Chapter 7

“See you later, Student Han Min-ha.”

“Goodbye, Professor.”

Han Min-ha bowed her head.

When I approached the desk, the nurses were playing rock-paper-scissors.

Ultimately, the nurse who won beamed with excitement as she handed me a shopping bag.

“It’s here, Professor.”

“Thank you.”

As I took the shopping bag, the nurse giggled and stomped her feet.

Another nurse smiled mischievously and spoke.

“Professor, do you happen to know how to disinfect? If not, we can teach you.”

“I know how.”

“Still, you should learn properly from us…”

Right then, the siren above the emergency room exit started flashing noisily and began revolving.

The moment the nurses reflexively rounded the desk, the emergency room door burst open.

Several medical staff along with members of the Maroon Beret pushed in a mobile stretcher.

The Maroon Beret, a special forces unit responsible for rescuing heroes who’ve become exhausted or isolated in perilous terrain after battling villains.

Upon seeing the Maroon Beret’s dark berets, I instinctively stepped aside, thinking that another hero must have been critically injured.

As it turns out, on the stretcher lay an unconscious, bloodied man, with one Maroon Beret member performing CPR forcefully on top of him.

Our academy clinic treats not only the students and faculty but also injured heroes.

Since everyone here is an academy graduate, we have their medical records and biological data. Moreover, there’s no better place to treat the severe injuries unique to heroes.

So it’s common for critically injured heroes to be brought here frequently.

The medical staff wheeled the stretcher straight into the emergency surgery room.

Han Min-ha, seemingly shocked, was looking with wide eyes at the long trail of blood on the floor.

One nurse approached Han Min-ha, calmed her, and drew the curtain to prevent her from seeing the blood.

After watching that scene for a moment, I turned around and left the emergency room.

When I returned to the lab, my cell phone notification went off.

It was an announcement posted in the professor group chat.

Multiple red notification icons appeared in the messenger list. They were messages from various faculty members, including Professor Jin and Administrative Director Chae.

After skimming through them, I entered the professor group chat.

The announcement was posted by the chief assistant of the faculty group. It said:

[The Initial Assessment results for freshmen have been shared. Please review and inform us of any corrections by 5 PM today.]

I downloaded the attached Excel file, opened it, and immediately checked Han Min-ha’s results.

Since the list was in alphabetical order, I had to scroll quite a bit to reach Han Min-ha.

And when I finally confirmed her scores down below—

“Ah, darn.”

Han Min-ha’s scores were disastrous.

Naturally, she received an F in my subject, and as for the others, the highest grade was a B.

Most of the classes were littered with C’s and D’s.

Even so, one might at least expect an A in something, right?

Wasn’t she the child of a hero with added bonuses? How could this happen?

Did something go wrong in the process of inheriting talent, perhaps some genetic or biological issue?

No, that’s not the situation here.

It’s the quest.

How am I supposed to turn someone like her into an S-Ranked Hero?

And if I fail the quest, will there be any negative consequences?

But I couldn’t check.

Last time I saw Han Min-ha, nothing popped up.

This way, I lose the advantage of knowing the original plot’s ending.

Still, one thing’s certain: although I don’t know the exact reason, I coughed less after interacting with Han Min-ha.

Whether it’s a temporary relief or a complete cure, it’s evident that it’s because of her.

Quest assignments and the alleviation of my lung disease—these are the significant changes after months of monotonous life under someone else’s body.

So, there’s no choice but to help her somehow.

By the way, how did Yu Hye-won do?

Naturally, she secured the top rank by scoring the highest in all subjects.

She already possesses at least mid-level hero capabilities and could be sent out into the field if needed right now.

Had I become her academic advisor per the original story, the quest would have been effortless.

No, I shouldn’t think that way.

The quest has already chosen Han Min-ha.

***

The Initial Assessment results were announced, and for a while, the academy was in an uproar.

This was a highly crucial evaluation, vital in determining how future academy life would unfold. Students reacted to their rankings with joy or despair.

Already, a few students from the lower ranks had declared their intention to drop out and were leaving through the main gate with their bags packed.

Worried that Han Min-ha might also decide to leave, I visited the administrative office.

“Dropout applications?”

Chae Ga-yoon, the Administrative Director, pretended to look reluctant, saying, “This is something I’m originally not supposed to show you,” before displaying the list on her monitor.

Thankfully, Han Min-ha’s name wasn’t there.

I’m really relieved.

“Professor, you smell really good.”

As I leaned over the desk maneuvering the mouse, Chae Ga-yoon sitting beside me spoke.

“Doesn’t my scent smell good too?”

“Hmm.”

“Come on, give it a sniff.”

Politely, I leaned toward her hair and took a slight breath.

Given her frequent late-night work, I expected her hair to smell dry and dusty like an old broom, but surprisingly, it smelled pleasant.

“Chanel Gabrielle…?”

“Goodness gracious! How did you know?”

Chae Ga-yoon was delighted as the topic of perfume struck a chord with her.

Still, I don’t have time to engage in trivial perfume talk with the administrator.

The phone rang at that moment, so I placed the mouse back and stepped a little backward.

“I’ll leave since you seem busy.”

“Oh, yes. Sorry, Professor. It’s an urgent call…”

After checking the caller ID, Chae Ga-yoon picked up the phone with a grimace.

