Chapter 23 : Main Quest Madness #2 - No Kidding, I’m an Extra

[????] After calming my mind, I pondered. Main quest. Right. It implies a very significant quest. Naturally, it's a quest that must be pursued. That main quest was unlocked because I used the first shop. However, it's currently cluttered with question marks, making it impossible to verify the content. Does that mean that by actively using such a special feature, the content will eventually appear? "I'm starting to get an idea." Based on the information I have, there will probably be a damn big war in the future. Judging by the knowledge I've acquired so far, it would be some scenario where either monsters or villains come charging in, putting the entire world in danger. And that’s something the protagonist, Lee Sihoo, resolves. "So… are they saying to make it so that Sihoo can save the world? And the reward is returning home?" If I were to make a deduction, it goes something like this. "Hmm." What am I supposed to do to make sure the protagonist can save the world? Should I just leave him to handle it on his own? Honestly, when I hear 'destruction,' I do get worried, but since there’s nothing I can immediately do, it doesn't feel real, nor can I take any action. A rookie like me, who can only jump high, facing world-ending monsters? I can't even imagine it. No matter how hard I work over the next three years, I don't think I can prevent the end. "..." While I was lamenting over this. — KakaoTalk notification — A message came from Sihoo. -Geuncheol, sorry I couldn't go to the gym with you. He worries about the smallest things. Though it's a bit disappointing, if he has something to do, what can we do? Next time, we'll hit the gym and go to the bathhouse. I’ll drag him there no matter what. Bathhouse fanatic Kim Geuncheol can't miss the chance to go to the bathhouse with a friend. I sent a light-hearted reply indicating it was okay. — Ring ring — A call came through. From Angel Leona, no less. She mentioned wanting an update earlier, so she's calling quite late? I answered immediately. "Hey, Angel Leona. What's up?" - I called because I wanted to hear about what you mentioned earlier. What was it all about? She must have been really curious. "Nothing much. You know Ryu Cheon hwi, right? It's something related to him..." I explained the situation step by step. When I got to the part where I mentioned the harsh words, Leona had a reaction similar to Instructor Lee Sora, but after hearing the whole story, she understood. - Hmm... Then it couldn’t be helped. An insult about one’s parents... Even Europeans use those kinds of insults. It might be a bit harsh, but if he started the provocation, he should bear the consequences. "Oh, you're quite understanding about this?" A European noblewoman being lenient about harsh words is really surprising. - It's nothing extraordinary. Responding to insults with insults is the way. While I think such harsh words might be extreme, I can understand if that’s your belief. Thanks for explaining. Quite an incident it was. "Right. Absurd, isn't it?" - It really is. Fighting is never a good thing, so I'll have a firm word with Ryu Cheon hwi. Avoid engaging with him in the future; there’s no need for unnecessary fights. Oh! "Wow! You’re really a class president through and through! Saying you'll firmly talk to him! Thanks, Leona!" - That's what leadership as a class president is all about. I won't tolerate things like that happening in my class. A class president who doesn’t tolerate school violence...! "As expected, you really are Angel Leona!" - Stop calling me that! I'm hanging up now! "Alright." With that, I ended the call with Leona. "Wow. Leona’s got my back, huh?" With Leona covering for me, neither Ryu Cheon hwi nor Ryu Ken is something to fear. Knowing her personality, she’ll definitely handle things firmly. "Okay, then bed it is." I have to sleep early to keep up with tomorrow's classes. * * * "Hey, why didn't you go to the gym with me yesterday? Do you know how lonely I was?" "That, that, Geuncheol...!" "Betraying those who trust you only leads to despair, and then to further dejection... huh? Just when I was thinking of hitting the gym and going to the bathhouse together. You ditched me." "I apologized already! Just forgive me!" Unlike yesterday, today I headed to school with Sihoo. There’s no reason to go separately when we’re in the same dorm. Plus, Sihoo acts as a kind of bodyguard. If Ryu Cheon hwi appears and ambushes me, I am really screwed. — Creak — Thinking this, I opened the classroom door. "You, you, you scoundrel…!" The moment I opened the door, I came face to face with that guy, Ryu Cheon hwi! "Oh crap! Sihoo!" "Yes!" Sihoo immediately stepped forward in front of me! Was that punk really lying in wait to exact revenge? As I thought this, I demanded to