I Escaped the Exile Story Only To Find It Was a Regret Trope

36 – 7# The Redhead Doesn’t Die!(2)

The duel between Hyunwoo and Yushin was set for lunchtime.

Until then, it was decided that Yushin would take custody of Selena. Of course, Hyunwoo protested, but Yushin declared that he wouldn’t duel otherwise.

From Hyunwoo’s perspective, who only wanted to crush Yushin immediately, he had no choice but to back down. However, Yushin’s mind was already elsewhere, not on Hyunwoo.

He recalled the middle-aged man who had warned him of such a situation in a dream before. Could it be that the sage had attached himself to this guy? But he didn’t feel that kind of vibe.

He couldn’t make a judgment based on appearances alone. Once he entered the duel, he would find out somehow. So, until then, he had to decide who would participate in the duel.

“I guess I’ll go.”

“Athena and Yuri will go.”

“Got it, I wanted to give that guy a blow too.”

Of course, even if he decided on the members, there were only two people who could go. Hayoung was too weak to go. On the other hand, the opponent was strong enough to be in Class A.

It would be tough for Hayoung, who had the strength of an average Class C. Knowing this, Hayoung didn’t step forward, but she couldn’t help feeling frustrated.

‘If I had been stronger, could I have helped Yushin?’

Hayeong couldn’t hide her frustration. If only I had been a little stronger, or even if I had a special power, I could have surely helped Yushin.

But for now, there was nothing I could do.

The news that Yushin was going to duel with Hyunwoo reached Seolyeon’s ears. However, instead of going to Hyunwoo, Seolyeon came straight to Yushin, who was just below.

“I heard the news.”

“That you’re going to duel with that redhead?”

“Yes. And it’s not ‘redhead,’ it’s Hyunwoo.”

“Do you know him?”

“Yes, he’s my younger brother.”

What kind of trick is this?

Yushin was dumbfounded. Was she trying to pressure him by revealing that Hyunwoo was her brother? Was she implying that if he won the duel, there would be no mercy?

“So, are you asking me to go easy on him?”

“No, I’m here to tell you not to go easy on him.”

“What?”

“Everyone knows that Hyunwoo is my younger brother.”

But Yushin’s prediction was wrong in a good way. Seolyeon actually urged Yushin not to go easy and to fight properly. The reason was simple.

She had barely realized that Hyunwoo was going berserk through this incident. She didn’t know how far things had gone, but it was clear that he wasn’t normal.

Therefore, she hoped that Hyunwoo would come to his senses before it was too late. Perhaps reading her wish, Yushin nodded after a moment of contemplation.

“Even if you hadn’t said anything, I was planning to go all out.”

“That’s a relief.”

“But isn’t he your precious brother? Are you sure it’s okay to ask this?”

“Truly caring for someone means telling them clearly when they’re wrong.”

Seolyeon answered Yushin’s question firmly. Perhaps, until now, she had been too lenient with Hyunwoo, which might have led him astray.

‘I hope this incident will make him come to his senses.’

Since then, Hyunwoo had been avoiding meeting Seolyeon altogether. This was quite a shock even for the steadfast Seolyeon. My brother is avoiding me?

Could it be that the way I taught him was wrong? Is that why he’s avoiding me? Because of this, Seolyeon was at a loss.

How can I lead the disciplinary committee like this? Seolyeon smiled bitterly, but for now, there was nothing she could do. She could only hope for Yushin.

“So? How are you planning to fight?”

Yuri, for now, didn’t care about Seolyeon’s feelings or anything else. She was only planning on winning the duel. Besides, she didn’t like the flirtatious Hyunwoo from the start.

Above all, there was a desire to prove his worth in this fight. However, Yushin and Athena didn’t really think much about it.

This was because they never thought they would lose, no matter what. But in fact, Yushin and Athena had different thoughts.

“We have Athena and me. We can win this even with our feet.”

“In a sacred duel, there is no other way. We just fight fairly and win!”

“……”

Yushin was overflowing with confidence, to put it nicely, but in reality, he showed an arrogant attitude. On the other hand, Athena said that the duel itself should be enjoyed.

