Second Life of a Dragon Raising Hunter

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Chapter 54

“It’ll all come to light once class starts anyway. Well, I should visit Master before class begins. I didn’t see him yesterday because I was too tired.”

“Sure! Hehe, I wonder what snacks he’ll give us today?”

“Ah, come on now. Do you think Master is some kind of snack vendor? You shouldn’t have that kind of attitude, Shar.”

Speaking of which, wouldn’t it be nice if he shared some good aura training techniques or swordsmanship?

“Dad’s two-faced attitude is truly admirable.”

Too much praise like that makes me blush, Yeon-woo shyly rubbed the back of her neck.

Before class started, I bumped into Je Gal Seong-ryong outside.

“Hahaha, did you rest well over the past week? You certainly look well—your skin is glowing and your hair is soft!”

“No, that’s just because I trained and showered in the morning…”

“That lady right there is the famous Shar Soja. I wonder if you’re not too tired from being dragged around by Yeon-woo for the past week?”

“Ah, um, hello, Seong-ryong Uncle….”

Seong-ryong, who spoke to the shyly hiding Shar behind Yeon-woo, stopped stroking his catfish mustache. His face looked rather shocked.

Is being called “uncle” that shocking? Honestly, I thought “uncle” was giving it some credit.

“To be honest, you look older than anyone else here at the Academy. Don’t worry about it, Seong-ryong.”

“What do you mean ‘don’t worry’…?”

I had only ever seen Seong-ryong’s face stoic or smiling, but now anger clouded his expression. It was a face unfit to show a child, so Yeon-woo quickly covered Shar’s eyes.

“Actually, he wasn’t really that angry.”

“Looks pretty angry to me.”

“Well, being called ‘uncle’ can’t be helped. If that’s how children perceive me, I should just let them call me that. What I’m saying is something different.”

“Different?”

“Believe it or not, including yourself, your friends were quite worried about you. They couldn’t see how badly you were injured during practice. And with a week of recuperation, it’s natural to worry for a visit.”

“They came to see me…?!”

Damn, I believed in them!

On the verge of bursting into tears, Yeon-woo tried to hug Seong-ryong, but his hand stopped her.

“No one could meet you, though.”

“…Huh?”

“They said while they were worrying about you, you were wandering outside…”

“Um, there were circumstances…”

“Hmm, but before you explain yourself, isn’t there something you should say?”

In front of Seong-ryong, who smiled refreshingly, Yeon-woo hesitated for a moment and then slowly lowered her head.

“I-I’m sorry…”

“Hmm, I can overlook this, but I can’t speak for the others. Do better from now on. Especially let it be known that Baek Soja has visited you three times over the past week.”

Seong-ryong tapped Yeon-woo’s head gently with an air fan as he turned away.

‘Oh no.’

Yeon-woo was so nervous she forgot to lift her head and was sweating profusely.

Today’s first class was “Understanding and Distinction of Aura and Mana.” It should be considered the basic subject even in the Hunter department. It’s about how to deal with enemies using magic and how to handle those using aura.

It was a class taking a very practical approach to hypothetical scenarios. While it might seem like idle talk at first, if the professor had nearly fifty years of experience as a Hunter, the narrative would change quite a bit.

A senior with a scruffy white beard and impressive facial hair, distinguished even in formal attire. A C-rank hunter with fifty years of a shining career, he was the professor in charge of the “Understanding and Distinction of Aura and Mana” course, Lee Seung-ryeol.

Most professors, aside from him, were at least B-rank hunters, which made it a subject of curiosity.

People often wondered why a C-rank Hunter stood before the scholars, but among the faculty, he was respected after Yuri.

Even as a C-rank Hunter, the fact that he had survived fifty years in the field was proof he was an impressive figure. Yeon-woo had always looked up to him even before her regression, so she was happy to have this class…

But at this moment, even Professor Lee Seung-ryeol’s lecture wasn’t reaching her ears. Cold glares were piercing into her back.

Most concerning was that Baek In-hwa, who usually came a bit early and took a nap due to morning fatigue, had somehow arrived just before class began today.

She had spoken to Je Gal Seong-ryong on her way to school, but had no chance to chat with Baek In-hwa or the habitual latecomer Namgung Seong.

Just endure for the next thirty minutes… I can suffer through this, and during the break, I’ll just bury my head on the table… Namgung Seong only came once, but Baek In-hwa had been there three times, so definitely, I’ll bury my head for her.

While diligently sweating, Yeon-woo unfortunately had to face an awkward situation as soon as the break bell rang.

“Okay, let’s take a ten-minute break and start again. Ah, Choi Yeon-woo?”

“…Ah, yes?”

“Could you step outside for a moment?”

Just as she turned to bury her head in the break time, the gentle voice of the old man called out.

It wouldn’t do to ignore him, so Yeon-woo hurriedly followed the professor out of the classroom, praying for a quick conclusion.

“Oh, you’re out. Was there a matter with the student in the back? If so, this can wait until after class.”

“Um… No, I just came out. Why did you call me, Professor?”

“I heard there was an accident during practice day. That’s why you were absent. Since there was some fault on the school’s part, they told me to give you a report regarding attendance. That’s why I called you.”

“Ah… Yes, that’s correct. Do you have any specific instructions regarding the report?”

“Something like that. Could you take out your phone?”

Did he pick up on Yeon-woo’s wish for brevity? After Yeon-woo took out her smartphone, Lee Seung-ryeol brought his phone close. After a bit of manipulation, a recording file was sent to her phone. Could it be a virus??

