Chapter 11
Just holding hands, that's all it was... The techniques for manipulating qi ultimately boil down to three core laws: Sense Qi (perception), Gather Qi (gathering), and Emit Qi (projection). Everything else is just an application of these three. Master those, and you're worth something as a fighter. That's why, aside from general education classes, first-year students spend the whole year grinding away at these three laws.
Usually, things don't go that far, but while other classes let you pass even with shitty grades, if you fall below the threshold in even one of these three laws, you fail and have to repeat the year. Two fails, and you're expelled. And as for this body? A genius who'd already honed the three laws to active Hero levels before even enrolling in the academy. In other words, I had nothing to do in class.
Bored as hell. Is this the downside of being way ahead of the curve? If I'd only studied a year in advance, I'd at least join class for review. But this body's prior training wasn't just a year ahead—it was on another level entirely. Reviewing would feel pointless, and it'd just distract the kids actually busting their asses.
Even trying to chat with someone on my level was tough; those types usually had their own circumstances keeping them distant.
...What the hell's Yujin up to? In the end, my eyes kept drifting to the protagonist. He was the type who needed delicate handling anyway, and now that I was bored, I found myself glancing his way more often. Talking to him was relatively easy, too.
As expected, Yujin was struggling hard, not even able to form a single proper qi bullet. But that didn't mean he was lagging behind. He was still a first-year, and this was the very first Emit Qi class—it's normal to struggle. He wasn't disastrously bad or anything.
What stood out was Yujin himself.
"Even with that kind of Unique Ability, his fundamentals aren't anything special."
"If his basics were at least solid, he could make something of it... Talent-wise, he's barely academy bottom-tier."
"Being in the same class as a guy like that? It drags down our level."
The nail that sticks out gets hammered down. Yujin was already drawing negative attention, and now showing sub-average basics? Naturally, he became the target.
For kids who enrolled dreaming of becoming life-saving Heroes, their personalities were... lacking. Not that I couldn't understand. Fresh out of high school as first-years, no real combat experience yet. At that age, they're full of elite consciousness, convinced they're the sprouts of future heroes, chests puffed with hot air. Spotting someone who seems to tarnish their image? Yeah, it'd grate on them.
I got it, but I wasn't about to agree. Wrong is wrong.
"Hey, what's tripping you up?"
"Uh... well... it's kinda tough. I don't get the knack."
His voice was smaller than usual, somehow. Maybe a bad throat day. Here, I was supposed to be the cool senior who'd grasped the trick first, demonstrating flawless qi control.
But I didn't know any "knack." Ever since possessing this body, it happened as naturally as breathing. How do you explain the trick to breathing? You don't.
Still, I could parrot the lines straight from the original story.
"Listen up, dummy. You're trying to gather outside qi and shoot it out, right? That's why it's not working. Use your own qi as the core—like seed money or a primer. Then layer the gathered external qi on top. That's the trick."
"...Sorry. No clue."
Reciting the canon lines verbatim didn't seem to click for him. Let me think. In the original, after saying that, I... yeah, I grabbed his hand like this...
...Screw it. Holding hands isn't a big deal.
"Hey, give me your hand."
"My hand?"
Innocent as a brick, he held it out. I wrapped my fingers around his. My hands—now a woman's—made his feel all rough and oversized. Damn it. Back in my old life, my hands weren't small either...
"Feel this. I'm flowing qi into your hand right now, yeah? Sense the difference between your qi and mine. Once you get a feel for yours, layer the external qi onto it and spit it out. Got it?"
"Ah, no... hey, d-do we have to hold hands like this...?"
"Shut up and focus. Do exactly what I said."
Don't look away with that red face, you idiot. Of course a guy would be thrilled having a beauty like me hold his hand. I get it—I'd feel the same. But inside this beauty's shell lurks a withered thirty-something dude. For both our sakes, no misunderstandings, please.
"Feel it yet?"
"Y-yeah."
I could see the qi gathering in Yujin's gripped hand. But stopping there was just Gather Qi.
"Now, merge that with your own qi and shoot it out. You can do it, right?"
"......"
Yujin squeezed his eyes shut, gritting his teeth like he was fighting for his life. Then, with a pop!, a qi orb like the one Instructor Sonya had shown floated up from his palm.
"There you go. See? You could do it."
I patted his shoulder in praise—a solid step forward for the guy. Sure, he was supposedly an adult, but fresh into his twenties? Felt more like a high school senior. You've gotta pet and praise them plenty at this age to keep 'em on the straight path. Key is not stroking their head or anything that triggers shame. Moderation, got it? ...But why's the mood so tense?
Was it always this quiet around here?
"......"
Looking around late, I realized all the cadets' eyes were locked on me and Yujin. What? Mind your own business.
"D-disgusting!"
Suddenly?
"Mature man and woman! Holding hands so blatantly in front of everyone... Th-that's indecent! Wh-what are your intentions? In this sacred place of learning!"
Esmeralda, face flushed crimson, throwing a fit. Come on, I just helped a fellow cadet who was struggling—what's with the drama?
"S-see? Just as I thought! Acting all clingy like that..."
"Hey, I saw him struggling and helped out. Why the fuss over one hand-hold?"
I tossed it out casually, like brushing off an annoyance... but that was a mistake.
"Ah, I'm struggling a bit too!"
"It works sometimes, fails others! Anyone wanna help?"
"One trigger, and I bet he'd nail it!"
Hand-holding's no biggie, right? So they could do it for me too? Guys swarmed around me, thinking exactly that.
Ah, you spicy bastards. I totally get the urge. I do. But this black-haired hime-cut beauty houses a thirty-something dude. Scram, you gay wannabes!
The instructor, who'd been watching the chaos with amusement, finally stepped in to resume class, calming things down. In the end, I only held hands with Yujin, and naturally, that became prime gossip fuel for the romance-obsessed first-years.
"Hyowon likes Yujin, right?"
"Joo Hyowon going for Yujin?"
"Who knows. Love at first sight? He's got that face that could attract weird fans."
"The Joo Hyowon from the news feels different now. Maybe Yujin's the reason?"
"No way... The girl who seemed fueled only by monster hatred has romance blooming? Oh my, oh my."
"They just met—too soon for feelings."
"Joo Hyowon? The one who went mad with revenge since middle school, charging into warzones? Love? Please."
"She's after his Unique Ability, obviously."
"That ability... the one that powers up women through sex? Whoa, so Hyowon's trying to bang Yujin?"
"She'd throw away her life for revenge on her parents' killers—virginity's nothing."
A single hand-hold in class spirals into ridiculous rumors. For aspiring Heroes, aren't they too weak to gossip? Seeing the reality of school romance scandals shattered my illusions a bit.
But this might actually work in my favor. If gossip was inevitable due to Unique Abilities, better it frames me as the aggressive one—easier on Yujin's fragile mental state. I'm an outsider here anyway, a lone wolf; weird rumors don't faze me. And I've got the power to smash anyone who acts like an ass to my face.
Such rumors wouldn't hit hard for a sensitive early-twenties girl, but for a thirty-something dude worrying about tomorrow? Zero damage.
And one more thing. Rumors don't just affect one person—they ripple hard to those around them. The awkward-sweet vibe from our duo's rumor spurred action from Yujin's childhood friend.
"Hi! Nice to meet you. You're Joo Hyowon, right? I'm Ayumi from the next class over. Yujin's friend. Wanna grab lunch together?"