Chapter 41

It was late at night by the time we were finally able to return to the Academy.

Chae, who was sitting in the passenger seat, seemed to have worked overtime yesterday as well, as she nodded off. Behind her, Professor Han sat silently, gazing out the window.

There was no way to tell what he was thinking; his expression gave nothing away.

And sitting diagonally behind me, in the seat of highest rank, Yu Hye-won leaned conspicuously in her place.

“Man, this is weird,” she muttered.

She was busily doing something on her cracked smartphone while grumbling to herself.

“Hey, let me see your phone,” she said.

After forcibly taking Professor Han’s phone, Hye-won rapped her thumbs across the cracked screen at an incredible speed.

Frowning in apparent frustration, it seemed she wasn’t having much luck.

“What’s going on here…” she muttered.

“What’s wrong? Is something going on?” Professor Han asked her.

“There were definitely people filming us before, right?” Yu Hye-won asked.

“Uh… I think so…”

“Then why is it so quiet now? Shouldn’t there be chaos by now?”

“You mean chaos?”

“Some video under the title ‘Astonishing Blonde Academy Student Fights an Unexpected Villain’…”

I see. Yu Hye-won was curious about the public’s reaction to the earlier incident.

This situation certainly warranted significant media attention: academy students in gym uniforms taking down a villain suddenly appearing in the city center close to the academy. The kind of event that could provide a scandalous headline.

However, it seems reality isn’t playing out this way.

“No, seriously, why isn’t anything showing up?”

“Well… there’s no video or anything?”

“No video, no news… are you serious? Not even a mention?”

Yu Hye-won kept shaking her head while she handed back the phone to Professor Han.

“This is so strange…”

While both Yu Hye-won and Professor Han remained in the dark, I had a hunch about the reason behind this phenomenon.

The Sikritos were monitoring everything closely.

Granted, the video featuring the students was one thing, but given that I intervened towards the end, there would inevitably be footage of a former Sikrito in combat. They wouldn’t let that sort of thing slip out. Instead, they’d preemptively block anything that might be associated or mentioned alongside such clips.

So, it makes sense that nothing has surfaced yet.

It’s unfortunate for Yu Hye-won, though.

“Huff… seriously, why even bother now? If I’d known, I would’ve just fled the scene…”

“But still… we managed to step in and at least reduce some damage, didn’t we?” Professor Han offered.

“Us?” Yu Hye-won asked with a smirk, revealing her sharp teeth.

“Ah… that’s right… thanks to your help…”

Yu Hye-won was truly unpredictable.

Sometimes, she was bursting with confidence, but beneath it all, she seemed like a genuinely kind person. And yet, other times she exhibited traits of an unfeeling sociopath in certain situations.

“Anyway, you really are a stubborn one, aren’t you? How could you not use your aura under such circumstances?”

“That’s… I tried, but…”

“If only you had been able to fight at that moment, I could’ve covered from behind… sigh… maybe I shouldn’t say this.”

Yu Hye-won sighed deeply and went back to typing something frantically on her broken phone.

As the conversation died down, Professor Han returned his gaze to the window, apparently unfazed by Yu Hye-won’s harsh words.

Has she already adapted to Yu Hye-won’s sharp and demanding personality?

It truly is a remarkable combination considering how ill-suited they initially seemed as guidance students. When I first thought of pairing them, I had doubts, but somehow, they’re moving forward together.

Let’s continue this way, Golden Viper and the Gray Mold.

—

Professor Hyun dropped Yu Hye-won and Professor Han off in front of the dormitory.

Since it was Friday’s extended lights-out time, even though it was late, the dorm was well-lit, and the usual raucous sounds could be heard from within.

If they entered now, there would be little chance of drawing suspicion from the other students.

“You both worked hard today. Hye-won, make sure you get checked at the health center tomorrow,” Professor Hyun reminded them.

“I’m fine, really,” Yu Hye-won replied.

“You still need to go. Sometimes people seem fine after a battle and then suddenly get much worse months later.”

At these words, Professor Han gasped and turned to look at Yu Hye-won.

“Would you really want that to happen?”

“No… but I’m still worried, so I’ll go with you tomorrow…”

“I’ll handle it myself, don’t worry.”

Chae decided not to head to the staff dormitories but opted instead to go to the administrative building on foot. She mentioned she had some work to finish before the weekend.

“Then everyone, get plenty of rest.”

