Chapter 11
Terminally Ill, but It's Okay — Episode 11
The wheel of education never rests.
That holds true in this world, where a novel has become reality.
"They could've set lunch break a little longer."
Clicking my tongue at the packed schedule, I climbed Achasan behind the dormitory.
The afternoon lecture was Practical Training II.
Like Monster Studies, it was a second-year common course, and as the name suggested, it was a brutal lecture combining real combat and training.
Teams carried out missions, were evaluated, and aimed to capture Monster nests.
We were to charge straight into the enemy's main camp.
We're students—is that really okay?
Well, you know.......
Of course it's not okay.
They said the selection took skill level into account, but since it involved facing real Monsters, there were frequent unexpected developments and accidents.
This was also why I suspected a Main Quest would be issued.
The nest raid starting today would culminate next week in the nest's lowest level, the Final Stage.
There, we would get caught up in an unforeseen incident involving the boss-class Monster guarding the core.
The novel Epic of Salvation.
Its long and arduous narrative was on the verge of stirring in earnest.
"Huff, huff."
But at this rate, I was going to die before even getting there.
I'd only climbed for twenty minutes, yet my breath was ragged and sweat was pouring down like rain.
"This is freaking hard."
All because of this wretched body.
Aside from Park Ha-yul's mana-deficiency constitution, his strength, agility, stamina, and so on—
most of his stats hovered around the average person's level.
Compared to my original body, which could lift around 400 even if not the 500 of a hardcore gym rat, this was actually worse.
"Ha, seriously, except for Manifestation, there's not a single decent thing about this body."
I seriously considered borrowing the power of sorcery, but I held back.
Gritting my teeth, I climbed for a while longer, and before long I reached the plaza halfway up the mountain—the assembly point.
"I'm dying. Seriously."
I was flapping my sweat-soaked shirt to cool down when a familiar voice reached me.
"Tch, looks like everyone's finally here."
The professor in charge of Practical Training—and the person at the center of my uncomfortable relationship with that class.
It was Professor Lee Taek-jin.
For whatever reason, he had arrived earlier than the appointed time.
"......Let's begin right away. Listen to the assistant instructor's explanation."
Lee Taek-jin, who had glanced at me with a subtle look, flicked his hand, and Kim Mi-young stepped forward.
"The G-17 nest that Class A will capture consists of ten Initial Stages and one Final Stage. It resembles an inverted triangle. You enter through different entrances and all arrive at a single end. Today is the Initial Stage. Next week, we plan to capture the Final Stage, and the teams have already been formed. Based on rankings: top-ranked, upper-ranked—"
Well, it was all information I already knew, so I didn't particularly pay attention.
Top-ranked, upper-ranked, middle-ranked, lower-ranked, bottom-ranked. They divided everyone into five groups and selected one person from each.
Class A had fifty students, so that meant ten teams in total.
Since I was ranked 700th, I'd probably be in the lower-ranked group.
"We also considered the special characteristics of each track. We used a program for the draw, and it was fair—"
I knew all of this too.
They had considered every possible case, so protesting the team assignments was useless.
So just do as you're told.
That was the gist of it.
And so, my attention drifted elsewhere.
Who would I end up on a team with?
Honestly, no matter which team I was on, we'd all reach the same Final Stage, so getting caught up in the incident was unavoidable.
But the team that would face the incident in the Final Stage up close—
for example, Baek Sa-young, Cheon Seo-yoon, Joo A-rin, Seol Yoon-gi.
The more I was on a team with those four, the easier it would be to respond.
That is, if a quest appeared and our objectives aligned.
"Then I'll announce the finalized teams. Everyone, please check your phones."
As soon as Kim Mi-young finished speaking, cheers and groans erupted all around.
Was the best team Baek Sa-young's?
Since he was someone who played a major role in this incident, I checked the notification while inwardly hoping for him.
But the team I was assigned to.......
"Team 4?"
The moment I confirmed my assignment, someone's voice rang out.
"Team 4, gather over here."
The haughty intonation was a voice I recognized.
* * *
If I had to pick team leaders I wanted to avoid, I would have chosen two people.
