Chapter 26
Chapter 26
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 26
Chapter Title: Dungeon Practice (3)
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Nam Da-eun froze at my words.
Nam Da-eun, Lumi, and even Lee Byung-hoon were all staring at me.
"So, what're you gonna do about it? There's not even a breeze in here. Thinking back to the monsters we ran into on the way, none of them leave tracks on the ground either."
Lee Byung-hoon, that guy. He was surprisingly sharp.
He knew the basics of conquering cave-type dungeons cold.
Air flow and monster tracks.
Of course, basics have advanced levels, and even deeper intricacies.
The key feature of cave-type dungeons is their high mana density.
Since these 'dungeons' are accessed via portals, with no entrances or exits in the traditional sense, it's entirely possible there's no wind by design.
But even without wind, mana still flows.
It's just that the density is so high and the movements so subtle that most people can't sense it.
In fact, tracking exits via mana flow is a method even seasoned hunters rarely use. It's inaccurate and damn hard to pull off in the first place.
"Hold on a sec."
But I'm different.
⚡ SKILL ACTIVATED ⚡ Clairvoyance Eyes glow golden... Pupils dilate
Mana fills the space around me. I observe its subtle flows.
"Over there."
I pointed with my index finger at one of the ten passages.
The third one from the left.
All the mana was converging there before spreading out. That was the path forward.
"What the hell are those golden eyes? Sorry, but how can you be so sure? Mind explaining, even roughly?"
Lee Byung-hoon raised his doubts.
"...Even if I explained, you wouldn't believe me. Can't we just go this way?"
"This is my grade on the line. Would you just let it slide if you were me?"
I rolled my eyes in my expanded field of vision and glanced sideways. Nam Da-eun was watching me quietly.
She wouldn't buy it without a proper explanation either.
Lumi had her hands clasped in front of her chest, blinking innocently. No complaints from her—she'd go along with whatever I said.
"I read the mana flow. All the passages' mana routes through the third one, so that's my call. Don't ask how I read it."
"No way... Reading mana flow at cadet level? That doesn't make sense..."
Lee Byung-hoon still looked skeptical.
But it didn't matter.
Our team leader thought differently.
Thud-thud-thud!
Nam Da-eun bolted toward the third passage first.
"Wha—huh?!"
I grabbed Lumi's arm and chased after her.
Lee Byung-hoon grumbled from behind, "Argh, screw it, whatever," before running to catch up.
Just like that, with Nam Da-eun handling the occasional monster that leaped out and me slipping in magic here and there to rack up points bit by bit, we'd been running for about fifteen minutes.
Another fork appeared. This time, eight passages branched off.
"Fourth one."
Thud-thud!
I pointed as I ran, and Nam Da-eun didn't slow down, veering straight into it.
"Wait, is this for real...? Argh, fine, I'm coming. Coming."
We were sprinting through the dungeon so smoothly now it was getting boring.
Other teams were probably too tense prepping for fights to relax, but ours had a monster-specialist chauffeur.
"Lumi."
"Yes?"
"Throw a shield on Nam Da-eun at least. You need the points too."
"Oh! She was killing them so fast I forgot. It's the basics of basics..."
No matter how big a role she'll play later, she's still just a cadet now.
First practical for her too—she could slip up.
Still, as a support mage, a simple shield should net her decent points.
I'm guiding the path and picking off stragglers with magic for my share.
Our team should snag all the points.
...Or not? Feels like I'm forgetting something.
Slash!
Nam Da-eun sliced a lizard clean in two by herself.
The thing died without knowing what hit it, eyes bulging.
Maybe because I'd kept Clairvoyance active to navigate, I could see her movements more clearly now.
The lizard's body was severed as neatly as a cross-section diagram.
Most folks think her Authority is instant acceleration. They'd chalk that insane cutting power up to a skill too. Both wrong.
Her Authority is Space Domination.
Her 'acceleration' speeds up the time flow in the space around her body.
She's not getting faster—her space is.
Of course, it looks like acceleration to everyone else.
That freakish cutting power? Her sword slices the space it occupies itself.
I knew all this from the lore.
No game dev obsessed with settings would detail mana circulation for accelerating the space around Nam Da-eun's body.
So I never imagined something like this was possible.
The possibility of using someone else's Authority.
Authorities are innate to one person by default—no one else can wield them.
But ultimately, all superhuman powers like Authorities or skills stem from mana.
Nam Da-eun's space domination. Specifically, the mana op to accelerate space.
My Clairvoyance was reading her mana op in real time.
Maybe... I could mimic her Authority.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Cadets started trickling back in after finishing the dungeon practice.
Our team's clear time was predictably a crushing first place.
Too fast to bump into Do Jin-hyuk's lackeys, though. Regrettable.
Other teams were ragged—clothes torn, dirt-caked from rolling on the ground, some even bleeding. Ours? Pristine.
Nam Da-eun had a bit of monster blood on her uniform, that was it.
"Ugh... it hurts..."
"Don't be such a wuss over a little blood, kid."
The injured lined up in front of Baek A-young.
Ours had downtime after clearing, so I wandered over to watch her work.
"Hup! Hup! Haaa."
Baek A-young was making those same weird sound effects from the game while healing cadets.
No matter how you sliced it, they didn't sound like tired grunts.
Did others not sense the weirdness? Or did the 'Saintess' title block out the naughty implications? Seemed like they didn't notice.
"Tough gig, huh."
I spoke up after she finished one.
"Oh, Ho-yeon. Nah, this is what I do."
Sweat poured off her, but the smile never left her face.
"You seem pretty satisfied with the job. Most healers I know look half-dead after."
Healing burns mana, sure, but also your own stamina.
