Chapter 308: 18th Week Final Exam Part 1

Class Time.

With the final exam content about to be revealed, heavy tension filled the classroom.

Then, out of nowhere, Lee Soo-dok glanced around the room and suddenly spoke.

“I’ll tell you an old story.”

“……?”

“There was a time when Dungeon Island wasn’t divided into multiple layers like it is now.”

A long time ago, back when Dungeon Island was a lawless zone.

Back then, dungeons weren’t categorized by difficulty like they are today. Instead, they were all jumbled together.

An F-rank dungeon could be right next to a D-rank one, with a B-rank dungeon just beyond it.

“And right next to the Cheese Trap, there was another dungeon. Its location was tricky, and its interior was very similar.”

Since it was right beside the Cheese Trap, it was easy to enter by mistake.

If someone realized they had stepped into the wrong dungeon, they would have tried to escape immediately. But because the two looked so alike, even recognizing the mistake wasn’t easy.

In other words, adventurers unknowingly entered this unknown dungeon, thinking it was the Cheese Trap and attempted to clear it.

As a result—

“Many adventurers never returned. It took a long time before the dungeon was finally conquered and its true nature was revealed.”

With a snap of Lee Soo-dok’s fingers against the blackboard, a dungeon map appeared.

Sure enough, structurally, it did resemble the Cheese Trap in many ways.

However, the map before them was far larger, more complex, and filled with tightly packed traps and monsters.

“A-rank dungeon. Iron Maiden. This is where the final exam will take place.”

So it’s finally here.

I had already expected this, and so had everyone else.

The hints had been dropping since last week, and a little research would have made it obvious.

Even so, the students’ faces remained grim. Knowing the dungeon in advance didn’t make the difficulty easier.

Even the fact that it was a replica dungeon would be of little comfort.

The Cheese Trap replica alone had been enough to make people wail in despair.

And Iron Maiden was just as difficult if not harder. There was no way it would be any easier.

Of course, the academy had no intention of considering the students’ struggles.

It was all based on the belief that overcoming harsh adversity forged stronger heroes.

Lee Soo-dok seemed to fully agree with that philosophy. Judging by his expression, he was secretly pleased that such a high-difficulty dungeon had appeared.

“Now, I’ll explain the differences between the two dungeons. You can already tell just by looking at the map that the scale is completely different.”

A larger scale meant greater distances between key points.

To reach the Cheese Room and the Control Room before finally escaping, the students would have to travel a much greater distance.

And along the way, they would inevitably encounter far more enemies and obstacles.

“Of course, since the dungeon is bigger, you’ll also come across various other rooms. You might find places to rest. Or even discover useful items.”

Most of them would be hidden, so they had better search carefully. Lee Soo-dok made sure to leave them with that hint.

“The next difference is the monsters. The main enemy in Cheese Trap was the poltergeist.”

“…….”

Disgust was written all over everyone’s faces.

Even Shin Byeong-cheol and the other thieves looked disgusted.

Poltergeists flitted around at high speed, triggering trap after trap as they went. If an attack was even slightly delayed, they would slip away into the walls or ceiling.

They were disgusting monsters in every possible way.

“In Iron Maiden, poltergeists won’t appear. Instead, you’ll be dealing with different spirit monsters. Though I’m not sure you’ll find that to be good news.”

The dungeon map on the blackboard vanished and was replaced by illustrations of two types of monsters.

One was a ghost armed with various weapons and radiating clear hostility.

The other was the figure of a screaming woman.

<Specter>

<Banshee>

The Specter attacked with close-range attacks or long-range magic depending on its weapon, while the Banshee cast area-wide debuffs.

Hearing its scream would cause certain skills or traits to drop in rank.

Either way, they were no easier to deal with than poltergeists.

“Next, if you’ve fought a doppelganger in the last strategy battle, raise your hand.”

Fighting a doppelganger meant that instead of focusing solely on escaping the dungeon, one had attempted to disable the control room.

Only a handful of people had the skill and composure for that, and fewer than ten students raised their hands.

Go Hyeon-woo and I were among them, while Seo Ye-in who had dozed off face-down didn’t bother.

Lee Soo-dok’s gaze lingered on me for a moment before shifting to Seo Ye-in and then moving on.

The fact that he didn’t even try to wake her suggested that even the so-called “human butcher” had given up on the “human sloth”.

Lee Soo-dok continued speaking.

“If you haven’t faced one yet, you will this time. It’s a standard monster.”

“……!”

The students who had raised their hands stiffened.

Even though the doppelganger’s clones were considered inferior copies, they were still difficult to defeat. And now, instead of encountering them in the control room, they would have to deal with them while wandering the labyrinth.

“…….”

Meanwhile, Seo Ye-in groggily woke up at those words and stared at me blankly.

There was a glint of anticipation in her gray eyes.

I had a feeling I knew exactly why, so I immediately put on a stern expression.

“No. Stop upgrading the pot.”

No Kim Ho Kim Ho Kim Ho Pot.

If a doppelganger copied me again during the finals, I planned to take it down as quickly as possible this time.

With the replay function set to public and too many eyes watching, I couldn’t afford to let a copy of my skills run wild.

Just then, a student hesitantly raised a hand.

“Um, teacher.”

“Speak.”

“Then… what about the control room?”

If the doppelgänger in Cheese Trap’s control room was a standard monster in Iron Maiden,

Then what kind of monster would be in Iron Maiden’s control room?

