Academy's Silver Gatekeeper

"Whoa, a foreigner. She's gorgeous."

"Is she an actress? A model? Damn... her figure is insane."

"Hey, keep your voice down. Don't be so loud."

"She probably doesn’t understand us anyway, so who cares?"

Hearing the murmurs of the academy students, Irina chuckled.

‘Doesn’t understand? Pffft. I understand way too well—that’s the problem.’

'Insane figure? Ahaha! I am pretty sexy, aren’t I?'

She skipped through the academy halls, brimming with excitement. Her disguise was working even better than expected.

In movies, people would change their hair a little, throw on some glasses, and—bam!—perfect disguise.

That’s so unrealistic!

TN: Clark Kent moment. 

Or so she thought.

But now, having pulled off the exact same trick, she had to admit—Damn. It actually works.

She could openly stroll through the academy without a single student recognizing her.

'Will the damn villains fall for this? Should I head to a crime-ridden area like this? Someone might try to mess with me. Then I can legally beat them to a pulp.'

Villains had no restrictions when it came to attacking superhuman. But superhumans were generally required to capture villains rather than kill them.

Even those scumbags had "basic human rights." Or so the damn human rights committees kept saying.

If a superhumans killed a villain without proper cause, the press and the authorities would throw a fit.

Even the Superhumans Association would start preaching about restraint.

'Go ahead and throw your tantrums. Human rights? For villains? This country is really messed up!'

That said, there was one exception.

If a villain posed a serious, immediate threat to an Superhuman, lethal force was allowed.

'Maybe I should go blow off some steam.'

She did have the perfect excuse: revenge for the academy attack.

Even the other S-rank Superhumans wouldn’t have much to say about it.

Irina considered it for a moment.

Then, she shook her head.

Was it because she cared about her reputation? Afraid to tarnish her title as the strongest Superhumans in Korea?

Pffft. Hell no.

'If my mom finds out, she'll literally kill me!'

Visibly shuddering, she quickly shoved the thought away.

She glanced around to make sure no one was watching, then removed her glasses.

With a swift shake of her head, her golden hair cascaded down like a waterfall of light.

"Hup!"

With a single step, she launched herself off the ground.

BOOM—!

In an instant, a golden meteor shot into the sky.

'Crap. Jiyoon is gonna yell at me again.'

Didn’t Jiyoon say not to pull this kind of stunt inside the academy?

The sensation at her toes confirmed it—she’d definitely shattered the ground with that takeoff.

...Whatever. She'd just forget about it.

Landing smoothly on a nearby rooftop, Irina hummed a tune as she sat down, gazing at the city below.

Life had been so boring lately.

But today?

Today was turning out to be incredibly interesting.

‘Baek Seojin.’

She recalled the silver-rank examiner she had met earlier.

Tall. Handsome. Seemed pretty decent as a person.

But what really piqued her interest was—

‘That incident.’

‘He took a direct hit from the Water Phantom’s spear and survived. Now that has my attention.’

A deep grin spread across her face.

She replayed her conversation with Jiyoon in her mind.

*

A Few Hours Ago…

"Unnie. You still haven’t found the Water Phantom?"

"Nope. Don’t get your hopes up. He’s too good at hiding. And with Hyun Sujin covering him, tracking him is basically impossible."

"Ha! That coward. He ran away because he knew I was coming, right?"

Even among Elders, Kwak Hyuk was a force to be reckoned with.

Even Jiyoon avoided making careless remarks about him.

After all, predicting the outcome of a fight with him was nearly impossible.

But Irina?

She earned the right to talk like this.

She was the only person to ever defeat him.

Of all the Elders, there was one opponent he feared—

And that was Irina.

‘That bastard only turned traitor because he lost to her.’

Years ago, Kwak Hyuk had been an S-rank Superhumans.

Arrogant. Overconfident. Insufferably full of himself.

But his skill was undeniable—no one could challenge him.

Until—

He lost.

To a teenage girl.

An S-rank Superhuman, completely crushed by a high schooler who hadn’t even entered the academy yet.

The humiliation shattered him.

He spiraled into madness, abandoned his rank, and became a villain—

All because he wanted one thing.

To defeat Irina.

To sharpen his spear, to prove he was stronger.

‘His arrogance turned into a lethal poison.’

Jiyoon sighed, shaking her head as she looked at Irina.

