—————————————————————–
Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: JayM
—————————————————————–
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
I was able to figure out why Ha-ni was fine even after using the cursed blade.
It was something that Ha-ni from the original story had lost when she first grasped the sword, but that she possessed now.
Trust in her own skills, and pride as a swordswoman.
-As long as that mental fortitude doesn’t waver, she won’t be consumed by the sword.
That was what my monkey brother told me, to be precise.
Not bad. No, it was good.
Originally, I was planning to secretly destroy the cursed blade before anything bad happened to her.
Whether it was Myriad Year Cold Iron, mithril, or legendary metals, in the end, they wouldn’t be stronger than Ruyi. If I became a little stronger, it would be a challenge worth trying.
And the original plan was to get her a new, less problematic, decent sword, but this changed things.
The settings book said that Snow Fang was a growing cursed blade, and its compatibility with Ha-ni was the best.
It was called a cursed blade, but it didn’t eat away at one’s reason.
It was called a cursed blade because the ever-sharpening blade made the owner degenerate as a swordsman, losing themselves as they relied on the blade’s sharpness rather than their skill.
In other words, if someone with a strong mind used it consciously, it would be the best weapon for them.
If Ha-ni didn’t lose to Lilac and Cheon Yoo-hak in this first ranking match, there was a high probability that she wouldn’t lose her confidence like in the original.
Well, that wasn’t something I could control, so moving on.
“Sigh.”
I found a secluded place to think, but there were already people there before me.
“Hey, who are you to keep calling our brother a loser? Ah, it could be a joke between friends, but the person hearing it might not take it as a joke. I’m really curious.”
“Th-that’s…”
“Hmm, it seems a bit much to be an expression of goodwill. If it’s a sign of friendliness, would it be okay if I did the same to you? I’m an inspector, so I want to be friendly with you cadets.”
“Sister… that’s…”
“Oh, why are you calling me your sister? When did we ever meet? Just because you want to be friends, it doesn’t mean we are close yet, right?”
Damn it. I saw nothing.
With the ranking match just around the corner, I finally wanted to rest, and I didn’t want to waste my energy on something like this.
A transmigrator is a human too. Human! They need to rest and play too.
The loser, who was enjoying playing a pseudo-delinquent at the beginning of the semester, was being scolded by a sister who actually looked like a delinquent.
Aren’t they your friend and your sister?
‘I don’t know what you’re talking about.’
-Do you not want to run into them?
‘Yes, of course.’
-Your sister has already noticed you. If you leave now, you’ll regret it.
‘You should have told me that first.’
I immediately ran over to pay my respects to my esteemed and beautiful sister.
-…How did a guy like this pass the trial?
I heard a pathetic tone in my head for a moment, but I ignored it.
“I thought you’d run away, but you didn’t. Or is it because of her?”
“Why would I run away from you, noona?”
Even I could tell that my tone and attitude were quite awkward.
Even after I dumped her on Professor Cathy that day, we had occasionally run into each other on campus, but we hadn’t had a proper conversation after that day. Even if we had, this awkwardness wasn’t the kind that would easily disappear.
“Anyway, I’m going to finish talking to her, so So-hyun, you…”
“No, first, let her go.”
Her beautiful eyes narrowed slightly.
Scary.
“Did I…”
The hostility towards Kim Ga-eul shifted its form slightly and turned towards me.
“…Hear that wrong?”
“No? I think you heard correctly.”
Kim Ga-eul looked a bit touched, but of course, I wasn’t helping her because she was pretty.
I might have been able to pretend that I didn’t see anything and run away, but since I was already caught, it was best to minimize the damage instead.
Although this place was secluded, it wasn’t impossible that someone else who was looking for a quiet place to think like me might show up.
If someone saw my sister scolding Kim Ga-eul, I didn’t know what kind of rumors would spread tomorrow.
“…Hey, why are you taking her side?”
“What? It’s not about taking sides. It’s just that you have a position to maintain, noona. Honestly, it doesn’t look good for an external inspector to be doing this to a cadet.”