“That’s a good question.”

Lee Soo-dok responded but then fell silent for a while.

Sensing that something was off, the students began murmuring in low voices.

– …No way.

– Come on, that can’t be it. Right?

– That would be crossing the line, even for finals.

– Yeah, no way… right?

But as if mocking their speculation, Lee Soo-dok soon gave them a definitive answer.

“I, along with the other teachers, will each be guarding a control room.”

It was unlikely that the decision was made just to increase the difficulty.

More than that, it was probably meant to completely block any external interference.

The Blood Fury Syringe incident during the midterms had already caused a major uproar. If something similar were to happen again during the finals, Dragon Slayer Academy’s reputation would be in shambles.

Guarding the control room meant having control over the traps.

And with the teachers’ fighting power added into the mix, they would be able to handle any unexpected situations that arose.

“We’ll go over the control rooms again later. First, I’ll explain the rules.”

The blackboard was wiped clean once more, and new text appeared, outlining the rules and environment.

MAP:[Iron Maiden]

RULE:[Survival][Fixed Zone (B)][Double][Three Teams]

“The survival rules are the same as the deserted island midterms.”

Inventory was locked.

The only things we could bring in were two pieces of equipment and the uniforms.

Everything else had to be obtained within the dungeon.

“Additionally, this dungeon is a Fixed Zone. That means the rank cap is B.”

This is meant to keep the teachers in check.

Most of the first-years didn’t even have B-rank skills or traits, let alone A-rank, so there was no risk of them being affected by the Fixed Zone restriction.

In other words, this restriction was put in place to weaken the teachers guarding the control room, as well as any potential intruders.

From a first-year’s perspective, taking down an A-rank opponent was out of the question, but if they worked together, they might have a chance against a B-rank.

“The party consists of three teams of two, making a total of six people, and points are shared. However, starting points are random.”

This meant that each team of two would be scattered across three different locations.

With the dungeon being both vast and maze-like, regrouping wouldn’t be easy.

“Now, onto the scoring criteria. As you experienced in Cheese Trap, the most important factor is the ‘Cheese Box’.”

The key objective was to go to the cheese room, obtain a box, and carry it to the exit.

“Each team is given one box, and submitting it at the exit grants 500 points. That makes a total of 1,500 points. The point multiplier is four times.”

Just meeting the basic goal would yield 1,500 points and a staggering 6,000 overall points.

However, that also meant that even accomplishing the bare minimum would be difficult.

Lee Soo-dok curled his lips into a grin and continued.

“And from the fourth box onward, each additional box is worth 200 points.”

“…Is there a limit?”

At someone’s question, Lee Soo-dok answered with a single word.

“None.”

“….…!”

That meant there was no cap on how many cheese boxes could be submitted.

Four boxes would yield a total of 1,700 points.

Six would be 2,100 points.

Ten would be 2,900 points.

The scoring system openly encouraged plundering.

It wasn’t just about reaching the exit. It was about safely protecting the cheese boxes along the way.

“Lastly, the control room. I can already see some of you getting scared and giving up just because the teachers are guarding it. But for those with the guts to take on the challenge—”

Lee Soo-dok glanced over in my direction, clearly hoping I would take him up on it.

Lately, he’d been paying an uncomfortable amount of attention to me.

I chose not to react for now and Lee Soo-dok continued speaking.

“—If you shave off a certain amount of my health, I’ll pull the lever. And every participating team will receive 1,500 points.”

“!!”

“……!”

The classroom buzzed at the shocking point reward.

Bold and eager glances darted across the room.

They took the bait.

Just securing three cheese boxes and neutralizing the control room would net 3,000 points.

Grabbing extra boxes would earn even more.

It was impossible not to be tempted.

Of course, there are plenty of restrictions.

The teachers’ ranks would be downgraded to B under the [Fixed Zone] rule.

Plus, there was no need to take them down completely. Just reducing their health to a certain level would suffice.

At this point, it would seem doable, right?

But will it really be that easy?

During the mentoring sticker duel battle, Dang Gyu-young had toyed with the first years even with all her skills and traits restricted to C-rank.

The sheer difference in equipment, skill count, trait combinations, and overall execution was staggering.

If even a third-year club president was that dominant, then a teacher who was not even limited to C-rank but was limited to B-rank instead…

It was easy to picture first-years getting wiped out en masse.

On top of that, the exact skill and trait composition of Lee Soo-dok and the other teachers were still unknown, meaning even I couldn’t guarantee a 100% victory.

Still, I have to try.

[Side Quest: 18th Week Final Exam]

▷ Objective 1: Move the cheese boxes (0/3)

▷ Objective 2: Neutralize the control room (0/1)

▷ Reward: Varies based on achievement level

Midterms and finals generally offered better rewards than regular side quests.

The most notable reward was the Fixed Pin.

So, aiming for the highest possible achievement was essential, and that meant the control room couldn’t be ignored.

Whether it worked out or not, I had to at least give it a shot.

With that in mind, I didn’t avoid Lee Soo-dok’s gaze. I met his eyes directly.

He must have picked up on something because he responded with a cold smile.

Of course, whether I would end up facing Lee Soo-dok in the control room or run into Seo Cheong-yong, Madam Jo Ok-soon, or someone else remained to be seen.

“Today will be spent preparing and forming teams. The final exam begins tomorrow morning, so be sure to gather at the dungeon building on time.”