Breaking Up with the Heroine of the Female-Oriented Game - Chapter 54

Chapter 54

Battle Survival (1)

This year is what you could call a “Golden Generation.”

That’s because a swarm of geniuses from across the globe has entered Union Academy.

Lee Siwoon, the prodigy of the SL Group.

Baek Yoorin, the granddaughter of the “Ten Swords’” greatest swordsman.

Kang Daehan, the bloodline of the legendary hero Kang Cheoleun.

Yoo Seolhyun, the granddaughter of the genius of creativity, Yoo Gamyeong.

Yuliya Troyanova, the disciple of the Archmage, and so on…

The midterm exams this time around attracted much more attention than in previous years because of the sheer number of geniuses.

Furthermore, it was a gathering where the heirs of Korea’s most influential corporations, the owners of massive clans, and the bloodlines of legendary heroes were all being evaluated together.

It was obvious that the competition would be fierce.

For the students, this midterm was a great opportunity to prove their value and abilities to the people of Korea.

After all, making a name for oneself at Union Academy was a world apart from gaining fame in a small town during middle school.

If you could stand tall among these geniuses, no one would dare deny your worth.

As the midterm exams, which spanned several weeks, unfolded, people were eager to see who would stand out.

Many speculated about names like Lee Siwoon, Kang Daehan, Baek Yoorin, Yoo Seolhyun, Goo Hancheol, and Kim Joon, engaging in heated debates.

All of them were hero candidates who had been rumored to be exceptional since their youth.

Some even placed bets, similar to sports lottery tickets, on who would rank the highest.

But what was this?

An unexpected figure was starting to make a name for himself.

That person was none other than Lee Jinhyuk.

[Author: novel***
Title: What’s up with Lee Jinhyuk? Why is his overall score so high?]
[Reply: Didn’t he barely make it into the academy?]
[Reply: Really?]
[Reply: My friend attends Union Academy, so I know.]
[Reply: Your friend goes to Union? Yeah right, then I’m attending Seoul National University, idiot.]
[Reply: Oh, right. Isn’t he one of the kids who caught that Black-Handed Long-Armed Monkey at the academy? I heard he even received an award for it.]

[Author: munp***
Title: Breaking News: Lee Jinhyuk’s team just set the highest score in the Hostage Rescue exam, lol]
[Reply: ??? Really?]
[Reply: He scored higher than Lee Siwoon’s team?]
[Reply: Isn’t that guy a non-ability user?]
[Reply: Talentless guy overcame prodigies, lol.]

[Author: joa***
Title: Isn’t Lee Jinhyuk just riding on his team’s coattails?]
[Reply: He’ll probably get wrecked once the individual exams start.]
[Reply: Isn’t today’s exam Battle Survival? Then Lee Jinhyuk’s going to get destroyed, lol.]
[Reply: Yeah. Battle Survival places importance on individual abilities.]
[Reply: You never know. He might set a high score again, lol.]
[Reply: Let’s go for the underdog win!]

The internet community was buzzing with talk about Lee Jinhyuk.

And for good reason—no one expected a student who had been nearly at the bottom to outperform prominent geniuses in the first midterm exams and achieve such high scores.

It was almost unheard of for an ordinary(?) student like Lee Jinhyuk to stand out among geniuses who had been famous for a long time.

After all, Lee Jinhyuk’s combat abilities were abysmal, and he hadn’t even awakened any special abilities. He was a defective product.

Besides having decent theoretical scores, he wasn’t particularly noteworthy.

On top of that, he had barely been admitted to Union Academy, almost at the bottom of the list. This was a sign that he lacked the qualities necessary to become a hero.

So what was going on?

How could he achieve such high scores in dungeon conquests, hostage rescues, and the Hero vs. Villain exams?

In the dungeon conquest, he set an astonishing record for the shortest completion time, and in the Hostage Rescue exam, he practically toyed with the opposing team with meticulous strategies and tactics. In the Hero vs. Villain exam, he persistently exploited his opponent’s weaknesses to secure numerous victories.

