Chapter 80. The Appearance of the School Nurse (2)

Chapter 80. The Appearance of the School Nurse (2)

“You… you’re not doing anything suspicious outside, are you?”

At Kim Jinhyuk’s question, I was momentarily speechless.

To be honest, I had been doing plenty of suspicious things, so I had no way to argue against it.

But I couldn’t just admit to it either, so I played dumb.

“What are you talking about? Suspicious things?”

“Hmm, the Director offhandedly mentioned something like, ‘That kid and his women,’ so I just wanted to check. I don’t intend to interfere in your private life, but you are a student in my class.”

“....”

No way. That can’t be it.

If my messy relationships got exposed… I’d seriously be screwed.

‘Wait a second.’

Thinking about it, there was no need to worry.

I had been with a total of five women.

Lumi, Im Sol, Lucy, Baek A-Young, and Liliana.

Among them, only Lumi was at risk.

Lucy’s first and only time was when she was under Felix’s arousal magic. Other than Liliana and me, no one knew what happened that day.

Im Sol and I only did it in the lab, so no way we were caught.

Baek A-Young and I had done it outdoors a few times… but I always set up a barrier, so we were never discovered.

Liliana was always inside my place, so no one would even know she existed.

That left Lumi, and honestly, she was the biggest risk.

We had gone to motels twice without knowing any better, and recently, we got caught having sex in the clubroom, thinking it was safe.

But even if someone investigated, all they would find is that Lumi and I are dating. Nothing suspicious beyond that.

In conclusion, I had nothing to be afraid of.

“Don’t worry. I’m not that kind of guy. It might sound odd coming from me, but I visit an orphanage every week to volunteer. I often run into the Saintess there. And during the dungeon field training attack, I ended up stranded with her. Maybe that’s why she called for me.”

“Oh… you volunteer on your own? I knew you two were stranded together, but I didn’t know the full story. That does explain things. If my question offended you, I apologize.”

Yeah, that’s the normal reaction.

I helped take down a demon infiltrator at the academy, worked diligently in the student council’s PR team, saved Baek A-Young during the dungeon outbreak, gained fame as a rising prospect, and even volunteered every weekend.

Where else could you find an ace like me?

“It’s fine. Where is the Director? Should I go to his office?”

“No, he’s on his way here. I have to leave for class, so just talk to him here.”

“Ah… understood.”

“Everyone knows you’re a hardworking student, so just relax and speak honestly.”

“Yes, sir. Have a good class.”

After Kim Jinhyuk left to prepare for the joint lesson…

I let out a breath and relaxed my body.

Organizations are always complicated, but an academy’s Director is powerful enough to ignore most things.

In reality, the Director holds more power than the Dean. Be it as a Hunter or in terms of authority, the Director had the upper hand.

So, I had no idea what he wanted to talk about.

Still, I decided to prepare some coffee for him.

It’s best to show at least a little courtesy.

Even if it’s just instant coffee, what matters is the gesture.

I placed a coffee packet in a cup but didn’t pour the hot water yet.

Knock, knock, knock.

“Cadet Lee Hoyeon, are you here?”

“Yes, I am!”

Now. I casually poured the hot water in.

This is how you make it seem like offering coffee is just second nature!

The Director who entered had the appearance of a middle-aged man.

He had a neat and easygoing demeanor. With his glasses, he even gave off a vibe similar to Moon Surin.

That man was definitely Surin’s grandfather… proving that strong Hunters can defy aging.

“So, you’re Cadet Lee Hoyeon. Nice to meet you.”

Director Moon Jaecheol extended his hand.

I accepted it politely with both hands.

Without even glancing at the coffee I prepared with such sincerity, he took a seat.

That was a little disappointing.

“So, Cadet Lee Hoyeon… Do you know why I’m here?”

“I’m not sure.”

It’s probably about Baek A-Young.

Since we volunteered together and were stranded during training, it would make sense for him to ask about her.

“I heard you’re acquainted with Saintess Baek A-Young. Is that true?”

“Yes. I wouldn’t say we’re particularly close, but we do have a reasonable level of acquaintance.”

It was best to act as if we weren’t too close. There was no benefit in claiming otherwise.

“I see… Yesterday, Baek A-Young suddenly expressed her desire to work at the academy. Did she mention anything about this to you beforehand?”

“No, I only heard about it this morning from Professor Kim Jinhyuk.”

“Hmm…”

Moon Jaecheol took a sip of the coffee on the table.

“For a student, you make a decent cup of coffee. But there’s something bothering me.”

“What is it?”

“Do you know what conditions Baek A-Young set? She doesn’t want money. All she asked for was that her ‘Saintess’ image wouldn’t be used for the academy’s benefit and that she be placed in a position where she can easily interact with students.”

“....”

I stayed silent, listening carefully to his words.

“From the academy’s perspective, there’s no reason to refuse. The association has already milked the ‘Saintess’ image dry. Just announcing that she left the association for the academy would be a massive PR win.”

That made sense. Baek A-Young had cemented her image as a Saintess through her beautiful appearance and her constant care for the wounded.

Not just the media, but even active Hunters strongly supported her, making the general public view her as kind and righteous.

The fact that she chose the academy over the association was a priceless advantage.

“But the part about her wanting easy access to students… that felt a little off. From our perspective, we had to question it.”

“I understand.”

“Could the association be trying to recruit students? No, Baek A-Young is too valuable for that. Could she be trying to gather cadets to form a guild? That’s absurd. That leaves only one possibility—there’s a cadet she’s particularly interested in…”

“....”

