The Duke's Son :Re-Chapter 42

The cafeteria was deserted on Saturday morning.

Many students overslept or left Lion’s Castle for the weekend, so it was mainly teachers and staff members.

“Hello.”

Kim Ji-Yeong—the teacher in charge of First Year Class F—and Park Min-Cheol—a school employee—ate and chatted casually before their voices gradually died down.

Kim Ji-Yeong cast a sound barrier around them, isolating their voices from the outside.

“I checked the entry records of the employees of Jaegyeong Pharmaceuticals and investigated the report of Kang Jae-Hyeok joining them. It’s true.”

“True? Hm. I didn’t expect Kim Jin-Myeong to entrust an escort mission to a first-year student. He must have a lot of trust in the kid.”

“Actually, it’s an easy mission that doesn’t require much skill.”

The personnel sent by Jaegyeong were three B-class players, five C-class players, and eight D-class players. The power of that group was more than a small guild could muster, and they certainly didn’t require their student guide to protect them.

“At first, the security forces directly escorted the employees of Jaegyeong Pharmaceuticals. But after learning all the habitats they visited for their herbs and securing a safe movement route, security let the teachers handle the task. And later on, the teachers passed it onto the students—with Kim Jin-Myeong being placed in charge of the mission’s assignment.

“Jaegyeong has used the same route for five years now. In fact, they don’t even need a guide. The student is really a token for the school faculty’s supervision. The only thing the student has to do is take care of themselves and not be a nuisance to Jaegyeong.”

“I see. As a student, they can make money and earn grades just by following the employees around all day.”

“That’s right. It is just a measuring device to find out who Kim Jin-Myeong’s favorite student is.”

In other words, although Kang Jae-Hyeok was given this mission, it didn’t mean that Kang Jae-Hyeok himself was as strong as a second-year student. They could relax on that point.

“This situation is much better than when Yoon Sang-Ho took action. It is a great opportunity to target Kang Jae-Hyeok on the outskirts, out of sight of the security forces. I put a map of the Arcane Canyon in your desk drawer.” Kim Ji-Yeong finished eating first and got up from her seat with the plate.

Before leaving, she added, “Wait at the spot marked on the map. Kang Jae-Hyeok and the employees of Jaegyeong Pharmaceuticals will be there around 9:05 p.m.”

She had a good understanding of the timing, thanks to the route being well-traveled over the last five years.

Arcane Canyon was the final destination for Jaegyeong Pharmaceuticals to collect the sky grass, and their log report indicated that they always arrived around nine at night.

“Arcane Canyon has many blind spots, and the sound of the wind drowns out all types of noise. Once everyone else disperses to collect herbs, Jae-Hyeok will be alone. Attack then.”

“I understand. I’ll move at sunset so I don’t garner the attention of the security forces,” Park Min-Cheol replied.

The Arcane Canyon had terrible terrain. It wouldn’t be strange if a student disappeared.

***

B-class players were welcome in any organization.

They were the backbone of society, handling the core of practical operations, so their value was enormously high.

In particular, the treatment received by B-class players in ordinary companies, rather than guilds or the Association, was beyond imagination.

B-class players were almost invincible in the private sector. This meant that Jaegyeong depended on Department Manager Gu, Team Leader Seol, and Team Leader Baek in many ways.

Cho Seong-Hyeon might be the chairman’s son, but he only had a low position in the company. He couldn’t control the B-class players.

This is a big problem.

A chill ran down Cho Seong-Hyeon’s spine. Those proud people wouldn’t simply let it slide after being pushed into a swamp. It didn’t matter that Jae-Hyeok was a student of Lion’s Castle. They would beat him to the brink of death, heal him with a potion, and feign ignorance.

Whose side should I testify for when this incident comes to light? ƒreewebηoveℓ.com

If the truth was known, Jaegyeong would lose Lion’s Castle, their best business partner. It was one thing to cause significant losses to the company accidentally, but it was another to be knowingly unfilial to his father.

