I Became a Troublemaker at the Academy

“Haeseong, isn’t this a bit too far?”

“Tch, scared already? Don’t worry. I heard from my dad’s guild that this is just a D-class dungeon, and they’ve already cleared out all the dangerous beasts.”

“Oh, really?”

“Yeah, and if we don’t venture out this far, we won’t find any rare items like elixirs or special weapons. You know, the kind no one else has discovered yet.”

Shin Haeseong confidently pushed through the thick foliage ahead, speaking to Joo Jinyong who was right behind him. 

Joo Jinyong sighed quietly to himself, careful not to let Shin Haeseong hear, and picked up his pace to catch up. But something started to nag at him, prompting him to ask, “Hey, Haeseong. Isn’t it a bit hotter than when we first came in? Shouldn’t it be cooler with all the trees blocking the sunlight?”

“Huh? What are you talking about? Feels the same to me. You’re probably just imagining things.”

“Is that so…? But it definitely feels like it’s getting hotter.”

Joo Jinyong wiped the sweat off his forehead, tilting his head with a confused look on his face. His clothes were starting to get soaked from the heat, yet Shin Hae-seong seemed unaffected by it all and walked as if he didn’t feel the rising temperature.

As they ventured deeper into the forest, Joo Jinyong’s suspicions grew even stronger. He shouted after Shin Haeseong, who was moving further ahead.

“Haeseong! Something’s wrong! It’s getting hotter — no, it’s burning hot!”

At Joo Jinyong’s panicked cry, Shin Hae-seong finally stopped, scanning the area as if searching for something. Without warning, he took off running in a specific direction.

‘What the…? Why is he running off without saying anything?’

Joo Jinyong was overwhelmed by the unbearable heat. Part of him wanted to abandon Shin Haeseong and leave the area, but he remembered his orders from the Chinese Intelligence Bureau: Stay close to Shin Haeseong. 

Gritting his teeth tightly, he was left with no other choice but to chase after him.

Ding!

[Using Magic Enhancement [D].]

The closer Joo Jinyong got to the direction Shin Hae-seong had run off to, the more intense the heat became. It wasn’t just hot anymore — it was a scorching wind blowing directly at him. 

Unable to withstand the heat, Joo Jinyong activated his Magic Enhancement to follow after Shin Haeseong.

After running for a while, the dense forest suddenly opened up into a large clearing. Before him stood a massive cave, the source of the scorching winds. 

Shin Hae-seong stood calmly in front of the cave and didn’t seem affected by the heat at all, his face serene as he gazed into its depths.

Unable to move any closer due to the extreme heat, Joo Jinyong called out from a distance while panting heavily.

“Haeseong! This place feels a little dangerous. Let’s head back to the clan and ask for reinforcements!”

Shin Haeseong, who had been observing the cave intently, turned around and gave Joo Jinyong a sly grin.

“I found it. There’s something special here, I can feel it. Go back if you want, but I’m going in.”

With those final words, Shin Haeseong plunged into the cave without a second thought.

***

“Will it be okay…?”

Standing in front of Gangnam Station, wearing a monkey mask, I tugged at the left sleeve of my black training suit while murmuring to myself. 

Yeo Jihye. 

The person behind the “Cat” mask in the Fixer Clan. 

I had expected to meet her at some point while working in the clan, but I didn’t think it would happen today.

The image of myself confidently lying yesterday overlapped with the memory of Yeo Jihye, shrouded in her sky-blue magic, smashing the Dire Wolf’s skull. 

A chill ran up and down my spine. 

I pulled down my left sleeve even further, trying to hide Aegis strapped to my wrist.

‘Let’s just make sure I don’t show Aegis. There are plenty of weapons made from Black Tiger fangs, so it’s fine to show Black Fang.’

Tap!

“Hey.”

“Hu—ah!”

“… What the hell? Why are you so jumpy? You look like someone who’s done something wrong.”

I turned around, and the person who had spoken, with his hand on my shoulder, was Joo Jinyong, wearing a black crow mask.

“By the way, Baram, were you at Sindorim Station yesterday?”

“… What? How do you know about that?”

“… Hah, so it’s true.”

At my answer, Joo Jinyong let out a deep sigh as if the ground beneath him was crumbling.

‘…? Why does he look so depressed? And how did he know? Is this the information network of a Chinese secret agent at work?’

“… You lucky bastard.”

While I was inwardly marveling at Joo Jinyong’s information-gathering abilities, he muttered something under his breath and lifted his phone to show me a video. The footage displayed me and Yeo Jihye fighting the Dire Wolves together.

