Chapter 51

Unexpectedly, Lim Ga-eul's group ended up with a stable combination of two Dealers, one Tanker, and two Supporters.

If it weren't for Soup, the Tanker, our party's composition would have been quite messy, but since we were the first to join and set the foundation, we managed to salvage a decent combination.

'It would've been better if the last member was a Healer… but oh well, this is still better than nothing.'

However, there was one unexpected development:

The other Supporter, aside from Lim Ga-eul, was someone I knew.

A guy whose name I could barely remember now.

Kim… something, I think.

"Captain!"

He was one of the male quota students from our group during the basic training.

I nodded reluctantly.

"Yeah, it's nice to see you again, but what's with that?"

I asked, gesturing at the large backpack he was carrying.

"Oh, this? Well, it's our survival strategy, so to speak."

"Survival strategy?"

The quota student nodded proudly.

"Yeah, as you know, Cheol-hyun and I are a bit lacking in abilities."

"A bit…?"

"Well, anyway! We thought that relying on just one ability wouldn't cut it."

"So, you're going to be porters as well?"

"Yup. We thought about it a lot after the basic training. Thanks to you, Captain, the perception of quota students has changed a lot, but that doesn't change the fact that we still lack certain abilities."

Wow. This guy had impressed me.

I had initially thought he was useless, but he had changed for the better.

Of course, I wouldn't bring him into my party since I had my own pocket dimension, but no party would refuse a Supporter or Healer who also took on the role of a porter.

'A porter who can use skills is truly rare.'

"Good thinking."

I nodded in approval.

"Jin Yuha. Who's this? Do you know him?"

As Yoo-ri and I greeted each other, Yoo-ri asked, curious about the guy.

"Oh, he's the quota student from our basic training group."

"Ah, the Supporter from the finals!"

Yoo-ri recalled the memory and nodded in recognition.

The guy bowed with a crisp movement.

"Yes! Nice to meet you, Soup-nim! I've heard a lot about you from the Captain! I'm Kim So-hun, a Supporter!"

Yoo-ri's face contorted in confusion at the unexpected address.

"Sou… Soup-nim?"

"Yes! Before the finals, He said if you are on the same team, you are so reliable, but when you're an enemy, you're someone who can never be underestimated! Soup-nim!"

Yoo-ri's expression twisted at the ambiguous compliment.

"Huhu. It's nice to see everyone getting along♪"

As our group chatted, Lim Ga-eul watched from behind with a serene smile.

"What the hell… a party with two guys…?"

But there's always one person who ruins the mood when five people get together.

"And you think this Gate training is a joke?!"

Choi Ah-ram stepped forward and growled at us.

"You freshmen, right after enrolling, have no idea how dangerous this training is, and you're all so carefree? Huh?!"

Pinkie Brat had failed a year, so she was technically a first-year student like us.

Yet, she wanted to act like she had spent an extra year here and tried to assert her seniority.

"Captain, who is she? If she's gathered here, isn't she a first-year student too? Why is she acting like a senior…?"

The quota student, unaware of the situation, whispered to Yoo-ri, who was standing next to him.

Apparently, his voice was louder than she intended, as Pinkie Brat's face turned bright red with embarrassment.

"You… you damn—"

Just as she was about to let out a string of curses,

Clap!

"Alright, everyone. Now that you've formed your groups, let's head over to Chairman Lina."

Lim Ga-eul clapped her hands to bring the situation under control.

Choi Ah-ram, who had been sputtering in anger, glared at us and then abruptly turned away.

'Hmm, I wanted to roast her with facts, but I guess that's not happening now.'

We followed Lim Ga-eul towards Chairman Lina.

Chairman Lina scanned us up and down and then furrowed her eyebrows at me.

"Jin Yuha."

"Yes?"

"What did you say to Seol-hee?"

'Hmm, to the instructor? I didn't really say anything?'

Seeing my confused expression, she shouted,

"What did you say to her that she's talking about giving you another pocket dimension tattoo and acting like she can't wait to get her hands on you?!"

Chairman Lina's eyes were filled with resentment, like a student forced to stay after school to finish their homework.

Her appearance made it easy to forget that she was an adult.

'Ah, didn't the instructor say something about giving Soup the pocket dimension tattoo as well?'

I felt sorry for the Chairman, who had been pestered about it, but I couldn't refuse.

I chuckled and bowed my head.

"I look forward to working with you, Chairman."

"Hmph!"

"But aren't we supposed to leave soon?"

I cut off the conversation with the Chairman before it could go any further.

