The Start of the Second Semester
I failed again. Another failure.
"You're really persistent. Just give up already."
Those words crushed my last shred of hope. They stabbed into my heart like a sharp dagger.
[Give up.]
Fuck.
I had failed once again to escape from Hye-ji's room. She was dead set on not letting me out until the new semester started. And so, today I was once again being squeezed dry.
"Hurry up and get it up, you dickless bastard!"
"Please, just let me live..."
Still, I never gave up completely. The first time I managed to overwhelm Hye-ji was when I took the stamina pills that Kang Hyuk had given me. The effect was so potent that Hye-ji actually surrendered.
"Haa... haa... Let's stop. I'm too tired."
"Whew... Those pills really do work."
But that was exactly when I should have stayed quiet. Seeing her trembling as she declared surrender, all the suffering I'd endured until then completely vanished from my mind. Instead, drunk on the sweet taste of victory, my mouth ran loose.
"You're actually really fucking weak, huh?"
"You're dead."
I paid the price for that remark. An enraged Hye-ji began to awaken for real. At first she surrendered often, but before long we were both passing out at the same time. Then finally, Hye-ji seized the initiative again.
In the end, there was a limit to how much I could handle Hye-ji as she grew stronger at an alarming rate.
[I told you not to provoke her!!!]
Fuck. I teabagged her and ended up getting completely wrecked.
Elsia and Ayeon came by often, but the moment Hye-ji finished eating, she would quickly kick them out. Every time they gave me these pitiful, longing looks.
"I want to fucking taste-test my husband too! Let me pound him into the mattress at least once!"
"Please, at least let us watch!"
"Get lost."
There was nothing I could do. Hye-ji was fiercely guarding the door.
On the other hand, I hadn't seen Caersi once throughout the entire break. I figured something must have come up in the Beastman Kingdom and she had gone back to deal with it. But that wasn't the important part right now.
"Shin-woo, I'll go wash up real quick."
"Wash up? Why?"
Hye-ji tilted her head in confusion.
"Do you prefer it when I don't wash?"
"......Just take your sweet time washing."
"Okay, I'll be right back."
"I said take your sweet fucking time, damn it."
Anyway, I was squeezed dry right up until the day before the new semester started. It was a break filled with equal parts pleasure and pain.
The new semester finally began. As always, it started with choosing dorm rooms. Conveniently, my original dorm had been completely demolished. I quickly picked out a perfectly fine room, but—
"Shin-woo, pack your stuff and come to my room."
"......Why?"
It was like a bolt from the blue. When I asked Hye-ji for a reason, her answer was painfully obvious.
"Where do you think you're running off to?"
She pointed out that since we'd already done everything there was to do, there was no point in staying separately. Elsia and Ayeon strongly protested this.
"How long are you going to monopolize him?! Even Nintendo doesn't hoard like this!"
"What if he can't get it up anymore?! That's a serious matter!"
"It's fine. He's still perfectly functional."
Suddenly Hye-ji pointed at my crotch. Just that gesture alone was enough to make my dick start swelling.
"See?"
"Looks perfectly fine! No problems at all!"
"It was normal. Then there is no need to worry."
"Please worry about my physical condition, you fucking bitches."
At that moment, Caersi, who had been standing far away, made eye contact with me. She let out a startled gasp and rushed over immediately.
"H-how did this happen-nya!!! You're actually alive-nya!!!"
It was true—my body had changed quite a bit. My complexion had returned, but I'd lost a lot of weight and the muscular lines of my body had become noticeably thinner. At the same time, dark circles were deeply etched under my eyes. At a glance, I probably looked like a grad student or a programmer suffering from endless spaghetti code.
"What the heck-nya, look at those skinny arms! You're nothing but skin and bones-nya!!!"
[At least that child is normal.]
Sniff. This is what a proper saintess looks like.
Seeing her genuinely worried about me as the saintess made me feel touched. Since we'd run into each other, I decided to ask how she'd been.
"Did something happen to you in the Beastman Kingdom?"
"It's hard to explain... but anyway, it went to shit-nya."
Caersi looked quite troubled. I was about to ask if she needed any help, but—
"Shin-woo, hurry up and pack your things."
"Fuck."
Hye-ji cut in faster than I could speak. The moment she heard Hye-ji's voice, Caersi's gaze shifted from me to her. Then she pointed at Hye-ji's face—which was glowing with even more luster than before we parted ways—and shouted.
"Just how much did you fucking do-nya!!!"
"I only did it in moderation."
"What the hell do you mean by moderation-nya!!!"
Caersi swung her arms wildly, her tail puffing up massively.
"This is just a fucking succubus-nya!!! What's the difference between her and a demon-nya!!!"
