Chapter 11
Chapter 11
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 11
Chapter Title: Team Composition Concerns
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“Of course there’s a problem. Think about Yoo Ah-ra’s team members. They stuck two bottom-rank students in there, but the other two are pretty solid picks. With that lineup, they’ll probably get crushed on dungeon clear speed.”
Lee Seo-jun flashed a confident smile at my words.
“It’s fine. I put this together with everything in mind. There is one variable, though.”
“A variable?”
What’s that supposed to mean?
“You not living up to my expectations?”
What the hell?
“I don’t know what you think of me, but is this because I came in last last time and you said my skills were decent?”
Lee Seo-jun laughed as he answered my question.
“Yeah, that’s right. You weren’t just saying it, were you?”
I could confidently say my skills weren’t total bottom-tier, but my mana shortage meant I couldn’t handle prolonged fights.
Which meant in a dungeon requiring long battles, calling my combat power bottom-tier wasn’t an exaggeration.
“I can’t fight for long. Not enough mana.”
“I kinda figured that from the test.”
“Then what makes you think I can pull it off?”
“You just fight when it matters.”
I shut my mouth at Lee Seo-jun’s words.
Fight only when it matters? What does that even mean?
...
Yeah, this guy’s smart—he must have something in mind.
And Yoon Ha-young might be low-ranked now, but her potential was sky-high.
I nodded.
“Fine. I handed team composition over to you, so I’ve got nothing to say.”
“It’ll work out. They all have solid basics.”
“......Yeah.”
Lee Seo-jun spoke with such confidence.
In my previous life, I would’ve trusted and followed him too.
But now, I couldn’t trust him like before.
Naturally so—I’d once put everything in his hands and it ended in failure.
Hmm. Something felt off.
After finishing mana training and personal practice, it was past 11 p.m.
I crashed onto my dorm bed the moment I got back.
Lying there in a daze from exhaustion, my smart student handbook buzzed with a notification.
I checked the screen—there was a new message.
“What’s this?”
[Jeong Jin-tae has invited Lee Seo-jun, Kim Seon-woo, Yoon Ha-young, and Shin Ji-hyeok.]
[Jeong Jin-tae: Let’s do our best these next two months, guys!]
[Yoon Ha-young: Heeeey everyone!!]
[Shin Ji-hyeok: Ho ho]
...It’s a group chat.
At least the vibe’s good to start. That’s a relief.
I’d heard other teams distrust each other from the get-go, leading to fights early on.
But our team had three low-rankers and still felt pretty harmonious.
Probably thanks to that reliable pillar, Lee Seo-jun.
I wasn’t in the mood to chat, so I just muted notifications.
We’d be together all day tomorrow anyway—no need to talk now.
“Let’s check my stats.”
[Activating unique trait ‘Outsider’s Benefit.’]
[Checking stats.]
［Stats］
Stamina: 44.06
Strength: 34.04
Mana: 24.2
Speed: 30.04
Agility: 32.02
Dexterity: 28
“Hmm.”
My stats had risen across the board, if only slightly.
Mana especially had broken past 24 thanks to steady mana training and the Returner’s Wristwatch effect. I still had a long way to go to match an average wizard’s mana, but steady growth was what mattered.
I dismissed the status window and thought about tomorrow’s dungeon exploration.
It was the school’s first group class.
No matter how well I did alone, I couldn’t carry the score.
The issue was whether I’d even get a chance to shine.
It felt like Lee Seo-jun’s one-man show was about to begin.
“Ah, whatever.”
I got up and headed to the bathroom.
I had to move early tomorrow morning—better wash up and sleep quick.
Thursday morning, 9 a.m.
Fifty students had gathered at the Wizard Academy’s back mountain bright and early.
For today’s practical class: the 5-Person Dungeon Exploration.
I arrived right on time.
That’s when a voice called out from beside me.
“Kim Seon-woo!”
I turned toward the voice and saw Lee Seo-jun approaching with three other students behind him.
I sized them up.
A pretty girl with brown hair and a youthful face—Yoon Ha-young, who’d play a decent role in the story’s mid-game.
Behind her, a big, stocky guy: Shin Ji-hyeok.
And a slim, handsome one: Jeong Jin-tae.
“Hey!”
Jeong Jin-tae approached with a bright greeting. I didn’t know him well, but he seemed friendly enough on the surface.
I nodded back.
“Hey.”
Lee Seo-jun looked us all over and spoke.
“Everyone’s finally here. Let’s make this semester count.”
“Yeah, let’s do great, guys!”
Yoon Ha-young shouted with overflowing energy.
“But man, our team’s kinda weird, right? Top dog and dead last together. Heh.”
Shin Ji-hyeok glanced at me as he said it. Couldn’t tell if it was mockery or just talk yet.
“You gonna be okay? Couldn’t even fire off one spell in the last test.”
But his follow-up made the intent clear enough.
Not thrilled, but I brushed it off.
I’d heard snide crap like this nonstop since ranking dead last. I was numb to it now.
“Well, Seo-jun put the team together, so it’ll work out somehow.”
Jeong Jin-tae jumped in.
I could tell he was already planning to ride Lee Seo-jun’s coattails.
Thirty minutes until dungeon exploration started.
I was starting to worry about this test.
The class took place in a real dungeon on the school’s back mountain.
Sure, it was real, but it’d been cleared ages ago and renovated by the school, so it was more artificial dungeon now.
Still, built from a real one, the atmosphere and traps felt authentic.
Among all the Wizard Academy classes, dungeon exploration was the most dangerous training.
They’d toned down the difficulty to prevent accidents, but a serious incident happened every year.
“The dungeon exploration class runs morning and afternoon, two sessions total. Since it’s the first day, you’ll only do Basement Level 1.”
