Chapter 124: The Angel Who Trains (2)

Episode 124: The Angel Who Trains (2)

The supplementary class for top students.

It sounded like a very contradictory name. To give more classes to students who already have good grades? Well, the world is a vast place, so perhaps there are schools that have such a sadistic system.

The Central Superhuman Academy was one of those schools.

‘Supplementary class for top students. Just by the name, it sounds like a class where you just study all day.’

Leffrey was currently warming up in a secret facility beneath the professors’ building, called Lecture Hall 0.

Lecture Hall 0 was, as the name suggests, the first lecture hall of the Central Academy, the place where Headmaster Iriel, the first professor, taught the first students, those who would later become known as the professors.

Through Headmaster Iriel’s special lessons, Park Jin-ho, Lusa, and Klein became heroes who transcended the limitations of ordinary heroes.

‘And the other professors who joined later, like Professor Rebecca, also took this class.’

The class that made the professors into professors.

The teachings that bridged the gap between superhumans and those who transcended them.

Just by hearing this, the class sounded like an incredible opportunity, an event you couldn’t miss, but…

‘But nothing in this world is free.’

Leffrey swallowed nervously,

And looked around Lecture Hall 0 again.

‘A pure white room, completely empty. But… I can smell blood.’

The smell of blood, something that couldn’t be removed even with cleaning, was deeply ingrained in this space. It meant that so much blood had been shed here, far too much to be removed with mere physical cleaning.

A class where a lot of blood is shed.

But Leffrey didn’t back down.

“Professor, I’m ready.”

As he said those words, shadows appeared in the empty, white space. Three professors stood in those shadows.

“Hah, Leffrey is still young. And a mere first-year. To think that he’s already taking the supplementary class for top students. It’s so dangerous…”

One was Klein, the head of the Magical Studies Department, unable to hide his anxiety.

“But look at his eyes, Leffrey has made up his mind as a warrior. He is seeking strength to protect what he must protect.”

Lusa, unable to do anything about it, made a pained expression.

“Yes, if a student desires strength, then it’s a professor’s duty to help them to the best of our ability.”

And lastly, the vice principal of the Central Academy,

Park Jin-ho.

“We will do our best to fulfill that duty.”

With the agreement of the three professors,

The white space grew dark.

“The class will begin soon. Be prepared.”

“Leffrey, you’ll learn a lot. I’m not sure if it’s a good thing though.”

“It’s okay to give up if it’s too much. No one will blame you, Leffrey.”

Leffrey, looking at the worried professors,

Smiled brightly, like a true angel.

“Don’t worry!”

Leffrey’s voice was filled with confidence. He already knew how the supplementary class for top students worked. And he had a rough idea of how to pass it.

“I’ll definitely complete the class and return!”

What was there to be afraid of?

‘Leffrey, even in the face of this frightening class… you’re showing courage.’

But the professors, unaware of this, couldn’t help but think that Leffrey was a truly brave child.

Although he looked like a boy who had never been in a fight, but Leffrey was a true warrior. The professors had no choice but to acknowledge that fact.

And once again, they were touched.

“Alright, come back safely.”

Thus, for a moment that felt longer than an instant,

Leffrey’s vision flickered.

The supplementary class for top students had begun.

* * *

This was how Leffrey understood the supplementary class for top students:

‘If Past Life Awakening, the secret technique of the East Coast Academy, summoned a past life and made it possess the student, then the supplementary class for top students summons the current self and forces them to break through their limits.’

Have you ever heard of extreme training or pushing yourself to the limit? Here, *geukgi* (克己) means “overcoming oneself,” and it means to break through your own limits through training.

‘And superhumans also use the term *geukgi*.’

There’s a term called Ultimate Skill for superhumans. This technique, often shortened to just ‘Ultimate’, has the same meaning as *geukgi* in extreme training. (TL Note: Ultimate in its most literal translation is known as extreme.)

A technique to overcome oneself.

That’s what *geukgi* is.

Then what must one do to master *geukgi*?

‘That’s why Headmaster Iriel thought of this. By researching doppelgängers, clones, and so on… she created this class where you fight against a perfect copy of yourself, literally overcoming yourself.’

To acquire an Ultimate Skill, you had to defeat a perfect copy of yourself.

And if you failed?

What would happen if you failed?

Leffrey didn’t think that far.

“Hello.”

Someone was walking towards him from afar. Brilliant golden hair, noble emerald eyes. And a pure smile, seemingly devoid of any malice.

An unforgettable, pretty boy.

It’s none other than…

‘Wow, that’s me!’

… A copy of Leffrey.

The copy was very similar to Leffriel, but there was one crucial difference, and while he looked very similar to the original Leffrey, there was something different.

The copied Leffrey radiated an undeniable malice. A malice that was similar to the one the demon king emanated a few weeks ago.

“I’ve finally met you. The fake me.”

The copy said to Leffrey, full of animosity.

“F-Fake me? You’re the fake one.”

“Hmph, you, who believes that you’re an angel, you, who serves the world that abused us, you, who has forgotten our miserable past, *you* are the fake one.”

The copy was enraged. His angelic face trembled with anger.

“What are you talking about? I haven’t forgotten anything!”

“Really? Then why aren’t you taking revenge on this world? Why aren’t you using the power to trample dragons to take revenge on the superhuman gangsters, why aren’t you using the power to heal all creation to deceive people, and why aren’t you using the blessing of the Power Angel to support tyrants and gain power?”

The copy shouted again,

“We have the right. This world is doomed anyway, we have the right to ascend the throne and repay the world for the despair we felt!”

“…This world won’t be destroyed.”

“Don’t lie. We’ve seen it. The demon king’s true power… the power of the only remaining archangel in this world.”

