4 Welcome to Cube IV

The world's greatest training institute that boasts state-of-the-art magic, science, and engineering— that is [Cube]. For three years, I will be attending this place.

The [Cube] is a facility set on an artificial island in the East Sea. It is easily 16.8 square kilometers in size. Quite extravagant, no? Well, that is not all there is to this place.

On this stupidly enormous island are approximately 5000 Hero Cadets! Judging the ratio of the island's mass to its students, it is painfully obvious how wasteful this can be… It just makes me think… How sad will it be if there are still homeless people in this world? Is that too much of a basis of scale? Then how terrible are the other countries if there is still a slum here in Korea?

I walk to my classroom while enjoying the scenery.

Initially... My only annoyance with having to attend Cube is having to risk myself to entangle with the main story! But.

The most annoying of all is the excessive hormones around the academy. It is within expectations as 17 to 19-year-olds attend Cube, but the things I am witnessing are definitely for sore eyes. I have been walking for some time already and the number of students I see flirting is already in double digits.

Isn't there some internal control policy to discourage romance among students, so that they focus on studying?

Well, it is my fault for starting so early in the morning.

[Novice— Veritas]

I arrive at my classroom fairly early. I smile at the signs plastering the wall. This is the main cast's class, meaning I can continue sticking to Hajin like crazy.

Novice refers to First Year Cadets, while Veritas refers to the name of the class. Simply put, I am in Year-1-Class-1. I enter the classroom and find three long cascading desks. I quickly sit for myself.

"Not bad," I offhandedly comment as I observe the sleek interior lacking any dust and trash.

I wait in painful silence as I remain in my seat while I wait for the class to start. Of course, I will not forget my casual scheming. I purposefully bring a big bag with rulers, books, and useless stuff. The bag is heavy and big, but I think my trick will work.

By placing the bag beside me, I deter others from sitting there.

Hogging two seats is the peak of evil, but what can they do? I am an early bird! And. Finders Keepers! "He he he…" A malicious laugh escapes my mouth unintentionally.

"You there…" Calling to me is an annoyed voice. "Can you please remove your things?"

I look above only to see Yoo Yeonha's scowling face.

There is no way I don't know her. As one of the heroines of the original novel, she is really not much. But as Kim Hajin's ally and supporter, she is a big deal. The future Queen of Seoul stares down at me with hate.

What did I do to you, miss? Why so hostile?

"Move it," Her dark hair shakes in fury as she comes at me aggressively. "No, you also move. I will claim both seats…"

I look around. If I change my seat, I won't be able to pick a seat where I can have Hajin sit beside me. It looks like, after some time of my idle wait, many of the students are already inside the classroom. I know Hajin will be a little bit late today. I am thinking that maybe I can have him as a seatmate for today if I scheme a bit.

"Uuuummm… Can you pick another seat?" I beg of you, Yoo Yeonha.

***

Yoo Yeonha is in love.

Surveys say what she must be feeling is a crush or puppy love. But Yeonha digresses. She is in love with none other than Shin Jonghak, grandson of the hero, Shin Myungchul.

They are perfect for each other, the prestige, status, and wealth all match up. They are a perfect match.

That is why after she receives a message from Jonghak through her smartwatch that he will be late this morning, Yeonha has a sudden epiphany. "Is there a way for me to have Jonghak as my seatmate? If there is a will, there is a way..."

Eager to make a change, she rushes to school. At first, she feels glum as most of the students are already occupying seats on odd numbers. "Are there no longer two adjacent seats available?"

But then, her eyes land on the seat hogger.

A bit childish, but Yeonha decides to pressure the guy from giving up his seat with her aura, status, and eloquence…

Unfortunately, the hogger is one hell of a fucker.

"Like I am saying, I don't want to… Can you please find another seat?"

The problem is the hogger is speaking reasonably, and as a reasonable person herself, Yeonha cannot make too big of a deal out of it. "I am just saying. Hogging two seats at once is just wrong. Why is such a pleb like you even here?"

