Chapter 99
Chapter 99: Movie Theater (2)
A group of heroes clad in dazzling equipment was walking down the street.
They were all heroes belonging to the same party.
“Look over there.”
“Wow…”
With long swords hanging at their waists and armor sparkling even brighter under the light, passersby stole glances at them.
Their gazes were filled with curiosity, envy, or admiration.
Among them was a hint of jealousy.
It was the envy of those who wanted to be heroes but couldn’t.
“Hmph.”
“Uhm.”
The heroes, conscious of the gazes around them, puffed up their chests.
They walked with pride, their faces exuding a sense of leisure.
While some heroes felt burdened by the attention that came with awakening their magic and becoming heroes, there were also many, like them, who enjoyed it.
Swish—
One of the heroes brushed off the red badge pinned to his left chest.
It was a badge given only to those heroes who had passed the Hero Academy, organized by Red Hole.
A symbol of belonging to a select few who made it through a high competition.
Though it served a symbolic purpose, wearing the badge made him feel greatly part of an esteemed group.
“What’s the schedule for today?”
“Feedback training.”
The class for the new recruits today was a feedback training session conducted by Instructor Jin Seok-woo.
The female hero who admired Seok-woo wore a beaming expression.
Her party member beside her asked,
“Is it that good?”
“Of course! Seok-woo is my role model!”
“You even coated that signed paper from him and hung it on the wall, right?”
“Yeah! I’m even planning to buy a frame!”
“Why not ask to take a picture together?”
“That’s too embarrassing…”
Seok-woo had gained enough recognition to be considered an object of admiration by some heroes.
They chatted and entered the main building of the Hero Academy.
At the moment they were looking for the lecture room, a male hero recalled Seok-woo’s training and spoke up.
“Which party was supposed to film the feedback video today?”
“It’s James Kang’s party from Red Hole… and then, what was the other one?”
“Probably Yoo Ji-han’s party from Sweet Fun?”
By the second training session, information about the parties selected for filming was already disclosed.
The hero who thought of Yoo Ji-han’s party chuckled.
“That’s the one. They scored well in the interview during the entrance ceremony at the Academy.”
“Right. I remember now.”
“But I can never acknowledge that. We didn’t even rank.”
“Me neither. How did that weird party get into the Academy…?”
In Korea, various support programs exist for heroes.
Among them, the Hero Academy stands at the top tier.
For Rank 4 heroes aware of the Academy’s existence, having entered it became a point of pride.
Though graduation is extremely challenging, if accomplished, it could lead to recognition as one of the notable parties in Korea.
“My friend is in a party that didn’t make it into Warriors. How did they get in?”
“Maybe they have connections inside?”
An unknown guild suddenly appeared at the Academy and even got mentioned directly by Baek Kang-cheon, the guild master of Red Hole.
If the heroes belonged to a well-known guild, it might not be surprising, but it felt annoying that those who seemed inferior were receiving praise.
As fellow recruits, it was hard not to see them as eyesores.
“I don’t even need to watch today’s video. It’s bound to be garbage.”
“Can’t have any bad words in the feedback, right?”
“It will count as a criterion, so no go. But why?”
“I wonder if I can hold back curses after watching their video.”
“Hey, that’s a bit too harsh.”
They giggled, badmouthing Yoo Ji-han’s party throughout their walk.
Though they were heroes belonging to a prominent guild, they considered themselves superior to smaller guilds.
It was somewhat dismissive of other heroes, yet perhaps it was to be expected.
Having support from higher-ranked heroes and guilds allows for swifter growth than others.
*
Once prepared, Jin Seok-woo walked into the classroom.
The classroom was filled to the brim with heroes, leaving no empty seats.
“Hello, everyone. It’s great to see you all again.”
Clap clap clap—
A brief applause followed.
Seok-woo turned to the heroes and continued speaking.
“Today, we’ll conduct the second feedback training. Are Kim Myung-su’s party and Go Mina’s party here?”
“Yes!”
“Four!”
The party leaders of the two parties replied energetically.
“I’ve sent you the feedback used for the training. How has it been since then? Did you find it helpful?”
“As the party leader, it helped me reflect on our party’s weaknesses. I noticed areas for improvement that I hadn’t thought about before. Thanks to it, I feel my perspective has broadened!”
“We also learned a lot from the feedback! Among them, the feedback submitted by a certain ‘unnamed party’ was especially helpful.”
“Is that the feedback I mentioned during training?”
“Exactly.”
“I’m glad it was helpful.”
Seok-woo’s gaze briefly landed on Go Mina before moving on as he opened the laptop placed on the teacher’s desk.
“As announced beforehand, today, we’ll watch the videos from James Kang’s party and Yoo Ji-han’s party.”
“I have a question!”
“Go ahead.”
“You mentioned parties receiving good evaluations earn bonus points, but what happens if they receive very poor evaluations?”
“A party that receives a bad evaluation may see their scores drop based on my subjective standards.”
Hearing Seok-woo’s words, the heroes nodded.
