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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: bchen3
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“Instructor, I’m submitting the roster.”
“Alright, I wish you good luck.”
Jin Taejin accepted the team roster from cadet An Ilhan.
He then immediately checked the list.
[Stat Circuit Training Team Roster]
-Cadet An Ilhan
-Cadet Yoon Seolha
-Cadet Lim Gangcheol
-Cadet Cha Eunwol
The moment he saw the names, a peculiar light gleamed in Jin Taejin’s eyes.
Coincidentally, it was because the three cadets he had been keeping an eye on had formed a team.
He recalled his assessment of each cadet one by one.
‘Cadet Yoon Seolha.’
She was the owner of perfect qualities that transcended even her background.
However, due to her perfectionist tendencies, she showed difficulties in peer relationships.
‘Next is Cadet Cha Eunwol.’
She too was born with blessed qualities, especially in the magic stat.
But there was a serious imbalance with her other three stats, and she had a problem of focusing too much on magic.
‘And lastly, Cadet An Ilhan.’
Considering his initial stats, it was difficult to say his qualities were outstanding.
However, he showed an unparalleled speed in growth, and his magic also kept pace with excellent intuition.
Moreover, seeing that he rarely lost his composure, he had a high potential to perform well in actual combat.
Not as special as the first two, but rather, a cadet who caught the eye because of that.
‘So the center of this team is…’
Jin Taejin recalled one cadet.
At the same time, his expectations for them rose.
‘Plus, the qualities of the remaining one weren’t bad either. Lim Gangcheol, was it?’
Let’s see what kind of performance they would show in the evaluation.
Jin Taejin opened his mouth with a faint smile.
“Next cadet, submit your roster.”
*
That evening.
After finishing dinner, I headed straight to the auditorium with Lim Gangcheol.
The reason was, of course, to coordinate with team members in preparation for the performance evaluation.
“Hmm, I’m looking forward to it! You too, right?”
On the way, Lim Gangcheol nudged me with his elbow.
“What is it.”
“From now on, we’re going to have intense cooperative training, aren’t we?! Doesn’t your heart pound, Ilhan?!”
“No.”
Lim Gangcheol was always the same.
Though my reasons were different from his, I was actually looking forward to it.
‘This is probably the strongest combination we can make in Class A.’
It was because of the team’s composition.
From Yoon Seolha with her near-perfect talents, to Cha Eunwol, a genius in the magic stat.
In addition, although Lim Gangcheol’s qualities might lag behind the two, his strength and stamina were excellent.
Finally.
‘As for me, well, I’ve got a decent balance.’
And me with my balanced stats.
With good cards in hand, it was enjoyable to prepare countermeasures.
‘First, the last course is…’
As I was freely developing my thoughts.
“Oh, they’re already here!”
We entered the gymnasium.
At the same time, two people, still unfamiliar, welcomed us.
After briefly greeting Yoon Seolha and Cha Eunwol, we got straight to the point.
The first person to speak was Yoon Seolha.
“We’ve already introduced ourselves, so let’s skip that. My goal is to be first. I’m counting on you all.”
A blunt tone, a confident statement, and the competitiveness felt from it.
It was just one sentence, but it somehow made me feel like I knew what kind of person Yoon Seolha was.
“Then let’s start right away. First, could you tell me your stats?”
Following Yoon Seolha’s enthusiastic attitude, the rest of us, including myself, complied readily.
She too, rather than simply receiving reports, extended her smartwatch to show her stats.
Each person’s stats were as follows:
My stats were Strength 9, Agility 8, Stamina 9, Magic 2.
Total: 29 stats.
Yoon Seolha had Strength 13, Agility 14, Stamina 13, Magic 1.
Total: 41 stats.
Lim Gangcheol had Strength 11, Agility 6, Stamina 9, Magic 1.
Total: 27 stats.
And Cha Eunwol had Strength 4, Agility 6, Stamina 5, Magic 15.
Total: 30 stats.
The moment we confirmed each other’s stats.
“…Wow.”
We each let out exclamations with different meanings.
Especially, Yoon Seolha and Cha Eunwol’s stats were tremendous in different ways.
‘Yoon Seolha already has a total of 41 stats, and Cha Eunwol’s magic stat is, what, 15 points.’
