The Support Ate it All

Fwooooooooooooooosh!

The power of the overlapping Fire Pillars was truly overwhelming.

The sheer heat alone was enough to melt the B-rank Ice Wall in an instant.

And the pursuers weren’t just feeling the heat. They were standing right where the pillars of fire had erupted. The outcome was obvious even without looking.

A moment later, as the flames died down, only scattered items remained where they had stood.

[Cheese Box]

[Earplugs]

[Cheese Box]

[Calorie Bar]

Two more Cheese Boxes were added to the count.

Including the ones dropped by Sa Gong-wook’s group and those obtained from the cheese room, the total had now reached six, accumulating a whopping 2,100 points already.

Of course, there was still the issue of safely carrying them to the exit.

On top of that, various other items were piled up in abundance.

There were more than enough earplugs, calorie bars, and sleeping bags for everyone to have their share.

Shin Byeong-cheol let out a small laugh.

“Wow… We’re loaded now. But seriously, how did you even think of setting a trap there?”

“Hunting is all about driving the prey into a corner.”

The blood of a stagnant water efficiency enthusiast ran through my veins.

My mind was always wired to minimize effort and maximize gains.

Especially this time, everything had lined up perfectly.

The space was confined to the labyrinth corridor, giving us plenty of time to prepare due to the distance from our pursuers. There was even a convenient hiding spot nearby, and to top it off, we had the high-efficiency Hong Yeon-hwa switch.

With circumstances this favorable, there was no reason to hesitate. Click.

Baek Jun-seok glanced at the items and spoke.

“With this much loot, we could probably skip the hidden room. What do you think?”

“That would be the efficient choice.”

With such an ample supply of items, the chances of finding anything worthwhile in the hidden room had significantly dropped.

There was a slim possibility of obtaining a powerful item like the [Screaming Jar], but realistically, nine times out of ten, it would just be a waste of time.

So we decided to remove the hidden room from our plans.

Unless it was a place for rest or had some special effect, we wouldn’t be going out of our way for extra items.

And with that, we continued toward our original destination. The cheese room.

Shin Byeong-cheol took the lead, dismantling any traps along the way, while the rest of us followed at a comfortable pace.

At some point, Baek Jun-seok turned to Go Hyeon-woo and asked,

“So how did you end up being chased in the first place?”

“They seemed to have their eyes on our loot. They just picked a fight out of nowhere.”

“Guess they thought they had a chance. Well, they did have the numbers on their side.”

“I thought so too.”

The number of pursuers was roughly seven or eight.

Even if each of them was weaker than Go Hyeon-woo, they must have judged that they had enough manpower to win the fight.

Baek Jun-seok’s expression grew serious.

“There’s no way they’re the only raiders around… We’d better stay on guard.”

Sure enough, as we got closer to the Cheese Room, we started encountering more and more teams.

Some teams were even stationed right in front of it, waiting.

They were probably planning to chase down anyone who looked weak and steal their loot.

However, contrary to our concerns, no fights broke out. Because our team had someone far too eye-catching.

As all eyes turned toward her, Hong Yeon-hwa narrowed her eyes.

“What are you staring at?”

“…….”

“…….”

The other teams hastily averted their gazes.

They were just scavengers looking for scraps. There was no way they would dare challenge a six-person party with a promising student in their ranks.

In the end, we stepped into the Cheese Room without spilling a single drop of blood.

Stacks of neatly piled boxes.

Go Hyeon-woo picked one up and asked,

“I heard it’s one per pair… What happens if we take two?”

“Try it and see.”

I answered casually.

At the very least, there was no harm in trying, so Go Hyeon-woo grabbed another box.

Whoosh…

The second box instantly crumbled into dust and reappeared in its original spot.

No matter how many times he tried, the result was the same.

Go Hyeon-woo let out a wry chuckle.

“As expected, that’s how it works.”

“No need to be greedy. We already have plenty.”

“Got it.”

We each took one cheese box per pair.

After that—

“Let’s rest for a bit.”

We huddled in a corner of the room, sat down, and took a break.

This place was a kind of neutral zone.

We could stay as long as we wanted.

The more we hesitated, the further we would fall behind, and the longer we stayed in the cheese room, the more attention we would draw. But that wasn’t something to worry about.

There were too many items for us to fall behind, and as we had already experienced, Hong Yeon-hwa would block any unnecessary trouble.

Besides, we weren’t just killing time.

I looked around at my companions before speaking.

“Like I explained earlier, our next target is the control room.”

“..……!”

Everyone listened intently with serious expressions.

Challenging the control room meant going up against a teacher.

“Of course, we’re not doing this alone. I’ve already spread the word here and there.”

I had asked around to see who was interested in joining the raid against a teacher.

The invitations were limited to people we were somewhat familiar with and those who met a certain skill threshold.

With a massive 1,500 points on the line, most accepted my proposal.

Go Hyeon-woo nodded his head.

“I see. So that’s why we’re waiting.”

“There’s no better meeting place than this.”

During the final exam, the ways to join forces with other teams were extremely limited.

The most important radio tool only worked between teammates.

On top of that, there were multiple control rooms and exits, making it difficult to designate a single gathering point.

In contrast, the cheese room was located right in the center of the dungeon.

Not only did everyone have to pass through it at least once due to the nature of the exam, but it was also a neutral zone.

In many ways, it was the ideal meeting spot.

Go Hyeon-woo’s eyes gleamed for a moment.

“Are Jang-hyung and Wang-hyung joining as well?”

“No, they’re sitting this one out.”

Before the final exam, I had exchanged messages with Jang Muoogeuk and floated the idea.

