episode_0061

“I specifically told you to stay put in the dorm for at least a day because we’ll be dealing with a lot of things. But why… nothing happened at all? Thanks to that, we couldn’t even go out and have fun with our Meonyangi, you know?”

“…Is that so?”

“…No way.”

Did they deceive me?

What on earth is going on?

What was the reason for telling us to stay put for a day?

To figure that out, we had to go back two days.

* * *

Two days ago.

After reconciling with my friend Moonbora and the hungover Meonyangi, we three met again at the dorm.

It was Moonbora who brought up the topic first.

She mentioned the precautions.

“Oh, so after 3 days, the first week of training begins, right?”

“Yes, but the timing is the problem. It’s a day of intense scrutiny.”

“…Huh?”

Moonbora explained that before entering the , the professors directly approach the students.

During the training, it’s a prohibited period, so that’s when everyone aims for it.

“Why approach them?”

“Well, it’s because they come in based on their achievements.”

“…Huh?”

After the training ends, the students attend the professor’s classes through enrollment.

However, there was a tricky part here.

It’s said that if a student excels in the class, they are rewarded with a prize under the guise of an incentive.

“It’s not just about the money, but at some point, it turned into a competition between the professors.”

“…Competition?”

“Yes, it’s a kind of showing off their disciples. They boast about how great the students they taught are. It has led to a hierarchy issue among the professors and even affects things like promotions.”

Moonbora explained that she didn’t know the details of the internal affairs of the academy, but it’s more complex than one would think.

“And here’s the problem. Most professors prefer students who are already complete rather than those who show potential. It’s much easier and more certain to teach them.”

As she said that, I also caught on to the intention behind her words.

“Mew…”

“Oh, that means…”

“Miss Mahana, and even Miss Seha, the students who showed impressive performance in the test are the ones to watch out for.”

Moonbora sighed briefly and looked at me.

“Especially Miss Seha will be under more scrutiny.”

“…Huh?”

“Think about it. She’s the only student who received a pass directly from Professor Pang Jina.”

Later, I found out that Professor Pang Jina is ranked second in the academy.

She holds immense power and influence, almost next to the director, and is considered a formidable figure who earned the impressive nickname of as a hunter.

‘…She’s definitely the owner of a level 25 skill.’

It’s a story that can be easily understood.

“Most likely, everyone will have their eyes on Miss Seha. The class is confidential, so they might not know about , but her potential, talent, and even her appearance will draw attention. Professors thirsty for results will approach you.”

“Oh…”

“Their contact isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but too much of anything is never good.”

So, I recommend staying quiet in the dorm for about a day.

It’s not good to get involved in unnecessary things.

*

Back to reality.

Moonbora made a bold statement…

But in the end, none of what she said came true.

‘There was no contact at all.’

Not just for me, but even Meonyangi.

According to Moonbora, no one came.

“Nothing happened at all?”

Moonbora was taken aback by my words.

‘There’s no way this could happen,’ she muttered, beads of sweat forming on her forehead.

Cough-!

Cough-!

She cleared her throat subtly, avoiding eye contact.

“What, what… I-I might be wrong. Don’t monkeys sometimes fall from trees?”

‘A monkey, huh.’

An abrupt story.

As befitting the popular character Moonbora, there were various costume options available.

Among them, the most prominent was animal cosplay.

Among these, there was also a costume in the form of a monkey.

Although opinions among the maplers were divided on this attire, I particularly liked Moonbora in that outfit.

The unique feature of Moonbora’s costume was that the tail moved.

There was even a special motion where Moonbora and Mmeongi would sway their animal tails together and draw a heart.

‘…Is it possible even now that it has become reality?’

Maybe if I ask for the outfit later, they’ll give it to me.

“…Are you imagining strange things right now?”

“No, not at all?”

“…Exactly!”

“No, not at all~”

Moonbora, getting angry while pouting, with a sulky attitude.

It was a moment when I was considering teasing her a little more.

“Mmeongi… Moonbora. It seems like they’ve arrived.”

Mmeongi, who had sensed it a while ago, gave a subtle signal.

Only then could I feel someone approaching this way.

“……!”

“They’ve arrived.”

The heavy and powerful sound of footsteps echoed in my ears.

Thud, thud.

As the door opened, in came a beautiful woman with long beige hair, as elegant as a spring flower.

“Sorry for being late. Have you been waiting long?”

“No!”

“Not at all.”

“Mmeongi. Please come in.”

The person who smiled satisfactorily at our response was none other than Professor Pang Jina.

She was the one in charge of guiding us through the training that was starting today.

‘…By the way.’

I was already concerned when she entered…

“Professor, um…”

“Yes?”

“Have you been to a dungeon recently?”

I asked this because there was a faint bruise on Pang Jina’s face.

Although it had almost disappeared after receiving treatment, the distinctive bluish color was still there.

Momentarily taken aback by my question, Pang Jina chuckled and slyly turned her head to hide the bruise.

“…Well, I had some business to take care of.”

