Chapter 46 – GOY 46
#46
Joo Seung-hyuk and I changed into our uniforms and headed to the KR Center. Today was the day for mock battle training.
The main auditorium of the KR Center was filled with the entire student body, all lined up in their uniforms.
Since Joo Seung-hyuk and I were S-Class, we stood in the very front row. People’s gazes had been fixed on us from the moment we appeared together, but I had grown used to it by now.
I simply accepted the fact that the Obsessive Madman was hugging me instead of going to the Esper section.
Even if I managed to break away from him, the mockery would just follow: ”They dated so loudly, and in the end, they broke up.”
But other people weren’t the problem right now. The Obsessive Madman’s mana was fluctuating violently.
“Oh Seok-gwang is doing something unnecessary,” Joo Seung-hyuk murmured lowly, looking at Professor Oh standing on the podium.
Originally, for mock battle training, the entire student body only gathered in the auditorium at the start of the semester; after that, training was conducted according to the time assigned to each group.
However, Professor Oh, who had taken charge of the mock training in place of Professor Choi, who had gone to a seminar, had summoned all students, claiming there was an urgent announcement.
“I agree,” I replied to Joo Seung-hyuk. If it were anyone else, I would have defended them to avoid getting on the Obsessive Madman’s bad side, but if the opponent was Professor Oh, I couldn’t care less.
Just how great of an event was it that he summoned the entire student body despite being a mere temporary instructor?
When the clock struck the hour, Joo Seung-hyuk finally returned to his spot. Then, Professor Oh, who had been reviewing materials with an expressionless face on the podium, looked up.
He looked down at me with arrogant eyes. Thanks to my shooting training being moved to Class C after becoming Joo Seung-hyuk’s responsibility, I hadn’t encountered Professor Oh all semester.
Facing him again after so long brought no joy; instead, it made me feel even filthier. However, fighting with a political human like him would only result in my own loss. It was better not to get entangled at all.
As I tried to avoid his gaze, one corner of Professor Oh’s mouth curled up. It was a clear sneer.
For a moment, a chill ran down my spine.
What is it? What is he trying to do?
He wasn’t simply trying to [Read on Read BL Novels]satisfy his vanity by putting me down. There was definitely something [unauthorized copy]more. He was clearly planning something for today.
I looked at Professor Oh. His smile deepened as he began his speech.
“It feels like only yesterday the new semester began, but half of it has already passed.”
After reciting some bland and ordinary remarks, Professor Oh announced the mid-term results of the mock battle training.
1st Place: Group 1, S-Class Esper Joo Seung-hyuk, S-Class Guide Lee Yeon-soo
Total Score – 989 points
The first place was Joo Seung-hyuk and me. This was the expected result.
Mock battle training is evaluated based on the quantity and speed of monster disposal, mana precision, and appropriate Guiding. (Special situations, such as a Rampage, are not reflected in the score.)
Joo Seung-hyuk had defeated monsters at an incredible speed every single time. Even with score adjustments based on rank, he was overwhelming.
As the results were announced, exclamations erupted from all over the auditorium.
“Wow, look at that score. It’s three times that of the second place. There are only two of them, but [visit our site]the pure points are more than triple.”
“It’s unfair for two S-Classes to be in the same group.”
“Didn’t Joo Seung-hyuk not work this hard last year?”
“Exactly. The power of love is scary.”
I didn’t mind people complaining about it being unfair, but please, stop saying strange things about love.
I struggled to suppress the urge to protest to every person uttering such dangerous words.
More than that, Professor Oh was the problem. What was that smile from earlier? And why did he gather the entire student body? Just to announce mid-term evaluation scores?
Other students had similar doubts. If it were just scores, they could have been announced via the school intranet. That was how it had been done until now; there was no need for the entire student body to gather.
Amidst the buzzing atmosphere, Professor Oh spoke.
“Some students may have good grades, while others may be lower than expected. However, there is no need to be conceited if your score is high, nor disappointed if it is low. There is still much of the semester left. You have only crossed the halfway mark. I hope everyone continues to strive. If you put in the effort, you will achieve the results you desire. You too can be first! Do not give up.”
His words were just polished nonsense.
People often say that in the world of Ability Users, rank and matching rate are everything.
While that isn’t absolute, it was a fact that there are limits based on rank.
No matter how hard the students of the Esper Academy worked, it was difficult to beat Joo Seung-hyuk. Moreover, it was nearly impossible to catch up to a score that was more than three times higher in just over two months. There was no way Professor Oh didn’t know this.
Despite that, the way he injected impossible ideals while only polishing his own image was disgusting. If someone failed, he would probably condemn them, saying their effort was insufficient.
In the end, the only person benefiting from such hypocritical words was Professor Oh himself.
“Starting next week, training for subjugating actual gates will begin. Although hologram technology has advanced, mock battles are different from reality. I hope you strive further. And there is something I wish to tell you all.”
Professor Oh, who had been droning on with cliché remarks, finally got to the point.
Students who had lost focus and slackened their posture straightened up again.
Professor Oh looked at the students with a satisfied face. His gaze, which had been slowly descending from the back row, finally landed on me.
