Kim Hyeji: Written as Support, Read as Tool
As soon as class ended, most of the students burst out of the classroom like they were fleeing for their lives. Some leaped straight over the desks, others scrambled out on all fours, and a few even scaled the walls like human spiders. It looked exactly like a B-grade zombie movie.
Once the most impatient ones had cleared out, the rest of the students began trickling out too. Not that they were any less desperate—their eyes all had that unhinged glaze. Turns out, forcing students to eat lunch alone was more than enough to drive them insane. The truly desperate ones just opened the windows and jumped.
Heavy thuds echoed from the ground below as they landed.
'Even among the virgins, there are apparently some crazy enough to leap from the fifth floor.'
"AHHHHHHHH! MY LEGS!"
......Never mind. We seriously need to add No Hero Landings Unless You're Captain America to the school rules.
Eventually the classroom emptied completely. All that remained was me and the pile of trash from my early lunch.
Since I'd already eaten ahead of time, I had zero desire to eat again. Instead, I decided to use the rest of lunch break to rush back to the dorm, shower, and return. Even the Gold Rank classroom had mistaken me for a grad student for a second. Fuck. Please stop.
The moment I reached the dorm, I frantically tore off my outer clothes. I'd been wearing them since yesterday, so they reeked of that stale, musty smell, and the sensation was so disgusting I wanted them as far from my body as possible.
I yanked open the washing machine, hurled the clothes inside, dumped in some detergent, and started the cycle. I watched the water slowly fill the drum and begin tumbling the fabric around. Only then did I head straight into the bathroom and turn on the water to wash up.
Both the clothes in the machine and my own body carried traces of a messy past. Every rotation of the washer and every splash of water against my skin washed those traces away, little by little.
They say the past can't be forgotten, but some memories fade surprisingly easily. Just to be clear, the "messy past" here refers to the drool stains I left while passed out drunk. Let's get one thing straight—this isn't some grimdark story. This is an academy novel.
If I could, I'd ditch class entirely. I'd fill the tub until it overflowed, soak in it, and drift off into a shallow, exhausted nap. That was my sincerest wish right now.
Of course, it was nothing more than a wish. I never actually followed through. As much as it sucked, the Academy's classes were absolutely essential for someone as knowledge-deficient as me. In the end, it was my loss, dammit.
No matter how passionately the professor taught, actually absorbing the knowledge was another matter entirely. Before enrolling, I'd gotten by purely through brute force. But here, there was simply too much I didn't know. Most of what Kang Hyuk had beaten into me was knowledge on how to kill people.
Of course, when your strength reaches an extreme level, knowledge doesn't matter—you can do anything. Especially since in Spider-Man, the uncle's dying words were "With great... power," so great power is important.
......Something feels off about that quote, but let's just ignore it.
I carefully set aside my regret at not being able to wash longer. I had to get back to class, after all.
The Academy generally allows free dress, but they still issue basic uniforms. The reason for the free dress policy is simple: if they're going to work you half to death anyway, they might as well let students wear whatever they want. Still, because it's an official Academy rule, I'd heard that occasionally some lunatic would show up wearing a full traditional hanbok.
What a crazy world. That isn't a fashion statement—that's actual insanity.
When your dorm assignment is confirmed, the Academy prepares the uniforms ahead of time and places them in each student's room before move-in. The uniform isn't much different from military fatigues. Hot in summer, cold in winter. The colors follow the standard light novel template: white top, black bottom. The design is exactly what you'd expect from the genre too.
Does this supplier ship to other worlds? That's a monopoly, you greedy bastards.
The reason I'm suddenly ranting about all this is because the only thing I had to wear right now was the uniform. Yesterday's clothes were in the wash, and I still hadn't located the casual clothes I'd brought with me.
With no other choice, the moment I put on the uniform, a question popped into my head.
'How the hell did they know my size, those fuckers?'
