Preparing for Midterm Exams
The midterm exam preparation period had arrived, and just as I had done during that earlier exam, I was studying in the classroom alongside Eunhye and Na-eun.
But the atmosphere was nothing like before. The two girls looked at me with eyes full of something they were waiting for.
“Why…?”
Before I could finish my question, Eunhye and Na-eun thrust their textbooks forward and began firing off questions one after another.
“This one….”
When I explained one problem to Eunhye, Na-eun jumped in with her own question.
“Ah… and this one is done like this….”
After teaching Na-eun, Eunhye asked another. It was never actual studying—it was tutoring.
Most of the time was spent teaching the kids, and the sessions ended quickly.
“Doun-ah, thank you.”
“Doun-ah, you really know a lot. When did you start studying like this?”
On the walk home, Eunhye and Na-eun chattered nonstop from both sides.
Was Na-eun always like this? I had no idea. Back then we barely spoke to each other.
Eunhye had never been this talkative, but recently she had opened up a little more. Still, this level of nonstop chatter was new.
The three of us kept talking for quite some time, the noise echoing around us.
“Ah… I’m tired…”
As soon as we reached home I collapsed. Talking like this was exhausting.
I had been looking forward to a Hero Game break today too.
“Can’t do that… I have to play the game even if I don’t study.”
Forcing myself out of bed, I booted up the game.
Eunhye had messaged happily.
[Cain, are you there? Today was really fun!]
Even while saying that, she found it enjoyable. I understood but answered that I was having fun too.
She was chatting too much to say she was tired, after all.
[Cain, let’s go hunting! Let’s go!!!]
[Yeah…]
Following Seolhwa, who led the way out of the castle, we headed off.
The second day of midterm exam preparation, they stopped asking as many questions.
From then on, only the hardest problems were asked—clearly out of consideration for me.
Thanks to that, I was able to focus on studying.
“Um…”
The final exam was not as easy as the midterm.
Even though the subjects had increased, physical education, music, and art were completely unfamiliar.
Without proper study, it would be impossible to get full marks across the board like last time.
While I was memorizing the art content, Na-eun tapped my shoulder.
“Why?”
“Doun-ah, where are you going to high school?”
“High school…?”
I personally had no desire to attend. Spending time on school while the game could accelerate my character growth felt like a waste.
“I’m going to a private high school with a special curriculum.”
Na-eun said.
“A special private high school?”
My head nodded on its own.
I had been a good student since middle school and would graduate from Korea’s top university.
And then.
Marrying a national soccer team player and appearing on TV…
“I see.”
“What about you, Doun?”
“I’m still thinking about it.”
In the end, deciding not to attend high school required my mother’s permission.
“What about a special private high school?”
“Me?”
“Yeah!”
Isn’t that where the students who study hard go?
I had never even considered it.
“My grades aren’t good enough.”
“No, there’s a special private high school I can recommend to you.”
Na-eun mentioned Forest Special Private High School.
“Forest Special Private High School?”
“Yeah. It should be easy to get into.”
“Why?”
“Well… the university entrance results are not great.”
“Ah…”
Why did so many parents prefer special private high schools?
One major reason was the chance of entering a prestigious university.
Sending your child there meant entering a good university.
But Forest Special Private High School was different.
“Forest Special Private High School is a real special private high school. They say it’s extremely free.”
“Free?”
“Yeah!”
The word “free” caught my attention.
Free… free. Free!
That was the word I needed most right now.
“I’ll look into it.”
“Really?”
“Yeah!”
When I got home, I searched for Forest Special Private High School.
The reputation was not great.
Even though it was a special private high school, its university entrance results were worse than regular high schools.
“Actually, that’s even better.”
A special private high school with low university entrance interest?
It suited me perfectly.
Competitive rate last year…
0.89, which meant almost no one applied.
“This is a jackpot!”
The location was far from home. No, far from the city entirely.
The school was built on a mountain ridge outside the urban area.
“Sounds good.”
In the past, I had attended high school near home.
Because of that, rumors of bullying had spread to the high school.
My classmates had quietly ignored and avoided me.
I had tried to make friends a few times, but they kept their distance.
“If I go there… I might make friends too?”
I had never known what friendship was.
It had only been people I met for a reason.
Even that had ended when I was fired from work.
But.
As I got closer to Eunhye and Na-eun…
Friends… that’s really nice.
Happy.
Having a close relationship with someone gave me peace of mind.
Along with fun.
“I want to go…”
The more I saw, the more Forest Special Private High School appealed to me.
Its poor university entrance result was no problem for me.
Only after searching in more detail did I discover the drawbacks.
“Wow… ten million won per year?”
Boarding, three meals a day…
Together, the costs added up to ten million won annually.
“I have forty million won… I’ll figure something out.”
Despite the ten-million-won cost, I decided to apply to Forest Special Private High School.
Leaving out the money, it was a school built for me.
The next day, after classes, I stayed in the classroom to study for the final exam.
“Na-eun.”
“Hmm?”
Na-eun, who had been studying beside me, turned with a sleepy smile.
“Eunhye, you should listen too.”
“Yeah!”
Eunhye, already turned away, looked at me with sparkling eyes.
“I’m going to Forest Special Private High School.”
“You’re going to a special private high school!”
“A special private high school… isn’t it expensive?”
“You have to budget ten million won a year. Plus, you’ll need to buy personal items separately. Probably fifteen million won.”
“That’s expensive…”
Eunhye said, lightly furrowing her brows.
