I’ll Retire After Saving the World

Chapter 47: Dungeon Raid (1)

As Hong Seok-young had predicted, an inspector was dispatched.

Just one person. It’s practically a sign that they have no interest in this pilot school. Is the pilot school even being properly recognized as a school right now?

Honestly, it’s only because of Hong Seok-young’s reputation that they’re even paying this much attention.

The kids, who don’t care about the adults’ circumstances, were so nervous they couldn’t even speak properly. That kind of stiff suit is perfect for giving an intimidating impression.

“Teacher?”

“I am…”

I reached out to shake the extended hand but hesitated for a moment. The inspector’s face looked somehow familiar.

“…I’m Woo Hwijae.”

“Nice to meet you. Have you prepared all the raid documents?”

“Yes. Here’s the dungeon raid report… and here are the students’ licenses.”

“You also need to give me your license, teacher.”

“Here it is.”

While the inspector checked the pre-prepared documents, I fell into thought.

I usually don’t forget people’s faces. If it feels this familiar, it means I’ve definitely seen them before.

“…….”

“…Teacher? What’s wrong?”

“No, I’m just a bit nervous before the raid.”

“Hunter Hong Seok-young bragged a lot about the students’ skills…”

“That’s exactly why we shouldn’t let our guard down.”

Where did we meet?

“That’s true.”

“No!”

At that moment, Hong Seok-young interrupted.

“You only yell at me, but why are you being so polite to Teacher Woo?”

The face that had been responding calmly crumpled as soon as Hong Seok-young’s voice was heard.

“If Hunter Hong Seok-young did things properly, I wouldn’t have to yell!”

The voice that had been lowered now rose. For a woman, her normally low voice became sharp and cracked when raised even slightly.

Yes, that voice!

I couldn’t immediately recall the face, but the voice was unmistakable.

“……!”

It’s that woman!

The inspector who was there the day the old man attacked the lab!

Thinking back now, it was no small feat to raise her voice to the old man despite not being an Awakened. It wasn’t entirely the old man’s fault for putting up with it, either.

“I’ve checked everything… if an emergency occurs, exit the dungeon immediately. Don’t overdo it.”

This woman also went through her own share of troubles but still retired successfully. It’s an enviable life. She can definitely be considered my role model.

I didn’t expect to see her again like this.

“In such tests, we usually have Hunters on standby for emergencies… but there aren’t many available Hunters these days.”

Returning the verified documents, the woman spoke with an apologetic expression.

There was no need for her to feel sorry. After all, with Hong Seok-young and Kim Chae-min around, what use were other Hunters?

As expected, Hong Seok-young’s pride was hurt by her words.

“You mean to call other Hunters when I’m here, Inspector Kim So-jung?”

“It’s just procedure, Hunter Hong Seok-young.”

“Why do we need such procedures between us?”

“Because you’re Hunter Hong Seok-young, we need them even more.”

It was nice to see a familiar face after a long time. Still, I had to do my job.

I looked at the kids, who were so nervous their faces were pale, peeking out from the van without getting out.

In their state, it’s better to enter the dungeon quickly.

Ignoring Hong Seok-young, who was still arguing with the inspector, I gestured to the kids.

“We’ll be entering the dungeon now.”

“Oh! I’m sorry. You must be busy, and I’ve been wasting your time.”

The kids stumbled out of the van.

I briefly recalled what Kim Chae-min had said before we left the school.

…That I didn’t teach them the proper raid method?

Kids are supposed to be raised tough. Just look at the principal.

I shook my head, giving up the idea of trying to encourage them.

It’s hard to speak properly with outsiders around.

“June 15, 2021. Dungeon Gyeonggi Hwaseong-20190527-0002. Nine people entering. Teacher Woo Hwijae of the Hunter Training Pilot High School. Students Park Seo-hyun, Seo Han-seong, Sun Sun-jin, Oh Hyun-wook, Yoo Hye-eun, Lee Seung-yeon, Choi Jin-woo, Han Eun-young. Current time is 10:12.”

The procedure just before entering the dungeon hasn’t changed even in the past.

As I called their names and made eye contact with each of them, the kids gulped.

“We’re entering the dungeon.”

* * *

No one knows how or why dungeons and dungeon gates appear.

There are various hypotheses.

Divine punishment from a god to punish corrupted humans, an invasion of Earth from another world, or even a training ground created by future humans to train people of the past to prevent apocalypse.

…Looking back now, the idea about future humans seems pretty plausible, doesn’t it?

Of course, there were no future humans left, and the training ground was nothing but a survival ordeal for those who fell into the past without any preparation.

Anyway, the monsters that emerge from dungeons are dangerous regardless of the reason.

No matter the reason, what’s inside the dungeon is profitable.

So humanity began to raid dungeons….

“W-Wow….”

The reactions of kids who entered a dungeon for the first time versus those who had not were starkly different.

Some kids were gawking around in a daze, while others stood with stiff faces, warily scanning their surroundings.

It’s fine to let them look around for a bit, to take in the scenery.

“Attention.”

Eight kids looked at me.

Today, they weren’t wearing their school uniforms or gym clothes. They were in armor made for raiding, though the design was the same.

It wasn’t great, but for tackling just a C-rank dungeon, it was decent. Despite pretending otherwise, that old man really does worry a lot.

As I’ve said repeatedly, this dungeon was filtered out by Daseon. Its actual rank should be considered D. It’s even overkill for me to be holding Yoo Ji-eun’s sword. Especially in this fairy forest-type dungeon, Yoo Ji-eun’s sword is highly compatible. Compatible in the sense that it makes the raid easier.

