episode_0103

Elia, who had been away, returned and studying resumed.

The ‘Lee Ha-yul Care Party’ system was still in place, but I wasn’t too upset.

Because results are starting to appear.

The number of sticks in the question paper decreased, and the proportion of circles gradually increased.

“I can see you growing in real time.”

It wasn’t my mood, it was the statistics. Baek A-rin, who was grading the score, opened her eyes wide and looked surprised.

There wasn’t a lot of memorization. In the first place, most of the problems related to memorization were solved.

In the original world, the body was weak, but the brain was… Memorization is an advantage that can be boasted, even if only slightly.

The problems currently being circled were all application problems.

If I thought this was it and solved it, I gradually began to understand the application problems that I got wrong as errors that occurred like the sides of gimbap bursting.

‘Is this also the effect of the all-rounder?’

I don’t know if it has a significant effect on intelligence, but it still seems to provide some degree of skill correction.

In fact, after realizing that being an all-rounder is my unique ability, my efficiency has improved in many ways.

And I understand why people seek out places like study cafes where they can study at home.

When I studied with other people, what could I say… I got better at motivating myself. As motivation and concentration increased, learning efficiency improved.

Of course, that wasn’t my only motivating factor.

“Hayul, did you get question 21 correct? It was a difficult problem. The narrative… was well explained.”

Elia, who was grading the score, looked surprised and patted my head with a soft smile.

“You did really well~”

A warm feeling ran down my hair. I felt like I was about to burst into a grin at the feel of it.

In fact, rather than the competitive spirit that comes from studying with others, the praise and pats that follow each time a problem is solved increased motivation.

They say praise can make anything dance. Actually, it wasn’t something worthy of praise, but I couldn’t deny that it felt good.

“Ha rate? Ah~”

[I’m full]

Along with compliments, sometimes… no, quite regularly, he would put snacks or candies in my mouth.

On the way, Elia, who saw Baek Arin forcing snacks into my mouth, also joined in and the number of times increased.

It didn’t taste good, but I ate it without any embarrassment, but after repeating it a few times, my stomach started to bloat.

Also, perhaps because I had been vomiting a lot since morning, my appetite had already dropped significantly and I didn’t want to put anything in my mouth.

I couldn’t even bear to reach for the nutritional bars that were always available.

“Originally, superhumans need to eat much more than ordinary people. Hayul usually eats so little that it makes me worry?”

To be honest, I thought it was a little unfair to hear Elia’s words when she put a cookie in my mouth.

Honestly, isn’t it strange that I have an appetite in my situation?

It wasn’t a life where I could eat a lot to begin with, so my mouth naturally became shorter.

In addition, my senses of taste and smell have both been damaged these days, and due to mental hardship, my already short mouth has become even shorter.

“You have to eat a lot to be healthy and grow taller…”

‘?’

As I was holding onto such resentment, a remark that was difficult to ignore flowed from Elia’s lips.

The corners of my eyes trembled in shock. I held the pen in my hand tightly.

[What you eat has nothing to do with height]

“Uh, huh…?”

[Height is the most important factor]

Elia hesitated, as if he was unusually embarrassed.

Even for Elijah, it was difficult to ignore such remarks.

You have to eat a lot to grow taller. It is said that bones grow only when nutrients are supplied to the body and vitamins and iron are consumed.

Who doesn’t know? First of all, I know that you have to eat to grow taller.

But not everyone is like that. There are people who cannot grow taller no matter how well they eat.

Although I never ate well and grew up well, I forced myself to eat because I wanted to grow taller later.

It wasn’t big at all. No matter how delicious it was, my height remained the same even though I drank milk every day and ate rice consistently.

If eating well in the first place made one grow taller, a person who eats three meals a day and sleeps well would have become a giant.

I know there is an error in logic. But on an emotional level… feelings of unfairness and inferiority that were difficult to describe came to mind.

Elia was tall. I easily exceed the average height of the women I know.

I was short. I found out that I was below the average height of a man.

If I open my eyes, I have to raise my head to make eye contact.

It’s not just Elia. Hong Yeon-hwa and Baek A-rin… Master and Professor Liana are both tall.

To begin with, people of the class called superhumans are in pretty good shape.

He is tall and has good muscles. The male cadets passing by are all tall and muscular, giving them an intimidating feeling.

Unlike me.

A feeling of resistance arose. The necklace of confession understood its owner’s intentions and rattled out a voice.

[Innate genes are the most important factor in height. Some people do not grow tall no matter how well they consume nutrients. They are just born like this─]

“Yes, calm down. Because everything Hayul said is correct. Shall we calm down a little?”

“…That’s right! Did I make a mistake? Ah, Hayul! Take a sip of this. It’s a lemon flavor, but it’s so fresh that you won’t find it repulsive… That’s right, it’s nice…”

It was subdued with hugs and pats.

In the face of force, the powerless truth was simply trampled upon.

.

.

.

“Should we stop here for today?”

After being suppressed, some time passed since I gathered myself and focused on my studies.

In the meantime, Baek Arin, who was scribbling with a pen, glanced outside the window and said.

