Chapter 12 : School is a fucking spectacle #7 - No Kidding, I’m an Extra

[Would you like to start the next stage?] As I wiped the sweat off, fired up with anticipation, the AI's cheerful voice tickled my ear. "Hah, are you trying to provoke me?" Are you pushing me to take on the next 'challenge' right away? It's so arrogantly blatant, but I've been waiting for it. Waiting for your urging. To me right now, that provocation to challenge is just candy to my ears. It's almost as sweet as honey. I'm thirsty for battle. "I'll take on whatever challenge you have. Bring forth my next opponent... a stronger one! Summon an adversary worthy of me!" [Starting the stage.] —Vrrrm. The same presentation as before. As lasers shot out, the holographic monster began to form from the toes just like a 3D printer. "Oh." This time the opponent was two antazoaras. Two F-rank monsters. "Cowardly little things. Now you're going to gang up on me?" Well, fine. Creatures like that probably don't roam alone. Weak beasts tend to form packs. It would make sense to assume a multi-battle scenario. This is a thorough representation. Aris Academy's educational philosophy stands out. "Even if you gang up on me, you still can't beat me... Learn your place already, you lowly sea anemone offspring." I spoke, brimming with determination. "Quiiiiik!" "Quiiiiik!" The two antazoaras raised their heads and shook their tentacles, roaring. Although they're holograms, giving off a sky-blue ethereal vibe, the detail is so alive that it feels real. Those disgusting things. Let's see. Their movements were simple. Run, then attack with tentacles once close. They lack intelligence. And when intelligence is lacking... there's no need to worry about being surrounded. This is my prediction, but let's collide with them once. It's training, after all, and there's no danger of dying. By directly thinking and colliding this way, I'll get accustomed to it. "Come on!" The moment I shouted that! —Papapap! The two antazoaras charged at me! "As expected." They show no signs of trying to surround me. They just charge straight at me side by side. Such idiotic movements are not fit to be my adversaries. I gauge the timing to kill them! As they close in! —Paah! I sidestepped and dodged their charge. "Quiiik!" "Quiiiiik!" Both reacted in the same way. As soon as they lost sight of me, they slowly reduced their speed, preparing to turn around. Is it because they're AI with simple patterns? I can't be sure if real monsters would do the same. Still, I killed one just now. Instantly, I dashed and stabbed my sword into the back of the decelerating antazoara. "Take that!" —Paang! "Quiiiiiik!" A truly satisfying strike! It takes two hits to kill them. Earlier, I was cautious, striking once and pulling back, but there's no need for that now. "Combo attack, you bastard!" Consecutive strikes. I swung the sword again! —Paang! With that, the creature scattered into a cluster of light. Simultaneously, the one from behind charged at me again. It had already turned itself around. "Quiiiiik!" "Evade lightly." —Pah! The moment it turned its back, slowing down. "Die!" Again, I swiftly struck its back twice. I may not have learned swordsmanship, but anyone can swing a stick twice fast. —Paang! —Paang! And that was the end. [Victory] "Yahho!!!" Facing up to two wasn't an issue at all! It seems like even an average person, if armed, can somehow handle F-rank monsters. "Aren't these things weaker than deer?" Honestly, during my military days, wild boars were like a disaster level—I would avoid them at all costs. Whether I encountered them or knew they were nearby, I wouldn't get close. However, there were times I bravely faced deer, making me seriously wonder if I could win in a one-on-one every time I saw them. "But this antazoara is just trash." I think if it fought a large dog, it would lose, but that's probably because I haven't been hit by those tentacles. If those tentacles are dangerous, then the combat power ranking changes. [Would you like to start the next stage?] The AI's voice chimed in again. "Didn't you hear? I'm going for tough training like in The Legendary Moonlight Sculptor." I'll keep pounding these hologram monsters to grow stronger. "Bring out the next stage's opponent!" And what was summoned next. —Vrrmm. "Three antazoaras, you piece of shit!" Stop copy-pasting monsters! * * * "Haaa... Haaa...!" Continuing this intense training like in The Legendary Moonlight Sculptor is seriously exhausting. "Damn, this is really tough." Damn it, moving so aggressively for the first time in a while is making it hard to breathe. "Running out of breath, Mayday." Anyway, I easily took down three antazoaras as well. They spread out a bit as they charged, but I just slipped through them, caught them from behind, and casually cut them down twice, repeating until they were all slaughtered. That was level 1, stage 3, and from stage 4, an F-rank monster called Khampunia appeared. It was a very chubby caterpillar with a duck-like snout, and its size was staggering, almost like a pig. I thought it was just fodder, but it suddenly spewed some poisonous liquid from its mouth. I managed to dodge one and take it down, but in stage 5, two appeared, and I got caught in a crossfire and perished. No joke, I even danced trying to dodge, but ended up getting hit by both. That resulted in a death scenario, ending the training. All holographic effects turned off, returning the training room to normal. "Whew." I caught my breath before rising to my feet. "Very good." Even though I'm out of breath and it's really tiring, what I feel is a sense of accomplishment and joy. Clearing level 1 up to stage 5 right from the start. This can only be described as talent. And above all, I managed to get a slight sense of how to swing a sword or attack in general. But that's about it. It's the kind of understanding a beginner who just started martial arts might have. If I continue to build on this, I'll probably become a formidable superhuman. But I haven't tried using that thing called magic yet during training; I'm