The treadmill of education never stopped.
The same was true even in this world, where a novel had become reality.
“They could at least have given us a longer lunch break.”
Grumbling at the packed schedule, I climbed Achasan behind the dormitory.
The afternoon class was Practical Combat Training II.
Like Magical Beast Studies, it was a required course for all second-year students, and true to its name, it was a grueling class that combined actual combat with training.
Students carried out missions in teams, received evaluations, and aimed to seize the nests of Magical Beasts.
In other words, we were going straight into the creatures’ strongholds.
Was it really all right to make students do that?
Well…….
Of course it was not.
The nests were supposedly selected with the students’ abilities in mind, but since we were facing actual Magical Beasts, unexpected variables were common and accidents happened frequently.
That was also why I suspected a Main Quest would be assigned.
The nest conquest that began today would culminate next week at the nest’s lowest level, the Final Stage.
There, we would become entangled in an unforeseen incident involving the boss-class Magical Beast guarding the core.
The novel [Epic of Salvation.]
Its long and arduous story was finally about to stir in earnest.
“Huff, huff.”
But I felt as though I was going to die before I even got that far.
I had only been climbing for twenty minutes, yet I was already gasping for breath and sweating as though I had been caught in a downpour.
“This is ridiculously hard.”
It was all because of this pathetic body.
Aside from the Mana-Deficient Constitution, Park Hayul’s strength, agility, stamina, and most of his other physical abilities hovered around the level of an ordinary person.
I did not need to be a hardcore lifter who totaled 500 kilograms across the big three, but compared with my original body, which could manage around 400 kilograms, this body was actually worse.
“Ha, seriously. Other than Manifestation, there is not a single decent thing about this body.”
I seriously considered borrowing the power of Sorcery Arts, but forced myself to resist.
After gritting my teeth and climbing for quite a while longer, I finally reached the plaza halfway up the mountain, our designated meeting point.
“I am dying. Seriously.”
As I flapped my sweat-soaked shirt to let some air inside, a familiar voice reached my ears.
“Tsk. It seems everyone has finally arrived.”
He was the professor in charge of Practical Combat Training and, for various reasons, someone with whom I had an uncomfortable relationship.
Professor Lee Taekjin.
For whatever reason, he had arrived before the scheduled time today.
“……We will begin immediately. Listen to the teaching assistant’s explanation.”
Lee Taekjin cast me a brief, inscrutable glance before flicking his hand, at which Kim Miyoung stepped forward.
“The G-17 Nest that Class A will be occupying consists of ten Opening Stages and one Final Stage. Its structure resembles an inverted triangle. You will enter through separate entrances and ultimately converge on a single endpoint. Today, you will occupy the Opening Stages. Next week, you will occupy the Final Stage. Your teams have already been assigned. Based on rankings, we divided you into the highest tier, upper tier—”
Well, I already knew all of this, so I did not pay much attention.
The highest tier, upper tier, middle tier, lower tier, and lowest tier.
One student was selected from each of those five groups.
Since Class A had fifty students, that meant there were ten teams in total.
I was ranked 700th, so I would probably fall into the lower tier.
“We also took the particular characteristics of each System into account. The draw was conducted using a program, ensuring fairness—”
I knew this part as well.
They had accounted for every possible variable, so protesting the team assignments would accomplish nothing.
In other words, if they told us to do it, we were expected to do it.
My attention therefore shifted elsewhere.
Who would I end up on a team with?
In truth, no matter which team I joined, every route eventually reached the same Final Stage, so I would inevitably become involved in the incident.
However, there were certain teams that would encounter the incident in the Final Stage from particularly close range.
For example, Baek Sayoung, Cheon Seoyoon, Joo Arin, and Seol Yungi.
The closer I was to one of those four teams, the easier it would be to respond.
Assuming a quest appeared and its objective aligned with the situation, that was.
“Then I will announce the finalized teams. Everyone, please check your phones.”
The moment Kim Miyoung finished speaking, cheers and groans erupted all around me.
Would Baek Sayoung’s team be the best option?
He played a major role in the upcoming incident, so I privately hoped for his team as I checked the notification.
But the team I had been assigned to was…….
“Team 4?”
Just as I confirmed my assignment, someone called out.
“Team 4, gather over here.”
The haughty inflection sounded familiar.
***
If I had been asked to choose two team leaders I wanted to avoid, I would have picked Cheon Seoyoon and Joo Arin.
One made me uncomfortable, while the other left me uneasy.
And yet, I had ended up on a team with one of them.
“……I’m Joo Arin, the team leader.”