Cheon Seo-yoon and Joo A-rin.
One was uncomfortable, and the other left a bad taste in my mouth.
And yet, I'd ended up on a team with one of them.
"...I'm Joo A-rin, the team leader."
"I'm Park Ha-yul. Let's do our best."
That was the entirety of our conversation.
A silence as heavy as the awkward atmosphere hung between us.
"......."
"......."
The ambiguous tension from the grip-tok seemed to have carried over here.......
It wasn't without discomfort, but I was fairly satisfied.
We'd keep our distance and just carry out the assignment.
What a professional and cool relationship.
Since there was no need to bother with clumsy relationship-building, my depleted energy.......
"Eee! A-rin! I'm on Team 4 too!"
......was just starting to feel restored.
Some girl let out a piercing shriek as she joined us.
The "dolphin" came running over, out of breath.
No, the girl with twin tails was so happy about something that she grabbed Joo A-rin's hands and bounced up and down.
"Ack!"
Then suddenly, her eyes met mine and she startled violently.
"Howhowhow—"
She fidgeted as if something terrible had happened, then brushed her hair back and greeted me shyly.
"Ahem, I'm Lee Min-ha. Nice to meet you."
Ah....... I think I know who she is.
Lee Min-ha. The friend I'd drawn like a background behind Joo A-rin.
Was her main track Magic?
I'd drawn even her eyes, nose, and mouth roughly, but in person she was fairly cute.
"I'm Park Ha-yul. Let's do our best."
"Yeah. I want to do my best too. With you......."
But this girl was a little strange.
As if something hurt, she squirmed with a reddened face.
"......Lee Min-ha. You haven't forgotten what I said, right?"
"Ah, of course I know. But......"
"But what? Get a grip."
Joo A-rin seemed to find it strange too. She poked Lee Min-ha in the side and threatened her.
Did she borrow money or something?
Hoping it would resolve well, I wished the next teammate would be a solid, easygoing guy.
"This is Team 4, right?"
At that moment, a man with a short buzz cut approached.
As if they already knew each other, Lee Min-ha shouted.
"Whoa, Kang Cheol-min, you're on our team too?"
"Yeah, that's how it turned out."
"Wow, our team lineup is insane. You're team-leader material."
"You think? Heh heh. Honestly, I was a little surprised too. I figured I'd be team leader for sure."
Kang Cheol-min.
A name as solid and sturdy as his stocky, compact build.
But his behavior was the opposite.
"Joo A-rin. I'm counting on you. With our combo, we've definitely got to take first place. Just trust me."
He went up to Joo A-rin first and chatted her up like they were close, then spotted me and grinned.
"Park Ha-yul? Hey, I get to meet the dark horse of the diagnostic assessment here too?"
I could feel a clear difference in temperature compared to how he treated the girls.
"...Didn't expect to run into you so soon. Nice to meet you?"
And his tone suggested he thought he'd caught something.
Why?
Since I didn't remember him, he was clearly an extra.......
His ranking seemed a bit high, but unfortunately, I didn't know him.
Besides, unlike other academy stories, Epic of Salvation had no such thing as an extra who became a genius.
So I asked.
"Are we close?"
"Me? No, no way. We run in different circles, so how could we be?"
With that, Kang Cheol-min chuckled to himself.
......This guy's in bad shape too.
I couldn't figure out why he was laughing at all.
"But why are you using casual speech with someone you just met....... Tch. Never mind. Just talk comfortably."
I'd been about to say something, but I let it go.
A provocation has to be on a certain level to be worth responding to.
I didn't want to argue with a guy who was an extra "1" at best, maybe a "2" if I was generous.
"You've got decent sense. You know when to back down. I don't have any hard feelings, so don't freeze up too much."
Kang Cheol-min chuckled to himself again.
At this point, I even started to suspect Lee Taek-jin had interfered.
Was this really put together properly?
There wasn't a single normal person here.
Since I couldn't protest, the last teammate had become truly important.
Man or woman, I hoped for an ordinary person.
"......Um. Hi, everyone."
But the moment I heard her timid, barely audible voice, I knew.
This one was no better than the previous two.
