During the training,
A woman—none other than Tina—opened the day with her long speech before the practice even started…
Until finally, Tina began explaining about the training spots that suited each type of group, and that people with the same type would be grouped together—so they could learn from each other and gain more useful information.
With excitement, Tina started calling out each type one by one:
> "MAGE!"
"ASSASSIN!"
"MARKSMAN!"
Everyone was excited—many stood up, proud to be those types.
But when it came to the melee type, not a single woman stepped forward.
Tina looked confused.
> "Hey... Where are the melee types??? Tanks??? Fighters??? Berserkers???"
She kept listing everything related to close combat types until she almost gave up.
Just as she was about to move on to the next type, a woman—older, more mature, definitely not one of the young ones—stepped forward alone.
All the other girls were shocked, whispering and murmuring behind her back.
Some were surprised:
> "Is she seriously a close-range fighter??? Has she not heard the rumors???"
Some said things with a tone of mockery:
> "Huh??? A woman as a melee fighter? Did I hear that right??? Is she insane or just desperate for money??? Ew…"
Arla, realizing the situation, decided to make use of every facility available for her type.
With a sarcastic tone, she said:
> "Wow, what a waste, huh? It's not that hard, unless everyone's scared of monsters? I mean, isn't most of our job just killing goblins these days since they've become more massive? Besides, most pure monsters were already wiped out during Tina's era—now it's just half-monster humans, mostly men, and all we have to do is bring them back here and get paid. WHAT'S SO HARD ABOUT THAT???"
Some of the women didn't take that well—mocking her, insulting her, looking down on her—until one woman, from the Mage type, spoke up with something that even Arla didn't know.
A mysterious Mage woman said:
> "Hey... Have you never heard of the 33/3 Incident???"
The moment she said that, everyone around went completely silent—as if terrified. Some even screamed in panic or froze in trauma.
Meanwhile, Arla stood there confused, having no idea what that 33/3 thing was.
Seeing the atmosphere turn heavy, Tina quickly ordered everyone to BE QUIET, and without further talk, she approved Arla's request to use the facilities.
Later, during her training, Arla still couldn't shake off what happened.
She wanted to find out about that mysterious "33/3," but not now.
Still, deep down, she already knew who she'd have to ask when the time came.
With determination, Arla muttered:
> "Whatever it is, I won't take my words back. I HAVE TO PASS THIS EXAM—AND BRING MY FATHER AND HUSBAND BACK TO BEING HUMAN AGAIN!!!!"
---
After training ended,
Arla smiled to herself.
> "Ah… Finally done. Honestly, I feel kinda lonely—but also peaceful. It's like having a VIP room all to myself. I can finally relax without worrying about what others say. Hehe… Alright, time to head to my room."
When she got to her room and started taking a shower, her mind couldn't stop replaying what that mysterious woman had said.
She hadn't even been curious at first—but now, she couldn't let it go.
Even showering felt uneasy.
Then suddenly—someone knocked on her door.
Arla was startled.
No one else should be resting right now—everyone else was still in training.
She quickly threw on her clothes and went to check.
With a curious voice, she said:
> "Who's there??? Is someone trying to prank me? This isn't funny, you know!!!"
Suddenly, a familiar voice came from behind her—someone tapped her shoulder, which felt firm from her training.
It was Sara.
With a relaxed tone, Sara said:
> "Calm down, Miss Muscles... It's me, your best buddy, the soon-to-be strongest assassin in the South! Hehe…"
Then, her tone turned serious.
> "You wanna know about the 33/3 Incident, right? And what it has to do with your melee type? I'm right, aren't I?"
Arla, expressionless but curious, replied:
> "Yeah, you're right. I've been restless thinking about it all day. So, what actually happened?"
Hearing that, Sara pulled out a small potion bottle—one that was usually used in the previous era.
Sara explained:
> "This potion's actually super expensive—and it's almost impossible to find anymore! You know why? Because it's USELESS NOW, COMPLETELY UNNEEDED!!!"
Arla looked unimpressed.
> "Isn't that just a normal potion? You can even make that yourself. Maybe that's why it doesn't sell?"
Sara replied:
> "It's NOT just that!!! What you've seen or what other adventurers used to make are all low-level versions. Only a few could upgrade it to a high-level one—and of course, those were MAGES!!!"
Arla leaned in closer, examining the potion carefully.
Then she realized:
> "Oh… isn't this a pregnancy prevention potion? The one used by adventurers so they don't get pregnant—even though it's rare for that to happen from monsters or goblins? Couples on long missions used it too, just in case something… bad happened—it helps them deal with it easier."
Sara nodded.
> "Exactly… and THAT was how it started—and why the 33/3 Incident became so SHOCKING!!!!"