Chapter 13
After the first day, Hajun didn’t do anything particularly noticeable.
As promised to Seoyoon, he quietly absorbed magic stones and attended training. Even after classes ended, he kept to himself, simply using the guild’s facilities without interacting much with others.
Since the other trainees didn’t bother picking fights with someone who was silently minding his own business, a week passed without any incidents.
And finally—the day of practical training arrived.
“Ha~ finally, theory is over. I was getting so restless.”
Voices buzzed throughout the classroom as trainees chatted about the upcoming field training.
Most of it, of course, was complaints about the harsh dungeon environment.
“Man, once we start, we have to camp in a dungeon for a whole week. This is insane.”
“Hyung, we’ll basically be living in dungeons from now on anyway. Better get used to it.”
“True. At least we’re with Baekhwa, so we’ll get top-tier camping gear. I heard the Association guys basically get military-level stuff.”
“That sounds rough… By the way, who’s in charge of our training? Hope it’s someone not too strict.”
“The last batch had Team 2’s leader, right? Then it should be Team 3 this time.”
In the end, it was just training in an E-rank dungeon owned by the guild.
For trainees who were at least C-rank or higher, there was nothing to be nervous about.
As they chatted idly while waiting for the instructor—
“Hello, new Baekhwa hunters.”
“…Huh?”
The classroom door opened, and a familiar figure walked in.
The elegant beauty stepped up to the podium with a bright smile and introduced herself.
“I’ll be in charge of your safety during the next seven days of training. I’m Baek Yujin. Nice to meet you~”
Baek Yujin—head of recruitment for Baekhwa Guild and an A-rank hunter.
Her unexpected appearance caused the entire classroom to erupt in excitement.
“What…? Team Leader Baek!?”
“No way, she’s in charge of us?”
“I didn’t think she did this kind of thing!”
Most of the trainees had seen her at least once during recruitment.
But no one had ever imagined that a member of the guild’s royal family would personally enter a dungeon to train rookies.
Even if it was a safe environment, a dungeon lacked even basic facilities like restrooms.
For such a key figure to spend a week there for training was extremely unusual.
Naturally, the trainees began to misunderstand the situation.
“Are we… like, seriously valued or something?”
“Of course! An A-rank hunter, and a royal family member at that, personally training us? That means the guild has huge expectations for us!”
“Exactly! Why else would she come herself?”
They believed they were elite prospects—the future of Baekhwa.
But—
Watching their reactions from the podium, Yujin smiled inwardly.
‘Well, they can think whatever they want.’
It was true they were future assets of the guild.
But that wasn’t why she was here.
There was only one reason.
‘Kang Hajun.’
She had volunteered for this role solely to personally assess—and recruit—him.
“Alright then, shall we get going?”
“Yes, Team Leader!”
Unaware of the truth, the trainees burned with motivation.
After completing their final safety briefing, they boarded the bus to the gate—still unable to contain their excitement.
Completely oblivious to the dangers that might lie ahead.
At the guild-owned training dungeon.
Though it was only an E-rank dungeon, the atmosphere was far more heated than usual.
The reason was simple—
“Alright, practical training begins now.”
Baek Yujin herself.
Sensing the overheated mood, she addressed them.
“Everyone, enthusiasm is good—but safety always comes first in a dungeon. You all know that, right?”
“Yes—! Safety first!”
The responses were loud, but few truly took the words to heart.
To them, this wasn’t just training—it was a chance to impress her.
‘If I stand out, she’ll notice me.’
‘Maybe I’ll even get promoted to the main squad.’
‘Gotta make this flashy.’
Each trainee burned with ambition.
But Yujin wasn’t entirely pleased.
Accidents in dungeons usually happened when people got overconfident.
‘Still… it’s just an E-rank dungeon.’
All trainees were at least C-rank, with even a few B-ranks.
Even Hajun, technically E-rank, was realistically at least D-rank.
The chances of an accident were minimal.
“Alright, we’re entering. Form up and follow me.”
[E-Rank Dungeon – Forgotten Ancient Temple]
The easiest dungeon owned by Baekhwa.
But a dungeon was still a dungeon.
One small mistake could lead to fatal consequences.
“I’ll only observe from behind. Even if it’s E-rank, don’t let your guard down. Form your raid properly and proceed as trained.”
“Yes!”
At first, they moved cautiously.
For about three hours, everything went smoothly.
But—
It went too smoothly.
“Kiiieeek—!”
Except for Hajun, everyone was at least C-rank.
The dungeon’s main monsters—kobolds—posed no threat.
Realizing this, the trainees began to relax.
“Isn’t this too easy?”
“Seriously, this is boring.”
Tension vanished.
Some even started chatting mid-combat.
And then—
It happened.
One trainee suddenly broke formation and charged ahead.
“Hey, Cha Eunseok! Don’t break formation!”
Ignoring the warning, he leapt straight into a group of kobolds.
“What’s the problem? They’re nothing!”
With a single swing—
“Kiiieeek—!”
Kobolds fell in droves.
Each strike cut down multiple enemies.
Within moments, over ten were slaughtered.
“Whoa…”
“That’s insane.”
“Maybe we can just wipe them all out.”
Encouraged by the attention, Eunseok smirked.
“Told you. It’s just E-rank. What are you scared of?”
Others joined in.
Soon, the entire group rushed forward.
Within minutes, dozens of kobolds were wiped out.
Complete annihilation.
Eunseok looked proudly toward Yujin.
But her reaction was cold.
Instead of praise, she simply wrote in her notebook:
‘Cha Eunseok: -10 points. Broke formation and endangered the team.’
This training wasn’t about strength.
Everyone here was already strong.
‘What matters is attitude.’
Even if it was just kobolds—
If they had been stronger monsters, the entire team could’ve been wiped out.
Habits formed in easy situations carried over into dangerous ones.
Yet Eunseok showed no remorse.
“Wow, Eunseok! That was amazing!”
“You destroyed them!”
Others even praised him.
“Heh, don’t exaggerate. This is nothing for a B-rank.”
Yujin sighed internally.
‘High rank, low brains… Still, they’ll learn.’
People grow through mistakes.
And it was her job to guide them.
‘I’ll talk to them later.’
Then she turned to Hajun.
Something about him felt… off.
“Trainee Kang Hajun? What’s wrong?”
“I was just wondering… is this really an E-rank dungeon?”
“What?”
“Never mind. Look over there.”
She followed his finger—
But saw nothing.
“…What are you pointing at?”
Even as an A-rank, she sensed nothing.
Hajun slightly moved his finger.
A faint ripple of mana spread—
And suddenly—
Something appeared.
A faint, shimmering trace on the ground.
Like moonlight reflecting—
Footprints.
