Chapter 81: Final Exam Preparation (4)
“You block the left escape route, and you over there!”
“Understood!”
Voices barked out urgent orders.
“Aaargh!!”
“Damn it! I cannot end like this!!”
Desperate screams and spiteful shouts echoed from all directions. In the midst of the chaos, a villain fled for his life. However, his desperate flight did not end in success.
“My, my. Do you not feel any pity for your friends dying over there? You should try living with a little sothing called camaraderie.”
He turned a corner and ran straight into a villain hunter. Not just any hunter, but the man known as the terror of all villains.
“The... the Grim Reaper...!”
“Grim Reaper? I do have a proper na, you know. Is it really necessary to call
that?”
Shin Yu-hwan, the man the villain called the Grim Reaper, smirked playfully. But did that smile look playful to the villain? To him, it likely seed like the mockery of a god of death coming to pronounce his sentence.
“D-Damn it!!”
Proving this, the villain imdiately turned to run, unaware that his struggle was utterly futile.
STAB!
“Ghurk...”
A black spear pierced the villain’s neck the mont he turned. It moved at a speed impossible for a normal person to even track. Unable to put up any resistance, the villain collapsed, foaming blood. It was a grueso and chilling sight, but Shin Yu-hwan’s expression remained indifferent. It was as if this were as mundane as eating a al.
“Phew. If I killed cockroaches this much, they would have gone extinct. Why are these guys never-ending?”
Shin Yu-hwan spoke of them as less than human, comparing them to pests. To him, it was not just a taphor; villains were truly nothing more than cockroaches. He pulled the spear from the cold corpse.
“Executor Shin Yu-hwan! They say the situation is cleared!”
A subordinate ran up to report. Shin Yu-hwan flicked the blood off his spear and replied grumpily.
“Seriously, why do you keep calling
Executor? I told you to call
what you used to.”
“But those are the orders from above. We should get used to calling you by a cool title too.”
“Always doing useless things. So, did anything turn up?”
“No. It looks like a bust again. They cut their tails off cleanly.”
Shin Yu-hwan clicked his tongue and complained.
“They said we would definitely catch a big fish this ti, but it is always like this.”
“What can we do? Finding A-Rank or S-Rank villains is a job in itself. For now, let us move out.”
It was true. To build infamy through evil deeds, one must first avoid being caught. Thus, even encountering an A-Rank villain was a difficult task. Knowing this did not make the annoyance of a wasted effort any easier to swallow. Shin Yu-hwan followed his subordinate, but his mind was racing.
‘I do not know how they are so elusive. Who on earth are they connected to?’
The one who had joined hands with the villain he had handled at Choi Yu-seong’s request. According to the investigation, the items that person produced were not to be taken lightly. The liquid made using mana from the gates was extrely dangerous. He had been conducting operations to find the villain who commissioned it, but there was no significant progress.
‘I wish I could find at least a lead, but it always ends in a bust like this...’
No progress. He wished he could at least face a mid-level figure, but he was stuck dealing with scraps. How could he stay in a good mood? As Shin Yu-hwan’s expression soured, the subordinate, unable to bear the suffocating atmosphere, finally spoke up.
“Co to think of it, the final exam season for "Glory" is approaching.”
“...That was a bit random, was it not?”
“Everyone is interested in the current class of cadets. It just ca to mind. So are even saying a golden age has arrived.”
The subordinate added with a hint of excitent.
“Oh! Co to think of it, was there not a boy you were interested in, Executor? How is he? Does he show promise?”
The subordinate looked at Shin Yu-hwan with sparkling eyes, hoping he would not ignore the question. Shin Yu-hwan could not help but chuckle internally. It was too obvious that the subordinate was trying to change the subject.
‘Well, I might as well play along.’
This was a guy who had worked hard and followed him without complaint. He thought it would be best to pretend to be fooled. Besides, if he had no interest in the topic, he would have ignored it, but he did have thoughts on the matter.
“Promise? I think he has more than enough. That boy always shows
sothing new.”
“Is that so? If you say so, then becoming an S-Rank player will be no problem for him later.”
“Hmm... I am not so sure about that.”
The subordinate looked puzzled by Shin Yu-hwan’s vague tone.
“Why? Ah, now that I think about it, I heard his rank was a bit low. Is it because of that?”
“No, it is not that. To be honest, I do not know why he entered with that rank given his potential and skill... Well, maybe he just started blooming late.”
“Then what is the problem? You evaluate him so highly.”
“I wonder if the boy will even care about ranks. Just like .”
The subordinate’s face soured instantly, as if he had heard sothing he should not have.
