Chapter 36 : Midterm Evaluation(1)

Very early in the morning, before even the sea was up.

“Phew… done.”

After quietly preparing to leave without waking up her roommates, and without even turning on the bathroom light, Fuyuno Tsubaki, with her bag slung over her shoulder, left the dormitory.

Even though it was a time she would normally be lost in a dream, her eyes were unusually clear and sharp.

It wasn’t because she had gone to bed early, nor because she was a superhuman.

“Hehe…”

The reason Fuyuno Tsubaki could walk with such energy was simply that she was going to see Yang Woobin.

On the day of the mid-term evaluation, she was heading to the training ground where he was waiting for her, to make her final check.

※

“Phew… phew…”

“Wow…”

“Hm?”

Wearing a weighted vest, weighted belt, and weighted ankle straps, she was doing push-ups on one arm while standing on her hands as part of her warm-up when she heard someone gasping in awe behind her.

She didn’t need to check who it was with her eyes because the tone of the voice gave away the source of the comment.

I slowly pushed up the arm I had bent and stood up from my position.

“Heh, you’re here, Tsubaki.”

I turned my head while placing the towel I had left on the ground around my neck.

There, Fuyuno Tsubaki stood with both hands covering her face, her ears bright red.

“…What are you doing?”

“Uh, uhh? Ah? Ah, no, it’s just…”

“If you’re going to look, then just look. If you’re going to hide, do it properly. If your fingers are spread out, is that even hiding?”

“Hii!”

In a hurry, Fuyuno Tsubaki pressed her fingers together, then awkwardly lowered them.

Her face, which was obviously flushed all the way up to the crown of her head, was as red as could be.

It was quite amusing to see her completely frozen in embarrassment, but today was a busy day.

“Stop panicking and go get some ice from the freezer.”

“Uh, uhmm. Ah, alright…”

Despite still being completely red, Fuyuno Tsubaki quickly moved in response to my request.

I wiped the sweat from my body with the towel and put on my shirt while watching her back.

“…I got it.”

Fuyuno Tsubaki returned with a bag full of ice in both hands, still looking incredibly flushed.

But since she was now wearing a shirt, she was able to make eye contact with me, so I gestured with my chin and said to her:

“Alright, go ahead.”

“Ah, yes!”

Nodding, Fuyuno Tsubaki placed the bag of ice on the ground.

She then closed her eyes, clasped her hands together in prayer, and began muttering in a small voice.

“Please help me… my inner Woobin…”

As she muttered some strange words, something about Woobin, it was as if she was casting a spell, and the ice cubes inside the bag began to float up into the air with a swish.

Each ice cube seemed to have its own will, flying freely through the air as if it had a personality.

It seemed there was no issue with her ability to control the cold.

“That’s enough. This should be fine.”

“Really? Hehe…”

“But about that inner Woobin thing, please… don’t. It’s kind of weird.”

“Huh? Uh, uhmm. Got it, Woobin…”

In response to my words, Fuyuno Tsubaki nodded and promised not to keep talking about Woobin.

Having confirmed that she could handle the cold like it was nothing, I decided that it was time to focus on raising her composure.

I gave Tsubaki a light tap on the shoulder, which seemed to make her a bit downcast, and said:

“Tsubaki, I’ll make you breakfast. Let’s go.”

“Ah, okay!”

※

The mid-term evaluations at Daecheon Academy are divided into two parts: written and practical exams.

“Woobin, did you do well on the written exam?”

“Mm.”

“Wow… as expected, Woobin!”

What we had just come from was the written exam, a simple test that could be solved with the knowledge we learned in the circular lecture hall.

Fuyuno Tsubaki surprisingly did well with her studies and seemed to have performed fine on the exam.

As for me, well, I had just gotten enough points to not get stuck on the written part.

“Tsubaki, you can start focusing on the floating technique after advancing to the next class. The written exam is just a formality, so don’t get too excited.”

“Ah, uhmm. Sorry, Woobin…”

But just because we had finished the written exam well, it didn’t mean we could relax.

The real challenge in the mid-term evaluation was the practical exam.

Since strength is valued in Daecheon, the written exam is only basic, but the practical exam is the real highlight of the mid-term evaluations… no, it’s the crown jewel of Daecheon itself.

The methods and formats vary each year and each semester, so the cadets never know what kind of exam they’ll be facing when the practical exam arrives.

Real combat always comes in an unexpected form, which is why this method was chosen to help prepare us to handle such situations.

Of course, this didn’t apply to me.

