Episode 10: Genre Misunderstanding: An Extra's Survival Story

Episode 10: The Winter Princesses

After leaving the testing grounds and passing a few buildings, Abel entered the academy’s rear garden and briefly scanned his surroundings.

Then, spotting a bench, he sat down and began leisurely taking in the view of the academy.

Not that he was actually trying to enjoy the scenery.

To be honest, Abel wasn’t the kind of guy who could appreciate the beauty of nature. Now, if the thought was more along the lines of “Can I smash that rock with my fist?”—that might be more believable.

He wasn’t sitting down because his legs were tired, either.

For this man, something like muscle fatigue would only begin to show after swinging a sword a hundred thousand times or running all day just to improve his stamina.

So then why?

Why was this man sitting on a bench, wasting time?

—‘Come on out already. How long are you planning to follow me around like this?’

Someone had been following him for a while now.

He couldn’t see them, no matter how hard he looked, but he could sense their presence—faint, but definitely there.

At first, he thought it might be a professor. But if it were a professor, there’d be no need for stealth—they’d just call out to him directly.

Could it be someone like Seria or Caligo? No, if it were one of them, they’d have just spoken up instead of sneaking around.

He had no Idea. Absolutely none.

He couldn’t even begin to guess who it might be or what their intentions were.

The one thing he could say for sure was that whoever it was had mastered the art of hiding their presence.

Thanks to the power enhancement he used during the evaluation, his body was still in a heightened state.

That enhancement didn’t just boost his strength and agility—it also amplified his senses. His vision broadened, his hearing sharpened to catch even the faintest sound, and his sense of smell became hyper-sensitive.

It was through this ability that Abel had pushed his body to its limits.

But even with that ability still active, he had learned nothing about the stalker.

If he hadn’t enhanced his body, there was a good chance he wouldn’t have even noticed someone was following him at all.

And if this person had tried to attack from behind, he probably wouldn’t have realized it until the very last second.

—‘Could it be someone trying to keep me in check already? Has word of my evaluation results spread that fast?’

Not impossible, but highly unlikely.

Barely an hour had passed since the evaluation. Professors were not allowed to talk about student results—this wasn’t just an unspoken rule; it was explicitly written in the academy regulations.

Results of the power evaluations wouldn’t be announced until tomorrow. So by all normal standards, this situation shouldn’t be happening.

Sitting a little longer on the bench, Abel finally made a decision.

Going around in circles just wasn’t his style.

He’d read enough ability-user stories to know that a head-on approach was usually the best in these situations.

“Alright, that’s enough. Why don’t you come out and sit here? Seems like you have some business with me, so let’s not waste each other’s time and just get it over with.”

He was talking into empty space, which made him look like a lunatic having a one-sided conversation.

If no one came out now, this would be seriously embarrassing.

Should he try to threaten them to force them out? But how do you threaten someone you can’t even see?

“We’ve been caught, Irshu.”

“We’ve been caught, Tarshu.”

This time, Abel’s gamble paid off.

He tossed his fishing line with a “screw it” attitude—and landed a big catch.

—‘Wait, they really were following me…? Hold on. Two of them? But I only sensed one presence…?’

As the figures appeared before him, Abel froze.

No one had ever deceived his senses while his body was enhanced—not even his father, Lumine Noona, or the family knights. This was the first time.

“Tarshu was being quiet.”

“Irshu was being quiet too.”

“Then why did we get caught, Irshu?”

“Then why did we get caught, Tarshu?”

Snow-white hair. Silver eyes. And most of all, two girls who looked like perfect mirror images of each other.

It was like staring at a set of human decals. And their strange way of speaking only made Abel even more confused, though he struggled to keep his composure.

“Who exactly are you two…?”

“Then how did you know we were there?”

“…”

Even their voices were identical—it was like hearing an echo.

It made his head feel hazy, like he was caught in a snowstorm where he couldn’t see an inch ahead.

Crunch.

Two people. But only one set of footsteps.

Even their walking rhythm and stride were identical. Was that even humanly possible?

This made Abel realize once again just how extraordinary this Continental Academy was.

If he hadn’t made it here, he would’ve regretted it for the rest of his life.

He shifted slightly to the side on the bench.

“First-year student Abel Rotensilt. I’m from the Ascal Kingdom.”

As the two white-haired girls sat down next to him, Abel decided to introduce himself.

He didn’t know anything about them—whether they were seniors, classmates, or even professors.

Judging by appearance alone, they looked younger than him. But Abel wasn’t naïve enough to trust appearances at face value.

That was one of the core rules in stories about ability users: Never trust what you see.

“Irshu. First-year student.”

“Tarshu. First-year student.”

Luckily, his stalkers didn’t seem interested in hiding their identities.

“Ah, so you’re Miss Irshu and Miss Tarshu.”

“I’m not Irshu, I’m Tarshu.”

