Chapter 40 - How to Adapt to a New Environment (2)
Her pointed ears clearly revealed that she was an elf, or at least a half-elf, yet her students’ eyes showed her respect, not contempt and fear.
“I’m Yggdrasil, the homeroom teacher of Class A!”
Yggdrasil.
The one who closed the ‘Tower Gate’.
A traitor to a different race.
And the strongest hunter who is still active since the days of top raids a long time ago.
Because Yggdrasil was that kind of person.
“I’ll teach you thoroughly!”
And Yggdrasil is a heroine who often appears in male-oriented novels with the ‘body type of a child but is older’ type. For your information, she’s very strong, but there is also a gap moe element in that she shows weakness sometimes.
In the original story, when Yggdrasil rationally appealed to Scammer, I almost quit. I vaguely recalled memories of the past.
Now that I think about it, my friend, you really recommended this novel to me…
“My theory is simple!”
Yggdrasil shouted, proudly standing on the scaffolding table.
“I will teach those who try to follow me! I leave the ones who aren’t alone!”
She grinned.
“My teaching will be difficult. however! You will know how valuable it is.”
Eagerness burned in the students’ eyes.
As they say, Yggdrasil was truly the best mentor.
“So follow me!”
She declared, stamping her foot vigorously. Then the students got excited and responded enthusiastically.
“Whoaaaa—!”
“I will do my best!”
I don’t know how many of these people will give up tomorrow. The extreme pain will begin today. I tried to suppress the sigh that was trying to escape on its own.
Yggdrasil laughed devilishly.
“Oh, don’t try too hard!”
And as they said, Yggdrasil has literally been pushing us extremely hard from day one.
“Measure your basic physical strength! Not the stats, but show your skills in using them!”
If there was a student who fell down, Yggdrasil would once force that student up.
“Stand up! You can still do more!”
“Ugh… I feel like I’m going to die…”
“I’ll heal you first.”
“Oh potion—mmmmph—!”
I turned my head away from the cruel scene as I witnessed Yggdrasil putting a potion into the mouth of a dying student.
“Hmm, this is your second time falling down! Still, I recommend that you continue training, but if you want to rest, you can rest. What are you going to do?”
“I’m going to rest!”
It would be better not to do that, though. Well, it indeed is hard.
Yggdrasil gave the students who fell for the second time the choice of resting like this or continuing after recovery. I looked at most of the students who quickly chose to take a break at that junction with pitiful eyes.
Yggdrasil’s motto is to teach more to those who don’t give up.
What this means…
Basically, it means that it’s extremely difficult, but if you follow along without giving up, it will be even harder.
“Hey, what is that posture?! Like this! Huh? Like this! Wouldn’t you be able to do it a little faster if you did that?”
I felt like I was going to die.
What was even more frustrating was that even though I felt like I was going to die, I could feel my posture and skill level gradually improving in real time.
By the time the morning was almost over, most of the students were exhausted.
Scammer, the owner of trash stats and a trash body that couldn’t even use all of those stats, was beaten intensively and ended up in an even messier mess.
He fell so often that Yggdrasil later cast a recovery spell instead of a potion, saying it would be more efficient this way. Of course, the recovery magic was applied just weakly enough to prevent death.
“Yuhan, are you okay?”
I handed the stamina recovery potion to Scammer, who looked very exhausted. It was a waste, but since I got this from this guy, I decided to think of it as an investment.
“…Yeah.”
He gulped down the potion he was handed and stood up without saying a word.
Even though I was running around all the time, because of his low stamina, he kept trying to push himself. Even during morning classes, he was seen silently drinking stamina potions like water until the recovery spell was applied.
This won’t work. I clicked my tongue inwardly.
“Yuhan, can we talk in private for a moment?”
It keeps getting on my mind.
His helpless eyes turned to me.
There was a need for him to recover, at least in that state without it. In order to continue to extract honey from Scammer, he needs to move passionately.
If you remain passive like that, the reader’s reaction will clearly be ruined.
I grabbed Scammer’s hand and lifted him up. Although he stumbled, he moved silently as I led him.
The two of us sat side by side on a bench in the corner of a walking path in a quiet place, suitable for two people to talk.
“What’s going on these days? You look listless. Everyone is worried.”
He looked at me blankly and lowered his head.
“I just realized I was stupid.”
“Why is Yuhan stupid? You’re good at commanding, you know the treasure dungeon well, and…”
I tried my best to squeeze out his strengths and tell him that, yet the more I spoke, the darker his face became.
