A month.
For some, it passed in the blink of an eye, while for others, it felt unbearably long.
Time was fair to all, but the results gained during that time were never fair.
"This is the Azure Dragon Academy...!"
Gong Sun-soo looked up at the large signboard with a moved expression.
The calligraphy of the Azure Dragon Academy seemed to wriggle as if alive.
Unable to contain his excitement, Gong Sun-soo clenched his fist tightly.
"I can't believe I've made it here..."
"Come on. Anyone would think you've already passed. You're just here to apply for admission."
Hyeon Won-gang grumbled beside him, but it wasn't enough to dampen Gong Sun-soo's overwhelming emotion.
"Hahaha! They say starting is half the battle!"
He had truly worked hard.
His martial arts uniform, made of tough fabric, was worn and faded to an ashen color.
His hands were calloused, and the calluses had torn and formed again.
Standing here, he couldn't help but feel a new sense of emotion.
"By the way, the line is really long."
Wi Ji-cheon remarked as he looked at the long line ahead.
Compared to a month ago, the boy had gained quite a bit of muscle.
"It wasn't this bad last year or the year before... There are more people this year."
In contrast, Hyeon Won-gang had lost some weight over the month, and his jawline had become sharper.
However, his body felt more solid.
Despite leaving right after finishing their dawn training, a long line had already formed in front of them.
"Hahaha! As expected of the renowned Five Great Academies of the martial world! So many eager young people!"
'Does this old man not know that the Azure Dragon Academy is considered the weakest among the Five Great Academies? Or does he not care...'
Hyeon Won-gang was curious but wasn't tactless enough to ask on the spot.
"Hahahaha!"
Gong Sun-soo was extremely excited.
He kept looking around and marveling at everything, like a child visiting a festival with his parents.
People around them glanced over, but Gong Sun-soo didn't care.
"You know what's good about getting older? Your face gets thicker!"
"We're not thick-skinned yet, so please stop..."
"Grandfather..."
At the request of the two whose faces turned red from the attention, Gong Sun-soo patted their backs and laughed heartily.
Looking down at his calloused hands, Gong Sun-soo smiled and murmured.
"... Time really flies. Only three days left until the entrance exam."
In three days, the entrance exam for the Azure Dragon Academy would finally begin.
Although they had been accepting applications for a month, registration in person started today.
They had to complete the registration within three days to qualify for the entrance exam.
The reason the three of them came here today was to register for the entrance exam.
The city had been bustling for days with applicants from all over the country.
"Applicants for the entrance exam, please prepare your identification and recommendation letters in advance!"
A guard shouted in front of the main gate.
To take the entrance exam for the Azure Dragon Academy, one had to prove their identity and obtain a recommendation letter from a reliable source, such as a martial arts school, sect, family, or a trustworthy guarantor.
"Hmph. They say it's to weed out spies from the unorthodox sects, but... where are the proper unorthodox sects these days? They just want to filter out people from the start."
Wi Ji-cheon felt a pang at Hyeon Won-gang's cynical words.
Although he wasn't a spy from an unorthodox sect, he was from one of the Eight Great Families, which had been a pillar of the Blood Cult in the past.
'The Blood Cult was destroyed before I was even born...'
It would be a lie to say he wasn't worried about his identity being exposed.
He had once thought he might have to live his life quietly hiding his identity.
However, Baek Soo-ryong, who brought Wi Ji-cheon to this city and gave him a new identity, and his grandfather, Wi Ji-yeol, were both in favor of him entering the Azure Dragon Academy.
- Cheon-ah.
Forget about the Blood Cult from now on.
Live as a martial artist of the righteous sects.
Last night, the last head of the Wi family, Wi Ji-yeol, sat across from his grandson and said this.
- It's impossible to hide forever.
Blend in instead.
Enter the Azure Dragon Academy as the top student and graduate as the top student.
Make it so no one can doubt you.
Baek Soo-ryong gave similar advice.
Using his status as a current instructor at the Azure Dragon Academy, he even wrote a recommendation letter for Wi Ji-cheon.
'I owe my teacher a debt I can never repay in my lifetime.'
