Climbing the Tower with Multidimensional Avatars - Chapter 47

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 47. Galaxy Martial God Hall – Clubs (2)

The senior who blocked my path introduced himself.
“I’m Cheon Hae-woo. I’m in Class 1 of the sixth grade and serve as vice-captain of the Martial Arts Club.”
Class 1, then.
At this school, whenever students advanced to the next grade, they were divided into classes based on the second semester final exams.
The sole criterion for class division was academic achievement.
And here, “academics” meant martial arts, befitting a school specialized in martial cultivation.
The school openly encouraged competition, ranking students by ability and dividing them into classes accordingly.
Being in Class 1 of the sixth grade meant you were among the top twenty martial artists in the entire school.
The current sixth grade had 489 students spread across twenty-five classes in total.
With such a diverse talent pool, the competition must have been fierce.
Which meant that a sixth-grader in Class 1 was either on the verge of reaching the first-rate realm or had already attained it.
“You should join our club!”
What was this? Was he recruiting me like a pirate gathering crew? He certainly looked the part.
“I’ll think about it. Excuse me.”
I gave a perfunctory bow and tried to pass by.
But the seniors blocked my way.
“Is there anything else you need?”
“Well, that’s… couldn’t you give us an answer right now?”
“Ah, then I must decline.”
“What? Why?!”
I spoke to the flustered, still-young senior.
“Because you’re not giving me time to think. You’re not even explaining why I should join—you’re just demanding I come aboard. Of course it feels coercive. Isn’t it natural to dislike that?”
Persuasion, after all, requires time and effort, little one.
Or you make an offer that’s absolutely impossible to refuse.
If they try anything coercive, I’ll simply call Riven and Kim Do-hwa.
If they’re going to leverage their backing, I’ll leverage mine as well.
I didn’t know what position Cheon Hae-woo’s parents held or how they obtained information about Cheon So-yeon’s surroundings, but they certainly ranked lower than Cheon Gyeong-ho, my legal guardian.
I’d never met Cheon Gyeong-ho, but I had no qualms about using his name to shield myself from adults’ unreasonable pressure.
Riven had mentioned that the reason I—someone intelligent but talentless at martial arts—wasn’t sent to a gifted school was precisely because I was Cheon Gyeong-ho’s grandson.
Though I was dissatisfied with not being transferred, I was grateful it hadn’t happened.
The seniors murmured in confusion at my explanation.
“W-wait, forget about the answer! Forget it!”
“J-just wait a moment! We’ll tell you exactly why you need to join our club!”
The seniors huddled together, whispering urgently as they scrambled to fabricate reasons on the spot.
At least they had some sense—or perhaps sixth-graders simply felt reluctant to bully a first-grader—because they showed no intention of resorting to force.
Good. I wouldn’t need to draw the sword from my inventory.
“I’ll explain the reason later. I have someone waiting for me, so I’ll head out first.”
“Huh?!”
I activated Lightness Skill and swiftly wove through the seniors before slipping outside.

