Chapter 26. Dungeon Practice (3)

Chapter 26. Dungeon Practice (3)

Nam Daeun stopped at my words.

Nam Daeun, Lumi, and Lee Byunghoon were all watching me.

“So, what are you going to do? There’s no wind here. Considering the monsters we encountered on the way, there aren’t any that would leave tracks on the ground.”

This guy, Lee Byunghoon, was unexpectedly sharp.

He had a good grasp of the basics of dungeon navigation.

The flow of air and monster traces.

Of course, where there are basics, there are also advanced and specialized techniques.

The defining characteristic of a cave-type dungeon is its high mana density.

Since it is a ‘dungeon’ accessed via a portal, the absence of an entrance and exit makes it plausible that there is no wind.

However, even if there is no wind, mana is still flowing.

Due to its incredibly high density and minute movements, most people simply can’t perceive it.

In reality, finding an exit by following mana flow is not a method commonly used by hunters. The accuracy is low, and it’s difficult to execute.

“Wait a moment.”

But I’m different.

[Mana Sensitivity] and [Clairvoyance]

I can sense mana and observe its flow. It makes no sense that I wouldn’t be able to see its movement.

‘Clairvoyance.’

Zing—

My eyes turned golden, and my pupils dilated.

Mana filled the space. I observed the subtle currents within it.

“There.”

I raised my index finger and pointed to one of the ten tunnels.

The third tunnel from the left.

All the mana was passing through that path. That was the passage.

“What’s with those golden eyes? Sorry, but how are you so sure it’s that way? I’d like at least a rough explanation.”

Lee Byunghoon questioned my words.

“...Even if I explain, you wouldn’t believe me. Can’t we just go this way?”

“My grades are on the line here. If it were you, would you just go along without questioning?”

As I glanced to the side with my widened vision, I noticed Nam Daeun watching me silently.

It seemed she also wouldn’t proceed without a proper explanation.

Lumi, on the other hand, had her hands clasped in front of her chest, blinking innocently. She had no complaints. It seemed like she was fine with whatever I decided.

“I read the mana flow. All the mana in the tunnels passes through the third one, so I judged it to be the right path. Don’t ask me how I read the flow.”

“No, but how can a cadet read the flow of mana…?”

Lee Byunghoon still looked skeptical.

But it didn’t matter.

Because our team leader thought differently.

Whoosh—

Nam Daeun took off toward the third tunnel.

“Eh? Eh?!”

I grabbed Lumi’s arm and followed after her.

Behind me, Lee Byunghoon groaned, “Ah, fuck. Whatever,” and ran as well.

Thus, we ran for about fifteen minutes, with Nam Daeun taking care of any monsters that appeared while I occasionally blasted spells to rack up some points.

Another fork appeared. This time, there were eight tunnels.

“The fourth one.”

Tap-tap-tap—!

As I pointed to the path while running, Nam Daeun changed course without slowing down.

“Wait, can we really trust this…? Ah, screw it. I’m following.”

At this point, running through the dungeon was becoming tedious.

Of course, other teams were probably too tense, preparing for monster encounters, but we had our own monster-exclusive chauffeur.

“Lumi.”

“Yes?”

“Put a shield on Nam Daeun. You need to earn some points too.”

“Ah, I didn’t think about it because you guys were dealing with the monsters too quickly. That’s a basic tactic too...”

No matter how important she might become later, for now, she was still just a cadet.

Since this was Lumi’s first field exercise, mistakes were understandable.

But since her role was a support mage, she could still earn some points just by casting shields.

Meanwhile, I was navigating the path and picking off monsters with magic whenever an opening appeared, gathering points myself.

Our team was efficiently collecting points.

…Or were we? I felt like I was forgetting something.

Splat—

Nam Daeun sliced a lizard in half on her own.

The lizard didn’t even realize it was dead, its eyes still glaring.

Since I had been continuously using [Clairvoyance] to navigate, I could see Nam Daeun’s movements more clearly.

The lizard she had just slain was cut so cleanly, it looked like a cross-section in a diagram.

Most people believed her Authority was related to acceleration. That unnatural slicing power was assumed to be a skill, but both assumptions were wrong.

Her Authority was spatial domination.

Her acceleration wasn’t due to moving faster, but because she accelerated the flow of time in the space around her.

