Chapter 12
Chapter 12
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 12
Chapter Title: Top Student (2)
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"Nice to meet you, fresh young sprouts."
All one hundred pairs of eyes, including mine, turned to Kang Cheol-su.
Was it because of his hulking, intimidating build—like some villain straight out of that one action flick?
Some students who met his sharp, murderous gaze averted their eyes in sheer terror.
Kang Cheol-su smirked, lifting one corner of his mouth at their reactions, and pulled a small notebook from his pocket to jot something down.
'...Poor kids. They've been marked.'
Marked, sure—but not in a bad way.
In the game Arena Academy, Kang Cheol-su's backstory painted him as the ultimate hero: a man who couldn't stomach injustice and pursued justice with unyielding zeal. Above all, he cared deeply for his students.
He just happened to look terrifying on the outside. Inside, he was pure gold.
So why did he carry that notebook and jot down students' names?
Because those kids were too fragile, dodging even a mere glance.
Arena Academy was notorious for its brutal, merit-based grading system. Training was hellish, and about 40% of each class washed out.
But in Kang Cheol-su's classes, the dropout rate was only around 10%.
That was because he personally looked after every single student.
He was an outstanding instructor.
Well... he had one tiny flaw.
'Guess we'll be seeing some muscleheads pop up soon.'
Kang Cheol-su was a fitness fanatic who practically worshipped exercise.
Still, anyone who went through his "care"—aka training—would shed their weakness and toughen up.
For them, it probably wasn't so bad.
Maybe.
Thud.
Having finished listing the students needing extra attention, he snapped his notebook shut and tucked it back into his suit's inner pocket.
Then he placed both hands on the lectern.
Bam!
With a light tap, the lectern cracked wide open.
"Ah, damn it. Told them to put something sturdy in here."
Kang Cheol-su grumbled as much, but that lectern?
It was insanely tough.
I didn't have an appraisal skill, but thanks to the system, I could read item descriptions.
The lectern he'd just turned into scrap was wooden, sure—but enchanted with durability magic, tough as steel.
He wouldn't say that if he knew.
The supply staff must've had constant headaches because of him.
Probably still did.
"Ahem. Ahem."
As the lectern teetered on the verge of collapse, Kang Cheol-su cleared his throat and stepped in front of it.
Like he was trying to hide it with his massive frame.
Crack... Boom...
As if mocking him, the lectern split in half and toppled to either side.
Split clean in two.
What a pathetic sight.
"......"
A chill silence fell over the classroom.
The students' faces, now aware of even a fraction of his strength, tensed up.
Kang Cheol-su scratched the scar on his forehead at their reactions, then clapped his hands sharply to liven things up.
"Bit of a mishap there, but let's move past it."
He picked up the bisected lectern and tossed it under the podium.
Then stood right where it had been.
"As for me, I'm Kang Cheol-su, the instructor in charge of you lot for the next three years."
His introduction made the students, who had been silently gaping, buzz with shock.
"...Kang Cheol-su? You mean that......?"
"My God... Our homeroom instructor is Crusher Kang Cheol-su?"
Instructor Kang Cheol-su.
Alias: Crusher.
A top-tier hero whose name inspired awe among fellow heroes and dread among the Fallen.
No aspiring hero could be ignorant of him.
Yet twenty years ago, he abruptly retired and started working here. No one knew why.
Why had this judge of the Fallen suddenly stepped away?
Rumors abounded: he'd made a fortune, grown disillusioned with hero work, wanted to teach the next generation.
The third one was closest to the truth.
Even in his prime, Kang Cheol-su loved mentoring juniors.
But the real reason for his retirement was different.
An injury.
You learn about it later in the game, from the alien entities that start appearing.
Twenty years ago, while hunting Fallen, he clashed with a named one called the "Plague."
He took a grievous wound in that fight. Fragments of plague lodged in his body, robbing him of his top-tier power. He reveals this himself.
And after that?
He dies. For the students.
Knowing full well using his full strength would kill him, he sacrifices himself without hesitation.
'...This time, I can change it.'
A fate only the protagonist could alter.
But that was the game.
This was reality now.
So I could change it.
...No, I would change it.
As I steeled my resolve, Kang Cheol-su's gaze landed on me.
