Even Today, the Ranker Dreams of Retirement

Gulp.

Yeo Seoyun stood in front of the dormitory door, her heart pounding.

‘Sh-should we really share a room?’

When she didn’t know anything. At the entrance ceremony, she had boldly asked Habin-unni (as it turned out, Hyun Habin was several years older than her) to share a room.

‘Is it really okay? What if unni just answered because she didn’t want to be bothered?’

“What are you doing? Didn’t you say we’d share a room?”

Just then, Seoyun was startled by a hand patting her shoulder.

“Yes? Yes! That’s right.”

“Huh? Why the sudden formal speech? Relax, be comfortable.”

“Yes! I mean… okay!”

Seoyun nodded her head quickly and registered her name at the dormitory desk.

“Ah, unni, your student ID…”

“I didn’t get one yet.”

“Th-then I’ll open the door with mine for now!”

“Oh. Thanks!”

Habin looked rather satisfied. The more she watched, the more she saw that this girl took care of everything on her own.

‘She’s quick and kind.’

It couldn’t be more convenient. Just then, Seoyun, who had been gauging the situation, continued speaking.

“If you’re hungry now, do you want to… go eat lunch right after registering?”

“You really know your stuff, don’t you?”

“Y-yes!”

Room assignments at Ullim International High’s dormitory were randomly determined, but on the day of the entrance ceremony, you could change roommates and be reassigned. There was just one chance to adjust roommates when students came to the dorm supervisor’s office to register at the dormitory desk themselves.

“Usually, the student ID acts as the room key, but since you don’t have your student ID yet, just ask me anytime!”

Seoyun nodded as if to say leave it to her.

◆◇◆◇◆

And so they arrived at the cafeteria.

“Whoa, what’s this?”

“…?”

Hyun Habin’s eyes widened as she took her first spoonful of the school meal. Seoyun, who was eating across from her, also looked up in surprise.

“Um… is something… wrong?”

“It’s so delicious!”

“……”

Habin, with a flushed voice, excitedly stabbed a french fry with her fork.

“Ah, this is incomparable to the training institute, really. From today, Ullim International High is the best restaurant in Hapjeong!”

Watching Hyun Habin carve into the meat in front of her with a ‘mmm’ expression, Seoyun cautiously opened her mouth.

“Actually, even in middle school… this place was famous for its delicious meals. I heard it’s rare for a hunter school to have a buffet-style cafeteria.”

Today’s menu was homemade hamburger steak / rose tteokbokki / salmon salad / soybean paste barley rice. Of course, it included side dishes and accompaniments like pickles, french fries, cheese, kimchi, and various vegetables. You could take as much as you wanted, and the taste was extraordinary. Habin nodded with a satisfied expression.

“If it’s this kind of school meal, I welcome it anytime! I’ll postpone dropping out a bit longer!”

When she was living alone at home, she was too lazy to cook, and there was a limit to how much food she could order for delivery.

To think that such properly prepared, delicious food would be served every single day?

‘Hah, should I live here a bit longer?’

“Um…”

Someone called out to Habin, who was happily drinking a carbonated beverage.

“So, um.”

‘Gasp, it’s them…!’

Seoyun, who had turned her head along with Habin, recognized them and her face hardened.

It was the B-class and C-class students who had picked a fight with Habin and Seoyun earlier. Song Jehui stood at the front with a bright red face. Habin greeted them with a welcoming expression.

“Ah! Hello, Four-legged Jehui?”

“I’m not Four-legged Jehui!”

Jehui answered heatedly, then belatedly cleared his throat.

“Well… it’s late, but I’ll apologize for speaking without knowing better. I heard that your age is also…”

He trailed off, wary of mentioning that she was actually several years older than him. After all, he had been told to keep Hyun Habin’s status as an A-rank hunter a secret. Jehui turned his head to address Seoyun.

“And Yeo Seoyun, I’m sorry to you too… Thinking about it again, my words were too harsh. I was very short-sighted.”

“……”

[Oh, this apology feels quite sincere?]

‘It does, doesn’t it?’

Habin tilted her head. Surprisingly, Song Jehui’s expression as he apologized was serious. Judging by his bright red face, he seemed to have come after making a big decision. Seeing this, Habin spoke while spinning her soda cup.

“…Alright! A quick apology is a good thing. I know someone who tried to reform too late and it’s been really hard for them. They’ve already fainted twice.”

“…?”

The students who had gathered murmured briefly at this statement.

‘Re-reform? Fainting?’

‘What is she talking about?’

