Embedded Files
29. Grade B is too strong 1
29. Grade B is too strong 1
The morning classes were spent casually gauging the atmosphere—after all, the content was already familiar to her. Breaks between classes were far more useful than the lessons themselves.
She meticulously stored away every snippet of conversation the students exchanged while chatting during breaks.
True to its reputation as a class labeled for troublemakers, the students were rough and aggressive. During each break, it felt like half a dozen noisy local broadcasts were playing simultaneously.
She had to concentrate significantly to focus her hearing on what mattered amidst the chaos.
Then, from the very back of the classroom, near the trash can and mirror, she caught the frequency of students whispering among themselves.
“When’s the evaluation match roster coming out?”
“It’ll be out soon. This time, I really need to get paired with a weakling. If I don’t recover my score, I’ll drop tiers—I messed up the last evaluation.”
“Try getting some Vitamin C. It works pretty well.”
“Do you think I can avoid getting caught…?”
“Contact ‘King Sean.’ Want his code?”
Yoon Tae-ha, who had been skimming through the textbooks that hadn’t changed much since her shelter days, perked up her ears.
King Sean. Vitamin C. Surely these kids weren’t looking for actual vitamins because they were deficient.
On her very first day undercover, before lunch even began, she’d already stumbled upon such conversations. This was proof that there were plenty of “lost lambs” in this school who needed saving.
---
Believing that one couldn’t skip meals even while working, Yoon Tae-ha stood up the moment the bell signaling lunchtime rang.
As soon as the transfer student rose, the chattiest guy from Kang Jin-ho’s group swaggered over, blocking her path just as she was about to head quickly to the cafeteria. She frowned, clearly displeased.
“Jeon Sung-ha, right?”
The transfer student pushed her glasses up slightly. Jet swiftly got to work.
〈Kim Su-chan (20 years old)〉
[Expected Esper Rank: D (Physical Enhancement)]
[Kang Jin-ho’s right-hand man]
So, they’re sending a friend first to test the new kid. Yoon Tae-ha stiffened her expression into a defensive stance.
“You already know, so why ask?”
Amused by her cold demeanor, Kim Su-chan grinned. He seemed quite taken with the transfer student.
“Who are you eating lunch with? Want to join us?”
“I’m eating alone.”
“What’s the fun in that? Come eat with us.”
He grabbed her wrist abruptly. As a D-class Physical Enhancement esper, his strength wouldn’t affect Yoon Tae-ha. But according to her fabricated identity as Jeon Sung-ha, she didn’t possess any physical enhancement abilities.
She pretended to be pulled along, feigning slight pain by furrowing her brows and wincing.
Kang Jin-ho’s group, a mix of boys and girls, surrounded her, giggling and teasing. Having maintained simple relationships even in the North Shelter, Yoon Tae-ha already longed for some personal space.
“Did you transfer here from the East Shelter?”
“At what age did your powers manifest? How good are you at telekinesis?”
“Hey, hey, hey! Take it easy; you’re scaring her!”
“Do you have a guide? Oh, if you came straight from the East Shelter, you probably don’t yet. The guides here suck…”
“Look how humble their faces are!”
“There aren’t many good ones to pick from, but if you stick with us, you might get paired with someone decent when it’s time for field missions.”
Maintaining an uninterested expression, she followed silently with her hands in her pockets. Kang Jin-ho, who had been walking beside her without saying a word, subtly edged closer.
At his movement, Kim Su-chan and the other five who had been chattering nonstop quickly retreated a few steps.
All the way to the cafeteria, Kang Jin-ho never stopped observing the transfer student closely.
Most of the students heading to the cafeteria instinctively stepped aside and lowered their gaze as Kang Jin-ho’s group moved noisily through the hallways.
The group was used to this treatment, ignoring any attempts to cut in line as they entered the cafeteria.
Sorry, kids. I’m on a mission right now.
Feeling a twinge of guilt for taking someone’s spot, Yoon Tae-ha glanced at the esper who had been pushed aside. The esper let out a squeak and hid behind a friend’s back.
…Is my impression really that bad?
“Didn’t you get your rank measured in the East Shelter?”
“Yeah. Why?”
Her response came out sharper than intended, slightly shocked by his question. Kang Jin-ho hesitated for a moment at her biting reply, like the fizz of carbonated soda. But he quickly regained his composure.
“They give predicted ranks, right? What was yours?”
“It came out as B.”
“Wow. It’s been a while since we’ve seen a B-class esper around here.”
Kim Su-chan made a fuss from behind.
“B-class in telekinesis?”
Kang Jin-ho, whose physique was impressively toned despite only training in the shelter, looked at her with interest. She responded:
“Is that rare around here?”
“No. If you’re really B-class, it’s definitely not common. Especially for telekinesis.”
He emphasized the word “really.” Yoon Tae-ha pretended to be someone who hadn’t yet fully grasped the intricacies of shelters and esper society.
“If they said I’m B-class in the East Shelter, doesn’t that make me B-class?”
“Ah... So you don’t know yet? Did you just come straight from the East Shelter?”
After receiving their meals, the group took over the largest table in the cafeteria. No one dared approach their table.
“What don’t I know?”
Kim Su-chan, sitting next to Kang Jin-ho, leaned in as if sharing a big secret.
“The final ranking of espers… You don’t know how it’s measured, do you?”
“Aren’t rankings determined through exams? Hologram battles for evaluations. They said it wasn’t dangerous.”
