As I headed to the cafeteria early in the morning, I asked:
'No, seriously, what's so sinister and scheming about it…?'
[There's no other way to describe a woman who gropes a man who isn't even her lover like that.]
[That's right. Master, you should be careful.]
'….'
The two of them are really in sync.
But wait a minute…
Didn't I do the same thing when I first met Lena? I definitely snuggled up to Lena while she was sleeping.
'Lena, I hugged you while you were sleeping, remember?'
[Master. Women and men are different.]
'….'
Good grief, this is outright gender discrimination.
Men can do it, but women can't.
[No matter how much she likes the other person, she's a woman who dared to grope an unrelated man's body under the pretext of being drunk.]
[She didn't even see you as a man in the first place when she did that.]
'W-Well…'
With both of them ganging up on me, I had nothing to say.
If women say so, then I guess that's how it is…
'Anyway, focus now. You keep saying she's sinister and scheming, and it's distracting me…'
[Understood.]
[I'll be careful, Master.]
After that, Lena, who had stayed up all night keeping watch, went to sleep.
When I arrived at the cafeteria, Sung Suah wasn't there yet.
We had agreed to greet each other in VR in the morning and have breakfast together.
Unlike men, Sung Suah took a long time to get ready, so I decided to wait in front of the cafeteria.
As I waited, I thought about today's class.
'Well, if Cho Seo-hyun is wielding a weapon, it'll be much better than yesterday, right?'
[But since she said she'd focus more on defense than evasion, the risk is likely to increase just as much.]
'…If only we could solve the issue with Song Ara.'
It wasn't that I was ignoring the other cadets.
Facing an opponent like Cho Seo-hyun and being able to perform at that level was impressive enough.
It's just that, among them, Song Ara stood out particularly.
'What a shame.'
[What do you mean?]
'Song Ahra—if she switched to archery, it'd be amazing.'
-[Archery Lv.29]-
She wasn't at the level of an instructor yet, but if she grew for a year, there was no telling how far she'd go.
If Song Ara had used a bow as her main weapon, even I wouldn't have been able to properly protect Cho Seo-hyun.
But as an assistant instructor, I couldn't give Song Ara advice about her future like that.
I could've if I wanted to, but how would others see me?
They'd obviously scold me for overstepping my boundaries the moment they saw me.
An assistant instructor is just someone who does what they're told.
And as they say, speak of the devil.
"Ah… Hi, Instructor."
"Ah, yeah. Here to eat?"
"Yes…"
"…?"
Why does she look so drained?
Usually bright and lively, she was dragging her feet sluggishly, completely unlike her usual self.
Then, after looking at the menu at the cafeteria entrance…
"Oh yeah! Meat!"
With those words, she dashed into the cafeteria like an arrow.
Is this what it feels like to worry for nothing?
As I watched Song Ara walk in with her tray, someone poked me from behind.
"Were you waiting? Let's go in."
Sung Suah was looking at me with a bright smile.
...
...
...
Somehow, the three of us ended up eating together.
To be honest, I wasn't sure if it could even be called eating together.
Sung Suah and I couldn't take our eyes off Song Ara's tray, where she was devouring her food with gusto.
Song Ara's tray was piled with about three times the usual amount of rice and side dishes.
Chomp chomp!
I marveled at Song Ara.
'Most girls would lose all their charm eating like that, but she's just so cute.'
Usually, when girls eat like they're stuffing themselves, it's not appealing, but Song Ara just seemed like a kid, making it adorable.
But there was one terrifying thing…
"We should be careful…"
"I'm even preparing to use magic, just in case…"
Sung Suah and I chuckled quietly, making sure Song Ara couldn't hear us.
"By the way, I talked to Ara yesterday. Did you hear?"
"Huh? About what?"
"You said you injured your leg before, right?"
"Ah…"
Now that I think about it, I remember saying something like that.
It was just a random excuse.
"I told Ara just in case. I asked her to take good care of Instructor Seong Suho."
"Haha… That wasn't necessary…"
"Don't worry too much. Ara's lips are sealed. I only told her because I trust her."
Come to think of it, her personality is straightforward—she doesn't seem like the type to go around blabbing about others' weaknesses.
Besides, the leg injury was just an excuse anyway, so it wasn't a big deal.
