Look at that flustered expression.
The guy, number 86, swallowed and rolled his eyes around.
He was desperately trying to find a way out.
Frankly speaking, if I swung my wooden sword right now, his head would crack open without him even being able to block.
"Why are you following me?"
"Following you? What are you talking about? It's a coincidence. A coincidence. I just felt like going this way."
Yeah, sure. A coincidence, my ass.
"What coincidence? You're Han Youngsu's lackey. Be honest. You followed us to ambush me and Sanghyeok, didn't you?"
"If I did that, I'd be disqualified too. Why would I do something like that?"
"As if that's true—"
I slapped him across the cheek.
He flailed, trying to block, but with half his body stuck in the hole, it was impossible.
That was one hit.
Smack!
"What!"
Smack!
"Not true?"
Smack!
After taking three hits total, he shouted with a face twisted in rage.
"It's not true, you fucking bastard! You attacked me, huh? You're disqualified! I'll tell everyone! Just you wait!"
"There's no evidence. What good would telling anyone do? More importantly, you did come to ambush us, right?"
"You son of a bitch, just wait till I get out of here. You two won't last one punch against me. Got it?"
He was confessing pretty willingly.
As expected of a fifteen-year-old whose emotions overrode reason.
"Yeah? Then come out."
"…What?"
"Come out. I don't want to hear later how you could've beaten me."
"Are you serious?"
"I am."
He stared at me in disbelief, then nodded.
"Fine. Then wait a second. I'll come out and smash you to pieces."
He probably thought his provocation had worked.
Too bad for him.
I had no intention of leaving loose ends.
If I broke one of his legs, the supervisors would take good care of him later.
"Seoha, are you sure you'll be okay?"
"Why? Is he strong?"
"He's not weak. My odds against him are about fifty-fifty."
"Oh? What's his name?"
"Kim Yongho."
"Ah, Kim Yongho?"
I nodded.
It was a name I'd heard before.
During the war, when there weren't enough immortals, some were recruited from among outstanding high-ranking warriors.
That meant he'd been exceptional even among them—someone with decent talent.
Kim Yongho was one of those who became an immortal due to the wartime boom.
And he was also included among the true warriors on the list I'd compiled.
Which meant he'd fought the Rakshasa until the very end and died doing so.
He wasn't rotten to the core—just a lackey in his youth, it seemed.
"Well, anyway, that means he's strong among fifteen-year-olds, right? That makes him a good practice opponent."
Lee Junha was neither more nor less than an average warrior.
Of course, compared to kids from rural academies, Junha's skill was decent, but compared to the top talents of the same generation, he was on a completely different level.
Kim Yongho, on the other hand, might not be the very best, but he would have real ability.
The fact that he was evenly matched with Sanghyeok, who hadn't yet awakened his talent, and that he'd been included among those carried by Han Youngsu, was proof enough.
For me, it was the perfect opportunity.
I could gauge my current level and verify Sanghyeok's skill at the same time.
While I was thinking that, the guy finally wriggled all the way out and stood in front of me.
"You know, the young master told me to break one of your bones? But I changed my mind. You're dying today, you bastard."
"Oh my~ so scary. Sanghyeok, I think I'm gonna pee myself. Did I already?"
"…You asshole."
Looks like he had no resistance to lowbrow provocation.
Even Sanghyeok looked at me with disbelief.
Well, to a fifteen-year-old, that probably sounded like something an old man would say.
"Die!"
With his anger reaching its peak, Kim Yongho swung his wooden sword down.
His stance was good.
His speed was much faster than Lee Junha's, and there was internal energy behind it.
"He really is strong."
Talent on a completely different level from Junha.
But to me, who had sparred daily with my grandfather, it wasn't threatening.
It wouldn't be as easy as beating Junha while fooling around, but as long as I focused, there was no way I'd lose.
I had overwhelmingly more real combat experience.
I dodged his sword and thrust my wooden sword into his abdomen.
"Ugh!"
Kim Yongho staggered back in pain.
I didn't show mercy and brought the sword down on his shoulder.
"Urk!"
In real combat, one clean hit is the end.
He dropped his sword, and I immediately smashed his side.
Kim Yongho reflexively raised his arm, but that only changed which part broke.
With a loud crack, his arm snapped cleanly.
"Aaaaargh!"
Clutching his left arm, Kim Yongho stumbled backward.
I punched his face once as he writhed in pain and stepped closer.
He spat blood and looked up at me.
