100
CH.100 Preparing for the New Semester (2)
"We're rich!"
This time, it wasn't something I said.
It was what Kim Chae-eun said while calculating our earnings at my house.
After we finished conquering the stained Rock Pile dungeon.
The most shocking thing was still Yoo Eun-seol becoming an academy instructor, but we still had something important left to do.
Dividing the dungeon conquest rewards.
We had to calculate the various items, magic stones, and monster byproducts.
As always, counting money was never tiring.
"Hehe. Pretty."
Chae-eun neatly organized the items on the table in the living room.
With the expensive equipment laid out, the table looked like a store display.
That table sure is unnecessarily long.
When did I get something like that in the house?
I asked Chae-eun with a broad grin.
"Chae-eun, Ms. Yoo Eun-seol didn't really take any rewards?"
Yoo Eun-seol, who was crucial in conquering the stained Rock Pile.
She said she didn't want any of the dungeon ownership rights or conquest rewards from us.
She even gave us all of the magic stones and byproducts from the monsters we hunted.
Why?
I wondered, but...
"Yep! She said she already accomplished her goal. The conquest rewards are just a gift."
"I see...."
Hearing that, I understood everything.
The reason Yoo Eun-seol joined us in the first place was because of me.
It was because I met the ‘special condition' to enter the double dungeon in <The River Touched by the Breath of a Dragon>.
Yoo Eun-seol suggested we conquer that dungeon together, and at that time I said I would do it if I became strong enough.
It looks like she resigned herself and gave up all the rewards.
In the first place, rewards at that level have no impact on an S-grade Holder like her anyway.
Thanks to that, we were able to monopolize all those rewards without making much effort to conquer the dungeon.
"...I feel a little guilty about it."
"Hehe. But making lots of money feels nice!"
"That's true."
I readily agreed with Chae-eun's rationalization.
After all, money is what remains in the end.
I checked the rewards with a broad grin.
"Did you tally up all the magic stones and byproducts?"
"Yep. Jae-hyun, divide it and deposit it into our accounts, 7:3 ratio."
"Huh? Why's that?"
"Hehe... I didn't do anything in the dungeon."
"Hey now, if you put it that way, I also..."
Other than killing six wolves in the boss room, I barely did anything....
I felt bad getting more money when we both got the same bus.
But there was no going back after Chae-eun already decided this.
Her stubbornness in things like this can't even be bent by Professor Kim Myeong-hyun.
I looked over the other rewards laid out on the table.
"There are a lot of them."
The rewards for conquering the 'Stained Rock Pile' were considerable.
It felt too easy since Yoo Eun-seol participated in the conquest, but after all, it was a high-level dungeon where all the monsters that appeared were B-grade or higher.
At minimum, it was an Academy Underground Dungeon.
At max, it could be compared to the Forest Covered with Snakes.
Thanks to that, the magic stones and monster byproducts, along with the rest room rewards, were pretty decent.
But among them, I was looking for something specific.
'Journal, journal... Aha! Found it.'
I discovered what I wanted while rummaging through the rewards.
A bundle of journals that looked quite old.
It was covered in dark blood and fur-like substances, and the extensive tears and damage made it look like it had been through a lot.
<Item Information>
◎ Name: Madman's Howling Journal
◎ Type: Special
◎ Rank: Epic
◎ Maker: -
◎ Special Effect: -
: When not in combat, possessing the journal at night under moonlight will quickly recover magic.
◎ Detailed Informations: -
: A journal of a human who howls madly whenever the moon shines at night. Most of the journal is torn and damaged, making it difficult to discern the contents.
'Okay. This is it.'
As expected, this was what I was looking for.
[Madman's Howling Journal].
It's a pretty decent epic special item with good effects, but the real value of this item lies elsewhere.
'City of Fallen Wolves'.
An ultra high-level dungeon that Park Jin-woo sets foot in later.
A special dungeon where werewolves or lycanthropes have taken over the interior.
Unlike normal dungeons, simply infusing magic into the medium is not enough to enter this dungeon.
Like the 'double dungeon entry condition' Yoo Eun-seol suggested, you had to use a special item as the medium to enter.
[Madman's Howling Journal] was that special entry item.
Lately, so many developments have diverged from the original that I was worried, but fortunately, this reward followed the original flow.
'It'll be difficult for now....'
I obtained the key to the dungeon, but conquering it right away will be hard.
The City of Fallen Wolves is the pinnacle dungeon where A-grade monsters prowl, not to mention the countless mysterious S-grade monsters.
In the first place, it's a special dungeon entered using an item obtained by conquering the already high-level 'Stained Rock Pile'.
There's no way conquering it would be easy.
'But getting it is what's important.'
The ‘City of Fallen Wolves’ is an extremely important dungeon.
Not simply because it has many high-level monsters and requires a special entry item.
As the name implies, the dungeon is literally a 'city'.
A dungeon in the form of a city where werewolves have gathered and created their own civilization.
Although crude and lowly, it clearly possessed all the basic elements of a city.
And this means...