know his intentions! "Ryu Cheon hwi! What's with you?!" "You bastard…!" He couldn’t stay still, staring at me anxiously. Ha. Is it because Sihoo is here? He doesn't dare to make a move. Sihoo is known to be damn strong. "What are you planning? Were you waiting to attack me again? Are you seriously going to do this? Wasn't yesterday a lesson enough for humans like us?" "That...! Ugh!" In an instant. — Swish! — "Whoa!" Suddenly, he turned and dashed towards the other classroom entrance! Run! "What the heck? Sihoo, what did you do?" "Nothing? I didn't do anything. But why did he run away... What's the deal?" "Who knows." Why did he run away? I watched Cheon hwi's back down the hallway for a moment, but the guy was genuinely running away. "That guy. He's scared of you, Sihoo?" "Ah, haha. I don't think it’s that." "Hey. If you’re as strong as you are, feigning humility is rather disrespectful, you know? What old pro acts humble? It’s bad form, bad form." "I'm not an old pro!" Still, today seems to be going well right from the morning. To think I managed to get rid of Ryu Cheon hwi. But, no quest for today, huh? That's a bit disappointing. As I was about to enter the classroom— "Kim Geun cheol?" I heard Leona's voice calling from behind. "Oh, Leona. Good morning." "And drop the 'Le.' Anyway, what was that? I was about to say something to Ryu Cheon hwi when I saw him run off, but he just bolted away?" "Seriously. He suddenly did that. Must've been scared of Sihoo. But hey, cafeteria vouchers, Leona? How did that go?" "I'll give them to you soon, so stop pestering me. You’re as bothersome as ever, Kim Geun cheol." "Ah, I'm dying to get them...!" "Learn some patience! Are you a child?!" "Yes." "Not this 'yes' nonsense again!" After chatting with Leona, I headed into the classroom. I waved at Ken, who greeted me as usual and took my seat. Right then, Instructor Lee Sora walked in. "I have bad news. The unfortunate news is that the first period is my class. Everyone, up. We're starting immediately." A slightly early first period had begun...! "Oh no! Instructor!" "Agh!" "Please, have mercy on us!" "Instructor! We have the right to a proper morning assembly!" I echoed alongside the students pleading in anguish as we stood up from our seats. "Quiet. I also have the authority to enforce classes on you. Get up and be quiet." Ugh! * * * The class content was the same as before. It was training to master the sensation of using mana, and I was honestly doing my absolute best. "Hoo... Kim Geun cheol. You learn quite quickly, more than expected. It's a bit unstable, but it's a decent high jump." Successfully putting in the effort, Instructor Lee Sora complimented me as she observed my movements. "Hehehe, really? Wow! To be recognized by Instructor Lee Sora! I want to record this and pass it down to my descendants!" "Can't you speak a bit shorter?" "Well, I'm just happy to be complimented." It felt great to be doing well. Seems I have innate superhuman talent. "Moving on. You're progressing smoothly, so just keep doing what you’re doing. Be careful not to overdo it, or you might faint from mana exhaustion... Starting from next week, I think it'll be okay to teach you meditation techniques." "Wh—! Meditation techniques, you say?!" What's that now? "Yes." With that, the instructor said she'd teach it next time and went on to check another student's posture. But watching this, I realized that surprisingly, I wasn’t at the very bottom tier. There were still a few students who couldn’t handle mana at all. Realizing this made me feel good. After all, I naturally liked competing. Knowing there were students trailing behind reassured me. — Ring ring. "Oh! Break time!" "Everyone, take a break and come back later. Next time is my class again." "Yes!" Alright, let's take a break. I was going to grab a drink from the vending machine, but then Leona approached me briskly. "Let's go, Kim Geun cheol." "Where to?" "To get your voucher." Ah! The cafeteria voucher! "Hurry! Hurry, let’s go!" "And you're slower than me. Talking about speed... stop being so impatient! Kim Geun cheol!" "Alright, alright! Let's go! Sihoo! I'll be hanging out with Leona for a bit!" Though I shouted it, Sihoo just looked at me without saying a word. Seriously suspicious. Could he really like Leona? Man, that'd make things awkward. Though our friendship is stronger than anything. In no time, we arrived in front of the cafeteria. Standing there was the magnificent voucher machine. — Beep beep beep. Leona expertly operated the machine, pulled out a voucher, and handed it to me. "Here you go." "This is the voucher!" The moment I received that bright yellow slip of paper! — Zing! "Hahaha!" A thrill shot through me! "Whooooaaaaaa!" A buffet! A buffet voucher worth 30,000 won at a superhuman buffet! What beautiful dishes must