Naturally, Yuri, who was the closest to being normal, was having a hard time.

* * *

Finally, lunchtime arrived.

Naturally, the training ground was filled with students who came to watch. From ancient times to the present, if there is an unchanging truth as the world changes, it is that watching fights is fun.

Moreover, Yushin was a student who was quite a hot topic at the academy, whether in a good or bad way. He had quietly attended until the middle of the second year.

Suddenly, he awakened and reached the S-class, which could be said to be the best in the academy? Naturally, he became a hot topic. As a result, Hyunwoo was relatively overshadowed.

This made Hyunwoo, who already disliked Yushin, hate him even more. Yushin, however, had no interest in his fame.

‘There’s nothing as futile as fame.’

Yushin had experienced many things in the fantasy world. A famous adventurer turned out to be a fraud, or the fame he built crumbled instantly.

Thanks to this, Yushin developed a habit of filtering out some of what he heard if the fame was high.

On the other hand, Yuri, who was still inexperienced, had a tense expression. Hyunwoo might not know, but the two girls next to him were quite strong.

‘Meina of the Strong Arm, and the Illusionist Hope… Both are famous strong ones.’

The girl with light green hair and a small build was famous for her sturdy body and immense strength, which didn’t match her build. No wonder she was nicknamed the Strong Arm.

“Can Athena really win?”

“Why?”

“Her opponent is that Strong Arm.”

“Is she famous?”

“She is evaluated as the strongest in terms of physical ability among the second years.”

If Selena is the strongest in firepower, that girl is said to be the strongest in physical ability. In other words, she could be seen as the physical version of Selena. Yushin narrowed his brows.

‘Indeed, she is no ordinary opponent.’

As proof, that girl named Meina endured Athena’s attack once. Of course, she looked like she was about to die after taking just one hit.

But this wasn’t because Meina was weak. It was just that Athena was too strong. Athena was a demigod and one of the heroes who saved numerous kingdoms.

Enduring such an attack from Athena, even if it wasn’t at full power, was quite an impressive feat for a student. Yuri shouted in surprise.

“No way! That Meina is being overpowered by strength?!”

Perhaps Yuri’s reaction was the typical one. It is commonly believed that servants are weaker than the heroes they contract with. However, there was a reason for this.

Usually, servants who contract with heroes, that is, monsters, make contracts with those of their own level. Naturally, if they are weaker, there is no reason to contract and provide help.

Of course, there are rare exceptions who contract for some reason, but those are extremely rare cases. Such few cases cannot be generalized.

‘Kuh! Strong!!’

The girl with green hair and a small frame, Meina, used her arms as a shield to block Athena’s attack. However, she couldn’t completely block the force.

She was continuously being pushed back. In fact, Meina was objectively quite strong. Among the second-year students at the academy, there were few who could defeat her in a direct confrontation.

The more frightening fact was that she had not yet even obtained her bloom. This was because the main scenario had been twisted by Hyunwoo, preventing her from growing at all.

Meina.

In the original main scenario, she was an experiment born as a test subject of her family. She didn’t even realize she was a test subject and lived an ordinary life.

One day, she saw Yushin, who never gave up and kept fighting, and became interested in him. Originally, she was like an empty shell with no emotions.

But as she spent time with Yushin, she learned the emotion of joy and slowly began to grow like a human. Of course, not only happiness but also hardships came along.

It was a story where she grew by overcoming hardships together with Yushin. However, due to Hyunwoo’s prior intervention, Meina missed the opportunity to overcome hardships and grow.

[You destroyed everything by yourself?]

[Yes, because I didn’t want you to get hurt.]

[I see, thank you so much.]

Hyunwoo solved all the problems by himself. He disparaged Yushin’s method as foolish, but because of that, Meina missed the opportunity to grow.

“Excellent, but still lacking.”

“……!!”

If she had grown and obtained her bloom, she might have been able to hold out to some extent. But the ungrown Meina ultimately couldn’t become a match for Athena.

Bang!!!

Meina, who had barely endured the second attack, had her guard broken by Athena’s continued punch.

It was an inevitable result.

A flower grown in a greenhouse lacks strength.