Chapter 42
Chapter 42
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 42
Chapter Title: Hobgoblin Ambush
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The cafeteria was quiet on Saturday morning.
Most students were sleeping in or heading out for the weekend, leaving the faculty and staff as the main crowd.
“Hello.”
Kim Ji-young, the homeroom teacher for 1st-year Class F, and Park Min-cheol from administration joined them.
Their casual chatter faded as they ate.
Kim Ji-young discreetly activated her sound barrier, blocking external leaks.
“I checked the access logs for Jaekyung Pharma staff and Kang Jae-hyeok’s assignment report.”
“So the rumors were true? Handing a bodyguard gig to a first-year? Kim Jin-myeong must really trust Kang Jae-hyeok.”
“It’s not a job that needs any real skill. It’s what they call a cushy assignment.”
The team from Jaekyung Pharma consisted of three B-rank players, five C-rankers, and eight D-rankers.
That was enough firepower to overwhelm a small guild.
No way did they need one student for protection.
“At first, Martial Force handled escorting the Jaekyung Pharma staff directly. But once they mapped all the herb growth spots and secured safe routes, they started offloading the job to teachers. Then the teachers passed it on to students.”
The mission lead had switched to Kim Jin-myeong in the process.
“Jaekyung Pharma’s been using the same route for five years now. They don’t need escorts or guides anymore. The student assigned just has to look after themselves. As long as they don’t get in Jaekyung’s way, it’s fine.”
“From the student’s perspective, tailing them all day earns cash and credits.”
“Exactly. It’s just a gauge of who’s in Kim Jin-myeong’s favor.”
In other words, Kang Jae-hyeok got the gig not because he was as strong as a second-year.
“The situation’s way better than when Yoon Sang-ho stepped up. It’s the perfect chance to target him outside Martial Force’s watch. I left a map of Arcane Gorge in your desk drawer.”
Kim Ji-young finished eating first, grabbing her tray and standing.
“Wait at the marked spot on the map. Kang Jae-hyeok and the Jaekyung Pharma crew should arrive around 9:05 p.m.”
She could predict the timing thanks to five years of data.
Arcane Gorge was the final stop for Jaekyung Pharma’s Skygrass harvests, and they always hit it around the same time.
“Arcane Gorge has tons of blind spots and wind noise that drowns out everything. The staff will scatter to gather herbs, leaving Kang Jae-hyeok alone at some point. Strike then.”
“Got it. I’ll head out around sunset to avoid drawing Martial Force eyes.”
Park Min-cheol knew Arcane Gorge was a brutal hellhole.
A single student vanishing without a trace wouldn’t raise eyebrows.
***
B-rank players were welcome anywhere.
As the backbone handling core operations, their value was sky-high.
Especially in regular companies outside guilds or associations, B-rankers got treatment beyond imagination.
To civilians, they were practically invincible, so Jaekyung Pharma relied heavily on Manager Gu, Team Lead Seol, and Team Lead Baek.
Even the chairman’s son, Jo Sung-hyun—with his shaky standing in the company—couldn’t control them.
*This is bad.*
Jo Sung-hyun felt a chill down his spine.
Those proud types getting shoved off a cliff—would they just let it slide?
Student at Lion’s Castle or not, they could beat Jae-hyeok half to death, heal him with potions, then play dumb.
*When this blows up, whose side do I testify for?*
Reveal the truth, and Jaekyung Pharma loses Lion’s Castle, their top client. Massive company losses aside, he’d be the ultimate unfilial son to his father.
But he couldn’t paint an innocent(?) student as a liar either.
“How about it? I’m right, aren’t I?”
“…You are. That’s the habitat for Alus fern and Black Viper.”
“…….”
Lost in grim worries, Jo Sung-hyun snapped back.
Against his fears, the managers were talking normally with Jae-hyeok.
The other staff who’d leaped off the cliff after the leaders looked relieved now that they’d reached the jungle.
“It’s not even 6 p.m., and we’re already at the first spot. Over two hours faster than usual.”
“Yeah. Aside from the dirty clothes, this is ideal.”
“Enough chit-chat. Scatter and harvest the fern blossoms and Vipers.”
“Yes, sir!”
Jaekyung Pharma staff brimmed with enthusiasm.
They freely gathered fern blossoms they usually skipped due to time limits.
“Hey now.”
Jae-hyeok doused the hype. He’d somehow produced a scale out of nowhere.
“Records show Jaekyung Pharma takes about ten kilos of Alus fern blossoms weekly. Time to ease off.”
“It wasn’t a hard limit. We only got ten kilos because of time.”
