Second Life of a Dragon Raising Hunter

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Chapter 213

“Another external performance report?”

“Hahaha….”

Yoo Ha-yeon and Choi Yeon-woo were in the teacher’s office. Sitting at her desk, Yoo Ha-yeon let out a deep sigh as she accepted the paper Yeon-woo held out.

Clearly exasperated, she leaned the letter against her computer’s side.

“Okay, okay, it’s easy to read. Wow, the performance section is flashy. All external performances, huh? What are you even learning at the Academy?”

“I’m here to make friends and learn a few things.”

“You think the Academy is a kindergarten, huh?”

Hearing Yeon-woo’s words, Yoo Ha-yeon chuckled. Setting the scanner and paper down on the floor, she turned her chair to look at Yeon-woo.

“Well then, while we wait, shall we have a talk? How’s school treating you?”

“Um, not bad. I’ve made a lot of friends, and I’ve had fun and interesting experiences.”

Responding to Yoo Ha-yeon’s question, Yeon-woo turned his body towards her without hesitation.

But do people usually have discussions like this in a crowded teacher’s office? While pondering this, a sudden silence enveloped the two. It was created by Yoo Ha-yeon.

“Phew, is that enough? Anyway, kids these days really hate sharing stories with others.”

“That’s just how the environment is, isn’t it?”

“Back in my day, I didn’t care if my cards were exposed…. No spirit, no spirit.”

“Teacher, I bet card games shouldn’t be played by you.”

Regardless, it’s polite to keep your hand hidden. If discovered, the opponent might lose interest.

However, that was indeed a neat silence. Personally, I always thought Yoo Ha-yeon was not the type to be just an ordinary homeroom teacher….

“What are you staring at? Are you smitten by me? I’m your teacher, and you’re my student, so that’s a no.”

“Teacher, at your age, isn’t that a bit cheesy?”

“Anyway, you don’t seem to want to let a single word go. Fine, fine, so school is enjoyable, and you’ll become a hunter after graduation. Do you have a dream guild?”

“No, I plan to go solo.”

“A solo hunter, okay. That wraps up the essential information. The rest is left blank.”

Hmm… if it’s unnecessary to fill out the optional fields, then it shouldn’t have been provided. Still, I quietly nodded in gratitude, as Yeon-woo wasn’t taking up much of her time.

But to end an interview in 30 seconds? He could probably turn this into a speedrun specialization. Not like there’s anyone who needs an interview proxy anyway.

“Lastly, just for formality, do you have any questions?”

“Oh, I do.”

“I’m asking as a formality, you know? Do you have any questions?”

“I do, seriously!”

“Ugh, you really have no tact.”

Seeing Yeon-woo raise his hand persistently to indicate he had a question, Yoo Ha-yeon sighed. After grumbling a bit, she gestured for him to go ahead.

“What kind of person are you?”

“Your homeroom teacher.”

“No, not that. I’ve been thinking for a while now, but you clearly don’t just teach homeroom, right?”

Above all, before the regression, Yeon-woo had never heard of a person named Yoo Ha-yeon. She might have been using an alias, but he had nothing to guess from.

Even the neat atmosphere she created was enough evidence. It seemed to him that the only ones capable of setting up a formation this flawlessly at the Academy were the Demon King and Yuri.

“Hmm, I am kind of amazing, aren’t I? But I didn’t give you question time to dig for my personal info, you know? Now, off you go to your next class~.”

“Is this what a professor is…?”

Yeon-woo shot a look of disdain at Yoo Ha-yeon, who was carelessly digging into her ear, but she just laughed as if it didn’t bother her at all.

“Still, you have a good eye. Yeah, this isn’t the kind of position I should be just filling as a homeroom teacher. That’s one thing I’ll let you know.”

“Don’t act like you’ve discovered something already.”

Yoo Ha-yeon burst into laughter at Yeon-woo’s cold response. What was so funny about that stuff? Yeon-woo thought as he left the teacher’s office, the corners of his mouth twitching. Yay, success!

*

“Formation Delta!!”

At Yeon-woo’s command, the four moved in perfect synchrony. Unlike a moment ago where they had maintained some distance, they now seemed scattered, creating an unstable impression.

Namgung Seong was at the back, Baek In-hwa was at the front, and Kim Yoo-min filled the middle. Meanwhile, Yeon-woo was simply standing in place.

It felt as if time had stopped for a moment. This suspended reality continued until Baek In-hwa turned her head, looking confused.

“…What’s Delta? Is that even a thing?”

“Correct, Baek In-hwa! Formation Delta doesn’t exist!! What are the other two doing? How did you take on a formation that doesn’t even exist?!”

At Baek In-hwa’s question, Yeon-woo snapped his fingers as he shouted, while Namgung Seong and Kim Yoo-min pouted.

“Shouldn’t you be appreciating our efforts, even if we didn’t know? That’s just mean!”

“Right, right! Please evaluate our efforts!”

“I’m losing my mind.”

Watching the clueless duo protest instead of reflecting on their actions, Yeon-woo shook his head.

Living life as a regressor can sometimes lead to moments when the regression means nothing at all. One is when unforeseen variables arise from your actions.

And the other is when you can’t take any action despite knowing better.

Namgung Seong and Kim Yoo-min fell under the latter category.

Although they always crammed, they still managed decent grades in exams, indicating they weren’t dumb. Yet, they had zero motivation to use their brains.