The uniforms are custom-made based on body measurements taken during the physical exam a week earlier. Of course, my pathetic brain didn't realize this obvious fact and instead spent its time trying to figure out how to protect my poor, innocent soul.
After getting fully dressed, I hung my student ID around my neck, grabbed my writing utensils, and headed back toward the classroom before lunch break ended.
I entered the classroom about three minutes before the next period started. Since I wasn't late like the first time, I didn't draw much attention. But the moment I sat back down in the front-row seat I'd taken that morning, murmurs erupted around me.
"Wait, is that the beggar bastard from this morning?"
"He looks normal after washing up?"
"Right? You still look like shit even after showering."
"This is unfair! Why am I the only one with a fucked-up face?"
"Honestly, when I saw him this morning I thought he was a master's student."
"I thought he was a PhD candidate."
Those last two bastards were spouting the same crap in the previous chapter. I'll give you shitheads a real reason to act like that soon.
A short while later, the professor who had taught the third class returned. The moment he walked in and saw me sitting there, he looked startled.
"Oh my, student. That seat belongs to a grad student."
"......A grad student?"
"You crazy bastard."
The professor declared with a completely straight face, "Getting involved with that mad dog is dangerous, so I recommend sitting somewhere else."
"......"
These bastards are actually serious.
To be honest, the class was brutally difficult. Everything except the ability registration process was completely foreign to me. Maybe that's why my completely blank notebook filled up with dense handwriting surprisingly fast.
But do these bastards actually understand everything and that's why they're sleeping through class? Fuck. Did you all learn from some legendary entrance exam instructor?
Before I could dwell on it, more unfamiliar material assaulted my ears. Not my problem. I'm the one who's going to fail and die from not knowing this shit.
After a lot of struggle, I somehow managed to organize the lecture content. When break time finally arrived, people immediately gathered in groups of three or five, forming their own little cliques.
Honestly, since I'd crushed Professor Pilyong on the very first day, I'd half-expected someone to approach me. But no one did. Absolutely no one.
They just kept sneaking glances at me, but nobody actually came over. In those trashy light novels, the protagonist becomes famous just by breathing and everyone flocks to him. I'm the protagonist too, you bastards.
Of course, nothing changed. It was probably because of discrimination against the powerless. In the early days when abilities first appeared, discrimination based on whether someone had powers was a massive social issue. Although it's improved a lot now, it hasn't disappeared completely.
'These bastards never evolved past the KKK stage.'
Then I suddenly thought of Kang Hyuk. Surprisingly, the tracksuit-wearing uncle didn't look down on people based on whether they had abilities. He just beat the absolute shit out of everyone regardless.
'As expected, what brings true equality to all people is guns, blades, and clubs.'
Don't believe me? Get hit by a lead bullet first and reconsider. It doesn't matter if you're an ability user or not—one shot levels the playing field.
The class time that felt uniquely painful and alien to me finally ended. Just as I was about to head back after surviving such an intense first day—
Tap. Tap.
Someone lightly tapped my shoulder from behind.
When I turned around, my vision filled with bright red hair and golden eyes. Despite the Academy's free-dress policy, she was wearing the uniform just like me. The moment our eyes met, the female student waved cheerfully.
"Hi~. We saw each other this morning, right~?"
But my brain couldn't process returning the greeting. The information pouring into my eyes had completely paralyzed my thoughts.
I'd seen four-digit regression counts before. But in those cases, the red numbers—which indicated how many times things had gone wrong—were overwhelmingly high. This was different. The proportion of red numbers was unusually low compared to the total regressions.
"Hello~? Excuse me~?"
The girl waved her hand in front of my face, checking if I was okay. I finally snapped out of it and answered apologetically.
"Sorry. Who were you again?"
"I put up the barrier for you this morning~. You already forgot~?"
Ah. So she was the one who turned the barrier into a fish farm.
"The person who made the fighting pit for guard dogs!"
"...Result-wise, that's accurate, so I can't argue."
She scratched her cheek awkwardly, then extended her hand.