It wasn’t that Nam Daeun was getting faster—it was that the space she occupied was moving faster.

Of course, to outsiders, it looked like she was accelerating.

The same applied to her extraordinary slicing power. Her sword wasn’t just cutting—it was severing the very space it occupied.

I had understood this much from the game’s lore.

But no matter how obsessed a developer was, they wouldn’t detail the mana manipulation method required to accelerate the space around Nam Daeun.

So, I had never thought something like this would be possible.

The possibility of using someone else’s Authority.

Normally, Authorities were innate and could not be used by others.

However, ultimately, both Authorities and skills were manifestations of mana.

Nam Daeun’s ability to control space—specifically, her mana technique to accelerate it.

My [Clairvoyance] was reading her mana manipulation in real-time.

Maybe… I could imitate her Authority.

*

One by one, cadets started gathering as the dungeon practice ended.

Naturally, our team finished in first place with an overwhelming lead.

We finished so quickly that I regretted not running into Do Jinhyuk’s lackeys.

Other teams emerged with torn clothes, covered in dust, and some even had visible injuries, but our team was spotless.

Only Nam Daeun had some monster blood on her clothes.

“Ugh. It hurts...”

“Don’t whine about a little blood, you’re a man.”

The injured cadets lined up in front of Baek A-Young, waiting for treatment.

Since we had already cleared the dungeon and were on break, I approached Baek A-Young to see what she was doing.

“Huff, huff, haah.”

Just like in the game, Baek A-Young made weird sound effects while treating the cadets.

No matter how many times I heard it, it didn’t sound like exhausted panting.

Either others weren’t noticing the weirdness, or the title ‘Saint’ didn’t trigger certain associations in their minds.

“You’re working hard.”

I spoke to Baek A-Young, who had just finished treating someone.

“Ah, Hoyeon. No, it’s nothing. This is my job, after all.”

Despite sweating profusely, she never lost her smile.

“You seem pretty satisfied with your job. Every healer I’ve seen always looked exhausted.”

Healing consumes mana and also takes a toll on one’s stamina.

Typically, healers collapse in exhaustion after finishing their work, but Baek A-Young was different.

“Yes. Treating and saving people is always fulfilling. I truly think this is my calling. Plus, I make a lot of money. Hehe.”

She ended her sentence playfully, but her sincerity was evident.

Baek A-Young was someone who found joy in helping others.

After treating all the injured, she finally looked exhausted.

Her sweat-soaked blouse revealed the pink lingerie beneath her uniform.

Sweat trickled down her deep cleavage.

Gulp. Desire surged within me involuntarily.

No, isn’t this weird?

She’s sweating and making those sounds, yet no one finds this situation suspicious just because it’s healing? Am I the only one who thinks this is strange?

Am I being made into the pervert here?

I subconsciously glanced at Baek A-Young’s chest, then raised my gaze—our eyes met.

I’m screwed. She caught me.

“Uh, uh. I’m just glad. I tried not to get injured so you wouldn’t have to work too hard.”

“Thank you. Hehe...”

I changed the subject as naturally as I could. Luckily, she didn’t seem to notice.

…She didn’t notice, right?

*

With all teams finishing their dungeon practice, the cadets gathered as before.

Some teams that got along well earlier were now cold toward each other, while those that weren’t close had become friends.

Our team remained unchanged.

- 1st Place: Team 13. (Nam Daeun, Lee Hoyeon, Lee Byunghoon, Lumi)

- 2nd Place: Team 7. (Seo Minjun, Kim Seoyeon, Jung Yejun, Elise)

- 3rd Place: Team 8. (Do Juwon, Ha Seoyoon, Chae Sua, Lucy)

The rankings of the best-performing teams were displayed via hologram, the same way we had watched the first group’s trial.

“All the team footage will be uploaded to the A-Class SNS, so review it. In the next lesson, I’ll point out the good and bad aspects of your dungeon runs.”

Our homeroom professor, Kim Jinhyuk, said this before leaving.

The remaining cadets chatted noisily before scattering.

Just as Nam Daeun was about to slip away, I stopped her.

“Nam Daeun.”

“...?”

At least she didn’t completely ignore me after we worked together.

“We got first place this time, but if you keep acting solo, it’ll be hard to maintain that rank.”

“...I’ll handle it myself.”

Nam Daeun frowned slightly before walking away alone.

