The Support Ate it All

“Hey.”

“Yeah?”

“Why do you think I lost?”

“To Song Cheon-hye?”

“Mhmm.”

The fact that she was willing to open up about her concerns was a positive sign.

It meant she was starting to open up to me if only a little.

Therefore, it was important for me to respond with care.

I took a moment to choose my words carefully.

“The terrain played a big part, I think. The arena was cramped, and there was nowhere to hide. It’s a disadvantage for a gunslinger.”

A round arena and a deathmatch were essentially an environment and a rule that forced a head-on confrontation with your opponent.

If the match had been played under different conditions, the outcome might have been different.

If the space had been two to three times larger, it would have been extremely difficult to cover it with [Lightning Thread].

And if there had been places to take cover, there was a high chance of remaining undetected for the entire five minutes, which could have led to a victory by decision.

But Seo Ye-in slowly shook her head.

“That’s not what I’m asking.”

She desired a fundamental solution rather than blaming external factors.

As a gunslinger, how could she break through the magical barrier of Song Cheon-hye, who was a mage, and the even more powerful high-level mages?

That was the real question.

I already had the answer but for the moment, I decided to step back.

“I’ve thought about it while watching, but I’m not sure if hearing from me will be of any help. I’m a support, you know. My score is even lower than yours.”

“I still want to hear it.”

She wanted to hear my thoughts whether they were helpful or not.

Having come this far, it wouldn’t hurt to offer some advice as an experienced gunslinger, not just as a support.

I spread my palms open.

“Look at this.”

Mana blossomed in each hand, compressing into the shape of bullets.

I deliberately made the two magic bullets differ in form.

One barely maintained its shape, while the other was so exquisitely crafted that it could have been mistaken for a real bullet painted blue.

“If you had to use just one shot against the magical barrier, which one would you take?”

“…….”

It was a question with an obvious answer.

Seo Ye-in’s finger pointed towards the more intricately shaped bullet.

At the same time, she seemed slightly surprised; it must have been her first time seeing such a perfectly shaped magic bullet.

I wonder if I should have made it a little more clumsy?

When I think about it, what was basic for me might not be so for a first-year student.

In such situations, it’s important to smoothly transition without showing any surprise.

First, I took the clumsy magic bullet and prodded its edge with my palm.

Almost immediately, the bullet shape collapsed and dispersed.

“When you try to break through a magic barrier with a normally formed magic bullet, it turns it into a battle of magical power against magical power. In that case, a mage with superior magical power quantity will naturally have the upper hand.”

Next, I picked up the more intricately shaped bullet and poked its edge in the same manner.

Though the edge was destroyed and a little blue energy leaked out, the bullet’s shape remained intact.

“However, the reason a swordsman can cut through a mage’s barrier and a gunslinger can penetrate it is by using concentrated and condensed magical power at a single point. So, investing more time in magical power training and paying attention to the crafting of each magic bullet might just reveal you the answer you seek.”

“…….”

Seo Ye-in listened silently until I finished explaining.

Then, tilting her head slightly, she asked,

“How do you train your magical power?”

“……What?”

I couldn’t believe my ears and had to ask again for confirmation.

“If you don’t know how to train magical power, how have you been creating magic bullets until now?”

“I just did, and it worked.”

“What about the [Magic Bullet] skill?”

“I didn’t learn it.”

“?”

“?”

She still looked like she was unable to understand my reaction.

This is unexpected.

The magic bullet I had just created seemed real, but it was really just for show.

The difference in lethality between a casually made magic bullet and one enhanced with the [Magic Bullet] skill was like night and day.

This skill forms the basic foundation of a gunslinger.

Yet she had not learned it up to this point.

Since she didn’t even know how to train her magical power, I guessed that her related skills and traits were likely elementary.

In essence, she had been winging everything by her intuition alone, which meant one thing:

She’s a prodigy.

In fact, I should probably raise my assessment of Seo Ye-in a notch.

Considering she managed to give Song Cheon-hye a run for her money without even having the basics down.

The extent of her talent was something I felt the need to verify with my own hands.

“Would you mind if I take some time to check it out for you?”

“Mhmm.”

Seo Ye-in immediately accepted my offer.

I thought about testing a few things on the spot, but then—

♩♪♩♬

The melody flowing from the speaker signaled the end of lunchtime.

It was time for the strategy battle test to begin.

***

In a section of the Dungeon Island, there was a hill neither too high nor too low.

This hill was not a place for people to climb up and down.