“That’s not my skill. It’s just… something anyone can do if they have the information.”
Scammer mocked himself. He clenched his fists with dull eyes. He chewed his lip and contorted his expression as if he was about to cry.
“I mistakenly thought that I was good and acted like I was the main character, and now I just woke up from a dream.”
… The situation is more serious than expected.
But unfortunately, the Academy, which seems to have all kinds of facilities, doesn’t have a mental hospital or a professional psychiatrist.
When someone shows abnormal symptoms, a separate visit is made, and usually there is only a light counseling program similar to the Wee Class of my previous life.
(Wee Class: a multi-integrated support service that supports students’ healthy and enjoyable school life in cooperation with schools etc in South Korea)
Is it okay for a hunter training academy to be like this? Since hunters have to perform on the battlefield, don’t they need to take proper mental care as well?
Anyway, the bottom line is that I have to take care of this child’s mental breakdown due to insufficient facilities.
I’ve never learned anything like counseling.
But there was no choice. I opened my mouth to cry and eat mustard.
“Knowing it so well isn’t something that just anyone can do.”
“…”
First, let’s pick up his self-esteem that has fallen to the bottom of hell.
“You know, it takes a lot of effort to dig deep into one thing like Yuhan.”
First, state a very obvious and irrefutable fact. Even Scammer would understand this.
“And not everyone can make that level of effort. I received a lot of help thanks to the knowledge Yuhan gained through your efforts.”
Even if it was just a game, it was well said that thanks to the effort he put into it that I, who was by his side, also benefited and developed further.
“So, my main character isn’t anyone else, but you here.”
I smiled warmly at the mesmerized Scammer.
“Yeah. Maybe there is someone else who can replace you as you say. But I think I was able to grow like this because you, Yuhan, and no one else, was here. Thanks to you, I’m here.”
It also tells me that it was you who discovered ‘me’ who was just a passing extra.
The me, whom Scammer discovered through his own skills, rather than simply using his knowledge of the game, whom he highlights the talent and recognizes the achievements.
“See. Isn’t that great enough?”
…I don’t know if this will be any consolation.
The moment I thought so, he began to shed tears.
What, why are you crying?
Cold sweat ran down my back. Did I touch something wrong?
I took out a clean handkerchief that I had prepared for the event just in case and wiped his face. With a bewildered smile.
“I-I’m… someone who’s more pathetic than you think.”
“But what Yuhan did for me doesn’t disappear. Even if Yuhan can’t do anything, I will still like you.”
He gritted his teeth and began to sob.
After all, I’m not providing psychotherapy! I hugged and patted Scammer, deciding that I would definitely have to find a good psychiatrist within a few days. My shoulder was soaked with his tears.
He cried profusely, saying “I’m sorry” and “thank you” in a garbled voice.
It won’t work. I think I made it even more rotten.
I had no choice but to hold him until his crying subsided.
We ended up being late for our last morning class.
Still, despite being scolded by Yggdrasil, Scammer seemed more energetic than before. It seemed like crying a lot helped. That’s a good thing.
I went through the rest of the morning class determined never to practice psychotherapy again.
It was an exhausting day.
***
And the next morning.
Class A’s classroom was filled with a sweet smell.
Because of the sweet smell that made her feel dizzy, Lee Hana, who does not like sweets very much, frowned for a moment as soon as she entered the classroom.
For her sake, I opened the window to ventilate the air. Choi Soojung, who was looking around, smiled and asked.
“It’s dessert season again~”
Right. The cause of the sweet smell that filled the class was the dessert brought by the students.
“Why is everyone suddenly bringing dessert?”
I pretended not to know anything and asked Scammer. He replied with a wry smile.
“It’s for a bribe.”
“For a bribe?”
At those words, Choi Soojung intervened, wrapping her tail around my arm.
“Our homeroom teacher is crazy about desserts~”
She chuckled and continued her words.
“And there is a famous rumor in the Academy.”
“Rumor?”
Na Yuri sighed and said.
“Rumor… rather than that, it’s more of a fact.”
“Yeah.”
Lee Hana silently nodded her head.
“‘If you bribe Miss Yggdrasil, she will make your training easier.’”
When Calmy said that, Scammer affirmed.
“Yeah. Yggdrasil is willing to accept most conveniences if you pay a bribe. This is especially true when it comes to training.”
And as if whispering a secret, in a low voice, he added.
“But if possible, it’s better not to do that. becauseㅡ”
Bang—!
To be exact, he was going to add.
At that moment, the front door of the classroom opened forcefully.