Chapter 8 – Practice (1)

“It was amazing.”

After training, we met again on the bench where the sunset was setting. Senior Yu-jeong scratched his head as if embarrassed and waved his hand. It was because I felt that my impressions were too overrepresented. She shook her head as hard as she could and said:

“Really… Don’t tease me like that. Mr. Suhyun. It was my first time acting as a bad person.”

I couldn’t figure out how to compliment her since senior Yoo-jeong said that. Should she really say that she seemed like a bad person? Or should I praise her for her good acting? Concerned, I said:

“Thanks to that… It seemed to help a lot. She seemed to be more immersed thanks to the hard acting of her seniors.”

“You did? Did she do that well?”

Senior Yoojung asked me. I nodded her head and said it again.

“Yes. She only saw senior Yoo Jung.”

“Ah…”

At those words, Senior Yu-jeong opened her eyes slightly wide and quickly avoided her gaze. I also shut her mouth, realizing that I said something embarrassing even after I said it. With her head down, I heard her sucking on her empty soda through her straw. The dry ice cubes were struggling to pump up the moisture through straws. I said this as I trembled her hand on her thigh.

“That is! So, that… ! You’re good at acting! It meant that you acted so well that you looked like that!”

Yoojung looked at me again at those words. She was still smiling. In the light of her sunset, her face seemed to be red. She said.

“What guild do you plan to go to, Suhyeon?”

“A guild? The guild…”

The number of guilds was as diverse as the number of hunters. Each guild had a unique concept, and the Black Dragon Room, which represents the flavor of old martial arts, was also one of the very unique guilds. I said.

“Looking at you, I think the Black Dragon Room would be great too.”

“Our guild?”

Senior Yoojeong looked at me with a surprised face. Is it so strange that she chose the black dragon room? Seeing my expression change strangely, Senior Yoo-jeong took care of it.

“Do not misunderstand. I didn’t ask again to mean no. Because our juniors work so hard. You should be able to pass the Black Dragon room entrance test. What’s your nickname… You can change it later But are you okay? It’s kind of like saying it with my own mouth, but the Black Dragon Room has a little less vision than other guilds.”

The place where people who work in the current job are dried really meant Hell. I thought it was very unexpected that he stopped joining the Black Dragon room, which has a good external image.

“You don’t have a vision?”

“Currently, Ark is not able to rise further from A-rank, so there are a lot of problems because of this. It’s complicated to talk about, but just know that much.”

“Senior, are you going to move later?”

Senior Yoojeong shook her head. Even after she said it, she thought it was a bit of a risky question, but she didn’t care much.

“First of all, I was a Black Dragon Guild trainee. It’s strange for a trainee to transfer to another guild, and I’m just here for loyalty. Since Suhyeon is working hard and has talent, he thinks it is better to find another guild.”

“That’s too bad. I thought it would be fun to work with senior Yoojung.”

“Me too.”

Yujeong senior nodded her head and she said so. We looked up at the sky without making eye contact again. I heard senior Yoojeong sucking on her straw. She tossed her coffee cup into the trash can with her clear face. The plastic cup fits snugly with the clean workmanship of a D-class hunter. She stood up from her seat with a proud expression on her face.

“Would you like to explore yourself tomorrow?”

“Is your senior coming too?”

“Shall we go take a look? Are you bringing a packed lunch?”

Senior Yu-jeong lifted her bag and said, I thought for a moment and then shook her head. A female hunter coming to support the bomber? This is a hundred percent strange rumor spread. That was a nuisance. I shook my head and said.

“No. Are you okay. Yoojung must be busy too.”

“Even if it is an exploration, there is nothing very difficult. Because I only practice the very basics.”

“Yes. Thank you.”

She stretched Her slim waistline stood out through her thin shirt. She even stretched her back, straightening her legs, then looked at me and asked.

“By the way, what were you going to do with your nickname?”

“What nickname is it?”

“When you enter the Black Dragon Room, everyone guesses the name like a martial arts nickname. What did you want to change your name to when you reached B rank?”

“The Heavenly Horse.”

There was no reason. To be honest, when I entered the Black Dragon Room, I hadn’t decided what to change my name to. The name Cheonma came to my mind like a bolt of lightning, so I just spit it out. Heavenly Demon Jung Soo-hyun. Even though I just recited it in my heart, it felt like my body was filled with energy. Senior Yoojeong shook her head at my words and said.

“Do you think that name is very important in martial arts? When all the men come in, they say they want to name it ‘Cheonma’.”

“Ah, then who has already written the name of the Heavenly Demon?”

In a way, of course, it was also a nickname that anyone could use. Senior Yoojeong shook her head and said.

