Chapter 42 Chapter 11.1 - Sylvie
After I sold everything at my disposal, the man there asked me if I wanted to make a deal with him.
"Your work is swift and splendid. If you bring more corpses in such good states, I will pay you more than the average amount."
He offered in such a manner, and I vaguely accepted the deal. I didn't write or sign a contract, but I still managed to enter his eyes, and that was enough for now.
When I returned to the academy, it was around 5 PM. Selling the monsters, cleaning myself inside an inn, and eating a hefty meal…All of them cost quite a long time as well as money, but it was good to reward myself from time to time.
The moment I returned to the academy, the same atmosphere of students walking and wandering around welcomed me.
Since the weekend was about to end, most students were returning from either their homes or their small ventures inside Aurora City.
"Oh, you are here."
The same worker that always sent me off welcomed me.
"Good that you are here before curfew."
I nodded in response to his words as I scanned the watch.
"Then, have a good week."
"Thanks."
Just like that, I was about to leave, but suddenly my ears perked up as I felt the familiar voice I had been hearing in the game.
"Yo, today's dungeon was pretty good, right?" It was a girl whose voice I knew pretty well.
"Indeed. I would have never thought your sword could be this sharp."
"Hehe….Do you think my family's arts are jokes, Victor?"
"It is not that. I didn't expect you to one-shot it."
"It was because I had fried his skin firsthand."
"Yeah. If it wasn't because of Irina, I am pretty sure I wouldn't have one-shotted it. As expected, working with a magician is the best."
A group of three students were walking together, and immediately surroundings attention was turned to them.
That was to be expected since all three of them had causal clothes on themselves, and they looked really good and aesthetically satisfying from an objective point of view.
A girl with red hair and a scruffy attitude, a girl with white hair and a tomboyish cut, and a boy with a cold demeanor.
Irene, Julia, Victor.
Looking at them, I remembered this event. In the game, according to the achievement and progress of those three characters at the start, Ethan might have also entered this dungeon with them…..
And the results would be abysmal for his character since he would see the disparity between him and his friends, making him work a lot harder than before. This event was one of the catalysts that would give players an experience points buff, which would let them advance at a faster rate.
'But from the looks of it, Ethan hadn't gone with them. Just as I heard at that time in the last class.'
As I saw the three walking together, without wanting to associate myself with them, I slowly walked away.
Though I felt a squinting gaze behind me.
"Irina, what is wrong?" As my sensitive senses picked the sound up, I heard Julia asking.
"Nothing. I just saw an annoying bastard; that's it."
"I see….Bad for him then…."
"Bad from him…."
Just like that, I returned to my room…..
********
'Status.'
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?Name: Astron Natusalune
?Occupation: Weapon Master (level 1)
?Talent Limit: 6
?Passives:
-? Vengeful Bane
?Attributes:
Variable Attributes:
-? Strength: 1.6
-? Dexterity: 2.216
-? Agility: 2.12
-? Constitution:? 1.524
-? Intuition: 2.3
-? Magical Power: 2.6
-? Mana Capacity: 1.84
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After returning to my room, I once again checked my stats.
'My strength stat increased by 0.1, and the others also increased a lot.' I thought to myself.
It was evident that putting one's self into dangerous situations that required one to push their limits enabled one to have better improvement.
'After all, that was the setting in the game.'
Especially a newly designed complex setting was added to the game.
'Danger meter.'
A special type of system that measures the difficulty and the danger of the situations by considering a lot of factors.
The adaptability of situations, the overall strength of the enemy, the preparations that were made, the factor of unknown, etc.
Even though it was not a perfect design, it made the game interesting since the harder the foe you fought, the more experience points you would get.
That did not simply mean the level of the enemy was higher than the player; it also took into account the fact of compatibility.
For instance, a physical tank type of monster would easily be beaten by a mage build; thus, that would give less experience even if its level was higher, etc.