* * *

The next day.
After finishing afternoon classes and showering, I was heading toward where Siu was waiting to pick me up when Cheon Hae-woo, the senior who’d approached me yesterday, and his Martial Arts Club cronies suddenly blocked my path again.
“Hey there, junior. Come to think of it, I don’t think I caught your name yesterday.”
As if he hadn’t already learned it—the gorilla was playing dumb.
“I’m Cheon Ji-woo.”
“Right, nice to meet you. I’m Cheon Hae-woo, captain of the Martial Arts Club.”
Unlike yesterday, he offered a strained smile and spoke with exaggerated courtesy.
Probably he and his gang had reflected on their mistakes after I left.
“Like I mentioned yesterday, the reason you need to join our Martial Arts Club is—”
“Hold it!”
A booming voice cut off Cheon Hae-woo mid-sentence.
When the Martial Arts Club captain turned to identify the speaker, his expression darkened.
“Cheon Jeon-il!”
Steroid victim number two—or gorilla number two—appeared with his two lackeys, blocking the path just like gorilla number one, the Martial Arts Club captain.
“What do you think you’re doing, cutting in line!”
“You’re the one cutting in line! I got here first!”
At Cheon Hae-woo’s valid point, gorilla number two, Cheon Jeon-il, let out a flustered “Ugh!”
Then the short-haired female student beside him fixed Cheon Hae-woo with a cold stare.
“No. Cheon Hae-woo, you’re the one cutting in line. Club recruitment period is next week. How is this early contact anything but cutting in line?”
“Ugh!”
This time it was Cheon Hae-woo who stepped back in confusion.
The short-haired female student looked at me and asked.
“You’re Cheon Ji-woo, right?”
“Yes.”
“Nice to meet you. I’m Cheon Young-ae, vice-captain of the Sword Arts Club. This is our captain, Cheon Jeon-il. If you join our club, I promise you’ll receive twice the support of other first-year students.”
At this unexpected offer, Cheon Hae-woo and the Martial Arts Club erupted in protest.
“Hey! You’re going to play dirty like that?!”
“That’s discrimination!”
To the Martial Arts Club’s objections, Sword Arts Club vice-captain Cheon Young-ae simply snorted dismissively.
“What do you say? It’s good for you too, isn’t it? With more support, you can grow stronger as a martial artist faster.”
Wow, elementary school kids already throwing money around to tempt people.
“We can make that offer too! We’ll give you 2.5 times!”
“Hae-woo?!”
Martial Arts Club captain Cheon Hae-woo blurted it out without even consulting his members.
That’s why competition is necessary.
Cheon Young-ae, the vice-captain of the Sword Arts Club, glared at Cheon Hae-woo.
The Sword Arts Club and the Martial Arts Club.
We’re both learning from them anyway.
While I was deliberating for a moment, the captains of the Lightness Skill Club and the Spear Arts Club arrived belatedly.
“You cowardly bastards!”
“How could you do this?!”
The latecomers vented their anger at those who’d arrived first, and as the four club captains and their followers gathered, growling at each other, the teachers mobilized.
“What are you all doing over there?!”
When the martial arts teachers from each class arrived—especially Kim Do-hwa, our homeroom teacher and the leader of the martial arts instructors—the situation escalated.
“How dare you sixth-graders surround and pressure a single first-year student?! All of you, follow me to the Staff Room!”
At Kim Do-hwa’s stern rebuke, the sixth-graders flinched and felt wronged.
They had a point—the atmosphere between themselves had grown hostile and they’d nearly fought each other, but they hadn’t actually pressured me.
The sixth-graders were dragged to the Staff Room by Kim Do-hwa, and I missed what looked like an entertaining brawl.
It would’ve been fun to watch them exchange blows in a group like that.
Isn’t it said that there’s nothing more entertaining than watching a fire or a fight?
“Cheon Ji-woo, you should head home now. I’ll go to the Staff Room and enjoy some amusing entertainment.”
Riven, who’d arrived at some point without my notice, saw me off in her android body.
Did she just call watching the kids get scolded “amusing entertainment”?
This crazy android.
Ah, I wanted to watch too.

