Academy’s Villain Professor-Chapter 186 : Chapter 186

Chapter 186: Talent (2)
Even the students who didn't know Ho-cheol's clear identity or true strength could tell.
Ho-cheol's strength was out of the ordinary.
It was clearly different from the S-rank heroes or villains that the media talked about and showed.
That was definitely the work of a genius.
But to lump himself in with the realm of ordinary people or talented individuals.
Wasn't that a bit too shameless?
“That…”
Da-yeon spoke on behalf of the students, expressing their true feelings.
“No matter how I look at it, Professor, you seem far from an ordinary person or a talented individual.”
In Da-yeon's opinion, there was no other person as close to a genius, or rather, a natural disaster, as Ho-cheol.
Much more so than her father, the Sword Demon.
“Heo.”
Ho-cheol, who had belatedly realized the students' inner thoughts, let out a hollow laugh as if dumbfounded.
“You have a strange misunderstanding. From my perspective, it’s strange that you guys would think that.”
He scratched the back of his head.
“A genius and a talented person. What separates the two is not simply the presence or absence of strength. Strong means a genius, weak means a talented person. Where is there such an absurd dichotomy?”
Ho-cheol said, handing the sphere he was holding back to Ye-jin.
“Their own flashes of insight. Not being able to be empathized with by others, not being able to share their image no matter how much they try, and proving their existence by showing it directly, those are the ones classified as geniuses.”
Geniuses have no basis for their actions.
Just a series of flashes of insight that transcend reason and thought to create completely new standards and criteria.
At the very least, Ho-cheol could be sure.
He was not a genius.
“But have I ever presented a theory or logic to you so far that you couldn't understand?”
At that question, the students each pondered.
Last semester, and in the recent few weeks of lectures, the things he had presented were all just things they had encountered for the first time, but once they knew them, they were close to common sense that was in line with a very natural principle.
“Of course, to you guys, I might seem incomprehensibly strong, but that's all there is to it.”
An overwhelmingly strong person.
He had no intention of denying that.
But the strength he had reached was one he had achieved by steadily building up strength through reason.
A Trait that surpassed imagination.
A bizarre and incomprehensible obsession with strength.
A grotesque philosophy that a human could not contain.
Essential elements for a genius.
At the very least, Ho-cheol had none of those.
“In that sense, there’s no one further from a genius than me.”
There had been times when he had thrown himself into a madness that surpassed reason.
But that was just the struggle of a talented person to deal with a being that reason did not work on, that is, a genius.
“A genius and a talented person are not superior to one another. They just grow in completely different directions.”
He spread his thumb and index finger wide.
Not only the direction, but also the method of growth was different.
Unlike a talented person who grows step by step, a genius can achieve dramatic growth with a very minor trigger.
Talented people, seeing that, mistake a genius for being superior, but that is just a difference that occurs in a short moment.
While that trigger is absent, a genius is always stagnant.
In the end, if you look at it from a macroscopic perspective, the total amount of growth is not that different.
“Conversely, if I had been a genius, I wouldn't have been able to teach you. ‘Why can't you do this obvious thing? Why don't you know? Why do I have to explain it?’ I would have just said things like that every day, and anyone would have gotten tired and quit.”
As Ho-cheol was continuing his explanation, someone stealthily raised their hand.
“Right. A question.”
“Then is there no such thing as talent?”
“That’s not it.”
A genius and a talented person are equal.
But within each category, there is also a superiority and inferiority of talent.
“Even among talented people, how could there be no difference in talent? There is bound to be something you are born with.”
At those words, the atmosphere strangely subsided.
It was a little surprising that Ho-cheol was a talented person like them, not a genius.
But in the end, the overwhelming difference in talent was still there, wasn't it?
“But there’s something you guys need to know for sure.”
Ho-cheol brought his spread fingers together and clenched his fist.
“Talent is, in the end, just one of the tools. A good weapon, an innate Trait, a physical condition. It’s just that much. Do you think you can beat me just because you have a good weapon? Do you think you can become an S-rank just because your Trait gets a little better? It’s the same principle. Don’t be buried in your talent.”
Talent was also just a tool to achieve a goal, a single component that made up a hero.
