Provoked
We didn’t have to use another finisher, but the dealers hammered away at the remaining wolves, and then the party leader, having recovered enough mana with the healer’s help to treat his own injuries, returned to the front line as a tank and helped clean up the rest.
His clothes were a little torn from taking the wolves’ attacks head-on, but in the end, the crisis was over without incident.
"Whoa, seriously? You’re an Awakened? You’re incredible!"
"Shut your mouth."
"Huh?"
I couldn’t help frowning when I saw the bastard who’d been stirring up trouble until a moment ago now strolling over with a bright, innocent smile on his face and showering me with praise.
But the words were already out of my mouth. There was no point in backing down now just because keeping the peace was supposedly the better option. Letting it slide would help no one, and I sure as hell wasn’t going to pretend this hadn’t been a mess from the start.
"I don’t know what kind of brain damage makes you think this whole disaster wasn’t your fault in the first place."
"Well, the healer was managing mana—"
"Who was it that refused to take a potion because they wanted to save consumables, then kept whining for heals? Who was it that, on a rare chance to lean on the healer, charged ahead of the tank when they were just a dealer?"
"When did I ever—"
"Do you think the people monitoring this don’t have eyes? Want to step outside and check the data for yourself? Should I compare it against your Awakened registration card?"
"..."
My gaze shifted back to the party leader.
"And the same goes for the party leader. Isn’t it your job to rein in and discipline party members when they act like this? Or do you just smile and brush it off because peace is supposedly the best policy? Isn’t the healer one of your fixed-party members? If you can’t even look after your own permanent team, then what the hell kind of party leader are you?"
"..."
At least this man had some shame. He couldn’t even answer me, just bowed his head so low I thought his neck might snap.
My gaze moved to the healer next.
"And you didn’t do well either. During rookie training, they must have drilled the importance of mana management into your head so many times you thought your ears would bleed. If you can’t so much as say one word to a loudmouthed dealer, the exact same thing will happen again later. When a formation collapses like that, who do you think dies first? What, are you going to run out of mana and then just stand there unable to escape, hoping somebody else will bail you out?"
"I-I’m sorry..."
The healer was on the verge of tears, but at least he apologized.
I looked around at the rest of the party and said, "And the rest of you weren’t any better. Because it’s an open party, you thought it was fine to half-ass it, that whatever happened to other people wasn’t your problem as long as you got your daily pay. You stood by and watched, and that’s why this happened. If the party collapses, do the people monitoring from outside die? No, the ones who suffer are you. Why is that such a hard thing to understand?"
I’d laid into them hard, but aside from the original troublemaker, no one talked back. They probably knew exactly how close they’d just come to getting themselves killed.
"Normally, when something like this happens, the support team uses the communication module to issue a warning, but today there seemed to be some kind of signal interference inside the Gate, so the connection was difficult. That’s why I had no choice but to come in myself. Anything can happen inside a Gate, so you should never let your guard down."
I said that, then looked toward the party leader, who was still hanging his head.
"Get your formation back in order and continue the Gate exploration. Since you started it, you might as well see it through. Wouldn’t you agree?"
"As you say."
Normally I would have preferred to step back and just watch, but my aggro rating was so absurdly high that there was no way I could do that. So I held the line without attacking, focusing only on taking the enemy’s blows, and I used the breathing room that gave the party leader to practice watching over the entire party during combat.
When the party leader is a tank, it’s common for them to get so absorbed in what’s right in front of them that they neglect the party as a whole. That was all this party’s leader needed to improve on.
Weakness could be trained out. That’s what monitoring was for, and that’s what a party was for, too.
Maybe he was shaken by my vicious expression, because after that the troublemaker didn’t dare act up again, and we were able to finish the Gate exploration without major issues.
"You’ve worked hard! Really, thank you so much!"
"Not at all."
After exchanging farewells with the party members and heading back, the field support team leader came over and handed me a drink.
"You really saved our asses today. I don’t know what would’ve happened without you, Seha."
"It wasn’t that big a deal."
The leader gave a wry smile and shook his head. "Not a big deal? You have no idea how stubborn Awakened can be. The fact that you gave advice and they actually listened is amazing in itself."
"Really?"
There’s always friction like this somewhere, but the problem with Awakened is that they start from the assumption that they’re special.
Come to think of it, maybe this whole messed-up class situation was a blessing in disguise.
Seeing things from a step removed like this, after being on the job, let me understand a lot of things I never could have during training. It wasn’t anything earth-shattering, but I felt like my perspective had widened a little.
Once I get this cursed class tangle sorted out, maybe I should take the instructor out for a proper meal.
"You all worked hard today. We’re going for a simple drink after this, so if you’re interested, gather in the parking lot after work."
"Yes, sir!"
The after-party ended with dinner at a back-alley rice-and-soup place the leader knew well, followed by exactly one drink to go with it. Anyone who wanted more was free to keep drinking on their own, but I decided to head to the Basement Training Center a little late and check my abilities.
