Chapter 9. Qualification (1)
April had been a glorious month of blooming spring flowers, and now it was sliding away on spring rains. The chilly morning air was finally losing its bite.
In the clear skies and mild weather of May, the rhythm of the regression curse began to rise in earnest.
For the Kang-jun team, May was nothing special. Training, conditioning, and those sweet, short breaks still followed the same hamster-wheel cycle. The only subtle change was that Belita Neyestani had started to take a small step into Kang-jun’s daily routine.
They had filmed one more pointless 3-star romance in the rain, but their relationship had shown no dramatic progress—nothing visible. It was just close enough to call him “Kang-jun-ssi,” far enough to avoid “baby.”
Belita’s haughtiness remained untouched. Kang-jun’s indifference was the same as always. Yet ever since that incident, he had become the quiet victor who claimed the loser as his own. She was the perfect plaything for now.
- Come on, let’s enjoy ourselves lol - Taste-hyung is getting excited lol - Well, you gotta eat it anyway lol - Holding onto you until then is pointless lol - Taste-hyung knows how to rack up points lol - Once you surrender it’s boring—make her beg for it one by one lol - Did you guys send me a coupon? lol - ???????????? - Ah, this is relative deprivation lol - lmao lol - I nearly spit lol - I almost choked lol - lmao lol
Kang-jun gave a small smirk and closed the chat window. Belita, who had been carefully avoiding smearing her lipstick on her mouth, paused, then arched one eyebrow and shot him a questioning glare.
“Nothing. Keep going.”
He tapped her cheek lightly. Thanks to her practice, the act had become smoother than before. He reminded himself once again of the importance of repetition. Whatever you do, practice makes perfect.
He felt her approaching climax and gripped the back of her head, pressing her down. She resisted for a moment, then squeezed her eyes shut and bore it. Her face flushed bright red from the lack of air.
Swoosh. She swallowed hard, drawing the shaft deep while her mouth remained sealed. Probably so no traces would be left on the car seat. Kang-jun caught her when she tried to pull away, holding her firmly. She blinked several times as she looked back up.
“Swallow.”
Belita narrowed her eyes slightly and shook her head in refusal.
“Quickly. Swallow.”
His tone turned a little more commanding. Hesitating for a second, she swallowed slowly. Her eyes closed briefly before opening again. Her expression twisted a little—the taste was still unpleasant.
“Open your mouth wider.”
Even with that reluctant face, she obeyed like a good girl.
“Ah… deeper. Ah… more. Ah!”
“Good girl.”
Her face relaxed a little when he praised her.
“…Don’t make me do that kind of thing. I have my own pride, you know.”
“Pride?”
“A lot of it.”
Kang-jun leaned in close to her ear.
“Then I’ll have to make you swallow next time too.”
“Like hell!” Belita shot him a sidelong glare. That was the farthest she would ever complain. When he ordered it, she had to obey. That was the unspoken rule that kept their relationship alive.
While Kang-jun straightened his pants, Belita rinsed her mouth with a sip of water and opened her compact to check for any lipstick smudges.
“Starting next month we’re heading into the dungeon. I won’t be able to see you for a week.”
“…Next Monday?”
“You’ve been busy lately. Alarms go off all the time. This is perfect. You should take some time off too.”
“It’s not that hard. I only work two days a week anyway…”
Kang-jun emphasized the free time on purpose so she wouldn’t worry about running into each other too often. Of course she already knew his schedule.
Belita let out a tiny, hopeful sigh.
“Then… can I stay with you today?”
“I have a promise. I have to go.”
“A promise? …Even after it ends you can’t?”
“There’s a dungeon exploration next week. You said you have a meeting too.”
“I’m canceling that meeting.”
“Then go back.”
…Sigh. Belita’s mood dropped and she crossed her arms, staring out the window.
“I’m leaving now.”
Still sulking about her situation, she looked back at him in surprise. Kang-jun had already stepped out of the car, posture perfectly set.
“Wait! …You’re really leaving?”
Asking to kiss with his cum still in her mouth would have been too much. Kang-jun snapped his fingers. Belita leaned forward. Their lips met in a brief, light kiss.
He opened the door and stepped out. Just before it closed, she called out, “If you come out, be sure to contact me. Understood?”
He didn’t answer and slammed the door shut.
Back at the dorm, someone knocked. It was Belita.
- If you come out, be sure to contact me! Got it?
Kang-jun tapped the screen twice. It wasn’t enthusiastic, but better than not sending anything at all.
- Ok
The team was gathered in the living room watching disaster news. A breaking alert flashed on screen. A monster had appeared in the 50th District. Evacuation orders went out and people fled across the camera.
The 44th District had gotten a new dungeon earlier. The 47th had fresh dungeon passages. And now the 50th was the latest monster site… It wasn’t just these districts. Monsters appeared far more frequently around them. The occasional emergencies of the past had become almost daily occurrences.