Wi Ji-cheon pressed the recommendation letter in his pocket with his palm.
He resolved to do his best for the two people who believed in him.
'I don't know if I can be the top student with my skills...'
Honestly, he didn't even dream of being the top student.
Wi Ji-cheon just hoped to pass, watching the line slowly shorten with a nervous expression.
"Do you think the teacher is inside? He went to work earlier, so..."
"Even if you go in, it'll be hard to meet him. The teachers in the student guidance department are quite busy. Especially now, with the entrance exam preparations."
Hyeon Won-gang, who was next to him, answered with a slightly smug expression.
Since he usually got beaten up in sparring, he rarely had the chance to assert himself as an older brother and senior to Wi Ji-cheon like today.
"Relax. It's nothing."
That's why Hyeon Won-gang was acting so arrogantly today.
In fact, as a current student, he could enter the Azure Dragon Academy without waiting, but he chose to stand in line with them and explain various things.
"If you have any questions, feel free to ask me."
"Yes, senior!"
"Haha. It's reassuring to have a senior."
As the line slowly shortened, Wi Ji-cheon's turn was getting closer.
Just then, there was some commotion inside the Azure Dragon Academy, and a man who seemed to be an instructor walked out.
The man shouted, using his internal energy so everyone could hear.
"There are too many applicants, and the inside of the Azure Dragon Academy is very crowded! From now on, family or acquaintances of the applicants are prohibited from entering the academy!"
Soon, complaints erupted from all around.
"How can you suddenly do this!"
"We came all the way here!"
Parents who came with their children and friends who came to support (and also to tour the Azure Dragon Academy) grumbled about the sudden rule.
However, the Azure Dragon Academy's policy did not change.
After checking the application forms and recommendation letters at the main gate, only the applicants were allowed inside.
Wi Ji-cheon's group was in a similar predicament.
"Haha. It seems Black Shadow will have to wait outside."
"... Sir. I cannot do that."
Black Shadow, who had been standing quietly without a word, shook her head.
Her duty was to accompany Gong Sun-soo wherever he went and protect him with her life if necessary.
"If I'm not by your side, I can't respond to any unexpected situations."
"The rules of the Azure Dragon Academy are like that. And what could possibly happen in there?"
"Just in case..."
An assassination attempt.
Black Shadow couldn't bring herself to say it, but Gong Sun-soo understood perfectly.
He smiled gently and said,
"You're worrying too much. If something were to happen, it would have happened long ago. Besides, don't I have these reliable companions by my side?"
Gong Sun-soo extended his arms to put them around Wi Ji-cheon and Hyeon Won-gang's shoulders.
Hyeon Won-gang grumbled that he was a senior, not a companion.
'Those two are quite strong, but...'
Still, Black Shadow couldn't be at ease.
She sent a voice transmission only to Gong Sun-soo.
[If it's not possible, I'll use stealth techniques to follow you.]
"Don't do it."
Gong Sun-soo shook his head with a firm expression.
Then he sent a voice transmission.
[There will be many martial arts experts inside.
Are you confident you can deceive all of them?]
[...
I'll try.]
Most of the martial arts Black Shadow learned were specialized in stealth, concealment, and assassination.
Her instructor had declared her the best among the trainees he had taught.
[I'll be extremely careful.
As long as I don't go to the central area...]
[No.]
Gong Sun-soo interrupted Black Shadow's words by shaking his head.
[If you're caught, it will be very troublesome.]
A person who learned assassin's martial arts sneaking into the Azure Dragon Academy? If that fact were discovered, both Black Shadow and Gong Sun-soo would have to reveal their identities to explain themselves.
And if Gong Sun-soo's identity were revealed... taking the entrance exam for the Azure Dragon Academy would be impossible.
The exam wouldn't be the issue; the Azure Dragon Academy would be turned upside down.
[I want to take the exam purely on my own ability, without any noise.]
"..."
Black Shadow was lost in thought for a moment.
Since Gong Sun-soo started learning martial arts at the White Dragon Hall, his transformation was almost unbelievable.
His body, which used to shiver in the cold morning breeze, had become healthy enough to do muscle-building exercises, and he no longer needed the medicinal decoctions he drank daily.
