chapter 5
chapter 5
Suspicious Secret Merchant (1)
Trigger Academy.
To save humanity from the contaminated zones, nobles enter the academy at the age of eight and are educated until nineteen.
After completing their education and becoming adults, they immediately enlist in the military and fight to protect world peace.
Commoners don’t really feel it, but the contaminated zones always threatened humanity’s survival.
And the nobles were doing everything they could to reduce the contamination, even if only a little.
“Haah… what about the record?”
“Same as before.”
“Damn! I had a good feeling about this. Should I try again?”
“You’re drenched in sweat right now. Do you think you’ll get a better record if you try again?”
At her friend’s words, she looked at her hands.
They were trembling so much it was visible.
“Yeah… I should stop for today.”
She had thought that today, of all days, she would finally set a new record.
Her condition was good, and she was certain her skills had improved.
“Haah… what’s my problem?”
At the academy, every student had a rank.
Rank was equivalent to skill.
Starting from the highest SS rank, then S, A, B, C, and D.
The ranks were determined every six months through tests, where students passed specially prepared obstacles and their time was measured.
By consistently training and shortening their time, they could raise their rank. Since the benefits provided by the academy differed greatly depending on rank, everyone risked everything to improve their records.
“They say going from B to A is the hardest. It takes insane patience.”
“I think I deserve to be A rank. But why can’t I improve my record? It feels strange.”
“They don’t call B the wall for nothing. Don’t rush—just stay calm.”
Her friend’s concerned words didn’t really sink in.
All her focus was on reaching A rank.
“Are you going to practice again this weekend?”
“Of course. I won’t rest until I hit A rank.”
“If you keep pushing like that all weekend, do you really think you’ll succeed?”
“…I don’t know.”
“You’re not confident either. Just take this weekend off. Do you even realize how long you’ve been like this?”
Her friend gently persuaded her to rest for just one day.
It wasn’t like she enjoyed pushing herself nonstop either.
She was forcing herself because A rank was so close.
“Just one day?”
In the end, she gave in.
It wasn’t like taking one day off would make it impossible to reach A rank.
“Yay! You made the right choice. When things feel stuck, you need to rest a bit.”
“…I guess.”
Without realizing that this one day off would completely change her life, she stared reluctantly at the record sheet that refused to improve.
⁘ ⁘ ⁘
She spent the whole day having fun with her friend.
It had been so long since she relaxed that she lost track of time.
“Ah… I don’t want to go back.”
She had finally relieved all her stress, but the thought of returning to the academy dormitory made it pile up again.
There was no noble who didn’t feel pressure about performance.
After graduating from the academy, they would immediately enlist and face real combat.
For nobles, improving their skills was something they had to pursue constantly, for the sake of their own survival.
If their ability was hopelessly low, they might get lucky and end up in an administrative role.
But if their skills were mediocre, they had to keep improving.
Because even those with mediocre skills would still be sent to the front lines.
Of course, B rank wasn’t mediocre.
‘B rank is the highest level average people can reach. From A rank onward, it’s the realm of talent. And I’m right at the threshold of that realm.’
That was probably why she felt so impatient.
She believed she had the qualifications to reach A rank.
That she was talented.
She wanted to prove it.
But every time she approached A rank, she failed.
‘Was I just an ordinary person without talent?’
She had shown talent since childhood and had received high expectations from her family.
She had always outperformed her peers and continued to rise in rank after entering the academy, meeting everyone’s expectations.
Back then, she had been arrogant.
A rank?
She thought she would reach it easily, just like before.
But as she approached A rank, she hit a wall.
‘It’s already been a year… at this rate, I’ll fail again.’
Being precocious and being a genius were different.
Even within her family, whispers began—maybe she wasn’t a genius, just someone who matured early.
The way people looked at her was changing.
The pressure from her family, the doubtful gazes from others.
Feeling suffocated, she lightly hit her chest with her fist.
There was nothing wrong with her body, yet it felt like something was stuck inside.
“My lady.”
“Mom—! You startled me!”
Unable to calm her restless mind, she wandered around instead of returning to the dorm after parting with her friend.
Then suddenly, a rough voice called out to her, making her jump like a startled cat.
“W-what is it?”
The person who called her was suspicious enough that it was hard to believe he had entered this place.
A man wearing a dark brown robe with the hood pulled low.
He had spread out a mat in a secluded corner and was beckoning her.
“You there, miss.”
“M-me?”
“Yeah, you. Come here.”
“Why would I? And mister, what are you even doing here? If you keep this up, the knights will come and arrest you.”
If he were truly suspicious, he wouldn’t have been able to come near the academy.
And confident in her own abilities, she kept her distance while speaking.
