Hero Academy (4-4)
The moment I logged into VR right after returning to the dormitory, all I felt was embarrassment.
The Seong Sua I'd been hoping for wasn't there—just an empty house with no one in it.
Still, on the off chance she might show up, I waited for her. In the end, I couldn't fight off the sleepiness while waiting and ended up dozing off, crouched in front of the house.
Half-asleep with my eyes closed in resignation, I was relieved to open them and see not the empty morning sun, but the Seong Sua I'd longed for, gazing down at me.
That way, I didn't have to greet the morning sun alone—I could do it in Seong Sua's arms.
"Then, I'll see you at the cafeteria."
"Sure."
Seong Sua had completely shed yesterday's gloom and welcomed me back with her fresh, vibrant smile.
The instant I logged out of VR, I let out a deep sigh of relief.
'Phew... I was so out of it from sleepiness yesterday. That was close.'
If Seong Sua hadn't come, or if I'd logged out in a daze and fallen asleep in reality, it would've been a disaster.
These emotional mismatches need to be fixed quickly, or they spiral out of control into something irreversible.
I quickly got ready and left the dormitory for the cafeteria.
Fortunately, Cho Seo-hyun wasn't there.
'Huh? That's unexpected.'
[Why do you ask?]
'Honestly, I figured Cho Seo-hyun would be here.'
I usually stuck to the principle of breakfast with Seong Sua and dinner with Cho Seo-hyun when hitting the cafeteria.
Cho Seo-hyun rarely showed up for breakfast anyway...
But after our relationship improved, I assumed she'd definitely appear.
[Just a guess...]
'...?'
[She might be inexperienced with preparations.]
'Huh? What preparations?'
[We'll know for sure when you meet her later. It won't be too late then.]
'What the hell...'
I shelved Armonia's words for now and started waiting for Seong Sua.
She showed up soon enough.
"Sorry, did I keep you waiting long?"
"Nah. Let's head in."
We ate together, chatting about classes like usual.
The biggest topic was, of course, one particular cadet.
"This is bad... I convinced her to come along, and now she's caught up in some huge incident..."
"At least Instructor Seong Su-ho was there. We got lucky."
"Should we visit her again?"
"Hmm... I'll call her before class."
That wrapped up the talk about Seo Ji-eun, though some regrets lingered.
'With Disassembly, I could probably smooth things over somehow, right?'
[You're right, but I personally don't recommend it.]
'Yeah... Disassembly isn't something that exists here.'
One or two uses might fly under the radar, but getting caught after frequent use would spell big trouble.
In the end, we decided to handle Seo Ji-eun's issue gradually, wrapping up breakfast with Seong Sua.
"See you this afternoon."
"Heading to the sword department already?"
"No."
I flashed a bright smile.
"I'm going to the security department."
When I arrived at the security department, the day shift workers were bustling in, getting ready.
I repeated yesterday's story to the day shifters, and their faces lit up as they happily headed out.
As they left, I posted the full staff duty roster and added one final note before strolling out of the security office.
This duty roster takes effect from Friday. In case of unavoidable changes to duty hours, please consult the administrator.
Stepping out of the security building, I looked up at the clear sky, thinking to myself.
Go Choong-shin... Will you sacrifice your body to preserve your pride, or bend your pride to protect your body?
I pictured both scenarios with a satisfied grin as I headed to the sword department office.
Go Choong-shin stared at the clear sky and the rising sun, irritation building.
'Haa... Fucking exhausted.'
The sun heralded the world's dawn and awakened all life, but to Go Choong-shin, it was just an annoying sleep disruptor.
At least it signaled the end of his shift, which he appreciated.
'...Haa, hurry up and eat, then sleep.'
The dawn sun brought brief joy, but its intensifying light soon irritated his eyes.
Go Choong-shin headed to the security building to change.
'Fuck... It was manageable without that bastard for a week.'
Dawn shifts were tough, but without superiors, they were comparatively easy.
Without Seong Su-ho, his body ached, but his mind was at ease.
Until today, anyway...
'And Ji-ah... Is she tired lately? Haven't seen her since the field trip.'
After returning from the trip, Go Choong-shin desperately wanted time with Yoon Ji-ah.
But dawn shifts wrecked his schedule, and Yoon Ji-ah—who always replied promptly—now sent curt responses.
'...If only I could swap my day off to Saturday or Sunday.'
Yoon Ji-ah, as a formal instructor, had weekends off automatically.
His was Thursday. Their secret relationship made mismatched days even harder.
'...Should I ask to switch? No, fuck that. I won't beg that bastard!'
The mere thought of pleading with Seong Su-ho filled him with crawling disgust.
He changed fully, shook off the chills, and left the locker room.
'He's already suspicious of me and Ji-ah. Begging would just get me mocked and pissed off.'
As he headed to the cafeteria, he noticed all the staff chattering around the bulletin board.
(Duty changed again...)
(Can't be helped. Everyone left and came back en masse from the trip.)
Drawn by their talk, Go Choong-shin approached.
'Maybe it switched to day or night...'
Hoping against hope, he checked the roster.
But his brain refused to process what his eyes saw.
'...What?'
He stared blankly at his schedule even as the others left.
