Hero Academy (3-47)
Clang! Shiiing! Kriiing!
"Everyone, focus fire!"
"Y-Yes!"
Park Huiyeon and the cadets poured attack after attack onto the cloaked figure without hesitation. The longer the exchange went on, the clearer Huiyeon could feel her opponent's skill.
As a working hero she had met countless adversaries and fought them just as many times. She had learned, through her body itself, how to take a measure of an opponent's strength. And the conclusion she reached now was simple.
This one's no ordinary fighter. I can't win this alone!
It wasn't merely a matter of being a cut above. The unidentified cloaked assailant not only caught every one of Huiyeon's sword strokes with perfect precision—he was also slipping past the cadets' attacks as if they were nothing.
Huiyeon swung her blade and shouted at Oh Jin-ho in the same breath.
"What are you doing?! Use your magic already!"
"Th-That's—!"
Even for Oh Jin-ho, whom she normally held a soft spot for, Huiyeon could not spare gentle words in a crisis like this.
"You think this is the time to stand there half-asleep?! Use it now!!"
"I-It won't come out!! My magic—it won't come out!!"
"What do you mean—Aagh!"
Slash!
In the split second her attention wandered, a yellow-edged blade skimmed across Huiyeon's shoulder. It was only a graze—but once a clean hit had landed, the tide of the fight could only turn against her.
Huiyeon scowled, ignored the wound, and kept swinging.
"What the hell are you?!"
"…"
Even under her shout, the cloaked figure gave no answer, calmly turning aside every attack.
No good! At this rate— Wait. That's it!
A single fact flashed through Huiyeon's mind, and she yelled at Oh Jin-ho again.
"Use that! That thing!!"
"Th-That what?!"
Oh Jin-ho, usually so composed, was fretting and flailing like a fool—behavior even the cadets would have been ashamed of. Huiyeon twisted her face and shouted once more.
"The thing you used earlier, you idiot!"
"Earlier… Ah!"
Only then did Oh Jin-ho grasp her meaning and reach into his pocket for something.
That was the moment.
Clang-clang-clang!
"Kh—!"
"Hahk!"
"Hngh!"
With a single sweep of the cloaked figure's sword, every weapon—the cadets' and Huiyeon's alike—was knocked flying. The cadets all dropped their arms. Huiyeon alone still held her sword, but her entire arm had been wrenched back behind her.
And then the figure they had surrounded burst through the encirclement and launched itself somewhere else. Only Huiyeon registered that impossible speed.
"Watch out!!!"
"Huh? Gyaaaaaah!"
Slashhh!
The cloaked figure that had shot toward Oh Jin-ho drew its blade on a diagonal and sheared his arm clean off at the shoulder. Oh Jin-ho toppled backward the instant the arm left him, thrashing in agony.
"Gyaaaaaah!"
"You bastard! I'll kill you!"
The sight of Oh Jin-ho's severed arm flipped something behind Huiyeon's eyes. She hurled sword strikes at the cloaked figure in a blind rage. The cadets could not even think of closing in under that furious swordsmanship. If anything, the exchange had grown far more ferocious than when several of them had rushed in together.
One of the cadets shouted urgently.
"I'll contact the instructor for now!"
"Do it! Meanwhile we—damn it, the way things are, if we jump in we'll only get in the way!"
Under the storm of Huiyeon's and the cloaked figure's blows, the other cadets could not even consider charging. They desperately wanted to drag the unconscious, one-armed Oh Jin-ho clear and treat him—but he lay behind the assailant, and none of them dared try.
In the middle of that panic, one cadet finally got through to Sung Suho.
"What's going on?"
"Instructor!"
The cadet laid out the entire situation. Suho listened to the condensed report in silence for a beat, then spoke quietly.
"Help Hero Park Huiyeon as best you can. We'll start searching that area right away."
"Y-Yes, sir!"
The call cut off. They were still trading uncertain looks, fretting over what to do next, when—
Slash!
"Aagh!"
Huiyeon took another cut to the arm that had already been wounded and staggered back.
