The Sparring Partner Mix-Up
I barely survived the physical fitness test that nearly killed me and stumbled back into the classroom. The moment I stepped inside, my eyes landed on the massive wall poster plastered across the room.
Rank 500 — Nam Doyun
“Pfft, hahaha. He came in dead last on the entrance exam and now he’s last again? What a legend.”
“I saw him. He didn’t even finish the long-distance run.”
“How the hell did he even get into Elphon Academy? Did his parents bribe someone?”
I lightly ignored the mocking stares from the other kids and dropped into my seat. I really felt like I was going to die.
The front door slid open with a rattle, and the homeroom teacher walked in. Every student’s gaze snapped toward him.
“The sparring matches against the second-years are scheduled for the day after tomorrow. I trust you’ve all been preparing?”
Tension flooded the students’ eyes.
“As you all know, this will factor into your evaluation, so I expect you to take it seriously. Of course, we won’t be judging you solely on wins and losses. We’ll be evaluating how outstanding your performance is during the actual sparring.”
First-years and second-years held regular exchange matches, and the results were reflected in their grades. Naturally, most first-years couldn’t beat second-years yet. The most important factor in the evaluation was a student’s potential—how much room they had to grow. That was the core of this assessment.
“That’s enough about the inter-grade sparring announcement. Today, many guilds have set up consultation sessions at the academy, so anyone who’s curious should definitely stop by.”
Numerous guilds were holding information sessions at Elphon Academy. They called them information sessions, but they were basically recruitment pitches. Join our guild and enjoy these benefits. You’ll start with this kind of annual salary. They advertised like this to lure talented students their way.
With that, the homeroom teacher left the classroom.
Countless guild booths had been set up across the athletic field.
“Whoa, seriously? Just joining gets you a starting salary of three hundred million won?”
“Of course. And it’s not just the salary—we also provide housing for our members.”
“Wow, that’s insane. Miss, I definitely want to join here!”
“I hope you do too, student. I’ll be waiting for you.”
At that moment, someone tapped the student who was sitting at the booth getting counseled.
“Hey.”
The student turned around. “What?”
“Look behind you.”
A massive line stretched out behind the student.
“Hurry up and finish. You’ve been talking for ten minutes by yourself.”
“Ah… Then I’ll see you next time, miss!”
The student quickly stood up and left.
Students rarely approached that particular booth.
“Hey, wanna try going over there?”
“Ugh, no way. We’d get rejected at the door.”
“Man, I want to get in so bad. Their starting salary is at least five hundred million.”
“I’m so jealous it hurts.”
Inside the booth sat Kant, a second-year rumored to be one of the most promising talents.
“It’s been a while, Kant. How have you been?”
“I’m always doing well. More importantly, was what you told me last time true?”
“What do you mean?”
“That if I sign, I’ll start at five hundred million a year, plus performance bonuses on top of that.”
“Of course.”
“Did the guild master say anything specific about me?”
Kant’s eyes sparkled.
“Ahaha… Of course. You’re one of our candidate students. The guild master is very interested.”
The counselor forced a smile.
This student was a candidate for the Crystal Guild. Candidates were students the guild had already marked as exceptional. The plan was to snatch them up the moment they graduated. However, the guild master himself had zero interest in these so-called candidates. He didn’t have any expectations for kids who still had milk behind their ears.
But lately, that same guild master had said something strange.
Keep a close eye on the student named Nam Doyun.
It was extremely unusual for someone who had never shown interest in any student to suddenly pay attention to one. Come to think of it, that kid was also an Elphon Academy student, wasn’t he?
The counselor spoke up.
“By the way, do you happen to know a student named Nam Doyun?”
“…Excuse me? Nam Doyun?”
“You don’t know him?”
“No, I’ve never even heard the name. Why do you ask?”
The counselor tilted his head in confusion. If the guild master had specifically told him to watch the boy, he should have been a standout talent. How strange.
“It’s nothing. Anyway, shall we talk more about our contract conditions, Kant?”
“Yes, please.”
The area in front of that booth was painfully empty. Not a single student had come by. The counselor scratched the back of his head awkwardly.
Then a woman approached.
“Oh! Welcome!”
The counselor greeted her with a bright smile. But the moment he saw her face, his expression froze in shock.
“Hayeon…?”
Jeong Hayeon silently stared at the completely empty booth.
