episode_0054

054.

This year could be considered the so-called golden age.

Because numerous geniuses from around the world have flocked to the Union.

Girin Ah Lee Siwoon of the SL Group.

The granddaughter of the legendary swordsman from the 10th Division, Baek Yurin.

The descendant of the legendary hero Kang Cheolwoon, Kang Daehan.

The granddaughter of the creative genius Yu Gabryeong, Yu Seolhyun.

The disciple of the great mage, Yuliya Troianova, and so on…

With so many geniuses swarming like ants, the attention towards this midterm exam was bound to be much hotter than before.

Moreover, it was a place where the heads of major corporations that could dominate South Korea, the owners of giant clans, and the bloodlines of legendary heroes were all being evaluated in one place.

It was obvious that the competition was fierce.

This midterm exam was a great opportunity for the students to prove their own worth and abilities to the people of South Korea.

There was a clear difference between making a name for oneself in a small town during middle school and making a name for oneself in the Union.

If one could stand tall confidently amidst the geniuses, then anyone would have to acknowledge them.

Those who had been watching the midterm exam process for weeks were curious about who would stand out.

Many people discussed names like Lee Siwoon, Kang Daehan, Baek Yurin, Yu Seolhyun, Gu Hanchul, Kim Jun, and so on.

They were all hero aspirants who had been outstanding since childhood.

There were people betting on who would rank higher, and others were betting like sports lotteries.

But what’s this?

Wasn’t it someone completely unexpected who was standing out?

It was none other than Lee Jinhyuk.

Author: novel***

Title: Who is Lee Jinhyuk? Why is his overall score so high?

└ I heard he almost ranked last in the entrance exam?

└ Really?

└ My friend went to the Union and knows.

└ Your friend goes to the Union? Bullshit haha then I’m at Seoul National University haha.

└ Oh, right. Isn’t he one of the guys who caught the Black Hand long-armed monkey at the academy? I heard he even received a commendation.

Author: munp***

Title: Breaking News: Lee Jinhyuk’s team tops the hostage rescue test haha

└ ??? Really?

└ Higher score than Lee Siwoon’s team?

└ Isn’t that guy a non-superpowered person?

└ Incompetent guy beating talented ones! Beating them haha

Author: joa***

Title: Isn’t Lee Jinhyuk carried by his team?

└ After the team test ends and the individual test begins, he’ll be exposed, right?

└ Isn’t today’s test Battle Survival? Then Lee Jinhyuk will definitely be exposed haha

└ Yeah. Battle Survival focuses on individual abilities.

└ Who knows. Maybe he’ll score high again? Haha

└ Let’s go, underdog!

The internet community was quite abuzz with Lee Jinhyuk’s story.

It was because an education trainee who was close to being a bottom-tier student unexpectedly surpassed well-known geniuses and achieved very high scores in the first midterm exam.

Among the geniuses who had been famous for a long time, cases like Lee Jinhyuk, an ordinary(?) person, standing out to this extent were almost unheard of.

Lee Jinhyuk was not only lacking in combat abilities but also a defective product who hadn’t even awakened his superpowers.

Except for his decent theoretical scores, he was nothing special.

Furthermore, he was an underachiever who had almost ranked last in the entrance exam for the Union Academy. It meant he lacked the qualities of a hero.

But how did this happen?

He excelled in dungeon raids, hostage rescues, and hero and villain tests with very high scores.

In the case of dungeon strategies, Joo Para set a remarkable record in the shortest time possible, devising detailed plans and tactics to dominate the opposing team in the rescue test, and meticulously exploiting the weaknesses of opponents in the hero and villain tests to achieve numerous victories.

While not solely achieving victory through his own strength, Joo Para garnered attention for actively utilizing team battles and employing intricate tactics and leadership skills to secure victories.

In typical scenarios, the outcome is determined by the overwhelming abilities of a single powerful individual.

However, Joo Para compensated for his lack of power through tactics and strategies, boldly outsmarting geniuses who had reigned as winners since childhood.

Being somewhat of a clever ordinary person, Joo Para inevitably became a target of envy for some.

His actions became a breath of fresh air for aspiring heroes who had been subtly looked down upon as incompetent.

“Oh, this Joo Para kid is quite famous these days, huh?”

However, riding on fame is not always a good thing.

“It seems like he’s pretty smart too.”

Because now, not only ordinary people and heroes but also villains have taken an interest in him.

Even the worst villain, who has his eyes on the students of Hoshitam Union.

“What do you think, Sung Yura?”

Running her fingers through her bleached hair, Yoo Dahee sat on the couch, browsing through the hero community site with a somber expression.

As the leader of the villain group Rebellion, her talent and strength were truly remarkable.

If Yoo Dahee had chosen the path of a hero, individuals like Lee Siwoon, Kang Daehan, and Yoo Seolhyun would not have stood a chance.

She was already much stronger than typical instructors.

