The Jet Bus to Hell

I held my tray and scanned for a quiet corner seat in the student cafeteria. Today's menu was stew and bread. A simple combination, but after barely eating breakfast, it made my ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠mouth water.

'Finally, I can eat in peace...'

The moment I sat down, it happened.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

A gust of wind hit me from both sides.

"......!"

Adelia took the seat on my left. Yuriel took the seat on my right. They'd claimed the spots beside me at the exact same time and were now glaring at each other.

"Junior, this is my seat~" Yuriel said with a bright smile. Her eyes, however, were not smiling at all.

"The spot next to the extra is mine," Adelia said coldly.

Crackle—

Invisible sparks flew through the air between them.

Bang!

The sound of a tray slamming down across from me. It was Iris.

"Human. Eat," she said, looking at me. But her gaze kept darting back and forth between Yuriel and Adelia.

'.......'

I froze with my spoon in hand. This had gone way beyond a simple sandwich ambush. I was now completely surrounded on all sides.

"Hey, look over there..."

"An F-class... sandwiched between those goddesses?"

"Hero Adelia, Senior Yuriel, Princess Iris..."

"This is insane, for real..."

"I'm so jealous..."

The students' whispers spread throughout the entire cafeteria. All eyes were on us. I lowered my head and scooped up some stew.

'I'm gonna get indigestion...'

Far away, by the window, Scarlet with her purple hair rested her chin on her hand and watched us. Her eyes were full of curiosity.

'This is entertaining...'

She let out a small snort of laughter.

"Human." Iris picked up a piece of bread from her own plate. Her face was slightly flushed. "This... tastes good."

She avoided my eyes and spoke in a small voice. "Try it... once."

She held out her fork toward me.

"Huh? Thanks—"

The moment I reached for it—

Clang!

Adelia knocked the fork away.

"Don't feed him something with elf spit on it."

"What?!" Iris shot up from her seat, shouting. "What did you just say?!"

"You heard me. Forest dwellers really have no tact," Adelia replied with a cold sneer.

"You, you...!" Iris's face turned bright red.

I was stuck between the two of them, barely able to breathe.

'Someone save me...'

At that moment, Adelia glanced at me. A quick look. Then another. Finally, she muttered under her breath.

"......No, no."

"I can't kill him..."

"But chopping off his limbs..."

"And locking him in a labyrinth sounds nice..."

"......"

I heard every single word clearly.

'Hey, what the fuck!'

I screamed internally.

'What the hell kind of thoughts are those?!'

My hand holding the spoon trembled. A chill ran down my spine.

"Junior~" Yuriel said with a radiant smile. She smoothly snatched the spoon I had been using.

"Huh?"

Yuriel used that very spoon to scoop up some stew from her own plate. Then—

Ah~ She put it in her mouth.

"......?!"

Yuriel's body shivered with delight. She closed her eyes, wearing an ecstatic expression.

"Ah... I love it so much♡"

"Junior's spoon..."

"An indirect kiss..."

The entire cafeteria fell silent. Everyone was staring at our table. Adelia's face hardened. Iris's mouth fell open. And I...

'I'm screwed.'

I barely managed to escape to the bathroom to kill time and slipped back into the classroom right before class started. I sat in the very back corner like a dead mouse.

Creak.

The door opened, and Professor Kane, the practical combat instructor, walked in. A former A-class hunter, he was notorious for being extremely strict.

"Alright, everyone pay attention. I have an important announcement."

The classroom fell silent.

"Next week, on April 10th of the Imperial Year 1247, we will be conducting the 'Dungeon Practical Evaluation' for all first-year students."

April 10th.

The moment I heard that date, my heart sank.

'......It's here.'

The first major incident in the original story. The infamous 'Bloody Practice' where countless extras died in droves.

"This practical will be conducted in teams of five. The location is the D-class dungeon located behind the school: Goblin Forest."

The students began murmuring. For first-years, a D-class dungeon was supposed to be easy difficulty. But I knew the truth. On that day, that dungeon would undergo a mutation and turn into hell itself.

"The teams have already been formed. Gather with your assigned group when your name is called."

The professor began reading from the list.

"Team 1: Kyle, Maria......"

I nervously bit my nails, waiting for my name to be called.

"......Next, Team 5."

The professor paused while reading the list. His brow furrowed.

'......No way.'

He hesitated for a moment, as if something seemed off, before continuing.

"Ahem. Team 5: James (B-class), Allen (C-class), Luca (C-class), Sophia (C-class)...... and Roy (F-class)."

"......!"

My mind went completely blank. James, Allen, Luca, Sophia. They were the exact same Team 5 from the original story that got caught in the dungeon mutation and were marked as 'all deceased' with no bodies ever recovered.

'Someone... deliberately put me in here to kill me.'

It was blatant murderous intent.

It felt like I couldn't breathe. Then—

Creak.

The sound of a chair scraping came from the front row. A dazzling head of platinum blonde hair rose. It was Adelia.

"Professor. I have an objection."

The classroom fell deathly silent, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠as if cold water had been poured over it.

