Kim Joohyuk basically knows how to classify people.
This doesn't mean his eye for character is exceptional. Rather, having rolled around at the bottom for quite a long time in his past life, he naturally learned how to sort them.
At the very least, the world he survived in was one where getting stabbed in the back was inevitable if you didn't have the eyes to distinguish friend from foe.
In that sense, Kim Joohyuk finished his assessment the moment he encountered the guys blocking his path.
These guys had absolutely no goodwill toward him. In fact, they were here to pick a fight.
And Kim Joohyuk, then and now, always showed the exact same attitude toward such trash.
"What, thugs?"
"Aren't you thugs?"
Kim Joohyuk said this, then answered himself with a low "Ah," as if a realization had just struck him.
"You're right. Looking at it now, you aren't thugs?"
"...?"
"Not thugs, but Power Rangers. Red, Blue, Black, Yellow... no Pink?"
Kim Joohyuk playfully wiggled his finger, pointing out the dyed hair colors of the group blocking his path. He smirked.
"Ha, look at this bastard?"
The ringleader, and the leader of this pack, Reric, the eldest son of the Sunrise Family, laughed in disbelief.
"Wow, look at how he talks? Why so overflowing with confidence? Does a senior look like a pushover to you?"
Reric deliberately made the atmosphere heavy.
Certainly, in this situation, ordinary students might have been fearful.
A group that looked exactly like thugs had suddenly blocked the way, surrounding one person to apply pressure.
However, Kim Joohyuk did not fall into the category of ordinary students.
"Asking something so obvious."
"What?"
"Are you scared when you see Power Rangers? Were you perhaps a villain beaten up by Power Rangers in the past? But why should I be scared? Besides-"
Smirk.
"Looking at it, you're not even a complete set since there's no Pink. Now that I see two Yellows, how about making one of them Pink?"
Kim Joohyuk mocked them openly.
Reric laughed in disbelief.
"Wow, listen to this guy?"
"Why, does admiration come out naturally because I guessed your identity at once?"
"This bastard...."
Reric frowned fiercely.
Kim Joohyuk hardened his expression, looking visibly annoyed.
"So, if you have nothing more to say, how about moving aside? Isn't it a waste to spend time like this? Unlike you, I'm busy."
"Ha... just because you entered Valhalla as 1st place, I guess you can't see what's in front of you?"
"Are you perhaps twisted? If you're twisted, you know what to do, right?"
Watching Kim Joohyuk giggle with a playful expression, Reric felt his hand twitch, wanting to strike, but he endured it with superhuman patience.
There are too many eyes watching here.
Honestly speaking, Reric was confident he could beat Kim Joohyuk right now.
Even if he was the 1st Place of the 1st Years, that was strictly 1st Years.
Of course, that rank wasn't insignificant, but to Reric, who held the rank of 12th among the 2nd Years, a freshman didn't look that impressive.
Leaving aside 3rd years, the gap between 1st and 2nd years was massive.
But even so, Reric endured.
He knew all too well that hitting him now wouldn't be worth the trouble.
I wondered why that Ventric threw such an attractive offer, but this guy is a complete crazy bastard?
He recalled the request made by Lokdil Ventric, the exchange student, a few days ago.
The request to handle Kim Joohyuk, accompanied by the offer of a very sweet reward.
However, breaking Valhalla's school rules and receiving a penalty just to get that reward was stupid.
Right, let's calm down for now. For now....
Moreover, today was just about seeing his face.
Reric forced a twisted smile.
"Let's see each other often, yeah?—Hey, let's go."
The group moved immediately, disappearing as if they had no interest in listening to Kim Joohyuk anymore.
Kim Joohyuk smacked his lips, watching those who scanned him with clumsy gazes until the end.
Want to beat them up so bad.
Honestly, mid-conversation, Kim Joohyuk had considered smashing Reric's jaw several times.
Because he thought he couldn't win?
No.
Even with a body like this, he was confident he could beat such thugs laughably.
If it weren't for the Constellation's Room, I would have just smashed their heads.
The reason Kim Joohyuk didn't cause trouble.
It was precisely because of the Constellation's Room he planned to enter tomorrow.
I entered Valhalla because of the Constellation's Room in the first place. If things get twisted by fighting with such guys, it becomes annoying.
Therefore.
Let's see after I come back.
Kim Joohyuk looked at the spot where Reric disappeared and smacked his lips once more.
I'll smash all their heads then.
He thought so.
❋ ❋ ❋
Next day, 6 AM.
Kim Joohyuk entered the physical training center. He looked at Choi Ah-rin standing in one corner of the deserted gym.
"You came?"
"Are you teaching me now?"
Choi Ah-rin held onto a practice Dao tightly, her face full of expectation.
Kim Joohyuk shook his head.
"No."
"...Not teaching?"
Her tone dropped two octaves. She looked visibly crestfallen.
Kim Joohyuk answered without changing his expression.
"If you want to learn from me, you must train your body first."
"Body training?"