“Why? Are you including that Joo Para kid in your prey ranking?”

“Hmm… well.”

In response to Sung Yura’s question, Yoo Dahee shrugged her shoulders.

Although Joo Para seemed to be performing well in team tests, he was a non-superpowered individual.

The limitations of such individuals as heroes were clear.

They couldn’t do anything without a team.

That’s why Yoo Dahee wasn’t interested in him.

“I don’t really care. He’s an incompetent, so he doesn’t catch my attention.”

“Oh, really?”

It’s better to focus on other aspiring heroes than someone like Joo Para.

People with abilities and talents worth trampling on.

Lee Siwoon, Kang Daehan, Joo Jiyeon, Gu Hanchul, and many more, right?

“By the way, Sung Yura, are you ready? It’s today, the day we agreed to have a showdown at the academy.”

“What about you?”

“Me? Well, I’m just halfway prepared.”

Yoo Dahee chuckled.

“Some disgruntled trash who can’t adapt to society have decided to join us as mercenaries.”

“Is that so?”

“Yeah. Unlike our Rebellion members, they’re just third-rate villains, but since we have quite a number of them, they can play the role of bait or hunting dogs.”

Playing the role of bait to delay security agents and acting as hunting dogs to find the targeted individuals and inform Yoo Dahee, that is.

“These third-rate lives are useful in times like this.”

“Is that so?”

“Yeah. That’s how these third-rate lives are. They have nothing to lose.”

Since their lives are beyond redemption.

“They harbor a lot of dissatisfaction in their hearts and want to vent their anger, but they might be a little scared to do it alone, right? That’s why I gave them the opportunity to join us.”

“Even so, I can’t understand why they would join such a plan.”

“Heh. Those third-rate lives just want to see the world burn. They want to trample on others’ happiness while everyone else laughs and enjoys life.”

Ultimately, they are lives beyond redemption who cannot be saved.

“The dissatisfaction in their hearts is great, and they want to unleash their anger right away, but they might be a little scared to do it alone, right? That’s why I gave them the opportunity to join us.”

“Even so, I can’t understand why they would join such a plan.”

“Heh. Those third-rate lives just want to see the world burn. They want to trample on others’ happiness while everyone else laughs and enjoys life.”

Yudahee jerked her head up.

“Of course, since just talking doesn’t work well, I asked for help from a self-proclaimed hero maniac.”

“Oh, the man who always smiles? I haven’t seen him much.”

Suddenly, Sung Yura’s face came to mind.

The man from the evil organization Rebellion who strangely favored heroes.

Of course, it was never normal favoritism, but rather twisted interest and affection, but his feelings seemed sincere in their own way.

Well… the fate of the heroes who received his attention wasn’t very good.

“His extraordinary ability… was it mind control?”

“Strictly speaking, it’s not mind control, but well, you can see it as similar.”

It’s not mind control, but rather an ability to stimulate human emotions.

Stimulating and inflating negative emotions like inferiority, desire, anger, and resentment makes it very easy to manipulate people.

Especially if they are low-life thugs roaming the back alleys with dissatisfaction towards heroes and society.

“Anyway, it seems like we’re prepared, Yudahee.”

“I wish the others would join too, but it seems like they’re not interested.”

Yudahee seemed disappointed.

“I was planning not to move until the final exams or the training camp, but since Sung Yura moved first, I agreed to join. By the way, don’t you really hate that nun?”

“I don’t really hate her. And this time, it’s not just about tormenting her, but trying to figure her out.”

“Oh, is that so?”

She chuckled and rolled her red eyes.

“Well, fine. Let’s work hard for our respective goals.”

“Right, Yudahee. Our goals are different.”

Their own goals.

Yudahee tramples over academy trainees and spreads chaos through the media, while Sung Yura attacks Roxanne and her surroundings to uncover any potential background.

The two are only cooperating for their own goals.

“Today’s test is Battle Survival, right? Phew. It’s really going to be survival.”

A survival test where aspiring heroes will be with numerous villains, wouldn’t it be a good experience as a hero trainee?

Of course, the kids caught by Yudahee will have the worst experience, but phew.

***

Battle Survival.

“Hah, hah, hah.”

“Hey, hey! Lee Jinhyuk! Aren’t you supposed to be there?!”

The test conducted outside the academy evaluates trainees’ survival skills, combat abilities, adaptability, interpersonal combat skills, giant monster combat skills, tactical abilities, etc.

They must survive in the vast forest for a total of 5 days.

The forest is truly a world of survival of the fittest.

Numerous traps, items, and artificial monsters are placed, and those who earn more points through competition among students receive higher scores.

There are two main ways to earn points.

The first is defeating artificial monsters.

The second is fighting and looting among students.

Through the smartwatch provided to each student, they can steal points or trade with each other.

The smartwatch also has a rough map function and a surrender function, so if a student wants to quit the test, they just need to press a button.

