Two days had passed since the dungeon ban on Hunter candidates had been announced.
That Sunday morning, I was browsing the internet.
“As expected, things turned out like this.”
It was chaos online.
To be precise, the communities of Hunters and Hunter candidates were blazing with activity.
The hot topic, of course, was the dungeon ban.
XX: Doesn’t this an we Hunters won’t be able to enter dungeons either?
└ Can’t you read? It’s only for candidates.
XX: Yeah, but they’ll probably start with the kids, then eventually ban low-level Hunters too.
└ Those checkpoints at dungeon entrances? The mayor set them up. Back in the day, anyone could enter dungeons as long as they weren’t powerless.
Adult Hunters’ forums were filled with worries that they too might end up facing restrictions.
anwhile, Hunter candidate communities were overflowing with curses aid at the mayor.
OO: That bastard Chun Jiwon should worry about his own piss leaking before he bans dungeon entry.
Amid the insults, there were also posts trying to analyze or predict the situation.
OO: The announcent said the first reported transference happened two months ago.
└ So the city just sat on its hands for two months?
└ And now they suddenly ban dungeons? Idiots.
OO: They’ll lift the restrictions as soon as they identify the cause and co up with a solution.
└ Then why didn’t they work on that earlier?
└ And will they even find a solution?
└ Demonology scholars say it might be so kind of sign of change, like when Gates first started leading into dungeons.
And the current top post on the community board was a video.
When I played it, my own face appeared.
[“…If dungeon access is completely banned until this is resolved, then we Hunter candidates will be deprived of the chance to grow strong enough to face monsters.”]
It was the clip from my PBC interview yesterday.
└ This is exactly right. Calling it ‘protection’ just strips us of the chance to beco Hunters.
└ Yeah, instead of banning us outright, they should figure out how to let us enter while preparing for transferences.
└ The kid in the interview talks well.
└ But were there really such strong students at Gwangcheon?
└ Isn’t Gwangcheon known as the worst academy in Seoul, both in education and facilities?
└ Maybe the monsters in that dungeon were just low level.
Let’s see how far this little snowball rolls.
That was when I heard a knock at the door.
I quickly turned off my tablet and opened it.
“Hello.”
The person standing there made blink.
A delicate, pretty face that most would mistake for a girl’s, long blue hair tied in a ribbon, narrow fox-like eyes, and a playful V-shaped smile.
“…What brings the student council president to my room?”
“I wanted to consult with you about sothing.”
It was Park Gwangah, Gwangcheon Academy’s student council president, smiling lightly.
“May I co in?”
I nodded and stepped aside.
After closing the door, Park Gwangah looked at .
“Nam Yein. I saw you on the news yesterday.”
“Is there so problem with that?”
“No, no problem at all. The school approved the interview anyway. Like I said, I ca for a consultation.”
“What kind of consultation?”
“Have you ever heard of the Seoul Hunter Candidate Alliance?”
“That’s the coalition of student representatives from the six academies in Seoul, isn’t it?”
“You’re well-inford.”
Gwangah widened one eye in amusent.
“And what does that have to do with ?”
“Because of the transfer incident, Hunter candidates have been banned from dungeons, right?”
“Yes.”
“So, the Candidate Alliance decided to issue a statent opposing the ban. A asure with no counterasures in place is nothing but depriving candidates of opportunities. Doesn’t that sound familiar?”
“…That’s what I said in my interview.”
“Exactly.”
Gwangah nodded with a grin.
“The alliance representative called earlier, asking if I could bring you to today’s eting.”
I see. So that’s what this is about.
“If you don’t mind, would you co with to attend the eting?”
“…Alright. I’ll go.”
“Really? Thanks! Then let’s et at the dorm entrance at two-thirty.”
Humming happily, Park Gwangah left my room.
“…Never thought I’d be going to a Candidate Alliance eting while at Gwangcheon.”
In the original Gwangcheon scenario, the academy had little connection to the alliance.
