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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Mod7
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Just before the training ground system finished activating, Professor Mi-ran’s voice echoed through the arena.
「The duel between Kim Shinwoo and Jung Ah-yeon will end when one of them loses consciousness or suffers fatal injuries. 」
「Now then, please duel while adhering to the rules and etiquette. 」
At that moment, the students around us started chattering frantically.
“Today’s favorite Jung Ah-yeon, the underdog is Kim Shinwoo. Place your bets before it starts! Time’s running out!!”
“Please, please, let Ah-yeon win.”
“You’re not betting on this sure win? You idiots, this is guaranteed money.”
“Damn, look at those odds. Even if we win, we’d lose money on fees if this were an illegal gambling site.”
“Jung Ah-yeon coin, going all-in!”
“Jung Ah-yeon punch! Jung Ah-yeon punch! Jung Ah-yeon punch!”
????
Who the hell are these bastards betting on?
Professor Mi-ran shouted at the chaotic students, attempting to control them.
「Hold on everyone, just wait a moment. I’m going to bet on Jung Ah-yeon too. Kim Shinwoo, die.」
“Kim Shinwoo, die!!!”
“Ah-yeon, please kill that bastard!!!”
It was no use.
The last voice even belonged to Jung Ah-yeon’s older sister.
She seemed to be a second-year, and here she was, shamelessly using her younger sister as a proxy.
‘These fucking bastards.’
Suddenly, someone darted towards the group of students.
It was Hye-ji.
“Hey! Wait! I’m betting all my money on Kim Shinwoo!”
“You’re throwing away money? You’re throwing away money? You’re throwing away money?”
“Are you out of your mind? Are you crazy?”
“That’s enough money for a ton of gukbap!”
When you have a single sane person surrounded by lunatics, the sane one is the problem.
So I guess I’m the problem here?
What kind of academy is this?
Hye-ji scribbled something down and came back to me.
“Hey, are all these students gamblers?”
“Huh? This is an academy rule. You didn’t know?”
“How the hell would I know that duels are betting events? Is it like this for every duel?”
“No, only for the ones with a lot of spectators.”
Hye-ji quickly explained.
She told me that this rule was in place to encourage frequent duels among students and generate excitement among the spectators.
Of course, it didn’t apply to every duel.
Only those with 50 or more observers.
You might question using the academy’s operating budget for something like this, but apparently, it was profitable.
Suddenly, I had a groundbreaking and incredibly obvious realization: I could bet on myself.
“Hey, can I bet everything on Jung Ah-yeon and lose on purpose?”
“Participants can’t bet. This is a legitimate sport!”
“…Calling gambling a sport is proof that everyone here is insane.”
A crazy academy for crazy people.
This place has no future.
“But if the participants win, they get 5% of the total amount bet on their opponent.”
“It’s always the crazy ones who lead the world.”
This academy does have a bright future after all.
I’m going to win this. I have to win.
What is gambling, anyway?
That money is practically mine already!
“Right! I bet on you too, Shinwoo, so let’s win this.”
“Why did you bet on me, though?”
“…Because I believe in you.”
Don’t lie, you bitch.
“Really?”
“That bitch called me a guy, so I’m going to kill her.”
“That’s the spirit. Let’s go, Hyeji-mon!”
「Begin!!!」
As soon as the professor gave the signal, I accelerated towards Jung Ah-yeon.
Or at least, I tried to.
Hye-ji suddenly threw herself in front of me, rolling on the ground.
“Why did you body slam me? Are you not listening because you’re short on gym badges?”
“What the hell are you doing spacing out? You would have died right at the start! You’re going to lose all my money?”
At that moment, I saw several thin, silver objects flash past the spot where I had been standing.
Jung Ah-yeon had a look of disappointment on her face.
I saw the number above Hye-ji’s head increase by one.
‘She must have seen the future where I get hit by that and die.’
But to throw hidden weapons right from the start?
Doesn’t she know about the 3-second rule?
I looked at Jung Ah-yeon incredulously and said,
“You call yourself a martial artist, but you use hidden weapons? Is this authentic martial arts?”
“Hmph. What’s wrong with using hidden weapons?”
