The Support Ate it All

Yein-ganger stared at us for a moment before stepping back with Feather Walk.

At the same time, the clone fired a rapid volley from the magic gun in its hand.

Tududududu!

Seo Ye-in mirrored its featherlight movements, unleashing her own barrage of magic bullets as the firefight erupted.

Rather than stepping in directly, I chose to support her instead.

I surrounded her with a Wind Barrier and manipulated Dark Clouds to deflect the incoming magic bullets.

Tudududu!

Streaks of blue light crisscrossed the air in a relentless exchange.

But then, I noticed that Seo Ye-in was gradually advancing.

It seemed she intended to finish this in close combat, so I reminded her of one crucial fact.

“Young Miss, the inventory is blocked.”

“…….!”

An exclamation mark practically appeared over Seo Ye-in’s head.

So she was planning to pull something out from her inventory.

Unfortunately, the final exams were under [Survival] rules.

The inventory was sealed, leaving me with only the Sapling and a Dark Cloud Bracelet, while Seo Ye-in had her Magic Gun and the Fluffy Cloud Bracelet.

Curious, I decided to ask.

“What were you trying to take out?”

“The pot.”

“To make Kim Ho-Yein Kim Ho-Pot?”

“Mhmm.”

I wondered just how much that pot would have to be dented before it stopped being a pot altogether.

Would it even be a pot in the end?

Meanwhile, the Sloth-ganger who was now losing the firefight seemed to decide that retreat was the best option.

Its form flickered and blurred, and in an instant, it had pulled away to the rear.

It had activated Ghost Dance.

We couldn’t afford to lose the items, so both of us tried to follow using Ghost Dance.

But at that moment—

Ssshhhhh!

Dozens of magical arrows rained down from the opposite side, triggering a large explosion.

Booom!

In the next instant, the Yein-ganger had completely vanished without a trace.

There weren’t many first-years capable of that level of destructive power.

And if we narrowed it down to archers, there were probably only one or two.

So I waved cheerfully.

“Hey, Hyeon-joo!”

“Why are you acting all friendly?”

“Sorry about that.”

Cha Hyeon-joo ground her teeth.

Standing next to her was the person paired with her instead of Kang Hee-chan. Aka Kang Hee-chan 2.

Come to think of it, I hadn’t even exchanged names with this person yet.

Regardless, I repeated the same words I had said to the Disciplinary Committee duo.

“Let’s keep things peaceful. There’s nothing to gain from fighting right now.”

However, rather than lowering their weapons, Cha Hyeon-joo’s duo burned with even more fighting spirit.

That meant they were willing to fight even if there was nothing to gain.

Jo Byeok was competitive but still reasonable, whereas Cha Hyeon-joo seemed determined to tear me apart on sight without question or hesitation.

Like some kind of hellhound…

Cha Hyeon-joo scoffed with a cold expression on her face.

“Peace? I don’t know anything about that.”

“Is that so.”

I let out a quiet sigh.

Thinking we could talk this out had been my mistake.

So I cast [Ice Wall] to block the passage.

“Well, I don’t know anything either.”

“Take down this wall!!”

“Nooope~ I don’t know anything at all~”

“Hey!! I said take it down!!”

Bang! Bang!

Cha Hyeon-joo’s duo pounded on the ice wall furiously, cursing all the while.

Of course, if I had any intention of removing it just because they demanded it, I wouldn’t have put it up in the first place.

Ignoring them, I added another layer to the ice wall, effectively blocking out the noise.

Then I collected the items from the remains of the Yein-ganger.

[Sleeping Bag] *2

The dropped items being for sleep… Guess that means this doppelganger copied the right person.

“Let’s keep moving.”

“The pot…”

“Let go of your attachment to the pot.”

But Seo Ye-in still looked reluctant.

Leaving that brief incident behind, we continued on our way and soon arrived at our first destination.

At first glance, the passage looked no different from any other, but this was the entrance to a hidden room.

First, I erected ice walls at both ends of the corridor.

There was always a risk of passing participants spotting us.

If that happened, they might find the hidden rooms the same way we did or, worse, try to interfere.

Once security was taken care of, I pointed at the floor.

“We’re going to step on that.”

“….…?”

Seo Ye-in examined it closely, then looked at me as if to ask, “Seriously?”

It was blatantly suspicious, practically screaming trap.

But when I nodded my head, she gave a small nod back, signaling her understanding.

At the same time, we both took a step forward.

Clunk!

The floor immediately swung open, and we dropped straight down.

Only up to our shoulders.

On top of that, unlike a real trap, the floor had no spikes, poison, or anything remotely dangerous.

So it was never meant to harm anyone in the first place.

It was just a space disguised as a trap.

I crouched down and felt around one corner until my hand found a handle.

I gripped it tightly, gave it a firm pull, and as the door swung open, a small hidden chamber revealed itself.

Inside, two items were placed neatly.

[Subspace Backpack]

[Radio]

“That was quick.”

Carrying two sleeping bags around the whole time had been getting annoying.

If we’d picked up even more stuff, it would have been a hassle, and it might have even affected combat.

I had expected to find a radio much later, yet here it was in the very first hidden room.

An item that allowed communication with teammates.

The issue was that the other party needed to have a radio too for it to work.

Still, just in case, I tried speaking into it.

“Can you hear me~?”

– ……

As expected, there was no response.

We’d just have to wait until Go Hyeon-woo’s or Hong Yeon-hwa’s team got their hands on one.

Knowing them, they’d probably test it out the moment they found one, so we’d know right away.

For now, I stored the items in the subspace backpack.

