Chapter 12
Chapter 12
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 12
Chapter Title: For Now, Let's Try Something. (1)
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A peaceful weekend passed, and as soon as I got to work on Monday, my schedule was locked in.
"The Hunter Association wants you there on Wednesday. They've sent the details by email, so check that out."
"Got it."
"Alright, then put in some effort today. I've picked a few schools and slotted them into the schedule. Tomorrow's no good because we need to prep for the dungeon raid."
"Understood."
"Oh, and by the looks of it, it'll take about two or three days. Clear your evening after today. Got it?"
Yoo Soo-jung was making her appeal with that sleazy expression I'd seen before. No real reason to turn her down, and when else would I get a chance with a hot girl like this if not for possessing this body? I should text home that I'd be late tonight.
Back in the vice guild master's office, I checked the email from the Association first.
[Request to Confirm Newly Discovered Dungeon 'Contaminated Wolf Dungeon' (Provisional)]
Contaminated wolves, huh. With "contaminated" in the name, probably undead types. That would make fire-based or priest-class skills ideal for total annihilation. Reading on, I could see why the Association wasn't handling it internally and passed it to us instead.
I'd figured it was C-rank level, but there were more of them than expected, and the forested terrain made the environment a mess. They basically wanted me to burn everything as I went. Looking at the sender, it was Yoo Ji-hyeok—Yoo Soo-jung's dad. She really knew how to funnel power when it counted. Being the first conqueror carried a lot of weight. It was originally routed to us, but the date was sooner than I'd anticipated, so they'd probably heard about her guild expansion plans.
Anyway, that's that. Time to get up and head out. Visiting two schools wouldn't leave much wiggle room time-wise.
I left the guild building, started the car, and dialed on speakerphone.
-[Hello? Vice Guild Master-nim?]
"Yeah. Ji-hyun, you busy right now?"
-[No, nothing much. What's up?]
"I won't be home tonight. Tell them not to wait up—have dinner and go to bed."
-[You're not coming home tonight?]
"Got some work. Plus, I've got a dungeon raid on Wednesday, so I need to prep for that too."
Of course, that wasn't the real reason, but with Seo Ji-hyun still on bad terms with Yoo Soo-jung, no need to say I was staying out to fool around with the guild master. Besides, even without any special feelings, telling the girl you live with that you're off to sleep with another woman felt a bit...
-[Hmmm. Is that really all?]
"Uh, yeah? Gotta check out a newly discovered dungeon. Just think of it as overtime."
Not sure if she was quick on the uptake or sensed something, but her suspicious tone made me stutter a bit without thinking. Man, this felt kinda unfair. Why did it feel like I was the one being cornered?
-[Sigh. Fine, I'll believe you for now. So you'll be back tomorrow?]
"Yeah. Then depending on how Wednesday goes, I might not make it back until Thursday if it drags on."
I'd never done a dungeon in this world, so I wasn't sure, but the official notice said to allocate 2-3 days. Come to think of it, I should pack camping gear. The guild probably has that stuff.
-[Okay. Good luck today. And you have to come home tomorrow, got it?]
"Got it. I'll be there tomorrow for sure. Hanging up."
-[Okay~]
Felt just like some cheating husband. Honestly, I was putting up with a lot living together like this. She was the novel's heroine and gorgeous, but making a move now would be basically assault—not to mention I'd look like a lunatic, and if she felt betrayed, I'd end up castrated like in the story, turned into a living bobblehead. That's why I was being extra careful. I'd even cut back on my daily right-hand therapy.
Survival threats aside, she made breakfast and dinner every day, and feeling guilty about those thoughts didn't help. Greeting me with a smile every time I walked in the door—a kind person like that—and here I was with my sleazy mind. One romp with Yoo Soo-jung, and my brain was already pickled on porn?
