The Thug Hides the Villainess

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008 – The Ugly Ones Find Joy in Each Other’s Faces #2

“The Main Building has conducted operations in various regions. There have been many crises. What has been the most reliable support for me during those times?”

The homeroom teacher of Class D, Kang Cheol-min, was said to be a veteran from a special forces unit who had rolled through battlefields around the world.

He appeared frequently on variety shows, and anyone would recognize him as ‘Captain Kang Cheol-min.’

Rather than just being a teacher, he seemed more suited to the titles of instructor or ‘Captain’ as he shouted out.

“It is precisely comrades. Comrades I can trust with my back! Having a comrade who can carry me away when I’m in danger is far more vital than any equipment or tactics.”

The intent behind Captain’s words was clear.

He meant we should form solid teams for the upcoming practical training.

“You have five minutes to organize your teams. Go!”

Five people per group among friends, creating six groups.

The issue was that I had just transferred and didn’t have any close friends yet.

“Class president! Come to our group! Huh?”

“Jina, if you join, we’ll have exactly five members!”

The atmosphere was lively like a marketplace.

I thought perhaps there might be some kids calling out to me, and as I looked around, I did catch eyes with a few.

“One person left? How about the transfer student? That could be fun.”

“Fun? Hey, do you want to struggle all day? We need skills, not fun!”

“Right, we don’t even know what skills the transfer student has.”

The kids who had shown interest in me during the discussion ended up forming groups with others instead.

Thus naturally, the leftover kid emerged.

The leftover kid, like a discarded radish, losing its shine!

“Tae-seong, you got left out too! Just like my friend!”

I waved at Geum Tae-seong, who had been standing alone in a corner while the others formed their groups. I thought he would be popular due to his sociable nature, but surprisingly, he seemed to drift outside of the group.

“Hah, I knew this would happen. Now, the leftovers will end up making their own group.”

Tae-seong shrugged and glanced slowly at the discarded kids who were left out.

“Han-jin got left out as a transfer student. ‘Artist,’ ‘Miss Fortune,’ ‘Silence’… Well, those are faces I always see during group training, so I’m not surprised.”

“Artist?”

“In practical training, we call each other by our call signs, kind of like nicknames. The messy-haired one over here is ‘Artist.’ The quiet girl over there is ‘Silence.’ And….”

“Yikes!”

As Tae-seong pointed to her, Baek-Yeoul jumped in surprise.

“Your partner, Baek-Yeoul, is ‘Miss Fortune.’ As you develop your talents and enroll in this special class, the instructors and seniors assign you these call signs based on your characteristics. By the way, I’m ‘Reversal.’”

Reversal.

A fitting call sign for Tae-seong, who, despite being a troublemaker, sat up front paying close attention in class.

The other call signs must also be equally fitting names, right?

“Han-jin, if you perform well in this training, you might get a call sign too.”

“Oh. Me too?”

Reversal, Artist, Miss Fortune, Silence—

It’s like a game character, isn’t it?

Now that I’m in the special class D, I could soon have such a nickname as well.

What if my call sign becomes famous?

If I get a cool call sign like ‘Brad Pitt’ thanks to my handsome appearance?

I’d have a higher chance of approaching Seoga-eul saying, “Hmm, I’m the famous ‘Brad Pitt’ these days.”

My motivation was starting to rise.

“So what exactly is the practical training?”

# # #

The reason why Hero Academy was established in D City, not the capital of South Korea, Seoul, was precisely because of the mysterious facility that appeared deep underground in D City.

“Seven years ago, two construction workers inspecting the campus sewer first discovered and reported on what lies beneath us—the ‘Great Labyrinth.’ A place where countless concepts intermingle.”

According to Captain Kang Cheol-min, the unknown facility called the ‘Great Labyrinth’ appeared beneath our feet at some point.

Exploring that place, discovering new things, and researching are going to be the main tasks for students of Yeongsa High School in the future.

“The Great Labyrinth is an ultra-lawful construction filled with numerous concepts in itself. And within it, many mysteries contribute to the advancement of humanity. These are precisely the objects imbued with ‘concepts.’”

Objects imbued with concepts?

Curiosity suddenly struck me.

“Captain, I have a question.”

“Call me teacher, not captain. Anyway, transfer student Hanam-jin. What question do you have?”

“Can concepts be imbued in objects? Isn’t a concept a superpower given to people?”

“You might not know well since you’re a transfer student, but concepts can be imbued in all things. The inspection machine you saw today was an object with the concept of inspection imbued in it.”

Swish—

The captain pulled a pen from his pocket.

“This is a ballpoint pen. But it contains the concept of ‘cutting.’ What do you think will happen if I bring this pen close to this glass cup? Surprisingly, the cup will be cut in half.”

Snip—

I couldn’t help but marvel at Captain Kang Cheol-min as he cut the cup in half with a ballpoint pen. Such astonishing objects filled the labyrinth?

It was only natural that my heart, which had lived as a scavenger in a landfill, would tingle with excitement.