Then the standby security personnel will come and safely escort the student out. At the cost of failing the test.

Of course, the surrender button requires fingerprint recognition, so it’s useless if the student doesn’t press it themselves.

Well, you could always make them press it by knocking them out or threatening them.

“Hah, hah, haa, damn, Lee Jinhyuk, you really know how to make us tired.”

“You guys are persistent… I didn’t expect you to chase me this far.”

I took a moment to catch my breath and looked at the kids who were chasing after me.

Kim Yuseong and two extras were panting and glaring at me with a menacing look. Wow, their eyes are really scary.

“Hey, isn’t it a bit much to team up on the first day?”

Teaming up.

It means forming a cooperative relationship with each other.

Like those three.

“If you’re not happy, why don’t you join in too?”

“Huh? Then can I join too?”

“No.”

“Hey, that’s too much. There’s no loyalty among classmates, hey. We’ve known each other since middle school, right? Let’s take it easy on the first day, okay?”

“No, I don’t like it.”

Kim Yuseong gave a determined smile.

It was a sinister smile, like that of a villain.

It also looked like the eyes of a predator looking at its prey.

Although I had performed well in the tests so far, it was all a result of using my teammates strategically.

My individual combat ability was at the bottom.

Kim Yuseong was well aware of this fact.

To him, I was nothing more than a mouse caught in a trap.

“Hoo. Yuseong, can’t we talk it out?”

“All I can do with you is fight.”

“Well, then?”

Kim Yuseong was visibly annoyed.

He seemed to know that he was being stubborn.

In the game, he was not a character who particularly liked me.

He was originally there to secretly harass me in order to gain favor with Ishiwoon.

Now, we had an okay relationship.

Unlike the original work, I maintained a normal relationship with Ishiwoon.

And since I broke up with Soyeon and got along well with Yuseolhyun, there was no need to stir things up.

“Kim Yuseong’s rookie ranking is in the upper-middle range, but… it says in the settings that his close combat ability rivals that of the top-tier players.”

I couldn’t be sure how strong the other two besides Kim Yuseong were, but they weren’t opponents I could handle anyway.

Because my combat ability was really poor.

If we were to fight one-on-one fairly, no one there could beat me.

“Then be prepared, Lee Jinhyuk.”

But it’s okay.

Why?

As mentioned earlier, this forest was filled with many traps and items hidden within it.

“Don’t blame me too much.”

Ah, of course, the exact locations of the traps and items couldn’t be known.

In the game, the interior of the forest appeared greatly reduced, so many things were different compared to reality.

And just like at Yeongdeung Mountain Dungeon, there was no existing data and the location was not limited like a dungeon.

Finding the exact locations of traps and items in this vast forest was quite difficult.

But it didn’t matter much.

Because traps are something I can set up myself, right?

I secretly brought in all kinds of traps and items through the spatial ring.

So setting up simple traps is easy.

For example, a mine?

“Alright, then…?”

As soon as the male student who looked like an extra took a step towards me, there was a clicking sound, and with a bang, the ground exploded.

It was the explosive booby trap I had set up.

Ah, caught you with that one.

“Uh, ah, ah?!”

“What the hell?!”

“A trap! Did that bastard lure us into a place with traps on purpose?!”

Due to the academy’s warning about traps, items, and monsters, the kids seemed to be unaware that the trap was set up by me.

Just in case, I set up traps similar to the ones installed by the academy.

To be prepared in case I get caught for no reason.

Of course, the traps were a bit different from the ones originally set up, but I couldn’t compare every single one.

Ah, there’s a possibility of getting caught by the security guards who were on standby, but this forest is really vast.

It is impossible to monitor everything one by one.

Even if you press the abandon button on the smartwatch, it takes quite a bit of time for the security agent to arrive.

And, well… after searching for a place where there are no security agents, I set up traps.

“Hey, hey! Wake up, deal with that guy first…!”

Swish!

I immediately shot a training arrow.

The target was the guy who stepped on the bear trap.

Normally, he could have easily blocked or avoided it.

But because he was unable to focus due to the bear trap, he quickly got hit by my arrow and rolled on the ground.

Oops, if he rolls that way…

“Argh! Th-this guy… ugh, aaaaah?!”

Boom!

Unfortunately, he rolled towards where the landmine was.

With a satisfying explosion sound, the male student went “Kwong?!” and hit his head on a tree.

He seemed to be an aspiring hero, so there shouldn’t be a big problem, but he seemed to have fainted from getting hit on the back of his head.

Oh, nice.

One down.

“K-Kang Jihoon!”

Oh, his name is Kang Jihoon?

I didn’t know.

I can’t remember the names of every insignificant kid from the other class in the game.

“Damn, how many traps are there here?!”

Yeah, there are a lot.

This place is like a minefield.

I’ve set up a lot of traps.

Of course, the traps aren’t just landmines.

I prepared quite a few interesting traps in case there are people like you trying to dig around, you know?