Professor Han bowed deeply to Professor Hyun, whose car was backing out of the dorm parking lot, while Hye-won gave a half-hearted wave.

“Goodbye, Director.”

“Goodbye, kids. Consider this one a lucky break.”

“Thank you.”

Once Chae had also gone, an alone Yu Hye-won nudged Professor Han’s arm with her elbow.

“Is that what you want?”

“What?”

“Do you want to be like that professor? Using finger flicks to defeat villains?”

“Eh… I wouldn’t mind…”

“Then… please, just use your aura. For the love of everything, please, just use it!”

“Uh… I’ll try…”

Yu Hye-won, who had been about to launch into another tirade, changed her tone to something softer.

“Still, I noticed your stamina has improved, right?”

“W-Well… I guess so? All that running until I vomited every day paid off, it seems.”

“Expect even more intense training going forward. Get ready.”

“Yeah…”

With a characteristic evil grin, Yu Hye-won pinched Professor Han’s cheek before heading into the dorm.

Proud despite receiving only lukewarm praise, Professor Han followed her into the dormitory with a skip in his step.

—

At that moment, Song Do-yoon, who had been leaning against Yu Hye-won’s dorm door, sprinted to the corridor window upon hearing her voice.

There, she saw Yu Hye-won affectionately caressing Professor Han’s cheek and whispering something to him. Professor Han, who rarely smiled in her presence, beamed at her.

Then, the two happily entered the dormitory, disappearing from Song Do-yoon’s sight.

In the dimly lit corridor, Song Do-yoon stood frozen like a statue before suddenly smashing the bottle of alcohol she had been holding against a wall with all her strength.

The bottle—meant to be shared with Yu Hye-won—shattered, cutting her cheek. Blood dripped down her face, unnoticed by her as she stared down at the growing crimson puddle pooling on the floor.

Han Min-ha… What were you doing with her in the middle of the night?

Song Do-youn’s expression darkened.

Han Min-ha…Han Min-ha…

What did you two do to make her act so tenderly?

That big chest of yours, did you use it to lure her?

I want to know. Tell me, Han Min-ha…

Song Do-yoon slowly opened her eyes. A faint bluish aura began to shimmer around her body, her eyes glinting with an ominous light.

Han Min-ha… How do I tear you away from my Yu Hye-won?

The vague idea that had been swirling in Song Do-yoon’s mind began to crystallize into a concrete plan.

—

The next day.

I woke the late-sleeping Yu Hye-won and took her to the health center. She insisted on only getting an X-ray, but the emergency room director on duty, Choi Sung-jun, who was waiting for his weekend shift, eventually took her inside.

After a villain fight, a thorough medical examination is mandatory.

It’s impossible to predict how a villain’s characteristics or powers could affect the human body. What might seem like a mere bruise could later lead to flesh rotting, or hearing damage from merely listening to their voice.

A comprehensive medical examination after a battle typically lasts around an hour, sometimes up to two.

During this wait, I decided to finally have a conversation with Han Min-ha. Fortunately, the waiting area for guardians offered a good place for quiet conversation.

“Student Min-ha, did you sleep well last night?”

“Yes, and Professor?”

“I slept well.”

This was a lie.

Last night, I had the same dream again about Han Min-ha’s parents falling.

“The last time we met, I promised to look into Student Min-ha’s parents.”

“Ah, yes.”

“I took leave specifically for that reason.”

“Are you really going to that extent…?”

“There’s a reason. You are my guidance student, and I have the duty to properly guide my students.”

“Ah…”

“Min-ha needs to be able to use aura to continue progressing. I believe that key lies in understanding your parents’ disappearance. That’s why I did this.”

Min-ha slowly nodded.

“Min-ha, you said you were curious about your parents?”

“Yes…”

“If you’re ready, I can tell you.”

Han Min-ha closed her mouth, her face darkening, as if deep in thought.

I decided to wait for her to gather her thoughts.

You must be curious… but perhaps you might not want to hear anything at all.

Maybe you’d rather avoid it, cover it up, push it away.

Because of this, I couldn’t rush to share this with her.

Finding the truth is my job, but choosing to listen or not is Min-ha’s.

“Our parents…”

After a pause, Min-ha finally opened her dry throat with a quiet voice.

“What happened to them…?”

“Min-ha’s parents… they passed away during a mission.”

“Ah…”