Academy Bully-in-Charge: Episode 6
Baek Iljin sat still with his characteristically expressionless face, watching her. She gave off an impression strangely similar to Charles, and even her gait resembled his.
‘Siblings?’
She only discovered Baek Iljin once she approached, flinching before whispering into Charles's ear.
"By the way, who is this?"
"Ah, this is my new friend, Baek Iljin. And this is my twin sister, Crystal..."
She glared at Charles once for introducing himself with that strange nickname again, then blushed as she greeted Baek Iljin.
"Ah, hello. I'm Hwangbo Sujeong..."
"Yes. I'm Baek Iljin."
Unlike the bold attitude she had shown toward Charles, her greeting to Baek Iljin was brimming with shyness.
"But Charles. Hwangbo Cheolsu, what is that supposed to..."
Upon hearing Baek Iljin's words, Hwangbo Sujeong let out a low sigh. Then she grabbed Charles's head and shoved it down.
"Did you go around calling yourself Charles again?"
"Why, don't you know mages usually operate using aliases?"
"What mage are you? You can't even use magic."
"Crystal, it's because you won't teach me..."
"You have no talent, and besides, martial arts are better than magic."
Unlike Hwangbo Cheolsu, she valued martial arts more highly than magic. Perhaps that was the start. The two continued arguing about the greatness of martial arts and magic for several minutes.
"Ah, I don't know. When I go to the academy, I'm definitely going to learn magic."
"For someone who loves learning so much, why did you run away during study time?"
As he seemed to be gradually losing the verbal sparring, Hwangbo Cheolsu shot Baek Iljin a look. It meant to say something and help him out.
"...I also have business at the Hwangbo Clan."
"That's right! Now that I think of it, why are you at our house?"
"Oh my! You're coming to our clan?"
Having successfully changed the subject at the right moment, Hwangbo Cheolsu winked at Baek Iljin.
"I need to receive an academy recommendation letter."
"Don't tell me, the 'Magic and Martial Arts Academy'?"
"Well, the Imperial Academy, then?"
"That's not what I meant, but..."
Baek Iljin took out the Leaf Token from the subspace in his ring.
"They said if I show them this, they'll give me an academy recommendation letter."
"What? You're the guest who was coming today?"
She recalled what her uncle had said during breakfast this morning. That a guest would be coming from the Elf Village, so don't go anywhere and train at home.
‘Though of course, I sneaked out.’
To think that guest was Baek Iljin—she thought fate was truly a curious thing.
"What are you doing? If you're done with your coffee, let's go back to the clan!"
* * *
The Hwangbo Clan was an estate that exuded a vigorous spirit befitting its majesty.
In the training grounds beside the estate, the clan's warriors, all with towering physiques, were training hard, and pride at being disciples of a prestigious clan dwelt in their eyes.
"Aren't they so cool they're beyond comparison with things like magic? These are our Hwangbo Clan's Overlord Squad and Thunderbolt Squad."
As befitting the names Overlord and Thunderbolt, each and every move they made contained an overbearing momentum that seemed capable of easily shattering boulders.
"Cool? They just reek of sweat."
Hwangbo Cheolsu picked a fight while listening to her explanation.
Seeing his mischievous expression, Hwangbo Sujeong raised her fist and struck his back with a loud thwack!
"Hwangbo Cheolsu! How can you say such things when you don't even train?"
"Ugh! And is it proper behavior for you to swing that brute fist of yours filled with internal energy?"
He held back the tears that threatened to spill from the sting of her punch and argued, but she ignored him and hurled one more remark at him.
"If you're going to act like that, don't even pretend you know me at the academy!"
"What? The academy...? You said you'd never go to the academy even if it killed you..."
Upon hearing those words, Hwangbo Sujeong's face suddenly flushed red as she glanced at Baek Iljin and spoke in an urgent voice.
"W-when did I... I wanted to go to the academy too."
"What? Even this morning, you..."
"Ah, I'm going! I wanted to go all along!"
Seeing her face flushed red and her voice full of shyness, Hwangbo Cheolsu shivered as if he had seen a ghost.
