Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Ability Copy, or Skill Copy.

Those who saw Seo Hyun-woo’s ability all mentioned the same words.

It could only be a special-type ability, and no one could surpass that ability.

After all, whenever Seo Hyun-woo fought, he copied every last one of his opponent’s abilities and techniques.

‘I don’t need to help him, do I? The President is plenty strong.’

Now that Seo Hyun-woo had stepped forward, there was no need to watch the result of the fight.

But Choi Jae-yeon had to watch the process.

He had to learn even one more thing about Seo Hyun-woo if he was going to defeat him himself.

“Graaaah!”

A transformation-type student howled and charged at Seo Hyun-woo.

However, Seo Hyun-woo showed no agitation and took his stance.

Because his feral nature had run wild, his strength and speed had risen, but he had lost his reason.

Because of that, his openings were plain to see, and Seo Hyun-woo would be able to end it in one stroke.

‘The Barrier System is still active right now. An ordinary attack won’t even leave a scratch. But he’ll definitely feel the pain.’

Miterich operated the Barrier System to prevent students from being injured during training.

Even if someone was injured for an unexpected reason, medical staff with healing abilities would respond quickly.

In other words, Seo Hyun-woo only had to focus on subduing his opponent without any worries.

‘If I try to subdue him after the Advance Battle ends, that guy or another student might get hurt. But I don’t need to worry too much. Even if I make a mistake, Choi Jae-yeon or the Security Department will somehow handle it.’

Seo Hyun-woo reached that conclusion and swung his sword without hesitation.

A white trail drew itself along the tip of the blade, maintaining the shape of an arc.

Then, sword aura formed and shot swiftly toward the transformation-type student.

Vmm, slash!

“Guh!”

The transformation-type student was forced back by the sword aura and crashed into the barrier again.

However, the sword aura did not stop in the slightest and kept stretching forward.

At the same time, Seo Hyun-woo dispersed the sword made of mana and approached the transformation-type student.

Tap, THUD!

[The Advance Battle has ended.]

[The Barrier System will now be released.]

Seo Hyun-woo knocked the transformation-type student down and seized both of his arms tightly.

Then he pressed the student’s back down with his leg and stopped him from resisting.

Because Seo Hyun-woo had strengthened his body with the copied enhancement-type ability, there was no way the student could shake him off.

“President, he might get hurt if you’re not careful.”

“That’s why I’m doing my best to control my strength. Would you help me a little?”

“Sure.”

Only after receiving Choi Jae-yeon’s help was Seo Hyun-woo able to slowly withdraw his mana.

Since his opponent could be hurt while the Barrier System was released, he reduced the amount of mana in advance.

“We apologize. We were late.”

Students wearing armbands that read “Security” suddenly appeared and began surrounding Seo Hyun-woo.

The Security Department members had belatedly mobilized to handle this accident.

Seo Hyun-woo and Choi Jae-yeon handed the subdued student over to the Security Department members and stepped back.

The Security Department members bound the transformation-type student with mana ropes created through form-type abilities, then even injected him with a tranquilizer.

The transformation-type student soon lost consciousness and was dragged away in the hands of the Security Department members.

“Fighting while holding back is harder.”

“It would’ve been even harder without the Barrier System.”

“If that had been the case, you and I would’ve had to fight him together.”

Seo Hyun-woo and Choi Jae-yeon returned to where they had been under all the students’ gazes.

The two sat down in silence and sipped their coffee and lemonade.

“They look really relaxed.”

“Do you think just anyone can become President or Department Head? They’re able to relax because they’re that skilled.”

“It’s my first time seeing the President fight.”

“There’s not much to see when the President fights. It ends in an instant.”

The students scattered, glancing at Seo Hyun-woo and Choi Jae-yeon.

They were among the top-tier powerhouses even within Miterich, so it was only natural that they would draw interest.

Seo Hyun-woo, in particular, had never once given up his position since becoming Student Council President, so he was constantly becoming a topic of conversation.

“You made good use of my ability. The sword aura seemed sharper too.”

“That’s because the original is good. I only copied it, exactly as it is.”

“That must be why no one has beaten the President in a Rank Battle so far. You come at them with the same ability as your opponent and with an even stronger attack, don’t you?”

Rank Battle.

Unlike an Advance Battle, it was a contest fought with a department position on the line.

A Rank Battle could be requested by anyone from a Full Member onward against the member directly above them.

In addition, the points they had earned in Advance Battles had to exceed a set standard, and there could be no problems in terms of their ability.

Even if they won a Rank Battle and were promoted, they would inevitably be demoted if they could not properly carry out the duties given to them.

“I suppose you could call it luck. If I had little mana, my ability would’ve been nothing special either.”

“That is not true. Since it can be used flexibly according to the situation, it can be considered a sufficiently good ability. And now you have plenty of mana as well, which is how you became the Student Council President, isn’t it?”

“You’re not wrong. But this ability is also my limit. In the end, I have no choice but to be swayed by other Awakened’s abilities, don’t I?”

At that unexpected answer, Choi Jae-yeon closed his mouth, yet felt a strange sense of dissonance.

He had never expected words like that to come from Seo Hyun-woo.

Compared to what he had said in the past, wouldn’t it be fair to say he had become excessively humble?

“You once said this. Even if the ability itself was the same, your amount of mana and your method of application were superior, so no one would ever be able to defeat you.”

“Was I that arrogant? I really had my nose in the air. A mindset like that won’t last long.”

The original Seo Hyun-woo had been called the strongest in Miterich, then later fought the protagonist to a draw.

