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Translator: Vine
Chapter Title: Future Knowledge (1)
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After the combat training practical.
I dragged myself along, feeling like a zombie, to attend the next lecture.
'Ugh, I'm dying here…'
Sparring with Kang Dohee alone was draining, but wrestling and grappling with her until we were rolling on the floor left me utterly exhausted.
It felt like every single cell in my body had been wrung dry.
'Grappling is supposed to be very tiring, after all…'
And the opponent was none other than Kang Dohee.
All I wanted to do was close my eyes and collapse onto a bed.
'But still, I can teach Kang Dohee grappling now. That's good.'
The reason why I, a combat non-specialist who wasn't even specialized in martial arts, could teach her grappling.
No matter how strong my grip was, it didn't really make sense.
I wasn't a former mixed martial artist or anything; I was just a regular armchair enthusiast.
Nevertheless, the reason I could confidently say I'd teach her was simple.
Because I had Instructor Baek Seolhee.
I planned to ask the instructor separately during tomorrow's major class.
About the grappling techniques I could teach Kang Dohee.
Given that Baek Seolhee had sparred with Kang Dohee in the basic training, it seemed she had a deep understanding of not only swordsmanship but also martial arts.
'The opportunity came faster than I expected.'
That was what I thought after attending the major class last time.
To internalize Instructor Baek Seolhee's lessons and teach them to my party members.
'However, to do that, I'll eventually have to use what's inside the Alice Box.'
Honestly, I felt a resistance to opening an item whose future use was unknown already,
But if the reward was an increase in stats, it was more than worth it.
Lost in these thoughts, I walked until I found myself at the lecture hall.
As I arrived, eyes turned towards me as always. I scanned the room, looking for Shin Sehee.
'Where did she go?'
This class was "Understanding Positional Formations and Organizations."
Among the classes that boosted intelligence, this one was related to party management.
It was a lecture I'd chosen, thinking it would be helpful for me as the party leader and Shin Sehee as the operator.
My searching gaze stopped at the very back corner of the classroom.
There, a person with long straight hair was huddled, desperately bowing her head.
Even though she was trying to hide, her unique shimmering aura couldn't be concealed.
'Is she embarrassed about the texts she sent last night after drinking?'
A smirk tugged at my lips, and I walked towards her.
"Shin Sehee, what are you doing there? Are you sleeping?"
I asked, standing beside her.
*Fl-inch—*
Her body trembled.
*Stretch—*
Her body stiffened. Slowly, she lifted her head and stretched both arms upwards.
It was as if she was trying to claim she had arrived early and simply dozed off.
"Oh, Jin Yuha. You're here? I'm sorry. I arrived early and just fell asleep for a bit."
She turned her gaze towards me and said, her face impassive.
"Were you tired? Are you feeling unwell?"
"Yes, a little…"
Shin Sehee nodded her head.
I placed one hand on my forehead and the other on hers.
'Huh? Is she really unwell?'
Her forehead felt hotter than I expected.
"You're hot? Are you really okay?"
I sat down next to her, my face filled with concern.
"W-wait! Just, just a moment! I-I'm fine!"
Shin Sehee said, practically shrinking into the corner.
Then, she subtly glanced at me before speaking.
"Um, Jin Yuha…"
"Hm?"
"Th-that is… You, you deleted the texts, right?"
"Of course, I did. You told me to delete them right away because there was a virus. I deleted them without checking."
"Is that so…?"
Shin Sehee then looked at me with a complex, trembling gaze.
She was even biting her lip.
Hmm, honestly, it was hard to resist the urge to tease her, which was bubbling up inside me right now,
But she was sick, so it wouldn't be right to tease her.
'I'll tease her later.'
I figured I could slowly ask her what happened yesterday after class ended.
"Alright, let's listen to the lecture."
I sat next to her and slumped onto my desk.
'I'll just sleep a bit until the instructor arrives.'
* * *
Shin Sehee bit her lip.
'Jin Yuha told me not to lie…'
What was the condition he had given her when he accepted her into his party?
— You must always be honest with me. If you try to deceive me even once, it's over between us that day.
However, what she had done the previous night—sending mortifying texts after drinking—could not be undone.
— But you really believed me, riiiight? I was honestly touched then, hah… but what's the point? I know it's not true, and I know I shouldn't be greedy. Did I maybe do anything weird to you? I honestly wanted you, but I really didn't do anything? Reallly.
The moment she woke up and checked her phone, there were sentences she didn't remember sending from the night before.
As soon as she saw them, her fingers instinctively typed a lie.
'"But you really believed me, riiiight?" My foot!'
As the texts she'd sent flashed through her mind, Shin Sehee's face burned hot enough to burst again.
She stomped her feet in the air and shadow-boxed internally, trying to somehow scatter those mortifying memories.
'Seriously. I never used to be like this when I drank before. What's wrong with me lately…?'
She covered her burning face with both hands.
Honestly, she wasn't sure yet if this fell into the realm of what he called a lie.
She just didn't want to show him her embarrassing side.
'Jin Yuha trusted me.'
Perhaps he was still giving her a chance.
Shin Sehee turned her head to the side, her expression filled with such complexity.
His eyes were closed, asleep.
He must have been tired; after exchanging a few words with her, Jin Yuha immediately fell asleep.
Shin Sehee also leaned slightly, resting her head on her arm on the desk, facing him.
