Chapter 3
Chapter 3
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 3
Chapter Title: Academy's First Class
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As Barton had said, my body really did recover in just one day.
A few medical treatments and plenty of rest were all it took to get back to normal.
My chaotic mind had settled a bit during that time, and I'd even managed to outline some basic guidelines for how to act moving forward.
Today marked the third day since becoming Lemon.
It was the day to attend classes.
'Where the hell is this?'
The Cradle of Heroes Academy was enormous.
It housed around 1,000 cadets per class, with three classes totaling 3,000 personnel.
Third-years were usually deployed to less intense battlefields under the guise of real combat, so the effective headcount was closer to 2,000.
Add in the senior superhumans serving as instructors, the teachers, and other support staff, and the total came to about 10,000 people.
But sheer numbers alone didn't capture its scale.
The real story was the facilities.
Each superhuman was practically a tactical weapon in their own right.
The top members of each superhuman unit could be called strategic weapons without exaggeration.
Did anyone really think these people could show off their talents just anywhere?
That's why the Cradle of Heroes Academy occupied the entirety of the second satellite of 'Terra'—the strategic stronghold dubbed the centerpiece of the United Humanity's second defense line.
This satellite had once been known by another name, but now it was simply called COH. Astronomical sums of funding for cadet training poured in annually, along with support from countless other fields.
So what I was getting at was...
'One wrong turn, and I'd get lost for sure.'
The distance to my assigned schedule was ridiculously far.
Without the guide bot floating around me, I definitely would've gotten lost.
Lemon's memories from his first day weren't complete enough to navigate on my own.
It was like reading a detailed log—vast amounts of info, but pinpointing what I needed on the fly was tough.
Luckily, this was a theory class, so the classroom was relatively close. Plus, Lemon's brain was far sharper than my original one.
His memory and overall intellect were at a genius level.
Probably one of the results of the genetic modifications and enhancements done to the 'Monarch' family lineage.
And yet, in the academy, even this was just average.
The more I learned, the more daunting it all felt.
"What's the first class?"
-Understanding and mastery of the BB000 Series weapon system.
"It's just theory today, right?"
-Yes, Master.
Thank goodness.
I still didn't trust my body for anything physical.
The first day when I was sick, it wasn't an issue. But on the second day, I made a ton of mistakes I couldn't tell anyone about.
I just couldn't adapt.
That was probably the first time I felt like a monster in my own skin.
No wonder civilians hated superhumans.
Now I was somewhat adjusted—no slip-ups in daily life—but intense physical activity still made me uneasy.
We arrived at the classroom soon enough.
It was a vast space dotted with round tables seating three people each.
About a hundred cadets had gathered for the class.
Hardly any empty seats left, so I must've been one of the last ones.
I pulled out a chair at an empty spot and sat down.
The other two at my table gave me a cynical glance before turning away. No interest.
Fine by me.
Instead, I turned to look at the table across the way, where the most eye-catching group was gathered.
Roze and Barton.
Roze was propping her chin on her hand, practically drilling a hole into her forehead. Barton, who was second to none in brains, sat ramrod straight, diligently reading a textbook he'd probably memorized already.
Next to them was a woman with striking silver bobbed hair, just as attention-grabbing as Roze's red locks. She was braiding Roze's long sleeping hair into an artistic masterpiece.
A woman who drew eyes for entirely different reasons.
Even decked out in a flashy two-tone dress with a plunging neckline and loaded with accessories, she didn't look tacky. Her languid gaze and perfectly upturned nose held a charm that could mesmerize anyone.
I would've been just as hooked if I didn't know who she was.
'Lightyear Merdi.'
I was really hoping to never cross paths with her.
Roze was trouble with her poor power control, but Merdi was on a whole other level of danger.
She was fine most of the time.
But in 'Lightyear' mode, she lost all sense of friend or foe, unleashing her abilities indiscriminately.
Her potential was so overwhelming that even without full control—just venting it raw—few superhumans could stand against her.
In raw firepower, she was the strongest of the Miracle Generation 5.
Sparring sessions with her triggered emergency alerts for the medical teams.
If this were a hundred years ago, before the United Humanity rose and superhumans were seen as humanity's counter to the aliens, she could've been a dire threat to pure humans.
Still, her Lightyear episodes were rare for now.
They'd worsen through a few incidents, eventually sparking 'that problem,' but that was far in the future.
That's when she noticed my stare and met my eyes.
She flashed a mischievous grin and playfully winked.
'Shit.'
I whipped my head away without thinking.
Giggles followed.
Had I turned too sharply?
I seriously, 100%, did not want her attention.
If possible, I wanted to live out my life pretending we were strangers.
Why shorten my lifespan in this already grim world with my own hands?
Luckily, her interest shifted back naturally soon enough.
"Attention."
The instructor entered.
Dressed in military uniform, he was a lieutenant colonel in the United Humanity Forces.
An elite who'd been on the front lines until earlier this year, now teaching at the academy during his standby leave—to contribute to humanity instead of resting.
That's why we called him "Lieutenant Colonel" instead of "Instructor."
"The lecture is on the BB000 weapon system, but I assume no cadet here is unfamiliar with it."
"The Lieutenant Colonel doesn't know Roze over there."
Merdi poked the still-dozing Roze with her finger as she spoke.
