Cube was the world’s greatest training institute that boasted state-of-the-art magic, science, and engineering. It was located in the East Sea on a huge artificial island twice the size of Yeouido. [1] This huge area contained 5000 hero cadets, of which 1300 were first years. Although 2000 non-combatants graduated 2 weeks ago, elite cadets from all over the world would replace them and further increase the competition. In a sense, this place could be considered too harsh to be a proper home for 17-19 year olds. Starting from the second year, magicians who wanted to become heroes would also transfer from the National Magic University, adding another 200-300 cadets.

Furthermore, Cube also included training instructors, cafeteria ladies, store workers, cleaners, recruiters, government associates, engineers, security, doctors, and researchers who all took care of the cadets. All these individuals added up to a total population of around 50,000.

Naturally, investors highly regarded this place. Korea was a world power rivaling the United States according to my novel’s setting. I listed several reasons, but the most obvious one was that I was Korean.

Chundong could be considered an elite as a Cube cadet. His destiny should be detached from the main storyline since I didn’t write any story for him. He wouldn’t have to live the burdening life of a main character and would probably live a carefree life. I wanted that kind of life too. I sighed in front of the classroom door.

[Novice – Veritas]

Novice referred to first year cadets, while Veritas was our class name. Simply put, I was in year 1 class 1. I knew that Shin Jonghak and Kim Suho were also in the same class. Cliques would form around them and Shin Jonghak would instigate many schemes that turned the class into a mess. Most likely, I would get swept up regardless of my will.

“Huuu.”

I carefully opened the door after collecting my breath.

The interior looked sleek and clean. White with no sign of dust and three long desks cascading up. Where should I sit? I looked around and found Shin Jonghak in the farthest back seat. He seemed imposing with his closed eyes and hands in his pockets. His childhood friend, Yoo Yeonha, chattered next to him. The 2 of them didn’t pay any attention to me. Thank God.

I sat at the edge of the middle row. I looked straight ahead like a proper extra. A screen projected holograms instead of a chalkboard. I couldn’t help but sigh as I looked at it. I couldn’t believe I was back in school after having already done my mandatory military service. There couldn’t be a worse calamity.

“… Yaaawn.”

Cube’s semester began in February. It was cold outside and the warm room made me sleepy. Currently, it was 8 A.M and class would begin at 8:30. Honestly, I didn’t plan to arrive this early. Traveling from Seoul to Cube took less time than I thought with a portal, and I also expected to get lost. Fortunately, something called the Cube bus ran every 10 minutes around campus, which didn’t exist in my original setting. Now that I think about it, it was an oversight to always have the main character walk around the huge campus. Since the novel became real, it seemed to be fixing plot holes on its own.

Anyways, let’s sleep a little. I don’t want to think anymore. I closed my eyes and dropped my head on the desk.

“Now!”

A thunderous shout woke me up. The instructor stood behind the podium when I opened my eyes.

“Today’s the first day, so there won’t be any special training. But I hope all of you did your morning training. You can never go wrong with training in the morning when mana is most dense.”

Morning training? Oh, right. There was something like that. A training ground opened up from 5 A.M. to 8 A.M. I stuffed it into the story so the leading characters could meet.

“Now, let’s start with self-introductions. I’m Kim Soohyuk, the instructor in charge of all of you for the year.”

I vaguely recalled his name.

“My national rank is 3850. World rank 9737. By the association’s classification, I am a high-intermediate rank, grade 5 hero.”

The students’ eyes lit up. That was understandable. Only around 2 million heroes existed in the world, so rank 9737 meant he was quite skilled.

“That’s enough for my introduction.”

Kim Soohyuk grinned at the students’ reactions.

“The first day always feels special. You might not have slept due to excitement and worry, or maybe you’re already looking forward to improving yourselves. Heh, maybe you’re just happy to see your crush again.”

The cadets broke out into small laughter, but the instructor kept a stern expression.

“Cube isn’t the same as before. I promise you will have no time for relationships. In Cube, you will experience real combat scenarios. Look forward to experiencing true fear.”

His mischievous smile sent a chill down my back. Combat training? I had to take part in that too?

“Cube is objective. The only indicator of success will be your grade. That’ll be the only thing that guilds look at, so we will grade you accurately and strictly. You will be held back if you underperform. Statistically, less than half of Cube cadets graduate without repeating a semester. Even then, you can only be held back up to 2 years. Any more than that and you will be expelled. If you can’t become a hero, you can become an agent or a mercenary. I take it that’s not what you want.”

The instructor scanned the students’ faces after giving them a scare.

“I see a few familiar faces.”

I did too. Kim Suho, Shin Jonghak, Yoo Yeonha, Chae Nayun, Rachel, and Yi Yeonghan. These 6 were the important characters I spotted. Shin Jonghak sat with Yoo Yeonha. Kim Suho and Chae Nayun sat apart since they considered each other rivals. Princess Rachel sat alone while Yi Yeonghan sat behind Kim Suho.

“I repeat. At Cube, you will confirm what you’ve learned until now and hone your skills in battle. There will be no easy training here. Remember that.”

With that, Kim Soohyuk announced the day’s activity.

“Prepare yourselves. Our schedule today won’t take long. The first task is to select your main weapon.”

***

“Any weapon you can think of should be here.”

A main weapon was exactly what it sounded like. High ranking heroes used treasured weapons, while those above the unique grade were called armaments.

I had no idea what weapon to choose since I knew nothing about Chundong.

“Stand in front of your chosen weapon. We’ll supply you with the training weapons, but don’t underestimate them. Their market prices go for 5 million won each.”

There were all sorts of weapons, more than I could’ve ever imagined. Sword, spear, saber, dagger, rapier, halberd, greatsword, zweihander, bow, gun, whip, gauntlet, etc. The 100 students of Veritas each stood in front of their chosen weapon.

“Choose carefully. You won’t be able to switch for at least 6 months once you pick your main weapon.”

Swords and spears were the most popular. Kim Suho and Shin Jonghak stood in front of a sword and a spear respectively. Seventy percent chose one of the so-called holy trinity of weapons: the sword, the spear, and the saber. On the other hand, Yoo Yeonha chose the whip, Chae Nayun chose the bow, and Rachel chose the rapier. However, I simply stood there.

“Kim Chundong, what are you standing still for?” Kim Soohyuk asked.

I stared blankly at the one weapon no one paid attention to. The weapon of choice in the modern world, one that didn’t require an instruction manual and anyone could use with a click. However, every hero avoided this weapon and considered it a useless lump of metal. Most likely, it was only here for the sake of having every weapon.

This was my only choice. I couldn’t use any close ranged weapons. Even if Chundong had talent, I didn’t want to participate where blood splattered everywhere.

“Kim Chundong.”

The instructor’s voice deepened as all the other students looked at me, including Shin Jonghak and Kim Suho. I didn’t like being the center of attention, so I quickly walked up and grabbed the weapon. I could feel the metal weight in my hand as the smell of rust tickled my nose. More eyes continued to stare.

I had chosen a handgun.