honestly clueless about how to use it. I even attempted to use an enchant skill, but it didn't work. Should I ask Instructor Kawar about magic? Even though she teases and laughs at people, I feel like she'd be a good instructor when it comes to teaching something. She doesn't strike me as the type to turn away a student looking for help. "But aren't my stats supposed to increase?" I defeated quite a few holographic monsters, yet there's no sign of my stats improving. Is this intense training approach from The Legendary Moonlight Sculptor not working? "Well, at least it was fun, so I’ll accept it." Honestly, it was so much fun I can admit it. This combat training seems fun enough to do every day. If something like this existed in reality, I'd probably do it daily just for fun. It was that realistic and enjoyable. But all the running and moving turned out to be more aerobic than anaerobic. It's not like I was sprinting short distances, after all. "Hmm." —Slides. Standing in front of the mirror, I took off my shirt to check out my body. "..." Just a typical high schooler's body. Not much muscle to speak of. To build this, I'd need to do some strength training separately... Alright. "Let's see." I'll come here right after school ends at 5. I'll get in some strength training first and then slice up some monsters in the training room. Study? I'll handle that at school. Honestly, how vital is studying for heroes? They seem to fight monsters all the time. It's an occupation where physique and skills are crucial. If I just learn how to use my body, I can do well enough. "Heh heh heh." This surge of motivation is explosive. I'm so excited that the plan for what to do from tomorrow is being neatly laid out. "Let's play a few more rounds of training and then hit the gym before heading back." Today, the human Kim Geun Cheol begins his transformation into a superhuman! Who’s going to stop me!!! "Who dares to stop meeeee!!!" * * * "Ah, come on. Please just let it slide this once, Dorm Manager. I honestly didn’t know. I’m sorry. It wasn’t intentional, I swear." I pleaded with the foreign woman in maid attire standing in front of me. "I'm really sorry. Really, it was just a one-time mistake—a slip-up." I was fervently apologizing, practically begging for forgiveness. Damn, I left feeling great after working out, and now what is this mess? "And I wasn’t out having fun. It's the beginning of the semester, so I was just trying to put in some effort and went to the training ground." "Were you diligent with your training? That's commendable." "Exactly! Look, I’m soaked in sweat!" I fanned my shirt to emphasize the effort I put into training. "So, considering I'm a hardworking student, please forgive me just this once. I promise I won't be late again. Oh, the things in this bag... I didn’t eat because I was training, so I grabbed some snacks from the store on my way back. Would you be willing to forgive me?" "No. You get a demerit." Even after all this pleading, she says a demerit! "What! Dorm Manager! Even so, a demerit? You didn’t provide any notification, and I really didn’t know!" "You still get a demerit. There are no exceptions to the dormitory rules. Even if training was commendable, a demerit is still a demerit." "Please...!" "One exception breaks all rules. A cadet must learn that." It’s hard to argue when she’s speaking the truth! "It's a 1-point demerit, and you'll face disadvantages if you accumulate 3 points. That will be all." "Grr!" "There's a dormitory rulebook at the first-floor counter. Go get it." In the end, there was no avoiding the demerit. This foreign lady giving me a demerit irks me beyond belief. "Ah." But what can I do? The dormitory rule states that we're supposed to be back by 11. It was my fault for not considering it. Still, it's so aggravating that I couldn't help but grumble. Immediately entering the dorm, I grabbed a copy of the rulebook and headed up the stairs. "What kind of dorm manager is this?" I finished a thoroughly productive day working out on the training ground and wrapping it up with some exercise, only to be stopped cold by a foreign dorm manager, no less. Had I known, I would have wrapped it up by 10. But she's indeed pretty. The director, Instructor Lee So Ra, Leona, and this manager—they're all exceptionally beautiful. Thinking these thoughts, I climbed the stairs with the rulebook in hand when: —Step Step. I saw someone approaching from the other side. Carrying a can of cola, they seemed to have just gotten a drink. And it was someone I knew. "Hey! Isn’t that Si Hu!" "Huh?" Turns out, it was Lee Si Hu. My kind and friendly homie. "Geun Cheol?" Recognizing me, he started walking over. But the more I look at him, the more androgynous he seems. He's smaller and shorter than me. It's quite surprising that someone like him is stronger than I am. "You're in this room, huh?" "Yeah. What about you?" "I'm at the end over there." "What! So, we're not far apart at all?" Makes sense since we’re in the same class and grade. "Right. I didn’t expect to be so close to Geun Cheol. But did you just get in now? It's past curfew, isn’t it?" "I got caught on my way back and received a demerit. I didn't know there was a curfew. I was coming back from the training ground when it happened." "You used the training ground?" "Yeah, it was fun. Haven’t you?" "Not yet..." "Want to join me tomorrow?" "Sure, let’s do that." Okay, that's one more ally. This means if someone starts trouble, there’ll be two of us to handle it. "By the way, did you wash up?" "Huh? No, not yet. Why?" "Really? On my way up, I noticed there's some kind of bathhouse on the top floor of the dorm. If you haven't washed up, want to go together?" "What? A ba-bathhouse?" "Yeah." "Um... No." "Hmm?" He awkwardly touched his chest and looked down. "No, I'm fine. I have some things to do. I was planning to wash up in my room afterward." "Alright then?" I guess I'll just use it alone. "Alright, get some rest. See you tomorrow." "Yeah, see you tomorrow, Geun Cheol." And with that, he went into his room. I think I'll go check out the bathhouse.