Ch.188Episode 37. Certification Exam (7)

“Did you finish your exam preparations well?”

On the morning of the practical exam, Yoo Ari and Yeon Muhui were at the training ground. They were sweating a little, as if they had just finished warming up before the exam.

“I’ll walk you there. Let’s go.”

“Huh? You’ll walk us there?”

Yoo Ari asked while tucking her dagger into her chest. Beside her, Yeon Muhui was checking the condition of her blade while listening to the conversation. She was polishing it thoroughly with a cloth.

“That, and I also have business at the exam site today.”

“What? Are you taking an exam too, Instructor?”

If I were going to take an exam now, wouldn’t that be problematic?

Someone without a hero license who’s been beating up villains, and now works as an instructor teaching heroes.

That would surely cause a major controversy.

“Of course not. I’m going as a supervisor.”

“What?!”

Yeon Muhui, who was standing nearby, exclaimed in surprise. What’s the big deal about me being a supervisor?

“Don’t tell me… we’ll have to face you?”

“No, nothing like that. My role is to take action if any problems arise.”

“O-oh, I see.”

The two visibly relaxed at my words. They seemed flustered at the thought of possibly having to face me in the exam.

Well, fighting against me while trying to rescue people wouldn’t be an easy task.

“Anyway… you seem warmed up. Let’s get going. The exam starts at 3.”

We had a quick lunch near the disaster training facility we had visited before, then entered the building.

There were still about two hours until the exam started, but supervisors needed to attend a briefing beforehand, so I had to go in early.

“Good luck on your exam. See you in a bit.”

I parted ways with the two and headed to the supervisors’ waiting room. They wouldn’t cause any trouble in the short time I’m gone, right?

When I arrived at the supervisors’ waiting room and opened the door, people were gathered in a cluster, seemingly receiving a briefing from the head supervisor. The supervisor spotted me and bowed respectfully. I bowed back politely in return. After this brief greeting, I approached the supervisor with a slight smile.

“Ah, welcome, Hero Yujin.”

“Hello.”

“You’ve arrived at the perfect time. We were just in the middle of the briefing. Please, have a seat.”

“Yes.”

After continuing the briefing, the supervisor finished and came over to me.

“As you may already know from the documents provided, Hero Yujin, while evaluating the students, please take immediate action if any emergency situations arise. Be prepared to respond appropriately, as villains might appear not only among the examinees but also among the spectators.”

It’s unlikely that villains would actually attack, but with the recent unrest caused by Akcheon and the presence of many future talents of the hero industry here, it was better to be cautious.

“Yes, I understand.”

“I appreciate your help today.”

The supervisor extended a hand. I smiled and shook it.

I’ll make this a good experience.

* @ *

In the examinee waiting room, Yeon Muhui and Yoo Ari opened the door and entered side by side.

When the students saw the two standing at the entrance, they gasped, and the noisy waiting room suddenly fell silent.

Everyone inside focused their attention on the two and began whispering.

“Look over there. Aren’t those two the disciples of Hero Yujin who were mentioned on TV?”

“I think so. They even fought evenly against Hero Yujin and Hero Hayuri.”

“But I heard they were such troublemakers they even beat up an academy instructor?”

“Seems like their character isn’t great. But in this industry, strength is all that matters.”

The two showed no reaction to the whispers reaching their ears. They knew that fighting among examinees would result in major point deductions or disqualification, so they planned to stay quiet.

From the beginning, they were aware that their reputation at the academy wasn’t good. The gossip they heard now didn’t affect them at all.

The two found suitable seats and sat down.

Yoo Ari and Yeon Muhui sat two seats apart, as if to show everyone they weren’t close.

“Are you two disciples of Hero Yujin?”

“…?”

Yeon Muhui and Yoo Ari glanced at the man standing in front of them, then looked away disinterestedly. They indirectly conveyed that they didn’t want to talk to anyone right now.

“Don’t ignore me.”

“…Hah.”

When the male examinee tried to intimidate them, Yeon Muhui sighed.

“Would you mind shutting up and getting lost before I cut you down?”

“What?”

Living up to her reputation as a special class student, Yeon Muhui snapped at him.

While they were well-behaved in front of Yujin, their personalities hadn’t fundamentally changed. Though they had softened considerably, they weren’t much different from how they were before meeting Yujin.

