Chapter 31 : Are you running in the hallway? (1)

Yoon Ha-eun has been at our school for teaching practice, and already a week has passed.

During that time, I had to stay as quiet as a mouse.

Because this guy outright said that the reason she infiltrated our school as a student teacher was because of me.

“Why do you think that monster is here?”

“Well, I tracked its movements. It appeared in City D before, and now it has shown up in City C.”

Yoon Ha-eun explained this to us while we were having lunch together.

“But right before that thing appeared in City C the other day, there were also reports of sightings near the barriers of City D.”

“Gulp!”

Well, of course, that makes sense.

Because the first place I transformed into a monster was in a public restroom stall in City D.

And to make matters worse, Carmilla, who even walked beside me back then, was supposed to be a hero.

Tremble, tremble, tremble.

‘Your acting is terrible!’

Even as a hero, she was still just a kid.

She trembled like a vibrating pager, as if lying wasn’t her strong suit.

“So I made a guess. The horned-mask monster that has been causing trouble in Cities D and C must have its hideout here in City E.”

“Th-that’s r-r-ridiculous… W-what a b-b-baseless d-d-deduction!”

“Y-yeah! It’s all just suspicion without any solid evidence! How can an S-rank hero just sit around here for that?!”

Nod, nod!

Of course.

Exactly!

Miss Hoshino, who owed me a favor, and Carmilla both pretended to scold Yoon Ha-eun while actually taking my side.

But…

“Hmph. If that’s the case, don’t worry. I even took a ‘vacation’ just to be here.”

As if she had no intention of returning to her original place until she had hunted me down.

Yoon Ha-eun was just as stubborn.

“How dare you humiliate me like that… H-hahaha! The next time I meet that horned-mask monster, I’ll make sure to return the favor twice over… Aaaaargh!”

At that moment, a sinister smile revealed her true intentions right in front of us.

From then on, Miss Hoshino became even more wary of this vulgar S-rank hero.

“Janghoon.”

“Yes, Miss.”

“You must never associate with that person. Understand?”

“Ah, yes. I understand…”

I needed to ask why Yoon Ha-eun was paying so much attention to me in class, aside from her obsession with the horned-mask monster.

But… it was probably better than accidentally revealing something suspicious in conversation.

‘She still seems to be keeping an eye on me since that day… Did I do something suspicious?’

Anyway, time passed and passed.

“Today is field trip day!”

Back to the present. Today, instead of staying inside the school, we had a special outdoor lesson.

A lesson often called the highlight of student life.

Not just sitting in a boring classroom reading books, but experiencing things firsthand to nurture the students’ emotions—our field trip day.

‘Who would have thought I’d get to relive the joy of those past school trips, like when we visited Bulguksa back then!’

Ah, this is fun.

Yes, this is what school life should be like.

It feels like I’ve traveled back to those nostalgic days, and old memories are flooding back.

I wonder how my old friends are doing.

At least for me, I’ve been reincarnated into a new world…

Slap!

Holding onto girls (who are fundamentally different from me by birth) on both sides, am I actually living a pretty happy life?

“Janghoon, you might get lost. Stay by my side at all times, understand?”

“Yes, Miss…”

“Janghoon, as a hero, I shall protect you!”

“Thanks, Carmilla…”

“Hey, I told you to get lost!”

“No way!”

Squabble, squabble.

When I was younger, I used to envy guys who had multiple girls around them.

But now, thinking back, they weren’t so enviable after all.

Or maybe it’s just that the two girls around me are way too high-spec.

I already feel suffocated.

“Alright, students. Today, we are visiting the Hero History Museum located in City G.”

As always, I barely managed to mediate between the two girls.

And now, after traveling for two hours, we finally arrived at Hero City’s new autonomous district.

In front of the massive Hero Museum in City G, we listened to Yoon Ha-eun, who had practically taken over as our class 1-A homeroom teacher.

“You all know that City G was the first autonomous district established after the founding of Hero City, right?”

“Yes, teacher!”

“Hmph. That’s just common knowledge.”

“Aren’t you treating us like kids too much?”

“Oh, really?”

I had no idea.

“City G was officially selected as an autonomous district exactly 12 years after Hero City was founded, in the 12th year of the Aden Calendar.”

Yoon Ha-eun continued her explanation.

“And the Hero Museum we’re visiting today is a symbolic place that records the history of City G and how the Hero Association was formed at that time.”

