I Became the Academy’s Heroine Stalker – Chapter 6

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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Chaos
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—*Thud!*

“Your launch strength has increased since last time.”

“Thank you, sir.”

—*Boom!*

“As expected, the destructive power of the great crossbow is impressive. However, you need to work on your firing speed.”

“Yes, sir.”

One by one.

Each cadet demonstrated their skills to the best of their ability against the disc-shaped magic guard Professor Choi Seok-min had deployed.

And when Baek Seok-hwa, a promising archer, cast his skill, everyone held their breath.

—*Crash!*

“Speed, accuracy, destructive power, all excellent. Well done, Cadet Baek Seok-hwa.”

“Heehee, thank you, sir!”

He was truly impressive.

The sound was like a cannonball crashing into the magic guard.

A tremendous boom similar to Han-Na’s resonated, and Seok-hwa returned to his place, happily hopping.

‘Ugh, please let me avoid complete humiliation.’

It was my turn next.

And of all things, why did I have to be right after Seok-hwa?

It felt somewhat cruel, but I focused on tensing all the muscles in my body.

*Crack,* I loosened my neck and finger joints.

I rotated my arms, contracting and relaxing my muscles.

Then, I gripped the handle of the bow with my left hand and lightly held the bowstring with my right.

‘Magic Arrow.’

A yellow arrow materialized with the basic magic chant.

It was a thin, unimpressive arrow due to my still-meager magic power, but I nocked it and drew the bowstring.

I lowered the bow slightly, assuming the ready position.

Now I had to pull the bowstring to its limit and aim.

But before that, I glanced around.

‘This situation is pathetic, truly pathetic.’

There wasn’t a single supportive glance to be found. In fact, no one was even looking at me properly.

They were all chatting with their partners, filing their nails, or looking at their phones.

Had I become something not even worth laughing at?

Their indifference fueled a sense of defiance within me.

No, this wasn’t indifference; it was outright disregard.

“Tsk.”

I clicked my tongue at the bitter reality, took a deep breath, and held it. Blood flowed rapidly through my tensed muscles, warming them up.

I sharpened my gaze, focusing my intent in my sunken eyes.

Then, I spread my shoulders, expanded my trapezius muscles, and pulled the bowstring with all my might.

—*Ziiiing!*

‘Okay.’

The moment I pulled it, I knew.

It was definitely different from yesterday.

But I was still far from a perfect shot.

My left hand, holding the bow, trembled as I pulled the bowstring to its limit, making it difficult to aim.

Nevertheless, I closed one eye and focused as much as possible.

‘Ugh.’

However, the shaking bow made it impossible to focus, and my right arm started to strain.

I felt intense pain in my swollen deltoid and triceps muscles.

‘Damn it…!’

I gritted my teeth.

My life as the perverted slacker Han Tae-jin was over.

With this one shot, I would make a strong impression on the guild observers and the cadets.

—*Creak.*

I pulled the already taut bowstring even further.

I heard a tearing sound from the stretched bowstring.

At the same time, I felt a tearing sensation in the muscles around my shoulder.

‘Ugh…! Just a little more!’

I swallowed the metallic taste of blood that filled my mouth.

The pungent scent sharpened my fading senses.

Just a little more.

Just a little longer.

I focused my gaze, trying to steady the trembling aim, and further tightened my left arm muscles.

‘Ugh… please, please…!’

Accuracy was crucial, as hitting closer to the center of the magic guard resulted in a higher evaluation.

A wave of magic power gradually emanated from my muscles as they reached their limit.

I gathered it at the arrowhead and focused on the center of the magic guard. Then, a system notification rang in my ears.

It was the trait activation I had been waiting for.

-Ding !!!

‘Yes!’

The center of the magic guard was locked in with the trait activation.

The bow vibrated intensely.

Amidst the tremors, I focused.

Excruciating pain shot through me as my swollen muscle fibers felt like they were tearing one by one.

Blood trickled from my bitten lip, and my consciousness began to fade.

‘Just a little more…!’

