Ch.33Episode 7. Joint Class Sparring (6)

“Yu Ari.”

“Yes.”

“Are you okay?”

“Wh-what do you mean?”

Yu Ari approached me hesitantly while stretching, looking puzzled.

“The sparring, isn’t it still difficult for you?”

“I-I’m fine. I’ll manage somehow. I’ll… earn your p-praise.”

Is she trying to overcome her trauma in her own way? How admirable.

“Alright. A wooden dagger should be enough to subdue an opponent.”

Drawing out someone’s full potential is most effective when their life is threatened. However, I couldn’t force that on her when she hadn’t yet overcome her trauma.

“Be bold. I’ll handle the aftermath.”

“Y-yes…!”

Yu Ari trudged toward the spectator stands where Class A was seated.

“A-anyone can come down. I w-won’t kill you.”

As if waiting for her words, a male student stood up. He was a typical model student type with glasses.

“I’ve always wanted to fight someone from the Special Class. Thanks for the opportunity.”

He pushed up his glasses as he spoke.

The Class A students watching him walk confidently forward looked surprised. While I was carefully observing their strange reactions, Yu Ari declared her resolve.

“Whatever… Become my s-sacrifice so I can get p-praised.”

“‘Sacrifice’ is a bit much.”

The male student entered the sparring area with a casual shrug of his shoulders.

There was a boldness about him that contrasted with his appearance. Even his relaxed gait exuded confidence.

“What’s that student’s name?”

“Jin Sudo.”

“Jin Sudo… What’s he like in class?”

“…He’s not particularly noticeable.”

“Not noticeable?”

“He’s usually very quiet. That applies during training and sparring too. But his abilities are among the best in Class A.”

I could understand that he was skilled.

Being in Class A meant meeting the academy’s high standards at the very least.

However, his current behavior seemed far from what I’d expect of a quiet student.

The basic premise of a quiet student is an ‘introverted personality,’ regardless of confidence.

Even middle schoolers know that introverts rarely take the initiative.

“Jin Sudo is a diligent student. Sometimes he steps forward like this.”

“Ah, I see…”

“I noticed you looked puzzled, so I thought I’d add that.”

“Haha. Was it that obvious?”

While we were talking, Yu Ari and Jin Sudo faced each other in the center of the sparring area.

Kang Chan and I stood between them.

“Excessive use of abilities will be penalized. Keep that in mind. Now—”

“Um… Instructor.”

Just as I was about to signal the start, Jin Sudo raised his hand.

“What is it?”

“I have something to ask Instructor Yujin.”

“What?”

“I’d like to see Instructor Yujin’s skills too. Would that be possible after this match?”

I frowned slightly.

Class A’s pride was being bruised, yet he wanted to see my skills? What kind of confidence was this?

After scrutinizing the suspicious male student, I spoke quietly.

“If you beat Yu Ari.”

If by some chance Class A defeated the Special Class, it would be difficult to clearly identify the Akcheon members through student sparring alone.

In that case, I would have no choice but to step in myself.

At my answer, his eyes narrowed. It was an unpleasantly strange smile.

“Now that I have your promise, let’s begin right away.”

Smiling, he pulled out a dagger from his chest.

It was a sharply honed black dagger. I sensed a strange energy from within it. It didn’t seem like standard issue equipment.

“Ready, and… begin!”

As soon as they started, Yu Ari threw numerous wooden daggers she had hidden on her person.

“Wood is so boring.”

Jin Sudo’s tone was casual and relaxed, but his eyes were serious. He kept his gaze fixed on the many wooden daggers flying past him.

“Let’s end this quickly.”

When Yu Ari pulled her extended arm inward, all the flying daggers converged toward him.

He half-turned his body and began evading the wooden daggers aimed at him.

Even as their trajectories changed erratically multiple times to target vital points, he wasn’t hit.

Clang! Clang!

While focusing on evasion with minimal movement, he deflected the unavoidable ones with his dagger.

Was he like that male student who had triggered Yu Ari’s trauma, with exceptional visual abilities?

If so, his reaction speed and movements were remarkably good.

Class A students are well-rounded in their abilities, but his attitude toward sparring and fighting style transcended that of a student.

Jin Sudo, having completely broken through the web of daggers, approached Yu Ari. His speed wasn’t bad either.

Clang!

Yu Ari, seemingly deciding wooden daggers wouldn’t be enough, drew the metal dagger she had in reserve and blocked his attack.

I slightly activated my lightning release, ready to intervene at any moment.

Clang! Clang!

She parried the successive thrusts with her body. Though she was at a disadvantage in strength, her movements were flexible and her reactions good.

In response, Jin Sudo channeled power into his dagger.

“Hup!”

An attack meant to inflict a fatal wound.

His motion was slightly larger than his previous attacks.

That’s when it happened.

Yu Ari’s body collapsed.

