Chapter 204
Chapter 204
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 204
Chapter Title: The Absolute Strength of the Heart
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Evening had arrived before I knew it.
*Clink. Clink...*
As Adelia's assistant, Erpe, diligently set the food on the table, I couldn't help but feel a sense of her effort as I accepted my plate.
‘Living as an assistant must be quite tough.’
Since she was Adelia's assistant, she probably didn't have to deal with much personal or internal hardship. Still, I imagined it must be difficult in many ways to act so politely and respectfully toward a cadet of the same age.
"...Thank you."
"Not at all. It's my job."
*Clink.*
As Erpe set down her own plate, my gaze shifted to the other two people at the table.
Across from me, Adelia and Erpe sat with calm expressions, and right beside me, Leonhardt was seated for dinner.
"Well then, everyone, please eat comfortably."
"Yes. Thank you for the meal."
After Adelia's words, the quiet clatter of utensils filled the air.
As we ate, I suddenly sensed a change in Leonhardt's demeanor.
*Clatter.*
The slight hesitation in his hand as he lifted his spoon or took food was gone. Before, he had seemed to be forcing himself to be okay, but for some reason, he now appeared to have genuinely regained his spirits.
‘A good change.’
Honestly, I was inwardly impressed by his recovery.
"......"
*Swoosh.* I found it amazing as I scooped up a spoonful of the hearty meat stew.
I had thought Leonhardt would surely need more time to recover, more time to mentally pull himself together.
No matter if he was the world's protagonist or not, he was still human. It was impossible to overcome such a great sense of loss in just a few days.
But his recovery was much faster than I'd expected.
...He had lost his trait, the very thing that could be called a human right in this world, the thing that proved his worth, yet he continued his meal so calmly.
‘I don't think I could do that.’
I could say with words that one must be strong of heart, that it would be okay. But an incident this devastating... unless you were the victim who experienced it firsthand, you could never truly understand the feeling.
What if I lost the power of my spearmanship overnight?
Just the brief thought made my heart sink.
"......"
And if the timing had been just a little different, this could have easily happened to me.
The moment I thought the apostle's hand had reached my heart, I had sensed certain death.
And he had suffered such a terrible incident, yet I couldn't shake the feeling that 'I alone' had been saved.
'Sigh.'
Perhaps that was why the more I looked at Leonhardt, the sorrier I felt.
*Chomp.*
Then, my eyes met his as he took a large bite of cheese. After swallowing the cheese, he blinked as if something was strange.
"Han Cheon-seong. Why are you looking at me like that?"
As he spoke with a questioning tone, I gave an awkward smile.
"Oh, it's just... you're eating well. I was just thinking it's a relief you seem to have your energy back."
"I'm really okay now. I've adopted a new mindset."
"Oh. I see."
Replying awkwardly, I thought to myself that the protagonist was truly the protagonist.
The one destined to bear the weight of the world seemed to be on a different level, even in his mental recovery.
"That is a good change. Only when the heart is strong can one see the path forward."
At Adelia's words, we nodded in unison, as if we'd practiced.
I agreed, and it was a sentiment I strongly believed in myself.
"I think so too. Actually, after watching Han Cheon-seong... I realized I needed to strengthen my resolve as well."
"Me?"
I was dumbfounded by his strange remark.
"After watching Cadet Han Cheon-seong? I'm a bit curious, Cadet Leonhardt. Could you explain further?"
*Clink.*
As Adelia set down her spoon, showing deep interest, I just felt flustered.
What could a guy with such a superhuman mentality possibly see in me that would make him strengthen his resolve? As Adelia and I stared at him, he let out a small laugh and looked back and forth between us.
"There's really not much to explain. It's just that the effort I've put in until now... might not have been true effort. That's the thought that occurred to me."
"Not true effort?"
Adelia picked up on that part of his sentence and glanced at me, and I found his words even more incomprehensible.
‘What does that even mean?’
In the original story, Leonhardt was a genius who worked harder than anyone. He always put in more effort than his natural talent warranted, and his mental fortitude was mentioned so many times that he was never once described as spending his time idly.
And yet, this was the guy saying he strengthened his resolve after watching me.
"When I think about everything I've had and enjoyed until now, I realize my growth has been incredibly slow. Watching Han Cheon-seong made me feel that even more keenly. The fact that I... haven't been putting in true effort all this time."
"Wait... that doesn't make sense. How does that lead to the conclusion that you haven't been trying?"
I couldn't just sit and listen; his logic was too strange, so I had to interrupt.
"It's because, Han Cheon-seong, when I look at your growth rate, I can't help but feel that way. That I haven't been putting in true effort."
As he replied with a calm smile, I froze.
"But, Cadet Leonhardt, shouldn't we consider Cadet Han Cheon-seong's growth rate to be abnormally fast...?"
Adelia voiced my thoughts perfectly, and I nodded vigorously.
"Instructor Adelia is right. I think it's very strange to use me as a standard."
I had experienced a series of fortunate events and circumstances that allowed for such miraculous growth.