“That exam is actually us fighting each other until we’re almost dead...”
“Ugh, this food tastes disgusting.”
Kang Jin-ho muttered under his breath after taking a few spoonfuls of rice and set his spoon down. Kim Su-chan, who had been about to explain further, blinked and glanced at him cautiously.
“Do we really need to scare the new transfer student already?”
“Scare? Why would I... Jeon Sung-ha, you’re not upset because of me, are you?”
“Not at all.”
“See? Jin-ho takes good care of the kids.”
This sounds more convincing than grass-eating nonsense.
Yoon Tae-ha ate a few spoonfuls of lukewarm corn soup before setting it down with an indifferent attitude.
“The food here really sucks.”
A student sitting diagonally across from her noticed her putting down her spoon and casually remarked:
“Every day, students complain about changing the catering company, but they don’t listen even with their ears plugged.”
“The principal and the catering company owner are apparently in a deep love affair.”
She quietly nodded in agreement.
---
After finishing their meals, the students dispersed for their afternoon classes.
Yoon Tae-ha moved with six telekinetic espers, including Kang Jin-ho, to attend the “Movement and Transformation” class.
Kim Su-chan, being overly nosy, assured Kang Jin-ho he’d take care of Yoon Tae-ha before disappearing to attend an advanced martial arts class.
“Alright, graduating class, gather up!”
The “Movement and Transformation” class took place in a wide open space with soft, cushioned flooring.
The instructor, a B-class telekinetic esper, wore something akin to a bulletproof vest and a helmet. A fresh-looking bruise was visible under his eye.
The teachers here all seem to have something stuck under their eyes.
Yoon Tae-ha felt a pang of pity for them.
“Starting today, we’ll practice handling these giant steel rods used in real combat against large monsters.”
The steel rods, which Yoon Tae-ha had once handled by the hundreds during a D-class rift, were stacked like logs on one side of the field. The difference was that these were cylindrical with flat ends, unlike the ones she’d handled before.
Practicing with these makes sense. When you don’t have weapons, you need to use your surroundings.
Thinking it was a decent curriculum, she carefully observed the steel rods, curious if their weight matched what she was used to as an active agent.
As the transfer student stared blankly at the rods, Kang Jin-ho interjected, seemingly misunderstanding something.
“Don’t worry too much.”
“...”
“They’re lighter than they look. If you focus, you should be able to lift one.”
One? What am I supposed to do with just one? Is this some kind of ant line where they come one by one?
Unable to hide her confusion, she furrowed her brows slightly. Kang Jin-ho smiled even more kindly.
“I’m telling you, it’s fine. Didn’t you practice lifting 1-meter steel rods in the East Shelter? It’s not much different from that.”
Finally, Yoon Tae-ha caught on.
Lifting just one of those is supposed to be difficult.
“Yeah, I’ve done that. I’m pretty good at it.”
Her confident response made Kang Jin-ho snicker—a clear sneer. He clearly didn’t believe her and countered with skepticism.
“Oh really?”
While they chatted, the teacher lined the students up along a stand.
Today’s objective was for each student to use telekinesis to lift a lying steel rod and stand it vertically on the opposite side of the field.
Lifting heavy objects while maintaining balance was a crucial skill for students who wielded telekinesis. Mastering delicate control was directly tied to their future salaries as active agents, making this an important lesson.
The students waiting their turn buzzed with chatter.
“The steel rods are so lame. Active agents use weapons that are flashy and have all sorts of effects.”
“Do you think you’re at the level to use something like that? Stop daydreaming, idiot.”
Since they were going in alphabetical order, Yoon Tae-ha had some time to wait. The instructor called Kang Jin-ho forward.
“Kang Jin-ho! Come out and demonstrate!”
“Yes, sir.”
“First, lift it vertically, then move it horizontally. Don’t forget how to stabilize it when fixing it in place, alright?”
“Of course.”
“Good. At least try to do well during class.”
Kang Jin-ho confidently stepped forward and successfully stood five steel rods upright in succession before returning to his seat. He did break a slight sweat on the last one, but completing it on the first try clearly demonstrated that he had some degree of control over his telekinesis.
As the other students marveled, he shrugged nonchalantly, acting as if it were no big deal.
“Isn’t that the same thing they used a lot during the recent D-class gate cleanup?”
“Yeah, that’s it. Espers working in the field reportedly use dozens of those at once.”
“How do you even use dozens of them? You’ve got to know your limits. Calculating their trajectories simultaneously would make your head explode.”
“A-class telekinetics could probably pull it off.”
At the mention of “A-class,” Kang Jin-ho, seated farther away, shot a sharp glance toward the group. The students hesitated for a moment before whispering again.
“A-class espers have serious inferiority complexes...”
“He’s obsessed with the idea that he has to go to the North Shelter. If he wants to go so badly, why doesn’t he just escape and go?”
“I doubt he’d actually go if given the chance. They say only truly dangerous, undisclosed cases get sent there.”
The topic of conversation shifted.
“Have you heard the story about the queen ant being taken down by a single esper?”
“How could someone kill that thing alone?”
“It’s true. Check the portal. There are tons of anonymous posts with proof from that day. Some say only one person went underground.”
“Who did it?”
Unaware that the esper who had slain the queen was sitting right behind them, the students enthusiastically speculated. Yoon Tae-ha listened with great interest.
“An undisclosed agent from Yeouido!”
One boy shouted excitedly, completely oblivious that the person in question was sitting nearby.
Google Sites
Report abuse