The Support Ate it All

Sunday evening.

Dang Gyu-young had called me out for a moment.

A bench on the outskirts of the walking trail.

There, Dang Gyu-young sat with her legs stretched out.

She noticed my presence then turned to me and waved her hand lightly.

“Young Monarch, come here.”

“Caa—w.”

I grabbed two canned drinks from a nearby vending machine, handed one to Dang Gyu-young, and sat at the edge of the bench.

She then naturally leaned her back against my arm.

“That doesn’t look comfortable.”

“Nope. Super comfy.”

As if telling me not to argue, she lightly bumped her head against my shoulder.

We sipped our drinks and exchanged casual updates for a while.

Then after staring down at her legs, Dang Gyu-young spoke.

“…I worked really hard this week, you know?”

“I know. I saw your effort.”

The reason she had called me out was obvious; she had completed the Stage 1 Hardship Quest.

I had estimated it would take about a week and a half, but she finished it a few days early.

Which meant she had pushed herself even harder.

Dang Gyu-young grinned.

“You should praise me, right?”

“You worked hard.”

“Hmph. That’s it? No reward?”

“Of course, there’s a reward. Stage 2.”

Once again, she bumped her head against my shoulder.

“You really have no sense of atmosphere. None at all. Hey, use it.”

Without hesitation, I activated the skill.

[Activated ‘Hardship’.]

[Cooldown: 5 days 23:59:58]

[‘Stage 2 Harship’ has been granted to the target.]

Dang Gyu-young fixed her gaze on empty space for a moment, as if she was reading the quest details.

Then she grimaced in disgust.

“…Two!? I’m not doing it.”

“You mean the quest where those light orbs appear?”

“Yeah, how did you know?”

“That one goes up to four.”

“…I’m not doing it! Seriously, I’m not! I’m going home.”

With that, she really did brush herself off and stand up.

I lightly grabbed her wrist.

“Where are you going? Since you’re here, stay a little longer.”

“…….”

She hesitated for a moment, then glanced down at her captured wrist.

A faint smirk tugged at the corner of her lips as she spoke in a coy tone.

“Let go. I’m really leaving.”

But she showed no real sign of pulling away or taking a step forward.

All she did was lightly shake her wrist in my grasp.

It was obvious she wanted me to play along, so I decided to humor her.

I tightened my grip slightly and spoke in a firmer tone.

“Qyu, you’re not going anywhere today.”

“I’m goi—pfft, hahahaha!”

Dang Gyu-young burst into laughter and started smacking my shoulder as she cackled.

Once her laughter died down a little, I spoke in a slightly more serious tone.

“That quest is annoying, right? Your skills keep getting interrupted and canceled.”

“Mhmm, mhmm. You get it.”

“But it’s a necessary step. Now that you’ve cleared Stage 1, you’ve improved a bit, haven’t you?”

“…I have, yeah.”

The streetlamp cast a wavering shadow of Dang Gyu-young.

Most people would overlook it as just an ordinary shadow, but I noticed the difference.

It had grown darker than before.

She had probably noticed it too.

“As you progress through the stages, it’ll keep getting darker. And then, you’ll learn.”

“…Learn what?”

“Shadow Mark.”

A trait that allowed her to cast shadows even in the light.

From the moment they mastered this, Shadow Mages were no longer bound by attributes or environment.

It was also an essential trait for progressing to the next stage.

“You might even be able to land a hit on the Disciplinary Committee President.”

“Oh Se-hoon? That part sounds nice.”

“Let’s aim to clear Stage 2 before summer break.”

That way, I would be able to use it again once the cooldown was up.

Dang Gyu-young met my gaze and nodded her head.

“Okay. I’ll give it a try.”

***

Monday.

Strategy Battle class.

Seo Cheong-yong, as always, continued his explanation with a gentle smile on his lips.

“Final exams are right around the corner. Next week, to be exact! Time to start preparing, don’t you think?”

“……!”

“Last week, you had a duel battle inside the Trap Labyrinth. Let’s go around and hear what each of you took away from it.”

A few students raised their hands, and as Seo Cheong-yong called on them one by one, they shared their thoughts.

– Just making it through the Labyrinth was exhausting.

– On top of that, we had to watch out for traps, so it felt harder than other duel battles.

– Our team got taken out by a trap before we even got to fight anyone.

– We did manage to encounter another team, but by then, we were both in shambles.

Seo Cheong-yong nodded along as he listened to their responses.

“That’s right. Labyrinths and traps are the most effective way to wear down intruders. And since your enemies know this, expect these kinds of situations to become more common, not less.”

Then, with a serious expression, he offered a word of caution.

“Even in these unfair and disadvantageous situations, you must win. Think about what rests on your shoulders.”

“…….”

“…….”

The students’ expressions hardened as they silently reaffirmed their determination.

After setting the mood for a moment, Seo Cheong-yong smiled again and resumed the lesson.

“So, both this week’s strategy battle and the final exam will take place inside a trap dungeon. To give you a little hint, the two are closely connected. Let’s start by looking at the map.”

With a casual wave of his hand, a dungeon map appeared on the blackboard.

A large rectangular maze was intricately tangled together. Its shape resembled that of a mousetrap.

“C-Rank Dungeon, Cheese Trap.”

“……!”

“—or rather, a replica of it.”

The students gasped before letting out sighs of relief.

Of course, it would have been absurd to throw them into a real C-Rank dungeon for just a strategy battle.

