Page 22

w

Chapter 21: Made a Team Since No One Invited Me

The time to finalize team formations was nearing.

No team calls came my way.

"…Why?"

No team call from anyone.

I murmured with a blank face, unable to accept the situation.

I’d definitely made an impression during the mock battles.

Though I wasn’t in the top ranks, placing 14th wasn’t bad.

Sure, I might’ve bent a few rules here and there!

I even defeated the so-called "Lazy Genius."

So why isn’t anyone inviting me?!

“Haaa… Do you really not get it?”

As I grabbed my head with both hands, twisting in frustration, someone spoke up from in front of me.

Her name was Sharin Sazaris.

Today, as always, she was teaching me the magical engraving I’d requested.

“I have no idea.”

I really didn’t know.

“Okay, let me share some of what the others are saying.”

Sharin straightened her posture from her slouched position at the desk.

She cleared her throat to adjust her voice.

“I don’t think he’d cooperate at all.”

It was the voice of a female classmate.

“His combat style seems kind of reckless. Might work in duels, but who knows about the Dungeon?”

This time, it was a male classmate’s voice.

“Even if his stamina is fine, his attack power is honestly mediocre.”

Finally, I understood the situation.

“…So they’re saying I haven’t shown enough for all the effort I put in?”

“Exactly.”

In the mock battles, I’d focused solely on duel-style combat to achieve results.

But that approach hadn’t convinced the other students of my value.

The Dungeon pits you against two types of beings:

First, the Apostles directly created by the Great Calamity.

Second, the demonic beasts controlled by those Apostles.

Naturally, these are beings far removed from humans.

This is something any second-year student who’s faced the Dungeon would know well.

Because of that, my position was left ambiguous.

While my evasion and durability were outstanding,

those alone weren’t enough to navigate the Dungeon, as they all thought.

“Sigh.”

I swallowed hard.

In games, performing well in mock battles usually earned invitations from good teams.

My fixation on ranking turned out to be a mistake.

“Sharin, what about your team?”

“Full. I mean, it’s me.”

Her smugness was a bit annoying, but as the top student in magical department, it wasn’t surprising.

Her team was bound to be packed.

‘If I’d known this, I wouldn’t have cared about rankings.’

My mind spun with frustration.

An unexpected variable had derailed my plans again.

“By the way, what’s this nonsense about me not being cooperative?”

I couldn’t think of anyone more cooperative than me.

Sharin blinked at me briefly.

Then she said no more and simply smiled faintly.

Her gentle smile made me grab her shoulders firmly.

“Hey, spill it. What about my cooperation skills?”

“All I’m saaaying is what I heeard.”

As I shook her shoulders relentlessly, Sharin protested.

I stopped shaking her.

These people who fail to recognize talent.

If they teamed up with me, they’d find the Dungeon the easiest thing in the world!

‘What should I do?’

At this rate, I’d end up stuck in one of those leftover teams the professor assigns.

And obviously, I wouldn’t be able to achieve what I wanted.

As I fretted over this, a light bulb went off in my head.

Why didn’t I think of this sooner?

“I’ll just make my own team.”

I’ll build my dream team.

Sharin looked at me with an odd expression.

“Sharin, explain that look. Why do you seem like you’re staring at some lonely loser?”

“Good luck.”

Sharin raised a hand feebly in encouragement.

“When I’ve formed my team, don’t come crying to join us later.”

“Sure, I won’t.”

She didn’t seem to care at all.

Next time, I’ll give her cream bread with all the cream removed.

Now the real challenge begins.

‘Acts 3-1 and 3-2, the second-year event and the next mock battles, passed without issues.’

What’s coming next is Act 3-3.

The first Dungeon battle of the second year.

Compared to his first year, Lucas had grown significantly.

Entering his second year, he ventures into the Dungeon again.

Drawing on his experience from the first year’s final Dungeon battle, where he defeated the so-called "Beginner Slayer" Apostle,

he initially progresses smoothly in this Dungeon battle, only to face new threats.

‘And soon.’

The disaster involving the Dragon Maiden,

Nikita’s brother will join the First Prince’s faction, triggering a horrific incident.

No matter what you do, this is an unavoidable, scripted event in the game.

Nikita’s brother is fated to die due to the web of causality.

