After the lecture ended, on the way back to the dormitory, Song Ha-eun, seemingly worried about me, spoke up.

"Y-Yun-seong oppa… Are you okay?"

"...I'm fine."

"Uh... Don't think too much about it. The i-instructor seems a bit... strange."

"..."

'Damn, that woman...'

Since I had never attended university on Earth, I couldn't compare accurately, but it felt like attending my first university lecture only to be immediately singled out by the professor. No, in my case, it was probably worse.

The shitty memory from earlier started to resurface.

• Lee Yun-seong, compared to the job you obtained during the tutorial, your mana pool is quite low.

• Lee Yun-seong? The way you're casting magic is very inefficient.

• Hmm... Even if you ask me, I'm not a Dark Mage, so I wouldn't know.

• The others are doing fine. It's because you're handling mana that way.

• Wouldn't it be better to just make a contract with a demon? Honestly... magic doesn't seem to be your thing...

Clench.

'Hoo... Calm down, just calm down.'

Since falling into this world, it was the first time I'd ever felt the urge to beat someone down.

The most frustrating part was that I had done nothing to Ha Yuri.

Being treated like this from the first meeting left me dumbfounded. If she hated Dark Mages so much, she could've just had someone else teach the lecture instead.

Honestly, I knew I had no talent for magic. Even compared to Song Ha-eun beside me, my mana stats were abysmally low.

[ Name: Lee Yun-seong ]

[ Age: 26 ]

[ Job: Dark Mage (Common Grade) ]

[ Title: None ]

[ Unique Trait ]

Scout (Hero Grade) - Allows viewing and storing other people's status windows. However, it can be detected by their unique traits or abilities. More features unlock as the grade increases.

[ Traits ]

Basic Dark Magic (Common Grade)

Basic Necromancy (Common Grade)

Basic Chimera Research (Common Grade)

Basic Curse Magic (Common Grade)

Understanding of Mana (Common Grade)

[ Stats ]

Strength - 14 Agility - 15

Stamina - 15 Luck - 20

Mana - 08 Resistance - 13

'...Only 8 mana.'

On the other hand, Song Ha-eun and Yu-hyun...

[ Name: Song Ha-eun ]

[ Age: 22 ]

[ Job: Spirit Summoner (Rare Grade) ]

[ Title: None ]

[ Unique Trait ]

Blessing of the Spirits (Hero Grade) - Spirits have an incredible fondness for you. They are always watching over you wherever you go.

Perfect Mana Organ (Legendary Grade) - Your mana organ is incredibly pure, granting a significant bonus to all mana-related actions.

[ Traits ]

Spirit Contract (Rare Grade) - Allows contracts with spirits. Spirits are shy, so make contracts when alone.

[ Stats ]

Strength - 09 Agility - 12

Stamina - 13 Luck - 17

Mana - 18 Resistance - 09

[ Name: Lee Yu-hyun ]

[ Age: 15 ]

[ Job: Priest of Protection (Hero Grade) ]

[ Title: None ]

[ Unique Trait ]

Guidance of a Fallen God (Grade Pending) - A once-glorious god favored you.

[ Traits ]

Healing Light (Rare Grade) - Gathers mana in the hands to heal oneself or others. The healing speed and effectiveness depend on the user's mana stat.

Shield of Protection (Hero Grade) - Creates a spherical barrier with a 3-meter diameter. It protects oneself and allies within range from a certain amount of impact. The barrier's size and durability depend on the user's mana stat.

[ Stats ]

Strength - 08 Agility - 13

Stamina - 11 Luck - 30

Mana - 15 Resistance - 10

Both of them had significantly higher mana stats than I did.

However, one strange thing stood out: while everyone else’s unique traits had been fully assessed after clearing the dungeon, Yu-hyun’s unique trait remained unchanged.

[ Guidance of a Fallen God (Grade Pending) - A once-glorious god favored you. ]

'...Why is this still pending?'

I had no clue why Yu-hyun’s trait hadn't been determined yet.

"...Yun-seong oppa?"

"Huh? What?"

"Are you really o-okay? You weren’t responding..."

"Ah, I was just thinking for a moment. I mean, the instructor might just not like me."

"Hyung... but from what I saw, that instructor was way too harsh on you..."

I ruffled Yu-hyun’s hair and brushed it off.

"It’s fine, I’ll just work harder and improve."

When we arrived at the dorm, everyone except Kang Iseo and Ho-won was already gathered. It seemed their lectures had ended early.

Seo Yu-ju asked me, "Yun-seong, how was the lecture? Was it okay?"

She probably knew from the first round that I lacked talent and was asking out of concern.

It really wasn’t a big deal, so I was about to tell her that when—

"Yu-ju noona! The instructor totally hates Yun-seong hyung!"

'What the hell?!'

I didn't want Yu-ju to know because she had a tendency to lose her composure when it came to matters involving me, but Yu-hyun just blurted it out.

Yu-ju’s expression hardened as she asked again.

"...What do you mean, Yu-hyun? Can you explain in detail?"

As if Yu-hyun wasn’t enough, Song Ha-eun also chimed in.

"Um... Yu-ju, Yun-seong oppa’s job is a Dark Mage. For some reason, the instructor seemed to really hate Dark Mages..."

"Yeah! She kept comparing him to others and treating him like he was useless!"

'Damn it, you two, why are you doing this?'

"Haha... It’s nothing, Yu-ju. Don’t worry about it, it wasn’t a big deal. Ha-eun and Yu-hyun are exaggerating."

Yu-ju lowered her head slightly and muttered to herself.

"...Ah, right... That woman... She always hated Dark Mages. That bitch..."

