NOVEL NEXT chapter 40
Chapter 40. Charging
“…?”
Kim Do-jin tilted his head, trudging along behind Carla Arlen.
– Thud.
Eventually, Carla Arlen stopped in a secluded corner of the rooftop, a blind spot where no other students could see them.
“….”
With a strangely flushed face, Carla Arlen glanced around to ensure no one was nearby, then suddenly looked up at Kim Do-jin and said,
“I-I just need to charge quickly, so I hope you don’t misunderstand.”
No sooner had she finished speaking than—
—
“……!”
To his astonishment, Karla Arlen pressed herself tightly against Kim Do-jin, as if seeking refuge in his embrace.
“What, what are you doing?”
Though Kim Do-jin had gleaned the reason from her earlier words, he couldn’t help but falter, taken aback by the suddenness of it all.
“I told you, I need to recharge quickly… And I should have done it earlier, but since I didn’t, I’m doing this specially, so, um, just understand that…”
As she spoke, Karla Arlen leaned in closer, leaving Kim Do-jin awkwardly standing there, unsure of how to respond.
– Vwooom…!
Indeed, the speed at which mana flowed was swift, given the extensive contact, yet the embarrassment of the situation loomed large.
“Ahem…”
Karla Arlen’s hands clutched the hem of Kim Do-jin’s side, while his own hands hovered awkwardly in the air.
Yet, from a glance, it appeared as if they were locked in an embrace.
‘She always seemed a bit peculiar, but… isn’t this a bit too strange?’
The sweet scent, the warmth radiating from her body, and the softness of her skin began to cloud his senses.
Kim Do-jin swallowed hard, striving to maintain his composure, but Karla Arlen seemed unfazed, her silence suggesting she was perfectly at ease.
“…….”
Time slipped by in this peculiar tableau.
Kim Do-jin felt the mana within him surge, surpassing 90%, and decided it was time to end the recharge.
He grasped Karla Arlen’s shoulders, intending to gently push her away.
“……!”
At that moment, fate conspired against him as he locked eyes with Hong Hyun-hwa, who had unexpectedly appeared.
“Ah! Th-this is…”
A situation ripe for misunderstanding, one that anyone could misinterpret.
Kim Do-jin shook his head vigorously, attempting to explain, but Hong Hyun-hwa flinched and quickly turned away, disappearing from sight.
“Why, why did you do that?”
Meanwhile, Karla Arlen, oblivious to Hong Hyun-hwa’s presence, tilted her head and looked up at Kim Do-jin, curious about her sudden startle.
“Uh? Ah… it’s nothing.”
In that moment, Kim Do-jin pondered how to clear up the misunderstandings but ultimately decided to let it be.
Hong Hyun-hwa was always glued to Yoon Yu-na, her best friend.
There was a chance she might tell Yoon Yu-na what she had just witnessed, but upon reflection, he realized it didn’t matter much.
So, he simply shook his head and acted as if nothing had happened with Karla Arlen.
“Is, is that so…?”
Karla Arlen lowered her head once more, focusing on the charge, while Kim Do-jin finally grasped her shoulder and pushed her back.
“That should be enough. We need to set off now.”
“Uh? Ah, understood…”
With that, he left Karla Arlen behind and walked back to the open center of the rooftop.
“Huh? Where have you been all this time?”
As if they had been searching, Nasca and Renya glanced around, their eyes darting.
“Ah, I was just checking over there for a moment…”
Kim Do-jin made his excuse while subtly gauging Hong Hyun-hwa’s reaction.
“……”
Hong Hyun-hwa knew it was a lie, but she said nothing, and Kim Do-jin, having finished his preparations, addressed the fourteen members of the special unit gathered around.
“Shall we depart now?”
* * *
The cityscape lay empty, like a scene from an apocalyptic film.
The fifteen members of the special unit, including Kim Do-jin, stood in a line, stealthily weaving between the buildings.
– Tatatatat.
After some time passed.
‘Is that it?’
At last, the distant silhouette of Building 8 began to emerge.
“Stop.”
Kim Do-jin signaled for them to halt, scanning for any signs of life around Building 8.
“……”
Indeed, the entrance to Building 8 was eerily silent, but whether there was an ambush lay shrouded in uncertainty.
This was especially true since Park Joo-seung, the leader of the third squad, was notorious for his cunning schemes.
‘It would have been nice to have a clairvoyant or some kind of detection esper… but it can’t be helped.’
If the presence of an ambush was uncertain, it was wiser to act as if one existed.
Kim Do-jin also had means to deal with an ambush.
‘What should I do?’
Currently, Kim Do-jin had two options at his disposal.
One was to utilize Im So-hee’s powers, and the other was to enter alone and handle the traps himself.
‘Im So-hee would be best kept safe.’
After a brief moment of contemplation, Kim Do-jin chose the second option and turned to his team, ready to explain the plan.
“Everyone stay here. I’ll go in alone first to see if there’s an ambush.”
Yoon Yu-na’s eyes widened in disbelief as she asked, “You’re just going to go in and find out? How?”
In truth, the very notion of going in and finding out was contradictory. Discovering an ambush the moment it was triggered would be of no use.
“I’ll just step in and see if there are any mines, that’s all.”
As expected, his explanation drew incredulous reactions from the team.
“What if there really are mines and they explode?”
“Then I’ll avoid them.”
Normally, the option to avoid them wouldn’t even exist.
“……”
Kim Do-jin continued to explain, maintaining a facade of sanity despite the bewildered stares from his teammates, who looked at him as if he were mad.