The dungeon had underground levels. The number varied by dungeon, but this one went down to Basement Level 15.
Each level ended with a boss monster, naturally. Beat it to descend.
The class progressed by clearing one floor per week.
“You’ll exit the dungeon after the morning session, eat lunch, and rest. Then continue in the afternoon. Class ends once Basement Level 1 is cleared. Now, I’ll explain scoring.”
Jang An-cheol addressed the fifty students before him.
“First is clear speed. The fastest team gets bonus points. Second is rank adjustment bonus. Pairing with lower-ranked teammates than your own rank gives you more personal points.”
Basic stuff every student knew.
“Third is contribution. The artificial dungeon has a special contribution system. It measures your team impact—extra points accordingly. Even support spells that immobilize monsters without direct attacks count.”
This contribution score was my biggest worry.
With my mana shortage, sustained combat was impossible—putting me at a disadvantage for racking up points.
And my competition? None other than Lee Seo-jun.
“Every year, dungeon exploration sees combat-incapable injuries. To emphasize protecting teammates, injury penalties apply. Don’t want them? Watch your team. Combat-incapable injuries also bench you from dungeon class for a month. Safety first, everyone.”
Dungeons and injuries went hand in hand.
Getting sidelined for one injury felt harsh, though.
But I got it—extreme penalties to drill in safety’s importance.
Even with warnings, big accidents happened because students didn’t take it seriously.
The school wanted to hammer that home.
“Got it? Don’t rush and eat a penalty. Be careful.”
Shin Ji-hyeok said it to the group while side-eyeing me.
“Yeah, injuries hurt the team and boot the person from class. Stay sharp.”
Jeong Jin-tae chimed in from the side. Didn’t seem malicious.
I ignored the stares and spoke up.
“Whatever. Tell me your main specialties.”
“Main? Auxiliary. Sub is Manifestation.”
Shin Ji-hyeok answered first.
Auxiliary, huh. It’s tricky to master due to the unique traits of its spells—rarest among the four magic systems. No wonder wizards specializing in it were rare.
Plus, mid-upper rank at 43rd.
Lee Seo-jun knew what he was doing.
He brought the exact firepower our team needed, even if he was a bit of a prick.
Next, Yoon Ha-young.
“Manifestation for me. Ice attribute, sub is Auxiliary.”
I already knew about her. But right now, she wouldn’t contribute much.
Still, with top-tier Enhancer Lee Seo-jun, we could lead with him and support.
“I’m Enhancement. Sub’s Manifestation, but I suck at it.”
Jeong Jin-tae went last, blunt about his weakness.
“Manifestation here. No attribute. Sub’s Enhancement.”
“Heh. We know. Probably no one in school doesn’t.”
Shin Ji-hyeok chuckled at my words.
“......Yeah, whatever.”
Info share done, Jang An-cheol’s voice rang out again.
“Alright, teams—enter the dungeon.”
Dungeon control room on the back mountain.
Ten massive screens glowed.
Each showed a team’s real-time dungeon feed, monitored by Jang An-cheol and three supervisors.
Dungeons were unpredictable—had to activate anti-monster artifacts if crisis hit.
“Damn, they’re already fighting among themselves over there.”
“Which team?”
“Team 5. That’s Shin Young-jun, right? Trying to break it up alone. Hilarious.”
One supervisor laughed at his screen.
“Oh, Teacher Jang. Isn’t Lee Seo-jun in your class?”
“Yeah, he is. Team 3 there.”
“Hmm. Team 3.”
The supervisor glanced at Team 3 and tilted his head.
“Odd lineup. Lots of unknowns. Oh, that one I know—Kim Seon-woo, right? The video that went viral recently.”
“Yes, that’s him.”
“Heh. That team’ll be fun. Kim Seon-woo’s school dead last, obviously. What about the other three’s ranks?”
“Big guy’s around 40th, the rest 80s and 120s, I think.”
The supervisor snickered.
“Lee Seo-jun’s got his work cut out. Looks like he built for adjustment bonuses, but might just tank clear time.”
“He’s skilled, though. Should manage.”
As Jang An-cheol chatted with the supervisors, footsteps approached.
He glanced at the door—moments later, it swung open.
“Teacher Lee Hee-young?”
In walked Manifestation instructor Lee Hee-young.
“Oh, Teacher Jang. Hi.”
She greeted with a bright smile.
“What brings you here?”
“No class, got bored—thought I’d drop by.”
Hmm. Jang An-cheol nodded.
Class A was famous for talent. He knew Lee Hee-young loved genius students.
His class had two generational ones: Lee Seo-jun and Yoo Ah-ra.
She’d come for them.
“Observing’s fine, Teacher Lee, but no favoritism.”
“Psh, wouldn’t dream of it.”
She laughed and sat beside Jang An-cheol. He glanced at her.
“Got a favorite anyway?”
“Hmm. One I’m curious about.”
Jang An-cheol smirked at her answer.
Predictable. Probably Yoo Ah-ra, fellow Manifestation user.
She loved the system.
“Oh? Which team’s that?”
Lee Hee-young pointed at a screen—Lee Seo-jun swinging his sword at monsters.
“Team 3.”
“Lee Seo-jun and Kim Seon-woo, right?”
“Yes.”
“Heh. Fun. Team 3—first and last place combo.”
Jang An-cheol pointed at another screen while watching Team 3.
“Team 7’s similar. Yoo Ah-ra’s. Two low-rankers, other two mid-tier.”
Lee Hee-young followed his finger. Yoo Ah-ra incinerated monsters with massive fire orbs, advancing faster than anyone.
“Seo-jun and Ah-ra both chasing adjustment bonuses, huh.”
“They’ve got the skills for it.”
Lee Hee-young smiled and nodded.