Chapter 58: Heart-Pounding First Ranking Tournament (4)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 58: Heart-Pounding First Ranking Tournament (4)
The first Ranking Tournament at the Academy is often considered relatively unimportant.
To be precise, it is important, but many people treat it as an afterthought because it feels overshadowed by the end-of-semester Ranking Tournament or the major events of the second semester.
Nevertheless, as the very first event for the freshmen, the atmosphere inevitably heated up.
This time, the reaction was particularly intense, not just within the Academy but from the outside as well. The reason was simple.
Lilac and Cheon Yu-hak—the famous joint top students of the prestigious Leilan Academy.
Countless people wanted to gauge their abilities. Looking further ahead, if scouts waited until the end-of-semester tournament or the athletic meet—events where outsiders could officially spectate—they would undoubtedly fall behind in the competition to recruit them.
Now, there were two problems.
The first problem was the girl in disguise standing before me, Kang Ha-ni.
“It’s the Ranking Tournament today, so I made a hearty meal. Hurry up and eat.”
She was my roommate, and since early morning, she had prepared a menu that tugged at my heartstrings: tteokgalbi and jeyuk.
“Honestly, Lilac and Cheon Yu-hak might beat me in the written exams, but the practical is a different story~”
Surprisingly, those words weren’t a lie.
In the original work, Kang Ha-ni, who had partially turned into a villain, had overwhelmed Lilac while wielding Seol-ah.
She had killed villains until the very end, so she couldn’t be called a complete villain. However, she had become intoxicated by the sword’s sharpness, neglected her training, and enjoyed cutting people down. From Lilac’s perspective, she must have seemed like a half-villain.
Anyway, to correct his friend’s straying path, Lilac eventually dueled Kang Ha-ni. In that process, Lilac was pushed back by Ha-ni as she swung Seol-ah.
Even a Lilac who had grown much stronger by surviving numerous life-and-death struggles couldn’t handle Seol-ah’s keen edge.
He’ll lose.
No matter how much I thought about it, it seemed like Lilac would lose.
Well, he wasn’t the type to care deeply about losing, but it would be troublesome if the attention that was supposed to be focused on Lilac shifted to Kang Ha-ni.
“Did I make too much? Just eat what you can and leave the rest.”
“Absolutely not.”
“Now that I think about it, you never leave any leftovers, do you? Is there a reason?”
“It’s a waste.”
A reason? Of course there was. It was because of the second problem I was currently agonizing over: Chamsarang Agriculture.
Chamsarang Agriculture.
It was a corporation established eight years ago by a man who graduated from the Academy. It was a bizarre entity where he was the only member.
Normally, he was a man who lived a quiet life, protecting his small happiness by farming with his superhuman strength. However, regardless of whether he was a hero or a villain, he was one of the top nutjobs in this novel.
That madman, whose principles differed from other villains or heroes, seemed poised to come today of all days to wreck the cadets who had bullied Kim Ga-eul.
So, as a transmigrator, what action should I take?
First, I moistened my dry mouth with soybean paste soup, placed a small piece of tteokgalbi on top of white rice, and ate it while it was still warm.
“This is really delicious.”
“I made plenty because you seemed to like tteokgalbi, so eat up. Even when I’m not around, just take the ones I froze in the fridge and eat them.”
I wasn’t going to do anything.
Considering the flow of the original work or my original plan, Lilac losing might be a bit of a problem, but on second thought, it might not be so bad.
Lilac had always felt burdened by the excessive expectations placed upon him anyway.
And his growth, which had been sluggish thanks to my help, might accelerate if he felt a sense of crisis during his duel with Ha-ni instead of a villain.
Minor problems were things I could solve myself.
“This really isn’t bad.”
“Do you like the tteokgalbi that much? Fine, you can have all the frozen ones too.”
For now, let’s focus on the Ranking Tournament ahead.
* * *
Upon arriving at the classroom, we each received information about our opponents for this tournament.
One opponent stronger than yourself, three at a similar level, and one weaker.
As explained before, the Ranking Tournament format involved fighting a total of five people to determine your rank.
Except for the first-year’s first tournament, students are usually allowed to choose their own opponents. This time, however, the professors selected the sparring partners based on regular class performance and entrance exam scores. But no matter how I looked at it, my match list was incredibly strange.
