Sihyeon, having exited the field with Haru, noticed the gazes of the students directed at him. They were people who had only known about his ability—Copy—through text. There was no way they had understood just how powerful it actually was.
Despite being a Quadruple, he had only completed two Class Engravings, and despite having Copy, he had never shown its capabilities—so Sihyeon had been undervalued until now. Blinking, Sihyeon recalled how things had been.
They say when people are too shocked, they can’t even speak. The silence that greeted him, rather than cheers, wasn’t bad.
At the very least, there wouldn’t be anyone like Kang Donghyeok anymore because of this.
Rather than letting those types appear, it was better to clearly demonstrate the gap in skill like this and avoid annoying situations. Even if it meant the way people looked at him would change.
That was still better than being looked down on. In the first place, hadn’t he sought an ordinary life for the sake of living peacefully?
Walking quietly through the stunned students, Sihyeon returned to his seat. Tap—Hamin nudged him.
“If you were going to do this, why’d you tell us to go easy?”
“I didn’t expect Haru hyung to be this fast either.”
To be honest, even Sihyeon hadn’t expected a one-minute record. No matter how fast Haru was, he thought there would be at least some struggle—but instead, it had been a complete one-sided slaughter. And incredibly fast at that. Even without Acceleration, it felt like they could’ve easily made it into the three-minute range. Just then, Haeun approached Sihyeon, looking impressed.
“By the way, Sihyeon, aren’t you tired? It looks like you were juggling at least three roles.”
For someone with such terrible stamina, how are you totally fine today?
Who are you calling weak?
If you really thought about it, his body had been part of the track team. Compared to the others in Class A, his stamina might be lacking, but it was still above average. Frowning, Sihyeon glanced at Haeun—who had even worse stamina than him yet was talking like that—then turned his head away.
“Later.”
There were too many eyes watching. He didn’t want to reveal detailed information about his class in front of other students.
He didn’t exactly want to tell Haeun either, but the other party was that Kang Haeun. If he didn’t explain, the guy might cling to him 24/7 all year long, whining and pestering him for answers.
Looking fed up, Sihyeon pushed away Haeun, who was trying to cling to him and whisper for details. As he brushed off his hair, his eyes met Seowoo, who was holding a placard. Before, Sihyeon had stood in front of him—but now, after finishing the evaluation, he was at the very end of the line.
You did well.
Even though they only made eye contact, it felt like he could hear his voice. Tap—at that moment, a cold water bottle touched Sihyeon’s cheek.
The cool surface pressed against his slightly warmed cheek. Rolling his eyes, Sihyeon looked at the person who had suddenly placed the bottle there. Impressively, Baek Geonwoo had returned from the evaluation without a single scratch.
It felt like a trivial déjà vu.
“…Why are you suddenly giving me water?”
“You looked thirsty earlier.”
“…So you brought it for me?”
“Yeah.”
“For that, it’s pretty cold.”
“They said it was lukewarm, so those guys helped cool it.”
“Those guys?”
At his questioning, Geonwoo jerked his chin to the side. Following his gaze, Sihyeon spotted a female student whose face had turned red. The moment their eyes met, she covered her mouth and stomped her feet.
“Ah….”
A short sigh escaped Sihyeon’s lips. Somehow, it felt like he shouldn’t be the one receiving this.
“…I’m good, so you drink it.”
Thud—he handed the bottle back. Geonwoo, who had been hit lightly in the chest by it, stared at Sihyeon’s hand.
“You prefer lukewarm?”
“No, I’m just fine.”
Only then did Geonwoo take the bottle back. Watching him hold it in his large hand, Sihyeon thought his eyebrows looked oddly drooped.
Well, he did bring it for me.
It made sense he’d feel a bit disappointed. But it also felt wrong to just accept something someone else had specifically cooled down for him. It was obvious at a glance that she liked Baek Geonwoo.
Confident in his ability to read situations, Sihyeon glanced again toward where the girl had been. The moment their eyes met, her face flushed bright red.
“…….”
Maybe that wasn’t it either.
In the end, the student hurriedly hid behind someone else. Watching that, Sihyeon rubbed the back of his neck. It was an awkward situation.
It’d be weird to take it back and drink it now.
He was thirsty, but pushing aside the trivial thoughts, Sihyeon let out a sigh. What mattered now wasn’t that—it was his score.
Since this was a partner evaluation, would rankings be calculated jointly? Or would individual report cards be issued?
Ding.
Just as the question formed, a notification sounded from the Pairing device. Speak of the devil—the report card had arrived immediately.
“You should have just received your individual report cards for the second Monthly Evaluation through your Pairing devices.”
Hearing the familiar explanation, Sihyeon tapped his Pairing to check. Including the Placement Test, this was his third time viewing a holographic report card.
[May Evaluation: Partner War Report Card]
Year 1, Class A, Kang Sihyeon
Timed Attack Clear: O
Clear Time: 1 minute 5 seconds
Detailed Scores
Cooperation: S ∥ Adaptability: S ∥ Attack Power: C
Support: S ∥ Speed: S ∥ Rule Compliance: S
Note: Excellent judgment
Overall Evaluation: S
This was easily top-tier. Haru’s would likely be similar, if not the same. As Sihyeon scanned the hologram, he noticed “Rule Compliance” among the categories—meaning Hamin would probably miss first place again.
“Now, we will announce the results of the Monthly Evaluation!”
At the principal’s words, the students—who had been chatting while checking their scores—turned their attention forward. Even those whose expressions had darkened after seeing their results looked up. From between the teacher’s lips came a merciless announcement.
