Chapter 18
Chapter 18
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 18
Chapter Title: Your Hero Academy
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Let's see. How did things end up like this?
I definitely came to the cafe to cheer up Seo Ha-eun.
Then suddenly ran into Hero Valkyrie and ended up sitting together.
The culprit who caused that disappeared midway through paying the bill.
And I ended up face-to-face with Jin Seo-ah, someone I had zero acquaintance with!
"Um... hello. I'm Kang Yuna."
The only one who could break this awkward atmosphere was me.
Kang Yuna felt a sense of responsibility and greeted Jin Seo-ah first.
In response, Jin Seo-ah offered a very refined smile.
"Nice to meet you, Cadet Kang Yuna. I saw that article."
"Yes?"
"Back when you weren't even a cadet yet, you fought a villain and saved some citizens. You even clashed with that villain, the Smiling Man, in the process."
"Uh... y-yes. Th-that's... right?"
Even if I denied it now, no one would believe me.
Why would a villain who murdered an S-Rank Hero help out an aspirant?
Kang Yuna herself was starting to get confused.
"And the one next to you is Cadet Seo Ha-eun, right?"
"You know her?"
"Her brother is our senior. Nice to meet you, Cadet Seo Ha-eun."
"...Nice to meet you."
Jin Seo-ah and Seo Ha-eun exchanged light greetings.
And then silence again. They just sipped their drinks.
Seo Ha-eun blankly. Jin Seo-ah quietly.
Valkyrie should be right here next to us, but where the hell did she go?
Kang Yuna started to feel suffocated.
"Um."
From the few conversations we'd had, Seo Ha-eun would stay silent to the bitter end.
I didn't know much about Jin Seo-ah, but she seemed incredibly serious right now.
Though earlier in class, when Valkyrie chewed her out, it didn't seem that way.
Anyway. At this rate, we'd part ways without a single word.
Kang Yuna felt the obligation to chase away this chill herself.
Why? Well. Was this just something a hero had to do?
"So, um..."
The problem was, she had no clue what to say.
How were you supposed to hold a good conversation with someone you were meeting for the first time like this?
Rolling her eyes desperately, Kang Yuna plunged forward come hell or high water.
"S-Sword!"
"Pardon? Sword? Ah. You mean my sword?"
"The sword you're carrying. I mean. It's incredibly cool and beautiful! That's what I wanted to say!"
Couldn't compliment her makeup. No accessories either, so that was out.
The only thing to praise and steer the conversation toward was that sword.
That was why Kang Yuna had brought up the sword...
"You think this sword is cool?"
If Valkyrie had been here, she would've sighed, "Oh dear."
She might've even grabbed Jin Seo-ah and yelled for her to run.
And for good reason—praising a sword in front of someone from the Jin family.
Anyone who knew would never. Ever. Ever do it.
"...Heh. Hehehe. Hahaha!"
The serious demeanor from moments ago was gone.
All that remained was a zealot extolling the beauty of her sword.
And Kang Yuna had realized it far too late!
"As expected! Cadet Kang Yuna, you're something else! You recognized it at a glance!"
"Uh, y-yes?"
"Look at this. Isn't it stunning? The perfectly shaped blade—so sharp it feels like it'll slice you just by touching it. And when the light bounces off here and shatters... It's pure ecstasy. I just want to show you!"
Hold on. Hold on a second? Even if this was Hero Academy.
Casually drawing a dangerous sword indoors...
"Cadets! No abilities inside the building! No weapons!"
"Ah, yes! Sorry!!"
Jin Seo-ah was the one in the wrong, but Kang Yuna was the one apologizing.
Technically, she'd provided the cause.
Since she'd brought up the sword, she felt responsible too.
"Hmm. Won't work here after all."
"Right? Put the sword away for now, have some coffee, and wait for the instructor..."
"Let's go outside."
"...??"
What the hell? Kang Yuna stared at Jin Seo-ah in bewilderment.
Even Seo Ha-eun, sipping her coffee next to her, wore a why? expression.
"You haven't seen the full beauty of my sword yet! I'll buy you coffee later."
"But... aren't we supposed to wait for Instructor Valkyrie?"
"That sister—no, that instructor's personality—she'll wrap up her work and slip off somewhere else. I've seen it plenty of times."
Personally close to an S-Rank Hero? Wow. Enviable.
As expected, the Sword Saint's granddaughter had class even before stepping foot in the academy.
"Uh. But are we really going out...?"
"Hurry up!"
In the end, Kang Yuna and Seo Ha-eun had no choice but to leave their half-finished coffees behind.
The one who'd paid was acting like this, so it was hard to refuse outright.
Moments later, the three of them were sitting side by side on a bench near the lawn.
