Hani was trying to gauge the skills of the famous Class Zero Crazy Guy, none other than the Yellow Tiger.
Her opponent had always completely beaten her before, even if he doesn’t take the matches all too seriously.
She has to admit that her opponent had overwhelming abilities even when joking around.
Physique, stamina, muscle strength, agility, quickness, and magic…
And on top of all those, Taehokwon…
Hani’s current abilities are nowhere near Hwang Jiho’s.
At least she could learn from Hwang Jiho.
However, seeing him score 40 points in all aspects, Hani thought that it was almost funny for him to be that good.
‘I think I’ll lose within a few seconds if Jiho fights seriously.’
However, after a few minutes, the match was still far from over.
When both their fists met in a collision, Hani realized why this was happening.
‘He’s matching the level of my overall ability!”
The force that she felt from his fist felt exactly the same as the force that she was using.
Hani realized that her opponent wants to determine who was inferior or superior purely in terms of Taehokwon skills.
‘It must be difficult for him to control his strength though.’
Even so, Hani can’t afford to relax.
Looking at Taehokwon’s skills alone, Hani was completely losing.
From her opponent who was using Taehokwon with all seriousness…
Hani could feel as if he had trained for decades or even hundreds of years.
Her opponent used sophisticated techniques to quickly penetrate the gap in Hani’s defenses.
Seeing the perfect movement as if it came straight from the Taehokwon textbook, Hani has no choice but to admit it.
‘It’s really upsetting to think about it, but I think Hwang Jiho is even a few levels better than Teacher Gong Cheonghwon…!’
As the intensity of the blows exchanged between them increased, Hani got more and more cornered.
Hani tried to assume a defensive posture, but she was a step late in timing.
Hani tripped and fell.
The Yellow Tiger took a brief pause but prepared to give a decisive blow before Hani could get up.
“That’s it!”
Gong Cheonghwon shouted loudly.
Hani could feel some energy wave accompanying the teacher’s voice.
“Hwang Jiho wins!”
What Gong Cheonghwon said was clear for Hani to see too.
Hwang Jiho stopped in his tracks immediately at Gong Cheonghwon’s interruption.
Gong Cheonghwon reached for Jiho’s hand and raised it, indicating that he had won the match.
“Need a hand?”
In just one match, Hani was completely exhausted.
On the other hand, the Yellow Tiger didn’t break a single sweat at all.
Feeling emotional, Hani quickly kicked the ground and got up.
“I can get up on my own.”
“Hahaha! I see. You don’t seem to need my help.”
Seeing Hani get up on her own, the Yellow Tiger let out a hearty laugh.
He just looked very happy.
“Thank you for accepting my offer for a match. I want to have a match with you too but… the typhoon is getting worse, so please head back now.”
Looking at Hani and then at Gong Cheonghwon, the Yellow Tiger left the gym as he held his jersey clothes in one hand.
Gong Cheonghwon smiled softly and waved.
“You did a great job.”
After the Yellow Tiger left the gym, Hani decided to do some stretching to finish up her training session.
In the middle of her stretching, Hani asked Gong Cheonghwon.
“Will you have a battle with him?”
“Yes. If he asks.”
Gong Cheonghwon still had his signature smile on.
He really seems to be willing to have a match with the Yellow Tiger.
‘Teacher…?’
Although many students ask for similar things from the brilliant teachers of Eungwang High, not many teachers would entertain such an offer.
Some teachers, like the strong Third Year Class Zero adviser Im Yeonhwa, are belligerent toward such offers.
However, there are many teachers who refuse to if they don’t deem it to be necessary.
It’s because it’s not a big problem having to deal with one or two people, but if they entertain every request from the talented and strong students, they’d be exhausted to death.
There were many students who ask Gong Cheonghwon for a match as the teacher had rare skills, but he refuse every single offer gently.
‘Seeing him want to accept the offer from Hwang Jiho so willingly…’
Hani stopped stretching.
“Teacher, I think you’re a little soft when it comes to him. Normally, you wouldn’t have allowed the match that we had just now…”
“I guess so.”
Hani stared at Gong Cheonghwon’s lips after he answered.
She doubted whether she heard the right thing, but the teacher really seemed to have said “I guess so.”
“I guess so… I don’t get angry too even when that kid is being rude.”
Hani thought ‘has Hwang Jiho ever been rude?’, but she decided not to ask it out loud.
Looking at the door where Hwang Jiho disappeared, Gong Cheonghwon murmured.
“I feel rather sorry. I find myself wanting to listen to him and understand him even if he’s a little stubborn.”
Those words from Gong Cheonghwon entered the ears of not just Hani…
The bright voice of Gong Cheonghwon was heard clearly by the Red Tiger, who was inside the gym all along.
As he hid passionately, the Red Tiger watched the two’s conversation with a complex expression.
‘Those two are clearly humans. This kind of relationship won’t work for the Blue Tiger and the Son of God. I can clearly see it.’
It’s bitter, but if those two become human beings in this form, it’s natural that they won’t have any romantic relations.
‘…But something is strange.’
The Red Tiger felt uncomfortable with the attitude of Gong Cheonghwon, the reincarnation of the Son of God.
‘Is it possible that Gong Cheonghwon has some faint memory as the Son of God?’
Just as Hani said, Gong Cheonghwon seemed to have a soft spot for the Yellow Tiger.
It was like that even when they first met.
He acted generously and understandingly to a student who aimed at his vital point.
Most of all, hearing Gong Cheonghwon say that he ‘somewhat feels sorry’…
It made the Red Tiger sure.
