Chapter 300: 17th Week Strategy Battle (1)

Sunday evening.

Dang Gyu-young had called me out for a moment.

A bench on the outskirts of the walking trail.

There, Dang Gyu-young sat with her legs stretched out.

She noticed my presence then turned to me and waved her hand lightly.

“Young Monarch, come here.”

“Caa—w.”

I grabbed two canned drinks from a nearby vending machine, handed one to Dang Gyu-young, and sat at the edge of the bench.

She then naturally leaned her back against my arm.

“Ah, so comfy~”

“That doesn’t look comfortable.”

“Nope. Super comfy.”

As if telling me not to argue, she lightly bumped her head against my shoulder.

We sipped our drinks and exchanged casual updates for a while.

Then after staring down at her legs, Dang Gyu-young spoke.

“...I worked really hard this week, you know?”

“I know. I saw your effort.”

The reason she had called me out was obvious; she had completed the Stage 1 Hardship Quest.

I had estimated it would take about a week and a half, but she finished it a few days early.

Which meant she had pushed herself even harder.

Dang Gyu-young grinned.

“You should praise me, right?”

“You worked hard.”

“Hmph. That’s it? No reward?”

“Of course, there’s a reward. Stage 2.”

Once again, she bumped her head against my shoulder.

“You really have no sense of atmosphere. None at all. Hey, use it.”

Without hesitation, I activated the skill.

[Activated ‘Hardship’.]

[Cooldown: 5 days 23:59:58]

[‘Stage 2 Harship’ has been granted to the target.]

Dang Gyu-young fixed her gaze on empty space for a moment, as if she was reading the quest details.

Then she grimaced in disgust.

“...Two!? I’m not doing it.”

“You mean the quest where those light orbs appear?”

“Yeah, how did you know?”

“That one goes up to four.”

“...I’m not doing it! Seriously, I’m not! I’m going home.”

With that, she really did brush herself off and stand up.

I lightly grabbed her wrist.

“Where are you going? Since you’re here, stay a little longer.”

“.......”

She hesitated for a moment, then glanced down at her captured wrist.

A faint smirk tugged at the corner of her lips as she spoke in a coy tone.

“Let go. I’m really leaving.”

But she showed no real sign of pulling away or taking a step forward.

All she did was lightly shake her wrist in my grasp.

It was obvious she wanted me to play along, so I decided to humor her.

I tightened my grip slightly and spoke in a firmer tone.

“Qyu, you’re not going anywhere today.”

“I’m goi—pfft, hahahaha!”

Dang Gyu-young burst into laughter and started smacking my shoulder as she cackled.

Once her laughter died down a little, I spoke in a slightly more serious tone.

“That quest is annoying, right? Your skills keep getting interrupted and canceled.”

“Mhmm, mhmm. You get it.”

“But it’s a necessary step. Now that you’ve cleared Stage 1, you’ve improved a bit, haven’t you?”

“...I have, yeah.”

The streetlamp cast a wavering shadow of Dang Gyu-young.

Then, a knowing smile formed on Seo Cheong-yong’s lips.

“Of course, if that were all there was to it, this dungeon wouldn’t be called Cheese ‘Trap’ now would it?”

A mousetrap existed to catch mice.

Likewise, the Cheese Room’s reward was merely bait to lure challengers in.

Just then, the golden light in the center of the map flickered out, and in its place, red markers began appearing all across the map.

“The moment you pick up the cheese, the number of traps will increase significantly. Monsters will also become more active. You’ll have to break through all of that to clear the dungeon. Now then, where do you escape?”

This time, green door icons began flashing in the four corners of the map.

“At a glance, they look like exits, don’t they? Once you take the cheese and leave through any of these, it’s over. It doesn’t matter which one you choose. And finally, one more thing.”

Four locations on the map lit up in a vivid red.

“The Control Room. Destroying it will disable the traps. Of course, it won’t be easy, but any student who succeeds will receive bonus points.”

To summarize, this week’s strategy battle goes as follows:

Fight through a maze filled with traps and monsters to reach the “Cheese Room” at the very center.

Once you obtain the cheese, additional traps will be triggered, and the number of monsters will increase. You must break through all of that and reach an escape point to clear the dungeon.

If you destroy the Control Room along the way, the traps will be disabled, but if memory serves me right, a powerful monster guards it, making it no easy feat.

Of course, for me, there was no choice in the matter.

[Side Quest: 17th Week Strategy Battle] (In Progress....)

? Objective: Clear the strategy battle dungeon

? Bonus Objective: Destroy the Control Room (0/1)

? Rewards: Varies based on achievement level

To earn the best reward possible, passing through it was unavoidable.

While I was lost in thought, Seo Cheong-yong’s explanation continued.

Instead of a map, the classroom blackboard now displayed the rules and environment.

MAP: [Cheese Trap]

RULE: [Three Players]

“There are no time or health limits, and as long as you clear it, you’ll get scores and points, so take your time and analyze it thoroughly. I’ve said it multiple times, but this is also connected to the final exam. That’s it for today’s lesson!”

After Seo Cheong-yong left the classroom, students began grouping up to form parties.

Since two-person teams were somewhat set in stone, today’s three-player requirement meant they needed to bring in one more member.

Of course, my three-player team had already been decided.

Go Hyeon-woo and Seo Ye-in approached me from both sides.

“Kim-hyung.”

“Butler.”

I responded with a single sentence to each of them.

“You’re not going to join Han So-mi? And also, I’m not a butler.”

“I only spent time with Miss Han on a whim last week. She said she had something to test.”

“What did she test?”

“I’m not sure. She wouldn’t tell me at all.”

Just then, I felt someone staring at us. When I turned to look, Han So-mi was glaring at Go Hyeon-woo with her cheeks puffed out.

What on earth did he do to make the always-smiling Han So-mi this upset?

Go Hyeon-woo let out a strained chuckle and continued speaking.

“Besides, it seems she feels more comfortable with you and Miss Seo.”

“Is that so?”

Since Go Hyeon-woo had been one of the key contributors to clearing dungeons with me alongside Dang Gu-young, he was always welcome in the party as long as he was willing to join.

Of course, that meant I’d have to give up on Plan B. Hong Yeon-hwa or Shin Byeong-cheol.

Just then, Hong Yeon-hwa had asked if there was a spot available, so I sent her a reply.

[Kim Ho: Already full.]

[Kim Ho: sry sry]

[Hong Yeon-hwa: (Sad puppy emoji)]

[Hong Yeon-hwa: Okay.......]

[Kim Ho: Should we go down tomorrow evening?]

[Hong Yeon-hwa: Mhmm.]

[Hong Yeon-hwa: (Tail-wagging puppy emoji)]

[Hong Yeon-hwa: I’ll wrap up the strategy battle before then!]

“You seem busy too, Kim-hyung.”

“You’re this perceptive, so why is Han So-mi acting like that?”

As I closed the message window and replied, Go Hyeon-woo let out an awkward laugh.

“Haha, well, they say even monks can’t shave their own heads.”

“I’m sure that’s the case. Anyway, let’s get going.”

We moved toward the dungeon building.