Chapter 168: The Last Nemesis Before Summer Vacation (10)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 168: The Last Nemesis Before Summer Vacation (10)
I had hoped to end this before things reached this point, but now that it had happened, it was foolish to waste time agonizing over the “best” possible outcome.
If the best is impossible, you choose the next best thing. Since I had already anticipated this possibility, I had a backup plan ready.
Following my prior instructions, the group split into two and began confronting the professors.
Let’s look on the bright side.
Professor Kim Min-soo was unconscious, so this wasn’t the absolute worst-case scenario. Since both of the remaining professors would have their movements restricted by the need to protect him, it meant we wouldn’t have to face all three at once, right?
Lilac and Cheon Yu-hak, supported by Lee Yu-na and the other supporters, would hold off Professor Park A-ram. Meanwhile, Ha-ni and I, along with the tanks, would deal with Professor Cathy.
Well, in theory, it was the most appropriate composition, but honestly, I didn’t think we had much of a chance as things stood.
“Honestly, everyone, I’m truly impressed. It’s not that there haven’t been seniors who had the same idea during similar exams, but this is the first time I’ve seen freshmen cooperate so quickly and effectively.”
Professor Cathy looked at us with a gaze full of pride and satisfaction, as if she were truly impressed by her students.
However, being impressed was one thing; the exam was another.
The moment she took her stance, the air around her shifted.
“You seem to have divided yourselves well, but I don’t think it’s quite enough.”
It was frustrating, but she was right.
One near S-rank hero and one high-tier A-rank hero.
Unlike Professor Kim Min-soo, who was weaker than a typical A-rank, numbers wouldn’t mean much against these two.
Unless I went all out, the truth was that they were walls far too high to be used as mere training for the kids’ growth.
If we had to fight a fair head-on battle, we would surely lose.
“Wow, the pressure is seriously no joke.”
Ha-ni muttered, breaking into a cold sweat as she took her stance.
Since she, like me, had been sparring with the professor every morning, she knew better than the others what it meant to face Professor Cathy as an enemy.
The professor, who had been smiling broadly, vanished as if melting into the air, accompanied by the sharp whistle of cloven wind.
I immediately used Reinforcement on Aisha, but the professor noticed. She came to a dead stop, then redirected the momentum from her flying kick into a spinning roundhouse.
The blow, which had clearly been aimed at Aisha, transitioned with unbelievable smoothness to strike Jae-hee instead. Woo Jae-hee was sent flying through the air once again.
At this point, I had to wonder if our Jae-hee was actually a bird.
He seemed to have used his talent to skillfully deflect the impact, but that was only possible while his feet were on the ground. It was impossible to deflect the shock of a follow-up attack while suspended in mid-air.
Here, I was forced to make a choice.
If I used Reinforcement to increase Jae-hee’s durability, I could prevent him from being retired, but Aisha wouldn’t be able to withstand the subsequent attack. Conversely, if I kept the Reinforcement on Aisha, Jae-hee would almost certainly be retired, leaving Aisha to endure the onslaught alone.
I couldn’t hesitate.
If I took too long, I’d lose both.
“Hup…!”
But while I was agonizing over what to sacrifice, someone else lunged forward without hesitation.
Ha-ni.
As if mocking the choice Professor Cathy had presented me, as if refusing to accept either outcome, she swung her sword.
The problem was that while it looked cool, it wasn’t exactly a great choice for a hero.
If she were facing a hero whose stance would falter from such a strike, it would have worked. But it didn’t work on a professor who had recently been on a growth spurt.
Using her right hand—the one she was using to slam Woo Jae-hee down—as a natural shield, she blocked Ha-ni’s attack. Then, she drove a straight punch toward Ha-ni, who had momentarily frozen mid-swing.
“It’s good to care for your comrades, but you know that refusing to pick an option isn’t always the right answer, don’t you?”
This is getting really tough.
Jae-hee was knocked out, and while Ha-ni seemed to have blocked with her sword, she was trembling violently, clearly having taken heavy damage.
I checked to see if the other side was faring any better, but Lee Yu-na and Ju Ri-ra were barely holding on, unable to fill the void I had left.
Honestly, the balance would crumble the moment ‘Overflowing Golden Light’ was unleashed. It was a miracle they were even lasting this long.
“Where are you looking?”
“At you, Professor.”
“Liar. You were looking away.”
