Chaeyoung was in a good mood. In fact, she was feeling so good that for once, she wasn't even feeling annoyed as she strode towards Sehun's room, a bounce in her step. Usually, the thought of the sour-faced captain always managed to soil her usually cheery countenance, but for once, even he was unable to dampen her high spirits. 

For once, she hadn't come last in their daily run. 

Grinning happily, she turned around the corner only to halt when she heard loud, raised voices nearby. Blinking, her eyebrows furrowed when she realised one of the voices was Sehun's. Glancing around the corner, she saw Sehun standing in front of an older man, who she identified as his grandfather, the famous general Oh Jinhyuk. 

"You're being ridiculous!" The young captain shouted, his voice coloured with anger. 

"I don't ing care! I need them to be ready in 4 months maximum!" General Oh roared back, his chilling glare piercing through Sehun. 'Well, now I know where he gets it from.'

"That's impossible! They're not ready and they definitely won't be in such a short amount of time!" Sehun growled back. 'Are they talking about our cadet class?' Chaeyoung wondered, her curiosity piqued. She knew she shouldn't eavesdrop, but she found her body refused to move. Her curiosity was too strong. Instead, she stayed hidden around the corner.

"Why? Are you that incompetent now that you can't even whip a bunch of trainees into shape?" General Oh sneered and Chaeyoung actually felt herself taking a step back in surprise, her eyes widening. To her surprise, she couldn't help but feel just a little bit indignant and defensive. There were many ways to describe Oh Sehun, but incompetent was definitely not one of them. His grandfather obviously didn't realise how talented and hard-working Sehun really was. 

"...They'll die the moment they step onto the battlefield," Sehun's voice was quiet now, but it retained it's cold, hard edge. 

"Then train them and make sure they don't. I gave you a job, Sehun. I expect you to complete it to your absolute best. I don't need any of half-assed, ty results you're giving me," General Oh spoke with a tone of authoritative finality. "I've seen the reports on their progress. Some of them are truly abysmal. There's this one woman, Park Chaeyoung I think her name was. Her results are absolutely terrible. From what I hear, she comes last in every obstacle course, loses every hand-to-hand combat match and struggles with all physical training. The only thing she's remotely good at is theory work, which isn't going to get her anywhere. It's absolutely pathetic and frankly embarrassing for both you and me."

Suddenly, it felt like Chaeyoung had just been punched in the chest. She blinked, her good mood dissipating into thin air as she swallowed thickly, a painful lump in . 

'It's absolutely pathetic and frankly embarrassing for both you and me.'

Sehun remained silent, obviously unable to disagree with the General. She looked down at her boots, suddenly regretting her choice of staying and listening. 

But just as she turned foot to leave, Sehun's voice spoke again. And this time, his voice was filled with contempt. "Shut the up. You don't ing know anything. That cadet you're talking about - she works harder than anyone in your ing specialised defence unit. And you said she was only remotely good at theory work? She's one of the smartest cadets in her entire ing class. Maybe she's not as strong as some of the other trainees, but I'll be damned before I let you call her pathetic. She's made the most progress out of anyone in the class. So shut up about my students being incompetent. Because they sure ing aren't."

Chaeyoung was stunned frozen. Did Sehun just defend her? Against his own grandfather and commander? Oddly, her heart began pounding in her chest. Didn't Sehun always find her pathetic? Why was he defending her now?

Feeling confused and sho