HLSEBT - 36

36. Good Cop, Bad Cop 4  

Although it had been a short time, Yoon Taeha quickly became part of Kang Jinho’s group—half of it was intentional, and the other half wasn’t. 

Whenever she tried to talk to the other kids in G-class, Kang Jinho and Kim Soochan would call her name, causing the others to vacate their seats without hesitation. 

“Hey, birds of a feather flock together, right?” 

That’s what Kim Soochan often said. 

“Strong people naturally stick together with other strong people.” 

It was a condescending attitude, as if they were graciously allowing her into their clique because, even though she couldn’t control her abilities yet, her potential was at B-level. 

“If you get too close to those kinds of kids, you’ll regret it during combat training. They’ll cling to you like leeches, begging for help.” 

“Anyway, more than half of our class will end up in rear support roles. Their precision is just too low… not enough to be attackers.” 

Kang Jinho often spoke dismissively about rear support roles. Engaging in conversations with these immature kids wasn’t exactly pleasant. 

But the foundation of all undercover work was patience and perseverance—areas where she was admittedly weaker. 

At least, whenever Kang Jinho or Kim Soochan made obnoxious comments, there was someone nearby to sneer at them, which helped her endure. 

[Master, this guy really rubs me the wrong way.] 

That was Jet’s evaluation of Kang Jinho. Every single line he uttered, every gesture he made, was being meticulously recorded by Jet. 

When Kang Jinho was upset, he’d bite his thumb; when he was pleased, he’d stroke his chin with his index and middle fingers—a habit Jet noted. 

[He pretends not to care, but his emotions seem volatile.] 

[And he’s hyper-aware of you, Master.] 

[Actually, I think he might dislike you.] 

She agreed with Jet’s analysis. While Kang Jinho didn’t openly display hostility, there was something subtle—very subtle—about the way he kept her at arm’s length. 

On the surface, he acted like he was looking out for her, but he never stopped Kim Soochan from mocking her lack of telekinetic control. 

Balancing mockery and camaraderie, Kim Soochan often leaned more toward mockery, shielded by Kang Jinho’s favoritism. Just look at how he always succeeded in tasks right beside her failures, almost deliberately showing off. 

[One of these days, he’s going to cross the line. Jet can guarantee it.] 

True to the wise AI’s prediction, an opportunity arose to confirm the subject’s animosity. 

---

It was evening on Thursday, after all the regular classes had ended. 

Kang Jinho sat next to Yoon Taeha, who was practicing stacking cards into a castle in the lounge area. She kept failing to complete the final triangle, causing the structure to collapse repeatedly. Yoon Taeha muttered under her breath, pretending to complain. 

“I want to use my power more precisely, but it’s so hard.” 

“Lifting things is only half the battle, isn’t it? Adjusting direction and applying force is much harder.” 

“How do you make it look so easy?” 

“Practice. That’s all there is to it.” 

Handling thin, delicate cards was one of the exercises designed to improve telekinetic precision. 

“You’re pushing the cards up from the center, right? If you touch the edges, the balance gets messed up.” 

Yoon Taeha nodded silently. Kang Jinho began rebuilding the castle she had knocked down. Thin cards floated gently upward without creasing, perfectly balanced. 

As expected of someone predicted to be B-level talent, his telekinetic control was impressive. Other kids gathered around to praise Kang Jinho’s skills. 

His ability to manipulate objects delicately, like extracting oil in a mill, was truly remarkable. 

“Isn’t Jinho capable of being A-level instead of B?” 

“Honestly, wouldn’t A-level suit him? He’s gotten stronger this year compared to last.” 

“Right after graduation, won’t Yeouido come knocking to recruit him? They’ll introduce him to some top-tier guides for sure. Guaranteed.” 

Kim Soochan, sucking on a lollipop, mumbled, “I’d bow down if I could even reach D-level.” 

