Chapter 109: Exam Over! Daily Life Begins!

“It’s not exactly a reunion, but you can take some time to commemorate your survival and get some rest, cadets.”

“…”

Leaving those words behind, Juyeon departed.

Tak! The infirmary door closed.

Rohan felt slightly resentful towards Juyeon, who had left him in the awkward silence.

Ah, this is embarrassing. I want to run away.

Noa’s tail was wagging. She stared at him, her eyes gleaming with a predator’s unique glint.

He didn’t know what that expression meant.

Ichinose only turned her head towards him, her eyes hidden, but it was incredibly burdensome.

“…”

A thin curtain of silence fluttered.

Ichinose rose gracefully from her seat, and Noa quickly followed suit.

Seeing the two girls stride towards him, Rohan held his breath.

Click!

Stopping in front of his bed, Ichinose bowed politely, her sword nestled in her arms.

Noa also hurriedly offered her respects as best she could.

“Setting aside everything else, I want to thank you. Thank you. And… I’m glad you’re safe.”

“Thanks. I’m alive thanks to you.”

It wasn’t like he deserved thanks for acting on an impulse, but his conversation with Juyeon had already been leaked.

“I’m glad you two are safe too.”

Feeling his reply becoming strained, Rohan laughed awkwardly to smooth things over.

“About the conversation with the Instructor… we absolutely didn’t intend to eavesdrop. We were just trying not to interrupt until the Instructor finished speaking.”

“Right! That’s why we were quiet.”

Rohan understood what they were trying to say.

Eavesdropping on Juyeon’s conversation was impossible for Cadets in the first place.

“I had just woken up, so I was out of it. How’s Corin?”

Changing the subject to avoid the awkwardness, Rohan asked.

Ichinose hesitated for a moment before answering.

“The examination results show no problems. She woke up earlier and we ate together. She’s sleeping normally now.”

“Corin must have been tired from being with me on the Uninhabited Island!”

Noa defused the awkward atmosphere with self-deprecating humor.

Ichinose lightly relayed the current situation to Rohan.

“It’s been about six hours since you fell asleep, and the Instructor removed the sticker.”

Come to think of it, there was such a thing.

Rohan touched his nape, realizing the bothersome object was gone.

“The Gangseol-75 Handgun broke completely. I think it couldn’t handle the mana.”

“I did fire it properly once. I used it well enough.”

He needed to get a proper Handgun when he returned.

He thought he should get some advice from Shion and Clara.

“Honestly, I have a lot to say to Rohan. I have a lot of questions to ask and I want to properly express my gratitude.”

“Yeah! Yeah!”

Noa nodded vigorously, seemingly sharing Ichinose’s sentiments.

“But I’ll hold back for now. As the Instructor said, I understand Rohan needs to rest.”

“Buy me something tasty next time. We can talk then.”

When Rohan smiled and spoke as usual, Ichinose nodded slightly in agreement.

“I don’t forget favors. The meal is separate, and I’ll find a way to repay you.”

“Me too! Dad said forgetting a favor is something a beast would do! I’m not a beast, I’m a Beastkin, so I won’t forget!”

After finishing their words, the girls disappeared like a storm, as if refusing to hear Rohan’s refusal.

Rohan stared blankly at the door where Ichinose and Noa had disappeared, then shut his eyes.

““…””

Click. Click. Click.

Ichinose and Noa left the infirmary and walked down the long corridor.

Their footsteps headed towards the place where the cadets were gathered and resting.

While they were walking, Noa, who had been looking at the ceiling, suddenly chuckled and revealed her inner thoughts.

“Haha! It’s the first time I’ve seen a man other than Dad look cool.”

Ichinose stopped walking in surprise.

She creakily moved her frozen head towards Noa.

She asked as if she had misheard.

“Noa. What did you just…?”

“Why? It’s true. He’s much better than those who awkwardly try to act manly.”

“That’s…”

Although Noa got along well with everyone, Ichinose had never heard her openly call a man cool.

Judging by her excited expression, it didn’t seem like a joke.

“Well, it’s just a simple observation. My heart was racing a bit, you know?”

