Correcting the Villainess of the Academy - Chapter 125

Chapter 125

Fall (2)

***

“Stop! The winner is Yu Jinhyun!”

At the referee’s voice, announcing the end of the duel, I stopped my movements.

Choi Woojin was kneeling on one knee, holding his shield up as if to block an attack from above. My blade was pressed against his neck, and the shattered remnants of his particle barrier flickered in the air, dissolving back into nothingness.

“Huff… huff…!”

The muscular boy was panting heavily, clearly exhausted, his breath tinged with the scent of sweat and effort.

Upon hearing the referee’s signal, he raised both hands and shook his head with a wry smile.

“Haha! Man, I didn’t expect the gap to be this big. Total defeat. Total defeat.”

His unexpected reaction made me relax my grip on the blade.

Choi Woojin caught his breath and then stood up, extending his thick right hand toward me.

“Well fought. I learned a lot.”

“…So did I.”

There was no way I could refuse such a friendly gesture. Was he the type who enjoyed the fight itself rather than obsessing over victory?

This was a side of him I hadn’t anticipated. From his usual cocky attitude with his friends and his constant bickering with Jin Yeseo, I had never imagined this.

I sheathed my blade and shook his hand. He enthusiastically pumped my arm up and down.

“Come on, don’t be modest. Even though you were holding back, I didn’t expect the gap to be this wide. I couldn’t even last five minutes…”

“What? I wasn’t holding back.”

“Yeah, right. I saw you turn Jin Yeseo into a half-dead corpse with my own eyes. Man, this is a blow to my pride…”

“…”

Choi Woojin frowned, as if the fact that his limbs were still intact meant I had gone easy on him.

But I actually prefer clean matches. If Jin Yeseo hadn’t been so troublesome, I would’ve ended the duel the same way I did today—by simply placing my blade at her neck, without any unnecessary fighting. Especially considering my time limit due to the overload issue, this approach made the most sense.

“Hey. Let me ask you something.”

“What is it?”

Choi Woojin’s tone suddenly shifted, becoming serious.

“Between Jin Yeseo and me, who was harder to fight?”

“…”

Choi Woojin’s expression was filled with an intense desire not to lose to Jin Yeseo. No, it was more than that—he seemed to genuinely despise her.

So, he does care about winning after all…

“…You.”

After a moment of thought, I gave him my answer. His previously serious face brightened instantly.

“Really?”

“Yeah.”

“Kuhaha, is that so…!”

I wasn’t trying to comfort him; I was simply being honest.

Even if Jin Yeseo always felt like she was wearing the wrong clothes during our fight, breaking through Choi Woojin’s solid barriers was definitely the more difficult task.

“That’s enough for me. Haha, I can’t wait to rub this in her face later.”

Choi Woojin laughed heartily, his shoulders shaking, but then his expression soured slightly.

“Still, it’s a shame. The gap between my score and Jin Yeseo’s will widen even more. I thought I could catch up this time… tsk.”

From what he said earlier, it seemed like Jin Yeseo had decided to go through with her match instead of postponing it.

“Why? Jin Yeseo could still lose, right?”

“No way. That’s impossible.”

Choi Woojin shook his head firmly.

“As much as her personality sucks, her skills are the real deal. Moon Yeowool’s never beaten her, not even once. Even with the injury, it’s the same…”

But just as he was boasting confidently, a deafening roar erupted from a nearby arena.

My ears rang from the sudden noise, and I couldn’t help but frown. What’s going on?

Both Choi Woojin and I instinctively turned toward the large live scoreboard.

-21st Match! The winner is…

With the amplified voice echoing through the arena, the unexpected result began to appear.

Ranking Match (First-Year Division)

21st Match Results

Jin Yeseo vs. Moon Yeowool (W)

-The winner is… Moon Yeowool!!

At the same time, the names on the live ranking board shifted dramatically. The upset victory caused the ranking changes to be swift and severe.

Jin Yeseo, who had held second place, plummeted to 11th, while Moon Yeowool, who had beaten her, shot up to 8th place.

“Haha! Are you serious? Really?”

Staring blankly at the scoreboard, Choi Woojin suddenly burst into laughter, clutching his stomach.

“Jin Yeseo got her rank stolen by Moon Yeowool?”

Tears formed at the corners of his eyes as he laughed at the unexpected turn of events.

“Pfft, pffthaha… I shouldn’t be wasting time here. I’m off. Let’s fight again sometime, for real.”

It was as if he had just remembered some forgotten task. In the blink of an eye, Choi Woojin left the arena without a trace.

-24th Match! The winner is… Yu Jinhyun!

He didn’t even stick around to hear the official announcement of my victory from the referee.

In the now tense atmosphere, I was left standing alone in the middle of the arena.

But I could still feel a pair of eyes boring into me from the stands behind.

***

Two days after the ranking match, students were still buzzing about the duel between Jin Yeseo and Moon Yeowool.

Ignoring all the chatter, I headed toward the large library nestled within the annex building.

