Don't Feed the Professor! - Chapter 12

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

When Mallo kicked open the door to the Administration Office, Kwon Tae-hyun had complained bitterly, but still guided me without resistance.
I suspected Kwon Tae-hyun might be receiving some kind of incentive from the Organization for information as well.
Though it was possible he was simply afraid of Mallo.
“About the lectures Mallo teaches—no one who’s actually attended them exists yet, right?”
I asked, but truthfully I was almost certain of the answer. Mallo and his Underground Research Lab received no mention whatsoever in the Rules Manual.
“Well… that’s right. This is the first year the course has even been offered.”
“What kind of lectures would such a superior being give? Wouldn’t the Organization be curious about that too?”
I widened my eyes as I asked, and Kwon Tae-hyun laughed uncomfortably. After a moment’s hesitation, he reached into his jacket pocket and produced something, pressing it into my hand.
“A… Business Card?”
A dark-red seal was stamped in one corner, but the name was impossible to read. The name printed in black ink was distorted like a hologram.
Kwon Tae-hyun reached over and pressed the name section lightly with his index finger. The letters became clear.
Rescue Team B, Team Leader Kwon Tae-hyun
“Using your real name openly in the Fortress does more harm than good. I have Administration Office privileges, but even so, you never know what might happen.”
I accepted the Business Card.
“…But don’t you usually give out Business Cards on the day you first meet someone?”
“Well, that’s…”
“Did you think I wouldn’t last even a day, Team Leader?”
At my question, Kwon Tae-hyun coughed awkwardly.
“What does my opinion matter? Anyway, seeing how well you’ve adapted in just one day makes me delighted, ha ha ha.”
…Sure.
“Ah, consider this a down payment, if you will.”
Kwon Tae-hyun rummaged through the Document Bag he’d been holding and handed me a paper-wrapped bundle. I received it. It contained what appeared to be a homemade Egg Sandwich.
“Even so, it’s from a fine establishment in the outside world. You can’t get anything like this here, no matter how much you want it.”
Under normal circumstances, I would have thought he was being pretentious over a mere sandwich. But not now. As Kwon Tae-hyun said, in the Fortress, nothing was more precious than food without complications.
“Then, best of luck to you.”
Kwon Tae-hyun gave my shoulder an encouraging pat and then left the Student Center.
‘Best of luck…’
I stood stock-still in the lobby and bit into the Egg Sandwich he’d given me. After thirty hours of fasting, the sandwich was delicious enough to bring tears to my eyes.
In any case, I now understood that there were ways to survive without the Organization’s help. But thinking about it differently, didn’t that mean all the Drifters who couldn’t fend for themselves had already died long ago?
I recalled the chilling atmosphere that had hung over the Hotline moments before.
I suspected the people I’d spoken with might be what you’d call the Fortress’s “Stagnant Water”—those long since settled. Maybe that’s why they’d been flustered by my rudimentary questions.
‘…I have no idea.’
On the way back to the Dormitory, students neither chased nor attacked me. If anything, they seemed to go out of their way to avoid me.
‘At this rate…’
I pushed the rest of the sandwich into my mouth and looked around.
There didn’t seem to be any immediate threats, so why not explore the campus a bit?
If I could gather something useful, I could even ask Kwon Tae-hyun for a finder’s fee.
But where should I start?
“Hey, you.”
At that moment, someone called to me from the direction of the Main Gate. It was the man in janitor’s clothes I’d met in the Student Lounge this morning.
But why did he look so angry?
As I stood there staring blankly, the man approached with long strides. When he finally stood before me, his eyebrows twitched. He was quite a handsome young man, now that I could see him clearly.
“Goldilocks?”
Oh.
He knew my alias. Had this person been logged into the Hotline as well?
“…So you’re Bibi?”
The man gave a small nod. Indeed, it seemed he was the same Bibi from the Hotline.
“Then who are you?”
“What?”
The man looked down at me. Even beneath his work clothes, you could see he had considerable muscle, and his tone was naturally rough, so it was hard not to feel intimidated.
“Who are you, I said.”
I’ve been hearing that question a lot lately.
The man continued.
“Standing around dazed all morning, then showing up in the Hotline—what the hell are you scheming?”
‘Showing up’? Wait, did this guy think I was following him?
