“What, what did you say? You mean I have an evaluation match with Kang Tae-hoon?”
It was just around the time when the lecture had ended. I informed Arna about what had happened yesterday in the military administration office.
Arna’s expression slightly changed as she frowned upon hearing the news.
“Why on earth would he….”
Of all the students, it just had to be an evaluation match with Kang Tae-hoon. Not only is there a significant skill gap, but there’s also a high chance of getting badly injured. Arna appeared slightly worried about it.
Still, there was one reason I couldn’t back out.
“It was just too much money to turn down.”
“M, money…?”
I showed my smartphone screen to Arna. It was the banking app screen.
“What, what’s this money…?”
With just that single deposit, my account balance had greatly increased. Arna opened her mouth wide in astonishment, asking what it was all about.
I smiled and said,
“It’s the knockout fee.”
“The, the knockout fee…?”
It turned out the reason was money, which was why I had agreed to an evaluation match so easily. Arna glared at me with a look that said this was the most pitiful excuse she had ever seen.
“You’re taking a payout before the match even begins… don’t you have any pride?”
Accepting the payment upfront was like saying outright that I would be nothing more than a punching bag.
That meant I would have to embarrass myself in front of a lot of spectators. Most people would find it hard to endure such humiliation.
But I’m different.
“Defeat is familiar to me. It’s something I’ve always known.”
“….”
Arna more than anyone else would know best. Hadn’t I always lost, right in front of her eyes? Every time, the failure of a third-rate villain.
It’s just the same thing repeated over and over.
“Still, this time the opponent is different… something could go wrong….”
Arna reminded me to be cautious since the opponent was Kang Tae-hoon.
“I’ll take care of myself. It’s not your concern.”
But there’s no reason to worry. There’s no risk of injury since I plan to raise both hands and surrender as soon as the evaluation match begins.
“No. I can’t just stand by and watch. Let me help you with this.”
“Help with what?”
Suddenly, Arna’s eyes started to sparkle. She had determination written all over her face.
“Evaluation match preparation. Even if you can’t win, you should at least try to trip him up, right? You’re not planning to just get beaten, are you?”
No, I didn’t really need much preparation…
And I wasn’t planning to just take it lying down either…
“This weekend, train with me.”
“W, what… training?”
“Yes, starting with basic exercises, dietary management, and even a tailored strategy for your match against Kang Tae-hoon. I’ll personally guide you through everything.”
With the evaluation already next week, there’s no way that last-minute preparation would make much of a difference.
This is just a waste of time.
“It’s not necessary. And shouldn’t you be managing your own diet properly?”
“Huh, hold your tongue.”
Arna firmly grabbed my arm and started dragging me somewhere.
“Let’s start with building up your stamina in the fitness room. There’s a need to develop your body first before we can think about combat.”
Hey, I don’t need this, alright?
I’m going to surrender right from the start.
Is she deliberately doing this to make me suffer?
“You’d better be prepared.”
She might just be right.
*
Before I knew it, the day of the evaluation arrived after all the various training sessions with Arna.
I stepped into the outdoor stadium as planned, receiving the stares of countless spectators as I walked to the center of the field.
Kang Tae-hoon was already there, looking rather cheerful.
“Hey, you’re here…”
As soon as he saw me, Kang Tae-hoon’s smile disappeared, then a genuinely worried expression took its place.
“What happened to you?”
“…”
It was true. I looked terrible. Apparently, I had eaten something bad, and I had lost a lot of weight. I was also trembling all over due to various muscle aches.
I managed to open my lips with difficulty.
“I’ve been through too much…”
“What?”
“It’s tough… really tough…”
I could never have predicted that I’d be pouring out my troubles to Kang Tae-hoon. It had been such a grueling few days. A mere few days of training had felt like living through hell.
I had attempted to escape several times, but each time, Arna had physically restrained me. As a result, I spent almost the entire weekend locked up in the fitness room.
It was just relentless exercise.
And predictably, there was no noticeable change in my body. All it did was give me unnecessary muscle pain.
─ It’s time to show the results of the training!
From afar, Arna shouted.
That cursed monster. The results of the training? I scoffed internally. What was she smiling so happily about?
This was something I hadn’t seen coming—being outmaneuvered by Arna. I’ll have to remember this and repay her manyfold later.
Anyway…
What mattered right now was the evaluation match waiting ahead.
I had to get through it first.
“Ugh…”
But I could barely even walk. My legs shook every time I took a step.
“Hey! If you keep crawling around like a dying fish, what’s the point of using you? You’ll ruin my appetite!”
Fed up, Kang Tae-hoon yelled at me.
It’s true that the best sushi comes from fresh, well-textured fish. However, in my current state, I was old and sickly—unsuitable even as sushi material.
“So what? If you’re not fit for sushi, I guess I’ll have to boil you up in a spicy soup or something.”
Anyway, his plan to use me as a meal seemed unwavering. There was no escape because he’d already paid quite a huge advance.
“Are we ready?”