“You’re a fake, aren’t you? You resort to cheap tricks because you’re not confident in your fists.”
“…This one is simply aiming for a swift and efficient victory-”
“Shut up!!!”
I cut Jung Ah-yeon off.
“If you want efficiency, use a gun instead of calling yourself a martial artist!!!”
“Silence!!! How can a martial artist use a gun!!”
Ah, she doesn’t know.
I’ll show her what real martial arts is like.
“Lady Hye-ji, I’m going to use “Myriad Flower Rain.” Would you please assist me?”
“Of course, Master Shinwoo. Here’s a Remington optimized for Myriad Flower Rain.”
“Would you also provide the ammunition?”
“It’s already loaded.”
“Blasphemy!! Myriad Flower Rain is a technique of the Sichuan Tang Clan, where countless hidden weapons are thrown, creating an illusion of a rain of flowers from the sky!!!”
Jung Ah-yeon stomped her feet and berated us.
But even Myriad Flower Rain has its tiers.
If the hidden weapons are weak, the technique is less effective.
“I see. What kind of ammunition is loaded?”
“Slug rounds, perfect for Myriad Flower Rain.”
“Excellent.”
“I’ll kill you all!!!!!!!!!”
Hye-ji was the best.
She had prepared slug rounds, the perfect hidden weapon for Myriad Flower Rain.
Jung Ah-yeon closed her eyes and clapped her hands together.
Then, she knelt on the ground and pressed her palms against the surface.
I was about to unleash Myriad Flower Rain at her…
「Shinwoo, that weapon is not registered! Drop it immediately!」
“Damn it.”
I obediently handed the shotgun back to Hye-ji due to the professor’s intervention.
That damn betting addict is a pain in the ass.
Fucking chicken coop bitch.
Meanwhile, a white aura emanated from Jung Ah-yeon and seeped into the ground.
Then, countless animal-shaped summons began to materialize around us.
10, 20, 30…
Their numbers grew rapidly, like a snowball rolling down a hill.
When they stopped appearing, there were about 80 summons surrounding Hye-ji and me.
There were wolves, bears, lions, elephants, and more – it felt like watching a nature documentary.
They all shared two common traits: they had no eyes, and their bodies were completely white.
As Jung Ah-yeon continued summoning, the spectators cheered even louder.
“Ooooooh!!! As expected of a Silver-tier!!”
“She only had 30 summons at the entrance ceremony, but look how many she has now!!”
“God! Please let me be reborn as Jung Ah-yeon when I die.”
“Jung Ah-yeon is a god!! How can you be reborn as a god!!”
But Hye-ji, who was standing next to me, just let out a sinister chuckle.
“Yes, this is more like it.”
“Hye-ji, are you losing it?”
“No, I haven’t even started yet.”
The number above her head went up by one, and her smile grew even more sinister.
She casually shouldered the shotgun.
“Enjoy the show! I’m an independent woman; I’ll make my own money!!!”
“Wow, damn. That’s fucking cool.”
Then, she materialized five gun emplacements around us.
Each emplacement was equipped with a gatling gun that shone as menacingly as her smile.
As Jung Ah-yeon’s summons charged towards us, Hye-ji aimed the shotgun and shouted,
“Die!!!!!”
The gatling gun barrels began to spin with a whirr.
This rain of bullets was the true Myriad Flower Rain.
No, wait.
It involved gunpowder, so it was Myriad Fire Rain.
The summons that were charging towards us were literally shredded to pieces by the hail of bullets.
Although the voiceless summons vanished silently, their mangled forms seemed to scream in agony.
Occasionally, one or two summons miraculously made it through the barrage and tried to attack Hye-ji with their teeth and claws.
Of course, their attempts were futile.
Hye-ji, having already experienced this future through regression, was waiting for them in advantageous positions, gifting them with a slug round to the head or mouth.
Whirr!
Bang!
Three minutes.
While I obediently lay on the ground, watching as Hye-ji instructed, she wiped out all the summons in just three minutes.
The excitement of the gambling crowd instantly evaporated.
Faced with the possibility of losing their precious money, everyone fell silent, praying desperately in their hearts.
Hye-ji casually tossed the shotgun aside and said,
“I told you, I’d be at least Silver-tier if I had a rank.”