She could have just ignored him, but for some reason, she felt like she shouldn’t.
“I called you over so others wouldn’t notice.”
“…No thanks. Why would I go to you? You look suspicious no matter how I see it. Should I report you?”
Why would she willingly approach him?
She didn’t think she would lose, but with so many different abilities in the world, caution was necessary.
“You’ll regret it.”
“I’ll regret it?”
“Yeah. I’ve got an amazing item that can drastically improve your abilities.”
“…An item? Are you an illegal merchant?”
She had heard of such things.
Merchants who secretly dealt in illegal goods—if you got involved, your life could be ruined.
She grimaced, thinking she was right not to approach him.
“I don’t do drugs or anything like that. I’ll report you immediately, so you should leave now.”
“Drugs? I don’t sell that either.”
“You said you’re selling something. That makes you illegal.”
Though she spoke calmly, she was on full guard.
She trusted her own strength, but she had no idea what abilities he might possess.
“What I wanted to show you isn’t medicine—it’s a weapon. I think it’d suit you perfectly.”
“How would you know what suits me? You’ve never even seen me before.”
“If you see it yourself, you’ll change your mind.”
“No thanks. Sell it to someone else. I won’t regret it, and I’m not buying anything.”
A weapon that suited her?
She could obtain equipment through her family anytime.
There was no reason to listen to a suspicious man.
“Fair enough. It’s natural to feel uneasy about a weapon from someone like me. But once you see this, that thought will disappear. It’ll feel like fate.”
The suspicious man opened a large sack and rummaged inside.
Not knowing what he would pull out, she took a step back, increasing her guard.
But then—
What came out was a large bow.
Coincidentally, a bow was her weapon.
Gulp—
The moment she saw it, a powerful instinct struck her.
Just as the man said, she would regret it forever if she didn’t buy it.
The moment she saw it, she felt it was destiny.
‘That has to be mine.’
All her caution vanished, and she rushed forward, staring intently at the weapon in his hand.
No matter how many times she looked, the urge to buy it didn’t fade.
“This is what you’re selling to me? I’ll buy it.”
“Ha! See? I told you you’d regret it. You want it, don’t you?”
“Yes! How much is it? Let me buy it now!”
Her eyes had gone wild.
It felt strange to have such intense desire and obsession over a weapon, but her captivated heart wouldn’t change.
Even if it turned out to be worthless later, she wouldn’t regret buying it.
That was how strongly she felt.
But the man coldly put the weapon back into the sack.
“Ah?! Mister! You said you’d sell it!”
It felt like something that belonged to her had been taken away.
Even though it wasn’t hers to begin with.
“No, my weapon!”
“It’s not yours yet. Why are you acting like it was stolen?”
“You said you’d sell it to me! That makes it mine. How much is it? What do you want?”
“Well.”
“…What?”
“Well?”
“Come back here at the same time next week. Bring something worthy of buying this weapon. If I like it, I’ll sell it. If not, I won’t.”
“Wait! I have to wait until next week? You came to sell it to me. You can’t be this vague!”
“So you’re not buying it?”
“….”
Not buying it?
After seeing that with her own eyes, how could she not?
That weapon was hers.
She was certain it existed for her.
She didn’t know how it ended up in his hands, but she had to take it back.
“Then forget it. I don’t have to sell it to you.”
So frustrating!!
His shameless attitude made her anxious.
“I’ll buy it! I will. Next week, same time, right? You have to show up. I’ll bring something you can’t refuse!”
“Good. Just know I prefer items over cash. Especially… monster byproducts.”
“Okay. I’ll remember that.”
As if that was all he had to say, the suspicious man stood up without hesitation.
Scrape— scrape— scrape—
Dragging his large sack behind him, he disappeared somewhere.
‘Who even is he? He didn’t look that old.’
She tilted her head as she watched him leave.
If his identity were unclear, he wouldn’t have been able to enter this place.
She couldn’t let prejudice cloud her judgment just because he looked suspicious.
‘I should’ve at least asked his name. Since I’ll see him again next week, I’ll definitely ask then.’
She already missed the weapon she had just seen.
The thought of forcibly taking it crossed her mind.
It wasn’t like she lacked money—she just had to wait a little.
But her mind was completely consumed by that weapon.
In the end, unable to focus on anything, she hurried back to the dorm.
It would be good if she could handle it with what she had, but didn’t he say it himself?
If he didn’t like it, he wouldn’t sell it.
‘I have to get it!’
She imagined once again the image of that weapon, still lingering vividly before her eyes.
She would need an enormous amount of money—or rather, items of great value.
And she firmly believed that her family could obtain such valuable items without difficulty.