Chapter 32: The Weekly Assignment Tyrant

“Are you free after class today?”

“I have a lecture in the afternoon, but if lunch is okay…”

“Alright, then let’s have lunch together.”

In the lecture hall of Byzantium Academy—

Serenne Camillea stood alone, reaching her hand out toward Sion, who was seated.

Her small pinky finger stood out as she made the gesture.

‘Is she still mad…?’

Sion glanced up at Serenne’s face.

Her cheeks were still puffed up with air, as if she was doing her best to say, “I’m angry.”

Yet, in contrast, her eyes remained half-lidded, as sleepy-looking as ever.

The disconnect between her inflated cheeks and drowsy expression left Sion blinking in confusion.

Then—

Snap!

Serenne suddenly brought her pinky right up to his face.

It was as if she was silently asking, “You see this, right?”

“Promise.”

“…Promise.”

All Sion could do was hook his own pinky with hers.

However, that wasn’t enough for her.

Serenne kept fidgeting with his hand, not letting go.

“Thumb.”

“…Huh?”

“We have to stamp it too.”

“Ah, alright…”

Press.

With their thumbs pressed together, Serenne made sure to “seal” the promise properly.

Only then did she finally let out a breath—

Pffffft.

Her once puffed-up cheeks deflated back to normal.

“Don’t forget the promise.”

Whoosh!

Flicking her sky-blue hair, she turned away.

As if she had finished all her business, Serenne Camillea returned to her seat.

She plopped down, preparing for class with an expression as neutral as ever—

Reminding Sion of a cat.

Especially in the way she only said what she needed to and then left.

‘…I can feel their stares.’

Only after Serenne was gone did Sion notice the other students watching.

Since he was seated in the front row, he stood out even more.

The hushed whispers of the students behind him reached his ears with painful clarity.

“Is something going on between them?”

“Well, with his skills, it makes sense that the top student would notice him.”

“Still… isn’t Camillea out of his league?”

“Forget it. It’s not our place to interfere. That guy’s a genius.”

“He’s a commoner, but… yeah, he’s ridiculously good at magic.”

At the very least, the way people looked at him had softened compared to before.

From “A lowly commoner who doesn’t know his place” to “A commoner who actually has the skills to be here.”

…Though that just meant a mix of wariness and grudging acceptance.

“Hey, what the hell was that just now?”

Patrick, who had been holding back, finally smacked Sion on the shoulder.

“What do you mean?”

“What do you mean ‘what’?! She said you broke a promise! Did you seriously ditch a meeting with the top student two days ago?”

“…”

Sion avoided eye contact.

His silence was answer enough.

Patrick immediately slapped his shoulder again.

“You absolute moron! The top student herself went out of her way to talk to you, even asked to meet after class, and you ditched her?!”

“It wasn’t a date or anything…”

“Then what was it?”

“…She just said she wanted to talk.”

“That is a date, you idiot!”

Smack!

This time, Patrick didn’t hold back and smacked Sion square on the back.

“Ow…!”

“You should be in pain, dumbass. Oh, heavens above! Why did you grant this fool talent in both magic and swordsmanship and have women chasing after him?!”

“Stop being dramatic.”

Patrick dramatically raised his arms toward the sky, as if mourning a great tragedy.

Beside him, Gáe Bolg raised a finger with a knowing grin.

“Hahaha! But Sion is lacking in magic knowledge and completely oblivious to women! The gods take as much as they give!”

“True. That explains why he’s so clueless about magic—because the gods had to balance things out.”

“Why are you agreeing with him?!”

Sion sighed, shaking his head.

Spending time with these two made his mental age drop to high school levels in an instant.

…Not that it was necessarily a bad thing.

Bang!

Just as Sion was thinking that—

The front door of the lecture hall slammed open, almost breaking off its hinges.

A short figure entered, their body packed with absurdly well-defined muscles.

The man responsible was none other than Baries—

The instructor for Wednesday morning classes.

“Hah hah hah! How have you been, my little fledglings of the Magic Department?!”

A dwarf professor who taught How to Survive in Dungeons.

And—

A legendary S-rank adventurer with countless heroic tales to his name.

The moment he arrived, the classroom fell silent.

Without wasting a second, he launched right into the lesson.

“Last class was just an orientation, and we assigned teams for the semester. So today—”

Gulp.

Sion swallowed nervously.

‘…He’s not about to throw us straight into a team project, is he?’

This was a first-year, first-semester class.

And this course was the only place they could learn about dungeons.

If the professor suddenly yelled—

“Time for a team project! No more theory—let’s head straight into a real dungeon, rookies!”

Then Sion’s assigned team—himself, Estroza, Patrick, and Gáe Bolg—

Would have to dive into a dungeon immediately.

‘I don’t mind the others, but… Estroza is going to be a problem.’

Estroza Farewell—

The same guy Sion had fought during Professor Mehden’s duel.

Even though he hadn’t known, he had still used 2nd and 3rd Circle magic in a class where only 1st Circle was allowed.

As a result, he had been knocked out of the ring, covered in dirt, and left in an embarrassing state in front of all the students.

‘O-Our eyes met!’

