Chapter 22 : Main Quest Madness #1 - No Kidding, I’m an Extra

This is outright unfair. The nagging I'm getting is ridiculous. I didn't scream because I enjoyed it... I screamed purely to prevent a disaster! "Wait! Leona! Calm down!" "How can I possibly calm down? A catastrophe occurred in the class I'm in charge of!" "It's not a catastrophe! I was trying to prevent one!" "W-What? What kind of nonsense is this?" Leona folded her arms, furrowing her brow as she spoke. "If a disaster could be prevented by screaming, there wouldn't be any disasters in the world. People would just scream, and everything would solve itself." "I’m telling you, it’s a misunderstanding. Angel Leona, could you hear me out?" "Hmph. Very well, I'll listen. I'm curious what kind of ridiculous excuse you'll come up with. If you start spouting nonsense, be prepared for some physical therapy." What do you think you are, my wife? "What do you mean physical therapy... just blacklist my name at any hospital. Anyway, it was a bit of a commotion, you know? Actually, you could call it an incident." "An incident? What kind?" "Well, students started fighting with knives, okay? I screamed to get the instructor's attention. Noise would make the instructor come, right? So, I put aside my pride and screamed for the sake of saving lives, and if you keep this up, I'll just start crying out of frustration." "What? Um, what?" Leona tilted her head, puzzled. "What do you mean by knife fight..." "Si Hoo, back me up here. Leona doesn’t seem to believe me." At my words, Si Hoo stepped forward and spoke up. "Hmm. To be honest, from the conclusion, it’s true. Thanks to Geun Cheol's scream, Instructor Lee Sora came and suppressed the situation." Si Hoo, you're a lifesaver! "Is that how it was?" "Indeed. That’s how it was. Leona, you have a big misunderstanding about me. I didn’t scream for pleasure. I screamed to save lives. If I hadn’t screamed, a victim of that incident would be screaming instead by now." I must stand my ground here! "I see... I get it." Leona nodded in agreement. "Hmm... if it’s coming from Si Hoo, then it must be true. If it’s really the case, then I wrongly accused you." "Yeah. Do you get it now?" "It looks like I was in the wrong then. Sorry, Kim Geun Cheol." She surprisingly apologized without a fuss. "But what kind of incident was it?" Seems like she's interested now, though. Of course, I’m still sulking. I'm not telling. "Hmph. If you're curious about the details, ask Instructor Lee Sora directly. I’m too sulky to say anything. Si Hoo, let's go sit." "Geun Cheol, 'hmph'? Really...!" "Come on, come on." "Wait! Please tell me what the incident was!" "I am emotionally wounded right now. My exceptionally delicate heart is aching. Speaking under such conditions... is impossible." "I'll give you meal coupons! I'll give you meal coupons, so please tell me! And stop with the ridiculous, ‘my heart is aching’ nonsense-" "Yahooooooooo!!!" "Eek!" Meal coupons!!!! In that case, I’ll definitely talk!!! "I’ll gratefully accept the meal coupons! I’ll explain properly in detail! But first, we have class!" "Seriously, you're screaming again about the meal coupons... Anyway! Weird Kim Geun Cheol! This time it was a misunderstanding on my part, but I’ll be watching you!" Weird, huh? "Hey, Angel Leona? Is it really okay to call someone weird?" "Why are you suddenly acting normally now!" "That's... because it's 'common sense'." "Common sense, my foot!" She truly has a knack for playful banter. "Hmph. Whatever Kim Geun Cheol, don't you keep babbling about Angel nonsense all the time? I should start doing it too. It's unfair otherwise. Now hurry up and sit down; class is starting soon." With those words, Leona returned to her seat in a haughty manner. So full of herself. I too went back to my seat. "Scream Man! You’re impressive! You’ve already received over 200 recommendations! The whole school will know by today! Hahaha!" "You bastard, Ken... Didn’t you hear? I ended up like this trying to save someone." "Oho! Saving people and bringing laughter too! Scream Man seems to have a beautiful heart!" "Hehehe, damn it." "But what about the drink?" "Damn, I forgot. I’ll get it for you tomorrow." "Okay." Soon class began. * * * "It's well-known how Kim Young Sam, an A-rank Awakened, single-handedly blew up the Japanese Government-General Building. Although this building survived the