Thinking it over, I felt bad. I'd just dropped her off and hadn't really taken care of her. Even on the weekend, she bought the rooftop excuse, but I shot down going out to have fun. She'd only been spinning her wheels at the guild, no real time to relax. Sure, it was unavoidable until things settled, but still.
From a reader's perspective, I wanted Seo Ji-hyun to be happy. Seeing her act more normally lately instead of like in the novel made me a bit proud. Even if I was the target, we'd kinda had that cafe date vibe. Feeding each other like lovers...
Huh?
No, wait. That's nothing. Or is it? Huh? What is this?
Something felt off, but I couldn't pinpoint it by the time I reached my destination, so I let it slide.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ "So we've decided to bring in the hot Lee Seo-woo Hunter these days."
"Nice to meet you all. I'm Lee Seo-woo, Vice Guild Master of Crystal Guild."
Applause erupted the moment I finished speaking. Kinda embarrassing, but it felt good. After possessing this body, I was racking up experiences I'd never get in a lifetime.
"I thought about giving a proper lecture, but I figured you students might get bored. So let's keep it simple."
This was the plan from the start when I asked them to gather in the training grounds. Controlling mana was getting natural now.
"One by one. First come, first served—come on up."
The faculty knew from my request, but the students who hadn't been briefed were confused and murmuring. Soon, a male student from the front row stood and approached.
"I'm Kim Si-hyun, third-year student council president."
"Your class?"
"Swordsman."
Swordsman. A solid, mainstream job. The go-to for most who awakened basic mana control—not some specialized magic type. That's when I noticed the longsword placed by his seat.
"Want to go melee? Or anti-mage training?"
"I've watched your videos and got interested in melee too, but I'd like anti-mage training, please."
The student council president bowed politely. Anti-mage it was, then. The faculty moved the students back, and we headed to the center of the training grounds, spacing out about ten steps. I'd heard skilled swordsmen made distance irrelevant, but with Lee Seo-woo's physique, I wouldn't lose there.
Alright, time to prep Lee Seo-woo style—not pure melee.
"Come at me first. Whenever you're ready. Don't worry about hurting me with that real sword—no need for kid gloves."
"Then I won't hold back."
Standard stance: blade forward, hilt low, gripped with both hands. He eyed me briefly, then dropped the blade low left and charged. A diagonal slash fast enough to catch my old world's self off guard. Quick, but I backpedaled easily, scattering flames around.
"Kuh!"
Not a uniform advance—the fierce flames erupted wildly from the ground in all directions. The president faltered mid-charge, and I widened the gap, firing palm-sized fireballs nonstop. He deflected a few with his sword at first, pushing forward, but soon the numbers overwhelmed him, and he started giving ground.
"Good attempt at batting them away. Fast, strong enough. Using the sword's reach to swing in arcs for multiples—that was impressive. But you've never sparred a high-rank mage, have you? You know your stamina will run out first at this rate, right?"
Somehow channeling the original Lee Seo-woo's advice stuck in my head. I even mimicked his tone unconsciously, but it fit, so I stuck with it. No response, of course—he was too busy deflecting.
"Hoo... haa..."
Seeing him struggle, I cut the flames. He gulped air deeply. Sword tip steady—worthy of praise—but his breathing was shot. Fight was over.
"Wanna keep going?"
"...No. Thank you for the lesson."
Tension released, he plopped down. I eased my sharpened focus too. Did I know this much combat? Just body habits from Lee Seo-woo? It went well anyway—good is good.
"Next time, think evasion over just blocking blindly."
"...I planned to, but the spells came faster and in greater numbers than expected. I was too slow to adapt."
"Ah."
Felt a tad sorry. Too rough for a student? Novel student council types were often pro-level, so maybe I misjudged. Awkward, I scratched my head and offered a hand to pull him up.
"Good work."
"Thank you."
"Alright, next?"
Maybe his competitive fire lit others—five more challenged me. But whether the original Lee Seo-woo was influencing or I overdid it, I thrashed them enough that no one else stepped up after.