I Became an Academy Overpowered Growth Genius

I Became an Academy Overpowered Growth Genius – 5

EP.5 Time for a Counterattack (2)

[Critical Hit! Lucky strikes hit the enemy’s vital point!]

– Whack! –

“Ugh…!”

After receiving Kang Seo-jun’s backspin blow on the chin, Park Shin-hoo staggered and

– Thud! –

collapsed onto the damp alley floor.

《Skill》

▶Name:

Counter Time

◆Grade:

[Epic]

◆Description:

When used, it will dodge all melee attacks below epic grade for 10 minutes and retaliate with 1.2 times the enemy’s attack power. It can only be used once a day, and the cooldown is reset at midnight.

If it were just a 1.2 times counterattack, it would have been impossible to disrupt Park Shin-hoo’s balance.

[Luck: 50]

However, with a luck correction of 50, a critical hit occurred, doubling the damage.

“Ugh….”

“Mu….”

As the unexpected situation unfolded before them, the demeanor of the thugs surrounding the alley froze.

“This, this bastard…!”

Then, the closest thug shouted,

“Get him!”

“Let’s kill him!”

Other thugs followed suit, rushing towards Kang Seo-jun.

[Skill ‘Counter Time’ is activated.]

[Critical Hit! Lucky strikes hit the enemy’s vital point!]

[Critical Hit! Lucky strikes hit the enemy’s vital point!]

[Critical Hit! Lucky strikes hit the enemy’s vital point!]

However, the momentum was so embarrassing that it took less than 3 seconds for each of them to clutch their vital points and groan.

“Ugh, my… shoulder…”

“I, I can’t breathe…”

“It, it feels like it burst… Ah, darn….”

“This bastard…”

Park Shin-hoo grumbled as he got up.

“You hid your abilities.”

“Well….”

Park Shin-hoo had a strange misconception.

However, Kang Seo-jun didn’t bother to dispel that misconception.

Hiding one’s abilities within the academy posed no problem at all.

The academy’s curriculum involved a rigorous selection process through intense competition.

Therefore, concealing one’s abilities was not only tolerated but considered part of the strategy. If it resulted in gaining additional points, there were no disadvantages.

– Huff! Huff! –

Park Shin-hoo stretched and assumed a stance as if preparing for a genuine fight.

It seemed he was getting ready to fight in earnest.

His way of life was metaphorically not much different from a beast.

An obsession that only he, with his strength, must reign supreme above all else.

If an enemy appeared, he must surely beat them, placing their knee under him.

Especially if it was an opponent within the academy whom he had to compete against.

“Hoo…!”

– Swish! –

Park Shin-hoo swung his body widely and delivered a powerful kick.

He had merely let his guard down a moment ago.

If he could establish dominance from a reach advantage with his long legs, the opponent would be helpless and take a beating.

Park Shin-hoo thought so.

[Skill ‘Counter Time’ is activated.]

[Critical Hit! Lucky strikes hit the enemy’s vital point!]

– Whack! –

“Argh…!”

However, such a strategy was nothing more than a naive theory in the face of the system’s absurdity.

Park Shin-hoo, who received a mysterious low kick, knelt with his knee on the damp ground.

“Grrr…!”

Seeing his knee stuck to the wet floor, Park Shin-hoo gritted his teeth.

“This bastard…!”

Utilizing the low posture’s thrust, Park Shin-hoo tackled Kang Seo-jun’s waist.

[Skill ‘Counter Time’ is activated.]

[Critical Hit! Lucky strikes hit the enemy’s vital point!]

– Whack! –

“Ah…!”

However, after receiving a counter knee kick to the nose, he fell backward.

“Kuk…! Ugh…!”

Park Shin-hoo clutched his bleeding nose and glared resentfully as he propped himself up from the floor.

Kang Seo-jun breathed a sigh of relief inwardly.

If Park Shin-hoo had been in a long-range position like a wizard or archer, he wouldn’t have gained the upper hand with ‘Counter Time’ like this.

This, too, should be attributed to luck’s correction, Kang Seo-jun thought to himself.

“I’ll kill you….”

A dark determination gleamed in Park Shin-hoo’s eyes.

“Hmm.”

If it had been his past self, the aura would have been ominous enough to make one shudder, but under the influence of willpower 30, it didn’t feel threatening at all.

“You’ll regret it.”

‘Counter Time’ inflicts additional damage proportionate to the opponent’s attack power.

In other words, the more sincere the opponent, the more it backfires on them.

However.

If he made a mistake, Park Shin-hoo could end up with a permanent disability or even die if the situation got serious.

Kang Seo-jun was a bit concerned about that aspect.

The fact that Park Shin-hoo dies isn’t a significant issue.