“Sigh, even when given solid advice, she doesn’t listen.”

I suppose I should be grateful she wasn’t more hostile.

For now, as freshmen, teamwork issues are overlooked, but if this keeps happening, it will eventually lower her evaluation scores.

Nam Daeun will lose her top spot sooner or later.

And the consequences… I don’t even want to imagine them.

She’ll regret it then, but no matter how much I explain now, she won’t understand.

*

Boom! Boom!

“Is that really a freshman? She could be placed in our guild’s second team right away.”

“That’s why she already signed an exclusive guild contract. Rumor has it she refused triple the signing bonus.”

“Tch. Sounds like she’s got some dirt on her. Everyone in the industry knows about the bad rumors surrounding that guild, so why would she sign immediately?”

Inside the monitor room, where dozens of screens displayed footage, the professors were deep in discussion after the dungeon practice.

Their eyes were fixed on a video of a girl running ahead while three others followed behind her.

“She’s not even letting her teammates fight.”

“Yeah, she doesn’t seem to cooperate at all.”

“Still, her talent is undeniable. If she keeps this up, we’ll have to deduct points next time.”

“It’s just the first evaluation, so we should be lenient.”

Among them was A-Class homeroom professor Kim Jinhyuk.

‘She’s strong, but her personality needs work.’

Kim Jinhyuk moved his fingers over the holographic interface.

Next to Nam Daeun’s name, he noted: “95 points. However, in the next evaluation, personality factors will be weighed more heavily.”

- Ah, whatever! Just kill them all!

- Hey, hey! Wait!

Boom! Boom!

Kim Jinhyuk turned to the next monitor, where a storm of magic explosions erupted.

The screen displayed Lucy annihilating dozens of monsters in one go.

Her combat style could be summed up as: [The best defense is a strong offense].

She minimized defense and prioritized taking down enemies before they could strike her.

If described kindly, it was like a shonen manga battle style. If not, it was just reckless.

For now, monsters couldn’t withstand her magical onslaught, but against stronger foes, this strategy wouldn’t hold up.

If combined with her sister Lumi’s support, it would be a deadly synergy. But assuming they’d always be together was unrealistic.

In the end, Kim Jinhyuk noted a score of 83 next to Lucy’s name.

“This batch of freshmen has some real gems—cute twins, Cadet Elise, and Cadet Nam Daeun. They’re all outstanding.”

“True. Even aside from them, Do Jinhyuk and Lee Hoyeon seem promising.”

‘Lee Hoyeon.’

Kim Jinhyuk found Lee Hoyeon’s video more intriguing than Elise’s or Nam Daeun’s.

His precise spellcasting between Nam Daeun’s high-speed movements was impressive, but even more so was his ability to navigate the dungeon flawlessly by reading mana flow.

For a cadet to read mana flow at this level suggested a specialized skill.

Cave-type dungeons are challenging due to accumulated fatigue and stress from getting lost, but he had eliminated that factor. It was a significant contribution.

Given that his teammates weren’t exceptionally skilled, his performance was even more commendable.

He hadn’t displayed overwhelming combat prowess, but he had a distinct air of extraordinariness.

“Hmm....”

After some thought, Kim Jinhyuk recorded a score of 86, three points higher than Lucy’s.

He had a preference for intelligent cadets.

“His mana reserves are a bit lacking, though. Small mana capacity, narrow circuits… Did he really start learning magic less than a month ago? But his mana control is too refined for that. Maybe a specialized skill? I should call him in for a closer look… For research purposes, of course…”

Mutter, mutter…

“?”

Kim Jinhyuk turned toward a strange mumbling sound.

There, Professor Im Sol was feverishly jotting down notes while watching Lee Hoyeon’s monitor.

“Professor? What are you doing here?”

Professor Im Sol, who usually never attended these meetings, was now passionately evaluating a cadet. This piqued Kim Jinhyuk’s curiosity.

He was also intrigued by the rumor quietly spreading around the academy—that Professor Im Sol had taken a special interest in a certain cadet.

“Ah, ah... It’s nothing!”

However, as soon as their eyes met, Professor Im Sol clutched the documents tightly to her chest and hurriedly ran off somewhere.

“...What the hell.”

For a brief moment, Kim Jinhyuk caught a glimpse of Professor Im Sol’s flushed face.

Chapter end