“… Where did you get this?”

“You didn’t know? This video has been all over the news since yesterday evening. It’s blown up on YouTube because the Empress — who fought with you — was caught on camera. But more importantly, how was she in person? Is she as pretty as she looks in the video?”

Even though his expression was hidden by the crow mask, I could tell from his tone that Joo Jinyong was dying of envy.

‘Ugh, is Joo Jinyong a fan of Yeo Jihye or something? If he finds out the Cat mask senior doing this mission with us today is Yeo Jihye, he’s going to lose it…’

“Oh… I’m screwed.”

“What? What are you talking about? Come on, did you talk to the Empress? How was it?”

Joo Jinyong kept pestering me with questions, but I just stared at him with a resolute look in my eyes, thinking: I’ll have to shut him up somehow when we all meet up later.

***

“You guys are all here. Why are you waiting in such a hidden spot?”

At exactly 2:00 p.m., Shin Yul, wearing a fox mask, arrived along with Yeo Jihye in her cat mask. They approached the alley near the station where the rest of us were gathered.

Shin Yul was dressed in a pretty bold outfit — a black cropped T-shirt, black hot pants that showed off her long legs, and a black hoodie thrown over it. It had a very “hip” vibe, with a lot of skin showing.

“Well, all five of us standing in front of the station, wearing masks and dressed in black, made people stop and stare, so we decided to hide here for a bit.”

It was Song Changbin, wearing a raccoon mask, whose fierce eyes could be seen even through his mask, who answered on behalf of the group.

“Hehe, I guess so. Smart thinking. Oh! For the newbies, this is ‘Cat,’ a second-year member of our clan. Sorry, her real name and identity are a secret~”

Shin Yul gestured behind her with her thumb, introducing Yeo Jihye to us.

Like the rest of us, Yeo Ji-hye was dressed in a black hoodie and training pants. Though her hair was mostly hidden under the hoodie and mask, a bit of her vibrant pink hair peeked out. She stepped forward slightly and gave us a small nod.

‘She probably didn’t use her disguise ring today since it would weaken her powers. She just dyed her hair with color spray instead. And I remember the setup was that during clan missions, she doesn’t talk and only communicates with gestures.’

I wasn’t sure why she was so adamant about hiding her identity, but whatever the reason, I kept my eye on Yeo Ji-hye, constantly checking to make sure my monkey mask was securely in place, terrified she might discover my identity.

And maybe it was just my imagination, but it felt like ever since Yeo Jihye arrived, she had been staring intently at Black Fang, the sword strapped to my waist.

“This is Kim Baram, Ko Joo-yeon, and Joo Jinyong,” Shin Yul continued, introducing each of us by name. “All right, it’s time. Let’s get moving.”

Just as Shin Yul finished her introductions and started walking toward our destination, Yeo Ji-hye suddenly whipped her head around at the mention of “Joo Jinyong.” She stared intensely at him, her gaze piercing through the crow mask.

“Uh… Is there something you want to say to me…?” Joo Jinyong stammered nervously, feeling her unblinking stare.

Yeo Ji-hye tilted her head slightly in curiosity, then turned back to follow Shin Yul. She must have suspected Joo Jinyong was the same person from yesterday, but his voice must have convinced her otherwise, so she seemed to have dismissed it as a case of mistaken identity.

‘Come to think of it, she could recognize me by my voice too. Damn it! Do I need to disguise my voice as well?’

“Let’s catch up with them.”

I nodded at Song Changbin’s words and started walking to follow Shin Yul.

“Ah, by the way, Leader, did you see that video on YouT—”

Cough… Cough, cough!

Joo Jinyong, who was walking next to me, started to mention the video of Yeo Jihye and me in combat again, so I quickly faked a coughing fit to cut him off.

Seeing me cough, Ko Jooyeon tugged at the hem of my training suit and looked up at me with worried eyes through her rabbit mask.

“Are you okay? Is it a cold?”

“… Damn it. The fuse has been lit. It’s going to blow. Ugh…”

Fortunately, for some reason, Joo Jinyong suddenly lowered his head and started mumbling to himself, seemingly losing interest in bringing up that troublesome YouTube video again.

***

We arrived at a park a little distance away from Gangnam Station. Inside the park, men in suits stood on guard, keeping an eye on the surroundings. Behind them was a glowing blue hole, suspended in midair.

‘That must be the dungeon entrance. Just like in the novels, it’s described as a glowing blue hole.’

As we approached the hole, one of the men in suits walked toward us and spoke. “Please stop for a moment. What is your business here?”

