It’s a boring moment.

Second to last, second place, first place.

Even after selecting the three, it seemed that Cheonghae Ilgeom had no intention of stopping his speech. He kept talking without end.

• “And thus, from now on….”

 

‘This old man really talks too much.’

The meaning of the words was fine.

Whatever the future holds, danger may come, so we must continue honing our skills.

A martial artist must refine their craft to truly be a martial artist. Under the name of the righteous sect, one must not lose their sense of justice.

Since we have been admitted to Jinryong Pavilion, even if we can’t protect all the people, we should at least become someone capable of protecting our own region.

That was the gist of Cheonghae Ilgeom’s speech.

‘Nice words, but….’

He had been saying it for tens of minutes. How could it not be tedious?

I heard that on the first day, they would only introduce the admission ceremony and the dorms.

No wonder the schedule seemed overly simple.

‘Was half of the schedule this guy’s speech?’

After going through it, it turned out to be quite an exhausting schedule. It’s unbelievable.

• “Finally, for the bright future ahead of you all….”

 

For reference, I had already heard the word ‘finally’ for the fifth time. I’m really going to lose it…

Among the recent hardships, this was definitely one of the top ones.

Since we were standing on the stage, the gazes of the junior students below were directed this way.

Especially.

I knew where the eyes of the male students were focused, which made it even more irritating.

‘They’re staring so blatantly, those bastards.’

Their gazes were fixed on Wi Seol-ah. Well, if I were in their place, I probably would have looked at Wi Seol-ah too.

Wi Seol-ah, whose beauty had blossomed, was certainly that captivating.

Honestly, I wanted to use my inner energy to cover her up, but my internal injuries hadn’t healed yet.

And if I acted rashly in front of Cheonghae Ilgeom, it could lead to trouble.

All I could do was memorize the faces of those sending their gazes.

‘…There are too many of them, I can’t remember them all.’

Most of the male junior students were doing it anyway.

It seemed that none of them had been interested in Cheonghae Ilgeom’s words from the start. The same went for the female students.

Whether Cheonghae Ilgeom knew it or not, he continued to speak enthusiastically.

While looking around with my eyes, I saw one guy grinning particularly widely.

‘Got you. I’ve remembered you now.’

I didn’t know his name or who he was, but I remembered his face.

While memorizing his face, I glanced at Wi Seol-ah next to me. She stood quietly, her eyes half-open.

Her upright posture caught my eye. If this had been the past, she would have been jumping around.

She wouldn’t have paid any attention to Cheonghae Ilgeom and would have been talking to me instead.

If that were the case, I would have scolded her to stay still, or just played along.

‘But now.’

Now?

Through her slightly open eyes, I saw her golden pupils. Her lips were pressed together, and her breathing was steady.

Where had the lively Wi Seol-ah gone? She now seemed like a well-disciplined heir of a noble family.

It felt different, and also a little distant.

‘But this is closer to the Wi Seol-ah I used to know.’

A look devoid of emotions, eyes as cold as winter.

It was closer to how she used to be, but for some reason, it felt a bit regretful.

While I was quietly watching Wi Seol-ah, she seemed to sense my gaze and turned to look at me. Our eyes met.

Her large eyes opened slightly wider, the golden light in them gleaming.

It looked like the moon, or perhaps the sun.

Which was it?

‘It doesn’t matter.’

It didn’t matter which one. All of it was Wi Seol-ah.

Wi Seol-ah, looking at me like that, slightly moved her lips.

She seemed like she was about to say something. While I was focused on her lips,

• “This concludes the admission ceremony.”

 

I heard Cheonghae Ilgeom finishing his speech. After all that endless talking, it was finally over.

The instructors began guiding the junior students, and they started to move.

As Wi Seol-ah moved to follow, I grabbed her wrist.

Her wrist felt cold to the touch.

“You should at least finish what you were about to say before leaving.”

I didn’t want to let it end like this. If she was going to say something, she should finish it.

“Ah, no, I….”

Wi Seol-ah seemed flustered, as if she hadn’t expected me to grab her.