"No. I'm not a succubus."
Hye-ji puffed out her nonexistent chest and declared proudly.
"I'm a human hymn."
"Goddamn-nya."
[Even in those shady comics, wasn't there a human female character who was more arousing than the succubus protagonist?]
That's also a human hymn. I got extremely hard.
Anyway, the option of using a separate dorm room was off the table. In the end, I gave up and moved into Hye-ji's room, beginning our life of cohabitation.
From the second year onward, classes at the Academy were held only in the mornings, as usual. And they were purely theoretical.
"Hunters benefit greatly from forming parties. Would you explain why, Student Shin-woo?"
"If the dungeon raid succeeds, it's thanks to me. If it fails, it's the team members' fault."
"Correct. But since it's you, Student Shin-woo, I'll deduct points anyway."
"Fucking bastard."
The second semester classes heavily emphasized the importance of parties.
"We don't recommend parties larger than five members. Do you know why, Student Elsia?"
"Yes! Sage Jirobo once said, 'When five people gather, there is always at least one piece of trash!'"
"Excellent! I'll give you bonus points!"
"Give me money instead of bonus points!"
Then the question turned to Caersi. It was about what to do immediately after a failed raid.
"Saintess. If a party has just failed a dungeon raid, what should they do?"
"Easy-nya! First, comfort everyone and then review the monster's patterns together-nya!"
Caersi crossed her arms with a smug expression. However—
"Incorrect. I didn't expect even the Saintess to get this wrong."
".....Where exactly did I go wrong-nya?"
Her confident face cracked instantly. The professor let out a small sigh and turned to someone else.
"It seems you lack experience. Student Ayeon, would you like to answer?"
He called on Ayeon. Without being intimidated by the professor's gaze, she answered calmly.
"You must use political maneuvering to pin the cause of failure on a single person."
"Correct! As expected from someone with plenty of dungeon raid experience!"
"This much is simple."
"......Is this really what they teach at this fucking academy-nya?"
Caersi muttered with a twisted face. Then Piece suddenly spoke to me.
[This body agrees with Caersi. Why is such a class even being taught?]
It's a class that builds character and practical skills.
Where were we? This was Korea, where the weak cannot survive. Therefore, this education was perfectly suited for Korea. Political maneuvering was always essential. Especially the more people involved. This was common sense. No, it was basic knowledge.
Of course, there were people who denied this. Like Piece, who was currently yelling at me.
[Where in the world is there such common sense!!!]
But this kind of thinking could be fixed quickly. Even someone who strongly denied it could soon be made to cry out for its necessity.
Just run a few ranks. You'll see I'm right.
[......You are correct.]
When you roll around in a demonic pit with no decent people, you naturally learn the necessity of political maneuvering. In the end, even Piece was convinced.
Still, the reason for teaching the importance of parties was perfectly understandable. The final exam involved students forming parties to raid an actual dungeon for evaluation. So the importance of party education was extremely high, never low.
At that moment, the professor suddenly made a suggestion. And it was quite a radical one.
"If anyone can answer this question, I'll end today's class here."
The students' eyes began to sparkle. Everyone stayed silent, desperately waiting for the professor to speak. After an endless wait, the professor finally opened his mouth.
"When you're doing political maneuvering but it looks like you're about to get politically maneuvered instead, how should you respond?"
However, no one raised their hand easily. The difficulty must have been high. A few students offered answers, but—
"I'll run away from the party and make a regret-obsession-madness story!"
"I'll ignore the opponent's words and report them all!"
"Just hit them! Violence solves everything!"
"Was my expectation too high? Unfortunately, there is no perfect answer."
No correct answer came. Disappointment began to show on the professor's face. At that moment, Hye-ji shot her hand up.
"Student Hye-ji, would you like to answer?"
"Yes." Everyone quietly turned their attention to Hye-ji. But she answered confidently, as if their gazes didn't bother her at all.
"First, you exaggerate the opponent's words and induce them to say something unreasonable."
"Good. And then?"
"If they get angry, you persistently latch onto that part."
"Excellent! And finally?"
The professor clapped his hands in praise. At the final stage, Hye-ji took a deep breath before proudly declaring.
"Instead of political maneuvering, you turn it into a mudslinging fight with personal attacks."
"Perfect! You are truly a hunter now!"
The professor was so moved by Hye-ji's remarkable growth that he struggled to hide his tears. He then announced the end of class.
"That concludes today's lesson!"
It was an unusually faithful fulfillment of his own statement. The moment he finished speaking, we all stood up and began applauding.
"These crazy bastards-nya."
[What a bunch of lunatics.]
Everyone except for one person, that is.