No sooner had he finished speaking than Kang Jinho completed the card tower in spectacular fashion. “Amazing!” The kids cheered for his impeccable control. 

Meanwhile, Yoon Taeha opened another pack of cards and slowly started building again from the ground up. 

“Transfer student, are you really going to try again?” 

“Hey, stop comparing yourself to Jinho. Let’s go eat chicken instead. We ordered a bunch of different kinds.” 

Kim Soochan whined beside her. Yoon Taeha shot him a glare to shut him up, then refocused. 

It was agonizing to stretch a task that should take ten seconds into ten minutes. 

But she persevered, carefully stacking the cards. This time, the structure was slightly more refined than before. 

“Control is god-tier… Looks like the transfer student wants to become a god.” 

“For the evaluation match, choose your partner wisely. Pick someone who dodges well over someone who attacks well.” 

The kids gradually lost interest in her repeated failures and began leaving the couch one by one. 

Undeterred, she continued moving the cards. Only two remained. Once she placed them on top, the castle would be complete. 

Should she do it properly? With that thought, she carefully lifted the final two cards. 

Hong Eunsoo, who had been quietly watching her challenge, clasped her hands together as if in prayer and silently cheered her on.

“Oh, this time I’m really going to do it!” 

Kang Jinho, who had gotten up to go eat a late-night snack with Kim Soochan, turned around upon hearing the voice. 

The scene he saw was this: 

A card castle on the verge of completion. The transfer student, seemingly ignored but secretly drawing glances from everyone, her pale face focused intently. 

It was at that moment mischief struck. 

The middle section of the nearly finished card castle wobbled slightly, and before the roof could be placed, it collapsed with a soft rustle. The onlookers clucked their tongues, saying they’d expected as much. 

“Did it fall again?” 

“Unyielding determination. But after all that effort, you should go to bed now.” 

The other kids assumed the card castle had collapsed on its own, just like before—another failure caused by the transfer student’s lack of control. 

But such tricks wouldn’t work on Yoon Taeha. 

So this is how he’s playing cute? 

She deliberately pushed her glasses up to avoid looking at Kang Jinho. Across from her, Hong Eunsoo genuinely lamented her friend’s failure. 

“What a shame!” 

But her voice was drowned out by the loud laughter of Kang Jinho’s group. 

“This is the hundredth case of shoddy construction, the hundredth!” 

When Kim Soochan pointed it out, the other kids joked that such poor construction would get them sued, laughing boisterously. 

“No one can build those things like Jinho.” 

The kids chattered in small groups, confirming the existing pyramid structure once more. The spectators drifted away like an ebbing tide. 

In the dimly lit lounge, only Hong Eunsoo, the transfer student, and a few students uninterested in the incident remained. 

Yoon Taeha silently stared down at the scattered cards lying like the remnants of a defeated army. Beside her, Kang Jinho’s castle still stood firm. 

“Don’t let it bother you. That’s just how they are.” 

Hong Eunsoo spoke as she neatly organized the deck of cards. 

“They’re wary because you’re predicted to be B-level. Especially since your ability is telekinesis.” 

“Is that so?” 

“He wasn’t always like this… He started acting strange after we moved up to the graduation class.” 

“Are you close with Kang Jinho?” 

“No. But we’ve been in the same class for the past two years. He wasn’t like this back then.” 

Does the side effect include personality changes? Yoon Taeha sighed lightly. 

[Shall I provoke him a little?] 

[٩(๑`^´๑)۶] 

Jet clenched a cyber fist, ready for action. 

---

The special lectures from the A-level instructor from Yeouido were held every Friday afternoon. 

The instructor’s name was Seo Dojin. The owner of the perfectly straight, dignified name arrived at the shelter much earlier than usual. 

His steps, light as if about to take flight, betrayed his excitement. Lee Haekyung had already warned him to tone it down, knowing how he got carried away. 

But there was no helping his excitement. How could he not be thrilled when the bratty kid four years younger than him was now his student waiting for him! 

