Correcting the Villainess of the Academy - Chapter 48

Chapter 48

Dream’s Boundary (3)

Early in the morning. I was just about to leave the dormitory for class, but my steps were blocked by someone standing in the second-floor hallway with an unpleasant expression.

“…?”

Yeon Minha, arms crossed and glaring at me with a venomous look, blocked my way. She was wearing silk pajamas and had wrapped a shawl around her as if it were armor.

It had only been three nights since I cast the barrier, but she was already brimming with a vitality that was previously absent. Her face was smooth, and her long, flowing hair gleamed with a healthy shine.

The only regret was that her arrogance and haughtiness had returned in full force. She still looked down on people with that characteristic gaze.

Perhaps she felt well enough to confront me now.

Her ingratitude was astounding, but how could she know of my help?

Better to face her suspicion than to be interrogated.

“What is it?”

“You, you… humph.”

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Seeing her continue to glare silently, I asked her purpose. I needed to leave for class, so if she had any business, it would be best to handle it quickly.

But look at that. Her insolence melted away in an instant with just a single word from me.

The words she had been preparing to spit out disappeared into the air, lost in her confusion and shame.

Her white skin flushed bright red, covered with the embarrassment of trying to maintain a facade of dignity.

Her whole body trembled slightly, perhaps in anger at herself.

Overcoming deeply ingrained fear is never easy.

“How long are you going to stay here… If your goal was to humiliate me… it’s enough now, isn’t it?”

Yeon Minha, having barely calmed herself, began to speak with desperate resolve.

“Stop… I told you I’d overlook it… Why are you still…”

“I plan to stay for a while longer. And who decides what’s enough? As far as I’m concerned, it doesn’t seem nearly enough yet.”

“Hum… humph.”

With a strange gulping sound, her face turned pale.

I took a step toward the stairs, and Yeon Minha instantly retreated two or three steps, backing herself against the wall.

Leaving her behind, I descended the stairs to leave the dormitory.

If she had no real business, I had no time to waste.

“Sniff… you perverted bastard… psycho… sniff, psychopath…”

From behind me, her curses sounded like faint white noise.

***

“As we speak, numerous large and small issues plague our country: mutant outbreaks, reports of dark mages, suspected demon activity, and sightings of level 2 or higher classified beasts. Most of these problems are beyond the capabilities of ordinary people who can’t use magic.”

The two-week external request period had just begun. The large lecture hall was packed with first-year students gathered for the preliminary briefing.

“These are fundamentally problems that only mages can solve. However, the number of mages is always insufficient compared to the number of incidents. While the capital area may seem relatively peaceful, once you venture to the borders or near the northern wall, you’ll see how precarious our country truly is.”

A young professor with horn-rimmed glasses and a dark beard continued his explanation using a projector.
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“Since the establishment of the 10th Republic 32 years ago, various measures have been introduced to address this chronic workforce shortage. The current national policy is to utilize even the inexperienced as efficiently as possible. This is why the adult age was lowered to 17, military service was extended up to 5 years, and now you will be participating in external requests.”

Professor Kwon Chanyul pressed a button on the device in his hand, and the projector whirred, displaying the next image.

A Level:
– Can be undertaken solo by 2nd-year students ranked 30th or higher
– Extermination of medium-sized or smaller groups of level 2 classified beasts
– Capture or elimination of criminals with a wanted level of yellow or lower
– Reserve personnel for frontier pioneering groups in unrecovered areas
– Regular or emergency requests

B Level:
– Can be undertaken by 1st-year students ranked 30th or higher, 2nd-year students, or mentoring groups led by 2nd-year students
– Extermination of individual level 2 classified beasts or large groups of level 3 classified beasts
– Capture or elimination of criminals with a wanted level of purple or lower
– Guard duties outside urban areas requested by corporations
– Regular or emergency requests

C Level:
– Can be undertaken by 1st-year students or higher
– Extermination of individual level 3 classified beasts or small groups, capture or elimination of mutants
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– Guard duties within urban areas or nearby requested by corporations
– Regular requests

“These requests have been categorized and rated by the Academic Affairs Department of the Cradle after receiving them from the Department of Special Crimes Investigation and the National Security Agency. You will first experience C Level requests, followed by B Level requests with a mentoring group. If you pass both, you will be granted the authority to undertake appropriate requests at your discretion anytime.”

“Sorry to repeat myself, but getting off to a good start is crucial. If you fail during this external request period, you’ll have to wait until the next one in a few months. While you’re stuck here twiddling your thumbs, your peers will be out gaining experience and earning achievements. This will affect your immediate ranking, sponsorship contract renewals, and even post-graduation job placements.”

Professor Kwon turned off the projector and looked around at the students in the lecture hall.

“Of course, C Level requests are not particularly difficult. They were classified with your abilities in mind, and the average pass rate exceeds 70%. But if you don’t want to be in that 30%, it’s better to take this seriously.”

He glanced at his watch.

“You can change your group members as much as you want, but once your names are on the request form, it’s final. And remember, the top 10 students from the last practical exam must each join different groups. Good luck, everyone.”

As he yawned and left the room, the lecture hall erupted into chaos.
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“Hey, come over here!”

“Hey, we need one more circulatory specialization! All expellers here!”

Although C Level requests can be undertaken solo by 1st-years, it was mandatory to form groups of four for the first external request to ensure safety and learning.

“Hyunha, remember my friends from last time?”

