Gaon's final exam was an important event that concluded a year in the Academy, so it was, naturally, huge.

"Although it's our school, it's still quite impressive… How much money does it have?" Lee ChaeHyun asked while looking at the sea ahead of her. The cruise the Academy had rented was of a scale that shouldn't have been possible for an academy test.

Although ChaeHyun was born as the daughter of the chairman of a mid-sized company, she couldn't help but be surprised at how much money Gaon spent.

"We're going to save the world, so it's obvious they would spend at least this much."

On the other hand, it seemed like Min SungHyuk had gotten used to such treatment.

"There's a reason why we're called a hunter powerhouse country. That's possible because we have such great infrastructure for hunters, and…"

"Haa… I can't stand hearing you brag any longer."

ChaeHyun frowned, and Min SungHyuk coughed and stopped talking.

At that moment, ChaeHyun's face brightened as if she'd found someone.

"Oh~ There he is. Our partner!"

YuSung was walking toward them from a distance. ChaeHyun approached YuSung and gave him a thumbs up.

"I saw the broadcast. What an incredible match. Was her name ‘Lorelei’? You beat her easily."

"What an undignified way of speaking…"

Although SungHyuk looked embarrassed, YuSung shook her hand as if he didn't mind.

'Both had among the highest ranks in the S class…'

Since even SiWoo had shown an incredible performance in the International Competition, no one in the S class was comparable to his party members.

Sumire was a necromancer. If she used all of her strength, she might be able to defeat all of the S-class alone.

The difference between the students who simply went to school and those obtaining real-life experience was huge.

Among them, YuSung was the one who had the most unparalleled growth. 

ChaeHyun looked at YuSung with a satisfied smile.

'Getting close to someone at YuSung’s level isn’t a bad thing.'

ChaeHyun only allowed people of a similar 'rank' to her to stand by her side. That's why, among S class students, she hung out with SungHyuk—he had high exam scores and a family background similar to hers.

"I~ felt a lot of things while looking at your match~ I was happy to hear that we were going to take the exam together~" ChaeHyun inched closer to YuSung and smiled up at him.

'She's at it again…'

Although SungHyun sighed, ChaeHyun didn't stop.

"Huh… Your necktie is a bit loose."

Slide- She tightened YuSung's necktie while looking him in the eyes. She even raised her feet a bit because of the height difference; her movements were smooth.

"Thank you." Despite her efforts, YuSung continued to maintain a calm expression and gave her a short reply.

'Why isn't he showing any reaction…?'

Most of the male students ChaeHyun had seen blushed from her simply smiling at them from a close distance.

Most of them had no experience with women. After all, they were busy training to become hunters.

On the other hand, YuSung had shown no reaction at all.

"That's why, once the exam is over~ do you want to have dinner? Would that look too much like a date? It's okay if SungHyuk comes as well…"

ChaeHyun held Shin YuSung's arm between hers—it was how she'd obtained an ‘OK’ from every male student she tried it on.

"I'm sorry. I'm busy, so I think that will be hard."

Once again, YuSung rejected her proposal while making a calm expression.

'This bastard… Maybe he doesn't have one?'

At that point, ChaeHyun’s pride wouldn’t let her back off.

Then…

Tap-!

"Agh!" ChaeHyun shouted as she was hit in the back by a blast of mana. She turned around and saw EunAh looking at her as if she were pathetic.

"Hey, what are you doing to someone else's party leader?"

Ha-!

ChaeHyun snorted and then provoked EunAh. "What’s wrong? Can't I get close to him if I’m not part of his party? We're also partners until the exam is over, and why do you care what others do?"

As ChaeHyun shrugged her shoulders, EunAh once again gathered mana on her index finger.

Tap!

She shot a mana bullet and hit ChaeHyun's forehead.

"Ah! You crazy bitch!" ChaeYeon angrily shouted. 

EunAh finished the drink she had in her hand and then showed her middle finger. 

"Don't try to flirt with him in such a pathetic way. There's no way you'll be able to seduce him with such a face. I'm sure he'd rather look in a mirror."

Unlike how she behaved with her party members, EunAh showed her aggressive side for the first time in a while.

"What's wrong with my face?! Also, why are you interfering with me talking to him?!"

EunAh was lost for words as ChaeHyun glared at her. "Th-that's…"

"Is it so wrong for YuSung to hang with me if he has some free time?" ChaeHyun looked at YuSung as she spoke, and he nodded.

ChaeHyun was also a Gaon Academy student; he could give her some time as long as he wasn't busy.

"Then—"

EunAh sensed danger as YuSung was about to say something and quickly shouted, "Y-YuSung is busy!"