Well, the ones raiding today aren’t me, but the kids. It’s their first raid, so we can’t let our guard down, but that’s their problem, not mine.

“As I said, I won’t do anything here.”

Gulp.

I could hear them swallowing their saliva.

“I’ll be grading each of you on how helpful you are in the raid. Didn’t the principal tell you? This is your final exam.”

“…Teacher.”

Lee Seung-yeon cautiously raised his hand.

“I’ve been curious for a while, but what’s the point of exam scores… uh, how does it help us?”

“It helps you understand your own level.”

Realize how pathetic you are.

“Ugh….”

His face crumpled. Some color seemed to return to it. Hmm. He still looked visibly tense.

I understand that it’s hard to feel the necessity of exams like in a regular school. These kids have already decided to become Hunters, and a Hunter’s skill is proven by the number of dungeons they’ve raided and monsters they’ve beheaded. The grades from a school that might not even be officially recognized don’t really matter.

“Starting from the bottom.”

But, the school is still a school. The authority of a teacher evaluating students must be upheld.

“After a meeting with the principal, you’ll go through remedial lessons with me.”

This crappy school doesn’t even have vacations. I confirmed that with Hong Seok-young. This is why you shouldn’t sign contracts recklessly.

The person who taught me that was the one who made me sign the contract, so it’s not entirely my fault.

“The lower your grades, the more I’ll take it as you wanting to spend more time with me.”

I clapped my hands lightly once.

“End of chit-chat. Let’s start the raid. I’ll go separately, so from here on, you’re on your own.”

“Uh, t-teacher!”

Ignoring their flustered voices, I concealed myself. In this dungeon densely planted with trees, the kids quickly lost sight of me.

Good. Let’s see how they handle this.

“…Um.”

“N-Now what do we do?”

“To raid the dungeon, we need to destroy the dungeon core… so, let’s start with the core….”

The kids, who were at a loss and bustling around, gradually started to get organized. After all, I had taught them the basics.

Yoo Hye-eun stood in the center. It was the most protected position. Mages were stationed on either side of her, and the rest took positions surrounding the three of them.

Typically, healers don’t enter dungeons. Though sturdier than non-Awakened, they practically have no combat ability. If the dungeon’s grade had been one level higher, Yoo Hye-eun would have been excluded from the raid.

Nevertheless, Hong Seok-young insisted on bringing Yoo Hye-eun into the dungeon because of the difference in experience.

Healers who understand what happens inside dungeons have a different mindset.

“…….”

The kids froze like broken toys. They were hesitating and looking at each other for cues. In a dungeon, where time is precious, this was unacceptable.

Just as I was about to deduct one point from everyone, someone stepped up.

“According to the scouting information, the dungeon core is to the east of the forest.”

It was Oh Hyun-wook. Our little piglet.

“To reach the dungeon core, we need to pass through a pixie swarm. Do you remember the characteristics of pixies?”

“Yeah.”

“Park Seo-hyun, Choi Jin-woo.”

“Here.”

The mages handed out runes they had prepared. These were Mana Concealment Runes.

Pixies, like other monsters, are sensitive to the smell of mana and hunt their prey in groups. Although they don’t fly high, they are undeniably flying-type monsters with a swarming habit, making them easy prey for beginner Hunters. Using the Concealment Runes would prevent them from being attacked due to the smell of mana.

“Let’s go.”

The kids, having activated the Concealment Runes, cautiously moved into the forest.

The sky visible through the trees was a starry night. Even though the sky was clearly night, it was bright enough not to feel like night.

For humanity, dungeons remained a mystery, but coincidentally, the things that emerged from them were somewhat familiar. Even if they weren’t identical, hearing their characteristics would make people go, “Ah, that one!” and recognize them.

Monsters from myths, legends, and folktales.

A giant humanoid monster with a bull’s head, like the boss of the Myeong-dong Dungeon, was named after a creature from Greek mythology. Monsters creating beautiful silk from spider threads were called Arachne, and female monsters who lured people with their songs were known as Sirens.

In the end, humans turned even the unknown into something familiar.

I leisurely followed the kids.

Honestly… from my standpoint, it’s quite frustrating.

A fairy forest-type dungeon is a forest. It’s full of bone-dry trees with not a drop of moisture. They’re called a fairy forest because the leaves sparkle and there’s a sweet fragrance, but a forest is a forest. It’s also a highly flammable forest.

There’s no water source in this dungeon. Even pixies, who have the intelligence of children, fetch water to put out fires. But here, there’s no water to fetch. All this information is detailed in the scouting report from Daseon.

So, you just need to set it on fire. Just make sure the raid team doesn’t get harmed by the fire and smoke.

If they notice this, they get full marks.

Of course, there’s no one who’ll get full marks.

“…….”

At some point, Oh Hyun-wook, who had taken the lead, raised his hand. It was a signal to stop.

A single pixie was peeking over at this side. If it escapes, it’ll return to its group and bring back friends.

Oh Hyun-wook skillfully moved his hand. 8 o’clock direction. One pixie. Scouting. You. Me. Capture.

They’re doing well.

Without needing the mages to intervene, Oh Hyun-wook and Seo Han-seong, who were at the front, handled it neatly.

First, injure the wings to prevent it from flying away. Catching it as it plummets to the ground is easy.

After dealing with the pixie, Oh Hyun-wook reorganized the kids. Our little piglet is doing well…. Thinking of the piglet twenty years from now is quite moving.

For now, plus one point for the little piglet.