“Did you tell Dad I was coming to the consultation today?”
“No… I didn’t pass on the message.”
“That’s a relief… At least he won’t be hurt…”
“The government isn’t planning to increase the subsidy?”
“No… I’m afraid it will be difficult.”
Jeong Hayeon clenched her teeth hard.
Unlike other guilds, the Hunter Association operated purely on government subsidies. If the other guilds were private companies, the Hunter Association was essentially a public enterprise. Joining the Hunter Association was like becoming a civil servant paid by the government. The problem was that the salary was absurdly low compared to what the guilds offered. After all, government money came with restrictions and limits. In contrast, the guilds could empty their own vaults to provide massive salaries and benefits. That was why students’ preferences naturally leaned toward the guilds rather than the Association.
“Uncle, does that mean you won’t be recruiting any talent this time either?”
“Yes… Most students are swayed by money and benefits, miss.”
Jeong Hayeon remained silent as she looked at the other booths. The recently rising guild Comet was packed with people—so crowded that fights were breaking out over the long waiting line. The rank-one Crystal Guild didn’t have as many visitors, but the students rumored to be the most promising at Elphon Academy were receiving consultations there. The best students went to the top-ranked guilds, the mid-tier students aimed for promising guilds with high salaries, and there was simply no place left for the Hunter Association.
“Why won’t the government increase the subsidy? If the Hunter Association collapses, who’s going to crack down on hunters who commit crimes?”
“…It wasn’t like this in the past, but recently all the outstanding students are joining high-ranked guilds. The government is questioning whether we, with our severely declining quality, can truly keep the other guilds in check.”
“…So if we solve that, it’ll be fine?”
“Pardon? Yes… Well, it won’t completely solve everything, but at least we could request an increase in subsidies.”
“Then all we have to do is prove that our quality hasn’t declined, right?”
“But… how?”
Jeong Hayeon’s gaze turned toward Kant, the Crystal Guild candidate.
“If I beat that guy, wouldn’t that prove our quality hasn’t declined?”
The man looked at Kant.
“…But miss, the difference between first-years and second-years is like heaven and earth. On top of that, Kant is considered one of the strongest among the second-years.”
Jeong Hayeon stayed silent.
“No matter how talented you are, it’s still too much for you right now. Once you become a second-year, you’ll have a good chance of winning, but not yet.”
“Then what are we supposed to do? Just keep failing to get subsidies, with no new blood coming in, until we wither away and die?”
“Miss…”
Before long, it was time for the end-of-day homeroom.
“Alright, good work today everyone.”
The homeroom teacher said as he put up a large poster.
Nam Doyun vs Kate
Jeong Hayeon vs Kant
It listed who would be fighting whom among the second-years.
Kate? Of all people, I got stuck with a really troublesome opponent. I shifted my gaze downward.
Jeong Hayeon vs Kant.
Jeong Hayeon and Kant… In the original game, this was the match where she lost. The gap in skill between her and Kant right now was truly like heaven and earth. In the game, the only first-years who could beat second-years were Cha Jiyun and Radeon. The difference between the two grades was simply insurmountable.
“Oh, right. To help with the upcoming sparring matches against the second-years, the school has arranged sparring partners for you. Please make good use of them.”
The sparring partners were organized into pairs of two. The goal was for them to spar with each other, point out weaknesses, and help correct them.
“If you dislike your assigned partner and decide to train separately, it will count as a negative in the cooperation category, so keep that in mind.”
In the original story, Radeon and Cha Jiyun were paired together, while Jeong Hayeon was paired with Ho Jin. I was supposed to stay in the back and test the performance of some medicinal herbs. But now…
“Then I will announce the sparring partners. Pair 1: Radeon and Cha Jiyun. … Pair 10: Jeong Hayeon and Nam Doyun.”
…?
Something had gone wrong. Originally, Jeong Hayeon should have been paired with Ho Jin. Why was she with me instead?
Still, I didn’t think it was necessarily a bad thing. After all, I knew how Jeong Hayeon could win against Kant. If she awakened to a new power here and opened her eyes to it, she would definitely become a huge help later on.
“……”
Jeong Hayeon glanced in my direction and frowned deeply. Then she abruptly turned her head away.
The real problem was… would she even listen to what I had to say? I guess I’d have to worry about that first.