Chapter 153: Student Council Election (3)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 153: Student Council Election (3)
Creeeak.
Amidst the tense silence hanging over the meeting room, Leon stepped inside. It was an entrance perfectly fitting the cliché of the protagonist arriving last.
His appearance instantly heightened the tension. If the atmosphere before had been suppressed, it was now blatantly hostile.
The tall beanpole, in particular, was exceptionally hostile. He kept clenching and unclenching his fists, looking as if he would throw a punch right then and there if they weren't being watched.
Leon, on the other hand, completely ignored the glares directed at him. He walked over with steady steps and extended a hand to me.
"To think we'd run into each other like this again. It feels a bit strange being candidates alongside you, Geomma."
I shook his hand with a lukewarm expression. Unable to find the right words to reply, I simply nodded in silence.
Leon offered a faint smile, then took a seat quite a distance away from me. For a long while, he quietly endured the envious stares directed at him.
For seniors, they sure are narrow-minded.
Clicking my tongue, I scanned my surroundings once more. The faint trace of magic power I had sensed just moments ago had already vanished.
Did they hide their magic power in that brief moment?
To conceal one's magic power so flawlessly... they were no ordinary opponent.
It is always harder to rein in one's aura than to unleash it. The same went for magic power.
This wouldn't be an easy ride either. To make matters worse, there was a villain disguised as a student among us.
Because of that, I couldn't just plunge my blade into them right away. If I accidentally slashed an innocent cadet, things would get incredibly complicated.
Furthermore, if the opponent was highly skilled at controlling magic power, they could easily use it to mislead me. Until clear evidence came to light, I had to proceed with caution.
I withdrew my gaze and took my hand out of my pocket. A moment later, Manager Seong and Supervisor Ha stepped onto the podium.
"Ahem, ah, ah. Mic test, one, two."
Manager Seong cleared his throat and stood close to the microphone.
"First of all, I would like to take this opportunity to express my gratitude to all the candidate cadets who have gathered here today."
After the customary pleasantries, Manager Seong explained the nature of the competition. He spent several minutes delivering an introduction about its purpose and significance.
Finally, Manager Seong got to the point.
"From this point on, I will explain the details of the competition. After much deliberation, the Hero Association has decided to adopt a method that aligns with the academic traditions of Joaquin Academy."
Manager Seong moistened his throat with a sip of Yeongchangsu before continuing.
"One-on-one subspace sparring. The format will be a tournament. While it doesn't follow the conventional concept of a tournament, we will refer to it as such for convenience. Ah, and the details of the matches will not be disclosed to the public, so you do not need to worry about any future repercussions."
Does this damn academy seriously only teach how to fight? Even for a student council election, they're doing this? It was absurd.
"I have a question."
The beanpole asked, using arrogant, informal speech. Manager Seong's eyebrow twitched for a fraction of a second, but he quickly masked it with a smile.
"Yes, please go ahead, Cadet Den Range."
"You said it's a tournament, but there are seven of us in total. An odd number. That leaves one person without an opponent. I have to wonder if the Association is stupid enough to overlook something so basic."
Despite the sarcastic tone, Manager Seong did his best to remain calm. This damn social hierarchy was the problem.
Even though he was twenty years older, his social standing was lower than that of these teenagers.
In fact, it wasn't just status; his combat ability also fell short of that cadet, Den Range.
Den was the current vice president and one of the strongest among the third-years.
Rumors were rampant that numerous prominent hero agencies were constantly sending him love calls.
Though his inability to match the current president—who was only a second-year—was a blemish on his record, there was no denying that Den Range was an extraordinary cadet.
...The only problem is that his personality is inversely proportional to his skill.
However, Manager Seong had come to the academy fully prepared for this. Forcing the corners of his mouth upward, he replied.
"An astute observation. The Association, of course, kept that in mind. Giving one person a bye would compromise the fairness of the competition. Therefore, someone from our side will participate as a sparring partner. However, please note that our representative will not be registered as a candidate and will only participate in the matches."
"Question~"
This time, a shifty-eyed female cadet raised her hand. She also spoke informally.
"It's nice that the Association wants to keep things fair by bringing in a sparring partner~ but I highly doubt you have anyone who can actually compete with us. Let's be honest, the people from the Association are all pretty mediocre, aren't they?"
"Haha, you don't need to worry about that, Cadet Sion. It is a sparring partner who will not disappoint you. Supervisor Ha, step forward."
Supervisor Ha, who had been standing blankly in the back, let out a small gasp and stepped up to the front of the podium. Manager Seong introduced her.
"The sole combat agent of our Strategic Planning Department, and a talent who achieved senior-level status at the age of twenty-six. This is Deputy Supervisor Ha Na-eun."
"P-Please look after me!"
"Supervisor Ha is a renowned talent within our Association. Although she is not a graduate of Joaquin, through blood, sweat, and tears, she bloomed late in life—"
"M-Manager! That's way too much information!"
This was unexpected. To think that innocent-looking woman was a senior-level hero. Achieving that rank at twenty-six meant she was highly capable.
Did Shail say she achieved senior-level at twenty...?
Well, she did secure a deputy position at such a young age. Even if she had walked an elite path, her skills had to be the real deal.
I looked at Sion, the female cadet who had asked the question. She was glaring at Supervisor Ha with a heavily distorted expression.
It seemed she hadn't expected a senior-level hero to appear. Because of this, Sion was left utterly speechless.
A pout puffed up her cheeks. She looked thoroughly displeased that her mockery hadn't landed.
But soon, Sion let out a haughty snort and snapped her head away. A subtle smile spread across Manager Seong's lips.
...It's obvious the student council isn't normal either.