It seemed like no one else heard her. I decided to pretend I hadn't either and continued speaking.

"It’s really nothing, please don’t blow this out of proportion. I’ll handle it myself."

'Please... just drop it!'

"...If you say so, Yun-seong, I’ll let it go for now. But if that instructor, no—that woman, crosses the line, you must tell me."

"Yes, yes. Of course. If that happens, I won’t just sit back. Don’t worry, Yu-ju."

"...Don’t just say you’re fine. If there really is a problem, please, let me know."

"Of course."

Click!

“Yahoo~ Lecture’s over! What? Everyone’s already here? Are me and the old man the last ones?”

Kang Iseo and Ho-won returned to the dormitory as their lecture ended.

I spoke to Kang Iseo, “What, you came back with Ho-won? Did you run into each other on the way?”

“The old man’s lecture ended around the same time as mine, so we came together! Haha~ More than that, I think I might have some talent. The instructor was showering me with praise!”

She looked unusually pleased. It seemed she received a lot of compliments during the lecture.

Well, judging by her stats and traits, she was definitely talented as an archer.

That instructor seemed to have a good eye.

“That’s good, what was the instructor like?”

“Uh… He was a guy, seemed like a decent person? What was it again? He came as a substitute instructor from the Golden Wings Clan, standing in for their clan master.”

As soon as Kang Iseo finished speaking, Seo Yu-ju interjected.

“The Golden Wings Clan is one of the three major clans.”

“Oh… really? Since he kept praising me so much, I just assumed it was a mid-tier or small clan trying to recruit me with flattery, but that’s surprising.”

It seemed the Golden Wings Clan had taken quite a liking to Kang Iseo. I had a feeling they might try to recruit her.

“More importantly, what about you? How was your lecture?”

“......”

The atmosphere suddenly grew tense and I could feel Yu-hyun and Ha-eun glancing at me nervously.

“Well, nothing much happened.”

Kang Iseo wasn’t entirely oblivious. She seemed to pick up on the mood and fell silent.

Seo Yu-ju took the opportunity to change the subject and addressed everyone.

“...More importantly, I have some good news to share with you all.”

Everyone turned to her with curious expressions. It was the first time she had ever mentioned good news.

Seo Yu-ju pulled out a magnifying glass, along with the necklace and rings we had obtained from the tutorial dungeon.

“The necklace and rings aside, I’m sure you’re all curious about this magnifying glass. To get straight to the point, this artifact is a one-time-use item that allows us to read item descriptions.”

“...Then, with that, we can find out what the necklace and rings we obtained are?”

“Yun-seong is right, I acquired this artifact so we could check the items together.”

“...How did you get an artifact like that?”

“I asked one of the instructors and they found one for me. These artifacts aren’t too expensive, so they were happy to give me one.”

It was probably because Seo Yu-ju had asked. The instructor must have recognized her talent and wanted to stay on her good side.

“Alright, I’m sure everyone’s curious. Let’s check the items.”

One by one, everyone picked up the magnifying glass and examined the necklace and rings. I was also curious, so I took the magnifying glass and checked the items’ information.

[ Radikus’ Mana Circulation Necklace (Hero Grade) - A necklace worn by High Mage Radikus. Aids in the circulation of mana. When equipped, increases Mana Stat by 4. ]

[ Ring of Strength (Rare Grade) - When equipped, increases Strength Stat by 2. ]

[ Ring of Resistance (Rare Grade) - When equipped, increases Resistance Stat by 2. ]

‘...This is good.’

The rings were nice, but the necklace’s performance was on another level. Considering how valuable even a single stat point was, the fact that this necklace increased Mana by 4 was insane.

On top of that, it aided in mana circulation. It was a piece of equipment worthy of its Hero Grade status.

‘Well, considering how difficult that dungeon was, it wouldn’t have made sense for the rewards to be bad.’

Looking around, I could see everyone staring at the items in shock. It seemed no one had expected to obtain a Hero Grade item right from the tutorial dungeon.

‘Maybe it’s just that tutorial dungeons have better loot.’

Seo Yu-ju got to the main point.

“Now that we’ve checked the item descriptions, let’s discuss distribution. If anyone has a preferred item or any opinions, please raise your hand.”

‘...I don’t need any of them.’

It wasn’t that I didn’t want the necklace, but honestly… It would be much better suited for Song Ha-eun or Yu-hyun, who actually had talent.

The two rings weren’t useful for me either.

I raised my hand to speak.

“Yes, Yun-seong? Do you have an item in mind?”

Honestly, if I had said I wanted something, Seo Yu-ju probably would have made sure I got it. But for me, these items would be like pearls before swine.

“...I think Yu-ju should take the Ring of Strength.”

She looked genuinely surprised, as if she hadn’t expected me to suggest something for her.

“Huh… Me? I don’t really need—”

“If we’re being honest, we wouldn’t have survived the dungeon without you. In terms of contributions to the party, you’re the most deserving.”

“He’s right, Yu-ju noona. If you don’t take it, who else should?”

Hyun-jin chimed in, and even Ho-won Ahjussi added his voice.

“I also believe Yu-ju should take it. She more than deserves it.”

“Everyone...”

Seo Yu-ju looked genuinely touched.

“...I understand. In that case, I’ll accept the Ring of Strength.”

“There’s no need to feel guilty. You’re the most suitable for it.”

“...Thank you, Yun-seong.”

After Seo Yu-ju took the Ring of Strength, Yu-rim suddenly raised her hand.

“Oh, Yu-rim. Do you want an item?”

“No, not exactly. I was just thinking Yun-seong oppa should take the necklace.”