The lieutenant colonel ignored it without so much as a glance. Par for the course.
Huh, only three months in, and he'd adapted fast.
Wise not to fixate on model slacker Roze.
"The BB000 Series refers to the latest personal close-combat weapon system designed for use against aliens. It's quite different from the superhuman models you'll wield in the future, but the core framework is similar. In fact, since superhuman weapons aren't issued until your third year, this is probably more familiar to you all."
One of the settings I agonized over most while writing was the weapon systems.
The world was so vast and complex that new elements kept popping up as the story progressed, but I'd meticulously detailed basics like the BB000 Series, so I remembered them clearly.
Good thing the textbook lined up mostly.
The unknowns were nitty-gritty stuff like materials and performance specs for each component—details cadets didn't need to know anyway.
"Most of you will end up commanding a certain number of soldiers, great or small. If you don't treat their lives as disposable, you need to know exactly how useful your weapons are and where their limits lie."
Spot on.
Even if soldiers were cannon fodder who dropped like flies, they were the foundation of the war effort.
Superhuman forces doubling or tripling wouldn't mean squat without them.
To sustain a war, you had to minimize soldier casualties—which meant deeply understanding their roles.
That was the path to protecting dreams and hope.
So I listened intently.
I'd spent the last three days thinking hard, and concluded that going full 'physical brute' was out of the question.
Abilities had potential as my wildcard, but nothing solid yet, so I'd explore everything for now.
Still, I could really feel how much smarter my brain was.
Stuff stuck in my head as I read; studying actually felt fun.
Plus, wasn't this me unpacking my own settings in gritty, realistic detail?
The way it all connected so perfectly left me in awe.
"...Huh?"
I'd finished the textbook before the three-hour class was even half over.
I flipped it open again, but the first page sprang to mind so vividly I closed it.
What the hell.
My memory was even more insane than I'd thought.
With a brain like this, how did he only score middling on theory?
How little studying did this guy Lemon do to waste it?
'Hmm...'
Any budding arrogance vanished with one scan of the room.
Yeah, in this crowd, it made sense.
I nodded and refocused on the lieutenant colonel.
His lectures worked on even this inhumanly genius group because they were grounded in vivid, real 'experience.'
Especially since he'd led superhuman support units—he clearly delineated the roles of superhumans and soldiers.
The rest of the time was incredibly valuable.
"That's the class. My standby leave ends today, so this course is canceled after now. One last piece of advice before I go: In the great war against the aliens, the superhumans' role is crucial. I'd sacrifice ten soldiers to save one superhuman—hell, a hundred, a thousand—and the soldiers would volunteer willingly."
"Really?"
Half the cadets here looked skeptical.
No matter how vital superhumans were, choosing to die 'for' someone wasn't easy.
But it was true.
There were plenty of real cases, documented in soldier and officer manuals.
Not in superhuman training, maybe, but still.
Apparently, the lieutenant colonel's words rubbed Merdi the wrong way.
"Pfft, liar. Who'd buy that?"
"It's true."
"Even for a trash superhuman?"
"A superhuman's personality, thoughts, ideology—none of that matters."
"What if they're just a troublemaker? Would you still sacrifice for them?"
"No 'ifs.' We save them, and the superhumans who survive go on to protect humanity from the aliens."
Merdi's mouth snapped shut at the lieutenant colonel's unyielding response.
"We trust in our values and fulfill our roles. Humanity doesn't have the luxury for other thoughts right now. Questions?"
"...Boring."
Whoa. Merdi got shut down.
She went quiet. I'll respect you forever, Lieutenant Colonel.
I gazed at him with every ounce of admiration I could muster.
Guess it wasn't enough.
He didn't even glance my way.
Instead, a chill prickled my left cheek.
I turned, and there was Merdi, squinting at me.
What now?!
"See you on the battlefield. Dismissed."
No time to savor the lieutenant colonel's lingering impact—I packed up.
Gotta get out of here.
Anywhere out of Merdi's line of sight.
Keep locking eyes, and I wouldn't die of natural causes.
But my wish shattered in three seconds flat.
"Lemon!"
Roze's bright voice called out—the same girl who'd been dozing moments ago.
Half her face was still red from propping it up.
Man, I'd set her up myself, but why was this girl so effortlessly tomboyish?
"Looks like you're fine now? Nothing wrong?"
"I'm good. Thanks for worrying. I was just gonna head out..."
"Great! Then spar with me."
"...Spar?"
What the hell out of nowhere.
Beautiful Roze, please ignore a scrub extra like me and brush it off lightly.
I prayed inwardly, but of course, no dice.
"Yeah. That thing the other day... I'm really sorry. And this time, I'm confident I can control my strength?"
"Confidence isn't a word you throw around lightly."
Barton scolded her.
Behind him stood beaming Merdi.
"What? It's true. I've been training hard the last three days."
"Uh, I'm fine, really..."
"If it's guilt, no need to refuse. You asked for guidance sparring back then. Didn't expect a fellow student to go that far. I respect you! I'll do my best to help."
What.
Damn you, Lemon. How much more crap would you dump on me?
He must've done it fully intending to die.
Sparring came in degrees, and he had no idea how few here were worth guiding.
I felt cold sweat soaking into my uniform at the back.