They didn’t know, but Kang-jun already understood what it all meant. The premonitions of the Great Catastrophe scheduled for March 6, 131.
The one in the 52nd District was the first of those catastrophes that occurred every thirty years. The scale was enormous—damage had spread to roughly ten nearby districts. Countless heroes had died or been wounded.
That was everything he knew. He had watched the aftermath from a distance, but had never experienced it firsthand. This was the first playthrough, after all.
The decision to take the Hero Qualification Exam in the second half of the year had been made for that reason too. In times of war, if your superior died, you got a special promotion. The same applied here. When the upper ranks fell, the lower ones rose naturally. For Kang-jun, this Great Catastrophe would be the lightning strike of a lifetime.
“Something should go wrong, right…”
Hye-mi, the soft-hearted one, worried about the people who would die at the monster’s hands. Tzu-shi remained completely unfazed. Kill or be killed. Ogernam and the Troll Girl were even more detached.
While they watched the news, the doorbell rang. Hye-mi dashed to the door in her usual energetic way and opened it.
“Oh, it’s the manager!”
“Welcome. Sorry for the interruption.”
The manager greeted the team briefly, then followed Kang-jun into the room. She spread out the documents on the table—forms required for the Hero Qualification Exam.
“You need to fill these out. Did you prepare your identification photo?”
Kang-jun took the photo from the drawer and pasted it into the slot. It took about twenty minutes to finish the rest. A few sections required a little imagination.
“Your birth certificate will get a small deduction. There’s nothing we can do about that…”
“I understand.”
“Still, Mr. Kang-jun, you’ll definitely pass.”
Kang So-mi gathered the papers and stood up. Kang-jun offered to treat her to dinner sometime.
“Yes, I’ll look forward to it.”
When the manager left, Hye-mi immediately pestered her again in the hallway.
“You’re already going? How about eating something first…”
“We’ll do that next time.”
“Okay. Take care. I’ll see you in two days.”
The manager waved lightly to the team, got into the van, and drove away. The van turned the corner in a smooth swirl and vanished from sight.
Julius Caesar threw the dice, the saying went. Kang-jun’s dice had already left his hand and were flying through the air. What number would come up depended on a little luck.
The team dispersed to their rooms after the news ended, preparing for the exploration in two days.
· · ·
Monday of the second week of May.
The Kang-jun team entered the 39th Zone Dungeon at 8 a.m. After a full six days of exploration, they returned to the dorm on Saturday evening.
Everyone had filled their stomachs, taken a hot shower, and gone straight to bed. They sank into dreamless sleep… except Kang-jun.
He called Belita. Three rings, then she picked up.
“Are you out?”
“Yeah. Where?”
“Home.”
“I’ll come over.”
“Now? Right now?”
“Why, not allowed?”
“No, it is! Come now. …No, I’ll pick you up. Wait a little. I’ll call when I get there!”
The call ended. After about thirty minutes, his phone rang again. He was packing into a comfortable outfit when he answered.
“Yeah, me. I’m here already. You coming out?”
“Yeah.”
Kang-jun stepped out of the room. The dorm was deathly quiet. He left the team house carefully and saw a black sedan idling at the alley entrance. Belita got out of the driver’s seat, smiling, but the smile didn’t quite reach her eyes. A subtle power struggle was clearly playing out.
“Get in quick.”
He climbed into the passenger seat. The car smelled like expensive perfume. The sedan sped off into the night.
“How was the exploration?”
“Not bad.”
“Where did you go this time?”
“The 39th.”
“…That’s a 3-star dungeon, right? Not much profit.”
“Couldn’t help it. Still a little unsure about climbing to 2-star.”
Belita changed the subject.
“Have you eaten? Want me to buy a bottle of wine?”
“No, let’s go straight. I’ve been holding it in too long.”
The words “holding it in” made her lips press shut. Even without an object, the implication was obvious. Her throat worked as saliva rose.
In truth, she had been holding it in too. Her sex drive had been raging lately, and she had been waiting desperately for Kang-jun. Her pussy was already throbbing.
The sedan pulled into a parking lot. They walked quickly to her apartment. Her fingers trembled slightly as she punched in the password. Once inside, the act began immediately. They crashed into each other, tongues rough and desperate. Belita felt her legs give out from the overwhelming pleasure.
Kang-jun, who had held back until his eyes rolled back, used her purely for his own release. She found truly terrifying ecstasy in that rough treatment. He never stopped. Even when she screamed or cried, he kept going. Finally she sobbed uncontrollably.
He tormented her without mercy. When he finally stopped, she had already collapsed, naked and exhausted. His cock was still slick.
He instinctively reached for his phone and wandered over. There it was on the floor beside his discarded pants. A message had arrived.
- Documents approved. The written exam is on May 27th—be sure to attend. Details are in the attached file. Good luck, ^^!
A notice about the exam and his test number were attached.
Test number: 29.
His age: 29.
Fate had it both numbers were the unlucky 9.
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