"Son of a—"
"…"
In the instant Huiyeon glanced at her wound, the cloaked figure scooped the unconscious Oh Jin-ho up in one motion. From the stump of his shoulder, blood poured in a torrent—proof that the thread of his life had almost run out.
The moment she saw the figure hoist Oh Jin-ho, Huiyeon's eyes went white with fury. She dropped her voice into a low, murderous growl.
"Put him down… or I kill you."
"…"
The cloaked figure gave no reply. Instead it kicked the severed arm lying at its feet.
Thud!
Straight toward Huiyeon.
"You fucking—!"
Huiyeon spat a curse and threw her whole body around the flying arm, terrified of any further damage to it. The cloaked figure seized that opening and fled with Oh Jin-ho still slung over its shoulder.
"Wh— Wait!!"
Arm in one hand, Huiyeon left the cadets behind and tore after the figure. The cadets could only stare, dumbfounded, and mutter among themselves.
"…What do we do now?"
I issued orders to the cadets through my smartwatch.
"Hold position for now."
"B-But shouldn't we go after the two of them even now…?"
"…I'll take full responsibility. You focus on staying as safe as you can."
"Yes, sir. Understood."
I ended the call and hummed under my breath.
Heh… Rena's combat skill really is something else.
Covering the shortfall in magic resistance with Disassembly Technique was also quite impressive, sir.
Magic circles really are the best.
The reason Oh Jin-ho had panicked when his magic refused to fire was my Disassembly Technique. While Rena fought, I had watched the battle from stealth, prepared for any contingency. The moment Oh Jin-ho showed any sign of casting, I read the flow of his magical power and applied Disassembly Technique on the spot.
In raw talent he might outstrip the students back in Shutra—but technically, he was still primitive.
Glad it worked out. Still, two or more casters at once would be rough.
And against someone who wields magic with true fluency, you may fall behind in speed.
Disassembly Technique was, without question, a near-broken ability. The problem was that while drawing a magic circle could be done instantly, reading the mana flow required for Disassembly still depended on magical power. Even so, I could form the circle the moment I caught on—late or not—and that had been enough to shut Oh Jin-ho down.
Once you raise your magical power, the day will come when you use it with ease.
So magical power really is priority number one.
I smiled and headed back toward where we had originally pitched the tents. My order to Rena had been simple: take Oh Jin-ho and go deeper into the dungeon we had come out of.
If it looks too dangerous, tell her to drop him and run.
Given Miss Rena's temperament, that seems unlikely—but I will convey it as firmly as possible.
Getting revenge on Oh Jin-ho and Park Huiyeon mattered, sure—but Rena came first. If she got hurt, there was zero profit in any of this. Honestly, even if Rena bailed right now, we had already far exceeded break-even—returns like the early days of a crypto boom.
I pulled something from my pocket and turned it over in my hands.
…So this is a ten-billion-won item, huh?
It certainly appears to be an item worth that price.
Park Huiyeon… so busy scooping up her favorite man's arm she never even thought about this.
When Rena had kicked Oh Jin-ho's severed arm, Huiyeon had been so fixated on the flying limb that she failed to stop Rena's escape. But that hadn't been the real reason for the kick. The plan had been to pass the orb clenched in that severed hand to me, waiting at a distance. My sleight of hand had drawn the orb into my palm like a magnet—and as a two-for-one bonus, Rena had gotten clean away.
Rena really deserves one free wish of her choosing after this.
I fully agree.
Talent enough to earn Armonia's approval. After about an hour of walking, I finally reached our original base. As a precaution, I asked Beatrice to head Rena's way.
"Got it, nyang."
Beatrice dropped onto all fours without warning and shot off like a bullet—a girl with bat wings, bounding away like a cat.
Hard to get a read on that one. All right, then…
I drew a deep breath and bellowed.
"Everybody up!!"
And with that, I hurriedly woke the cadets sleeping inside the tents.
…
…
I kept the dungeon exploration moving in what I claimed was our original direction—while actually steering us toward the other group. Yoon Jia, Song Ara, and the rest looked exhausted, but they seemed to grasp how serious things were; not one of them even yawned as they followed behind me.