I thought it was a pretty persuasive argument, but she didn’t even pretend to listen.
However, for some reason, she sighed and let Kim Ga-eul go.
“Hey, you. I’m watching you. I’m letting you go because of So-hyun, but I’m not the kind of person who cares about my image. If you do this again, you’re dead.”
She said that to Kim Ga-eul and then glanced back at me.
“The first ranking match is soon, right?”
“Ah, yes.”
“…Don’t push yourself too hard. There will be many more ranking matches. If you get hurt by pushing yourself, you’ll fall behind the others, so don’t overdo it. Ah, and make some time after the ranking match.”
“Huh? Time?”
“…Father said we should have a meal together as a family sometime.”
“Sure.”
I nodded without thinking, but for some reason, her expression crumpled again.
“…Okay, thanks.”
I really need to resolve things with her, too.
But I first need to know exactly what happened to do that.
“Then, listen to Cathy unnie. See you next time.”
“…Who?”
“Who else but Cathy unnie. She’s your professor.”
…Huh? That was strange.
In my memory, they weren’t close enough to call each other ‘sister’…
But I didn’t point out that discrepancy.
Well, they probably resolved things while talking without me.
Professor Cathy isn’t someone who would be disliked, so she probably cleared up the misunderstanding well.
It definitely wasn’t because I was afraid to look into the abyss.
“Yes, of course.”
Long after my sister left, I heard someone plop down.
“Are you okay?”
“No. Your sister is so scary. I think she’s got it out for me. What do I do, loser…?”
“You’re still calling me a loser after being scolded like that. You’re stubborn, I’ll give you that. Whatever, you can just keep calling me a loser.”
Kim Ga-eul, who had been trembling, made a strange face and hardened her expression.
“I’m not. I’m practicing. Soon, okay?”
“…What?”
“Shut up, loser. That’s why I’m calling you a loser, loser.”
Oh, she was getting on my nerves.
I helped her from getting scolded, and told her to call me whatever she wanted, yet she was getting mad at me?
“But seeing her up close, you two really look alike.”
“Me and my sister?”
“Yeah, you should clean yourself up a bit too. Your sister is so pretty.”
…I don’t know. I heard that we’re not actually blood-related, but I should probably look into that too.
“Well, anyway, thanks for helping…”
Grrr.
Oh, at a very cartoonish timing, a growling sound was heard.
Kim Ga-eul’s face turned bright red as her stomach growled, perhaps due to the release of tension and the onset of hunger.
She looked so embarrassed that she even had tears in her eyes, so I didn’t even feel like teasing her.
But I didn’t have the ability or the will to offer sensitive and delicate comfort like Lilac.
“Ah, I’m hungry. Hey, let’s go eat something.”
“Huh? Oh. You must be really hungry. That was really loud.”
“Yeah, I’m starving, so let’s hurry.”
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
“Cadets, eat a lot.”
“Thank you, Professor! But is it really okay for you to buy us this?”
“Yes, it would be a problem if I let a cadet treat me, but it’s fine for me to treat you guys.”
The moment I stepped out of the school gate to get some tteokbokki for Ga-eul, Professor Cathy appeared with perfect timing and offered to treat us, setting up the meal.
In the end, almost all of our close friends gathered for an unexpected tteokbokki party.
…It’s just a coincidence, right?
For some reason, I felt a strange sense of unease as I felt like I was running into Professor Cathy more and more these days.
At first, the others hesitated, but when she said that they didn’t need to hold back, they ordered what they wanted.
Since there were many people, the orders were quite varied, and right now, there was someone in front of me who was happily eating something that I couldn’t possibly acknowledge as tteokbokki.
“Lilac, what is that…?”
“This? Rose tteokbokki. Yoo-na likes it, and after eating it with her, I got used to it, so it’s pretty good. Do you want to try some?”
“Lilac. The rose tteokbokki I know doesn’t have that in it.”
As far as I knew, a neutral-tasting, orange or pink sauce made with cream sauce and something spicy was called rose, but I didn’t remember it being made with vanilla ice cream.