Just then, a woman entered the stadium. It was Lab Assistant Seo Dan-ah, who’d been assigned to act as the referee for this evaluation match.
“Would you please come this way for a moment?”
Following Assistant Seo Dan-ah’s instructions, we gathered in the center. We were then informed of safety guidelines and other details regarding the evaluation.
“Finally, if there’s anyone who may have health restrictions for participating today, please let us know.”
She was asking if there were any ill participants. Kang Tae-hoon gestured towards me with his chin.
“I’m fine, go ahead and ask him.”
“Shin Yoon-seong, are you all right?”
Seo Dan-ah looked at me. I nodded to indicate that I had no issues.
Anyway, this match would be over within one minute.
“Understood. Please return to your positions.”
Already, the outdoor arena was tense with anticipation. The noisy crowd had fallen silent, waiting anxiously for the match to commence.
Even Arna, sitting far in the stands, was the same.
“Huhuhu…”
Meanwhile, Kang Tae-hoon didn’t seem the slightest bit nervous. In fact, he appeared to be enjoying the moment as he gripped his sword and subtly moved his body.
Since the opponent wielded a sword, it was my turn to bring out the spoon…
Ding!
At that moment, a quest window popped up.
[Quest]
Villains Do Not Fall
Survive for 30 minutes after the start of the evaluation.
Reward for completion: <1 SP Point>, <Increase Arna’s overall stats by 1>
—
Huh?
Out of nowhere, a survival mission popped up. It was a quest to survive for 30 minutes.
The guy who made this quest clearly had no clue about fighting. Did he even know what he was talking about? Even UFC rounds are only five minutes each.
Expecting me to survive for several times that duration? It was essentially telling me to collapse.
I effortlessly ignored the quest.
Ding!
But then, the quest window appeared again.
[Quest]
Villains Do Not Fall
Survive for 10 minutes after the start of the evaluation.
Reward for completion: <1 SP Point>, <Increase Arna’s overall stats by 1>
—
Look at that. The quest-giver probably realized that 30 minutes was too ambitious and lowered it to 10 minutes.
Nope, I’m still not doing it. Ten minutes is still an eternity. Once a fight starts, even one minute will feel agonizingly long.
I treated it the same way as before—pretending not to see it.
Ding!
However, the quest window kept coming without stopping.
[Quest]
Villains Do Not Fall
Survive for 5 minutes after the start of the evaluation!
Reward for completion: <1 SP Point>, <Increase Arna’s overall stats by 1>
—
Oh.
Now it was down to 5 minutes. The exclamation mark at the end was rather cute. They probably didn’t expect me to act this way.
But I was not someone who lived and breathed quests. There was no real reason to accept.
There’s a saying about “choosing the small gain and losing the big”—I couldn’t waste my precious body for the sake of just one SP point.
I decided to ignore it again.
Ding!
[Quest]
Villains Do Not Fall
Survive for 1 minute after the start of the evaluation!!!
Reward for completion: <1 SP Point>, <Increase Arna’s overall stats by 1>
—
The quest window came again, and this time with three exclamation marks. This was likely the final offer.
A single minute.
Honestly, one minute was worth trying. Now, we were talking on even terms.
I decided to accept it immediately.
Beeeeeep!
“…!”
No sooner had I accepted when a signal went off. It was the whistle announcing the start of the evaluation match.
What? I wasn’t ready yet!
“Huff…!”
Thud!
As soon as the whistle blew, Kang Tae-hoon made the first move. He came charging at me with his sword raised, moving at the speed of a predator.
“Wait!”
Before Kang Tae-hoon reached me, I quickly stretched out my hand in front, signaling for him to pause.
“…!”
Squeeeeeeeak!
Just as he was running, Kang Tae-hoon slammed on the brakes after noticing my hand signal in the nick of time.
“What’s this all about all of a sudden?”
“Sorry. My shoelaces came undone.”
“Damn it! You should’ve checked that before the match!”
Damn, starting even one match was harder than expected. Despite Kang Tae-hoon’s various complaints, he gave me a little time.
Still, what a good guy, willing to let me tie my shoelaces. Taking this opportunity, I bent down to tie my shoelaces and, at the same time, started counting silently.
60… 50… 40… 30… 20… 10… 0…
Ding.
I had managed to endure for a full minute just by tying my shoelaces. With that, I now had the quest reward secured.
Now the only problem was Kang Tae-hoon. Thinking about his upcoming reaction filled me with laughter.
Somehow containing my grin, I slowly stood up.
“All done… huh?”
Then, for everyone in the stadium to see.
I raised both my arms high.
“….”
Arms-raised mid-match to tie shoelaces already felt strange enough. Now, I sat there with both arms raised and confused everyone. Kang Tae-hoon blinked several times, utterly baffled.
“What are you doing?”
In response to his question, I grinned, showing off my white teeth.
“You don’t know? It’s a sign of surrender.”
–!
In that instant, the audience section erupted into chaos.
[Quest]
Villains Do Not Fall <Cleared...>
Reward for completion: <1 SP Point>, <Increase Arna’s overall stats by 1>
—