'…His eyelashes are so long.'
A perfectly sculpted nose.
Straight eyebrows.
Fair skin.
Even the color of his bright red lips.
It felt like looking at an artistic sculpture.
She wanted to keep looking at his sleeping face, but then.
*Tap. Tap.*
The crisp sound of hard shoe heels shattered Shin Sehee's reverie.
"Welcome. I am Instructor Park Jin-soo, in charge of the 'Understanding Positional Formations and Organizations' class."
She startled at the instructor's voice and straightened up.
The instructor in charge of the lecture was a stern-faced male instructor.
He was clearly the strict type.
"There will be no early dismissals just because it's the first class. This is all exam material starting today, so take notes thoroughly."
True to his impression, the instructor opened a book in one hand and began writing on the holographic whiteboard behind him.
"Jin Yuha. Jin Yuha."
Shin Sehee gently shook his shoulder, whispering in a small voice.
Jin Yuha's eyebrows twitched.
"Wake up. The instructor is here."
"More sleep…"
Jin Yuha whined in a low, baritone voice.
"…You're going to sleep more?"
"Mm-hmm…"
Shin Sehee flinched.
*Gulp.*
Shin Sehee looked down at him for a moment, then closed her eyes tightly.
'Hmm. In that case, there's no helping it.'
She clenched her fists.
'I'll write down all the lecture content. And after class, I'll show him my notes and confess what happened yesterday.'
Then, she could keep her promise to be honest with him, and since she had already deleted them, she wouldn't have to tell him the contents of the texts she sent.
*
*Scratch, scratch—*
The classroom was as silent as a mouse.
The only sound was the scratching of students' pens.
"Party formations and placements must be carefully put together like a puzzle. The combat situation can swing to extremes depending on each person's position and role."
And the detached voice of the stern-faced instructor lecturing.
"Here, we have two B-rank healers, four C-rank dealers, and one E-rank tank. And in front of them, four A-rank monsters. In this scenario, how should the party members be arranged to achieve victory without losing a single member? Formulate a strategy considering the characteristics of this terrain."
The instructor then manipulated the hologram.
Immediately, each party member's status window, items, and other numerical data appeared on the whiteboard.
'…This class is much more difficult than I thought.'
It was a class I had been confident in, having experience managing and leading parties even before entering Velvet Academy.
Unexpectedly, it required considerable inferential and strategic planning abilities.
Judging by the other cadets' pale faces, everyone seemed overwhelmed just trying to follow the lecture.
'Two B-rank healers, four C-rank dealers, and one E-rank tank… Four A-rank monsters.'
If I planned the movements well, it seemed possible to defeat all four monsters.
However, the condition of not losing a single member was the tricky part.
'Indeed, this class is definitely what I need.'
Jin Yuha had recommended this class to me, saying I absolutely had to take it.
He said it would help me manage the party in the future.
That's when it happened.
"You, male cadet."
The instructor looked towards Jin Yuha, who was asleep, and called out to him with an unfeeling expression.
'Oh no.'
Shin Sehee shook Jin Yuha's shoulder.
"Mmm…"
"Jin Yuha. Wake up. I think the instructor is calling you."
"…What?"
Jin Yuha rubbed his eyes and lifted his head.
"Cadet, you've been asleep since before my class even started. You've been asleep this entire time. If you have no intention of listening to the lecture, I'll give you a chance to leave."
"I apologize."
Jin Yuha nodded his head, still half-asleep.
The instructor stared at him, a slight frown of displeasure creasing his brow.
"No, perhaps my class is simply too easy for you."
The instructor stroked his chin and nodded.
"Very well, I'll assume you understand my entire lecture. Now, come up and solve the problem."
'Ah…!'
With a look of sudden realization, Shin Sehee subtly slid the strategy she'd devised under her arm, towards him.
'Jin Yuha, at least take this…'
However, Jin Yuha did not turn his head towards Shin Sehee.
He simply gazed at the whiteboard with narrowed eyes, then nodded.
*Thump. Thump.*
Jin Yuha stepped forward.
Shin Sehee felt a pang of anxiety as she watched his back.
'This is a problem you absolutely can't solve if you didn't listen to the lecture!'
Jin Yuha didn't know the characteristics of that terrain or the features of those monsters.
Because they weren't displayed on the screen.
They were parts that the instructor had explained verbally just moments before.
In other words, Jin Yuha had to formulate a strategy with absolutely no information about the enemy, using only his allies' status windows.
Stepping forward, Jin Yuha quickly scanned the presented status windows,
Then he scanned the monster placements.
Then, he reached for the hologram.
Without hesitation, he began to position the party.
*Tap.*
*Tap.*
However, his choices were completely unexpected.
Jin Yuha abruptly placed the healers, who had no combat ability, in the tank's position.
He went a step further, moving the dealers and the tank far away.
'He's… putting the healers at the very front?'
Next, Jin Yuha began to manipulate each party member's skills, items, and movement order.
'…Huh?'
Shin Sehee's eyes widened as she belatedly understood Jin Yuha's intention.
"I think this should work."
Jin Yuha turned his head and said to the instructor with a blank expression.
"…Are you truly confident this will work?"
The instructor asked, his voice trailing off as he looked at the formation.
Jin Yuha nodded firmly, as if certain.
"Yes, it will."
The instructor's cold expression fractured, replaced by a momentary look of bewilderment.