Chapter 144: Changed
Let
say this clearly.
I do not like swearing.
At most, I use sothing mild like “damn” out of habit.
Stuff like “fuck,” or expressions that directly insult others.
I try to avoid those whenever possible.
[Crude beyond asure. Do humans truly squander resources so recklessly?]
But sotis, there are beings that make it impossible to hold back.
‘Ha, fuck.’
Why are you doing this to , seriously.
[To invite disaster upon oneself—how foolish a sight it is.]
The White Deer kept comnting with obvious displeasure.
Like an aunt watching an unpleasant scene in a drama.
The real problem was that she never stopped, and her voice kept scraping directly against my brain.
“Rember—believe that the mannequins you are carrying are real people! Protect them at all costs!”
On the other side, the instructor’s shout bood across the training ground.
Several cadets, myself included, were sprinting desperately, gasping for breath.
KWAANG—!
An explosion erupted right beside .
A deafening roar threatened to tear my eardrums apart as a pitch-black shadow lood overhead.
A chunk of concrete the size of a boulder was flying straight toward .
“Ghk!”
I clenched my teeth and threw my body in the opposite direction.
The seventy-kilogram jointed mannequin strapped to my back clattered violently.
KUGUNG—!
With a heavy crash, massive debris slamd into the spot where I had just been standing.
A thick cloud of dust billowed up as the chaos continued.
Red letters flashed on the academy training watch strapped to my arm, accompanied by a warning tone.
[Warning: Entering rockfall zone. Evade falling debris and proceed swiftly.]
This was the academy’s ambitious disaster-response simulation training.
The goal was to rescue civilians under conditions modeled after real disasters.
The base setup alone was brutal.
Fires burned throughout the area, oxygen levels were lowered, and cadets had to push through obstacles while carrying a jointed mannequin weighing as much as an adult man.
The rockfall zone we had just entered was especially nasty.
Rockfalls were said to be among the most dangerous threats heroes faced at real collapse sites.
Even more so in urban rescue scenarios.
‘I know that much.’
Whooong—!
Another massive rock hurtled toward .
‘This is way too much!’
At this point, it felt less like a collapse and more like demonic beasts or villains were deliberately pelting us with rocks.
If I were alone, I could dodge and clear the zone quickly.
But the mannequin on my back was the problem.
The mannequin represented a civilian.
Any damage ant an imdiate score penalty, and if it was damaged beyond recovery, instant failure.
All training directly affected academy evaluations.
For soone like , who would be forced into a body swap by Edward the mont I fell out of the top ranks, slacking off was not an option.
[Even though this is no real disaster, to waste stone and explosives so wantonly—truly barbaric.]
The White Deer had been spouting nonsense nonstop while watching the training.
‘This is training for real situations, you lunatic.’
Sure, as a divine beast representing nature, she might dislike seeing fires lit and environnts destroyed to recreate disasters.
But why was she taking it out on ?
‘You know I am the only one who can hear you, right……’
In reality, I was already fighting for my life while safely hauling a seventy-kilo burden.
And in my head, an entirely different war was raging.
Just as I was on the verge of losing my mind—
Screeeech—!
A rock ca flying in from the front like a cannonball.
‘That is not a rockfall.’
That was a siege weapon.
There was no good space to dodge.
If I moved sideways, other debris would fall.
Even if I barely avoided it myself, the mannequin would be in danger.
Then—
‘Up.’
Whooong—!
Using my running montum, I hurled the mannequin into the air.
It was heavy, but thanks to my strengthened strength, I could throw it high enough.
I focused power into my lower body.
Just before the projectile reached , I slamd my foot into the ground.
[Kangaroo Rat: Maximum jump height doubled. Fall damage reduced.]
‘Whoa!’
My body shot upward.
Higher than expected.
Could I really jump this high?
I had not expected to feel the effects of physical enhancent this clearly.
The massive rock flew harmlessly beneath .
“Uh—uhhh!”
BAAM—!
A brutal impact and a scream erupted below.
The rock I had dodged struck a cadet running behind
head-on.
Unfortunately, that was almost certainly a failure.
Even if they survived, the mannequin would not have.
Thump—
As I rose, I grabbed the mannequin I had thrown earlier.
Then I landed and kept running.
[Ho. I expected you to be reduced to pulp, but it seems selling off my blessing was not entirely without rit.]
‘I am going to lose my mind.’
If you are a divine beast, act like one and keep so dignity.
She was clearly still hung up on the stat conversion using the imprint.
I shook my head as I cleared the rockfall zone.
***
anwhile, soone was watching from the waiting room.
A silver-haired girl, Seol Hayun, stared at the holographic feed floating in the air.
“……”
The scene just now—throwing the mannequin into the air, dodging the rockfall with an incredible leap, then catching it again.
‘That is Jinwoo for you.’
Overcoming a crisis in an unexpected way.
Who else would think to throw a civilian into the air?
‘Should I call it reckless… or enviable?’
It was a boldness she herself did not have.
She would have chosen a textbook approach—wrapping herself in magic power or intercepting with spells.
Both carried risks of harming the civilian.
Considering that, Ryu Jinwoo’s thod was actually better.
‘But was he always this capable?’
A sense of unease crept in.
Throwing a mannequin weighing dozens of kilograms to the height of at least four floors—and jumping even higher himself.
An overwhelming physical performance.
She knew he had sharp instincts and quick thinking.
But this felt different.
His base physical ability itself seed to have leapt upward.
Without realizing it, Seol Hayun had locked her gaze completely onto Ryu Jinwoo.
As if she had bet everything she owned on a single racehorse.
On screen, Ryu Jinwoo cleared the rockfall zone and entered the next section.
A long elevated roadway stretched out ahead.