But if he killed Park Shin-hoo, the Taesan Group behind him would become a problem.

Killing Park Shin-hoo here leaves no way to avoid investigation.

With luck correction, he might somehow evade investigation in the early stages, but luck is not an all-powerful stat.

Ultimately, turning the Taesan Group into an enemy would be a matter of time.

‘If that happens, I’ll have no choice but to give up on academy admission and take the villain route….’

Kang Seo-jun could only hope that it wouldn’t come to that.

“This bastard…”

Park Shin-hoo roughly tore off his necklace and infused it with magic.

Upon doing so, the necklace shone brightly, gradually enlarging until a giant greatsword appeared in his hand.

“Ah….”

He even pulled out a sword at this point.

An involuntary sigh escaped Kang Seo-jun’s lips.

With this development, the probability of Park Shin-hoo dying became even higher.

Wanting to make him faint without causing any harm is impossible with just the intention. And there’s no skill to control strength…

‘What to do…’

Kang Seo-jun bit his lower lip in distress.

He began formulating a new plan, assuming Park Shin-hoo’s death.

First, giving up on academy admission, joining a villain organization, and awakening in a different way…

“Now, do you regret it?”

Unaware of Kang Seo-jun’s inner turmoil, Park Shin-hoo interpreted his expression differently.

“But it’s already too late.”

Once Park Shin-hoo unsheathed his sword, he would likely strike with the intention to kill.

He didn’t care about the details as long as he believed in the background of the Taesan Group.

‘Sigh… It’s all tangled up like this….’

“You idiot!”

Park Shin-hoo closed the distance in an instant,

– Swish! –

And swung the giant greatsword from above.

[Skill ‘Counter Time’ is activated.]

A sensation as if time were flowing slowly.

‘Right. Since it’s come to this, there’s no other choice.’

Kang Seo-jun decided to accept Park Shin-hoo’s death.

At that moment, the air currents in the area changed.

The mysterious flow of luck responded to Kang Seo-jun’s will.

‘Ugh…?’

Park Shin-hoo’s beast-like instinct also sensed the change.

In that fleeting moment when the giant sword was about to strike Kang Seo-jun’s head.

An instinctive intuition that something was wrong surged through his body like a tsunami.

Amidst that ominous tsunami, Park Shin-hoo felt an emotion he had never experienced before.

An emotion he thought he would never feel in his entire life.

Fear.

As he watched the fist fiercely rushing towards him, Park Shin-hoo, who had never averted his eyes from an enemy in his entire life, finally tightly shut both eyes.

Right after that.

– Rumble! –

Soon, a massive vibration swept through the area as if an earthquake had occurred,

[Critical Hit! Lucky strikes hit the enemy’s vital point!]

“Ah…!”

A woman in a suit had wedged herself between Kang Seo-jun and Park Shin-hoo.

Holding Park Shin-hoo’s sword with one hand, the woman took the brunt of Kang Seo-jun’s fist with her body, groaning in pain.

“Huh?”

The woman, grimacing in pain, was someone Kang Seo-jun recognized.

‘Park Seo-yoon?’

Park Shin-hoo’s sister and the guild leader of a guild under the Taesan Group.

‘She’s here?’

Park Seo-yoon typically appears after the mid-game.

This situation where Park Seo-yoon intervenes in the early-game event is unprecedented.

‘A flow I’ve never seen before.’

To Kang Seo-jun, who has played through countless scenarios in the Grand Hunter Academy, this unfamiliar turn of events felt somewhat confusing.

Is it a grotesque luck correction… or is it a difference between reality and the game… or perhaps an additional route in the DLC…?

This new flow, unseen in the game, perplexed Kang Seo-jun a bit.

“Hmm….”

[Intelligence: 8]

Well, it doesn’t matter.

However, he quickly accepted the situation without much concern.

[Willpower: 30]

Expecting every flow to follow the game’s logic now that the game has become reality is a flawed assumption.

Besides, it’s not someone completely unknown intervening.

This level of variable was quite acceptable.

“You…!”

The one truly shocked was Park Shin-hoo.

“Get a grip… you crazy bastard….”

Park Seo-yoon glared fiercely at Park Shin-hoo while enduring the pain.

“Grr….”

Park Shin-hoo gritted his teeth with mixed emotions.

In this moment of crisis, he couldn’t help but feel relieved by Park Seo-yoon’s intervention, something that deepened the wounds on his pride.

– Thud! –

Park Shin-hoo, frustrated, slammed the oversized sword to the ground as if venting his anger and left the alley. The thugs lying flat on the ground also noticed and followed him.

“This isn’t a kid’s punch….”

