The Interview
In terms of conquering gates, hunters are broadly divided into two types. One is the martial faction.
Gates are full of variables. Even monsters you'd seen just the other day could show up with entirely new gimmicks in the next one.
That was probably why most hunters trusted in their own power. Not information from outside sources or strategy methods they’d heard about—they believed in the skills they'd honed diligently and the points they'd invested.
The other type was the theoretical faction. Mages usually dominated here. Maybe because they relied on their brains over brawn, they sought out weaknesses to exploit and emphasized efficiency, which had made them rise in prominence lately.
Anyway, Yang Sae-rom in the meeting room represented the martial faction, while the principal was theoretical.
How much time had passed? The promised 30 minutes was approaching.
-Ring ring ring.
"Yeah, Yoo-seong junior. You know the meeting room? Oh, the old spot—right, come here. Yep."
Yang Sae-rom's head slowly lifted. Footsteps echoed in.
Who could it be? What kind of woman? A mage, probably? Yang Sae-rom was dying to know who could have earned the principal's recommendation.
"Ah, h-hello thereee…."
Small. That was her first impression. She wore a black robe, the attached hood pulled so low it was hard to even see her face.
"A man…?"
"…?"
Thoroughly sexist remark. In this world too, questioning why a man would be a professor was blatant discrimination.
"Ah, no, I didn't mean—sorry."
"I-it's f-fine."
She flinched. Yang Sae-rom bowed her head in apology. Lee Yoo-seong was puzzled but accepted it since it was directed at him. He raised both hands lightly in a wave, then took off his hood.
"Whoa…."
"L-long time no see, s-senior…."
"You haven't changed a bit?"
"Ahaha…."
Cute. Yang Sae-rom felt embarrassed with herself even as she admired the man's looks.
Early twenties? No, he could pass for just turning twenty.
Maybe that's why, despite the clear senior-junior dynamic, she saw him as some academy freshman around her age.
As their brief exchange flowed,
"This is today's special interviewer."
"Hello…."
"Greetings."
Lee Yoo-seong gave a timid greeting.
If you captured his current state in sound, it'd be like this.
Returning to the academy after so long had him overwhelmed. There were new buildings, everything gleamed shiny and new.
And above all, all these strangers. Even with just four people in this vast space, Lee Yoo-seong was radiating tension.
At that moment, the principal began clarifying the situation.
Simple introductions first.
"This is Professor Yang Sae-rom from the Swordsmanship Department. An A-rank hunter."
"Ah, h-hello…."
"……."
Next up was Lee Yoo-seong. But after twenty years' gap, his mouth wouldn't open easily.
"Still Lee Yoo-seong…?"
"Yes…."
A slightly rude question. A man's surname changes upon marriage.
He'd become Lee Yoo-seong from Na Yoo-seong when he married Lee Seol-ah.
Still, the reason for asking was simple.
If your wife dies, you can revert to your original surname. No legal issues. It was purely a notion created for men's remarriages.
A kind of "wise father, good husband" mindset. Even if you could revert upon your wife's death, you don't.
Anyway, after some roundabout talk, the point was he had to introduce himself.
"L-Lee Yoo-seong… I-I'm great at cl-cleaning, l-laundry too…! G-good temper…!"
"…??"
The women's eyes shook in unison.
Because of how this man introduced himself. His wandering gaze screamed anxiety. Stammering speech, timid tone—it went beyond cute into something that stirred a sadistic urge.
And the biggest factor was his words themselves.
Why introduce himself like that? Every line teased a woman's dark desires.
"A-and… Ah! I'm an F-rank hunter. B-better stamina than other guys… G-good at heavy lifting or getting up early at dawn…."
Flich, flinch, flinch.
Yang Sae-rom's gaze gradually turned disgusted. But not at the man—at the principal.
"What the hell are you planning?"
"Ah, no, it's not… There's a misunderstanding… right?"
Hiring scandal. Even Ryu Ga-young started stammering. His words kept sparking weird imaginations…. She couldn't pinpoint where it went wrong.
Sensing the odd vibe, perhaps, Lee Yoo-seong asked in a quavering voice.
"Y-you're hiring a j-janitor, right…?"
"…?"
"Ah."
Yang Sae-rom's face twisted. Simultaneously, the principal's bloomed like a flower.
Thank goodness. So that's the misunderstanding!!
"I just meant it like that, Yoo-seong junior!"
"…?"
The principal briefly recalled the past.
