Chapter 72
After receiving a group message from the Academy stating there were no afternoon classes, I finished my meal a bit more leisurely.
“Stop eating, Gyeoul…”
“Why are you picking on me for eating? That’s the worst.”
Hayan scolds me for eating too much.
…Mean.
Hayan, who’s growing up, is becoming more and more twisted.
“…You’ve already taken seven servings.”
Hmm… Has it already come to that?
No wonder the lunch ladies stare at me with their mouths open every time they see me.
Chaesong and Chaerin also look at me in awe.
But it’s not my fault that my fuel efficiency is terrible…
If I were a car, I could just change the model, but I can’t change my body.
I didn’t expect to eat more than Jeong Ha-yul either.
I’ve been suggested to try being a mukbang streamer, but I don’t want to have to react every time I get donations.
Eating is my joy, but I don’t want to turn it into a job.
Anyway, since it’s the seventh serving, I’m starting to feel a bit self-conscious.
I’ll fill my stomach with snacks later and stop taking the school meals.
After finishing my meal, I returned to the dorm and called Lin Hazel.
The ringing tone has already gone past five times, but she’s not picking up.
‘…She’s ignoring me.’
Instead of taking care of me, she’s getting paid by the Clock Tower and has her tuition waived.
I even heard Jeong Ha-yul is taking extra care of her.
But she’s not answering my call.
She couldn’t still be sleeping, could she?
It’s… 1 PM.
“Hello?”
Finally, she answered.
She’s a woman who gets paid to work but has zero professionalism.
I knew it from the moment she tried to steal my lunch box at the Clock Tower.
“Why did you take so long to answer?”
“Do you even know what time it is?”
I just had lunch and came back to the dorm. Do you think I don’t know the time?
“It’s London here. There’s an 8 to 9-hour time difference with Korea.”
….
Always attending classes via real-time video calls and asking questions over the phone every day, I must have forgotten that Lin Hazel is from England.
I never thought about the time difference.
“Right… So why are you in England? It would be easier for both of us if you were in Korea.”
“…I’m British.”
I had nothing to say.
Complaining to a British person for being in England feels like a Taruula moment.
Luckily, Lin Hazel changed the topic first.
After explaining the contents of my dream, she asked me to draw it.
Switching to a video call, I started drawing the magic circle I saw in my dream.
Drawing it in the air using magic power made me a bit scared.
‘If I finish drawing this, something might get summoned, right?’
I’m still only C-Class.
If a demon suddenly pops out, I might just die on the spot.
Unlike before, when I managed to stall for time against various villain threats and summoned Jeong Ha-yul to survive.
A demon might just slash me instantly.
The warning from my intuition, the warning from Lin Hazel.
If either one had been present, I wouldn’t have drawn it with magic power, but both were silent.
Anyway, I need to know what this is.
Trying to shake off the fear…
Wait? I’m not scared of this.
I’m not a person who gets scared.
Really.
Anyway, after confirming the shape of the magic circle, Lin Hazel started talking about reverse pentagrams, Mendes’ goat, and other incomprehensible things.
It’s a symbol of the Satan Church…
What the hell is that, you nerd.
Magic Otaku Lin Hazel brought up stories from hundreds of years ago.
As if she had a book open in front of her, she went on and on.
Extremely boring.
But it seemed like I shouldn’t be bored by the content.
I still don’t really understand what the Satan Church is.
But isn’t it some cult created by dark mages who worship demons?
I thought the Clock Tower had eradicated all those cults, but these crazy guys managed to survive.
And they’re trying to pull some nonsense in Korea again.
‘Why Korea of all places…’
I admit they cause incidents and accidents.
But it should be in their own country.
A fanatical group from England’s past revives and comes all the way to Korea to pull this crap…
Isn’t that just throwing logic out the window?
Having lived in the world for a while, though not too long.
In reality, it’s true that logic is often thrown out the window.
Stories more fictional than fiction, more cinematic than movies, unfold in reality.
What’s the point of complaining?
The cultists are already here.
They’re already causing trouble.
They’ve already reached out to me.
“I’ll report it to the Tower Master right away. The Clock Tower will probably send mages. Be careful until then.”
Even though the Clock Tower will send mages, I don’t think there’s time to wait.
I can feel it.
If I wait, it’ll be too late.
The moment you think it’s too late is when it’s already too late.
Leaving everything to Jeong Ha-yul would be the easiest and safest, but I can’t rely on her forever.
I’m now a proper hero candidate.
I need to know how to do things on my own.
That’s why I studied so hard at the Clock Tower.
And why I kept training with Jeong Ha-yul even after coming to Korea.
First.
I need to go see Instructor Kim Gae-soo.
Instructor Kim Gae-sou definitely saw the magic power leaking from a male student yesterday and ran after him as soon as class ended.
I was too focused on the class to notice.
And since there’s no afternoon class, I probably won’t witness that magic power again.
The first step in solving any incident is always the witness’s statement.
