The Support Ate it All

The established rule was that the rank of the drop item didn't exceed the rank of the random box.

However, there was one thing Song Cheon-hye hadn't known—

On extremely rare occasions, an item of a higher rank can appear.

And Lucky Charm was a broken character who treated those extremely rare odds like daily routine.

Soon, the light faded, and the item revealed itself.

[Fire Essence (D+)]

Han So-mi deflated her puffed-up cheeks and let out an admiring gasp.

"Wow! That's some crazy luck!"

"……"

I casually threw out a comment.

"Looks like I won?"

"Th-This can't be happening…? The fortune-teller specifically said to bet big…"

"Who did?"

"Th-The fortune-teller…"

"Wait, you went to a fortune-teller too?"

Only then did Song Cheon-hye flinch and snap back to her senses—

But it was too late to take back what she'd already blurted out.

Still, she tried to save face with an awkward excuse.

"I-It was just on the way! I just happened to notice the place and went in!"

"Fair enough. But why would you place a bet based on that?"

"It… It sounded kinda convincing, okay?"

More than just "kinda". That fortune-teller was scarily accurate.

Didn't he also guess I was a greedy guy?

Chances were, the fortune itself wasn't wrong—

Song Cheon-hye had just interpreted it poorly.

"What exactly did the fortune say? Just that you should bet big?"

"Yes."

I repeated her words in my head for about three seconds before something struck me as odd.

"It didn't say you'd win if you went big, did it?"

"…Ah."

That day, Song Cheon-hye gained a new understanding of life.

At the cost of a medium wish ticket.

***

Fire Essence was a potion-type item.

So Seo Ye-in and I shared it evenly like good friends.

[Side Quest: 5th and 6th Week Strategy Battle] (Complete)

▷ Objective: Clear Strategy Battle Dungeons (2/2)

▷ Bonus Goal: Clear within 4 days (1/4 days passed)

▷ Reward: Rank Up (C)

Since we cleared two dungeons in a single day, I completed the side quest with the highest achievement.

And I already knew exactly where that Rank Up reward would go.

There was only one skill I couldn't improve through regular training.

[Activated 'Rank Up (C)']

[The rank of 'Chillwind' has increased. (C+ → B+)]

"With that, the strategy battle's wrapped up."

I spent the next few days grinding skill ranks with Seo Ye-in.

My plan was to stay on standby until I heard from Park Na-ri, the Sculptor Club, or Dang Gyu-young.

Then on Thursday—

I got a message from the president of the Sculptor Club and made my way to the club room.

Unlike usual, the door was half open.

It seemed deliberate, but out of courtesy, I raised my hand to knock—

Just as a familiar voice called from inside.

"Come in."

"Hello, senior."

I stepped into the room and greeted her, but the club president barely acknowledged it, brushing it off like manners weren't all that important.

Instead, she gestured toward the side.

"Take a look."

Sitting on the workbench was a large Crow.

Even knowing it was a sculpture, I almost mistook it for the real thing.

[Crow Sculpture (A)]

I moved in for a closer look, taking in the fine details.

The main material used was sterling black mithril, giving the whole body a dark sheen with a subtle silvery shimmer.

There wasn't much onyx used. There was only enough to accent the key features like the eyes, beak, and claws, and the remainder was likely spread thin as a coating.

And even that wasn't the end of it.

The president of the Sculptor Club suddenly grabbed the Crow and pulled on its wing.

The wings and even each individual feather spread out smoothly like an umbrella.

I asked for a sculpture, but she went and made a robot instead.

Just in case, I asked,

"Can this be remote-controlled too?"

"Don't be ridiculous. Well? What do you think?"

"I love it. I didn't expect you to go this far."

"It was my first VIP ticket, so I figured I'd show off a bit."

She called this masterpiece merely "showing off".

If she ever put in 100% effort, she might just sculpt the moonlight itself.

Then she frowned and added,

"I agreed when I took the ticket, so I'll take one more commission. After that, no way. Got it?"

"Yes, senior."

But even as I nodded, my thoughts were headed in the opposite direction.

If I bring the materials again, she might just do it anyway.

***

Not long after receiving the Crow sculpture, I got another message.

The flower had bloomed.

I headed straight to the greenhouse, where Park Na-ri greeted me with a shy wave.

"Y-You're here…?"

"I have arrived, my friend."

"Friend…"

A soft smile tugged at the corner of her lips.

Watching us, Bum gave her a light cat-punch as if to say, "Snap out of it."

Startled back to reality, Park Na-ri took out the Cube of Life.

More precisely, the flowerpot inside it.

Just a few days ago, it had only held a sprout.

Now, a single glowing flower shimmered softly in its place.

[Flower of Order (S)]

By stacking fertilizer, the pot, and the cube's bonuses, she'd pushed it past A+ and all the way into S rank.

Park Na-ri added quietly,

"The club president… helped a lot too."

"I see. Please thank her for me."

Then I retrieved the flower and stored it in my inventory.