Among the six Seoul academies, Gwangcheon’s students had the lowest average level, so their voices carried almost no weight.
The ones with influence in the alliance were the presidents of prestigious schools like Crystal, Martial God, and Magica.
Which ans… I’ll have to see that person again.
A headache was already coming on.
A few hours later—
In the main building’s conference room, the presidents and vice presidents of the six academies gathered.
All familiar faces.
The pair in modified martial arts uniforms were Jin Cheongryong and Ao from Martial God Academy.
The twins in hooded cloaks were Zen and Rune from Magica Academy.
There were also representatives from Ucheon Academy and Daeo Academy.
And lastly, in pristine white uniforms, stood Crystal’s vice president Toby and…
“I oppose this!”
Even before the eting officially began, a loud voice rang out—belonging to none other than Iris, Crystal’s student council president.
“Bringing that shady guy here won’t benefit us at all!”
“Iris, keep your voice down. If you keep shouting like that, every window in Gwangcheon will shatter. Not like this place has the money to replace them.”
Toby, sitting beside her, covered his ears and grimaced.
“Oh? So Iris already knows Nam Yein?”
Jin Cheongryong crossed his thick, muscular arms and asked, his massive biceps impossible to ignore.
“I didn’t want to, but yes.”
Iris scowled and glared daggers at .
“I was only invited here. If it bothers you, I can leave.”
“W-Wait…!”
As I started to rise, Park Gwangah looked panicked.
“Please wait.”
A clear, lodious voice carried across the room.
I froze without aning to.
“I’m the one who asked for you to be here.”
The girl sitting beside Jin Cheongryong stood and looked straight at .
Her sky-blue hair swayed gently, catching my eye.
“I am Kobayakawa Ao, student council president of Martial God Academy and representative of the Seoul Hunter Candidate Alliance.”
With her hands clasped politely, Ao radiated the refined air of a well-bred young lady—very different from Chen iling or Eleanor.
Her straight-cut bangs and the long sword at her waist were exactly as I rembered from the ga.
“The reason I invited you to this eting was because I saw your interview on the news yesterday. As Gwangah likely explained, the Seoul Candidate Alliance is firmly against the city’s dungeon ban on Hunter candidates. That’s why we wish to borrow your strength, Nam Yein.”
“What do you an by ‘strength’?”
“Are you aware that your interview clip is spreading rapidly across Hunter candidate communities online?”
“Is that so?”
I feigned ignorance.
“The discussions rejecting the ban are spreading quickly. And it would not be an exaggeration to say that your interview is the driving force. The opposition will only grow stronger. Which is why the Alliance wishes to use you as the rallying point for our movent.”
I understood.
In short, they wanted to make the symbol of their resistance.
Using the fa I had gained online would no doubt help them attract even more supporters.
To be honest, the situation was unfolding in a far better direction than I had expected.
“Still, I don’t believe the city will change its policy just because of a protest movent.”
At my words, the expressions of the student council presidents and vice presidents shifted.
“What’s that supposed to an? You say one thing in your interview, and now you don’t even plan to act?”
Iris spoke sharply, practically picking a fight.
“I’m talking about how we act.”
I t her gaze without flinching.
“Mayor Chun Jiwon was one of the Seven Pioneers. Think about how he lost his comrades—then you’ll understand the aning behind the policy the city has enacted this ti.”
“!”
Iris’s eyes widened.
The others reacted in much the sa way.
“I see. So that’s it.”
Jin Cheongryong of Martial God Academy nodded, still with his arms crossed.
“Five of the Seven Pioneers disappeared after venturing inside a Gate. He probably doesn’t want a repeat of that, triggered by transference incidents.”
“That does sound convincing,” said Rune, the red-haired twin from Magica.
“So that’s why the city ca down so harshly,” added Zen, the blue-haired twin.
For the record, Rune was the sister and Zen the brother, though their faces were so alike it was hard to believe they weren’t identical twins.
“Then, Nam Yein, are you suggesting you have another idea to change the mayor’s mind?”
Ao looked at .