‘The responsibility shouldered by Yellow Tiger became heavier after the Son of God and Blue Tiger left… If he really is the Son of God, it makes sense for him to feel that way.’
Hani, on the other hand, was different.
The Yellow Tiger acted suspiciously all the time as a student, but Hani doesn’t seem to recognize him at all.
Even now, Hani doesn’t seem to question Gong Cheonghwon’s attitude that much.
‘Looks like the Blue Tiger was the one who completely had her memories erased.’
The Red Tiger recalled Yellow Tiger’s words.
— Maybe that was part of the price.
— To cut us off.
The Red Tiger watched the two some more before leaving in agony.
Even though he has faith that the friendship and bond with the Blue Tiger did not change, it’s not easy for him to see that at all in the current situation.
Through the worsening typhoon, the Red Tiger headed to the mansion where his friends were waiting.
* * *
The transcendent universe that brought me to this world knows me well.
Minor details of my life were retained, even family relationships that I had.
I’m sure that the transcendent universe is aware of the fact that I don’t get dreams.
Still, it let me use the ‘Replay’ function.
[Replay]
Be able to view the future and records engraved in the game dimension as reproduced into dreams.
(Stage 1)
The function that would give “revelations in dreams” became available to me, a man who doesn’t dream.
I should’ve had my doubts right from the start.
I should’ve known that the function applies to the person that I choose from that list.
‘Why didn’t I think of this…!’
All the other features, like opening a map and re-reading logs, were exclusively applied to me, so I thought the Replay function would be the same.
However, unlike the Replay function, all the other features appeared inside the game.
I should’ve considered that fact better.
‘Jang Namwook’s had it once, and Sanghoon twice…!’
Son Minki must’ve had a dream too, but whatever dream he had, it didn’t matter that much to me.
However, I find it unbearable to have caused such nightmares for Namwook and Sanghoon.
When I first came to this world, they showed me that a happy ending was possible.
And what have I shown them in return?
Maybe I was neglectful because the two of them weren’t my playable characters.
“Jo Euishin.”
I heard the White Tiger’s voice and raised my head.
The White Tiger touched my forehead with his fingertip.
Fwaaa….
I could feel energy wave moving from the tip of the White Tiger’s finger.
‘This is…!’
The White Tiger’s finger became enveloped in a black-colored energy wave.
I think he’s using the same method that Hwang Jiho used to suppress the energy wave of Kwon Jein and Red Tiger.
“I told you to break that habit.”
Was I holding my breath with my energy wave again?
I couldn’t feel it at all.
When I turned speechless, Jang Namwook’s voice over the device pulled me back to my senses.
[Ah, there was a difference in our dreams too.]
“…What’s the difference?”
[The description right after Son Minki failed to escape is a bit different. In my dream, I couldn’t take my eyes off of Son Minki. On the other hand, Sanghoon must’ve been looking the other way. He must’ve been looking at the door.]
Although the two were in the same scenario in their dreams, some scenes would certainly have different descriptions from them because they were looking at different places.
It’s now clearer to me what kind of function this Replay feature has.
‘Replay allows the person to experience exactly how the flow of events occurred inside the game.’
At the very beginning of the game, the tutorial level.
In other words, the day of the entrance examination.
The beginning of Namwook and Sanghoon’s dream coincides with how the tutorial level started.
And the two people, who died almost just as the game started, experienced what had happened to their characters inside the game.
‘If I use the Replay function, some people will be able to get a glimpse of the memories that they should’ve had. But…’
Does the function only allow to show those nightmarish memories to the characters themselves?
Almost all the playable characters in this world had died a miserable death.
At this point, some characters that are still alive now should’ve been dead already according to the game.
There are also some characters who die a year after, like Joo Soohyuk, Ahn Dain, and the White Tiger.
I didn’t want to put those characters through that pain again.
[Euishin? You still there?]
Jang Namwook’s words brought me back to reality.
I glanced at the White Tiger and saw him still coldly looking at my forehead.
Looks like I still haven’t succeeded in controlling my energy wave.
“…You don’t have to worry about that dream. You guys won’t have that nightmare again.”
[Huh? Perhaps… Do you know something?]
“I’ll explain later. I’m sorry.”
[Euishin?]
I hung up after saying sorry.
I was able to breathe again.
Right now, I want some time to think on my own.
I also said goodbye to the White Tiger.
“Well then, I’ll be heading off first.”
“Jo Euishin…”
The White Tiger seemed to be contemplating whether or not he should tell me something.
He looked at me with disapproving eyes, but he didn’t end up saying anything.
Instead, the White Tiger retreated his blackened finger.
I guess he’s going to let me go now.
“See you.”
Outside the boundary of the temple, the typhoon was raging still.
It was time for me to go.
However…
My device and the White Tiger’s both rang at the same time.
Dingdong.
I don’t know who it is, but I’m not in the right mind to check it right now.
I should go back to my dorm room first, analyze the current situation, and think about the replay…
“Let’s go.”
The White Tiger interrupted my thoughts.
Go? Go where?
“Check your device.”
We must’ve received the same message just now.
There aren’t many people that could send texts to both me and White Tiger.
It’s either one of the descendants or Hwang Jiho.
I had a hunch on who sent the message, but I still checked it in hopes that it was just one of the descendants.
[Hwang Jiho] I know you had a match with White Tiger today.
[Hwang Jiho] Come to the mansion together after.
I turned speechless when I checked the last message.
[Hwang Jiho] The customized medicine from the Deer Clan is here.