be waiting for me! "Oh, yeah!" Thinking about it made me so excited that I couldn’t help but do an energetic, exaggerated dance! Finally! Finally, I'm going to a buffet! This is amazing! "Sigh… What is with this man? Aren't you overexcited? You’re dancing already, Kim Geun cheol." "Hey. What's exaggerated about this? If anything, I'm holding back. Wow, really, thank you so much!" "You're over the top, truly." "It's not over the top, Angel Leona. No, you're no longer just Angel Leona." "What’s it now? You’re not going to call me 'Voucher Leona' again, are you?" Leona, with her hands on her hips, glared at me with a tilted stance. Of course not. I have something better. "What kind of rustic nickname is that? You like that title?" "As if! You started it..." "Forget that. From today on, you're Archangel Leona." Buying me the voucher easily makes you an archangel. "You’ve lost it! Never thought I'd hear 'archangel' in my life! How do you come up with these ridiculous things! Just stop it already, really!" "Heh heh heh. Acting like you don’t like it when you do." "Hmph!" Leona, seeming utterly annoyed, turned her head away with a huff. Anyway, a voucher! So beautiful and lovely. Maybe I should save it for tomorrow instead of using it today? I feel like I want to cuddle with this voucher tonight and share a bed. "Anyway, really, thank you. I’ll enjoy the meal." "There's no need to thank me. It’s a fair trade for information. But Kim Geun cheol, you." "Yeah?" "I haven’t seen you in the cafeteria. What do you do during lunchtime?" I head to the convenience store and grab some bread. "Well, you know. Eat lunch, basically." "Lunch? Where?" "From the snack bar." "The snack bar?" "Yeah, I just grab some bread there." As I explained this— "Wha—why such cheap bread?" Leona frowned and tilted her head. "Cheap?" "Snack bar bread? It's probably not healthy, you know? An essential thing for a hero is their body... why not just use the cafeteria? It's not like you don't have money for lunch, so why eat such junk?" Wow, listen to this privileged girl flaunting her wealth! The way she just assumes I must not lack money for meals is the epitome of privileged thinking! There are children in this world who can't even afford a meal due to lack of money...! "Really, your diet is so haphazard—" "No, Leona? It's just that I'm short on cash, so I go to the snack bar." "What? What did you say?" See? She can't even fathom the idea of not having money. "What did you just say? You don't have money?" "Yeah." "Why not?" "Well... because I just don't?" "Why don't you? No matter what, your parents should at least give you some money for food when you're working hard at school to become a hero." "Oh, about that." It's simple. I don't have money. "Because I don't have parents." And I have no parents either. "So aside from some basic stipends, I have to be frugal." "What?" "The cafeteria's expensive; how can I afford it? Going to the snack bar is cheaper." When I said that, Leona fell silent for a moment. "What? What? Wh-What...?!" Every time I mention this, people react the same way. "Th-That's... Kim Geun cheol?" "Why." "I-I didn’t know when I brought it up." In that instant, Leona gripped the hem of her school skirt tightly, hesitated, and stumbled over her words while looking cautiously at me. "I-I mean...! If I had known, I wouldn't have said anything! I didn’t know..." And all this with a face full of remorse. There's really no need for this. "Hey, hey. It's fine. Why worry about something like that?" I consoled her, patting her shoulder. "It's not like I blamed you, so why feel bad about it? You didn’t do anything wrong." "It’s just...! That's why!" "I'm telling you, it's okay." Suddenly— "Ugh!" —Beep beep beep! Leona suddenly started violently jabbing her card into the machine, furiously tapping on the screen. —Whirr! —Whirr! —Whirr! And she printed out a bunch of meal vouchers! "Here, take these!" Then she thrust them into my hands! What?! "Whoa! You're giving me all this?! Just how much does this all cost?!" "Just eat properly...! Ugh!" "What, why are you crying?" Leona, offering me a stack of meal vouchers, began to cry! "I can’t stand having someone in my class who could be a starving child like in a PSA!!!" "I'm not a child!" "Shut up! Just take it and eat!!! You starving child Geun cheol!!!" —Whoosh! With that, Leona, after thrusting the vouchers at me, turned and sprinted away! "Hey! Come back! Come back to me!" What kind of bolt from the blue is this?! "Hey! Seriously! Why are there so many of these?!" Honestly, a few would be a sweet deal, and I would've gladly accepted them, but this is way too much! "Sigh... Really." Why is she so kind? She truly is an Archangel. "I need to return these." At 30,000 won each, I can’t shamelessly accept them all. I'll just take this gesture to heart.