Episode 19. The Incident at the MT
The students of Hanguk University gathering at school that morning were met with an unusual commotion.
"What the... that guy?"
"You didn't know? They say he's an Awakened!"
While others were struggling to load soju boxes onto the bus one by one, Sindae lifted four boxes at once.
Student Council President I Seonho watched him with satisfaction as he fluttered about in a luxury coat, moving soju boxes.
'Could it be that I've discovered a future Welfare Department Head here?'
It was a student council department with a grand name, the Welfare Department, but in reality, it was a chore department that moved luggage and cooked at the MT.
I Seonho cleared his throat and approached Sindae, who was moving luggage amidst the admiration of those around him.
"Ahem... Sindae, take it slow."
"I'm fine, Hyung."
Sindae's Strength stat was over 200 to begin with.
It was clear he wouldn't break a sweat even if he moved every piece of luggage here.
"Is that so? But do you know how to cook?"
"Cook?"
Several students flinched at the word "cooking."
The quick-witted ones among them noticed I Seonho's intention of marking Sindae for the vacant Welfare Department Head position.
'That guy as Welfare Department Head?'
'Wow... a rich young master getting an express pass straight to the Welfare Department Head spot...'
"I know a little cooking..."
Sindae was confident in meat dishes, if nothing else, having learned a few techniques from his father since childhood.
On top of that, his proficiency, honed through cooking monster meat using his cooking skill, made him confident that he had cooked more than anyone else present.
"Really?"
A smile curved at the corners of I Seonho's lips at Sindae's words.
He chuckled and patted Sindae's shoulder.
"Take it easy. You might end up with more work."
'Why are there so many people telling me I'll have a lot of work to do these days?'
Sindae tilted his head, finding it strange.
As soon as he finished moving the luggage, Bak Hyeyeon of the student council, who had been watching with her mouth agape in amazement, hurriedly came over with a drink.
"A... are you thirsty? D... Department Head—no, Senior Bak Sindae."
"You aren't fainting today, I see."
Bak Hyeyeon's face reddened at Sindae's chuckled remark. Seeing her like that, he thought to himself, 'Oops.'
'D... did I just sound too much like an insider?'
To Bak Hyeyeon, who seemed to be blushing out of awkwardness, Sindae recalled the smile he had practiced from I Seonho yesterday.
"I... I... I'm joking."
Sindae attempted the leisurely yet refreshing smile of I Seonho.
Bak Hyeyeon was slightly taken aback by his expression.
And thanks to his raised stats, Sindae heard someone muttering.
"What's up with that senior? Is he frowning right now?"
"Hey, hey, she gave a drink like that to a rich young master. Of course he'd frown."
'What... now I'm a rich young master?'
At first they had called him an ogre and a North Korean spy, and now just because his clothes had changed a little, he was a rich young master.
Sindae could only shake his head at others' words.
"Alright, alright, everyone get on the bus!"
'The bus!'
His thoughts were cut short.
Sindae couldn't help but harden his expression as the moment he had dreaded the most approached.
I Seonho had sorted the Awakened within the department appropriately and assigned them to buses to prepare for unexpected situations.
Sindae had been assigned to Bus 3 along with Byeon Beomsu and Bak Sangok, whom he had seen before.
'Gayeon is on Bus 2, huh...'
He had wondered if he might be able to sit with O Gayeon if the Awakened sat together, but he could only sigh internally.
"For now, I'm on Bus 3..."
The destination was Gimhae.
Since this field trip's schedule involved touring the ancient Gaya ruins, the long ride from Seoul to Gimhae made the question of where to sit the most problematic moment.
'Rather than where to sit, who will be sitting next to me...'
Sindae recalled the sad memory of sitting alone with a professor before enlisting in the military.
Fortunately, thanks to the professor having gone to Gimhae in advance this time, there was no chance of that.
Sindae followed the students boarding the bus one by one and got on.
When he boarded with a pounding heart, he noticed that the students who had been chatting noisily all fell silent.
"Th... that senior is on the same bus as us..."
"W... we shouldn't be loud, should we?"
"Should we just sleep?"
Sindae sighed at the students watching his every move.
Byeon Beomsu, who hadn't even made eye contact with him since the last reservist training, was throwing his weight around at the juniors in the back and even frowned when he saw Sindae.
'I should just sit in the very front...'
Sindae sat in the very front, as the atmosphere had grown awkward because of him for no reason.
An unfamiliar voice reached Sindae, who was resting his chin on his hand and looking out the window.
"I... is this s... seat empty?"
'A girl's voice!?'
Surprised at the thought that a female student might be appearing to sit next to him, Sindae opened his eyes wide.
He discovered Bak Hyeyeon looking at him.
'He might become the Welfare Department Head, so I should get close to him in advance.'
Bak Hyeyeon had grasped I Seonho's intentions.
Since she served as the vice head of welfare in the student council, she wanted to sit there simply because she wanted to get close to Sindae.
"Ah... yes... p... please sit..."
'Wh... what? Why is this girl sitting next to me?'
Unaware of this, Sindae let his imagination run wild, one thought leading to another.
