Chapter 39: The Tutorial – Second Mission

[A new message from the Guide has arrived.]

[The second Tutorial mission, 'Breaking Traps' has begun.]

Everyone heard the new announcement, and at the same time, the sturdy door at the end of the corridor automatically disintegrated. Regardless of the remaining time, the next mission is activated immediately once all the survivors reach the waiting room.

I saw that Yun Seora was a bit pale, but she did not avert her gaze from mine.

"If you really plan to go to that place, you have to get used to these things, it is a war zone after all and it won't be a pretty place," I told her as calmly and gently as I could, she just nodded at my words and said nothing.

The Yi siblings were more shocked, so I told them the same thing and they just became paler and hesitantly and shakily followed behind me.

I then checked the new message on my phone.

[Sender: The Guide.]

[1. Enter classroom "3-1" on the fourth floor of the main building through the third floor of the annex before time runs out]

[Remaining time: 01:59:36]

Alright, I don't have to waste any more time, I walked to the end of the hallway towards the next mission.

"Follow me at a distance of 10 meters or wait until I finish clearing the trap zone on the third floor," I said without addressing anyone in particular and kept moving forward.

Hyun Sangmin and the rest of the group obeyed and followed me at a prudent distance.

****

In an observation room, an announcement could be heard;

[Area 1. The second mission is now beginning]

A robotic voice made an announcement as images flashed on a massive semi-transparent screen. Several men and women were sitting in front of this screen, watching the procedures unfold.

"Not bad, there are 30 survivors left for the second mission," said a slightly satisfied voice belonging to a large bald man, a woman wearing a purple robe beside him also nodded at his words with satisfaction.

However, there was another woman dressed in a business suit sitting in front. She gave them an icy look, and the two quickly shut their mouths.

"Just now. That guy, he is clearly the reason for the large number of survivors and at the same time the few casualties. Isn't he that famous most sought-after billionaire from Seoul or am I mistaken?" The large bald man couldn't resist his curiosity and added a couple more sentences, but fearing that the business suit woman would look at him again, he hurriedly turned his attention elsewhere.

"Does anyone know what's happening in other areas? Did anyone hear anything?" asked the bald man.

"Me," a young man with curly hair raised his hand. And said, "I heard something while I was outside... Regarding the speed of completion of the first mission, I heard that Area 2 and Area 7 were neck and neck for first place."

"2 and 7? I understand the Europeans, but what about those Chinese bastards?" asked the bald man.

"What's the point of even asking? You know what dirty tricks the Chinese are using there. All their guests conspire together and as soon as the tutorial starts, they use the Contractors as meat shields. I'm sure they are passing the missions while sacrificing the Contractors whenever necessary."

The large bald man spat out a groan. And asked, "What about Area 2?"

"I heard they are the example of perfection itself. A French girl named Odelette Delphine took charge of the show. With pure skills too. Well, the fact that she killed the tutorial monster in front of everyone with the initial bonus she got during the first mission turned out to be the decisive factor."

"Huh. What's the grade of her mark?" asked the bald man.

"Silver. Moreover, as soon as the second mission started, she managed to open the way to the computer classroom. She is sweeping everything in her path. I think she won't even need an hour to reach the end of the second mission. Maybe 50 minutes at most?"

"Wow, what is she, a monster? Europe really found a good seed this time. What about the rest?" said the bald man clearly excited.

"Area 5 is decent... but, it's average. We estimate that we have a 10-minute lead for the second mission, so that's it."

The large bald man looked satisfied.

"At this rate, as long as our guys are cautious and clear the area calmly, we will finish the second mission in about an hour. It won't be an excessively fast time, but we will surely be among the top 3 places in the different zones," said the large, bald man.

"No way. Don't forget we have a Gold Mark. It seems he even has the Unknown Student's Diary. He will surely be able to clear it faster and without problems," said the young man with curly hair.

"Do you think so?" asked the bald man.

"I mean, he killed the tutorial monster quite easily, right?" The curly-haired young man spoke with hope that they would win first place in clearing time for the Tutorial compared to the other zones. The large bald man's face continued to show doubt, but his eyes remained fixed on the person on the screen. Seol Jihu, as shown on the screen, was entering the annex through the sky bridge that connected the two buildings.

"Hey, that guy looks like he is not taking any precautions! Don't tell me he is just going to walk calmly through the trap zone, is he looking to get killed? What the hell!" said the large bald man.

"Has he gone mad?" The curly-haired young man raised a sharp voice of surprise.

As the name of the mission suggests, the location reserved for the "Breaking Traps" mission should be approached carefully. However, Seol Jihu did not even stop to assess any danger and simply entered the trap zone without apparent caution while still carrying his uncle in the chair on his back.

"Can we really trust a guy like that?" The large bald man asked while touching the shoulder of the woman wearing the business suit. But she did not respond, so the large bald man spoke again, "Hey! say something Kim Hannah."

"Shut your damn mouth for once, okay? He is capable and he's already proven it. Don't make drama and just trust his ability," Kim Hannah spat out with a voice full of irritation.

The large bald man immediately realized that if he tried to provoke her further, he would be on the painful end of a spinster's hysteria.

The large bald man licked his lips as if he found everything unsatisfactory, then got up from his seat. He thought he would rather go out for a smoke break than sit here and get angry about what was about to happen on the screen.

As he was about to leave the projection room to smoke, he was yet to reach the door when he heard it.

*CLANG!*

The noisy metallic sounds coming from the screen. He thought the brainless idiot had suddenly walked into a trap, activating it without realizing it. While shaking his head in disappointment, he reached the door and opened it to leave but stopped abruptly with the sudden series of sounds that followed after the initial one.