“This is the content of the lecture that day. It’s two hours long, but since you’re busy with other classes too, you don’t have to listen to it all. Just write at least half a page on what to do if you encounter a pack of frost wolves in the Snowfield. Then it’ll count as your report.”

“Whoa… Professor… You went through all that trouble for me…?”

“Hahaha, it’s no big deal. I recorded it over the weekend, so it might differ a bit from the actual lecture. Don’t worry, it won’t affect your midterms.”

Yeon-woo was taken aback. A professor willing to go out of his way to record a class for a single student who couldn’t attend due to unavoidable circumstances? She didn’t exactly attend university in her previous life, but it was certainly not a common type.

Especially the amount of the report seemed quite lenient. Half a page on A4 paper? That hardly even counts as a report.

“Should I handwrite it?”

“Do as you prefer. As long as it’s not too noticeable, the font size shouldn’t matter either. Sorry for taking up your precious break time. Go back and relax.”

Saying this, the elderly gentleman spun around quickly toward the restroom, leaving Yeon-woo overwhelmed with gratitude. What a god-like professor this is…

The unfortunate thing was, no matter how brief he said it would be, ten minutes for the break was by no means a long stretch of time.

Returning to her seat, she found Baek In-hwa slumped down with a bored expression, resting her chin on her hand.

“You seem to have had an interesting chat with the professor. Hmm.”

“Ah, no, it’s not like that…”

Before she could explain, the break time bell rang, and Old Lee entered the classroom after wiping his hands with a handkerchief.

“Okay, let’s begin again. Could you check if there’s any student who hasn’t returned yet?”

[Aw man, Dad…]

‘Yeah, right?’

Compelled to straighten up and face forward, Yeon-woo suddenly felt the urge to write an impressive report about frost wolves while reflecting on the current scenario.

*

‘…He seems okay. Thank goodness.’

Baek In-hwa, who had visited three times without finding a single time to confirm how badly Choi Yeon-woo was injured during his hospital visits, breathed a sigh of relief.

After all, she thought of Yeon-woo as someone close to her all her life. The bitter taste of not knowing if they had genuinely become friends or if someone had just passed away sat uneasily with her.

From that perspective, she was slightly relieved to learn he was up and about. At least it seemed they weren’t seriously injured.

At some point, instead of visiting the empty hospital room, Baek In-hwa had come to infer Yeon-woo’s condition through the news of him wandering outside.

But suddenly on the seventh day, there was no news at all.

Did something go wrong suddenly?

She couldn’t sleep properly over such worries. Thinking she should’ve ambushed him while he was out and about, she pondered.

Fortunately, it appeared there was no problem as she saw Yeon-woo was present and well. At least at first.

However, as time went on, she began to feel increasingly irritated.

No, the fact that the patient was not stuck in a hospital bed felt wrong. If he had just stayed put, she could have paid him a proper visit, and there would have been no worries like this.

These thoughts bubbled up as she simmered with complaints.

Could this be what it means to be trapped in the ‘heart of emergence’? All sorts of grudges were spilling over, and she found herself staring at Yeon-woo with resentful eyes.

Even knowing why the professor summoned him, Baek In-hwa couldn’t help but let a snappy voice slip out.

‘Ugh… why is Baek In-hwa’s gaze so piercing…?’

[Serves you right.]

‘Dad is suffering like this, and that’s your way of speaking, Shar!’

But if anything, she brought it upon herself. With the chilling sensation of ice rolling down her spine, Yeon-woo shivered. Well, thinking about it, it was reasonable and considerate to visit friends who were hurt. Especially considering her friends came from well-off families, it should have been something expected.

The fact that she didn’t even think about that and frivolously wandered around was entirely Yeon-woo’s doing.

All of this seemed to stem from her own inadequacies, and she had to bear it in silence.

In that bitter end of endurance, the long-awaited bell signaling the end of class rang.

“I’m sorry for making you worry, Baek In-hwa!!”

After the relentless pressure, Yeon-woo turned around, theatrically slammed her head on the desk, and hysterically shouted, which could easily be misinterpreted by anyone.

All the attention in the lively classroom, following Lee Seung-ryeol’s departure, shifted suddenly to the two of them.

It’s not strange. Ignoring the classmate who suddenly yelled a loud apology while slamming her head down would be odd.

The issue was that Baek In-hwa was highly sensitive in such situations. Although she was accustomed to being the center of attention by nature, it was unprecedented for her to be the focus for such an embarrassing reason, and she couldn’t hide her surprise.

“I-I’ll go outside and talk…”

“I’m really sorry, Baek In-hwa! I never thought you’d worry about me like this! I can’t believe you visited three times… I’m so sorry for not recognizing it!!”

“I-I…I wanted to go outside…”

Yeon-woo intended to apologize before getting beat up. In other words, she was cornered as well. Before her, Baek In-hwa was fidgeting, unsure of what to say.

The only party with the context of the situation, Shar stifled a laugh internally.

“What the hell is going on over there…?”

“Whoa, Baek In-hwa visited three times… what’s going on with those two?”

Baek In-hwa’s face gradually turned red.

Originally, she was not one to enjoy being discussed by others, yet she needed to speak more but wanted to leave this place, feeling deeply embarrassed.

“……Ugh!”

Covering her face with her sleeve, she fled. The storm of gossip whipped through the empty space behind her. A martial artist who had mastered the ability to wield Elemental Mana ran away with all her strength.

As the intense backlash struck the empty spot, only Yeon-woo was left behind, staring in bewilderment with a face that seemed smacked, having sustained no actual hit.

“……Huh?”

“Pwahaha!”

Namgung Seong, who had been nearby, burst into laughter at the scene.

(Continued in the next chapter)