“I’m Park Hayul. Let’s do our best.”
That was the entirety of our conversation.
A silence as heavy as the awkward atmosphere settled between us.
“…….”
“…….”
It felt as though the ambiguous atmosphere surrounding the GripTok had followed us all the way here…….
It was somewhat uncomfortable, but I was fairly satisfied with the situation.
We would keep our distance from one another and simply complete the assignment.
What a professional and refreshingly detached relationship.
There was no need to waste energy trying to force some half-baked relationship between us, so the vitality I had squandered on such things was finally beginning to…….
“Aaaah! Arin! I’m on Team 4 too!”
……recover, or so I had just begun to think.
A female student joined us with a piercing shriek.
The dolphin who had come rushing over breathlessly—no, the girl with pigtails—grabbed Joo Arin’s hands and bounced up and down as though she could not contain her excitement.
“Ah!”
Then our eyes met, and she suddenly recoiled in shock.
“What do I do? What do I do? What do I do?”
She fidgeted as though some disaster had occurred, then shyly brushed the hair beside her face back and greeted me.
“Ahem. I’m Lee Minha. Nice to meet you.”
Ah…… I thought I knew who she was.
Lee Minha.
She was the friend who had always been portrayed almost like background scenery behind Joo Arin.
Was her primary System the Magic System?
I remembered even her eyes, nose, and mouth being portrayed almost as an afterthought, but in person she was actually rather cute.
“I’m Park Hayul. Let’s do our best.”
“Y-yes. I want to do well too. With you…….”
But something was strange about this girl.
Her face turned red, and she twisted her body bashfully as though something were wrong with her.
“……Lee Minha. You haven’t forgotten what I told you, have you?”
“Of course I haven’t. But……”
“But what? Get a hold of yourself.”
Apparently Joo Arin had found her behavior strange as well. She jabbed Lee Minha in the side with a finger and threatened her.
Did she owe Joo Arin money or something?
Hoping they would resolve whatever it was, I wished that the next member would at least be a solid, easygoing man.
“This is Team 4, right?”
Just then, a man with a short crew cut approached us.
Apparently they already knew each other, because Lee Minha immediately exclaimed.
“Wait, Kang Cheolmin, you’re on our team too?”
“Yeah. Looks like it.”
“Wow, our team composition is incredible. Someone at your level could practically be a team leader.”
“You think so? Heh. I was a little surprised too. I thought I would obviously be the team leader.”
Kang Cheolmin.
His name sounded as solid and sturdy as his stocky, well-built physique.
His behavior, however, seemed to be the exact opposite.
“Joo Arin. I’m counting on you. With the two of us together, we have to take first place. Just leave it to me.”
He first walked over to Joo Arin and spoke to her as though they were close, then noticed me and broke into a grin.
“Park Hayul? Well, well. I never thought I’d run into the dark horse of the Diagnostic Assessment here.”
There was an unmistakable difference in warmth between the way he spoke to the girls and the way he spoke to me.
“……I didn’t expect to meet you this soon. Nice to see you?”
On top of that, he sounded as though he had just found himself a convenient target.
Why?
Judging by the fact that I had no memory of him, he was undoubtedly an extra…….
His ranking seemed fairly high, but unfortunately for him, I did not know who he was.
Besides, unlike other academy stories, [Epic of Salvation] did not have some insignificant extra who suddenly turned out to be a genius.
So I asked him.
“Are you and I close?”
“Me? Of course not. How could we be, when we move in completely different circles?”
Kang Cheolmin chuckled to himself after saying that.
……There was definitely something wrong with this one too.
I had no idea what he found so amusing.
“Then why are you addressing me so informally when we’ve only just met……? Tsk. Never mind. Speak however you like.”
I was about to say something, but decided against it.
A provocation had to be worth my time before I bothered responding.
He did not even seem important enough to qualify as Extra ‘1.’ At best, he looked like an Extra ‘2.’
I had no desire to waste my breath arguing with someone like that.
“You’re fairly perceptive. At least you know when to lower your head. I don’t have anything against you, so don’t be so tense.”
Kang Cheolmin once again chuckled to himself.
At this point, I was beginning to wonder whether Lee Taekjin had interfered with the assignments.
Was this draw actually done properly?
How had I ended up without a single normal person on my team?
Since protesting was not an option, the last team member suddenly became extremely important.
Man or woman, I only hoped they would be ordinary.
“……Um. Hello, everyone.”
But the instant I heard that timid, barely audible voice, I knew.
She was going to be no better than the previous two.