‘Ugh, why is she making that expression? I'd rather get beaten than see that.’
While they were bickering, a middle-aged man of enormous physique approached with a hearty laugh and stopped them.
"Hehe, look at you two, still fighting even though you're all grown up."
"Uncle! He went out to play again instead of studying!"
"Our Cheolsu... no, Charles must have gone to greet the guest. Isn't that right, Charles?"
"Yes! Of course, Uncle!"
Seeing her uncle defend Hwangbo Cheolsu at every turn made her burn with frustration inside.
"So you're the friend called Baek Iljin?"
"Yes."
He gestured for Baek Iljin to follow and entered the Patriarch's Hall.
Despite the Hwangbo Clan's grand exterior, the Patriarch's Hall was simpler than expected. The room was fairly spacious, but aside from a work desk and a conference sofa, there were no interior decorations.
"Here, this."
Baek Iljin took out the token he had received from the Elf Village and held it out.
Having received the token, Hwangbo Myeong examined the 'Leaf Token' in his hand with sharp eyes.
"Indeed, this is certainly the token of Blue Leaf Village."
"Yes."
"Glad to meet you. I am Hwangbo Myeong. Undeservedly, I hold the position of Clan Head. Well, I also bear the title of Count, but that doesn't mean much."
"I am Baek Iljin."
After exchanging greetings, Hwangbo Myeong swept his gaze over Baek Iljin and stroked his chin. The hard calluses embedded in every knuckle on the back of his hand seemed to prove his harsh training.
Unlike his fists, Baek Iljin's delicate hands looked as though they had never washed a single dish.
‘This child shows no trace of having learned martial arts.’
Hwangbo Myeong, who had shaken his head slightly, asked Baek Iljin,
"You said you needed an academy recommendation letter, yes?"
"That's correct."
"Giving you one is not difficult. There is no limit on the number, after all."
"Thank you."
"But you see..."
He paused, took a sip of tea, and continued.
"Do you think you can enter the academy simply by receiving one?"
"Pardon?"
As his words indicated, one could not enter the Magic and Martial Arts Academy with merely a 'recommendation letter'.
"I am asking if you can meet the academy's admission standards. A recommendation letter only grants you the qualification to take the exam."
"Admission standards?"
He didn't understand what admission standards were being referred to. His grandfather and the Elf Village chief had simply said he only needed a recommendation letter.
"Dear me. You really didn't know anything."
"I was unaware there were separate admission standards."
Hwangbo Myeong pondered how to explain this to the expressionless boy.
‘Truly, this is frustrating. I can't speak bluntly to the benefactor of Blue Leaf...’
"You show no trace of having learned martial arts."
"Yes, that is true."
He had learned a mental technique for handling internal energy, but had never separately learned martial arts.
"Then have you learned magic?"
"No."
Upon hearing the answer, Hwangbo Myeong clicked his tongue lowly.
"Then, you won't be able to enroll."
"Because of those 'admission standards'?"
"Precisely. Do you know the reason the academy was founded?"
"I do not know well."
The Murim Alliance and the Tower of Magicians.
150 years ago, they had formed an alliance to restrain a common enemy—the Tower of Dark Magicians and the Demonic Alliance—and the 'Reserve Talent Training Center' was created as the beginning of that harmony.
"That Reserve Talent Training Center is the predecessor of the current Tower of Magicians & Murim Alliance Academy."
"Yes."
"Having said this much, do you roughly understand?"
"So one must prove their level of martial arts or magic through an exam to meet the admission standards."
After thinking for a moment, Baek Iljin spoke as if it were no big deal.
"Magic or martial arts—one simply needs to learn them, no?"
"That is true. But there is not much time left until the entrance exam."
"Even so..."
"Furthermore, there is no one here to teach you martial arts, and even if you were to learn, one week is far too short."
Hwangbo Myeong cut in firmly, though his heart was not at ease either. However, he could not let the boy harbor false hope.
"My apologies."
"It is fine."
Baek Iljin was not so foolish that he couldn't grasp the situation. He was confident he could surpass the admission standards if they taught him martial arts, but that was a separate problem.
‘Even if I insisted here, the Hwangbo Clan would not teach me martial arts.’
