When Kwak Ji-cheol made eye contact with while climbing the stairs, his complexion turned a little pale and he lowered his gaze.
The mories of the day he was ruthlessly beaten to the ground must have resurfaced.
On the other hand, I no longer harbored any old grudges against Kwak Ji-cheol.
I have already vented my frustrations enough.
And so when we were close enough, I took the initiative to break the ice.
163-H?
Yes.
Youve co to the right place.
Song Cheon-Hyes attitude towards Kwak Ji-cheol wasnt as disdainful as it was when she looked at , but it was clear she harbored a mix of complex emotions.
One of them seed to be concern about the pairing of Kwak Ji-cheol and .
After all, weve already dueled before, and now well be ntoring together for a month, so Im sure shes wondering if this is a good idea.
And the last mber to join was even more surprising
With shoulder-length red hair, a staff inlaid with rubies,
And the person who had fought alongside in last weeks strategy battle,
It was Hong Yeon-hwa.
Hong Yeon-hwas face was full of dissatisfaction as if there was sothing here that she didnt like so much.
With that unhappy expression, she scanned the seating chart,
And then her gaze shifted towards where 163-H was,
Only to discover sitting squarely in the sa seat.
..!!
Hong Yeon-hwa seed to freeze and she grew as still as a statue.
Her pupils darted wildly as if they were caught in an earthquake.
She swiftly turned her back and started rummaging through her belongings, likely double-checking the back of her student ID.
But just as it had been for Song Cheon-Hye and Kwak Ji-Cheol, destiny couldnt be changed.
She might as well accept it. I dont know whether it would ease her mind though.
Hong Yeon-hwa then climbed the stairs with steps as heavy as if her legs were weighed down by sandbags.
There I was, comfortably seated by myself, while the three of them awkwardly stood a little apart.
To an outsider, the scene must have looked quite comical.
So, whos going to be our ntor?
The person ant to teach us was nowhere to be seen even though all those ant to learn had already gathered.
Fortunately, the wait wasnt long.
A stir from below captured the attention of the four of us, who had been looking elsewhere, and our gazes focused on one figure.
Our ntor received those gazes calmly and continued climbing the stairs with relaxed and leisurely steps.
A third-year student and the president of the thieves club,
Dang Gyu-young.
Hello? Im your ntor.
Dang Gyu-young briefly introduced herself and sat down before she leaned against the back of the seat in front of .
Then she flashed a sly smile as if asking,
How about that, surprised?
So this is what she ant by see you Monday.
It wasnt shockingly surprising, but it was unexpected.
Those who belong to the thief class are generally a free-spirited bunch who do not like to be tied down to anything, and they often prefer leisure over diligence.
On the other hand, participating in ntoring ans being bound by a contract with Dragon Slayer Academy and having to diligently follow the schedules of the students being taught, which is quite different from what a thief would like.
In addition to that, Dang Gyu-young was the club president which ant she was likely far busier than the average mber.
Yet contrary to my expectations, she had beco a ntor.
I wonder if theres so hidden story behind this.
I doubted she would have accepted the role without good reason; the academic departnt must have offered her sothing quite enticing.
Lets ask her about it when the opportunity cos.
Dang Gyu-young silently observed each of us in turn,
After secretly making eye contact with , she no longer pretended to know . Since she was a ntor, she should not give the impression that she favored any of the students.
Among us was Song Cheon-hye, the younger sister of the third-year student council president, Song Cheon-gi.
Considering the prickly exchange they had during the temporary storage room break-in, it seed Dang Gyu-young and Song Cheon-gi were not on the best of terms.
Then there was Kwak Ji-cheol, the younger brother of Kwak Seung-jae.
Despite the heated relationship between the thieves club and the disciplinary committee, Dang Gyu-young seed to hold a relatively positive view of Kwak Seung-jae.
He was difficult to deal with, but he was a respectable opponent.
But her opinion of his younger brother, Kwak Ji-cheol, shouldnt be good.
During our duel, he had resorted to borrowing a third-years golem and equipnt and he even resorted to underhanded tactics like using space defense (turtle tactic), which likely left a very negative impression.
Among the four of us, Hong Yeon-hwa seed to have the least in common with Dang Gyu-young, but given my limited knowledge of the relationship between the Ruby Magic Tower and the Thieves Club, this was sothing to keep an eye on.
Altogether, it was a combination that was headache-inducing just to look at.
However, now that we were all part of the ntoring program, we had to accept each other regardless of the mix.
Dang Gyu-young was capable enough to be a club president so she certainly knew how to separate personal feelings from professional duties.
She began in a business-like tone while setting emotions aside.
You all ca under my guidance with the goal of becoming all-rounder mages. You might be skilled in magic, but being an all-rounder requires more than just that.
An all-rounder mage must not only fulfill their role but also adapt to the changing dynamics of a party, moving between the front, middle, and rear lines, and taking on additional roles as needed.
Dang Gyu-young continued.
I dont know where or how much you lack in certain areas. So, today, well find that out.
Through this weeks duel battles.
Dang Gyu-young brought up the duel battle map and rules next to her.
MAP:[Round Arena]
RULE:[Strong Enemy][Random Rule]
The first rule that stood out was [Strong Enemy].
The strong enemy for the second weeks strategy battle was the Beheader Goblin, which was several tis stronger than a standard goblin.
The strong enemy for this duel battle would be equally difficult.
By this point, it was almost predictable who that would be.
The strong enemy is obviously .
