The director finished his speech, leaving the room in a stunned silence. No one knew what to say.
"Normally," he continued, his tone shifting back to that of an administrator, "homicide is punished by immediate expulsion and handover to the authorities. However, the circumstances are... exceptional."
He turned to the other professors. "Let's discuss the punishment."
While the administration began to debate in low voices, Yoo-Na leaned slightly toward me.
"Don't listen to his fancy stories," she whispered, her tone full of venom. "You killed five elites. You're going to be expelled. It's the only possible outcome. Enjoy your last few minutes in this academy, you piece of trash."
I didn't answer. I just waited.
After a few minutes, the discussion ended. The director tapped the table to get their attention.
"We have made a decision," he announced.
"First, the 'Ivory Circle' is, as of today, disbanded. Its unofficial existence has tolerated too much abuse."
Yoo-Na gasped in surprise.
"Second, as punishment for leading this personal vendetta and for failing in your role as a model student, you, Kang Yoo-Na, and you, Kang Ji-Hoon, will be bound as partners for an indefinite period."
"What?!" Yoo-Na shouted, jumping up from her chair.
"You will do everything together," the director continued, unbothered. "Classes. Exercises. Missions. You will be responsible for each other. This is non-negotiable."
Yoo-Na was furious. "But... he killed people! Why aren't you expelling him?!"
"Because you attacked his family," the director replied, his voice turning icy. "Private life is sacred. That is a line that even we do not cross. You are lucky you are not being expelled yourself. Now, dismiss. All of you."
Everyone began to get up to leave.
Before walking out, I turned to Yoo-Na.
"I'm still waiting for my five million points," I said, my voice sarcastic. "For the quest."
"Get lost!" she hissed.
"Miss Kang," the director said, without even turning around. "A quest is a quest. A rule is a rule. Pay him, or be expelled. The choice is yours."
Yoo-Na's face twisted with rage. Her hands shaking with fury, she took out her terminal and made the transfer.
My terminal vibrated.
[Transfer received: 5,000,000 points]
I looked at Yoo-Na with a cold smile. Then I turned and left, leaving her alone with her hatred.
I walked out of the council room with my head held high. The hallways were still filled with curious students waiting to see what would happen.
They saw me walk out. Free.
Then they saw Yoo-Na walk out behind me, her face a mask of contained fury. She walked a few steps behind me, as if forced by an invisible chain. Which, in a way, was true.
The news spread in an instant. Not expelled. Partners. The rumor flew from terminal to terminal. The F-rank and the Ice Queen, forced to team up. It was the craziest story the academy had ever known.
I saw Min-Soo in the crowd. He looked at me, completely stunned, a mix of relief and total disbelief on his face. I gave him a slight nod. We would talk later.
I didn't slow down. I kept walking, cutting through the crowd that parted for me. I didn't go back to my room.
I had only one destination in mind.
I walked to the main building, to the administrative terminals room. I opened my interface.
[Balance: 5,000,000 points]
I opened the transaction menu. I selected "Convert points to Won." The exchange rate was terrible, but it didn't matter.
[Convert 5,000,000 points to 5,000,000 Won?]
I confirmed.
[Transaction successful. Transfer funds?]
I entered the account number for the billing department of Seoul National University Hospital.
[Transfer of 5,000,000 Won completed.]
It was done.
I had no points left. I was back to zero. But it didn't matter at all.
I closed the interface. I felt an immense weight leave my shoulders. Not the weight of sadness, no. That was a part of me now.
But the weight of helplessness. It was gone.
I turned around. Yoo-Na was still there, watching me from the other end of the hall, her arms crossed, her eyes murderous.
Our punishment had just begun. And I was going to make her regret every second of it.
The first day of our "partnership" began the next day.
The academy's system had automatically enrolled us in the same classes. And since I was the lowest rank, that meant Yoo-Na, the great A-rank Ice Queen, was forced to sit with me in the most basic theory classes.
I arrived in class and sat in the back. A few minutes later, she walked in.
The entire class went silent. The students stared at her, mouths open, wondering what she was doing there.
She ignored everyone. Her icy gaze swept the room, found me, and then she came and sat in the empty seat next to me. She placed her things on the table with a sharp thud, without giving me a single glance.
