What Is This Trash?
What Is This Trash?
The evening of the entrance ceremony.
Cheon Hae-won was enjoying the night view from the rooftop of a building near the Academy.
As he took in the glittering city with both eyes, he narrowed his brows bitterly and pulled out a Mana Herb.
Chik-
Chiiik-
"...... Did you follow me?"
"Of course not. I just happened to find you."
The moment he was about to light it, the movement of the wind changed faintly.
Cheon Hae-won, who had put away his lighter, said to her.
"Don't get the wrong idea, you're not worth that much. I came to give you the supplies you didn't receive."
Arnes Julius.
She descended from the sky on her staff and handed over an artifact.
A sweet, smiling gaze.
A type that doesn't show emotions or thoughts on the outside.
I don't like it.
Cheon Hae-won crumpled his expression.
"You didn't come all this way at this hour just to give me this."
It wouldn't have been too late to send it to the dormitory or give it to him the next day.
It was just a communication device. If it had to be delivered quickly, she would have given it to him sooner.
There must be some purpose... Arnes, who read his thoughts, opened her mouth.
"I wanted to talk to you about Do-ah-yang."
"Why is that brat coming up all of a sudden? I have nothing to talk about regarding her."
"You know it too, don't you? That Do-ah-yang is different from others."
Fwoong-!
A red rod appeared in his empty hand.
Arnes's eyes widened, albeit briefly, at the fact that the murderous rod was already touching her neck.
"How much do you know?"
"... I prided myself on being a fairly strong hero, but I never imagined the gap would be this big. Honestly, I'm flustered."
"Don't flap your trap unless you're answering. Next time, it's your neck."
"I had a feeling this would happen... Ahem, Mind Reading. Reading others' thoughts is my ability."
Arnes raised both hands, showing her intention to surrender.
She then began to spill the beans about herself.
"My ability can be used when I want... but I can also see the memories of people with intense emotions. It's only then that my ability's range expands and I can't control it, so it's really tiring."
Especially the thoughts and memories of those harboring strong lust.
Arnes sighed as if complaining.
Realizing she wasn't hostile, Cheon Hae-won put away the rod and lit the Mana Herb again.
A sweet yet bitter scent enveloped the surroundings.
"No wonder your attitude was so submissive... You read my and the brat's memories? So, what is her identity?"
"If Do-ah-yang is 'that guy' you're thinking of... would you kill her right away?"
"I'll judge that myself. Just answer."
"I don't know the details. I couldn't see Do-ah-yang's memories."
"... Hey, that doesn't add up. When I was pissed off, the brat was right in front of me."
The emotions that bloom from someone pushed to the brink of suffocation are intense.
The anger toward the perpetrator, the despair felt from one's own helplessness.
You didn't notice? Are you hiding it?
Arnes replied.
"This is the first time this has happened to me, too. I don't know the reason, but Do-ah-yang's memories are the only ones I can't see, as if they were written on black paper with a black pen."
She could barely make out the thoughts because they were written by pressing the pen down hard, but she couldn't see anything about the past.
That was why Arnes had come to talk.
To piece together everything she knew about Kwon Do-ah.
"Even in the classroom when you weren't there, and when you two met, all I could read from Do-ah-yang were some slight thoughts and a strong will to survive—'I want to live'."
Since it's a world covered in Magi, it's a desire one would naturally have.
However, unless she was certain that Kwon Do-ah wasn't 'that guy' whom Cheon Hae-won hated, she had to treat Kwon Do-ah with the mission of a hero while being a teacher.
"Trust to believe... In a world where God is dead, the only things you can trust are other humans."
"Sounds like you're being sarcastic, is that aimed at me?"
"Not really? Beastmen are humans too, and aside from your bad attitude, in this day and age, you can definitely be called a human. Don't you think so, Hae-won-gun?"
"I don't know if you're crazy because you looked into my head, or if you were a psycho to begin with..."
"Heh, I'll take that as a compliment for being bold. Oh, and students aren't allowed to smoke."
"... Huh?"
Arnes snatched the cigarette pack from Cheon Hae-won.
Then, telling him not to smoke in front of a superior, she burned the whole pack right in his hand.
Cheon Hae-won clicked his tongue as if it were unpleasant.
"Anyway, kids these days..."
"I don't know about age, but in terms of rank, I'm a teacher and a hero, so I'm much higher than you, Hae-won-gun?"
"I'm the elder, but anyone can see you look older."
".................."
Just now.
What on earth was that indescribable killing intent, as if a snake had bitten him?
After that, while exchanging information, until the conversation ended.
Cheon Hae-won had to keep his senses sharp, not knowing when an attack might come.
'Scared? Me...? By a woman much younger than me?'
