02. Rank.
02. Rank.
02. Ranking.
"Good morning, did you sleep well?"
Early morning.
Next to Sihwan, who had just opened his eyes, Bari was kneeling gracefully.
Her outfit was impeccably wrinkle-free, her expression utterly steady.
She had probably been in that exact pose ever since finishing yesterday's tasks up until now.
"What's this? Why are you like that?"
He asked without hiding his puzzled look.
He had no clue how to mask his expressions like some royal.
"I felt like this was the right way."
"?"
He tilted his head at her response.
It was never like this once, not even a single time since Bari was first issued to him.
"It's something for myself, so please don't worry about it, Sihwan-nim."
"No... it bothers me if you keep doing that."
Sihwan stared at her blankly for a moment before pulling her down to lie beside him.
"I like this better."
"Sihwan-nim... do you perhaps..."
"Nah, not that."
"..."
"Just lie down. No need to be uncomfortable like that."
"That's just how it feels from a human perspective. I'm not uncomfortable at all."
"I am."
"But still..."
"But still my ass. Let's sleep more."
"We'll be late."
"It's fine. We can take it easy."
Sihwan stroked Bari's hair and fell asleep.
At a terrifying speed. No fear, no tension whatsoever.
"..."
Bari stayed still for a bit before burying her face in Sihwan's chest.
Of course, she wasn't uncomfortable.
With her strength on a whole other level from any living being, kneeling on one knee didn't faze her.
But this was her own control mechanism.
A way to steadily express respect toward humans—and her master—to keep her unconscious self in check.
Back at the Base, there were plenty of environmental factors to control herself without needing this.
The moment an AI betrayed its master, every human across the universe and all AIs loyal to them would unleash cutting-edge weaponry to destroy that AI.
But not here.
If she wanted, she could create her own world single-handedly.
Ryu Si-hwan?
Any affection or respect for him now existed only in her CPU, with zero environmental factors to maintain it.
In other words, everything hinged on her conscience.
'Aren't you afraid of me at all?'
Whether it was because they'd been together so long, or because he trusted her that much.
Even after the report that contact with headquarters was cut off—a fact Sihwan had to know—he treated Bari exactly the same.
'...Should I read his mind?'
She could do it anytime if she tried.
But reading her master's thoughts?
She saw it as a kind of irreverence, so unless absolutely necessary, she never peeked into Sihwan's mind.
That's why she always asked him directly.
Though he seemed to think she was acting.
'Nah. Let's drop it.'
.
.
"Mm..."
Sihwan finally got up two hours later.
It wasn't just tight anymore—it was impossible to reach the Academy without being late.
At least on human legs.
But even so, he stayed totally chill.
Moving leisurely like he was on a relaxing trip, even yawning his head off.
"You're late, Sihwan-nim."
Bari reported in the same crisp tone as before.
He glanced at her and nodded.
"Hm... by how much?"
"If we walk like yesterday, we'll be over 30 minutes late."
"Will I get in trouble?"
"Yes."
Bari answered firmly.
"But we got a bit closer yesterday, so maybe it's fine?"
"You'll get scolded."
"Ugh."
No way in hell.
She might be a bit of an airhead, but she was still an Instructor.
No way she'd let it slide.
"What if we fly?"
"Then we might not be late."
"Great. Let's do that."
"It'll draw eyes."
"Whatever. As a human, I stand out wherever I go anyway."
"Agreed."
After a quick prep, Sihwan headed straight down to the inn's first floor.
"...Those guys are still alive."
"Yeah."
"Why aren't those bastards around? They were talking all that big shit."
Chaotic vibes.
The various groups eating breakfast eyed Sihwan and Bari as they came down.
The difference from yesterday? They weren't staring outright. Like they had something to hide, they were sneaking peeks. Which annoyed Sihwan even more.
"What the hell. Why are they acting like that."
Grumbling, he passed through the frozen-solid inn first floor and stepped outside.
The streets were pretty lively since it was morning.
"The inn draws too much attention. Gotta snag some real estate quick."
"Sihwan-nim, how about we build the Base underground instead?"
"Underground?"
"Yes. It might be more efficient. Way easier to defend if needed."
"Hm."
Sihwan pondered the unexpected idea.
Underground meant no need to buy land, for sure.
"That's solid. Let's just make it under the Academy."
"That has a higher chance of getting found out, doesn't it?"
"Eh, doesn't matter if it does. Point is, you need to bulk up first."
"I see."
"Let's do it after today."
+++
"...This bastard, why isn't he here?"
Instructor Yu Ina stood with arms crossed, leg propped up, foot tapping.
A seriously delinquent pose for an Instructor.
"Instructor-nim, he must've bailed out of fear. Let's ditch him and proceed."
Demon Race Tweed raised his hand and spoke.
With his typical chosen-people complex, he hated seeing a puny human strut around.
Of course, if the human had bowed to him, it'd be a different story.
"Cut the bullshit."
"But he was late on the first day too!"
"Not late yet? One minute left."
Velvet tried saying it with a smile, but it fell on deaf ears.
"Hmph. To a slow-ass human, one minute might as well not exist. Bet he pissed the bed this morning—,"
"Ha. Is this fucker actually insane?"
Yu Ina cut into Tweed's rant out of nowhere.
"Kwah-chang!"!!!!
""???""
"Ugly bastard talks too damn much."
Ryu Si-hwan and Bari.
The two flew in.
Crashing through the Academy classroom's glass window.
Thud!
"Krack!"