tragedy of the Korean War and the Dimension War, it didn’t apparently sit well with him... Anyway, Kim Young Sam, the civic activist, possesses explosive-type abilities. Let's explore this ability in detail..." What an astounding story! To think there's a world where Kim Young Sam isn’t the president but rather an A-rank Awakened bomb specialist. I scribbled down notes while learning about these abilities. Awakened individuals all utilize a resource within their bodies called mana to exhibit superhuman strength, but it’s not limited to just physical enhancement. They can perform magical attacks too. Depending on the individual’s constitution, the 'magic' they perform can differ greatly, and these distinct attributes seem to be called special abilities. "Special abilities, huh." I currently only have the capacity for basic physical enhancement and a touch of superhuman strength. I need to level up more to use magic. But from what I hear, that might not be necessary. Even if one is not good at physical enhancement, they might have a talent for magic, and vice versa, it seems that’s quite common. The world of the Awakened appears to be truly diverse. "Geun Cheol, want to head to the training gym together?" "Heh, let's do that." And just like that, another day of classes came to an end. What comes after class? Head to the training gym for a workout and then hit the gym properly. Impressive, huh? Is this the life of a hero? Honestly, it's tough as hell. "Si Hoo, how about we mess around in the training gym for a bit before heading to the gym?" "Huh? The gym?" "Yeah. To get some exercise in." "Alright, sounds good." "Great, let's head out then." As soon as I gathered my things and stood up. "Wait, Kim Geun Cheol?" "It's you, Leona!" Leona approached! "Didn't you forget something? What was that knife fight incident all about?" "I'll tell you once I get the meal coupon. Payment in advance." "Wh-what! Do you expect me to get it now?" "You can give it to me by lunch tomorrow." "Forget it, just give me your number. I’ll call you later when you’re not busy." "Sure, here." I handed my smartphone to Leona. She dialed her own number, saving mine in the process. "All done. You’re going to the training gym, right? Well, I admire your dedication. See you." "Heh, right. See you later, Meal Ticket Leona." "Who are you calling Meal Ticket Leona!" I'll call her later to explain. "Geun Cheol." "Yeah, Si Hoo. Let’s hurry." "Hmm." "What? Why?" Why is he staring so intently? "Si Hoo?" "..." His expression seems... odd? It feels like he's glaring at me with his eyes half-closed. Glaring? Why would Si Hoo glare? Ah! Don't tell me! "You... could it be you have a thing for Angel Leona?" "What?" "Is that it?" "Geun Cheol, enough with the nonsense and let's head to the training ground." With that, Si Hoo took the lead and walked ahead. "Oh... sure." What’s going on? * * * Anyway, Si Hoo and I went to the training ground to get a feel for the new skills I acquired. "Uruk High Jump!" Recalling the sensation from before, I channeled mana to my feet and pushed off the ground. I felt myself rise, a bit more than a regular jump would allow. It's truly a curious sensation. "Geun Cheol succeeded!" "Wow! That actually worked immediately!" "But it's still rough. It’s basic to use it naturally whenever and however much you want. Watch, like this." —Swoosh! Si Hoo demonstrated in front of me. He used mana as if it were a part of his body, executing a smooth high jump effortlessly. "It’s really fascinating." "If you keep practicing, Geun Cheol, you’ll get there too. But, the important part is knowing your mana capacity." "What do you mean?" "Checking your mana levels. You might not know yet just how much mana you have left in your body." "That..." I tried to gauge it. "I still don't quite know." "As you get more accustomed, you should practice spreading mana throughout your body and cycling it. Doing so might increase your mana capacity." "Whoa... that’s incredibly helpful! Let's keep at it then!" "Hold on. At first, you should take it slow. If you run out of mana, you’ll get really tired." "Oh, really?" That’d be a bit of a problem. I need to work out too. Right now, I’m a total newbie with mana, and not being able to check my reserves is a downside. "Then, let's stop high jump training here for now. If I master this, I should be able to dash too, right?" "Of course." "Great! Let’s