However, if he testified against the truth, he would turn a good student into a liar. That was something he couldn’t do...

Cho Seong-Hyeon was worrying about the worst-case scenario when a conversation between Jae-Hyeok and the others brought him to his senses.

Jae-Hyeok asked, "How is it? Wasn’t I right?”

“Hm. You’re right. This is indeed the native habitat of the Alus fern and the black bayburn.”

“......”

Contrary to his expectations, the department manager and team leaders were having a normal conversation with Jae-Hyeok.

The other employees had also jumped into the swamp since their superiors did so. But they all had visibly brighter expressions after arriving at the jungle.

“It’s only 6 a.m., but we’ve already arrived at our first destination. That’s two hours shorter than usual.”

“Yeah. Except for the dirty clothes, this is the best.”

“Stop chatting. Disperse and gather the Alus ferns and black bayburns.”

"Yes!"

The enthusiasm of the employees skyrocketed. On previous trips, they couldn’t collect many herbs because of the time constraints. Now, they could go around collecting as much as they wanted.

“Ahem.”

Unfortunately, Jae-Hyeok poured cold water on their excitement. They had no clue where it came from, but there was a measuring scale in his hand.

He told them, “According to the log, ten kilograms of Alus ferns are collected by Jaegyeong every week. We should stop there.”

One of the employees spoke, “Actually, there isn’t a set weight. We only collected ten kilograms in the past because we were short on time.”

“So what? Do you plan to pluck out all the ferns here today? What if there are none left when you come back next week?” Jae-Hyeok said.

“Um, if we collect a lot this week, we can collect less next week.”

“I see. Does your boss feel the same way?”

“Uh?”

Jae-Hyeok explained, “Do you think your boss will praise you for suddenly digging twenty kilograms of herbs this way when you’ve been digging ten kilograms for the past five years? No, he’ll suspect that you’ve been doing things sloppily and just criticize you.”

“......”

“You aren’t a family member in charge of Jaegyeong. You’re an employee. Even if you do well, it’s unlikely that you’ll be recognized for your performance and receive extra pay or a promotion. Don’t you watch dramas?”

“E-excuse me... ”

Cho Seong-Hyeon couldn’t stand hearing this and tried to refute it, but Department Manager Gu was nodding as if Jae-Hyeok’s words made sense.

“The population of Alus ferns has always been small. Collecting a large amount at once could destroy the ecosystem. Let’s not be greedy and maintain the status quo.”

“Yes!”

The staff members replied vigorously. As Jae-Hyeok said, they were just employees receiving salaries. There was no reason for them to do more than necessary.

They decided it would be better to finish work early and leave early.

......

Over the next half day, the journey between each herb habitat played out similarly.

“Aaaaack!”

Jae-Hyeok dragged the employees of Jaegyeong through all kinds of rough terrain that they’d never seen before. Each time, they arrived at the native habitat of the herb early, picked it, and quickly moved on to the next route.

“It’s a tough path, but I feel better when thinking about leaving work early.

“Yeah. Isn’t this the first time we can have a leisurely lunch here?”

“I won’t have to worry about getting indigestion today.”

The atmosphere among the staff members was unusually friendly. They all looked like beggars but they couldn’t stop smiling.

The unfavorable attitude of Department Manager Gu and the team leaders toward Jae-Hyeok had also softened a bit.

“I heard that a first-year student was being sent and thought Kim Jin-Myeong was disregarding Jaegyeong. Now I realize I was mistaken. He sent a proper ace.”

“Yeah. I thought Kim Jin-Myeong was crazy—how could he ignore Jaegyeong, ranked thirteenth in the Korean business community? It turns out I was just overthinking it.”

It was only 11 a.m., but there was only one last place left.

The Arcane Canyon.

“Normally, we don’t arrive until after 9 p.m.”

