Midterms Are Solo (3)
In the center of Valhalla's grounds stood a massive dome-shaped arena.
Gathered in its midst were Valhalla's first-year students, their faces tense with anticipation.
Yet despite the staggering number of 1,500 students, not a murmur rippled through the crowd.
That was because all 1,500 had their eyes locked on the platform erected at one side of the arena.
And atop that platform, where every gaze converged...
"I will now explain the details of the midterm exam you are about to take."
Lee Sang-cheol, Valhalla's top senior combat instructor, spoke with 52 instructors lined up behind him on the platform.
"Today's subject is 'Dungeon Conquest'."
A ripple of murmurs swept through the students at Lee Sang-cheol's words.
But he made no effort to quiet them, maintaining his impassive expression as he continued.
"To cut to the chase, I'll tell you what you need to do from here on out. You will form teams of exactly eight members and enter the artificial dungeon prepared by Valhalla."
Whirrr-!!
"!?"
As if on cue with Lee Sang-cheol's words, a harsh mechanical whine erupted, and the arena shuddered as something began to rise from below.
Undeterred, Lee Sang-cheol pressed on.
"How you form your teams is up to you. With friends, or balancing roles for synergy—whatever. If you have more than eight, you can trim down."
Grinddd-!!!
"That said, eight is just the baseline—you can bring more if you want. Ten, twenty, doesn't matter."
Rumblerumblerumble-!!!
"Enter the dungeon, conquer the artificial one that's indistinguishable from the real thing, and exit. That's when the exam ends."
Thud!
As Lee Sang-cheol finished, the raging mechanical clamor halted abruptly, and the students realized countless iron doors had materialized around them.
"Now, onto the grading criteria."
All eyes focused on him once more.
"Grading will be based purely on your individual contribution percentage to the dungeon conquest. And—"
Ding-!
A stopwatch lit up above his head mid-sentence.
"Disqualification is simple: fail to clear in time. That's it."
The moment Lee Sang-cheol finished, the electronic timer above him spun to life—
—and began counting down.
"……."
Silence blanketed the arena.
Lee Sang-cheol smirked at the frozen students and added, "Oh, one more thing: the artificial dungeons you're entering are all set to base F+ difficulty. In short, the slower you are to enter, the higher your disqualification risk."
And then.
"Also, if anyone's confused—the exam has already started. Better move fast."
Those words ignited the fuse.
"Shiwon, team up with us! Youngmi, you too!"
The real exam chaos erupted.
"Hey, Lee Ji-won! Over here!"
"Healer! Looking for a healer!"
"DPS! DPS! Need DPS!"
"Hey, Jo Hyun-seok! You going there? Team with me!"
"Sorry, you're trash."
"You little shit—!"
In seconds, the arena devolved into pandemonium, students dashing every which way. Some scrambled to gather friends; others shouted for healers, DPS, tanks—essential party roles.
Amid it all, fractured relationships surfaced everywhere.
"……."
Yet even in the frenzy, some found swift calm.
"Jinbae, Sanggeun—team with me. Oh, Yeonhui too."
"Yeah!"
"If So-yeon calls, of course!"
"Me too!"
"Anyone know a DPS we can call?"
"I'll get 'em!"
First among them: Yoo So-yeon of the Yushin family.
The instant Lee Sang-cheol finished, she leveraged her name to assemble a six-person party in a blink—each member clearly dimmer than her own shine.
'No need to pick anyone who might out-contribute me.'
She had pierced the exam's core.
'Conditions are loose: bring as many as you want, and five hours isn't short for eight F+ clear.'
Her eyes darted ceaselessly, assessing, calculating.
'But the point isn't conquest—it's contribution percentage.'
That was what the panicked students overlooked.
Spurred by the disqualification rule, they rushed to form teams for a clear—but that wouldn't yield high scores.
'Become leader, recruit those definitively below you but competent enough for conquest, maximize your team contribution.'
That was the exam's hidden key, unseen amid the chaos.
'……Insanely tough.'
Simple on the surface, but exponentially harder for top scores. Sticking out her tongue at the difficulty, she barked,
"Guys, let's head in now……!"
First among 1,500 to assemble and enter the artificial dungeon.
"Wh-what? Hey, hurry and group up! Group!"
"Anyone! Just come!"
"Hey, what? Nine people? Fuck it, let's go!"
"All you rejects, over here! Twenty-man raid, charge!"
Seeing Yoo So-yeon enter, urgency spiked; students barreled into dungeons recklessly.
The arena thinned as numbers dwindled.
Those left grew frantic, near-screaming as they bolted about. The marketplace clamor had morphed into something beyond.
But contrary to the arena's plunge into madness...
"Well, this is convenient."
Kim Joo-hyuk watched the sprinting students with a grin, then glanced at the instructors still on the platform—heads swiveling, jotting notes like graders already.
After a quick scan, he turned to Choi Ah-rin beside him.
"What're you gonna do?"
"Whatever Joo-hyuk says."
Her unyielding gaze met his amid the storm.
Kim Joo-hyuk pulled a sour face.
'……What the hell's with this girl?'
It had been about two weeks since she started saying that, but it still didn't sit right.
'She wasn't like this at first, was she?'
Two weeks back, she'd just followed orders blindly—unknowable mindset, but obedient. Lately, though, she followed his words proactively.
Too proactively.
He'd held off asking, but two weeks in, it felt awkward. With a weird look, he probed Choi Ah-rin.
"Why do you keep saying you'll do whatever I say lately?"
"?"
"?"
"?"
"……And what's with the puzzled face?"
"……?"
"……Forget it."
Shrugging off her Isn't that obvious? head-tilt, he gave up decoding her headspace.
"I'm going solo, so you do you."
"Me solo too?"
"Yeah."
Kim Joo-hyuk flicked his hand dismissively, striding toward the nearest door without a second thought.
Choi Ah-rin watched him go, then—
"Hey!"
"?"
—turned at the voice behind her.
Students.
"Choi Ah-rin, right?"
"?"
"Join us? We're exactly seven."
The apparent leader spoke true: seven members, roles balanced neatly by their weapons.
But.
"No."
Choi Ah-rin shook her head at their outstretched hands, declining.
"Why? You look solo too……? Wouldn't it be better? If it's contribution, we can tilt it your way—"
"I'm going solo."
"……Solo? Into a dungeon? That's foolish—"
"Joo-hyuk said it's possible."
"What?"
With that, Choi Ah-rin turned away, ignoring them.
Truth be told, she had no confidence in solo-clearing.
She'd never even entered a dungeon.
Yet she was set on solo because of Kim Joo-hyuk's words.
'Yeah.'
That casual remark.
But it sealed her decision.
Others might call her incomprehensible.
Yet to Choi Ah-rin now, Kim Joo-hyuk was her compass.
Following him had never failed her once.
She'd known endless failure.
From losing her mother.
Training alone with the blade.
Making friends.
Sustaining bonds.
Even seeking family recognition.
Every attempt: failure.
Failed friendships left her relations clumsy.
Those bonds shattered effortlessly.
Her blade path—the lone triangle mark she bore—was no true success either.
It couldn't achieve what she craved.
But after meeting Kim Joo-hyuk?
Just obeying him skyrocketed her skills—faster than she dreamed possible.
Each word from him: growth.
Insight.
Conviction.
In her failure-riddled life, he'd drawn countless circles in mere weeks.
'I can do it.'
Thus.
'Because Joo-hyuk said so.'
Choi Ah-rin harbored no doubt.