"Y-you… ugh…!"
He looked like he had a lot he wanted to say, but he couldn't get it out.
With broken bones, the pain must have been unbearable.
But I had no intention of letting him off.
And his eyes weren't those of someone admitting defeat.
"What? That's it? You talked like you could beat me once you got out."
"I—I just let my guard down…!"
"Yeah, yeah. You think you'd win if we did it again, right? Too bad. There's no 'next time' in real combat."
I glanced at his knee and said,
"This knee. If I break it, you'll be crippled for life. Joints don't heal once they're completely destroyed. You'll spend the rest of your life farming."
"…!"
Kim Yongho's face turned deathly pale.
"S-sorry. I was just doing what I was told. Please, just once—just once, let me go. I'll repay you, I swear."
"Didn't you say you'd kill me earlier? Did I hear that wrong? Huh, funny. My memory's bad—I feel like I remember it, but maybe I don't."
"N-no, you heard wrong. I was just going to make you fail the exam."
"There you go lying again. Should I break your knee?"
When I raised my wooden sword, Kim Yongho began convulsing and shouted,
"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! Please! Just let me be a warrior!"
I smiled faintly.
I never intended to destroy his joints in the first place.
The more true warriors there were, the better.
Even if he was immature now, there was no need to discard someone who would struggle on the front lines once war broke out.
"But even if I let you go, what changes? Your plan failed, so Han Youngsu will abandon you anyway, won't he?"
"…."
Kim Yongho lowered his head.
He'd spent his whole life flattering Han Youngsu.
Having it all turn to nothing in an instant—it was only natural he felt empty.
"So here's the thing."
I needed to give him a way forward.
So he wouldn't lose his dream when faced with adversity.
"If you still want to train as a warrior, go to Cheongsin. I'll write you a letter of recommendation. This year's slots are full, so you'll have to join the general training class, but with your skill, you'll make it into the military examination class next year."
"What? What did you just say…?"
"What, you don't like it?"
"No! I like it! I love it!"
Kim Yongho immediately grabbed onto my pant leg.
Compared to the declining Unseong, the rising Cheongsin would be far more appealing to him—this reaction was expected.
"Then don't follow me. Stay here quietly until the supervisors arrive. I'll write the recommendation after the exam."
"Thank you. Really. No—thank you, young master. Truly, thank you."
"Thank me after you get the recommendation. And we're the same age, so drop the honorifics."
"Yes! Young master!"
I told you to drop them.
"I'll definitely repay this kindness!"
It didn't look like he had any intention of doing so.
"Then rest so your injury doesn't get worse."
"Take care."
Kim Yongho straightened himself and bowed ninety degrees.
Watching the whole thing, Sanghyeok said with a shocked expression,
"You're forgiving him?"
"Do you think he did it because he wanted to? He had no other choice. Everyone's like that. They say submitting to power isn't wrong."
Power. Wealth.
Someone who doesn't bow to those is one in ten thousand—no, one in a million.
It's the ones who overcome that who are abnormal.
And at fifteen, before firm convictions are formed, it's easy to waver before the temptation of power.
"Kim Yongho isn't rotten to the core. Circumstances made him that way."
"What's the difference?"
"A huge one. People rotten to the core stab you in the back at the crucial moment. But those with decent roots don't betray you easily if you treat them like human beings. That's a big difference. A very big one."
No one shows their true face in ordinary times.
They reveal it once, at the decisive moment, when it truly matters.
That's why you need to observe and understand people before that moment arrives.
In that sense, regression really is a huge advantage.
Because I know what choices everyone in this world made at their decisive moments.
"Let's go. We've wasted a lot of time."
I planned to arrive around the middle anyway, so it wasn't a big deal, but getting caught by the supervisors would mean immediate disqualification.
It was unlikely anyone would follow us, but just in case, we should hurry.
And erase our tracks properly.
I pushed through the undergrowth and moved forward.
One day earlier.
Kang Museong scratched his head.
Sitting across from him was a red-robed immortal.
After completing their training period and earning recognition through achievements, white-robed immortals would don one of three colors.
Black, red, or blue.
It was hard to define their roles in a single word, but broadly speaking: black handled intelligence, red led expeditions, and blue handled defense.
The one sitting before him now was Hong Seongtaek, the Red-Robed Immortal, who was the chief supervisor of this exam.
"You're the supervisor for this practical exam. Take the necessary high-ranking warriors and conduct it. The exam details are written here."
