A Lost Cause in the Making (1)
"Here is the list of top scorers on the first written exam! Students whose names appear, please prepare to take the first practical exam together with your partner! A text message has also been sent to everyone on the list, so you'll have plenty of time to get ready without any delay—"
Rumble rumble rumble—
A swarm of students came sprinting toward the central bulletin board the moment the list went up.
It was such a densely packed space that it was impossible to tell who was who, but I didn't particularly care. Most of the people crowding around over there were probably a bunch of random extras with nothing to do with the top scorers anyway.
Like the assistant just announced, anyone who was an actual top scorer got a text message automatically—no need to go through the hassle of shoving their way to a bulletin board.
Bzzt bzzt.
"…Oh, oh?"
Yes, exactly like this.
"Seonho."
"Yeah?"
"What do I do…? The academy just contacted me saying I made the top scorers list…"
"Oh, really?"
I already knew it, of course, but I feigned surprise and asked back anyway. Cha Eunju having excellent written scores was information that had come up plenty of times in the original story.
Which was exactly why, despite her somewhat underwhelming performance in the field, she'd never been expelled from Cheonmu Hunter Academy—she always managed to hang on. And her scores on group assignments, the ones where she could team up with Lee Seonho, were consistently solid.
"Good for you. Something told me you'd end up on the list, Eunju."
"Wh-what do I do…? I-if I'm a top scorer, doesn't that mean I can't take the exam with you, Seonho…? I-I don't think I could do it with anyone else…"
"Don't panic. Just read the rest of what's written under the message."
"Huh…?"
To the girl fretting over the possibility that she might not be able to partner with me, I showed her the message laying out the rules of the 'first practical exam'—and the moment she read what was written beneath it, Cha Eunju finally began to relax.
"The partner of a top scorer may take the first practical exam together with them even if they are not a top scorer themselves, so applicants who have already selected a partner in advance are kindly asked to take note of this…"
"Thanks to you, I get to take my exam without a long wait. Much appreciated, Cha Eunju."
"Haaah, th-thank goodness. So I do get to take it with Seonho…"
Cha Eunju, who had been flustered with no idea what to do, patted her chest in relief and let out a long, easy breath. The practical exam hadn't even started yet, and already her dependence on me had climbed this high.
A good sign. The more her heart leaned toward relying on me, the more it proved she had the makings of an obedient slave.
Not that I planned to raise every slave to be purely obedient—but it was better for the first one to lean that way. It made it far easier to add more slaves down the line.
That was also part of why I'd gone after Cha Eunju before any of the other heroines.
Bzzt bzzt.
"Oh, hold on."
"Hm?"
While Eunju and I were briefly discussing the practical exam, my phone buzzed with an incoming text as well. I checked it on the off chance, and there it was—almost the exact same message Cha Eunju had just received.
…I hadn't thought I'd done that well when I finished the written exam, but apparently knowing all the right answers beforehand paid off more than I expected.
"Applicant Cha Eunju from the Magic Department, and applicant Lee Seonho from the Combat Support Department—you're both taking the exam as the same group, correct?"
"Yes."
Nod nod.
"Right, you're all registered. The first practical exam begins in about an hour, so please wait in the first-exam waiting room until then."
"Yes, thank you."
Nod nod.
Following the receptionist's instructions, Cha Eunju and I headed for the waiting room.
Apparently fascinated by the fact that I was a top scorer too, she kept peppering me with questions about it the entire walk over.
"S-so you're a top scorer too, Seonho. That's kind of amazing…"
"What, do I look like someone who'd be bad at studying?"
"N-no, that's not it. It's just… b-both of us making the list feels kind of impressive. We were training together even before the written results came out…"
"I'm kidding, kidding. Honestly, I didn't expect to make the list either. There were so many hard questions I figured I'd scraped by with a barely passing score."
My acing the written exam shouldn't derail the original story too badly. Though the kid who ranked one hundredth in the original will probably get bumped down a tier come the next exam.