They usually collapse post-shift. Not Baek A-young.
"Yeah. Healing and saving people is always so rewarding. Feels like my true calling. Pays great too. Hehe."
She joked at the end, but her words and actions rang true.
Baek A-young genuinely loved helping others.
After treating everyone, she finally looked beat.
Her sweat-soaked blouse clung under her suit, pink bra visible through the fabric.
Sweat trickled down her deep cleavage.
Gulp. Lust stirred before I knew it.
Wait, isn't this weird?
She's sweating buckets, moaning lewdly, and no one bats an eye because it's 'healing'? Am I the only one seeing this?
Am I the pervert here?
I'd unconsciously ogled her chest, then looked up—our eyes met.
Shit. Busted.
"G-good thing. I tried not getting hurt so you wouldn't have to work too hard, A-young."
"Thanks. Hehe..."
I pivoted awkwardly, but she didn't seem to notice.
...Right? She didn't notice?
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ With all teams done, cadets gathered like at the start, waiting.
Some friendly pairs were now in cold wars; some rivals had bonded.
Ours stayed the same. Shockingly.
🏆 Top Teams - 1st: Team 13 (Nam Da-eun, Lee Ho-yeon, Lee Byung-hoon, Lumi) - 2nd: Team 7 (Seo Min-jun, Kim Seo-yeon, Jung Ye-jun, Elise) - 3rd: Team 8 (Do Ju-won, Ha Seo-yun, Chae Su-a, Lucy) The hologram we'd watched the first team on now displayed the top scorers.
"All team footage will be up on A-Class SNS, so review what you can. Next class, I'll point out what you did well and what needs fixing from this dungeon practice."
Homeroom prof Kim Jin-hyuk said that and left.
The remaining cadets buzzed before dispersing.
Ours almost split first—Nam Da-eun heading off somewhere—but I grabbed her.
"Nam Da-eun."
"...?"
Maybe bonding over the dungeon run, she didn't outright ignore me.
"We lucked into first this time, but if you solo-carry next round, we won't hold it."
"...I'll handle it."
She furrowed her brow briefly, said that, and vanished alone.
"Sigh. Won't even take solid advice."
At least her tone was less hostile. Small mercies.
As freshmen, low teamwork gets a pass, but repeat it a few times? They'd dock us hard on cooperation.
Nam Da-eun coughs up first place soon enough.
And the fallout... I don't even want to imagine.
She'll regret it then, but no explanation from me now would get through.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Boom! Bang!
"That one's a freshman? I could slot her into our guild's second string right now."
"That's why we already signed her exclusive contract. Rumor is she ignored triple the signing bonus."
"Tch. She's got dirt on them. Everyone in the biz knows Buyer Guild's bad rep—why else jump to exclusive?"
Post-dungeon practice, profs chatted in the monitor room, dozens of screens streaming footage.
Their eyes were glued to a girl charging ahead, three others trailing.
"Not giving the others any fight time at all?"
"Yeah, zero team cooperation."
"Talent's overwhelming, though. Can't avoid deducting next time if she pulls that."
"First eval, cut 'em slack."
A-Class homeroom prof Kim Jin-hyuk was among them.
'Her skills outpace her personality, for sure.'
He swiped over the hologram, noting by Nam Da-eun's name: '95 points. But next eval, stricter on personality.'
⚙ PROFESSOR'S NOTE ⚙ Nam Da-eun: 95 points. Next eval: stricter on personality. - Ah, screw it! Just kill 'em all!
- Hey, wait!
Kaboom!
Kim Jin-hyuk glanced at the next monitor, magic exploding wildly.
Lucy was wiping out dozens of monsters at once.
Her style in one phrase: [Offense is the best defense].
Minimize defense, drop foes before you fall—shonen manga tactics.
Heroic or reckless, depending on your view.
Monsters crumpled to her barrage before closing in now, but higher-tier ones later? Nah.
Pairing with sis Lumi yields killer synergy, sure, but without 24/7 teamwork, it's moot.
He noted 83 points by Lucy's name.
⚙ PROFESSOR'S NOTE ⚙ Lucy: 83 points "This freshman class is stacked~ Cute twins, Elise, Nam Da-eun—all gems."
"Yeah. Do Jin-hyuk and Lee Ho-yeon stood out too."
'Lee Ho-yeon.'
Kim Jin-hyuk found Ho-yeon's footage more intriguing than Elise or Nam Da-eun's.
Slipping spells into Nam Da-eun's high-speed fights showed solid mana control, but claiming to read mana flow and nailing the path perfectly?
At cadet level, that's specialized skill territory.
Cave dungeons wear you down with navigation fatigue and stress—that fix alone was huge.
Given Nam Da-eun's team skewed low otherwise, he overperformed relative to level.
No raw combat flash, but extraordinary potential.
"Hmm..."
After deliberation, he gave 86—three over Lucy.
⚙ PROFESSOR'S NOTE ⚙ Lee Ho-yeon: 86 points Kim Jin-hyuk liked smart cadets.
"Everything checks out, but mana capacity's low. Circuits narrow too. No way she's really only a month into magic...? But the control's too good for that. Purity's sky-high. Skill-related, specialized? Gotta summon him next... For research... It's for humanity..."
Mutter mutter mutter...
"?"
He turned at the weird noise beside him.
Im Sol was scribbling furiously at Lee Ho-yeon's monitor.
"Prof? What're you doing here?"
She never showed for these, yet evaluating so passionately? Curiosity piqued Kim Jin-hyuk.
Rumors swirled about her interest in some cadet—truth time?
"Ah—n-nothing!"
Eye contact hit, she clutched her papers and bolted.
"...What the heck."
Her face had been flushed beet red.