Choi Ah-rin tilted her head, her expression asking if that was really necessary.
Kim Joohyuk shrugged.
"Don't want to? If you don't want to, forget it."
"No, I'll do it."
In fact, it didn't matter if she refused.
From Kim Joohyuk's perspective, deciding to teach Choi Ah-rin was strictly a whim.
Since I have to do physical training consistently from now on anyway, it wouldn't be bad to watch over her while I'm at it. It's just training.
Taking on a real disciple was annoying and hard, but just training together and giving advice wasn't difficult.
Moreover, it's true that she lacks the physical foundation to handle the Dao properly.
In the current world, people seemed to train mainly in mana rather than physical conditioning. Kim Joohyuk thought this trend was foolish.
One could handle mana well only if they had stamina. A strong body could accept more mana.
That was an obvious fact, but strangely, everyone in this era was obsessively attached to mana while neglecting their bodies.
It was a bizarre obsession: keeping physical training to the minimum while pushing mana to the limit.
Choi Ah-rin was the same.
Her mana capacity is substantial.
But compared to her mana, her physical conditioning wasn't even half of his. Kim Joohyuk decided to fix that first.
Just fixing that would make Choi Ah-rin's skill much higher than it was now.
And, if she follows better than I think, there's no reason not to look after her properly.... Well, I don't know if I'll be here until then.
Kim Joohyuk smirked and started physical training with Choi Ah-rin.
30 minutes later.
"Pant... Pant...."
"Hmm, now it feels like a workout."
"What... pant... did... pant?"
"Why are you spread out like that? There's still 20km of full-speed running left."
"...."
Choi Ah-rin's pupils began to tremble for the first time.
❋ ❋ ❋
5 PM. Classes ended.
Entrance to the 'Constellation's Room' at the east end of Valhalla.
"...Somehow it seems the defense here is much greater than outside Valhalla?"
When Kim Joohyuk looked around, Kim Yi-gun answered as if it was natural.
"As you know, this Constellation's Room is the treasure that allowed Valhalla to be included in the world's top 3 academies. Don't you think it would be strange if there weren't this many personnel?"
As his homeroom teacher said, the Constellation's Room had tremendous value.
However, what Kim Joohyuk was talking about wasn't the security personnel, but the defenses placed on the building itself.
They didn't just paint it on; they plastered it thickly.
The building was covered in an enormous number of magic circles, enough to make Kim Joohyuk sick just by glancing.
To what extent? The magic circles were so dense that only the building entrance was actually visible.
Kim Joohyuk stood blankly at the entrance, assessing the structure.
"Student Kim Joohyuk, confirmed."
"You may enter now."
"Oh, really?"
"However, as mentioned last time, the area allowed to you is only Basement Level 1. Be aware that if you try to go down to Basement Level 2, you could be expelled from Valhalla."
"I understand."
"And the time limit is 30 minutes."
"I understood that too. Can I go in now?"
Kim Yi-gun looked at him with a strange anxiety, but soon nodded.
Kim Joohyuk began to descend toward the Constellation's Room instantly.
Watching him, Kim Yi-gun shrugged his shoulders.
Surely he wouldn't go down to Basement Level 2...?
No matter how peculiar his personality, Kim Joohyuk entered Valhalla as 1st place. He would gain much more benefit staying in the academy than being expelled.
Right, surely he wouldn't kick away his own luck.
Kim Yi-gun shook off the anxious feeling.
"Good, let's search."
[Find the Armament and Memory.]
[Valhalla Constellation's Room Basement Level 3, Right Side, Fifth Room]
[■■■ ■■■■■ ■■■■■ ■■ ■]
[■■■■■■ ■■■ ■■■■■ ■■ ■■■]
Kim Joohyuk didn't care much whether he was expelled from Valhalla.
Of course, if he became a criminal because of this, the costs would outweigh the gains, so he would avoid it if possible. But getting expelled didn't matter as long as he achieved his goal.
The reason I entered Valhalla was because of this in the first place.
Kim Joohyuk began to descend the stairs that seemed to continue endlessly.
"Is it here?"
Not long after, Kim Joohyuk saw the Constellation's Room.
"...A prison?"
Honestly, the layout looked strange.
A corridor stretched straight ahead, and room doors were attached one by one on both sides like a prison or a gosiwon (cramped study room).
Far away, he saw stairs going down.
Kim Joohyuk stopped appreciating the view and tried to move immediately to Basement Level 2.
[Conditions Met!]
"?"
As soon as he stepped inward, a notification window rose before his eyes.
[Moving to the Room.]
Before Kim Joohyuk could say anything, his vision flickered.
And then.
[Wow, long time no see, Kim Hyeonoh.]
"...Varche?"
As soon as his vision recovered, Kim Joohyuk saw the Destruction King Varche appearing in front of him.
[Reunion after 300 years... this isn't ba-]
"Perfect timing, you bastard!"
Kim Joohyuk rushed in, not caring about the consequences, and smashed his jaw.
[Smack!]
(End of Chapter 9)
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