"Nice to meet you anyway. I'm Kim Hyeji~."
"Nice to meet you too, Hyeji. I'm Kim Shinu."
"Why so stiff~. We're the same age, so let's talk casually~."
"...Alright, Hyeji."
Since she said we were the same age, I dropped the formal speech. However—
"But are we really the same age?"
"Isn't it obvious?"
"Hmm...."
My gaze unconsciously drifted to Hyeji's height and chest. She was extremely short. And her chest was... nonexistent.
....Optical illusion? There's seriously nothing there?
When I suddenly went silent, Hyeji tilted her head. The moment she noticed where I was looking, her expression hardened. Before I could speak, the number above her head increased by one and she cut me off.
"Just so you know, I'm still in my growth period."
"......I haven't said anything yet."
"I have my ways of knowing, so don't even say it. Unless you want to die."
Does the growth period start after high school? Sure, in your dreams maybe.
At that moment, the worst possible scenario flashed through my mind. A man. Could she be a cross-dressing otokonoko? The lack of chest and short stature would make sense if the Hyeji in front of me was actually a trap.
Of course, making sense and becoming a heroine are two completely different things. If a trap dares to aim for the heroine position, the only answer is heroine death.
I carefully tried to determine Hyeji's gender, but once again the number above her head went up and she cut me off.
"Are you—"
"If you ask if I'm a guy, you're really dead."
"Yes ma'am."
In the middle of all that, Hyeji's cutesy "~" speech pattern completely shattered. Understandable. When someone gets pissed, the concept goes out the window and raw anger takes priority.
Having quickly recovered her composure, Hyeji spoke again.
"Anyway, nice to meet you~. Talents like you are always welcome~."
Talent? Is this bastard seriously messing with me?
"I'm powerless, though?"
"Of course I know~. That's why I came to you~."
As mentioned before, the powerless receive various forms of discrimination from ability users. From their perspective, we're useless and inferior. If you were under twenty you might still try for an ability coin, but past that age, even that's off the table.
But an ability user suddenly approaching a powerless person like me? This smells fishy. My internal alarm bells were screaming.
With my guard fully raised, I listed off possible reasons for her approach.
"Multi-level marketing? Cult? Shincheonji? Insurance? What scam is this?"
"......None of those."
"Then what kind of fraud are you trying to pull?"
The fact that it wasn't any of those made it even more suspicious. Hyeji let out a small sigh.
"Haa... I'm from the support class, so I came looking for you~."
"Support class means supporter, right?"
"That's right~."
At that moment, the AOS game term "utility support banned" flashed through my mind. Her name fit the stereotype perfectly too. But once again the number above Hyeji's head increased and she cut me off.
"By any chance—"
"I fucking hate AOS games, so if you say even one word about it I'll kill you!!!"
The gentle tone from earlier was completely gone. This was full rage mode. Before I could even open my mouth, Hyeji continued venting.
"And especially don't ask if I like cats and fairies!!! I fucking hate that shit!!!"
She looked like her sanity was about to snap. Then she suddenly pointed at me and roared.
"Don't ask if I'm a utility support! Just don't say it at all!!!!!"
She's making preemptive strikes like a pro. I'm jealous—you're going to make bank.
Hyeji's anger had flared up like wildfire, but calming down took a while. Once she had regained her cutesy concept, I finally spoke.
"Can I ask just one thing?"
"What is it~?"
"You don't like mermaids?"
"You son of a bitch!!!!!!"
Her anger flared up again. This time it took even longer to subside. After regaining her composure once more, Hyeji finally got to the point.
"I'm from the support class, so I actually prefer someone powerless like you~."
"In what way?"
"I support powerless people using the equipment I create~."
"Is all that equipment properly tested?"
Hyeji suddenly averted her gaze.
"..."
"Answer me."
After a moment of silence and some cold sweat, she started babbling.
"If I make it and test it right away, there shouldn't be any problems~."