That made the game a lot harder since those that would abuse the weakness of the bosses and enemies would be rewarded less simply…..
That was the reason why the game was a git-gud type at the end.
After closing my status window, I started pondering about my future events on my way to the training grounds.
'After the club activities start, the interactions with demons will also start. I need to be present there no matter what.'
CLENCH
Clenching my fists, I gritted my teeth. Remembering the amount of demon influence and the djinns inside this academy made me want to puke.
'I will pluck every one of you, one by one. I won't spare those who wish to become dogs of demons either.'
Just like that, I reached the training grounds. Today I didn't want to do any more combat training, so I just focused on my body inside the gym.
And, of course, it was always the running that came first…..
*******
RUSTLE CHATTER
As the morning of Monday came, all of the students made their way to their classrooms.
A round-looking amphitheater was filled with students since today; they would learn about their first dungeon exploration grades.
Everyone took their seats as they talked amongst themselves energetically.
"What do you think? Who will get the highest grade?"
"Yeah, there are some really skilled hunters in our group. It's hard to predict," another student replied.
"Did you see Victor during training? He's got this intense aura. As expected from Blackthorns," a curious student whispered.
"Really? That's pretty cool. I hope I did well in the dungeon," their friend responded.
Over in another corner, a group of friends discussed their favorites.
"I'm rooting for Lilia. She is our school goddess, I bet she nailed it," one of them said with a smile.
"Oh, and Julia. To be honest, I didn't expect them to get out this fast….I mean, they basically finished the whole training in 40 minutes."
"Yeah, I was in her group, and to be honest, that girl was crazy. Her sword just decimated the boss monster in a matter of seconds."
As the groups talked amongst themselves, behind the rows, a young man just sat there and kept reading the book in front of him.
Astron was someone that didn't have much interest in gossip that didn't benefit him. But, he still put his one ear to the conversations since there was a chance that good information might appear inside there.
After all, information was power, and rumors always contained such.
But, for now, it was meaningless.
CREAK
While the students were busy talking amongst themselves, suddenly, the door opened wide, and a person with a good amount of pressure entered the room.
The same woman with short yellow hair and clothes showcased that she was an instructor.
"Attention."
SILENCE
As she raised her voice, instantly, the students' chatter reached its end as well, as an eerie silence descended upon the classroom.
'She looks like she is in a bad mood.' Astron thought.
His eyes perceived the small gestures that were commonly made by those that were annoyed and angry.
Her brow was slightly furrowed, and her lips were pressed into a thin line. She tapped her fingers impatiently on the desk, a clear sign of her agitation. Her foot tapped rhythmically on the floor, a sure indication of her growing impatience.
Her crossed arms and the way she shifted her weight from one leg to the other showed her frustration. The way she stared at the class with a stern and unwavering gaze sent a message that she meant she was angry.
And the aura that was excluded from her added made the students think of themselves.
'What did we do wrong?'
All of them asked this question themselves, as they couldn't understand why Instructor White was angry.
"Today, before we start our class, I will announce your first Practical Assessment results." As she said those words, she squinted her eyes.
'And here comes the roast.' Astron thought.
He knew this even after all.
"It was pathetic," Eleanor said as her gaze wandered around the students. She looked at the students like they were bugs, and she crushed them with her aura.
"For starters, some of you displayed a complete lack of teamwork. It's as if you all forgot that hunting monsters is not a solo endeavor. We put the students that ranked higher into the teams for the sake of making them understand how helpful teamwork could be. You were supposed to work together, support each other, and strategize as a team. But what did I witness? Individuals acted like they were the stars of the show, ignoring their teammates and charging ahead recklessly. You were more interested in showing off your own skills rather than accomplishing the mission as a group."
With those words, her gaze wandered around the students in the front. Even though Eleanor knew this generation was named as Golden Generation, that didn't mean she would let them do as they wanted.