“We’re here on a request from the Geumseong Guild. They’ve asked us to ‘clean’ a D-class dungeon.”

“Ah, please wait a moment… Confirmed. The request terms are…”

“We’re only here to clean, and we won’t touch any of the dungeon’s items except for the mana stones. Is that correct?”

“… Yes, that’s correct. Anyway, even if you do take items from the dungeon, the magic detectors here will catch it. Let’s avoid any unnecessary trouble, all right?”

“Of course! Well, let’s head in. Take care~”

‘Geumseong Guild?’

Based on the conversation between Shin Yul and the guard, it seemed like this dungeon was owned by the Geumseong Guild. I glanced over at Joo Jinyong, who flinched slightly when he heard the word “Geumseong.”

Following Shin Yul, we entered the glowing dungeon entrance. A wave of dizziness hit me as space seemed to warp, but after a moment, I opened my eyes to see a vast meadow with a dense forest in the distance.

This new experience was fascinating, and I couldn’t help but look around at my surroundings in awe. Shin Yul turned to face us and began explaining.

“Our task today is to deal with dangerous beasts in this D-class field dungeon called ‘Goblin’s Forest.’ From what I’ve heard, the Gold Star Clan, which is sponsored by the Geumseong Guild, plans to use this place for their activities.”

‘Gold Star Clan…? It seems like I can’t help but get entangled with Shin Haeseong, whether directly or indirectly.’

“Oh! So, we just kill everything we see, right, Fox?” asked Paeng Hojin excitedly.

“No, you can’t just kill everything. Only the dangerous beasts. To be specific, ignore the E-class goblins and only take out the D-class Hobgoblins or Goblin Shamans.”

“Got it! I’ll get started right away!”

“Ho-jin, calm down a bit… Leader, are there any other things we should watch out for?” asked Song Changbin, trying to rein in Paeng Hojin, who was ready to draw his greatsword at a moment’s notice.

“Yes, one important thing: even if we find the dungeon core, do not destroy it. If we do, we might have to pay for it later. Hojin, you got that?”

“Of course! No destroying dungeon cores!” Paeng Hojin shouted confidently, raising his greatsword over his head.

‘Did he really understand…?’

The dungeon core. It was the essential structure of a dungeon, and if destroyed, the dungeon would close, ejecting all players inside. Destroying it also granted rewards, but there were many reasons not to do so, especially in a field-type dungeon like this one.

Field dungeons were known as treasure troves, full of valuable resources like beast byproducts, hidden items, and minerals buried underground. Farming those resources was common, and destroying the core too early would be foolish, as it meant giving up access to all those riches.

Shin Yul chuckled at Paeng Hojin’s enthusiasm and continued with her explanation.

“The second rule, which some of you might have heard already, is that we’re not allowed to take any items from inside the dungeon. Field dungeons are huge, so you might get lucky and stumble upon something rare. But even if you do, the Geumseong guys waiting outside will catch you, so it’s best not to bother. However…”

Shin Yul looked around cautiously, then leaned in close and lowered her voice.

“If you find any elixirs, just drink them on the spot. As long as you don’t get caught, no one will know.”

“Leader… some elixirs can be dangerous if you take the wrong one…” Song Changbin pointed out.

“Hehe, I was just kidding. I doubt we’ll find anything valuable in a D-class dungeon, even if it is a field dungeon.”

At that, Joo Jinyong raised his hand with a question.

“Leader, what should we do with the byproducts or mana stones from the beasts we kill?”

Mana stones. In novels, they were magical stones found near the hearts of monsters in dungeons or gates. 

They were valuable for crafting weapons, artifacts, or magical items, and could even be used as energy resources. 

Yesterday, Kim Baram earned a decent reward from the Korean Player Association thanks to the mana stones he had collected from the Dire Wolves.

“Good question. Since goblin byproducts aren’t worth much, just leave them. But collect any mana stones you find. We’ll gather them and hand them over to the Geumseong guys later. We get 50% of the mana stones on top of the request fee, so it’s a pretty decent deal.”

Joo Jinyong nodded in understanding, and Shin Yul clapped her hands to get everyone’s attention.

“All right! Now that we’ve covered everything, let’s get started. Changbin, you’ll stay here at the entrance to support us. The rest will pair up in teams of two. Since the newbies are still inexperienced, each one will go with me, Hojin, or Cat.”

At Shin Yul’s suggestion, I froze in panic. 

I glanced nervously at Yeo Ji-hye, who stood with her arms crossed, listening to Shin Yul’s explanation, and silently prayed.

‘Please… please let me be on a different team from Yeo Jihye…’