Park Seo-yoon, breathing heavily, looked at Kang Seo-jun. Her endurance was A-Grade, and even with magical reinforcement, she had sustained considerable damage. If the inexperienced Park Shin-hoo had taken this punch to the head…

‘He would’ve died.’

However, Park Seo-yoon had no intention of blaming him for that. After all, Park Shin-hoo had drawn his sword first.

‘Besides….’

Even after such a sinister attack, the opponent showed no sign of fatigue.

‘A body that’s partly damaged, yet possesses such strength and stamina… Unusual. Surely, he’s not an ordinary person… There’s something about him.’

It was too reckless to openly antagonize someone hiding unknown strength and background, even if they were a Taesan Group member, equivalent to Park Seo-yoon’s guild.

“Sorry. My younger brother caused a big trouble. I’ll take responsibility and compensate for what happened just now. Here’s my business card.”

Park Seo-yoon bowed 90 degrees as an apology.

“You’re a new student at the academy, right? I know it’s a bit much, but I hope this incident doesn’t leave bad feelings between my brother and you. I’ll make sure to advise my brother thoroughly. I can provide medical expenses, additional compensation, and if you have any specific conditions, I’ll do my best to accommodate them.”

“Huh?”

Kang Seo-jun was puzzled by the unexpected attitude.

The Taesan Group usually leans towards threats over negotiations, violence over cooperation. Even Park Seo-yoon, known as the most humane in the Taesan Group, was no exception. When the Taesan Group proposed negotiation, there was always a clear and compelling reason.

Kang Seo-jun couldn’t understand the reason, but he didn’t dwell on it for long.

‘If I don’t know, I’ll find out.’

[Insight into the opponent’s true feelings with the Eye of Providence.]

A mysterious spell shimmered in Kang Seo-jun’s pupils.

‘A pretext for compensation… Approach… Understand… Strange… Eliminate….’

[Insight is discontinued due to insufficient mana.]

– Zap! –

“Ugh!”

In an instant, a sharp pain occurred in Kang Seo-jun’s eyes.

“…? Are you okay?”

Park Seo-yoon asked with confusion as Kang Seo-jun suddenly grimaced and groaned.

“Yes.”

Kang Seo-jun answered vaguely, clutching his painful eyes.

‘Even just looking at the words, it doesn’t interpret well. There must be some nasty intentions. It’s better not to get involved any further here.’

Although he couldn’t discern the exact thoughts due to insufficient mana, these clues were enough to infer the underlying intentions. If it were a later part of the original story, there might be some benefits in getting involved with the Taesan Group. Still, in the early stages, there was nothing good about being entangled with them.

“No need for compensation.”

“Really? Excuse me, but you don’t seem well… If you want, I can introduce you to a competent healer or doctor. Of course, we’ll cover all medical expenses.”

Kang Seo-jun was puzzled by the suggestion. The pretext of a medical checkup would likely lead to dissecting abilities, traits, and everything else. Moreover, with no notable person from the original work coming out in the early stages, this deviation from the expected flow confused Kang Seo-jun.

“Okay. I just hope you forget about what happened today. I’ll also consider this matter as if it never occurred.”

“Sure….”

Already, there was no choice but to accept what had happened. At this point, it was best to minimize further involvement.

[Your intelligent decision-making results in a slight increase in Intelligence experience points!]

And….

‘I’ve already received a reward worthy of compensation.’

[The Constellations admire your cunning judgment!]

[Constellation ‘Compassionate Hermit’ sponsors dimensional currency!]

[Constellation ‘Guardian with Scales’ sponsors dimensional currency!]

Although the Constellations’ rewards were generous, the real reward was something else.

Kang Seo-jun looked at the bloodstains on his clothes from Park Shin-hoo.

If there was Park Shin-hoo’s blood, Kang Seo-jun could use it to create a skill that would help overcome the early weakness with a one-time combination box available in stores.

Skill: ‘Parasitic Growth’.

Whenever the host exercised or studied, the effort would bear fruit in the form of experience points that Kang Seo-jun could absorb. If the host did push-ups, Kang Seo-jun’s arms would become stronger, if the host studied, Kang Seo-jun’s intelligence would increase. Moreover….

‘I can periodically transfer debuff characteristics to the host.’

As time passed, Park Shin-hoo, who was gradually becoming more comfortable with being used, and his own appearance becoming cleaner as he got sick.

In Kang Seo-jun’s mind, the image of a progressively sick Park Shin-hoo with diminishing uncertainties flashed by.

And as he became more ill, his own appearance became neater in contrast.

In that strange warmth, Kang Seo-jun’s lips curled into an unconscious smirk.

“Uh, um… That…?”

Seeing Kang Seo-jun like that, Park Seo-yoon felt an inexplicable chill running down her spine.