Chapter 104

At the moment I heard those words, I felt as if cracks were forming in my mental barrier.

I tried hastily to reinforce it, but it was useless.

My mental barrier had weakened, and my unsettled spirit, unable to be properly contained, surged with a powerful wave of guilt, shaking me intensely.

As dizziness clouded my vision, I managed to open my mouth with great difficulty.

“Truly, I’m sorry, Student Han Min-ha.”

“No… please don’t. Professor, if you say that, it makes me even sadder….”

Yu Hye-won and Song Do-yoon, who were unaware of the situation, exchanged glances as they alternately stared at me and Professor Han.

“What’s going on with both of you? Are you alright, Professor? Your complexion is completely off.”

“I’m fine, it’s nothing at all…”

A fresh bout of headache cut me off mid-sentence as I took a deep breath.

Since the mental barrier meant to steady my spirit is failing me, this is proving somewhat challenging.

“Anyway, we should head inside.”

As Song Do-yoon, who was still slumped on the floor, spoke, Yu Hye-won grabbed my arm and pulled me up.

“Come on, Professor.”

“It does seem best that we do.”

“Tank, bring Chong with you.”

“Um… I got it…”

With Yu Hye-won’s support, I struggled back to the lounge.

Having discarded my skis, I collapsed onto the lounge sofa, tipping my head back and closing my eyes.

Right now, the memories of that moment are vividly resurfacing, and I am in a very confusing state.

Urgent communications, the encroaching green clouds, the shoulder bone shattered from impact on the ground, the two meteors plummeting.

Damn it… What the hell happened?

Whenever it involves the Hams, it’s this severe…

It’s likely due to the heavy guilt I carry.

And now, Professor Han too.

Had I met Han Min-ha at an earlier time, it wouldn’t have affected me this much.

She is the only child of the senior Han Tae-woo and his wife, and because of me, she was left without parents. Beyond that, she held no special meaning for me.

But things are different now.

Han Min-ha is my guidance student, and through the course of a year, we’ve grown very close.

The Han Min-ha from a year ago and today’s Han Min-ha are like two completely different people to me.

That’s why even tears shed this time feel different. The tears that Min-ha just cried struck me deeply.

“Are you alright?”

Yu Hye-won, worriedly pressing her hand to my forehead, asked.

“My head is a bit dizzy. If I sit still, it should improve.”

The headache is from the instability of my mental barrier, so there’s nothing to do but wait until it settles.

“Hmm, why are you suddenly like this…? Should we go to the medical room? We do have one here.”

“No. It’s not that bad.”

“I don’t like seeing you in pain, Professor.”

Yu Hye-won, stroking my cheek, expressed her dissatisfaction.

“I’m sorry. We came to the ski resort after all, and it’s because of me.”

“It’s not that, right? I dislike seeing you in pain, not that someone can’t ski because of you.”

Though I wanted to say something to console her, I was too weak, so I could only smile weakly.

“Don’t smile. It’s annoying.”

Still, Yu Hye-won glanced around and then sneaked a peck on my cheek.

“It can’t be helped. We’ll just have to keep you locked up at my place until you’re fully recovered.”

At her whispered words, I couldn’t help but chuckle.

How adorable.

I find the stark contrast between this and her ordinarily fierce personality even more charming.

“By the way, why did you apologize to Tank earlier?”

Some time later, Yu Hye-won carefully inquired.

“Tank, you should stop saying things like that too. Is there something I don’t know about?”

Yu Hye-won, this isn’t something that would warrant your suspicion. Please don’t worry about it.”

“You can’t decide to worry or not unless you tell me what it is.”

I hesitated for a moment.

Sikrito’s operational history must never be disclosed to others.

The only reason I mentioned it to Han Min-ha was because it involved her parents.

And it was necessary to do so in order to elevate her aura.

Therefore, there’s no need to answer Yu Hye-won.

Nonetheless, I was still contemplating.

If I gloss over it without clear explanation, Yu Hye-won may continue to suspect after recalling our brief conversation earlier.

It could pass this time, but as time goes by, her suspicion might grow, undoubtedly causing a significant rift within our team.

Moreover, Yu Hye-won is not an ordinary individual like Han Min-ha. She has gone through various twists and turns but eventually came under my tutelage, maintaining a close relationship ever since.

While she may appear tough on the outside, I know well that she is kind, warm-hearted, and fiercely loyal.

Indeed, telling her the truth is the right choice.

“Hye-won student, do you know what your father did during his hero days?”

“Our father? Hmm… I don’t know much, but I heard he was somewhere strange.”

“He was the leader of a secret organization under the Bureau, and so am I a product of that.”

“Eh? Really?”

“Moreover, the parents of Student Han Min-ha were also part of that group. They were on my team.”

“Huh?”

I continued the story with my head tipped back and eyes closed.

Being from the same orphanage and coincidentally awakening special abilities and activating our auras, we all three entered Graford Academy.

Uniquely, while the two of them maintained good grades, I became obsessed with defense techniques, delving so deeply into it that I ended up graduating with a low rating.

In a state of uncertainty, through the recommendation of Yu Hye-won’s father, I joined Sikrito.

“That’s because at that time, with my level, there were barely any options available for me.”