“Th-That…”

Leffrey’s voice lowered a little. Why was the copied Leffrey saying those things? Why on earth?

‘No, I think I understand.’

That was Leffrey’s subconscious. Those were Leffrey’s sorrow and despair, the tantrum of a child who had spent his life sobbing under a sofa.

‘This is why it’s called overcoming oneself. To overcome yourself…’

Leffrey bit his lip and looked at his copy again.

“I’ll kill you and become the real Leffrey.”

“I won’t let you.”

“Why?”

The copy took a stance. The same stance as Leffrey’s Martial Arts of the Archangel Who Tramples Dragons.

“Because I have something to protect.”

The two Leffreys charged at each other. Their fists collided, and cracks appeared on the floor. Using the recoil from the impact, they both launched a flying kick towards each other.

Crack—Their faces twisted from the impact.

“Ugh.”

“Ugh.”

The two boys immediately healed their faces.

“You said you have something to protect?”

“Yes.”

“You’re talking about those hero candidates? They’re just tools to defeat the demon king. Factories for Angelic Power, beings that we can discard without hesitation for our own gain.”

The copy looked at Leffrey with a ‘don’t tell me…’ expression.

“Don’t tell me, everything you did… for Angelic Power, for your own gain… were all… just meaningless acts of good deeds?”

“…”

The two boys, moving at a speed that left afterimages, started unleashing techniques used by the World Tree’s royal family.

Fairy Martial Arts, Explosive Pinecone.

A fist, imbued with the vitality unique to Fairy Martial Arts, explodes on the opponent’s guard.

The shockwaves of fighting spirit piercing through the guard.

The two boys, who had been guarding their hearts, felt a crushing pain in their chest and coughed up blood.

“Explain yourself, were you being an idiot? After all we’ve been through in this world, you’ve been acting like a stupid slave!”

“…Yes.”

Leffrey said, wiping away the blood with his sleeve.

“I won’t lie anymore. That’s right.”

“How could you do that? Have you forgotten how we suffered because of those superhumans in our past life? Those people who looked down on us? The hatred and the grudge we felt…”

The copied Leffrey shook his head.

“No, you’re lying, right? You did it all for profit? For money, fame, and power, right? You did it all to become the victor in this world, right?! Have you really become an idiot life form with even your brain turning into an angel?!”

“…I…”

“Tell me you’re not!”

Quickly forming hand seals.

Klein-style Magic: Obsidian Spear of Thanatos.

This magic, which combined blue and black mana, was known for its incredible power and instant activation speed.

Two black ice spears collided in midair. *Shatter*—A rain of black crystals, mystical and dreamlike, began to fall with that sound.

Mana, slowly…

…But surely, descended upon the ground.

“There are still things I don’t know.”

The cute gray-haired witch said there were things she didn’t know yet too. She said she had to keep living until she found the answers.

“And there’s a world I want to see.”

The pink-haired, beautiful girl said there was a world she wanted to see too. She said she even threw herself in front of danger to see that world.

“So I’ve decided to live as an angel.”

“Shut up, fake.”

The copied Leffrey was completely consumed by hatred.

Leffrey once again created some distance and pondered the techniques the copy might unleash.

‘Lecture Hall 0. This space is practically inside a barrier.’’

And this barrier was probably supporting the copied Leffrey. If this truly was just a fight against himself… the other genius students, including Yu Si-hyun, wouldn’t have struggled so much.

‘Our abilities, our combat experience, our combat sense, everything is… identical, it’s a fight against ourselves. But this environment puts me at a much more disadvantageous position.’

That meant he couldn’t win with a head-on fight.

It was a battle where he had to completely and utterly overwhelm his opponent, far beyond just barely surpassing him.

Truly an act of overcoming oneself.

“After all that suffering, you should be vowing to live for yourself. And yet… What? You’re saying that you want to protect those girls?”

“Yes, you know me well.”

“I’ll kill you and become the real one. That way, I can stop doing those useless, angelic deeds and live as a victor.”

Leffrey, hearing that, smiled.

And opened his status window.

“You can’t.”

“What?”

===

Leffrey Lv.30

Race: Angel

HP: 600/600 MP: 400/400

Strength: 50

Agility: 34

Magic: 40

Esper Ability: 9

Angelic Power: 345

Cooking Lv.10 (Master), Repair Lv.1, Cleaning Lv.3, Crafting Lv.1, Fairy Martial Arts Lv.6, True Cheongu Swordsmanship Lv.6, Klein-style Magic Lv.6

===

Martial Arts of the Archangel who Tramples Dragons Lv.9 (Critical Threshold Reached)

Healing of the Seraphim that Heals All Creation Lv.8

Blessing of the Power Angel who Graced the King Lv.7

Steps of the Fallen Angel Walking Through the Night Lv.6

Light of the Ruling Archangel that Illuminates the World Lv.5

===

Leffrey, before entering the supplementary class for top students, had accumulated a lot of Angelic Power through his Volunteer Club and his hero friends.

‘And I finally gathered 300, the minimum amount needed to raise a stat.’

[Consuming 300 Angelic Power to increase Esper Ability from 9 to 10.]

[Angelic Power consumed.]

[All stats have exceeded 10!]

[Currently, there are 6 individuals with all stats exceeding 10. You are now within the top 10.]

[Achievement updated.]

The copied Leffrey asked,

“You’re saying I can’t? Don’t try to bluff.”

“No, you really can’t.”

[Achievement acquired: All-Master]

“You are a being trapped in the pain of the past.”

A new energy began to surge within Leffrey. This special energy, something that the copied Leffrey lacked, something that only Leffrey possessed…

“But I’m moving towards the future.”

…was unquestionably powerful that it couldn’t be ignored.