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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Chaos
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Choi Ah-hyun had obtained Wind God.
This meant we were one step closer to D-rank.
“Hmm… Hup!”
Choi Ah-hyun stretched out her hand and yelled, but not even a slight breeze stirred.
“Waaah… Why isn’t it working?!”
“Do you think an S-rank potential skill is a joke? It took me half a year to even create a derivative skill.”
“If it took Yuri half a year, it might take me over a year…”
“Stop whining and try again.”
“Okay…”
At Han Yuri’s prodding, Choi Ah-hyun stood up and resumed practicing.
I gave Han Yuri a look.
‘Control your expression.’
She responded with a middle finger.
The day I told Han Yuri that Choi Ah-hyun had obtained an S-rank skill, I saw a crack in her composure.
Usually, only one or two S-rank Unique Skills appeared in an entire grade.
The fact that Choi Ah-hyun, whom she’d labeled a slow learner and a defective product, had obtained one must have been a huge shock.
But it was short-lived.
She started training Choi Ah-hyun, a stark contrast to her previous neglect.
‘She’s accepted it.’
She finally recognized that Choi Ah-hyun wasn’t dead weight.
“Focus and draw up your mana.”
“Ugh… Haaa!”
“I said focus, not yell.”
Slap.
Han Yuri lightly swatted Choi Ah-hyun’s butt.
“Ow! I am focusing…”
“Focus until your consciousness fades. That’s the only way you’ll get a feel for it.”
“Hee… Seong-hyun-ah, save me…”
Despite her complaints, Choi Ah-hyun’s face was bright.
She finally had a path to improvement.
The Choi Ah-hyun Strengthening Project continued.
“Golems again today? Aren’t wind and golems a bad match-up?”
“That’s true, but it’s always good to train for the worst-case scenario.”
“I see.”
That was a lie.
The D-rank test monsters were golems.
This was a rehearsal, just like the E-rank test preparations.
While Choi Ah-hyun practiced Wind God against golems, Han Yuri didn’t neglect her own training.
In fact, she seemed to be training twice as hard as usual.
Boom! Boom!
“Haa… Haa…”
She summoned over a dozen meteors, but she didn’t stop there and pushed herself to summon even more.
Finally, she coughed up blood.
‘Lack of control.’
Despite her lack of proficiency, she kept pushing herself.
Seeing her overexertion, I spoke up.
“Don’t push yourself too hard. Take it easy, or you’ll collapse.”
“…God, you’re such a wannabe coach. Go away.”
“Where did you even learn that phrase?”
“Ah-hyun.”
She’d been hanging out with the wrong crowd.
“Managing your condition is also part of being a Hunter. The test is in three days; overexerting yourself like this is counterproductive.”
-Grit.
I could hear her grinding her teeth.
“Shut up. I’ll do what I want. Mind your own business.”
She left without another word.
‘Is it that time of the month?’
Her personality is such a pain.
I swallowed my curses as the training room door opened.
“Everyone’s here?”
It was Kim Ji-hoon.
“What are you doing here?”
“Just checking in on the soon-to-be D-rank Hunters.”
That was a lie.
I’d known him for years.
He came up to me and slung an arm around my shoulder.
“Hey, did you do it with Seol?”
“…What the hell are you talking about?”
“Seol’s been acting weird ever since she went drinking with you.”
Weird?
“She’s been making uncharacteristic mistakes, spacing out, staring into space… I’m worried sick.”
“…”
“I wouldn’t have come to you if it wasn’t serious. Any idea what’s going on?”
Any idea…
‘Nothing seemed out of the ordinary when we were drinking…’
Had Yeon Hyo-joo done something?
I couldn’t think of anything.
“I’ll contact her after the test.”
“Alright. Anyway, congrats on reaching D-rank. And after the test, you know what we’re doing, right?”
He grinned lewdly, making the “let’s go to the officetel” gesture, assuming our D-rank promotion was a done deal.
I chuckled and replied,
“Sure. My treat.”
“Awesome! Okay, I’ll get going. Good luck!”
Even after Kim Ji-hoon left, the special training continued.
One hour, two hours. Time flew by, and it was evening.
I was about to order dinner when I saw a missed call.
[Yoon Se-ah]
‘What?’
Yoon Se-ah wasn’t supposed to contact me until the end of the first year.
I’d been ignoring her completely since she was at an overseas academy…
I thought for a moment.
If I didn’t answer, she’d come back to Korea for sure. So…
‘It’s better to contact her first.’
I asked the others,
“You two are going to keep practicing, right?”
“Yep, still going strong!”
“I’m fine too.”
They both seemed determined to continue.
“I have an appointment, so I’ll head out first. Don’t overdo it.”
“Okay~”
“Hurry up and leave. You’re distracting.”
I left the training room, their farewells sounding more like good riddance.
As I walked out of the building…
“Oh? You’re Seong-hyun?”
A sleazy-looking guy and his lackey were waiting for me.
“Want to have a chat?”
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Kim Ho-young, a third-year B-rank Hunter.
A big shot at the Academy.
And the reason this important person was looking for Lee Seong-hyun was…
BAM!
“Ugh!”
…to threaten him.
Kim Ho-young’s punch sent Lee Seong-hyun crashing into the wall.
Lee Seong-hyun, a mere E-rank, was no match for him.
With debuff and paralysis skills stacked on top of that, he couldn’t even resist.
“I’m not asking for much. Just drop out of the Academy. Is that so hard?”
