I Became a Genius Swordsman in the Pretty Girl Game

With the next schedule looming, we didn’t have much free time.

But our Utopia decided to take a short break.

‘Everyone worked hard this time.’

Not only Ichikawa Aki, but all the party members had visited the library and cleared their quests.

I already knew what would happen if I kept pushing them without giving them a break, constantly whipping them like busy bees.

I hadn’t forgotten that day in the Winter Palace, where the party members took turns tormenting and squeezing me dry.

Learning from that experience, I was taking this break to spend some quality time with each party member, no matter how brief.

In front of a building that blended modern and traditional Korean architectural styles, a delicious aroma tickled my nose.

“Is this the place? The famous rice soup restaurant?”

I had come to a famous rice soup restaurant near the Academy with Lee Yoo-ri.

“Yup, this is it.”

I nodded in response to her question, but…

To be honest, I was feeling a bit on edge.

‘What’s this? It’s not just my imagination, is it…?’

I felt like someone was watching me, but I couldn’t pinpoint the source.

At first, I brushed it off as paranoia, but as I spent more time with the party members, the intensity of that surveillance seemed to increase. Now, I was certain of it.

‘It’s not Sophia, at least.’

I already knew that Sophia occasionally tailed me and took photos.

But Sophia’s stalking skills were so amateurish that it would be weirder if I didn’t notice. She made all sorts of commotion while taking pictures, giving away her presence.

Unlike Sophia, the person watching me now eluded my sharpened senses no matter how much I focused and expanded my perception range, even with the boost from the Dragon’s Elixir and my promotion to a 3-star.

I couldn’t tell where they were, how close they were, or even if they were male or female.

All I felt was a strong sense of being watched.

‘Quite a skilled individual… But they’ve been observing me all day without making a move. What’s their purpose?’

“Jin Yuha, are you okay? You don’t look so good.”

Yoo-ri, sitting across from me in the rice soup restaurant, asked with a concerned look.

Apparently, my expression had given away my inner turmoil.

‘……Hmm, they don’t seem to be up to anything right now, so I should focus on Yoo-ri for now.’

I forced a smile and replied, “It’s nothing. I just got something in my eye, that’s all.”

“Hmm? Your eye? Let me see.”

Yoo-ri leaned in, but I shook my head.

“It’s fine now. Ah, the rice soup is here. Let’s eat! This place is supposed to be the most famous one near the Academy.”

Bubbling—

Two bowls of rice soup, with a milky white broth, were placed in front of us, steaming hot.

“Really? I can’t wait! It’s been ages since I had rice soup!”
“Me too.”
“Come to think of it, this is our first time having rice soup together since the Carmela’s Forest incident, right?”
“Hmm, I guess so.”

Indeed, the first time I met Yoo-ri, we had gone on a dungeon raid and then had rice soup for our after-party.

Recalling that day brought a smile to my lips.

Just as I was about to take a spoonful of rice soup, Yoo-ri suddenly stopped me.

“Wait a moment!”

She reached out and stopped my spoon mid-air.

“Huh?”

With a beaming smile, she picked up the plate of radish side dish from the table.

Then, she poured the entire thing, radish and broth, into my rice soup bowl.

“……?”

The milky white broth turned reddish.

‘What the heck is she doing?’

I stared at Yoo-ri, bewildered, and she replied with a smile.

“You like it this way, don’t you?”
“……Huh? Me?”
“Don’t you remember? You poured the radish broth into my rice soup bowl, and I got so mad at you. You said this was the ‘real’ way to eat it.”

‘……I remember.’

How could I forget?

That day, Yoo-ri had given me her signature expression, the ‘Radish (Kal) Rice Soup’ look, when I poured the radish broth into her rice soup to elicit that tasty reaction from her.

However, there was one problem.

‘The thing is, I actually don’t like radish broth in my rice soup…?’

Yes. I was a purist when it came to rice soup, preferring just a sprinkle of salt and pepper.

Back then, I had sacrificed my rice soup, biting back my tears, just to see Yoo-ri’s delicious reaction when she got angry.

Who would’ve thought that karma would come back to bite me like this?

“Here. Try it. It’s supposed to be delicious.”

With a face full of pure innocence and goodwill, how could I tell her that I actually disliked it this way?

So, I forced a smile and took a spoonful of the reddish rice soup, feeling awkward.

