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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Yuzio
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On the way to the Hero Association…
Yu-jin was sitting alone in the back seat of a taxi, gazing out the window.
As if sensing his melancholy and wistful mood…
…Terra, his eternal comrade, sent him a comforting message.
[Master, are you alright?]
‘No.’
Not at all.
He shook his head at Terra’s question and sighed deeply.
He recalled the conversation he had with Arthur and Noah as they left the Academy gates.
‘…Excuse me? You haven’t applied for the internship yet?’
‘Wait… we could do that in advance?’
‘Didn’t you know? Unlike other academies, Arena Academy has a system where you can apply in advance.’
‘I had no idea… who was supposed to tell me about this?’
‘Well, it’s not that anyone is specifically assigned to inform you, but it’s a very well-known system. And even if you hadn’t heard rumors, there’s an announcement on the Academy website and the Arena Academy 1st Year online forum. I assumed you knew…’
‘Hmm… looks like we’ll have to go ahead.’
‘Yes, unfortunately, we must part ways here for a while.’
‘Then Lee Yu-jin, we’ll see you at the outpost.’
‘Player Lee Yu-jin, I will see you at the outpost.’
For this reason, Arthur and Noah had already left for the Land of Death, where the Suppression Squad’s outpost was located…
…and Yu-jin, completely unaware of the Academy’s system, was headed to the Hero Association alone.
‘How was I supposed to know about the Academy’s system?’
Of course, it was his fault for not even bothering to find out…
But to make an excuse, he hadn’t even thought to look into it because he had no idea such a system existed.
Still, he decided to reflect on his actions.
He might not be interested in information outside the storyline, but the Academy system was basic information.
To not even think about looking into such basic information was not just a mistake, but a sign of negligence.
‘I’ll have to check the Academy website and the community forums when I have time.’
He also needed to browse through articles, news, superhuman online communities, and various other sources of information.
There might be useful information, or basic information he wasn’t aware of.
As he was thinking this, Terra sent him a message.
[( ✋˙࿁˙ ) That is unacceptable.]
A message opposing his thoughts.
He frowned at the message and asked,
‘Why? Why not?’
He wondered if there was a reason.
After all, there was no reason for Terra, the system supporting him, to oppose him for no reason.
But surprisingly, Terra’s reason for objecting was trivial.
[Gathering information is the role of your supporter.]
[Therefore, please use your precious time for other things.]
Are… you my supporter?
He stared at Terra’s message, overwhelmed with emotion.
He then nodded and said,
‘Alright, I’ll leave it to you then. Let me know if you find any useful information.’
[Leave it to me. (・∧・)ゞ]
He chuckled at Terra’s reliable message and nodded again.
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Hero Association.
Or rather, it should be called the Korean branch of the Hero Association.
Unlike the Alchemy Workshop, which was headquartered in Korea…
…the headquarters of the Hero Association was located in the United States.
But it wasn’t managed by the United States, it was managed as an international organization, like the UN.
Of course, even though it was an international organization, the influence each country held wasn’t equal.
After all, the influence of a country’s branch in the Hero Association was determined by the number of superhumans in that country.
Therefore, the country with the most influence among all nations was Korea, the land he was currently standing on.
It was only natural.
Korea was home to…
…Martial God Baek Yu-hwa.
…Grand Wizard Yoo Baek.
…Sword Star Lee Jung-baek.
…three transcendents.
It also boasted the highest number of top-rank and high-rank superhumans.
So the United States called Korea the “Land Blessed by God”…
…and other countries called it a “Superhuman Powerhouse”.
But it was inevitable.
‘Arena Academy’ was located in Korea.
It was only natural for it to be the center.
But it also came with a proportional increase in incidents and accidents… especially rift occurrences and Fallen-related terrorist attacks.
Of course, other countries also experienced rifts and terrorist attacks, but not as frequently or as intensely as Korea.
As a “Land Blessed by God”, its trials were also greater.
‘That’s why only our country has Suppression Squads.’
He sighed briefly and operated his smartwatch.
He sent a message to ‘Pretty Noona (Grey)’ in his contact list, informing her that he had arrived at the Association.
He then entered the Hero Association building, which was structured like the Alchemy Workshop.
Murmur, murmur.
[There are a lot of people.]
‘It’s the Hero Association.’
Even if you weren’t a hero, you would come to the Hero Association.
It was the place you had to come to register as a superhuman for the first time…
…and the place superhumans had to come to become heroes.
There were other reasons, but they weren’t relevant to him, so there was no need to know.
“Welcome to the Hero Association. How can I help you?”
As he approached the reception desk, a staff member who had been organizing documents approached him.
“I’m here to apply for an internship.”
“Ah, you’re here for an internship application.”
The staff member nodded with a business smile.
He took out a piece of paper from under the desk and handed it to Yu-jin along with a pen.
“Could you please fill out this form?”
[Academy Internship Application Form]
“You need to fill out the information in the circles here, here, and here.”
He looked at the areas circled in pink marker, as instructed by the staff member.
Name of the Academy you are currently attending.
Name, Year, Phone Number, Address.
Internship Department.
He immediately picked up the pen and filled out the form.
Name of the Academy you are currently attending.
= (Arena Academy)
Name, Year, Phone Number, Address.
= (Lee Yu-jin), (1st Year), (…), (…).
Internship Department.
= (Mobile Task Force 4)
For reference, “Mobile Task Force 4” was the ‘official’ name of the 9th Extermination Unit.