It wasn’t as if he had won purely by his own power, but he had fully utilized the team-based format to achieve victory through extraordinary tactics and leadership, which drew the attention of many people.

Ordinarily, the outcome of such exams would be determined by the one-man show of a powerful ability user.

But Lee Jinhyuk used strategy and tactics to make up for his lack of brute strength, proudly outsmarting the geniuses who had always reigned as victors since they were young.

In some ways, Lee Jinhyuk was more like an unusually clever ordinary person, which naturally made him the subject of much discussion among certain people.

His actions were a breath of fresh air for other hero trainees who had been subtly looked down upon as incompetent because they lacked abilities.

“Ah~ This guy Lee Jinhyuk is quite famous these days, isn’t he?”
T h i s w as c o p i ed f r o m k i n g m t l . o r g

But gaining fame isn’t always a good thing.

“He seems pretty smart too.”

Because it wasn’t only ordinary people and heroes who had taken an interest in him. Villains were watching too.

Even the worst of them, who were always lurking, waiting to prey on Union students.

“What do you think, Seong Yura?”

Yoo Dahee, who had smoothly brushed back her bleached white hair, sat on the sofa with a bored expression as she scrolled through a hero community site.

Yoo Dahee was the leader of the villain group Rebellion and was currently with Seong Yura.

Her talent and power were so overwhelming that they could shake the heavens and the earth.

If Yoo Dahee had walked the path of a hero, people like Lee Siwoon, Kang Daehan, and Yoo Seolhyun wouldn’t have even been able to hold a candle to her.

She was already far stronger than most regular instructors.

“Why? Are you thinking of making Lee Jinhyuk another one of your prey?”

“Hmm… not really.”

Yoo Dahee shrugged at Seong Yura’s question.

Even though Lee Jinhyuk seemed to be performing well in team-based exams, he was a non-ability user.

Such individuals had clear limitations as heroes.

Without a team, they were nothing.

So Yoo Dahee wasn’t particularly interested.

“Not really? Since he’s a non-ability user, I’m not very interested.”

“Oh, really?”

Rather than someone like Lee Jinhyuk, she was more interested in other hero trainees.

Those who had the skills and talents worth crushing.

Like Lee Siwoon, Kang Daehan, Joo Jiyeon, Goo Hancheol, and so on… There were plenty of them.

“By the way, Seong Yura, are you all set? Today’s the day we’re going to cause chaos at the academy.”

“And you?”
T h i s w as c o pi e d f r o m k i n g m t l . o r g

“Me? I’m all set.”

Yoo Dahee chuckled.

T h i s w as cop i e d f r o m k ing m t l . org
“A lot of discontented losers from society have joined in as mercenaries.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. Unlike our Rebellion members, they’re just third-rate villains, but since there are quite a few of them, they can at least serve as bait or hunting dogs.”

Their role was to delay the security forces and to hunt down and contact the targeted students for Yoo Dahee.

“They’re trash who couldn’t adapt to society and just whine about it, but at times like these, they can be surprisingly useful.”

“Is that so?”

“Yeah. These third-rate lives, you see, they have no future. None at all.”

After all, they were beyond salvation, with no way to turn their lives around.

“They’re filled with anger and want to vent their frustrations immediately, but they’re too scared to do it alone. So I just gave them an opportunity to join in.”

“But to think they would participate in such a plan. I really don’t understand.”

“Kik. These third-rate lives just want to watch the world burn. They find joy in trampling on others’ happiness.”

Yoo Dahee suddenly tilted her head up.

“Of course, since they don’t respond well to words alone, I had to borrow a little help from a self-proclaimed hero maniac.”

“Oh, that guy who’s always smiling? I’ve only seen him a few times.”

Seong Yura suddenly recalled the face of a man.

A man who, within the villain organization Rebellion, had an oddly benevolent attitude toward heroes.

Of course, it wasn’t a normal kind of benevolence. It was a twisted fascination and affection, but it seemed genuine in its own way.

Well… the heroes who received his attention didn’t fare too well in the end, though.

“That guy’s ability… wasn’t it mind control?”

