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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Chaos
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Fortunately, since the time of my reincarnation was Saturday, I had the weekend to sort out my affairs (?) and prepare for my new life.
The first thing I learned while cleaning the pigsty of a house was that Han Tae-jin was an orphan.
There were absolutely no belongings related to his parents, and no information suggesting their existence was saved in his phone either.
It was as if he had some kind of grudge against them.
Well, being alone was more convenient for starting a new life, so I didn’t dwell on it.
‘Besides, isn’t being an orphan the standard for reincarnation?’
After cleaning the house, I deactivated my social media accounts to erase my embarrassing past.
My personal SNS, Twitora, was filled with cringe-worthy posts that made me want to gouge my eyes out.
To give you just one example:
It lacked the “Kekeke” at the end, making it somewhat bland, but about 100 similar, embarrassing posts littered my SNS.
So I deleted them all and deactivated my accounts.
The thought of any academy cadets seeing them already made my head spin.
Black flame dragon my ass, I’m the black flame dragon now, you bastard.
Anyway, after taking care of everything, I went to a hair salon and got a proper haircut, trimming the shaggy hair that covered my face.
A haggard face was revealed. It was certainly a gloomy appearance befitting Frail Lv10, and the dark circles under my eyes seemed to announce, “I’m a patient.”
Of course, I had some idea of what to expect, as there was a brief description of Han Tae-jin in the original novel.
In short, he had a handsome face, but it was a mess due to neglect, and he was a slacker with no interest in growing as a hunter. That’s how I interpreted it.
“With a face like this and amazing traits, he wasted his time stalking, tsk tsk.”
Humanity is diverse, but Han Tae-jin was truly incomprehensible.
Anyway, after finishing all of that, I signed up for a gym membership and returned home.
I didn’t forget to buy groceries for bulking up my frail body.
“Shall I start by grilling some meat?”
Of course, I planned to use hidden pieces to boost my stats, but before that, a healthy body was essential to absorb those stats fully.
There’s a limit to how much you can improve a frail body, even with hidden pieces.
So, starting today, I planned to focus on a bulking diet and exercise.
Therefore, I prepared a hearty dinner.
A balanced meal with carbohydrates, protein, and other nutrients.
First, let’s load up on rice and meat.
A healthy mind resides in a healthy body!
However,
-Ding !!!
[Frail (Lv10) activated.]
[Sudden food intake causes stomach contractions. You will vomit.]
Those who overlooked the level 10 Frail trait had to learn through vomiting.
“Ugh, blech!”
But seriously.
How the hell did this guy stalk four people with a body like this?
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“Ha, I finally finished eating.”
I slumped in my chair and rubbed my stomach.
The Frail trait made my meal last an hour.
My eagerness had led me to underestimate the power of “Frail (Lv10).”
I did get a little breathless just from picking up the pace on the way to the gym, but I didn’t expect it to be this bad.
Fortunately, after throwing up once, I was able to manage by eating slowly, although I still had to chew my food several times.
“Such an inefficient body.”
I was newly impressed.
He stalked four heroines every day with a body like this. In a way, it was an ‘S’-rank level of dedication.
If he had invested this dedication in his growth, he might have surpassed the protagonist by now. He truly was a unique individual.
“Let’s clean up.”
After clearing the empty dishes, I decided to test this wretched body before starting my workout.
The most effective test was, of course, to see if I could handle the appropriate weapon for my class.
I picked up the longbow hanging on the wall.
A crude practice longbow suitable for F-ranks, it boasted similar strength to the main weapon used at the academy.
*Thump thump.*
A heavy sound resonated as I plucked the bowstring.
People often think of archers as “agility characters,” but archers are actually “strength characters.”
Unlike close-range dealers, who rely heavily on skill, archers prioritize accuracy and the power to draw the bowstring strongly – in other words, destructive power.
That doesn’t mean skill is unimportant for archers. The priorities are simply different, as strength is a prerequisite for developing pinpoint accuracy.
Anyway,
To become a powerful archer, you need the strength and endurance to pull this thick bowstring with force and maintain aim at the target, but…
‘Status Window’
..
..
[Status▼]
[Strength: 2] [Agility: 46] [Magic Power: 3]
[Stamina: 40] [Luck: 50] [Endurance: 1]
..
..
Looking at these speechless stats, I wondered how he even became an archer.
How did he avoid expulsion from the academy with stats like these? Did he have some kind of deal with his homeroom teacher?
‘…Bullshit.’
Sadly, that possibility was close to zero.
Professor Perna Ella, the homeroom teacher, was one of the main heroines Han Tae-jin had stalked.
Forget a deal, he’d be lucky if she didn’t slap him.
But isn’t it common knowledge that all stats except luck complement each other, and that agility requires strength to reach 100% efficiency?
And this guy was supposedly an academy cadet?
Isn’t this something that’s constantly emphasized from the very first page of the first-year theory class?
