“Fool. Idiot. Squid face. Ugly.”
“If I’m ugly, what about you?”
Oh Ja-Ha had been silently enduring his sister Ja-Du’s criticism, only to become angry at her last words. He couldn’t stand the word ugly. “I’m an idol! Admit it. My shining face adds to the popularity of the Shinra family!”
The short-haired girl with a hippie perm also scolded him, “Even if that wild claim were true, it isn’t enough to forgive you. You sure did a good job of tarnishing the Shinra family’s reputation today.”
Oh Ja-Ha flinched at her cold gaze. He came to his senses and lowered his head again. “I’m sorry, young master.”
“Why did you stop your sword halfway? I know your personality, Ja-Ha, and you aren’t the sort who calms down quickly,” Shinra Kyeong asked abruptly. Silver hair spilled from his shoulders as he tilted his head, but his eyes remained fixed out the window.
“T-that... ” Oh Ja-Ha hesitated for a moment, but sensing Shinra Kyeong’s sincere tone, he answered honestly, “I felt continuing would have been dangerous.”
The group tilted their heads. They’d been given a detailed report of what had happened in the cafeteria.
Oh Ja-Ha had insulted the Kang family while arguing with Loren. Then, someone from Kang Jae-Hyeok’s group named Lee Jin-Seong riled up Oh Ja-Ha to the point that he swung his sword at him.
Oh Ja-Ha’s swordsmanship was fast and varied. Those who dealt with it for the first time had difficulty coping; what’s more, the opponent was weaker than Oh Ja-Ha. Lee Jin-Seong should’ve been beaten without being able to fight back. However, Oh Ja-Ha sensed danger and stopped attacking?
Ja-Du wondered, “Why?”
He couldn’t easily answer his younger sister, who blinked with eyes just like his own.
Kang Jae-Hyeok. A chill went down Ja-Ha’s spine recalling the moment Jae-Hyeok gripped the hilt of his sword. His two swords had been about to complete a cross slash, but if Jae-Hyeok had drawn his sword at that moment, both his swords’ paths would’ve been blocked at the crossing point.
It meant that Kang Jae-Hyeok had seen through his swordsmanship instantly.
No, that’s impossible. Was it just a coincidence?
That would make sense. In the end, Jae-Hyeok hadn’t drawn his sword. Maybe he couldn’t—maybe the timing of his reaching for the sword was a fluke.
Yes. That must be it. Other than the young master, there couldn’t be another monster in the world who saw through his sword instantly and attacked his weak spots.
Even if by some chance he has exceptional vision... Kang Jae-Hyeok was still weak.
At the time of the admissions review, Jae-Hyeok was only level 10. If his talent was above average, he would be between levels 17 and 19 by now. In other words, it would have been meaningless even if Jae-Hyeok swung his sword in time. Oh Ja-Ha would’ve crushed right through Jae-Hyeok’s defense with superior strength.
“Ja-Ha, what level are you?” The silent Shinra Kyeong asked a new question.
Oh Ja-Ha answered confidently this time.
In terms of leveling, it wasn’t necessarily a bad thing to enter Lion’s Castle. Every night, he searched for quests and hunted monsters, so he leveled up quickly.
Shinra Kyeong’s thoughts were different.
“Your growth is slow. We need to tighten up our search schedule.”
“M-making it even tighter? We only rest for ten minutes every three hours.”
“Most of our time is spent on the move, not in combat. What’s the problem?”
Shinra Kyeong’s words made it sound like walking, running, or climbing rocks was resting.
“I-it is hard... ” Oh Ja-Du also cried out. She was worried because it felt like lumps were forming on her calves recently. Of course, that said more about her mood than anything. It was unlikely for an awakened player's body to change through exercise.
“Like or not, it’s punishment for Oh Ja-Ha’s wrongdoing, so you will accept it all the same.”
Oh Ja-Du complained, “He is the one who did wrong. Why are we... Huh? Ah, really! Mo Yo-Ah, you! I told you not to hit my head! Are you going to take responsibility if I become stupid from constantly being hit on the head!”
The short-haired girl looked at Ja-Du, who was fuming after being hit on the head, and explained, “It’s true that our growth has slowed down recently. Well, it is more accurate to say that it’s relatively slower. You don’t want to slack off and have the ordinary students catch up, right?”
Recently, the average level of class A had exceeded level 28. Shinra Kyeong’s group wasn’t included in this average, so it represented tremendous improvement among the other students. In particular, a small number of students like Chae Da-Hee and Lim Yoo-Jin demonstrated the most remarkable growth. If they caught up with the level of the Oh siblings and Mo Yo-Ah, the Shinra family’s prestige would shine less bright in Lion’s Castle.
Of course, the chance of that happening is unlikely. Nevertheless, raising awareness was necessary to keep Ja-Ha working hard and staying out of trouble.
“I will visit Young Master Kang Jae-Hyeok and apologize respectfully,” Mo Yo-Ah said, but Shinra Kyeong shook his head.
