Shae Harris left the library and wandered around a few more times.
She would subconsciously brush her hair close to her ear, then stop herself once she realized what she was doing.
Eventually, she realized that this place looked familiar and she must have been walking the same way, so she slapped her cheeks with both hands.
"Stop thinking about Ming Jun," she muttered while rubbing her warm cheeks.
"Sigh, I miss my console," she muttered.
"I have a job to do. Now, where will I find that dungeon?"
Shae Harris began to think while pacing back and forth in the empty hallway.
But this was a completely new experience for her.
The dungeons she was used to had a fixed location—and most importantly, a map pointing to it.
While hidden dungeons would be acquired after going through a monster nest or some exciting quests.
If Ming Jun was here, then he would rattle on about his otaku life and whatnot.
"No, why did I think of that perverted otaku again?"
"Have I fallen so far that lecherous fat boys is making me lost in thought?"
"Don't forget, it's Ming Jun we're talking about."
"M.i.n.g J.u.n."
Shae Harris squatted on the ground with her hands in her hair, muttering.
Then she calmed down after crashing slightly and began to reason once again.
"If I can't approach it the traditional way, then I'll approach it the video game way."
And the video game way can mostly be divided into two parts:
The dungeon found through quests and maps,
and the hidden dungeons found by chance or exploration.
The probability of finding a hidden dungeon without direction is hopeless.
But finding a dungeon using a map shouldn't be that hard compared to the first option.
"So now that I've decided to use the map, where could the dungeon be?"
"Well, let's think about it using a different approach. How are dungeons formed?"
"Well, it can be natural… but I highly doubt that the dungeon I'm looking for was formed naturally."
"Or it can be created using a special technique that traps monsters."
"And where would be the best place to hide an artificial dungeon?"
"Hmm, the library might be a good place to start."
"The entrance of the dungeon would be hidden behind a bookshelf or be activated by pulling a single book."
"The second part is too much work and too hard."
So Shae Harris walked around the library, carefully inspecting each bookshelf.
She didn't see any glowing book or portal behind the bookshelves,
so she sat at a table and continued to think.
"The next location to check should be the cafeteria."
"The most probable location that would be hidden is inside a pot or in a cupboard."
Shae Harris pursed her lips and went to the cafeteria.
The cooks were surprised at her appearance.
"I came over to eat… I mean taste… I mean explore the food… I mean kitchen." Shae Harris slapped a hand to her head.
The cooks exchanged glances and looked at her in doubt.
"Actually, I came from a low-class ordinary family and was brought to this school because I was cursed and was good bait," Shae Harris explained, waving her hands.
The cooks listened and looked at her in pity.
Their doubtful expressions softened, and they encouraged her to ask anything she wanted.
Shae Harris looked at the familiar look that people get when looking at a terminally ill patient—those eyes that held pity but not sorrow or loss, just complexity at the futility of life that you reminded them of.
It was a look where they deemed it upon themselves to already condemn you to death, without any explanation or even trying.
It's like they become some sort of observer in your life, with the unfolding happening right before their eyes.
"I feel kind of grateful to experience such a noble school," Shae Harris bowed her head and squeezed a tear at the corner of her eyes.
Years of living in a hospital surrounded by terminal patients had trained her for this moment.
Who cares if I don't need your pity?
Or if it's demeaning, humiliating, and discouraging?
If it doesn't help me, then I'll make it benefit me.
The cooks responded with a sigh and looked at her even more warmly.
Shae Harris now held a freshly baked muffin and was walking around the kitchen.
She opened all the big pots she could find, opened all cupboards, and lifted random cups.
Still got nothing.
So she patted her bum and waved her new kitchen friends goodbye.
"Come back anytime," they said cheerfully.
Shae Harris nodded with a bun in her mouth.
Then she walked while thinking of where next to go.
"There are five places left in school: classrooms, staff building, toilets, dormitory, and school field."
Shae Harris walked in the direction of the closest classroom,
then remembered that there were a lot of classrooms—
and she was only one person.
Plus, the people in this school were snobs who probably wouldn't get out of the way.
And there really wasn't that much space to inspect in the classroom.
Shae Harris decided to look from afar before giving up.
Who knows, she just might see a notification that she discovered the hidden dungeon.
Shae Harris walked over to the closest classroom and was surprised to find it empty.
But there were cracks on the wall and a student lying on the ground.
Shae Harris deduced immediately that there was a conflict that had just occurred.
But she wasn't averse to it because this was a game—
meaning her courage was enhanced infinitely.
And with that boundless amount of courage, she stepped in.
Then she examined the corpse of the student on the ground.
Severely lacking in knowledge on such matters,
she guessed that it was a punch because she didn't see any weapon around or a weapon mark.
Like if it was done by a sword, then she assumed there would be a cut.
A hammer would make the head cave in more.
"I haven't seen any barbarian or axe-wielder since we entered the game, so that's out."
"In fact, the only reason why I'm doing this is because I hoped it would trigger a quest."
Shae Harris thought with a sigh and poked the body one last time.
Then, after moving around the classroom, she left.
Shae Harris pursed her lips and turned to the other classrooms in dejection.
Although they sounded empty also—
"Forget it, forget it."
"That's too many places and more school than I've ever been to."
So she patted her bum and habitually wanted to put a puff in her mouth,
but her hands were now empty and all her snacks were in her stomach.
Rubbing her belly, Shae Harris looked conflicted.
"Should I go back and milk some more from those cooks,
or should I just forget about it and go check the staff building?"
She hesitated for a minute before ultimately choosing the serious option.
She turned away from the path to food and headed for the staff building.
The building was also empty, probably due to the same reason the classrooms were empty.
But the teachers didn't leave their things unprotected.