!
Dang Gyu-young pointed at herself with her thumb.
If the goal was to assess skills, there was no better way than direct confrontation.
It was also an opportunity for ntors to prove their strength and validate their qualifications to teach.
In short, it is ti to establish discipline.
Song Cheon-hye, Hong Yeon-hwa, and Kwak Ji-cheol, though only first-year students, belonged to well-known factions.
This ant they had great pride and there was a chance they might question the ntors background or status.
Their sowhat cold stares at Dang Gyu-young were a sign of this sentint.
Especially when you think about the negative view of the thief class.
Dang Gyu-young wasnt part of the Magic Tower Association but belonged to the Guild Union as a mage.
To avoid unnecessary complications, it was best to firmly establish discipline right away.
No matter what, defeating a third-year might be an excessively harsh demand. So, Im going to add [Random Rules].
So rules could be adjusted at the ntors discretion.
With a snap of her fingers, Dang Gyu-young added the rules.
MAP: [Round Arena]
RULE: [Strong Enemy][Limit][Sticker][Duo]
Ill start by wearing this in the fight.
At so point, a bracelet appeared on Dang Gyu-youngs finger and it was swaying gently.
It resembled an electronic bracelet with a large C displayed on its screen.
This was a bracelet that played a similar role to the [Fixed Zone] in the strategy battle placent test as it limited the wearers abilities at C rank.
Skills and traits were diminished in power, and the use of so higher-rank skills was restricted.
For example, [Blink] which was a highly versatile and fundantal movent spell for mages, was naturally a B-rank skill and so it couldnt be used in this case.
Even with everything limited to C rank, the gap in specs between first-years and her remained significant.
The sheer difference in the number of skills mastered was staggering,
Not to ntion that most skills held by first-years were at best C rank, with many at lower levels of E or F rank.
For this reason, the next rule, [Sticker], was also in our favor.
Dang Gyu-young pulled out three palm-sized stickers and attached one to her outer thigh, one to her side, and one above her collarbone.
Seeing that, Kwak Ji-cheol blushed and turned his head.
What on earth was he thinking?
This creep.
Though it was clear that Dang Gyu-young had seen his reaction, she didnt show it and continued to explain.
You dont need to defeat completely; just removing all three stickers will count as a win. Of course, I wont just stand by idly.
To remove the sticker, of course you will have to approach within arms reach, and this ans that Dang Gyu-young can keep the approaching opponent in check.
The last rule, [Duo], was so obvious it hardly needed to be ntioned.
It simply ant that two people should try their best to cooperate and remove the stickers.
Thats all. If you have any questions or complaints, speak now.
..
With such handicaps in place, there was hardly room for complaints.
Even if there were, no one wanted to be the only one grumbling when everyone else remained silent, for fear of wounding their pride.
Dang Gyu-young led us to the front of the arena.
She stood in the teleportation circle and said,
Enter in pairs when youre ready. Decide amongst yourselves who pairs with whom.
Then, Dang Gyu-young vanished inside with a swift movent.
.
.
The eyes of the four left behind wildly crisscrossing in the air.
After a tense mont of silent stand-off, Song Cheon-hye suggested to Kwak Ji-cheol,
Lets pair up.
That sounds good.
I guess Song Cheon-hye ca to the conclusion that Kwak Ji-cheo was the least troubling option among the group.
It seed Kwak Ji-cheol had arrived at the sa conclusion.
No matter what, he probably didnt want to be with , and it was better to team up with a fellow mber from the Topaz Magic Tower rather than from the rival Ruby Magic Tower.
The newly ford team stepped onto the teleportation circle and was whisked away into the arena.
Hong Yeon-hwa who was left behind looked on with a mix of frustration and resignation.
In front of Song Cheon-hye and Kwak Ji-cheol, she had maintained her usual confident and slightly irritated deanor, but now left alone with , her confidence waned and she beca visibly anxious.
I guess shes still the sa.
I thought she might be a little more at ease with after we had managed to navigate through last weeks strategy battle together but I guess that wasnt the case.
Anyway, wouldnt sothing work if we relive that experience and do sothing similar?
While waiting for Song Cheon-hye and Kwak Ji-cheol to co out,
I read the notification ssages that had just co in.
[Event: 1st ntoring] (In progress)
[Remaining Duration: 27 Days]
Accelerate your growth with the help of a ntor.
Increased probability of acquiring skills/traits.
Increased skill/trait growth speed
[Side Quest: 5th Week Duel Battles]
Objective: Remove Stickers (0/3)
Deadline: ~ midnight on Sunday.
Reward: Varies based on the ti of completion
Setting aside the ntoring event for a mont.
Although Dang Kyu-young has not ntioned it yet, this Removing Stickers from a Strong Enemy duel battle allows for multiple attempts.
However, the point to note here is that the rewards vary depending on the ti of completion.
There was a fairly large difference in reward between succeeding today, the first day, and barely succeeding by the end of Sunday.
And so I set my sights on cleanly removing all three stickers on my first try.
Argh.
Just then, Kwak Ji-cheol ca tumbling out like a ball and abruptly interrupted my thoughts.
He rolled and rolled, losing montum before sprawling out on the ground with faint sparks of electricity crackling from his body.
Soon after him, Song Cheon-hye trudged out while looking really tired.
She seed on the verge of collapsing at any mont, but when she noticed us, she tried her best to appear calm.
Then she raised her trembling hand and pointed toward the arena.
Its your turn to go in
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