I pointed at the flowerpot and asked,

"You want it? I don't think I'll use it anymore."

"Mhmm, thank you."

Her class may be Beast Tamer, but as a member of the Mother Nature Club, she's more than capable of caring for plants.

One more good flowerpot was always a win.

And since I snagged it at auction, the quality's guaranteed.

Of course, I don't plan to settle the debt with just that—

I'll repay her separately later on.

***

To encounter the Dimensional Crow, not only the dungeon but the timing must be precisely right.

Although I had all the items ready, I still took a few more days to wait.

As usual, I trained with Seo Ye-in during that time.

As a result,

▷ Copy – Skill [3/3]

1. Thief's Step (B)

2. Destructive Gale (C+)

3. Ice Wall (B)

Seo Ye-in's [Destructive Gale] had reached C-rank.

It had only been about a week since she learned it, so this was an incredible rate of growth.

Now, it was fully ready to be used in close combat during the Fixed Zone.

Of course, we'd need to keep pushing beyond that, too.

In addition, the newly learned [Fickle Trap] had also reached E-rank.

With a bit of luck, we might even aim for C-rank before the tournament.

After wrapping up my thoughts, I started tidying up the area.

"That's it for today. Good work."

"…….?"

Seo Ye-in tilted her head slightly.

She seemed puzzled, since under normal circumstances, our training would've gone late into the night.

Soon, she asked me a question.

"Where are you going?"

"I'm heading down for a bit."

The dungeon where I'd meet the Crow Tailor this time was D-rank.

The difficulty was manageable, and there was no need for multiple people to split up. So there was no reason to bring Go Hyeon-woo or Seo Ye-in along.

It was better to let them train or rest during that time.

But Seo Ye-in gently tugged at my arm and said,

"I want to come too."

"There won't be anything to see. I'm just going in to meet the crow and leave."

"I still want to go."

"Aren't you sleepy? Shouldn't your eyelids be drooping by now?"

"I'm not sleepy."

She looked straight up at me as she said that—

Almost like she was trying to show off her bright, clear eyes.

She seemed so eager to come that I had no reason to leave her behind, so I gave a small nod.

"Follow me."

"Let's go." This соntеnt is prеsеntеd by М4VLЕМРYR.

I had already arranged a guide in advance.

We met up with Shin Byeong-cheol in front of the Dungeon Building, then immediately made our way underground.

As we rode the elevator down, I casually threw out a comment.

"Surely you're not going to mess up again today, right?"

"Hey now, give me some credit. I'll admit, I was a little shaky on the C floor. But the D floor? That's basically my backyard. If I mess up here too, I might as well quit the business."

"I'll be watching."

"Don't worry about a thing."

Maybe that light teasing had an effect, because Shin Byeong-cheol guided us with impressive skill and focus.

Eventually, we arrived at our target dungeon.

[No.498] [Crescent Moon Temple]

Shin Byeong-cheol asked,

"Should I come back later?"

"It'll be over quickly. You can wait, or come with us."

"Of course I'm coming."

There's no way Shin Byeong-cheol would miss a chance to safely watch a fight from the sidelines.

One by one, we stepped through the teleportation portal and the next moment, we were standing in the middle of an old-fashioned stone building.

Definitely looks like a temple.

The only notable difference from most temples was the open ceiling that was clearly designed that way on purpose.

You could see the crescent moon perfectly from here.

The chilling, almost painful moonlight poured down onto the temple.

And onto the goddess statue at its center.

Main rules are defense and boss rush.

Naturally, the thing to protect was the goddess statue.

And it didn't take long to find out what the boss was.

Thud. Thump—

Soon, the sound of heavy footsteps began to approach.

What appeared was a monster both familiar and unfamiliar.

"Groooar…"

Twin Head.

A two-headed ogre, just like the name implies.

Its body was bulkier than a regular ogre's, too.

In terms of difficulty, it was probably on par with the Alpha Ogre we fought during midterms.

Seo Ye-in readied her magic gun, and Shin Byeong-cheol took out his chopsticks, but I held them both back.

"I'll handle this one."

Then I walked toward the monster and activated Inferno Fist.

My fist ignited with dark red flames, and I thrust it straight forward.

Boooom—!

A firestorm swept through the area ahead.

Before the Twin Head Ogre could do anything, both of its heads were gone.

Watching this, Shin Byeong-cheol muttered,

"Man, you're always so explosive."

"Let's move. Follow me."

"What? I thought this was a defense dungeon?"

"It is."

There was just a bit of a gap between one boss and the next.

The Dimensional Crow shows up during that interval.

I led the group out of the temple.

After pushing our way through the forest for a while, a familiar rock came into view between the trees.

A broad slab of stone, like an airplane landing pad.

After a short wait, the air suddenly began to tremble wildly, and a crow in a suit appeared.

The Crow Tailor.

We'd met once before at Rainbow Lake.

It seemed to recognize me too, because as soon as it landed on the rock, it flapped its wings.

"Caw, young monarch. You've grown quite a bit since I last saw you."