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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: JayM
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Ah, a teenager’s body was amazing.
After singing until my enhanced vocal cords were raw and stuffing myself with spicy kimchi fried rice and pork cutlet until I was about to burst, I honestly made up my mind to humbly accept my impending death.
But surprisingly, thanks to the combined power of the Saint’s Will’s enhanced healing and my teenage body, I woke up without much pain, except for a slightly scratchy throat.
Actually, I would have died if I had done this right after transmigrating, so it seemed like this was just my efforts so far being rewarded rather than being due to my teenager body, but what did it matter?
Being healthy was a good thing.
“Ugh…”
However, there was a superhuman paying the price for her first experience with pleasure.
“I told you not to eat that spicy pork cutlet.”
The loser who called me a scaredy-cat for eating regular pork cutlet and ate the spicy one without any stomach protection, was now silently screaming in bed, suffering the consequences of her indulgence.
Yes, spicy food was one thing, but the real horror came the next day.
She probably wanted to use the restroom, but was holding it in because she was embarrassed that I was there.
It was quite pitiful to see a heroine use her superhuman patience for something like this.
It’s okay, Ha-ni. Even heroines need to use the restroom. I understand.
But I couldn’t forgive her for calling me a scaredy-cat.
“Be quiet…”
Well, even though I said that, Ha-ni would soon be free.
I was going out today.
I didn’t really need to go out yet, but it would be a problem if my goodwill with her decreased like how it did with Lilac in the original story because I got too comfortable.
I would die if she decided to stab me.
“Where are you going…”
But surprisingly, Ha-ni, who I thought would want me to leave as soon as possible, stopped me.
“Huh? I have something to do, I’ll be back around dinner time.”
“Melona when you come back.”
“I’ll be late, so it’s better that you buy it yourself. But I’ll get you something soft.”
“Okay.”
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I had several reasons for going out today, but my first priority was to resolve a question I had.
It was a simple question.
I could use my talent.
I could also use magic.
Although my body was still pathetic, it was improving, and at this level, I could be considered to have the basic qualities of a cadet.
But there was still something I wasn’t sure about.
It was the natural question of whether I could actually fight.
My physical limitations and lack of skill could be overcome, but I wondered if I, who transmigrated from a normal, peaceful world, could actually engage in a life-or-death battle, and not just a spar.
At the entrance ceremony, Choi In-ho was dealt with by Lilac, and in the Saint’s dungeon with the Goblins, Professor Cathy handled the enemies.
Yes, I had never properly fought a monster before, let alone a villain.
Could I actually perform well if I was suddenly thrown into a real battle next week?
I was planning to test that today.
The place I found was the academy’s VR room.
It wasn’t for entertainment though. It was a near-realistic combat simulator that could simulate monsters, beasts, and even criminals with high fidelity.
I sat down at a device, activated it, and intentionally chose the data of a villain whose name I didn’t recognize from the list.
The moment I set the pain setting to 100%, the scenery changed, and I found myself facing the villain in an arena-like place.
“What the… A kid?”
Good, he definitely looked like a person.
Although it wouldn’t be exactly the same as reality since I knew it was an illusion created by the device, it was sufficient for my experiment.
Thanks to the device’s high fidelity, the dry wind and dust felt surprisingly real to me.
The unknown villain’s weapon was a knife, just like mine. He was an E-rank villain, so he probably wasn’t that strong.
I enhanced my eyesight with Enhancement, and the world slowed down, making the villain’s movements clearly visible to me.
“Consider it your misfortune to have met this old man.”
Old man, my ass.
He charged at me.
The way he swung his dagger was as slow as me, but the murderous intent in his eyes was like that of a real criminal.
After dodging his clumsy attack and punching him in the solar plexus, a surprisingly realistic sensation traveled through my arm.
It seemed like I could punch someone without hesitation.
As I subdued him, his knife grazed me, and a sharp pain shot through my arm, but other than that, I was able to subdue him quite smoothly.
The problem started here.
“You son of a bitch! Let me go! You bastard!”
The cut from his knife stung, and my fist throbbed.
The realistic sensation, almost making me feel like this was reality, made me hesitate.
It was true.
I didn’t have to kill the villain.
Even in the original story, the number of villains Lilac killed could be counted on one hand.
If I just subdued him and left him, he would be arrested and sent to prison.
“Huh…? You’re not going to put that down?”
But the hesitation was only momentary.
That was why Lilac had to endure countless hardships in the original story.
That was why Choi In-ho was able to seize the opportunity and escape again this time.
I steeled myself and stabbed the restrained villain in the neck with my knife.
A strangely unpleasant sensation, like piercing through thick meat and bone, traveled up my arm, but it wasn’t unbearable.
Befitting its title as the best academy, Reilan Academy’s training equipment boasted incredible quality, and I was able to witness the villain’s death.
Countless thoughts flashed through the villain’s eyes, unable to even scream, but he soon stopped moving.
It wasn’t a pleasant sensation, but it wasn’t unbearably terrible either.
The immersion was broken when his body disintegrated into particles of light, but this kind of practice was better than nothing.
The unpleasant feeling would become familiar and disappear.
It was important to always think that way.
“…Shouldn’t academy stories have some kind of cheerful mental safety device?”
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My second objective wasn’t a big deal.
I just had to go to the supermarket and buy some things.
“I’d like to buy these.”
“Are you going hiking?”
“Yes, something like that. I need to get them before it gets humid.”
“You look like an academy student. Do you get bugs in the dormitory?”