▷ Current Inventory

[Subspace Backpack]

[Radio]

[Sleeping Bag] ×2

[Map (Incomplete)]

“Let’s move on to the next one.”

“Let’s go.”

When I checked the map, I saw that the next hidden room was quite close.

After walking a bit and turning through a few winding corners, I reached a dead end.

Normally, when navigating a maze and encountering a blocked path, one would instinctively turn back. But this case was an exception.

There’s something I need to take.

As I continued forward, flames suddenly ignited around me as if warning me not to come any closer.

Whoosh, crackle…

The flames merged, then grew larger and larger until they engulfed the entire passageway and surged toward me.

Kwaaaah—!

I could easily withstand it with my B-rank elemental resistance, but Seo Ye-in wouldn’t be so lucky.

So, I pointed at the flames with the Sapling.

An ice wall shot up, sealing off the passage completely.

Fwoooosh—

Beyond the ice wall, I could hear the roaring flames.

Meanwhile, Seo Ye-in curiously examined the wall, stepping closer and poking at it here and there.

“……?”

Would the ice wall feel warmer than usual if the fire was blazing just beyond it?

However, before Seo Ye-in could satisfy her curiosity, the flames naturally died down on their own, and I dispelled the ice wall.

Despite the intense fire that had just swept through, not a single trace of soot remained in the area.

As I walked forward, a thought crossed my mind.

Whoever designed this place really had a twisted mind.

Most people would see the dead end and leave immediately. But if someone remained with the thought that there might be something hidden, the passage would be engulfed in flames.

Only those stubborn enough to persist despite that would be granted access to the hidden room.

Of course, I wasn’t one to lose when it came to persistence, so I had discovered this place fairly early on.

Pushing my thoughts aside, I gently ran my hand along one of the walls.

Fine dust crumbled away, revealing a barely noticeable gap.

When I pressed against it with force, the wall slid open like a hidden door.

Inside, I found:

[Calorie Bar (Spicy Flavor)] ×2

[Earplugs]

“It says it’s spicy. Want some?”

“…….”

When I held out the calorie bar, Seo Ye-in slowly backed away in the opposite direction.

She used to show at least a little interest before, but it seemed the trauma from the Inferno Cookie still lingered.

I figured I would either have to eat it myself or give it to another teammate.

Next was the earplugs.

They were a headset-style item worn over the head.

As the name suggested, their effect was simple. To block out noise.

Usually, cutting off sound brought more disadvantages than benefits, but in this dungeon, they were surprisingly useful.

I handed her the earplugs and said,

“Let’s test them. Can you hear me or not?”

“Okay.”

After confirming that Seo Ye-in had put them on, I threw out a question.

“Hey, you lazy ugly sloth. Can you hear me?”

– Shake, shake.

She shook her head from side to side.

At the same time, she flipped her assault rifle upside down and lifted it—

As if she was about to smack me with the stock.

She might not have heard me, but she could still read my lips, it seemed.

Before things escalated any further, I quickly apologized.

“My bad.”

“I’m not lazy.”

“So that’s what bothered you.”

But honestly, she was lazy.

Still, it wouldn’t do me any good to argue any further, so I quickly changed the subject.

“Anyway, if I tell you to use them, put them on immediately. Okay?”

“…Okay.”

Seo Ye-in stared at me for a few seconds before hanging the earplug headset around her neck.

***

The chance to use them came sooner than expected.

As we moved toward the next hidden room, a roar and the sound of an impact echoed from somewhere nearby.

– Kruooohh!

Since there were no beast-type monsters in this dungeon, it was obvious who the roar belonged to without even looking.

So we turned in that direction.

Sure enough, when we arrived, Park Na-ri, Jeong Soo-ji, and the giant tiger Bum were locked in battle.

Their opponents were two pale, human-like figures.

One held a sword and shield, while the other held a long spear.

Specters.

They were basic monsters that appeared in Iron Maiden.

The spear-wielding specter lunged repeatedly while thrusting its weapon with precision. Bum dodged with agile movements before counterattacking.

Each of his claws shimmered with blue mana. If they landed properly, he could tear the enemy apart in a single strike.

However, the sword-and-shield specter intervened at just the right moment, blocking the attack.

Bang!

It then slid back smoothly before stepping forward again to continue defending.

As always, Park Na-ri and Jeong Soo-ji focused entirely on supporting Bum.

He was a promising fighter in his own right, and with their help, his endurance became almost limitless.

It might take some time, but ultimately, victory was certain.

No need to step in.

Even so, I decided to stay and watch. The longer the fight dragged on, the higher the chance that other participants might interfere.

Besides, I could actually communicate with those two, so there was a possibility we could strike a deal once the battle was over.

– Kreuhung!

Bum ran with incredible speed. He leaped from wall to wall, then from wall to ceiling, swinging his huge paws in the air.

His mana-infused claws tore off one of the sword-and-shield specter’s arms.

That’s half the fight done.

Their fighting power had dropped significantly.

But just then, something suddenly emerged from the wall.

It was the figure of a woman dressed in tattered rags.

It writhed and twisted its entire body as if in agony.

The Banshee. This was a basic monster that appeared alongside doppelgängers and specters.

Before long, the Banshee’s gaze locked onto Park Na-ri’s duo and the specter.

Its previously wavering movements came to an abrupt halt.

Without hesitation, I gave an order to Seo Ye-in.

“Earplugs.”

“On.”

The very moment Seo Ye-in put on the earplug headset, the Banshee’s mouth stretched open far beyond human limits.

A piercing scream shook the entire arena.

– Kyaaaaaah—!