Piece Placement

Checking the rear camera on my smartphone, the dark circles I'd created with disguise techniques looked remarkably natural.

"Good."

—Knock knock

"Come in."

Stepping into the infirmary, I saw Baek Je-in sitting there alone.

"Oh. It's you, Taeyang."

She probably thought she was greeting me casually without a care, but I could tell something felt off about her demeanor.

<It's guilt. She doesn't think you're a thief anymore.> The bad girl whispered in my ear, but I ignored Gemma and put on a light pouty face.

"Seems like the Class A kids have been coming in a lot today?"

"Anyone besides me?"

"Yeah. Seol Romi was just here a bit ago, asking if In-myeong had come by."

True to her reputation for attention to detail that no other teacher could match, Je-in seemed to have all the students' names memorized.

"Ah, those guys... They're probably prepping for the senior-junior spar."

"Right, you're the first-year rep."

The spar at the meet-and-greet carried big meaning for Seol Romi beyond just facing off against a second-year senior. It was a gathering where her family and big clan heavyweights would show up to gauge the students' levels.

"So, what's hurting today? If you're here for a nap like some people, I'm not having it."

"Actually, that's ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠exactly why."

I pointed to the dark circles under my eyes, and only then did Baek Je-in lean in to inspect my face closely.

"Insomnia?"

"Yeah. I need sleeping pills. The strong stuff."

"Hmm... There's a limit to what I can give without a proper prescription—"

"Every time I close my eyes, that Bonwon-gwi's face pops up. Please. Just one good night's sleep."

"...Sigh."

Did the act land? Baek Je-in turned and headed to the drawer with the meds.

"Normally I wouldn't, but just this once."

She wrote the dosage and frequency on the bag of pills and handed it over.

"Just in case, I threw in some sleep aids instead of straight sedatives. I'd prefer you take those, but I know you won't listen."

"Thanks, teach."

I flashed a bright smile, and she turned her head away.

"......"

She kept beating herself up, but with conversations stalling like this, there was no way to raise our relationship rank before Baek Yu-min arrived next semester. I needed a way in.

I scanned the infirmary, then "noticed" the photo on her desk for the first time.

"She's pretty."

I threw out the random comment to grab her attention.

"Who?"

"You, teach."

"I told you not to climb that vine last time."

"The girl next to you—she your little sis?"

"Why? Don't even think about an intro."

A hint of wariness crept into Baek Je-in's voice.

"Nah, nothing like that—"

"Cousin."

"You two seem close."

Resort photo, maybe? The two women in the picture had their arms linked, beaming.

"We grew up like real sisters."

"Makes sense."

"She lives in Hawaii. We were supposed to meet during this break—we haven't seen each other in three years."

"Right. So why'd you cancel the trip? Something urgent?"

"Lost it. The gift I promised her."

"......"

"Felt too ashamed to go. No face to show."

Baek Je-in gave a bitter smile, brushing her long hair behind her ear. A deep perfume scent wafted with an elegant, quiet melancholy that seemed to flow down her neck and maxi dress.

"I'm pathetic, huh? Dumping this on a high schooler."

"No way."

I admit it. I'd definitely saved Baek Je-in and Baek Yu-min from danger. I'd stopped her from becoming a puppet for Yeom Jin-gwan's backers by stealing the Soul Incense she was developing as blackmail leverage. And I'd preempted the risk of Baek Yu-min unwittingly taking it and getting possessed by a powerful vengeful ghost.

But I was the only one who knew that. Baek Je-in still felt guilty toward her cousin, and their relationship was on the brink of falling apart.

A woman bold enough to steal Soul Incense, yet so timid in relationships. Well, that duality was Baek Je-in.

What could I do? Time for some heartfelt after-service.

"Doesn't seem like something to worry over."

"Huh?"

"Your cousin's waiting for you, not the gift. That's family for you."

Baek Je-in blinked in stupid surprise at the unexpected words, then bowed her head.

"Yeah."

—Pfft

The corner of her mouth lifted. Not mockery, but the smile you make when you realize your worries were nothing.

"You're kinder than I thought."

An unexpected harvest. Snapping out of it, I realized I was smiling too.

"If that's how I come off, doesn't bother me. I'll keep acting that way around you, teach."

"Knock it off."

<This woman's trying to... mrrph!>

"Gonna head out."

"Yeah. If you don't take the meds, come talk."

I clamped Gemma's mouth shut and stood.

"Wait. You're not planning to use those sleeping pills on some girl, right?"

"...What do you even take me for?"

"Hmm. Delinquent?"

"Ahaha..."

Liking, my interface. Guessing her type would just give me a headache, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠so I said goodbye and left the infirmary.

* * *

After school.

