TRPM 254

chapter 254

Since Yeon Mirae suddenly reached a moment of enlightenment, the mood was no longer suitable for individual training, so I gathered everyone and descended the mountain.

“Mirae noona! Could you show that sword technique again?”

“Hmm… right now, that’s a bit too much…”

Meanwhile, Elliott seemed genuinely fascinated by Yeon Mirae’s swordsmanship and tried to urge her to demonstrate again, but she only responded with a look of discomfort. That’s understandable—the sword technique she displayed earlier was only possible because she had entered a state of complete focus, and it would be impossible to replicate in her current condition.

‘But did that guy completely forget that he was supposed to learn swordsmanship from me?’

It’s nice that I have less to do for now, but he might still request sword training later. It would be wise to at least lay the groundwork for magical swordsmanship. There’s no need to advance beyond the basics right now. Once he’s proficient in the fundamentals, I can teach him additional techniques as needed.

One day, as usual, we were going through our training and attending school classes.

“Everyone remember, right? Tomorrow we’ll be going on a group volunteer activity.”

Teacher Son Ji-hye addressed our class.

Volunteer activity… I vaguely remembered it being mentioned last week. And I think something similar happened before the regression.

‘We’ll probably be sent to repair damage caused by an encroaching-type dungeon.’

Thanks to the low-frequency devices I deployed to the database of the Awakened system, no new dungeons, including encroaching-type ones, can occur in highly populated metropolitan areas. However, outside the device’s range, many dungeons still appear. Encroaching-type dungeons, in particular, alter the surrounding environment the moment they manifest, so the resulting damage continues to occur.

‘But there’s no way we can send ordinary civilians to repair the damage from an encroaching-type dungeon.’

Depending on the dungeon type, some areas may contain air with weak toxins. Only Awakened individuals capable of resisting such toxins can be deployed there.

‘Ultimately, the problem is manpower shortage.’

Thus, high schools for Awakened students from various regions began organizing group volunteer trips to areas affected by encroaching-type dungeons. Our school was no exception. The students didn’t show any obvious complaints.

‘Going to a dungeon-affected area is good for volunteer points. Even working there for an hour counts as much as more than four hours of service elsewhere.’

Even if the school only organized group volunteer activities, it was enough to earn minimum volunteer points. Some people criticize the system as exploitative, claiming it’s unpaid labor rather than voluntary service, but there’s little choice—the number of Awakened available for dungeon-affected areas is limited.

‘Still, you can skip it if you want.’

Even though it’s a school-organized activity, attendance isn’t mandatory. You can opt out if you want. Most would participate, though, unless they planned to make up volunteer points later.

“So, where are we going?”

As I was thinking this, Kang Garam raised his hand to ask. Judging by the location, our volunteer site was likely quite far. Since the low-frequency devices prevent dungeons from appearing nearby, it wouldn’t be in an uninhabited remote area either—those areas are usually just left alone after dungeon clearing.

‘I hope it’s somewhere relatively close…’

But…

“Jeolla Province.”

“…What?”

“Our school is going all the way to Jeolla. Apparently, many encroaching-type dungeons have appeared along the southern coast.”

Everyone’s faces fell. Why Jeolla? Not that there’s anything wrong with Jeolla, but it’s just so far away.

“Still, the Awakened Association arranged a plane to Gwangju.”

Hmm… a plane, not a bus, that’s fine. The main concern was that traveling by bus would take forever.

Then, the next question…

“What will we be doing there?”

I asked the teacher, as it was probably the most important question: what exactly will we be doing? Sampling or research would have been completed by professionals, so our task would likely be restoring the environment to its state before the dungeon appeared. It seemed unlikely that ordinary high school Awakened could handle that work alone.

‘We’ll probably just assist those performing the work.’

Usually.

“Oh, that… the others will just clean up monster corpses and follow instructions, but Gunwoo, Haeun, and Eun-yeon, I want you three to handle a slightly special task.”