‘I don’t know either…’

“Anyway.”

Habin nodded with a satisfied face. Jehui asked Habin with a face full of faint hope.

“Then, about crawling on all fours…”

“That depends on what Seoyun says.”

“I! I’m fine with it.”

Seoyun answered quickly. She hadn’t even expected to receive an apology in the first place. Moreover, she wasn’t the type to hold onto such things for long, so Seoyun’s heart had already softened long ago. At that answer, Jehui bowed his head.

“Th-that’s. Thanks…”

“……”

Jehui glanced at Habin, watching her reaction.

“Th-then I… don’t have to crawl on all fours…”

“Jehui, you’ve been fixated on the all-fours thing since earlier! Could it be that you secretly wanted to crawl on all fours?”

“N-no! Of course not!”

“Really? Then that’s fine.”

“About buying from the school store…”

“That’s fine too. You don’t have to, so from now on…”

“Ah, from now on?”

“…Let’s be careful of each other?”

“Yes!”

I’ll be careful! I’ll be careful!

Jehui answered hurriedly.

‘Hmm, I could just let them go since I’m hungry, but.’

Habin frowned. Somehow, her mouth was itching…

“And Four-legged Jehui… I mean, Jehui?”

“Yes?”

“You said F-rank could never catch up to B-rank, right?”

“That’s…”

The reason Jehui had lost to Habin now was simply because Habin was an unexpected A-rank.

Seoyun’s rank beside her was still F-rank.

“I don’t think we need to be so definitive about that. They might be able to catch up, you know?”

“……”

“You should never be careless or jump to conclusions in this world.”

“Yes…”

Jehui answered with a guilty face. He had already learned painfully from this incident that one should never be careless or jump to conclusions.

“And even if they can’t catch up, so what? It’s not like we’re trying to show off being hunters, do we have to criticize each other based on rank? Is that why you became a hunter?”

Habin, who had been seriously lecturing, suddenly lifted her head.

‘Hah, does this make me sound like an old fogey?’

Like those annoying senior students who put a kid in front of them and ramble on about ‘In my opinion…’ and nag?

‘Eeh. That won’t do. I’m not an old fogey!’

Habin hurriedly wrapped up the conversation.

“W-well, anyway, if you understand, let’s say goodbye. Bye!”

“Y-yes! Enjoy your lunch!”

The students hastily greeted her and disappeared as if fleeing.

‘I guess being lectured was really tough for them after all.’

I ended up acting like an old fogey!

Habin nodded and continued her meal.

“Ah, I should have eaten before it got cold. The potato and broccoli fries. They’re delicious dipped in cheese sauce.”

[Why are you letting them off so easily? Usually…]

‘Usually?’

[Usually, when there’s someone who irritates you, you hit them or tie them up or make them faint or extort… Ahem, never mind.]

It seemed the things she had done to Kriksha, Hwang Maru, and Minsu in the past had flashed through his mind. Habin wore an incredulous expression.

‘Whaaat? What are you talking about? When did I ever do such scary things?’

[……]

‘And you know, you shouldn’t do such harsh things to growing students! I never intended to make him crawl on all fours in the first place.’

[Really?]

‘Well, he keeps mentioning it, so he seems to have some lingering regrets… but I was just trying to scare him. In the first place, a bad adult who makes high school students do such things… what was it called, child abuse? Student human rights ordinance? They’d get in trouble for that.’

Above all, Jehui had quickly apologized to Seoyun.

“…The kid is more docile than I thought. I was needlessly worried after hearing news stories about high school students riding motorcycles.”

[Oh, motorcycles?]

“Motor…cycles?”

“That’s right. Motorcycles are very dangerous. If you’re not careful, you could end up with your head on the ground. If you’re going to ride, you need to wear knee pads and a helmet. Even then, a car with seatbelts and airbags is still the best.”

Habin, who had been speaking, suddenly stopped as if remembering something.

“Ah, come to think of it, I should have bought a car!”

‘How foolish of me not to think of a car even after earning money!’

Next time, when she has the means, she’ll definitely buy a car.

While Habin was belatedly making plans to purchase her own car with a solemn face, Seoyun, sitting across from her, cautiously opened her mouth.

“Um… unni.”

“Yes?”

“H-have you ridden a motorcycle?”

“Yeah. I’m quite skilled at it.”

Habin answered promptly.

‘Despite appearances, I even worked as a delivery part-timer!’

Those days when she worked as a porter while also doing urgent ingredient delivery quick service. Thanks to that, Habin learned how to ride a motorcycle.