Mun Hee-jeong walked toward the dorm alone. Kim Taeyang and U Hyo-chung had ditched early for some errand. The two had been chatting about clubs. Something about how their club senior was stunning without her glasses, that kind of dumb guy talk.

"......"

No idea why, but it pissed her off. Totally normal convo for guys their age, especially a tanned blond delinquent.

Yet why did it sour her mood when Kim Taeyang talked about girls? Why did that seductive ancestor's ghost clinging to him, with her sultry gestures and expressions, stab jealousy into her chest?

"......"

Since Seol Romi left her hometown, Mun Hee-jeong had never had a friend. Her interactions with others were limited to brief hobby comments on SNS, never face-to-face, just a few hundred characters.

"Annoying..."

Mun Hee-jeong kicked a roadside pebble in frustration.

She'd entered Argo amid village expectations, but top grades and becoming a great Shangju weren't what she wanted. She needed a friend.

She thought reuniting with Seol Romi would restore their old bond. And after that incident, she wanted to change herself—from the shut-in who'd locked her heart away.

But even on Argo, nothing changed.

It wasn't lack of will. She'd practiced greetings in the mirror at home. When Kim Taeyang spoke to her, she tried normal responses. U Hyo-chung's face intimidated her, but Kim Taeyang resembled book characters she loved, so talking came easier.

She couldn't approach Seol Romi yet, but Mun Hee-jeong was desperately trying to become 'normal.'

Yet why? She'd thought he could be a friend. But that blond delinquent gave back none of the interest she showed—not even a tenth.

—Sniff

The pent-up tears leaked out, buckling her legs. She collapsed on the dorm stairs.

She knew she was bad at communicating, gauging distance. And since suddenly losing Seol Romi, she'd become obsessed with relationships.

"You're the first one... I approached first."

Like a chick imprinting on the first thing it sees? Reason didn't matter. Conversations with her first friend in three years were fun. Laughing till her sides hurt at lame jokes—for the first time.

To Kim Taeyang, it might be everyday nonsense. But to her, who'd cut off all ties outside family for years, it ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠was addictive as drugs.

But he spent way more time chatting with his ancestor spirit or U Hyo-chung. At first, she'd seen him as a practice dummy to rebuild ties with Seol Romi.

"No."

Right. He was just a means to an end. Nice to get close, but talking to him was rehab for human communication. No need to obsess.

—Bzzzzt

Her phone's vibration snapped her thoughts. The screen showed a two-letter caller ID.

"Mom?"

"......"

Her mom's questions continued relentlessly. Did she make other friends besides Seol Romi? Any discomfort sleeping? Was she properly offering rites to her ancestor spirit Mun Ik-jeom? After faking answers, Mun Hee-jeong finally asked what she wanted.

"Not that. Mom, what about that thing I asked for last time?"

Her one hobby before Argo was reading. She'd asked her parents to send her books.

A shriek came through the phone—the old box tearing as she tried repacking, peeking inside.

Mun Hee-jeong hit end call and powered off her phone the second the yell hit.

"Haa..."

Busted. The 19+ restricted books she'd commissioned via SNS contacts over three years—doujinshi, the thin books. No allowance for a while. All featured that tanned blond delinquent with busty, pretty female characters in... activities. And her conservative parents.

"What now."

She buried her face in her knees. Nothing went right. How had everything gone wrong since semester start? Obsessing over Kim Taeyang, who seemed disinterested; no fix for Seol Romi; lied to parents, hobby exposed, allowance cut.

Worst-case scenario. Where to start fixing?

"Head hurts."

What to do? To untangle yarn, find the end. She pondered where it started.

'Getting along with Romi?'

Mom's worried question echoed. Right. No matter what adults expected, she'd come to Argo for Seol Romi.

Mun Hee-jeong imagined how Seol Romi saw her. She still thought of her as a friend, wanted closeness—but Seol Romi?

She recalled Seol Romi's gaze during the draw with Yeom Jin-gwan. Still emotionless.

"If I were stronger, maybe Romi would accept me as a friend."

Seol Romi looked at Gong In-myeong differently—anger or rivalry, but real emotion. Meant she saw him as an equal.

Others might call it dumb binary thinking, but panicked Mun Hee-jeong lacked calm reason.

"If I get strong, I can be friends ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠with Romi again."

Seol Romi was too high to reach. Climb to her level—problem solved?

I want to get strong. Her longing for unbroken bonds twisted via warped logic.

"But how?"

The focus was ironclad will. Her mind quickly found a way: Kim Taeyang. Switched ancestors post-entrance exam, mastered new Spirit Lord Transformation fast, overwhelmed top-seater Shin Sua. Had a secret. Or a nearby mentor.

Powering on her phone with that thought—