Chapter 52: Chapter 52: Dungeon Practice (2)

Iona Francheska was a beautiful woman.

With her softly wavy dark red hair and similarly captivating dark red eyes.

Her milky-white skin, which looked as though it could burst with fragrance at a touch, added another layer of allure when contrasted with her blood-like color tones.

And how could I not mention her voluptuous figure that was impossible to hide even in modest clothing?

It was no exaggeration to say that her curves would make any man lose his train of thought.

It only made sense.

The appearance of a vampire was like the flickering light of a will-o’-the-wisp, a hunting tool designed to lure in humans.

Being a species that reproduced through bloodsucking, it was only natural that they would have bodies that accentuated femininity.

However, the reason why the male students at the academy were not captivated by Iona was simple.

It was because of her silly antics that counterbalanced her overwhelming beauty.

Swoosh.

Today, like any other day, Iona rolled into the classroom three consecutive times, then suddenly sprang up and exclaimed,

“Iona has arrived!”

Perhaps they’d grown completely accustomed to it over the past month. The students casually greeted Iona as if it were nothing out of the ordinary.

She looked quite friendly.

Did they know? Iona was intentionally adopting a goofy demeanor to form neutral human relations.

Well… they would all find out sooner or later, but for now, they probably just think Iona was an amazing but peculiar person.

After briefly chatting with the surrounding students, Iona banged on the podium and said,

“Quiet, everyone! There’s important news today!”

Despite this and that, the students, who respected Iona’s authority as a professor, promptly fell silent.

After all, how could they ignore what Iona says when they were practicing to death with her—or at her behest—on the training grounds every day?

In the slightly tense silence, Iona put on her usual screw-loose smile.

“Listen up, listen up! Some of you might have heard rumors, but in one week, Class A will have a dungeon practical! We’ll be going jointly with Class A from another department, so look forward to it!”

Finally…!

Iona’s words had hinted at something important, and sure enough, it was about the upcoming dungeon practical.

The academy’s ultimate goal, although slightly faded now, is to eradicate all the dungeons and dungeon-dwellers.

So, even if the students in Class A had only been enrolled for a month and were still freshmen, they were given the opportunity to experience a dungeon at least once.

Of course, not just any dungeon, but a special one under strict academy management.

Fundamentally, dungeons were the traces of failed attempts by the good Gods to consume the legions of the evil Gods.

Boss monsters, or ‘cores’ as they were called, received late protection from evil Gods, serving as anchors keeping the dungeons connected to this world.

And because of that, some dungeons, like the field-type dungeons that Carla and I had cleared, were stable, but others exhibited bizarre phenomena.

One of these was the ‘Regen-type’ dungeon.

The dungeon’s space and time were twisted, causing monsters to revive at regular intervals.

The only strategy was to clear the dungeon by defeating the boss or breaking the core before the next cycle began.

Mistakes could lead to ambushes during boss fights and endless battles, making it one of the most demanding types of dungeons.

But what if there were only weak monsters like goblins and kobolds in a Regen-type dungeon?

Wasn’t it useful for training if only the boss was managed properly?

That was the kind of dungeon we’d be going to for our practical.

The second-year students would go to standard dungeons, but the first-years had no choice but to go to this practice dungeon.

Even then, they would go based on their grades, and by the time they get to Class C, they could only go in the second semester. However, that wasn’t the case for Class A.

One of the advantages of Class A was that they could go on dungeon practicals the earliest and most often during their first year.

Compared to just taking academy classes and practicing, the rate of growth was much faster when you were gaining real-life experience by killing even weak monsters.

…And you could get your hands on the hidden pieces in the training dungeon sooner, too.

After all, wasn’t it a rule to hide something in the beginner’s dungeon?

Of course, these were early-stage hidden pieces, so their performance wasn’t all that great.

While contemplating how to naturally obtain these hidden pieces, a student raised a hand, looking curious.

Upon closer look, it was the same unimpressive male student who was eliminated after shouting during the previous match. His name was definitely McKellin.

“Professor, I have a question!”

“Huh? What is it, what is it? Go ahead, McKellin!”

“So we’re going to collaborate with the other departments? Does that mean we’ll be forming parties?”

“Exactly! Bingo! No one’s good at everything on their own, which is why you need teammates, and why most people go into dungeons in parties!”

At this, McKellin nodded as if hearing something he’d expected.

“Right. I’m not as physically strong as a knight, nor can I instantly heal like a priest skilled in healing magic.”

