It was the middle of the night when Han Min-ha stepped out into the dormitory hallway.
It was to go over to Yu Hye-won’s room.
However, no matter how much Han Min-ha knocked on the door, Yu Hye-won didn’t respond.
Is she asleep? If so, there’s nothing I can do. Guess I’ll have to go with Do-yoon.
Carefully crossing over to the room opposite, Han Min-ha softly knocked on the door. Soon, with the sound of footsteps, Song Do-yoon opened the door.
“What is it? This late?”
“Hehe, Do-yoon. Would you like to go somewhere with me?”
“At this late hour, where?”
“To see the professor.”
At that, Han Min-ha took out a crumpled piece of paper from the sport uniform pocket.
It was the emergency standby roster for the Academy’s professors, printed from the school homepage announcements.
“Since the professor is on emergency standby today, I thought we could go visit.”
“Dumb. There’s no way students can just go there.”
“Eh? Why? Isn’t it the administrative building?”
“You don’t know it’s restricted after ten o’clock?”
“Huh… Is that true?”
Hearing something Han Min-ha hadn’t considered, panic set in as they scratched their head, unsure of what to do.
“Who’s there?”
Then, from down the hallway, the voice of the on-duty teaching assistant was heard, and Song Do-yoon quickly grabbed Han Min-ha by the collar and pulled them inside the room.
“Phew, that was close. Thanks, Do-yoon.”
“Anyway, since we can’t go see the professor tonight, you should just go back to your room and sleep… Where are you going?”
As Song Do-yoon spoke, Han Min-ha had quietly entered the room and pointed to the equipment on the desk.
It was the amplifier Song Do-yoon had bought to wiretap Han Min-ha’s room in the past.
“What’s this? Looks like an antenna.”
“Forget about it. It’s nothing.”
Song Do-yoon pushed Han Min-ha aside and shoved it into the desk drawer.
“Alright, you should head back. It’s too late.”
“Is there really no way? The professor must be so lonely on their own…”
“No. You’ll probably get caught on the CCTV before you even get there.”
“Umm….”
After a moment of thought, Han Min-ha looked at Song Do-yoon with a determined expression.
“No, I think I should go无论如何. Let’s make sure the professor doesn’t get bored.”
“Exactly how do you plan on going?”
“I have a good idea. Listen, Do-yoon.”
Han Min-ha pulled Song Do-yoon’s arm and whispered their ingenious plan into their ear.
* * *
“So, you flipped the box over your head and entered through the blind spot?”
“Hehe… I didn’t know the CCTV did motion detection…”
This was the entrance of the administrative building.
I had dismissed all the security personnel and was reprimanding the children myself.
“As for you, Do-yoon, what were you thinking when you assisted Min-ha?”
To my question, Song Do-yoon answered with an indifferent expression, looking away.
“I thought it would be good to see the professor.”
“To think you’d do such a foolish thing as this. It’s not about just getting points or punishments; you could’ve been shot.”
“I’m sorry.”
Sighing heavily, I glanced at the two children.
Han Min-ha was grinning since they got to see me, while Song Do-yoon was pretending not to care but subtly monitoring my reactions with sidelong glances.
Well, looking at their faces, it’s hard to scold them further.
“Alright, go back. I’ll try to have this incident omitted from the situation log.”
“Thank you, professor. But, um…”
Min-ha fidgeted and opened the zipper of their sports uniform.
Then Min-ha inserted a hand under their sweatshirt and, from between their breasts…? What is that?
A small glass bottle was pulled out and presented to me.
“It’s plum tea. I kept it warm for you, in case you’re tired.”
The bottle, handed to me unexpectedly, was still somewhat warm, even in the cold winter night.
You brought it here tucked between your chest from the dormitory?
Yu Hye-won was right. Outwardly, they may seem innocent and unaware, but inside…
“Thank you. I’ll drink it well. Now, everyone, go back.”
I clasped the hesitant arms of the two with both hands and personally led them outside the administrative building.
“Farewell.”
“Goodbye, professor.”
The children, with reluctant steps, made their way back to the dormitory.
