Who Would Ever Team Up With Me?
Bukjin offered a casual greeting to Jeong Sam-seok, who was already seated, before dropping down and grabbing a massive roasted magical beast leg. He began to tear into it with gusto.
"Wow, this is incredible," Bukjin mumbled, his voice muffled by a massive mouthful of meat.
"Oh, and this liquor is top-tier! It’s sweet, almost like a fruit wine. These pancakes are great, too!" Bukjin continued to shove food into his mouth like a man possessed, as if he hadn't eaten in weeks.
The atmosphere of the event was already reaching a fever pitch. The students had finally let their guards down, relaxing their minds in preparation for the selection trial beginning tomorrow. Usually confined to the academy grounds under the stress of constant training and study, being out in the open without strict restrictions had sent everyone’s spirits soaring.
The male students were busy hovering around the girls they admired, trying to strike up conversations and draw attention to themselves. Naturally, the most beautiful girls—those rumored to be the 'goddesses' of their respective academies—were surrounded by the thickest crowds of suitors. At the center of these circles, the geniuses from the National Imperial Junior Academy exerted a subtle but undeniable presence, acting as the focal points of the gathering.
A few girls, struck by Bukjin’s stunning looks, couldn't help themselves and approached him to offer a greeting. However, Bukjin completely ignored them.
"He’s certainly full of himself!"
"Hmph! He didn't even make the top ten, yet he acts with such arrogance!"
The girls who had been snubbed by Bukjin walked away, whispering insults under their breath in indignation. But Bukjin remained unmoved, locked in a glorious, solitary battle with the gourmet spread before him. Because of this, he failed to notice a pair of beautiful eyes watching him intently from a nearby lodging within the estate. Those eyes never left him for a second, observing him with a gaze that seemed to be weighing his worth, as if appreciating a piece of art.
Suddenly, a familiar figure sat down beside him.
"Were you a starving ghost in a past life?" Jeong Sam-seok asked, his expression one of pure disbelief. "You senseless brat! How can you think of nothing but gorging yourself when you're surrounded by such a golden opportunity and a perfect atmosphere?"
At that moment, Bukjin was occupied with a particularly succulent piece of meat, chewing and savoring it with every fiber of his being.
"What else should I be doing? Didn't Lord Icheonghyeon tell us to enjoy our 'Last Supper' tonight?"
Jeong Sam-seok’s jaw dropped even further at the reply.
"Is your head filled with nothing but food? That was a figure of speech! Do you really mean to tell me you haven't realized the true purpose of this campfire event?"
"The true purpose?" Bukjin asked, his jaw never stopping its rhythmic grind. "Um... is it not to fill our bellies?"
Jeong Sam-seok felt a powerful urge to smack the boy upside the head. "You gluttonous fool! It’s a prompt for you all to form your cliques!"
"Cliques? What’s that? Is it edible?"
Jeong Sam-seok finally lost his patience and delivered a sharp smack to the back of Bukjin’s head.
"Get a grip, you idiot!" Jeong Sam-seok roared in frustration. "I am not joking. Listen to me carefully."
Clutching his head, Bukjin put on his most attentive face. "Fine, fine. Let me ask properly then. What on earth do you mean by 'forming cliques'?"
Jeong Sam-seok felt his blood pressure skyrocketing. He felt as though his brain might suffer a hemorrhage if he continued talking to this delinquent. However, he managed to steady his heart by recalling the request of Grade Dean Cho Heun, his own expectations for Bukjin, and the potential glory of the 3rd Academy.
Taking a deep breath to compose his emotions, Jeong Sam-seok finally spoke.
"The purpose of this campfire event isn't just to feed the students and help them relax. Its primary goal is to provide an opportunity for you all to get to know one another, exchange information, and form alliances and cooperative relationships. Only by doing so can you maximize your gains during the ten-day selection trial starting tomorrow. What they are evaluating in the trial isn't just individual martial prowess. They are testing your wisdom, your leadership in taking the initiative, and your ability to adapt to changing circumstances. In short, your ability to survive and thrive within a group is part of the evaluation. Every move you make, every word you speak, is being closely monitored by the three officials in charge of this estate."
Jeong Sam-seok explained everything with saint-like patience. Bukjin wiped his mouth with a handkerchief before responding.
"So, what you're saying is that the real competition has already begun right here, at this campfire?"
Jeong Sam-seok shook his head. "No. To be precise, it began the moment you set foot on this estate."
"I see. So the campfire wasn't meant to fill our stomachs, but to give us a public stage to scout for comrades. We’re supposed to form cliques, scheme in the shadows, eliminate the competition through clever ploys, and flaunt our influence... is that it?" Bukjin said, sounding as if he’d had a grand epiphany.
Jeong Sam-seok felt a headache coming on. Bukjin seemed to understand at first, but the way he phrased it at the end was disturbingly twisted. Still, it wasn't technically wrong.