“To be precise, it’s not exactly mind control, but it’s similar.”

It wasn’t exactly mind control but rather an ability that stimulated human emotions.

By provoking and amplifying negative feelings like inferiority, desire, anger, and resentment, controlling a person became incredibly easy.

Especially if the person was a piece of trash, a third-rate thug drifting in the back alleys filled with resentment toward heroes and society.

“Anyway, it’s good to see that everything is set, Yoo Dahee.”

“I would’ve liked for more of our members to join, but they didn’t seem to be interested.”

Yoo Dahee clicked her tongue in disappointment.

“I wasn’t planning on making a move until the finals or the training camp, but you went ahead and made the first move, so I decided to join in. You really don’t like that nun, do you, Seong Yura?”

“It’s not that I particularly hate her. Also, this time, it’s not just about bothering her, it’s about testing her.”

“Oh, is that so?”

Yoo Dahee chuckled and rolled her red eyes.

“Well, fine. Let’s both do our best to achieve our own goals.”

“Yeah, Yoo Dahee. You and I are after different things.”

Different goals.

Yoo Dahee’s goal was to crush the academy trainees and spread chaos through the media, while Seong Yura’s goal was to attack Roxanne and those around her to uncover any hidden connections.

The two were cooperating solely for their own purposes.

“Today’s test is Battle Survival, right? Kik. It’s going to be a real survival out there.”

It might be a third-rate rabble, but with so many villains joining in, won’t it be a good experience for the hero-trainees?

Of course, for those who have the misfortune of running into Yoo Dahee, it will be the worst experience, kik.

***

Battle Survival.

“Huff, huff, huff.”

“Hey, hey! Lee Jinhyuk! You! Stop right there!”

Battle Survival is an exam held outside the academy to evaluate the students’ survival skills, combat abilities, quick thinking, interpersonal combat skills, large-scale monster combat skills, tactical abilities, and more.

The goal is to survive for a total of five days in a vast mountainous area.

The forest is a world of survival of the fittest.

Numerous traps, items, and artificial monsters are scattered throughout, and students can earn points through competition. The more points someone collects, the higher their score.

There are two main ways to earn points.

The first is by defeating artificial monsters.

The second is by fighting other students and stealing their points.

Each student is equipped with a smart watch that allows them to steal or trade points.

This smart watch also includes a basic map function and a surrender function. If a student wants to give up, they just need to hold down a button.

Then, a security officer on standby will arrive to safely escort the student out, at the cost of failing the exam.

Of course, the surrender button requires fingerprint recognition, so it’s useless unless the student presses it themselves.

Oh, well, you could always knock someone out or threaten them to press it themselves.

“Huff, huff, damn it, Jinhyuk, you’re making this way too tiring.”

T h i s w a s c o pi ed fr o m kin gm t l . o rg
“You guys are persistent… to have chased me all the way here.”

I caught my breath for a moment and looked at the students who had been chasing me.

T h i s w a s c o pi e d fr om k i n gm t l . o rg
Kim Yuseong and two extras were panting heavily as they glared at me with hostile expressions. Wow, those are some fierce eyes.

“Guys, isn’t teaming up on the first day a bit much?”

Teaming up.

It’s when people form alliances, like those three.

“If you don’t like it, why don’t you do it too?”

“Hmm? Then will you let me join?”

“No.”

“Aww, that’s too harsh. Where’s the camaraderie? We’ve known each other since middle school, right? How about we take it easy on the first day?”

“Nope, not happening.”

Kim Yuseong smiled slyly.

It was a smile that belonged to a truly despicable villain.

It was the look of a predator eyeing its prey.

Although I had been doing well in the exams so far, it was only because I had skillfully utilized my teammates.

In terms of individual combat ability, I was among the lowest.

Kim Yuseong was well aware of that.

To him, I was nothing more than a rat trapped in a jar.

“Sigh. Yuseong, can’t we just talk this out?”

“The only thing left to do is to fight.”

“Sigh. You really are impossible to communicate with. No wonder your theory scores are so bad.”