I’m a seasoned veteran with my own hero’s tale, and naturally, I knew exactly how the practical exam would unfold and what would happen.

The practical exam for the first years was simple yet clear: a monster-catching test.

With five doors, each leading to a random monster, we would fight whatever came out, and even luck would be a factor in the evaluation, making it a bluntly practical test.

Of course, since I knew exactly what monsters were behind each door, this didn’t apply to me either.

[Cadets, please proceed to the exam hall and select a door.]

“What’s this door? What are we supposed to do?”

“What’s a door? Do you know anything about this?”

“They say Daecheon changes the format of the practical exams every time. We’ll never guess it if we just keep talking.”

“Ahh, what should we do then?”

The announcement echoed through the hallway, and without further explanation, the cadets in the group murmured in confusion as they tried to figure out what to do when told to choose a door.

“Tsubaki, you know, right?”

“Mm! Woobin, you’ll take the first door, and I’ll take the third!”

“Okay.”

Of course, Fuyuno Tsubaki and I, who knew exactly what monsters were behind each door, just leisurely made our way to the exam hall.

[Cadets who have arrived at the exam hall, please stand in front of the door you selected and wait for your turn.]

“Well then, shall we go?”

“Ugh, uhm! Hehe, I’ll… I’ll do my best…!”

“….You.”

However, once we arrived at the exam hall, Fuyuno Tsubaki’s expression changed drastically.

“Ah, ahh. Aah… Huh? Why, why, why Woobin?”

Fuyuno Tsubaki was clenching her teeth, shaking her body, and fidgeting with her fingers, unable to keep her gaze still.

Until we entered the exam hall, she had been fine, but now, her face was pale, almost ghostly white.

It was clear that she was extremely nervous and unsure of what to do.

After all the training we did together, and with her having awakened a new power just yesterday, I couldn’t believe she still lacked confidence in herself.

As someone who had struggled to make a potion for her, I couldn’t help but feel frustrated.

But I knew that getting angry would only have the opposite effect on her, so I gently placed my hand on her ashen-colored hair.

“A, ah? W-Woobin?!”

In an instant, Fuyuno Tsubaki’s scalp turned bright red.

She forgot to shake from nerves and looked up at me with damp, tear-filled eyes.

I simply said what I needed to say in a calm tone.

“This exam isn’t hard for you. Especially what’s behind the third door. Just do what I taught you, and you’ll pass right away.”

“Heh, heh, hee… Uhm.”

At my words, Fuyuno Tsubaki nodded with a sigh, exhaling hot breath, though for some reason, she seemed to be filled with excitement.

At that moment, the trembling stopped, and her lips curled into a relaxed smile.

But just to be sure, and to prevent her from getting too nervous and failing when the exam actually began, I added one more thing.

“So, if you don’t pass, you die.”

At those words, Fuyuno Tsubaki flinched and then brightly smiled and replied.

“Yes! I’ll definitely pass!”

I had said that to scare her, but for some reason, she was happy at the mention of dying.

With that lingering question in my mind, Fuyuno Tsubaki and I walked toward our respective doors.

※

I wonder if she’ll do well.

She should be fine.

Honestly, with her extreme agility and that particular trait, if she can’t pass this, she’s an idiot.

But then again, Tsubaki is an idiot.

Should’ve made her train harder.

“Yang Woobin cadet, just to confirm, you’re choosing the first door, correct?”

As I worried about Fuyuno Tsubaki, my turn arrived.

“Ah, yes.”

“Confirmed. Then, please open the door and proceed with the exam.”

Nodding, the attendant opened the door, and I walked toward the light spilling from it.

Whooosh—!

The same sensation I felt during the entrance exam, the feeling of the space around me shifting, overwhelmed me.

It was hard to explain, but that strange sensation swept over my entire body.

When I opened my eyes, a completely new landscape appeared before me.

“Wow.”

I had known I’d fall here, but standing in this grand arena, resembling the Colosseum in Rome, I couldn’t help but be in awe of the sheer intensity the arena radiated.

But there was no time to marvel.

Screech…!

The sound of pulleys turning from an elevator on the opposite side of the arena reached my ears.

Clank!

A heavy sound echoed across the arena floor, signaling the arrival of the elevator, and the iron bars that had been closed opened, revealing the beast inside.

“Grarr…”

A four-legged beast, a blade leopard, stepped out from the cage, its sharp fangs gleaming as it moved silently.

“Look at that. It’s terrifying.”

This was the monster I was about to face in the practical exam.