After vaguely skirting around the issue, she began the briefing in earnest.

Most of the briefing content was already known to us.

As Moonbora had mentioned earlier, the first week was for physical training.

The second week was for testing and recording the power of the abilities we possessed.

The third week was for 3v3 team battles.

And the final fourth week was for clearing and closing the gate.

“Oh, so in the fourth week… the semi-finals and finals will compete against each other?”

“That’s right. The scores here will determine the winner more than the training. And the winning team will have the opportunity to use the academy’s treasure vault with the chairman’s permission.”

Oh, wow.

The treasure vault?

The Gones Hunter Academy boasted a long history of producing various talents.

And some of these talents, upon retirement, donated their equipment, artifacts, masterpieces, and even unused [Runes].

Just obtaining one of these would undoubtedly be a great help for future growth.

“Um, Professor, by the way?”

Moonbora slowly raised her hand.

“What is it, Moonbora?”

“…Why are there only three of us here? I heard that we were supposed to gather everyone at once for the explanation…”

“Well, I was just about to explain that part.”

Pang Jina coughed awkwardly.

Moonbora’s eyes widened at her following words.

“From now on, the three of you will form a team and proceed. And during the training period, I will be in charge exclusively. That’s why I called you separately to inform you.”

“…Excuse me? A team? But, as far as I know, team formation is supposed to be done slowly starting from the second week…”

“You three are an exception. And Yuseha, what about you?”

“Oh, me?”

I, too, was taken aback by her words.

“After all your training is over, you will receive specialized lessons under me. Until you graduate, that is.”

“…Specialized lessons?”

“Yes. It’s the next step in the process commonly known as ‘exclusive disciple.’”

“…What?”

Exclusive disciple.

A kind of apprentice that each professor has, a combination of a protege and a student proposal.

It was a very meaningful ceremony where they pledged to each other at their [roots], going beyond the relationship of just teaching.

However, the instructors of ‘Gosla’ saw this a bit differently.

“Damn… Isn’t this like a graduate student event?!”

Among the many in ‘Gosla’, this was considered one of the most significant opportunities.

But it was equally intense.

Their relaxed academic life suddenly turned into a hellish level of difficulty.

With an overwhelming amount of homework to do.

They had to present papers and actual achievements to the professors in order to pass.

If they didn’t do it on time.

They had to be prepared for bitter remarks and scolding like, “Is that all you can do?”

“…”

Turning her creaking head, she stared at Moon Bora intently.

Moon Bora quickly turned her head away from that gaze.

“Excuse me. Bora, right? Didn’t you say not to worry about this until all the training is over and the ‘exclusive’ proposal comes…?”

“…There’s no way… Well, even monkeys fall from trees sometimes…”

“-If you fall from this height, you would have cracked your head long ago!”

“Eek! Both of you calm down!”

The sudden remarks caused a commotion among the three.

Pang Jina, the mastermind behind everything, watched this scene with satisfaction.

Indeed, even now she thought…

‘I did well.’

Three days ago.

Conference room within the academy.

About ten professors were silently looking at each other.

All of them were specialized professors in charge of the subjects preferred by ‘close combat dealers’, and they themselves were individuals who taught classes of the ‘close combat dealer’ type.

They were all hot-headed by nature.

So, seeing them gathered like this was quite a rare sight.

Undoubtedly, the most suspicious figure among them was Pang Jina, sitting right in the center.

‘…How pitiful.’

Pang Jina snorted at the women who were trying to push her aside and settle things among themselves.

After all, the campaign was hers…

She couldn’t understand why they were targeting her.

‘But leaving this alone would only cause trouble.’

Therefore, she chose a fiery method that no one could object to.

Bang!

Pang Jina stood up from her seat and slammed the table hard.

The professors all looked at her with wide-eyed faces.

Whether to say something or not, she untied the sword at her waist and dropped it to the corner of the room.

“It seems like everyone has a lot to say.”

“…Of course. Professor Pang Jina. Being all lovey-dovey with a cute and handsome guy on your own…-”

“-Your tongue is sharp.”

Cutting off the words neatly, Pang Jina removed the badge symbolizing the ‘2nd place’ on her chest and threw it to the corner.

“Talking among ourselves is meaningless. After all, conversation is done with fists. Therefore, from now on, we will remove our badges.”

Understanding the meaning of her last words, the eyes of the female professors changed.

They all stood up from their seats and threw their weapons and badges to the corner.

Pang Jina cracked her knuckles.

“From now on, we settle things with our fists. And the winner takes it all. That way, no one will have any complaints, right?”

“Alright!”

“I’ve never liked it from the beginning!”

“I will teach while showing off my genius handsome man! I will teach you this and that!”

“A 30-year-old spinster! Revealing a man! How embarrassing!”

Snap!

The last words were definitely a strong provocation.

Pang Jina, with blood vessels pulsating on his forehead, clenched his fist firmly.

“O-nya, let’s rearrange the hierarchy once again today.”

He swung his lightning-fast fist towards the professors charging towards him.