175 – 175. Midwinter (1)
Unknown In company life, the rank is a gangster.
Ahn Su-ho and Min Chae-ryeong, who were often at odds with each other, had the same thoughts in their heads that day. Watching the nameless intruder walk outside the academy, both of them let out an annoyed sigh at the same time.
“Team manager. Does this make sense now?”
“…… It makes no sense.”
“Is the captain of the security team with Seong Yu-jin?”
“… ….”
Min Chaeryeong did not answer. She just leaned her back against the wall and took a cigarette from her bosom and asked. Ahn Su-ho stops her from trying to light her fire.
“No smoking here. It’s right by the front door.”
“…… It’s okay to tidy one up.”
“What would other people say if a security guard team leader smoked heavily in a non-smoking area? There is a smoking room within walking distance, so let’s smoke there.”
The two left behind the main gate where students were busy coming and going. Chaeryeong Min said as she headed for a small smoking room in the corner of the street under the shade of a tree.
“I asked earlier if Kim Soo-hyun and Sung Yu-jin were going to be together.”
“Yes.”
“Perhaps. Under the circumstances, that would be the case. Otherwise, there is no way Kim Soo-hyun would give such incomprehensible instructions.”
Min Chae-ryeong, who entered the smoking room, lit her cigarette as if she had waited, and offered An Soo-ho one. However, An Su-ho, who had quit smoking immediately, shook his head lightly.
Min Chae-ryeong sucks her cigarette with a lonely expression. It’s not just because of Ahn Soo-ho.
“Kim Soo-hyun is… …. He was the perfect fit for the title of captain of the guard. His personality was also upright. He was a daredevil to keep the peace in the academy. At the same time, he was a good boss who respected the discretion of each team at work.”
That’s why it was strange. Releasing an intruder who committed an obvious crime, and intervening in the case Min Chae-ryeong and Ahn Su-ho were in charge of, advocating their rank. Even if something was strange, it was firmly strange.
It wasn’t like Kim Soo-hyun.
That’s why Chaeryeong Min thought. There must be a reason for doing something that is not answerable, maybe Kim Soo-hyun is connected to Sung Yu-jin.
“I thought Kim Soo-hyun was different from me… ….”
Unlike himself, who wears a business card as the leader of the security team and gets involved in all sorts of crimes, he thought he would be an upright and righteous person who moves forward.
Min Chae-ryeong scattered her deep sighs in the air along with her hazy cigarette smoke. Ahn Su-ho, who did not know the relationship between the two, did not know why she was so depressed, but he could clearly feel her heartbreak.
“…… Cheer up, chief.”
Ahn Suho sighed with a confused face. He sits down on a chair in the smoking room and speaks.
“I know very well how it feels to be swayed by a superior who oppresses his subordinates forcibly through rank. You must be confused. But don’t get too down on yourself. Because this too shall pass. I always thought that way and endured it.”
“………… Are you telling me to listen to that?”
“Then do you put your comfort against the wall? Of course I’m telling you to listen.”
Anyway, do your best. Ahn Su-ho smiled as he added that. Min Chaeryeong also laughed along. A mischievous joke can make you feel bad, but knowing that the joke was An Su-ho’s own consolation, it felt good.
“If the captain of the guard and Seong Yu-jin are on the same team, it wouldn’t be safe even inside the academy.”
“I guess so. Come to think of it, the student ID the guy had also looked real on the outside. Did you get that through Kim Soo-hyun?”
“It must have been the captain of the guard or some other connection. There’s no way a guild at the level of the Winter Alliance doesn’t have connections with the academy.”
Even the criminal organization, the Dawning, planted Prakchi, but how can the regular guild do it? Even if it wasn’t just Kim Soo-hyun, there could be any number of people in the academy who were close to Seong Yu-jin.
“Team manager. Can I borrow your car for work?”
“Where are you going to write it?”
“To take out Xiao Mei. Originally, I was going to steal the opportunity more secretly until the weekend, but if it has already been caught, there is no need to be more careful.”
“Are you going to take me home?”
“Yes. I just want to tell the sky first before taking him. Even if there are circumstances, it’s because you’re bringing another woman into the house…….”
“You have a public wife. She would be very envious.”
“Does the team leader have a boyfriend?”
“If there is a man who can handle me. But don’t you? No matter how much you look around.”
