My Childhood Friend’s Stock Will Never Fail Chapter 37

“Then… I think it’d be even better.”

 

Yoohee’s round eyes met Joohoon’s long, gray ones.

 

Beneath those innocent eyes, blinking so gently, lurked a strange sense of incongruity.

 

An emotion she could never believe belonged to Joohoon—

 

Something like longing.

 

Or desire.

 

“Right, we don’t have time to stay here. Let’s head back to the classroom.”

 

The corners of Joohoon’s eyes curved softly as he stood up.

 

And just like that, the conversation about imprinting came to an inconclusive end.

 

Still somewhat dazed, Yoohee followed after him and reached for the tightly shut iron door.

 

“This door slams shut if you use even a little force. We’d better be careful.”

 

Standing behind her, Joohoon stretched out an arm and effortlessly pulled the door open.

 

Even though it hadn’t budged at all when Yoohee had tried.

 

…

 

Yoohee looked up at him blankly.

 

In his usual gentle voice, he said,

 

“You go first, Yoohee.”

 

“O-Okay.”

 

The moment she stepped through the doorway Joohoon had opened for her, the dusty smell filling the storage room vanished, replaced by the fresh scent of grass.

 

As they walked back toward the classroom together, Yoohee couldn’t shake the strange feeling lingering inside her.

 

Perhaps…

 

The Joohoon she knew wasn’t all there was to him.

 

***

 

“A final exam replacement assignment?”

 

Another joint practical lesson with the Kestrel Class, just like always.

 

Today’s lesson had been focused on individual training, so Yoohee had assumed it would end quietly—

 

Until her eyes flew open near the end of class.

 

Wait, what?

 

The midterms only just ended.

 

“There won’t be a final exam instead. Since it won’t overlap with your other subjects’ exams, it’s actually better this way, right?”

 

Teacher Youngju puffed up proudly, as though she were doing everyone a favor.

 

But if you thought about it, having to take an exam outside the regular exam period wasn’t exactly an advantage either.

 

The benefit was negligible at best.

 

“The difficulty is much lower than the Race from Hell, so you won’t have to worry as much.”

 

If the midterm had been the Race from Hell, then this final replacement assignment was Capture the Divine Beast.

 

Unlike the Race from Hell, which involved students from every grade, this assignment required first-year pairs to capture divine beasts hidden throughout the academy.

 

There was just one condition—

 

Do not kill them.

 

No matter how troublesome the divine beast was, it would only count if it was captured alive and brought back.

 

“The score varies depending on the beast’s color, so make sure you identify it before capturing it. Oh, and once you place a divine beast into the capture container, your assignment is immediately finalized, so choose carefully.”

 

Teacher Youngju also explained that keeping a divine beast anywhere other than the designated capture container would be considered a rules violation and result in a point deduction.

 

Yoohee had no idea what divine beasts looked like, but apparently they came in several colors.

 

Black beasts were worth the most points.

 

Then red.

 

Followed by blue, green, and finally yellow.

 

Yellow seems a little too low…

 

Blue should be good enough.

 

There wasn’t anything particularly important riding on this exam, so Yoohee figured aiming for the middle was perfectly fine.

 

But beside her, Joohoon voiced a completely different opinion.

 

“Should we catch a black divine beast? I guess a red one wouldn’t really be enough, huh?”

 

Yoohee stared at him as if she’d just seen a ghost.

 

If black divine beasts were worth the most points…

 

That obviously meant they were the hardest to catch.

 

“It’s our first exam together, Yoohee.”

 

“I want us to do our absolute best.”

 

Joohoon’s clear eyes sparkled with determination.

 

Seeing how motivated he was made Yoohee feel almost ashamed for wanting to settle for an average score.

 

“…You’re right. They say you should always aim high. Sorry for being so weak.”

 

“I’ll definitely catch one. Don’t worry.”

 

“You’re so reassuring. Seriously.”

 

If Jooyoung had said the exact same thing, it wouldn’t have inspired even the slightest confidence.

 

But when Joohoon said it…

 

It felt as though she had an entire army behind her.

 

With Joohoon by her side, what could possibly be difficult?

 

The problem was…

 

He wasn’t the only one involved.

 

[At the enthusiastic request of a Constellation, the Sixth Sub Scenario has been activated.]

 

—Sixth Sub Scenario: ~High School Romance Cliché~

 

Difficulty: E

 

Objective: Catch a black divine beast… then let it escape.
(Constellation, ‘Mother of Failure,’ explains that things are more beautiful when they’re imperfect.)

 

Time Limit: Until the end of the Capture the Divine Beast assignment.

 

Reward for Success: ???

 

Penalty for Failure: 30% increased chance of experiencing a natural disaster.

 

Host Constellation: Constellation, ‘Mother of Failure,’ oversees both the reward and the penalty.

 

There were even Constellations who showed up without being invited.

 

But that failure penalty…

 

Are you kidding me?

 

That’s basically the same as telling me to go die!