“…”

“Anyone can say they’ll risk their life, but I’ve never actually seen that level of firm resolve or spirit.”

“I understand what you mean.”

“And I’m so frustrated! I’m too weak! I can’t even beat that old man… Dad would have killed him with one fist! When I get back, it’s training! Training! Training!”

Ichinose found Noa, who was strengthening her resolve, admirable.

Sharing such an observation so openly with others. She couldn’t do that.

How could she be so honest?

She was envious.

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The Transport Ship was currently heading towards Academy City.

Having finished resting in the infirmary, Rohan re-joined Class 1 and received his smartphone, which had been kept safe.

I wonder if Shion and Clara are doing alright.

The exam ended sooner than expected.

Shion and Clara’s worried faces lingered in Rohan’s mind.

Thinking of the two girls who might be in the dormitory, Rohan turned on his smartphone.

Around the time Academy City started to appear through the transport ship’s window, he confirmed that the carrier signal was connected.

Buzz! Buzzz! Buzzz! Zing!

The frantic vibrations startled Rohan. He quickly turned off the vibration and checked his phone.

A flood of unread messages in the group chat was pouring in.

How many are there?

He hadn’t even scrolled halfway through yet. There must be at least a few hundred messages.

Before letting them know he was on his way back, Rohan read through the messages, a warm smile forming on his face as he checked on how well they were doing.

Having vaguely scrolled through about half, new messages popped up in real time.

Rohan chuckled and started typing.

A short message saying the exam finished early and he was on his way back.

He added that he was almost there.

Just as he decided to call them to hear their voices, unfortunately, Juyeon started the broadcast.

─ Broadcasting to the 1st year Cadets. The transport ship will land in 5 minutes, so please remain seated.

The place they arrived at was Orion Academy.

The cadets poured out of the transport ship, and Juyeon gathered the 1st year Cadets to wrap things up.

“It’s not the kind of fatigue that can be relieved overnight, but everyone, attend class tomorrow. We won’t be having lessons. I’ll guarantee proper rest afterward.”

Since the exam ended early due to the incident, it was something everyone expected.

After confirming there were no objections or complaints, Juyeon continued.

“Today, focus on returning to the dormitory and resting. Contact an Instructor if any problems arise.”

With such an incident occurring, the Academy couldn’t just relax either.

They had to gather as many cadet testimonies as possible and do their best to take care of any cadets who had even minor injuries.

“Dismissed.”

“““Thank you for your hard work!!!”””

The Cadets shouted loudly and dispersed.

Ichinose decided to follow Juyeon’s words and focus on resting.

Arriving at the dormitory, she soaked in hot water, and then stretched while talking to her parents on speakerphone.

Noa hadn’t replied to her messages; she must have fallen asleep as soon as she arrived.

Ramen…

Feeling hungry, she suddenly thought of ramen.

This was a first.

She went to the convenience store and bought some ramen.

She tried her best to make it on her own, but it didn’t taste good.

If Rohan’s was a 100, this was about a 10.

Unable to eat it, she decided to just brush her teeth and go to sleep.

“Mmm…”

A soft and warm bed. She lay down, closed her eyes, and 3 minutes passed.

Ichinose sat up, feeling bewildered.

What? Why is the pillow like this?

The pillow she had been using comfortably for so long suddenly felt slightly uncomfortable, a feeling she had never experienced before.

Wondering if the shape of the back of her head had changed, the girl sat on the bed and felt her head.

It was round. No problem.

She had a nicely shaped head.

“Ha!”

Dumbfounded, she hugged a plush toy lined up on her bed and lay down again.

She could definitely sleep. Compared to the uninhabited island, this was heaven.

Still, to be objective, she’d give this pillow a 98.

There were no shortcomings.

However, there was a strange sense of something missing.

100 is greedy. This is more than enough.

Random thoughts continued to drift through her mind.

Her consciousness drifted towards dreamland, creating hazy images.

She looked back on the unforgettable day.

“…”

Rohan’s words and actions vividly came to mind.

Just as Noa had said, her heart was pounding.

Whoosh!

Ichinose pulled the blanket up over her face.