"I-I'm Min Young-ji. I'll work hard so I don't cause trouble."
It was the girl with the straight bangs who had given me that strange jolt when we first met.
The journalist corps savior who had unintentionally gifted me time by writing the diagnostic assessment article.
"Wow, all the diagnostic assessment frauds are gathered here. Is this a hidden camera prank?"
But was that bastard Kang Cheol-min a chicken or something?
He seemed determined to peck at everything in sight, flooring it from the start.
"This capture battle is totally screwed."
"Oh my, whyyy?"
"She's dead last in the whole school. No wonder I'm not team leader. This is a balance patch."
"I-I'll work hard."
"Work hard, my ass. How many teams did you ruin last year alone?"
"Last year?"
"Yeah. We were in the same class. She can find the way okay, but her combat ability is just hopeless."
Min Young-ji's already drooping shoulders now looked ready to dock with the ground.
"Stop it, Kang Cheol-min. We're already on the same team, so there's no need to get worked up from the start."
I was just starting to get annoyed when Joo A-rin, the team leader, stepped in.
"Ugh, how frustrating do you think this is?"
"I understand the situation, so that's enough. And Young-ji? Don't be too discouraged—just guide us well. We'll handle the rest."
"......Okay."
"Min-ha, you too. Don't judge her before you know her."
"O-of course. She's....... I'm not that kind of person, okay?"
"I know. So treat her well. How can we do well on a team assignment without teamwork?"
As expected, her ability as team leader was worth acknowledging.
She was curt, but that only gave her a kind of charisma that was hard to ignore.
Having neatly cleared away the seeds of conflict, Joo A-rin briefly stepped away to draw lots for the Initial Stage.
"Tch, you two suit each other. Say hi or something."
Kang Cheol-min clicked his tongue, looking back and forth between me and Min Young-ji, then turned sharply toward Lee Min-ha.
"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have written that article......."
The hesitant girl spoke carefully.
It seemed she had read the comments too.
"It's fine. You didn't mean it."
I waved my hand calmly.
Thanks to it, I'd also received a hefty reward.
Come to think of it, wasn't the article itself fairly favorable?
The problem was the people who twisted it.
"Th-thank you."
"Instead, give me a heads-up next time."
So I can first judge whether I can get an achievement out of it.
"......Okay. I'll work hard on the team assignment too, so I won't be a burden."
"Burden, what burden."
"No, really. My combat ability is—"
Huh?
"W-wait a moment!"
The conversation that had been flowing smoothly came to a brief halt as an unexpected situation arose.
The system message that suddenly appeared was exactly the kind I had been hoping for.
[Main Quest #2]
[Objective: Place in the top 3 of the Initial Stage Occupation Battle]
[Reward: 10 days, 15 SP]
But ten whole days just for the Initial Stage Occupation Battle, not even the Final Stage?
That's insane.......
"Min Young-ji. You said you'd do your best, right?"
"Huh?"
"That's not enough. Let's put our lives on the line."
"......?"
"Human life is surprisingly tough, you know? You won't die easily just from getting a little hurt. Even if you lose an arm....... No, that's not what I meant. Anyway, let's do well."
"......Yesss."
Since it was an opportunity I couldn't miss, I didn't forget to ask seriously once more.
Meanwhile, Joo A-rin returned after finishing a brief meeting.
"Okay, everyone, focus. According to the draw, we're entering Initial Stage 9. The Monster information will be sent after we enter."
Number 9?
For a moment, I tilted my head, wondering if I'd misheard.
It still seemed strange after thinking it over, so I abruptly asked.
"Wait. Are you sure about that?"
"......?"
"I'm asking if we're really supposed to enter Initial Stage 9."
"Yes, that's right. You couldn't have misheard. Why are you asking again?"
Joo A-rin narrowed her eyes as if she didn't understand my intent. But I had no choice but to ask.
It was different from the development I knew.
In the original story, Lee Dae-ho's team had been assigned to Initial Stage 9.
The difficulty was the worst of them all; injuries had piled up, and the team had finished last in the Initial Stage Occupation Battle evaluation.
But why had that damn number come out of Joo A-rin's mouth.......