Chapter 4
Muscle memory is insane!
"Shut up already. Do all the freshmen this year have to be so full of energy?"
The woman with short, flaming red hair burst into the classroom, practically kicking the door open. She was tall and slender with long legs; her breasts weren't huge, but they suited her black jacket perfectly, giving her an elegant, well-proportioned figure. She was undeniably beautiful, but her fierce eyes and the scar across her neck—like a knife cut—gave off an intimidating vibe.
I hadn't noticed it much from the illustrations, but... she looks way more threatening in person, that instructor.
"Hm? What happened to all that excited chatter from just a minute ago? You can keep going if you want."
She said that from the podium, but who would take her seriously? And even if they did, could they actually keep talking in front of that aura?
"Looks like you just happened to run out of things to say right when I showed up. Anyway, let's get to my introduction. Name's Sonya. I'll be your instructor for the next year. Let's get along."
She gave a half-hearted nod by way of greeting, without a shred of sincerity. The faces of the students sitting at their desks darkened.
Did we get stuck with a really bad instructor?
Sonya ignored their stares and kept talking.
"You all probably entered the Academy dreaming of becoming heroes. That's a good thing. But don't start acting like you're already heroes. You first-years are nothing but fledglings."
She pulled out an empty chair, set it in front of the podium, and sat down. Crossing her long legs arrogantly, she looked like a queen from some BDSM fantasy.
"In this four-year Academy, only first- and second-years have dedicated classrooms. From third-year on, you pick your own classes and team up with squadmates that match your affinities. Anyone know why?"
The black-haired female cadet raised her hand and answered.
"Because the curriculum for first- and second-years focuses on building fundamentals and fostering bonds among classmates..."
"Yeah, good answer. Short version: first-years are useless, so it's easier to lump you all together and teach. That's it."
Unpleasant murmurs rippled through the students. They'd all been scouted for their talents to get into the Academy, so hearing their dreams crushed like that naturally pissed them off.
Sonya added fuel to the fire.
"The schedule says we do self-introductions and share our unique abilities... but skip it. Why bother learning the abilities of fledglings like you? Moving on."
Sure enough, that level of dismissal pushed someone to stand up—in this case, Esmeralda Dorardo.
"Just a moment, Instructor! That's too much! We're not fully formed yet, but we all came here with the conviction to serve humanity! Even you can't just dismiss us like that!"
"Oh? Then let's check."
Those words shifted the air in the room.
"Ugh!"
"Ooooh..."
"......"
To outward appearances, nothing had changed. But I felt it immediately. My sixth sense, beyond the five basic ones, started screaming with suffocation.
It was like barely sticking my mouth above water to breathe. Or like peering through glasses smeared with fingerprints. Like sleep paralysis, where your body won't move no matter what.
"?"
But the protagonist didn't seem to notice a thing. Not just him—most of the class was clueless. They were just shutting up because Sonya's vibe was off the charts.
Maybe five people, including me, clocked what she'd done.
"So, shall we see if you're really fledglings or not? I hear you kids these days pre-study before even entering the Academy. Ruins the fun of teaching. Anyone wanna demonstrate?"
No one stepped up. The capable ones read the room and stayed quiet; the clueless ones lacked the skills anyway.
Her initial dismissive attitude toward the cadets must've been to establish discipline. Cliché, but effective.
I had no intention of volunteering either. The original Hyowon might've, but me? Nothing to show.
Better to lay low...
"Oh, right. Joo Hyowon, wasn't it? You, come up here."
Why me!?
"M-Me?"
"Who else? You're the only freshman with real combat experience. Show us what makes a veteran different."
All eyes turned to me, laced with expectation. Maybe she'll show something cool?
Sorry to disappoint, but I've got zilch.
Hyowon was the one with combat experience... on the surface. But that was her, not me. I'd skimmed the game's lore on qi manipulation a few times, but reading a martial arts manual doesn't make you a master. And the lore was so abbreviated for players it was useless anyway.
Refusing now would just draw aggro, though. No choice.
"What should I show?"
She's just trying to rein in the cadets anyway. I'll fake it, fail spectacularly, and call it a day.
"You know the three core laws of qi manipulation?"
"Sense Qi. Gather Qi. Emit Qi. Chalbeop, Gyeolbeop, Balbeop. Three of them."
"Right. Master those three, and you're set. Everything else is just applications. For now... show me Gather Qi."
Gather Qi. The technique to draw ambient qi toward yourself or another focal point. Since fights here revolve around spending qi, gathering it is basic of basics.
Of course, I had no clue how.
Just fake it.
I stood, closed my eyes, and cupped my hands in front of my chest. Feeling the qi composition Sonya had altered through my skin, I imagined it swirling into my palms.
That's how it looked in the game. An amateur like me imitating wouldn't actually work, though.
—Shoooooooowaaaah—
"Ugh!?"
"Wh-What? My chest suddenly feels tight..."
"Hooo..."
It worked!?
I could vividly feel the qi vortex in my palms. With the classroom's qi already thinned by Sonya's trick, drawing it to me made the cadets complain of suffocation one after another.
So this is muscle memory? My soul might not know qi, but this body—trained over and over—instinctively does.
That's broken!?
"...Fair enough. Guess 'all fledglings' doesn't apply anymore. Not when there's fresh talent like this."
Sonya eyed me with interest. A chill ran down my spine—bad premonition.
I didn't want to play show-off, and this perfect Gather Qi was pure muscle memory. I really know nothing.
Don't get the wrong idea...
"No big deal."
I regretted it the second it left my mouth. It isn't a big deal. Voices mocking talentless hacks echoed in my ears, even though no one said anything.
But I'd said it, so I doubled down. Staring straight at Instructor Sonya, I declared:
"What I did is a hack I forced out without proper training. Now that I'm in the Academy, I want to grow through the real curriculum. Please guide me."
"...Perfect."
Sonya grinned, satisfied, and addressed the class.
"Joo Hyowon says that. Anyone bolder than her, stand up proud."
No one did.
"Good. So you all agree you're fledglings in need of guidance. Excellent. You can't grow without knowing your flaws."
She stood, pointing at us dramatically.
"Listen up. You're all fledglings—no, unhatched eggs. Too early to help the world."
But then she added:
"That also means you've got tons of potential. No telling how far you'll go. You might soar unexpectedly... or drop out midway."
Her gaze swept over promising students—Esmeralda, me, others. And the protagonist, Hwa Yujin.
"So quit yapping about unique abilities. That's for way down the line, not greenhorns like you."
Yujin's hand on the desk clenched into a fist. He was so absorbed in her words, he didn't notice me watching.
"Don't mock the Academy's judgment. You're all here because you're talented. Trust your talents—and your comrades'."
Weird!