One was almost perfect, and the other was truly extreme.
Particularly, Yoon Seolha’s expression darkened slightly after confirming the stats of Cha Eunwol, the owner of extreme stats.
It seemed to be because of the remaining three stats excluding magic.
‘Well, if she could utilize the magic stat, it might be different, but for the immediate performance evaluation, the others are more important.’
This seemed to be something Cha Eunwol herself was aware of.
Perhaps that’s why she was hanging her head low.
After silently watching her for a moment, Yoon Seolha hesitantly opened her mouth.
“…It’s okay. Let’s distribute them well. Yes, we can do it.”
As if casting a spell on herself, she comforted Cha Eunwol, and immediately changed the topic.
It was about determining the track for the last course.
“Then I’ll take the overall stat track first.”
“Is that okay?”
In response to my question, Yoon Seolha nodded firmly.
She then distributed the remaining 3 tracks according to each person’s stats.
The first ‘Strength – Stamina’ track went to Lim Gangcheol.
The second ‘Agility – Stamina’ track went to Cha Eunwol.
And the third ‘Strength – Agility’ track was for me.
This was the same distribution I had in mind.
“Does anyone have any objections? Then let’s give it a try.”
We quickly made our first attempt.
The result.
“…Lim Gangcheol 65 points, Cha Eunwol 47 points, An Ilhan 69 points, and I got 83 points.”
65 points, 47 points, 69 points, 83 points. Total score: 264 points.
The average of the total score would be the individual’s team grade.
That is, 66 points each.
Considering only forced transfer, it wasn’t too bad to have scored more than half.
But.
‘I can’t be satisfied with this.’
I couldn’t be satisfied with this.
It wasn’t simply a matter of will.
Not just the performance evaluation right in front of us, but also written and practical tests.
The threat of forced transfer continued to remain.
‘I can’t gamble with that, so naturally, I have to do my best.’
Unlike me, who had organized my thoughts to that extent, Yoon Seolha seemed to find it hard to accept.
‘…Sure enough, her declaration to be first wasn’t just empty talk.’
Especially, her expression was dark, as if she was suppressing something.
Looking at her, I somehow felt I knew what it was.
‘Finding the culprit.’
Identifying and pointing out the cause that was lowering the total score.
It was something that would typically happen in this situation.
At the same time, it was also a major cause of ruining the team atmosphere.
I observed Yoon Seolha, and then Cha Eunwol, who was quite timid.
And just before a sigh escaped from Yoon Seolha.
Clap-!
I clapped my hands.
Startled, including Cha Eunwol, the three people’s attention turned to me.
I slightly organized my thoughts and slowly opened my mouth.
“They said know-how is the most important.”
As my words seemed somewhat abrupt, the three tilted their heads.
I continued without minding.
“According to the instructor, we can increase our score through know-how, posture correction, or attitude. At least by more than 10 points. So, we can do better.”
I added with strength and turned my head.
‘First, Lim Gangcheol.’
His personality was simple and straightforward.
The same applied when receiving feedback.
So, when speaking to Lim Gangcheol.
“First of all, Lim Gangcheol, your movements are too big.”
“…Is, is that so?!”
First, the problem.
“But you learn quickly.”
“Oh, learning speed.”
“So watch Yoon Seolha closely. And also the class next week.”
Then, the solution.
I spoke simply and concisely, just the key points.
“Yoon Seolha and next week’s class, got it!”
At my words, Lim Gangcheol clenched his fist, burning with fighting spirit.
I immediately moved on to the next person.
“Cha Eunwol.”
“…Yes.”
Cha Eunwol, the period I had directly experienced her was of course short.
But I had observed her conversations with the instructor, her reactions, and even the atmosphere. Everything.
That was enough for conversation.
“In a way, I think the score that came out now is the result of your best effort.”
“But the score is…”
“It’s low. But as I said earlier, you can raise your score as much as possible by mastering the know-how.”
She seemed to need confidence.
This kind of disposition often gets easily intimidated and ends up failing to demonstrate their true abilities even more.
Therefore.
“You shrunk from the balls flying at you in the course, right? That’s because it’s unfamiliar.”
Eye contact, tone, attitude.