Artificial demonic beasts ford of magic flew through the air, targeting the cadets.
Tatadat—!
Ryu Jinwoo sprinted forward without hesitation.
‘Does he have a plan?’
Seol Hayun’s brow furrowed slightly.
That section was a trap course designed to collapse.
Once cadets passed a certain point, the road would give way.
It was literally called the “Road Collapse Zone.”
Normally, you needed flight spells or special equipnt.
But Ryu Jinwoo wore only his suit. No special gear in sight.
Was he planning to clear it before the road collapsed?
‘That should be impossible.’
No matter how fast you were, it was physically impossible.
The road was too long to outrun the collapse.
And even if you jumped at the last mont, interception beasts waited in the air.
No retreat. Guaranteed collapse.
Yet Ryu Jinwoo kept sprinting, mannequin on his back.
That was when soone beside Seol Hayun spoke softly.
“That is reckless.”
She turned to see a petite blonde girl standing there.
“Lily.”
It was Lily, still in her suit.
Soot and dust smudged her cheeks and clothes.
She had already completed her turn.
Lily dropped into the empty seat beside Seol Hayun.
“When it was our turn, there were people who tried running like that too. Thinking speed alone would be enough.”
Lily shook her head.
“They all failed. I was fine since I could lift myself with telekinesis—aside from the beasts.”
She crossed her arms, adding with a hint of pride.
“Anyway, charging in like that is dangerous.”
“Maybe,” Seol Hayun replied without looking away.
“But if Jinwoo is running, he has sothing in mind.”
There was strange conviction in her voice.
Lily looked at her with curiosity.
“You trust Ryu Jinwoo quite a bit. Is it because of the incidents you went through together?”
“Probably.”
“Was he reckless back then too? I am curious what made you trust him like that.”
Lily probed gently.
Seol Hayun answered in a flat tone.
“Is this because of your grandmother’s request?”
“……What?”
“You are investigating Jinwoo. The only one who would ask that of you is your grandmother.”
“I—I have no idea what you are talking about.”
Lily played dumb, but it hardly mattered.
Still staring at the screen, Seol Hayun continued.
“You do not need to pry from . Stay near him and you will see.”
“See what?”
“I will answer your earlier question. Yes, he was reckless then too. Always reckless. Because of that, I survived. Others did as well.”
Ryu Jinwoo was always reckless.
Always pushing his limits.
But it was not blind bravado.
He never ran—he always found a way through.
No one knew why, but that desperate stubbornness saved people.
That was when it happened.
On screen, Ryu Jinwoo reached one-third of the roadway.
KUGUGUGUNG—!
As if on cue, the road began collapsing.
At the sa ti, Ryu Jinwoo kicked off the ground.
CRACK—!
The asphalt beneath his foot caved in from the rebound alone.
Seol Hayun held her breath.
‘He really is different.’
He was undeniably stronger.
His jumping power had clearly increased.
That earlier leap had not been a fluke.
But even jumping higher and farther did not solve everything.
He had only cleared one-third. The distance left was imnse.
And interception beasts rushed him the mont he leapt.
“At this rate……” Lily muttered.
“Ah!”
Lily gasped.
An eagle-shaped artificial beast lunged at the airborne Ryu Jinwoo, jaws wide.
With nowhere to dodge, it should have been over.
Tap—!
But he was not caught.
Instead, he grabbed the beast’s neck mid-charge and landed on its back.
Kiiieeek!
The creature flailed wildly, wings beating, but Jinwoo ignored it and leapt again.
The place he jumped toward was empty air.
A fall was inevitable.
Yet his expression showed no fear.
He waited calmly—and his intent beca clear.
Beasts instinctively rushed toward the exposed prey suspended in midair.
Whoosh—!
Sharp talons and beaks converged.
Jinwoo barely dodged them, then climbed onto another beast with quick hands.
He balanced briefly like a rodeo rider, then jumped again.
Sa direction.
The far side of the broken road—the finish line.
“He is… advancing,” Lily whispered in disbelief.
The principle was simple.
He was exploiting the beasts’ instinctive attack patterns.
Dodge one, jump forward.
The beasts rush him.
Grab one, ride it, and jump again.
He was using the beasts as stepping stones.
Pure insanity.
A slight mistiming ant being torn apart or falling from that height.
“This is insane. It is basically suicide!”
Lily cried out.
But Seol Hayun replied softly.
“That does not even qualify as reckless for him.”
What was more surprising was sothing else.
‘He does not look tired at all.’
No frantic panting. No coughing blood. No collapsing.
She knew Jinwoo’s usual pattern—pushing himself to the brink, burning life force.
But now, he looked lighter than ever.
As she watched, completely absorbed—
“……Yoon—Hayun?”
“Hm?”
Seol Hayun snapped back to herself.
Lily was calling her, glancing around.
Other cadets were staring at her uneasily.
“It is hot.”
“Oh.”
Only then did she realize.
Red magic power was shimring from her body like heat haze.
She had unconsciously let her magic leak out while watching Jinwoo’s run.
Seol Hayun hurriedly suppressed it.
‘If Grandmother saw this……’
A chill ran down her spine.
She would have been locked in the underground ditation chamber, starved and sleepless for three days and nights until her emotions were completely erased.
She had always followed the orthodox path.
Deviation was never tolerated.
Ryu Jinwoo was different.
If there was no path, he made one.
If blocked, he smashed through.
‘So reckless.’
And that recklessness—the freedom she could never even dream of—stirred sothing inside her.
Seol Hayun placed a hand over her pounding heart.
The unruly heartbeat.
The sensation of blood burning hotter than flas.
‘Not bad.’
Watching Jinwoo continue his perilous acrobatics, a faint smile ford on Seol Hayun’s lips.
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