Shae Harris gazed at the glowing magic circle that prevented her from opening drawers.
She turned her focus to objects in the open and was blocked once again—
by the same magic circle.
"Stingy," Shae Harris clicked her tongue.
"Who even remembers to lock their stuff before they leave in an emergency?"
"No, wait, first of all—why do they even have to lock it in the first place?
Unless they have some dirty secret they didn't want others to know.
Or they're a hidden villain.
But the whole school can't be villains, right… right?"
Honestly, Shae Harris began to doubt the integrity of the teaching staff.
"I mean, anyone would after listening to one of Ming Jun's rantings."
"Students dying while on campus, students fighting monsters as a test,
out-of-control monsters almost killing some students,
a trash student getting a power-up that looks suspicious from all angles—every single thing just screams negligence."
"At a point, I think they don't even teach.
They just dump the students at monsters and in the training room until they graduate."
"Come to think of it, I've actually never heard Ming Jun mention a graduation."
"So then what on earth do they go to school for??"
Shae Harris rubbed her forehead and gave up thinking about it.
"Anyway, I'm not suited for being an otaku.
Ming Jun is pretty cool for being able to endure that nonsense and even remember it," Shae Harris muttered.
Then she flinched and slapped both cheeks.
"Stop thinking about him!"
Shae Harris huffed and stomped out of the staff building and into the closest toilet in the class building.
She slammed all the stalls open on the third floor and only found some panicked girls.
They were hugging each other and crying.
"Sorry," Shae Harris said, closing the stall that held the crying girls.
After that, she left the bathroom awkwardly,
then hesitated at the door of the male restroom.
Her hand was on the doorknob as she stood still and perked up her ears.
She heard nothing, so she opened the door carefully.
"Sorry," she said loudly into the quiet restroom.
The lack of response made her finally move her feet.
And the result of all that embarrassment and displeasure was an empty restroom.
Shae Harris sighed in relief that there wasn't a person doing their business.
She walked to the dormitory but then realized that it would never be open during school hours.
She still wanted to make sure, and her conjecture was right.
"So that must mean the location of the dungeon must be the school training field,"
was what was going through her head as she left the dormitory.
Putting words into action was her main thing, so she didn't waste time thinking about it.
Shae Harris skipped over to the large field and resisted the urge to roll around.
Instead, she tried to brush her fingers past the knee-length grass.
And during the process of touching grass under the sun,
she eventually reached the center of the field.
Also noticing how the sun shone directly into her eyes,
and when she shielded them from the direct confrontation,
she released the arm over her eyes and looked at the situation curiously.
From the dark rock walls to the lack of light and finally ending with the putrid stench—
Shae Harris had not only found but also entered the dungeon.
She heard the faint sounds of monster growls
and knew by the degree of sound that the monster was still far away.
Shae Harris looked at her uniform and empty pockets.
"Lacking equipment will only lead to a quicker death," she clicked her tongue.
So she opened the item mall and tried to look for a suitable weapon,
then forgot the most important thing to do first—
Check one's spec.
Shae Harris observed her own personal status.
It wasn't the best skin, but you just have to make do with what you have.
Her items were non-existent and completely empty.
Her skills were only one: Heal.
Shae Harris was a healer.
A full-blown support healer whose only skill is to heal scratches and minor injuries.
The healer was shocked at her skill.
It's ironic in two ways that made her eyes twitch.
How could someone who loves to fight and seek death be a healer?
It's just too contradictory.
Unless… I can heal myself.
But that usually never happens.
Secondly, the only fighter in the group was given a healer skill.
Shae Harris searched the item shop to redeem her scarred healer heart
and bought the skill Berserk.
Every injury would be traded for blood—
plus, the berserk skill corresponds well with a healer.
One side drains their energy and blood to unleash 2x their destructive power;
the other heals the injury and indirectly sustains the transformation.
After buying a short sword, Shae Harris shook it up and down.
Unleashing berserk mode to the highest degree,
she heard her heart pumping loudly,
and the energy that rushed into every pore and cell in her body,
plus the red haze that descended over her eyes and filled her world with rage.
She used the sword with red, bloody eyes and black veins bulging beneath the skin.
At this point, she went crazy and slayed the monsters around her—
the orcs, goblins, and wolves who occupied the dungeon.
Anything that moved would receive a sword slash.
And if they had thick skin, they'd end up beaten with bare fists.
Shae Harris cut skin like tofu or used her fist to pound the enemy's head in.
But then her reckless slaughter gave the enemy the opportunity to surround her.
There she stood, in the middle of the monster encirclement.
The aggression and red haze reduced in her eyes,
and with that clarity came the solution.
Shae Harris sliced a monster in front, then escaped through the gap left behind by the fallen monster.
Then she used all her energy from the berserk state to run as far away as possible—
and this escape included running outside of the dungeon.
Shae Harris ran to the outside world, by stepping on the glowing circle at a hidden corner of the dungeon.
Also bringing the monsters along, with both landing on the school field
The monsters who had just tasted freedom were now excited.
They sniffed the air a few times and ran in a frenzy toward the stench of humans.
So the students who had gathered outside were beseaged by a horde of monsters that spawned from nowhere.
The situation of the school that was a bit better was now flipped.
Shae Harris who was ignored by the horde of monsters froze.
She stared speechlessly at the full blown war that was happening before her eyes seeing as the students had gathered at the school field.
She opened the team group chat and typed a message in a daze.
Only after pressing send did she realize Ming Jun had sent a message too.
It read:
I really didn't mean it, crying jpg
And the message she just sent said:
Wasn't me, guilty jpg
"Hey fatty, what did you do?" Shae Harris typed with an eyebrow raised again.
"What did you do?" Ming Jun typed with an expression on his face that showed he didn't know whether to cry or laugh.