“But given your current skills, you should have graduated at least at B-level.”

“Because I only focused on defense techniques and neglected the other subjects. Of course, a well-used defense technique can be very powerful, but as the graduation exam evaluated each subject separately, that’s how it was. In any case…”

After joining Sikrito, I worked in a duo team with a certain hero until we disbanded and then formed a new team with the parents of Han Min-ha.

The hero who left me due to the chairman of the advisory board’s cold commandments and values that didn’t align with mine must have experienced immense stress.

After forming a team with the parents of Han Min-ha, we worked together for a few years.

Until the incident happened when Han Min-ha was in middle school, leading to the immediate death of the Seniors Han Tae-woo and his wife.

“It ended like that. That’s why I said sorry to Student Min-ha earlier.”

My voice cracked as I spoke, choked with emotion.

“If I had been more composed at that time, right about now Min-ha would be skiing with her parents instead of us, and Min-ha would have never cried. That’s all.”

Yu Hye-won said nothing.

Opening my eyes, to my surprise, she was looking at me with tears streaming down her face.

“Your poor professor.”

Yu Hye-won, whispering, gently brushed my hair aside.

“Poor Min-ha. How lonely and tough it must have been for both of you.”

Her hand was so warm and gentle that I closed my eyes again, feeling her touch and her tear-tinged voice.

“You’ve gone through a lot, haven’t you?”

“A bit.”

“You must have been so suffering.”

Yu Hye-won leaned closer and rested her head on my shoulder, lightly holding me in her arms.

“Our professor. You’ve been through so much, haven’t you?”

Yu Hye-won’s calm voice struck deep into my heart, and I clenched my teeth to hold back the tears.

It’s truly strange.

The mental barrier assists in maintaining clear judgment while simultaneously preventing one from being overwhelmed by intense emotions.

If the mental barrier was functioning properly, there should have been no chance for tears to even form.

“But from now on, don’t be sad. I’ll make sure you’re not.”

“How will you do that?”

“Even a person like me, a clumsy girl, can make an old bachelor like you happy.”

“Haha, what will that entail?”

“Plenty of things. Taking care of the housework when you come home. Preparing a delicious meal to welcome you after work. Relaxing together in front of the TV. And then, at night, in the bed…”

The sudden stop in Yu Hye-won’s speech caught my attention, and she roughly pushed me away and distanced herself.

Apparently, Han Min-ha and Song Do-yoon were entering the lounge at that moment.

“Did you clear the snow outside? Why did you come in so late?!”

Yu Hye-won, completely changing her tone from before, scolded Han Min-ha, who was smiling broadly.

“Ha ha, sorry. It took a while because Do-yoon was helping me take off the skis. How’s the professor doing?”

“I’ve recovered. I’m sorry to all of you.”

“That’s a relief. Please let us see your face.”

As Han Min-ha approached from behind and began massaging my cheeks vigorously with both her cold hands, Yu Hye-won glared.

“If your cold hands make the professor catch a cold, what will we do?”

“Ah, that’s true. Sorry!”

Han Min-ha backed away quickly, retreating like an ancient court eunuch bowing out.

She looked so cute and comical that I couldn’t help but laugh out loud.

“It seems that all is well if you’re laughing like that?”

According to Yu Hye-won’s comment, I intentionally stood up vigorously from the sofa and shook my body.

“Thanks to all of you, I seem to have recovered. Should we go out again?”

“Sounds good!”

Together, we headed from the lounge towards the exterior of the ski resort.

As Song Do-yoon followed behind me, he called me quietly.

“Professor.”

“Yes, Student Do-yoon?”

“Will you teach me skiing?”

“Of course. If you don’t ski at a ski resort, what will we do? I’ll give you a crash course, so don’t worry.”

“Thank you.”

But Student Do-yoon should not have requested that.

It would have been better if he had asked Student Han Min-ha instead.

What else could explain how Han Min-ha, who ranked nearly last semester, displayed such remarkable skills at the end of this semester?

“Uh, professor, sorry to bother you…”

“Don’t stop, Student Do-yoon. Hold the stick properly.”

“I’m starting to lose strength in my legs now…”

“In that stance, you’re vulnerable to surprise attacks from enemies. So watch carefully and follow me.”

“Do we really have to ski as if we are going to be attacked? We came here to enjoy, right?”

“But to quickly master it and mingle with other students, it’s unavoidable. Bend your knees and lower your waist.”

“Yes, professor…”

In this way, the Golden Viper and the Gray Fungus enjoyed a wonderful day at the ski resort.

But Song Do-yoon should have chosen otherwise.

Rather than my accelerated instruction, he would have had a smoother learning curve taking lessons from Han Min-ha.

“Sorry, professor…”

“Keep moving, Do-yoon student. Grasp the stick correctly.”

“I’m just starting to lose strength in my legs…”

“To move properly, you’ll be vulnerable to attacks. Watch me carefully and follow.”

“Do we really have to think of this as enemy attacks? We came to relax, right?”

“If you want to get better and enjoy with your peers, this is necessary. Bend your knees and lower your waist.”

“Yes, professor…”

And in this way, Goldenviper and Greyfungi spent a delightful day at the ski resort.

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