The infirmary for Cube was modern and considerate. Due to the fact that injuries and physical status could be exploited in the mandatory duels at the end of the semester, as well as general information gathering for weaknesses, it was a highly restricted area.
Or in other words, for Yeonha to meet someone in the infirmary, she had to make a request to visit said cadet at the front desk and hope that said cadet allowed her to enter.
Normally.
Fortunately, there was an exception made if you were in the same team due to the fact that a team member's condition determined a cadet's personal evaluation as well.
All of that to say, Yeonha was free to make her way to Hajin's treatment room and check in on him.
As she headed there, she came across Suho, who was heading back from his treatment.
"Yoo Yeonha." Suho nodded and said, "You here to check on Hajin?"
"Yes. There is something I wished to discuss with him... and also, I need to ensure his condition is sufficient for combat. I cannot have him bring down my own performance, can I?"
Suho chuckled. "I think you'll be fine considering Lee is on your team." He massaged his arms and said, "That guy... It's weird."
"Hm?" Yeonha sensed something odd in Suho's tone of voice, so she slowed her steps and stopped in front of him. "...Something strange about Lee?"
"Well, first there's the fact that you're calling him by name."
Yeonha froze. Then she felt her face heat up from embarrassment and said, "Th-That does not count. He is American. Name conventions don't follow."
Suho laughed and said, "Just kidding. But seriously... Hm." Suho rubbed his chin and said, "...I'm sure of it. That guy's real weapon is a sword. He knows how to use a spear and halberd, but the footwork and the fact that he read my abilities and attacks so easily... you can't do that without knowing how to use a sword yourself."
Yeonha blinked. "...I beg your pardon? Do you mean that Lee, our ridiculously competent teammate, one who even managed to push Nayun towards enlightenment with a bow... is using a secondary weapon at Cube?! No, he has been doing that since the Agent Military Academy?!"
Suho nodded. "Yeah. I mean, it makes sense though. He's probably in a similar situation as Hajin. Lee is definitely more talented in the sword, but he's hampered by his lack of magic power output. And since a spear or polearm is a larger weapon, later on, you can stack more enchantments onto it. It's enough to make up for that handicap."
Yeonha froze. Pieces clicked together in her head.
The reason why Lee didn't completely disregard Hajin. The reason why he was so knowledgable about bows. How he could assess Hajin's abilities so readily...
"...Lee chose the spear after considering every other weapon." Yeonha murmured.
"Well, yeah." Suho shrugged and said, "They gave us mandatory weapon training at the Agent Military Academy, but that guy probably looked into it more. You saw how he fought me, right?" He laughed and rubbed the back of his neck. "...It's ridiculous. He probably has real life fighting experience. ...Against people too."
Yeonha's eyes widened.
And then she saw it. The reason why Lee was so skilled- No, what he had chosen to specialize in.
If you lacked magic power, you couldn't defeat monsters. Not easily, at least. And not without being extremely geared to compensate for the lack of damage output.
But HUMANs. Rogue Heroes or Villains...
Monsters came in all forms of morphologies and with all sorts of abilities.
But humans were the same.
Though Gifts could differ, the way people moved, the way they fought, the way they THOUGHT.
If you were smart enough... No. If you understood 'humanity' well enough.
You could- WOULD win every time. Even if you were weaker. Even if you lacked a critical component like magic power.
Because it was easy to tell what killed a human. And 'how' to kill a human had been refined since the start of humanity.
Killing monsters though?
That was a recent thing.
You could train, plan, and learn. But it was still unpredictable.
Compared to that...
Yeonha instinctively swallowed at the realization.
Because she understood now.
The reason why Lee walked around so carefree. Why he was amused at people looking down at him.
It must be as amusing as a wolf- No. As a bear roaming among puppies.
Suho shook his head and said, "Either way... it should be fine." He smiled. "I confirmed it today when sparring against him. His blade is clear."
Yeonha blinked. "His blade is clear? What?"
Suho laughed and walked past Yeonha. "I mean that he's just here to relax, have fun, and learn. Don't worry about him. Our mutual friend is the sort of guy you have to work at to make an enemy. Anyway, tell Nayun I said hi."
Yeonha reflexively said, "It's Chae Nayun, Kim Suho. Unless you want Jonghak to challenge you to a spar next."
Suho raised his hand and said, "Any day, any time~ Probably easier than Lee." After saying that, Suho left.
And then it was just Yeonha with her thoughts.
For a moment, she considered bringing it up with Lee. After all, Yeonha had already determined that Lee was a valuable ally to have...
But then she decided it didn't matter.
'That Suho is right.'
Yeonha had assessed Lee as well. And she knew that he was the sort of person who had a firm sense of himself. And someone who also knew where the lines were without crossing them.
Well, except when it came to Lady Rachel.
...Though if he WASN'T acting like he was around Lady Rachel, then Yeonha would be suspicious.
After all, Rachel was the number one beauty in the school. Objectively so as well... as loathe as Yeonha was to admit it.
Having that person be so clearly into you and not reciprocating it...
'You would either have to like the same gender or have something wrong with your head as a man...'
So, after settling that matter in her head, Yeonha continued on her way to meet with the other person occupying her thoughts.
The door opened with a click.
Hajin was already up, fiddling with the blankets and open air for some reason... A nervous tick that Yeonha noticed him have.
'Maybe since he's still used to having a sword? Or a side-effect of his Gift?'
Hajin seemed deeply lost in thought, his fingers twitching against nothing.
So Yeonha cleared her throat to get his attention. "Ahem. Kim Hajin."
Hajin flinched and looked up. "Y-Yes? I mean, yes. What is it, Yeonha?"
Yeonha's eye twitched. "...I will let it slide this once. But use my last name when addressing me, Kim Hajin. Lee gets a pass because he is American. You do not. Also, don't speak so casually with me."
"Yes. Got it." Hajin nodded, although he still seemed distracted, averting his gaze.
Yeonha frowned. "...Are you not well?"
"Huh?" Hajin blinked. "I mean... I'm a bit sore from training. But I'm fine. The nurse said I didn't even have a concussion." He laughed. "It was just passing out from fatigue."
Yeonha's frown deepened as she swept her gaze across Hajin's body.
...It didn't make sense.
Hajin was clearly trained. His body was muscular and looked fit. Moreover, he didn't look like he would lose out to Kim Suho in terms of athletic prowess.
But he was so *utterly* pathetic.
'It must be due to Enlightenment.'
That was the only conclusion Yeonha could reach.
Whatever he had awakened to as a Gift had taken all his talent with the blade and compressed it into the talent with a gun instead.
Considering how trained Hajin appeared to be...
'...It's like an abandoned puppy.'
That was Yeonha's impression of him. Something discarded at the curb because it ended up being a different breed once he matured a bit. Like the many designer pets discarded by the rich.
Still.
'He isn't completely valueless. No, he is actually a steal.'
Because Yeonha was the daughter of the Essence of Strait's guild leader.
And the Essence of Strait ran Essential Armory, the most prevalent location for factory manufactured weapons.
Like guns.
"Well. Your physical fitness aside..." Yeonha decided to ignore the mental dissonance that came with someone like Hajin looking so athletic but performing worse than a civilian computer science major who spent all day inside on a computer. "...I have an offer for you. One you cannot refuse."
Hajin blinked. "...An offer?"
"Yes. Your Gift, it has to do with guns, yes? And your Gift does not expend your stamina or magic power. It simply 'performs.' So." Yeonha let out a sly smile. "Let me buy you."
"W-What?"