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“Professor! What in the world is this?!”

Jae-woo shouted to Professor Jeong Si-hyun with a trembling voice.

What on earth is this unidentified goblin?

His hands and arms, gripping the sword, were still tense with strength.

His legs were also ready to move at any moment.

Jae-woo didn’t take his eyes off the grotesque goblin.

But—

The goblin didn’t move.

“Hmmm…?”

Puzzled, Jae-woo frowned.

At that moment, a faint chuckle tickled his ears.

Jae-woo glanced sideways at the professor.

The professor, who had been leaning against the lectern, stood up and approached the goblin.

With her pretty, long fingers, she began to pet the fearsome goblin’s head.

The stark contrast between the goblin’s horrifying appearance and the beautiful female professor was striking.

Jae-woo blinked rapidly.

“It’s a model, a model.”

The goblin still didn’t move.

“…Phew.”

Only then did Jae-woo release the tension that had been gripping his body.

But he wasn’t completely relaxed.

With cautious steps, he approached the goblin.

“C-can I touch it?”
“Yes, of course.”

Si-hyun’s permission was granted.
Jae-woo held the sword tightly in one hand and nudged the goblin’s arm with the other.

“Ah!”

It didn’t feel like a living creature.
It was somewhat hard; perhaps it was made of dirt or stone? That thought crossed his mind.

With a long breath, Jae-woo returned the sword to the status window.
He had never seen such a finely crafted monster model in his life.

“It’s a magic tool made on commission by a production hunter. Isn’t it well-made?”
“I, I see.”

Jae-woo nodded slowly as he stepped back.
He took a seat in the front row, opposite the windows and the lectern, in the corridor.

He usually sat in that spot, but today it was mandatory.
He wanted to keep a distance from that horrifying goblin model.
He definitely didn’t want to be nearby.

It had such a gruesome and deadly appearance.
Even though he recognized it as a model, it continued to evoke terror and unease.

-Creeeak.

The back door of the lecture hall opened again.
It signified that other students were arriving one by one.

“Ah?!”

Ah-reum, the second student to arrive, stumbled and fell flat on her backside.
She then slid along the wall, using only her arms and bum to escape.

Though her pants were covered in dust, she had no time to worry about it.

“…Hmm.”

Eun-byeol, who entered the lecture hall with Ah-reum, crossed her arms and glared at the goblin model.

For a moment, she almost used a magical combat skill as a magic hunter, but fortunately, she spotted Jae-woo and Si-hyun.
Thanks to that, there was no risk of sparks flying around the classroom.

Of course, that didn’t mean Eun-byeol fully understood the situation.
She pretended to be calm, but her eyes were trembling slightly.
She fidgeted with her left toes, assessing the situation.

“P-professor…?”

Ah-reum, finally noticing Si-hyun, stood up from her seat.
She adjusted her glasses and brushed the dust off her backside.

Si-hyun chuckled lightly as she tapped the goblin’s head playfully.

“It’s a moving model. Isn’t it well-made?”

Her voice was filled with playful mischief.

Upon hearing Si-hyun’s words, Ah-reum, Eun-byeol, and even Jae-woo all widened their eyes in disbelief.

‘It moves?’
Jae-woo stared at the goblin with his mouth slightly agape.

So that’s what you meant by a magic tool earlier!
…Does that monstrous thing even move?

Eek…
Jae-woo felt goosebumps and unconsciously rubbed his arms.
His skin prickled up as chills ran down his spine.

To be honest, that model was scarier than a real goblin.
It looked truly horrendous.

While Jae-woo rubbed his arms, Ah-reum and Eun-byeol took their seats by the windows.
They sat a bit further back, not in the front row as usual.

They were also scared of the goblin model.
It was spine-chillingly unpleasant.
Honestly, they wished someone would just take it away.

Be that as it may, Si-hyun gleefully observed the students’ reactions.
The Wings Guild members had said that instilling a good scare would ensure the students wouldn’t underestimate goblins in the future!

It was undoubtedly a valid point.
Thus, she came early to the lecture hall and set up the goblin model.

Seeing the students’ reactions, she felt quite satisfied.
It felt rewarding for the effort she put in.

“Ugh?!”
“Yikes!”
“Eek!”

One by one, the students entered the classroom.
Each one of them screamed and froze in place.

And so, during the fifth class of the Academy, Introduction to Monsters,
the goblin model successfully terrified all fifteen young students.

Especially the students who sat near the lectern trembled in fear.

There were enough chairs in the classroom, but not too many.
The last students to arrive had no choice but to sit near the goblin.

They exchanged confused glances, glancing furtively at the model.
‘Hehe, all this fuss over just one goblin.’
Si-hyun thought the students were so naive and cute, smiling brightly.

* * *

After finishing the attendance check, Si-hyun wore a deep and satisfied expression.
Today, every student showed up, and there were no latecomers.

Clap! Si-hyun lightly clapped her hands and opened her mouth.
“Everyone, last time we learned various things about goblins.”

She briefly mentioned the prior lessons.
“Today, we will show you what real goblins are like using audiovisual materials.”

She played a video she had prepared in advance.
The projector displayed a dim cave.

Once she confirmed that the video was playing correctly, Si-hyun paused it momentarily.
She looked around at the students.