“Aw, come on. Where else would I look when you’re right here, Professor?”
I tried to dodge the incoming punch, but I couldn’t clear it perfectly. My shoulder throbbed where it had been grazed.
I thought I had grown used to her through our morning spars, but it seemed she had been taking it easy on me even in our most recent session. Her strikes were half a beat faster than I anticipated.
“Oh, really? I could have sworn you were looking over there~?”
“I was paying proper attention!”
I was being pushed back.
Even when I tried to execute proper swordsmanship or movements, her thrusts were faster than my swings. I had no way to counter.
If I combined Reinforcement with as much Demonic Energy as I could muster to reinforce my body, I might be able to respond, but doing so would surely cause a massive scene.
Ah, I really hate doing this.
It felt cowardly, and it felt like a dirty trick to play on the professor, but I had no choice. I couldn’t let the kids be retired here.
In truth, I had a trump card that could momentarily catch Professor Cathy off guard.
Even if it makes me a piece of trash, it can’t be helped.
“How could I look away? I have a history of being hit pretty hard by you, Professor.”
I widened the distance and, with a bitter expression, lightly tapped my abdomen with my index finger. The professor’s expression froze instantly.
“Ah, of course, you know I’m not blaming you, right? We made a promise.”
Even if her head knew it was a trap, superhumans were still human. Everyone has a weakness they can’t help but react to when poked, and a sudden jab at that spot inevitably creates an opening.
To her, the ‘Kang So-hyun Donut Incident’ was a sore spot—a literal “reverse scale.” Me bringing it up directly was a one-time move, but it was the best (and worst) way to leave her completely defenseless.
Adding a layer of acting, I nodded and gave her a bright smile, as if to say I understood everything and that it was okay. Only then did she relax her tension, a trembling smile touching her lips.
That’s right, Professor. It wasn’t anyone’s fault. We can understand each other.
“Catch her! Ruyi!”
So please understand me for using everything at my disposal!
“Ah!? So-hyun, you—!?”
The professor snapped back to her senses instantly and tried to resist, but she wouldn’t be able to easily break a binding that utilized both Ruyi and Reinforcement.
“…Wow.”
“That’s a bit…”
“There’s going to be a controversy about this.”
— Wow, you are seriously…
— The Will of the Saint and the Touch of the Devil are sighing. Wow.
— The Lucky Double Coin is appalled. One-coin…?
For a moment, everyone who knew the gist of the incident—including Professor Park A-ram, who was in the middle of her own battle—stared at me. The artifacts in my head began to scold me.
I admit it.
Honestly, it was a bit much.
Of course, I had forgiven her, and I only did it because I knew the professor would realize I was using it as a provocation, but I still pushed the line.
Still, I had an excuse. If a villain were to mimic me and do something like this, Professor Cathy might get flustered, so she needed to be prepared for it at least once.
She won’t fall for it again now.
The professor stared at me with a betrayed expression for a long time before finally lowering her head.
“…No, as a professor of a combat-oriented academy, I can’t scold a cadet for that. It was the optimal move to neutralize me. To be honest, I had no choice but to fall for it even though I saw it coming.”
Wait, she suddenly switched back to formal speech and called me “cadet.” Is she really angry?
Since I couldn’t see her eyes or full expression, it was even scarier.
But when she lifted her head again, she was surprisingly wearing a beaming smile.
“So-hyun. You remember our morning spar, right? You promised to grant me a wish if you couldn’t beat me within a week. I was wondering what to ask for, but I’ve finally decided.”
…I see.
Why are you deciding that right now? You’re making me incredibly anxious.
“Look forward to it.”
The highlights had vanished from her eyes. Am I fucked? Would she go easy on me if I let her go now?
A brief silence fell over the area.
“…Ah, right. We were in the middle of a fight, weren’t we?”
Professor Park A-ram, who had been watching with an incredulous look, was the first to snap back to reality and deployed her magic.
Regardless of the method, Professor Cathy was neutralized. Only she remained.
Since we had already captured two of them, we would win just by holding out until time ran out. If we could manage to restrain her as well, it would be even better.
She knew that too, so she wouldn’t be using any half-hearted spells.
Overflowing Golden Light.
Her original spell, boasting power that was among the best in terms of pure physical force, poured down toward us.
Because I was using Ruyi to restrain Professor Cathy, I couldn’t use it to block.