I met his eyes.
He grinned, flashing pearly whites.
"That should cover the introductions."
With that, he shrugged off his suit jacket, dropped it on the floor, and started rolling up his shirt sleeves to his forearms.
"Ah, rolling up sleeves is such a pain."
That's why I hate wearing suits, he muttered in complaint.
He could've stopped at the elbows, but no—he stubbornly rolled them all the way up.
Finally exposing forearms thicker than most grown men's heads, he addressed the class.
"Alright, everyone line up. Time to see what you've got."
Kang Cheol-su flung the door open.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ We followed Kang Cheol-su to a training ground.
In the game, minor travels like this auto-skipped.
So walking there myself was a first.
Thanks to that, I realized the classroom and training ground were in the same building.
And just how vast the training ground was—beyond what the screen could show.
"This is the training ground. Everyone remember the way here?"
"Yes!"
"Good."
As if we'd forget.
It was a three-minute walk from class.
Kang Cheol-su nodded at our unified shout and shut the training ground door.
"Oh, and FYI—this whole building is exclusive to our class. So feel free to use any facilities besides the training ground."
Everyone let out impressed "oohs."
Arena Academy lived up to its name.
High rank meant top treatment.
"Now, before we test your skills..."
He fiddled with the keypad by the door.
The center of the training ground split open, and an arena rose from below—like a coliseum dueling ring, complete with tiered seating overlooking it.
Typical of a competition-obsessed academy.
Even the training ground had a built-in arena.
"Alright, everyone grab a training weapon from over there. This is just evaluation—no personal weapons or stuff bought outside the academy."
His eyes flicked to me at "stuff bought outside the academy."
The look said: You get it, right?
I nodded.
Satisfied with my response, he glanced at his smart watch.
Activated its hologram and continued.
"We'll do tournaments for sparring. Pick your weapons and take seats while I set up the brackets."
With that, we all rushed to the weapon racks.
They had pretty much every basic weapon.
Melee to firearms.
Most headed for melee.
Heroes favored melee weapons, so the kids probably did too.
This raises a question.
In a modern world laced with fantasy, why skip advanced guns for old-school melee?
Simple reason.
The "fantasy" part.
In Arena Academy's lore, it's modern fantasy. Tech exists, but so do tons of magical elements: magic, skills, heroes, Fallen, monsters, transcendent beings, aliens, etc.
And pretty much all beings with fantasy powers resist firearms.
Take nukes—the ultimate gunpowder weapon.
Even top heroes survive them.
So guns work on low-tier villains or physically weak Fallen, but melee became heroes' go-to for universal effectiveness.
Guns aren't useless, though. Great against monsters from other dimensions invading ours.
Most monsters are trapped in the Shadow Realm between worlds, though, so they rarely show.
"Hmm..."
I stood between the melee and firearm racks, deliberating.
'Should stick with melee...'
Gameplay, I'd mostly used melee.
I'd tried guns once, but that run ended in early game over—didn't even finish the story.
Logically, skip guns, grab melee...
'But I got Super Accuracy cheat...'
'Sigh... Guns are calling my name.'
I wanted to try one.
'...Just once.'
Yeah, a test run.
We hadn't finalized weapons yet.
Just testing.
Decision made, I stepped toward the firearms.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ ◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ ◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ "...Top student Lee Yoo-jin. You sure you picked proper weapons?"
"Yes, sir. Proper ones."
"......"
Instructor Kang Cheol-su was speechless.
The other kids stared too, utterly baffled.
"...Top student. Last chance. Really proper weapons?"
"Yes, sir."
"...Got it."
Even after my final confirmation, he scratched his forehead scar in exasperation before nodding.
"Um, top student? You know how to use all that?"
Shuhei Asuka sidled up, whispering.
I nodded.
"Of course."
"...Impressive, top student."
She marveled, eyeing my gear.
Longsword in left hand.
Autopistol in right.
Revolver holstered on right thigh.
Tactical vest loaded with a greatsword, flashbangs, and non-lethal grenades.
And a shotgun slung on my back.
"Whoa... Guns are so cool..."
In the heavy silence, only Asuka's awe broke through.
'...Overdid it?'
But what I wanted to say was:
Pretty badass, right?