Since the 9th Extermination Unit was an unofficial organization, all its members were officially registered under “Mobile Task Force 4”.
It was a department created to manage operating expenses, salaries, and official activities.
“Have you finished filling it out?”
The staff member, who had been typing on the computer, approached him as he put down the pen.
“Yes, I have.”
“Okay, let me check it for a moment.”
The staff member took the application form and sat in front of the computer.
He looked at the form and typed on the keyboard for a moment…
“…Um, are you sure you filled this out correctly?”
He got up from his seat with a flustered expression, handing Yu-jin the form.
He pointed his finger at the “Internship Department” section, specifically at “Mobile Task Force 4”.
“Yes, I filled it out correctly.”
“Ah… really?”
At Yu-jin’s confirmation, the staff member picked up the phone next to the computer with a stiff expression.
He dialed a number and…
“Is this Mobile Task Force 4? This is the reception desk on the first floor. Are you recruiting any new interns? As far as I know, all the interns in Mobile Task Force 4 were sent to the operation area today… Ah, yes, yes.”
He glanced at Yu-jin nervously as he asked about intern recruitment in Mobile Task Force 4.
And after a while…
“Yes, I understand.”
He hung up the phone and looked at Yu-jin with a bright expression.
“The vice-captain is coming down right now.”
He then muttered under his breath,
“Thank goodness he’s not a villain.”
‘…Was I just mistaken for a villain?’
[It was a situation that could easily be misunderstood.]
Well… Arthur and Noah, who had applied for the internship in advance, had already gone to the operation area, the Land of Death, while he was applying separately here.
From the staff member’s perspective, he could have easily been mistaken for a villain or a Fallen targeting Mobile Task Force 4.
[It’s a good thing Master sent a message to Grey.]
‘You’re right, I might have been arrested if I hadn’t.’
He agreed with Terra and let out a sigh of relief.
“Well then… Mr. Lee Yu-jin? I will help you with your internship registration.”
The staff member, wearing the same business smile as before, sat back in front of the computer.
He began processing the internship registration at lightning speed, his typing skills on a completely different level than before…
“Yu-jin!”
…when Grey, dressed in a suit, appeared from an elevator beyond the reception desk, calling his name.
He raised his hand and waved…
…and Grey approached him quickly, a bright smile on her face.
She spread her arms wide, as if to hug him, but…
“Ah, I’d rather not.”
He chuckled wryly and stepped back.
From the moment Grey appeared, all eyes had been on them.
And some of them, seemingly aware of Grey’s affiliation, were whispering in surprise, looking back and forth between him and Grey.
“Aw, why are you avoiding me?”
Grey pouted and lowered her arms, whining as he rejected her hug.
But only for a moment.
“Welcome, Yu-jin.”
She smiled warmly, like an older sister greeting her younger brother, and pinched his cheek.
She then slung her arm around his shoulder and spoke to the staff member who was processing his registration.
“Can I take him with me?”
“Ah, just a moment. I’m almost…”
Clack, clack, clack!
“…Done!”
The staff member pressed the enter key as he spoke.
“Your internship registration is complete. Mr. Lee Yu-jin, you are now officially affiliated with the Academy and ‘Mobile Task Force 4’ for the next three months.”
He spoke rapidly, getting up from his seat and handing Yu-jin a key card.
“This is your Association ID card. If it gets destroyed or lost, please come see me. I’ll issue you a new one right away.”
“Ah, thank you.”
Wow, this staff member was a veteran.
Yu-jin was impressed by his ability to create a key card with his name printed on it while processing his registration.
The staff member, beaming with pride, resumed his paperwork.
“Let’s go, Yu-jin.”
His internship registration was complete and he had received his Association ID card.
Grey patted his back and headed towards the elevator she had come out of.
He followed her into the elevator.
Grey swiped her ID card on the card reader and said,
“Mobile Task Force 4, where we’re officially affiliated, is on the 7th floor.”
She pressed the button for the 7th floor.
“And the place where we’re unofficially affiliated is on the 3rd basement floor, but to enter there… Ah, we have to go there anyway, so I’ll tell you myself. For now, let’s go greet the members of our team on the 7th floor.”
He knew what she was talking about.
On the 3rd basement floor, there was a base for the ‘9th Extermination Unit’.
A special procedure was required to enter.
Of course, he knew the procedure, having been there countless times in the game.
But since this was his first time visiting in reality, he should pretend not to know.
He nodded at Grey’s offer to explain and looked up at the elevator floor indicator.
He chatted with Grey until they reached the 7th floor.
Ding.
[7th Floor.]
“We’re here, let’s go.”
Grey stepped out of the elevator, and Yu-jin followed.
“Noona! Is this him?”
“Is this the child of those…!”
“Wow, I can’t believe I’m seeing the child of those two!”
People who looked like members of the Suppression Squad swarmed around them.
They looked at Yu-jin with emotional expressions, asking Grey questions.
Grey grinned and slung her arm around Yu-jin’s shoulder.
“Yes, Yu-jin is the son of those two.”
She confirmed their suspicions.
The members looked at Yu-jin for a moment, speechless.
And after a while…
“Oh, oh!”
“Thank goodness, thank goodness you’re alive!”
“It’s so good to see you! So good to see you!”
They hugged him, cheering as if they had found a long-lost family member.
Yu-jin, caught in their embrace, could only chuckle awkwardly.
“H-hello, it’s nice to meet you all.”
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Kkakakakka let fucking goooo