“You seem pretty arrogant after learning a few things under Hero Yujin. In this industry, uncooperative people like you die first.”

“…Then you’ll die today. Since you’re weaker than me.”

Yeon Muhui said, tapping the handle of her sword. She was ready to draw it if necessary.

“What did you just say…?”

“…Muhui.”

Just as the tension between the two was about to peak, Yoo Ari intervened. The attention of the two naturally shifted to her.

“Don’t cause unnecessary trouble and make things difficult for the instructor. If you want to fight, do it later in a proper duel.”

Yeon Muhui clicked her tongue at Yoo Ari’s admonishment.

“…I wasn’t planning to cause trouble anyway.”

She removed her hand from the sword, glared at him briefly, then sharply turned her head away.

With that, the incident in the waiting room calmed down, and conversations among the examinees resumed.

“By the way, I heard it’s okay to cooperate during the exam?”

“But ultimately, the credit goes to whoever lands the final blow or rescues people. So cooperation doesn’t mean much, does it?”

“Still, they said they evaluate overall performance, and cooperation is one of the assessment factors. They mentioned that coordinated operations among heroes aren’t common.”

After a while, when the waiting room was bustling with examinees, the door swung open and the supervisor who had briefed Yujin entered.

“We will now begin the practical exam for the hero license. The rules are simple. Defeat the villains and rescue civilians. However, you must not kill anyone—neither villains nor civilians. Always keep that in mind as you act.”

As soon as the supervisor finished speaking, security personnel entered and opened the inner door.

Beyond the open door, a ruined city came into view. Smoke rose from various places, and screams could be heard continuously.

The examinees looked nervous but gripped their weapons firmly with serious expressions.

Befitting those gathered to become heroes, they showed resolute determination.

“We will now test your qualifications as heroes. Begin.”

As soon as the supervisor finished speaking, examinees began rushing out. Yoo Ari and Yeon Muhui watched them, then leisurely rose from their seats.

Standing at the doorway, the two glanced at each other.

“Don’t embarrass the instructor.”

“You’re one to talk.”

After seeing Yoo Ari dive between buildings, Yeon Muhui took out the sword at her waist and tied its scabbard strap to the sword guard, preventing it from being drawn.

She left her other sword in its normal state so she could draw it if necessary.

“Haaah…”

Taking a deep breath, Yeon Muhui kicked off the ground. With enough force to send fragments flying, she moved quickly through the city and soon encountered a group of villains setting fires and threatening civilians.

At the same time, she spotted the male examinee who had confronted her earlier.

He was trying to take on multiple villains with bravado. However…

Clang!

Struck by a villain’s attack, he lost his weapon and his balance, falling down. Just as he was about to be finished off by the villain, Yeon Muhui sharply activated her skill.

“Yeonhwa Style – Yeonhwa Single Flash.”

Crack!

Yeon Muhui deflected the villain’s attack and said to the male examinee:

“If you’re going to cower, get out of here. I need to pass.”

“Yeonhwa Style – Red Flower Mist Dance.”

With movements as smooth as a dance, she precisely struck the villains’ vital points.

Crack!

“…!”

But not all the heroes playing villain roles were low-level.

One blocked Yeon Muhui’s strike accurately and counterattacked. Despite the threatening weapon flashing right before her eyes, Yeon Muhui remained unfazed.

“Yeonhwa Style – Rotating Wheel.”

Quickly changing her stance, she spun around and struck the villain’s side with her scabbard.

Thwack!

“…Muhui, it’s not just about defeating villains. Rescuing people comes first.”

Yoo Ari said as she landed on the ground while carrying a civilian.

“Isn’t that because you’re weak?”

“Hmph. I’ve already taken down six. That’s one more than you.”

When Yoo Ari boasted proudly while holding a young civilian, Yeon Muhui’s competitive spirit was triggered, and she snorted before replying:

“What does it matter if you have more now? By the end, I’ll have twice as many as you.”

“Let’s see about that.”

“I will, without saying.”

The two glared at each other once, then immediately began moving to score points.

And Yujin, watching from the highest point of the building, suddenly noticed a figure in the spectator stands who shouldn’t be there.

A man with black hair and red eyes like Yeon Muhui, wearing a uniform with the Chinese character ‘延’ on the chest.

It was Yeonhwaryong.

‘Why is he here….’