Judging by her big eyes, it seemed she hadn’t changed just yet. Is that supposed to be a relief?

“Food….” “Hmm?” “I was going to ask if you’ve eaten….”

…Did she really just ask if I had eaten? That was a rather random question.

“I’ve eaten, yeah. Why do you ask?” “…I just…. just wanted to ask.”

Wi Seol-ah stammered as if she was embarrassed by her own question. She looked like she had malfunctioned somehow.

“Um, isn’t the weather nice today…?” “Does that look nice to you?”

The sky was covered with dark clouds. No matter how you looked at it, calling this good weather was a bit of a stretch.

“…”

Apparently, she hadn’t even looked at the sky before speaking. Wi Seol-ah glanced up at the sky and then pressed her lips together.

Maybe she realized that wasn’t quite right either.

After stumbling over her words for a while, Wi Seol-ah closed her mouth tightly and hurriedly walked away.

“Hey, where are you going!”

I called after her, but she didn’t even look back as she left. Watching her retreating figure, I chuckled to myself.

What exactly was she trying to do?

   
   ******************
   

After the admission ceremony ended, the next thing on the agenda was dormitory assignments.
What kind of twisted mind spends three whole hours on just a speech?

‘Four to five people per room.’

On the large wooden board, the positions of the rooms and the names of those assigned to them were written.

The building they provided for the dormitory was massive. It had over six floors. Even the dorms housing only the male martial artists were so large they nearly occupied an entire district.

It was truly enormous.

‘Well, my house isn’t small either, but...’

Still, using this much space for dormitories seems like a huge waste. And yet, the odd part was that the rooms weren’t for individuals. With such a large space, they could have given each person their own room.

I asked Gu Jeol-yeop, who was looking at the floor assignments with me.

“What floor are you on?” “The third floor.” “The third floor, huh... Seems like all the swordsmen are gathered on the third and fourth floors.”

It wasn’t just Gu Jeol-yeop. Most of the well-known swordsmen were assigned to specific floors.

So they’ve divided us up again.

‘And I’m on the fifth floor?’

It looks like they’ve split us up proportionally. It seems unnecessary for mere dorm assignments, but they must have had some reason.

Climbing up and down the stairs was a hassle. The floors were absurdly tall.

After confirming this, I asked another person nearby.

“Hey, what floor are you on?” “…F-fourth.”

Cheol Ji-seon responded with a trembling voice. So, he’s on the fourth floor.

Surprisingly, it seems he uses a sword, too.

Well, he does carry one at his waist. I’ve never seen him draw it, though.

“Do you know what’s happening tomorrow?” “I heard we’re just doing simple greetings.” “With who? Demons?” “No, with the instructors….” “How boring. What’s the point of greetings?”

What a waste of time. Why bother with greetings when we could just dive into the real stuff? Time is precious, after all.

As I sighed deeply, looking at the people assigned to the various floors.

‘Hmm?’

I noticed something unusual.

‘They’ve scattered us all?’

The notable ones. The so-called dragons and sword masters. Most of the Six Dragons and Three Peaks were split up.

Is this a coincidence, or deliberate?

‘Why would they split us up like that?’

There must be a reason they went out of their way to keep us separated. As I pondered, a familiar name caught my eye.

‘Wait, is that guy here? I haven’t seen him until now.’

Hwangbo Cheol-wi.

I caught a glimpse of the name of that boar-like descendant from the Hwangbo family. It makes sense he would be here, being a junior like the rest of us.

Was he in a different group during the test, which is why I didn’t see him? That could be it.

But considering I haven’t seen him until now, maybe he’s been avoiding me on purpose.

‘Things aren’t going well for him, huh.’

I hadn’t really been paying attention to the situation I’d laid out with the Hwangbo family. It wasn’t something I cared about either way.

I only kept an eye on Hwangbo Seon; the rest I left alone. I should check on this situation again later. It’s probably more urgent for Hwangbo Cheol-wi.

‘Looks like the others have been split up too.’