Werewolves cannot simply be treated as monsters.
The 'different species capable of communication' that appear later in the original.
One of them was the werewolf.
"What's that, Jae-hyun?"
As I kept holding the journal for a while.
Chae-eun, who was organizing the items, asked.
"It looks like a special item... Chae-eun, is it okay if I take this?"
I wasn't particularly interested in the other equipment.
For now, none of the rewards included my main weapons like swords or daggers.
The armor and accessories didn't seem good for me either.
On the other hand, there were many magic-related items suitable for Chae-eun.
The only thing I needed from these rewards was [Madman's Howling Journal].
And Chae-eun brightly nodded at my question.
"Yep!"
"Huh?"
"Huh? Why?"
"You're giving it to me so easily?"
"Yeah. Just by looking, that item doesn't really suit me. And since it's a dungeon Jae-hyun found and conquered, you should decide how to split the rewards!"
"But... I also got the bus...."
Get a grip, please.
***
Ippotranslation
***
The new semester was right around the corner.
Whether as a student in the past or now…
If I had to pick the most important thing while preparing for a new semester.
It was, of course, course registration.
The academy was focused on educating Rune Holders, but the system itself was similar to a university.
Naturally, if there were lectures I wanted to take, I had to register online and get a seat.
"Ugghh- sleepy...."
8 AM in the morning.
Like any other student, I went to a PC cafe to get ready for course registration.
And next to me was a man with messy hair.
Park Jin-woo sat there with a drained expression from exhaustion.
"So you're here to register for courses too."
"Ohh... so sleepy. This is normally my sleeping time...."
"What about morning training?"
"Usually... 9 AM... uhmm..."
Course registration this time was pushed back about a week compared to normal.
The reason was, of course, Yoo Eun-seol.
Due to the ultra-special lecturer being recruited late, some time was needed to open lectures.
That's why course registration was only starting now, 2 weeks before the semester began.
"I'm nervous."
"What are you nervous about?"
"What if I can't get a seat? The competition ratio for Ms. Yoo Eun-seol's lecture will be insane."
The lectures I planned to register for this semester were 6.
General courses <Application of Magic Control> and <Harvesting Byproducts>.
Warrior-type major courses <One-handed Sword and Shield Usage>, <Understanding Two-handed Swords>, <Enjoy Getting Hit>.
And finally, the assassin-type major course which was...
The only lecture by Yoo Eun-seol opened this semester, <Dagger Usage and Sword Techniques>.
I chose those six courses because I needed them all, but Yoo Eun-seol's lecture was especially important.
It was a chance to improve my dagger skills which had stagnated to the point of regression, and a lecture taught by an S-grade Holder.
Even if I failed the others, I absolutely had to succeed in getting this one.
But Jin-woo, who was listening to me, tilted his head.
"Why are you taking Yoo Eun-seol's lecture? You're in the warrior class."
"What are you talking about? I entered as an assassin."
"That's not the assassin I know...!!"
Ignoring Jin-woo who suddenly fell into despair alone.
I focused on the course registration page on the screen.
The lectures were already reserved.
All I had to do was click the registration buttons 6 times when it was time.
"Phew...."
I don't know why course registration is so nerve-wracking every time.
I took a deep breath and stared at the screen.
Before I realized, the time raced towards 9 AM.
8:57, 58, 59...
As the minutes ended and it flipped to seconds,
[09:00]
The alarm for the hour rang, and hellish course registration began.
And...
[Dagger Usage and Sword Techniques (Yoo Eun-seol) : (0/0/0)]
"What the fuck, no way?"
As expected, I failed spectacularly.
Refreshing right at 9 AM allowed me to avoid the hellish waitlist, but...
The moment I clicked “registration”, the seats were gone in less than a second.
Damn it.
Is everyone using a supercomputer?
How is it so freaking fast?
Fortunately, I didn't panic and finished registering for the remaining courses, but I felt frustrated after missing the most important lecture.
"Sigh...."
"Give up. It feels nice to give up."
Park Jin-woo, who gave that consolation-like advice, was finally starting to look for lectures to register one by one, opening his sleepy eyes.
"What are you doing?"
"What do you mean ? Looking for lectures."
"You didn't reserve them in advance?"
"When did I ever?"
Wow.
He came to register without reserving lectures in advance.
This bastard. If I didn't tell him yesterday, he probably wouldn't have even known today was registration day.
"Ah... I need to find another lecture."
There was still the method of waiting for someone else to cancel and open up a seat.
Whenever someone vacated a spot, a seat would open up.
But there was no way that stroke of luck would happen for Yoo Eun-seol's lecture.
What crazy dude would cancel registration for the S-grade Holder's lecture that might be the last?
The possibility was zero.
"Tch."
Just as I was about to give up and look for another lecture,
Buzz-
I got a text from an unknown number.
[010-... ] This is Yoo Eun-seol. If you tried to register for my lecture but failed, give me a call. I'll open up a seat at the right time.
Only then did I remember the obvious fact I had forgotten.
That's right.
She came to the academy because of me.