‘But now…’

The Flame Butterfly story arc has become reality.

Must Nikita’s brother really die?

As that thought crossed my mind,

I recalled that for the world to flow as scripted, the deaths of Nikita’s brother, Nia Cynthia, are inevitable.

That bitter truth left a bad taste in my mouth.

Because I know well that Act 3 ends with Nikita’s death.

Nikita appeared in my mind.

Cold on the outside but warm-hearted on the inside.

I’d seen her countless times in the game, broken after losing her brother.

“Sharin.”

“Yeah?”

“Do you think destiny can be changed?”

The world had already deviated from its original course after Lucas’s death.

Now, I was barely holding it together, stitching it with what little I could.

This world could no longer follow its original path.

And that made me even more afraid.

Each new variable added to this already-deviated world made the road ahead harder and less predictable.

In the end, the game strategy guide I held dear would lose its relevance.

I wouldn’t be able to predict where this world would head.

My mind was clouded with doubt.

The bonds I’d formed with people here were tying me down.

‘I approached Nikita initially to…’

…gain the motivation to oppose her when she inevitably awakened as the Dragon Maiden in Lucas’s stead.

But now?

The distant reality I’d been avoiding was slowly closing in on me.

“Destiny, huh…”

Sharin pondered seriously over my casual question.

Eventually, she seemed to gather her thoughts and raised her head.

“Destiny is like a massive clump of fate.”

A large, liquid-like mass formed in her hands.

She pressed down on it firmly with her hands.

“No matter how hard you push against it…”

Boing!

The liquid quickly returned to its original shape.

“It’s elastic, so destiny itself doesn’t change.”

So, destiny can’t be altered, huh?

“But.”

Sharin began pressing down on the mass again with even greater force.

For a moment, an immense pressure built up,

until the mass finally gave way and burst with a pop.

“Everything in the world has a limit to how much it can endure.”

Failing to change destiny meant not exerting enough force.

If you want to break destiny, you need a power strong enough to overwhelm it.

That’s what she was saying.

w

“That’s reckless.”

“To shatter something as immense as destiny, you have to be reckless.”

She had a point.

A power strong enough to change destiny.

Could I find such a force?

‘If necessary, I’ll create it.’

And to do that, I returned to Zerion Academy, donning Hannon’s guise.

Through the north-facing window, a distant mountain range could be seen.

The Great Dragon Mountains.

The time was approaching soon.

* * *

The Demon Dungeon Team consisted of five members in total.

Usually, there were two vanguard members, two rearguard members, and one healer.

‘Vanguard includes me, and rearguard has Foara.’

Foara, a Spirit Lord contractor, excelled in firepower.

‘In terms of rearguard, having just Foara would suffice.’

It would be better to allocate two more members to the vanguard instead.

‘The remaining task is to find two vanguard members and a healer.’

I wandered around Zerion Academy.

First, I looked for second-year combat class students.

“Ah, s-sorry, I already have plans.”

“I’ve already got a team.”

As expected, most people already had teams.

Especially the top-ranking students—there was no need to even ask.

“Are you crazy? Who’d want to team up with someone like you?”

I even asked the group of four girls as a joke.

They refused in disgust, throwing insults my way.

‘Yeah, those four are a no-go.’

But I noticed that one of them seemed to be left out.

“Come to think of it, where’s your big forehead girl?”

“Forehead?”

At first, the three seemed puzzled but soon realized who I was referring to and snorted.

Their reactions seemed strange.

There was a hint of disdain toward Seron from them.

Had something happened?

“You’ll figure it out.”

“Why don’t you mind your own business?”

Really now.

“Why are you all so useless?”

“What!?”

“Are you serious right now!?”

I quickly turned away.

Not long after, I ran into a familiar face in the hallway.

“Ban.”

When I called out the name, Ban, who had been walking nonchalantly, turned toward me.

He raised a hand casually in greeting.

“Hey.”

“Looks like you’re coming back from somewhere.”

“Did some training.”

Hearing that, a slight smile crept up on my lips.

“Are you planning to beat me next time?”

Ban’s mouth curved into a faint smile too.

“Yeah. You better watch out.”

The lazy genius seemed to have shaken off his laziness.

I was curious to see how much stronger he’d get.

“By the way, Ban, do you have a Demon Dungeon team?”

