Side Quest: Dungeon Exploration Failure and Strategy (1)
An enormous traditional hanok steeped in the atmosphere of olden times.
In the vast front courtyard, evergreen pines stood year-round in proud, majestic form. A small stone-lined pond brimmed with golden carp and reddish lotus blossoms in full bloom. Outside the traditional residence—built according to the classical geomantic ideal of mountains at the back and water in front—countless guards stood watch with ironclad vigilance.
This place, staffed by dozens of servants and protected by a round-the-clock security system, was the grand mansion of Yu Gapryeong. It felt almost like a king’s residence.
“…….”
Around the wooden dining table in the living room, Yu Gapryeong’s blood relatives sat quietly eating their evening meal. Clink. Clink. Only the soft sounds of chopsticks, spoons, and breathing drifted through the air. An unreadable silence filled the space completely. Even the air itself seemed heavy.
“……Yu Seolhyeon.”
Yu Gapryeong’s deep, resonant voice broke the quiet. The family members flinched for a moment; only Yu Seolhyeon slowly set down her utensils and lifted her head to meet his gaze.
“Yes.”
Yu Gapryeong’s stern eyes held an unreadable intent. Yu Seolhyeon simply faced her grandfather in silence.
“……How is life at the Academy?”
A question packed with many layers of meaning.
“It is fine.”
The first exam and match. The sudden intrusion of monsters. Defeating them and receiving a commendation… There was so much she could have said, yet Yu Seolhyeon offered nothing more and merely gave a quiet nod.
“Good. That is enough, then.”
“…….”
Yu Gapryeong asked nothing further, as if that single answer had been sufficient.
“My daughter-in-law.”
“Yes, Father.”
“I will retire first. Finish the meal with the children.”
“Yes.”
Leaving his second daughter-in-law’s respectful reply behind him, Yu Gapryeong rose and walked away with deliberate, unhurried steps. After watching his retreating back for a moment, a voice rose—her stepmother’s.
“Seolhyeon, I heard you even received a commendation this time?”
“Yes.”
“You weren’t hurt?”
“No.”
Yu Seolhyeon answered the second mother’s purely perfunctory questions with short replies and set down her utensils. The second mother frowned slightly and shot her a sidelong glance, though outwardly she kept a bright, pleasant smile.
“I’ll be heading in as well.”
“Oh my? Already?”
Yu Seolhyeon rose and left. Behind her, the family began chattering about something or other; she deliberately ignored it. They were surely badmouthing her.
“……Haa.”
When she finally reached her own room, Yu Seolhyeon buried her face in her pillow.
“……So stifling.”
She had come down to the main house for the first time in a while, yet merely looking at those faces made her diaphragm ache. She no longer wanted anything to do with this family that barely deserved the name.
“…….”
Yu Seolhyeon hugged the soft pillow tightly and stared weakly up at the ceiling. After gazing at the beautiful patterns overhead, she quietly closed her eyes. The moment her eyelids settled, the events of the past few days rose to the surface of her mind.
The performance evaluation, the life-or-death struggle with the monster, receiving the commendation… Plenty of things had happened, or few, depending on how one looked at it. The clearest memory among them was, of course, the fight with the monster.
“……I really almost died back there, didn’t I? Probably.”
Yu Seolhyeon gave a bitter smile. It had been her first encounter with a monster of that level—like meeting a wild beast deep in the mountains at night. Thick killing intent so dense it was hard even to breathe had unsettled not only her but every other student as well. Lee Siwoo, Seo Nari, Yuliya, Jin Soyeon—none of them had been exceptions. They had all been steadily drowning in an inexplicable fear.
…Except for one person.
Come to think of it, Lee Jinhyuk looked pretty fine, didn’t he?
Lee Jinhyuk. That man had seemed remarkably composed. How could he stay so steady after being exposed to such intense killing intent in his first real battle—when even the Academy’s so-called geniuses had been flustered? He had been far too calm, almost as if he had expected the situation.
…Looking back carefully, there were a lot of strange things about Lee Jinhyuk.
Throughout the performance evaluation he had told them the opposing team’s abilities and weaknesses. His strategies had lined up with uncanny precision. Even in a first real battle where lives were on the line, he had remained unfazed. Those eyes that always seemed filled with certainty.
And especially that last arrow he showed us… that final one.
A single arrow. The shaft that had streaked forward like a bolt of light refused to leave her mind. The moment it struck, the monster had spewed blood and gone berserk. None of the students’ attacks had managed to deal meaningful damage, so how had one arrow delivered such a heavy blow?
Lee Jinhyuk played dumb and claimed it was just a lucky hit on a vital spot… but that never made sense to begin with.
His arrow had been a training arrow—blunt-tipped and difficult to imbue with mana. In other words, an arrow that could not inflict a fatal wound.
So how?
A question. Nothing but questions. Asking him never produced a proper answer. She had wanted to press harder, yet because she owed him her life she had been unable to push too strongly.
Could it be a supernatural ability?
If it were a supernatural ability, it would make sense. This world held truly diverse kinds of powers; he might simply have been lucky enough to awaken something extraordinary. But Lee Jinhyuk was a Non-Ability User—someone who had never awakened a supernatural ability… unless he was deliberately hiding it.
“Ugh. My head hurts.”
Yu Seolhyeon let out a sigh. No matter how carefully she thought it over, she could not figure it out. Speculating like this now would reveal nothing. It was true that Lee Jinhyuk was hiding many things and was a suspicious figure in various ways, yet that alone was no proof he was concealing a supernatural ability.
…Of course, Yu Seolhyeon half-suspected he was doing exactly that.
Well, either way, Lee Jinhyuk seems like something of a talent in his own right.