Of course, I had put in the effort, but honestly, I felt that many situations had worked out too favorably for me.
-Reaching level 4 during the duel with Leonhardt and correcting my mindset.
-Gaining clues for skills through dueling with Kalli and the help of magitech items.
-Facing the apostle with the resolve to sacrifice my life to protect Karite, which led to the massive experience gain for level 5...
...
...
Each of those events was special, and under normal circumstances, one would be lucky to experience even one of them.
That's why I can't be judged by any normal standard.
Just as I was about to add more, he gave a strange smile.
"Han Cheon-seong. I'm not using you as a standard right now. I'm just dividing what I can and cannot do and facing reality again."
He said it with a strange lightness.
That he was just facing reality properly.
"To face what you can and cannot do..."
"Right. I believe that because you could do it, I can do it too. I'm not saying this to belittle you or anything like that. I just believe that if one person can do something, then anyone else can too."
Faced with his calm and sincere expression, I was at a loss for words.
‘He's insane.’
...I knew from the original story that Leonhardt's mindset was absurd.
I had thought he possessed the strongest mind in this world, and I believed that to be the absolute truth.
But that... wasn't it.
This guy's very 'thought process' was on a completely different plane.
"...'If one person can do it, then anyone else can too.' Those are quite surprising words, Cadet Leonhardt."
As Adelia spoke with a small smile, I completely empathized with her expression.
It was a mindset utterly impossible for a normal person.
The truly outstanding officers on the front lines who achieved great feats, or the cadets who were far ahead of their peers.
...Ironically, I suppose I'm one of those people now. I was already feeling something similar.
The cadets in my class were gradually distancing themselves from me or looking at me differently.
And I felt that was a very normal reaction.
When people see someone achieve what is normally considered impossible, they might think it's amazing or admire them, but most don't look at that person and think, 'I can do that too.'
Because everyone has different fields they excel in, and there are just some people who are exceptional.
The fact that traits are divided by rank from birth, and talents vary wildly by field, was a prime example of this.
This world itself acknowledged that. So people naturally came to realize it on their own.
—I can't do it. I can never catch up to that person.
But now, Leonhardt was casually denying that truth.
"Instructor Adelia. I believe it's a difference in mindset. People set their own limits and confine themselves, even when they could go much further."
Furthermore, though he spoke lightly, the words he delivered were anything but.
"...Is that so?"
"Yes. That's why I was able to find my resolve again. I think it's incredible that Han Cheon-seong achieved such unparalleled growth despite having a Common trait. And because he did it, he showed us it's possible. We can make that our goal. Isn't that what I'm doing right now?"
"......"
At his following words, Adelia didn't reply but instead cast her gaze quietly toward me.
It was as if she were asking what I thought...
‘That's impossible.’
Then why are there people in the world called geniuses, and why are there people who achieve seemingly impossible feats?
I believed there were definitely people who were on a 'different level'. Beings who took four or five steps forward while others took one, surpassing the thoughts of ordinary people.
However, contrary to my thoughts, I just nodded blankly.
"...Right. I... think so too."
I forced my lips apart and agreed with Leonhardt's opinion.
He said that even in this difficult situation, he had found hope and renewed his resolve.
How could I possibly deny that?
"Right? I knew you'd think the same way."
And as if my words had conveyed my true meaning, he gave a truly refreshing smile... and I couldn't help but nod.
I absolutely did not feel the same way he did. But in a different sense, I came to understand him a little.
‘So this is the world's protagonist.’
I really felt like you had to be on this level to be a protagonist.
If I were him, I would have found it difficult just to pull myself together, and every day would have been filled with despair. But here he was, standing up as if to prove a point, fiercely manifesting his will.
Even after losing his trait, he tries to move forward. Without stopping, he looks toward what's next...
"To think two geniuses of the century enrolled in the same year. This year is full of surprises."
As Adelia spoke with a chuckle, a laugh escaped me without my realizing.
"Instructor. I just believe that's how one should think. If anything, Han Cheon-seong is the one you could call a genius, not me."
But at Leonhardt's bright, corrective reply... my smile vanished.
Adelia also slowly turned her gaze to me...
"......"
As I met her eyes, which held a strange emotion, my heart just felt... uneasy.
‘Me…?’
Honestly, having achieved such dazzling growth, I was aware that I possessed an uncommon talent.
I was so far ahead of others; I couldn't just put myself down.
But.
In this very moment, I clearly realized that my talent was of a fundamentally different nature than Leonhardt's.
Unconsciously, I had been recalling Leonhardt's mindset and resolve from the original story and trying to follow it.
His indomitable will. His selfless heart that didn't only think of himself. Even his strong mind that didn't shy away from crisis.
I had been unconsciously influenced by him, believing that the path of his strong heart in the story was the most righteous one.
But now.
That guy... is calling me a genius.
How on earth was I supposed to take this situation, where he denies being a genius himself while praising me?
"...The food is getting cold. Shouldn't we finish our dinner?"
I felt strange even as I deliberately changed the subject.
'I was just….'
...trying to follow the path he had walked.