“Eek, there is another person like you, Executor?”
“There could be. By the way, what is with that face? Do you want to get hit?”
“It was just a look of surprise.”
From the subordinate's perspective, such a reaction was natural. Shin Yu-hwan was a great player, but he was hardly a "good" boss. To hear there was another person like him made Choi Yu-seong sound like a little devil to the subordinate's ears. Shin Yu-hwan knew this, so he only offered a playful threat.
“Anyway, whether he becos an S-Rank player or an A-Rank, I do not know. But based on my gut... I think he will be soone who definitely carves his na into the world.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes. I have a feeling that will be the case in many ways.”
Shin Yu-hwan smiled with certainty. It was a smile that held many complex emotions rather than pure joy. At the sa ti, he declared:
“So, will he not do well on his final exams on his own? Provided it is a aningful exam for the boy, that is.”
He did not blindly say he would do well; he said he would do well 'if' it was a aningful exam. It was the highest praise the Spear God, Shin Yu-hwan, could give.
***
“...So, what you are saying, Yu-seong, is that we should clear a gate together for training?”
“Yes. That is right.”
“And just the two of us, without the other kids?”
“Yeah. Exactly.”
After hearing my explanation, a look of confusion appeared on Kim Su-hyeok’s face. It was understandable why he looked like that.
“But do we have to do it with just the two of us? If it is for training, wouldn't it be better if the others joined as well?”
Even though I frad it as training, my insistence on going with only the two of us was sowhat forced. However, I could not help it in this case.
‘What can I do when the place I found has a two-person limit?’
The problem was that I had no justification to explain this properly. It was because of the unique nature of the gate I intended to visit.
‘The two-person limit is for the hidden piece that leads to another place inside the gate.’
The gate itself did not have a two-person limit. But the location of the hidden piece, which held a reward that would be a huge help to Kim Su-hyeok, was restricted to two people. The issue was that there was no way to explain this properly. Why else would it be called a hidden piece? It is called that because others do not know about it. If I suddenly said I knew about it and told him to go with ... I would be suspicious of myself too.
‘That is why I had to be stubborn.’
But if we kept going like this, we would just be running in circles. So, I agonized over a plausible excuse before a brilliant idea struck .
“Since it is a gate, there might be unexpected dangers.”
“Huh?”
“The final exams are coming up soon, and I thought it would be a nuisance to the others if so unfortunate accident happened...”
I paused to catch my breath before continuing.
“But as you know, it is very dangerous to go alone. That is why I told only you after giving it a lot of thought. You are the most reliable, Su-hyeok.”
After I finished speaking, I looked at Kim Su-hyeok’s face. His eyes wavered slightly; it seed I had reached him.
‘As expected of Kim Su-hyeok's personality, he cannot resist when I put it like this.’
As a protagonist, Kim Su-hyeok always takes care of those around him first. To him, saying it would be a "nuisance" to others and that he was the most "reliable" was an irresistible combination. As proof, the atmosphere shifted as if he were reluctantly agreeing.
“Well, should we do that then? You might be right, Yu-seong.”
“Is that okay? If it is too much to ask, I will go alone—”
“No! It would be very dangerous to go alone, so you cannot do that!”
Bingo.
Su-hyeok really is soft-hearted and easy to trick.
‘...But I feel like a bad guy for so reason.’
Still, please understand, Su-hyeok, since this is all for your growth. I guarantee that everything will be helpful to you.
“Then when are you planning to go?”
“I was thinking of leaving tomorrow. What do you think?”
“But we have classes. Is that okay?”
“We can get permission to go out if we have a valid reason. They will allow it if we say we are going out for training to prepare for the final exams.”
Kim Su-hyeok looked thoughtful for a mont at my words, but when I said sothing like, ‘I guess it really is better if I go alone,’ he imdiately accepted. I should not be doing this, but this is actually kind of fun. Still, I cannot toy with the protagonist too much. I shook off the addictive urge to manipulate Kim Su-hyeok and brought up the plans for tomorrow.
“Then let us leave after finishing only the morning classes tomorrow. How about it?”
“Hmm... I do not have any specific plans, so I think it will be fine.”
“Great. Then I will see you tomorrow.”
“All right. You have to be thoroughly prepared, Yu-seong! Like you said, a gate is a place where it is not strange for anything to happen.”
I could not help but smile at those words. From Kim Su-hyeok's perspective, he was likely going because of my stubbornness, yet he was still so worried. He was far too kind.
“Sure. Do not worry.”
To ensure this kind fellow would not shed tears in the future, I turned away to make my own thorough preparations.
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