Chapter 35 : Silent Yin Body (2)

Six days had passed since the training to eat shaved ice without using hands began.

With the midterm evaluation starting tomorrow, which would be followed immediately by the challenge to join the Jincheon class, today was essentially the only time left.

Since this training was done after all daily schedules had ended, there really wasn’t much time left.

“Huuuup…!”

Silence…

But compared to six days ago, the only noticeable difference was that Fuyuno’s face turned a little redder when she exerted force.

Other than that, nothing had changed.

“I’m getting tired of shaved ice after eating it for a week. Got anything else?”

Ryu Jia, who had finished a bowl of shaved ice in the blink of an eye as usual, said she was tired of it.

I lightly ignored her.

There was no time to waste on such things.

The seal on the “Extreme Yin Constitution” had been released, and her mana capacity had increased, so in theory, there shouldn’t be a problem.

What exactly isn’t working?

It’s not a lack of talent—her mana sensitivity is excellent.

Given that she couldn’t train at all while her trait was sealed, having a “B” level is actually really impressive.

There’s no reason it shouldn’t work.

According to the status window, Fuyuno’s talent was outstanding—just like someone from the Fuyuno family.

If her trait had never been sealed and she had trained since she was young like the rest of the Fuyuno family…

“…She probably would’ve died.”

She would have died from mana rampaging due to the Extreme Yin Constitution.

The Sun Constitution and the Extreme Yin Constitution weren’t the kinds of traits that a normal child’s mind could handle.

Thinking that way, the fact that her trait had been sealed didn’t seem entirely bad.

Of course, it didn’t change the fact that this unexplained lack of progress was frustrating.

“Hmm…”

As I was deep in thought, someone poked my right forearm with a finger.

“That’s exactly what I wanted to say, you rookie. When your senior says she’s sick of shaved ice, you’re supposed to whip out a fresh and exciting dessert right away! Are you listening with one ear and letting it out the other?! Want me to scold you?!”

When I turned my head, I saw Ryu Jia scowling, her eyebrows furrowed sharply and her finger pointed accusingly.

“Captain’s orders. Take this and go buy some desserts!”

She handed me her black card.

The “Cheondap Card,” only given to the top 10 students in the year at Daecheon Academy.

It was a mythical card that allowed free access to every product in the Daecheon store.

Since I knew that sitting around here wouldn’t magically bring me answers, I nodded.

“Sigh. I’ll be back.”

Walking around and getting some fresh air might actually help me come up with something.

Thinking that, I set off.

***

“Huuuuuuuup!!!”

“Hey, you little gofer. Stop.”

“Uuuuh…? Huh? Where’s Woobin?”

Opening her eyes at Ryu Jia’s words, Tsubaki Fuyuno looked around in confusion when the person who should have been there wasn’t.

Seeing her darting her gaze all around and whipping her body back and forth to look for Yang Woobin with anxious eyes just because he wasn’t there, Ryu Jia stuck out her tongue in genuine exasperation.

“What kind of separation anxiety is that? The more I see it, the more you really seem like a pet dog.”

“S-Separation anxiety… Eheh.”

“Why are you happy even when I compare you to a dog…?”

When Tsubaki Fuyuno blushed with joy, Ryu Jia was beginning to feel a sense of fear.

“But… why did you tell me to stop? I’m supposed to train hard as Woobin instructed…”

“Because it’s frustrating to watch.”

Despite the fact that Tsubaki Fuyuno was pleased by being compared to a pet dog, Ryu Jia didn’t like the fact that they had wasted an entire week.

It was nice that she came every day to make shaved ice as a dessert, but the enjoyment only lasted until the bowl was empty.

Seeing the unchanged bowl of shaved ice with her face turning bright red for a week, even Ryu Jia, who wasn’t fond of Tsubaki Fuyuno, couldn’t stay silent anymore.

“Well, I heard from the new guy that you can handle cold energy. Is that true?”

Ryu Jia asked, looking at Tsubaki Fuyuno, who stared at her blankly.

“That’s probably true…”

“‘Probably true’? Is it true or not? Speak clearly.”

“U-Woobin said so… s-so it’s true.”

“…”

The answer that came back was exactly the kind of response Ryu Jia had expected from Tsubaki Fuyuno, and it didn’t sit well with her.

To someone who valued strength, the first-year with gray hair in front of her was an inherent weakling, impossible to like.

“Sigh…”

But ignoring it wouldn’t solve the frustration she was feeling, so Ryu Jia let out a deep sigh and asked another question.

“Okay, then, do you actually feel anything? To handle cold energy, you need to be able to sense it first. It’s nonsense to try to control something you can’t even detect.”

“Oh, I can feel it. Ever since Woobin gave me the Frost Dragon Pill as a gift, I’ve been able to sense cold energies.”

“Then why can’t you handle it?”