Ability or no ability, he had remained composed from start to finish even in his first real battle. Some people, no matter how skilled, went blank under real combat pressure and performed far below their usual level; others grew colder and sharper the more real the situation became. Lee Jinhyuk clearly belonged to the latter group. He had been the first to grasp the situation and calm the others down. As an operator, that was an essential talent and quality.
Yes—quality. Quality was a domain that effort alone could not easily fix. One had to be born with it.
The more talent I have around me, the better.
Yu Seolhyeon knew her own limits as a hero. It was not that she lacked talent; she could proudly say she did not fall far behind even Lee Siwoo. But her supernatural ability was another matter. It was not suited for combat—closer to a supporter’s power. That was why she wanted a team: a team that could fill one another’s gaps, where each person’s abilities and talents could create synergy. Lee Jinhyuk was a little lacking for now, but that would change depending on what he was still hiding.
“I wonder how it will turn out.”
Yu Seolhyeon hoped he was hiding even more secrets. As she had said, talent was always better in greater numbers. And if it was someone of Lee Jinhyuk’s caliber… well, she was confident she could scout him anytime.
“That’s it for today. No dilly-dallying—go straight home.”
The homeroom teacher’s closing remarks ended. For someone who had fought a life-or-death battle against a minotaur not long ago, he looked surprisingly fine. In the original story he would have been lying in a hospital bed by now.
“Soyeon, Soyeon. Want to hit karaoke today?”
“Oh. Should we?”
Once class was over, several students invited Jin Soyeon to karaoke. She glanced my way. The others grinned and came over to me as well.
“Hey~ Jinhyuk-ssi, wanna come to karaoke with us?”
“Ah. I’ve got something to take care of today.”
A male trainee tried to act buddy-buddy and invite me, but unfortunately I had no time for karaoke. Because today was the day that incident happened—the very first event that would send Yu Seolhyeon down the path of becoming a villainess.
“Come on, just come with us.”
“Sorry.”
“Ugh, this guy’s playing hard to get again.”
Jin Soyeon muttered discontentedly. I could only offer a wry smile.
“I said I’m sorry. I’ve really got something urgent today.”
“What is it this time? Always something urgent. Last time it was the performance evaluation, the time before that it was studying—ugh, fine, whatever.”
Maybe because I had turned down her suggestions one after another lately, she seemed a little sulky. Honestly, she was acting like a kid.
“Don’t get too mad. I’ll get you something nice later.”
With that I hurried off. Jin Soyeon grumbled behind me, but I had no room to care today.
“There she is.”
Leaving the Academy building, I spotted Yu Seolhyeon and a few other girls in the distance. I walked up to her.
“Yu Seolhyeon.”
“Ah. It’s you. What is it?”
“I need to talk to you for a moment.”
“Talk?”
“Yeah.”
When I nodded once, Seo Nari’s eyes narrowed beside her, then sharpened into a piercing glare.
“Don’t tell me! You’re about to confess to Seolhyeon?”
“Oh~ is that what this is? Heh.”
Yu Seolhyeon played along with Seo Nari’s nonsense. I was genuinely speechless. Confess? What confession?
“Sorry, Lee Jinhyuk. As I told you last time, your face just isn’t my type.”
“I’m not trying to confess.”
Second confession rejection. Hadn’t this happened last time too?
“It’s something important.”
“Something important? What?”
“A dungeon.”
“Huh?”
I couldn’t speak openly in front of the rest of Yu Seolhyeon’s group, so I floated a single keyword and let her catch the hint.
“It’s related to the Yeongdeung Mountain Dungeon.”
“……!”
Yu Seolhyeon’s face stiffened instantly. The fact that it involved her had been confidential. Coming to her directly with those words would naturally raise all sorts of suspicions on her end.
“I’ve got a proposal about it. How about it? Can you spare some time?”
“Huh? What’s this guy suddenly talking about? Seolhyeon?”
“…….”
Seo Nari blinked in confusion. The other girls looked the same. Only Yu Seolhyeon remained silent.
“Fine. Let’s move somewhere else for a bit.”
“Huh? Wait, Seolhyeon. Your next schedule is—”
“It’s fine. I’ll handle the schedule myself. You go on ahead, Nari. I’ll talk with him for a moment and catch up. The rest of you too.”
“O-okay. Got it.”
After sending Seo Nari and her followers off first, Yu Seolhyeon fixed me with a hard stare. Then she spoke a single line.
“What are you?”
“What?”
“How much do you know? Why are you bringing up the Yeongdeung Mountain Dungeon to me of all people…?”
“Before we get into that, how about we go somewhere easier to talk? Too many eyes around here.”
We were still inside the Academy. A change of venue was necessary.
“I know a good café. Let’s head there.”
“Fine. Let’s do that.”
“Soyeon, Soyeon.”
“What?”
“Do you still have some leftover feelings for Jinhyuk or something?”
“What? No, no. We’re not like that.”
“Right? I was just wondering.”
In the middle of downtown, Jin Soyeon and her classmates were walking toward the karaoke place.
“You’ve got Siwoo, after all.”
“I’ve told you a dozen times Siwoo and I aren’t like that either.”
“Heh~ Playing both sides? Guess a pretty face really does get you places.”
“Ugh. Forget it. Not worth talking about.”
“Aww~ Just kidding, just kidding. Don’t get mad~.”
The girl giggled.
“Anyway, you’ve been kinda… with Jinhyuk lately—huh?”
“What is it?”
The girl suddenly peered intently at a café window and tilted her head. Jin Soyeon followed her gaze. Then—
“Huh? Jinhyuk? What’s he doing at a café…?”
Her words cut off mid-sentence. The person sitting with Lee Jinhyuk looked familiar. Wait, was that—
“Yu Seolhyeon?”
No. Why was she meeting Jinhyuk separately again? The performance evaluation was already over. So why?