Ryu Si-hwan's foot nailed Tweed's cheek, and the moment it connected, Bari grabbed Sihwan's waist to steady him.
The Reinforced Armor that had briefly encased his foot retracted too.
Tweed, who took the hit, flew straight through the wall into the hallway.
"..."
Everyone stared at them in utter bewilderment.
"Hey! Instructor ma'am. Not late yet, right?"
"..."
Brushing off the stares like nothing, Ryu Si-hwan even flashed a smile at the Instructor.
"I keep promises, y'know. Can't have Sihwan-nim's rep ruined by being late on day one, eh?"
He patted Bari's shoulder as she calmly pulled out a chair for him, then sat down.
"...What the hell is this shitshow?"
Yu Ina asked in a baffled tone at the absurd display.
No, not asking—she was demanding an explanation.
Attacking a stationary Tweed was one thing, but he wrecked Academy property.
Big time.
The window side was totally smashed open, the classroom a total mess.
Plus, Tweed's crash demolished the wall between classroom and hallway.
"What? Oh, the wall? Just fix it."
He turned to Bari, who stood and extended a hand toward the window.
In mere seconds.
Wall debris vanished, the collapsed window frame restored spotless.
Tweed's crash spot too, of course.
"All good now?"
"You fucking bastard!!"
Tweed, who'd been flung into the hall, burst back in through the back door.
Shockingly, not a drop of blood.
"Wow, tough son of a bitch. Lips didn't even split. Should've just castrated you after all."
"Demons have overwhelmingly superior durability compared to humans, after all."
Sihwan marveled, while Bari nodded.
Tweed exploded even harder at their nonchalant vibe.
"I'll kill you!!"
Bursting with the purple Demonic Energy unique to the Demon Race, he charged at Sihwan.
But,
"Cut the crap, you greenhorns."
Floating gently.
"Oh?"
"Grr!"
At Yu Ina's chilling command, Sihwan and Tweed's bodies floated into the air.
Sihwan casually marveling in the midst of it, while Tweed flailed wildly in rage—the contrast was stark.
"Whoa. Like a ride at the amusement park."
"Human, warning you—rampage without my permission again, and you die that day."
"Yeah. Sorry."
He didn't think for a second she could actually kill him, but he tossed out a casual apology anyway.
He had caused a scene right in front of an Instructor, after all.
Though he didn't stop his giggling.
"..."
She'd gotten a taste of Sihwan's reckless personality, so she didn't push further.
Deep down, she'd wanted to execute him the second he crashed through that window, but he was an A-Rank with a mysterious doll drawing the Chief Instructor's interest.
Plus the Luna thing.
"Don't get the wrong idea that we're buddies just 'cause of yesterday."
"Aww, bummer."
"......And you, Demon. Pathetic as hell."
"I-I didn't start it, that bastard...!"
"What kinda excuse is that from someone who couldn't even dodge? Who told you to stand there?"
"No... that's bullshit! He flew in outta nowhere and attacked me!"
"So you're saying you just took it? Why didn't you dodge? If you couldn't, you're unqualified trash. If you could but didn't, your brain's fucking rotten."
Tweed's face flushed with shame and fury.
Seconds ago, his anger was all on Sihwan; now it shifted to the Instructor spouting nonsense.
"In the Tower, shit that jumps out and attacks is a dime a dozen. You gonna whine the same dumb crap then?"
"..."
"Forget blame games in the Tower. That shit's worthless."
"Yeah yeah, who cares about that? Getting hit is what matters. Lucky for you, I'm forgiving the ball-busting since you kept your junk intact. Good enough, right?"
Sihwan beamed as he said it.
Tweed felt murderous intent boiling over.
"Shut your trap, human."
"'Kay."
"...."
Yu Ina felt a spike of killing intent too but swallowed it, reminding herself she couldn't snap at some lowly human.
"As I said, today's a one-on-one with the Chief Instructor-nim."
"She was super hot. Gonna get up close? Can't wait."
"......Just so you know, pull any disrespect on Chief Instructor-nim, and I'll beat you to death."
Growling mostly at Sihwan, she announced the counseling order.
Sihwan and Bari were dead last.
"Human, there was much debate on whether to counsel you and the doll separately or treat it as an Artifact and do it together. But based on the very objective truth that you, excluding the doll, hold 'zero' value in the Tower, it's decided you both go in at once."
"Why the long-winded bullshit? Just say 'go with Bari.' Folks with shit language skills always pad with adjectives. Right, Bari?"
"...Sihwan-nim, you're pulling way too much aggro."
Crunch.
Teeth-grinding noise.
He poked at her nerves every damn time.
'If not for Luna, that fucker... grrr...!!'
It burned her up inside.
"Wow... what the hell's with that human? What's he got to mouth off to a Noblesse Instructor?"
"Clueless idiots. He's human, duh."
Trainees whispering in the corner.
Not close before, but Sihwan's beyond-insane antics got them chatting.
"Fine... you get special homeroom counseling too. Just us two."
"Heh. Just us? What're you planning? That hungry, huh?"
"What?"
"Be gentle."
She blanked for a sec on the meaning, then her face turned beet red.
Pure rage, of course.
"...You're human, so your physical abilities suck, right? That's why this me will per.so.nally. train. you. Better brace yourself. I'll shave your bones down."
"...That sounds kinda off, doesn't it?"
Shave your bones down?
"Like you said, my language skills suck. But don't worry. I can convey it straight-up at least."
"...."
"See, I told you the aggro was too much."
"...What'd I even do?"
"Sigh."
Even Bari let out a sigh.