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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Mod7
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Dungeon exploration.
Navigate a narrow, dark labyrinth, defeat the boss, and discover hidden treasures.
It was a repetitive grind in RPG games.
Tesha, Reus, and I walked through the dungeon corridors. The midterm practical exam consisted of dungeon exploration and a raid.
Could a three-person party even be called a raid? But that’s what the Hero Academy expected of us.
Because we weren’t just any party. We were Hero Candidates. We had to be strong.
I was on the left, responsible for defense. Reus was in the center, leading the way. And Tesha was on the right, taking on the offensive role.
I channeled mana into my left hand, creating a glowing orb that illuminated the corridor and served as a shield.
I was the designated tank, after all.
As we navigated the labyrinth, I unraveled a ball of thread, marking our path. Tesha made small scratches on the walls, and Reus dropped pebbles.
We were triple-marking our route, and Reus was also drawing a map.
Kanion, trailing behind us, observed our every move with a critical eye.
‘He clearly doesn’t like us.’
We encountered a group of hobgoblins and easily dispatched them.
Whenever we encountered a trap, whoever spotted it first called out a warning and disarmed it.
The dungeon itself was relatively easy.
We reached a large hall.
It was the center of the labyrinth, the boss room. The ceiling was higher than in the other corridors, and crystal pillars illuminated the area.
A massive Minotaur stood on an altar in the center of the hall.
It was about ten meters tall, its red eyes gleaming through its shaggy fur. It snorted, its massive horns and axe glinting in the crystalline light.
It looked like it had mad cow disease.
“I’ll take care of this.”
Tesha shouted as she charged forward.
The Minotaur swung its axe.
Tesha gracefully dodged the attack. A deafening roar echoed through the hall as the axe struck the floor. Tesha, nimble as a cat, ran up the axe’s handle.
“Haaa—!”
The Minotaur tried to swat her with its left arm. It was my turn. I sliced through the monster’s wrist with my black blade.
A clean cut.
Tesha ran up its arm and onto its shoulder.
She unleashed her mana and plunged her shortsword into the Minotaur’s temple.
The blade pierced its flesh like a skewer through a piece of meat.
A torrent of blood gushed from the wound, splattering onto the floor.
The monstrous creature, which had seemed unstoppable, collapsed with a thud.
Tesha flipped backward and landed gracefully.
She had defeated the boss monster in seconds. It had been a flawless performance.
“It’s over, Senior.”
“Ah… oh… okay.”
Kanion, who had been leaning against a wall with his arms crossed, seemed to snap out of his daze. A look of annoyance flashed across his face.
But he quickly composed himself.
“Let me give you my assessment. Your approach was too… textbook.”
“What?”
Tesha’s voice was filled with disbelief. I was also speechless.
“This is a virtual dungeon. The layout and the monster’s attack patterns are predetermined. Do you think textbook strategies will work in the real world?”
He was right.
Tesha, ever the diligent student, listened attentively.
“Your entire strategy, from start to finish, was too by-the-book. In a real dungeon, there are countless variables: traps, ambushes, unexpected monster behavior. You need to be more creative.”
Creative?
If we had been creative, he would have criticized us for being reckless.
“But the textbook…”
Tesha started to protest. She wanted to point out that their strategy had been perfect, according to the textbook.
“Are you arguing with me?”
“What?”
“The purpose of practical exams is to teach you to think outside the box. That’s the problem with students like you. You can’t adapt to unexpected situations.”
His words flowed smoothly.
Reus chuckled, tapping his spear against the ground.
“If we had used a creative strategy, you would have criticized us for being reckless, wouldn’t you?”
I didn’t want to antagonize him. I had been in the military. I knew it was better to avoid conflicts with your superiors.
But I couldn’t let him criticize us for following the rules.
“What did you say? Ethan, was it? What did you just say?”
“Our approach was correct. It’s not right to criticize a textbook strategy for being uncreative, Senior.”
It wasn’t just correct. It had been flawless. Kanion’s eyebrows furrowed.
“That’s what they call being a frog in a well. Real battles are different from practice.”