He slashed through her darkened body with his dagger, but no hit connected.

While the tip of his blade wandered aimlessly, Yu Ari appeared behind him.

He turned around a beat too late, grimacing.

Thud!

He fell forward after being kicked in the back. When Jin Sudo got up, the smile had disappeared from his face.

“Why did you use a kick instead of your dagger?”

Jin Sudo asked seriously as he got up and dusted himself off, glaring at Yu Ari as if he couldn’t understand.

“It would be t-troublesome… if I actually k-killed you.”

“…Tch. So that’s it.”

After hearing Yu Ari’s answer, he sighed.

“Not bad. I lost.”

Even at a glance, it was clear that Jin Sudo had been holding back.

Though I couldn’t be as certain as with Kang Sohee, he was worth keeping an eye on.

“Unfortunately, I’ll have to ask you another time, Instructor Yujin.”

“Indeed.”

By the way, I hadn’t expected Yu Ari to have already mastered her second unique skill.

“Shadow Movement.”

Yu Ari’s second unique skill allowed her to move freely between shadows.

The fastest member of the Special Class, she was adept at strategic battles with unpredictable movements in the original story.

This technique maximized her effectiveness in those battles.

“In-Instructor.”

Just as I was watching Jin Sudo lick his lips, Yu Ari approached with small, quick steps. She looked up at me with pleading eyes.

“Well done.”

I smiled and patted her head. I also made sure to give her a thumbs up.

“Hehehe…”

Yu Ari shyly smiled and subtly moved her head in rhythm with my hand.

Seeing her smile when she usually looked so gloomy, as if bearing all the world’s misfortunes, made me feel oddly proud.

I should praise her more often in the future.

* * *

The subsequent sparring matches were one-sided.

It was an overwhelming victory for the Special Class.

During the matches, I considered stepping in, but I had to restrain myself since they shouldn’t notice that I was suspicious of them.

As Yu Ari’s final match with a Class A female student was ending, I quietly approached Gu Yeonhwa.

“Gu Yeonhwa.”

“Yes?”

She turned around while gulping down water. She looked visibly fatigued.

Though her black dress didn’t show it, her golden hair was plastered to her face with sweat.

Well, even with breaks, ten consecutive sparring matches would have been challenging for them.

Nevertheless, I had to ask her.

“Can you use Dark Barrier?”

“Of course! I’m the strongest! Where do you need—”

“Stop the bravado. How long do you think you can maintain it?”

When I asked seriously, Gu Yeonhwa sensed the gravity of the situation. Her usually wide eyes narrowed slightly.

“…At best, 10 seconds.”

Gu Yeonhwa answered solemnly. I patted her shoulder and whispered in her ear.

“Good. I’m going to gather Class A in the center of the sparring area. When I give the signal, deploy it toward them.”

“…Ah! Could it be!”

“Yes. I want to put some pressure on them.”

My prime suspects were Kang Sohee and Jin Sudo, but I couldn’t be certain. Still, I was 90% sure they were Akcheon operatives.

Both of them refrained from using their skills even when facing defeat in their matches.

It was unnatural to hide their skills to the end when Class A’s pride was at stake.

This clearly indicated they were concerned about someone recognizing their unique skills.

“Is Code Name Yujin finally starting?!”

“Uh, yeah. Something like that.”

I inadvertently agreed to her renewed enthusiasm.

“How thrilling. I’ll give it my all! Agent James Yujin!”

…Maybe I shouldn’t have asked her.

“Do I have nothing to do?”

Jung Iyeon, who had been listening nearby, asked cautiously.

“That’s right. Only Gu Yeonhwa needs to act.”

“But…”

“I’m your supervising instructor. I’ll try not to put you in danger.”

The disguise artist’s location was still unknown.

They could be in Class A or hiding somewhere in the sparring area, watching.

However, I couldn’t just let Class A leave.

Even at the risk of losing the disguise artist, I needed to catch those suspected of being Akcheon.

Fortunately, they probably thought I hadn’t noticed, so approaching them shouldn’t be too difficult.

I walked over to Kang Chan, who was mediating the final match.

“Instructor Kang Chan.”

“Yes?”

“I’d like to give some advice to Class A. Could you gather them in the sparring area?”

“What kind of advice?”

“I want to explain the reasons behind their defeats and suggest development paths for the students. Is that overstepping?”

As I smoothly lied and asked for his opinion, he waved his hands dismissively.

“Not at all. You’re recognized even by the Association Chairman. Many people may look down on you, but personally, I think it’s impressive that you’re in charge of the Special Class.”

“…I see. Thank you for saying that.”

That’s unexpectedly high praise…

“Not at all. I’ll gather the Class A students.”

“Ah, and one more thing I’d like to ask.”

If my suspicions were correct, Instructor Kang Chan was about to have a shocking experience in the next few minutes.

An experience that would reveal why this world was so corrupt.