“Well… umm, that’s…”

Up until now, Tsubaki Fuyuno had always answered questions well, even if she didn’t have much confidence.

But now, she hesitated and trailed off, which made Ryu Jia furrowed her brow.

If she truly couldn’t handle cold energy, if she hadn’t even felt the possibility of it, she would have just answered, “I don’t know…” But her hesitation meant she was hiding something.

“What’s going on? Why can’t you answer? Hey, my precious little gofer, be honest with me. Can’t handle it, or just don’t want to?”

Ryu Jia glared at Tsubaki Fuyuno with eyes glowing red from her emotional reaction.

The fierce gaze and pressure made Tsubaki Fuyuno tremble, and her lips quivered before she answered.

“C-cold energy… I’m afraid of it.”

“…What?”

It was an unexpected answer.

‘So you can handle cold energy, but you’re afraid of it? Does that even make sense? How can you fear something you can control?’

For Ryu Jia, who had never failed to achieve what she wanted with her own power in 21 years of life, Tsubaki Fuyuno’s honest answer was hard to comprehend.

“Why?”

All she could ask, genuinely, was ‘Why?’

Tsubaki Fuyuno hesitated for a moment before opening her mouth.

“Ever since I was little… I was afraid of it.”

“Ah.”

The following brief response from Tsubaki Fuyuno gave Ryu Jia an idea of what the problem was.

She had heard a little about Tsubaki Fuyuno from Yang Woobin before.

The fact that she had been afraid of it since childhood meant that she must have had some traumatic experience with cold energy when she was younger.

Of course, Ryu Jia couldn’t fully understand it since she had never had such an experience, but she could grasp the idea intellectually.

“Please… keep this a secret from Woobin. If he finds out I’m still afraid of ice, he’ll think I’m pathetic…”

Tsubaki Fuyuno, with her head lowered and shoulders hunched, quietly asked for help, but to Ryu Jia, she still didn’t seem likable.

However, since she had already decided to help solve the problem, Ryu Jia buried her emotions and voiced the solution that had just occurred to her.

“If you’re so scared of cold energy, try imagining that something stronger than that cold energy is behind you.”

“Hmm?”

“Fear, or imagination, are both just illusions, right? So think that something stronger than the fear is behind you, something that can devour your fear.”

“Ah…!”

The simple suggestion Ryu Jia made, so easy yet profound, hit Tsubaki Fuyuno deeply in the heart.

The nervous eyes that had been trembling without Yang Woobin around now regained calm, and the shoulders that had been hunched up straightened, with her head lifting from its lowered position.

“Wow…”

Ryu Jia couldn’t help but feel a sense of admiration for the sudden change in Tsubaki Fuyuno.

Seeing her junior realizing something from her words made Ryu Jia feel a sense of pride as a senior.

“Ah, so that’s how it is! If I imagine my inner Woobin, the warmest and strongest being, I can easily defeat any cold energy…!”

“What?”

However, something strange and incomprehensible came out of Tsubaki Fuyuno’s mouth.

“Inner Woobin, please help me…!”

Whooo-!

“Ah! Ahhh! It worked! It worked! Just like my inner Woobin!”

As she tightly shut her eyes and spoke as though in prayer, the shaved ice, which had not moved at all for an entire week, suddenly floated in mid-air. Ryu Jia couldn’t believe her eyes.

‘…What is this?’

“So, you were afraid of the cold energy and couldn’t handle it, but when I suggested imagining something that could overcome that fear, this happened?”

“Yeah.”

“This is…”

Even after hearing the explanation, Ryu Jia couldn’t understand.

“Right? You had the same reaction! She started mumbling something about her ‘inner Woobin’ and suddenly this happened, right?”

“Huh.”

When she turned to the side, she saw Tsubaki Fuyuno waving her fingers like a conductor, with chunks of ice floating freely in the air, following her movements.

The problem had been solved while I was away.

For six days, I had been watching, and not even the slightest movement occurred.

But just after I gave a single piece of advice… it was all fixed…

Though this realization made Ryu Jia feel a bit empty, she quickly shook off the negative thoughts, reminding herself that this was a time for joy, not disappointment.

“Tsubaki!”

“Ah, Woobin! Hehe, I didn’t realize you were here because I was concentrating… sorry…”

“Sorry? No need to apologize. You’ve worked hard.”

Woobin gently patted Tsubaki Fuyuno’s head, who had worked the hardest among everyone present.

“…Huh?”

“You did well. There’s nothing to worry about now.”

Ryu Jia smiled brightly as she ruffled Tsubaki Fuyuno’s gray hair.

She had often seen Tsubaki Fuyuno act like a puppy, so she thought this time she would probably laugh with a silly sound, but unexpectedly, that didn’t happen.

“…”

Tsubaki Fuyuno just stood there, her face and ears completely red, stiffly frozen in place.

※

The next day, the midterm evaluation day arrived.