As things became noisy, everyone started looking at them. As they mumbled and watched, many of the people began suspecting YuSung and EunAh of being in a relationship.

ChaeHyun realized something when she saw EunAh's reaction.

"Hngh~ Ah~ I understand~"

Her expression relaxed, and she looked at EunAh. "EunAh, you have a cute side. To think you'd become jeal—"

BZZT!

Lightning poured off of EunAh as she stood up, and both of them disappeared in the blink of an eye.

SungHyuk shook his head at YuSung.

"Seeing how even the Student Council President was interested in you… It seems like you're quite a popular fellow."

He didn't know YuSung and HaYoon were both from the Shin-oh family, so it was obvious that he would react like that.

Although SungHyuk was also a member of the Hunters Club, YuSung was the first person HaYoon had shown interest in.

"If it's about the Student Council President, I don't want to talk about her." YuSung cut the conversation short. 

SungHyuk looked into the sea and then slowly opened his mouth. "I'm not sure what happened… but I don't think you should be hostile toward the Student Council President."

SungHyuk sighed and then opened his mouth again. "YuSung, I'm not underestimating you. You're strong, and everyone's paying attention to you, but that person has something that you don't know about…"

SungHyuk said it for YuSung's own good. The members of the Hunter Club weren't afraid of HaYoon's strength.

Other than Lee Hyuk, most hadn’t seen her ‘true’ strength.

What they were afraid of was her resourcefulness and charisma which made it hard to believe she was still a high school student.

HaYoon wouldn't forgive anyone that went against her; she was prepared to raise her claws against anyone with a bright smile on her face.

"Is there a need to make someone like that your enemy?"

YuSung remained silent for a while.

'Shin HaYoon…'

She was the heir of the Shin-oh family.

She was a hunter who had a Trait called Telekinesis—something that allowed her to manipulate reality, and she was his noona.

Not even YuSung, her little brother, knew the secret she was hiding.

How she'd managed to skillfully hide her real strength against adults at such a young age and why she had done that, all of those things were under a veil of mystery.

'The Shin-oh family…'

The more he thought about it, the more muddled his thoughts became. Since HaYoon was approaching him in such an explicit way, he had no choice but to face HaYoon and the Shin-oh family.

* * *

Reaper Scans

Translator - Daniel Shin

Proofreader - ilafy

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* * *

Adela watched someone in her mind as if she were watching a scene from a movie.

[I'm cold…]

She saw her five-year-old self, who was trembling from the cold while hugging a teddy bear.

[I'm hungry…]

The memories of her childhood were like a nightmare to her.

Cold, hunger, and, above all of that…

[Mom… Dad… I miss you.]

Loneliness.

[Why did you leave me alone…?]

Her five-year-old self couldn't understand why they had left her behind.

[I hate you.]

Her emotions quickly began to change.

[I'm suffering…]

Her emotions cooled down very quickly, and Adela's bright self lost its light and turned gray.

After the Witch Luisa appeared in Volterra, it became a barren place a five-year-old wouldn't have been able to survive in if she hadn't killed her emotions.

Three months passed like that.

Adela didn't miss her dad anymore, she didn't miss her mother's soups anymore, and she didn't feel cold any longer.

Her feelings didn't warm up again.

The scene changed as if going through reels of film.

Adela saw a familiar yet foreign face.

[Adela, we're going to return soon, okay?]

Her father.

[Three days. You just have to wait alone for three days, okay?]

Her mother.

[We're really sorry… but there's nothing we can do about it.]

Adela opened her mouth in her dream.

- Don't go…

She couldn't say it out loud.

The words remained inside her mouth.

She wanted to tell them to stay with her, but both of them stretched their arms.

Swoosh-!

Looking at the blue barrier surrounding her house, Adela closed her eyes. She felt all three of those hell-like months hit her all at once.

Paf!

"Ugh! Haa…" She breathed heavily after waking up from the dream. Rather than Volterra, she was in her dormitory bed.

'Was I dreaming…?'

Tap, tap.

She sighed and walked toward the bathroom. The sweat dripping down her body made the images of her nightmare even clearer.

Slide-

As she took off her clothes, her naked body appeared.

She wasn't her five-year-old self anymore, so distancing herself from those hellish memories was the correct course of action.

'But why…?'

Why were those emotions binding her tighter as time passed?

Swoosh-

Adela fell into thought as the water from the shower head poured over her.

She wanted to meet that person; she wanted to feel she was alive while going at him with all her might.

She wanted to rely on whatever she could to move away from those emotions. 

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