However, his response was somewhat cautious.

[Kim Ho: Can you help?]

[Kim Ho: Against the teacher.]

[Jang Moo-geuk: It’s not time to reveal my strength yet.]

[Jang Moo-geuk: I hope you understand.]

[Kim Ho: Of course, I understand.]

Since the duo of assassins had been hiding their identities under aliases throughout the semester, revealing their true skills in a public setting like the final exam would have been burdensome.

Taking this into account, I hadn’t placed much expectation on them from the start.

[Jang Moo-geuk: When the time comes, I will definitely help.]

[Kim Ho: Understood.]

Go Hyeon-woo let out a small sigh.

“Hmm… I understand his reasoning, but it’s still a shame. If those two had joined us, it would have been a great reassurance.”

“There will be another chance. Today isn’t the only day.”

“Then what about the others?”

The answer to that question came from elsewhere.

“Ah! There they are!”

At the sound of a bright voice, I turned my head to see Han So-mi pointing in our direction.

Following behind her into the cheese room were Song Cheon-hye, Jo Byeok, and Geum Jo-han.

Song Cheon-hye walked toward me AND spoke.

“There are four of us.”

“What about the other two?”

Since we were supposed to be in teams of six, I questioned why only four had arrived.

Song Cheon-hye seemed slightly disappointed as if she had wanted to bring everyone along.

“They got caught up in something and couldn’t make it. They’ll have to move separately.”

“I see.”

Battles were still raging across the dungeon, and if they had been caught up in one, it wouldn’t be easy for them to move freely.

Even so, the four standing before me were already a powerful force, so I had no complaints.

With ten people gathered, the once-quiet cheese room grew noticeably livelier.

Han So-mi who was full of energy bombarded Go Hyeon-woo with trivial questions.

“Did you eat? Did you rest well? What items did you get? Did you think about me?”

“I was focused on the final exam. There was too much going on.”

“Are you ignoring me on purpose?”

Han So-mi puffed out her cheeks in frustration.

Go Hyeon-woo gave a strained smile and averted his gaze, only to accidentally lock eyes with Geum Jo-han.

The two had been at odds ever since their first encounter on the train.

Perhaps recalling that memory, Geum Jo-han muttered.

“So it’s you.”

“You remember me, I see.”

“Do you really think you’re skilled enough to be here?”

“You’ll be surprised when you see for yourself.”

Meanwhile, the atmosphere in another corner wasn’t exactly warm either.

Jo Byeok stared intently at Shin Byeong-cheol, causing him to shrink back slightly.

“……”

“Uh… why are you looking at me like that?”

“……”

“I didn’t do anything, okay?”

“……”

In another corner, Song Cheon-hye and Hong Yeon-hwa stole wary glances at each other.

They had been rivals since their time at the Magic Tower and had competed even during the mentoring program.

“……”

Meanwhile, Seo Ye-in sat in silence, lost in deep thought, as if she were still mourning the late Frying Pan.

All in all, it was a complete mess. Song Cheon-hye shook her head before speaking.

“This is already giving me a headache. Wouldn’t it be better to just head out quickly?”

“No, there’s still one more left.”

“Who?”

“They’re here now.”

When I gestured toward the door, Song Cheon-hye also turned her head in that direction.

At that moment, Park Na-ri and Jeong Soo-ji walked in and locked eyes with us.

Park Na-ri timidly waved her hand.

“Ah, hi. We’re here….”

“Grrr.”

Even Bum let out a low growl and waved a front paw.

On the first day, after taking down the Specters and the Banshees, I had extended an offer to them as well.

I expected them to accept, of course.

Park Na-ri herself didn’t seem particularly ambitious about earning points, but as a promising student, she couldn’t ignore them entirely.

If all the other promising students succeeded in attacking the Control Room while she lagged behind, she’d end up falling far behind on her own.

Since her combat style was passive, I had worried that she and Jeong Soo-ji might get caught like the two disciplinary members. But luckily, they had made it to the Cheese Room in time.

Jeong Soo-ji spoke up in Park Na-ri’s stead.

“We managed to get in touch with the others too. Are you sure we don’t need to call them?”

“Yeah. They’d just get in the way.”

Park Na-ri’s team included Gwak Ji-cheol and some earth mages, but with their level of skill, joining the Control Room raid wouldn’t do any meaningful damage to the teacher.

So I had told them not to come at all.

Jeong Soo-ji had only ended up joining because she was paired with Park Na-ri.

Still, this should be enough.

Out of twelve people, six were either promising students or at the disciplinary committee level, and three others were just shy of reaching that level.

Even against a teacher, this was a lineup that had a real shot at victory.

Now, the key was figuring out how to execute the raid.

So, I spoke up.

“Let’s go over our strategy one last time.”

“……”

At that, everyone fell silent, as if they had never been talking in the first place, and focused their attention.

They all knew how crucial the Control Room raid was.

Thanks to that, explaining things became much easier for me.

“We won’t know which teacher we’ll be up against until we go in.”

There were four Control Rooms, each guarded by a different teacher.

It was impossible to tell whether we’d be facing Lee Soo-dok, Seo Cheong-yong, Madam Jo Ok-soon, or someone else.

We also wouldn’t know exactly what skill or trait setups they had until we actually fought them.

Still, since each of them had a defined class, we could at least prepare countermeasures on a broad scale.

“—Teacher Seo Cheong-yong is a martial artist. He mainly fights in close combat but mixes in ice-type skills from time to time. So our approach should be—”

After that, we divided up roles and picked out useful items for the raid.

Then, together, we left the Cheese Room.