A tool was not to be obsessed with, but to be used.
If you didn't understand that difference, you could never become first-rate.
“Most importantly, you guys are also in the top few percent in terms of pure talent.”
In the first place, you couldn't even enroll in Clington without talent.
“And one more thing. Top-tier heroes. Although the proportion of geniuses in the S-rank is considerable, the best heroes have always been talented individuals.”
Not only the Sword Demon, but also Smiley, and even The Sun.
In Ho-cheol's standards, they were closer to talented individuals than geniuses.
The way they had built up their strength was always logical and in line with reason.
“The next one is…”
Ho-cheol raised his index finger and pointed to Da-yeon.
And then to Ye-jin.
After that, he pointed to the other students one by one.
“There’s no guarantee that it’s not you. No, it will be you. Because I taught you, and you learned.”
That confident declaration.
At the very least, Ho-cheol did not have even a small exaggeration in such an education.
He said he could do it, and that it would happen.
Then it would surely happen.
The students' eyes burned with more motivation than ever before.
After the lecture, a student asked.
“Then have you ever seen such a genius, Professor?”
“Yes. I have.”
Ho-cheol answered shortly and let out a sigh.
The face that immediately came to mind was the glutton in his dorm who was probably sleeping in right now.
***
After the lecture.
Ho-cheol, who had returned to his dorm, changed his clothes.
Originally, he had no schedule on Mondays other than his morning lecture, but today was an exception.
Perhaps because it was getting to be autumn, the weather was also quite chilly, and he, who had put on a windbreaker, turned his head to the side.
On the bed, the center of the blanket was bulging.
He slapped the bulging blanket, which was like a hill, with his palm.
“Eeing.”
With a weak sound from below, the blanket squirmed.
From under the blanket, Ji-an poked only her head out.
A real genius.
Looking at her, Ho-cheol gestured with his chin.
At the very least, in Ho-cheol's opinion, there was no other genius as bizarre as this.
A flash of insight, a species that would become stronger at will for trivial reasons.
And that is much harder to understand.
“What are you doing? Get ready quickly.”
Although Ji-an would usually be full of anticipation for an outing with Ho-cheol and would have finished her preparations a day in advance, even taking out the clothes she would wear, today was an exception.
Because the purpose of today's outing was a health check-up.
She turned her body in circles with a tearful face.
“I don’t want to goooo.”
“You’ve been fasting since yesterday, right? I heard you have to fast before a check-up.”
“Ugh. Yes…”
Of course, although she had whined that she didn't want to go, if she had really not even fasted and had been stubborn, it was obvious that she would have been really scolded by Ho-cheol, so she had followed the fast properly.
“Kkeueueuk.”
Ji-an was dawdling without even getting properly dressed.
Since she was blatantly showing that she didn't want to go, Ho-cheol let out a sigh.
At that sigh, Ji-an's body flinched greatly for a moment.
Ho-cheol might be strict as a professor, but as a guardian, he was an endlessly generous person.
However, that was only when she stayed within certain bounds.
This sigh was of a kind that only came out when the other person had crossed that line.
“I-I’ll get ready quickly!”
Ji-an hastily put on the socks she had taken off under the bed.
No, she was about to.
Ho-cheol, who was now kneeling on one knee, put her socks on for her.
“Uht, you don’t have to do that!”
Unlike the flustered Ji-an, Ho-cheol was calm.
Ho-cheol calmly reached for the other sock.
“I’m going to be with you the whole time. What are you so afraid of?”
Unlike what she had expected, which was anger or a scolding, he put on her other sock with a gentle tone.
“Heroes and villains. As long as I keep protecting you, they won't touch or torment you. But sickness is different.”
After putting on the pure white socks up to her ankles, Ho-cheol pressed her feet.
“I have very few people who I would call a friend. I can count them on one hand. But in the midst of so few, one of them just died.”
He let out a faint sigh.
“It was a sickness. Of course, since it was an incurable disease, it probably wouldn’t have changed much even if she had gotten a hospital check-up. But maybe if she had found it in the early stages. And if she had somehow received the proper treatment, maybe she could have lived at least one more day. I had a lot of regrets like that. I was so desperate for that one day, no, for even a few hours. That’s how precious the time you have together is.”