“But you’re a support, why are you acting like the ADC?”
“A true support eliminates the source of damage.”
“So you’re a damage support. I won’t complain about you taking the farm.”
Taking the tower, though, is crossing the line.
Meanwhile, Jung Ah-yeon seemed completely unfazed by the annihilation of her summons.
She simply remained in her kneeling position and said calmly,
“The man in the skirt was quite capable. So, this one will get a little serious now.”
As soon as she finished speaking, a large, amorphous object materialized in front of her and began to grow in size.
From a small dot to a distorted circle, then to a massive, shapeless blob.
Its appearance was both simple and complex.
It was the same color as her summons, a writhing mass of slime.
Its size was also difficult to define.
It seemed to be about 4 meters tall and 2 meters wide.
However, there was one thing that felt unsettling.
It seemed to be staring directly at Hye-ji, despite having no discernible sensory organs like eyes, nose, or ears.
As soon as the slime finished materializing, the number above Jung Ah-yeon’s head increased by one.
A faint smile appeared on her face.
“This one’s victory is inevitable!”
“Says the eyeless Lee Sin.”
“Try to struggle all you want!”
As soon as she finished speaking, the slime lunged towards Hye-ji with incredible speed.
Its movements were surprisingly agile and sharp, despite its massive size.
Hye-ji, whose number had also increased, had already moved out of the slime’s trajectory, but the gatling gun emplacement she left behind wasn’t so fortunate.
The slime’s attack was just a simple charge.
But its power was undeniable.
BOOM!
Three of the gatling gun emplacements in its path were destroyed on impact.
The slime brushed past a few others, but that was enough to cause significant damage.
Hiss.
The parts of the emplacements that came into contact with the slime began to corrode.
The slime immediately changed direction and charged at Hye-ji again.
It accelerated and lunged repeatedly, seemingly unaffected by the laws of inertia.
Hye-ji, whose number increased yet again, quickly leaped back.
She had moved before the slime even changed direction.
As soon as she landed, she materialized a massive hammer in her right hand, gripping it tightly with both hands.
She swung the hammer in a wide arc to the right, perfectly timing it to meet the incoming slime.
Her movements resembled a batter hitting a pitch.
Clang!
The slime was sent flying back with a resounding clang, crashing into the ground.
But that was all.
It started to wriggle again, slowly rising from the ground as if completely unharmed.
Hye-ji, seemingly exhausted from her previous actions, gasped for breath and asked me,
“Shinwoo, that bitch’s got her eyes closed, right? How is this thing tracking me?!”
“Ask the slime mom over there.”
“Hmph. This one’s summons can sense ability users. So escaping is futile.”
“She said it herself. Hye-ji, is there something different about ability users?”
Hye-ji, forgetting her breathlessness, looked at me as if I were an idiot.
But it was okay.
Because I was an idiot.
“…Shinwoo, how did you even get into this academy?”
“I just came here, damn it.”
“When you awaken an ability, mana is generated within your body. It’s probably sensing that.”
“Oh. So the man in the skirt already knew?”
What the hell is mana?
MP? Seriously?
This world is full of convenient clichés.
“What? Where did you learn that?”
“This is basic knowledge, basic!!!!!”
“How would I know that, I’m a non-ability user!! You ability discriminator!!”
Hye-ji shouted in frustration, but I shouted back, feeling equally frustrated.
Meanwhile, Jung Ah-yeon, looking as if she had already won, said with a bored tone,
“How noisy. Let’s end this.”
“Shinwoo, what do you think about a martial artist using only summons?”
“That’s not a martial artist, it’s a Pokémon trainer. That slime is a 6IV Ditto.”
“Shut up!!!”
The slime started wriggling again.
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k-novels has finally reached peak 😭
I’m no gun expert, but I’m pretty sure that if I understood correctly Hie-Ji’s ability and that she summons metal only objects, then the ammunitions should not work.
its already said in a previous chapter that Hieji can also make ammunitions lmao.
Yeah, she can’t make gunpowder of any kind. It did say she could make ammunition though, so airguns and railguns are probably not off the table although the electricity for a railgun would be tricky.