To The Academy (3)

“……”
“……”

The suffocating atmosphere continued.
A subtle silence flowed gently between Moon Bora and Ma Hana, swirling like mist.

Even Yu Seha, who had been teasing Moon Bora just a moment ago and savoring her cute reactions, closed his mouth in a slightly serious mood.

Well, of course, it wasn’t a look of worry at all.

Rather, his eyes were shouting like this,

‘Our Meowi has grown up well, right?’

Moon Bora pouted at his ‘Hehe~’, as if he were showing off a proud daughter.

It was an obviously annoying sight, but Moon Bora did not deny it.

It was just a little irritating to nod along with his intention.

There was no reason to deny Ma Hana’s growth.

And it was true that the result before her eyes was something to be proud of.

‘What on earth could have happened?’

She had a vague sense that Ma Hana had changed.
Well, she had watched her dance from a distance at the ‘Shrine of the Dancer’ recently.

But seeing her up close now felt different once again.

‘She is a completely different person.’

Not only the amount of magic flowing through her body but also her overall physical abilities had significantly increased.

Even Moon Bora, who lacked proper [Exploration] and [Observation] skills, could notice this level of growth.

Surely, the stats and records in the status window would be even more impressive.

There was one more thing that stood out.

A unique magic wavelength that she felt for the first time.

It was undoubtedly the power of a [Rune].

‘Judging by the unfamiliar rhythm… could it be a rune from a rare boss with a + grade?’

It must be.
There weren’t many runes she was unaware of.

‘Did Yu Seha also consume it?’

This… she didn’t know.

The first time she met him, she felt it too, but it was strangely difficult to find out anything about Yu Seha.

At first, she wondered if he had some kind of trait that blocked information leakage from the like [Concealment].

‘…No.’

It was just that his aura was so astonishingly calm and serene that she couldn’t tell.

It was evidence that he had mastered the art of hiding and controlling his power and presence.

She was wondering where he learned such a skill when…

A voice buzzed in her ear, ‘Meeeooow~’

Ma Hana, the cute girl, was looking up at her with her tiny fists clenched adorably.

“Hey, long time no see. Miss Bora.”
“Yes, nice to see you.”

Silence fell again.

She tried to break the awkwardness by speaking first.
But Ma Hana acted faster.
She bowed her head 90 degrees and apologized.

“Meeoooow! I’m sorry!”
“…Wh-what?”

Towards Moon Bora, who was flustered by the unexpected words, Ma Hana kept bowing her head.

“I’m really sorry about that time. I deeply regret failing to manage my condition and not taking care of my body.”
“…Ah.”
“I’m sorry for disappointing you. It’s a basic qualification I should have as a tank… I have no excuse, even if I had ten mouths to speak the excuses.”

Moon Bora couldn’t say anything for a moment.
The words she had once said…
Were they engraved this deeply in her heart?

‘…I’m sorry.’

It was something she had to say.
Even if she went back to that time, she would have acted the same.
But it must have been a huge shock to Ma Hana.

Just when she was starting to feel a bit down.
Completely unexpected words followed.

“Meow, and thank you.”
“…What?”

Ma Hana, who was twiddling her fingers, smiled bashfully.

“Thanks to you, I was able to reflect on myself. I was able to make an effort. Even though my heart almost broke and I nearly gave up halfway…”

Ma Hana looked back at Yu Seha.
From their smiling faces, one could feel their unbreakable bond.

“Because of you… I was able to move forward.”
“…”
“And because I moved forward, I was able to meet Seha, and now I can stand here and speak to you.”
“…What are you saying?”

Ma Hana carefully grasped Moon Bora’s hands.

“I will definitely prove it.”
“…Prove?”
“Prove that I can trust and follow you.”
“…!”
“S-so… please watch over me. Mehehe.”

Ma Hana’s smile was like the sun.
That face surely contained warmth.
Just like the smile Yu Seha once had.

‘…I see.’

Moon Bora nodded inwardly.
She had to admit.
The fact that she was wrong.

‘I judged everything just by looking at her status window.’

She concluded her potential solely based on the recorded figures and abilities.

And just now, she hastily concluded based on the magic power levels she felt.

She realized how foolish that thought was.

‘Inner strength.’

Ma Hana.
The heart of this little girl was formed with an iron will stronger than anything else.

At this point, her defeat was practically confirmed.

“…”

Moon Bora slowly lowered her hand.
She turned her body.

“We’ll be late at this rate. Let’s head to the exam hall too.”
“…Meow.”

A low sigh escaped from Ma Hana’s lips.

Feeling a slight sense of sadness for a moment.
A word that made Ma Hana shudder flowed into her ear.

“I believe you.”
“…! Meow! Th-thank you!”

Ma Hana, smiling brightly, followed behind Moon Bora.

And a little distance away…

“…Kheuheuk!”

Yu Seha, who had been watching all of this, covered his mouth with both hands, shedding tears of joy.

Yes, this is it.
This is the taste.

‘This is…!’

The true taste of ‘GAL’!

BUUUUUUUZZZZ!

The three of them entered the examination hall.
There was still a bustling crowd, with about five pathways splitting off.

It was overwhelming due to the sheer number of people.
Then, a presence approached them.

“Excuse me!”

A woman with reddish-brown hair raised a folder, speaking in a bright voice.

Judging by her name tag and the characteristic pretty uniform, she seemed to be one of the seniors volunteering for today’s exam.