I ended up forming a group with Yena again. Our previous teamwork was good, so there was no need to change.

Yena introduced the two female students she had brought along as we sat at a table. Their faces were familiar, and it didn’t take long for me to remember them.

They were the duo we encountered during the Celestial Basin exercise when Akrites attacked. One had screamed upon seeing me, and the other had been injured and carried on someone’s back.

“Hi, I’m Sera. Yu Sera.”

The girl who had screamed smiled and extended her hand. She had bleached hair tied in a ponytail and wore her school jacket tightly around her waist. Her skirt was almost half the length of Yena’s.

Her appearance was quite striking, almost worrying in terms of school rules. She seemed the complete opposite of Yena. How did they become friends?

“Um… Hyun doesn’t like that sort of thing… Just a greeting is fine…”

Yena spoke cautiously, noticing my discomfort with physical contact. I felt a little guilty.

“Hmm…?”

“What’s wrong…”

Yena shrank back slightly as Sera retracted her hand with a mischievous smile.

“Hehe, alright then. Just a greeting. Anyway, nice to meet you. And thanks for last time. We managed to escape because you stepped in.”

“Yeah, thanks. I’m Ju Yeoreum. Just call me Yeoreum.”

The girl with mid-length hair sitting next to her nodded in agreement.

“It’s fine. I wasn’t really helping.”

“Well, that’s how it is. Anyway, you seem nicer than I heard. Maybe rumors aren’t reliable.”

“See, I told you…!”

Yena nodded happily at Sera’s words.

Sera was from the third city of the Greater Masada area, and her parents were civil servants in the Department of Long-Term Strategy. Yeoreum was the granddaughter of a famous logistics chain founder from the capital.

Both were first-generation natural-born mages with ordinary parents, but their talents were enough to get them into the Cradle.

“So… last time Yena…”

“S-stop it…!”

It was interesting to see people from different backgrounds come together.

While the girls chatted, I turned my attention to the surroundings.

Soon, I spotted Muyoung talking to his group from a distance. He was laughing heartily.

I had wanted to team up with him again since the previous exercise went well, and he was one of the few people I could speak comfortably with.

But his polite and apologetic refusal had left me with no choice but to let it go.

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His group was all male, and he had even taken off his usual mask, looking quite refreshed. No slave freed from oppression could look happier.
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He didn’t seem like a bad person. Indeed, he was a unique friend…

“Shall we start discussing our plan?”

T h i s w a s c op ie d fr o m k in gm t l .o r g
Sera, who had been pinching Yena’s cheeks, initiated the conversation.

“Well… um…”

“Just call me Hyun.”

“Hmm, alright. From what I know, you’re a circulatory specialization, right? The three of us are all expellers.”

She laid out several request cards on the table.

“Even if the balance isn’t perfect, your skills are exceptional, so it shouldn’t be a problem. About the mission…”

She knew a surprising amount for a first-year student.

“First-year students can only undertake C Level requests, but the difficulty can vary greatly depending on the distance and location. For example, easy tasks like subduing Nobekus in the Masada sewer system are probably already taken.”

“Nobekus…?”

“The giant sewer rats…”

When Yena looked puzzled, Yeoreum spread her arms wide to show the size of the creatures. Yena’s face turned pale at their huge size.

“Eek… no way…”

“Oh, when will you ever get used to this…”
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Sera shook her head. I had seen Nobekus a few times. They were rat-type beasts, the size of small ponies, and bred rapidly, often clogging sewers with their bodies.

“Most of those requests are probably already taken. We should go for this one: mutant extermination.”

Sera pushed a request card forward.

“Recently, there have been numerous reports of mutant sightings in Sector B-143 of the capital. Let’s take this one. What do you think?”

Mutants were people who had not become mages but were negatively affected by particles, resulting in twisted minds. Statistics showed that over 80% of those hiding in the city’s back alleys committing various crimes were mutants.

“I asked a senior, and they said dealing with mutants can sometimes be easier than dealing with beasts. They often have strong obsessions with specific things, making them easy to trap with the right bait.”
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“Strong obsessions…?”

“Like… a bald mutant who only drinks virgins’ blood?”

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“Eek… scary…”

“Don’t worry. You’re braver than me, so I don’t understand why you’re so scared.”

Yena trembled and clung to Yeoreum, making Sera shake her head.

After a brief discussion, we decided to accept Sera’s proposed mutant extermination request. Despite being somewhat challenging compared to other C Level requests, it had the advantage of taking less time than those requiring us to travel to the outskirts.

But Sector B-143… it sounded familiar.

I remembered seeing that name in Yeon Minha’s report. There was a research lab owned by a Jeokhwa Yeon-affiliated company in that sector.

So it was a wealthy area? It was surprising to hear about mutants being sighted near such a place.

“Have you packed everything? Let’s sign the request form and head out. It’s best to get it done quickly.”

Sera stood up, and we gathered our things, planning to meet at the courtyard and leave immediately.

Naturally, my thoughts drifted to Yeon Minha. I had run into her briefly this morning.

I would be away from the dormitory for at least a day. Not participating in the request was not an option.

External requests had a significant impact on grades, and I had promised the captain and my seniors to graduate with top marks.

But this meant Yeon Minha would be exposed to her old environment again.

Well, she had lived that way for over ten years. A day or two of regression shouldn’t have a major impact.

The immediate crisis was averted. The rest could be dealt with gradually.

With that in mind, I stood up and followed the others out of the lecture hall.

End of Chapter