NOVEL NEXT Episode 175
Episode 175
About a week before the three great academies began moving to the banquet hall.
At Mirinae Academy…
A study guide titled “Know Yourself and Your Enemy: Project for Winning Every Battle in the Academy Competition” became a mega-hit. Although it wasn’t an official study guide related to academy exams, even disciplined cadets passed it around with excited faces. They said that with this, it might be possible to show a decent performance in the competition.
For reference, the author of this document was Jang Wi-an. The back page of the booklet-like study guide said it was published by the student council, but somehow everyone knew the truth.
Anyway, the first chapter of the study guide begins like this:
“Chapter 1: Comparative Analysis by Academy”
Project name: To know yourself and your enemy is to win every battle.
“1. Areah Academy
– Undisputed #1 in academy rankings.
– Emphasis on academic performance, achievement, and educational background.
– Characterized by a large number of elite promising students from around the world seeking to receive the energy of the Korean peninsula.
(…)
Dormitory system: Divided into White Tiger, Blue Dragon, Vermilion Bird, and Black Tortoise, with uniforms also provided separately according to dormitory symbol colors. Dormitories are assigned through ancient magic. It’s said that professors deliberately encourage competition between dormitories. Rumor has it that among graduates, there are still annual bets on which dormitory achieves the highest grades.
┕ Information has been obtained that the competitive structure between dormitories has weakened compared to before this year. Whether this information is true or false can only be known by confronting them.
Class system: Classes are reorganized every semester according to academic performance. Famous for having no class cooperation as classmates must fail exams for others to be promoted.
┕ Nevertheless, historical academy competitions have been a record of crushing defeats. Frustration is unnecessary. Only a realistic view is needed. It is judged that organized offensives should be conducted to prevent individuals from Areah from demonstrating their skills. Refer to page 177…”
The reason Jang Wi-an described Areah Academy first, rather than her own school, is simple.
No matter what, Areah is considered the top among awakened academies. Although for attending students it’s a mess that makes them want to faint with eyes tightly shut due to its haphazard system and makeshift administration, the outward appearance is quite different.
While not without its flaws, Areah Academy is the elite of elites that consistently provides frustration and a sense of helplessness to other academies.
The academy closely chasing behind is none other than Mirinae Academy, where this study guide is circulating.
“2. Mirinae Academy
– Boasts strict discipline and military regulations like a military academy.
– Characterized by fierce competition and strict control.
– Uniforms are classified and provided in five colors according to grades each semester. From lowest: yellow, blue, white, red, black…”
Next is, of course, that place.
The very place that Mirinae Academy secretly looks down on and neglects as unworthy of being called one of the three great academies.
“3. Guiding Star Academy
– Its operation focusing on teaching rather than competition is evaluated as a limitation. It’s said that students are often accepted even if their potential is relatively low. Complaints often come in disputing entrance exam results, but it’s also characteristic that they never overturn their decisions.
– Tends to attract awakened individuals who can’t go to Areah or Mirinae as a last hope. This year too, it’s being evaluated as having many applicants but no real gems.
– Has a characteristic of examining character when selecting students.
– No class distinctions. Only elective subjects differ based on aptitude. Frequent group classes.
(…)
– Operates dormitories but in a completely different way from the usual. Most notably, there are no dormitory supervisors. Professors never interfere with dormitories, and students have autonomy in the dormitories. The entire dormitory building area, except for on-campus, is essentially the students’ domain.
– Instead of a student council, a student autonomous organization called the Real Estate Association represents Guiding Star’s students. However, the association president has no decision-making power. They only have negotiation rights with the principal. All students at Guiding Star Academy have equal voting rights. The main task of the Real Estate Association is to negotiate with the principal based on agenda items decided through voting or discussion.
– There are various buildings such as Dog Star Villa, Anchor Star Villa, Fixed Star Villa, Fox Star Villa, etc., and each villa has specific duties assigned for dormitory management…”
In addition to this, Jang Wi-an’s study guide meticulously recorded various easily understandable information.
However, the most important content among these was predetermined.
It was Chapter 7, the “Gaining the Initiative” section, starting from page 177.
The method of gaining the initiative that Areah Academy should refer to before showing off individual skills was…!
“38. If the opponent is too superior, resort to personal attacks.
Excerpted from Arthur Schopenhauer’s ’38 Ways to Win an Argument’.”
…It was personal attacks.
Indeed, Chapter 7 was a parade of sentences so practical that it seemed insane. Of course, it’s known that Schopenhauer, who authored the book “38 Ways to Win an Argument,” wrote such things with the intention that one should be prepared for cases where the opponent uses such means even if one’s own argument is logically correct in a debate. But for mentally unhinged students, such truth wasn’t important.
‘Personal attacks are the sure way to victory!’