Most of them were staring at the goblin model rather than the screen.
‘Isn’t it a problem if it’s too well-made?’

Thanks to that, their focus seemed well-formed, but it was a bit much.
Si-hyun hid the goblin model behind the lectern.

“Phew…”
“I’m alive…”

The students seated near the model let out sighs of relief.
Their gazes turned to the screen.
Si-hyun nodded and resumed the video.

The start was uneventful.

[These are current D-rank Hunters.]
[Hello!]
[Nice to meet you!]

In the video, Si-hyun briefly introduced the male members of the Wings Guild.
Then they commenced their battle with the goblins.

Perhaps aware of the filming, they occasionally struck poses, but generally, they continued fighting.
As the males’ battle came to an end, the video concluded.

‘Today seems pretty normal?’
‘Was last week special?’

The hunters in the video were certainly stronger than the E-rank students.
But that’s about it.

Students accustomed to the flashy and sensational videos online found little impact.
Indeed, one student even began to doze off.

Since the lecture time was right after lunch,
it was natural that drowsiness would sneak in.

‘Anyway, this is just a general course.’
Ultimately, one student outright lay down.

However, that behavior didn’t last long.
– Snap!

Si-hyun lightly snapped her fingers.
Suddenly, students feeling sleepy found their drowsiness vanished as if by magic.
In fact, they became so alert that it was surprising.

“U-uhm…?”
The student who had been lying down regained their posture.
Not knowing why, their sleepiness had suddenly disappeared.

Due to their head becoming so clear, the lethargy they felt moments ago seemed like a lie.
The student stared blankly at the professor.

It felt like something was suddenly clearing up? They might also feel strangely refreshed?
The student rubbed their forehead and brows.
With a confused expression, they began to pay attention to the lecture again.
It was too hard to disregard the class, especially since they felt so good.

“Let’s watch the next video.”
Having easily dealt with the sleepyheads, Si-hyun played the next video.

And then.
“Uh…?”
“What is that?”
“Huh?”

Shock spread among the students.

[I’ll explain with this guy first. First—]

A furious goblin charged at the Si-hyun in the video, attacking continuously.
But Si-hyun continued her explanation, ignoring it entirely.

As none of the attacks worked, the goblin started stomping in anger.
Fueled by rage, it wildly swung its club.

However, Si-hyun didn’t even bother glancing at the goblin.
She kept her focus on the filming device while relaying the information the students needed to know.

Still, the goblin couldn’t even manage to touch the hem of Si-hyun’s clothing.
In the end, the goblin angrily pointed at Si-hyun, letting out a furious scream.

[Kehehhh—!]
It was clearly annoyed.

The students watching the video had their mouths agape.
So stunned that they couldn’t even think of closing their lips.

The battle hadn’t even started yet, but it was already a work of art.
“What the heck is that? How is she dodging?”
“The professor isn’t even looking at the goblin…?”
“Does that even make sense?”

[Let’s wrap up the explanations for now. Now, I’ll show you in real life.]

Regardless of the students’ astonishment,
the Si-hyun in the video continued her work with nonchalance.

Pretending to manipulate the status window, she withdrew her sword from the magic tool bracelet.
At that moment, the goblin swung its club again.
Si-hyun slightly twisted her body, effortlessly dodging the attack.

In an instant, her sword sparkled.
Swish—thud.

With one clean stroke, the goblin’s head fell to the ground.

“…”
“…”

A moment of silence.
None of the students could speak.

The Si-hyun in the video effortlessly sheathed her sword and returned to a stable stance.
It wasn’t a show of strength; there were no unnecessary movements.
It was literally a quick and clean action.

As the video Si-hyun initiated her movement,
thanks to the brief downtime, the students began to whisper among themselves.
“What the heck is that…?”
“Isn’t Professor Jeong Si-hyun a D-rank?”
“Wow, I heard she’s a Paladin, but she really knows how to use that sword!”

The suitably edited video omitted the movement segments.
When Si-hyun faced a group of goblins, she resumed battle.

The students’ gazes locked back onto the screen.
There wasn’t a single student who was distracted or unable to focus.
Everyone was absorbed in the video.
Now was not the time for chit-chat.

At this moment, they had to engrave every scene deeply. They had to imprint it in their minds.
This was fundamentally different from the cheap online videos targeting promotion.
It was literally a compressed version of real combat, a finely crafted lecture video.

Si-hyun swiftly swept through a group of goblins.
Then, out of nowhere, she returned the weapon to the magic tool, now left with bare hands.

[Since it’s a general lecture, there must be students from various professions. This time, I’ll show you with a spear.]

Another bombshell announcement!
The antics didn’t stop there.
Si-hyun showcased the weapons Da-young had given her, one after another.

Though the weapons themselves were cheap enough for E-rank hunters to use,
the person wielding them was Si-hyun.

With the most systematic movements suited to each weapon’s characteristics, she mowed down the goblins.
It was the same when using the sword.

There was no need for flair or bravado.
Just the most basic actions and precise force, effortlessly taking down the enemies.

[How about that? It’s really easy, right? You all can do it too.]

– Thud!
Si-hyun set down a massive weapon that was roughly her size and smiled lightly.

Thus, the long yet seemingly short video came to an end.