The Narrow-Eyed Character's Exam Prep (1)
The woman who had been lying listlessly on the bed finally opened her eyes.
I rushed over to her in a panic and locked gazes with her.
"Sis! You're finally awake? A whole month's already gone by!"
Tears spilled free, dripping down and soaking into her clothes.
She stared at me steadily for a long moment, then called my name in a cracked, struggling voice.
"Kang Eun-seol… no. Gamigin, is it?"
Ah, she figured it out.
Boring.
I'd put on an extremely high-fidelity performance based on this body's memories, and yet she saw through it every single time without fail.
I wiped every expression from my face and stepped back from her.
"Calling me Gamigin? Even for a little sister, isn't that a bit stiff, Sis?"
She forced out a hollow laugh at my words, then pushed herself up into a sitting position.
"…Cut the crap and give my sister's body back."
Ahh, that line again.
"You failed your mission, so why should I? If you wanted your sister's body back so badly, you should've succeeded in the first place, don't you think? Right, Kang Ye-eun?"
Kang Ye-eun bit down hard on her lip.
"That was… I didn't have a choice. The principal was there. You know how strong the principal is. I—I did my best. There was no way I could've done better than that."
"Yeah, yeah, sure you did. 'I gave it my all, so it's fine if I die~'—that's the kind of bullshit you were spouting, right? Pfft. And you didn't even lose to the principal.
You got wrecked by some fresh-faced chick that just enrolled. Completely destroyed like a total loser. You think I didn't see that?"
I sneered and mocked her openly; her eyes locked onto me with pure murder in them.
Killing intent glittered in her gaze.
"Oh? Looking to kill me? Go on, try it. Kill me if you can. You won't be able to, Sis. Whose body do you think this is?"
She tore her eyes away from me and covered her face with trembling hands.
"What am I supposed to do…"
She muttered in a dry, hollow voice.
I walked slowly closer, leaned in until my lips nearly brushed her ear, and whispered softly.
"Too bad~ If you'd just finished this last mission successfully, that precious little sister you love so much would've been free."
Of course, even if she had succeeded, there was zero chance the owner of this body would ever have been set free.
Why would I go through the trouble of hunting down a new contractor when I've already got a body this perfectly compatible?
Forming a contract is a hassle in itself.
It's so much easier to just snatch the body like this.
Humans are a dime a dozen in this world anyway, and ones with this level of compatibility are practically rolling around underfoot.
The reason I was specially using this body was simple.
Because it was fun.
"Sis. As the older sister, aren't you supposed to clear the path for your little sister? Before you die, use that worthless body of yours to set her free."
"…Don't call me Sis, Gamigin. It's disgusting."
"Puhuhu, you're hung up on something like that, Sis? If I were the older sister, I'd just hurry up and finish the mission so I could free my little sister~.
Ah! Or maybe Sis actually wants her little sister to keep living with her body stolen by someone else forever~?"
Her body trembled.
She heard this same line all the time, yet her reaction stayed so fresh every single time that it only made me want to torment her more.
Ah, this is why I can't quit humans.
"Terminal illness this, terminal illness that. Like I care? If you're just going to keep acting so pathetic, go ahead and die already. Then there was no point in me saving you from the cops.
Aaah~ Maybe I should've just left you to rot and die in prison. Wasted my energy for nothing, huh?"
"…"
Kang Ye-eun clamped both hands over her ears and buried her face against her knees, as if she couldn't stand to hear another word from me.
I forcibly pried her hands away and kept whispering into her ear.
"Sis, don't try to run from reality. Your adorable little sister is talking to you—why are you trying not to listen? Hmm~! But since I feel a little sorry for you, maybe I'll give you another chance. Go back to the academy. How about it?"
"…"
Kang Ye-eun slowly raised her head.
I met her eyes steadily as she looked up.
I beamed at her with a bright, cheerful smile while she faced me with a rigid expression.
"…You want me to go after the Philosopher's Stone again?"
"Mm, no. I've lost interest in that. Instead, bring me that little chick. Easy enough, right?"
"When you say 'little chick'…"
"Sis, are you an idiot? Bring me that guy. The man who beat you senseless and got you dragged off by the cops. The man who made me waste my energy for nothing.
What was his name again? Baek something-or-other."
"…If I succeed at this mission, you'll free my sister?"
"Sure, sure. But in one piece—I trust you understand. Ah, and I used a bit of power last time so I'm tired, okay? That means you have to do it with your own strength alone. Got it?"
Kang Ye-eun nodded with difficulty.
Looking at her face like that, I couldn't help the laughter that slipped out.
During lunch, I was sparring with Kim Gabyul in the training hall.
Both of us were using real swords.
"Hah, looks like I win again today."
"Haa… haa…"
Kim Gabyul collapsed onto the floor, catching her breath.
