How to get on the protagonist’s flower path

***

In training with Yggdrasil, Min Jae-yoon learned how to handle her magic more delicately.

“Now, imagine a thread! Wrap a thick thread around your body!”

“Thread…!”

“The lighter the thread’s color, the weaker it is; the darker the thread, the stronger it is. This is the quality of the curse. And the more threads you wrap, the greater the amount of the curse. This is the output of the curse.”

“I’m not sure if I understand…”

“Ugh, it’s impossible to explain it with words. Just roll!”

“Yes, yes!”

I knew this would happen.

I shook my head when I saw Yggdrasil suddenly pull out a holy weapon.

“What are you doing, Kang Na-hyun! You come too! It’s a sparring match!”

“Yes, I’m coming!”

Thus, the torture called training continued.

Having endured this kind of torture, I at least felt I had become stronger.

“I feel like I’m going to die…!”

“But wasn’t it manageable?”

“Yes…!”

The two were in perfect sync.

With her strong desire for improvement, Min Jae-yoon must have been an enticing student for Yggdrasil.

Min Jae-yoon handled Yggdrasil’s intense training quite well. Yggdrasil often praised her, and Min Jae-yoon was extremely happy about it.

Maybe that’s why she seemed to follow Yggdrasil quite well. Not as much as I did, but still.

“You’re strong!”

“I-I am strong!”

“Hahahaha!”

“Hahahaha!”

…And it seemed that at least through Yggdrasil’s authoritative statements, Min Jae-yoon had regained her confidence regarding combat.

That’s a good thing… right?

I decided to pretend I didn’t see Min Jae-yoon, who was turning into a tank from hell.

Time passed quickly, and before I knew it, June had arrived.

The summer that had suddenly approached was painting the academy green.

Students were gradually starting to wear summer uniforms, and it was common to see them gathered around the fountain in the walking path just outside the window.

I wondered how the club members were doing.

While I had indirectly grasped it through the perspective of a con artist, it was still insufficient.

Yggdrasil’s mention of meeting some familiar faces must be referring to the club members.

I inwardly anticipated meeting them as I checked the rapidly approaching first-year field practice season.

Field Practice.

It refers to activities where hunters gain experience by observing and assisting in actual workplaces.

And we had decided to join the field practice along with other students. So, it was necessary to prepare well.

I cleared my throat and spoke up.

“Do you remember our promise?”

“Yeah. Even if my personality seems different, I won’t say a word!”

Min Jae-yoon responded confidently, grinning.

I had recently confessed to her that I was acting like a good kid. However, instead of showing surprise, she seemed to be thrilled about the ‘secret of Na-hyun that only I know.’ She truly was a bold one.

Well… if you’re happy, that’s enough.

I turned my gaze to the meta system window above.

[Current Meta Points: 9520 Points]

It seemed that the heart of the con artist, which had been rampaging while I couldn’t see her face, was slowly calming down, or perhaps it was due to the other female students’ efforts; the rate at which meta points were increasing had gradually slowed down.

Due to the overflowing amount of content, I couldn’t muster the courage to read it all seriously. I hadn’t even considered that having too much information could be an issue.

There was even a nasty comment saying, “Hey author, stop whining about the heroine already.” I completely empathized with that.

Still, I had found out who would be participating in the field practice with us.

“It’s been a while.”

“Uh, um! Hello!”

It was Dum Dum and Shin Baran.

They got out of the car, carrying a bag containing something long, and approached us with a plodding gait.

Seeing them after such a long time made me so happy that I couldn’t help but let my lips curl upward uncontrollably.

“It’s been a while, everyone! How have you been?”

I greeted them with a bright smile and waved my hand.

My expression of joy seemed to be so apparent that Min Jae-yoon pressed against my side. I patted her shoulder to reassure her not to worry.

At that moment…

“Descendant of the Black Dragon?”

Shin Baran, who had paused for a moment, muttered while staring at Min Jae-yoon. Min Jae-yoon flinched.

“That’s right.”

As Dum Dum echoed those words, Min Jae-yoon shrank even further, burrowing into my side. Since Min Jae-yoon was actually bigger than me, it looked as if an ostrich was hiding its head in the sand.

I patted Min Jae-yoon and said, “Her name is Min Jae-yoon! She’s my friend! She’s strong!”

I mentioned the point where Min Jae-yoon was currently feeling the most confident.

That’s right. Min Jae-yoon is a half-breed of a different race.

If she were just a half-breed of a different race and human, it wouldn’t be a big deal, but she happens to be the granddaughter of the ‘Black Dragon,’ the boss of the 666th floor.

“Y-yeah… I’m strong…”

This rare lineage drew even more attention to Min Jae-yoon, and the moment her inability to control her abilities was exposed, it hurt her even more.