‘…Well, it’s hard to talk about common sense with such a crazy bastard.’
He was an S-rank character with four archer-specialized traits, yet he used them for stalking. What common sense or basic knowledge could I expect from him?
Forget all that.
‘I’ll train hard from now on.’
Even though I was a third-year, graduating class, I would become skilled enough to join Korea’s top guild, “Laon Jena,” by the time I graduated.
Engraving that determination in my heart, I took a deep breath, tensed my muscles, and hooked my fingers onto the bowstring.
I didn’t need an arrow.
I just needed to check if I could pull this thick bowstring to its limit and hold it for at least 10 seconds.
I took a deep breath and held it.
Then, I channeled blood flow into my contracted muscles, expanding my deltoid muscles.
Even without an arrow, I visualized a target and sharpened my gaze.
Immediately after, I pulled the bowstring with all my might.
—*Ziiiing.*
The thick bowstring stretched taut. I clenched my teeth and pulled the bow forward, stretching the bowstring to its limit.
But then.
-Ding !!!
[Frail (Lv10) activated.]
[Extreme muscle expansion without warm-up causes cramps.]
“Ugh!”
As soon as I fully drew the bowstring, the trait activated, forcing me to drop the longbow and clutch my right deltoid muscle.
Just from drawing the bowstring once, all the muscles in my arm cramped up.
-Ding !!!
[10 minutes of rest required.]
“Ugh…”
This son of a bitch.
A third-year academy student getting muscle cramps just because he didn’t warm up?
Was he planning to politely request a break in the middle of a raid, saying, “Excuse me, but could you give me some time to warm up? My muscles are precious”?
“Han Tae-jin… ugh… you fucking… bastard…!”
Rolling on the floor, I thought about this pathetic excuse for a body that I’d confirmed with just one test.
It seemed I needed to do something about that damn Frail trait.
“Ugh…”
I had to lie on the floor for a long time, struggling to relieve the cramps.
It seemed the difficulty level of my new life was quite high.
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Monday morning arrived.
Last night, before going to bed, I logged onto the ‘National Hunter Academy’ website and checked Han Tae-jin’s grades, just in case. As expected:
[Midterm Theory Evaluation: D-]
[Midterm Practical Evaluation: F+]
A disastrous level.
It was unreasonable to expect high marks from someone obsessed with stalking outside of sleeping hours, but the F+ in the practical evaluation was truly disappointing.
If I graduated with grades like these, I’d be lucky to join a third-rate mercenary group run by local thugs, let alone Laon Jena.
“Ha… I have a splitting headache.”
A dull headache crept in, brought on by my bleak future.
-Ding !!!
[Frail (Lv10) activated.]
[You have a mild headache. Stress is the main culprit! Eliminate the source of stress to alleviate the headache.]
This was ridiculous.
The incessantly irritating Frail trait made me nauseous to the point of explosion.
And what?
Eliminate the source of stress?
Was it suggesting I commit suicide?
They should have coded it with some flexibility. This new life was off to a frustrating start.
—*Screech.*
‘Hurry up and get on.’
“Thank you.”
At least, thanks to my high luck stat, catching the bus I almost missed was one reason not to be completely pessimistic about the future.
As the elders say,
Luck is seven, skill is three.
Success in life is 70% luck and 30% skill. No matter how skilled you are, success is difficult without luck.
Of course, it felt a little strange to apply that saying to this idiot, who wasted his luck stat of 50 on stalking.
Anyway, I shook off my distracting thoughts and sat in the back seat of the bus.
Despite my anxieties about going to school, I felt strangely excited.
Attending ‘Hidden Piece Academy’ had been a dream of mine ever since I first read the novel.
《The next stop is Gomok Police Station.》
Tapping my foot, I looked out the window at the bustling scenery.
For two days, I had thoroughly familiarized myself with this imbecile.
Know yourself and know your enemy, and you will never be in peril.
Now, if I monopolized the hidden pieces, drastically improved my shortcomings, and stood out in the final exams, it would be easier to attract the attention of guilds.
‘Wasn’t he at the bottom of the class during the midterm evaluations?’
That kind of suspicious interest.
The sudden rise of an insignificant person always piques people’s curiosity.
I took out my phone and opened the memo app.
I had recorded all the information I could remember about the hidden pieces.
There were probably about 50 of them, even after summarizing.
These records would be the cradle of my growth, the treasure trove of my success.
After reading through them with satisfaction and closing the memo app, I raised my head and looked at the people getting on the bus.
And then.
“…Oh.”
I saw Hanna, one of the main heroines.
Hanna, the eldest daughter of a prestigious tanker hunter family.
She, whose surname was Han and given name was Na, got on the bus, her red hair fluttering in the wind.
‘…We take the same bus to school?’
I immediately lowered my gaze.
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Dark Flame Master is that you?
I understood that reference.