Teacher Son said apologetically. Of course. Considering my abilities, along with Grand Magician Lee Haeun and Alchemist Kim Eun-yeon, we’re all specialists. Assigning us basic labor would be inefficient, so it’s natural we have different tasks.

“What kind of work…? It’s not too difficult, is it?”

“Eun-yeon, you’ll be tasked with synthesizing a medicine to neutralize toxins absorbed into the ground. The materials are already prepared.”

“Oh, if it’s that….”

Synthesizing medicine is never simple, but for Kim Eun-yeon, it’s routine work and won’t be a burden. As for Haeun and me…

“Gunwoo and Haeun, you’ll handle purification magic. Can both of you use it?”

“Yes.”

“Yes, we can.”

We were given a similar task. The main danger from encroaching-type dungeons is that their environment overlaps with reality, potentially lethal to ordinary people. But if we can remove the toxic substances in that environment, civilians can safely work there. Removing toxins was thus the top priority.

“If anyone else has purification abilities, please inform us. You’ll get easier tasks than the others.”

The next day, most students from our school arrived in Gwangju by plane. From there, they boarded buses waiting at the airport and headed south.

‘…I can see the sea.’

As we traveled by bus, the ocean came into view. I hadn’t expected we’d end up so close to the coast.

‘Well… technically, we’re still on the bus, so the final destination could be along the coastline.’

I thought that when…

“Teacher, is our destination along the coast?”

Elena, who seemed to have reached a similar conclusion, asked the teacher at the front.

“Yes, that’s right. We’ll be volunteering at a site that was a beach long ago.”

A beach… Before the black mist appeared and made the sea dangerous, there were many beaches. Of course, some still exist, but maintaining them is expensive—troops must defend against monsters, clean up corpses and other contamination, etc.

‘We’re probably going to a closed beach that can’t afford such upkeep.’

The bus entered a small village and stopped in what seemed to be the parking lot of a local office. The lot was small, fitting only about half the bus, but that was impressive for such a tiny village.

“Everyone, get off. We’ll have to walk from here.”

The students stood and exited the bus. I joined them, looking around.

‘The buses that couldn’t fit are just parked on the roadside.’

Though the road wasn’t wide and the buses blocked it slightly, traffic was light, and locals didn’t seem concerned.

“Students assigned special tasks for volunteer work, please come this way!”

A high-ranking soldier announced through a megaphone. The special tasks referred to purification work, so I and others with purification abilities went to that location. The soldier began calling names and assigning tasks.

“Kim Eun-yeon? Who’s Kim Eun-yeon?”

“That’s me…”

“Good. The herbs you’ll need are in the multipurpose room inside the office. Go there, and if you need anything, ask the soldier or staff waiting in front of the room.”

Eun-yeon nodded and followed another soldier’s guidance into the office.

“And the rest of you are students who can use purification magic, right? When I call your name, tell me the range you can purify in one spell.”

Other students began reporting their ranges. Some required physical contact, others could purify within one meter. Then it was Lee Haeun’s turn.

“Hmm… at least a 1 km radius.”

“…Wait, what did you say?”

“A 1 km radius.”

The soldier blinked and shook his head.

“This isn’t a joke. I need to know exactly how much area you can purify. Can you give me an accurate answer?”

“…Yes?”

In fact, 1 km was just a baseline for Haeun’s spontaneous spell, and it could be extended with preparation. But the soldier seemed skeptical.

‘They don’t seem to know about me and Haeun.’

It makes sense if they’re not interested in the Awakened society or rarely watch TV.

“Sir… the two here, Lee Haeun is a Grand Magician, and Han Gunwoo beside her is an Artist… with suspected Aura Master and revenge abilities. I assure you, 1 km is accurate.”

The commander looked at us in disbelief.

“Ah, sorry for doubting you.”

“No problem.”

It’s strange how some Koreans don’t know about us. Not everyone has to, but it felt like a new experience.