Report
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HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator - Helga ]
[Proofreader - Starfall ]
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Chapter 7
"Wow, it's much more ordinary than I expected. I heard so many rumors about you, I was curious to see what your office was like," Seo Su-gyeong looked around my private office and commented.
After the incident in the Garden...
She had asked to speak with me, so I brought her here.
"But how come you don't even have a coffee pot in your office? I heard you drink more than 10 cups of coffee a day."
She grumbled in a disappointed tone, pulling two cans of coffee from her pocket.
I stared at her as she held out a can of coffee.
"Here, have one. It's from Cafe Untni, you know? The oneyou went to with the vice principal. It's quite good."
"...What are you trying to do?"
"What do you mean?"
Seo Su-gyeong blinked her eyes innocently.
I stared at her without saying a word.
After a long moment, the innocent mask on Seo Su-gyeong's face slipped, and a sly smile crept into her eyes.
"You're quite prickly, just like they say. Are you sure that's wise? After all, I've seen your little secret."
"What secret are you talking about?"
"Oh, come on. Are you playing dumb? Why were you in the Garden? And what was that spirit corpse doing there? What were you doing?"
Seo Su-gyeong smirked as if she had me cornered.
And she did. After all, she had seen me in a compromising position, in a restricted area with a dead spirit.
'She'll use this against me."
Given Seo Su-gyeong's character in the game, she would definitely use this information to manipulate me.
But Seo Su-gyeong was mistaken about one thing. It wasn't me who was vulnerable.
"Then let me ask you something."
"What?"
"What were you doing there?"
Seo Su-gyeong hesitated for the first time. Seeing her hesitation, I sneered.
"You're not a professor, and you're not majoring in a subject that requires compounding magical ingredients. What was a student from the Emission Department doing in the Garden at that time? Aren't you more suspicious?"
Seo Su-gyeong's eyes hardened. She knew. She knew that she was also in a compromising position.
"Well, you're right. The professor from the Deconstructionist Department is very perceptive." She sighed and admitted, "Alright, I'll tell you. I was following you."
"Following me?"
"I saw you earlier this evening and wanted to greet you, so I came to this building. But then you suddenly left in a hurry, as if something was wrong."
She claimed that she had followed me out of curiosity.
'I don't think she's lying."
Her tone and demeanor suggested that she was genuinely curious about me. It was typical of her arrogant personality to shift the blame onto me.
"So, why did you come here?"
"Believe it or not, I was very impressed by your Deconstructionist Department thesis."
I was surprised. Professor D's thesis was so abstract and difficult that even professors found it hard to understand.
‘I, who had barely grasped half of it after a month of studying as Professor D, am told that a student has found it impressive.’
It was hard to believe.
"I can see you don't trust me."
I must have unconsciously frowned because Seo Su-gyeong said it as if she had read my mind.
"I understand. It must be rare for you to meet a student who has read your papers. But this is the Masterclass, isn't it? I'm Seo Su-gyeong. You know who I am, right?"
How audacious.
I was momentarily speechless at her nonchalant attitude. Her calm voice and gestures suggested an unusually high level of self-esteem.
'Right... that's just how she is. I'd forgotten.'
If Professor D was a character who mocked everyone, Seo Su-gyeong was one who believed she was the best in the world.
Thanks to her family's wealth and her exceptional talent, she had never experienced failure in her life.
Although she was often disliked because of her arrogant attitude, she was surprisingly popular among gamers who found her character charming.
'I could never understand why people liked her.'
I put on a mocking expression, as Professor D would have done.
"I know you're a member of the student council."
"Thank you for knowing. And please know this: I'm very interested in the Deconstructionist Department, and I want to have a deep relationship with you."
Seo Su-gyeong looked me straight in the eye and smiled slyly.
I nodded, urging her to continue.
"I've really read your papers. Several of them, in fact. You mainly focus on experiments with villains, right? But as you know, villainous test subjects are very expensive, and it must be difficult to secure funding."
"Just get to the point."
"Well, I'm saying that I might be able to help. With your tight research budget."
"You're offering to sponsor me? With the International Group?"
I feigned surprise.
Actually, I was genuinely surprised.
The International Group, Seo Su-gyeong's family business, was one of the top two conglomerates in Korea.