“I’m not Tarshu, I’m Irshu.”

“…Excuse me?”

“I’m not Tarshu, I’m Irshu.”

“And I’m not Irshu, I’m Tarshu.”

Abel blinked a couple of times before realizing what had gone wrong.

In other words, when they introduced themselves earlier, they hadn’t said their own names, but instead introduced the twin sitting next to them.

“Then that means you’re not Irshu, you’re Miss Tarshu. And you’re not Tarshu, you’re Miss Irshu. Is that correct?”

Nod, nod.

Staring into the two pairs of eyes now properly directed at him, Abel tightened his grip on his wavering sanity once more.

“Nice to meet you, Miss Irshu, Miss Tarshu. Since we’re all freshmen, I guess that makes us classmates. On that note, as a fellow classmate, may I ask you one thing?”

“Tarshu is listening.”

“Irshu is also listening.”

“Thank you. Then, may I ask—why exactly were you following me? From the looks of it, you’ve been tailing me since I left the test site.”

At first, he’d worried they might have bad intentions. Maybe it was one of those classic academy ambushes.

But both guesses were wrong. The ones tailing him were just twin sisters.

“We were curious.”

“We wanted to know.”

“…Excuse me?”

“We’re curious about you, Abel.”

“Abel. Curious.”

This isn’t working. The way they speak together makes it feel like he’s hearing an echo.

“I’m really sorry, but… could only one of you speak at a time?”

“But Irshu wants to talk.”

“And Tarshu also wants to talk.”

“Well then, what about taking turns? One speaks, then the other?”

It was a random suggestion—but for these twins, it seemed like a revolutionary idea.

They let out small gasps of awe at the same time, then quietly whispered to each other, seemingly deciding the order, before the one sitting to his left opened her red lips first.

“Abel, are you by any chance a genius?”

“Not at all. Now, back to the main point—why were you following me?”

“Because Abel is strong.”

“You followed me because I’m strong?”

“Strength is a gift. Gifts make people curious. If you’re curious, you want to know. And if you want to know, you need to confirm.”

Confirm? Abel tilted his head, and then Irshu—no, Tarshu—picked up the thread.

“Winter is harsh. In harsh places, the strong are necessary.”

“There aren’t many strong people. That’s why everyone wants them.”

“Blood doesn’t matter. If someone’s strong, they must be accepted.”

Winter, and strength. Abel latched onto those two words. Snow-white hair. Silver eyes. Twin sisters. That much was enough to guess their identity.

“By any chance… are you from the Duchy of Nord?”

“Irshu. A noble lady.”

“Tarshu. A noble lady.”

“But also freshmen.”

“Just like you.”

Then Abel recalled what the king had told him before he left for the academy.

That many incredible ability users were enrolling this year. That Abel, entering alongside them, was the future and face of the kingdom.

Prince Caligo of the Empire, Flam from the Phoenix family, and Portus from the Sparrow family weren’t the only elites. They were amazing, but they weren’t the only ones with overwhelming talent.

This year’s freshman lineup was insane. No wonder the king had specifically asked Abel to look after Seria.

Compared to those prodigies, Seria—with her relatively modest abilities—might seem like a disappointment, even an embarrassment to the kingdom.

‘Seriously, what’s up with this lineup? The imperial prince, two top elemental heirs, and now the twin noble ladies from the winter duchy? Is this for real?’

And the scariest part? He was certain this wasn’t the end. Even more incredible newcomers were likely waiting to show up. And with people like these gathered together, incidents and chaos were inevitable.

[Campus Announcement: Freshmen Irshu Scandia and Tarshu Scandia, please report to Testing Room 5 immediately upon hearing this message. Once again, Freshmen Irshu Scandia and Tarshu Scandia, please come to Testing Room 5 right away.]

“What was that…?” Abel stared at the twin noble ladies next to him, then asked, just to be sure.

“You two didn’t finish your measurements already?”

“If we did, it would’ve been bad.”

“If we did, we would’ve missed you.”

“Please head back right away. I’m sure the professors are desperate to find you both.”

Two students disappearing during power measurement—no doubt the professors were panicking.

Truth be told, the most chaos today was actually caused by Abel himself, but he had conveniently forgotten that.

“See you later, Abel Rotensilt.”

“We’ll meet again, Abel Rotensilt.”

They waved and turned away, walking off in perfect sync. Even their hurried steps were identical—Abel couldn’t believe how perfectly aligned they were, even for twins.

‘The Continental Academy… I expected a challenge, but this is on another level.’

A place overflowing with unique students. A haven of powerful ability users. If he didn’t want to be left behind by the likes of them, he’d need to work even harder from now on.

Getting up from the bench, Abel cracked his neck and shoulders.

He had planned on going back and resting early today—but now, those plans were completely scrapped.

It was time for training. And then more training.

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