Moyong Hee-ah, Dang So-yeol, Namgoong Bi-ah, and Wi Seol-ah, among others.

Just like with the male dorms, it seems they were divided over there as well.

The strange thing was that Namgoong Bi-ah and Gu Yeon-seo were assigned together.

What’s the reasoning behind that? Is there any at all?

I’ll set that aside for now and grab the stammering Cheol Ji-seon next to me.

“Hey, friend.” “Huh? Oh, yes?” “If anyone gives you trouble, tell me right away, don’t wait until later.” “…Ah, I will.”

Cheol Ji-seon’s expression was strange as he answered. It was the kind of look that said, ‘Isn’t it weird that you’re the one saying this?’

“Look at your face. Did I bully you? Why do you look like that?” “N-no… You didn’t.” “Right? We agreed to get along, didn’t we, friend?”

As I patted Cheol Ji-seon’s shoulder, he nodded. This guy... trying to joke around, huh? Hahaha.

“...” “What, man?” “Nothing…”

Gu Jeol-yeop shot me a funny look, so I asked. He shook his head in response.

That bastard… so ungrateful.

‘I picked him up off the streets, cleaned him up, and taught him to walk, and this is how he repays me?’

He’s truly ungrateful. I’ll need to educate him properly later.

While Gu Jeol-yeop shivered, feeling some unknown chill, I figured I’d seen enough and moved on.

I’ll deal with the rest tomorrow.

Dragging my tired body around, I made my way to my assigned room.

Putting the dorms inside Jinryong Pavilion was a good idea in its own way, but... it wasn’t all that great.

Creaaaak.

When I opened the door to my room, the first thing I noticed was how large it was, followed by the stifling heat of inner energy radiating inside.

“How dare you talk back to me, you pathetic fool?” “Are you picking a fight?”

It was the kind of cliché line you’d expect to hear at least once in your life. Do they teach these things somewhere?

“Why don’t we just settle who’s superior right now?”

Oh boy. What a scene this was.

Inside the room, a bunch of guys were already snarling at each other. Clearly, they had arrived earlier.

Sigh.

As soon as I saw the situation, a sigh escaped my lips. There were five of them, including me.

Looking at this, I suddenly understood the reason.

‘No wonder.’

I’ve been mentioning this repeatedly, but Jinryong Pavilion is a place where the elite juniors from prestigious families and sects gather. On top of that, these guys were the cream of the crop, selected from the best.

In other words, this meant the place was full of people who believed they were geniuses. People who knew how great their talents were and had egos that touched the sky.

They had likely never backed down in any confrontation.

The thing about these kinds of guys is, the truly extraordinary ones don’t even bother with this nonsense.

The Six Dragons, Three Peaks, and other high-ranking martial artists, who already stood on a different level, were treated as such.

But these guys still wanted to act like the boss in their own little worlds. In a place full of people like that, you put four or five of them in one room?

“I’ll break your nose so you’ll shut up…”

It meant the first thing that would happen was a power struggle.

Without any attendants or overseers around, they figured it was better to establish a hierarchy early since they’d be living together for a while.

‘Ugh… I’m already exhausted, and it’s only the first day.’

Watching these idiots flare up their inner energy was already giving me a headache.

Now I understood a little more. Why the rooms were assigned like this.

With a building this big, there was plenty of space for individual rooms. Yet, they intentionally made large rooms and stuffed multiple people in them.

On top of that, they even split up the Six Dragons, Three Peaks, and other notable figures and threw them into different rooms.

‘They must think some order needs to be established.’

That’s how it works. In this world, people naturally bow to someone stronger. Maybe the intent was to create a more organized structure.

But I didn’t see it as a good thing.

Oh, if only they had just given us individual rooms. What’s the point of all this nonsense?

It’s all just a front. Jinryong Pavilion says things like, "It doesn’t matter what family or sect you’re from, everyone is equal." There are no special privileges, blah blah blah.

But everyone here already knows how much power is tied to the name in front of their family. That won’t work here.

And don’t think the Martial Alliance doesn’t know that. No, they know and leave it alone.