Yeon-woo couldn’t help but feel a headache creeping in. Whether it was due to his reputation or the directive that states their target is the western forest, he wasn’t sure. But it was clear that aside from the four of them, there were no decent members available.

Recently, even Darius, who had been gaining favorable opinions from Yuri, had been approached, as well as Park Seong-in and a few other familiar faces.

However, Darius looked at the members and turned them down, saying he didn’t feel he belonged. Park Seong-in rejected it, saying he didn’t have the time, while others provided all sorts of lame excuses.

As a result, the members they had now formed an ideal but unchangeable configuration.

In other words, if someone suddenly said, “Oh? I crave Merona while heading to the western forest~”, Yeon-woo would have to go and buy Merona immediately….

Ugh, that’s terrifying. To have party members who would threaten not to go together if you didn’t buy Merona. He hoped that would never happen for the sake of their friendship.

“Sigh, what to do with these fools….”

He had many concerns. The high-ranked monsters ruling the western forest were not to be underestimated. After all, one could say that high-ranked monsters were on par with bosses of a typical C-rank gate.

None of the four had a C-rank hunter license, including Yeon-woo, but their skills were definitely solid.

Yet considering the criteria for hunter ranks is the minimum number of team members required to take on gates of similar ranks…

“It’s not easy, that’s for sure.”

If this mission was to hunt a single high-ranked monster, they could forgo arrangements entirely and just go smash it right now. Their capabilities were that impressive.

But the western forest was different. While facing typical high-ranked monsters, 4:1 was reasonable, as those in charge there would ‘collaborate’ to drive intruding humans away.

That meant situations would likely become 4:4. However, unlike monsters who merely partnered up, humans could increase their coordination to 6, 8, or even 10 by working together. Hence, crafting strategies was essential….

It was perhaps because Baek In-hwa had been surprisingly cooperative after he shamelessly confessed that she had become more compliant… then there were those two, those two were the problem.

“Eh, is it break time? I feel like I’m cooling down. Can I hit someone?”

“Gah, you shouldn’t cool down. Can I hit you too?”

Look at that, even now they’re swinging swords and throwing punches at each other out of nowhere.

While they wouldn’t behave that way in an actual match, unresolved impulses that follow instinct over reason have their risks in collective actions, and Yeon-woo understood that better than anyone.

“…Hmm? Wait a minute.”

As Yeon-woo rubbed his temple, a sudden thought crossed his mind.

“…Could it be that I’ve been too biased?”

Even if a 4:1 scenario seemed impossible, they might just be able to create a 1:1 situation.

Of course, asking whether a first-year student could take down a high-ranked monster on their own was akin to saying, “How about you try getting killed?” Yeon-woo understood that very well.

Yet, at the same time, he knew precisely why conquering the western forest was so difficult.

First, the monsters had the best fighting environment. Second, they couldn’t rely on numbers. Third, if one side got pushed, the high-ranked monsters would support each other.

It was one thing not to summon a lot of people, but what if they could completely eliminate the first two points? Wouldn’t that be doable?

“Hey, you dense head. Are you confident in aerial combat?”

“What the hell are you asking? Whatever else may be, I’ll get chewed out by Grandpa if I lose in the skies.”

“Okay, you’re good to go. Baek In-hwa, you can take on the Grand Serpent in a 1:1 fight, right?”

“Yeah, for sure. As long as other high-ranked monsters don’t interfere, definitely.”

“What about me? What about me? Don’t you have any questions for me?”

“None.”

At Yeon-woo’s icy response, Kim Yoo-min pouted. As Namgung Seong snickered at the dejected Kim Yoo-min, Yeon-woo began calculating in his mind.

After standing still for a moment in thought, Yeon-woo finally came up with an answer. Whether it would work out or not was uncertain. To be frank, he had no guarantee that those two would definitely win.

However, he decided to trust the confidence that if there were no interruptions, victory was certain. If he couldn’t trust the future Sword Monarch, the genius of the Ice Palace, or the great assault commander, then who could he trust among people his age?

“You two will go 1:1, while Kim Yoo-min and I will pair up for a 2:2. Forget all the formations we practiced so far.”

“Okay, I’ll forget~.”

While he wanted to rip off the head of Namgung Seong, who spread his wings and took to the skies, he couldn’t bring himself to do it. Too far to reach.

“Honestly, forming a party with Baek In-hwa is too challenging. I’m okay with it, but Kim Yoo-min, you can’t fight on ice.”

“Ah, no! I could if I had roller skates!”

“…Roller skates aren’t what you use on ice.”

“Really? Is that so?”

What do I even do with this idiot…?

Regardless of those personal worries, the matchups were decided. Baek In-hwa vs. Grand Serpent, Namgung Seong vs. Night Stalker, and finally Yeon-woo and Kim Yoo-min duo to face Elder Tree and Ja-young’s monster alliance.

“Baek In-hwa, I’m sorry, but could you explain the Night Stalker to Namgung Seong? I think I’ll be occupied just teaching him.”

“Um….”

After briefly pondering, Baek In-hwa began to speak. Unbeknownst to her, Yeon-woo was reading her lips.

‘If you take me out on a date later.’

“This is insane.”

“What’s with you two, exchanging signals!? I wanna know too!!”

Alongside Kim Yoo-min and Namgung Seong, who were desperately asking for details, Yeon-woo felt like he was losing his mind. Is this a daycare center or a raid team?

(Continued in the next episode)