It's not like I was actually hurt—I just lacked stamina…
As I watched Song Ara eating voraciously, I thought:
'Please… please don't explode…'
Fortunately, Song Ara must've been really hungry, as she didn't open her mouth except to shovel food in.
***
"…."
"Huu…"
Cho Seo-hyun had put up a partition and was lying on her desk, fast asleep.
Come to think of it, aside from yesterday, I'd never seen her come to work normally.
Every time I see her, she's sleeping like this…
'Now that I think about it, she doesn't even eat… Isn't this a gaming addiction?'
[But since she does her job properly during class, I'd say she's rather capable.]
Well, as long as she does her job, she's free to enjoy games.
I'm curious.
What kind of dream is she having today?
A few instructors were moving around the faculty office, but it still felt quiet.
Plus, there were about 30 minutes left until class…
'I'll just peek in for a bit and come back.'
[Please be careful.]
After signaling to Armonia, I carefully cast Dream Invasion.
...
...
...
"Huh?"
As soon as I entered Cho Seo-hyun's dream, the first thing I saw wasn't a game environment.
It was a place I knew all too well.
"The academy?"
It was definitely the academy I knew, but something felt off.
'Well, it's a dream, so it's not like the structure has to be precise.'
Thinking that, I started walking around the academy.
First, I headed to the faculty office to find Cho Seo-hyun.
'Don't tell me she's sleeping in her dream too?'
I chuckled inwardly and carefully opened the faculty office door.
Then, when I went to Cho Seo-hyun's seat…
"…Huh?"
"Who are you?"
A sharp-eyed, mean-looking woman in her 40s was sitting there.
I could say with certainty that I'd never seen her before.
'Or maybe I have, but she wasn't important enough to remember?'
After staring at me for a while, the woman frowned and twisted her lips.
"Are you the new assistant instructor?"
"Ah… yes."
Her personality was as evident as her expression—short-tempered from the start…
After glaring at me for a while, the woman in her 40s didn't even introduce herself and just started explaining today's tasks, leading me away.
"Today's the entrance ceremony, and you're already here so early."
"Thank you."
"You think that's a compliment?"
I know it's not a compliment. I just said it because I didn't want to be treated like this even in a dream.
But for some reason, I felt like it'd be troublesome later, so I apologized.
"…Sorry."
At my words, the woman's face turned into that of a 50-year-old, and she started ranting.
Only after we arrived at the auditorium did her skin return to that of a 40-year-old.
Inside the auditorium, a huge crowd of cadets was chattering noisily, and unfamiliar instructors were lined up on the stage.
I followed the 40-year-old woman onto the stage and stood blankly next to her.
The woman had been grumbling about something since earlier, and I half-listened.
'This is annoying… But where the heck is Cho Seo-hyun?'
I turned my head and scanned the instructors on stage, but I couldn't find Cho Seo-hyun.
'…Sung Suah isn't here either?'
This dream is a mess…
As I was debating whether to leave the dream, since quite some time had passed, an elderly man stepped forward and spoke into the microphone.
"I sincerely congratulate you all on your admission to the Hero Academy today. I am…"
I thought it'd be another tedious speech from the crappy principal…
Fortunately, the principal kept his introduction brief and moved on to the next part.
"Now! The top-ranked incoming student, please come to the front of the stage."
At the principal's words, a cadet began walking up to the stage with a dignified posture.
Slightly wavy long hair, a refreshing smile, confident eyes, and… a slightly short stature.
As I watched the cadet climb the stage, I pondered deeply.
'Who is that? I feel like I've seen her somewhere…'
I had a vague sense of familiarity, but I couldn't place who she was.
Once the female cadet stood confidently at the front of the stage, the principal handed her a document and spoke quietly.
"Just read the oath here."
"Thank you."
The cadet accepted the document politely and stood facing the principal, radiating confidence.
She took a deep breath, raised her right arm at a right angle, and solemnly began speaking.
"I swear! As a cadet of the Hero Academy…"
As I listened to the oath, I made up my mind.
'Ugh… Let's get out of here.'
If this kept up, far from finding Cho Seo-hyun in the dream, I'd just be branded as a lazy assistant instructor who sleeps in the faculty office.
Even as I was about to cancel Dream Invasion, the female cadet continued speaking.
"I solemnly pledge!"
Just as I was about to leave the dream without finding Cho Seo-hyun—
"First-year cadet representative! Cho Seo-hyun!"
…Huh?
***
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