“Ah, the dormitory is clean, but since the main building is large, there are some here and there.”
“Ah, I see. Some people buy these every year. I asked because it’s a bit early in the season.”
“I’m a bit sensitive to bugs.”
“Haha, a hero student who’s afraid of bugs. You won’t be able to go to the jungle.”
“I guess not.”
As I had my stuff checked out, I casually responded to the supermarket employee’s joke. The time was just right.
He was in the park in front of the supermarket just as the sun began to set.
The main purpose of today’s outing was the coincidental encounter I had orchestrated.
“Sigh.”
Lilac.
He usually trained in the park near his family home after visiting his family over the weekends when he had no other plans.
He said he felt like he trained better there because it was the place where he first awakened his talent.
It was exactly as described in the novel.
I watched the protagonist of this world practice his swordsmanship for a moment.
Slowly, but precisely, he drew his sword and struck.
Closing his eyes, holding his breath, and swinging his sword as if he wouldn’t allow even the slightest tremor, he seemed incredibly serious even to me, a layman when it came to swords.
You might ask why he was so focused on a simple downward strike, but perhaps it was because of the move’s simplicity that his effort was clearly visible.
“Sigh.”
But he sighed again.
He seemed dissatisfied.
“Lilac?”
It was the perfect time to talk to him, so I interrupted his training before he started swinging his sword again.
“Oh, So-hyun!”
He had always been friendly towards me, but his goodwill had skyrocketed since I told him it was okay to help Kim Ga-eul, even though she had been bullying me.
How burdensome.
“Were you training?”
“Yeah. How did you know I’d be here? Did you have something to do nearby?”
“Yeah, I had to buy something.”
“Anyway, it’s good to see you!”
He didn’t seem to mind that I had interrupted his training and greeted me warmly.
I felt a bit guilty.
I was about to use him, after all.
“Hey, Lilac, are you free next week?”
“Huh? Next week? I might be busy on the weekend.”
“No, it’ll be during the weekdays. It’s about Ga-eul. It seems like the bullying is a bit severe.”
I didn’t know for sure, but it was probably severe.
“…Really?”
As expected of the protagonist, he already seemed displeased.
“So, I was thinking of gathering a few kids and comforting her. Having even one or two people on your side makes a big difference in these situations.”
“Ah, that’s a good idea. But do you think the others will want to go? I’m fine with it though.”
“Actually, I’m trying to recruit you first, but I’ll gather a few more people after.”
“Should I ask around?”
“Don’t invite… Yoo-na.”
I almost called her “pink chihuahua.”
“Huh…? But why?”
“She’ll get jealous if she sees you comforting another girl.”
“Come on, Yoo-na can be a bit prickly, but she wouldn’t go that far.”
Yes, she would.
I knew her better than you did.
“Ah, just trust me and don’t invite her. She’s straightforward, and it’ll ruin the mood if she criticizes her.”
“Ah, that’s possible.”
He seemed to dismiss my first comment as a joke, but when I made an excuse, he nodded as if it was plausible.
In the end, he couldn’t deny his childhood friend’s personality.
“Anyway, keep your schedule clear. We’ll do it after class on Thursday.”
“Okay. So-hyun, you’re really kind. I don’t think I could do that for someone who bullied me.”
“You’d probably do even more than me.”
“Would I?”
Yes, that was why you cried so sadly when she died, even though you only just started to become friends, and she was still reflecting on her actions.
The scene where he hugged her unrecognizable corpse and wailed while apologizing for not being able to save her clearly showed his despair even if it was just through text.
He defeated the culprit later, but that didn’t change the fact that she was dead and wouldn’t be able to come back.
The description was particularly detailed because it was the first time he personally lost someone at the academy, and it was still vivid in my mind.
“Yes, you would have done even more.”
“Nah, I wouldn’t do that much.”
Tsk.
Setting aside Kim Ga-eul, I had to make sure this clueless, friend’s son-like guy didn’t cry so sadly this time.
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It was already late when I returned to the dormitory after chatting with Lilac.
Ha-ni, who seemed to be doing better now, peeked down from the top bunk.
“Oh, you’re back?”
“Yeah. I bought you a Melona.”
“What?”
“Why what? You asked me to buy you one.”
“You actually bought one? You’re so cute.”
Well, it was a common rule for protagonists in web novels to forget this kind of thing, but I was a thoughtful man and didn’t forget my promises easily.
Of course, I was also scared of her becoming upset with me.
“Hey, did you know?”
“What?”
“I heard this through a group chat, but Kim Ga-eul was asking if anyone had your number. Everyone ignored her, but is she planning to do something to you again?”
“Why does she hate me so much?”
“I know, right? Our So-hyun is so cute. And quick-witted.”
…Actually, that didn’t make me feel very good. I would have frowned if I didn’t know you were a girl.
Though I’d succumb and laugh about it later on.
“Anyway, tell me if she does anything on Monday. Ah, it’s too bad we’re in different classes. Why does she go to your class every day when she’s not even in it?”
“I don’t know. Maybe she still has feelings for Cheon Yoo-hak.”
“She’s persistent.”
But it was annoying that she was looking for my number. Let’s see what she does on Monday.
If she annoyed me, I wouldn’t save her.
No, I couldn’t not save her because of Lilac. I would just save her a bit later.
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T/N – “Hesitation is defeat” -Isshin the Glock Saint.
Also, it looks like the MC is preparing for the main event bit by bit.
If you find any mistakes, feel free to point them out in the comments.
Ah a fellow sekiro player, those words from the glock saint was truly a motivating sentence