"Now, take a good look. What do you think? This elegance. Isn't it too beautiful?"
"Yes. It is. Um, but..."
"Cadet Kang Yuna, ever thought about learning the sword? Someone who appreciates its beauty has real potential! I'll prove it!"
"Um. My ability has absolutely nothing to do with swordsmanship..."
"Mine doesn't either?"
"...??"
Kang Yuna had to doubt her own ears. What was this?
The Sword Saint's granddaughter was an ability user with no relation to the sword?
"You saw me swing it earlier, right?"
If she meant the part where she nearly demolished an innocent janitor, then yes, definitely.
"My ability is amplification. Sound sword-unrelated, doesn't it?"
"Certainly..."
"So I adapted it for the sword. The instant I draw it from the scabbard, I pour all my power into that split-second iaijutsu draw and amplify it in the direction I unleash it."
She'd even named the technique already. One-Strike Kill. Cool, right?!
It was like how she treated her favorite male idol.
All Kang Yuna could do was nod along quietly.
"Um."
Seo Ha-eun, silent until now, finally parted her lips.
Her eyes brimmed with utter incomprehension.
"Your ability doesn't even match. Why stick to the sword? Focusing elsewhere, you could take down way more villains."
"Obvious question, Cadet Seo Ha-eun."
Shing!-
She gracefully drew the sword, spun it once, and continued.
"It's romance."
"Romance...?"
"The romance of being together forever with this lethally beautiful companion called a sword."
"..."
Seo Ha-eun, sitting beside her, shook her head with a small sigh.
Kang Yuna's reason told her to just smile it off too.
But unbeknownst to her, her hands were clapping away.
Romance. What a cool word. Just like how I dream of becoming a righteous hero.
I know how lonely and grueling that path is—no way I could mock it.
"Exactly, Cadet Kang Yuna. The sword isn't the only impressive part. Check out this scabbard."
"The scabbard is special too?"
"It's commissioned from someone with a creation ability. Looks like a plain scabbard normally, but it reacts immediately to any threat against a swordsman in the vicinity."
"Wow."
This was surprising. Creation abilities were rare in and of themselves.
To procure an item from that artisan... As expected of the Sword Saint's family!
"Better if I just show you. For example, if I hold the scabbard like this... Huh?"
Suddenly, the scabbard floated up on its own and began shaking violently.
It was like it was screaming at her to get out of this place right now.
"Is that the scabbard's ability?"
"N-No. This... I've never seen this before?"
As Jin Seo-ah made no move, the scabbard reacted even more fiercely.
No longer able to hold back, it shot straight into the air—
"Ehhh?!"
Smack!-
It zipped off on its own and clocked a passing man right on the forehead.
There hadn't even been time to grab it. She hadn't even thought to.
The scabbard had never shown this level of instability before—ever!
"Kyaaak!?"
"Someone collapsed!"
"Who was it? Who threw this at a person?!"
Why did this keep happening?! Jin Seo-ah rushed over there.
Hero-aspirant Kang Yuna followed behind.
It wasn't killing a villain or anything. But Seo Ha-eun came along too.
When someone collapsed, any academy cadet had to.
"Luckily, no cuts or tears. Just unconscious?"
"Fastest to take him to the treatment room."
"Isn't that uniform a janitor's? Bring an outsider into the academy treatment room?"
As people murmured, Jin Seo-ah arrived.
She checked the fallen man and decided to move him to the treatment room.
Outsiders normally couldn't just wander in.
But this was where being the Sword Saint's granddaughter shone brightest.
"Make way!"
"No accidents outside the training grounds. Geez."
The ever-ready transport team loaded the man onto a stretcher.
Jin Seo-ah followed alongside. Then Seo Ha-eun. And Kang Yuna.
All three wore expressions of worry, great or small.
This is driving me crazy.
The man lying on the stretcher inwardly let out a chuckle.
They'd never imagine the one lying there was the Smiling Man.
The Black Woman sat in the pavilion, tilting her glass.
Drinking alone, with no one to share it with.
She never kept company, but today felt a little boring.
There was a man she sometimes called on days like this, but he'd said he was busy today.
Why insist on doing it himself when he could've just sent one of the others?
Ding!-
The phone he'd given her as a gift let out an alert sound.
Still awkward with it, she fumbled a bit before checking the contents.
"...Hmm?"
A single photo had been sent to the screen.
And below it, a very simple message.
- Entered Hero Academy treatment room. -
"...Puhahat! Ahahaha!!"
The Black Woman set down her glass.
What an absurd turn of events. Infiltrating that all-important treatment room.
There'd never be another monster quite like you in all the world!
"Then, a reply..."
But... how did you reply again?
He'd taught her before.