It was an entrance.

And when you enter the huge tunnel before you, an intricate maze of countless dungeons unfolds, intertwining and extending into an endless underground expanse.

This was the Dungeon Hall, a place where students of Dragon Slayer Academy conduct their strategy battles

“Kim-hyung.”

I met Go Hyeon-woo near the tunnel.

Right now, Go Hyeon-woo’s expression has become much brighter.

I handed him a sandwich and asked.

“Feeling any better?”

“Thanks to you. I’m truly grateful.”

“No need to thank me every time. We’re friends.”

Go Hyeon-woo led the way, quickly finishing the sandwich in the blink of an eye.

“Let’s continue with the placement test then.”

***

The dungeons on the ground level of the dungeon hall were all artificial dungeons created specifically for the students’ education or exams.

A good example was the several teleportation portals gaping next to Lee Soo-dok.

“Is everyone gathered? I’ll explain the strategy battle test then.”

Lee Soo-dok floated a small window next to himself.

MAP: [Mist Forest]

RULE: [High Score], [10-Minute Limit], [Fixed Zone]

“Each person will enter the portal one by one to take the test. Most of you are probably familiar with the High Score rule.”

High Score.

The number of monsters killed during the 10-minute time limit was added up and converted into a score.

Monsters of higher ranks yielded more points per kill.

For example, orcs and trolls offered more points than goblins.

The goal was to eliminate as many high-rank monsters as possible within the time frame.

“I will allow time for questions.”

“Um… Teacher.”

A student hesitantly raised a trembling hand.

Although it was scary to pose a question to someone known as the human butcher,

But the prospect of entering the placement test without addressing the newly arisen doubts was even more terrifying.

“Um… What exactly is the Fixed Zone rule?”

After asking that question, that student looked at the other students as if asking for their approval, and judging by the similar expressions on their faces, it seemed like they all shared the same doubts.

Lee Soo-dok responded in a tone that implied the question was obvious.

“The Fixed Zone is an area with set ability limits. Everything’s performance is ‘fixed’ at the lowest rank. Be mindful that your [Core], which most of you possess, will also be limited to F-rank. Those who recklessly use magical power without any shortages will regret poor mana management.”

“!”

“!”

The revelation struck like a bolt from the blue.

Right now, the performance of equipment, skills, and traits that were handled like extensions of the students’ own bodies has drastically declined.

The only thing that remained unchanged was the technique ingrained in their bodies over many years.

Go Hyeon-woo lowered his voice and asked me,

“So, in this Fixed Zone, is he saying that any famed sword becomes no different from this iron sword?”

“Exactly. It’s not that high-rank items or skills can’t be used, but their effectiveness is diminished. Sometimes swinging the sword one more time might be more beneficial.”

“Hmm. Interesting.”

He murmured this while gently stroking the newly brought iron sword.

However, only a few in our class, including Go Hyeon-woo, found this situation interesting.

Most were marked with expressions of confusion and worry, not knowing what to do.

Glancing around, I noticed that Song Cheon-hye’s face betrayed a clear look of distress as if she was utterly unprepared for such a test.

– What’s this Fixed Zone all of a sudden?

– I heard this doesn’t come up until the second year.

– Hey, is this really difficult?

– I don’t know, but I’ve heard the seniors really hate it.

– Really? We’re doomed…

“Enough.”

With a single word from Lee Soo-dok, everyone suddenly fell silent as if on cue.

Lee Soo-dok spoke with a displeased expression.

“It is very common for the contents of a dungeon to differ from the information you’ve gathered. Are you going to be as lost and confused as this every time you encounter an unexpected situation? You should be thinking about how to adapt to such drastic changes.”

His rebuke was extremely effective.

Everyone’s faces hardened and strengthened their resolve.

They began to steel themselves for whatever awaited them inside and resolved to use everything at their disposal.

“Get ready then. Students will enter one by one as I call their names. Choi Jeong-pil.”

Choi Jeong-pil stepped forward with a nervous look.

He took a few deep breaths before stepping into the teleportation portal and soon it closed behind him.

After confirming this, Lee Soo-dok called the next name.

“Han So-mi.”

“Yes!”

Han So-mi flashed her usual cheerful smile and entered the dungeon with light steps.

Not a trace of nervousness could be found in her, which momentarily sparked a flicker of interest in Lee Soo-dok’s eyes.

He then shifted his gaze and moved on.

“Park Kyung-ah.”

