Incident at the Mission Training Ground - 3
"Everyone finished with lunch?"
A few of us had just scarfed down energy bars, but Yang Jun didn't seem to care one bit. Well, whatever we ate wasn't the point anyway. The real highlight was that I had devoured two sandwiches. They were delicious.
"Alright, then. Time to get moving?"
He scanned the cadets' faces, smirked, and stepped through the gate. We followed right behind.
"Whoa..."
Passing through the gate revealed a sprawling research facility grounds.
-Whirrr...!!
Moving across the grounds were dummies. Combat-use dummies like the ones we'd seen in training, armed to the teeth and locking onto us.
"Whoa! Whoa! That's the Halo series MK-3, right?"
"You know it?"
"What? You don't know the Halo series?"
I glanced at Cheon Suho. He gave an awkward smile, but his expression said he was clueless.
"Wow. You don't know the Halo series. Those things are insanely tough. Just looking at the specs is no joke. Standard Astra mana cannons, mobility on par with any human, and the armor..."
She was off to the races. Yoo Choa sparkled with excitement, rattling off an unasked-for explanation.
"Quiet down, Yoo Choa."
"Ah. Yes, sir."
She looked like she'd just spotted a rare plastic model kit, eyes gleaming as she tried to keep going, but she shut her mouth at Yang Jun's words. Still, she couldn't tear her gaze from the dummies. Otaku spirit, strong as ever.
"She really likes that stuff, huh."
"...Back during the individual skill test, she took down a dummy the fastest. Knew all its weak points inside out."
Cheon Suho shook his head like he was exasperated.
"It gets worse with dummies, golems, anything mechanical. Especially explosions."
"Explosions are art!"
"Ah. Right."
Who knew I'd have a bomb maniac right next to me.
"In my book, if she hadn't gotten into the academy, she'd be a villain by now."
"Aw, come on~ I keep it in check~."
Grinning wide, Yoo Choa smacked my arm playfully. Cheon Suho was the one who said it—why hit me?
"Welcome. Come on in."
Then, a middle-aged man in a white lab coat emerged from between the dummies. His thick beard was striking, and he gave us a warm smile after looking us over.
"Energy Research Institute under the Hero Association. I'm Kim Cheoljin, deputy director of 'Gwangryeok'."
"Hero Academy instructor Yang Jun. And these are..."
"Yes, I've heard. Here for mission training, right? Come on inside."
Following his lead past the entrance, Yoo Choa let out a gasp of awe.
"Whoa! Whoa! Look at that! That thing!"
Quit hitting me already. The moment she spotted the massive golem at the main gate, she went full fanatic mode, slapping and tugging my arm as she pointed at it.
"Yohan. You know what that is?"
"A golem."
"Not just any golem. It's infused with the pinnacle of energy core tech..."
"Ho ho. You know your stuff."
"Hehe. I'm really into this kind of thing."
"I see. As this cadet said, that golem embodies the essence of our Energy Core Research Lab. It's named Galeyron. Back during the monster wave, Galeyron was deployed and saved countless lives."
Heroes are limited in number—they can't handle every monster or dungeon alone. So the world developed weapons for the battlefield to ease their burden and protect people: golems and dummies.
"Conventional guns and firearms fall short against monsters. Especially B-rank and above."
"Because of their hides?"
"Exactly. B-rank and higher monsters classified by the Association possess mana. Old-school guns and explosives couldn't dent them much."
That's why they developed dummies, golems, mana guns, mana cannons, and the like.
"The applications for energy harvested from dungeons are endless. Not just for daily life."
Kim Cheoljin looked us over.
"They can protect heroes like you, too."
Nice words. Then maybe make weapons and armor cheaper for active heroes.
"We'll tour later. First, I'd like to meet the heroes stationed here."
"They're all waiting."
Kim Cheoljin's guidance continued. Yoo Choa geeked out over the outdated gear, dummies, golems, and tank-like machines we passed, but nothing major.
"Welcome, underclassmen!"
Inside the facility, people in combat gear greeted us.
"Quick intros first. I'm Kang Jin-ho, B-rank hero with the Association."
"Swift...?"
"Oh, you know me?"
Kang Jin-ho beamed at one cadet's words. Must feel good.
"Haha. Honestly, 'Swift' feels a bit much. But do you know why they call me that?"