Seo Hyun-woo had barely been mentioned after that, but hadn’t his changed self been seen when he encountered the protagonist by chance?

‘In the end, Seo Hyun-woo loses his left eye and ends up limping on his right leg. That’s the result of trusting only his ability and running wild. I’ll never make that mistake.’

That was precisely why Seo Hyun-woo had focused on his own growth.

Seo Hyun-woo was undoubtedly an important character, but there were very few descriptions of him.

Because of that, aside from his confrontation with the protagonist, he had no way of knowing what incidents the original Seo Hyun-woo had experienced, nor why there were problems with his left eye and right leg.

“There’s definitely someone you like. Otherwise, there’s no reason for you to change.”

“Wasn’t that topic already over?”

“If my guess is right, you have never dated before. Be honest with me, at least. I can give you some advice.”

“……I’m so dumbfounded I can’t even laugh.”

Seo Hyun-woo frowned and sipped his coffee.

He had no idea what Choi Jae-yeon intended by saying that.

For now, he thought he would have to explain properly and clear up the misunderstanding.

“Um……. Excuse me…….”

“Mm?”

A female student in a navy-blue uniform stopped in front of Seo Hyun-woo with her head bowed low.

Choi Jae-yeon sensed the atmosphere and deliberately turned his gaze in the opposite direction.

Of course, Seo Hyun-woo had also guessed it to some extent, but his answer had already been decided.

“P-President, if it’s not too much trouble, could I have your contact information?”

Seo Hyun-woo knew very well that this female student had mustered a great deal of courage.

There were many eyes around them, and she must also have known that there was a high chance she would be rejected.

After all, according to the written story, Seo Hyun-woo had never dated anyone before going out with Jin Se-hee.

‘……This is a little annoying. Should I settle it once and for all while I’m at it? There happen to be other students here too, so the rumor should spread quickly.’

Seo Hyun-woo was about to give his prepared answer, then changed his mind slightly.

He needed to leave a clear impression on this female student, the other students, and Choi Jae-yeon.

If it worked properly, he would no longer have to state his refusal one by one in the future.

“I’m sorry, but that would be difficult. I already have someone I’m dating.”

“What? Really?”

“Why would I lie about that?”

At Seo Hyun-woo’s answer, the surrounding students stirred and began whispering to one another.

The female student, who had barely managed to speak up, blushed and quickly disappeared.

Choi Jae-yeon, who had been listening quietly, opened his eyes wide and stared at Seo Hyun-woo.

“President, is that true? You have someone you’re dating?”

“Yeah. This kind of thing happens often, so it’s quite troublesome. Drawing the line in advance isn’t a bad idea.”

Of course, it was naturally a lie.

Seo Hyun-woo had no intention of dating a woman for no reason.

When he was already pouring effort into his duties as Student Council President and his personal training, why would he waste time on romance?

“I misunderstood. Your personality changed not because you were trying to look good for a woman you were interested in, but because you were already dating someone.”

“……That’s right. That’s probably it.”

“So that’s why you didn’t spew venom at that female student earlier.”

“Venom?”

“According to the rumors I’ve heard, you apparently said it wasn’t even worth exchanging contact information with low-level kids.”

“That’s more amazing than I imagined.”

Seo Hyun-woo knew that the original Seo Hyun-woo had a considerably overbearing and coldhearted personality, but he had not known it was that severe.

By realistic standards, it would not be strange at all if he were socially buried.

“Then can you tell me who you’re dating?”

“No comment on that. I don’t want to reveal my partner yet.”

“Hmm…….”

Choi Jae-yeon showed a suspicious look, but he did not pry any further.

If his guess was correct, the person Seo Hyun-woo was dating had to be someone Choi Jae-yeon knew.

‘Who is it? The Transformation Department Head? The Form Department Head? If not, the Attribute Department Head……. Ah, that one really doesn’t seem right. The Vice President is the most likely after all.’

***

The Chancellor’s Office at Miterich.

A middle-aged man was dressed neatly in a suit as he reviewed documents.

The documents were filled with the name “Kang Jin-ha” and various personal details about him.

In the field for abilities, the word “nine-tailed fox” had been added in addition to “fox.”

‘A fox is a fox, but why did it have to be a nine-tailed fox of all things……. Doesn’t that make it neither an animal nor a magical beast?’

Miterich’s Chancellor, Park Do-woon, set down the documents in his hand and sank into thought.

Transformation-type abilities collectively referred to abilities that allowed an Awakened to transform into various animals or magical beasts.

However, there had been no reported cases at all of someone transforming into an animal or magical beast that did not actually exist.

Ring, ring…

Park Do-woon immediately picked up the intercom receiver and brought it to his ear.

His secretary’s voice came from the other side of the receiver.

After confirming the message, Park Do-woon answered.

“Send him in.”

It was one of the items on his scheduled agenda.

Miterich’s Student Council President had requested a private meeting with him.

It was clearly not something that could be sent as an official document, so he must have intended to meet Park Do-woon directly.

“Hello, Chancellor. It has been a long time.”

Seo Hyun-woo entered the Chancellor’s Office and bowed his head lightly.

Park Do-woon nodded and rose from his chair, heading toward the sofa.

“Sit down first.”

“Yes, sir.”

Park Do-woon and Seo Hyun-woo each sat on the sofa and kept silent for a moment.

Only after the Chancellor’s secretary brought in coffee did Park Do-woon speak first.

“So, what business made you ask to see me?”

“Please return the Security Department to the Student Council. Until now, the Security Office has been using the Security Department as if it were a subordinate department. This is a clear infringement of the Student Council’s authority by the Security Office.”