If Ban joined my team, it would be incredibly reassuring.

“Yeah, Isabel asked me to team up with her a few days ago.”

But he already had prior arrangements.

I didn’t expect Isabel to recruit Ban.

‘Originally, Lucas would’ve been in that spot.’

It seemed Ban had taken Lucas’s place.

As a replacement for Lucas, Ban was likely the only one suitable.

“Alright, do your best.”

Without lingering, I exchanged farewells with Ban and left.

In the end, I didn’t accomplish anything with the second-year combat class.

‘Should I check the first-year special class?’

With Foara in the special class, maybe I could work something out with her help.

Thinking that, I headed toward the first-year floor.

As I turned a corner, someone’s face suddenly popped up right in front of me.

A pure white forehead appeared before my eyes.

Instinctively, my hand struck the forehead.

Smack!

The sound was crisp and clear!

I looked at my hand in shock.

“Aaah?!”

The person whose forehead was struck let out a shriek.

“Wh-who’s the crazy person?!”

Her sharp voice echoed loudly.

Such a powerful voice.

“It’s me.”

“...Burnt Sweet Potato?”

She still called me that.

“Why are you suddenly popping out like that?!”

“You’re the one who popped out, you bruised tomato!”

“Who said I was bruised?!”

Had she already forgotten?

Should I remind her?

Leaving the fuming Seron behind, I glanced toward the direction she’d come from.

“Why are you on the first-year floor?”

Seron flinched, curling her body and mumbling.

“W-what does it matter if I’m here or not?”

Fair enough, but...

“You got kicked out of your friends’ group, didn’t you?”

Her eyes widened, and her face turned red as she shouted back.

“What-what are you even talking about? Do you think I’m like you? I’m totally fine!”

Over-the-top denial often hints at the truth.

I stared at her, and her lips moved as if to speak but eventually pressed shut.

Seron had a fiery temper.

To be precise, it was a rotten one.

Her personality often led her to clash with others.

While she often took the lead among the girls, her tendency to confront others wasn’t conducive to smooth relationships.

“You had a fight.”

For some reason, she must have fought with them.

Her silence and glare confirmed my guess.

“It’s your fault.”

Me?

“They said that since I lost to you, you’ve become cocky and look down on them.”

“They all got beaten by me too.”

“...But I was the first to lose.”

So they needed someone to blame, and that someone happened to be Seron.

She had been a convenient scapegoat.

Seron bit her lip and lowered her head.

“No, it’s my fault, really.”

Even as she admitted it, her trembling face was evident.

“I lost because I wasn’t strong enough, and I never really got along with them because of my personality. They probably only hung out with me because I was somewhat useful.”

So she knew her personality was a problem.

For her to admit it like this, she must have been holding in a lot.

“Yeah, you’re not wrong.”

I affirmed her words.

People grow more through affirmation, they say.

Seron slowly lifted her head.

Her shocked expression quickly turned into anger.

“...What the heck do you know?!”

Like a bulldog, she barked even when affirmed.

More importantly, wasn’t she the one who said I had no friends or girlfriends last time?

My eyes narrowed.

“I know more than you’d think. And I know you’re wandering around the first-year special class because you don’t have a team.”

Seron froze.

Her pale forehead turned bright red.

Her legs fidgeted, and she tightly grasped her skirt with both hands.

Her lips trembled as if suppressing her embarrassment, and a huff escaped her nose.

Before I knew it, tears welled in her eyes.

Oh, she’s crying.

“You’re crying?”

“So what? What does it matter?! What am I supposed to do?! The second-years all have teams, and everyone left is someone I’ve fought with, so I can’t even ask to join their team!”

She shouted, covering her face, and collapsed to the ground.

“Sobbing in front of this sweet potato of all people.”

Watching her cry, I spoke calmly.

“Seron.”

“What?”

“I’m making a team.”

She peeked at me through her fingers, her tear-filled eyes visible.

“Just so you know.”

With that, I left her there and walked down the stairs.

I wasn’t desperate enough to invite Seron first.

If I were to invite her, I’d have to train her personality first.

‘Before she joins my team…’

Some preemptive education would be necessary.

Seron’s personality was awful.

But mine?

Mine was worse.

Let’s see whose pride lasts longer in this clash of rotten tempers.

w