Spending time at a place like this would eventually expose you to things you wouldn’t want to see. However, that didn’t apply to our party as we were receiving special treatment from the Blue Guild. The majority of people were like that, but their actions were more noticeable in a confined place like this. Aside from the trainees from the attack group, the others all had the same starting line, so they learned and trained together. I was sure they had different goals, but they all knew that powerful people would receive special treatment. As such, when the training camp’s end was getting closer and closer, the majority of the trainees started to change out of desperation and apprehension.

I wasn’t sure if this is a proper comparison, but if I had to give an example, I would say they were like examinees. The fields may be different, but they didn’t seem out of place. As the exam day got closer, the trainees became more and more anxious.

‘I’m sure I’ll at least get accepted into a mid-sized guild. With my skills, I’ll probably get an offer from one of the main guilds in Lindel.’

They initially thought they didn’t have to work to eke out a living, but when the reality became clearer to them, the thought was erased from their minds. They realized that they had nowhere to go.

The attack team and those that showed promise were envied by many since they had received an offer from guilds after passing the entrance test. This caused the remaining trainees to become anxious. They tried their best to make themselves more appealing, but since they weren’t talented, they couldn’t show much as time was limited.

At this point, it had become obvious who was talented and who was talentless. Both sides were taking the same class, but the level of achievement between those with talent and those without was noticeably different.

‘I think they can join a mid-sized guild.’

Or…

‘I’m jealous. I heard they’re joining the Red Mercenary Guild.’

And…

‘I guess it’s not bad since their alchemy grades are good.’

Also…

‘You’re still thinking about the offer from the Blue Guild? You received an offer from the Red Mercenary Guild, too?’

Some were going to become successful, while others had nowhere to go. The problem was that these trainees were using the same classroom, cafeteria, and dorms. An invisible rank was starting to form, and the maids and servants similar to those who had been with Han Sora started to appear everywhere. They were trying their best to survive in a society that had nothing for them.

Even though it was only for a moment, the nominated trainees had probably gotten a taste of the high-class life. A life where everyone respected and treated them well. Of course, they were still cautious of their actions. Although there were people who seemed to be saying, 'don't approach me’ like Lee Chang-Ryeol, the majority of them had slowly accepted the sense of superiority that the maids and servants were giving them.

‘It’s all about the connection.’

It wasn’t that bad because they would meet all sorts of people once they joined the society, and a connection with a promising player was a good thing. The problem was with the people who had hit rock bottom. Treating them indifferently was considered being nice, as there had always been people who took solace in knowing that others were suffering more than them. Those people hadn’t received any nominations, and they weren’t talented, either. However, they would bully those at the bottom to console themselves every day that—at the very least—they were better than them.

I wasn’t in the training camp every day, so I didn’t witness every instance of bullying, but I was certain that Han Sora and a few others were being bullied. The others probably had it better than Han Sora, who had fallen from grace and was now being ridiculed at every turn. This outcome didn’t come as a surprise as she had been a rookie whom everyone had high expectations for, but now, she had become a cripple who couldn’t even use her mana properly.

‘There’s someone opposite of her.’

If Han Sora fell to the bottom, then Yoo Ah-Young was the opposite because she started from the bottom and climbed to the top. Of course, she hadn’t really put in a lot of effort because she was the type of person who grew quickly without even trying.

When I first entered the classroom, I complimented her potential, which made others dislike her, but once her true value was revealed, those who disliked her pledged their loyalty toward her as if they were willing to die for her. She had a close-combat job, and when her evaluation and grades reached the top from the bottom, the unofficial rumor about her receiving an offer from the Blue Guild turned official. It felt like a plague had spread because the talentless trainees gathered around her, basically turning her into the Pied Piper.

Seeing Yoo Ah-Young talking to Park Deok-Gu in front of me made me think that the world was definitely unfair.

“Ahem… So, about the Blue Guild. I guess… you can say that we have good support… or something like that. A long time ago, I honestly had nothing, but everything changed once I joined the Blue Guild. So… if it’s something we can provide, we can give it all to you,” Park Deok-Gu told her.

“Oh… okay…” Yoo Ah-Young mumbled.

“If you want to change your life, join the Blue Guild! I guarantee it! I’m sure you heard it already. Even though it hasn’t been officially announced yet, our guild master bro and hyung-nim were selected for the Eight Seats, and our noonim is so good at magic that your mouth will drop when you see her magic go pew pew! Boom!” he continued.

“I see…”

“The kid named Ye-Ri is so fast that once she starts moving, your eyes won’t be able to catch up to her and the spear-wielding noonim Jo Hye-Jin is really talented with the spear and… And! Miss Jung-Yeon, the Magic Scholar, is really smart. She’s probably just as smart as our hyung-nim. Not only does she have a really good memory, but she’s good at doing administrative work as well! Sun Hee-Young noonim is kind of scary, but her holy magic is incredible. Of course, that's if we enter a dungeon together,” he added.

“Ah,” she said.

“When we rush into a dungeon, the monsters will move here and there when the guild master bro starts attacking! They’ll be here! And then over there! They’ll start falling like leaves, and noomnim, hyung-nim, and Miss Jung-Yeon will use their magic! Some of the monsters will start exploding, and the others will go boom once they’re gathered in one place! That kid Ye-Ri is also good at shooting arrows, so they’ll start flying like swoosh, whoosh! And if there’s a monster that jumps at us, Jo Hye-Jin noonim will use her spear and move like this! And then like this! Almost like a snake!” he exclaimed.

“Pffft.”

“Everything happens so fast that I don’t even need to do anything! It’s really fast and safe. Last time…” Park Deok-Gu paused.

“Yes?” she asked.