1st Match: Woo Jae-hee (Holy Sword Class)
2nd Match: Professor Park A-ram (Mana Studies)
3rd Match: Professor Kim Min-soo (Physical Training)
4th Match: Cathy (Combat Arts)
5th Match: Chae Yu-jin (Holy Sword Class)
…What is this? Was I actually the strongest in this world? Why is a raid party roster written here instead of a list of opponents?
There were only two students—the first match against someone stronger and the fifth against someone weaker. The rest were entirely filled with professors.
Have they lost their minds?
Am I… on the same level as Professor Cathy or Professor Park A-ram?
“Ah, some cadets might see professors’ names on their lists. It’s not an error. It’s just that it was difficult to find cadets of a similar skill level, so the professors will personally observe and safely measure your abilities. Don’t worry.”
Aha, so that was it.
Based solely on the Academy’s official system, there probably wasn’t a rival who could fight me on equal footing.
The only person who knew I had defeated a villain or that I possessed special artifacts was the Chairperson, and I had made it clear that I didn’t want those reflected in my grades.
By the Academy’s evaluation standards, I was still a loser.
…But am I so weak that there isn’t even anyone similar among the bottom-tier students?
Woo Jae-hee, the tanker of Cheon Yu-hak’s party, was evaluated as stronger than me, and I wondered just how weak Chae Yu-jin had to be to be evaluated as weaker than me.
Since the Academy’s Ranking Tournament is practice-oriented, artifacts are allowed.
It would be a bit much to use the Power of the Black Shadow in front of everyone, but I figured I could use the Ruyi.
“Hey, Loser~”
“Yeah?”
“Who are you fighting?”
When I silently held out my sheet, Butt asked back with a face full of confusion.
“…What is this?”
“What do you think? It’s my match list.”
“Why is it like this?”
“Oh, is that So-hyun’s match list? Let’s see who he’s fighting.”
Following Kang Ha-ni, even Lilac joined in. Their expressions turned grim after seeing my list.
“It’s okay. You’ve been working out hard. You’ll be able to catch up by the next evaluation tournament.”
“Y-Yeah! We’ll help you a lot, so don’t worry, So-hyun!”
“I appreciate it, but you guys are really bad at comforting people, aren’t you?”
“But isn’t this actually a good thing? You’re super strong, Loser.”
I wondered what she was talking about, but then I remembered Kim Ga-eul had seen me fighting Jin Gyeong-tae up close.
“Hey, don’t you remember how much it hurts when he uses his ability?”
“Ah, right. Sorry…”
And she had seen me being carried off to the emergency room afterward.
Actually, if I really put my mind to it, I think I’d be okay.
“Hmm, the professors’ eyes must be made of wood if they think Jae-hee is stronger than you.”
“Oh, Yu-hak.”
“Jae-hee isn’t bad, but he’s no match for you. It’s a shame. But for his sake, don’t go easy on him.”
I think you’re overestimating me, Cheon Yu-hak.
“Well, I didn’t come here to chat with you today. I came to make a declaration.”
“A declaration?”
“Lilac, this time, I’ll make you realize that you are beneath me.”
“Oh, you came to provoke me? But Yu-hak, I don’t plan on losing easily either, you know?”
The two boys looked at each other with smirks, but there was no genuine malice in their eyes.
“Hmm, we’ll see about that. Since I’ve made a promise on this spear, I have no intention of losing.”
“Wow, relying on artifacts.”
“Do you think it’s unfair?”
“No, choosing a good weapon and wielding it well is also a skill.”
“I’m glad you’re not an idiot. Anyway, the joint top spot ends today. From now on, I am the top student, and you are the runner-up.”
“Who says? Weapons are important, but they aren’t everything.”
“Hey.”
While the two protagonists were fueling their rivalry, a girl who looked like a boy cut in.
Kang Ha-ni.
She stood between Cheon Yu-hak and Lilac with a confident smile and made her own declaration.
“You guys are funny, you know? Who says you get to decide who’s top and runner-up? I’m right here.”
“Is that so? I admit you’re quite capable, but unless you’ve gained some grand realization in the meantime, the gap between us has only widened since the entrance ceremony, not narrowed.”