“This will be the first time I’ve collected the sky grass during the day instead of at night.”

“That damn canyon probably won’t be so tough today.”

......

While the group ate and chatted, Jae-Hyeok was off surveying the nearby danger zones. Walking, he spared only his mouth and one hand for his lunch, a piece of bread.

[The gray helmet knoll has been defeated.]

This is good experience.

It wasn’t easy to walk around dangerous areas in broad daylight as a student.

Normally, he would be penalized if security caught him wandering around these areas where entry was forbidden.

However, Jae-Hyeok was currently working with the Jaegyeong Pharmaceuticals employees as a guide. That was enough justification to go back and forth in the danger zones, clearing monsters as he pleased.

The employees of Jaegyeong Pharmaceuticals were so focused on the herbs that they didn’t notice when he was away for a while.

After checking the time, Jae-Hyeok returned to the group. He found Department Manager Gu gathering the employees. “We should depart.”

***

It was noon.

After an early lunch, the group arrived at the Arcane Canyon nine hours earlier than usual.

A towering expanse of copper-red cliffs filled their vision. It was an outstanding sight.

“It is so beautiful here.”

“The sound of the wind is surprisingly normal. It always sounds like a ghostly wail when we come at night.”

The employees took out various equipment and started climbing.

If it were night, they would have had to rely on lamps or light magic for visibility. But in broad daylight, the sky grass was easy to see.

They filled the sack several times faster than usual.

“Are we really going to leave work early today?”

“I hope he’ll guide us next week.”

The employees of Jaegyeong Pharmaceuticals were smiling brightly as they replanned their weekend schedules in their heads.

“Dodge!” Department Manager Gu suddenly shouted.

Dozens of hobgoblins appeared on the clifftop, shooting down arrows in unison.

The employees who’d been collecting sky grass halfway up the cliff hugged the cliff wall and avoided the arrows, but those on the ground around the base of the cliff were completely exposed. Among them, the department manager and the team leader in charge of the employees on the ground moved frantically.

“Shit! The student!”

Department Manager Gu was more worried about Jae-Hyeok than the arrow stuck in his shoulder.

Regardless of the situation, the death of a student from Lion’s Castle could turn into a huge issue.

In addition, hobgoblins were C-class monsters. Their arrow barrage would turn any first-year student into a porcupine.

Cho Seong-Hyeon moved quickly. He spotted Jae-Hyeok behind the team leaders and rushed to protect him.

Jae-Hyeok tilted his head. “Aren’t I the escort?”

“Uh?”

Cho Seong-Hyeon tried to pull Jae-Hyeok into his arms but was dumbfounded when he found himself unexpectedly pulled into Jae-Hyeok’s arms instead.

Just in time, an arrow flying toward his forehead was deflected by Jae-Hyeok’s green scabbard.

“Stay close to the cliff face.”

Jae-Hyeok didn’t wait for a reply and directly flung Cho Seong-Hyeon away. Then, he also jumped toward the cliff.

Bang!

He released mana from the bottoms of his feet and stuck to the cliff as if it were flat ground. From there, he took two more leaps and passed the employees trapped halfway up. He reached the top of the cliff with the fifth leap.

“Is he a grasshopper?”

The mouths of the employees of Jaegyeong Pharmaceuticals dropped open.

Cho Seong-Hyeon was the first to wake up and chase after Jae-Hyeok, but it was too late. By the time he started climbing the cliff, Jae-Hyeok was already confronting a group of hobgoblins head-on.

Slash!

A sharp roar echoed through the canyon.

Jae-Hyeok drew his hwando and cut off the heads of three hobgoblins.

Kieeek!

After seeing their comrades killed in an instant, the agitated hobgoblins threw away their bows and drew their swords.

However, they weren’t given the chance to counterattack.

A Thunderbolt Sword followed the path of Jae-Hyeok’s sword, releasing thunderbolts that made it impossible for them to approach.