 

“What do you think the divine beasts look like?”

 

Unaware of the scenario window floating before Yoohee, Joohoon asked innocently.

 

Now that she’d accepted the scenario, catching a black divine beast was no longer an option.

 

Feeling a pang of guilt, Yoohee answered quietly,

 

“I don’t know… but I don’t think they’ll look that scary.”

 

Having read the original novel, she knew most of the academy’s events inside and out.

 

The first-year exams, however, had never been described in the story.

 

Still, divine beasts were creatures created using an Esper’s mana.

 

Surely they couldn’t be nearly as terrifying as Creatures.

 

“Hey, Joohoon… if, by any chance, we don’t manage to catch a black divine beast, let’s not be too disappointed, okay? There are still other exams.”

 

Yoohee fidgeted nervously as she spoke, feeling guilty before anything had even happened.

 

Joohoon looked at her and smiled.

 

“You’re really considerate, Yoohee.”

 

“I-I’m not…”

 

“But don’t worry. We won’t lose it.”

 

He meant it to reassure her.

 

Yet somehow…

 

It sent a chill down her spine.

 

The assignment deadline was May 15.

 

It will begin as early as next week.

 

If we simply fail to catch one, that’s one thing.

 

But catching it… only to let it escape?

 

Even someone as kind as Joohoon would probably think she was making fun of him or playing some sort of prank.

 

She was already dreading how she’d explain herself.

 

But the scenario’s prerequisite was clear—

 

First, they had to catch a black divine beast.

 

Which meant they had to claim one before any other students did.

 

“Haah…”

 

The final assignment wasn’t held across every grade like some previous exams.

 

Still, every first-year student would be participating.

 

It definitely wouldn’t be easy.

 

Yoohee let out another deep sigh.

 

Unfortunately, time waited for no one.

 

Before she knew it, the following week had arrived.

 

“Look at them. The first-years are already doing their assignment.”

 

“Capturing divine beasts? That’s kind of cute.”

 

The academy grounds were livelier than usual.

 

Passing upperclassmen watched the bustling first-years with amused smiles.

 

Near the garden benches and along the walkways, countless students had already begun searching for divine beasts.

 

“I got one! It’s blue!”

 

So that’s a divine beast?

 

The little blue creature in one student’s hands looked rather unfamiliar.

 

Unlike the divine beasts Yoohee had seen in Building F, this one looked rather clumsy.

 

Rather than a divine beast…

 

It looked more like a floating ball of dust.

 

“There are only yellow ones here. Let’s try somewhere else.”

 

Most of the floating dust balls—

 

No, divine beasts—

 

Drifting around the campus were yellow or green.

 

Pairs lucky enough to catch a blue one happily placed it into their capture containers.

 

Most others, disappointed by the low score, simply released the beasts they’d caught.

 

Occasionally, lower-ranked pairs settled for putting a green divine beast into their container.

 

After all, as time passed, even green ones would become scarce.

 

If you weren’t confident in finding higher-scoring beasts, it wasn’t a bad strategy.

 

“Looks like there aren’t any red or black divine beasts in crowded places.”

 

Standing beside Yoohee after leaving the classroom, Joohoon looked around as he spoke.

 

Even blue beasts were considered rare here.

 

Finding a red or black one clearly wouldn’t be easy.

 

“We’ve got a little time before the next class.”

 

“Want to go look for divine beasts?”

 

“Where?”

 

“Hmm… how about the mountain behind the academy? I don’t think they’d stay somewhere with so many students.”

 

Yoohee nodded at Joohoon’s suggestion.

 

For the sake of the scenario, they needed to find a black divine beast before anyone else.

 

Together, they headed toward the wooded mountain behind the academy.

 

The scent of trees and fresh earth greeted them as a quiet forest spread before their eyes.

 

Joohoon stepped forward to lead them onto the forest trail—

 

“Kyyaaaa!”

 

A sudden scream rang through the woods.

 

Startled birds burst into the air, their wings flapping wildly.

 

It was unmistakably a woman’s voice.

 

Caught off guard by the unexpected scream, Yoohee froze.

 

Joohoon turned to her and said,

 

“Yoohee, just in case, stay close to me.”

 

Instinctively sensing danger, Yoohee tightly grabbed the hem of Joohoon’s clothes.

 

His expression immediately brightened.

 

“Yeah. Just keep holding on like that while we move forward.”

 

“D-Do you think it’ll be okay?”

 

“Of course. I’m here, aren’t I?”

 

Joohoon’s reassuring answer made Yoohee nod.

 

Right.

 

As long as Joohoon’s here… what is there to be afraid of?

 

Thinking that, they slowly ventured deeper into the forest.

 

“Wait.”

 

“Shouldn’t we stop here?”

 

Beside the path stood a sign marked ‘WARNING.’

 

In smaller letters underneath, it read:

 

‘Dangerous lifeforms inhabit this area. Please turn back.’

 

Maybe…

 

They should find another route instead.