“Ha, ha. This is really good.”
“Great! I’ll try it too!”

Slurp!

Yoo-ri’s eyes lit up with stars as she took a spoonful of the rice soup.

“Wow! It really is! This place is amazing! The broth is so rich and flavorful!”

Yoo-ri spoke with high enthusiasm, true to her nickname, ‘Rice Soup’.

But I couldn’t relate to her enthusiasm.

‘All I taste is radish…

.

.

.

“Phew… I’m full. Jin Yuha, this place was really delicious, wasn’t it?”
“Yeah, it was okay.”
“Let’s come here again sometime! I think I’ll add this to my favorite restaurant list!”
“Ahaha, yeah, sure.”
“Thank you so much for treating me to this delicious meal, Jin Yuha.”
“No problem. I’m glad you enjoyed it.”
“Shall we head home now?”

Yoo-ri offered her hand to me in front of the Academy’s clock tower, but I shook my head.

“You go on ahead.”
“Huh? Aren’t you coming?”
“Yeah, I have something to take care of.”
“Something?”
“I’ll be there soon. Go on ahead.”
“Hmm… Okay, see you later!”

Yoo-ri seemed curious about what I was up to, but she didn’t pry further and waved goodbye as she left.

Alone now, I lowered my gaze.

‘I can still feel it…

Yes.

The reason I stayed behind after sending Yoo-ri off was to uncover the identity of the person who had been watching me all day.

‘Who could it be?’

Who would dare to blatantly stalk me at the Academy?

I still didn’t know their identity or location, but I had a way to find out.

A cheat-like method, to be precise.

I took out my phone.

[ Sword Ghost: Master, I’m at the clock tower now. ]

Whoosh.

As soon as I sent the message, a reply came promptly.

[ Baek Seol-hee: Hmm, sorry. I got held up with work today. I’m on my way now. Should be there in about a minute. ]

[ Sword Ghost: It’s fine. Take your time. The stalker doesn’t seem to be in a hurry to leave. ]

That cheat-like method involved my master!

With her keen senses, far superior to mine, she would surely be able to uncover the stalker’s identity.

I waited by the clock tower.

Swoosh—

In an instant, Master Baek Seol-hee appeared before me and landed gracefully.

“Ah, Master—”

Before I could greet her, she stiffened and abruptly turned her head upward.

‘Did she find something?’

My gaze followed hers to the empty air above.

Master Baek Seol-hee opened her mouth as if addressing someone there.

“What are you doing up there?”

‘Master is using honorifics?

Whoooosh—

A powerful wave of mana distorted the air, and a figure emerged from the warping void.

“Chairman Lina.”

I couldn’t help but be surprised.

‘Was Chairman Lina the one who had been watching me all day?’

A moment later, Chairman Lina appeared, floating in mid-air with a disgruntled look on her face, glaring down at us.

“……Chairman?”
“……”
“You’ve been following me all day, Chairman?”

Lina’s expression turned indignant as she protested.

“I, I wasn’t following you!”

Then, she pointed at me and started scolding.

“You! Jin Yuha! As the leader of Utopia, you’re supposed to be training and studying with your party members! When do you plan on becoming my successor if you keep goofing off like this!? Academy students should be focusing on their training and studies!!!”

I tilted my head, confused.

‘What’s gotten into this old-timer today?

Did she eat something bad? Did she forget about our mission yesterday?

I was so taken aback that I couldn’t find the words to respond.

“……Master, I think we need a proper explanation for why you are been stalking my disciple.”

At that moment, Master Baek Seol-hee chimed in with support.

“Well, it’s only natural for the Academy Chairman to keep an eye on the students and make sure they’re doing well!”

Lina looked flustered and tried to defend herself, but her excuse was flimsy.

“……”
“……”

The gazes of both me and Master Baek Seolhee turned even colder, causing Lina to shrink back like a scolded child.

“Well, I…”

She opened her mouth, her voice cracking.

P.S. Hello Everyone! I’m VarieTL. I hope you are all enjoying my work! I only wanted to announce that I have posted a new Novel on the site 🙂 The novel is called:Avoid the Yandere Goddess Summery: I possessed a third-grade extra villain. I barely avoided the fate of dying from the hands of the protagonist. However, that’s why the Yandere Goddess’s interest turned from the protagonist towards me. [The Goddess of Fate shows interest in you with a sly expression.]