentle glow spread outward until it enveloped her entire body.
"And right now, the state of your body is like this."
"H-how...."
Kang Seok-ho sheepishly withdrew the mana he'd spread across his whole body.
"In a spar or real combat, the method you just used would have been correct. But I told you I would give you ample time. In that case, the proper approach is to concentrate your mana on the necessary body parts, as I just demonstrated—not to spread it everywhere."
"Uh...."
"Additionally, when wielding a cold weapon rather than your own body, you must always wrap the weapon in mana to protect it from breaking."
"Uh, um...."
He knew that.
But even though he'd done his best to relax, he was still far more tense than usual, and his head simply hadn't been working properly.
"If you already knew, then that's an even bigger problem. I clearly said I would give you ample time. That means you were given time to check your condition multiple times—and you still failed to properly tend to your own body. What a fool you'd be."
"......."
The heart that had been pounding with excitement and anticipation now began to slam hard for a different reason.
"One last thing. Your ability."
Claire lowered her wooden sword.
"I told you to come at me with everything you have. Why didn't you manifest your ability? Or do you not know how to incorporate your ability into your attacks?"
"...When I manifest my ability, my body becomes sluggish, so I can't properly put power into my attacks."
"Huu...."
Claire let out a short sigh, as if something was frustrating her.
"That's because you're covering your entire body in steel. With just a little effort, it should be possible to manifest your ability only on the areas you need."
"My mana circulation speed isn't fast enough... it's hard to apply in live situations."
Crack—!!
"Eek?!"
The wooden sword in Claire's hand had shattered right at the grip.
"Explaining things to you would clearly be a waste of time."
"P-pardon...?"
"So learn through your body. Feel your shortcomings and make up for them yourself."
·
·
·
-Gack!!
Kang Seok-ho took a simple punch from Claire and went rolling across the floor.
"That's seriously insane."
With nothing else to do, Kang Han-na was sitting with the students who'd come outside for a break, watching Kang Seok-ho get beaten down and murmuring to herself.
Who did he think he was, saying it was hard in front of her?
Not that it was impossible—just that it was hard. What did that even mean?
'Honestly, this is the problem with kids who've grown up soft.'
They'd grown strong through innate talent and the elixirs supplied to them, but they were fundamentally lacking in sheer, grinding effort.
Click.
"......!!"
Kang Han-na, who'd been watching the screen with a disinterested expression, shot to her feet at the sound of dress shoes.
She immediately bowed her head toward the direction the sound had come from.
"Have you returned, sir?!"
"Yes."
That deep, composed voice—always pleasant to hear—brushed past Kang Han-na's ears.
"Kang Han-na."
"Y-yes, sir?"
She'd spent nearly half the day doing nothing but slacking off, so she tensed up hard, worried she might be about to get scolded, and raised her head.
"......?"
And then she blinked at the box packed full of chocolate.
"Share it with the students when they come out to rest."
"......Ah!! Th-thank you, sir!!"
At the unexpected gift, Kang Han-na jumped and quickly accepted it.
Click, click.
The sound of dress shoes slowly receding.
Kang Han-na watched Baek Woo-jin's back as he headed toward the very last training room at the far end.
'Is he going to eat all that?'
What looked like a lunchbox and a paper bag bearing a grocery store seal were floating gently along behind Baek Woo-jin's back.
"Professor! Don't just hold it—give us some, Big Sis Ha-na!!"
"Hey now! I'm the adult here—I eat first, you brats?!"
While Kang Han-na bickered with the students swarming around her, the sound of dress shoes had already vanished.
**
"Kuh...!!"
I dodged the flying stalks and branches.
I'd lost count of how many times now.
My body was so heavy it felt ready to collapse at any moment, and my mind was hazy.
What little mana remained was truly at the level of a speck, yet somehow my legs kept kicking off the ground, kept moving.
'There's no end in sight...'
I didn't know how much time had passed.
But it was clear I'd spent no small amount of it in this place.
"Haaahk...!!"
It felt like my lungs would burst.
Every joint in my body creaked.
My muscles, which had expanded and contracted over and over, spasmed faintly, tormenting me.
More than anything, that single speck of mana still remaining somehow kept my consciousness tethered.
I was clearly continuing to expend mana, so why wouldn't that one speck disappear?
Thwack—!!
"Ah...."
At the sticky sensation coiling around my ankle, Baek Ha-na let out an empty breath.
My reaction had been slowed by stray thoughts.
Baek Ha-na squeezed her eyes shut as her vision tilted downward.
Flump.
"......?"
She'd been certain she'd faceplant into the dirt.
But what touched her face wasn't damp soil. It was soft fabric.
She opened her tightly shut eyes.
A pitch-black dress shirt and a red necktie filled her vision.
"...Woo-jin."
Looking up at his face and his large glasses, Baek Ha-na stuck out her lower lip in a pout.
She had so many things she wanted to say.
But her lips wouldn't part.
Softly.
"Mn...."
A large hand came down to stroke her head.
That single, simple gesture melted away all her hurt feelings, soft as snow.
"A little late, but eat your lunch."
"...Feed me."
"Be quiet."
Baek Ha-na retreated a step from his fingers gently pushing against her forehead.
And then she noticed—the bushes and the dirt floor that had been all around her were gone.
Floor and walls, all so clean and stark white.
"Sit."
"...Hmph."
Her sullen feelings had already vanished entirely, but even so, Baek Ha-na sat down with an air of defiance.
Before her, Baek Woo-jin set down the food he'd made himself and the snacks he'd bought at the store.
"Wow... d-did you make all this, Woo-jin?"
"Yes."
"Oh, oh? Heh, hehe...."
As if she'd even forgotten she was putting on a sulky act, Baek Ha-na smiled brightly, like a flower blooming in spring, and began eating the lunchbox.
Swish-swish~
The white tail that had sprouted above her rear swished back and forth, clearly pleased.
"Listen while you eat."
"Mn?"
Baek Ha-na looked up, both cheeks puffed out round.
"Come."
Woooong—
From the empty air, a blue light flickered and revealed itself.
"Grkheeta?"
"...Don't talk. Just listen."
"Mnn-mnn."
Baek Ha-na's eyes went round and she nodded.
"I have things to do, so I'll have to leave soon."
"Hmm?"
Baek Ha-na, who'd been reaching for a piece of rolled omelet, flinched and looked up.
"In my place, this one here will create various environments and help you."
"Ghuh-uh-eh-uh-boo-ub!!"
Baek Woo-jin used mana to seal Baek Ha-na's mouth shut.
"...It will keep supplying you with the bare minimum of mana so you don't lose consciousness. So when it's genuinely too hard, shout 'I give up,' and it'll stop. And if you say 'start' again, it'll rebuild the environment."
Baek Ha-na clearly had a lot she wanted to say.
Baek Woo-jin released her mouth.
"...But I want to get it from Woo-jin."
"I'll look after you this evening."
"Ooh...."
Baek Ha-na's ears and tail drooped heavily.
What had she been running so hard for, then?
The hurt feelings that had melted away began creeping back up, little by little.