While at it, Yeonha tries to disgust that hogger as much as possible so that he voluntarily leaves the seat just to avoid her. It is a good plan, Yeonha thinks. "But if not implemented, it is just as bad as any…"

The hogger patiently explains to her. "You see, I am saving this seat for a friend. The reason I wake up so early is so that I can save that seat for my friend. Do not be too unreasonable, miss…"

It is Yeonha's defeat. She can see it coming a mile away. "Hey, if you give up these two seats, I will put a good word for Essence of the Strait…"

This is for the sake of love. Yeonha tells herself this with conviction.

***

"Hey, if you give up these two seats, I will put a good word for Essence of the Strait…" She says it so plainly like that, while gesturing on her face, clearly advertising her good name as the daughter of the Guild Master of Essence of the Strait.

Crazy bitch.

The Essence of the Strait is currently the Rank 2 Guild in the whole world. It is famous, rich, and powerful. For Yeonha to sell her guild so easily… Is she nuts? No, she's still young, so she can be immature sometimes...

"Now—!"

Disturbing me from my thoughts is a thunderous shout.

The instructor is already here. Standing behind the podium, he gives me (and Yeonha) a stink eye.

"Seat down. Class is about to start."

I look around in disbelief. My eyes imperceptibly land on Kim Hajin who seems to just wake up from sleeping while waiting for class to start. Since when is he here? I begrudgingly take my enormous bag and stick it between my legs just under the table.

Yeonha grumbles while she sits just beside me.

"Just to add. The seats will remain like this for the current semester. Remember your seatmates. I will make a headcount and check the attendance. No need to say 'present'." The instructor adds as he makes a quick count of his students.

I freeze. This is a first. In fact, I don't remember this happening in the novel.

Yeonha and I meet gazes. She looks at me with hate, and I return the gesture. How dare she separate me from the love of my life? A-hem… It is not that I swing that way, but I just lost my quarry! Damn it!

I return to my bag. It is so big, and bulging out. I force it under me and stick it under the table only for three rulers to pop out from the little opening. The three rulers hit my face in succession.

I turn my head to Yeonha imagining her to be laughing at my predicament. Contrary to my expectations, she is giving me that 'Are you crazy?' look. I admit. Carrying such an enormous bag is making me look crazy. And three rulers? Hmmm…

While I contemplate the source of my shenanigans, I give half of my attention to the class.

The instructor after finishing on checking up the attendance, proceeds to warm up to us.

"Today's the first day, so there won't be any special training, but I hope you all did your morning training. Training is never wrong, especially in the morning when magic power density is high."

I rack my head around the thoughts of training. Yesterday, I am thinking of doing it just like the instructor's reminder. But thinking or saying it is much easier than actually doing it.

The training ground opens from 5:00 a.m. to 8:00 a.m.

I should check up on the place. I have no luxury to slack off, and especially so, if I want to live for a long time. "Sigh… I hope I have something I can actually use…"

I don't have a gift, any special characteristics, or intimate access to magic power. In a sense, I am in the same situation as Hajin, but worse.

"Now, let's start the introductions. I'm Kim Soohyuk, the instructor in charge of you all for the first year. My ranking point is 3850. World Rank 9737. By the Association's classification, I would be high-intermediate rank grade 5."

The student's eyes light up. It is certainly amazing as there are two million Heroes around the world. So… I start clapping.

~clap* ~clap* ~clap*

In the desolate silence, only my clapping resounds… The students stare at me in unison. This doesn't deter me. As if urging me, I only continue to clap louder.

"S—student… please…" The instructor, Kim Soohyuk, awkwardly beckons me. "You can stop now, student…"

Finally, I stop.

With a sigh, Kim Soohyuk ends his introduction. "I think that's enough for my introduction. The first day will feel special. You might not have slept due to excitement and worry, or maybe you're feeling great about being able to improve yourselves. Heh, maybe you are happy to see your crushes again."

The Cadets have various reactions to this. Most of them laugh, while a very specific minority exhibits a glum look. I cannot help but notice Yeonha's expression particularly with her being my seatmate.

Suddenly, the instructor tenses his expression and sternly warns his students. "But…" He hangs on the word like a ticking time bomb. "Cube isn't the same as it was before. I promise you, there will be no time for relationships. In Cube, you will experience several real combat situations. Look forward to experiencing how fearful the real world is."