“Are you Moon Bora, Ma Hana, and Yu Seha?”
“Yes, we are.”
“Great! Would you follow me? I’ll guide you.”

With the help of a kind senior, they entered and, about 10 minutes later, arrived at the stadium for today’s exam.

The stadium had a round spectator stand like a colosseum and a central place for the exam.

Lastly, it was composed of a judging platform for scoring.

“…I have a question.”

At that moment, Moon Bora raised her hand with a look of ‘Why…?’

“Why are we naturally together like this?”

There were a total of five exam locations.

Naturally, Moon Bora thought they would take the exam separately and then meet again.

But there was no sign of being split up, and even the seats were arranged for the three of them together.

Moon Bora was inwardly flustered by this treatment of being handled like one unit.

Then Yu Seha tilted his head.

“That’s because we are now a team. It’s only natural to be together.”

“…Whose decision was that?! No, I don’t want a team!”

“Yes, it isn’t just any team. It is a team that moves ahead together, sharing all hardships and joys with each other.”

“D-don’t talk nonsense!”

In response to Moon Bora’s protest, Yu Seha shook his head like it was puzzling.

She turned to Ma Hana beside her, attempting an ineffectual gaslighting by saying, ‘That’s strange. We swore an oath, didn’t we?’

“Such a thing didn’t happen!”

“Oh, given your gullible nature, you’ll end up joining us anyway, so why are you being so difficult?”

“What did you just say?!”

As if helpless, Moon Bora whispered something to Ma Hana’s ear.

‘Mmm, mmmm,’ came the sound from Ma Hana.

I glanced at Moon Bora and focused on her large eyes.

“Mmm, woah. W-we are on the same team now. I hope we can do well…”

Those bright eyes shone.
Moon Bora’s face turned red in an instant at the powerful technique called ‘Eye Contact.’

“Ah-ahem! S-Stop saying weird things… Anyway, we’re not going in together!”
“Tsk~”
“Meow~”
“Making such sounds won’t work!”

They shared a brief moment of amusing banter.
Soon, the sound of tapping on a microphone was heard.
It was the signal announcing the start of the test.

Five people then entered.

Each of them wore the emblem and the unique uniform symbolizing the ‘Hunter Academy,’ proving they were professors.

‘…The age range is more diverse than I thought.’

In ‘GAL,’ there was almost no information about the Academy’s professors.

It just shows what the characters learn.
What skills they gain.
What stats have increased.

Even considering it as the main stage, it was quite puzzling.

‘This is probably because of the supervisor.’

The supervisor was somewhat ambiguous but also played the role of a teacher.

Therefore, if the influence of professors increases, it would overlap with the position of the supervisor who manages characters.
It was excluded, thinking that complaints might arise in the community.

‘…Let’s see. There’s one man, and the rest are all women… Oh? There’s also a grandmother.’

The fourth seat.

A woman who appeared to be at least in her 60s, with wrinkled skin, was crossing her arms.

The aura of firmness that belied her age made it clear she was a professor.

“As expected, the rumors about heavy recruitment efforts this year are true. Everyone here is a notable figure.”

“Oh, really?”

Moon Bora responded to my question with incredulity.

“…You don’t know?”

Of course, I didn’t.

I had only been in this world for two months, right?

“…Haa, since it’s information you need to know anyway, I’ll tell you now.”

Moon Bora explained something enthusiastically.
I only caught onto the subject being taught roughly.

Each one was [Understanding Hunter Positions], [Strategy and Command Systems], [Information and Ancient History of Monsters], [Hunter Sparring Matches], etc.

They were major professors, teaching obviously useful subjects.

I listened quietly and then responded.

“Then, what about that person?”
“…Who?”
“Over there, the person at the very end.”

The woman at the very end.
Beige long hair.
A slim and toned body like Moon Bora.

A sword hung at her waist.
And she was slightly fierce, yet as beautiful as blooming flowers in spring.
She was naturally someone who drew attention.

“That person is…”

Moon Bora stopped as she was about to speak.
When I looked at her curiously, she glanced away and pursed her lips.

“…I don’t know.”
“…Huh?”
“Wh-what are you talking about? Of course, I don’t know everything.”
“Uh, that can’t be true. You’re Moon Bo-Wiki.”
“M-Moon Bo-Wiki… Don’t give me strange nicknames! Anyway, I don’t know. Yes, I don’t know.”

I narrowed my eyes.

Judging by the reaction, it seemed like she knew…

It wasn’t like Moon Bora’s personality to not tell because she’s annoyed.

‘Is it someone she personally knows?’

Maybe, since Moon Bora valued etiquette and was reserved about sensitive matters.

The reason I was particularly concerned about this female professor was, of course, not because of her appearance.

She was beautiful.
Even Moon Bora next to me was no less of a beauty.
Meow was also a sufficiently cute beauty.

There was only one reason I was concerned.

‘…Because she’s been staring at me continuously.’

It might seem strange.
Closing my eyes and crossing my arms, standing so far away, how could I know that?

But my intuition was screaming thoroughly.

Right now, that woman, among the many test-takers gathered here, was looking solely at me.

And she was scanning me with terrifying intensity.

‘…Ugh.’

I wish it were just a misunderstanding.
Since I am someone who has experienced this a lot.

‘Perhaps…’

It’s not a misunderstanding, right?