"There are a fuckton of problems for me."
"You get equipment and I get results. Win-win, right?"
"Win-win my ass. No matter how I look at it, I'm the lab rat here?"
Hyeji tried to reassure me.
"If something goes wrong, I'll ask the senior students in the support department for help~."
"I just can't trust the support class."
"Why~? What's more reliable than a supporter~?"
Why can't I trust it? Because I'm the one getting fucked over, that's why.
"I don't really trust tools."
"You bastard!!! Stop calling me a tool!!!"
Once again, Hyeji threw away her concept and had another fit. In the end, we formed a contract that was half-forced on me, but the content was much closer to exploitation than cooperation.
It probably wouldn't make much difference. Whether it's cooperation or exploitation, it's still two syllables.
......What a fucking naive thought that was.
A contract was formed between me and Hyeji. However, I didn't expect it to need revisions starting from the very first day.
"Try this once."
"What is it?"
Hyeji suddenly brought out an exoskeleton suit.
"I made this recently. I tested it too."
"...Really?"
But something felt ominously wrong. Do you believe in tools? No. I absolutely do not.
Before putting on the exoskeleton, I turned on the power to test it first. The lower half immediately anchored itself to the ground. At the same time, the upper and lower halves separated, and the top half shot straight into the sky.
Hyeji and I silently watched the upper torso disappear into the distance.
"..."
"..."
"You said you tested it, you fuck."
"...I guess this wasn't it."
If I'd put it on without testing, I would've become Kim/Sinu/Woo. The protagonist dying in chapter eight of his own novel.
'They always say to read the terms and conditions carefully before signing...'
My distrust of Hyeji had already exceeded maximum capacity. However, when it came to actually drafting the contract, she was strangely sane.
"Hey. Let's decide on the details here."
This Kim Hyeji bastard. Why is she only normal when writing contracts? Why does she cosplay as a complete idiot the rest of the time?
"Hey, Kim Shinu. What does this clause mean?"
"I du~nno~."
"You fucking bitch."
It doesn't work on me. I'm the bigger idiot here.
An intense battle of wits and mutual checks continued. In the end, I managed to dramatically add two conditions to the contract.
1) If you conduct experiments recklessly, I will immediately run away.
2) The testing equipment must guarantee a minimum level of safety.
This should prevent death, right? There's no way I'd die after going this far.
I died. I died like crazy.
Tuesday. Wednesday. In just two days, my death count increased by twenty-four.
"Starting the next test~!"
"Mommy."
You said you were a support, dammit. Why is your kill count so high? Please stop killing me.
Still, the one saving grace was that she never ran out of equipment to provide. After all, Hyeji's ability was specialized for exactly this.
Simply put, her ability allowed her to materialize metal objects.
"Hold on~. I'll make it quickly~."
"Please make it slowly."
In detail, it could be divided into two categories. The first was materializing weapons and armor she had personally touched and used. The second was materializing objects whose structure and design she already knew. However, the second category was restricted to weapons and armor only.
I was swinging around the hammer Hyeji had materialized when a brilliant idea suddenly struck me.
"Hyeji, let's make all the weapons out of gold and sell them."
"It only lasts fifteen minutes~."
"You're fucking useless, aren't you?"
"You bastard."
The downside of Hyeji's ability was its fifteen-minute duration. If it were permanent, that alone would cause problems, so in a way it was fortunate.
And another thing.
"Why is the hammer handle made of metal?"
"Parts that aren't metal get replaced with metal~."
She said that any non-metal components would be substituted with metal. Weapons that relied on chemical reactions couldn't be used even if materialized.
"It's kind of ambiguous~. At least bullets can still be materialized, so that's something~."
"Stop messing with a powerless person."
Meanwhile, I pressed the switch on the hammer that Hyeji said was a new feature. The moment I did—
-Squelch!
Spikes shot out and pierced straight through my hand. Blood dripped down as I stared at Hyeji.
"Hey."