Once again, he wore that same unsettling smile.
Professor Oh was definitely plotting something. And at the same time, he was targeting me.
After pausing for a long time, Professor Oh spoke into the microphone.
“Today, a very special guest has visited the Esper Academy.”
Simultaneously with Professor Oh’s confident voice, a man with a cute appearance walked up onto the podium.
“It’s Aaron Han!”
The KR building buzzed at the appearance of an unexpected heavyweight. I knew him as well.
Aaron Han.
He was the grandson of Han Gun-cheol, an S-Class Esper who had left South Korea during the ‘S-Class Awakened Italian Defection Incident’ in ’81.
Han Gun-cheol was considered the ringleader of the defection and was treated as a traitor, facing visceral criticism to the point where he was told never to set foot on South Korean soil again.
Even as the perception of Ability Users changed [visit our site]and times shifted, Han Gun-cheol’s image remained negative to the people of South Korea.
However, the situation changed when his son awakened as an S-Class Esper, and his grandsons, David and Aaron, were also judged as S-Class.
While it is said that an Ability User’s rank is influenced by bloodline, it was extremely rare for S-Class individuals to be born across three generations.
Han Gun-cheol’s family became a huge topic of interest. Furthermore, a reality show called ‘S-Class Royal Family’ detailing their daily lives became a massive hit, making them global stars.
In many interviews, Han Gun-cheol stated that his roots were Korean, and the brothers David and Aaron frequently posted photos of themselves eating Korean food on social media, appealing that they loved Korea. Moreover, despite being third-generation overseas Koreans, they spoke Korean fluently.
Before long, Han Gun-cheol’s family had been transformed from traitors who betrayed South Korea into proud Koreans.
Among them, Aaron received particularly much attention due to his small, cute appearance and the rarity of being an S-Class Guide.
As he grew, the sensational popularity of his childhood faded, but there were still many ‘online aunties and uncles’ who adored Aaron.
I was well aware of Aaron. Not because he was a global star or an S-Class Guide.
It was because that guy was the original story’s villainous sub-uke No. 2.
Aaron falls in love with [stolen content]Joo Seung-hyuk at first sight at a party he happened to Read on Read BL Novelsattend and comes to Korea to claim him.
Then, Aaron and Lee Yeon-soo engage in a fierce battle over Joo Seung-hyuk.
Of course, since only Kim Joon mattered to Joo Seung-hyuk, the fight between the two was meaningless.
Regardless, knowing the original story, I knew Aaron would come to Korea. But the timing was unexpected.
He was supposed to appear around next year, so why is he here already? Now, it’s not even the second semester, yet episodes from a year later are starting to appear.
Everyone in the auditorium, including me, focused on Aaron. He seemed to enjoy the attention, wearing a satisfied smile before slowly speaking.
“Hello. I am S-Class Guide Han Min-ho. I am 20 years old in Korean age.”
He introduced himself by his Korean name.
“South Korea is my grandfather’s country. To me, it is my second home.”
That guy… last year he went to Milan and said, ‘This is where my father grew up. To me, it is my second home.’
What a predictable guy…
Aaron’s mother was American. He was born in the US and spent most of his time there. The reality show was also filmed in the US.
Because of that, although he held dual citizenship in the US and Italy, he perceived himself as American.
Still, he considered Italy his second home and visited every vacation, but Korea was never on his mind. In fact, he hated it.
Last year, he visited Asia to promote a clothing brand he advertised, but he only visited Japan and China and skipped Korea, which caused a minor controversy.
Everyone cursed the company, saying the clothing brand didn’t do their job properly, but I, having read the original, knew. It was because Aaron stubbornly insisted he didn’t want to come to Korea, so they had no choice but to pass.
“I’ve always wanted to visit Korea, and Professor Oh Seok-gwang provided a wonderful opportunity.”
As Aaron looked at Professor Oh, the latter laughed heartily.
Did he bring Aaron here? That would explain why he gathered the entire student body to brag about it.
In the original, not only does Joo Seung-hyuk reject Lee Yeon-soo’s Guiding, but he also gets involved with Kim Joon, an F-Rank Guide, which makes Chairman Joo furious.
Chairman Joo searched for a new guide, and upon hearing this news, Aaron immediately comes to Korea. Then, Aaron competes fiercely [visit our site]with Lee Yeon-soo for the position of Joo Seung-hyuk’s exclusive guide.
But coming to the Esper Academy through Professor Oh… this was a completely different development from the original.
“Guide Han Min-ho has decided to train here at the Esper Academy for one month.”
“If I meet an Esper wonderful enough to bet my life on, I might stay permanently.”
As Aaron gave a crescent-eyed smile, the venue buzzed.
‘Espers, don’t get your hopes up. He’s talking about Joo Seung-hyuk.’
In reality, Aaron’s smile was directed precisely toward Joo Seung-hyuk. The Espers envied Joo Seung-hyuk for that. However, the person being envied was staring at me.
‘Since when has he been looking at me?’
Even while everyone else was distracted by the new S-Class Guide, it seemed that for Joo Seung-hyuk, I was the only one visible.
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