At , various worldviews were intertwined.
There could be a dieval fantasy city with swords and magic, and just a step away, you could find a martial arts world. And then, if you shifted your gaze slightly, modern buildings would catch your eye.
Therefore, it wasnt strange that the platform in front of us was made up of ancient-looking pavilions.
Fortunately, we made it in ti.
Its all thanks to Kim-hyung.
There was a reason why Go Hyeon-woo praised ; he wasnt particularly talented at finding his way.
On the other hand, I just had to follow the quest arrows, so there was no chance of us getting lost.
Still, this guy was helpful.
Go Hyeon-woo dealt with minor monsters we encountered on our path, so it wasnt a loss for .
The train had already arrived and was waiting on the platform, and I could see students in school uniform coming and going.
We approached the station attendant.
He appeared to be a middle-aged man in his forties or fifties, with an unexpectedly full head of hair for his age.
Moreover, his hair was so well-kept that it glead and swayed neatly.
Could that be a wig?
With those doubts in mind, I handed over my ticket.
The station attendant checked the tickets and looked us over before asking.
First year?
Yes.
First-year students should board the carriages from number 1 to 10.
Thank you.
As we scanned the series of carriages, we soon spotted one marked with the number .
The mont we stepped onto the train, a notification ssage popped up.
[Tutorial II Completed]
[Tutorial III]
Objective: Attend the entrance ceremony.
[TIP: Make different friends on the train.]
The train to Dragon Slayer Academy was of the cabin type.
The right half was a corridor for people to pass through, and the left half consisted of small rooms.
Go Hyeon-woo and I walked down the corridor, peering through the small windows on each cabin door.
We were looking for an empty cabin.
But it was difficult to find even an empty seat, let alone an empty cabin.
It made sense, as students must have boarded at other platforms the train had passed through.
We walked from carriage 10, peering and walking, until around carriage 8.
Finally, Go Hyeon-woo found a suitable cabin.
Kim-hyung, there seems to be space here.
Peeking inside, there was only one person.
We slid the door open.
The inside of the cabin was about two pyeong (6 square ters) in size.
In the middle of the cabin, there was a small table with built-in seats facing each other around it.
The arrangent was such that four people could sit in each cabin.
A female student with light gray hair was lying face down on the window seat. When she sensed soones presence, she slowly sat up.
When I t the gray-haired girls eyes, my first thought was that she was beautiful.
Even among the many attractive n and won in , she stood out as exceptionally beautiful.
The instincts of n are indeed unavoidable.
The next thing I noticed about her was that she looked to be sleepy.
Her languid face, dripping with fatigue, and her half-closed eyes seed to debate whether to fall back asleep.
Although she had just woken up, I got the feeling that this was her usual state.
Lastly, my long experience as a collector whispered to ,
This is a raw gem.
It was just a vague intuition at the mont, but characters like her usually reached S-tier without much difficulty in ninety-nine out of a hundred cases.
Whether my feeling was correct or not would be sothing to find out in the future.
Anyway, since we couldnt just keep staring at each other, I took the initiative to ask,
Are the seats empty?
Yes.
Her hoodie worn over her school uniform seed slightly oversized, as only the tips of her fingers peeked out from the loose sleeves.
She tapped the seat next to her. She wants to sit there, I suppose?
I didnt hesitate and quickly took the seat.
Go Hyeon-woo chose a spot across from , near the window.
My na is Go Hyeon-woo.
Im Kim Ho.
Seo Ye-in.
After our brief introductions, I found myself lost in thought.
I had morized all the characters in from the nad ones to the minor extras in its story and quests.
But Go Hyeon-woo and Seo Ye-in were both new to .
Moreover, from my brief observation at the platform, other students and station staff were all unfamiliar faces.
The setting was the sa, but the characters were different.
This would inevitably lead to changes in the upcoming events and quests.
I needed to keep a close watch to see what would change and what would remain the sa.
Rumble
My body slightly jolted, and I felt a faint sense of floating.
The train must have departed as the scenery outside the window gradually receded.
But for a while now, Ive been feeling a persistent gaze on .
Seo Ye-in was staring intently at my face and with slightly less sleepy eyes than when we first t.
?
As I sent her a look asking if she had sothing to say, she placed her bag on her lap.
It was a tactical tal bag that was designed for extre practicality, devoid of any trace of cuteness.
She rustled through the bag and pulled out a small paper pouch.
From the pouch, she offered a chocolate chip cookie.
Want one?
***
Seo Ye-in possessed a unique set of eyes that were different from others.
Her eyes could quantify everything she saw into information.
For example, when she looked at a male student in martial arts clothing, she saw familiar data.
[Status]
Go Hyeon-woo
Skills
Heavenly Flow Sword Technique (D)
Traits
Swordsmanship (C)
Core (E)
etc.
She could delve into these details any ti she wanted, though they rarely piqued her interest.
However, the data for another male student who entered the cabin was full of question marks.
Not taphorically, but literally filled with question marks.
[Stat??]
?????
#?????
?mpl??
??arc?
???
???
She couldnt read anything at all.
This was the fourth ti Seo Ye-in had encountered such a status window since she had acquired her eyes.
It was the fourth among countless status windows she had seen flit past her.