Ho-cheol raised his head and asked Ji-an.
“I want to see you healthy for a long time. It seems you don’t?”
At Ho-cheol's honest question, Ji-an was momentarily at a loss for words.
Whether she was completely moved, or if she had felt an even greater emotion.
She whimpered and sniffled.
“If you say it like that, Mister… how can I say I don’t want to go…”
She sniffled and collapsed onto Ho-cheol's shoulder.
“Let’s go quickly…”
“Right.”
Ho-cheol chuckled and lightly patted the back of her, who was clinging to him like a piece of luggage.
***
The hospital is affiliated with the Association.
After several hours of a detailed check-up, it was finally over.
Of course, there had been some minor friction, such as her stubbornly refusing to get a shot, but for the other check-ups, since Ho-cheol had been by her side for most of them, there had been no major incidents.
And the characteristic color and atmosphere of the check-up facilities, which could have stimulated her trauma, Ho-cheol had solved by just throwing money at it.
Not only had he rented out the entire hospital, but he had also called an awakened one with a paint Trait and had changed all the colors in the hospital.
For just one person, it was a truly extravagant service.
As an extension of that, a doctor in a gown of an unusually flamboyant color sat facing the two of them.
He flipped through the results and continued to speak.
“Uh, first, to tell you the results, in Ji-an’s case, there are no problems with her general health.”
The doctor adjusted his glasses that had slipped down.
“However. A minor overclocking phenomenon was detected in her Trait.”
Trait overclocking.
It was simple overuse and a kind of Trait overwork.
In fact, it was a minor phenomenon that heroes or villains would often experience.
Ho-cheol's expression crumpled.
He turned his head to the side and asked Ji-an.
“We agreed you wouldn’t use your Trait.”
“Ah, um. When I was listening to the lecture, I only used it to the extent that it was absolutely necessary.”
She raised both hands and brought her fingers together.
She fidgeted with her fingers and glanced at Ho-cheol.
“In the lecture?”
That's impossible.
The first-year curriculum at the academy was mostly theory that did not require a Trait.
In the first place, what were they going to do, guys who hadn't even gotten a Trait-related license.
Most importantly, Ji-an's specs were such that she could beat up all the students at Clington even without using her Trait.
To say she used her Trait because of the lecture was just an excuse.
“Again.”
“Th-that is.”
Looking at Ji-an, who couldn't answer for a long time, Ho-cheol let out another sigh.
He turned his head and looked at So-hee.
She also stealthily turned her head and avoided Ho-cheol's gaze.
It seemed she knew something, but judging by the fact that she was hiding it, had the two of them agreed on something?
Ho-cheol, who had been considering a few possibilities, clicked his tongue as if he had given up on questioning her.
“It’s not a bad thing, is it?”
“……Yes. Yes! Absolutely!”
“Then it’s fine. Judging by the fact that you can’t say it, it seems to be for a personal reason. That’s it. I won’t let it slide anymore.”
Whatever she had done, he believed that at the very least, it wasn't something that would betray his trust.
And he didn't want to pry into something she didn't want to talk about.
If it had been something truly illegal, So-hee would have stopped her first.
That's why he had just let what had happened so far be.
The doctor had said that if she just rested for about a month and took her medicine regularly, she would return to her normal level.
“Whatever you do, one month. Don’t do anything for a month.”
“Yeees…”
And so, after hearing the rest of the explanation about Ji-an's condition, it was now Ho-cheol's turn.
In fact, Ji-an was the main, and Ho-cheol was just on the side.
Naturally, he had thought he would be healthy without any major problems, so he hadn't given it much thought.
At least, that's what he had thought until just a moment ago.
The doctor adjusted his glasses with a serious expression.
“And uh, the guardian is in a rather serious condition.”
In fact, instead of Ji-an, who was perfectly healthy except for some minor overwork, the real problem was him.
It was a miracle he was alive.
A walking corpse.
The doctor, who had forced himself to hold back such expressions, added.
“Let’s start with hospitalization right away.”
Ho-cheol's expression momentarily became blank.
Who?
Me?
Why?