"Please assign me to Team 5."

"......Pardon?"

The professor looked flustered.

"What are you saying? Miss Adelia, you are in Team 1. It's composed of S-class talents..."

"I don't want that. Team 1 is boring. James? I heard he's B-class. I want to see what he's capable of."

"But... that would violate fairness! If an SS-class hero joins, Team 5's overall power will become overwhelmingly unbalanced..."

"Fairness?"

Adelia's eyes grew icy cold.

Bang!

She pulled a dagger from her waist and stabbed it into the lectern.

"Hiiik!"

"My 'instinct' is telling me that spot is dangerous. Are you going to ignore a hero's intuition? Or..."

Her red eyes flashed as she growled.

"Are you, a mere professor, really going to argue when I say I will personally select my own party members?"

The intense killing intent made everyone's skin prickle. The entire classroom trembled in fear.

"U-understood! If that's what you want...!"

The professor nodded, his face pale. In this world ruled by the logic of power, the authority of an SS-class hero stood above the law.

"M-me too!"

At that moment, Iris shot up from the back of the room, raising her hand.

"If Adelia is going, I can't stay behind! Please put me in Team 5 too!"

"Whoa, even the princess?!"

"I apply in the name of elven honor! That hero is going, so what reason does an S-class like me have to stay behind?"

In the end, a historically unprecedented, monstrous team was born.

The students buzzed with noise, looking at me with eyes full of envy and jealousy. I just stared blankly at the situation.

'......I'm saved.'

The two strongest characters from the original story had joined. This wasn't just a bus anymore. This was a damn jet.

I let out a sigh of relief.

......Or so I thought.

After class, in the hallway.

"Hey, extra. Don't worry."

Adelia approached and patted my shoulder.

"I'll ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠be right next to you. It'd be inconvenient for me if you died."

"Hmph, don't make me laugh!"

Iris jumped in from the other side.

"I'll protect you! You think my spirits can't protect a single human?"

Reliable backup had me flanked on both sides. I looked at them with a touched expression.

"Thanks, you guys. Really..."

A bad premonition crawled down my spine.

"......"

My mouth fell open.

It felt like this world was mocking me, whispering in my ear. 'You tried to pull a fast one? Then I'll flip the whole board over.'

"Roy? What's wrong? Your face is pale."

Adelia asked with concern.

'......Please, you crazy bitches.'

I shed tears of blood in my heart. Because you two decided to help, the bus I thought I was riding just turned into an express train to hell. And the brakes are broken.

'I'm so fucked.'

After all the lectures ended, at dusk, I trudged alone toward the training grounds.

'Seven days.'

'The dungeon opens in a week.'

No matter how strong Adelia was, if an unmeasurable monster popped out of the dungeon, even she couldn't guarantee anything. And someone like me at F-class would die from a mere graze.

'Damn it. Even if I die, I need to prepare.'

I was walking past the training ground entrance with a grim expression when—

"Oh my, Junior?"

A sticky, sweet voice came from behind me. Goosebumps rose all over my body. I slowly turned around to see Yuriel leaning against the wall, looking at me.

"Ah... Senior."

"Why the long face? Are ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠you worried about next week's practical?"

"Yeah, well. Something like that happened."

Yuriel walked gracefully over and stood in front of me. Her eyes glowed as if they could pierce right through me.

"I heard Adelia and Princess Iris joined your team. I'm a little hurt. You left me out completely."

"Come on, you're a second-year, Senior. You can't participate in a first-year practical..."

I waved my hands dismissively. Hey, please don't come too. If you do, the system might turn the dungeon into the demon realm.

But Yuriel wasn't listening. She took one more step closer and brought her lips right next to my ear.

"Junior, did you know?"

Her warm breath tickled my earlobe.

"Academy dungeon practicals always require 'medical support' from upperclassmen as a precaution."

"......Huh?"

"You need a healer. It would be bad if someone got hurt."

She stroked my shoulder with her finger and whispered meaningfully.

"I applied. As the medical support staff for this practical."

"......!!"

"So don't worry. Even if something gets cut off, bursts, or gets a hole..."

She gave me a seductive, coy smile.

"I'll take responsibility and fix it all for you♡"

She hummed a little tune as she walked away.

I stood there frozen like a stone statue.

Hero (SS-class DPS). Spirit Archer (S-class long-range). Saintess (S-class healer).

The party composition was perfect. It was practically an Earth Defense Force level team. The problem was that the moment this insane party gathered, this damned world would raise the dungeon difficulty to 'Unmeasurable.'

I stared blankly at the distant training grounds. Looking up at the sky, I saw dark clouds gathering. Were those my own feelings?

Suddenly, my vision blurred.

Stream...

Hot tears flowed down my cheeks against my will. It was so unfair. What the hell did I do so wrong? I just wanted to save Adelia and live a peaceful life.

I roughly wiped away the flowing tears with my sleeve and moved my trembling lips.

"......Ah, fuck."

The curse slipped out on its own.

"Ha, seriously...... What a shitty world."

Shedding tears like a galaxy, I walked toward the training ground.