Became a Swordsman Genius in a Pretty Girl Game - Chapter 298



298. Freshman Training

I stared blankly at the guy.

The name tag on his chest read [Min Tae-hoon].

‘No matter how I look at it, he’s definitely a demon.’

At first, I thought I might have seen it wrong, but as I focused my magical energy, it became clear.

The dark aura subtly emanating from his body was unmistakably the filthy magic characteristic of demons.

‘But how the hell did this b*stard get in here?’

It was strange.

Of course, I knew that the male quota system basically didn’t conduct proper skill verification or magical tests, letting people in through random selection.

If that weren’t the case, I wouldn’t have been able to enter either.

However, since there had been a precedent last year when I was suspected of being a demon, Lina had set up a barrier throughout the academy to detect demons.

‘Did he get through that?’

If so, it was highly likely he had some kind of power.

Perhaps a mind manipulation ability that deceives others, or a power specialized in stealth.

Using a mine detector or conducting a thorough search, it was highly likely that they could escape.

And the fact that this guy was here meant that even the mine guys had started to catch on.

Regarding Rina’s causality, which couldn’t directly intervene in the world.

“Should I kill him now?”

Even if I had the power to do so, a dead body couldn’t tell a lie.

If I killed him and performed an autopsy, it would immediately reveal that he was a mine.

Isn’t that a tough opponent?

It’s not like that.

In reality, by this point, a mine was nothing special.

There were occasionally stronger ones among the other mine guys, but honestly, they were all the same.

The mine guys were only good for launching a mine tribe attack, nothing more or less.

The important thing was capturing the mine tribe.

“The problem is that the mine tribe guys have become scarce lately.”

At this point in time, the status of Velvet Academy was vastly different from its in-game status.

Originally, Velvet Hunter Academy should have been on a decline starting from last year.

In opposition to the Hunter Management Bureau, during the mid-evaluation, the cadets were sacrificed,

Chimeras were unleashed in China, and it had become a world where demons and dark beings ran rampant behind the scenes.

As the world grew chaotic, Lina remained inactive,

Public opinion and the media had no choice but to raise suspicions about the Academy.

‘In the meantime, the player struggles to continuously restore the Academy’s reputation.’

That was the original story, but,

With my much broader involvement than in the game, faith in Lina remains strong, and the Academy’s credibility is at its peak.

Given the situation, the number of demons crossing over here has decreased!

I’ve caught every one I could see, but they appeared less than expected.

‘Still, I’ve dealt with the big ones that were originally impossible to hunt, so the situation is much better than the original.’

For instance, the ones I caught during summer vacation with my master, the one I saved Ichika from, and even the demon lord.

Capturing such large beings in the current situation, where demons face significant burdens when descending from the demon realm to reality, was an incredible achievement.

Thanks to that, I even received the first achievement blessings like Demon Slayer and Demon Lord Slayer.

‘But, once the demon realm gates start to appear later, that burden will disappear…’

In other words, it means that the more demons I can catch now, before the gates are created, the better it will be.

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“Indeed, it’s best to keep this demon alive and summon the demon lord through him to capture that guy.”

At that moment, I caught sight of his magic writhing and beginning to move.

“Oh no, have I been staring too long?”

I tried to deploy the mental protection barrier I learned from my master.

A technique I had learned to prevent Lina from reading my thoughts.

But then, at that moment.

[ The blessing, “Demon King Slayer,” nullifies lower-tier powers. ]

“Jin Yu-ha, I don’t know what you’re thinking right now, but that’s a misconception. I’m just an ordinary cadet.”

Min Tae-hoon suddenly spouted such nonsensical words.

It seemed that it was indeed a power related to mental manipulation.

“It would be better to pretend to be deceived here.”

I relaxed my pupils slightly and opened my mouth.

“What do you mean? There’s no way you’re just an ordinary cadet.”

At that, Min Tae-hoon’s expression hardened.

“Aren’t you a male quota cadet?”

Soon, his expression relaxes again at the following words.

“Ahaha, yes, that’s right. I’m a male cadet. I admire Jin Yu-ha.”

“Hmm, sorry, was I staring for too long? I was lost in thought for a moment.”

“Yes, it’s fine. It’s an honor, rather.”

As he says this, Min Tae-hoon flashes a refreshing smile on his lips.

*

“After all, we won’t be taking action today.”

This is the kind of person who lays the groundwork and then puts on an act, so I’ll just play along.

I’ll leave it to Shin Se-hee, who’s much smarter than me and has a bigger game plan, to figure out how to use this guy to bring about the demon tribe’s descent.

“For now, we need to proceed with training as usual.”

I scan the cadets and furrow my brow.

Something doesn’t feel right.

I have a rough idea of how to gauge people’s abilities.

The special admission students were at a ‘usable’ level in my standards.