Amidst the brief, strange silence, the senior who had been staring only at the ceiling spoke up in a low voice.
"I'm curious, is there a particular reason we have to spar in a subspace? I feel like we could just fight in reality. Sparring is supposed to involve a bit of bloodshed anyway. And since the details are kept secret, it shouldn't matter if one or two people end up hospitalized."
"……."
At those words, everyone's eyes widened. Their expressions screamed, What on earth is he talking about? I was no exception.
Although he looked a bit sickly, I had thought he was the most decent one here. But what he just said was utterly insane. It almost made the insolent Den and Sion seem normal by comparison.
The reason for sparring in a subspace? Obviously, it was to prevent the cadets from getting hurt. A single slip-up could easily result in severed limbs or worse.
In fact, I had made sashimi out of Nox and severed Mao Rang's limbs. Thank goodness those had been in a subspace; if those spars had taken place in reality... I'd rather leave that to the imagination.
Yet this guy was acting as if a little bloodshed was no big deal. That single remark made him the prime suspect for being the villain. Even I, whose humanity was gradually eroding, had never entertained such a thought.
Snapping out of his daze, Manager Seong scrambled to salvage the situation. Wiping away cold sweat, he began to explain the logical reasoning.
Is there anything harder than repeatedly explaining common sense? Manager Seong was pulling off that difficult feat.
At his explanation, the patient—no, the current president, Kim Woo-jin—nodded with a sullen expression. He didn't look convinced at all, but he seemed to accept it for now.
Once the situation was somewhat settled, Manager Seong looked as if he had aged ten years in the span of ten minutes. Nevertheless, he managed to open his mouth once more.
"Since everyone seems to understand, we will now begin drawing lots for the matchups."
* * *
The moment I returned to the classroom, Ryozo asked me, as if she had been waiting.
"How did it go? What's the format of the competition?"
"They're doing a tournament with subspace sparring. But it's not a typical tournament that goes all the way to the finals; it's just one-on-one matches. Like you said, Ryozo, there are too many candidates right now. It seems they want to slash the numbers in half first."
At my words, Ryozo pressed her temples. She shook her head repeatedly.
"Seriously, is violence the only method this academy can ever choose...? But the number of candidates is odd. How does a tournament even work?"
"The current vice president asked the exact same question just a moment ago. Since one person is left out, the Association brought in their own sparring partner—a senior-level hero."
"Senior-level?! Isn't that completely unbalanced? Besides, there's no way the Association has that kind of talent."
"Supervisor Ha. She's the Association's representative. Apparently, she's a prodigy who reached senior-level at twenty-six."
"……."
Ryozo fell silent. Reading her expression, she seemed to be thinking, That soft-looking woman is a senior-level hero?
After a brief moment of confusion, Ryozo looked me straight in the eye.
"I get that part. But that's not the most important thing. Geomma, your opponent. You just drew them, didn't you?"
To think she would get straight to the point. I admired her silently. As expected, Ryozo was incredibly sharp.
Instead of answering, I wrote a name down in my notebook. If I spoke it aloud, someone might overhear.
The next moment, Ryozo's eyes narrowed as she looked down at the notebook. She muttered in a barely audible whisper.
"Sion, the student council's head of general affairs. I don't know if you're lucky or unlucky..."
"Do you know her?"
"Vaguely. She's the student council's head of general affairs, and she comes from a decent family, so I recognize her face. Well, she's annoying, but that's not the only reason. This senior, Sion, is famous for being incredibly persistent. She usually acts all bubbly, but she's rumored to have a rotten core."
Ryozo spoke with a worried expression.
"Her martial talent is mediocre. You definitely couldn't call her strong. But her persistence more than makes up for her shallow talent. I mean, she did manage to snatch the position of head of general affairs... For someone like you, Geomma, this type might actually be more troublesome."
Ryozo suddenly crumpled the paper with the name on it. The shadow on her face vanished in an instant, and she let out a short chuckle.
"Well, I'm sure you'll handle it. After all, worrying about you is the most pointless thing in the world."
* * *
...A week passed, and the morning of the competition finally dawned.
As always, I tucked my sashimi knife into my clothes. As the steel touched my chest, it resonated fiercely, like a heartbeat. After savoring the vibration of the metal for a moment, I left the dormitory.
The venue for the competition was an annex located on the outskirts of the academy. The interior looked like a miniature version of the training grounds.
To put it simply, if the training grounds were an outdoor field, this venue was an indoor gymnasium.
Although the annex seemed to have been abandoned for a long time, it was well-maintained and clean.
As I stood there, looking around, a figure suddenly drifted into the left side of my vision.
"Hello there."
Sion greeted me with a bright smile. I gave her a reluctant nod.
"Yes. I look forward to our match today."
"Oh my~ You're so stiff! And I should be the one saying that~ You're the famous Sashimi Sword Saint, after all! You're not going to just slice me up in one go like you did before, are you? I'd really appreciate it if you went easy on me~"
Her voice made it hard to gauge her true intentions. It sounded like a compliment, but the tone was clearly mocking.
And that unmoving expression. A hollow emptiness seemed to linger in her eyes.
"Oh, my. Why are you staring at me like that? You're making me blush!"
Sion took a step back, creating some distance. I stared at her and spoke in a low voice.
"I don't think it will end in one go."
"Are you saying you're going to go easy on me? If so, I'm a bit disappointed."
Sion tilted her head cutely. Combined with her emotionless expression, it created a strange sense of dissonance. Smiling faintly at this oddly familiar sensation, I replied.
"If you show your full strength, senior, then who knows. Besides, I have something I need to verify in this match anyway."
Sion, whether you are the villain.