Sion glanced back over his shoulder.

Estroza was staring right at him.

Sion immediately snapped his head forward.

‘It’s just a coincidence… right?’

Yeah, since he was sitting in the front row, it was entirely possible their eyes just happened to meet.

Maybe if he looked back again, she wouldn’t be looking at him anymore.

…Of course, Sion didn’t have the courage to actually turn around and check.

“Hey, weakling!”

“Y-Yes?!”

“You’re sitting right in the front but keep losing focus! If you can’t even concentrate, you’ll be the first to die in a dungeon!”

Whoosh!

Baries’ fist stopped right in front of Sion’s nose.

A moment later, the wind from the punch swept over Sion’s bangs, ruffling them.

His heart pounded wildly.

No, to be precise… his heart had started racing before the punch was even thrown.

“…Now this is interesting! Hah hah hah!”

Baries slowly withdrew his fist.

At the same time, the Barrier in front of Sion dissipated, turning back into mana and scattering into the air.

In that split second before the punch landed, Sion had instinctively deployed a barrier to protect his face.

“I was about to scold you for not paying attention, but it seems you were focused.”

“…Huh? Ah, I’m sorry.”

“No need to apologize! If anything, I’m impressed! I didn’t expect a freshman to have such quick reflexes. Your body’s weak, but you’re pretty good! Now I’m looking forward to our dungeon training! Hah hah hah!!”

Laughing heartily, Professor Baries moved on.

Fortunately, the situation had ended on a positive note, but Sion had nearly died of shock.

If he had been a second too late, would he have been hit?

‘No, he probably would have stopped right before contact. He never intended to actually punch me.’

Baries’ fist had halted just before touching the barrier.

He had no intention of pushing it any further.

He had simply wanted to startle a distracted student.

As expected of an S-rank adventurer—his control was impeccable.

“In a dungeon, the most important thing is information! First, you need to visit the Adventurer’s Guild to get detailed information about the request. Then, you must thoroughly analyze the types of monsters you’ll encounter! Also, don’t forget to bring a map to the dungeon! And, of course, pack essential supplies and emergency rations—”

Contrary to Sion’s fears, there was no team project today.

Baries launched into a proper lecture.

Despite his background as an S-rank adventurer, he was surprisingly effective as a professor.

Perhaps because he was an adventurer, his lecture was filled with practical knowledge.

And when he mixed in real experiences from his past, the realism of his stories captivated the students, keeping their attention locked in.

Even from Sion’s perspective, his teaching ability was top-notch.

‘I didn’t expect much since he’s an adjunct professor, but he’s actually pretty good.’

Adjunct professors were those who held another primary job and taught as a secondary position.

Most adjuncts were too busy with their main work, and since teaching wasn’t their primary profession, they often had weaker teaching skills or neglected their students.

‘If only he didn’t assign random team projects, this class would be great.’

While Sion was thinking that, the class came to an end.

“That’s it for today! We’ve learned about the mindset and preparations needed before entering a dungeon! With that, class is dismissed!”

As expected of a good lecturer—time had flown by.

Sion and the other students started packing their things, the usual post-class chatter filling the air.

Then—

Baries’ next words brought that noise to an abrupt halt.

“I’ve posted next week’s assignment on the Vizanity course board! Work well with your teams! Hah hah hah!”

Assignment? Next week? Vizanity?

The sudden flood of words short-circuited the students’ brains.

Leaving behind a classroom full of frozen students, Baries cheerfully walked out.

‘No way…’

Sion, still motionless, turned to look beside him.

Patrick was staring at him in the exact same posture.

“A course board? Patrick, do you know anything about this?”

“Hold on, let me check right now. Let’s see… ah.”

“What? What is it?”

Sion peeked at Patrick’s student ID, which displayed Vizanity.

Vizanity was an advanced magic-tech communication platform provided by the academy, offering various features like student-faculty messaging, schedules, announcements, and even a class discussion board.

Naturally, it also included a course board where professors posted important updates.

And right there, on the course board for How to Survive in Dungeons—

A new announcement stood out boldly.

[Category: Announcement]
[Title: Week 2 Team Project Assignment]
[Content:]

“Hah hah hah! Listen up, fledglings! My class will have weekly team projects!

Grades are split as follows:

• 30% Midterms
• 30% Finals
• 30% Team Projects
• 10% Participation

This means a single team project is worth as much as the midterm or final! So you’d better take it seriously!

Your assignment for next week is as follows:

1. Register as an F-rank adventurer at the Adventurer’s Guild.
2. Accept an E-rank dungeon request from the guild. (An F-rank adventurer party of 4 can take on E-rank dungeons!)
3. Research the E-rank dungeon and submit a report. (Write it down, take a photo, and upload it to the assignment board!)

There will be another assignment next week! Work hard! Hah hah hah!”

“…Oh.”

The announcement was formatted in a way that was all too familiar to Sion.

Having attended school during the pandemic era in his previous life—

The sight of an online course assignment posted like that sent waves of PTSD crashing over him.

…That’s right.

Professor Baries was an excellent teacher.

But among the professors—

He was also one of the most infamous.

A notorious “Weekly Assignment Tyrant.”