As we pressed on, Song Ara glanced around and muttered,
"…Guess there aren't many monsters at night."
"Or maybe this is a path we've already cleared, so they're just gone."
"Ah! Then if we keep going this way, we might run into them."
Song Ara played along with my line and kept the conversation loud enough for everyone nearby to hear. Thanks to her curious little remarks, even if we found the other group in short order, no one would think it suspicious.
Always useful, that one.
…If she'd just grow her hair out, she'd be perfect. Whether you looked at her as a girl or not, with longer hair her looks and her specs would turn heads the moment she graduated. Being in the spotlight had its downsides, sure—but once you became a hero, comfort was something you had to give up. Being successful and noticed might actually be the easier path, in its way.
Well… her choice. Not my place to say.
I kept that thought to myself and headed straight toward the other group without slowing. After a stretch of walking, an orange glow began to appear in the distance. At the same time, Song Ara shouted,
"Ah! There they are!"
We broke into a run the moment she spoke. The cadets from the other group let out sighs of relief at the sight of us.
"Haa… Thank god."
"You all right?"
"Yes, we're fine. But…"
They recounted every detail of the summary they had already given over the call. Everyone who heard it wore a grave expression.
"Everything else intact?"
"Yes… the tents are fine, and the gear is all still here."
I already knew the full story, but I put on a serious face, closed my eyes, and held my silence. I could feel every gaze fixed on me. Then I opened my eyes and spoke with deliberate gravity.
"For now, set a night watch and get some rest."
"…What?"
"I-Instructor Sung Suho. Shouldn't we be looking for the two of them?"
"…I'll search for them myself."
"What?"
Yoon Jia, Song Ara, the other cadets, even the security detail—all wore the same look. A look that said they couldn't understand.
"I'll search alone for now. If the opponent is that strong, taking cadets with me is too dangerous."
"Instructor Sung… no matter how I look at it, that—"
"She's right! If they're really that strong, we should stick together and—"
"Quiet!"
"Ehk…"
I barked at Song Ara and swept a look around the group.
"This is a dungeon. Raise your voices and more monsters show up—then the situation gets worse."
"I'm sorry…"
"It's fine. Just listen to me for now."
"…I don't want to."
"…"
I hadn't expected them to fall in line on the first try. To anyone looking, it was reckless—borderline absurd. At Song Ara's words, Yoon Jia chimed in as well.
"She's right, Instructor Sung. If you insist on searching, at least rest first and then—"
"No. If those two are in that kind of danger, we need to find them as fast as possible."
"Then let's go together right n—"
"That won't work either. We also have to prioritize the cadets' safety."
"…"
Between Yoon Jia and me, one of us had to stay with the students by position. But we also couldn't ignore two heroes in peril—so one of us had to go look. The only rational conclusion was that I would be the one to go.
I took Yoon Jia by the shoulder and spoke.
"Instructor Yoon Jia. I'm entrusting the cadets to you. Rest first, then take them and look for the exit."
"…"
Yoon Jia bit her lip and said nothing. I had expected an answer wouldn't come easily. And then someone who hadn't even been asked for one spoke up instead.
"Then I'll go."
"No."
"But—"
"This is the last time."
"Ugh…"
I spoke with more raw anger in my face than I had shown in any expression so far.
"You planning to put everyone else in a bind over some thin little sense of camaraderie?"
"Th-That's not—"
"Cadet Song Ara. Have you thought about how hard the others will have it finding the exit tomorrow if you're not there?"
"…"
I pressed Song Ara as hard as I could and worked the whole group toward persuasion. After cornering them for a good while, I finally eased my expression and said,
"This isn't a class. This is live combat. Don't let personal feelings dictate your actions."
"…Yes, sir."
I could see acceptance settle not only on Song Ara's face, but on the other cadets' as well. I turned back to Yoon Jia one more time.
"Instructor Yoon Jia. The kids… please take care of them. If anything comes up, contact me."
"…Yes. And Instructor Sung—if anything happens on your end, please contact me as well."
"Understood. Then."
With the gathered group seeing me off, I broke into a run in the direction the cadets' testimony said Park Huiyeon had gone.