Rank 0 of the Awakener Special School - Chapter 99

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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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Rank 0 of the Awakener Special School
Episode 99
The two of them barely had time to be startled by Ji-u’s sudden appearance.
Ji-u strode forward and positioned himself before the director.
“I’ll take care of that.”
“What—”
Do Min-ki stared at Ji-u in bewilderment. But Ji-u’s blue eyes remained fixed entirely on Orion.
With his gaze unwavering, Ji-u spoke with quiet confidence.
“I’ll bring you the Three-time Victory.”
……
Orion’s fingers drifted slowly to his lips.
It was a habit of his, something he did whenever he encountered an unexpected turn of events.
If truth be told, he’d been considering Seol Ji-hyo’s participation anyway.
But there had been hesitation—she was only a first-year student, after all. The Tae Ga-young disappearance incident had struck not long ago; its emotional toll surely weighed on her.
Yet he hadn’t anticipated that she’d throw her own name forward.
Lost in thought for a moment, Orion posed his question.
“Can you promise that?”
His meaning was clear: could Ji-u truly deliver a Three-time Victory?
From that response, Ji-u gained his certainty.
The director had been considering him all along.
It made perfect sense.
Ji-u had achieved the highest score in every category during the first semester exams. Orion had certainly been watching his abilities closely.
Especially since he would believe Ji-u had undergone Awakening.
If that were the case, the advantage had already shifted to Ji-u’s hand.
So Ji-u played his card immediately.
“But I have conditions.”
“Conditions?”
Orion’s eyebrows rose slightly.
Yet he didn’t cut the conversation short.
He leaned back against the sofa, as if to say: let’s hear them.
“First: if I bring you the Three-time Victory, grant me the right to undertake an External Mission.”
“An External Mission.”
Was he hoping to return to Jeju Island and search for Tae Ga-young himself?
Or did he have some other purpose in mind?
“And second.”
Before Orion could finish his thought, Ji-u opened his mouth again.
“Allow Vice Captain to participate.”
“Seol Ji-hyo?”
In that instant, Do Min-ki’s head snapped toward Ji-u.
Orion was equally taken aback. The director, who rarely displayed emotion, opened his eyes wide with genuine surprise—like a child seeing something astonishing for the first time.
“Why would that be?”
“Because I need Vice Captain’s Core.”
“You’re unfamiliar with Min-ki’s Core?”
“Memory. But that’s far from all—his mental acuity, his observation skills, they surpass anyone in the Special Team. In fact, they surpass everyone in the entire school.”
Any member of the team who’d ever gone on a mission with Do Min-ki would know this.
Even if the director himself had overlooked it.
“You yourself said that confidence is the most crucial element in victory. Vice Captain’s keen observation and sound judgment will fill the gaps in my confidence. That’s what I believe.”
As he finished, Ji-u shot Do Min-ki a brief glance.
“I trust in him that much.”
* * *
Late at night, near the School Gate of Gaon Special School.
A passenger ship lay moored at the pier, which was well-maintained with olive trees.
“They’ve arrived.”
It was Gaon’s Vice Principal who had come out to receive the guests.
The sound of a luggage bag being dragged across the white walkway drew closer.
“Welcome. We’ve been expecting you.”
The Vice Principal approached the man at the head of the group—presumed to be an instructor—and greeted him.
“Was the journey comfortable?”
Even at night, it was still summer.
The foreign teacher, unaccustomed to Korean summers, wiped the sweat streaming from his brow with a handkerchief and smiled warmly.
“Thank you always for your consideration. Thanks to your kindness, I was able to make a smooth trip.”
Bright blond hair, pale lashes. Sharp, well-defined features and blue eyes.
He answered in fluent Korean, every inch the foreign gentleman.
Twenty years of teaching experience.
Twenty years of building friendship between Leonhardt and Gaon through Cultural Exchange.
By this point, it was hardly surprising that he spoke Korean like a native tongue.
“Oh, let me introduce them.”
The instructor from Leonhardt stepped aside slightly, gesturing to five students behind him.
Under the moonlight, the Vice Principal’s eyes narrowed keenly.
Black uniforms adorned with golden shoulder boards and capes.
Cross-shaped badges and shoes polished to a pristine shine.
“These are the Falke, who will be participating in this year’s Cultural Exchange.”
Falke—a word meaning falcon.
These students emanated a dignity befitting the name. Sharp yet aloof. A true Elite aura.
‘Of course, not quite on the level of our Special Team.’
The Vice Principal’s gaze swept quickly across their faces.
Some were already familiar; others he saw for the first time.
Three boys, two girls. Five in total.
“Leonhardt’s Falke are always impressive to see.”
“Ha—even so, we suffered two consecutive losses to Gaon’s Special Team, did we not?”
“Whether that fortune continues this year, I cannot say. There’s been an incident, you see.”
“Ah. You mean… the Tae Ga-young incident? We deeply regret it.”
The instructor quietly removed his hat and brought it to his chest.
Meanwhile, as the two men conversed—
“How much longer are we supposed to stand here? What’s that bald man waiting for?”
One of the students scowled at the Vice Principal.
She was a tall girl with her hair neatly tied back like a dancer.
“Clara—?! What if he understands us?”
“If he could understand our language, they would’ve greeted us in Korean from the start.”
Clara Weber.
The girl so named turned her head sharply. Clearly displeased, her doll-like face had creased quite noticeably.
“There’s been an odd smell since we arrived. It’s unbearable.”
“What kind of smell?”
“I don’t know. Just some foul stench. Is it something local to this country?”
“I only smell the ocean.”
“Don’t you have perfume? I should spray some.”
“Um, the perfume’s in the luggage bag…”
“Get it out. I can’t stand this smell.”
“Oh, just a moment.”
It was just as another girl bent down to open the luggage bag.
Another boy at the front turned around.
“Clara.”
He had pale sky-blue hair and golden eyes. His bearing was that of a refined nobleman—gentle yet graceful.
His name was Julian Brandt.
Third-year at Leonhardt Academy.
Leader of Falke.
“Maintaining composure is admirable, but we’ll be leaving soon. Could you apply the perfume after we move?”
……
At his words, Clara fell silent.
Julian smiled faintly and withdrew his gaze from her.
Moments later.
“Close the bag, Maya.”
Clara spoke coldly to the girl who’d been rummaging through the luggage.
“Huh? But the perfume—”
“We don’t need it.”
Meanwhile, the Vice Principal, unaware of their conversation, gestured kindly to the instructor from Leonhardt.
“We’ve prepared transportation behind the School Gate, so shall we depart? The director is waiting for you.”
“Yes, well then—”
The instructor turned his gaze to the students following him—Falke.
“Let’s go.”
“Yes, sir.”
Clack-clack, the sound of shoes echoing into the distance.
Midway, Clara suddenly stopped in her tracks.
Beneath the moonlight, the pristine School Gate.
The Taegukgi fluttering in the breeze.
And the emblem symbolizing Gaon—
“Clara? What are you doing? Come on.”
The student ahead noticed and turned back.
Clara did not answer.
Her eyes narrowed, she murmured something so quietly that no one else could hear.
“…Moon Yu-jin.”
Crunch—
Clara’s hand tightened around the luggage bag handle.
A moment later, she lifted her chin gracefully, as if nothing had happened.
Clack-clack.
Her confident, unhesitating stride carried her through Gaon’s School Gate.

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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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