"Because you can move super fast, right?"
"You got it."
-Whoosh!!
In an instant, he vanished, reappearing with a sword in hand. It had been a decorative blade over there. Impressive.
"Eh, I'm still lacking compared to A-rank. Right,前辈?"
"That's plenty impressive. Word is you'll hit A-rank next evaluation?"
"Haha. Evaluations are brutal. Anyway, thrilled to meet you underclassmen. Straight to business? Let's assign teams. Yoo Choa."
"Yes!"
"Cheon Suho."
"Yes."
"Kim Yohan... Hm. Interesting. With scores like that, getting here must've been tough."
Tell me about it.
"Well, the academy has its reasons. You three, head to Lab 3. Someone'll be waiting—get your mission from them."
"Lab 3 is..."
"Follow that dummy. Next group. End. Blad. You three to Lab 1..."
-Whirrr...!
While others got called, a dummy came to guide us. Not a combat one like before—this was a service model.
"Whoa! Whoa!"
"What's this now?"
"Langrit series MK-31! Service dummy... You don't know?"
"No clue."
There was nothing like this at the orphanage.
"Sigh. Guess I'll explain."
Yoo Choa launched into a confident spiel, and Cheon Suho and I just nodded along to keep her going. We arrived, half-listening and half-tuning out, to find someone waiting, just as Kang Jin-ho said.
"Whoa~! Underclassmen! Nice to meet ya~! I'm Shin Haerang, director of Lab 3."
He wore a lab coat, dark circles under his eyes, sipping coffee. Looking exhausted, he shuffled in slippers, scratching his unwashed hair.
"Couldn't even shower before you got here. Bear with me—research is like that. Don't end up like this, kids..."
"Ahaha... Nice to meet you! We're first-year cadets from Hero Academy! I'm Yoo Choa... that's Kim Yohan. And that's Cheon Suho."
"Got it. Come on in."
Inside the lab was a small meeting room. The spacious interior buzzed with weary researchers at computers and equipment. Shin Haerang blocked our view with his body.
"Don't look."
"Pardon? Classified?"
"Nah. You fresh rookies should only see the good stuff."
Ah, that kind of thing. He grinned mischievously and pointed to seats in the meeting room. As we sat, he fiddled with his ID badge around his neck. The photo... was Shin Haerang, but not. A neat thirty-something guy versus now. What the hell happens in these labs?
"Academy... Ah, miss it. Back in my academy days were the best. Sigh... Stuck like this even on my honeymoon..."
"Whoa, you're married?"
"Yeah. See that zombie over there?"
Grinning, he pointed out the window to the lab. A skinny woman with a pen stuck in her hair like a hairpin.
"That's my wife. Heh. Lab couple."
"Wow... Love blooming in the lab..."
"Anyway, your job: if fighting breaks out, take on any enemies who might breach here. Of course, prioritize the first barrier if it falls."
In other words, fight inside the first barrier, and if pushed back, defend this place as the last stand. Simple.
"Got it. Understood!"
"Heh. Reliable."
"But前辈, you're a hero too—can't you fight?"
"I'm not combat-track. You'll split into combat and research roles in second year."
"Research track must be tough, huh?"
"Everything's tough."
"Um... One thing I'm curious about. The Death Witch is targeting this lab, right?"
"Yep."
"Heard it's super important... Can we handle it? Even with the other heroes..."
"Our lab matters, but so do the others."
"Still..."
"Still, this place has it better. The gap between ideals and reality... it's something."
His bitter tone dimmed Yoo Choa's face.
"...Politics?"
"Kinda. Bigger reason is..."
"Not enough heroes."
Shin Haerang nodded at my words, shadows crossing his face. Yeah. Awakened are few compared to monsters and dungeons. Not all become heroes—some turn villain, others too weak for combat. Heroes are always short-staffed.
The once-bright meeting room grew heavy, so I smiled to lighten it.
"Doesn't change what we have to do. We're in the academy, we're heroes."
If they hated it, they'd have quit already—the instructors too. Sticking around means they know. And me too. Running without trying? Not my style.
Yoo Choa and Cheon Suho grinned. Shin Haerang stared a moment, then smiled.
"...Haha. Yeah. If not us, who?"
Finally, the heavy mood lifted.