The Support Ate it All

Although Seo Ye-in was showing an unexpected amount of interest, it didn’t seem like Ahn Jeong-mi had brought up this question just to change the subject.

It was an issue that needed to be dealt with sooner or later anyway.

There had to be some connection between taking Seo Ye-in into a dungeon and my summer vacation plans.

So, to confirm, I asked again.

“I assume there’s a reason you’re asking this?”

“The Chairman would like to meet you, Kim Ho-nim.”

“And the Chairman is….?”

“He is young miss Seo Ye-in’s grandfather.”

I glanced over at Seo Ye-in.

I had guessed she was connected to someone high up.

So, she’s the Chairman’s granddaughter.

It made perfect sense now why she was under the management of the Future Strategy Office and even had a butler.

Given the flow of the conversation, it seemed the Chairman of a company as big as Hye-seong Group wanted to meet me because,

“He wants to assess my qualifications?”

“That’s correct.”

He wanted to see if my abilities were sufficient to tackle high-level dungeons,

What kind of person I was,

And whether I was someone he could trust to look after his granddaughter.

He wanted to judge that for himself.

There’s no reason for me to refuse.

Taking Seo Ye-in into the underground dungeons was a hurdle I would have to clear eventually.

Since the rewards from luck-related dungeons were quite substantial, the sooner I got permission, the better.

There could be some extra benefits too.

They invited me over, so would it really just end with a simple meeting?

Hye-seong Group had often given me decent rewards whenever I helped Seo Ye-in or did her a favor.

This time would probably be no different.

If I have time, I could even grab a hidden piece or two.

The new city where Hye-seong Group’s headquarters were located came to mind.

I remembered a few hidden pieces around there.

Though I was leaning toward going, you never know what might happen in life.

So I decided to hold off on giving an answer.

“I don’t have any special plans, but I’d like to think it over a bit more before deciding.”

“I understand. Feel free to let me know anytime.”

Ahn Jeong-mi who was inside the crystal ball bowed politely as if to show respect for my decision.

On the other hand, Seo Ye-in who was eager for a quicker response said,

“Come visit my house.”

“We’ll see.”

“Come visit.”

She kept tugging at my sleeve whenever she got the chance and repeatedly urged me to visit her.

***

The “three-in-one” training continued over the weekend.

Normally, I left Seo Ye-in alone on weekends, but this time, she participated with unusual enthusiasm.

I was curious so I asked her why.

“I didn’t get to finish her off.”

That was her brief reply.

In the last match of the duel battle, Kwak Ji-cheol ended up being little more than cannon fodder, but it seemed that wasn’t enough to satisfy her.

So she decided to focus on ranking up more in preparation for the day she would face Hong Yeon-hwa again.

Turns out she really doesn’t like losing either.

For Go Hyeon-woo and me, this was welcome news.

The three-in-one training couldn’t proceed if even one person was missing.

So by Sunday evening, as Seo Ye-in worked on her explosive bullet skill, Go Hyeon-woo trained both his sword technique and movement technique, and I continued my wind magic practice, we saw significant progress.

The talented monster Seo Ye-in naturally advanced her explosive bullet skill to C-rank, while Go Hyeon-woo became skilled enough to use his sword technique and movement technique in real combat.

[‘Wind Barrier’ rank has increased. (D+ -> C+)]

I also managed to push my Wind Barrier to the next level.

***

Monday.

It was time for the strategy battle class.

Seo Cheong-yong began to speak with his usual kind smile.

“This week, just like always, we’ll be trying to survive in a hostile environment.”

“…….”

He hadn’t even explained the details yet, but the students were already filled with exhaustion and annoyance.

Even last week’s cloud stairs had been an unbearable place.

The students had to carefully cross the platforms without falling, and even the slightest damage would cause the clouds to dissipate. This would force them to scramble whenever the opponents attacked.

The stress had been no small thing.

On top of that, there was the extremely unpleasant experience of skydiving without a parachute.

Most of the students had likely fallen at least once in the three matches, so there was no way anyone could like the cloud stairs.

And to make matters worse, the teachers said that similar things would continue for the rest of the semester.

It was only natural for the students to be annoyed.

Of course, not me.

Veterans tend to take a twisted pleasure in watching newbies suffer.

Sometimes, we even become the ones causing that suffering.

I wasn’t sure if Seo Cheong-yong enjoyed that kind of thrill, but as a teacher, he had to guide his students in the right direction.

So he began to lecture in a much more serious tone,

“I understand it’s tough, kids. But if you go through this now and get used to it, it will definitely help you later.”

For now, failing to adapt to hostile environments would only lead to being knocked out of a fight or losing a few points on a practical exam.

But after graduation, those things wouldn’t matter.

In real combat, failing to handle hostile environments wouldn’t cost points; it would cost lives.

So, wouldn’t it be better to have a little trouble now rather than regret it later? Seo Cheong-yong was doing his best to convince the students.

When the atmosphere softened a little, he resumed the class which had briefly paused.

“Alright, here’s the content for this week’s strategy battle.”

The blackboard was wiped clean, and in its place, the rules and environment appeared.

MAP: [Poison Zone]

RULE: [Crystal] [Triple]

“First, we’re bringing back the familiar crystal rule.”

The rule was to retrieve the crystal located somewhere in the dungeon and bring it to the sanctuary to charge it.