***
Kim Gae-soo, a third-year instructor at Hero Academy.
He handles the monster studies part and is a former B-Class hero.
Unlike other heroes who were busy just killing and subduing monsters during their active duty, he focused on the habits and unique traits of monsters, conducting various researches.
He was a competent intelligence-type hero, having published several papers under his name in the World Monster Forum.
There was a first-year freshman who made him nervous.
Jeong Gyeoul.
A 14-year-old student who knows the years and types of disaster species appearances.
If he hadn’t interrupted, she would have probably listed their characteristics and weaknesses.
When Instructor Kim Gae-soo interrupted, Jeong Gyeoul looked disappointed.
In fact, other students in the classroom might have known that much.
There were students who seemed to have memorized the entire textbook when teaching other classes.
Smart students have always existed.
But she felt different.
Her relaxed expression and unwavering gaze.
From another perspective, one could say Instructor Kim Gae-soo was intimidated by Jeong Gyeoul’s presence.
‘What was I doing at 14…’
Anticipating that classes would become difficult, Kim Gae-soo was thinking of overhauling the curriculum.
Assigning the theoretical parts as homework and focusing on practical classes.
He regretted not agreeing when President Kim Bong-du suggested focusing on practical classes three years ago.
“Instructor.”
“Yes?”
Each instructor has an assistant instructor.
Similar to a teaching assistant at a university.
“Jeong Gyeoul is here to see you. Should I let her in?”
“…Yes?”
A shiver ran down Kim Gae-soo’s spine, and cold sweat dripped down his back.
‘Why is she here all of a sudden?’
Bored.
Not fun.
The content is terrible.
I’ll tell my sister.
I’ll tell the president.
I’ll throw you to the monsters.
I’ll kick you out.
I’ll make you live as a cripple for life.
You’re not even a real instructor!
….
….
In a fleeting moment, Kim Gae-soo imagined dozens of scenarios and shook his head.
She’s just a 14-year-old student.
I can’t demean a young student because of my prejudice from the Demon King’s image.
Deciding to act like a proper instructor, Kim Gae-soo allowed Jeong Gyeoul to enter.
“Let her in.”
“…?”
The assistant instructor looked at Kim Gae-soo curiously.
‘Why is he shaking?’
Kim Gae-soo’s trembling hands and legs were visible, but the assistant thought it wasn’t his place to care.
He opened the door and let Jeong Gyeoul in.
“Please come in.”
“Yes. Thank you.”
Instructor Kim Gae-soo clenched and unclenched his fist as he greeted Jeong Gyeoul.
“Welcome, what brings you here?”
“Hello, Instructor. I’m Jeong Gyeoul, taking Introduction to Monster Studies.”
“I know.”
“Do you remember the male student who fell off the desk during class?”
“…Do I need to remember every student?”
Jeong Gyeoul’s eyes widened slightly.
He definitely chased after the magic power that leaked from that student.
But he doesn’t remember the student?
It was a situation that was hard to understand.
“Magic power was leaking from that student.”
“…What?”
This time, Kim Gae-soo’s eyes widened slightly.
Magic power leaked during class?
That’s a violation of school regulations.
Using magic power during theoretical classes is prohibited.
Long ago, after Jeong Ha-yul, engrossed in the theory recited by an instructor, covered the school with a magic storm, one of the rules was established.
But a student leaked magic power?
However, he never felt any such sign.
“That’s what I wanted to ask about.”
“I never felt anything like that. If that’s all, please return to your dorm.”
“…Yes.”
Jeong Gyeoul tilted her head and left.
Only then did Kim Gae-soo relax and slump into his chair.
“Damn… I can’t do this instructor thing.”
Kim Gae-soo was lost in thoughts about what might have happened if he had answered that he remembered.
Jeong Gyeoul, who had simply attended Kim Gae-soo’s class, would have been very wronged if she knew.
As she left the room, Jeong Gyeoul was caught in a misunderstanding.
“…Is he hiding it because the student might be in danger?”
She saw his pale hands, trembling body, and the sweat dripping from his forehead.
Something was definitely wrong with him.
The only reason she could think of was that he chased after that magic power yesterday.
‘President Kim Bong-du probably already knows.’
Since an S-Class has stepped in, there’s nothing for me to do.
As she walked back to the dorm to rest.
Flash—
A tremendous light erupted in the distance.
The unpleasant magic power she felt yesterday enveloped the Academy.
“…What the hell?”
‘Does that mean even an S-Class hero couldn’t handle it?’
Suddenly, Lin Hazel’s warning came to mind.
-This is really dangerous. It’s not something to take lightly. If you step in recklessly…
Jeong Gyeoul felt wronged.
I haven’t even stepped in yet, and it’s already dangerous.
Anyway, the incident has happened, and time is passing.
I don’t know the purpose or what they did.
But there’s one thing I need to do first.
Gathering magic power in my legs, I ran to the dorm.
“Hayan!”
‘Someone save me, damn it.’