32 students.
That was the number of students who would be transferred to Beomin High School after this evaluation.
Watching the 32 students walk into the building, Sihyeon ran his tongue over his dry lips. A flicker of pity crossed his eyes before fading. Only after all 32 had left the field did the principal begin announcing the top students.
“Starting from this evaluation, the system will now be called a ranking system. Now, I will announce the top 10 students of the 2nd Monthly Evaluation: Partner War. Rank—no, Ranking 10th, Shin Yijae!”
“…Them again.”
A student from Class B stepped forward—it was the boy who looked like a squirrel.
Didn’t even see him during the evaluation.
He must’ve completed it while Sihyeon was caught up in Haeun’s antics. Applause followed the announcement that he had cleared it in exactly 10 minutes, and his partner was called for 9th place. 8th was Dawoon, 7th was Jihye.
“Ranking 6th, Kang Haeun. Ranking 5th, Baek Geonwoo!”
It seemed they were being evaluated individually, as both Haeun and Geonwoo were called up. Waving his hand, Haeun said, “I’ll go ahead and wait,” making Sihyeon roll his eyes. It was the kind of thing that could easily earn resentment from students who hadn’t ranked.
“Ranking 4th, Lee Hamin!”
“Damn it….”
Hamin frowned and ran a hand through his hair. His clear time had been fast, but breaking the rules had clearly cost him. Well—he had killed all fifteen.
As if it were karma, a blue gaze landed on Hamin’s back. Despite dropping from 2nd to 4th, he looked surprisingly composed.
I thought he’d throw a fit from the hit to his pride.
Maybe he’s finally growing up.
As Sihyeon watched him with interest, he felt an intense gaze from a third party. It was persistent enough to be impossible to ignore. Letting out a sigh, Sihyeon turned his head.
“What?”
“I was wondering if I’d get to see it too if you ranked first this time.”
“See what?”
“That thing your partner picked up.”
“Ah… yeah, you’ll probably see it. Kang Haeun will definitely show it off.”
If Pia was brought in, Haeun would absolutely go around bragging about it while holding it. Just imagining trying to stop him was already exhausting. As Sihyeon pressed his forehead, Seowoo chuckled and stepped forward when his name was called.
“That’s good. I don’t like it when you hide things from me.”
“What?”
At Seowoo’s words as he walked ahead, showing only his back, Sihyeon asked again. Seowoo glanced back with a faint smile but didn’t answer, continuing forward. Earlier it was Hamin acting strange—now Seowoo was at it too.
“…How was that even a secret?”
Pia’s existence had already become common knowledge, thanks to someone with a loose mouth in Class A spreading it everywhere. Frowning, Sihyeon barely had time to continue the thought before his own name was called for 2nd place. Snapping out of his confusion, he stepped forward. The plan had worked.
“Good job, hyung.”
After giving Haru a brief acknowledgment, he walked ahead. Standing next to Seowoo, Sihyeon spoke quietly without moving his lips, almost like ventriloquism.
“What are you, a kid? Are you sulking?”
“Even if I act like a child, it’s not like you’d suddenly become kind to me. So why would I bother?”
That’s true.
If Yoo Seowoo acted childish, it would honestly feel uncomfortable. Kindness? He’d probably be more freaked out than anything. Letting those thoughts show, Sihyeon watched as Seowoo burst into laughter and tilted his head slightly. His platinum blond hair shimmered.
“Sihyeon.”
“What now?”
“I like it when you show me everything like this.”
“…….”
“Whether it’s your expressions… or your words.”
Without hiding anything.
At the whispered words, Sihyeon blinked. The voice had been quiet, but each word was clear. It seemed he’d been quite upset about the Pia situation. Seowoo was fully reflected in Sihyeon’s blue eyes.
Didn’t expect it, but… this was kind of childish.
Though, if you asked whether it felt unpleasant—that wasn’t quite it either.
“…Is that your line?”
“Hm?”
“Whatever. Stop staring.”
Muttering out of habit, Sihyeon reached out and roughly ruffled Seowoo’s hair. It was an unconscious gesture, like soothing a sulking seventeen-year-old. Only afterward did Sihyeon realize what he’d done, lowering his hand from the tousled blond hair.
Just then, his gaze shifted to Haru, who had been called as 1st place. Haru was summoned before the principal, and it was time to use the Wish Ticket.
“There’s… an animal I want to raise…. Would that be okay?”
“You’re saying you’d like to use your Wish Ticket.”
“…Yes.”
Even though he already knew, he still put on an act. Watching the staged exchange with half-lidded eyes, Sihyeon observed as the principal—bringing up the fact that Haru hadn’t used his Placement Test Wish Ticket—granted permission to raise Pia. Thinking about it, it felt suspicious.
What exactly is Pia, for the principal to go this far?
As that uneasy thought lingered, Haru, having received permission, turned to Sihyeon. His face lit up brightly, eyes sparkling as he gave a small smile. Blinking, Sihyeon let out an awkward laugh.
He’s really that happy.
It was satisfying, yet complicated—and complicated, yet satisfying. Not knowing how to describe the mixed feeling, Sihyeon sighed as he watched Haru approach with a bright expression.
“They said we can raise it.”
“That’s a relief.”
His expression looked excited, but his tone was calm. Sihyeon casually patted Haru’s head, then quickly pulled his hand away upon noticing the students in front of them.
“That’s good.”
A quiet whisper came from beside him.
The Monthly Evaluation—one that had felt more like retrieving Pia than an actual test—had come to an end.
And Room 207 was about to gain one more member.