“Here, have a drink and eat some of the meat! I’m sure they don’t serve good food at the camp,” he told her.

“No, it’s actually not as bad as you think. The dorm is nice too,” she replied.

‘Deok-Gu! You’re doing great!’

When I saw Yoo Ah-Young smiling lightly, I realized that my assumption was right.

‘Nice.’

Kim Hyun-Sung had already interviewed her several times, and I had even interviewed her once. We had already handed over a guild catalog to her, so I thought maybe she was dissatisfied with the salary, so we kept increasing it as we talked to her. Kim Hyun-Sung approached her first, so he could get close to her. Unfortunately, his social skills weren’t that great, so it was impossible for him to convince her. I also tried my best to curry favor with Yoo Ah-Young, but she seemed wary of me for some reason. As such, I decided not to approach her anymore. I thought getting Park Deok-Gu involved might yield some results, and my assumption quickly became true when he started talking to her.

‘I really have no idea what she’s thinking.’

I was certain that Park Deok-Gu’s social appeal was better than mine, and even though it all depended on one’s taste, he didn’t seem like he had a facade. I couldn’t help but nod once again when I recalled how he got close to her instantly during our first meal.

“You two seem really close,” Yoo Ah-Young commented.

“Of course we are! Didn’t I tell you last time? Obviously, I’m close to the other members as well, but hyung-nim, Mr. Hyun-Sung, and I are… How do I describe it... We have a close bond that started since the tutorial dungeon. We have a passionate friendship that only men can understand! I can finally understand what hyung-nim and the bro are thinking even with my eyes closed!” he boasted.

He had to be misunderstanding that part…

“Speaking of the tutorial dungeon, I remembered something. After hyung-nim beat the monster’s head with a rock like boom! he said this, ‘Deok-Gu, if I can do it… you can do it even better.’ Yeah! I was trembling in fear, but after hearing that, I became courageous!” Park Deok-Gu continued.

‘How many times has he told that story?’

The only downside was that I was getting embarrassed, but it was bearable.

“You told me that story last week, Deok-Gu Oppa.” Yoo Ah-Young pointed out.

“Did I?” he asked.

“Yes, but it puts me in a good mood every time I hear it. It just feels like you two are close,” she commented.

“Hahaha. That’s how we are. Of course I cherish my relationship with Deok-Gu, Ha-Yan, and Mr. Hyun-Sung since we met in the tutorial dungeon, but what the Blue Guild considers important is having a family-like atmosphere. We also have a good relationship with other guilds,” I chimed in.

“Oh! I see…”

“We’re really like a family,” I added.

“Of course we are! However, Hyung-nim and noonim might actually become a real family!” he shouted.

“Ah… so you two are in a relationship. I heard rumors about it, but it wasn’t confirmed so I didn’t think much of it…” she mentioned.

“We’re.. dating for now…” I commented.

“And it was Park Deok-Gu, Gangwon Province’s Love Doctor, who made them into a couple!” he announced.

“What?” she asked, astonished.

“I connected those two together and played an important role. Noonim is a bit timid, so I helped her. Ahem…” he answered.

“Gangwon Province’s Love Doctor? So you two met in the tutorial dungeon and started dating?” Yoo Ah-Young questioned.

“Yes, that’s what happened,” I replied.

She seemed really interested.

‘Is she interested in stuff like this?’

I thought it was possible because despite how fast the time passed, she was still in her early 20s, so it was natural for her to be interested in love stories like this.

I was about to talk, but Park Deok-Gu beat me to it.

“You see… noonim was originally a genius, but! Ahem! She went through some stuff while we were in the tutorial dungeon. I don’t know the details, but I think there were people who didn’t like her…” he started.

“I see…” Yoo Ah-Young nodded.

“There were bad people who bullied and made her feel isolated. During that time, our bro gathered the survivors in one place in the tutorial dungeon and was protecting them… Anyway, they even gave noonim less food on purpose! Those mean bastards!” he cursed.

“Ah…”

“I didn’t want to say this, but there was this bastard! He tried to make a move on noonim! Wait, maybe this isn’t appropriate to say. Moving on, even though noonim didn’t say anything, she was suffering a lot back then,” Park Deok-Gu continued.

“I see...”

“And then, our Ki-Young hyung-nim came to the rescue,” he added.

My face turned red.

‘How embarrassing.’

However, it wasn’t so bad because Yoo Ah-Young glanced at me, nodding.

“That’s when Ki-Young hyung-nim started taking care of noonim. Naturally, he only took care of her because she reminded him of his little sister, but… the heart doesn’t work like that. Since noonim liked hyung-nim so much, I gave her advice here and there…” he explained.

“Oh…” she muttered.

“Everyone in Gangwon Province knows Park Deok-Gu, the Love Doctor. Ahem. It wasn’t that big of a deal. It’ll be a long story if I go into details, but I gave noonim tips and tricks discreetly and before I knew it, the two became close. Once Gangwon Province’s Love Doctor gets involved, there’s no stopping it!” he exclaimed.

“Oh, right…”

“But in the end, their love only blossomed because of themselves. Noonim took courage, and eventually, hyung-nim started liking her, too. Actually, they were the ones who took a big part in starting their beautiful relationship, not me. The only thing the Love Doctor did was give them a little push,” Park Deok-Gu added.

‘This pig…’

Seeing him glance over and giving me a thumbs up did make me feel a bit upset, but Yoo Ah-Young’s reaction wasn’t so bad. Not only did she nod, but it seemed like she was quite impressed by Park Deok-Gu’s last statement.

That was when she started talking.

“I…”

“Yes?”

“If you don’t mind, can I get some advice? It’s related to joining the guild as well…” she requested.

I hadn’t expected this.