I offered a silent apology to that nameless, faceless extra and stepped into the waiting room, where the assembled crowd was already an eye-catching bunch.
Swoop.
"……"
Side-eye. Side-eye.
"…Ahem."
Other applicants shot strangely wary glances at Cha Eunju and me as we walked in.
A few of them had appeared in the original story, and quite a few more I couldn't place at all—probably just extras.
Their hair colors and styles were wildly assorted, too. Eunju's purple-and-black hair would have turned plenty of heads back in my original world, yet among the main cast of Surviving the Hunter Academy, it was actually on the ordinary side.
'No need to go out of my way and start schmoozing with people now.'
Today's targets were exactly two: Kim Isabel and Han Sora. Splitting my attention on some other heroine or side character here would only complicate things.
With that in mind, Eunju and I claimed a round four-person table tucked away in a quiet corner.
…The reason I chose a four-seater instead of a two-seater was simple: once Han Sora and the protagonist's crew showed up, we might get the chance to invite them to join us.
"There's bread and snacks over there. I think we're allowed to have some?"
"S-seems like it…"
"What do you want, Eunju? A croissant? Or cookies?"
"Cookies…"
"Then I'll go grab some real quick."
"Ah, w-wait, I'll—"
After picking out a few clean, fresh-looking snacks from the little refreshment corner that had been set aside, I came back and set my bag down on an empty seat, waiting for the others to arrive as if holding the spot for companions.
Kim Isabel, the centerpiece of this episode—and Han Sora and the protagonist to round it out.
As Eunju and I sat side by side at the round table, whiling away the time, the top-scorers' waiting room began to fill up one by one.
BANG!
"Yoohoo, hey there! Everyone all set for the exam?!"
"Quit making a scene and just get inside already, you idiot!"
In came 'Park Cheonho', bellowing loud enough to draw the ire of everyone in the waiting room, with 'Park Hana' shoving him through the door while kicking at his heels in sheer embarrassment.
Creak.
"……"
Side-eye. Side-eye.
"Isabel! Over here, over here!"
"…Ah, Yewon!"
Unlike the Park siblings moments before, 'Kim Isabel' eased the door open with careful hesitance, glanced around the room, then hurried over the moment she spotted her partner, 'Min Yewon'.
SLAM!
"Seo Woojin! Move it, we're running late—the exam's about to start!"
"Haa, I-I'm running as fast as I can, haaah…"
"How many times have I told you to build up your stamina?!"
And last but not least, 'Han Sora' kicked open the waiting room door with barely ten minutes to spare before the exam, trailed by the protagonist 'Seo Woojin', wheezing as he stumbled in after her.
With everyone who'd already been here included, the main cast of Surviving the Hunter Academy had more or less assembled.
One of the heroines still hadn't arrived, but she probably wasn't a top scorer, meaning she'd be taking the second exam instead.
'Seeing them all face-to-face like this, they really are a cut above.'
I wasn't talking about their caliber as hunters. My assessment was strictly about the looks of the main girls.
Han Sora, who strode in with her chestnut waves and a determined set to her face. Park Hana, with her blue bob and prickly expression. And Kim Isabel, whose striking silver hair stood out even with her face hidden behind a veil.
The whole lineup made you wonder exactly what expressions they'd be making between the sheets. Naturally, Cha Eunju sitting beside me was every bit as cute and lovable as any of them, of course.
'Didn't expect Park Cheonho and Park Hana to be taking the first exam, though.'
Neither of them seemed remotely close to top-scorer material. Did they actually get lucky with that many guesses?
A minor question flickered through my mind, but it wasn't important. All that mattered to me was that Kim Isabel and Han Sora were taking the same exam.
…As for Seo Woojin, whatever. He could tag along or not, couldn't care less.
'Still, for what he is, the guy's actually good-looking. Guess that's the protagonist for you.'
Well, the original novel wouldn't function at all if its lead weren't handsome, so fair enough.
The good news was that Han Sora hadn't yet developed anything beyond 'childhood friend' feelings for Woojin. She wouldn't start catching real romantic feelings for the original's protagonist until after the incident that unfolds in this very practical exam.