Chairman Lina grit her teeth and turned away.

"Lim Ga-eul, step forward."

Lim Ga-eul, who had been dazedly watching the exchange between Yoo-ri and me, snapped out of her daze and stepped forward with a stiff expression.

"Here, this is an emergency call bell. All second-year students who lead parties must carry this."

"Yes."

"If you press this, a signal will be sent to me. In case of an emergency, don't hesitate to use it."

The item she handed over was an emergency call bell.

Normally, no machinery worked inside Gates.

So, they used magically created artifacts, and as expected of Velvet Academy, they were providing these expensive items to each party.

"Thank you."

"And the Gate you'll be heading to is the C-grade Dungeon, Ogre's Village."

"Huh!?"

Lim Ga-eul's eyes widened in surprise at the higher-grade dungeon than expected.

"The maximum clearance time is six hours. The target is 100 magic stones. If you reach the quota, you can return early."

"But…!"

She looked visibly flustered and glanced at her party members.

"But at this level…!"

Chairman Lina snorted and said firmly,

"That's an assessment of your party members' approximate skills. I won't listen to any complaints."

There was no way Lim Ga-eul could resist. She could only bite her lip and nod.

"Understood."

"Then, Lim Ga-eul and her party, you may depart now."

.

.

.

Thanks to the warp gate within the Academy, we arrived at the dungeon entrance in the blink of an eye.

And soon, guided by the female soldiers waiting for us, we entered the C-grade Dungeon, Ogre's Village.

A desolate landscape welcomed us, different from Carmela's Forest.

The trees were all withered, and the ground was cracked, causing sand to crunch under our feet with every step.

"This is insane… how could they send us to a C-grade Dungeon instead of a D-grade one…!"

Choi Ah-ram, who had been acting like a senior just a moment ago, was now shaking with her pink hair clutched in her hands.

"And with two guys in the party… this can't be happening…"

She began to weave a ridiculous story,

"Could this be a plot to kill me…? Because I failed a year and have no use, they're just trying to get rid of me now…"

Alone, Choi Ah-ram spun a pathetic tale.

Lim Ga-eul was equally flustered, but she maintained her composure and calmly assessed the situation.

Chairman Lina.

Despite her adorable appearance that made you want to hug her, she was known as the pinnacle of magic users.

No one in the Academy dared to defy her.

'…Chairman Lina said she selected the dungeon based on an assessment of our party's approximate skills. That must mean…'

Lim Ga-eul's gaze shifted to the back of the black-haired person walking in front of her.

'He seemed quite friendly when he first approached her.'

I had never seen a student speak so casually with Chairman Lina.

'What is he?'

When he first approached her, she had thought he was just an innocent, cute male freshman.

But there seemed to be something he was hiding. Of course, it would be unwise to rely solely on that and dive into the clearance without caution…

'…I guess we'll just have to see how it goes.'

Yeah, if things went wrong, we could always use the emergency call bell.

Lim Ga-eul tried to calm her agitation and fiddled with the call bell.

Just then,

"Ogre spotted ahead!"

.

.

.

"Gruuuh—"

A monster with two huge tusks protruding from its lower jaw and a mud-colored skin.

An Ogre.

Its body was three times the size of a human, with a protruding belly that made it look sluggish.

It dragged a massive axe in one hand as it wandered around.

"I'm… I'm going to die. I'm going to die. I can't face a monster like that…"

Pinkie Brat, who had been acting tough earlier, now bit her nails and trembled pathetically.

Even our quota Supporter was putting on a stoic front, but Choi Ah-ram's behavior was truly pathetic.

I turned to look at Lim Ga-eul.

She swallowed nervously and said in a tense voice,

"It doesn't seem to have noticed us yet. First, I'll use all the support skills I can. Then, let's ambush and take it down. If anything goes wrong, I'll ring the call bell right away, so don't worry too much—"

"Wait a moment."

I interrupted her.

"Hmm?"

Well, it wouldn't hurt to see how much Lim Ga-eul could do in her pure state first…

"Senior. Before using your skills, why don't you hold this and give it a try?"

I didn't like the feeling of being stifled.

I took out an item I had prepared beforehand from my pocket and handed it to her.

Lim Ga-eul took it, looking puzzled.

"Hmm, what is this… This is…?!"

Suddenly, her eyes widened.

Opening wide.

"It's a magic stone… and it's top-grade?!"

Here comes the energy injection.

"Kuuu—"

And her surprised exclamation was loud enough to catch the Ogre's attention.

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