Chapter 137
Chapter 137
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 137
Chapter Title: Group Assignment (5)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Seo Jin-ah bit her lip in frustration, glaring at me—the root of all this mess—like she wanted to kill me.
'Heh heh heh. You look great like that, Seo Jin-ah.'
If we were outside, she could've cursed me out to her heart's content.
But Professor Cheon Ho-seok was right there with us.
Her struggle to suppress her boiling rage was fucking hilarious.
I was inwardly mocking Seo Jin-ah for getting fact-slammed like that.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ Professor Cheon Ho-seok's turn has ended! Seo Jin-ah has taken massive damage. Next target: Kim Joo-hyuk. Professor Cheon Ho-seok's turn begins. 'Fuck.'
Come to think of it, there was no reason for Professor Cheon Ho-seok to blindly take my side.
For one, I hadn't done jack shit for the data research we were supposed to handle.
And two, I was Student #1 who used his brilliant lecture as a lullaby for a nice nap.
Now it was my turn to get fact-slammed, just like her.
Maybe even harder.
'But what the hell does this guy want from me?'
I cursed inwardly.
I couldn't figure out Professor Cheon Ho-seok's intentions at all.
Was he just trying to mediate the situation?
Or did he call us here to chew us both out like some punching bag?
To gauge his real intentions, I secretly activated 【Third Eye B-】.
⚔ STATUS ⚔ 👤 Target: Professor Cheon Ho-seok 🏷️ Tags: #Incorruptible #Logical #MyWay 'Whoa. A rare breed of professor.'
I was briefly surprised.
Professor Cheon Ho-seok's tags showed he was an upright man of integrity who didn't compromise with corruption.
He judged everything logically.
And he wasn't swayed by others' opinions.
In short, he was the ideal scholar and educator—far removed from sleaze or scheming.
'Doesn't seem like he's doing this out of any malice toward me.'
Simply put,
just as he'd pointed out Seo Jin-ah's mistakes,
now he was about to point out mine!
I thought it over for a moment,
then decided to just tell the truth.
No point in lying.
I doubted I could fool the eyes of an active A-rank Hunter like Professor Cheon Ho-seok.
Besides, there was no reason to hide the facts in the first place.
I figured being upfront would win me more favor with him.
"Yesterday morning, I went to the C--rank Goblin Habitat dungeon."
At my response,
every eye in the room turned to me again.
Seo Jin-ah's expression was priceless.
Her eyes were wide with disbelief, her mouth slightly agape.
"What!? How the hell did you go to a dungeon?"
Seo Jin-ah demanded in a voice dripping with skepticism.
Strength F.
This talent, which doubled your final Strength stat and seemed kinda cheat-y,
was trash because it was based on your base Strength stat.
Average adult male stat: 10.
Average F-rank Hunter: 20.
Even if it doubled all stats for an F-rank Hunter, you'd barely hit D-rank levels.
Strength F only doubled the Strength stat precisely.
So you had D-rank Strength, but everything else was straight F-rank Hunter trash.
Monsters?
Good weapons and gear let you kill 'em fine.
But you tired out faster than others.
Your sluggish movements meant you ate every hit.
And your Endurance was garbage too.
No wonder basic stat awakenings were called the "Trash Trinity."
(Intelligence doesn't count as trash, FYI.)
Mages only needed Intelligence; everything else was irrelevant.
That was why I got shat on in Class A of the Hunter Department.
My abilities were just that pathetic.
And that's why
an F-rank Hunter lackey like me going into a dungeon as a proper Hunter
was suicide.
Or sounded like a desperate lie to dodge this mess.
"How? As a porter. Oh, if you need proof, I can request documentation from the Hunter Association."
I answered confidently.
After all, by 'real-world standards,' I'd worked as a porter for B-rank Hunter Lee Chae-ah's party yesterday.
Nothing to sweat over.
Professor Cheon Ho-seok stared at me for a moment,
then nodded with a faint smile.
"Alright, now the situation is clear."
The professor began summarizing.