I wiped away the sweat running down my cheek as well.
Lately Kim Gabyul's skill had improved dramatically.
I now had to put in a fair amount of real effort just to beat her.
"You've been practicing a lot, I see. Even I'm finding it pretty tough now."
"I still lost. Not good enough yet."
—Rattle
"Looks like we need to lend a hand here!"
"Hahaha! Exactly! Looks like you need our help!"
Lee Ye-rin and Hwang Ju-hyeon barged into the private training room we were using, wooden swords in hand, and strode over.
"Hm? Why are the two of you arriving together? Don't tell me…?"
"No way! It's just…"
"We just kinda ended up…"
I hadn't even said much, yet the two of them were desperately making excuses. It was pretty entertaining.
"And what about you? Why are you sparring alone with Gabyul? In this tiny 'private' training room!"
"Calling this place tiny is a bit…"
I glanced around.
The training room was extremely spacious.
Located underground, every wall and floor was made of special materials that absorbed impact with great efficiency.
The entire training complex, including all the private rooms, was larger than a soccer field.
"Whatever. Why are the two of you alone together? Don't tell me you like each other?"
Lee Ye-rin shouted, her face flushed red.
"Where did that suddenly come from…"
Kim Gabyul muttered, her own face faintly pink.
"Forget it! Forget it! Just spar already."
Lee Ye-rin, now completely red, clumsily changed the subject.
"Ahem. So, how exactly do you plan to help me?"
Kim Gabyul cleared her throat, still a little flushed.
"You know skill improves fastest when you face tough opponents, right?"
Hwang Ju-hyeon stepped in for Lee Ye-rin, who was still flustered and red-faced.
"Yeah! If we take you on three-on-one, your skill will shoot up crazy fast."
Once Hwang Ju-hyeon spoke up, Lee Ye-rin regained her confidence and backed him.
"Three-on-one? Right now?"
Kim Gabyul tilted her head.
*
And so the three-on-one began.
Three shadows fell across Kim Gabyul.
"Try blocking this too!"
"Hoo…"
Kim Gabyul frantically parried the attacks from me, Lee Ye-rin, and Hwang Ju-hyeon.
Yet she moved without pause and blocked every strike cleanly.
After a reasonable amount of attacking I stepped back.
The reason Kim Gabyul could handle all three of us was obvious.
Lee Ye-rin and Hwang Ju-hyeon simply weren't good with swords.
Their sword paths were so simple that no matter how fast they swung, the trajectories were easy to read and counter.
On top of that I wasn't really attacking from behind them, so overall—while chaotic—it was actually easier for her than a one-on-one with me.
Without proper coordination, more numbers only meant they got in each other's way.
"Damn, she's ridiculously good. Wait, or are we just bad…"
Hwang Ju-hyeon muttered.
Lee Ye-rin nodded in agreement.
"Right? It's three-on-one, so why does it feel like we're only about even…?"
After muttering that, Lee Ye-rin glanced behind her.
Her eyes met mine as I stood with my hands clasped behind my back.
"What are you doing…?"
"Just watching."
"…What?"
The moment Lee Ye-rin stood there blankly staring at me, Kim Gabyul closed the distance on her in a flash.
"Ye-rin! Front!"
"Ah!"
—Clack!
"…That was close."
The sound of wood striking wood rang out.
It was Kim Gabyul's wooden sword colliding with Lee Ye-rin's.
"Hold on! The skill gap is way too big like this!"
Lee Ye-rin was right—the difference in level was severe.
Even if they learned swordsmanship in class, there was no comparing someone who had continuously held a sword to those who hadn't.
Lee Ye-rin and Hwang Ju-hyeon's stances were clumsy and unstable, while Kim Gabyul held her sword with rock-solid stability.
Moreover, even though Kim Gabyul barely attacked and played purely defensively, she somehow still held the initiative.
"You were the one who suggested this, so quit whining."
Hwang Ju-hyeon, sparring beside her, said to Lee Ye-rin.
"What was that, you bastard?"
Lee Ye-rin stopped sparring mid-swing and yelled at Hwang Ju-hyeon.
"Whoa, getting distracted?"
"What… ah?!"
At Hwang Ju-hyeon's words she hurriedly snapped her head back toward Kim Gabyul and let out a scream.
The wooden sword smacked her square on the forehead and sent her toppling backward.
Lee Ye-rin landed hard on her rear and rubbed her forehead.
"Ow…"
"Hahaha! That's what you get for looking away."
Hwang Ju-hyeon clutched his stomach laughing.
"You shouldn't look away either."
Kim Gabyul gave a wry smile and tapped Hwang Ju-hyeon on the forehead with her wooden sword.
"Aagh!"
Hit on the forehead, Hwang Ju-hyeon plopped down right beside Lee Ye-rin and rubbed the same spot.
So… what exactly had these two come here for?