“I-I’m Min Youngji. I’ll work hard so I don’t cause any trouble.”
It was the girl with the straight-cut bangs who had given me that strange jolt the first time we met.
My journalistic savior, who had inadvertently gifted me time by writing that article about the Diagnostic Assessment.
“Wow. All the Diagnostic Assessment frauds are gathered in one place. Is this some hidden-camera prank?”
But was that bastard Kang Cheolmin a chicken or something?
Did he intend to peck at everything that entered his field of vision? He was already charging straight into trouble from the very beginning.
“This conquest is completely screwed.”
“Oh? Why?”
“She’s dead last in the entire school. No wonder I wasn’t made team leader. She’s the balance patch.”
“I-I’ll work hard.”
“What good is working hard? Do you know how many teams failed because of you last year?”
“Last year?”
“Yeah. We were in the same class. She’s decent at finding routes, but her combat ability is hopeless.”
Min Youngji’s shoulders, which had already been drooping, now looked ready to dock with the ground.
“Enough, Kang Cheolmin. We’re already on the same team, so there’s no need to start fighting before we’ve even begun.”
I was just starting to get irritated when Joo Arin, our team leader, stepped in.
“Come on. You think I’d be saying this if it weren’t that frustrating?”
“I understand the situation, so stop there. And Youngji? Don’t be too discouraged. Just guide us properly. We’ll handle the rest.”
“……Okay.”
“Minha, don’t prejudge her either.”
“O-of course. I mean, she…… I’m not that kind of person, you know?”
“I know. That’s why I’m telling you to treat her well. How are we supposed to complete a team assignment properly without teamwork?”
As expected, Joo Arin’s ability as a team leader was undeniable.
She was cold, but that very coldness translated into a charisma that could not be ignored.
Having effortlessly dealt with the source of the conflict, Joo Arin stepped away for a moment to draw our Opening Stage assignment.
“Tsk. You two suit each other. At least say hello.”
Kang Cheolmin clicked his tongue while looking back and forth between Min Youngji and me, then sharply turned toward Lee Minha.
“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have written that article without asking you first…….”
After hesitating for a while, Min Youngji cautiously spoke.
Apparently she had read the comments too.
“It’s fine. You didn’t do it deliberately.”
I waved a hand dismissively.
Besides, I had received a generous reward thanks to it.
When I thought about it, had the article itself not been fairly favorable toward me?
The problem had been the people who twisted it into something else.
“Th-thank you.”
“Just let me know in advance next time.”
That way, I could first determine whether I might earn an Achievement from it.
“……Okay. I’ll work hard on the team assignment too, so I don’t hold everyone back.”
“Hold us back? What are you talking about?”
“No. My combat ability is—”
What?
“W-wait!”
Our conversation, which had been proceeding rather smoothly, was abruptly interrupted by an unexpected development.
A system message had appeared without warning, and it was exactly the kind I had been hoping for.
───────────────
[Main Quest #2]
[Objective: Place within the top 3 in the Opening Stage Conquest Battle]
[Reward: 10 days, 15 SP]
───────────────
And this was not even the Final Stage. Ten whole days just for the preliminary Opening Stage Conquest Battle?
This was insane…….
“Min Youngji. You said you’d do your best, right?”
“What?”
“That won’t be enough. We need to put our lives on the line.”
“……?”
“Human lives are surprisingly tenacious, you know? You don’t die that easily just because you get hurt. Even if you have to give up an arm or so……. No, that’s not what I mean. Anyway, let’s do well.”
“……Y-yes.”
It was an opportunity I could not afford to lose, so I made sure to impress the matter upon her with renewed seriousness.
Meanwhile, Joo Arin returned after finishing a brief meeting.
“Everyone, pay attention. According to the draw, the Opening Stage we’ll be entering is No. 9. The information about the Magical Beasts will be transmitted after we enter.”
No. 9?
For a moment, I tilted my head, wondering whether I had misheard her.
Even after thinking it over again, it still made no sense, so I abruptly asked.
“Wait. Are you sure?”
“……?”
“The Opening Stage we’re supposed to enter is No. 9, right?”
“Yes, it is. You obviously heard me, so why are you asking again?”
Joo Arin narrowed her eyes, apparently unable to understand my intention.
But I had no choice except to ask.
This was different from the development I knew.
In the original story, the team assigned to Opening Stage No. 9 had been Lee Daeho’s team.
Because it had the worst difficulty, one student after another had been injured, and they had ended up dead last in the Opening Stage Conquest Battle evaluation.
So why the hell had that damned number just come out of Joo Arin’s mouth……?