*CLANG!* *CLANG!* *CLANG!* *CLANG!* *CLANG!*

Then he tilted his head, wondering if his ears were playing tricks on him. He heard the sound of many traps activating one after another. And he could not help but go back and see what was happening on the screen. What he saw left him speechless.

Indeed, the second mission was not at all difficult for someone like this bald man. A highly trained Earthling could clear the mission in about 30 minutes, even if they took their time.

However, those who were undertaking the mission at this moment were supposed to be not the trained Earthlings, but a group of weak and powerless civilians. These people had not even experienced a proper fight.

The mission's objective was simple enough: stop the activation of various traps by previously fulfilling a set of conditions. Or else, leave it in the hands of lady luck. That should have been the case. However...

"Is he blocking and deflecting everything?!" exclaimed the bald man.

Seol Jihu not only didn't stop after performing those actions, but he even deliberately sprung the traps that had not yet been activated. He was moving forward while destroying everything. It was like watching a top level warrior, not a powerless civilian.

A look of disbelief was etched on the large bald man's face as he hurriedly approached the screen. At the same time, three sharp metal spears shot towards Seol Jihu from the ceiling and from the right and left sides.

*CLANG!* *CLANG!* *CLANG!*

They did not know where Seol Jihu had acquired that fantasy-like sword, but regardless, he wielded it with a mastery that made the audience only enjoy the cacophony of metallic noises and the dazzling trail of black and red colors left by the blade with each cut that flashed on the screen.

The result was a spectacle of colors and sounds. The moment the spears from the right and left were deflected and flew off in other directions, the spear from the ceiling was blocked, losing all its power and falling powerlessly at Seol Jihu's feet.

The woman wearing the purple robe stood up excitedly, her fists clenched in anticipation. "That was impressive, is he even human?!"

"I don't know, but he's definitely not a novice, he is a highly trained person and a master of swordsmanship," the bald man closely observed the unfolding procedures.

Then he declared confidently out loud, "I'm sure of it. He deflected the spears coming from both sides, and easily blocked the one from the ceiling, all almost simultaneously and with a single sword."

"Oi, Kim Hannah! What's up with that guy?! Where the hell did he come from? I know he is famous and all, but he's famous for being a pretty boy and rich, not for being a damn swordmaster," the bald man seemed surprised by his own words and belatedly shouted at Kim Hannah.

Kim Hannah remained silent for a long time before suddenly opening her mouth. But instead of answering what the man asked, she asked her own question, "For the second mission, what is the fastest completion record?"

"The record? You mean the legendary 29 minutes and 38 seconds of Sung Shihyun-nim?" said the curly-haired young man.

"Mm, mm," the bald man nodded his head in agreement as if he was proud of something. Meanwhile, Kim Hannah lowered her head and finally began to rub her face as if she suddenly felt quite fatigued.

"I expected it to be surprising, but this is crazy," said Kim Hannah.

"What's crazy?" asked the large bald man.

[The second mission of Area 1 has been cleared] the robotic voice sounded from the screen.

The expressions of all those present in the observation room were of astonishment at the sudden announcement. The time it took was recorded on the screen.

7 minutes, 35 seconds.

This was precisely the moment when history was rewritten.

****

Seol Jihu cleared the second mission in a few minutes without even breaking a sweat, but the truth is that it took quite a while just because he held himself back to a relatively human level. If he had held nothing back and went all out, he could have finished in a few seconds, but he did not want to reveal so much yet. He was sure that with what he had already shown, it was enough to cause quite a few reactions of all kinds, and he knew there were many observers in the Tutorial. He did not want them to see his true capabilities yet, so he refrained from using any abilities that could be associated with the use of magic. After all, it is assumed that no human can use magic before entering the awakening chamber and receiving the blessing of the gods of Lost Paradise.

As for how surprising his toy sword is, he concluded it was better for them to see that and think it was some kind of special sword granted for being a gold-grade invitee and have a misunderstanding in that direction.

He saw the new meeting area; the label on the classroom door said '3-1'. It is a regular classroom that can be found in almost any school.

He opened the door calmly, entered, and chose a seat at the back by the window, the one they call the protagonist's seat. Before sitting down, he placed uncle Jung's chair in front of the seat he chose so he could watch him at all times, and then he sat down.

And while he sat there for a while, the door finally opened again, and the classroom began to fill with everyone who came after him. They took a while because when they saw the traps, they decided not to follow him at a 10-meter distance as he had told them and instead waited for him to clear everything.

The total number of casualties during the second mission: 0.

It was an obvious result since he had gone ahead and destroyed all the traps. If someone died after that, it would have been because they were killed by other participants or their bad luck was such that they would die in the style of the movie 'Final Destination'.

The survivors looked at him with more frightened faces than before, but overall, he did not pay much attention to them. Well, they had to witness some incredible scenes that were simply beyond their ability to describe, so understandably, they could not help but be scared.

"Are you okay?" After impeccably fulfilling his duty as the reliable henchman, Hyun Sangmin asked with clear emotion in his voice.

"Don't worry, it was just like a normal stroll through the school for me," he said calmly while yawning.

Shin Sang-Ah approached quite nervously, then found a chair near them, and she sat down. Yun Seora did the same; it seems she resolved something with herself since she now looked at him without any hesitation. Finally, the Yi siblings, the mother, and the daughter approached and also sat down in the nearby chairs.

Lastly, the others who were not part of his personal group also looked for seats, but they were clearly looking for the ones that were as far away from him as possible.

~~~~~~~~

[T/N: I just peeped at the next chapter and saw that it was more than 8K words as indicated by the author. Yeah... I'm not touching that for now. That's going to take me the whole day to translate ugh... Anyway I'm going to bed now, I'll probably get to it after waking up tomorrow. I'm from South Africa by the way, just letting you know so you can search how that translates to your (readers) Time Zones.]