episode_0240

The part that Soo-ah poked with her finger is where the vessel of power is precisely shaped. She even goes so far as to refer to it as ‘hers’.

I could only think of one case. I suddenly locked eyes with a small creature that was staring at me. In those twinkling starry eyes, there was only blind favor toward me.

“Uhm?”

A thousand thoughts wandered around in that one bright smile.

Have you been hiding your identity all this time? For what? To bide your time and regain your power? But there have been plenty of opportunities to do so before. It wasn’t just once or twice that I fell.

Besides, if that was the goal… there was no need to reveal yourself like this…

“Dad! More! More! Please!!”

Su-ah felt that her arms were losing strength due to her complicated head, so she urged her on. She looked exactly like a girl of that age, which made it even more difficult to figure out.

I managed to calm my breathing and then spoke carefully to Su-ah.

“… Su-ah?”

“Yes!”

“I… Dad, I have one question for you… Is that okay?”

I changed a word without realizing it. The two pairs of eyes that were staring at the commotion here somehow had mixed feelings of joy and sorrow. One side was satisfied, the other side was sad…

“Yeah! It’s okay!”

Su-ah nods her head eagerly. As if she will answer anything. Is there no other way than to rely on this child’s kindness right now?

Taking another deep breath, I finally got to the point.

“By any chance… Are you Polaris…?”

“Polarishuh…?”

And Su-ah was deep in thought with her finger on the corner of her mouth. The tension was so strong that the sound of her swallowing was so loud.

And Suah’s answer was surprisingly simple.

“What is Polaris…?”

“… ”

Instead, I felt a sense of emptiness at the sight of her asking me questions. It didn’t seem like a lie that she had made up on purpose. It was a clear voice that conveyed only pure ignorance.

“Then… Do you remember what you were doing before you met Mom and Dad…?”

I had already half given up, but I managed to hold on and asked the question again. It was a desperate attempt to get at least a minimal amount of information.

“Um… ”

Su-ah was deep in thought this time too. The way she closed her eyes and groaned was quite cute.

And this time the ending was the same.

“I don’t remember!”

“… ”

My mind was blown. I needed to gather my thoughts at this point.

In any case, it is a well-established fact that Su-ah’s true identity is the witch Polaris. The witches who have seen my power all agree that its owner is Polaris. And Su-ah pointed to the bowl and called it exactly hers.

There are still many questions. Su-ah says that I took her power, but I lived without even feeling the existence of that power until I met the captain.

How did such a dangerous power come to me?

Moreover, the creatures called witches are nothing less than enemies of humanity. Why did such creatures appear before us in the form of kittens on the verge of death?

Rather than plotting the destruction of humanity, he has been living a leisurely life and now even calls me “daddy”…

But since Su-ah said she didn’t know about them, it was a standstill. It seemed like there was nothing more to find out now.

“Sua, did you answer well?”

“… Yeah, good job.”

“Hehehe… ”

As I patted her head with expectant eyes, Suah smiled brightly. I put Suah down on the chair and turned around.

And because I couldn’t keep up with the conversation, I saw two female students looking at me with questioning eyes. At first glance, it looked like they wanted an explanation.

The existence of witches had been announced long ago, but I didn’t know their names. However, it was not the right place to have a long conversation. Besides, we had just been engrossed in another topic.

“I’ll explain this later. And… ”

“… Ugh.”

“Sigh… ”

As my gaze turned to them, the two female students flinched at the same time. Their feelings were complicated. They had fought like enemies, but now they were both showing a pitiful appearance.

Yeon-i couldn’t even meet his eyes and lowered her head again. Yeon-min-ha, who had been spitting out harsh words, was nowhere to be found. She was just trembling as if she was anxious. Of the four, the only one who smiled was Su-ah, who was rolling around on my lap.

And I was about to open my mouth in a hurry, without even being able to organize my thoughts.

“I… ”

“What the hell is all this noise!!”

Suddenly, someone’s voice was heard. It was a roar like thunder. Soon after, at the sound of footsteps, Yeon-i and Yeon-min-ha both turned around with fierce expressions.

And somehow, the two of them lost their momentum in an instant.

“It is a sad thing.”

Well, he was an opponent that couldn’t be helped.

“Even though I was away for a short while, I never thought discipline would become this lax.”

Walking towards us was a girl dressed in dark, sophisticated attire. At first glance, she looked to be in her late teens, not much different from us.

A great beauty that would not be strange at all to let out an exclamation of admiration. However, her face was filled with an obvious anger directed at us. The blindfold covering one side of her face made it stand out even more.

“Principal… Teacher… ?”

“I told you clearly.”

And Haewolhwa, who was standing there, was spewing out more anger than anyone else.