"Because you had charged on your own, your teammates had a hard time dealing with the remaining monsters. And, if this was a real dungeon, we could even see some monsters that got away thanks to your negligence. We are hunters, and it is our job to ensure that we clear the gates perfectly and protect our citizens from the monsters inside the gate."
Her gaze especially stayed on Irina for longer than others. That was because she watched her recording, and Irina was one of those that disappointed her the most.
"Understood!"
""""Yes."""""
Against the charisma of such a high-ranked hunter, none of the students could voice their thoughts as almost every one of them spoke.
Almost.
Since Astron kept silent, as he knew most students that had graduated from here were going to be selfish hunters in the future.
Like him.
So, there was no need to make empty promises here.
"And don't even get me started on the egos in this room," Eleanor continued, her tone becoming more impassioned. "Some of you acted as if you were invincible, disregarding the warnings and advice of your teammates. You thought you knew it all, and your arrogance led to poor decision-making and unnecessary risks. This is not a place for heroes. This is a place for smart and skilled hunters who know how to work together and make sound judgments."
She continued speaking as she didn't stop her roast. Her gaze was still around the people that sat in the front rows, and even the main cast couldn't help but lower their heads. This one was directed to Victor mostly since he was the one that disregarded others as thrash and didn't listen to the ranger of his group, almost leading them into a trap.
"And let's not forget about those who were simply lazy," Eleanor said, her voice taking on a stern edge as her gaze slightly wandered at the back of the seats.
In the end, even if she was roasting those at the front seats with higher ranks, there were things she hated a lot more than those.
Especially people who were weak and lazy at the same time.
""Some of you were so lazy during the assessment, it's a wonder you even bothered to show up," she said.
"There were those who thought they could rely on their teammates to do all the work for them. Let me tell you, that's not how teamwork works," she added, her voice firm as she glanced in Astron's direction.
Her gaze penetrated Astron, that was sitting in the back rows. The way she glared at him showed that she was really angry.
Hearing this, Irina turned back with a smirk on her face. After all, she knew the person Eleanor's words attacked. The one that annoyed her the most for the time being.
'You reap what you sow; you low-ranked bastard.' She thought as she was happy with Astron getting the result he deserved.
It was not only her; almost everyone inside the classroom could see Eleanor's gaze directed at Astron.
"Looks like Astron is her favorite target today," someone remarked, glancing at the scene.
"I heard he was pretty lazy during the assessment," another student said with a knowing nod.
The students murmured amongst themselves as they looked at Eleanor and Astron. They were now happy that he was the target since the pressure on themselves was now shifted to him.
"And then we have those who seemed completely disinterested in the task at hand. It's as if they had better things to do than participate in dungeon exploration," she remarked, her eyes narrowing as she looked at Astron, who remained impassive.
Throughout Eleanor's criticisms, Astron maintained his calm demeanor, not showing any reaction to her words. He knew she was targeting him, but he didn't feel the need to defend himself. He was well aware of his shortcomings and didn't need Eleanor to point them out.
The other students couldn't help but notice the tension between Eleanor and Astron, and they exchanged knowing glances as they observed the scene.
"He's really getting under her skin," one student whispered to another.
"Yeah, she's definitely singling him out," the other replied with a nod.
As Eleanor's roasting continued, she emphasized the importance of taking the Practical Assessment seriously and putting in the effort to improve. Her words were meant to motivate the students, but Astron didn't seem fazed.
"He must have nerves of steel to remain so composed," someone whispered, impressed by Astron's unwavering demeanor.
That was partially true as physically Astron really had a hard time enduring Eleanor's pressure, but for the mental case, he didn't care.
In the end, Eleanor's criticisms didn't seem to affect Astron. He didn't care about his grades or what others thought of him.
After all, he had only one goal in his mind, and that didn't require him to have a good impression of others.
Just like that, the class continued as Eleanor kept spouting her strict remarks about their dungeon work.
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