Chapter 13

The moment I heard those words, I quickly erected a strong mental barrier and began to think rapidly.

Glancing at my wristwatch, I realized it was still early in the morning, too soon for lunch.

I wasn’t sure exactly when ‘that morning’ had started for him, but it probably hadn’t been more than three hours yet.

Han Min-ha most likely remained in the Academy, with a very high probability.

Because, after all, dropping out isn’t as simple as packing up and leaving when you feel like it.

Unless it was a special case, formal deliberation was required, and there was no way that deliberation had already happened.

Research Assistant Bae Ye-bin had stated he “dropped out,” but the more accurate phrasing would be that he had “submitted a withdrawal application.”

“Where is Han Min-ha right now?”

[He’s waiting in the dormitory. His case will be decided at the scheduled afternoon deliberation today.]

“I’ll head there. Please wait for me.”

[N-Nani?! Professor, you are coming here?!]

After ending the call, instead of heading to the dormitory, I moved toward the Administrative Office.

—

“Hello, Professor!”

As I entered the Administrative Office and opened the door, the staff sitting at their computers all greeted me cheerfully.

“Good day. Is the Director here?”

“Yes, they’re inside. But they’re quite busy right now…”

I moved straight across the office and knocked on the inner door.

“Director of Administration. I’m Professor Hyun.”

“Wha…? Oh, yes!”

Footsteps approached, and the door swung open. Chae Ga-yun, with dark circles under her eyes from fatigue, greeted me with a smile.

“You’ve been coming here often lately. Is there something you need?”

“Did any withdrawal applications come in?”

“Yes, one did. Assistant Bae Ye-bin brought it in this morning.”

“Let me take a look at it.”

Stepping into the Director’s office, I accepted the withdrawal application Chae Ga-yun handed to me. It was handwritten, and the reason stated was short and to the point.

“I don’t see any hope anymore, so I’m quitting.”

“Is there any particular reason for this? Is there a problem with this student?”

Chae Ga-yun, looking over the withdrawal application beside me, asked.

“There is an issue. Has this been reported to the department?”

“No, that’s not true. The reason is, I was busy this morning… I’m sorry about that. Also… Aaaaaaah! What are you doing?!”

As I slid the document into a shredder, Chae Ga-yun let out a shriek.

“We need the original for the deliberation process, and I haven’t made any copies…”

“It’s fine. This student isn’t dropping out after all.”

“Wh-what? What do you mean by that?”

“There was a problem. I was planning to mentor him for his basics in defense, but then I heard he wanted to drop out, so I persuaded him otherwise. Anyways, let’s consider the matter of withdrawal as non-existent.”

“Um… Yes… If Professor Hyun says so…”

Chae Ga-yun nodded in a dazed manner as she watched the withdrawal application being shredded.

“Thank you so much.”

I gave her shoulder a gentle pat, and her face brightened as she smiled.

If I give her occasional perks, she’ll continue to cooperate well.

“Since you’re here, would you like some tea?”

“I’m sorry, but I have something urgent. I’ll treat you to something in my research room later.”

“Tea…? In your research room?! That sounds wonderful!”

After flashing her a smile, I left the office.

—

“Professor!”

Assistant Bae Ye-bin, who had been pacing in front of the dormitory, noticed me and bowed deeply, nearly touching her forehead to the ground.

“Thank you for all your hard work, Bae Assistant. I’ve come to see Student Han Min-ha.”

Standing much shorter than me, Assistant Bae tilted her head up cautiously before speaking.

“Professor, you’ve come all the way to the dormitory because Min-ha is dropping out? Could Min-ha have committed some terrible mistake?”

“No. I’m here to persuade him not to drop out since I’ve selected him to be my guidance student.”

“Guidance…student…? Professor, Min-ha…?”

Bae Ye-bin stammered, clearly struggling to believe her ears.

“Yes. This is my first time taking a guidance student, and if he drops out, it causes a great inconvenience. Is he inside?”

“Um… Yes… he’s here. But Professor…”

Just as I was about to enter the dormitory, Assistant Bae stopped me.

“I already talked to Min-ha after receiving the withdrawal application this morning, but I believe it may be hard to persuade him.”

“What do you mean?”

“Even if he continues his studies here, it’s likely he’ll attempt to drop out again. As you know, his grades are extremely low. Plus, he’s timid and hasn’t made any friends… Also…”

Assistant Bae glanced at me cautiously before continuing.

“He fainted during the initial assessment. And because of that, the students subtly exclude him. I think it all just became too hard for him to handle.”

“I see. I’ll keep that in mind as I speak with him. By the way, Assistant Bae…”

“Yes?”

“Have you gathered information on all the students under your supervision? Is there anything you know specifically about Student Han Min-ha’s parents?”

Assistant Bae furrowed her brow as if searching through her memory before replying.

“Min-ha is the offspring of a hero, giving him an additional bonus score. But his family information is missing. All I know is that his parents went missing during an official mission.”

So, Assistant Bae knows nothing beyond what I already do.

For now, let’s go see Han Min-ha.

—

As it was the middle of the morning classes, the dormitory was practically empty.

Standing in front of Han Min-ha’s door, I waited a moment before knocking.

“Student Han Min-ha. This is Professor Hyun. Can we have a quick word?”

No sound came from inside.

I was about to knock again when the door slowly opened.

“Professor…?”