But I held onto my wavering consciousness, focusing on the center of the magic guard despite the intense pain.

And then.

“Initial Shot.”

I unleashed the magic power concentrated in my dantian, activating the skill. My consciousness faded like I was falling asleep, and my hearing muffled as if I were submerged in water.

As my muscles, pushed to their absolute limit, tore, I released the bowstring.

—*Whoosh!*

The magic arrow flew with a sharp whistling sound.

A powerful wave of magic power followed in its wake.

But I didn’t see where it landed.

My mind and body, pushed to the extreme, finally collapsed with the release of the arrow.

‘Ugh…’

But just before I lost consciousness, I heard another system notification.

…What?

A new trait?

Limit Break?

*Thud.*

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A chilling silence fell over the gymnasium.

The guild observers sprang up like jack-in-the-boxes, drawing the attention of even the second-year cadets training nearby.

“Wh-what was that just now?”

“Was that… Han Tae-jin…?”

“That guy who couldn’t even hit the target properly in the last test…?”

“He couldn’t even fully draw the bowstring back then…”

The graduating class cadets murmured, looking at the collapsed Tae-jin.

Hunters’ bows were, of course, specially made, and the bow itself weighed 5kg. Ordinary people couldn’t even draw the string.

Tae-jin used to struggle every time he tried to draw the bowstring.

He had a frail body, only slightly stronger than an average person.

But the shot he just fired was unbelievably powerful and fast.

Of course, it was nowhere near the level of Baek Seok-hwa’s shot, but it was something that the weak and frail Han Tae-jin they knew could never have achieved.

The cadets, too stunned to even help the collapsed Tae-jin, could only whisper among themselves.

“What…?”

“What was that…?”

“What happened to Han Tae-jin over the weekend?”

“This doesn’t make sense.”

“That guy who couldn’t even draw the bowstring properly… produced that kind of destructive power…?”

Most of the reactions were of disbelief.

Their murmurs were silenced by Professor Choi Seok-min’s command.

“Everyone, quiet.”

Choi Seok-min deactivated his magic guard and rushed over to Han Tae-jin.

Magic power exhaustion was a common occurrence during practical tests. Excessive enthusiasm often made cadets forget their limits.

But Cadet Han Tae-jin was far from enthusiastic, which was why his magic guard level had been lowered to the minimum.

That’s why it had cracked.

To accurately measure the results of the practical test, the magic guard level had to be adjusted for each cadet.

Just as you couldn’t measure the strength of an egg by throwing it at a rock, the magic guard levels were adjusted based on the cadets’ previous records and skill levels.

That way, they could accurately assess even the thickness of the eggshell.

That’s why the lowest level of magic guard had been set for Cadet Han Tae-jin, but its unexpected destructive power had caused it to crack.

‘…He fainted from exhaustion.’

Choi Seok-min checked Tae-jin’s pulse and circulated magic power through him, reaching that conclusion.

His body, unaccustomed to properly handling magic power, couldn’t withstand the sudden exertion at its maximum capacity.

Fortunately, it was just a simple faint from magic power exhaustion, not a medical emergency.

After his assessment, Choi Seok-min called Yoo Su-ah, a promising healer, and Kim Min, the class president, from among the murmuring cadets.

“Cadet Yoo Su-ah, Cadet Kim Min.”

““Yes, sir.””

“Cadet Han Tae-jin has simply fainted from magic power exhaustion. Administer recovery and healing skills while taking him to Nurse Cecilia.”

“Yes, sir.”

Kim Min carried Tae-jin on his back, and Su-ah followed.

Magic power exhaustion occurred when the dantian was depleted of magic power. Replenishing a small amount of magic power and resting for a while would lead to recovery. Su-ah, trained for such situations, skillfully cast her spell.

With that, the commotion subsided, and Choi Seok-min called for a short break.

He, too, needed a moment to catch his breath after the unexpected turn of events.

“We will resume the test after a 10-minute break.”

““Yes, sir!””

As soon as the break was announced, the cadets gathered in groups and chattered, the noise intensifying like a marketplace.

