episode_0017

018

Bang, clang!

Clang clang clang! Bang!

“Grr?! Eum-eo-eo-eo-eo!”

With tremendous psychic power, Hong Da-ye relentlessly attacked the Minotaur.

The Minotaur roared loudly, causing the training ground floor to crack open, sending dirt and stone fragments flying.

In an instant, Hong Da-ye concentrated his intangible power to tightly restrain the Minotaur’s limbs and then swung his sword with all his might.

But from a distance, a black hand swooped in like an arrow, attacking Hong Da-ye’s back.

“Kiri-ri-ri, kick, kiri-ri, kick-kick.”

“This little monkey.”

The sharp claws of a monkey, about two fists larger than an adult male, narrowly grazed Hong Da-ye’s cheek.

Drip.

Droplets of blood trickled down his cheek.

“Kiiii, kiiick, kick-kick.”

Excited by the sight of blood, the monkey extended its arms like rubber bands, whipping them like a whip.

Buzz.

At a speed almost invisible to the eye, it gradually pressured Hong Da-ye, but with the use of psychic power, he could easily block the attack.

However, every time he used psychic power, the Minotaur seemed to sense it like a ghost and unleashed a counterattack.

Unable to properly fight against both of them.

And his psychic abilities were acting up.

His powers were slowly slipping away.

His body, already in bad shape, seemed unable to withstand any more psychic power usage.

His body just couldn’t handle it.

“Eum, eo-eo! Eo-eo!”

“!”

Taking advantage of a slight lapse in concentration, the Minotaur’s fist struck his abdomen. Oh, damn it.

Thud!

“Kuh, kug!”

It felt like being hit by a truck.

He managed to defend against the fatal blow with psychic power in a short time, but it felt like a rib had cracked.

“Cooluk, cooluk… Hoo.”

Damn it.

In the past, he could have easily taken him down.

To be defeated by a mere calf was humiliating.

Time is cruel.

“If only that little monkey wasn’t here.”

The black-handed monkey behind the Minotaur, constantly restraining Hong Da-ye, was quite a nuisance.

If he tried to bind the calf with psychic power, the monkey would interfere.

“If I keep this up, I might not be able to hold out until the security team arrives.”

Wiping away the blood trickling from his lips, Hong Da-ye once again summoned his psychic power.

He couldn’t afford to speak softly in front of the children.

After all, he was a hero.

He had to protect those children.

“…As you can see, the instructor won’t last long.”

“…”

The trainees from Team 1 and Team 16 fell silent.

They couldn’t just leave the injured Hong Da-ye alone.

But jumping in without thinking would only result in them being tossed around like a piece of meat on the dirty ground.

“Our task is simple. We’ll take on one of those monsters to allow the instructor to focus more.”

“Which monster, the calf or the monkey?”

In response to the polite character Yulia’s question, Lee Jin-hyuk gestured towards the long-armed monkey.

“Of course, the monkey.”

It was only natural.

The Minotaur was on a different level.

“But don’t underestimate the monkey. It may be weaker than the Minotaur, but it’s not an opponent that trainees can easily defeat.”

Indeed, it seemed likely.

Yuriya nodded solemnly in agreement with his words.

“I may not know exactly how strong that monkey monster is, but just by watching it move a few times, I could tell that it’s beyond what the students can handle.”

“Rather than trying to defeat that monkey monster, we just need to aggro it until the security team arrives.”

“…It doesn’t seem as easy as you make it sound.”

Aggroing the monkey?

Words are easy, too easy.

But for the students who have never faced an opponent of that level before, it was definitely not an easy task.

Unlike the practice they had done at the academy so far, real combat could result in irreversible consequences with just a small mistake.

And their bodies were still stiff from facing those monsters scattered around.

So they couldn’t perform at their usual level.

In this situation, could they really handle that monster well?

“Whether you like it or not, we have to do it.”

Jinhyuk scanned the faces of the kids with a serious look in his eyes.

The kids quietly met Jinhyuk’s gaze.

“Since our lives are at stake if the instructor falls, we have no choice.”

“…Well, that’s true.”

Sena nodded, unable to deny the fact, even though she wanted to. When is the security team coming for real?

“So, what’s the plan?”

“Do we have any sharp objects?”

“Hey, we don’t have time, so hurry up and tell us.”

Naturally, Jinsuyeon, Yuseolhyun, and Senari threw questions at him.

And accordingly, Isiwoon and Yuriya’s gazes also turned towards Jinhyuk.

Since everyone knew about his ability to strategize and his achievements in the 16th, 8th, and 4th rounds.

It was only natural for them to listen to his words with interest.

Given that Jinhyuk was the most suitable operator here, no matter what others said.

It was better to leave the planning to him rather than the others.

“…Well. Instead of a great plan, I’ll assign positions. As I said before, we just need to buy time.”

In the tense situation, Jinhyuk quickly explained the outline and mentioned a few characteristics of the black-handed long-armed monkey.

The kids nodded in agreement and took on their respective roles.

Although a little anxious, the results Jinhyuk had shown throughout the evaluation gave them some confidence.

“Now then.”

Jinhyuk slowly nocked an arrow on his bow.

He was an archer after all.

As someone lacking in heroic talent, using a bow as his main weapon was the most rational choice for Jinhyuk.

“Let’s go. Everyone, get ready.”

“Yes.”

“Okay.”

Thwack! An arrow imbued with a faint magical power flew towards the monkey’s temple.

But…

“Huh? Kiiii?”

Was it too easy for the monkey to just casually catch the arrow as if it had eyes on its back? It’s not just going to let itself be hit like that.