[J-janitor's fine….]
[Yep yep. Got a job. Of course.]
Their initial phone call. Ryu Ga-young had brushed it off thinking he just needed professor staff, unwittingly causing this mix-up.
…So Yoo-seong junior came thinking it was a janitor gig all this time?
"H-how could we put a pr-precious academy graduate…."
"Y-you said you had an opening…."
"Sorry, Yoo-seong junior. Let me… rephrase."
Ahem. Ryu Ga-young cleared her throat.
And then.
"We're starting a new department called Monster Response Studies. Could you take the professor position?"
"……."
Frozen. Like a limestone statue.
"…C-can't I just be a j-janitor?"
"N-no!"
The principal was the one pleading. Her face screamed Professor…? What's that…? I'm scared… Convincing him would require piling on massive perks.
"P-private office of course…. R-right! The Academy System!"
"That's…!"
"?!"
Yang Sae-rom and the admin assistant's eyes went wide.
The Academy System. A near-miraculous magic even S-rank hunters found tricky.
From training hall simulations to midterms' test backgrounds. In short, it controlled artificial gates or the academy's firewall defenses.
"I'll give you system access…."
Tempting offer? Yoo-seong's eyes, once set on "janitor life~," began to shift.
"Level 2?"
"Th-that's… Level 3."
Level 2 meant manipulating the entire midterm exam.
In simple terms, crafting the midterm itself or tweaking its backdrop.
Level 1 was what the principal held—like a nuke, controlling the academy's protective barrier.
"Level 2."
"N-no… Level 3. Level 3's good too. I'll give you the new department training hall too—freshly built?"
"Isn't that for Swordsmanship?"
"We'll make it shared… Level 2."
"Yoo-seong… Even back in academy, you always agreed with me."
Wasn't this an interview? How'd it turn into this? In the end, Lee Yoo-seong agreed to the professor role, snagging Level 2 system access and the new training building to boot.
Finally, fed up, Yang Sae-rom spoke up.
"What is this?"
"……."
"Where's principle? Recommend, hire, done?"
Yang Sae-rom couldn't comprehend the situation. Sure, she'd been briefly dazzled by the man's beauty. But hiring based on looks alone? Straight-up corruption.
"We're still interviewing."
The admin assistant murmured softly. Compromise, perhaps. In the end, Yang Sae-rom backed down a bit.
"…Let's do this."
"……."
"Bringing him in, fine—it's Ryu Ga-young Hunter. But shouldn't he have some qualifications?"
F-rank hunter. Yang Sae-rom pointed that out.
Even for a theory department, this was a hunter academy.
An F-rank was just a healthier civilian. Stronger than an athlete, barely.
So that's why she wanted proof of qualifications.
"This is…."
Gate Survival Training. Long time no see?"
"Yes, senior…."
Lee Yoo-seong caressed the book fondly. It had been ages.
He hadn't written the whole thing. Experts from each field compiled survival info for gates. He'd handled only the monster combat parts.
Qualifications. Qualifications….
Lee Yoo-seong had agreed to the professor job. Not his favorite due to his personality.
But looking at this book changed his mind. He wanted one more hunter to survive gates.
If his daughter was life priority one, priority two was hunters not dying. Starting with Lee Seol-ah.
"Hey, Hunter Yang Sae-rom?"
"Yes. Hunter Lee Yoo-seong."
Maybe that's why he wanted to pass this interview. He could've pushed back and walked, but the industry scent after twenty years was surprisingly nostalgic.
"You just did a g-gate raid, right?"
"Yes."
"F-faced an A-rank monster, Hell Hound."
Flich. Info he'd never shared. He'd just gone and come back quietly.
Yang Sae-rom flinched at his suddenly sharp eyes. Felt like her clothes were stripped bare. His gaze scanned her body.
"Four? N-no… Including the one you th-thought you killed, f-five?"
"……."
"L-leg grazed, d-during right-flank breakthrough… r-right arm injury."
Silence. An astonishingly cold silence blanketed the room. Info no one mentioned, no one saw—spilling from one man's mouth.
"Y-you're gr-green. S-sorry. Not swordsmanship… m-monster fighting…."
"……."
Qualification proven. Lee Yoo-seong said no more.
"Sh-shall we go to the tr-training hall…?"
"……."
"I-I'll show you… my qu-qualifications."
Lee Yoo-seong slowly turned.
Squish.
Still his timid, awkward movements.