Chapter 39

Chapter 39

Park Yong-jun looked over Min Ha-young, Seo Hyun-woo, and Baek Seo-yeon in order, showing open curiosity.

In the Hunter industry, students holding Department Head positions at Miterich were considered to possess skills comparable to Blue-grade Hunters.

That was why new Hunters with Department Head experience at Miterich received Hunter Committee authorization and cleared the probationary Hunter process quickly.

'The Student Council President's position at Miterich signifies the strongest in school. On top of that, I hear this one has never lost a single time since becoming Student Council President.'

Park Yong-jun stared at Seo Hyun-woo's back, feeling a faint stirring of fighting spirit.

At the very least, Miterich's Student Council President would be at Yellow-grade Hunter level; generously estimated, even Green-grade Hunter level was possible.

And with the special-type ability of Ability Copy on top of that, his interest only grew.

'If that kid copies my ability, he'd be able to use the dragon transformation ability. Would he transform into the same thing as me, then? I think they said he could copy techniques too...'

Park Yong-jun found combat itself tedious.

He merely bore the title of the strongest transformation-type Awakened; in reality, he had barely experienced any real combat.

Whether magical beasts or Hunters, hardly anything could match him, so there was never a need to go all out.

'I'd love to test myself against another Setinos Hunter, but......... there are too many eyes, and it could invite misunderstanding. Then again, fighting weaklings is no fun at all.'

Park Yong-jun had always been drawn to Awakened who possessed the same kind of ability as his own.

At some point, he had begun searching for a dragon transformation Awakened even stronger than himself.

It was a Hunter's instinct, and it served his desire to become the strongest even among dragons.

'So far, not a single Awakened with the dragon transformation ability has surpassed me. But this kid can copy my ability. He might be a bit weaker, but being able to fight an Awakened who wields my own ability is incredibly intriguing.'

That was precisely why Park Yong-jun couldn't help but look forward to a fight with Seo Hyun-woo.

He would be facing his own ability that no other dragon had been able to handle.

The level of mana and proficiency would be somewhat lower, of course, but the anticipation was impossible to suppress.

'The Vice Student Council President is tempting too. I hear she's never lost to anyone except the Student Council President. Being Baek Jeong-woon's niece makes her even more interesting.'

Park Yong-jun shifted his gaze to Baek Seo-yeon walking beside Seo Hyun-woo and fell into thought.

Baek Seo-yeon was an Awakened who stirred his fighting spirit just as much as Seo Hyun-woo.

The fact that she wielded the same transformation-type ability as himself while being classified as a special type, the fact that she held the number-two position behind Seo Hyun-woo, and the fact that she was Baek Jeong-woon's niece.

Even if she was still a student, anyone could see at a glance that she possessed immense potential.

'Baek Jeong-woon is a swordsman acknowledged by the Gold Sword Saint and the Blue Spear Saint. On top of that, he turned down the chance to become a Setinos Hunter without hesitation. The niece of such a Hunter would naturally be strong.'

However, Park Yong-jun completely abandoned the idea of sparring with Baek Seo-yeon.

He had no desire to provoke Baek Jeong-woon just to satisfy his own ambition.

Baek Jeong-woon might look like a mere Black Hunter on the surface, but he possessed skill on par with a Setinos Hunter.

Moreover, he had deep ties with the Gold Sword Saint, the Blue Spear Saint, and Miterich's chairman, the Black Demon King, so poking the wrong bear could blow things out of proportion.

'I'll settle for just the Student Council President for now. Oh, right. There was one more kid who caught my eye.........'

Park Yong-jun looked around the indoor training grounds before quickly spotting another student.

It was Kang Jin-ha, who was about to become a Security Department member.

He didn't hold a position of Department Head or above, but his aura was anything but ordinary, which immediately drew the eye.

'That kid has something too. He can probably transform into a special entity, just like me.'

Park Yong-jun alternated his gaze between Min Ha-young and Kang Jin-ha, continuing to compare them.

He would definitely need to spar with Seo Hyun-woo, but he couldn't easily decide between Min Ha-young and Kang Jin-ha.

He would only be able to spar twice at most, and if Seo Hyun-woo was excluded, that left only one spot.

'The Black Demon King said she'd formally protest if any students got hurt. There's nothing to gain from sparring with someone mediocre.'

Park Yong-jun felt some regret but quickly changed his mind.

He had come to Miterich to provide consultation in order to build rapport with the Black Demon King while satisfying his personal desires.

There was no reason to stir up trouble, and wrapping things up within reason would suffice.

"So, Scarlet Dragon King, do you always conduct feral instinct control training?"

"......It's less about always doing it and more like a habit. Transformation-type Awakened are more easily swept up by instinct and emotion compared to other Awakened. That's why you have to maintain composure at all times and approach combat with a level head."

Park Yong-jun quickly collected himself and answered Min Ha-young's question.

It was a question without much depth, and accordingly, the answer was bound to be formulaic.