With each name called, the number of waiting students decreased, and the teleportation portals closed one after the other.

When about half of the dungeons were filled,

“Argh!”

A student’s scream echoed as they were ejected from the portal.

The rule was to kill as many monsters as possible within 10 minutes, but this student was ejected not even 3 minutes after entering.

It was a premature retirement.

The dungeon’s safety mechanism decided that the test could no longer proceed for some reason, and the participant was kicked out.

“Argh!”

Another student was ejected from the portal.

This one managed to last 5 minutes, 2 minutes longer than the previous one.

Of course, the fact that it was a premature retirement was the same.

It looks like they proceeded as usual.

It was obvious what had happened inside without even having to see it.

These students must have tried to wipe out the monsters with a barrage of skills like they always did.

Forgetting that the power of their skills had dropped to an F-rank.

The monsters, which should have been swept away in droves, were very much alive and attacking, which likely left them flustered and they got severely beaten up.

And so, after being continuously pummeled, they were eventually ejected.

“Ouch!”

“Aaah!”

One after another, students started failing.

This meant an increasing number of students were disgracefully sprawled on the ground.

Those waiting for their turn watched the scene unfold and they became even more tense.

I must absolutely not end up like that.

“Ugh…”

“Stop, stop hitting me, you bastards…!”

Even after being expelled from the dungeon, the eliminated participants rolled on the floor and groaned.

Since it was an artificial dungeon and there were multiple safety mechanisms put into place, there was no physical damage, but being swarmed and lynched by a horde of monsters was enough to mentally shatter anyone.

In the midst of this, 10 minutes had passed since the start of the strategy battle test.

The first person from our class to complete the 10-minute duration emerged.

It was Choi Jeong-pil who had entered first.

He staggered out, looking mentally exhausted, but he was, after all, standing on his feet.

[Choi Jeong-pil, 530 points, 20%]

A little distance from the strategy battle portals floated a large hologram window the size of a poster. This was supposed to be the leaderboard.

It displayed the [Name, Score, Ranking] of the entire grade in real-time.

Soon after Choi Jeong-pil, Han So-mi, who had entered next, and then Park Kyung-ah, who followed, also completed their trials and walked out.

[Han So-mi, 928 points, 1st place] New!

……

[Park Kyung-ah, 543 points, 40%]

[Choi Jeong-pil, 530 points, 45%]

Students from other classes also started coming out one after another after they succeeded in their trials.

With each new emergence, their names and scores were added to the leaderboard, and the rankings were continuously updated.

Choi Jeong-pil’s rank, which was initially in the top 20%, began to plummet.

– Wow, look at Han So-mi’s score.

– It’s almost twice as much, twice as much.

– Is this the difference in skill?

– I told you she’s really scary when you get to know her.

– She looks so cute though.

The attention of the audience, which had been focused on the eliminated students, swiftly shifted to the leaderboard.

As the students began to talk about the rankings, their enthusiasm was ignited.

Although still nervous due to the [Fixed Zone] rule, the desire to secure a high position on the publicly visible leaderboard seemed to motivate them.

“Seo Ye-in.”

It was Seo Ye-in’s turn.

I offered a brief piece of advice to Seo Ye-in, who was checking her two pistols for the last time.

“It might be better to switch to a rifle. If you feel that mana management is becoming difficult, just focus on headshots for those that get close.”

“Mhmm.”

Seo Ye-in accepted my advice without question.

The pistols in her hands were swiftly disassembled and reassembled into a rifle.

She glanced at me with an expressionless face, as if to ask, “Did I do well?”

I nodded in approval, and she responded with a slight nod before entering the dungeon.

“…….”

Feeling a stinging sensation at the back of my head, I turned around to find Song Cheon-hye looking at me with a disapproving look.

From her perspective, she probably wondered what right I had to give advice.

When our eyes met, she quickly turned her head away.

“Kim Ho.”

As I waited, my name was eventually called.

Upon stepping one foot into the portal, I was swiftly pulled into somewhere else.

In the next moment, I found myself standing in the midst of a forest thick with fog.

It was a forest in the early hours before dawn, retaining the darkness and dampness of the early morning.

[Monsters will be summoned shortly.]

[Remaining time 10:00]

I curled the corners of my mouth upwards as I read the notification message.

It’s been a long time since I’ve been here.

At <Dragon Slayer Academy>, I was called by many nicknames.

The S-rank Hero Factory, the top ranker, the strongest supporter.

And yet there was one more.

The God of the Fixed Zone.