The air was still hot when Do-jun returned home, but he didn't feel it.
The weight of that meeting with his grandfather…The subtle, unspoken approval…It left him walking on clouds.
As soon as he stepped through the doors, Lee Hae-in rushed forward.
"Do-jun! Are you alright? Your knees—let me see!"
"I'm fine, Mom," he said gently. "Grandpa even gave me a reward."
"A reward?"
He nodded, smirking."A real one, not a toy."
He didn't mention the part where he almost fell over with numb legs. No need to make her worry.
Instead, he looked toward his room and smiled.
Now the real game begins.
That evening, as he reviewed textbooks in his room, Jin Run-ki walked in holding a tablet.
"Do-jun, your grandfather called."
"Hmm?"
"He said if you're going to get full marks, you'll need the best help."
Do-jun raised an eyebrow.
Aha… so he's not just testing my willpower. He's testing how far I'll go to win.
Run-ki continued, "He's sending tutors. Three of them."
"Three?"
"Language, Math, and Politics. One is a former university professor. One was a top-tier civil service exam instructor. The third... is from overseas."
That last one caught Do-jun's attention.
"Overseas?"
Run-ki nodded. "From Harvard."
So he's sending me the best tutors money can buy. Tch. He really wants to see if I'll break or bloom under pressure.
Too bad for him—I'm not just some overachieving chaebol brat.
I've lived this life once already.
The next day, a black Mercedes Maybach pulled up in front of their villa. A man stepped out in a perfectly tailored navy suit, briefcase in hand, eyes sharp as knives.
Professor Min Tae-suk. Former Seoul University faculty. Known for making college freshmen cry in the first week.
He glanced at Do-jun and gave a stiff nod.
"You're the boy?""I am."
"I don't waste time. You follow my pace. If you fall behind, I leave."
He didn't wait for a response and walked in.
Do-jun smirked.
First one's a tiger. Okay, let's see who's taming who.
Not long after, two more arrived.
The math tutor—Mr. Kwon—looked like a tax auditor with an axe to grind. He had once been known as the man who coached two national math Olympiad winners.
And then there was the third.
The Harvard tutor.
She was young—barely in her late twenties—with pale skin, glasses, and an intimidating, no-nonsense aura.
"I'm Anna Yoo," she said, in flawless Korean. "Double majors in Political Science and International Relations. I was told you'd be difficult."
Do-jun blinked."I was told you'd be brilliant."
She gave him a thin smile.
This will be fun.
Thus began Do-jun's Hell Week.
Three subjects. Three teachers. Twelve-hour days. Zero mercy.
He was drilled on literary structure, asked to dissect policy whitepapers, and pushed to solve calculus problems that gave grown adults anxiety.
Any normal ten-year-old would've broken in two.
But Do-jun?
He thrived.
Three days later, Jin Yang-chul called again.
"How's the tutoring going?" he asked, sipping tea in his study.
Lee Hae-in answered nervously, "T-They're very… thorough. Do-jun seems tired but he says he's okay."
"Good," Yang-chul said. "Push him. If he wants a real horse, he needs to earn it."
But inside Jeongsimjae, something strange was happening.
Anna Yoo had stopped treating Do-jun like a child.
Min Tae-suk—cold as ever—had begun sending him university-level essays.
Even Mr. Kwon had said, in a rare moment of praise, "The kid's better than most of my high school students."
One evening, as they packed up, Anna turned to the others.
"This kid… something's different about him."
Min scoffed. "He's disciplined. That's all."
"No," she said, shaking her head. "He remembers everything. Not just facts. Strategy. Nuance."
Kwon added, "It's like he's already lived all of this once before."
Anna's eyes narrowed.
"Exactly."
Do-jun lay on his bed that night, eyes open, staring at the ceiling.
His muscles ached. His brain throbbed.
But his heart?
It burned with purpose.
If I win this game… I won't just get a horse.
I'll start rewriting my fate.
And from this point forward—every class, every test, every move—would bring him one step closer to the top of Sunyang.
(End of Chapter)