…Whatever the true meaning, it was interpreted in such a ridiculous way.
Moreover, Jang Wi-an didn’t just give absurd guidelines to make personal attacks, but clearly defined what the cadets should say. Even if the beginning looks like that, it’s just fabrication for incitement.
The true intention of Chapter 7 was on the following pages.
“
The true secret techniques passed down orally from previous generations were here…
Of course, real profanity was excluded as they couldn’t be caught throwing the first punch, and most were childish but annoying and infuriating taunts. Sentences that seemed a bit too funny for people over twenty to seriously exchange…
But what did that matter? Mirinae Academy’s cadets had been treated as losers just for enrolling in Mirinae instead of Areah until now. But this year, they finally saw a chance of victory. They wanted to gain the initiative, whether through personal attacks or whatever.
Mirinae’s first strike began in this context.
“Does it make sense for Guiding Star to be counted as one of the three great academies?”
“How low-class.”
In fact, Mirinae’s cadets were somewhat twisted from trying to overcome generations of inherited defeatism. Even more so because they started picking on the seemingly easy target of Guiding Star instead of touching Areah.
Still, it was somewhat understandable strategically because Guiding Star had rarely shown aggression. Guiding Star students had always treated the competition as more of a friendly festival.
However… how should I put it.
“I’m already pissed off, and now these bastards are acting up.”
“Who is it? Come out without a word. I’ll beat you up.”
Something seemed to be going wrong. Where did the naive students who were said to be so innocent they didn’t know the ways of the world go, and why were a bunch of crocodiles glaring with their eyes wide open? Mirinae’s cadets didn’t know that Guiding Star’s students had flipped their lids, ready to become demons for Ryuseong’s sake, and in the end, their attempt at personal attacks backfired, and they were overwhelmed instead. A sense of terror swept over them as if they had encountered a pride of lions on the savanna.
The frightened speaker tried to hide behind the other cadets.
But Guiding Star, fully charged with hostility, had left their mercy in Jeju Island and wasn’t about to let go of the provocation that had come their way.
“Tsk. Haven’t you seen what happens when you play with your hands and lose your neck?”
“You little shit, in front of our sister.”
“Sis. Just leave it to us. Who should we crush first?”
As Kim Garam, Guiding Star’s first-year Real Estate Association president, coldly presided, burly figures surrounded him, instantly turning the ordinary corridor leading to the banquet hall into the middle of a noir film.
Before they knew it, all the first-year students from the three great academies were watching the situation tensely with their mouths shut.
The reporters were grinning from ear to ear, holding their cameras.
Jang Wi-an inwardly clicked her tongue at this.
‘…Tch, do they think they’ll win a fight just because they look tough?’
Although displeased about being pushed back in the first confrontation, at this rate, news would spread like wildfire that Guiding Star Academy had overpowered Mirinae Academy with sheer force.
Jang Wi-an, who genuinely wanted Mirinae’s victory, couldn’t just stand by and watch this situation.
“Your speech is quite rough?”
“Didn’t you learn any manners?”
Jang Wi-an’s cold voice cut through the heated scene. Immediately after, Jang Wi-an and the executive members stood in front of the speaker as if it were natural. This, in turn, meant that the Guiding Star side couldn’t just stay still. Just as the burly figures of questionable student status were about to start cursing simultaneously, that’s when it happened.
“Ah, is this what they call youth?”
A casual remark was heard from somewhere. It seemed like a whisper to them, but somehow it was loud enough to be clearly heard.
“Youth. Adolescence. Passion. That’s nice. It’s also a privilege of that age group. Fighting over pride for nothing. Pointlessly pouring out overflowing vigor. Paying the price of irresponsibility. Being humiliated…”
“…”
“It’s quite unsightly and pleasant to see…”
…The protagonist of this all-directional aggro was, of course, Cassice Demillang.
Up to that point, it could be considered somewhat acceptable.
It hurt their pride as it seemed to acknowledge the other side, but not just anyone could say such things.
However, there was something else that everyone couldn’t stand.
While Cassice Demillang pretended to be distracted as if claiming his words were a monologue, Jang Wi-an found herself wanting to point out ‘that’ unknowingly, her lips quivering.
That was…!
***
‘I’m sorry for suddenly drawing aggro, students.’
But I had my reasons. This body of mine had stepped up to tank, preventing Ryuseong from jumping in to mediate between Guiding Star and Mirinae.
Because I didn’t want Ryuseong wasting time cleaning up after them.
And incidentally, to escalate the situation a bit more.
‘Kids grow through fighting, and if adults forcibly intervene to stop them, it just festers inside.’
In other words, my aggro was a build-up to see an even bigger mess.
However, my perfect build-up was shattered by Ryuseong’s whisper in my ear.
“…You do know how old you are, right?”
“Ah.”