episode_0019

– What? The principal came to pick you up personally?

“Yeah. He said he was curious about who I am.”

– Has this old man already lost his mind… What kind of ridiculous stunt is he trying to pull…

An irritated expression suddenly appeared in the director’s voice coming through the phone line.

– So?

“What?”

– What do you mean, ‘what’? The principal wouldn’t ask to see you without any reason. Did he ask you to do something strange?

“Well…”

I almost blurted out the conversation without thinking, but I swallowed my words as a sudden thought crossed my mind.

Judging by the director’s usual attitude and current reaction, it seemed clear that if I were to tell the conversation as it happened, he wouldn’t be pleased.

But I had already made up my mind a long time ago. Didn’t the director tell me himself? Now, I had to think and make decisions on my own.

If I consulted with them about everything like before, I wouldn’t be able to follow the director’s orders forever.

“…Nothing happened. We were just having a casual conversation. He seemed to need someone to talk to.”

In the end, I chose to beat around the bush. It pricked my conscience a little, but strictly speaking, it wasn’t a lie. Haewolhwa really rambled on for tens of minutes about useless nonsense.

And considering how he often invited me to come to the greenhouse, maybe he did need someone to talk to.

– What? That’s nonsense. Tell me honestly… Hey! Get out of the way…!

– Why are you… chirp… talking so long…!!

– Chirp… come out…! Me too…!

– Hyuna! Are you okay? Our Hyun… chirp… being lonely, what should we do… I should have followed you after all…

The director’s tone was incredulous. Suddenly, a commotion erupted on the other end of the phone line, with a lot of noise and shouting making it difficult to understand.

– Hyuna, did you experience anything strange with Teacher Hae? His personality is so eccentric…

In the end, it was the sisters who took control in place of the director. Sehwa noona’s voice full of concern echoed through the phone line.

“Really, nothing happened. He just seemed like a nice person. He even arranged for the hotel I’m staying at…”

– What? He arranged a hotel for you? What about the place you originally booked?

– Hotel? What are you talking about?

Sehwa noona’s voice became unusually sharp. In the background, Chaewon noona’s questioning voice could also be heard.

“He said this place would be better than the one I booked. I was a bit hesitant to refuse. And it’s really a nice place, so don’t worry. I’ve never stayed in such a luxurious place before…”

– …Hyuna, make sure to lock the hotel room door when you sleep. Got it? No, it’s better to use a lock…

Suddenly, Jin noona joined in, giving serious advice. I couldn’t understand why the sisters were acting like this all of a sudden. Maybe they were upset because I didn’t go to the pre-arranged accommodation…

“…Yes?”

– Hyuna, appearances aren’t everything. You understand, right? That’s a defective product. It may look fine on the outside, but it’s already spoiled inside. Falling for someone like this… Are you aiming for maternal love…

– You let your guard down… even though you’re getting old, you still have energy…

– Hyuna, you have to be careful. Do you know what that person’s nickname was when we were young? Seriously…

– Hey! I told you to stop! To others, you guys look like the strange ones! Just stop it…!

– You be quiet… chirp…!

– Come out… chirp…! I told you to leave…! Anyway, you’re not helping…!

The voices of the director and the sisters mixed together, and the phone line once again became chaotic. The sisters continued to exchange words that I couldn’t understand.

And it took me a long time to finally break free from the lectures and worries of my older sisters.

-My goodness, it’s already this late. I’m sorry, Hyuna. Have we been holding you back for too long?

“I’m okay…”

-I should go to bed soon. Sleep well, Hyuna. Even if we can’t call, make sure to write letters regularly!

-Sleep well~

“I will. Make sure the older sisters sleep well too.”

-Sleep well, Hyeoni! Don’t forget that your older sisters are always cheering you on!

-Click

“…”

As the noisy exchange of words came to a halt, I suddenly felt like I was left alone in the quiet depths of the sea.

The Captain and the older sisters were planning to take a break and head to the east. With the physical distance growing further from me in the western capital, and most of the east being remote areas without telephone lines, it would be impossible to have direct conversations like this for a while.

Thinking about this fact, I now truly feel the loneliness of being on my own.

It’s been almost two years since I met them and spent time together.

The pain of sending off my loved ones first still haunts me, but thanks to the care of the Captain and the older sisters, I am now able to overcome the sadness to some extent.

I am deeply grateful to them and only wish to somehow repay their kindness.

However, there were still many things I didn’t fully understand.

First and foremost, it was the Captain’s true identity.

When I started learning common sense from the older sisters and naturally found out the Captain’s surname, I was quite surprised.

No one would have thought that the rough and fierce Captain was a member of a prestigious family, let alone the heir of the Hyeokryeon Clan, one of the original five noble families.

Knowing this fact, I could finally make sense of the strange things that had been happening around the Captain.

For example, the fact that the commander of a superior unit was actually subservient to him.

Or how he could easily make me an identification card with the highest purple seal.

Or how he confidently claimed that he could cover up any strange accidents I might have, and so on…

But why such a remarkable person would voluntarily take on dangerous tasks in the borderlands was still a reason I couldn’t understand.

Most of all, I was curious about why the Captain, who had no connection to me, decided to take me in.

It seemed to be related to the background of my ability to use magic and the fact that I had received the designation of a Null Responder, but the Captain stubbornly kept his lips sealed until the end.