A replica dungeon was essentially a recreated version of an existing dungeon. It was a type of duplicate.

While it didn’t grant rewards upon completion, it could be modified to suit the academy’s needs, making it perfect for training.

Most likely, only the structure had been preserved while the traps’ lethality had been significantly toned down.

Of course, since it was still adjusted to fit first-year students, getting caught in one would hurt all the same.

Just then, a student sitting near the front raised a hand and asked a question.

“So we’re not going down to the lower levels this week?”

“Good question. I was just about to bring that up. This week’s strategy battle will take place only on the ground level.”

Since it was connected to the final exam dungeon, experiencing Cheese Trap firsthand was more beneficial than exploring any other dungeon.

Seo Cheong-yong pointed to the map and continued his explanation.

“So what exactly are you supposed to do here? If you’re entering a dungeon, you should have something to gain from it, right?”

After all, without a goal, there would be no reason to risk one’s life clearing a dungeon in the first place.

At the very center of the map, a room began flashing in golden light.

“Simply put, it’s the Cheese Room. Your main objective is to secure the reward from this place.”

At some point, a comically shaped cheese box had appeared in Seo Cheong-yong’s hand.

It was nothing more than a prop, but holding onto it was necessary to earn points in the strategy battle.

Then, a knowing smile formed on Seo Cheong-yong’s lips.

“Of course, if that were all there was to it, this dungeon wouldn’t be called Cheese ‘Trap’ now would it?”

A mousetrap existed to catch mice.

Likewise, the Cheese Room’s reward was merely bait to lure challengers in.

Just then, the golden light in the center of the map flickered out, and in its place, red markers began appearing all across the map.

“The moment you pick up the cheese, the number of traps will increase significantly. Monsters will also become more active. You’ll have to break through all of that to clear the dungeon. Now then, where do you escape?”

This time, green door icons began flashing in the four corners of the map.

“At a glance, they look like exits, don’t they? Once you take the cheese and leave through any of these, it’s over. It doesn’t matter which one you choose. And finally, one more thing.”

Four locations on the map lit up in a vivid red.

“The Control Room. Destroying it will disable the traps. Of course, it won’t be easy, but any student who succeeds will receive bonus points.”

To summarize, this week’s strategy battle goes as follows:

Fight through a maze filled with traps and monsters to reach the “Cheese Room” at the very center.

Once you obtain the cheese, additional traps will be triggered, and the number of monsters will increase. You must break through all of that and reach an escape point to clear the dungeon.

If you destroy the Control Room along the way, the traps will be disabled, but if memory serves me right, a powerful monster guards it, making it no easy feat.

Of course, for me, there was no choice in the matter.

[Side Quest: 17th Week Strategy Battle] (In Progress….)

▷ Objective: Clear the strategy battle dungeon

▷ Bonus Objective: Destroy the Control Room (0/1)

▷ Rewards: Varies based on achievement level

To earn the best reward possible, passing through it was unavoidable.

While I was lost in thought, Seo Cheong-yong’s explanation continued.

Instead of a map, the classroom blackboard now displayed the rules and environment.

MAP: [Cheese Trap]

RULE: [Three Players]

“There are no time or health limits, and as long as you clear it, you’ll get scores and points, so take your time and analyze it thoroughly. I’ve said it multiple times, but this is also connected to the final exam. That’s it for today’s lesson!”

After Seo Cheong-yong left the classroom, students began grouping up to form parties.

Since two-person teams were somewhat set in stone, today’s three-player requirement meant they needed to bring in one more member.

Of course, my three-player team had already been decided.

Go Hyeon-woo and Seo Ye-in approached me from both sides.

“Kim-hyung.”

“Butler.”

I responded with a single sentence to each of them.

“You’re not going to join Han So-mi? And also, I’m not a butler.”

“I only spent time with Miss Han on a whim last week. She said she had something to test.”

“What did she test?”

“I’m not sure. She wouldn’t tell me at all.”

Just then, I felt someone staring at us. When I turned to look, Han So-mi was glaring at Go Hyeon-woo with her cheeks puffed out.

What on earth did he do to make the always-smiling Han So-mi this upset?

Go Hyeon-woo let out a strained chuckle and continued speaking.

“Besides, it seems she feels more comfortable with you and Miss Seo.”

“Is that so?”

Since Go Hyeon-woo had been one of the key contributors to clearing dungeons with me alongside Dang Gu-young, he was always welcome in the party as long as he was willing to join.

Of course, that meant I’d have to give up on Plan B. Hong Yeon-hwa or Shin Byeong-cheol.

Just then, Hong Yeon-hwa had asked if there was a spot available, so I sent her a reply.

[Kim Ho: Already full.]

[Kim Ho: sry sry]

[Hong Yeon-hwa: (Sad puppy emoji)]

[Hong Yeon-hwa: Okay…….]

[Kim Ho: Should we go down tomorrow evening?]

[Hong Yeon-hwa: Mhmm.]

[Hong Yeon-hwa: (Tail-wagging puppy emoji)]

[Hong Yeon-hwa: I’ll wrap up the strategy battle before then!]

“You seem busy too, Kim-hyung.”

“You’re this perceptive, so why is Han So-mi acting like that?”

As I closed the message window and replied, Go Hyeon-woo let out an awkward laugh.

“Haha, well, they say even monks can’t shave their own heads.”

“I’m sure that’s the case. Anyway, let’s get going.”

We moved toward the dungeon building.