This World is too Cruel to Men – Chapter 545

“Ah, you’ve arrived?”

To be honest, I was a bit surprised.

It’s only natural to expect that after sending out an SOS message, I would eventually see Chae-rim’s face. But even with that expectation, I never thought that moment would come so quickly.

From my point of view, I couldn’t help but think about how busy Chae-rim must be.

So, I believed that the first time I would see her face again would be after sending another SOS signal…

Yet, before I knew it, Chae-rim was already making her way over.

Like the Secretary of the Association Chairman, who had come to the training ground and asked a million questions, I wondered if Chae-rim was also curious about what exactly caused the commotion that shook the building earlier.

Maybe that’s why her eyes had been glued to Yoonseo and the Senior since a while ago, as if she couldn’t tear herself away from them.

Now and then, sounds like “Hmm?” or “Oh…” slipped out, making it seem like there was something admirable in her eyes as she watched.

Just as I was admiring the fierce competition they were fueling between themselves, Chae-rim turned to me and asked,

“So how long have those two been at it?”

How long have they been at it, huh?

I hadn’t been timing them with a stopwatch or anything, so I couldn’t say for certain—but—

“Um… I think it’s been about 15 minutes?”

I guessed it was roughly that long, and Chae-rim nodded as if she understood.

“Then we really should intervene soon.”

With that, she stepped forward.

It was just after that moment, when two electric-blue beams of energy were furiously exchanged between the two, that something remarkable happened.

To be honest, I couldn’t help but admire the spectacle created by what just happened.

I knew there was a wall between Second-Class and First-Class, and an even bigger wall between First-Class and Special-Class, but never did I expect that a single, simple gesture could nullify all the attacks those two were hurling at each other.

‘This is Special-Class…’

Or rather, should one be at this level to be considered a Special-Class?

Yoonseo’s attacks were in the form of streams of water, so I could buy that, but Senior’s attacks directed at Yoonseo were virtually invisible to the eye. Yet, to have both of them obliterated in one fell swoop was astounding.

I had been thinking about how much they had improved compared to before, but this made it clear.

No matter how much they progressed, they were still leagues away from Chae-rim.

Thinking back, it might have been obvious.

Unlike those two, who still hadn’t reached that level, Chae-rim was the iconic figure of her generation, known as the Golden Age, sitting firmly in the number one spot.

Yet, if those two, who were still inexperienced, started to compete with Chae-rim right now, wouldn’t Chae-rim feel a bit wronged?

Well, anyhow, amidst their fierce focus solely on each other, the sudden intervention from a third party must have felt like a bucket of cold water splashed over them, snapping them back to reality.

Yoonseo and Senior both jerked their heads up in unison, apparently startled.

Without anyone needing to say it, they wiped their hands free with expressions that hinted at losing some steam.

For them showing off their “disappointment” so noticeably, I felt a bit bad, but honestly, I felt relieved that it didn’t escalate any further than this.

From my perspective, it was only natural for me to think that way. I didn’t know how the two were feeling, but from a third-party viewpoint, I could clearly see—

That the atmosphere in the training ground was starting to heat up.

In that sense, if Chae-rim had arrived just five minutes later, I was pretty sure something might have gone down.

Of course, even if things had headed that way, it might not have escalated to a serious situation, but… that was just one of the many possibilities. In the end, the best outcome is always that no one gets hurt.

The problem now was that with Chae-rim’s intrusion, the sparring ended up fizzling out, and the direction our betting was headed became utterly unclear…

Given their history of having growled at each other, there was no way they wouldn’t feel awkward now.

Both Yoonseo and Senior seemed anxious as they cleared their throats out of embarrassment.

Thinking about it, it must have been an embarrassing situation for them, considering how trivial the bet was, acting like elementary school kids bickering.

Especially since it wasn’t just the two of them, but I was watching them, making it all the more embarrassing.

As a result, amidst the two feeling extremely awkward and unable to shake off that feeling, the only two people who seemed completely at ease in this atmosphere were Chae-rim and I.

“Congratulations to both of you.”

The words that slipped out of Chae-rim’s mouth were enough to make question marks hover over both of their faces.

I thought for sure she would scold them severely, so hearing her say congratulations was a surprise.

What on earth was she congratulating them for?

As a third party, even I was pondering that, so I could only imagine how confused they were.

Both Senior and Yoonseo were busy raising question marks over their heads at Chae-rim’s unexpected comment.

Regardless of how they felt, Chae-rim pressed on, unfazed.

“Especially you, Yoonseo.”

“Y-yes, huh?”

“It seems like you’ve experienced an epiphany of sorts. Your skills have improved dramatically.”

Receiving praise from Chae-rim, who wasn’t just anyone but a long-time idol of hers and still regarded as a top hero even after stepping back from the frontline, had to feel surreal for Yoonseo.

In an instant, the corners of her mouth shot up.

Of course, whether it was due to the Senior next to her or my eyes on her, she quickly reverted back to her usual state, but still—

“Well… I guess I do feel a bit more comfortable handling my talent than before.”

Despite managing her expression, her voice betrayed the delight she could hardly contain.

And seeing Yoonseo’s reaction, Chae-rim tilted her head slightly in what seemed like an affectionate gesture.

“Right, don’t forget that feeling and make sure you engrave it in your mind. It will definitely help you later.”

By “later,” did she mean when Yoonseo challenged the Special-Class?

It seemed she meant that, as Yoonseo nodded, now with a hint of tension in her expression.

Chae-rim then shifted her gaze to the Senior.

“And Seolhwa… you know what you lack, right? Without me telling you?”

“Y-yes.”

“Still, seeing you improve compared to the last time I saw you puts me at ease.”

In a situation where Chae-rim was giving such sincere advice, it seemed inappropriate to bring up the bet.

So I was glad.

Though it might sound a bit harsh, the childishness of their little squabbles felt truly… ridiculous at times.

However, with Chae-rim’s timely arrival halting their antics, the chance of witnessing such silliness again had considerably decreased, which made me feel that way—

“By the way, both of you, why were you so riled up? Did you two end up fighting or something?”

Chae-rim was reigniting that spark again.

Of course, neither of them could easily answer her question.

That made sense.

They probably hadn’t noticed at the moment, but after thinking it over, they must have realized they had lost their cool over something utterly trivial.

So perhaps because of that, they both hesitated to speak, but… Chae-rim was persistent.

In the end, both of them, who had been trying to hold back until the very end, finally spilled the whole story behind the incident.

And after hearing their accounts, Chae-rim’s bewildered response was—

“Are you both out of your minds?”

Of course, I knew that she would respond like that.

I mean, it just doesn’t make sense for heroes to fuss over such trivial matters—