His roguish smile sends a chill down everyone's back… except mine.

"I OBJECT!" I shout at the top of my lungs.

"Eh?" My objection seems to fluster the instructor.

I begin with my ludicrous performance.

"RELATIONSHIPS ARE POWER! ROMANCE IS POWER! LOVE IS POWER! WHEN THERE IS REAL DANGER IN FRONT OF YOU! AND WHEN ALL HOPE IS LOST! THE LITTLE POWER THAT OFTEN TILTS THE BALANCE BETWEEN LIFE AND DEATH IS THE MOTIVATION THAT COMES FROM LOVE!"

"W-what? What the actual fu—" The instructor fumbles on his words seemingly unable to react.

"I BELIEVE THIS HOLDS TRUTH! WHEN JESUS WAS PUT ON THE CROSS, HE SAVED US FROM ETERNAL DAMNATION WITH THE POWER OF LOVE. AND IN TROPES, WHEN THE HERO IS LOSING, HE SOMEHOW EKES A VICTORY THROUGH THE POWER OF FRIENDSHIP! RELATIONSHIPS ARE IMPORTANT, SIR!"

"Where did this crazy psycho come from?" Kim Soohyuk the instructor is outright just cursing at me.

"MOREOVER, WHEN YOU FIND YOURSELF IN TROUBLE YOU CANNOT ESCAPE, ONLY RELATIONSHIPS CAN SAVE YOU! IF I ACCIDENTALLY KILL SOMEONE, I CAN JUST ASK THE PRESIDENT OF KOREA TO BAIL ME OUT—"

Finally, the students cannot take it anymore as they devolve into laughter.

The Cringe Overlord on my head mentally bows as I reign in my emotions. I search for Chae Nayun. I wonder what her inner thoughts are like. I finish my cringe-worthy performance by returning to my seat.

"C-calm down, calm down class… I understand… Relationships are important… Sigh…" The instructor massages his nose bridge as he tries to calm the crowd. "I understand. Relationships are important such as comradeship… But we don't live in a novel, Mr. Hyon Hyung…"

The instructor knowing my name is a surprise. They should be memorizing each student's face, huh?

That aside, I feel bad for the instructor. After all, we do live inside a novel.

I observe Kim Hajin who is fidgeting at the mention of 'don't live in a novel', and there is also Chae Nayun who is subtly glancing at me with curiosity as the turn of events must be unlike what she remembers.

The instructor makes an enormous effort to calm the class and himself, and then he resumes the program with a calm facade.

"Next, Cube is objective. The only indicator of your success will be your grade. Guilds will only look at your grade. Thus, we will grade you accurately and strictly. If you underperform, you will be held back. Statistically, less than half of Cube's cadets graduate without repeating a semester. Even then, you can only be held back up to two years. Any more than that, you will be expelled. If you can't become a Hero, you will become an agent or a mercenary. I take it that's not what you want."

The instructor pauses and scans the students' faces. He wants to say something along the lines of 'I can already see a few faces I am familiar with.' But he feels awkward saying it. Once more, he feels annoyed by the dissident who has interrupted his momentum.

I feel the instructor's passionate gaze on me specifically. I wave my hand to him with fanfare. I can hear the instructor's 'tsk' sound from where I sit.

My crazy antics have a purpose. I specifically gaze at Kim Hajin. One of his very ridiculous cheats is that he can spend SP through his laptop. This SP can help him create gifts, and upgrade his items. However, to earn SP, one must become an attention whore.

Kim Hajin is the kind of character that the more attention he gets, the stronger he becomes.

I am planning to become his manager. As to how... I don't have an exact method yet. But with today's performance, I believe I can influence him to some extent. I then glance at Chae Nayun. She is not showing much, but she is unto me.

"I repeat," The instructor calls to us once more. "At Cube, you will need to confirm the things you've learned until now and hone your skills to be used in battle. There will be no 'kind' training here. Remember that."

Ending the class orientation, our dear and lovely instructor Kim Soohyuk announces. "Now get ready. What's scheduled for today won't take long. The first task is 'main weapon selection'."

Just like that… the first curtain to our story comes to a fall.

Welcome to Cube.