I needed to ‘explain’ the problem well, paying as much attention as possible.
“Try training agility in the stat training room first. Get as familiar as possible with similar situations.”
I also suggested a solution as if coaxing her well.
Of course, it was troublesome.
But it was a troublesome effort worth making.
“…Yes, I’ll try that.”
As such, I got the desired result.
Unlike her dejected state until now, Cha Eunwol properly met my eyes and answered.
Seeing her response, I was confident.
‘Today’s effort will return as better grades later.’
Finally.
‘Yoon Seolha.’
She actually didn’t need any measures.
It was enough that I had refreshed the atmosphere earlier.
‘Rather, I should learn from her.’
As I was thinking that and turning my head.
‘…Hm?’
Suddenly, our eyes met.
It felt as if she had been looking at me from before.
Moreover, her gaze was somehow strange.
‘When the scores came out, she looked fierce.’
Fortunately, she seemed more relaxed now.
Thinking so, I spoke what I had to say.
“Feel free to point things out to me anytime.”
“…Huh?”
Was it because the flow was different from before?
Yoon Seolha tilted her head at my words.
As if she soon understood my intention, she carefully asked back.
“Is that really okay?”
“Yeah. We’re going to be first, right?”
Alone, it would be impossible.
But with Yoon Seolha?
‘If we can’t be first, then we should headbutt.’
I believed in her competitive nature and outstanding stats.
So I spoke calmly, but.
She looked at me with round eyes like a rabbit.
“What is it?”
“Ah, nothing at all. Yes, I understand. We have to, be first.”
Yoon Seolha mumbled again as if reciting to herself.
I added one more thing to that.
“Besides, we have one more thing to do, right?”
“One more thing to do?”
“There.”
I pointed a finger at the opposite corner of the gymnasium.
There was Kang Jinsol’s gang, who had been mocking and teasing our team since earlier.
As if they noticed our gaze just then.
“Jinsol, did you see their score?”
“Kick! Yeah, why did they antagonize us. Wouldn’t it have been better if they had obediently listened and joined us?”
“This time, Jinsol, let’s beat them to first place!”
They raised their volume as if deliberately wanting us to hear.
Perhaps thanks to the gang hyping him up.
Kang Jinsol shrugged his shoulders and looked straight at me.
At that sight, Yoon Seolha’s thin eyebrows shot up.
“Wait. I have a good idea for times like this.”
Intrigued by my words, Yoon Seolha tilted her head.
I showed it directly through action.
With my long middle finger.
Flick-
The moment they saw this.
“Hey, you son of a…!”
“Ji, Jinsol! Calm down! You’ll get suspended for that!”
Kang Jinsol showed an excellent reaction this time too.
‘Ah, this is addictive.’
A smile formed naturally.
Yoon Seolha also smiled faintly with a chuckle.
“Anyway, I look forward to working with you.”
“Yes, me too.”
And so, we warmly concluded our first feedback.
After practicing until late in the evening.
“Let’s meet right away in the morning, as tomorrow starts the weekend.”
We only disbanded after setting up a weekend appointment.
*
Late at night.
-Checking the subject’s unconscious state.
-The subject’s initiative is transferred to [????’s Shadow]!
-Checking synchronization rate with the subject.
-Current synchronization rate…… [6%]
-The synchronization rate is very low!
-[????’s Shadow] acts according to consciousness imbued with weak discernment and fragments of memory!
-The [Skill] imprinted in consciousness has been activated!
…
…
…
As always, An Ilhan opened his eyes.
He naturally got up and left the dormitory.
The destination was the stat training room, just like usual.
“Oh, Ilhan! What are you going to do today?”
Lim Gangcheol’s greeting response was the same, and.
“Magic training room? That’s unexpected? I thought you’d do other stats. I’m going to crush some strength today!”
Heading to the magic training room was also the same.
While most things were similar to the recent daily routine.
Just one thing changed.
“……Seuuuh.”
The first stage of mana breathing method, then the second stage, and the third stage.
After instantly reaching mana circulation, he flowed mana to specific parts of his body.
Swoosh-!
He concentrated mana on both arms and both legs.
Until he felt a power never felt before in his arms and legs.
As always, until the body remembered.
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Oooh magic reinforcement