“Wow, the history of heroes…”

“I’ve never been to a place like this before!”

“Hehe. Of course! That’s because, unlike other museums in other districts, this one in City G is only open to ‘authorized personnel’.”

“Ooooh!”

Back when I stopped playing the game on its 5th anniversary, only 19 of the 26 autonomous districts had been updated.

So maybe that’s why.

City G, which never appeared in Kaiju Frontline, remained a mystery to me.

But to think it was an exclusive district only accessible to authorized personnel…

‘Maybe I should have played the game a bit more?’

Even as I slightly regretted it, I was excited to explore the museum.

So, while gathering information, I still had ten years left until the original story.

Today, I planned to take my time exploring this place leisurely.

“Today’s lunch will be at the five-star restaurant on the top floor of the museum.

Until then, students, feel free to explore the museum, which has 30 floors. Understood?”

“””Yes, teacher!!”””

Ah…

Even though they are elites, kids are still kids.

Thanks to S-rank hero Yoon Ha-eun, we were granted access to the Hero Museum.

As soon as she finished speaking, my classmates sprinted off in excitement.

They were so thrilled.

At this rate, they might really manage to explore all 31 floors of the building in a single day.

Meanwhile…

“I’m planning to start from the first floor and slowly look around. What about you two?”

“”Then we’ll do the same!””

Of course, I can’t shake them off…

Even though this should be their first time here, both Hoshino and Carmilla…

“I actually came here before with my mom.”

“I also visited once before for a related reason.”

…Never mind.

As expected of people associated with the hero side, they had already been here.

Already bored with the museum before we even started, the two seemed intent on sticking with me.

Step, step, step.

And then…

“Yoon Ha-eun, teacher?”

“Hehe. Can I tag along too?”

As soon as she gave the students free time, Yoon Ha-eun ended up alone and now wanted to join us.

“?! T-the teacher should go somewhere else!”

“Yeah! Aren’t you worried about the students?”

“Haha. As if any of them could be more of a concern than the only male student in our school.”

“Janghoon is fine because we’re with him!!”

Even inside the museum, Hoshino and Carmilla growled at Yoon Ha-eun, keeping their guard up.

However, to Yoon Ha-eun, their hostility probably looked no different from cute little kids throwing a tantrum.

“Aw, don’t be like that. Let’s all go together~.”

No matter how fast they tried to drag me away, Yoon Ha-eun kept a calm expression and effortlessly kept up with us.

Eventually, Hoshino and Carmilla even started carrying me on their backs to run, panting from exhaustion.

But behind them, the ever-smiling S-rank hero was still right there.

“Huff, huff… Why is she… so fast…”

“I’m… dying…”

“Come on, I’m an S-rank hero. It’d be weird if I couldn’t even keep up with some kids.”

“”OO””

As the two finally collapsed onto the floor from exhaustion…

“Huh? Isn’t this the equipment Yoon Ha-eun used?”

Finally able to actually explore the museum, I was looking around at the relics when I stumbled upon a weapon.

It was the very same dagger she aimed at me when we fought, now displayed in a museum case.

Curious, I asked,

“Oh? I mainly fight with sniper rifles and bows, so almost no one knows that I use melee weapons like these.”

“…!”

I made a mistake.

In the original story, she would always pull out hammers or swords during close combat, so I had no idea this was supposed to be a secret.

“Janghoon… How did you know that I use a dagger?”

Her smile disappeared in an instant.

She looked down at me with suspicious eyes.

Thinking quickly, I considered my options.

“Haa…”

“…?”

I really didn’t want to do this, but…

“The truth is…”

“The truth is…”

“”?””

“I’m actually… a fan of S-rank Hero No. 5, Yoon Ha-eun!”

“Oh, really?!”

“Wha… what?!”

Thinking back to how I spent over 200 just to build her character in the game, it wasn’t even a complete lie.

Avoiding the shocked stares of Hoshino and Carmilla, I declared it as if I were revealing my secret otaku side.

Pop!

“Hehe. If you were my fan, you should’ve told me earlier!”

Overjoyed, Yoon Ha-eun pulled me into a tight hug, pressing me into her ‘abundant heart.’

With my back tingling from the intense glares behind me…

“…Huh? Haven’t we been here before?”

“Yeah, seems like it?”

While a four-way mess was forming between us,

The first-year A-class students who had come to visit the Hero Museum were beginning to realize something strange.

Even as lunchtime approached, they felt as though they were walking the same path over and over again…