Then, something suddenly flashed through Hwangbo Myeong's mind. The entrance exam consisted not only of practical skills but also a written test.
"Ah, right! Are you perhaps good at studying?"
"What kind of studying do you mean?"
"There is also a written exam in the academy's admission process."
"What?"
"The disciples of martial arts families and magicians will not take the written exam, so that may be your only possibility."
And the Hwangbo Clan had an expert in written exams.
* * *
Inside a small room stacked with dozens of thick books substantial enough to serve as blunt weapons.
‘Ah, what should I do? Suddenly being alone together like this...’
A young man and woman who had just come of age were together, so excitement would naturally be expected, but unlike the woman's flushed face, the man's expression showed no change whatsoever.
Thump, thump, thump.
Fearing that the sound of her heartbeat might reach Baek Iljin, Hwangbo Sujeong quickly spoke up out of embarrassment.
"U-um, should we speak comfortably?"
"Yes. Let's do that."
"Y-you speak casually first."
"Alright."
"O-okay."
Even after agreeing to drop formalities, a long silence passed before she took a deep breath and began explaining the subjects.
"The subjects you need to test in are History, Combat Magic, Support Magic, Formation Studies, Martial Arts Studies, and Movement Arts and Footwork Studies—six in total."
He had heard that the written exam was easier to enter than the practical one, but seeing the stacks of thick books, it didn't seem to be entirely the case.
"That's quite a lot."
"Right? You have to memorize all of this in one week."
"One week?"
"You didn't know? The exam is next week."
The exam date was closer than expected.
"Right now, there's too little time to truly understand everything, so you need to study by memorizing as much as possible."
"Understood."
For the first time in her life, Hwangbo Sujeong found teaching someone to study enjoyable. It was a feeling on a completely different dimension from when she had forced herself to sit and teach Hwangbo Cheolsu.
However, fun aside, there was a problem: Baek Iljin hadn't said a word during the study session. He hadn't even asked any questions.
‘Why isn't he asking questions? Am I bad at teaching...?’
But there was a different reason Baek Iljin was not asking questions. The sun had already set, and the energies within his body were beginning to rampage.
‘Hmm...’
He tried to suppress the rampaging energies, but controlling them without circulating his qi was not as easy as he thought.
"Um... you do understand, right?"
"Huff, I understand."
Thanks to that, the lesson progressed quickly, but she began to grow worried.
‘At this rate, Iljin might fail to get into the academy...’
Then, a noisy sound was heard from outside. As if something urgent had happened, Hwangbo Cheolsu was calling for her in a hurry.
"Iljin, work through this problem book up to the range we've covered. I'll be right back."
"Got it."
Left alone, Baek Iljin let out a low groan and assumed the lotus position. Then he urgently began qi circulation meditation.
‘I will survive.’
After a long while, having finally calmed his energy, he picked up the problem book. It was basic-level problems, but they were less difficult than expected.
‘Finished them all.’
Yawn-
After solving all the problems, drowsiness poured over him. It was because he had been busy moving around yesterday and today, and also because he had failed to suppress the rampaging energy in time.
‘I should take a quick nap.’
* * *
‘This Hwangbo Cheolsu. Calling me over something so trivial. Whether he's Charles or Cheolsu, he should take care of his alias himself.’
Listening to Hwangbo Cheolsu's pointless worries took longer than expected. When she hurriedly returned to the study room, she saw Baek Iljin lying fast asleep.
‘He must have been tired...’
In front of him with his eyes closed was the problem book. It seemed he had already solved everything, as ink had smudged across the open pages.
[Academy Entrance Problem Book -Advanced-]
‘What! This is the advanced problem book?’
In her rush to leave, she had mistakenly given him the advanced problem book she had bought for herself. The advanced problem book was notorious for being more difficult than most specialized textbooks.
‘Ha, I feel so sorry for him.’
Thinking of Baek Iljin having worked hard to solve such difficult problems made her feel unnecessarily apologetic.
‘But since he's solved them, I should grade them...?’
As she picked up the problem book to grade it, her expression gradually became one of shock.
‘N-no way!...’