Now that both my duel with Jin Yeseo and the ranking match were over, I could finally catch up on the assignments I had fallen behind on.

“So the atmosphere was super intense…”

“It was pretty much like a real battle…”

“If the professors hadn’t stepped in, there would’ve been a hole in her stomach…”

Even though I deliberately chose a secluded corner facing the wall to avoid standing out, a boy with a stern expression and glasses spotted me and immediately started babbling away. His oversized mask covered most of his face, making his voice muffled.

I also noticed a long adhesive bandage stuck to the side of his cheek.

If I remembered correctly, Muyoung wasn’t exactly in a position to talk about others. He had lost pretty badly to Sera and even Yena, putting him on a two-match losing streak.

Sera was holding her own in the middle ranks, but… is it really okay for an Intelligence Bureau agent to be this weak?

Well, he did mention that his strength wasn’t his primary focus and that he specialized in other areas, so I guess it doesn’t matter too much…

“Didn’t you say you had something to give me?”

“Oh, right. I almost forgot.”

Caught up in his gossip, Muyoung suddenly remembered and adjusted his glasses before pulling two thin file folders out of his bag and handing them to me.

“Here you go.”

“What’s this?”

“It’s what the captain asked for…”

Muyoung trailed off, lowering his voice. But I immediately understood what he was referring to.

The moment he mentioned it, my ears perked up, and I felt a surge of excitement.

Could this finally provide some answers about that strange dream?

I hastily grabbed one of the files and began flipping through it.

But, as expected, I was greeted by nothing but blank, white pages.

Muyoung gave me an incredulous look.

“Captain. Do you not know how to handle classified documents? I’ll give you the decryption key later. Read it when you’re alone. After you’ve reviewed it, destroy it immediately.”

Alone, huh?

I won’t have time to read it until after Yeon Minha’s asleep.

Feeling embarrassed, I set the first file aside and opened the second one.

This one wasn’t encrypted. The text was densely packed, but at least it was readable.

“What about this one?”

“It’s a collection of texts related to witches. You seemed curious about it last time.”

“Why isn’t it encrypted?”

“Because it’s not classified. You could find most of this in newspapers from 15 years ago. You can read it here if you want.”

Muyoung gave me a puzzled look.

“How come you don’t know about this stuff? Weren’t you raised in Heukryeon? It would’ve been common knowledge back then.”

Well, that’s because the place I grew up in was so remote that newspapers only arrived every few months. Until it was attacked by demonic tribes, it was one of the most peaceful regions, free of even third-rate monsters.

“I’m sure you’ll find everything commonly known about witches in there.”

“Commonly known? Sounds like there’s more to it.”

“I did some digging, but there were areas I couldn’t access. I couldn’t bring those, obviously.”

“That’s strange. Earlier, you mentioned this was classified as top-secret.”

“It is.”

“Then how does it make sense that you can pull top-tier information but couldn’t get access to other parts?”

“Sometimes, things get tangled up in the chain of responsibility. It happens. Don’t sweat it too much. Everything you were curious about should be in there.”

Muyoung brushed off my questions casually.

Even though I could read the file right away, it was too lengthy to go through here.

I decided to tuck both files into my bag to read later when I had more time.

“Thanks. This will be a huge help.”

“It’s nothing. The branch director told me to help you however I can, so don’t worry about it. I’ll be off now.”

“Wait. Can I ask you something?”

I stopped Muyoung just as he was about to leave with a wave of his hand.

“The person I asked you to look into… are they real?”

It was a critical question, one that could clear up all the unease and discomfort of the past few days.

But Muyoung only stared at me with a confused expression.

“What? Of course. You asked me to investigate a real person, didn’t you?”

***

Leaving the library, I quickly walked down the corridor.

The setting sun had turned the hallway a deep orange, its light wrapping around me like a curtain. Though the faded hues created a peaceful scene, they did little to calm my restless mind.

Muyoung’s matter-of-fact response only made the currents of doubt swirl even more violently in my head.

“Hey, chick. I need to ask you something…”

How am I supposed to interpret the fact that someone I’ve never met appeared in my dream so vividly? And they’re a real person, no less.

“Hey. Hey. Geez, why are you walking so fast… Is it because your legs are long…?”

I was itching to rush back to the dorm and pore over the documents. I needed to get back to the Beech Dormitory as fast as possible…

“Hey! Seriously! A senior is talking to you!”

Suddenly, a high-pitched shout pierced my ears, and I came to an abrupt stop, turning around.

Standing about ten paces behind me was a girl, panting heavily.

Her chest heaved with every breath, making it look like the buttons on her shirt would pop off at any moment.

On her lapel was the badge indicating she was a second-year. Her hair was tied neatly in a simple, yet lively style. With her innocent, bright appearance and the small tear-shaped beauty mark under her right eye, she was hard to miss.

She was always seen with that girl.

Second-year Kwon Yuri was looking up at me with a slightly annoyed expression.

End of Chapter