“Huh? Huh, huh? Weren’t you going to say that you could sweep up low-level monsters on your own?”

“Why would I do such a foolish thing?”

“Every year, there’s at least one fool in Class A who thinks like that.”

Iona and McKellin exchanged a knowing look.

Well, it was true that Class A students tend to have a high sense of pride.

As Iona said, it wasn’t uncommon in H&A for one party member to act arrogant and cause issues.

And the person who usually did that was, with a high probability, a magic department student.

Magic, by its nature, requires one to have strong self-confidence.

But for some reason, the current Class A students all seemed puzzled by Iona’s words, just like McKellin.

A mage without a single prideful attitude?

Just as I was about to tilt my head, puzzled by the situation,

“Ah.”

I realized the subtly glancing eyes of those around were focused on me.

I must have dominated too much during the spar.

Elisha was a natural-born talent, hailing from noble bloodlines, and has been famous in the magic world for her exceptional abilities since childhood.

So, everyone would naturally assume it was okay to lose to Elisha.

But I was different, right?

A mercenary-born (not really) half-baked magician, outperforming them daily?

Even more, the rate at which my magical skills were improving was much faster than how they were getting used to combat.

Feeling inferior or angry was one thing, but naturally, their mindset of being able to do everything by themselves would disappear.

With a complicated expression about whether I should be happy or not, Iona cheerfully changed the topic.

“So, why did you ask about forming a party?”

“Um…I was wondering if we need to find our teammates from other Class A students from different departments or if the Academy will decide for us. How many people will be at a party… things like that?”

“Aha!”

Clap!

Iona, as if finally understanding, clapped her hands lightly and nodded.

“I should definitely tell you! Yes! Actually, I was about to tell you anyway!”

“Haha…”

At that, McKellin awkwardly laughed and lowered his hand.

“Firstly, the academy will randomly assign your parties! You can officially form your own parties in your second year, but in your first year, the party members will change every time so that you can team up with as many different people as possible! Who you’ll team up with is a secret! You’ll find out on the day itself!”

Iona paused, scanning the classroom, before settling her eyes on Elisha and me, flashing a meaningful smile.

“Don’t be too disappointed! The purpose of this practice is to experience dungeons! You’re still freshmen. It’s not like you’re expected to achieve anything grand. The aim is to gain as many diverse experiences as possible! Including common misfortunes you might encounter in dungeons.”

“……”

Iona’s seemingly significant words tightened the tension among the students. Even Elisha seemed to swallow hard, perhaps because of the look in her eyes a moment ago.

… But it wasn’t really a big deal.

Professors set up traps in the dungeon, and they purposely matched teammates who were incompatible either in skills or personality.

Think of it as a balance patch.

Given that the entrance exam involved taming monsters, even the lowest-level dungeons shouldn’t be too challenging for freshmen.

So, it was to ensure that none of us could fully showcase our abilities.

Internal strife within the party was common anyway.

Even if the team wasn’t hastily put together, personalities tend to sharpen in extreme situations.

They must want us to experience that too.

In my case, I performed quite well in magic combat classes, so I’d probably be matched with someone less competent from Class A of another department.

I wasn’t sure who it was, though.

Then I raised my hand confidently, while everyone else was tense. Iona’s eyes widened as if surprised by my calm demeanor.

“Uh? Yandel, do you have a question? Professor Iona will answer anything!”

“Ah, well.”

After taking a deep breath, I spoke up. This was a bit nerve-wracking.

“Is it possible to bring someone other than party members? For example, a servant to carry our stuff?”

“Why would you need a porter when you have a pocket dimension? Unfortunately, outsiders are not allowed! Beep-beep!”

Iona crossed her arms to form an ‘X.’

I guess it wasn’t possible.

Might as well ask everything.

“Slaves aren’t people, right? So are they considered ‘outsiders’?”

It was a terrible thing to say, but in this era, it was allowed. Slaves were considered objects, not people.

Iona seemed to ponder for a moment before finally crossing her arms again.

“Hmm… Still a no-go! It would undermine the purpose of this dungeon exercise! You have to form a party with newly met students and go on an adventure. Even bringing slaves is forbidden!”

“No choice, then… Understood.”

Sigh.

It seemed like the Carlabus Season 2 plan had gone down the drain.

As I sighed inwardly, people around me gave me looks of disgust and shock.

It was okay. This hostility would probably be directed at Elisha anyway.

But then.

Elisha looked at me with a doubtful gaze.

This was a bit problematic. It looks like we needed to have a talk.