“The ark made a reservation. He’ll change his name to Cheonma when he becomes S-class. I didn’t know, but there seems to be a function to reserve a nickname if you’re above grade A.”

It was a status window where useless welfare existed. For some reason, the Black Dragon’s Ark began to feel human. From insisting on calling him the ark when he could have been called the guild master, to making reservations for the nickname of the Heavenly Demon, no one was this humane.

She looked at her watch and turned to her driver’s seat.

“Oh, it’s already time. Sorry. I will go first today.”

“Ah, thank you.”

“Yes. Then see you next time. When I have time, I will definitely go see it.”

“Yes!”

I waved my hand toward Senior Yoo-jung’s car as it was moving away. The further her car got away, the more she felt regret for some reason. My legs didn’t hurt today, and I didn’t sweat much. I felt like I wouldn’t be out of breath even if I ran all the way home.

However, I wanted to go back in her car with senior Yoo-jeong. I sighed and clicked her tongue.

*****

Next day. Those of us who stood in front of the gate couldn’t help but marvel at the scenery around the gate that exuded a different atmosphere. There was a sense of heterogeneity at the gate, as if a CG movie was being broadcast on the screen. A large, thin magnetic field was illuminating a different world, and if I turned my body a little bit, I could see that the wall was thinner than a sheet of paper.

Teacher Jung-ah seemed very familiar with our surprised reactions.

“This is an F-level gate prepared for beginner hunters to adapt. As you know, it can be applied in this way because once the coordinates are taken, the gate can be opened continuously. Everyone, please wear safety gear.”

Looking to the side, Kim Joo-seong was wearing safety gear and warming up her body. He was tall and had a good body, and since he was wearing gear, he gave off the air of a skilled future warrior. I looked at my still weak muscles and shook my head. It was not possible to compare each of these things one by one.

I am me and Kim Joo-sung was Kim Joo-sung. He could have a rivalry with him, but he didn’t have to hold a grudge. I made up my mind and got up from my seat. Each was preparing to jump over the gate with his partner, but there was no one beside me.

It was because Ichigaya Ichie didn’t come today. Two more days until she arrives. I was at a loss as to how to conduct the class today. Teacher Jeong-ah said to me as she checked the faces of the personnel and then she put on the equipment.

“Hunter Jeong Soo-hyeon, since Miss Ichigaya Ichie didn’t come today, I will arbitrarily act as her partner. It’s a simple practice anyway, and everyone will be moving together, so you don’t have to feel burdened.”

“Yes!”

I let out a sigh of relief and nodded. Teacher Jung-a stood in front of the gate with an expressionless face. She checked her gear once again for any abnormalities, then jumped inside the gate with the highest priority. I too followed her through her gate and moved her steps.

Even though I only moved one step, I felt a strange atmosphere enveloping my whole body. It was moist air, much clearer than Earth’s atmosphere. Teacher Jung-ah stepped on the inside of her gate once with her foot and looked back at her. She and she circled and then she said.

“The advance team entering the gate must check for anomalies. Anomalies here are the air quality and the condition of the interior floor. And whether there are nearby monster habitats.”

Drurrrr!

As soon as she finished her words, the ground shook. The sound that made my whole body tremble was like the sound of a drill at a construction site. Teacher Jeonga frowned and turned her head away. The other students across her gate were also startled, pulling her foot behind her and inhaling.

Teacher Jeonga frowned and pulled her sword from her waistband. She then took her knife back in her hand, measured her distance, and swung it wide in front of her. A long blue line was drawn, and the trees in the forest fell down in a straight line, as if measured with a ruler.

There was no time to admire the power. I could see the figures of construction workers beyond the disturbed trees. Seeing them, the world beyond the gate seemed to be pulled back into reality.

The workers who were digging in the middle of the day took off their masks and faced Mr. Jeonga and me. They nodded, greeted each other, and then started working again. Teacher Jung-ah said with an astonished expression.

“What are you doing here? Who are you?”

One of the workers raised his head. He was quite old, and the distribution seemed high even at this construction site. He had a black dragon mark on his chest. As soon as Mr. Jeonga saw the mark, she chanted:

“Black dragon room?”

“Yes. I came from the Black Dragon room. I got information that there is a fragment of the Almighty here, and I got permission from the academy. Please don’t disturb me and go.”

He maintained a rude demeanor, wiggling her fingers as if Miss Jeonga, a B-class hunter, was a pesky bug. Teacher Jung-a licked her lips lightly with her tongue and began examining the faces of the Black Dragon room construction workers.

They were randomly scraping the floor inside the gate.