Chapter 387

The large clan collaborates with external organizations to provide various training programs for the empowerment of its employees.

Intern Shin Jin-ho attended the Raon Clan training program, following junior magicians and associate seniors.

“You said Jin-ho is the younger sibling of Shin Yeon-ho, right? How is Yeon-ho doing these days? I haven’t heard any news.”

“I think he’s doing well. No news is good news, so we haven’t really been in touch, haha.”

“Wait, did he go abroad or something?”

“He went to the military right after the first semester ended.”

“Oh, right, right. Everyone usually goes to the military around this time. I should send him a message while I remember.”

A young woman hummed a tune while looking for contact from Shin Yeon-ho.

“Isn’t Kim Yu-ri’s interest a bit too personal? I heard Shin Yeon-ho has a girlfriend already.”

“Hey, this is all part of managing my reputation. If I want to earn points with someone who will be a junior, I need to take care of them from now on.”

“Wow, did you just hear that, Jin-ho? When you enter society, you really have to be wary of these sly people. They act sweet but just stab you in the back.”

“Come on, that’s not true! Good-looking people don’t betray. You’re safe, Jin-ho.”

“What about me?”

“You might need to be careful on your way home at night?”

The employees were joking around while setting up their virtual reality avatars.

Since they were going to learn swordsmanship, they made their avatars resemble their real appearances as closely as possible.

“It’s won by the winner of the National Exchange Competition who teaches us swordsmanship. I’ve wanted to learn swordsmanship for ages. Can you handle a sword, Jin-ho?”

“I only did kendo a little when I was younger.”

“There aren’t many places to learn in Korea. It’ll be fun; let’s learn well together!”

“They’ve made the open world quite nice. Is the church in the Baroque style?”

Until the meeting time, everyone scattered to explore various maps.

Shin Jin-ho also explored the natural scenery in the open world across several channels.

While most magicians were loitering around the streamside promenade, Shin Jin-ho discovered a little cabin on a hill.

‘I’m bored; should I go check that out?’

He climbed up the steep hill with difficulty and knocked on the cabin door.

Knock knock—

“Who is it?”

A woman with a sweet voice opened the door and came out to greet him.

Upon seeing the woman’s face, Shin Jin-ho was left speechless.

Her beautiful blonde hair sparkled like a wheat field soaked in warm sunlight.

With a tiny face and fairy-tale-like features, she appeared almost unreal.

Her blazing golden eyes slowly scanned left and right before meeting Shin Jin-ho’s gaze.

Seeing him flustered, the woman smiled calmly.

“The training will start as soon as Katsuhata is ready. Please wait a moment.”

“Are you… a member of the Jansol Clan?”

Shin Jin-ho raised an eyebrow and asked.

“Ah, well… that’s right, isn’t it? You don’t know me?”

A meaningful answer slipped from the woman’s lips.

Shin Jin-ho’s mind became complicated.

Her Korean pronunciation was far too fluent for her to be a foreigner.

“Are you… Korean?”

“Haha, yes, I’m Korean. You must have been confused because of the avatar.”

‘So, it’s a custom avatar; that explains it.’

It was so unrealistically beautiful that it was almost expected for her to be from fantasy.

“You can wait inside the cabin, Shin Jin-ho.”

“How do you know my name?”

“It’s written on your name tag. Shin Jin-ho intern.”

The woman answered nonchalantly, pointing to his chest.

Shin Jin-ho nodded briefly and entered the cabin.

The woman had a beautifully designed sword hanging at her waist.

It was highly likely that she was a teaching assistant who would help with the training.

She took a teapot from her inventory and poured tea into a white teacup.

She offered one cup to Shin Jin-ho.

“It feels like we haven’t met in a long time. How is Shin Yeon-ho doing now?”

The woman asked about her brother who had gone to the military.

“Ah, we don’t really keep in touch, but I suppose he’s doing well.”

Shin Jin-ho answered reflexively.

He hurriedly gulped the tea down and took in the woman’s every movement.

‘Who is this person? She must be one of my acquaintances.’

He couldn’t ask out of fear of disappointing her if she turned out to be a close friend he didn’t recognize.

Moreover, the woman also seemed to be intentionally not introducing herself as if challenging him to guess who she was.

A sense of competitiveness arose within him.

“Did both of your brothers decide to join the Raon Clan?”

“There wasn’t much point in going abroad. My brother and I think alike.”

“Then it must be tough moving to a new place.”

“Do you have experience living abroad?”