The Black Dragon and her other family members had been dead for a long time. There was no backing to support her, only the fame remained. Moreover, she often caused damage to those around her due to her inability to control her innate abilities.

Because of this, Min Jae-yoon had to endure the hatred for her race with her whole being. All because her abilities were deemed inadequate, and she was labeled as a nuisance.

Fearful that a similar incident might occur again, Min Jae-yoon stole glances at the two of them.

Dum Dum responded completely nonchalantly, “I see.”

Then he extended his hand.

“I’m Park Si-woo. Nice to meet you.”

As Min Jae-yoon stared at Dum Dum’s hand, her face quickly brightened.

“…Okay!”

Their hands clasped tightly, and Shin Baran, observing the scene, interjected with an “Ahem!”

“I-I’m Shin Baran. You can shake hands with me too!”

Shin Baran boldly reached out her hand, but she seemed tense. Min Jae-yoon, also visibly nervous, grasped her hand. They both felt a bit awkward.

Well, neither of them was particularly good at socializing…

Still, it was surprising that Shin Baran, who used to evaluate and categorize others on her own whims, was the first to propose a handshake. It seemed there had been a significant change in her feelings.

In any case…

“Isn’t this great?”

I said with a smile, and Min Jae-yoon shyly nodded in agreement, returning a bashful smile.

A bit of the tension eased in Min Jae-yoon’s grip on my hand. Just as Dum Dum was about to speak to me,

“Everyone’s gathered.”

The hunters appeared.

Among them was one person who looked extremely familiar.

It was an unexpected reunion, but I maintained a calm expression, focusing solely on the leader of the group of hunters.

For some reason, Shin Baran seemed intimidated upon seeing the leader.

Now that I think about it, that leader looks a lot like Shin Baran.

“You’re looking at the leader of this fortress, where you’ll be doing your practice, Shin Barun.”

Ah, it made sense that she would feel intimidated. I clicked my tongue inwardly.

She was Shin Barun, the youngest leader and the older sister of Shin Baran.

Originally, the fortress was operated by private guild hunters hired by the government, with their representative serving as the vice-captain. The captain, along with a directly subordinate unit, is composed of government-affiliated hunters.

Additionally, it is said that captain-level hunters undergo rotation as part of their experience to eventually become the supreme commander overseeing all fortresses surrounding Seoul.

According to the original novel, by the time we were supposed to do our field practice, Shin Barun should have been transferred to the Pangyo Fortress.

But what is going on?

Could it be that Shin Baran came over here? Did she deliberately come this way?

If that’s the case, there’s a possibility. Shin Barun has the power to adjust the area in which she works at her discretion.

Shin Barun glanced at us and said in a nonchalant manner, “A half-breed of a different race, along with an unreliable younger sister.”

Shin Baran and Min Jae-yoon flinched. Especially Min Jae-yoon, whose breathing became increasingly ragged. I quickly took her hand and whispered, “Min Jae-yoon. Calm down.”

“Okay…!”

However, watching Min Jae-yoon, Shin Barun frowned and warned her, “Even if it’s called field practice, you must participate in real combat missions. If you aren’t confident in performing properly, it’s better to return to your school now.”

“I-I’m confident!”

“That’s not just idle talk. Especially you, didn’t you lose control of your magic recently and go on a rampage?”

I stepped in front of Min Jae-yoon, who was struggling to respond to Shin Barun’s words, and said, “After the rampage, her magic has been completely controllable. Lord Yggdrasil has guaranteed this, so I don’t think you need to worry about this anymore!”

I tried to maintain a bright smile. I’m harvesting sunshine, harvesting sunshine.

Shin Barun countered my smiling face with her sharp voice, “But you’ve sent two students with fire attribute magic. The very fact that a concentrated monitoring inspection team is conducting field practice in a dangerous area is an unusual situation.”

Following Shin Barun’s gaze toward Dum Dum and Shin Baran, I turned my eyes to them as well.

“One of your other missions is to control the half-breed of a different race, right?”

“Yes, yes!”

Shin Baran answered stiffly. Dum Dum tried to retort.

“I’ve heard that controlling shadow attribute students in emergencies is the goal, but that’s—”

However, Shin Barun interrupted him and continued speaking to me.

“Except for these two, you both are concentrated monitoring inspection members. Don’t forget that you are subjects of observation. Especially in the case of a half-breed of a different race, due to their characteristics—”

Is anyone thinking about teaching, or are they just treating us like criminals first?

No. If I don’t clarify things at this point, Shin Barun’s biased thoughts will reflect in the way we are treated.

I opened my mouth firmly and said, “We are subjects of observation, but we are also students here to learn.”

This awkward…