"I'd like to study the peach that grants immortality at least once... I'd like to take a bite, too."
"Don't eat it, there's no good in living long. You'll only see a bunch of shitty things."
"Isn't that hypocrisy?"
Since it's all eaten, he wouldn't be able to find it anyway.
Classes at Utopia Academy are mainly divided into two.
In the morning, there are theoretical lectures on understanding the structure of Magic Beasts or magic, and in the afternoon, training is the main focus, learning directly with the body in the gym or on the field.
But today, as Arnes had announced in advance, it was the day for ability measurement and status checks in the morning.
Skipping the first class under the pretext of placing Awakened in the right places is the golden rule of academy stories.
It was a structure where if you placed your hand on the crystal ball Arnes had prepared, the measured grade would be updated on your student ID and the [Class A Student List] app on your artifact.
'Anyway, that jerk... didn't come today either.'
Cheon Hae-won's seat was still empty.
Compared to other teams having three people, wouldn't our combat power be severely lacking if it were just me and Aisha?
If he's going to keep a seat empty, can't they just expel Cheon Hae-won or replenish the personnel?
A moment later, Aisha, who had finished the measurement first because she was ahead of me in line, returned.
"Do-ah-ya~"
"How was it?"
"It wasn't too bad!"
A notification sound rang from the artifact, and Aisha's information came up.
[Aisha Roselia]
[Strength: D]
[Durability: D]
[Agility: D]
[Mana: A+]
[Luck: F]
[Intelligence: B+]
[Ability: Authority of Healing]
'I guess Durability is like HP... She's a typical mage character.'
They say the standard for a normal person, excluding the three below, is E.
Looking at it overall, with her glass cannon build and excessively high mana, Aisha was perfect for a typical ranged dealer.
A dealer who can even heal is truly rare.
For reference, Yoon Sia's status was the exact opposite of Aisha's; she was a destruction tank who received B~A in Strength, Durability, and Agility, even though her Mana was low.
"Next is the last one... Do-ah-yang, are you ready?"
"Ah, yes... I'll go."
"Good luck~"
I stood up at Arnes's call and stood in front of the podium.
As I looked at the sparkling crystal ball floating in front of her, all sorts of thoughts crossed my mind.
'For starters, my Strength is definitely low.'
I didn't have high expectations for Strength since I couldn't land a valid hit on the Circle trash and Cheon Hae-won, and only got beaten up.
Then, my toughness... would my Durability be at least a little better?
Considering I only got bruises after being punched in the gut or choked, and was still walking around fine, it seems like a decent level.
Standing in front of the crystal ball for a long time, Arnes smiled quietly.
"I'll be looking forward to it, Do-ah-yang."
"Umm, then..."
I placed my hand on the crystal ball.
After feeling a slight tingling sensation, a moment later, Arnes checked my updated student ID first.
And for a brief moment, her smile vanished, and her eyes, which had only been looking at me suggestively, widened.
"My goodness... No, can it even come out like this...?"
'Even if Strength, Durability, and Agility are terrible, the remaining three must have come out well?'
It's a natural reaction if the stats are extreme.
A super academy-level Intelligence, Luck, and Mana holder? I guess I did get special treatment for being a heroine character.
See, there are ways to clear this other than reforming Cheon Hae-won.
Arnes opened her mouth cautiously.
"Do-ah-yang, don't be too discouraged by the stats that came out first. Grades can change as much as you want if you put in the effort."
"... Yes?"
"There are many surprising things today, just like yesterday... Ahaha..."
Something is weird.
It's about time the students who saw my stats started bursting out with cringy exclamations like 'Ehh! No way?! That's amazing~!' like popcorn.
"Hey, damn... is this for real?"
"Shh, they can all hear you, you idiot..."
"Looks like she's in huge shock."
Not only Arnes, who let out a sigh of relief for some reason, but the entire class, having checked the app, became solemn.
What is it. What is this gloomy atmosphere.
Did someone die?
Just in case, I looked at our Chapssaltteok, and this guy is also avoiding my eyes.
I immediately checked the student ID I received from Arnes.
[Kwon Do-ah]
[Strength: F]
[Durability: F]
[Agility: C]
[Mana: Unmeasurable]
[Luck: Unmeasurable]
[Intelligence: F-]
[Ability: -]
"It says Unmeasurable because it's lower than the standard for that grade... Do-ah-yang? Do-ah-yang~?"
What is this trash?
Was it possible for F to have a minus attached to it?
A feast of the worst stats, impossible to believe I'm a heroine.
There are even two things worse than F lined up.
"Ha, haha... Hahaha..."
This can't be.
Is this for real?
Something like this... in Class A?
Did I get in through some kind of fraudulent admission?