In the game, the Seo family, the owners of the International Group, was depicted as a prestigious family that had produced numerous talented individuals since the Goryeo Dynasty. They were known for their extensive philanthropy and sponsorship of various causes.
'But why would they be interested in a minor department like the Deconstructionist Department?'
While it was common for large corporations to sponsor academic research, it was rare for them to be interested in such a fringe field as Deconstructionist.
"Why would you do that?"
Seo Su-gyeong seemed taken aback by my question.
"Of course, I want to support research that I find interesting. Besides, I'm taking a minor in the Deconstructionist Department this semester, remember?"
"Is that all?"
"Of course. Why would there be anything else?"
"I don't think someone like you would do something so selfless."
I asked directly. Seo Su-gyeong was not the type of person to do something without expecting something in return.
Seo Su-gyeong blinked, looking offended.
"Wow, you're so cynical. You think I would ask for something in return for funding your research?"
She seemed genuinely insulted.
"There might be students like that at other academies, but not here. Here, research funding is more like a gift. It's like giving someone a box of chocolates or fruit basket."
Seo Su-gyeong argued, sounding indignant.
According to her, she was simply offering a gift, just on a much larger scale than usual.
"So I don't need anything in return. Just treat me well. Like a precious gem you've found in a pile of rocks."
Seo Su-gyeong's eyes sparkled as she said this. It was almost hypnotic.
As I was pondering her words, a message appeared on my screen.
Ding-!
[Sub-Quest: A Secret Proposal from the Sword Saint]
[Content: Seo Su-gyeong seems interested in forming a secret connection with you. Increasing your favorability with her might have benefits.]
[Reward: Funding from the International Group, increased status for the Deconstructionist Department.]
I stared at the message as Seo Su-gyeong looked at me expectantly.
* * *
"What kind of quest is this?"
After Seo Su-gyeong left, I was left alone in my office, mumbling to myself. A message that had appeared earlier was constantly on my mind.
Especially the reward.
"Raising the status of the Deconstructionist Department..."
My eyes lit up at the unexpected quest and its reward.
This was it. This was how Professor D had raised the status of the Deconstructionist Department.
"I wonder how Do Jin-hak managed to raise the status of the Deconstructionist Department."
It was simple now that I thought about it. All I had to do was make Seo Su-gyeong my disciple. Having the Sword Saint, ranked fifth in the entire Masterclass, join the Deconstructionist Department would undoubtedly elevate the faction's status.
"Come to think of it, in the game, Seo Su-gyeong's minor was also the Deconstructionist Department."
Seo Su-gyeong was the only student council member who joined the Deconstructionist Department.
In the original game, the story revolved around the students discovering Professor D's plot, leading to them becoming the 7 Heroes. Seo Su-gyeong played a crucial role in this, but I had never delved deep into her personal quest. I had simply assumed she was a troublesome student paired with a troublesome professor.
"I didn't know there was such a backstory between the two."
I had never explored the details of Seo Su-gyeong's character in the game.
"But accepting this quest might be too easy."
While the reward was tempting, there were risks involved.
The biggest risk was Seo Su-gyeong herself.
She might use this as leverage to control me in the future, just like she had done to Professor D in the game.
"She'll definitely use this to control me later, just like she did with Professor Do."
In the game, Professor D was a fearsome character who insulted everyone, but he was always cautious around Seo Su-gyeong. It was clear that she had some hold over him.
"I think I'll pass on this for now."
I dismissed the message. The reward was tempting, but the risks were too high.
"I can't let Seo Su-gyeong control me."
If I followed the game's storyline, the students would eventually become the 7 Heroes, and I would fail to prevent that.
"So, what other options do I have?"
I was back to square one.
But this time, it wasn't as hopeless as before. Thanks to Seo Su-gyeong, I had a new idea.
"...I don't need Seo Su-gyeong. I just need another top-ranking student."
In the game, Professor D had raised the status of the Deconstructionist Department because a top-ranking student had joined it.
So, it didn't have to be Seo Su-gyeong.
If I could find another student with a similar status and bring them into the Deconstructionist Department, I could achieve the same goal.
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HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator - Helga ]
[Proofreader - Starfall ]
Join our Discord for release updates!
https://discord.com/invite/dbdMDhzWa2
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