Feral instinct rampage varied greatly from individual to individual, and training alone couldn't guarantee control.

If one was truly afraid of a feral instinct rampage, then one simply should not use transformation-type abilities at all.

"What do you think about transformation-type Awakened who don't need to control their feral instinct?"

"Hmm......... You might be a bit disappointed to hear this. As a transformation-type Awakened, that's genuinely a stroke of luck. It's not something you can obtain through effort. On top of that, since you don't waste energy controlling your feral instinct, your combat power goes up by that much."

Upon hearing that, Min Ha-young narrowed her eyes and glanced sideways at Baek Seo-yeon.

Baek Seo-yeon's Archangel Descent was classified as a special-type ability, but based on its fundamental characteristics alone, it was no different from a transformation-type ability.

And yet, Baek Seo-yeon had never once shown any sign of being overtaken by feral instinct since enrolling at Miterich.

Even Min Ha-young herself, as Transformation Department Head, carried the risk of a feral instinct rampage, yet Baek Seo-yeon never had.

'The Vice President really rubs me the wrong way. Her ability, her looks......... If we're all the same person, shouldn't she at least be lacking in something?'

Of course, Min Ha-young didn't believe she was inferior to Baek Seo-yeon in any way.

Ordinary transformation-type Awakened gained only physical reinforcement as an additional enhancement-type ability.

But unlike them, she could use form-type abilities rather than enhancement-type abilities when transforming into a vampire.

In other words, she was essentially a special-type Awakened, and her looks weren't so lacking as to lose to Baek Seo-yeon.

'But that's surprising. I thought the Vice President was dating the President. How high are the President's standards that he's seeing some other woman?'

Min Ha-young had already heard about the closing meeting from Jin Se-hee.

Until then, she had assumed Seo Hyun-woo and Baek Seo-yeon were secretly dating.

If they truly wanted to hide that fact, they would never have deliberately mentioned a girlfriend buying the brooch.

'Come to think of it, the President has never had any issues with feral instinct either. He copies transformation-type abilities and uses them just fine.'

Min Ha-young glanced at Seo Hyun-woo as this realization belatedly struck her.

No matter how outstanding Seo Hyun-woo's ability was, the fact that it was a special-type ability didn't change.

Yet when he copied transformation-type abilities, he fought with perfect composure, never losing his reason.

It really seemed as though Seo Hyun-woo had no weaknesses whatsoever.

'I knew it. I should just give up on Rank Battles against the President. At my current level, I probably can't even beat the Vice President. Wouldn't it be better to just hold on to my Department Head position and graduate?'

Min Ha-young opened the door to the Department Head's office and let the three of them in first.

When she had first become Transformation Department Head, she had thought she could easily take the Student Council President's seat.

But the wall that was Seo Hyun-woo was far too high, and it was only after a string of consecutive losses that she finally gave up.

She still had a slight attachment to the Student Council President's seat, but no matter how many times she reconsidered, she could only conclude it was impossible.

"Thank you for taking the time to visit Miterich despite your busy schedule. The advice from the Scarlet Dragon King will be of great help."

"I wouldn't go that far. The Black Demon King asked me to come, so I simply stopped by Miterich for a while."

When Seo Hyun-woo offered his thanks, Park Yong-jun picked up the teacup from the table and answered warmly.

He had cleared his schedule specifically to visit Miterich, and dressing up commonly known information as advice was a rather tedious affair.

But a minimum of decorum had to be maintained, and for the sake of his own small wish, this much was more than worth the effort.

"It truly was helpful. As a transformation-type Awakened, just being able to meet the Scarlet Dragon King in person is a great honor."

"Haha, you flatter me. The honor is mine. How often does one get to meet the strongest students at Miterich?"

Park Yong-jun subtly praised the three while hinting at his desire for a spar.

It went without saying that there was no chance of him losing to Student Council officers in a spar.

But a subtle curiosity and the potential they possessed were stoking his fighting spirit.

'So the Scarlet Dragon King does want to spar with me. I expected as much, so it's not that surprising, but there might be a variable.'

In fact, the original Seo Hyun-woo had once sparred with the Scarlet Dragon King when he visited Miterich.

It was a fight he was bound to lose, but the original Seo Hyun-woo had given his all, according to the narrative.

Moreover, the Scarlet Dragon King had even mentioned that he would like to fight again if given the chance, so it was fair to say he had evaluated Seo Hyun-woo highly.

'My opponent is a Setinos Hunter. There are many types of dragons, so just as when I copied Archangel Descent, a change might occur.'

What Seo Hyun-woo was worried about was the alteration of the copied ability.

It was only after copying Baek Seo-yeon's Archangel Descent that Seo Hyun-woo had discovered his crown, wings, and lightning had all turned gold.

Considering the original color had been black, this was a significant change.

'If I can just fight properly as per the original story, a small change won't matter much. But if the wings and tail turn gold like with Archangel Descent, it becomes a problem. If I'm not careful, I might wake the sleeping dragons.'