"That idiot keeps saying he wants a rematch, but he just keeps running away."

"He needs to actually fight if he wants to win. How else is he gonna learn?"

Every time she saw Irina, she questioned reality.

How was this woman considered one of the strongest in the world?

"Anyway, aren’t you heading back yet?"

"I should. But first—tell me about that examiner."

"…What examiner?"

"Come on, Unnie. I heard everything."

Jiyoon sighed again.

She knew Irina would never let this go.

She’d hunt down Baek Seojin no matter what.

"Baek Seojin. Silver-rank examiner. Superhuman after the incident, but had no notable abilities. Failed to get into the academy. Passed the civil servant exam and became a rank-9 administrative officer. That’s it."

"…That’s it? Seriously?"

"That’s it."

Irina wasn’t buying it.

There had to be something more.

Maybe a secret family background? A hidden ability?

"Nope. He’s listed as having no family. Probably lost them during a Gate incident. So don’t mention that. It’s a sensitive topic."

"I get it."

"I honestly can't wrap my head around this. A failed superhuman who couldn't even get into the Academy, yet he survived an Elder's attack. Twice. And on top of that… he still stood in their way."

"Ooooh! What if it’s that?" Irina clapped her hands together, her eyes sparkling. "You know—'Himsoomjin!'"

"…What the hell is that?"

"Ehh? Unnie, seriously? You don’t know Himsoomjin? Hiding his power, but acting like a loser!"

Jiyoon frowned, her patience already wearing thin.

"What kind of nonsense—"

Before she could finish, Irina struck where it hurt most.

"Wait… don’t tell me. You really don’t know? Wow. Our dear Unnie is getting so old."

“…What did this crazy bitch just say?"

Jiyoon immediately grabbed her sword from beside her.

Talking about a woman’s age? In front of her face?

Irina had officially crossed the line.

And that was punishable by death.

"Ahaha! I'm just messing with you! Anyway, fun story! No Drowned Ghost, no target, so I'm out!"

"You little—!" Jiyoon swung her sheathed sword, eyes blazing. "You're not leaving until I beat the shit out of you!"

But Irina, ever the agent of chaos, only grinned wider as she dodged back.

"Hihi! Sorry! But it’s true, unnie. You are getting old!"

"IRINA—!!"

*

Irina lazily glanced at her phone and tapped the call button.

"Yeah? When are you coming out? Huh? Me? I'm not at the Academy. I'm... uh, on a building. Dunno. Just picked the tallest one I saw. So where am I, you ask? Figure it out yourself."

She smirked, twirling a lock of golden hair around her finger.

"Aide or not, you should at least have that much competence. Huh? Not my problem. Oh, and if you're not here in ten minutes, I'm leaving without you."

The distressed cry of the aide from the other end was completely ignored.

Call ended.

She lowered her phone, her thoughts immediately shifting to Baek Seojin.

‘Two possibilities. He’s either hiding it, or… he doesn’t even know. Just like I didn’t, back then.’

To confirm, she had deliberately grabbed his hand, channeling just enough energy to sense his reaction.@@novelbin@@

No matter how much someone concealed their strength, their body would always respond to an external force. It was instinct—a fundamental law among the powerful.

And Irina’s conclusion?

‘He has no clue.’

Not completely sure, but at least 80% confident.

"Aaah, this is way too exciting," she purred, stretching her arms over her head.

That clueless handsome oppa was sitting on something massive, and he didn't even realize it.

The moment he truly understood his power—How terrifying would he become?

Just thinking about it sent a thrill down her spine.

Forget Kwak Hyuk, that ugly bastard.

That freak could never give her the heart-racing, pulse-pounding battle of a lifetime.

But Baek Seojin? Oh, he would.

And unlike that repulsive excuse of a man, he was actually good-looking too.

Not only would she enjoy the fight, but she wouldn’t have to endure an eyesore while doing it.

A win-win situation!

"Uuuuugh—!"

Irina stretched again, then suddenly froze, a wild grin breaking across her face.

"Oh. My. God."

She clapped her hands together.

"Is this what they call…"

A dramatic pause.

"KIJAP?!"

A burst of manic laughter followed.

"AHHHH! AHAHAHAHAHA!"

The sheer absurdity of it made her cackle like a madwoman.

If any villains had been nearby, they would have muttered,

"Yep. Crazy Blonde Bitch. Still living up to her name."