"Joo-hyuk went to the dungeon himself to gather data for the group assignment. That's why he couldn't be reached—he was inside the dungeon. And unfortunately, he lost or broke his phone in the process."
'He's making an alibi for me. No need to correct this misunderstanding.'
I didn't bother clarifying that his guess wasn't quite right.
Better to play along for now—it worked in my favor.
"Yes, Professor."
At my confirmation, Seo Jin-ah shot me a look like, No way...? But there's no way he'd... right?
"Jin-ah, what now? Joo-hyuk's side seems sufficiently explained. Will you give him another chance? Or exclude him from the assignment as is? The choice is still yours."
The decision went back to Seo Jin-ah.
But the situation had flipped completely.
Before, I looked like a irresponsible teammate who'd ditched the assignment.
Now I was packaged as the passionate one who'd gone to a dungeon for research.
If she kept insisting on kicking me out now?
She'd come off as petty and selfish—especially in front of Professor Cheon Ho-seok, who wielded huge influence in Hunter society.
I looked at Seo Jin-ah's face.
It was flushed red with humiliation.
'Heh. She didn't see this coming and thought everything would go her way.'
"......So, what should I do?"
In the end, Seo Jin-ah backed down.
*
While Professor Cheon Ho-seok and Seo Jin-ah had their private talk,
I waited outside.
'Man, the more I think about it, the better my choice of tag-specialized trait seems.'
I could've gotten similar results with 【Third Eye B-】's target scan and search,
but it sends a wall of text, so reading takes time.
Plus, your eyes naturally move when reading.
Fine for most people,
but Professor Cheon Ho-seok was an active A-rank Hunter.
Darting my eyes around in front of him?
He might not notice instantly, but he'd suspect I was using some ability.
'Or I'd just look like a spaced-out idiot.'
Tags, though? Short, concise, straight to the key info—no such worries.
*
The meeting between Professor Cheon Ho-seok and Seo Jin-ah ended,
and the lab door opened.
I was leaning against the hallway wall, arms crossed, and glanced at Seo Jin-ah as she stepped out.
Gone was yesterday's smug attitude bulldozing me.
She looked utterly defeated.
'Ahh, that hits the spot!'
Spotting me, she hardened her expression and strode over.
Her clenched fist trembled faintly, her bitten lip red and ready to burst.
"Ha..."
Standing before me, Seo Jin-ah let out a deep sigh.
"You annoying bastard. This is all because of you. Was it that hard to send a quick message saying you were hitting a dungeon?"
Her voice was low and calm.
But the tone was pure sarcasm.
"Why do I have to report every little thing to you? You my wife or something?"
Her face blanked at my retort.
She'd clearly expected me to grovel and apologize like always.
"W-what? Are you insane? Who started all this!?"
"Didn't you hear the professor? Team management is the leader's responsibility. So yeah, it's on you."
"Ha! Fine, you wanna play it like that?"
Seo Jin-ah let out a disbelieving scoff
and stepped closer, jabbing a finger at me.
"Listen up, Kim Joo-hyuk. No matter how much you squirm, you're still F-rank. Trash that doesn't even reach the toes of an E-rank Healer like me. Know your place. You think you can talk back to me? If I wanted, someone like you would be..."
🔔 Ding. The elevator opened, and people appeared.
Seo Jin-ah cut herself off and took a deep breath.
"Hoo..."
Then she looked up at me with cold eyes.
"You're dead later. For real."
She spat the warning like even talking to me disgusted her, then turned and stalked down the hall.
Her plump ass swayed left and right over her tight jeans, like it was pissed too.
'Dead later, my ass.'
I snorted inwardly.
All Seo Jin-ah could do was petty threats like this.
The old me would've trembled and kissed her ass at those words...
But not anymore.
Hell, her flailing now just seemed kinda cute.
"Hey. Professor says come in."
Seo Jin-ah's curt voice echoed from down the hall.
She whipped around like she couldn't stand dealing with me anymore.
"Why?"
"How should I know!? Did he put me in charge? Ask him yourself."
With that, she vanished completely.
'Look at her taking it out on me. Seo Jin-ah, you're booked for one pussy flick first thing.'