To survive.

“Can you… drive too?”

“Huh? I have a driver’s license.”

“…!”

Seoyun wore a surprised expression.

‘…? What point is she surprised at?’

“Why?”

“Ah, it’s nothing…”

“Right, you should avoid riding as much as possible. If you ever do ride, make sure to wear protective gear and be extremely careful!”

“Yes…”

Habin tilted her head for a moment at Seoyun, who was somehow being more cautious than before, but decided to focus on eating again because the lunch was too delicious.

◆◇◆◇◆

The first thing Habin did right after lunch was neither attending class nor touring the school.

“Wow, the dorm is perfect!”

Habin flopped down on the bed in the corner of the dormitory and let out a satisfied sigh.

“This is a really great place to skip class and take naps!”

Habin lifted her head and looked around the dormitory interior. Her room had quite a high ceiling with elegantly decorated arched windows. The walls near the ceiling sloped diagonally, giving a cozy feeling reminiscent of an attic.

“What’s that over there?”

Habin opened a door on one side of the room. It revealed a small living room.

“Wow, a private living room? This is amazing.”

There was even a fireplace on one side of the living room.

[Item – Quiet Warmth]

Caution: Fire attribute magic has been applied. Although mass-produced, it’s an interior item with definite effects.

Provides an effect that prevents the room temperature from falling below a certain level.

Two sofas and a side table placed in front of it.

[It seems they created such a space with the intention of reading books and devoting oneself to studies…]

“This is for movies! Anyone can see it’s made for watching movies while munching on snacks!”

Habin sank into the sofa and pulled out a bag of potato chips from her inventory.

“Watching movies here in winter with the fireplace on and snacking on chips would be heaven!”

[……]

“Of course, I don’t plan on staying until winter!”

Seemingly impressed by the attributes applied to the fireplace, Ahezar opened his mouth.

[…Still, it’s quite similar to what I imagined! Using magic for heating! It’s quite befitting of a magic school!]

Ahezar exclaimed in an impressed voice.

[The cleaning here must surely be done by magic too?]

Whirrrr-

At that very moment.

As soon as Ahezar finished speaking, a robot vacuum cleaner peeked out from under the sofa.

Whirr- Whirr-

Roll roll roll roll-tap.

The robot vacuum cleaner moved busily, cleaning the wooden floor.

[W-what is that!]

In response to Ahezar’s startled reaction, Habin rested her chin on her hand with an indifferent expression.

“Sigh, Kim Jaljal. That right there is true ma-gic. It’s the cute robot vacuum cleaner responsible for our quality of life. Say hello.”

Whirrrr-

[……]

“Never underestimate science and technology again.”

Ahem.

Habin, who had been humming, flopped back onto the bed.

“This very bed is also science… Science is the best!”

She was quite pleased with the snow-white bedding and soft mattress too. Habin, who had rolled over once on the bed, suddenly lifted her head as if remembering something.

“Oh? Science… Come to think of it, I forgot something!”

She quickly pulled out her phone.

“I forgot to ask Jise-unni about the progress.”

[What progress?]

“I asked her to research a way for communication to work inside dungeons.”

That’s right. During their last visit to the strawberry buffet, Habin had casually asked Chae Jise to make Wi-Fi or data work in dungeons.

Surprisingly, that proposal was taken quite seriously.

“Unexpectedly, even Secretary Lee welcomed it, saying it was worth investing in!”

Though his face that smiled with some ulterior motive, saying ‘Haha! Then we could work remotely even inside dungeons. What an excellent idea!’ followed, but still.

“Now that I’ve remembered, I should contact unni!”

Just as Habin was about to tap on her phone,

-Crackle… crackle…!

Suddenly, a crackling noise filled the room.

“…?”

Habin raised her head and looked towards the source of the sound. It was coming from the speaker installed in the room. After a moment of static, the speaker began broadcasting an announcement.

Ding dong ding-

-Ahem! Students! There will be a brief introduction of the principal after lunch!

“…Principal?”

Speak of the devil. She had just been wondering where the principal was.

‘Should I skip the introduction anyway since it’s bothersome?’

While Habin was pondering, the speaker continued with an excited voice.

-Please gather in the auditorium when lunch time is over!

-We will introduce Fides-nim, who will be taking on the role of our school’s temporary principal!

“…?”

[…?]

Fides?

‘Did they just say Fides?’

[They said Fides!]

“What…?”

Habin exclaimed with an incredulous expression.

“Why is the Masked Magician showing up here?!”