I stood there until they disappeared from sight and then returned to the situation management center.
At the central control room, I approached the situation room director and spoke softly.
“Excuse me.”
“Yes, professor.”
“Could you please remove this incident from the log? They’re my guidance students and I’ll give them a proper scolding myself.”
At my request, the director, though slightly troubled, agreed and immediately deleted a portion of the log content right there.
This is the kind of treatment and perception heroes receive in our society.
Returning to the emergency standby room, Yu Hye-won was nowhere to be seen, only her cell phone was left quietly on the sofa.
At least, thankfully, it didn’t escalate to the worst situation I imagined.
It seems Yu Hye-won has agreed to overlook it with just a kiss.
Well, the expression “agreed to overlook” itself is rather amusing.
What does Yu Hye-won have to do with the fact that my phone has Han Min-ha’s picture on it?
If we were to examine this coldly, it’s none of Yu Hye-won’s business.
Unless we were actually dating, that is.
It’s absurd.
Being blackmailed with a picture and kissing someone twenty years younger.
Still, what kind of confidence did Yu Hye-won have to push that far?
Then, when it actually came down to it, she seemed nervous.
Surprisingly, she has a cute side.
I chuckled briefly while thinking about Yu Hye-won, then finished reading the book I had started earlier.
* * *
The team competency evaluation results came out.
As expected, our team came in first.
It was something everyone anticipated, so there wasn’t much excitement.
Yu Hye-won had never cared about such things, and Song Do-yoon showed no inner feelings, so I wasn’t sure.
“Wowww! I got first place!”
Han Min-ha loudly celebrated the evaluation results displayed on the monitor, seemingly unable to believe it.
We were now all gathered in the lab for the last time before the semester ended.
We were there to review the semester’s events and loosely discuss the curriculum for the next year.
Just then, the evaluation results announcement came up, so we checked it on the lab computer.
“Unbelievable… Only the other day, I failed the initial assessment and was thinking of dropping out… I guess there really is sunshine even for mice…”
Han Min-ha eventually burst into tears.
Looking at Han Min-ha, Yu Hye-won remarked with a disparaging tone.
“It’s not you in first place, it’s our team. And that’s all thanks to me. Then what? Mouse hole? You’ll never fit in there with your size.”
Ignoring that, Han Min-ha sniffled, grabbed a tissue from the desk, and blew their nose with a loud “phew.”
“Everyone worked hard this semester. We’ve had a lot of events, but getting a good result in the end, that’s what matters.”
As I handed out coffee mugs filled with freshly brewed coffee, Yu Hye-won muttered something again.
“Seriously acting like an old fogey.”
“Then, what else am I at my age if not an old fogey? Anyway, it’s vacation now. What’s everyone’s plan?”
Han Min-ha looked back and forth between me and Yu Hye-won, silent as a honeyed bear.
Recalling the summer break, Han Min-ha had just stayed home alone.
As for Song Do-yoon, they were a guidance student of Professor Hyun Ju at that time, so I wasn’t really sure.
Yu Hye-won, well, would certainly spend it luxuriously at that palace-like house of hers.
Ah, now that I think about it, the Chairman of the Advisory Board did invite me to come over once.
“So what about you, professor?”
“I need to settle this semester’s results and prepare for the next one. Professors have a lot to do even on break. You all get a month, but I’ll only have a week.”
“Hmm. Is that so?”
With arms crossed, Yu Hye-won looked at me, then at Song Do-yoon and Han Min-ha before speaking.
“Then, come over to my place then.”
“Eek?! Can we really?”
The previously sulking Han Min-ha suddenly brightened and clapped.
They must have had a pretty fun time during the last summer break.
“I’m not going.”
However, Song Do-yoon flatly rejected Yu Hye-won’s invitation.
“What?! How dare you?”
Clearly upset, Yu Hye-won shot a sharp retort at Song Do-yoon.
“You don’t need to come. As long as Professor ‘Tank’ and I are there, it’s fine.”
“Sure. Very kind of you.”
Song Do-yoon answered just as confidently, unaffected by Yu Hye-won’s aggressive tone.