Wine and Lonely Dreams

In a conference room whose every corner glittered with lavish ornamentation, four old men sat around an opulent table, deep in conversation.

"Why have there been so many incidents lately…"

"You still haven't caught those bastards?"

"Afraid not. They don't seem like ordinary types. Anyone who would draw a blade on us was never in their right mind to begin with, but still…"

The four men murmuring among themselves were elders of the Church, waiting for their leader. Since the Pope had yet to arrive, they were simply killing time with idle talk.

"Come to think of it — why did we promise that Go Chungshin fellow the captain's seat last time…?"

"The boy has his uses, but…"

"I suspect His Holiness decided it would make him easier to exploit…"

They were still discussing past affairs when the door creaked open.

"Oh dear, my apologies… I seem to be late."

The moment ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Pope Shin Seokwon stepped through the doorway, the elders rose as one to greet him.

"Welcome, Your Holiness."

"Now, now~ no need to stand on ceremony. Please, sit."

Shin Seokwon waved them down with his usual smile, gesturing for them to take their seats. Once they had settled, he claimed the place of honor and opened his mouth.

"Well? Has that matter been resolved satisfactorily?"

The matter in question was the attack that had occurred during the field trip.

"Yes. We sealed every possible leak, and we gave word directly to the Association as well."

"And next?"

"And… none of the cadets were injured, and our own staff who went on the tour have all received treatment for now…"

"And next?"

"That is…"

The elder looked at Shin Seokwon's bright smile, forced his trembling lips open, and managed to speak.

"Th-the ones who carried out the attack… we haven't found them yet. We're searching high and low as we speak…"

"And you call that resolved?"

Shin Seokwon never lost his smile, yet his eyes went wide as he fixed the man with a stare. The elder who had delivered the report was not alone — the other three clamped their mouths shut and broke into cold sweats of silence. Only after a long, heavy pause did the man wipe his brow and answer.

"I-I apologize. It seems the matter is not yet fully resolved…"

"That's right~ No one can be perfect!"

Shin Seokwon laughed, patted the elder's shoulder, and leaned in to whisper against his ear.

"I would very much like to receive a report of resolution in the near future."

"I-I will keep that in mind."

"Excellent!"

Beaming, Shin Seokwon straightened in his seat and got down to business.

"The reason I called you all here today concerns the upcoming field trip to the Tower."

"…?"

"Not only Lady Ye-riel, but the Wise Stars themselves have stepped forward, showing a clear will to snuff out the embers of this problem."

The elders had already heard as much, so they showed no surprise — only focused on Shin Seokwon's lips. They still could not see what any of it had to do with the reason for this gathering.

Shin Seokwon smiled at them and said,

"Shouldn't we… offer a gift to those hardworking people?"

Time slipped by, and Friday arrived.

The cadets had not yet fully adapted to the miasma, but they had grown familiar enough with it that their performance looked nothing like the first day. Under Seong Sua's guidance they were learning to deploy their magic with precision and absorbing efficient methods of real combat response.

All of them, that is — save one.

At this rate, there's no point in her even coming on the field trip.

Seo Jieun simply watched the other cadets spar with Seong Sua in calm silence. She was, quite literally, touring. In truth, she had little to worry about. Merely observing the field trip firsthand was already a worthwhile experience.

The real problem was Ye-riel and me.

"We don't seem to have anything to do."

"Haha… that just means the cadets are skilled enough. I wouldn't call it a bad thing."

"So you're saying loafing around is good?"

"…No."

"Candy, please."

"Yes…"

Ye-riel was now demanding candy outright. Still, being a candy shuttle beat hauling luggage for the security detail any day — that was my personal assessment.

A dessert waiter is still better than a pack mule…

The pack mules glaring daggers at me were just a bonus. I could only hope the principal would treat the security staff to some proper benefits…

I can't afford to be complacent and assume he'll handle it on his own. I'll need to bring it up properly again later…

The principal seemed decent enough on the surface, but that was only an impression. If I brushed this off as a hassle, I might end up shouldering the entire mess alone.

What?

Until now, the only place I had gotten close to Seong Sua was inside VR. Outside of class and mealtimes, the two of us had rarely spent time alone together in the real world. This field trip, though, had unexpectedly given us stretches of private time in the car — and every time those moments arrived, I cast Dream Intrusion on her.

I had not, however, manipulated the dreams the way I had with Yoon Jia. The reason was neither concern for her well-being nor a shortage of mana.

…She and Cho Kang-hyun have so little shared history that it's actually worrying.

I had carefully observed her dreams, trying to unearth as many of their memories as possible, but I could not find a single substantial one. When Seong Sua had been a third-year at the Academy, Cho Kang-hyun had been too busy to see her much — even in her dreams, the guilt he projected made that clear. And after she graduated, whatever affection remained had cooled to the point that not a single gram of warmth could be felt. Whether that was simply love gone cold or something more problematic, I still could not tell.

One thing was certain: Seong Sua had reached a point where she could no longer endure the loneliness.

…Not yet.

I'm not approaching this like some perfectionist who has to have every detail locked down.

I had a gut feeling that, if I played my cards right, I could already take things further with Seong Sua. But given her personality, she was not the type to offer her body easily unless a much larger crack opened first. Yoon Jia had been fairly chaste in her own way, yet Go Chungshin's idiocy had handed me her body and heart in short order. Seong Sua's position and temperament left far too many uncertainties. On top of that, I still had no read on what Cho Kang-hyun was even thinking.