Gritting his teeth, Jeong Sam-seok replied, "...Let’s just say that’s the gist of it."
Bukjin scanned his surroundings. Now that he looked, he realized he hadn't seen Mok Simwol, Oh Sobang, or Ak Hong-hyang for a while.
"Now that I think about it, has that foxy Mok girl and that Oh guy who spends his life chasing skirts already gone off to suck up to the geniuses from other academies?" Bukjin asked boldly.
Jeong Sam-seok felt dizzy. The way Bukjin referred to his own schoolmates was incredibly crude.
"Do you even need to ask?" Jeong Sam-seok said dismissively. "Do you think other students are as idle and clueless about the world as you are?"
Bukjin downed a cup of fruit wine and tilted his head. "But isn't that strange? If we’re from the same school, shouldn't we unite to bring glory to our academy? Why would they go off to team up with students from other schools? And why aren't they trying to hang out with me?"
Do you really not know why they don't want to hang out with you?! Jeong Sam-seok screamed internally.
"The reality is the exact opposite of what you think," Jeong Sam-seok said aloud. "Even if you are schoolmates, you are rivals within the academy. Unless there is a perfect alignment of interests, it’s difficult for students from the same school to cooperate. That is why, in every selection trial held so far, students have chosen to cooperate with those from other academies. They exchange information and maximize their own individual benefits. By doing so, they secure a foothold to defeat their internal rivals once they return to their own schools. Furthermore, if they advance to the main competition this way, they become the ones who brought glory to the academy, while simultaneously sidelining their school rivals and building their own reputation. Who would pass up such an opportunity?"
Hearing this, Bukjin had to admit it made sense. Dealing with someone you knew well was often harder than dealing with a stranger. Even scammers usually targeted those close to them, so the logic held up.
"But surely the top-tier geniuses from the National Imperial Junior Academy don't feel the need to form alliances," Bukjin noted. "Participating in the Academic & Martial Arts Competition must be a walk in the park for them. If they start forming alliances on top of that, the students from other academies won't stand a chance."
Jeong Sam-seok shook his head. "That’s not true. Out of the hundred participants, there is perhaps only one genius who might find this competition meaningless. Someone with a hundred percent chance of victory, a genius so far above the rest that no one could possibly threaten them. As for the others... listen well. Every student has a different level of skill and a different rank. Students of each rank have their own level of competition. Ordinary students compete with ordinary students, and geniuses compete with other geniuses. In fact, the competition among the geniuses of the National Imperial Junior Academy is even more cutthroat. Think about it. If you could eliminate the rival you struggle against most during this selection trial, wouldn't you take the chance?"
Listening to Jeong Sam-seok, Bukjin realized the situation was far more complex than he had initially thought. There was no place in this world without competition. This trial at the training camp wasn't just a simple test. It was a war of survival where a single hidden move or a clever scheme could determine victory or defeat.
Phew. At this rate, they aren't raising martial arts masters; they're raising a bunch of sly old snakes, Bukjin lamented internally.
He felt that the method adopted by the Unmong City Education Bureau was designed to produce 'insects' that could survive any competition rather than truly honorable talents. In other words, the reason the North Sea Empire placed such importance on basic education wasn't just to train skilled warriors, but to identify individuals with the talent to succeed by any means necessary. They wanted comprehensive talents who were strong, possessed leadership, and could handle any situation.
From that perspective, this trial at the training camp seemed to have been designed with meticulous care.
Nodding as he processed the information, Bukjin flashed a grin. "Right, right. Hehe. By the way, Master... that 'genius among geniuses' you mentioned earlier... you weren't talking about me, were you?"
Jeong Sam-seok snorted. "Keep dreaming! Of course not. I was referring to Im Jin, the girl ranked number one in the overall standings."
"...I see," Bukjin said, his tone turning sour. "I understand perfectly."
He turned his body back toward the table and resumed his battle with the gourmet food. He picked up a large piece of meat and shoved it into his mouth as if trying to drown his sorrows in flavor.
Jeong Sam-seok watched him for a moment before he couldn't help but ask, "You understand, and then what?"
"There is no 'then,'" Bukjin replied.
"I just gave you that long explanation, and you're just going to let it go in one ear and out the other?" Jeong Sam-seok said, suppressing his exploding temper.
"Master, you're still misunderstanding something. No matter how much you explain it to me, it’s useless. The most important thing right now is that my reputation is absolutely filthy. There isn't a soul in Unmong City who doesn't know about my personality. What student in their right mind would ever want to team up with a scoundrel like me?"
Jeong Sam-seok’s eyes widened, and his mouth hung open. He had, in fact, completely overlooked Bukjin’s reputation. Now that he heard it, it was undeniably true. He found himself at a total loss for words.