It’s more convenient for them that way.

The quick-witted ones have already started making connections or figuring out who holds power on the first day. I could tell by the way they were moving. Kids these days move fast.

In my day… wait, was it just me who was slow? The thought leaves a bitter taste.

Even though we’re all trainees here, it won’t be the same once we leave.

This was the best place to build connections. And also, ‘The best place to act tough.’

If you could gain some fame here, it would be beneficial to your reputation later.

The guys who seemed to think they had a leg up were all acting like this. Especially on my floor, where only the physical fighters were gathered. It was no wonder tempers ran high.

Maybe the reason I’m so ill-tempered is that I belong to the combat division. Every brawler I’ve met recently had a terrible personality, so it must be a difference in martial discipline.

‘If I were a swordsman, I’d be so kind-hearted.’

[Grumble?] ‘What’s with you waking up and suddenly disagreeing? Go back to sleep.’ […Grumble.]

I dismissed the beast who rudely interrupted my thoughts and surveyed the room, which was on the verge of an incident.

“Should I break your nose to shut you up…?” “Shut it, you moron. Keep your voice down, I’ve got a headache. Honestly, you idiots think you’re tough just because you yell the loudest.”

“What?”

The guy who had been yelling lowered his voice as soon as I interrupted.

He glared at me with a look that could kill. If looks could kill, I’d already be dead.

“What did you just say…?” “I tend to sleep a lot, so wake me up last. Also, make sure you memorize tomorrow’s menu in advance.”

“What the hell is this guy talking about…”

The guy started to walk toward me. One of the others seemed to realize something and tried to speak up.

“Wait, that guy is—”

Crack.

But my hand was faster.

“Ugh!”

The guy who had raised his fist towards me had his jaw twisted slightly.

Since using my internal energy caused pain in my core, I didn’t bother with a soft hit—I just punched him with all my strength. He probably wouldn’t wake up until morning.

Honestly, I just wanted to clear the air quickly. I’m tired and need some rest.

Thud.

The large figure, who had been stirring up the room, collapsed lifelessly to the ground. The others, who had been flaring their inner energy, fell silent.

“Hey.”

I turned to the guy who had been bickering with the one I knocked out.

“…Are you talking to me?”

From his tone and appearance, he didn’t seem to be from a noble family. He was probably from a sect.

“Who else would I be talking to?” “W-what is it?”

“What’s this guy’s name?” “He… he said his name was Pae Woo-chul.”

Pae Woo-chul, a name I hadn’t heard before. He had a large frame, but he didn’t seem as tough as I expected.

I kicked the unconscious guy and sent him rolling into a corner.

“From now on, if you need someone to do anything, tell Woo-chul to handle it. He’s the youngest in the room now.”

The problem was that he had been too noisy the moment I walked in.

“…What do you mean by that?”

The guy who had been answering my questions looked confused. I frowned slightly.

“I don’t like people who lack awareness. If you don’t get it, do you want to be the youngest?” “As an elder brother, I’ll take good care of my juniors.”

“Good instincts. You can be the second youngest.” “Thank you, brother.”

Unlike some of the people I’ve dealt with recently, this guy had good instincts. Not bad.

After knocking out Pae Woo-chul, the atmosphere in the room seemed to settle down a bit. They must have known from the room assignments that I’d be sharing this room with them.

So why had they acted like this? It was better to establish things now, so I wouldn’t have to deal with it later.

I smiled at my new roommates and said,

“Let’s all get along from now on. Anyone have any complaints?”

They exchanged silent glances.

If anyone did, I’d be happy to deal with it.

“If you do, speak up now. I’d like to put them to sleep and get some rest myself.”

Naturally, by “put them to sleep,” I meant physically. Since controlling my strength is a bit difficult right now, it might hurt more than usual. But it wouldn’t matter to me. I wasn’t the one who would be in pain.

Maybe my kindness reached them because they quickly shook their heads, showing they had no objections. Seeing this, I smiled and nodded.

I’m glad they’re such obedient kids.