“So you plan to yank every flower here today? What happens next week when they’re gone?”
“If we grab a ton this week, we can take less next time.”
“You think your boss would see it that way?”
“Huh…?”
“Suddenly doubling from five years of ten-kilo hauls? He’d praise you? Or suspect slacking and chew you out?”
“…….”
“You’re employees, not family. Even top performance rarely nets bonuses or promotions. Haven’t you seen a drama?”
“W-Well…”
Jo Sung-hyun tried to argue, but Manager Gu nodded like Jae-hyeok had a point.
“Alus fern populations are thin. Overharvesting could wreck the ecosystem. Drop the greed and stick to usual amounts.”
“Yes, sir!”
The staff replied energetically.
Just wage slaves like Jae-hyeok said, no reason to overachieve.
Better to wrap up early and head home.
It repeated a few times.
“Uwaaaaaah!!”
Prodded by Jae-hyeok, Jaekyung Pharma staff tumbled into hazards they’d normally ignore, rolling around. But they hit herb sites early and moved on fast.
“It’s brutal as hell, but thinking of early clock-out makes it kinda fun.”
“Yeah. First time eating lunch leisurely out here, right?”
“No overeating issues today.”
The mood was unusually cheerful.
They looked like beggars, but the laughs didn’t stop.
Even Manager Gu and the team leads softened toward Jae-hyeok.
“Thought Kim Jin-myeong was dissing us sending a first-year, but it was a misunderstanding. He sent a real ace.”
“No kidding. Kim Jin-myeong’s not crazy enough to snub Jaekyung Pharma, ranked 13th in Korea’s conglomerates.”
It was just 11 a.m., and only one spot left.
Arcane Gorge.
The Skygrass habitat they usually reached past 9 p.m.
“Harvesting Skygrass in daylight instead of night for the first time.”
“That godforsaken gorge won’t suck as much today.”
While staff ate, Jae-hyeok—with bread in his mouth—scouted nearby danger zones.
[Gray-Helmet Troll defeated.]
*Nice XP.*
Patrolling danger zones in broad daylight as a student wasn’t easy.
Loitering in restricted areas meant demerits if Martial Force caught you.
But as Jaekyung Pharma’s guide, Jae-hyeok had cover to roam and hunt monsters freely.
Staff, herb-focused, didn’t notice his brief absences.
“Time to move.”
Jae-hyeok returned; Manager Gu was rallying the team.
Noon.
Post-early lunch, they hit Arcane Gorge nine hours ahead of schedule.
Towering red cliffs flanked a stark, stunning view.
“Didn’t know this place was so pretty.”
“Wind’s surprisingly normal. Nights sound like screams from hell.”
Staff unpacked gear and began climbing.
Daylight made it a breeze compared to nights relying on light spells and lanterns.
They filled sacks several times faster.
*Real early quit today?*
*Hope this kid guides next week too.*
Grinning ear-to-ear, staff mentally rescheduled weekends.
“Dodge!”
Manager Gu yelled urgently.
Dozens of hobgoblins atop the cliffs loosed arrows in unison.
Staff mid-cliff dodged by hugging the rockface, but the manager and team leads below took the full barrage, dancing wildly with blades.
“Damn it! The student…!”
Manager Gu fretted more over Jae-hyeok than his own shoulder arrow.
A Lion’s Castle student dying would explode into a mess, context be damned.
And hobgoblins were C-rank monsters.
No first-year survives dozens of C-rank arrows unaided.
Jo Sung-hyun dashed forward.
Spotting Jae-hyeok behind the team leads, he lunged to shield him.
Jae-hyeok tilted his head.
“I’m the bodyguard?”
“Huh?”
Jo Sung-hyun, trying to scoop Jae-hyeok, got hugged instead, eyes wide.
An arrow aimed at his brow bounced off Jae-hyeok’s green scabbard.
“Stick to the cliff.”
Jae-hyeok leaped without waiting.
Boom-!
Mana burst from his soles’ Yongcheon points, sticking him to the cliff instantly.
Two more jumps passed frozen staff mid-cliff; fifth landed him atop.
“…A grasshopper?”
Jaekyung Pharma staff gaped.
Jo Sung-hyun recovered first, chasing—but way behind.
As he started climbing, Jae-hyeok faced the hobgoblin pack head-on.
Shing-!
A sharp sonic boom echoed through the gorge.
Lightning blade drawn sliced three hobgoblin necks.
Kieeeek!
Pack enraged, they dropped bows for swords.
But held back.
The draw’s afterimage sparked electric barrier, denying approach.