“Yes, this is the Administrative Director.”

She, who was so gentle moments ago, became serious and her voice turned icy.

“What? Excuse me? Why are you calling to complain about students dropping out here?”

It seemed it was the Organization responsible for hero management.

They probably called because future heroes, the freshmen, are leaving.

“Their scores were low on the initial assessment; they’re leaving because they lack potential. Did we conduct the initial assessment? That’s something you should discuss with the faculty. What? You claim we’re the ones to coordinate? How ridiculous…”

As Chae Ga-yoon’s language became more forceful, I gave her a light nod and quietly left the office.

The moment I closed the door behind me, Chae Ga-yoon’s raised voice erupted from inside.

“Anyway, the guidelines should have been relaxed right from the beginning!”

Chae Ga-yoon’s temper is well-known across the academy.

Her no-nonsense personality and effective handling of work helped her rapidly rise from a low-level administrative job to her current role as director.

There’s a kind of magic when she handles anything that seems impossible.

Her sudden outburst startled the administrative staff, who peeked over their cubicle walls and looked this way.

“Professor! Professor!”

A few female staff members called out to me.

“Why is the director so upset again?”

“It’s probably the Management Bureau. They’re probably arguing since the dropout rate this year is high.”

“I see… it happens every year at this time…”

The female staff nodded in understanding.

“Anyway, Professor.”

“Yes?”

“You’ve been visiting the director quite often lately… Is there something going on between the two of you?”

After making the comment, the female staff even covered her mouth and laughed, while the one beside her repeatedly slapped her shoulder, yelling “You’re crazy!”

“No, nothing’s going on. I just came here to confirm things related to the freshmen.”

“Ah, I see. In that case, it’s a relief.”

After greeting the staff, I left the administrative office and headed toward the lecture hall.

Beginning today, the freshmen’s first class starts.

***

The lecture hall is tiered, so from the podium, I can see the rows of student desks rising up in tiers.

I climbed onto the podium and looked around at the freshmen who had taken their seats.

“Hello, everyone. I’m Professor Hyun, teaching Basic Defense.”

In the front row sat Yu Hye-won, gleaming eyes looking up at me.

In the farthest corner at the back, Han Min-ha was slouching, exuding a dark aura.

She always appears gloomy, but after knowing her evaluation results, she seemed even more subdued.

“Am I right?”

“Yeah.”

The freshmen leaned their heads together in whispers.

While I couldn’t hear what they were saying, I quietly waited for their attention to return to me.

After a while, the freshmen ceased murmuring and looked at me.

“Alright. Let’s first explain what Basic Defense is.”

The students took out their notebooks and pens.

However, I had no intention of delving into the history of the discipline or writing on the board at the beginning.

“Just watching will do.”

The teaching assistant, waiting outside, brought in a machine gun, causing the students to murmur.

The assistant, fully equipped with a bulletproof vest and helmet, stood at the end of the podium facing me.

“Basic Defense, as the name suggests, is the study of defensive techniques.”

At my cue, the assistant fired the machine gun at me.

The loud gunfire made the students flinch and cover their ears.

Only Yu Hye-won smiled calmly, watching the bullets fly toward me.

The moment the assistant pulled the trigger, the Basic Physical Barrier spread in front of me, repelling all the bullets.

For safety reasons, I had reduced the strength of the barrier, so instead of bouncing off, the bullets hovered in the air, embedded in the barrier.

“That’s all, Professor.”

The assistant emptied the magazine and lowered the gun.

I dismantled the barrier, and dozens of bullets scattered onto the podium’s floor.

“There’s no need to clap.”

When the freshmen were about to clap, I told them.

“Anyway, by the time you graduate, you’ll likely be able to stop such bullets with your bare hands.”

Afterwards, I gave a brief explanation of various types of defense techniques and their development.

Toward the end of the lecture, I talked to the students about the Mental Barrier.

“Once you become highly proficient in defensive techniques, you will be able to use the ultimate ability called Mental Barrier. It’s exactly what it sounds like—a shield for your mind. But it’s very hard to use. Maintaining calmness in extreme situations…”

At that moment, Yu Hye-won suddenly spoke up without raising her hand.

“Calling the Mental Barrier the ultimate ability seems a bit exaggerated, doesn’t it?”

I smiled lightly and turned back to Yu Hye-won.

“Why do you think so?”

“Because with a deep study of defensive techniques, all you gain is the ability to ‘hang onto your mental state.’ By the time you’re in the graduating class, you’d have immunity to most things anyway.”

“True, it might apply if you’re a natural psychopath or sociopath.”

Yu Hye-won smiled, but she couldn’t suppress her trembling lips.

“Of course, never has any graduate successfully used the Mental Barrier. But if you can master it, it will undoubtedly be a great help. That’ll be all for today.”

The students gathered their bags one by one and left the lecture hall. I squeezed through them.

I was heading toward Han Min-ha, who was standing stiffly, unable to move, surrounded by other students.

I had to return the handkerchief and also console her on her poor performance in the initial assessment.

“Student Han Min-ha.”

Hearing my voice, Han Min-ha jumped and shrank back.

“Professor…?”

“Can I have a word with you about the assessment results?”

Suddenly, Yu Hye-won rudely pushed Han Min-ha aside and stood in front of me.

“Professor, can I have a private talk with you?”