“Captain! Where can I buy that ballpoint pen?!”

“This is a special tool from the Main Building. It’s a Class 3 administrative product—dangerous yet convenient. If you want to obtain such items, you’ll have to explore the labyrinth yourself.”

“Whoa!”

“But the labyrinth isn’t just filled with such treasures. Many dangers lurk within. That’s why you’re enjoying the expensive meals and wonderful benefits here at this academy while learning the best of everything. Now, let’s head to the training ground!”

Following behind the Class D students as they left the classroom and headed underground on the vast school grounds, I remembered that this practical training was a joint class with Class F.

It was a golden opportunity to meet Seoga-eul.

If I missed this chance, who knows when it would come again? I had to stay sharp.

After walking quite a while through the white corridor resembling a research facility, I arrived at a white room where a woman was calmly sitting.

She looked to be in her mid-twenties?

Dressed like a researcher, but she was blindfolded for some reason.

“Captain, you’ve come right on time. Class F has already moved to the training ground. Now, let’s get the students of Class D in here sequentially. Those who are ready, this way—”

Swish—

As the five ready members stood around the woman, they vanished with a whoosh. It was as if they boarded a warp device from a movie.

What on earth just happened?

While I was in shock, the captain approached me, offering something while kindly explaining.

“This is Moon Hyun-a, a first-generation graduate of Yeongsa High School and an active explorer in the field. The concept associated with her is ‘door.’ If it’s a place she remembers, she can send people anywhere. Just like a real door.”

“Teacher, it’s not that I can send anyone anywhere. It’s not that convenient either. There’s a significant backlash. That’s why I can’t leave this city.”

Hehe—

As the woman with her eyes covered smiled elegantly, I looked at the item I received from the instructor.

“Hanam-jin, here’s your smartphone and smartwatch. They’ll measure your condition in real-time and provide good guides. Don’t ever forget them. They’re expensive items.”

Before long, it was our group’s turn to move to the training ground.

Standing in front of the blindfolded woman, she smiled at me as if she could sense my smell.

“You said you were a transfer student. What’s the name of your group? Group name.”

“Our group? It’s ‘No Leftover Day.’”

“No Leftover? That’s an interesting name. So if you want to travel, where would you like to go?”

“Huh? What do you mean─whoaahhh!”

A sensation swept through my insides as if everything was being mixed altogether.

In the blink of an eye, as I couldn’t react, someone slapped my back, jolting me back into consciousness, finding myself sprawled on top of what seemed to be a cliff.

# # #

Whoosh—

It really was a cliff.

The wind blew so fiercely that it was cold.

“What is this, where am I?”

As I got dazed from the unfamiliar experience, Geum Tae-seong, who had been patting my back, helped me up.

“We’re inside the labyrinth. The location seems to be the worst. On top of a cliff? How many meters is this? We could end up spending three hours here.”

Creak—. Creak—.

The smartwatch I was given let out sounds as it activated.

“02:59:57”

“02:59:56”

…

“Countdown?”

“Your task during this time is to navigate through the labyrinth. If you discover and retrieve an object with an imbued concept or defeat a monstrous creature, you can earn lots of points. However, you can stay put if you want, but you won’t earn any points.”

It was literally an adventure and exploration.

I was confident in finding useful items.

However, this cliff was strange.

“I expected the labyrinth to be filled with cold stone walls and moving skeletons.”

“Outdoor dungeon.”

Someone replied to my musings, and my ears perked up.

It was a girl with long bangs covering her face, an unknown entity.

I didn’t know her name, but I figured she was the one called ‘Silence.’

You know those girls in every class?

The really quiet ones whom you hear speak only once a year at most.

That girl muttered softly.

“…The labyrinth isn’t always just structures. In mangas, there are times dense ice realms or volcanoes exist inside buildings, remember? The spaces are twisted…. ”

In summary, this cliff and the forest below it are part of the place they call the ‘Great Labyrinth’?

And somewhere in here is Seoga-eul from Class F who entered first.

Swish—

Tae-seong hit his forehead.

“The starting points are often randomized. What a bad luck to start on a cliff. Truly lacking in fortune.”

Soon, Baek-Yeoul murmured softly.

“…Sorry.”

“Sorry? Why?”

Why is Baek-Yeoul saying sorry in this situation?

As I tried to understand, a rough-haired male student named ‘Artist’ opened his mouth.

“I had a feeling, but it’s just as I suspected. Whenever I team up with Yeoul-chan, it always ends up like this.”

What kind of speech is that? Did he drop out of a historical drama?

That guy’s concept is really something else.

Is that why he’s called ‘Artist’? Artists are usually a bit eccentric, after all.

But just when I thought it sounded interesting, he spoke up again.

“Since we have nothing else to do, how about we introduce ourselves? Since there is a transfer student here, let’s reveal the concepts we each possess.”

That sounded like a good idea.

We need to know who is who and what abilities they have.

However, Baek-Yeoul started trembling like someone had come to collect a debt in her home.

“I-I… don’t really….