He even went as far as to sternly warn that it should never be revealed to anyone, so it was not appropriate to pry into it.

But despite mentioning that my ability was tempting, and seeming to actually know its true nature, the Captain never once asked me to use my ability for his benefit.

It was solely my stubbornness that led me to follow them to the battlefield, as the Captain and the older sisters had opposed it until the end.

There were other factors, such as the grudge the head of the Baekga Clan held against the Captain.

Or the incident involving the principal and their past.

There were too many things that left me curious.

But I had no intention of digging into those matters.

Everyone has a past they don’t want to talk about. I am no exception. For example, the trauma related to the ring that slipped from my finger that day, or the scars.

But the Captain and the older sisters never asked about those aspects. So it was only right for me to do the same.

In the end, what I need to do now is to faithfully focus on my academy life according to their demands, and do my best to ensure that the Captain and the older sisters do not suffer any harm.

After spending three years like this, when I graduate and return, the Captain will have no choice but to reveal the truth.

“…”

As my thoughts reached that point, my gaze naturally fell on the envelope the principal had handed me earlier.

Earlier, the older sisters told me to go to bed early, but instead, I found myself waking up in loneliness.

I opened the envelope and checked its contents.

The papers inside were detailed student records, like a school register.

Even though it felt strange to be reading someone else’s records, I decided to just treat it as part of the job…

I started reading through the documents, and the first thing I saw was a frontal picture of a female student.

At first, upon hearing about her personality, I worried she might be someone I knew, but thankfully, it was someone completely different.

With a slender and delicate face, large and clear eyes, and pale pink lips.

A refined, straight nose and flawless clear skin.

The captivating and haughty appearance made it clear that just by looks alone, she could attract people.

However, at the same time, I could sense the arrogance and aloofness within her.

I continued reading through the various information written below the photo of the female student.

-Name: Yeon Minha

-Grade: 2nd year

-Age: 18 years old

-Major: Elemental Magic

-Family: Yeon Clan of Cheonghwa

-1st year final comprehensive ranking: 2nd place…

An elemental mage. Come to think of it, the Yeon Clan is known for being a prestigious family of elemental mages.

One of the first five sorcerers to awaken during the Dawn Era was the pioneer of elemental magic, and his descendant, Yeon Ga, has been known to attract other sorcerers to her side or exert influence with her pioneering qualifications.

But whether she is an elemental mage or not is not that important right now. What caught my eye was the additional information written below.

-Record of receiving the most duel requests in 1st year (all wins)

-Suspected to be involved in a large-scale incident on March 4th of the same year, but lack of evidence led to disciplinary dismissal

-Got into an accidental altercation with a classmate on July 12th, resulting in a 10-week suspension. Claimed that the classmate initiated the conflict. Evidence supporting this claim was found, but disciplinary action was dismissed.

-On August 23rd of the same year, verbally abused a close friend, causing psychological trauma…

-On September 12th and 17th respectively…

“…”

Despite the small font, the record was extensive enough to fill a whole page. Each incident either had disciplinary action dismissed or received very light punishment.

-The student is suspected to have inherited the Yeon Clan’s unique violence, commonly known as the ‘Curse of the Elemental Mages.’ This seems to be an extreme manifestation of the inherent side effects of being an elemental mage, but due to lack of evidence, it is currently impossible to draw a conclusion.

The last paragraph unexpectedly gave me something to think about. The inherent side effects of being an elemental mage. Was there such a thing?

Elemental mages are a rare breed among sorcerers. Moreover, since I have always been on the fringes, I have only seen elemental mages a couple of times and do not have proper information about them.

It seems like I need to look into this further. If I can understand the inherent side effects of being an elemental mage and what this ‘Curse of the Elemental Mages’ is, it might even help me in my work…

“Sigh…”

Even though it was just the beginning, I already felt like I was hitting a wall. The principal asked me to put in effort, but it seems like she might reject me.

Furthermore, even though I haven’t met her yet, I don’t have a good impression of her either.

Her arrogance and haughtiness reminded me of something from the past.

Is it really possible for me to make friends with someone like her?

“…”

Suddenly, I remembered a conversation I had with Jin Nuna in the past.

-We are prisoners.

-Prisoners…?

-Yes. Ghosts who couldn’t escape the past, and the prisoners bound to them…

That self-deprecating tone and bitter expression still lingered in my memory.

I didn’t need to pry, but just those words alone were enough to give me a glimpse of their relationship.

It was all too obvious who was the ghost and who was the captive.

Yet, I couldn’t help but envy them instead.

There was a time when I, too, had someone like that.

Days that were happy and dream-like, so it felt like they would last forever.

But now, all of that has cruelly been trampled upon by the past.

My heart had long been torn to shreds.

Thoughts that once surfaced on the surface continued to loop in my mind.

The commander spoke, the sisters spoke, and the Hae-Wol-Hwa spoke.

“Hey. What’s so difficult about making friends and studying hard? Huh?”

“If you happen to like someone, make sure to consult with us first…”

“Our academy is very strict when it comes to romantic relationships. Unless you’re engaged, on-campus dating is absolutely prohibited. Got it? Absolutely prohibited.”

“…”

It could be said that either way, it was a completely useless worry.

Those days will never come back to me now.