“Hey, it might not look like it, but its sweetness goes well with the spiciness.”
I turned my head away from the horrific monstrosity that I couldn’t believe existed.
“Ah, So-hyun, you’re going on the trip, right?”
“Trip?”
“Yeah, the club is organizing a trip. The seniors said that they’re preparing a lot of fun things for our first trip this weekend after the ranking match.”
Oh, right.
There was that, too.
The initiation trip of the travel enthusiasts who didn’t give up even when the academy was half-destroyed in the original story.
Originally, it was an event that happened before the ranking match because the latter was delayed, but this was the original order.
“You went to a dungeon with Yoo-hak and you hang out with Han-hee every day. It’ll be a betrayal if you don’t go on the trip with me.”
“Yeah, I’m going.”
“Ah, let’s go. Han-hee decided to go, and Yoo-na and Ga-eul too… Huh?”
“I said I’m going. Why are you so surprised?”
“You would usually have a really annoyed expression and say, ‘Hey, what are we going to do there?’”
“Oh, you’re spot on.”
“Pfft.”
Kang Ha-ni chimed in, and Kim Ga-eul burst out laughing.
Even the usually reserved Yoo-na covered her mouth and chuckled.
These guys, seriously.
I’m only holding back because I’m weak.
Then, I made eye contact with Kang Ha-ni, who was still laughing.
But now that I think about it, why did Kang Ha-ni say she was going on the trip?
Does she have a plan?
I was a bit curious, but since I couldn’t ask her about it now, I decided to let it go.
“I was planning to go anyway. If I miss the first trip, it’ll be hard to get to know the seniors, and since I joined the club, I should participate when I can.”
“Yeah! It’ll be fun if we go together!”
Yeah, it’ll be really fun.
Thinking back to what the first trip was like in the novel, it was definitely a trip to look forward to.
Although not quite like a summer trip destination, the first trip was also quite eventful.
A fortuitous opportunity I needed for my plan.
Among the settings that were mentioned in passing and then forgotten, something I needed was scheduled to appear there.
“Excuse me, Cadet Lilac.”
“…Yes? What is it, Professor Cathy?”
“I may be imposing a bit too much, but do you happen to know where the travel club is going for its first trip?”
“…Huh?”
“Ah, it’s just that… I’m worried… Yes, I’m worried. If it’s a dangerous place, I can’t just send the cadets there alone.”
“Ah, don’t worry. I heard that we’re going to a safe place.”
Honestly, it wasn’t very safe.
“Ah… I see?”
She looked openly disappointed, but everyone seemed to be caught up in the atmosphere and didn’t notice.
“Still, don’t get too excited and be careful, everyone. And the ranking match and midterm exams come first, you know?”
Ha-ni, who had been chuckling, reacted to those words.
“Ah, that’s right. Lilac, be prepared. The top spot in the practicals is going to change this time.”
“Oh, you’re confident you can beat both Yoo-hak and me?”
“Of course. I’m going to reveal the secret weapon I’ve been saving since the entrance ceremony, so be prepared.”
“Hmm, I should be careful. I’m so nervous.”
A small spark seemed to fly between Lilac, who responded in a completely calm tone, and Kang Ha-ni.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
The pleasant tteokbokki party ended, and time flew by like an arrow.
Each of them strengthened their resolve and focused on training, and finally, the morning of the ranking match dawned.
“What the… Damn it.”
-Sudden Quest: The Farmer’s Fury. An enraged farmer is approaching. He will never forgive those who have mocked the spirit of the land and the sweat of the farmer.-
My head was spinning from the sudden quest notification.
…I did call him, but why did he have to come now, of all times?
The disaster I had summoned was about to strike Reilan Academy’s ranking match.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
T/N – Dang, I’m even more curious now about this crazy farmer coming to the academy. Also, I wonder what happened on this field trip in the original story? And what kind of opportunity is the MC aiming for this time?
If you find any mistakes, feel free to point them out in the comments.