* * *

Another day had passed.
After finishing afternoon classes today, I emerged from the shower to find Kim Do-hwa, my homeroom teacher, waiting for me.
“Is something the matter?”
“Do you have a moment? I’d like you to come to the Staff Room with me.”
The atmosphere suggested that if I declined, she’d accept it gracefully, but since it was a request from my homeroom teacher, I decided to comply.
“Just a moment.”
I texted Siu, letting her know I might be a bit late and asking her to send Cheon So-yeon home first.
Then I followed Kim Do-hwa toward the Staff Room.
Inside the Staff Room sat forty-one students, including Cheon Hae-woo, the Martial Arts Club director—Gorilla Number One—and Cheon Jeon-il, the Sword Arts Club director—Gorilla Number Two, all waiting. When I entered, they all turned to stare at me at once.
“Tsk!”
When Kim Do-hwa glared, the sixth-year students flinched and lowered their eyes.
“Let’s have a brief counseling session.”
Kim Do-hwa led me into the Counseling Room inside the Staff Room.
“Are those seniors perhaps the club directors trying to recruit me? Shouldn’t sixth-year students be in class after break time?”
“I’ve already obtained permission from each class. You really are sharp-witted, just as your intelligence would suggest.”
“Well, yes. Riven gave me a heads-up.”
“Then you must understand why those guys are acting this way.”
Rumors must have spread after yesterday’s commotion.
That recruiting me would bring Cheon So-yeon along as a package deal.
That having Cheon So-yeon would mean far better club funding.
When I nodded, Kim Do-hwa let out a sigh.
“Shamefully, there’s too much that rings true to dismiss this as mere gossip. In reality, that speculation isn’t entirely off the mark either.”
Kim Do-hwa acknowledged the loss of fairness.
“Well, if So-yeon is talented, there’s nothing to be done about it. It must be difficult for other students to accept easily, but since I’m close with So-yeon, I think I understand why the family has such high expectations for her.”
“…I see. Thank you for understanding.”
This school fundamentally provided considerable support to all students, but to receive support beyond that, one had to win in various competitions.
Or demonstrate equivalent achievements.
In first year, we were still learning how to use our bodies rather than internal energy, so nothing beyond basic support was necessary, but second year was different.
And the still-young sixth-year students gathered outside the Counseling Room had experienced that reality through their bodies for years.
But if they’d learned that simply recruiting Cheon So-yeon alone, without any competition, would bring substantial benefits, then even at their young age, they couldn’t help but feel greedy.
Of course, the adults’ greed might have been even greater than the children’s.
Even if they felt jealous toward Cheon So-yeon, at their young age, it would be awkward to treat her as a competitor.
The current situation was less a problem with those children and more a problem with the school for failing to control that greed and allowing problems to arise.
“In truth, this situation should be resolved through a faculty meeting, but first I’d like to hear your opinion as the person directly involved.”
“My opinion… If I just pick one of them and join, the situation would settle down for now, at least.”
Of course, even if it settled now, problems could erupt later.
“But why back down? What those seniors really want is So-yeon anyway. No one’s even approached So-yeon.”
They’re not pursuing a two-track strategy—why approach me from the start? That doesn’t make sense.
What if Cheon So-yeon chooses a different club than me?
At my question, Kim Do-hwa let out another sigh.
“I hear that a parent who leaked information to the children has imposed strict prohibitions against any act that burdens Cheon So-yeon. Perhaps it was orchestrated by the family’s core leadership—or even the patriarch himself.”
Indeed, since they couldn’t target the general, they’d set their sights on the horse instead.
As for me—neigh~! Clop clop clop.
“Please keep this secret from So-yeon. She’ll be devastated if she finds out.”
She was already wracked with guilt over dragging me into the kidnapping incident. If she learned that I’d been entangled in this troublesome affair simply because we were close friends, I couldn’t predict what would happen.
Cheon So-yeon was ordinarily gentle and slow to anger, but once she lost her temper, there was no stopping her.
I still vividly remembered that kidnapper whose neck was severed in an instant, putting on quite the fountain show.
She’d been three years old then—by now, it wouldn’t be strange if she’d reached her peak.
“Right. I’ll keep them as quiet as possible. And this is a compilation of the various inducements those students have been offering you before you arrived. Take a look.”
Kim Do-hwa handed me the documents.
The forty-one pages detailed precisely what support each club could provide me.
Did each club president manage their own resources?
No, that couldn’t be. The school couldn’t be foolish enough to entrust resources directly to students.
The faculty advisors would manage them, with the school conducting periodic audits.
Still, the club presidents wouldn’t be entirely without authority.
They’d be in a position to evaluate club members and voice opinions on resource allocation—enough to present proposals like these.
Since all the students were direct descendants of major families, the faculty advisors would have no choice but to respect their autonomy.
“I can think of roughly three ways to resolve this matter amicably.”
“Three ways?”
Kim Do-hwa looked at me with surprise.
She seemed quite troubled, unable to grasp how to resolve this situation.
This was a matter of factional strife among students—the kind of problem that was difficult to solve unless you were directly involved.
“It’s simple. First….”
Just as I was about to explain my proposed solutions to Kim Do-hwa, a chilling, murderous aura emanated from outside.
Kim Do-hwa jumped up in alarm and rushed out of the counseling room to check.
Outside, Cheon So-yeon was radiating a savage presence, her gaze fixed menacingly on the club presidents.
Ah, this just eliminated two of my options.

(To be continued in the next chapter)

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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