The most remarkable change was the vitality overflowing from his face.
Even though he struggled with unfamiliar muscle pain every day, Gong Sun-soo always had a satisfied smile after training.
"Hahaha. I've never felt so fulfilled day by day in my life."
Black Shadow didn't dislike seeing him like that.
However, her mission was to protect her charge with her life.
Having lived a life of obedience to orders and dedication to her mission, she tried to find a way somehow.
After organizing her thoughts for a moment, Black Shadow came up with a method.
[Even if I'm discovered, I'll keep silent about you until the end.
I've had enough training against torture, so you don't have to worry.
If necessary, I'll cut off my tongue...]
Black Shadow stopped speaking.
The expression on Gong Sun-soo's face, which had been smiling all the way here, twisted into something terrifying.
In the years she had been guarding him, it was the first time she had seen him so angry.
"Are you trying to make me angry?"
It wasn't a voice transmission but a spoken voice.
The voice, trembling with anger, startled Black Shadow, and she replied in a flustered voice.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean it that way..."
Gong Sun-soo strode over to Black Shadow and reached out his hand.
Black Shadow braced herself, thinking she might get slapped.
If it would relieve Gong Sun-soo's anger, a slap was nothing.
However, Gong Sun-soo didn't slap her.
[Black Shadow.]
Instead, he held her shoulders and looked her in the eye as he sent a voice transmission.
[I don't know what you think of me, but I think of you as a daughter.]
"..."
[How do you think I would feel hearing such words from someone I consider a daughter?]
"I'm sorry..."
Black Shadow didn't know what to say or what expression to make at this moment.
She hadn't received any training for this.
Gong Sun-soo sighed softly, patted her shoulder, and said,
"If you're really uncomfortable, I'll give you an order. Today is a day off."
"Yes...?"
Black Shadow's eyes widened in confusion.
Gong Sun-soo laughed heartily as if he found her reaction amusing.
"Go and eat whatever you want, buy clothes and accessories, and visit places you've wanted to see. Enjoy yourself."
"Sir?"
"As I said, it's an order. If you disobey, I'll remove you from my guard."
"..."
Faced with Gong Sun-soo's firm gaze, Black Shadow couldn't hide her bewilderment.
A day off.
Normally, she would have dismissed it as a joke, but Gong Sun-soo's eyes were not the kind to be refused.
In the end, she had no choice but to comply with the order.
"Understood."
"We'll register for the entrance exam and return by evening, so you enjoy your day off."
"... Yes."
"Go now."
Pushed on the back by Gong Sun-soo, Black Shadow looked around for a moment, unsure of where to go, then slowly walked toward the market.
"... What did you say to Black Shadow earlier?"
Hyeon Won-gang asked as if he wasn't really curious.
But he kept glancing at Black Shadow's retreating figure, clearly curious about the conversation they had through voice transmission.
"You heard it all. I told her to take a day off and have fun."
"What kind of day off is that? The person on leave looked like an abandoned puppy..."
"Senior, there are all sorts of people with different stories in the world."
Gong Sun-soo didn't elaborate further.
He didn't know everything about Black Shadow's life.
Talking about things he didn't know would be arrogant and rude.
"Tsk..."
Hyeon Won-gang didn't ask for more details.
He was just grumbling out of habit.
"Anyway, she's an unusual woman. At an age when others would be dating, she's working as a bodyguard for an old man..."
"... Senior Won-gang, are you interested in Black Shadow?"
"What? Interested? No..."
"That's a relief. She's like a daughter to me."
"... Wait. What does that sigh of relief mean?"
"Hahaha..."
"Who said I was interested? This old man..."
"Hahahaha!"
"I'm not interested! Hey, Wi Ji-cheon! Why are you smirking like that?"
"Senior, so that's your preference..."
Just as Hyeon Won-gang was about to get riled up by their teasing, the line in front disappeared, and the guard at the main gate shouted.
"Next applicants, come in!"
The three of them hurriedly took out their documents and approached the gate.
And.
"Isn't it them?"
"..."
There was a gaze quietly watching the backs of the three as they entered.