Academy's Silver Gatekeeper

Chapter 19

Student Council Vice President, Jung Yuhyeon. I hardly knew anything about him. All I knew was that he was steeped in a sense of superiority, and that his fighting style centered on ambush tactics in the Weaponry category.

And since he was in the Student Council, he had to be at least Gold rank.

He might have already reached Platinum. Outside these walls, he was probably at least B-rank, maybe even A-rank.

The moment he graduated, mid-tier Clans would be scrambling to recruit him. His superhuman abilities alone were impressive, and there was no comparing his practical battle experience to someone like Park Junwoo. Even Lee Hyunwoo, the protagonist, probably couldn’t match his level yet.

I heard a rumor about the Academy. They said, “You can bring a whole truck of Bronze and Silver folks, but we wouldn’t trade them for a single Gold.” That explained why he flaunted his superiority so boldly.

“Examiner.”

I was stretching my stiff body when Jung Yuhyeon spoke up.

“You said if I lose, I’d have to drop down to Bronze.”

He smirked when I nodded. It was a rather annoying smile. It made me want to smack him.

“Then, what if you lose, Examiner?”

“If I lose, I assume I just give in and go easy on the promotions, right?”

“No. That’s not enough for me.”

Then what did he want?

“You should apologize to every single student who failed their promotion so far.”

“...Apologize?”

“Yes. If you call yourself an Examiner who cares about the students, you should at least be willing to do that.”

He must have wanted to crush a lower-ranked outsider who didn’t know his place. It didn’t matter that I wasn’t an Academy student.

It made me wonder how someone like him ever became Vice President. There’s always one character like this, but still.

“Fine. Let’s do it that way.”

“That’s refreshingly straightforward. You may not be that skilled, but your personality—”

I cut him off before he could finish. It wasn’t worth listening to that drivel anymore. I lunged forward, throwing a punch.

Thud—

“Guh?!”

Jung Yuhyeon reeled back, clutching his face. He hadn’t even processed what just happened.

“What are you doing, Student Jung Yuhyeon?”

Didn’t he know? Vice President? A preemptive strike usually wins.

“Weren’t we starting the duel?”

When there’s no referee, if two people stand on the practice field after agreeing to fight, that is considered the start. That meant our duel was already underway.

“....”

Drip—

It seemed my blow really landed. I hadn’t expected him to start bleeding from the nose, but there it was. It was coming out of both nostrils. The Vice President who had been bragging moments ago looked pretty pathetic.

“Y-you bastard!”

He had clearly lost his temper over that unexpected first strike. He had been keeping up appearances before, but now he was cursing and rushing in.

Swish—!

Something glinted from both of his wrists. I dodged on reflex, and a chill grazed my side. If I had been any slower, those daggers would have sunk right into my torso.

“I was going to go easy on you since you’re just a pathetic third-rate superhuman, but you’re not worth it.”

Why was he speaking like some cliched third-rate villain? Even modern villains wouldn’t bother with such outdated lines. He was angry enough to lose it completely after taking a single hit from someone he had looked down on.

“Hoo.”

I took a breath as I watched him pull out another pair of daggers.

This time, I had to remember that my opponent wasn’t just some Bronze like Lee Hyunwoo. Nor was he someone like Park Junwoo, who still ended up at Bronze after a forced demotion.

He was already recognized as Gold rank, which was impressive. Meanwhile, my Trait was Gatekeeper, specifically “Silver” Gatekeeper. In theory, it shouldn’t have worked on him, since he had already reached Gold.

◎ Sole Examiner

I looked at him as he stood there, nose bleeding. As an Examiner, I felt we’d gone far enough, but as a person, I still felt like I owed him more payback.

He had tossed out that parent-related slur earlier, and I hadn’t really paid him back for it.

“Of course! You, I’ll definitely—”

“No, Examiner. Let’s end it here.”

I was about to keep going when someone else’s voice halted my punch.

“Stop it too, Jung Yuhyeon.”

“Who the hell... President?”

President? I turned toward the source of the voice at his mutter.

It was a tall female student and a slightly shorter female student standing beside her. I wasn’t sure how long they’d been watching, but it didn’t look like they had just arrived.

“Hello, Examiner Baek Seojin. This is our first time meeting. I’m Kang Hana, Student Council President.”

“Hi there! I’m Yoo Dasom, the Student Council Treasurer!”

I couldn’t believe we now had the President and Treasurer after the Vice President. Jung Yuhyeon suddenly shouted.

“President! Why are you telling me to stop? I’m not finished—”

“Cut it out, Jung Yuhyeon. You look pathetic.”

“What...?”

“You’re smearing the Student Council’s reputation. Consider this your final warning. Close your mouth.”

She silenced him so fast. Then she turned her stern gaze toward me.

“Examiner Baek Seojin, I’d appreciate it if we could end things here.”

“He says he can still fight.”

“Is that so? Jung Yuhyeon, you really want to keep going?”

He bit his lip, but ultimately backed down.

He was the type to behave around anyone stronger or higher in status.

“That settles it, Examiner.”

“Then what about the condition I mentioned?”

“Condition?”

It seemed Kang Hana didn’t know about that part yet.

Jung Yuhyeon shouted, “Wait!” too late. There was no way I’d let him off without settling that score.

“I told him if he lost, he’d drop to Bronze rank.”

“...Drop to Bronze?”

“Yes. He said it himself.”

Kang Hana studied me for a moment, then turned her attention to Jung Yuhyeon.

“Is that true?”

“P-President. This is, um...”

“Is it true or not?”

He nodded, much to my surprise. I’d expected him to deny it.

“Hah.”

Kang Hana heaved a deep sigh, then spoke in a cold tone.

“Jung Yuhyeon. You’re on probation. Don’t come to the Student Council for a while. Keep your head down.”

“President!”

“I’ll report this to the Director separately. I’ll have them revoke your rank and drop you to Bronze.”

“Kang Hana!!”

“That’s it. We’re done here.”

As I watched her shut him down so decisively, I thought, ‘There was a reason she was the Student Council President.’