A man who can handle himself. It would have been normal if an ordinary woman said it, but when it was put into Min Chaeryeong’s mouth, it had a completely different meaning. Ahn Su-ho stuck out her tongue, asking if there would be a man other than Ryu Tae-hyeon who could handle all of Min Chae-ryeong.
“Then I will go alone.”
“To where? To the sky?”
“Yes. I’m going to go ahead and say it myself. Class will be over soon…….”
“Yes. Go and try to persuade him well and tell him my regards as well.”
“How are you, boss? What do you mean?”
“Don’t be bothered to watch and run around here and there, and stick to the dormitory. And I hope to see your face sometime soon.”
“Why is the team leader with the sky? ….”
I can understand the first one, but I can’t understand the second one. When Ahn Su-ho tilted her head, Min Chae-ryeong smiled meaningfully.
“Just. How many questions do you have?”
“I wonder… ….”
Ahn Su-ho tried to ask what it was, but Min Chae-ryeong shook her hand and let him go. He said that even if I asked him anyway, he wouldn’t answer properly, and Ahn Soo-ho left to meet Kang Ha-neul.
‘The timetable says that the current subject is interpersonal martial arts, so it must be practiced at the gym.’
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Looking at the timetable given by Kang Ha-neul, Ahn Su-ho headed to the gym. There were more than dozens of gyms in the Green House, but Ahn Su-ho was able to find a gym where the 1st grade class was taking classes.
The floor of the gym he found was lined with square rings like those used in boxing matches. The students were in the middle of practicing on top of it, two by two.
‘The sky is… ….’
Ahn Su-ho’s gaze scanned the surroundings. Soon, he was able to find Kang Ha-neul practicing joint techniques in a clumsy position on the ring.
Her partner was Liu Xue, who lived in the room next to her, and even while her Kang Ha-neul was twisting her arm, he kindly added explanations and helped her practice.
‘There are about 10 minutes until the end of class, so let’s wait.’
Ahn Soo-ho thought so and headed to the corner of the gym.
“Huh?”
Then, I saw a student who hadn’t participated in the practice alone in the distance. A schoolgirl leaning weakly against a wall with her red hair hanging down.
Ahn Soo-ho approached the girl with her stride. The girl side of her soon noticed his presence as well. With her sharp eyes, the female student who slipped her hands was startled, and soon she turned away from him with a quick turn of her head.
However, Suho Ahn dared to approach the female student and greet her.
“It’s been a while, Midwinter student. How have you been?”
“No.”
Midwinter let out a short sigh with a sharp attitude, then turned his head again. A gesture of not wanting to talk to Ahn Su-ho.
“Do winter students not practice? All the other students are doing it…….”
“… ….”
However, Ahn Su-ho did not back down. She had been worried about her condition since the last Dalian, so she was thinking about seeing her condition at this time.
Perhaps sensing that An Su-ho would never back down, Mid-gyeol let out a deep sigh and replied.
“…… I’m not in good shape. I told the professor about today’s practice and went on a field trip.”
“Condition…… ?”
Ahn Su-ho expressed his doubts at those words. Midwinter was never a character who skipped practice for such an obscure reason.
‘Are you disappointed because of the last defeat? Well, Taehyung Ryu also said that midwinter keeps avoiding him.’
It wasn’t a very pleasant situation. What Ahn Su-ho wanted was for Midwyeol to look back on her own arrogance through her defeat, not for her time to be helpless in her disappointment.
Ahn Soo-ho, wanting to cheer her up or encourage her by making her rhyme, shook her head. Considering her pride in the middle of winter, such an unlikely consolation is rather poison. It was effective for her to point out the reality more harshly and coldly to her.
“The last defeat must have been quite a shock.”
“Yes?”
In the middle of the winter, unable to respond to Ahn Su-ho’s words, his expression soon begins to frown. After understanding why Ahn Su-ho said such a thing, she reveals her displeasure.
“…… None of your business.”
“That’s too much. We even sparred together in preparation for the ranking match. Seeing him become lethargic after losing a single defeat, I don’t feel comfortable either.”
“Don’t get me wrong. Who is depressed and who is helpless? Why, do you really think it’s because I missed practice?”
Midwinter is here! I laughed out loud as if it was absurd.
“Then why didn’t you participate in the practice?”
“Because it doesn’t help. Interpersonal combat is a completely useless subject for me. It is much better to condition yourself for the afternoon training than to waste time in useless practice.”
“Why isn’t interpersonal combat useless? Rather, it is the part that winter students need to improve most urgently.”