Should they engage the monkey in its 2nd phase after all?

“It’s aggroed.”

“Kii? Kiiiii? Kiiiiii….”

The gaze of the black-handed long-armed monkey met Jinhyuk’s.

Uh… Now that their eyes met, it seemed like the monkey was slightly regretting its actions just now? Jinhyuk discreetly swallowed his dry saliva. Phew. Oh well. Let’s give it a try.

The monkey disdainfully snapped the arrow in half and then leisurely licked its lips.

Seeing this, Hong Daye furrowed her brows and shouted, “What are you guys doing? You’re risking yourselves unnecessarily! I told you not to step forward…”

“You can’t handle it alone, Instructor! If you fall, it’s all over!”

Jinsuyeon shouted loudly.

“We’re dealing with that monkey, so hurry up and help us catch the cow!”

“…You guys.”

Hong Daye slightly bit her lip.

It was difficult for Hong Daye alone to deal with the two monsters, despite Jin Soyeon’s words.

If they made a mistake and suffered a serious injury, she couldn’t guarantee the safety of those kids.

In a way, the kids’ actions were a rational choice.

But was it the right choice to entrust a powerful monster to them, who were just academy trainees?

If something went wrong…

“We’re hero trainees too! So don’t worry too much, teacher!”

Suddenly.

– Trainees are not just kids, they’re hero trainees. We can’t just treat them like kids forever.

The words she had said before came to mind.

– You will have multiple responsibilities as a hero trainee. In case of an emergency declaration, you will be mobilized without being seen as trainees and have the duty to protect citizens from criminals.

These kids are not just students, they are hero trainees.

– They are treated as half adults by law. They may have been students who received help until now, but it’s different now. You are not in a role to receive help. You are in a role to give help.

It’s not just a role to receive help, but a role to give help, as Hong Daye had said herself.

But should they continue to treat those kids as students?

Even those who have obtained licenses as prospective heroes?

“…Don’t be reckless. The security team will be here soon. No, wait. I’ll quickly take care of this cow head and come help.”

For now, Hong Daye decided to give in.

She was worried, but she had no choice but to trust the kids for now.

“Yes, teacher…! Oh, they’re coming! Jinhyuk, they’re coming!”

The long-armed monkey, who had been staring at Lee Jinhyuk’s group, immediately leaped towards the kids.

In the blink of an eye, the monkey jumped several meters and extended its arms like rubber bands to aim at Lee Jinhyuk, but…

“Who are you looking at?”

Ignoring the flesh scattered by the monkey, Seonari forcefully raised his fist to knock away the monkey’s arm.

With a bang, the monkey’s hand shot up to the ceiling. An arm that had stretched to almost five meters.

“…Huh!”

Seiwoon did not miss the opportunity and, after taking a breath, infused magic into his sword to horizontally cut the monkey’s arm.

Splat!

“Kiiii, iii!”

The monster’s flesh split open, and blood splattered.

“…It’s tough.”

But the skin was tougher than he thought.

He didn’t cut it properly.

No matter how much he poured his strength and magic into the training sword and swung it with all his might, it didn’t cut through. Was it because it was a training sword?

Seiwoon bit his lower lip slightly.

“Back off! Yuseolhyun, counterattack!”

“I know!”

When the monkey tried to push Seiwoon with its left hand, Yuseolhyun immediately sprang forward and attacked.

Clang, clang! The sharp claws and practice blade made a clanging sound.

While slashing with the spear, Yulia’s Thunder Spear struck the long-armed monkey at the right moment.

“Kiiii, iii, eek!”

Taking advantage of the momentary muscle contraction caused by the intense lightning strike, Seiwoon, Yuseolhyun, and Seonari launched a combined attack.

But the black hand of the long-armed monkey, unfazed by their combined attack, extended its arm between the spears to attack the annoying magician first.

Swish!

The black hand moved at a rapid speed.

Unprotected, Yuriya’s abdomen was vigorously struck, but Jin Soyeon, who had been prepared in advance, used a one-handed shield to parry the monkey’s touch.

“Kirri, liriliri, liririk!”

The black-handed long-armed monkey, as if annoyed, withdrew its arm.

The sight of them hopping around one by one was far from pleasing.

“Haa, ha… What’s this, nothing special about this monkey.”

“Don’t let your guard down. That guy hasn’t taken much damage.”

At Seonari’s words, Lee Jinhyuk added a comment.

Despite the six of them working together to attack, they were unable to inflict proper damage. However, Jinhyuk thought it was going better than expected.

For the first time, facing off against 16 teams of kids, their coordination was surprisingly good, and since stalling for time was the top priority anyway.

‘Alright.’

Frontline tanking was handled by Isiwoon and Seonari, who had good defensive abilities. Mid-range dealing was done by Yuseolhyun, who was fast on his feet and had a long range. The backline consisted of operator Lee Jinhyuk and magician Yuriya. And the well-balanced Jin Soyeon took on the role of keeper in the middle.

‘Not bad.’

Yeah, it wasn’t bad.

With this level of power and positions, unless they were facing a really formidable opponent, they should be able to handle it.

That’s how outstanding the kids’ skills were.

It’s not like they were the female lead, male lead, or villainess.

***

“Huuk, ugh, ugh. Damn it…”

“D-Damn it. Cough… cough…”

“Hack, haa, hah.”

A few minutes. Yeah, just a few minutes.

At most, only a few minutes had passed.

Yet here we were, spitting out blood and rolling on the dirty ground.

Isiwoon, Yuseolhyun, Seonari, Jin Soyeon, all of us, without exception.