And as is the eternal fate of childhood friends in manga and novels everywhere, Han Sora got treated pretty poorly in the story. She had real presence early on, but by the later arcs she was reduced to little more than 'the heroine who showed up first'.
As the protagonist's ability blossomed, more and more women more capable than her gathered around him, and she became the tragic heroine who realized her feelings too late and could never confess, just quietly burning with jealousy.
…Not that any of that would happen once she became my woman. I'd never let her be left hanging like that—which meant she'd surely be far happier joining my harem than lingering around an indecisive chump like him.
"Mm-mmph…"
Han Sora, arms crossed, scanned the crowded waiting room of over a hundred applicants with careful deliberation.
Deciding this was my moment, I swept my bag off the empty seat and pretended to rummage through it.
"What are you doing, Seonho?"
"Just putting my phone and wallet in my bag. No use for them once the exam starts, and they'd just get in the way in my pockets."
"Oh, right… I should do that too."
Cha Eunju adorably mimicked what I was doing, tucking her phone into her crossbody bag.
Thankfully, my little gambit worked—Han Sora spotted the open seats and started walking toward our table.
"You guys got room here?"
"Go ahead and sit. That's fine with you, right, Eunju?"
"Doesn't bother me…"
"Hey, Seo Woojin. Seats over here."
"Yeah…"
Woojin drifted along in Han Sora's wake like a kite on her string—early days, apparently.
For all his good looks, that cowed, pathetic air of his rubbed me the wrong way.
"Since fate's brought us together, might as well introduce ourselves, right? I'm Han Sora. Archery Department."
"Lee Seonho. Combat Support Department."
"…Ch-Cha Eunju. Magic Department…"
True to her outgoing nature, Han Sora launched straight into introductions the moment she sat down.
I briefly considered matching her energy with a warm, friendly greeting, but decided against it. With Cha Eunju sitting right there, I should keep speaking the way I usually did—calm and steady.
Eunju was slow to warm up to strangers, but because I'd offered my introduction first, she followed along and opened up cautiously in her own time.
"……"
And then there was one person even more awkward than Eunju about the whole situation, sitting there with his mouth sealed shut.
Seo Woojin, wedged between me and Han Sora, jaw clenched, saying absolutely nothing.
BANG!
"Hey, Seo Woojin! Aren't you gonna introduce yourself?"
"Wh-what's the point…? Support and Magic Department kids will see each other once and never again anyway…"
"You might run into them again in group classes! And if they're people you'll see again, shouldn't you at least say hello?"
"……Seo Woojin."
"Sorry about that. He doesn't talk much."
"It's fine. Meeting people for the first time can make anyone awkward."
Thankfully, this Seo Woojin was exactly the Seo Woojin I remembered from the original story. Put any woman other than his childhood friend Han Sora in the room, and he turned into a sniveling mess who couldn't hold a conversation to save his life, all darting glances and fidgeting.
The original had slapped a justification on this—that the protagonist's pitifulness triggered women's protective instincts, drawing heroines to his side… but honestly, the idea that women would flock to a guy like this defied common sense.
Granted, I dropped the novel midway and never saw how it ended, but if a guy like this was the lead of a harem story, he'd probably stall on making any real decision until the bitter end and then cop out with some cop-out ending where everyone stays 'just friends'.
And the heroines would simply keep pouring unrequited love into a man who'd never repay it. Since I did read it with genuine affection right up until I quit, I absolutely could not tolerate an ending like that.
"What department are you in? Same as Han Sora—Archery?"
"N-no… I'm in, uh, Swordsmanship…"
"Really? Then we might run into each other more than I thought. Support has a lot of joint classes with Combat."
"Ah, no, that's fine. I don't really have any interest in getting close to Support kids…"
"Hm?"
"I-I mean, the Support Department is where all the kids with no combat ability end up, right…? I-I'm not really into that sort of thing…"
…Oh ho.
This little bastard. Turns out he's even more of a lost cause than I thought?