I thought I made a good excuse in the middle of winter, but Ahn Su-ho seemed to be full of energy. No matter how much Midwinter is a superman who fights mainly in long-distance combat, there is no way that close combat skills are useless. Rather, as Ryu Tae-hyun focused on close combat, he was in a position to work hard in practice to counter him.
When Ahn Su-ho pointed out that part, Mid-gyeol was speechless. She was, in fact, she knew that she needed to supplement her melee skills.
Nevertheless, the reason she fell for the practice was simple. It was to avoid the situation itself of being compared to Ryu Tae-hyun.
“…… What do you think you know? On the topic of security guards…….”
To the words of Ahn Soo-ho, who reminded him of the fact he had been ignoring, Mid-gyeol nervously replied.
“I think you know that you are above me because you were lucky enough to win against me once, but don’t be mistaken. Because I can’t reach my feet anymore like you. If you’re conceited on such a topic, you’re giving me advice that doesn’t seem like much…….”
“It’s not the same advice. However, students in the middle of winter also know in their hearts, right? Even though he has trained his long-distance combat skills to the limit, the reason he loses to Ryu Tae-hyeon every time is because he lacks close combat skills.”
In the middle of the winter of the year before the long distance, she had drawn out virtually all of the potential she could draw out immediately. It is self-evident that in order to grow beyond that, improvement in other areas is necessary.
I’ve said it over and over again, but Midwyeol was clearly aware of that fact, but he was just ignoring it.
And Ahn Soo-ho mercilessly stabbed her weak parts, revealing the fact that she had neglected her.
“You’re talking like you’re proud of something. On a subject that is weaker than me…….”
“I am obviously weaker than the former winter student. But being weak doesn’t mean you can’t give advice. Rather, it must be that the weaknesses of winter students are clear enough that even I, who are weaker than winter students, notice.”
“So you say you know something like that-“
“The story keeps going around, but let’s stop admitting it. It is true that the mid-winter student is behind Ryu Tae-hyun in close combat, and the area where there is a lot of room for improvement right now is close combat. Isn’t it? Am I wrong?”
“… ….”
Mid-winter couldn’t bear to speak at the facts of Ahn Su-ho’s merciless shooting. Leaning her back against the wall, she slowly bent her knees and sat on her floor. Then she hugged her knees and pouted her lips.
“……………… So what should I do? If I were to hone my interpersonal fighting skills now, I wouldn’t be able to match even half of Ryu Tae-hyeon.”
In those words, the real reason for Midwyeol’s disappointment was contained.
There was no way Midwinter was unaware of her own weakness in close combat. However, the reason she has been trying hard to ignore that fact, and the reason she has been able to avoid it, is purely thanks to her powerful long-distance fighting talent.
A superpower blessed with the ability to ignite. In addition to that, depending on her efforts, she has a unique quality that allows her to rise to the ranks of an S-class superhuman.
Thanks to such conditions, Midgeoreum was able to grow rapidly even though she had been ignoring her own weaknesses and polishing her strengths. Not to mention the students around her, even quite a few professional hunters would not be able to compete with Midwinter.
However, that growth has now reached its limit. As I said earlier, Midwinter had already reached its maximum potential in terms of long-distance combat.
If you train repeatedly, you will grow even more, but it is only at the level of getting rid of superfluities and mastering your skills, and more dramatic growth will be impossible.
In order for her to become stronger, she had to face her own weakness that she had neglected. But her pride wouldn’t allow it.
However, that weakness was also the biggest strength of his competitor Ryu Tae-hyeon, so it’s a shame. It was a natural reaction to be disappointed before even starting.
She said that no matter how hard she tried, she would never be able to beat Ryu Tae-hyeon in close combat.
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Let alone win, I wouldn’t be able to reach her toes.
With those negative thoughts combined with her earlier defeats in the rankings, she quickly became lethargic, like a boulder rolling down her slope. The result was the current situation.
That’s why.
“What if I can’t follow even half of the half? It’s not like a midwinter student is trying to beat Ryu Tae-hyeon only in close combat.”
Ahn Su-ho sat down beside him in the dead of winter. As he approaches him, he widens his eyes as if Midwinter is trying to say something.
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Looking at such a midwinter, Suho Ahn thought.
“The important thing is that midwinter students still have room to grow. Isn’t it?”
You’ve had enough whipping, now it’s your turn to encourage and caress.