Name:Go Min-hyuk
Dorm:Male Instructor Dormitory
Day (Fri) → Day (Sat) → Night (Sun) → Night (Mon) → Late Night (Tue) → Late Night (Wed) → Off (Thu)
The moment I entered the sword department office, an unfamiliar face greeted me warmly.
"Oh, you're here!"
"...Hello."
A stranger's greeting threw me off.
But piecing together her features—short stature, bobbed hair, sharp eyes—I realized who it was.
Cho Seo-hyun.
Definitely her, but...
"...You've changed a lot."
"R-Really? I-I'm just like usual?"
"..."
Messy hair, uneven BB cream smeared across her face, lipstick everywhere...
'Whoa... She has zero talent for makeup.'
Her petite frame made it look cute, but on an adult woman, it'd be laughable.
It was the kind of sloppy, overdone makeup a clueless middle or high schooler does when first experimenting.
'So that's what she meant by preparations?'
[Yes, but not quite what I had in mind.]
Armonia's voice was clear, but laced with surprise.
To fluster Armonia—Cho Seo-hyun was impressive.
But even impressive women needed fixing here.
'Gotta get her to wipe that off first.'
One wrong word could upset her, but I had a way.
"Instructor Cho Seo-hyun. Um... your makeup's a bit heavy."
"What? It's too much?"
She pouted, shooting me a sulky glare.
I shook my head right away.
"Not that makeup's bad. But like that... the male cadets won't focus. And..."
"...?"
Scratching my head at her puzzled look, I added,
"I won't be able to focus either. Accidents happen, right?"
"Eek... Oh... R-Really? Haha! W-Well, can't be helped!"
Thankfully, she took it well, dashed to the bathroom to fix it properly, and we proceeded with class.
Class was dull sparring.
Dull for the cadets, anyway.
'Keep it at sparring forever.'
As assistant instructor, nothing beat sparring for ease and safety.
The head instructor checked form and technique; no major injuries meant low worry.
Best of all, Cho Seo-hyun was professionally focused—no distractions, all on the cadets.
"Too slow!", "Higher!", "Your movements are too narrow! Be more aggressive!"
After the cadets' tedious session ended, we headed to the cafeteria together.
Talk turned to the maze dungeon incident.
"It was even on the news—why didn't you mention it?", "Whoa? You fought monsters like that?", "Be careful next time. Recklessness could get you killed."
We bantered about the magic department trip all the way.
Heading to the cafeteria with Cho Seo-hyun again sparked one worry.
'...Seong Sua won't be there, right?'
[High possibility.]
'Well... better than Cho Kang-hyun.'
Enduring glares from two women beat a potentially murderous guy.
When we arrived, someone was waiting.
Someone unexpected.
"Um... Administrator."
"Huh? Go Min-hyuk? What're you doing here?"
"I... need to talk."
Go Choong-shin approached with a sour face, shoulders slumped.
I told the blankly watching Cho Seo-hyun to go ahead, then moved to a quiet spot with him.
"What's up?"
"The... duty roster seems off."
"How so?"
I played dumb, feigning ignorance to rile him up.
Unaware, he forced a smile through furrowed brows.
"My shifts are too erratic. No matter how I look at it, it's hard to digest..."
"Oh... Your schedule's the problem? I thought something was wrong with the one I posted."
"Ha... ha... ha..."
Laugh it up. Smile till your laugh lines crease.
His expression nearly cracked my facade, but I held it together.
"So, you're complaining about the times?"
"Not complaining... Just thought there might be errors..."
"And if there are?"
"Huh?"
"Think you can just barge in anytime with complaints?"
Stunned, he clasped his hands, stammering up at me.
"Th-That's not..."
"Didn't you see the note at the bottom?"
"Yes! It said to consult you if there are duty issues..."
Right. I had written it.
Consult the administrator for duty problems.
But...
"Do I have to be administrator 24/7?"
"Ah..."
"I'm assisting in class right now—it's lunchtime. Didn't think to come later?"
"W-Well..."
It was a stretch, but who was I?
The guy who could pull it off.
"I'll check tonight. Go back."
"...Understood."
Go Choong-shin left, brows writhing like worms—whether from the sun or disgust, who knew.
Watching his back, Armonia asked,
[You'll check it?]
'Ah...'
I smirked at his trembling retreating figure.
'He can check it all he wants.'
Grinning, I hurried to Cho Seo-hyun.
After lunch with Cho Seo-hyun, I headed straight to the magic department classroom.
The whole way, I couldn't help marveling at her—or rather, freaking out.
'She loves that stuff so much? Doesn't it get boring?'
Cho Seo-hyun stuck to one dish every day: tonkatsu.
I liked it too, but this was excessive.
'Eating that much would make me puke...'
Yet someone defended her tonkatsu obsession...
[Food is just for sustaining life. Taste is secondary...]
'...You like tonkatsu?'
[No comment.]
Tonkatsu diehards...
I chuckled at Armonia's response and slowly opened the magic classroom door.
Voices drifted through the crack.
'Wonder if she was talking to someone at lunch since she wasn't around.'
I flung the door open.
"Instructor Seong Su-ho."
Seong Sua welcomed me.
"...You're here."
Seo Ji-eun's butler—Lee Se-hyung, no, Ki Cheol-ho—stood there, eyeing me coldly.