Subjugation is what matters. Let's wait a little longer — until she comes to me on her own.

Information is getting hard to dig up anyway. Time to ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠start manipulating. A little differently from before…

I was in the middle of drafting a scenario for the next Dream Intrusion on Seong Sua when Ye-riel poked me in the side.

"Candy."

"…Yes."

The moment we stepped out of the dungeon, I bowed my head to Ye-riel.

"Thank you for your hard work, Lady Ye-riel."

"Is that sarcasm?"

"I'm hardly in a position to be sarcastic…"

There was no hostility in her tone. Candy alone had not bought her off — spending so much time talking beside her had simply worn down her wariness on its own.

While I was still speaking with Ye-riel, Seong Sua finished loading the cadets into their vehicle and walked over to us.

"Thank you for your hard work today as well."

"I keep wondering if I only made things awkward for you by sticking my nose in."

"Not at all."

Seong Sua smiled. Ye-riel gave a short snort of amusement at the sight and opened her mouth.

"I should give the two of you a heads-up."

"About what, exactly?"

"Tomorrow we're going to a rather different sort of dungeon."

A flicker of unease sprouted at Ye-riel's words, but her explanation snipped it off at the root. The dungeon we would visit tomorrow, she said, was one where monsters almost never appeared. Unlike the Church's arrangements, they had gone so far as to consult the Association directly this time — and the Association had given a ready green light.

"What kind of dungeon is it…?"

"That's a secret. Don't worry, though. Like I said, it's not a place where monsters show up, so there's no real danger."

If Ye-riel was willing to say that much, there would be no problem. She also confirmed she would accompany us tomorrow exactly as she had today.

"That's all, then. Let's head home."

"Yes."

Ye-riel skipped off toward the cadets' vehicle the same way she had the day before. Seong Sua and I watched her go with a shared smile, then boarded our own car separately.

The moment she sat down, Seong Sua turned to me with a weary expression.

"I… I've been meaning to apologize. Because of me…"

"About what?"

"Lately, the second I get in the car, I fall straight asleep…"

She kept apologizing with a guilty look. I sat down beside her and smiled.

"Looks like the roles have reversed."

"…Reversed?"

"In Animal Village, I was the one who kept falling asleep, and Instructor Seong Sua always took care of me. Then I'd wake up the next day feeling so bad I'd apologize…"

"That's a little different."

"No, it isn't. So please don't worry about it too much. Or is being around me just… uncomfortable?"

"O-of course not!"

She protested in a fluster, and I smiled as I set her at ease.

"Then please don't give it another thought. Honestly, I'm just glad I can grow closer to Instructor Seong Sua without any awkwardness."

"…Okay."

Hearing that, she smiled, the tension left her shoulders, and she began looking around the cabin.

"…Instructor Sung Suho."

"Yes?"

"Would you…"

Seong Sua lifted a bottle of wine from the side display with both hands, held it out toward me, and smiled.

"Would you care for a light drink?"

Logged into Animal Village, Seong Sua sat in a patch of grass and gazed endlessly at the full moon hanging in the night sky. After a long while, she murmured quietly to herself.

"…Is something wrong? He's not coming."

At some point, ending each day by playing games with Sung Suho had become her routine. Yet the man who logged in every night was nowhere to be found.

She waited and waited.

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

"Oh!? He's here!"

An alert popped up on her friends list — Sung Suho's name shifted from gray to green. Eyes bright with anticipation, she swayed gently in place, waiting for him to enter the world.

But the time when he should have appeared came and went, and there was still no sign of him connecting into the game.

"…? Is something the matter?"

She glanced at the friends list again, about to send a whisper — and that was when the name of the game he was currently playing landed unfiltered in her vision.

"Huh… Watch of Legends? Wh-why would he…"

She waited a little longer just in case, but Sung Suho did not return. He had begun playing in earnest.

"I should whisper him."

Anxious, she sent a whisper. He did not answer right away. Only after a considerable stretch of time did a reply finally come.

"Instructor Sung Suho, are you… not coming in?"

"…"

He went quiet for a while. Only after more time had passed did another whisper arrive.

"Ah… when do you think you'll come in? I've been waiting…"

Afraid he might not come at all, she let him know she was waiting. The reply that reached her only deepened the disappointment.

"Th-that's fine. These things happen."

She sighed with regret and pushed out her lower lip.

Still… he'll come tomorrow.

A day passed. Then another. He repeated the same excuses and never came to meet her.

"I-it's okay."

And the next day. And the day after that…

"Instructor Sung Suho, today…"

"Yes!"

She smiled and leaned in to listen — and his words only disappointed her further.

"Th-that's… what do you mean…"

Shocked, she listened as the whispers continued.

"Th-that's not true!"

"Th-that's…"

"…Who are you with right now?"

After that, Seong Sua kept sending him whispers. Sung Suho never answered a single one.

She had been blocked.

But she did not want to believe it.

"It's not like that… I… just being together was enough…"

Alone in the Animal Village they had built together, Seong Sua wept.

"Hah… ah…"

Seong Sua wiped her tears and looked around. The interior of a vehicle that did not rock even slightly. An empty wine bottle and two glasses on the fold-out table. And… Sung Suho, asleep beside her.

"It was a dream…"

Relief washed over her. She wrapped both arms around the sleeping face of Sung Suho and murmured,

"Thank goodness… I'm so glad…"

Drunk on wine and sleep, Seong Sua cradled his head against her and drifted off just like that.