But Choi Seok-min simply watched Han Tae-jin being carried towards the gymnasium exit.

His magic guard had cracked.

It was probably because he had set the level to 2, the level for freshmen, but it was only the second time his magic guard had been damaged, the first being by Cadet Choi Do-han.

This was a matter of a professor’s dignity, but he didn’t have the time to worry about such things right now.

‘How did he…?’

It was a mystery.

He had been in charge of practical training for five years.

There had been many cadets who exceeded his expectations, and occasionally, some cadets would experience sudden growth spurts.

But Cadet Han Tae-jin’s shot was truly baffling.

It felt like his hard work over the years had been mocked, even belittled.

‘The point of impact was perfect, too.’

A magic guard didn’t crack easily.

It required a precise balance of point of impact and destructive power. The shot just now had been perfectly balanced, as if measured with a ruler.

It was a balance that the listless, unmotivated Tae-jin he knew could never have achieved.

‘In terms of balance alone, it was superior to Cadet Baek Seok-hwa’s shot.’

He knew Cadet Han Tae-jin better than anyone.

As an instructor and professor responsible for the cadets’ combat growth, Tae-jin’s regressing progress had been a major headache.

Yet, he had just become the second cadet to damage his magic guard, after Cadet Choi Do-han.

Of course, in terms of pure destructive power, it was far inferior to Cadet Baek Seok-hwa’s previous shot.

The crack in the magic guard was purely due to his own mistake.

But in terms of relative growth, it was unparalleled among the countless cadets he had seen in the past five years.

‘…Or has he been hiding his skills all along?’

He tried to rationalize it, but it was an illogical conclusion.

What could have happened?

What turning point could have occurred in the life of someone who seemed to lack any motivation for growth or dreams for the future, leading to such a display of magic power?

Whether he hid his skills or experienced a sudden growth spurt, there had to be a significant reason behind it, but even he, who had taught countless cadets, couldn’t fathom it.

This was the first time he had encountered such a case.

‘Cadet Han Tae-jin is definitely a subject worthy of research.’

Choi Seok-min finally reached that conclusion and called the next group, the close-range dealers, while redeploying his magic guard.

However, his mind was preoccupied with thoughts of Han Tae-jin.

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I opened my eyes.

An unfamiliar ceiling greeted me.

Or rather, a familiar ceiling for this frail body.

I sighed softly, noticing the faint smell of medicine and the bed curtains indicating I was in the infirmary.

My whole body ached.

Especially my right arm, which was difficult to even move.

‘Just one shot reduced me to this state.’

I wondered if I even hit the target.

If I fainted without even hitting the target, I would be too embarrassed to even show my face.

To think that this damned body had acquired the Limit Break trait, a trait that was supposed to be exclusive to the protagonist, Choi Do-han. At least, it wasn’t supposed to appear until much later in the story.

‘Limit Break was a trait that accelerated growth.’

In other words, it was a useful trait that amplified the effects of training and practice. If you didn’t do anything, nothing would happen, but if you trained and cultivated yourself, it would boost your growth rate.

It seemed that the original owner of this body had never pushed his mind and body to the limit, which is why it hadn’t manifested until now.

‘Wait, does that mean he had the potential to become a main villain in the original story?’

Han Tae-jin was expelled from the academy after being beaten by the protagonist for blackmailing the main heroines.

Until then, there hadn’t been any significant foreshadowing, so I assumed he was just a low-level villain who faded into obscurity. But if he possessed a protagonist-level trait like Limit Break, the story could have been different.

At least, it meant he wasn’t just a one-off side character.

‘Hmm, maybe he would have been a mid-boss level character?’

I didn’t know.

The rest of the story hadn’t been revealed yet.

Anyway, this damned body had manifested the Limit Break trait, which also provided a +1 bonus to all stats, so it was a significant boost of hope.

‘Should I check my status window?’

I could confirm the details through the status window.

But I was startled by a voice right next to me.

“Ah, Brother Han Tae-jin. Are you awake?”

It was the voice of Yoo Su-ah, the natural nun and healer among the main heroines.

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