“Rather than simple opposition, I believe we must propose a solution or compromise that the city will find reasonable.”
“You don’t an that ‘escort bodyguards’ nonsense you ntioned in the interview, do you?” Iris sneered.
“Even if we wanted that, the city doesn’t have the manpower. The only way would be supplenting from outside, and the cost would be enormous.”
Her tone irritated , but she wasn’t wrong.
“Seoul City doesn’t need to shoulder the entire burden,” another voice said.
It was Toby, seated beside Iris.
“That’s what our tuition fees to the academies are for, isn’t it? To cover tis like this.”
“So the city and the academies would split the cost,” Jin Cheongryong murmured.
“Exactly. Though whether Gwangcheon could manage its share is questionable,” Toby added, casting a glance.
“Of course, what I said in the interview is only one possible asure.”
I swept my gaze across the room.
“That’s why we should first co up with a list of feasible asures we can demand from the city. The more convincing our proposals are, the more the public will support us, and the harder it will be for the city to dismiss us.”
“Then are you saying you’ll stand with us, Nam Yein?” Ao asked, as if seeking confirmation.
I nodded.
“Ohhh!”
“Now that’s reassuring.”
“Didn’t know Gwangcheon had soone this dependable.”
“Haha…”
Park Gwangah let out a dry laugh.
After that, the alliance eting brainstord three more asures, and together we drafted a protest statent that included all our demands.
“Then we’ll move forward with our campaign based on this statent.”
Ao rose to her feet, setting the tablet with the docunt down on the table.
“That concludes today’s eting. I’d like to thank Gwangah for providing the venue, and Yein for so readily agreeing to support us.”
The presidents and vice presidents applauded.
Iris alone averted her head, arms crossed, refusing to clap.
A few minutes later, after the students from the other academies had left, Park Gwangah turned to with a bright smile.
“Thank you so much. Thanks to you, I managed to save face as part of the alliance.”
“Glad I could help. But I have one question.”
“Hm? What is it?”
“All the other academies brought both their president and vice president, but I didn’t see ours.”
“Ah…”
The smile faded from Gwangah’s face.
“Well… Zaza went out.”
“…Excuse ?”
“She said she couldn’t waste her weekend at so eting, so she left early this morning. She’s probably at karaoke right now. Hahaha.”
The sa dry laugh from earlier slipped out again.
So the na is Zaza, huh.
In the ga, Gwangcheon Academy’s vice president was nothing more than a MacGuffin.
She dumped all her work on Park Gwangah, was always off playing sowhere, and practically never appeared. Her na and grade weren’t even revealed—she didn’t even have a model or illustration.
But now that this world is real, I’ll et her sooner or later. At least I’ve learned her na.
Not that knowing her na or face changes anything. True to her MacGuffin role, she was irrelevant to the scenario.
Still, for a gar who loved Latesai, uncovering information the ga never revealed was exhilarating.
“If our protest gains traction, maybe Gwangcheon will finally have so influence in the alliance.”
Gwangah gave a wry smile.
Unfortunately, that’s impossible. Chun Jiwon won’t overturn his decision over sothing that small.
The proposals we agreed on today were logical, yes—but they wouldn’t sway Chun Jiwon.
This situation was sothing that never existed in the ga. A bug, so to speak.
And bugs don’t have strategy guides.
But just because there’s no guide doesn’t an I don’t know the key.
What mattered was setting the stage so that the key could actually be used.
Just then, my smartwatch buzzed.
A call from iling.
[Where are you?]
“In the main building conference room.”
[What? Why are you there?]
“I had sothing to take care of. What do you want?”
[Seo Yui doesn’t have a phone, so I’m taking her to buy one. You’re coming with us.]
Was that an order? I thought wryly, but I didn’t have any plans left for the day anyway.
“Alright. I’ll et you at the front gate.”
As I ended the call, Park Gwangah, who had been watching, waved a hand as if to say I’ll go on ahead.
I dipped my head slightly in reply.
(End of Chapter)
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