'Wait, if I think about it, the only one who's kept talking to me at school is Bak Hyeyeon, right?'
Sindae couldn't even imagine that she had just been doing student council work.
Before long, the bus carrying the confused him began to depart.
"Senior, but don't you smell something like blood?"
Sindae couldn't help but sigh internally as he saw Bak Hyeyeon, who had furrowed her brows at the smell of blood as soon as she sat next to him, sniffing with her nose.
'I showered in a hurry, so it hasn't completely gone away yet?'
Sindae had been butchering in the dungeon following Cha Yerin from last night until 7 in the morning.
It was a moment when he resented her for catching the boss monster of a 7-star dungeon in a short time and even making him butcher it.
"Hmm... I don't smell anything?"
"Is that so?"
Looking at Bak Hyeyeon tilting her head at his words, Sindae couldn't help but sigh internally once more.
'No... I can't cause a scene on the bus where I'm making my insider debut!'
Sindae resolved to spray cologne as soon as they stopped at a rest area.
***
'Huh? This is...'
The Hanguk University History Department bus speeding toward Gimhae.
I Seonho, who had been laughing with students on Bus 1, opened his eyes wide at the creepy sensation he felt while passing through a tunnel.
"Hyung, what's wrong?"
"This is definitely..."
The tension one feels upon entering a dungeon.
However, since it was an ordinary tunnel outside the window, I Seonho's bewilderment was short-lived, and he opened his eyes wide at the scenery appearing outside the bus as it passed through the tunnel into bright light.
"Wh... what... what is this!?"
"Huh? Why are we in a forest?"
The bus driver and students in the front seats were surprised by the sudden change in scenery.
I Seonho quickly jumped forward and surveyed the surroundings, and he couldn't help but open his eyes wide.
"A trap-type dungeon..."
'Of all things, it had to be a trap-type dungeon...'
I Seonho clicked his teeth as he looked around.
A trap-type dungeon was a dungeon that, like a trap, pulled in living beings at any given moment and disappeared.
Because of this, it was difficult for the Association to observe them, and they had trouble closing such dungeons.
"Umm... H... Hyung?"
When an anxious student pointed his finger out the window, they could see giant trees moving and approaching them.
'Trap-types are tricky for other reasons, but...'
The biggest problem was that escape was absolutely impossible unless they defeated the boss here.
However, I Seonho chuckled and got off the bus.
"Still, you guys have bad luck..."
The tree-type monsters, [Ents], approaching with heavy thuds.
They were 4-star monsters, beings that were no match for I Seonho.
"There are two A-rank Awakened here."
I Seonho looked back, thinking of the other Awakened besides himself.
However, he discovered that only the one Bus 1 that he had ridden was there, and his expression hardened.
'Uh... w... wait, why is there only our bus!?'
Anxiety flashed through his mind so quickly that he even forgot about the approaching Ents.
***
'Good lord, what is this now?'
Sindae couldn't close his mouth in surprise at the scenery visible after exiting the tunnel.
A grassland spread out as widely as Daegwallyeong Ranch.
Moreover, thanks to the uneasiness he felt, Sindae could easily tell that this was a dungeon.
"Umm... S... Senior?"
Before even reacting to Bak Hyeyeon's voice beside him, Sindae hurriedly got off the bus.
"Please tell everyone to stay inside the bus."
Bak Hyeyeon nodded at Sindae's serious words.
Soon after getting off the bus, Sindae could feel the presences around him.
'This is definitely...'
"A trap-type dungeon..."
Sindae nodded as he looked at Bak Sangok, who had appeared beside him at some point.
Because they knew all too well how troublesome trap-type dungeons were, their expressions couldn't help but harden.
"What star-rank monsters do they feel like?"
The aura he felt was 4-star.
When Sindae asked Bak Sangok beside him, the latter looked at Sindae as if asking what he was talking about.
"How do you know when you can't even see the monsters?"
'Huh? He can't feel this?'
Sindae thought that Bak Sangok couldn't read the auras emanating from the surroundings.
He noticed that Byeon Beomsu hadn't gotten off the bus and tilted his head.
"Huh, but why isn't Beomsu-Hyung out here?"
If they were 4-star or higher monsters, they would be impossible for Sindae to clear alone, so he was flustered that Byeon Beomsu wasn't coming out.
At his words, Bak Sangok could only sigh.
"Empty wagons make the most noise..."
Sindae was about to go back into the bus to call Byeon Beomsu out, asking what he meant.
However, seeing Byeon Beomsu's eyes soaked in panic, he sighed.
'Still, it's better than nothing...'
Remembering that Byeon Beomsu had received the high rank of C-rank Awakened, Sindae approached him.
As Sindae approached, he could see Byeon Beomsu gradually growing more intimidated.
"Hyung, right now it would be best if you hunted with us outside the bus..."
"You guys do it..."
"Huh?"
Sindae had never expected him to avoid it like this, so when he asked in disbelief, he discovered Byeon Beomsu eventually screaming.
"I said you guys do it!! Why are you trying to drag me into this!?"
"..........."
'Could this person really be.......'