She couldnt help but be intrigued.
Moreover, the previous three had all been individuals of deep importance to her.
So, would this man who introduced himself as Kim Ho be the sa?
There were many reasons why her gaze kept returning to him.
Even though staring wouldnt change the question marks filling his status window, she continued to look intently.
As she did so, Kim Ho t her gaze and his eyes were filled with curiosity.
Seo Ye-in didnt look away but continued to stare and while doing so she suddenly rembered a piece of advice she had heard before.
If youre interested in soone, start by showing them kindness.
Seo Ye-in took out a cookie from her bag.
Want one?
***
Ah, thanks.
I sowhat bewilderedly accepted the cookie.
It was about half the size of my palm, irregularly shaped, far from a perfect circle, and the chocolate chips were unevenly embedded in it.
Although it wasnt very appealing to look at, I doubted it would taste much different from a typical chocolate chip cookie.
With that thought, I took a big bite.
Seo Ye-in was looking at intently again as if asking how it tasted.
I took a mont to choose my words carefully.
The cookie is quite soft.
It was a lump of softness with hardly any sweetness.
I had so expectations about the chocolate chip cookie, but it seed to be 65% pure cacao, and it tasted more bitter than sweet.
Of course, it was different from what I had expected, but not tasteless.
So, I managed to finish the cookie quite easily.
And throughout, Seo Ye-in kept watching .
Her face was expressionless, so it was hard to read her thoughts.
Still, it felt uncomfortable just making eye contact, so I searched for a topic of conversation.
Its good. Did you bake it yourself?
Mhm, have another.
At this ti, Go Hyeon-woo coughed lightly and asked, albeit hesitantly,
Ahem, if its not too rude, may I have one too?
This is the last one.
Seo Ye-in cut him off with an almost cold, decisive tone.
At the sa ti, she fed the last cookie from the paper bag into my mouth, and it was indeed the last one.
I couldnt shake the feeling that she just didnt want to give one to him
Go Hyeon-woo opened his mouth to say sothing but then as if realizing it was pointless he closed it.
Just then,
Drrrrr
Suddenly, the cabin door slid open, and a boy with a buzz cut burst in.
He promptly plopped down in the empty seat next to Go Hyeon-woo.
Sorry everyone, I need to intrude for a mont. Ill just sit here for a bit if you dont mind.
I dont mind at all. Feel free to stay as long as you need.
neither. The seats empty anyway.
Instead of replying, Seo Ye-in simply nodded her head slightly.
The boy with the buzz cut grinned.
I like this welcoming vibe. Im Byeong-cheol. Shin Byeong-cheol.
This guy is ordinary.
As soon as I laid my eyes on this Shin Byeong-cheol, a rough estimate imdiately ca to mind.
If he took the easy route, hed be a C-grade, but with real effort, perhaps hed end up a B-grade.
The potential seen in Go Hyeon-woo and Seo Ye-in was so dazzling that this level hardly caught the eye.
However, despite my harsh evaluation, it seed beneficial to familiarize myself with Shin Byeong-cheol.
From the mont he entered the cabin, I had a rough idea of his identity.
A clue was that despite his flashy entrance, he barely made any sound.
When Shin Byeong-cheol introduced himself, everyone responded with a light exchange of nas.
He showed particular interest in Go Hyeon-woo.
Seeing that you are wearing a martial artists clothing, you must be from a sect, right? Which sect are you from?
Im from Heavenly Wind Gate.
Heavenly Wind Gate? Heavenly Wind Gate? Wind Gate Ive never heard of it.
Its an obscure, single-succession sect that is not well-known to the public. Its possible you havent heard of it.
Is that so? Ill make a note of it. Lets see
Shin Byeong-cheol then pulled out a small notebook and swiftly jotted sothing down.
Next, he turned his attention to Seo Ye-in and .
Do you two belong to any sects or magic towers?
No.
Seo Ye-in, once again, responded silently by shaking her head from side to side.
Shin Byeong-cheol continued to scribble sothing in his notebook.
Information is crucial. It translates to money, you know.
From the way you talk about it, it seems you trade information too.
Of course. And I dont just deal in information.
When I showed interest, he seed to think I could be a potential custor, so he quickly took out a business card and handed it to .
The cards cheap design resembled those distributed in low-end pubs, with the following written in the center:
[Dragon Slayer Academy Errand Service!]
Seek out this Shin Byeong-cheol whenever and wherever! Ill procure anything for the right price.
I examined the card with curiosity, flipped it over, and asked,
Anything, you say Does that include breaking out so rules?
Ah, certainly. Just give the word.
Youre on the run for that right now, arent you?
!
Shin Byeong-cheol who had been chattering excitedly suddenly clamped his mouth shut.
It was clear now that his reason for entering this cabin was not rely to socialize with us.
Was it that obvious?
Your eyes kept darting towards the door.
Hehe, well, I tried to hide it.
Seizing the mont, Shin Byeong-cheol peered outside the cabin once more.
Suddenly, after seeing sothing, he hurried back to his seat, pretending as if he had always been part of this cabins company.
However,
Drrrrrr!
The rooms door opened again.
***********
TN: when author says with the brackets he is talking about the ga not the academy.
User Comments
0 comments from readers