“No, I’ll go myself. He will argue that my apology isn’t enough, but... ” Shinra Kyeong’s words trailed off as he reconsidered the incident in the cafeteria.
Thanks to Ja-Ha and the testimonies of his vassals, who had eyes and ears all throughout the school, he knew everything about the incident. He thought, What if Kang Jae-Heyok figured Oh Ja-Ha’s personality? It’s possible he intentionally provoked Oh Ja-Ha’s overreaction and then stalled until a teacher arrived.
Shinra Kyeong shifted his gaze out the window again. The view was beautiful. A land once guarded by the Yaksha...
The beautiful silver-haired boy’s expression became subtle.
After the day’s work, Jae-Hyeok went to the seashore in the evening.
Suddenly, Chae Da-Hee waved to him while looking around as if checking for any security forces.
Her small, delicate body was covered in sweat and dust. She seemed to be focusing on personal training, even after the day’s training was over.
Jae-Hyeok smiled but asked her a question. “Why are you talking so formally to me?”
It was rare for Da-Hee to call him Mr. Jae-Hyeok. She mostly got along with all the first-year students in an informal manner. Jae-Hyeok figured she was distancing herself and felt a bit sad.
“You are the son of His Excellency Yaksha! I think that’s how I should call you,” Da-Hee said. She had changed her attitude out of respect for the Yaksha.
“Ah, I’m glad. I was almost sad for a moment there.”
Da-Hee laughed. “Hehe, I’ve heard many rumors about you. I heard you almost got into trouble this morning?”
“Oh, that? It was nothing big. Class A was having an internal issue, and I got casually involved on the side.”
“From what I heard, Oh Ja-Ha did something wrong! I heard he was so agitated that he attacked the Kang family? I can’t believe you managed to endure it.”
When Da-Hee had first met Jae-Hyeok, he had been throwing food and planning to assassinate teachers. She’d thought he was a fighting maniac and a crazy person.
But that was just an illusion.
Jae-Hyeok didn’t recklessly use violence—no matter when the other students had scolded him before his re-examination; when Shinra Kyeong had provoked him in the cafeteria; when he had broken into the Shooting Club; and even this morning, when Oh Ja-Ha had insulted his Kang family.
Contrary to popular belief, he never showed off his great skills.
“I think Jae-Hyeok-ssi is a nice person.”
Nice? Jae-Hyeok didn’t know if that was a compliment or an insult. He could only laugh and shrug.
“I’m not nice. Try not to be prejudiced. If you have high hopes and are mistaken, there will come a day when you’ll be disappointed.”
Jae-Hyeok was far from pure and innocent. It was simply out of necessity that he didn’t show his power carelessly.
Da-Hee’s purple eyes were as straightforward as ever despite seeing the darkness on Jae-Hyeok’s face. “That’s up to me to decide. Also, I wasn’t disappointed even when the whole world was criticizing His Excellency Yaksha. There is no way I will be disappointed easily.”
Jae-Hyeok recalled Lee Jin-Seong, Du Bae-Su, and Cheon Hye-Ji’s ever-changing faces. He shook his head and waved his hand. “Go wash up. I can smell you.”
Da-Hee was embarrassed. “I-it’s normal for players to sweat! Besides, I even heard that the smell of my sweat motivates my classmates to work harder!”
Jae-Hyeok put a hand over his face. “Don’t... listen to Yoo-Jin’s words.”
The good atmosphere was shattered.
Jae-Hyeok watched Da-Hee running away with a blushing face before he began warming up. It was time for him to move.
Name: Kang Jae-Hyeok.
[Strength: 127], [Stamina: 127], [Agility: 99], [Magic: 127], [Insight: 99]
Skills: [Noble Chivalry], [King’s Roar], [Empty]
Jae-Hyeok’s status window was beyond flashy.
At only level 29, Jae-Hyeok’s stats were already above average among B-class players. It was at the level where others would find it either awesome or bizarre. And considering his personal abilities and Skills as well, it would be difficult for the majority of B-class players to handle him.
This is why they should’ve used all their strength at the beginning. He sneered as he remembered the assassins who had targeted him. At their level, they couldn’t do anything against him even if they tried their best. As expected, opportunities only came to those who were desperate. The assassins weren’t, so they died.
“Sigh. Let’s not get too excited.
The secrets to his superior stats were clear: He’d trained his body and mind to the limit before awakening and also earned close to twenty achievements.
Even so, he doubted he was the only one in the world to achieve this, and that Oh Ja-Ha person he saw in the morning had shown an astonishing level of swordsmanship.
I have to keep in mind that there will always be people stronger than me.
Jae-Hyeok spent the next few hours training, Iyarugt dying the darkness of the night red. By the end, Jae-Hyeok had fully adjusted his Skills and swordsmanship to the growth of his body.
He sheathed his sword.
And /dove into the dark sea in order to catch a marine monster.
Jang Yeon-Ju was worried it would take him more than a whole weekend, but Jae-Hyeok felt differently.
He used King’s Roar underwater, and big waves stirred the water as startled monsters surfaced.