The class began. The professor was talking about the history of M-Day, things that even children knew.
I wasn't listening. I was watching her out of the corner of my eye. She sat with her back perfectly straight, staring at the board, her face a mask of cold indifference. But I could see the tension in her jaw, the way her fingers gripped her pen.
She was boiling with rage.
It was delicious.
At the end of the class, she stood up and left without a word.
In the afternoon, it was practical combat class. The one where I got beaten up every day.
When I entered the gym, the professor looked at me, then looked at Yoo-Na who was entering behind me. A small, amused smile appeared on his face.
"Today, we're working in pairs," he announced to the class.
All the students started to partner up with their friends.
"Not so fast," the professor said. "The pairs are already set. Kang Ji-Hoon, you're with Kang Yoo-Na."
A dead silence fell over the gym. All eyes turned to us.
Yoo-Na shot me a death glare. If looks could kill, I'd already be a pile of ash.
"Your first exercise," the professor said. "A simple training match. One attacks, the other defends. Go ahead."
We took our places in one of the arenas. Face to face. Just like before. But this time, the atmosphere was completely different.
"You defend first," she said, her voice low and full of contempt.
"No," I replied calmly. "You defend."
Her eyes narrowed. "What did you say?"
"You heard me. You're the A-rank. You're supposed to be the strongest. Show me how you defend."
She clenched her fists. She wanted to attack me, to freeze me on the spot. But the rules of the exercise were clear. And the professor was watching us. She was trapped.
"Fine," she hissed.
She got into a defensive stance, her body radiating a cold aura.
I summoned my dagger. I didn't wait. I charged.
My attack was simple, direct. A slashing strike.
She parried it easily, creating a small shield of ice right in front of her. My dagger hit the ice. The ice shattered, and the power was absorbed.
I followed up. A thrust. She dodged. A low strike. She jumped back.
My movements weren't elegant. They weren't technical. But they were relentless. I didn't give her a moment to breathe, to counter-attack. I was like a rabid dog.
The other students watched, fascinated. The F-rank, the one who got beaten by everyone, was putting pressure on the Ice Queen.
For several minutes, I harassed her without stopping. She parried, she dodged, but she couldn't launch her own attack.
Finally, the professor blew the whistle to end the exercise.
"Time's up," he announced.
I stepped back, panting a little. She was glaring at me, her chest rising quickly from the effort and rage.
I had lost all my fights before. But this one... this one, I hadn't lost. I hadn't won either. It was a draw.
And for her, a draw against me was the worst kind of defeat.
I gave her a small, mocking smile. "Not bad, for an A-rank."
The week continued at this pace.
Every class, every meal, every exercise, we were forced to be together. We barely spoke. Just sharp commands or sarcastic remarks. But the tension between us was so thick you could cut it with my dagger.
During training, I pushed her to her limits. I wasn't trying to win. I was trying to exhaust her, to frustrate her, to show her that her rank meant nothing against me.
And it was working. She became more and more irritable. More and more reckless.
On my side, I was improving at an insane speed. Every day, by fighting her, I was learning. I analyzed her movements, her feints, her way of managing her Aura. She was the best teacher I could have hoped for. And she hated me for it.
One afternoon, Min-Soo found me after combat class.
"You're playing a dangerous game," he said, handing me a bottle of water.
"It's her game, not mine," I replied, taking a big gulp.
"Maybe. But she's changing. She's more focused. More precise. You're training her as much as she's training you."
I shrugged. "So what?"
"So, the director is going to give you a real partner mission soon. Not an exercise. Something dangerous. He's going to test you. And when you're out there, with no professors to watch you, do you really think she won't try to 'get rid' of you?"
He was right. The thought had crossed my mind.
Our partnership was a ticking time bomb. And the director was the one holding the detonator.
That same evening, we received the notification.
[Special Mission Assignment - Partner]
[Target: Level 2 Aura Breach - Bukhansan Forest]
[Objective: Close the breach and eliminate all hostile entities.]
[Appointment: Tomorrow, 06:00, Academy Heliport.]
It had come. Our first test.
In the forest, far from any prying eyes, there would be no more rules. Just her, me, and monsters.