“Ah, I wasn’t ignoring you. But I don’t plan on losing either. I’m going to give it my all.”
The two boys openly regarded her as an inferior, but her expression showed no sign of humiliation or anger.
“It’s true that the weakest dogs bark the loudest. Just watch. I’m going to beat you both and take the top spot in the practicals.”
Instead, she even provoked them with a confident attitude. Since this was quite different from her usual self, the two seemed to feel a sense of doubt.
“You seem quite confident. Fine, I’ll look forward to it.”
“Han-hee. Let’s both do our best. No holding back.”
“Of course.”
Before the strange tension between the three could shift to me, I decided to quietly take my leave.
“Hey, Loser, where are you going?”
“My match with Woo Jae-hee is early, so I should head out.”
“Really? Good luck! Ah, wait. Don’t try too hard. You can go a little easy on him.”
“Anyone listening would think I’m incredibly strong.”
Jae-hee is probably laughing right now, thinking he got matched with an easy target.
* * *
I’m screwed.
Woo Jae-hee prayed that his eyesight was failing him, that he had misread the match list, as he stared at it over and over again.
However, the name written there did not change.
In the slot where a weaker opponent should have been, that name was unmistakably written.
Kang So-hyun.
The name that occupied a place of terror in his mind second only to Cheon Yu-hak. The name of the devil who easily accomplished things that Jae-hee couldn’t do no matter how hard he tried.
Of course, after seeing So-hyun yield an artifact to Yu-hak and observing his actions at the party, Jae-hee had come to see him in a new light and had reflected much on his own attitude.
But that was that. Seeing him in a new light didn’t mean the instinctual fear had vanished.
To make matters worse, the match was scheduled early, so there was no way to escape.
Actually, it might sound a bit much to say it himself, but Woo Jae-hee was quite talented.
He lacked offensive capabilities, but his defensive power and aggro-pulling ability as a tanker were at a level rarely seen in a first-year.
Because of that, he had wanted to confidently show his cool side to his friends.
Ju Ri-ra had declined, but Oh Yoon-ha and Lee Mi-na had said they would come to watch his first duel, if only for the sake of their friendship from the party.
He wanted to show them a cool, smart victory and win the favor of the two girls.
He didn’t want to be a gladiator fighting a monster.
Regardless of his feelings, his turn came while he was waiting. When the instructor standing in the center nodded, the door opened.
And standing across from him was him.
A small frame that didn’t exude the slightest sense of crisis, a body that looked weak and fragile.
With his hair tied messily and his glasses, he had a somewhat loser-like impression, but his true essence was something that couldn’t be known from such an appearance.
Except for himself and a few others who had witnessed his prowess that day, everyone else must be underestimating him—no, they probably weren’t even evaluating him at all.
“Oh~ It’s been a while.”
— A bet? You brat. I just told you not to pick fights because you were picking fights. What bet? What would I even make you do? Just don’t pick fights with the kids from now on. You punk.
In his waving figure, a vision of the past flickered.
“Yeah, it’s been a while.”
“…Why are you talking like that? Are you sick?”
He was probably trying to lower my guard with a friendly appearance, but it wouldn’t work.
Others might not know, but I alone could feel the pressure of the one who dominated this arena.
Should I just forfeit?
That thought crossed his mind, but…
“Oh! So-hyun! Good luck to you too~”
From behind, he heard Yoon-ha’s cheering.
Cheering for him, not me.
That sound snapped him back to his senses.
“There are times when a man must do what he must.”
“What?”
“There are moments when you cannot back down, even if you know you’ll lose.”
The guy looked at me as if he were looking at a madman, but at least to me, it was important.
Ju Ri-ra likes Cheon Yu-hak.
That’s why I tried to give up on her and give my all to the other two girls who surely had feelings for me.
But then another wall appeared.
To achieve my goal, to achieve my dream, I couldn’t run away twice.
“Here I come.”
“…Uh, sure, go ahead.”
At the same time the instructor gave the signal, I shrouded my body in a Protective Aura and charged at him.
This was my only chance.
* * *
…Is he insane?
What’s wrong with him? That guy.
It was difficult to understand him as he charged in after talking nonsense to himself.