Han Min-ha appeared with dark hair drooping, timidly looking up at me with an air of unease.

“I’ve come to have a chat.”

“Professor… I’ve already withdrawn, haven’t I?”

“You’ve handed in a withdrawal application, but you haven’t officially withdrawn, right? Let’s have a quick consultation. You’re still considered an Academy student, so refusing a professor’s request for discussion without a good reason is inappropriate.”

At my words, Han Min-ha begrudgingly stepped back and opened the door wider.

Next to his bed stood a large, neatly packed suitcase.

So, he’s already prepared to leave.

“May I sit?”

“Yes, please sit.”

After rearranging the chair and sitting down, Han Min-ha perched uneasily at the edge of the bed and lowered his head.

“I’ve read your withdrawal application. It states that you no longer see any hope.”

“Yes…”

“Fainting during the initial assessment, bottom-ranked grades, no friends. Is that correct?”

“Yes…”

I deliberately sighed.

“Have you forgotten what I told you during our last consultation?”

“No…”

“Tell me what I said.”

“Professor, you said you would help me…”

After a brief moment of silently staring at Han Min-ha, I spoke.

“If you still cannot see any hope, despite my assurance of help, does that mean you don’t trust me at all?”

“A…! No, that’s not it…!”

Han Min-ha turned red with embarrassment.

“Han Min-ha. I clearly said I would help you.”

“Yes… but I think… I just feel like I don’t fit in the Academy…”

“Is there someone who fits here?”

Han Min-ha slowly nodded, with dejection, and whispered,

“Students like Hye-won… people who seem born to become heroes…”

Speaking of Yu Hye-won…

“Is that so? But you, Han Min-ha, aren’t you the child of a hero too? Heroic talent is hereditary. You are one of those people.”

“No… I… I have no talent. I lag behind the others in every subject. At this rate, I’ll likely fail to graduate, let alone become a hero.”

“Do you know that your aura is unusually pure and powerful?”

Han Min-ha shook his head slowly, seemingly hearing this for the first time.

“If my observations are correct, your aura far surpasses that of other students. You just haven’t yet figured out how to use it effectively.”

“Though I appreciate what you say… even if I do possess a powerful aura… it feels impossible that I’ll learn to use it my entire life…”

His self-esteem has sunk so low it’s now digging into the ground and entering the basement.

It’s no wonder Assistant Bae couldn’t convince him, given his state of self-denial.

“Professor… I apologize for taking up your time. My intention to leave remains the same.”

“Did you think I came here to stop you from leaving?”

Han Min-ha looked at me, puzzled.

“I came here for a guidance student selection consultation.”

“Guidance…student…?”

“I’ve selected you, Han Min-ha, to be my guidance student, and a consultation is mandatory for that.”

“Yes…? You’ve selected me…?”

“That’s right.”

“Wh… Why…? Why am I…?”

Struggling to comprehend the situation, Han Min-ha’s eyes darted back and forth like a broken doll as he stammered.

“Because I’ve decided to guide you, Han Min-ha. Does a professor need any other reason for choosing a student?”

“But… Professor… My grades are bad… and there’s nothing special about my family…”

“Grades can be improved, and family circumstances have little impact here, right? Isn’t that so?”

Han Min-ha remained silent, his lips tightly closed.

“After checking, it appears you don’t have any particular preferred mentor. Would it be alright if I became your mentor?”

“I haven’t thought deeply about that… and besides, I am withdrawing…”

“The withdrawal request is canceled. I just visited the administrative office and shredded the application form.”

“Yes… Yes?!?”

Han Min-ha, startled, lifted himself halfway off the bed, to which I calmly responded.

“Only the administrative director, Assistant Bae, and I know about Han Min-ha’s request to withdraw. If we say it’s due to a guidance-related consultation that you missed morning classes, that should suffice.”

“But… Professor… I truly lack confidence…”

Han Min-ha sank back onto the bed, lowering his head.

“Whether I can graduate… or if I’ll end up with an F-class hero status and become useless… I honestly have no idea…”

“F-class you say…”

I silently stared at Han Min-ha’s scalp.

Right. If things continue like this, you’ll indeed end up with an F-class rating.

But you need to endure to even receive that.

And if you can’t even endure to that degree, becoming an S-Class hero is impossible.

And if you don’t become S-Class, it’s problematic for me too.

“Becoming an S-Class Hero is truly difficult.”

Han Min-ha looked at me.

“There are two ways to become an S-Class Hero.”

I extended two fingers as I spoke.

“First, fulfill the perilous and demanding conditions set by the Management Bureau, while simultaneously waiting for one of the allocated S-Class Heroes to die, creating an opening.”

I folded one finger.

“Second, survive until you become an S-Class.”

I lowered my hand after folding the remaining finger and gave a faint smile.

“It may seem obvious, but most heroes fail to grasp this. That’s why Basic Defense is an unpopular course.”

I stood up from the chair and knelt down in front of Han Min-ha.

“Han Min-ha.”

Startled by the sudden narrowing distance, Han Min-ha leaned back as far as possible while gripping the edge of the bed.

“I’ll help you.”

I leaned forward toward Han Min-ha, speaking softly.

“I’ll help you survive until the end. Survive.”

Han Min-ha stared at me intently, his face turning red with bewilderment.

Smiling while watching him,

You must survive, Han Min-ha, so that I may also survive.