Seo Dojin headed to the massive gymnasium. 

Expensive mats designed to absorb shocks even from full-body falls covered nearly half the gymnasium floor for his class. 

Dressed in a black martial arts uniform, he stepped onto the mat. 

The first of three class sessions included the students from G-class, including Yoon Taeha. 

As he lightly jogged across the mat while stretching, the door opened, and the students began filing in. 

“Good afternoon!” 

“Hello, Teacher Dojin!” 

Voices filled with energy reverberated off the gymnasium ceiling. 

“Teacher, I missed you!” 

“I missed you more! Teacher, this one belongs to the Lee Haekyung faction!” 

“...Are you insane?” 

“You don’t need to smile at that white-loving turncoat!” 

Some of the students exchanged warm greetings with him. There were even kids he had thoroughly humbled with a powerful throw the previous week, but they didn’t seem to mind. 

The students’ uniforms came in two colors: 

White and blue. The kids in white were physical enhancement-type espers, while those in blue belonged to other categories. 

Yoon Taeha slipped in quietly after most of the students had entered. 

She was wearing a blue uniform.

Seo Dojin’s eyes told him that the blue uniform really didn’t suit her. 

Special instructor Seo Dojin lightly covered his mouth, which was on the verge of twisting into a smile, then let it drop back down. 

“Aren’t you in a hurry?” 

The playful reprimand made his younger sister’s eyes widen. Is he talking to me right now? Seo Dojin pretended not to notice, standing with his hands clasped behind his back like a strict teacher. 

“Last week, we learned about one-on-one responses in situations where there are no weapons, right?” 

The children gathered around Seo Dojin in a large circle. 

Yoon Taeha didn’t want to be near Seo Dojin. But Hong Eunsoo, who had come with her and was an enormous fan of Seo Dojin, stood near the innermost part of the circle, forcing her to stay close as well. 

Seo Dojin pulled out a wooden sword, painted black, from a long bag he had prepared in advance. 

“In the Fractures, it’s not always mysterious monsters that appear. Sometimes, creatures that look human—or, in fact, seem indistinguishable from humans—show up as hostile entities.” 

The core of this week’s lecture by Seo Dojin was preparing for close combat with humanoid monsters. 

Up until last week, they had practiced unarmed sparring. 

This week, they would use long practice swords equipped with sensors to measure strike values. A small screen embedded just above the hilt displayed the numbers. 

Yoon Taeha had used them often before. Her sparring partner was currently basking in admiration from everyone: Mr. Seo himself. 

“I trust that all of you have diligently built up your basics in swordsmanship during regular classes. What happens if you rely too much on guns and slack off on practicing with other weapons?” 

“You die when you run out of bullets!” 

The kids chorused together like chicks. 

“First, I need a chance to assess your level. Your unarmed combat was abysmal, but I believe things might be different once you’re armed.” 

“How will you assess us?” 

“I’ll take two volunteers. A free sparring match for three minutes, and whoever scores the higher strike value wins.” 

Seo Dojin placed his hands on his hips and looked around at the students. 

“You can pair up with friends if you’d like. It’ll be a light sparring session.” 

The kids nudged each other, encouraging their friends to volunteer. Yoon Taeha, however, wasn’t particularly interested and simply stared at the mat. She had no intention of participating anyway. 

Kim Soochan suddenly raised his hand and stepped forward. 

“I’ll give it a try!” 

“Good attitude, brave. Then, who will be your sparring partner? How about your usual buddy?” 

Seo Dojin gestured toward Kang Jinho with his eyes. Kang Jinho rubbed his chin with his index and middle fingers, smirking mysteriously. 

And then—thud. Someone gave Yoon Taeha a hard push from behind. 

Just like that, another student in a blue uniform was added to the center stage. 

“...” 

For a moment, Seo Dojin forgot his role and stared at his younger sister in bewilderment. Yoon Taeha was also momentarily taken aback.