T h i s w a s co p i e d f r o m k i n g m t l . o r g
“What did you say, punk?”

Kim Yuseong snapped.

It seemed he was well aware that he wasn’t the brightest.

In the game, he wasn’t a character who particularly liked me.

After all, his role was to secretly bully me to suck up to Lee Siwoon.

Right now, our relationship wasn’t exactly good, but it wasn’t bad either.

Unlike in the original story, I was maintaining a normal relationship with Lee Siwoon.

Besides, I had broken up with Soyeon and was getting along well with someone like Yoo Seolhyun, so Yuseong probably didn’t feel the need to mess with me.

‘Kim Yuseong’s freshman ranking is in the upper-middle tier, but… his close-combat ability is said to rival those in the upper ranks.’

I wasn’t sure how strong the other two were, but it’s not like I could handle them anyway.

My combat abilities were really terrible.

If I were to fight any of them one-on-one, I wouldn’t stand a chance.

“Then get ready, Lee Jinhyuk.”

But that’s fine.

Why?

Because, as I mentioned earlier, this forest is full of hidden traps and items.

“Don’t hold a grudge.”

Ah, of course, I don’t know the exact locations of the traps and items.

In the game, the forest appeared in a much smaller scale compared to reality, so many things were different.

It’s not like I had obtained special information beforehand, like during the Youngdeung Mountain Dungeon, and the location wasn’t as confined as a dungeon.

Finding the exact locations of traps and items in this vast forest would be incredibly difficult.

But that doesn’t really matter.

Why?

Because when it comes to traps…

I can just set them up myself, right?

T h i s w a s c o pi e d f r o m k in g mt l. o r g
I secretly smuggled in all sorts of traps and items through the Space Ring.
T h i s w as co p i ed f r o m k i n g m t l .o r g

So I can easily set up simple traps.

Hmm.

For example, something like a landmine?

“Well then…?”

The moment one of the male students, who looked like an extra, took a step toward me, there was a clicking sound followed by a loud bang as the ground exploded.

It was an explosive booby trap that I had set up.

Ah, gotcha.

“Ugh, aah!?”

“What the hell?!”

“A trap! That bastard lured us into a trap!”

Because the academy had explicitly warned us to be cautious of traps, items, and monsters, the kids didn’t seem to suspect that the trap was something I had set up myself.

Just in case, I had set up traps that were similar to the ones the academy had laid down.

To avoid getting into trouble later.

Of course, the locations of the traps differed somewhat from the original ones, but it wouldn’t be easy to compare them all.

Ah, there’s always a possibility that a security officer on standby could catch me, but the forest is really large.

It’s impossible to monitor everything.

Also, even if you press the surrender button on the smart watch, it takes quite a while for a security officer to arrive.

And, well… I had scouted out places where security officers wouldn’t likely be and set up the traps there.

“Hey, hey! Snap out of it! Let’s take him down first…!”

Swoosh!

I immediately shot a practice arrow.

My target was the guy who had stepped on the booby trap.

Under normal circumstances, he could have easily blocked or dodged it.
T h is w a s c o pi e d f r o m k i n g m t l . o r g

T hi s w a s co pi ed f r o m k i n g m tl . or g
But since he was still disoriented from the booby trap, my arrow hit him dead on, and he tumbled to the ground.

Oops, if he rolls that way…

“You bastard… Ugh, aaahhh!”

Boom!

Unfortunately for him, he rolled right onto another landmine.

With a satisfying explosion, the male student slammed his head into a tree.

He was a hero-in-training, so he should be fine, but since he got hit on the back of the head, it looked like he passed out.

Oh, nice.

One down.

“Ga, Kang Jihoon!”

Ah, so his name was Kang Jihoon?

I didn’t know that.

I can’t remember the names of every unimportant character from another class in the game.

“Damn it, how many traps are there here?!”

Yeah, there are a ton.

This place is a minefield.

I’ve set up a lot of traps here.

Of course, the traps aren’t just mines.

Just in case there were kids like you who wanted to gang up on me, I’ve prepared a lot of fun traps.

End of Chapter.