The male quota system was truly pathetic.

No, it’s not that they lacked talent.

Judging someone solely based on their talent is something I shouldn’t do.

I, on the other hand, didn’t raise my abilities through some clever means.

‘But, this is not it.”

What didn’t sit well with me was their attitude.

The male quota system students all had a smirk on their faces and were swaggering around.

It was as if they were on a pleasure trip or something.

On the contrary, the special admission students had a tense expression, their faces stiff with determination.

‘Is this… could this be my karma?’

As I, a male quota system graduate, was actively making a name for myself, it seemed like I was being praised by those around me, and it felt like I was being inflated with hot air.

‘I felt this way, too.”

It made me realize once again how open-minded my teacher, who had given me my first opportunity, was.

Even though their limitations in talent and physical ability were clear, they were still pretending to be strong.

To be honest, if I had my way, I would just want to make them all lie down and scream at them to get lost.

Haah─

I sighed inwardly and opened my mouth towards the male candidates.

“You, male candidates. You must have come here wanting to be like me.”

“Yes, that’s right!”

They answered with high-pitched voices, showing no intention of hiding their feelings.

“That’s understandable. In that case, I will give you a choice.”

“A choice?”

“Yes, the opportunity to decide whether or not to undergo training at the same level as the special admission students over here.”

“Did you also receive training at the same level as the special admission students when you were a freshman, Jin Yu-ha?”

One of the male cadets, with a face painted in white makeup, asked what seemed to be a silly question.

Ah, seriously, it’s so infuriating how they keep interrupting me.

“……Yes. I too demanded the same level of training as the special admission students at first.”

“oooh……!”

“If you endure the training at the same level as the special admission students, there’s a slight chance you could rise to the same position as me.”

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Then, those guys started snickering among themselves.

“Wow, is this guy a possible second Jin Yu-ha?”

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“Agreed.”

“This is a must-see, even if it’s not a fight!”

I slowly closed my eyes.

Hmph,

‘How did Master manage to turn these guys into human beings?’

My respect for Master was growing in real-time.

“Let’s just start with something light, how about running 50 laps around here?”

I forced a smile onto my face and said.

* * *

Huff─

Huff─

Alice was running while catching her breath.

Sweat droplets were forming on her forehead.

Her hands and feet were burdened with heavy weights.

She had always been confident in her basic physical strength.

After all, it was her grandmother who had always emphasized the importance of foundational fitness.

The lesson was to never neglect physical training at any moment.

Thanks to that, the current training was quite manageable.

Others were already in a dying state.

Huff— huff—

Heeek— heeek—

It seemed that even the special admission students were struggling with this weight, as rough breaths could be heard.

“Ugh!”

“I… I’m dying…”

Still, they were following along stubbornly.

However, the men who had confidently strapped on the weights initially showed enthusiasm, but before even completing a lap, they began to make excuses like, “My stomach hurts,” or “I trained this morning,” and dropped out.

‘As expected, Jin Yu-ha is different.’

Alice looked at the back of Jin Yu-ha, who was running ahead of her, with newfound admiration.

As an instructor, it wouldn’t have mattered if they didn’t do it together,

but they trained together.

In fact, she even wore much heavier weights on her hands and feet.

“It’s still hurtful to my pride.”

Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud.

She quickly moved her feet and caught up to Jin Yu-ha’s side.

“Hmm? Alice?”

Jin Yu-ha looked back at himself, his eyebrows twitching.

Jin Yu-ha, drenched in sweat and breathing heavily.

For a moment, she was taken aback by his appearance,

but soon, she swallowed her saliva and spoke.

“……the same weight.”

She wanted to say more, but in front of this person, her words kept coming out short.

Fortunately, Jin Yu-ha was quick to pick up on that.

“What? You want to use the same weight as me?”

Nod, nod.

As I nodded, Jin-yu let out a laugh that seemed to escape into the wind.

“Right? This is too light for you, isn’t it? Just a moment. If you wear this along with what you have on, you’ll be the same weight as me.”

Woo-ooong—

Even while running, Jin-yu opened a space without any disruption and handed me a weight with a different color.

Stagger!

As soon as Alice received that weight, her legs almost gave way for a moment.

Soon, gritting her teeth, she attached the new weights to her hands and legs.

Thud!

Thud!

Thud!

With each step Alice took on the training ground, a sense of weight was added.

‘······I’ve been running with this weight on!?’

In that moment, a worry crept in—could she really do it?

“I’m really glad you’re here, even if it’s just you.”

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Jin Yu-ha’s words made her resolve to give up vanish even more.

‘Hmm! It’s not that I want to look good or anything, but if I want to keep up with this person at a utopian level, there’s no other choice!’

Thud!

Thud!

Thud!

A deep imprint of footsteps appeared behind Alice.