The scores assigned to each party at the Academy are similar to the credits needed for college graduation.
If the scores fall below a certain threshold, it could lead to the risk of expulsion.
“I’ll start by showing the video from James Kang’s party.”
As the lights dimmed, the classroom became dark, and a projector displayed the video.
—James Kang’s Party. Recording begins.
With a deep male voice, the hunt began.
—Uooooo!
A hulking warrior wielding a massive shield and mace charged at the monsters with a roar.
Each time a monster was struck, they flew away!
“Ooo….”
“Wow, sick.”
James Kang, born in America but active in Korea where his parents reside, truly had the skills worthy of being recruited by Red Hole.
‘Not bad.’
Watching the video, Yoo Ji-han had little to note for this feedback.
That was because James Kang’s party was overwhelmingly dominating the battle against their foes.
Every monster fell in a single hit, making it feel monotonous.
He could only point out a few mistakes he noticed here and there.
“Next is the video from Yoo Ji-han’s party.”
“…….”
It was time to play the video filmed by Yoo Ji-han’s party.
While Seok-woo manipulated the remote, the heroes’ attention shifted back toward the earlier impressive performance by James Kang.
‘He’s really selfish.’
‘He makes our warrior look pathetic in comparison.’
‘It would be so comfortable to be with a hero like that….’
Even among the same rank, his presence stood out significantly.
Other heroes envied him and his party members.
James Kang seemed familiar with this kind of attention, shrugging it off casually.
Meanwhile, Kim Si-hu looked at Yoo Ji-han and asked,
“Hyung, are we going to be okay?”
“No problem.”
Unlike Kim Si-hu, who was worried about evaluations, Yoo Ji-han appeared very relaxed.
They had fought against barbarians, after all.
He had confidence that they wouldn’t fall short compared to any other party.
—Is the camera working well?
—Yes.
As Yoo Ji-han’s party video began to play, everyone redirected their focus to the screen.
Most wore indifferent expressions.
Thanks to their previous impressive showing at Red Hole, Yoo Ji-han’s party looked considerably less impressive in comparison.
—Let’s go up.
The video transitioned to the 2nd floor of the department store.
Finally, the camera captured the An Gwae flower.
‘It’s the An Gwae flower.’
‘A rather tricky monster.’
As the monster appeared, a few heroes took interest, while those who had encountered Yoo Ji-han’s party in the department store watched the scene with great intrigue.
In the video, Yoo Ji-han stepped forward alone.
—Are you watching closely?
His thrust met the An Gwae flower.
With just that one attack, the small flower fell, and his sword smoothly sliced through the surrounding branches.
“……?”
“Huh?”
“What’s going on?”
The heroes watching the video frowned or expressed confusion.
The An Gwae flower, which had been moving just fine, fell far too quickly.
—Too easy, right?
The moment Yoo Ji-han turned to speak, everyone fell silent.
The same went for the following scene.
Every time Yoo Ji-han swung his sword, the An Gwae flowers fell in a similar fashion.
“No way…”
“What’s happening?”
The previously quiet heroes began to murmur among themselves.
They were mostly heroes who had previously hunted An Gwae flowers.
The An Gwae flower was a monster whose stem was tougher and sturdier than expected, making it tricky to deal with.
Yet Yoo Ji-han was taking them down as if he were simply cutting a normal flower.
‘Is his weapon incredibly expensive?’
‘Doesn’t look that special….’
As time passed, both Yoo Ji-han and his party members, Kim Si-hu and Min Yu-ri, showcased remarkable skills.
The sight of them sweeping up the An Gwae flowers left the watching heroes speechless.
The edited video quickly progressed, bringing Yoo Ji-han’s party to the rooftop.
“Hah!”
“That’s!”
As the door to the rooftop swung open, the Maple Goemi and Giant Goemi made an appearance.
The sudden appearance of Rank 3 monsters left everyone watching the video in shock.
And the scenes that followed even more astonished the heroes.
“Insane!”
“They fought a Goemi?!”
Yoo Ji-han’s party charged at the Goemi.
Beside them, Kim Si-hu and Min Yu-ri continued the battle, with Chilla leading the way.
Even against Rank 3 foes, the situation appeared stable and secure. The heroes who could appreciate a good fight let out strange utterances of amazement.
—Swoosh! Swoosh!
The camera captured Yoo Ji-han facing the Maple Goemi alone.
In scenes where countless maple leaves were thrown at him, the heroes held their breath in suspense.
An attack that seemed unavoidable.
But…
Yoo Ji-han avoided every single attack without allowing even one to touch him.
“…….”
“…….”
“…….”
“…….”
As Yoo Ji-han’s party began to gain the upper hand in combat, no one in the classroom was distracted anymore.
All that remained was silence, with everyone focusing intently on the unfolding video.
*
After the feedback class concluded, Yoo Ji-han’s party moved to Seok-woo’s office at his request.
Upon entering the office, Yoo Ji-han was the first to speak.
“Instructor Jin Seok-woo.”
“Yes.”
“You cut out the part where we fought against the barbarians in the video earlier.”