“Anyway, whether there’s an ambush or not, I’ll sort things out and send a signal. When I do, everyone come running.”
There was nothing more to say.
With that, Kim Do-jin turned back and trudged alone toward the entrance of Building 8.
“……”
The entrance remained eerily silent, as if a mouse had died there.
Kim Do-jin kept his guard up, continuing to trudge toward the elevator.
‘This should be the spot.’
If there were an ambush, this would be the place.
With heightened senses, he moved forward.
And finally, the moment he set foot there.
“Get him!”
As expected, the surprise attack from the ten students lying in ambush began.
– Whoosh!
Blades flew from all directions, aimed at Kim Do-jin, just as planned.
But it was not Kim Do-jin who was in danger.
– Slash!
Kim Do-jin activated his ‘Time Transcendence’ superpower just before the enemies’ blades could touch his skin.
– Shuuuk!
Thanks to the magical enhancement buff he received from Yoon Yu-na just before setting off.
In an instant, the movements of his foes slowed to about 0.3 times their normal speed, and Kim Do-jin evaded all attacks with a single step, launching his counterattack.
– Woom!
First, he unleashed a powerful light from his entire body using his ‘Light Generation’ ability, blinding the enemies’ sight.
“Uuuhhh—!”
As expected, the sudden flash made the enemies shut their eyes tightly, and Kim Do-jin, of course, did not miss that opportunity.
– Shushushushushushushuk!
In a blink, with his eyes gleaming, Kim Do-jin thrust his sword into seven vital points.
– Pababababababak!
The current ‘Mana Coating’ equipment was still an unfinished prototype, and it had one critical weakness: the exposed power unit located on his chest.
If one were to destroy the power unit, they could incapacitate him in one blow without damaging the mana coating.
Of course, given its small size and placement on the chest, it was easy to defend, so it wasn’t considered cheating.
And that was precisely why Kim Do-jin confidently walked into the trap he had set for himself.
In a territory with such a narrow entrance, the ambush team would be at most ten, and he calculated that he could exploit their weakness and take them all down alone.
In any case, all of Kim Do-jin’s attacks struck true, and in the blink of an eye, seven of them were eliminated.
“What the—!”
The students, who had tightly shut their eyes, opened them again only to be met with the shocking sight of seven fallen comrades.
And Kim Do-jin did not let that opening slip by.
– Woom!
Once more, he emitted a powerful light from his body as he swung his sword, ultimately taking down the remaining three.
“……”
The ten students, who had intended to ambush, now found themselves ambushed instead, staring blankly at Kim Do-jin in disbelief.
“What are you doing? Sit down.”
Kim Do-jin reminded them of the rules, and soon the ten students lowered their weapons and plopped down onto the ground.
“What the hell is this……”
Amidst the incredulous expressions of the third class students, Kim Do-jin checked the mana within his body.
‘As expected, the mana consumption of superpowers is proportional to their absurdity.’
Though the activation time in reality was less than five seconds, over 30% of Kim Do-jin’s MP had already vanished.
Of course, it was a skill good enough to be worth the effort, yet one could not deny the need to manage MP carefully.
“Ha…”
In any case, the mines had been cleared.
Kim Do-jin turned slightly, preparing to call his teammates, when—
“Oh…”
There was still one enemy remaining.
“Did you do this all by yourself?”
From a corner, a long-haired male student emerged.
‘Was this guy here too?’
The student was Kaji Takahiro, a Japanese exchange student, who could truly be called the strongest of Class 3.
If Lee Jin-ryul was in Class 1, then Kaji Takahiro was the one to reckon with in Class 3.
Of course, Lee Jin-ryul had even greater hidden power, but Kaji Takahiro was undeniably skilled.
Among the twelve Japanese exchange students in the first year of ‘Arc,’ he was the genius upon whom the Japanese people had the highest hopes.
“Interesting. I thought I had no rivals besides Lee Jin-ryul from Class 1…”
With a strong sense of pride in his martial arts and a fierce competitive spirit, Kaji Takahiro seemed to ignite with unexpected ambition upon witnessing Kim Do-jin’s prowess.
– Creak!
Kaji Takahiro immediately assumed his signature sword-drawing stance and challenged Kim Do-jin to a one-on-one duel.
“Let’s see who is stronger, in a fair match.”
To this, Kim Do-jin shook his head in disdain.
“Fair? What are you, crazy?”
He then called out to all the teammates waiting outside.
“Okay!”
Soon, his teammates, including Yoon Yu-na, rushed in and lined up on either side of Kim Do-jin, causing Kaji Takahiro’s expression to darken in an instant.
“…Coward.”
Kaji Takahiro glared at Kim Do-jin with a look of disdain, but Kim Do-jin was merely trying to conserve a bit more of his mana.
“Crush him.”
No matter how skilled Kaji Takahiro was, there was nothing he could do against fifteen opponents.
“Ugh!”
Before long, Kaji Takahiro was taken out, and the ambush operation of Class 3 had completely fallen apart.
From Class 1’s perspective, it was an incredible achievement, having taken a stronghold without suffering any significant losses.
“Good!”
“Whoa! This test feels different, doesn’t it?”
The students of Class 1 were elated, their spirits soaring, yet a thread of curiosity wove through their joy.
How on earth had Kim Do-jin managed to eliminate all ten students by himself?
Especially considering he had been ambushed.
As the jubilant students turned to Kim Do-jin, their expressions shifting to confusion, he merely shrugged, his demeanor casual.
“Once we’re done here, let’s go plant the flag.”
—