“…”
Lee Seong-hyun remained silent, and Kim Ho-young slung an arm around his shoulder.
“Seong-hyun-ah, I want to get along with you. We might run into each other again in the future, and it wouldn’t be pleasant if we kept butting heads, would it?”
“…”
“Honestly, we’ve been holding back for a while now. We understand that Hyo-joo likes you, but you’re getting too cocky. We’ve been working our asses off for years to get a taste of Hyo-joo, and it’s not fair that you just waltz in and cut in line.”
Lee Seong-hyun remained silent, and the lackey spoke up.
“This bastard, ignoring you while you’re talking…!”
“Hey, hey, don’t scare him. Wait a minute, did he piss himself? Hey, Min-seok, check his pants.”
“Ugh, even if you ask me to, I don’t want to see his dirty underwear…”
“Haha, right!”
They laughed, looking at Lee Seong-hyun’s pants.
Despite the humiliation, Lee Seong-hyun’s heart beat steadily.
“Seong-hyun-ah, I’m a nice guy. If you just listen to me… I won’t touch your friends, Ji-hoon and Ah-hyun.”
“…”
“Tsk. Still not talking, huh? You know things will get ugly if you keep this up, right? This isn’t because I hate you. This is for your own good. Hup!”
BAM!
A glowing blue fist slammed into Lee Seong-hyun’s solar plexus.
A punch that surpassed his dynamic vision.
The powerful blow shattered his ribs.
Like a lifeless corpse, Lee Seong-hyun lay motionless on the floor.
He’d passed out.
“Phew. Let’s call it a day, Seong-hyun-ah. Wait here tomorrow at the same time, okay? And don’t tell anyone about this, or things will get very unpleasant.”
With that, Kim Ho-young and his lackey left.
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In the lobby of the Hall of Challenges.
Yeon Hyo-joo stood there, arms crossed.
“Did it go well? You didn’t hit him, did you?”
“Of course not. You know us. We’re law-abiding citizens. Right, Min-seok?”
“Hehehe! Of course!”
Yeon Hyo-joo smiled at their words.
‘I hope he comes around easily.’
She didn’t want to resort to posting about it on social media and ruining his reputation.
That was a last resort.
She hoped Lee Seong-hyun would submit willingly.
“Let’s go in.”
“Alright!”
The three of them tore off a Post-it note for their assignment.
A white light enveloped them, and they were transported to a blue ocean.
“Let’s finish this quickly and go home…”
“Huh? Hey, Hyo-joo!”
“What?”
“Look! Up there!”
Yeon Hyo-joo looked up and saw a Gate opening.
“I-is that a Gate?! Why is a Gate opening in a dungeon…!”
As Yeon Hyo-joo screamed in terror, something began to emerge from the Gate.
A woman, her face hidden by a robe that covered her from head to toe. She descended from the sky, walking on air.
And in that moment…
…the air around them compressed.
Or rather, the space itself distorted.
“A… Witch?”
An overwhelming presence.
Even those unfamiliar with Witches would have sensed her transcendental aura.
“Kyaa!”
“Min-seok!”
One of the lackeys clutched his throat and convulsed.
“H-Hyo-joo! Hurry!”
“O-okay! Give up!”
The team leader declared their surrender.
They should have been able to return to the Hall of Challenges, but…
“It’s… not working?”
No response.
“Kyaa!”
The lackey’s body twisted grotesquely and his spine snapped in half as he fell to the floor.
-Thud!!
A lifeless corpse lay on the ground, like a discarded doll.
“Kyaaa! P-please spare me! I’ll do anything!”
Her panties were soaked with urine.
Yeon Hyo-joo, completely unaware, continued rubbing her hands frantically.
“What’s your name?”
A mechanical voice.
It was hard to tell if it was male or female.
“M-my name is Yeon Hyo-joo.”
“Not you. Who is the person closest to you?”
“…”
Yeon Hyo-joo glanced at the remaining lackey, and the Witch smiled.
“I’ll let one of you live. Choose. You, or your subordinate.”
“…”
Kim Ho-young looked at Yeon Hyo-joo pleadingly, but she shouted,
“I choose to live!”
“H-Hyo-joo, how could you…!”
“Shut up! After everything I’ve done for you, this is nothing! Just sacrifice for once! This is the least you can do!”
“You bitch…! I’ve been kissing your ass for years, and this is how you repay me?!”
“What?! Did you just say that?!”
Discord.
The Witch’s smile widened.
“Typical. This is all the little ones are capable of.”
“Kyaaa!”
“Gah!”
The two floated into the air, clutching their throats.
The Witch spread her arms wide.
“Human relationships are most beautiful when they shatter.”
Their bodies twisted.
“When the trust they’ve built crumbles,”
Their eyes bulged.
“And their faith in each other hits rock bottom.”
The Witch’s eyes gleamed with delight.
“That’s when humans shine the brightest.”
-Bang!
Blood rained down, and the two bodies exploded, scattering into pieces.
The Witch savored the sight, closing her eyes.
“That’s why memories shine so brightly.”
Relationships may break, but memories remain.
Beautiful fragments of the past, weathered by time.
Memories are treasures that cannot be bought with money.
“This time, I’ll make it perfect.”
So that he would never suffer again.
So that he would never choose to end his life again.
“There will be no more mistakes.”
Madness flickered in the Witch’s eyes.
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I’m guessing this witch is Lee Seol or the third one