The moment you stepped outside the sanctuary’s boundary, the charge would rapidly decrease, so you always had to stay within a certain range.

At this point, Seo Cheong-yong added a comment.

“But this time, we can’t forget the hostile environment, can we?”

Even if you stayed near the sanctuary, you needed to know when to leave if the situation wasn’t favorable.

Especially since this environment was a [Poison Zone], if you were late in getting out, you’d be poisoned and take continuous damage.

You would have to decide at every moment whether to prioritize safety or charging.

“And this week, we’re doing it in teams of three.”

The team size which had previously been a maximum of two had now increased to three.

The number of participants in the practical evaluation would gradually increase over time, and it would eventually lead to expeditions or class-wide duel battles.

This works out well.

“Kim-hyung.”

“Let’s go together.”

Go Hyeon-woo and Seo Ye-in who were sitting on either side of me had a gleam in their eyes.

For the past few weeks, Go Hyeon-woo had made concessions, though not entirely willingly, but now there was no need to worry about which one to team up with.

The three of us can just stick together.

As soon as class ended, we moved to the dungeon building and descended the stairs to the underground levels.

As expected, the students going up and down the spiral staircase were all second and third years.

Most first-year students still needed to carefully evaluate even F-rank dungeons and go through the minimum preparation process, but I could skip that step without any concern.

I had already selected a dungeon that would be easy to clear.

[No.808] [Herb Botanical Garden]

One by one, we crossed through the teleport portal, and in the next moment, we found ourselves standing in front of a rundown ticket booth.

Seo Ye-in peeked inside with curious eyes but,

“There’s nothing.”

“They’re out of business.”

This place was once a botanical garden that had been forcibly shut down.

A little to the side, there was an old large sign that read <Herb Botanical Garden> and below it was the entrance gate.

Like the rest of the place, it was barely standing and no longer served its purpose.

We roughly pushed through and entered only to find a winding path meant for visitors.

As I led the way down the path, Go Hyeon-woo and Seo Ye-in followed while glancing around at their surroundings.

Go Hyeon-woo spoke in a half-curious, half-wary tone.

“It doesn’t seem like an ordinary botanical garden.”

The environment was becoming more like a tropical rainforest, and the size of each plant was anything but normal.

Their appearances were also strange, with many looking bizarre and the colors of the flowers unnecessarily vibrant. This made them look even more unsettling.

“They look like poisonous plants, right?”

“They do.”

Shhhhhh…

In addition, thick smoke was rising from various spots here and there.

“That looks like poisonous gas, right?”

“Mhmm.”

Large plants were swaying side to side in the distance, almost as if they were dancing.

“They look like monsters, right?”

“They do.”

Go Hyeon-woo slowly reached for his waist, but I kept walking ahead regardless.

Before long, a building that had once been a greenhouse came into view.

Its glass walls were shattered, leaving only a bare frame behind, while various plants had burst out from the structure.

I trudged inside without hesitation with Go Hyeon-woo and Seo Ye-in following behind me.

In the center of the greenhouse, a small tree was glowing with light.

“It looks like a sanctuary, right?”

“It’s definitely easy to tell.”

“Just find the crystal and charge it.”

The clear condition for this dungeon was to charge two crystals.

“The grading is based on average health.”

[Kim Ho: 100%]

[Go Hyeon-woo: 100%]

[Seo Ye-in: 100%]

The score would depend on how much of the group’s average health remained once both crystals were fully charged.

At the same time, I pulled up this week’s side quest.

[Side Quest: 13th Week Strategy Battle]

?Objective: Clear the strategy battle dungeon

?Deadline: ~Sunday midnight

?Reward: Varies based on performance.

The maximum achievement rate required was an average health of 95% or higher.

In other words, we had to take almost no damage.

And with a three-person team, it wasn’t enough for just me to perform well.

We all had to do well.

The difficulty was definitely high,

But it’s definitely worth it.

The rewards were good enough to justify the effort.

“I’ve got some good news; the location here is pretty good.”

Standing in the sanctuary and surveying the terrain, I noticed a few narrow paths winding through the dense mass of giant plants.

“If the monsters come, that’s the only way they can get through.”

“It looks like a good spot for a fight.”

Among other poison zone dungeons like jungles or swamps, I specifically chose this botanical garden for a reason.

The narrow paths made it impossible for us to get surrounded by monsters, and we could take them down as they came.

However, Go Hyeon-woo seemed to have some concerns.

“But Kim-hyung, doesn’t that restrict our movement too?”

“That’s right.”

Shhhh…

Right then, acrid smoke began rising from the nearby ground.

If poisonous gas or pollen scattered around during an urgent battle, where could we possibly run?

Of course, I had prepared a solution for this problem too.

“The second piece of good news is…”

It would be faster to show than to explain a hundred times.

I glanced nearby and spotted a colorful flower in full bloom.

When I reached out and grabbed it, purple pollen scattered everywhere.

At a glance, it was obviously full of toxins.

[Kim Ho: 100%]

[Kim Ho: 100%]

Not only had my health not dropped, but I hadn’t even been poisoned.

I dusted off my hands and asked,

“What are we?”

“……!”

Go Hyeon-woo seemed to remember something he had forgotten when he saw that.

“…We’re immune to most poisons.”

All three of us were.