"Why~?"
"Why the fuck are there spikes coming out of the hammer handle? Did I become Jesus?"
"......I was supposed to put it in the head, but I put it in backwards~."
By this point, I wasn't even surprised anymore. I casually pulled the hammer off my hand and spoke again.
"Hyeji, you said your ability only lasts fifteen minutes, right?"
"That's right~! Why~?"
"Let's sell it within fifteen minutes and run. This is a country of scammers anyway."
Hyeji looked at me like I was a complete idiot and told me it was impossible.
"It's impossible~."
"If we don't get caught, it's fine."
"First of all, selling items materialized through abilities is prohibited inside the Academy~."
?????? Hey, you bitch. Wait a second.
"You bitch, you said this was originally something you sell for money."
"......."
"You said you were specially providing it to me for free, you bitch."
Hyeji slightly avoided my gaze. After clearing her throat a few times, she spoke again.
"Anyway, monetary transactions are prohibited, and even if you did it there would be problems~."
"I already sold it, so what now?"
"You'll get caught soon~."
According to Hyeji, there were CCTVs everywhere in the Academy. On top of that, surveillance ability users operated by the Academy took turns monitoring the grounds.
"This isn't an Academy, it's a prison or military base, fuck."
"But the food is good~."
"I'll admit yesterday's soya was decent."
Of course, there were professors with no conscience who targeted the student cafeteria. The quality gap compared to the professor's cafeteria was huge. The student cafeteria is a no-professor zone, so why are you bastards aiming for the soya? Go eat some high-grade hanwoo or something.
Hyeji seemed to ponder something for a moment before making a fed-up face.
"For things like this, you have to submit a plan every single time~. It's so annoying~."
"Can't you just roughly get by?"
"That's impossible, which is why I submit one every morning~."
As expected, the Academy was thoroughly infused with the spicy flavor of Korean society.
"You can only proceed at designated locations, and everything from creation to disposal must be completed at that location~."
"I'm powerless so this is great..."
"Finally, the surveillance ability user watches until it's over~."
Suddenly I was extremely jealous. Getting paid just for voyeurism?
"Fucking jealous. You get money duplicated just from voyeurism?"
"The condition for the surveillance ability is maintaining a plank position~."
Suddenly I wasn't jealous anymore.
"If they do it longer than now, even they would suffer, right?"
"To do that, we'd need to test again~? It's new equipment~."
"Sorry. My bad."
Forcing my body to get torn apart is still awkward. At least inside the Academy there aren't any special restrictions. Outside, the restrictions are even more annoying.
For a simple example, abilities can only be used in specific locations, and your body gets scanned before and after for comparison. If there's any difference, you have to explain it.
And so, for three days, I repeated the cycle of testing equipment with Hyeji—cooperating?—and dying.
Then, fifteen minutes before class on Friday morning, the front door of the classroom suddenly burst open violently. A woman strode in through the gap.
Navy-blue hair tied in a ponytail. A black martial arts uniform embroidered with gold thread. Hands and feet wrapped in bandages. Green eyes burning with rage.
At first glance, she looked like a female martial artist. While everyone stared in confusion, the woman casually walked to the center of the lectern. Then she widened her eyes, scanned the classroom, and bellowed.
"WHERE THE HELL IS THAT BASTARD KIM SHINU!!!! COME OUT RIGHT NOW!!!"
Her sudden lion's roar made the students cover their ears and groan in pain. But no one stepped forward. The woman, growing even angrier, scrunched up her face and shouted even louder.
"YOU BASTARD KIM SHINU, COME OUT RIGHT NOW!!!!!"
"Um..."
"SHUT UP!!! JUST HAVE KIM SHINU COME OUT QUICKLY!!!"
Someone tried to point something out, but she shut them down too. That's why no one answered or came forward. They all just suffered in silence.
Why didn't anyone come out? Obviously. Because I wasn't there.
I didn't go to class that early. I'm not an idiot.