In the scenery outside the window with the curtains drawn, the sun was slowly setting, and a soft orange light was spreading like paint.

“The time has already come.”

Elia, who saw the sunset seeping into the room, nodded and agreed. I guess I was so focused that I didn’t even notice time passing.

I, who already knew the time thanks to the power of observation, put down my pen and nodded.

Even so, it was a bit weird to sit in someone else’s house and study until late at night.

I already ate a lot of food and had a lot of snacks.

Elia and I gathered our luggage and stood up. Of course, the only luggage I had was a hologram projector and a pad.

“I will take good care of you for a day! And I will take care of you tomorrow as well?”

[thanked]

“Yes, please come tomorrow too. But the snack composition may be similar to today.”

“Arin’s taste is really strong.”

After a brief greeting, I left the study room. I packed everything and made sure I didn’t forget anything.

‘Now I have to stop by the training room.’

The body has long since recovered. Almost all of the aftereffects have been overcome, and the performance of my body has actually improved compared to before.

In order to regenerate the arm, they say to focus on recovering energy for a while… but this part has not been confirmed yet, so I am worried.

‘Is it in two weeks?’

The midterm evaluation is getting closer. Although it was said to be two weeks later, today is Saturday, so it was the same as next week.

I felt like it was really just around the corner.

And at the same time, I was reminded of the memory of Iptop not being able to prepare properly due to an unexpected situation.

An incident where he took an elixir without fear and fainted on the spot.

Because of this, I vividly remember completely forgetting about the weekend just before entering the pagoda…

‘I also need to control my condition.’

In order to avoid repeating the tragedy of that time, I had to control my physical condition.

However, because the nightmares got worse, the sleep time of less than one or two hours a day disappeared.

I can last for about five days, and it doesn’t really matter since I’m just going about my daily life… but it will have a negative impact on my midterm evaluation performance.

This will be especially true for combat major practical skills and tournaments.

‘Today… should I take medicine?’

Medicine prescribed by the association’s main headquarters’ intensive care unit.

It was similar to a psychiatric medication, and they prescribed me to take one pill at a time if it was having a problem with my daily life.

I took one last time and fell asleep, and it was quite effective. I fell asleep for quite a long time and the nightmares were relatively bearable.

…In fact, falling asleep in the arms of Master or Hong Yeon-hwa was much more effective than the effect of the medicine.

Of course, that doesn’t mean you can’t ask one of them to let you sleep without taking medicine.

[see you tommorow]

“Uh, wait a minute.“

As I was about to turn around after bowing my head, Baek Arin, who had been waving, suddenly tapped my shoulder.

As I turned my half-turned body to see something, Baek A-rin’s finger skimmed the corner of my mouth.

“You have to wash your hands well after eating.”

‘?’

Baek A-rin smiled mischievously and raised her finger.

There were cookie crumbs on the tips of my fingers.

It was a finger that had just skimmed the corner of my mouth.

‘……’

No, I definitely wiped it? Why is it buried…

The feeling of injustice came first, followed by embarrassment.

[Just let me know]

“Why bother doing that? You can just wipe it off like this.“

Baek Arin giggled and waved her hand again.

I belatedly wiped my mouth with a handkerchief and left the room as if running away.

“Hayul~ Let’s go together~?”

Elia, who was also laughing, followed suit.

* * *

The door slammed shut and silence fell into the room.

The room where the three of us had gathered and studied until just a moment ago.

Due to the nature of studying, the quietness was the same, but now there was an added feeling of emptiness.

“Hmm…”

Baek Arin snapped her fingers. I was lost in strange thoughts for a moment and recalled the memories from earlier.

Then, I noticed cookie crumbs on my fingers.

It was a crumb of a cookie that had been removed from Lee Ha-yul’s mouth just moments ago.

Lee Ha-yul, who was embarrassed and said that he definitely removed it, was right.

Since these cookies were given to me right before I finished studying, I may have forgotten to shake them off.

Baek A-rin recalled the memory from just now.

-Try just one bite.

– [thank you]

A snack that you gave yourself. It was just the right size for one bite, so Lee Ha-yul ate it without any hesitation.

Of course, it was surprising that even that filled my mouth quite a bit.

anyway.

– how is it? Sweet, right?

Baek A-rin, who was staring at the finger, brought it to her mouth.

Then he stretched out his tongue and licked up the crumbs on the tip of his finger.

There might be saliva on it, but Baek Arin didn’t care.

– [yes]

– [Sweet]

When asked by Baek A-rin if it was sweet, Lee Ha-yul accepted it without any problem and responded that it was sweet.

There was no doubt in his innocent expression, and there was no lie in his reply that there was nothing strange.

Although it was only crumbs at best, Baek Arin nodded, feeling the taste lingering on the tip of her tongue.

“Wow, write it.”

Saying it was sweet was a lie.

* * *

[Player Correction System: Favorability]

Lee Ha-yul → Baek A-rin

●●●●●○○○○○(55▷56/100)

｢Favorable｣ ｢Doubt｣ ｢Confusion｣

…

[Unique ability ‘All-rounder’ grows]