take on some hologram monsters!" "Geun Cheol, don’t scream again if something hits you." "Hey, don't you trust me? Let’s just start. I’ll show you my improvement." "Hehehe, alright." So I spent time with Si Hoo taking down holographic monsters at the training ground. But Si Hoo seemed so adept that he mostly spent his time watching me tackle F-rank monsters. For Si Hoo, there probably wasn’t any need for such training. Catching F-rank monsters at his level wouldn’t be challenging in the slightest. "But I feel a bit bad." "For what?" "You’re not able to do your own training while helping me out." "Ah... that’s okay. I can balance it. Helping out a friend is important too." "Hehehe, really? I’m grateful. I’ll get used to it quickly so I’m not a bother." "..." Now it's about time to wrap things up. "Si Hoo, let's finish up here and hit the gym properly." "...Yeah." We promptly packed up and headed to the gym upstairs. The facilities here are great—lots of space, people, and good equipment. "The changing room is over there. Let's go in." "Huh...? Uh? Uh?" "What?" "The changing room...? Oh! Right, because it's the gym...!" Si Hoo’s reaction was puzzling. I paid no mind as I approached a locker with some athletic gear. I grabbed a larger one. "Si Hoo, you can use this smaller size here." As I pointed it out and stepped into the changing room. "Hmm?" I noticed Si Hoo hadn’t followed me in. He was just standing there, his hands clasped over his chest. "Hey. Why aren’t you coming in?" "Geun Cheol." "What is it?" "Geun Cheol. Um, you see, I..." What is it? "I’ve got work to do!" "Work? What kind?" "I gotta do something on the computer!" "Come on, unless it’s urgent, work out first. We came together, so don’t ditch me now." "I’m busy, sorry! See you tomorrow!" With that shout, Si Hoo— —Whoosh! —rushed out just like that. Busy, he says. "Silly guy." In the end, I worked out alone. Traitor, Si Hoo. * * * "Finally, the time has come!" Workout done, shower at home done! Money Heist is already heating in the microwave! With Leona promising a meal coupon tomorrow, I can hit the buffet then! I've been waiting for just the right circumstances like now! "Come forth, my 'Status Window'...!" —Ding! ――――――――――――――――― [Status Window - Kim Geun Cheol] [Rank: F] 「 Strength: 13 」 「 Dexterity: 13 」 「 Stamina: 12 」 「 Endurance: 10 」 「 Mana: 10 」 ――――――――――――――――― "Ho!" A noticeable change at first glance! My Dexterity has increased by 1! This is truly satisfying! There's a pleasure in raising stats. I glanced at it contentedly and then opened the shop window. "Shop window!" Now I'm a shopman who can use the shop. —Ding! ―――――――――――― [Strength (1) - 3,000 Coins] [Dexterity (1) - 3,000 Coins] [Stamina (1) - 3,000 Coins] [Endurance (1) - 3,000 Coins] [Mana (1) - 3,000 Coins] [Coins Held: 3,000] ―――――――――――― With the shop window right before me, I pondered. Since I can buy stats, I'm planning to do just that. "I already decided what to increase." Honestly, Strength, Dexterity, Stamina—those I can probably increase through daily effort. But Mana? I have no clue. Above all, being superhuman is about having Mana. So, I should invest in Mana. "I'm going with Mana." Having abundant Mana means I could one day run along buildings like Instructor Lee Sora or punch monsters to bits with bare hands. With that thought, as soon as I pressed Mana: [Mana increased by 1] A cheerful notification tickled my ears. "Total stats increased by 2. I've become pretty darn strong." I feel like testing my strength right now. "I'm going to devour this Money Heist ferociously. With my beefed-up stats, I’m going to bite into it hard and enjoy every bit." Giving a serious glare and threat to the Money Heist, I aimed to start chomping down. Anyone can relate—people have an innate urge to threaten and intimidate their delicious food before eating. "Alright then." Time to eat. —Chomp. Just the moment I grabbed the Money Heist. —Ding! "Ah, surprised me!" Another alert sound... ――――――――――――――――― 「Main Quest Unlock Conditions Met」 「First Shop Use」 「Reward: Main Quest Unlocked」 ――――――――――――――――― "What?" A main quest? Did a quest pop up? "Damn it! Check!" This is important! A new window appeared immediately. ―――――――――― 「Main Quest - ??」 「???????????????」 ―――――――――― A window full of question marks! "What the hell!!! Damn it!!!" If you're giving a quest, you should at least show the details!