Kang Museong accepted it reluctantly.
"I really want to go on this Mu-Wang Mountain expedition. I'm not someone who should be babysitting kids."
He was aiming to become a Red-Robed Immortal.
And for that, he needed to go on expeditions constantly and rack up achievements.
He didn't have time to be supervising kids.
"Originally, Lee Geonha was supposed to handle this, but this year, Cheongsin also applied."
"Why is Cheongsin coming to Seongmu Academy instead of using their own academy? What a hassle."
"Because Seongmu Academy is better. And if you talk back one more time, I'll reassign you."
"…Sorry."
"Then supervise the exam. Before I cut you loose."
"…Yes. I'll take my leave."
Kang Museong smacked his lips in irritation as he stepped outside.
"Damn it, stepped in shit."
Since a candidate's cousin couldn't be a supervisor, Lee Geonha's role had fallen to Kang Museong.
"Which bastard is it?"
The Mu-Wang Mountain expedition.
It was an area where the number of demonic beasts had increased rapidly.
There was no need to ponder the reason.
Demonic beasts were created by strong negative energy.
In other words, there was a Rakshasa in Mu-Wang Mountain.
If he could capture even a moderately famous Rakshasa alive, he could be promoted straight to red robes, which was why Kang Museong was desperate to join the expedition.
But because of some Cheongsin brat, it had fallen through.
Kang Museong immediately looked for the applicant from the Cheongsin family.
"So it's this guy."
The name was Lee Seoha.
He decided to see what kind of person he was.
Thanks to keeping an eye on him, he also learned that Lee Seoha received number 88.
"Perfect score on the written exam? Isn't that cheating?"
On the second day, the kid got a perfect score.
Seongmu Academy's written exam was designed so that a perfect score was impossible.
Each subject included at least one problem difficult even for experts.
And yet, a perfect score—it was hard to accept rationally.
"And what's with this 498?"
It wasn't just Lee Seoha.
There was also a candidate who missed only one question, in law.
"What's wrong with this batch?"
People weren't calling them a golden generation for nothing.
In response to Kang Museong's question, his subordinate tilted his head.
"There were evaluations saying there are many geniuses."
"No, does 'genius' really explain this? These are questions even active generals and judges get wrong. And these candidates solve them?"
"There is suspicion, but do you really think they did something under the noses of high-ranking warriors? About fifty high-ranking warriors were monitoring roughly three hundred candidates. There was no way to cheat."
"True. That's unlikely."
I'll have to keep watching.
That's what he thought as the day of the practical exam arrived.
Not only did number 88 reach the cave without even panting, he deliberately exited through the narrowest hole.
No matter which hole one chose, the distance or difficulty to the training ground wasn't much different.
No—strictly speaking, the large holes with established paths were much easier.
Kang Museong gave his assessment of Lee Seoha.
"He's a weirdo."
"Supervisor, everyone has departed."
"Then start timing. We depart exactly one half-hour later."
After waiting, Kang Museong jumped up and said,
"I'm going through the narrow one. You all split up and go wherever."
They knew which paths the candidates had taken, so they could distribute their numbers appropriately.
"This perverted bastard. He went out through a place like this?"
Larger than the fifteen-year-olds, Kang Museong struggled to squeeze out through the exit.
In front of him stood a candidate clutching his arm.
"What's this?"
Right in front of the exit, a candidate had splinted his injured arm.
Kang Museong approached him and asked,
"What number are you?"
"Number 86."
"What happened to your arm? Don't tell me number 88 did this."
"No. I fell on my own."
Kim Yongho said it without blinking.
"A warrior candidate fell on his own and broke his arm?"
"Yes."
"You expect me to believe that?"
"It's the truth."
Kang Museong snorted.
"Well, would you look at this?"
Number 86 was clearly from Unseong.
Why would someone from Unseong cover for Cheongsin?
Even with a broken arm?
"Funny bunch, aren't you?"
Kang Museong looked at the undergrowth.
The very undergrowth Seoha had passed through.
Though there were signs of erased tracks, he noticed that small branches had been bent unnaturally.
Looking back at Kim Yongho, Kang Museong said,
"Fine. Then I'll ask him directly."
"I don't mind. I fell down. Number 88 has nothing to do with it."
"Alright, alright. I get it. Loyal, huh? But you're disqualified."
Daring to attack another candidate, huh?
"I didn't like you from the start."
I'll just catch him and disqualify him.
It definitely wasn't venting my anger.