“Eunhye, there they say it’s really free.”
“Free???”
Free was important to Eunhye too.
She was as hooked on Hero Game as I was.
“I have money though…”
“Yeah… then I’ll apply to Forest Special Private High School too.”
Na-eun, listening, clasped her hands together.
“Let’s all go to Forest Special Private High School together!”
Na-eun had never actually entered Forest Special Private High School before.
But this time…
I felt a little worried.
Because my regression was changing their futures.
And Eunhye’s future too.
I had to work harder.
So their futures wouldn’t go wrong because of me.
In the past…
Unlike me, both Eunhye and Na-eun had lived successful lives.
Eunhye had become the strongest swordsman among users in Hero.
Na-eun had entered a good university and, after graduation… she had lived well.
Maybe that was why we had a common goal now.
We had grown closer than ever and studied even harder together.
The result?
We had achieved excellent final exam scores.
I averaged 98.75 points.
Na-eun averaged 97.25.
Eunhye averaged 92.50.
The final exam for the second semester of third-year middle school had ended, and the teacher had free time.
The teachers discussed the future, watched movies, or covered topics unrelated to classes.
And.
I worked hard on my Forest Special Private High School application.
Putting in all my effort because I really wanted to go there.
After school, I submitted the application to my homeroom teacher.
Eunhye and Na-eun also went together and handed theirs to their own homeroom teachers.
“I hope we all get into Forest Special Private High School together.”
Na-eun said, looking at the sky on the way home.
“Don’t worry. Their competitive rate has never been 1 for years…”
“Yeah…”
We arrived at Na-eun’s apartment.
“Everyone enjoy the break well…”
“Yeah. You too.”
“Na-eun, have fun.”
From today, the break begins.
Na-eun wouldn’t see me for a while.
Because of advanced high school preparation, she would have no time.
After saying goodbye to Na-eun, I walked home with Eunhye.
She was chatting beside me.
“Eunhye… now it’s break time.”
“Yeah.”
“Can we play Hero during break?”
“Yeah!”
“Good. Let’s team up.”
“Yeah!!”
Rion Castle Mercenary Guild.
Seolhwa had not logged in yet, so I waited while checking the status window.
Name: Cain
Level: 26
Job: Head of the Household / Mercenary Commander
DNA: Gambler
Strength 31 Agility 35 Stamina 43 Intelligence 28
Charisma 28
While preparing for the final exam and writing the application, I had continued playing the game steadily.
My level had risen by two, and the Mercenary Commander job had been added.
The new job created a mercenary management window.
Previously, gathering mercenaries required taking quests, but now I could summon subordinates through the window without any reason.
Detailed commands were also possible.
Team 3: 30 members.
A Team: 10 members (Cain)
B Team: 10 members (Seolhwa)
C Team: 10 members (Nine)
When the mercenary management window appeared, I divided Team 3 into three squads for finer control.
[Cain, what are you doing?]
Seolhwa’s chat popped up, so I closed the status window.
[I was looking at the mercenary management window.]
[Yeah. Should we go on a quest now?]
[Yeah. Let’s really play Hero starting today.]
Top Guard (Seriol Road)
Goblin Pack Extermination
Deep Forest Exploration
Exterminate Orc Pack That Entered Rion Territory
…
[Eunhye, what do you think is good?]
[What about goblins?]
Goblins…
It felt boring.
If it were a normal game, I would have gone straight for the orcs, but Hero was different.
Dangerous quests could result in player deaths.
I did not want anyone in Team 3 to die.
And if I or Seolhwa died, the loss would be too great.
The characters I had grown so far would be deleted.
[Are there no orcs?]
Just as I was about to choose goblins, a notification appeared.
Personal Quest: Find Captain Grape
Location: Rion Castle Gate.
[Eh? Seolhwa, I got a quest!]
[I didn’t get one?]
[It says to find Captain Grape.]
[Let’s go together.]
At the Rion Castle Gate, Captain Grape was waiting.
When I approached, the captain took us to a quiet alley in the Rion Castle backstreets.
[Team Leader Cain, your reputation has improved lately.]
Reputation? I had only taken quests and hunted like usual.
[Several village chiefs praised you. They said you actively hunted the foxes and wolves threatening their villages.]
Ah…
I had moved between villages to earn extra money and hunted foxes and wolves nonstop.
Perhaps the village chiefs had liked how I never stopped hunting for extra income.
[So, the Viscountess Rion secretly entrusted a quest to you.]
The captain looked around and explained.
[Her third son is in the deep forest of Rion Territory. Before the territorial troops arrive, we must find him first and escort him back to Rion Territory.]
Team 3 Quest: Find Viscount Rion’s Third Son.
Departure: Immediate
The quest was automatically accepted without choice.
[Move immediately. Thank you.]
Grape left the last words and disappeared into the alley.
I summoned Team 3 to the Rion Castle Gate through the mercenary management window.
[Seolhwa, buy as much food as possible as fast as you can and come to the gate.]
[Yeah!]
Leaving the food purchase to Seolhye, I prepared various items needed for camping.
When the inventory was full of goods and we reached the gate,
The mercenaries, including Seolhwa, had gathered.
We set our destination as the entrance to the deep forest.
[Deep forest, huh.]
[They say it’s full of dangerous animals there.]
[We have to be careful.]
After setting the destination in the mercenary window, the NPC mercenaries began chatting among themselves as they moved.
[Seolhwa, let’s go too.]
[Yeah!]