By now, I’d become so much more skilled at controlling the butterflies thanks to the help I’d gotten in last night’s dream that it was almost unrecognizable.
As for Soul Edge, the finisher I’d used for the second time during the fight at the Gate, the blade that appeared after the uppercut was generated by the butterflies’ material transformation. In other words, if I hadn’t been able to control the butterflies, all I would’ve done was land the uppercut; there’d have been no way to slice the target apart with a blade.
I checked the commands for both characters, organized a list of finishers I could use in emergencies, and finished the day’s training by actually trying them out.
I’d gotten lucky earlier, but if a problem cropped up the moment I tried to use one in real combat, that would be a disaster, so this kind of verification was absolutely necessary.
I couldn’t afford to run out of mana, so after taking it slow and checking the finishers one by one, it was already late evening.
When I came out after changing clothes, the bald instructor, who’d been doing solo practice, noticed me and said, "I heard you went out on an external assignment today and handled something. Good work."
"Not at all. I just did what I could."
"There’s nothing harder than that in life." He laughed heartily. "Judging by your clothes, the fight must have been pretty rough. Any injuries?"
"No. I’m fairly sturdy, in my own way."
The bald instructor chuckled at that.
"Even so, if it happened on the job, you should at least bill them for the clothes. It’s already late today, so when you come in tomorrow, tell Assistant Manager Kim right away."
"Will do. Thanks for letting me know."
"You must be tired, and I’ve kept you long enough. Go on home."
"Yes. I’ll head out first."
When I boarded the bus in clothes torn to pieces and splattered with wolf blood, people around me quietly edged away. Honestly, if someone looked like that and suddenly walked up to you, anyone would be on guard.
I really needed to buy a car soon. Tch.
Once I got home, the first thing I did was strip off my clothes. I hadn’t noticed it during the fight, but the state they were in was pretty serious. The pants might still be salvageable, but the top was probably beyond saving.
If I could just master the butterflies’ material transformation properly, I’d never have to worry about clothing costs again.
Grumbling to myself, I washed up first, ate dinner, and then lay down in bed.
As I blankly scrolled through Shorts, I suddenly thought of the dream from last night.
No way I’m dreaming two nights in a row. I should just sleep already.
Muttering that to no one in particular, I turned off my phone and tried to sleep.
And then I dreamed again.
"..."
It was even the same beach from yesterday. I was staring around in a daze when I heard, once again, the sound of something coming out of the sea with a wet splash.
I thought I might have gotten a little used to this after yesterday, but suddenly seeing a ghost in front of me was still terrible for my heart.
I took a light breath and slowly turned my head, only to find a woman completely different from what I’d expected.
A dark elf?
She wore a highly revealing outfit that showed off the deep line between her breasts, and her skin was a healthy sun-kissed brown. Her hair was a shimmering silver, with long pointed ears rising through it, and her eyes were gold.
She really did look like a dark elf drawn straight out of an illustration.
I was sure this was another character from somewhere, but I had no idea who she was.
She smiled at me as if to say, How do I look?
Good. Very good, actually. But if a class like this showed up again in my current state, I honestly didn’t think I could handle it.
My lower body reacted immediately to her sensual figure, but my head was full of nothing but trouble.
Amused by my reaction, she burst out laughing, then waved a hand as if to say it was fine.
So that meant it was okay?
If she was a character I didn’t know, that meant she must be pretty old. And at the very least, she didn’t seem to be a fighting game character. If she had been, I would have recognized her at a glance.
In that case, her claim that it was fine sounded plausible. At least there wouldn’t be any command overlap.
Maybe my thoughts had shown clearly on my face, because she laughed again and then suddenly pulled open the sides of her outfit—which was less armor than an outrageously revealing costume, one that already left the valley of her cleavage and even her navel fully exposed—to bare her breasts.
The sight of those plump, taut breasts right in front of me made my already-hardened body stir even more.
She met my gaze with eyes full of lust, then slowly spread her legs and leaned back. Her skirt naturally rode up, revealing wet underwear soaked through with arousal.
The sight of that small hollow barely visible beyond the damp white fabric made me swallow again.
Watching me like this, she slowly undid the string tied around her underwear.
When the thin cloth came away, it revealed flesh that looked even more vivid pink against her brown skin.
As I stared at the sight in a daze, she covered the damp, glistening flesh with a finger covered in a white glove.
Maybe she didn’t like me staring so openly at her most private place.
But as if mocking that thought, she moved even more boldly.
Slowly, she slid her fingers over the slick flesh, rubbing herself. Then she guided her middle finger into the opening and began stimulating the deep inner flesh with her own hand.
She was masturbating. And not just idly brushing over a sensitive spot, either—she was actually sliding her finger inside herself.
As if asking whether I was really going to keep standing there and just watch.