Then again, with this many coincidences piling up, it was worth being suspicious. Especially since I’d apparently inadvertently drawn Aggro from the Stagnant Water crowd.
But accusing someone outright like that? My defense mechanisms kicked in reflexively.
“Are you insane?”
The man’s expression changed. He looked somewhat startled.
I crossed my arms and looked up at him.
“I’ve had bad luck since this morning. Who exactly is scheming against whom? I scraped both my knees because of you.”
“I didn’t say anything about scheming……”
The man faltered, his eyes dropping. He looked somewhat alarmed when he saw blood trickling down my legs.
“You’re hurt?”
“Yeah, I’m hurt. Because of you.”
“How is that my fault……”
“You threw me out without warning. I ran without thinking and drew Aggro and nearly died. How is that not your fault?”
“That’s because you were trying to go toward the Female Dormitory……”
The man suddenly stopped mid-sentence. Then, as if something had occurred to him, he asked:
“…Do you really not know anything?”
Do I really not know anything?
I didn’t know what context the question was even coming from, but I was ignorant enough not to know what context it was coming from.
The man let out a sound that was neither a sigh nor a groan. He glanced around before tilting his head at me.
“Just follow me for a bit.”
Of course, I didn’t move.
“Why should I trust you?”
The man’s eyebrows twitched. After a moment of hesitation, he put his hand in the front pocket of his Jumpsuit and pulled something out.
I instinctively prepared to step back, but what emerged from the pocket was, unexpectedly, a Business Card.
“There. Satisfied?”
The man held the Business Card up before my eyes. It bore the same red seal as Kwon Tae-hyun’s.
“…So you’re an agent?”
“You said you didn’t know anything, but you seem to know that much.”
I reflexively reached out to tap the smudged letters, but the man raised his arm high as if to say it was out of the question.
“Why should I trust you?”
“……”
Hearing my own words thrown back at me, I felt mildly embarrassed.
So this guy was what you’d call an undercover agent or something? Why hadn’t Kwon Tae-hyun given me a heads-up?
Then again, he wasn’t the type to explain such things kindly.
The man slipped the Business Card back into his inner pocket. Then he tapped the Boston Bag slung across his back with his hand.
“You wanted to know how to make money, right? I was headed to borrow some myself.”
‘Borrow?’
It was a phrase far too grounded in reality for the Fortress.
The man turned and began walking without further explanation. I hesitated for a moment, but ultimately followed after him.
“…Why are you helping me?”
I asked. I’d matched his rough tone earlier, but he didn’t seem to take offense.
“Well, I think I might’ve overreacted a bit back there……”
“Overreacted? You cornered me saying not to pull anything funny, and you call that an overreaction?”
“I didn’t phrase it quite like that… but honestly, wasn’t it a weird situation no matter how you look at it?”
“What was weird about it?”
Bibi clicked his tongue in disbelief.
“I saw you freezing in the Dormitory and figured you were a Drifter who’d just separated from your party, but then you suddenly show up in the Hotline, and right away you’re asking how to make money—anyone would be suspicious. Especially with the mood around here being so tense lately……”
“The mood?”
Bibi clicked his tongue, realizing he’d misspoken, and turned to walk again.
I could piece together a rough picture. Given Kwon Tae-hyun’s earlier attitude and the way things seemed to work in the Fortress, making money through less legitimate means was apparently common.
If you went around asking what seemed like entrapment questions while claiming to know nothing, of course you’d look suspicious.
Bibi and I walked along the Walking Path for a while. And shortly after, we arrived at……
the Central Library
A five-story building constructed of rose-colored brick. True to its name, it had small windows and was built in the hunched, fortress-like form.
The library wasn’t mentioned anywhere in the Rules Manual. But what was stranger still was that despite walking the Walking Path multiple times, I hadn’t noticed such a large building until now.
“The Central Library of Gwangyun Comprehensive University. It exists in a Territory that only those who know of its existence can perceive. In other words, anyone without connections to the Organization can never find it.”
Bibi glanced back at me and added:
“It doesn’t seem like Team Leader Kwon Tae-hyun explained any of this to you.”
“…No, he didn’t.”
The lobby was empty, and despite it being daytime, it was somewhat dim.

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————