“Dating within the academy is… absolutely forbidden… !”

***

Our three-way, no, four-way confrontation came to an end in an instant.

And by someone you never would have thought of.

“It’s the end of the world, it’s the end of the world.”

Yeon-i and Yeon-min had no choice but to step back immediately. Their faces were filled with discontent, but there was nothing they could do. Who in this cradle could possibly treat the two of them so forcefully? If you exclude me, who has no intention of doing so, then there would be only one person.

I’m a little grateful, because it gave me a chance to breathe a sigh of relief.

“A reckless and absurd play in the sacred place of learning… What a delusion… Even if the country falls into a state of ruin, I am very firm in my belief… ”

And somehow, I ended up being held captive by the principal and had to listen to her ramblings under the guise of a reprimand.

Are you trying to hold the so-called ‘love drama’ mastermind responsible?

“Tsk tsk, you’re really good at it.”

The principal, who had been walking side by side and mumbling for a while, finally glanced at me and opened his mouth.

“There was such a big commotion that I thought another accident had happened. But when I heard the whole story from the kids, I couldn’t believe my ears. That’s why I came to see you in person.”

“That… ”

“Don’t even think about making excuses. I told you clearly in the past. Dating on campus is strictly prohibited. But was this body’s warning that funny?”

“… No.”

The principal kept firing his magic bullets without stopping. It was clear that he had hit hard.

I have no intention of making excuses for what I did. But at the same time, I am also very curious about the principal’s intentions.

Why on earth does Haewolhwa dislike the students’ love life so much? From a national perspective, wouldn’t it be better to encourage it? The Republic is a country that is chronically suffering from a shortage of magicians.

This is the reason why even students from remote areas and lowly backgrounds work hard to collect from the cradle, and why they are forced to work hard on the front lines for over a dozen years even after graduating.

Since I didn’t know anything before entering the school, I could only nod my head.

But I heard that there used to be no such rules. The rules that forbid students from dating were all new rules that were created when Haewolhwa took office as the current principal.

They even tried to abolish the early engagement system, but due to the complicated relationships between the families, they eventually had no choice but to give up in tears…

“So, is that rumor really true?”

Haewolhwa still didn’t seem to have any intention of letting me go.

“Rumors… Are you talking about that?”

“The child of the fallen angel brought your child or something.”

“Coolook… !”

“Don’t even think about pretending not to know. I heard with my own two ears the slander the children gathered in the square were making.”

“How could that be? Yeon… Baek Seo-yeon Young-ae probably brought her niece. Isn’t that what kids at that age do? They go to anyone and call them dad… ”

I desperately tried to minimize the situation. I feel a little sorry for Su-ah, but there’s nothing I can do.

Fortunately, when Haewolhwa arrived, Suah had already disappeared. She may have sensed her anger and turned into a cat to hide herself.

It was a very fortunate thing for me. If the principal had seen Su-ah’s appearance, which resembled both me and Yeon-i, he would not have been able to make any excuses.

“Hmm… ”

And it was only after a long time that the principal finally stopped looking at me with suspicion.

“Well, I’ll believe you.”

The fresh-faced girl with slightly pouty lips nodded reluctantly. Was she persuaded? It wasn’t as difficult as I thought.

Maybe the principal trusts me quite a bit.

“That, that’s only natural. How could someone of that age have such a… shameless and outrageous… sexual intercourse… ”

“… ”

The principal trailed off, seeming embarrassed even after saying it himself.

It’s trustworthy, right?

“I… Are your eyes okay?”

After a storm passed, it suddenly seemed like the two of us were taking a walk together. I walked alongside him and tried to change the subject. I was feeling awkward in many ways…

“Didn’t you say it was okay a long time ago?”

And the principal said it was no big deal.

“The usual field of vision has only narrowed slightly. Even that is no different from before when the nervous system is expanded.”

“But… ”

“You’re a guy who’s good at worrying too much about small things. What are you going to do when I tell you I’m not okay? Are you going to support me? Huh? ”

“Yes.”

“… What?”

“If the principal is having a hard time… I thought I could help.”

“… ”

Then the principal stopped walking and stared at me. Was this a mistake? I thought he was joking because he had a rare smile on his face. So I hesitated and accepted it…

The smile was nowhere to be found, and Haewolhwa was frozen in place. Did she hurt the pride of the great wizard?

Well, how funny would it look if a freshman student was helping someone out and doing all that?

As expected, I clearly have no talent for jokes. While I was groaning and struggling to come up with a solution, the principal just stood there.

And only after quite some time did she open her mouth again.

“… Hmm. I guess there’s nothing I can do. If that’s what you mean… ”