“Oh, me? I have plenty. There isn’t a place I haven’t been to.”

This narrowed down the possibilities, but many candidates still remained suspicious.

‘Wait, she said she was a member of the Raon Clan earlier… Could it be…?’

An idea sparked in Shin Jin-ho’s mind.

“Are you Ban So Wol?”

Shin Yeon-ho’s girlfriend.

The woman broke into a cheerful smile.

Shin Jin-ho let out a sigh of relief.

“I’ve been racking my brain trying to figure out who you are since earlier. But what made you decide to join this new clan, So Wol? It’s completely new.”

“I promised to find a way to help fix Jansol’s eyes.”

“That kid, Na-me?”

“Yes.”

“You’re amazing for joining the clan just by trusting a promise from a kid. Na-me is something else, but she’s certainly impressive.”

Na-me had accomplished so much that it wouldn’t be surprising if she did more.

“What makes her impressive?”

“Her intelligence is remarkable, but I think it’s her lack of childishness that stands out.”

“Hm.”

“I met her briefly during the Academy Tournament, and she showed great responsibility. So Wol, you know how everyone usually just focuses on winning for their own grade, right? But she gave up her sleeping time to help as many others as she could. It’s commendable.”

“Hmm. Is there more?”

“At that age, it’s impressive how she has so many ambitions and the ability to pursue them. Watching geniuses like your brother and Na-me makes me realize I have to work hard.”

“Anything else?”

“Um, sometimes she appears in commercials, and she looks cute in a child-like way? Though she’s a bit short, her face gives off a child actor vibe. Oh, but being short might make acting difficult.”

Thud—

The woman slammed her teacup onto the table.

“Alright, that’s enough. By the way, how did the Raon Clan end up coming here for training?”

“I’m not an intern, so I don’t know the details, but I heard rumors internally that the Raon Clan is working with the Katsuhata School on some kind of project.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes. So, it seems like they want to get to know the successor over there and build camaraderie among clan members. That seems to be the general intention.”

“Oh, so everyone didn’t sign up just to learn swordsmanship… That’s a bit… disappointing…”

She seemed disappointed as she licked her lips.

“But since they’re eager to learn, they’ll work hard when being taught.”

“What about you, Shin Jin-ho?”

“Well, since I’m doing it anyway, I want to work hard. I heard there are 496 Imperial Palace Sword Methods, so I should at least learn 50 to make it worthwhile, right? But So Wol, are you participating as a teaching assistant today? When did you start handling swords?”

Ban So Wol is known for her unarmed combat skills.

While Shin Jin-ho was tilting his head in confusion, the cabin door suddenly burst open.

“Clan leader. Katsuhata just logged in. When shall we start?”

The visitor was none other than the real Ban So Wol.

“Phew!”

Shin Jin-ho spat out the tea he had in his mouth and looked back and forth between the woman before him and Ban So Wol.

“Cough cough! W-wait a minute! Is that you, Ban So Wol?”

“Hmm? Jin-ho, hello. So you’re also an intern in the Raon Clan.”

“Then who is this?”

Shin Jin-ho had completely forgotten.

Ban So Wol’s tone was even dryer and more rude than he remembered.

The foreign woman seated across from Shin Jin-ho stood up.

She absently fiddled with the hilt of her sword.

Her shoulders shook, and she couldn’t hold back the laugh that burst out.

“I heard the student council president’s aspirations. You’ll stay until you’ve learned all 50, as promised.”

[▶Custom 1 – Unlocked]

[▶Main Custom – Equipped]

The blonde woman vanished, and a girl with twin tails took her place.

“No way, Na-me!”

“Originally, a teacher finds it rewarding to have just one student in class. I’m just so happy that you, Shin Jin-ho, are willing to participate so eagerly!”

Shin Jin-ho was stunned as he had completely been tricked by Na-me.

He had known for a long time that Na-me had an unusual maturity for her age.

But he never imagined he would be caught off guard just by a change in her avatar.

Na-me transformed back into an adult female avatar.

“I’m sorry for deceiving you. Instead, I’ll make sure to adjust your posture along with Emika. It’s a time that others wouldn’t be able to buy with a billion won, you know?”

“No, I…!”

Day one of the Raon Clan swordsmanship training program.

While other clan members finished work at 5 PM, Shin Jin-ho couldn’t even eat dinner and didn’t exit the capsule until 11 PM.

Enduring a cold, Shin Jin-ho had no choice but to take a day off the next day.