Chapter 22
Thankfully, the orc's fist vanished into smoke just before it could smash into my head. Black mist scattered, brushing past my body once before dissipating. My whole body drenched in sweat, I collapsed to the ground, gasping for breath—and then numbers appeared in the sky: [00:11:04].
Eleven minutes and four seconds. That was how long I'd lasted.
*
The first stage of the test was over, and I tried to head back to my seat, but my body wouldn't cooperate—it had no strength left. Then Nice Guy strode over, gave me a thumbs-up, hoisted me onto his shoulder, and carried me back to my spot. I mumbled a weak thanks, and he flashed his teeth in a grin, shot me another thumbs-up, and returned to his seat.
Fortunately, the second stage—sparring—was scheduled for next week, not today. I slumped in my chair, catching my breath, when a few notification windows popped up in the corner of my vision.
'Oh right, I think some notifications came up earlier.' I'd been so hyper-focused that I barely even remembered them.
Teacher Chaenari was saying something up front, but I pulled up the notifications to check them out.
'Flow State? So that's what that was?'
It was an otherworldly experience, straight out of some novel—but I'd lived it myself. However...
'It's not over yet?'
There were more notifications queued up.
One new trait and one unawakened trait. 'Not bad at all.'
Honestly, I hadn't expected this stamina test to yield much growth. But triggering Flow State bumped my stats and handed out traits? If it keeps scaling like this, I couldn't ask for more.
While I was at it, I pulled up my status window to see the full results.
10
7
9
13
"……!!!!"
I twisted in my seat, silently screaming with joy—until Scarlett shot me a weird look from the side, like what the hell are you doing?
Right now, I bet I could even give Scarlett a run for her money in a spar.
Just then, the bell rang, signaling lunchtime. With help from Scarlett and Nice Guy, I made it to the cafeteria. On the way, I felt an oddly prickling gaze and glanced back.
"……?"
Dina was glaring daggers at me.
'What the hell?'
Was she pissed that someone from Class A like me was this pathetic? I ignored the stinging stare and arrived at the cafeteria, where we dug into the meal with Scarlett and Nice Guy. It was some fancy dish I'd never even heard of—and insanely delicious, as expected...
'But it's gonna sit like a rock...!'
That gaze kept boring into me the whole time, making everything stick in my throat. I barely knew if I was eating through my nose or mouth. Lunchtime flew by in a haze, and we headed back to Shield.
With some energy restored from the food, I walked on my own two feet this time—and the stares felt a bit less intense than before.
'No clue what her deal is.'
Maybe she just didn't like me, or perhaps she was debating whether to kill me or let me live. Either way, I'd have to play along with whatever she wanted as best I could.
Back in Shield, I zoned out in my seat, resting, when Teachers Chaenari and Lee Yura stepped up to the podium with an announcement.
"We'll now show the results of the first-stage stamina test!"
"Dina and Nice Guy are tied for first..." Chaenari mumbled timidly, but no one paid it any mind.
'I knew it, but still stings to be dead last.'
Scarlett grinned like an idiot beside me. "We both hit eleven minutes—besties!" I couldn't help but chuckle.
Next, they played back the recorded footage of each person's test, pointing out issues and giving feedback. Dina's was flawless, so they skipped straight to Nice Guy's.
Dozens of attacks rained down, but his massive frame dodged them effortlessly left and right, shattering foes with overwhelming punches. Past the twenty-minute mark, no one could dodge every single orc swarm forever—but neither the orcs' strikes nor flying weapons left a scratch on him. The footage even caught Iphelsar cursing in frustration, which nearly made me burst out laughing.
They went through each one systematically until it was my turn. The video started, and blue mana immediately enveloped my body and sword.
The first five minutes showed me holding out purely on skill. I'd never used Serin Style in real combat, so it was mostly clumsy instinct-driven swings rather than proper forms.
Lee Yura paused it briefly. "Seems like a lack of real combat experience, but your movements are fundamentally sloppy. It's like your head knows what to do, but your body can't keep up..."
She trailed off and resumed playback. Around the six-minute mark, the soldiers adapted, landing hits—arrows piercing me, slashes here and there. That's when I started mimicking Scarlett's movements, albeit awkwardly. Each swing carried more mana, and the attacks definitely hit harder than the first five minutes...
But the openings multiplied too. Lee Yura spoke up again. "This is you copying Scarlett, right?"
"Yeah."
Scarlett's eyes went wide beside me as she poked my arm. "For real? Seriously?"
"It's a decent imitation, if a bit rough... but Scarlett's swordsmanship doesn't quite suit you, I'd say?"
Lee Yura seemed worried I'd take offense and hesitated to elaborate. "Y-Yeah, different weapons entirely. Scarlett uses a massive zweihander, way bigger than a standard sword?"
Chaenari patted her sweating colleague, snapping her back to it, and they resumed the video.
"For you, Siwoo, something like Kania's style here might fit better..."
"Got it."
Mimicking Kania definitely felt more natural for my body. 'Though the physical gap made it tough.'
The footage reached its final stretch. Honestly, even I barely remembered this part. The world drowned in white darkness, leaving only the sword in my hand. I just swung at everything coming my way.
My vibe in the video shifted dramatically. Twisting to dodge, and even when hit, slashing through enemies to the end. It looked beastly, pure instinct—but
'I'm using Serin Style.'
Every motion wove in Serin Style techniques. Not just that—Scarlett's and Kania's moves blended in too, creating more efficient combos.
And my face? Kinda terrifying. My already sharp features twisted into a mad grin as I gleefully carved through illusions. Seeing it again, my heart pounded—thump, thump. I wanted to feel it once more.
That's when it hit me. Not as much as Iphelsar, but I was definitely...
...enjoying the fight.
The mere ten-second climax ended, leaving Shield in dead silence. Everyone there knew I'd slipped into Flow State, even if briefly.
"Uh... um."
Lee Yura broke the hush. "The end was perfect. You were probably in Flow State, so it might be fuzzy now—but head back to the dorm, retrace your steps slowly, and it'll come back. Definitely review it later."
"Will do."
The bell rang right on cue—a bit early, but all I wanted was to crash in the dorm. I planned to head back with Scarlett, but she said something about an errand and went ahead.
Or so I thought...
'How did it end up like this?'
Now I was walking back to the dorm alone. With Dina.