Now, the only one among us who could block that head-on was Lilac, and both we and our opponent knew this well.
It was a situation where both sides knew each other’s hands, and simultaneously, a situation where neither could avoid playing their strongest card.
The light of Reinforcement dwelled within Lilac’s talent, and the Holy Sword slashed through the magic.
“Huh…!?”
No, it hadn’t been slashed.
He thought he had cut through it, but the light had intentionally split itself just before making contact with the Holy Sword.
“Haha! Did our cadets not know about this!?”
The golden light split into five branches.
Though flustered, Lilac did his best.
Following the first strike that hit nothing but air, he swung a second and third time, managing to cut down two of the five golden branches.
Three branches remained. Cheon Yu-hak and I each took one of the weakened lights and neutralized them, but the one we missed flew straight toward Ha-ni.
Ha-ni still hadn’t been able to stand up due to the damage she took from her encounter with Professor Cathy.
Furthermore, there was an additional incantation.
A new spell manifested in the air.
Wow, this person is dead serious.
She has no intention of going easy on us at all.
If I save Ha-ni, I can’t block the magic.
If I block the magic, I can’t save Ha-ni.
I knew it was just a test, but that only made the taste in my mouth more bitter.
I felt like I was constantly being forced to discard something, and honestly, it wasn’t pleasant.
I knew exactly what they were trying to teach through this exam.
They weren’t telling us to actually discard something.
They wanted us to experience an unreasonable situation in advance and think about what to do if we ever truly faced such a moment.
Furthermore, they wanted us to strive to gain enough power to shatter such absurdities.
— If only I had looked at them a little sooner, could I have avoided that?
But to me…
To me, who had so easily cut things away, given up, and reached the worst possible conclusion…
This lesson felt far too bitter.
It felt like I was being forced to discard something, but the essence was to make me realize that I must never discard anything.
So, even if it was just an exam, I wouldn’t discard a thing.
However, someone else stepped in front of Ha-ni before I could act on my resolve.
Aisha.
“Eryaaaaahhh…!!!!”
“Huh?! Hey! What are you—!”
Concentrating all her mana into the armor on her right hand, she struck back against the torrent of golden light flying toward Ha-ni.
Of course, that didn’t mean she blocked it.
She had only tried to deflect it, but her resistance was futile, and the golden light mercilessly destroyed her bracelet.
Even though her bracelet was destroyed, Aisha smiled at Ha-ni and spoke.
“It was a good idea to accept me as a comrade, wasn’t it?”
Seeing that, I suddenly felt a sense of futility.
Let’s stop this foolish agonizing.
So what if it’s an exam?
If I hesitate now, I will surely hesitate in a real battle as well.
I released the Reinforcement I had placed on Lilac and cast it upon my own body.
At the same time, I gripped the Touch of the Devil and offered a piece of my soul to request a trade.
Reinforcement and Demonic Energy dwelled in my body simultaneously, and my eyes bled from red to purple.
Right on cue, a new burst of golden light erupted, obscuring everyone’s vision, and my gaze met Professor Park A-ram’s.
She didn’t panic even when she saw my purple eyes.
The emotion she held was closer to surprise and worry than panic.
I’d leave the excuses for the Demonic Energy for later; for now, I executed the swordsmanship I had grown accustomed to with my dagger.
Since the distance was short, I took one more step forward than usual.
The Demonic Energy twisted the mana she had fired, and the Black Flower blooming at the tip of my blade split the torrent of light.
“You know, Kang So-hyun.”
Just before my blade could reach her neck, she spoke, sounding surprised and worried.
Professor Park A-ram smiled with a face that looked somewhat lonely.
“I’m sorry for rushing you, but that power is definitely not the answer. I’ll make sure you don’t have to rely on things like that, so please… try not to depend on that power… that Demonic Energy.”
The mana she fired struck me at the same moment my dagger slashed her.
…Hm? What? It doesn’t hurt.
As I suppressed her, the golden light that had obscured everyone’s vision vanished, but I had already withdrawn my Demonic Energy, and my eyes had returned to their original color.
Something was strange. There was no way it would end this easily. Why did she fire the spells she had prepared in such odd directions?
It was almost as if she were trying to block the other kids’ view…?
Wait, so…
Did she waste her final attack just to hide me?
Uh, Professor, you aren’t getting some weird misunderstanding right now, are you?