Chapter 135
Chapter 135
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 135
Chapter Title: Group Assignment (3)
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"Fine, let's say you really lost your phone."
Seo Jin-ah crossed her arms and took a step toward me.
"But come on. Couldn't you do research at a PC bang or something? Those places are everywhere. And I just saw you have a tablet too. Fine, whatever about the phone, but not installing KakaoTalk? That's kinda suspicious, don't you think? You're clearly just dodging contact, right?"
Seo Jin-ah relentlessly grilled me, backing me into a corner.
Just as she said.
If I really had any intention of doing the research, there were plenty of ways to get it done.
But right now, I had zero interest in wasting energy on petty arguments like this.
Survival in the Tower.
The desperate fight on the zombie planet.
Compared to that stuff, this group assignment felt utterly trivial.
"Sorry. It slipped my mind."
I just wanted to throw out a half-assed apology and be done with it.
I meant it.
She snorted in response.
"Slipped your mind? Hey, Kim Joo-hyuk. You messing with me right now? Do you have any idea how important this assignment is? You know how much grief I'm going through because of you? It's bad enough being grouped with a loser like you— the least you could do is show some effort!"
"……."
Like she'd finally caught me slipping up after holding back for so long.
Her voice grew louder and more heated by the second.
I was exhausted.
My mood sank heavy.
"I get what you're saying, so can we drop it?"
I wasn't sure I could guarantee her safety if this dragged on.
"Hah, who the hell said—"
She met my eyes and trailed off, her body flinching once.
In my gaze, Seo Jin-ah looked like easy prey, ripe for the taking.
"………Whatever. Fine! I'm done too! If team assignments weren't random, I never would've had to deal with trash like you anyway. Hmph. What a waste of time. And don't act like you know me if we run into each other at school. It creeps me out."
She shot me a look full of contempt and rushed to wrap things up.
Like she couldn't stand another second of talking to me. She turned on her heel and headed for the door.
Without so much as a glance back, she flung it open and stormed out.
SLAM!
The door crashed shut, leaving only silence in the room.
"...That bitch is totally unhinged."
A hollow laugh escaped me.
"All prim and proper at school... so this is her real face, huh."
Seo Jin-ah was known publicly as this sweet, angelic girl—kind and friendly to everyone.
But from what I'd seen working on this group project, she was the exact opposite.
I pondered her two-faced nature for a moment, then shook my head. No point wasting more energy on useless crap.
That's when my eyes fell on the trashed state of my apartment.
"Goddamn that fucking bitch!"
Dares to mess up my place and just bail?
I yanked open the front door and stepped out.
She'd only left a minute ago.
Had to be close by.
Sure enough.
There she was at the end of the hallway, waiting for the elevator.
"Hey! You fucking slut! Clean up your own mess before you go!"
Hearing my curses, Seo Jin-ah slowly turned around.
She flashed me a brilliant smile and flipped me off with everything she had.
Seo Jin-ah exaggeratedly opened her mouth wide.
The shape was clearly mouthing "retard" at me.
"……Hey, stop right there!"
I bolted toward her.
But she vanished into the arriving elevator with a cheerful ding.
I was tempted to summon just her lower half and give that ass a good smack.
But hey, that's how it goes—you start, and next thing you know, you're wanting to fuck her.
Not before dimensional travel, maybe, but no way was I wasting my precious seed on a girl like that.
I roughly tidied up the mess and flopped onto the bed.
Thought about tomorrow's lecture.
'What a pain. Maybe skip it.'
But if I didn't show, she might think I was scared of her outburst and hiding.
No way in hell was I letting her see that.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ The next morning.
I got up a bit earlier than usual and headed to Namtian University's campus.
Passing through the main gate, I took in the massive buildings built with cutting-edge facilities and the grand sprawl of the campus.
Among them, the Hunter Department building—the most expensive one—gleamed dazzlingly in the morning sun.
'Eye candy for sure.'
I glanced sideways at the training facilities emblazoned with logos from major guilds.
Most of Namtian University's state-of-the-art buildings had been funded by massive donations from those big guilds.
No denying it—they'd thrown money around like crazy, and the buildings were gorgeous for it.
Back in the day, I didn't even have the leisure to admire the campus scenery.
And for good reason. I was crushed by a massive inferiority complex back then.
The stigma of being an F-rank hunter.
My shitty family situation.
Anxiety about the future.
All of it weighed me down.
'But now? I'm good.'
I no longer cared about the stares around me.
Or more precisely, I didn't need to.
If Im Ji-hye were here right now, she might analyze it like this.
[Humans are social animals. Even if you tell yourself you're fine, you subconsciously care about others' opinions. In that sense, Master, you've gained great power, so you've realized you don't need to worry about what people think anymore?]
She'd nail my psyche with that cool, detached tone of hers.
'As if Im Ji-hye knows jack about a hunter's life.'
A smirk slipped out.
'Gonna be late for lecture. Time to go.'
Jumping straight into active hunter duty wasn't a bad idea.
But no place lets you meet as wide a variety of people as university.
Women included, of course.
I strolled lightly toward the lecture hall assigned for "Dungeon Ecology."
Stepping inside, sure enough, Seo Jin-ah was already seated.
She met my eyes once, then turned away.
I had no business with her, so I took an empty seat by the window.
A moment later.
Professor Cheon Ho-seok, who taught Intro to Dungeon Ecology, entered the room.
He was the top authority in Korea's dungeon ecology field—and an active A-rank powerhouse hunter to boot.
Rumor had it that catching his eye practically guaranteed offers from major guilds, which made his lectures insanely popular with students.
"Alright, quiet down. Let's begin."
The room fell silent at his low voice.
He nodded with a blank expression, then pulled up complex charts and images on the lecture hall screen.
"Today's topic is the 'symbiotic relationship between dungeon cores and monster populations.' Many aspiring hunters view dungeons as mere infinite monster farms, which is incredibly shortsighted. A dungeon is a living organism—a complete, self-contained ecosystem."
The professor pointed at the screen and continued.
"At the heart of every dungeon lies the 'dungeon core.' This core acts like a star, drawing in and condensing surrounding mana. The density and attributes of the mana it pulls in determine the dungeon's internal environment, and monsters suited to that environment are spawned."
"That's why dungeons rich in fire-attribute mana teem with salamanders or fire golems, while those heavy on ice mana host ice golems or yetis."
"The key point here is that when the core's mana condensation exceeds a certain threshold, bizarre phenomena occur. We call this the 'core saturation state.' In such dungeons, entities that defy normal ecological rules—unique and extraordinarily powerful—often emerge."
"We term them 'Named Monsters' or 'Unique Monsters.'"
I ended up listening intently to Professor Cheon Ho-seok's lecture despite myself.
'Powerful entities, huh. Like that goblin shaman B-rank hunter Lee Chae-ah hunted, or the boss mobs?'
"And as you all know, when this saturation persists and the core hits its limit, releasing mana outward—that's what we call a 'Monster Wave.'"
"Just 20 years ago, when gates first appeared, this kind of info was nonexistent or insanely valuable. Hunters back then threw themselves into the fray to protect humanity. That's why you're all sitting here today."
"So I trust no one here is dumb enough to ask why monster-hunting hunters need to study dungeon ecology starting today."
Professor Cheon Ho-seok wrapped up in his signature dry tone.
"Now, let's get into the real lesson."
For the first time, I thought university classes might actually be useful.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ ...Or so I thought, for a fleeting moment. I couldn't fight the crashing wave of sleepiness and ended up face-planting on my desk, out cold.