“Of course, they are. Thank you for the advice. Perhaps you could enlighten us with your ‘creative real-world strategies,’ Senior.”
Even Master Sylvia had said that if we lacked creativity, we should just follow the textbook. And even then, we often failed.
Kanion sighed.
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At the academy cafe.
Tesha and I were relaxing after the exam. Reus had left as soon as it was over, saying he had something to do.
Tesha sighed, stirring her iced tea.
“What kind of creative strategies are there…?”
“Don’t worry about it, Tesha.”
The midterm exams were over. I was planning to relax for a while, then practice dueling with Lien.
I had plenty of things to do.
“But… I can’t help but wonder if there’s a better way…”
A better way?
I couldn’t think of any. Unleashing your full mana in a dungeon was risky.
It could cause the dungeon to collapse.
So, aiming for vital points was the most efficient way.
There was also the troll hunting method: attacking from behind, severing the Achilles tendon, and then piercing the heart.
But that was also a textbook strategy.
“I don’t know.”
“Ethan…”
Tesha seemed to have something to say, but just then, Sepia approached us, waving her hand. Tia was following her.
“Ethan! Tesha! What are you doing here?”
Their practical exams must be over. Sepia pulled up a chair and joined us.
“We were just talking about the exam.”
“Heehee, really? How did it go?”
“It was okay.”
“You must have done well. You had a good team.”
Tia sat down next to Sepia. Nothing had changed between us since that night, at least outwardly.
And that’s what Tia wanted.
“What are you guys doing now that the exam is over?”
“I don’t know… lots of things to do.”
“I’m getting my ears pierced tonight.”
Sepia announced proudly. Tia chuckled.
“What’s so funny?”
“Sepia, did you know…?”
“Know what?”
Sepia’s eyes wavered, sensing Tia’s teasing tone.
“Some people have optic nerves in their ears.”
“What? So…?”
“Do you know what a girl said after getting her ears pierced?”
Sepia listened intently.
“‘Why did the lights go out?’”
It was a joke about someone going blind after getting their ears pierced. Sepia’s eyes widened in horror.
“Good luck, Sepia. Make sure you come back in one piece! Fighting!”
“That’s… that’s a lie, right? You’re just teasing me, aren’t you?”
“Who knows? It’s better to be safe than sorry!”
“But how can I be careful?!”
I chuckled at their exchange. Sepia was surprisingly gullible.
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Kanion was fuming. He didn’t like Ethan. The kid had dared to talk back to him, a senior.
And he hadn’t shown any respect.
‘And the worst part is, that elf girl likes him.’
He had checked Ethan’s grades before the practical exam.
He was ranked somewhere in the 20s.
A pathetic score compared to Kanion, who was always in the top 10.
And he was the eldest son of the prestigious Amos family. The Amos family had produced several notable heroes over the past 300 years.
“How dare you…”
He gritted his teeth. He wanted to find Ethan and teach him a lesson. He headed to the cafe.
Ethan had gone there with Tesha after the exam.
He had planned to give Ethan a verbal lashing.
‘How dare you talk back to your senior? Your arrogance will get your teammates killed.’ Something like that.
But when he saw Ethan laughing and chatting with three girls, his anger intensified.
It was the TTS trio from the festival performance. He hadn’t forgotten them.
And the memory of being rejected by Tia resurfaced.
“So you’re not getting your ears pierced?”
“No way! After hearing that story?!”
“Sepia, you’re so gullible. Why would there be optic nerves in your ears?”
“I know! I’m just saying I don’t want to risk it!”
The pink-haired girl and the red-haired girl were bickering. Kanion walked over to their table and stood beside Ethan.
“Come with me, Ethan. I need to teach you some manners.”
He threw a brown leather glove at Ethan. It was a duel challenge. The glove landed in Ethan’s iced Americano, spilling the drink.
Brown liquid spread across the table.
The three girls looked up at Kanion.
“Apologize now, and I’ll forget this ever happened.”
But Ethan didn’t look intimidated. He picked up the glove and looked at Kanion, his voice low and steady.
“What do you think you’re doing, Senior?”
His dark eyes met Kanion’s.
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Ethan’s about to take out the trash.