“And that cadet is you, Lee Hoyeon.”

Damn.

I could feel the Director’s determination to dig out my secrets.

So this is the kind of man who climbed to the position of Academy Director.

If I were just a regular cadet, I would have been overwhelmed by the setting—a professor’s office, the Director’s authority, and his sheer presence—and spilled everything. But I was different.

[Steadfast Willpower] allowed me to suppress my emotions at will, no matter the situation.

It was a bit scary how the Academy had figured out in just one day that Baek A-Young’s target was me, but now was the time to stay calm.

My answer here was critical.

What kind of response was this man looking for?

“I’m not an unreasonable person. If you were the reason Hunter Baek A-Young came to the Academy, then I intend to reward you, so you don’t have to lie.”

He said that, but it was clear he already knew the truth.

In reality, if he asked the Hunters who rescued us during the dungeon attack or the caretakers at the orphanage, they would confirm that Baek A-Young and I were quite close.

I could strongly deny it and escape for now, but that wouldn’t solve the problem.

After all, Baek A-Young had gone as far as infiltrating the Academy. She would make contact with me sooner or later.

‘Would it be best to say we’re dating?’

If I claimed we were in a relationship, everything would be settled. It’s common for someone to change jobs for a lover.

I was about to say we were dating but hesitated for a moment.

If he had investigated this thoroughly, then he likely knew about my relationship with Lumi as well.

That meant saying we were dating wasn’t an option.

How should I respond?

After some thought, I spoke up.

“Actually… the Saintess has a one-sided crush on me and has been following me around.”

Sorry, A-Young.

“...What?”

The usually composed Moon Jaecheol’s eyes widened in surprise.

“So that’s how it was… She developed feelings for you after the dungeon outbreak and started following you around…”

“Yes. Just last weekend, the student council volunteered at the orphanage, and she knew in advance and showed up. You can confirm with the orphanage director.”

“Huh… Hold on a moment.”

Moon Jaecheol tapped on his smartwatch, contacting someone.

“It’s true. I confirmed with the orphanage director.”

“Yes.”

“Hmm. If you wish, the Academy can remove Baek A-Young right now. What do you think?”

Oh-ho. Expelling the Saintess for the sake of a single cadet? He still had a sense of duty as a Director, at least.

Well, considering he was Moon Surin’s grandfather, he couldn’t be a bad person.

“No, that won’t be necessary. I’m still thinking about my relationship with the Saintess.”

I thought I gave a decent answer, but Moon Jaecheol stared at me intently.

“You are certainly different from other cadets.”

“It’s nothing special.”

Damn. Did I act too calm?

But it was better to stay composed than to make mistakes trying to act like a nervous student.

I was confident there was no better response than what I just gave.

“Nothing special? Most cadets tremble just standing before me. You’re on a completely different level. No wonder Surin is interested in you.”

“...What?”

Did I mishear that? How did the Director know Moon Surin was interested in me?

“But, you see…”

Thump.

He wasn’t releasing any mana.

Yet, my Combat Sense was screaming that I was in danger.

“If you want to get close to my Surin… you’d better clean up your relationships and only focus on her. Otherwise, even I don’t know what I’ll do.”

“...Yes, sir.”

The Director was smiling, but it didn’t look like a smile at all.

“You don’t lower your head completely, huh? I admire your guts.”

It seemed he liked me as a potential son-in-law—if I ignored my relationships with other women.

Honestly, I was too scared to try making excuses.

At least he didn’t seem to know that I was actively chasing multiple women. That was a relief.

“I’ll send Surin your way next time. Since you helped bring the Saintess into the Academy, I’ll make sure you’re rewarded properly.”

The problem was, I hadn’t even started making a move on Moon Surin yet.

Would he still be this relaxed if I actually made a move?

What if I kept collecting women like an octopus collecting tentacles? How would he react?

‘I have no idea…’

The Director left after finishing the conversation.

I couldn’t skip class, so I quickly ran to the auditorium for the joint lesson.

Creak—

As I entered the auditorium, I saw the first and second-year cadets gathered, receiving guidance from the professors.

I made eye contact with Professor Kim Jinhyuk, who was standing in front of the first-years, and nodded slightly before sitting next to Lucy.

“Oh? Lee Hoyeon, you’re here?”

“Yeah. Where’s Lumi?”

“She went to the bathroom. You got here just in time—mental training just finished, and it’s time for sparring.”

“Oh… really?”

Now that I looked, some professors were setting up sparring rings in the back.

Judging by the fact that they were setting up over ten rings, it looked like everyone would be sparring.

“Alright, all first-years, gather over here. You’ll be sparring with the second-years.”

Murmurs spread through the crowd.

“Whoa, second-years must be really strong.”

“But aren’t there no famous second-years? Our top first-years could probably beat them.”

That was true.

For the sake of game balance, all the prodigies were crammed into the first year. The second-years were just unlucky victims.

“Wow, were all the first-years born in a golden era or something?”

“I dunno. Just lucky, I guess.”

I was just grateful we weren’t called the ‘Golden Generation.’

If I ever heard someone say, ‘Lee Hoyeon, leader of the Golden Generation,’ I’d want to die.

“So, how should we decide the order? Anyone want to spar with a second-year first?”

While Professor Kim Jinhyuk was helping set up the sparring rings, a female professor from Class B stepped onto the stage and asked the first-years.

Unlike in regular class, the students seemed interested. It wasn’t often they got to spar with their seniors.

Before anyone else could, I quickly raised my hand.

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