Hero Academy (4-5)
"…You've arrived."
"…."
The magic department classroom held Seong Sua, Ki Cheol-ho, and two burly men in black suits.
Ki Cheol-ho tilted his head with a sour expression as he eyed me, while the bodyguards scanned me over their sunglasses from the side.
They were people who didn't fit in this classroom at all.
I slowly took a seat, standing before Ki Cheol-ho who was glaring up at me crookedly, looking down at him as I greeted him.
"Hello."
"Hello…."
Ki Cheol-ho twisted his lips unpleasantly at my greeting, smirking as he looked up at me and spoke.
"I'm not in a 'hello' kind of situation at all, but I suppose manners must be observed. Hello to you too."
"…."
It was blatant sarcasm.
I could tell instantly why he was acting this way.
Seo Ji-eun.
There was no other reason for him to come here like this.
At Ki Cheol-ho's words, Seong Sua put on a firm expression and spoke.
"I don't think that kind of sarcasm is helpful."
"Haha… The victims are the ones showing manners, while the perpetrators make a fuss."
"That's not what I meant. I understand your feelings, but please remember that Instructor Seong Su-ho is the one who saved Cadet Seo Ji-eun."
"Saved?"
Ki Cheol-ho turned the expression he'd been giving me toward Seong Sua as he spoke.
"Hello… saved… Instructors really have a peculiar way with words."
"…."
"When you're far from 'hello' and the ones who put the young lady in danger?"
Ki Cheol-ho wiped the smile from his lips, twitching his eyebrows as he began glaring at the two of us.
First, we needed to change the mood.
I bowed my head toward Ki Cheol-ho and began apologizing.
"I apologize for that part."
"…."
"As the one responsible for the cadet's safety, it was my shortcomings that gave her a bad experience. I'm sorry."
As I bowed my head and put the final period on my words, the classroom fell deathly silent, the quiet stretching on endlessly.
Only after that long silence did one person finally speak, slowly lifting the fog of quiet.
"Good. At least you have the conversational skills a human should possess."
"…."
Seong Sua was the one who reacted to Ki Cheol-ho's words with her expression.
She furrowed her brows in a way she usually didn't, starting to chew on her lips.
It was one thing to endure sarcasm aimed at herself, but it was hard to stomach when it was directed at someone close.
If I'd heard that kind of talk inside VR while looking like a child, she probably would've jumped into action right away.
As I lifted my head, Ki Cheol-ho spread his palm and gestured toward the seat next to Seong Sua across from him, saying,
"Have a seat for now."
"Yes."
The moment I sat right beside Seong Sua, I asked,
"What brings you here?"
"Well… Now that you're both here, let's get to the main point."
Ki Cheol-ho pulled a bundle of papers from his bag, placed them on the desk, and slid them toward us with his long arm so we could see clearly.
Seong Sua glanced at him appropriately before picking up the bundle and slowly reading through it.
"This is…?"
"Diagnoses from the young lady's dedicated attending physicians."
Not just one attending physician. Physicians, plural.
Meaning it wasn't written by just one or two people.
Despite the large stack, Seong Sua began reading as quickly as possible.
But without giving her time to read, Ki Cheol-ho pressed on rapidly.
"You'll see when you look later, but the young lady can't control her ability… No, control itself is impossible."
The biggest reason Seo Ji-eun couldn't do school life.
Her ability was in a dangerous situation that threatened her own life.
The more she tried to control it, the deeper she sank into the quagmire—an absurd predicament.
Once the top admittee who dominated the cadets as number one, she now couldn't even sleep without fear.
Not even guaranteed to open her eyes the next day….
Ki Cheol-ho continued explaining Seo Ji-eun's ability issues and clearly stated the reason for his visit.
"To put it bluntly: Help the young lady graduate normally."
"Pardon? What do you mean…?"
Like Seong Sua's confusion, I was puzzled too.
Graduation wasn't something you could just achieve by attending classes.
You had to take exams, and if scores were too low, retakes during breaks.
No such thing as grade repetition—if you failed a year, expulsion the next.
There was also a separate graduation exam, though I didn't know the details.
But Seo Ji-eun was already attending the minimum classes and taking minimum exams; she could definitely graduate.
Sudden talk of graduation in that situation was baffling.
Seeing our puzzled looks, he shook his head and pulled out a few more sheets, sliding them across the desk to us.
The previous ones were A4 paper, but these were clearly bill-sized sheets.
Seong Sua narrowed her eyes, not reaching for the paper but just staring at it before speaking.
"…This is?"
"If the young lady graduates safely, we'll take much better care of you."
Silence descended.
I could tell what the papers were without looking closely.
After hearing from Armonia, I grasped the exact amount.
Armonia: Each one is 100 million.
'Damn…. If they're promising more later, they won't just settle for 200-300 million, right?'
Armonia: Since it's targeting Seong Sua, they'll likely offer a much larger sum.
For Seong Sua, officially on the hero list, 100-200 million wasn't pocket change but not unattainable.
But if they handed it over right at graduation as Armonia predicted, that changed things.
Seong Sua was a hero, not a chaebol heir.
Yet even so, I couldn't understand her silence right now.
'What's this? Is she hesitating?'
Armonia: Considering Seong Sua's wealth, it's not about the money.
'Then?'
Armonia: Probably because you're here with her.
I knew better than anyone that Seong Sua wasn't the type to accept that kind of money.
Armonia's guess was that she was hesitating because I was beside her.
It wasn't a huge sum for Seong Sua, but it was for me.
'Can't be helped then.'
In that case, there was one thing for me to do.
I slowly reached out toward the desk.
Seong Sua flinched in surprise at my action, while Ki Cheol-ho smirked at me.
Ignoring both, I did what I had to.
That is….
"Looks like you pulled out the wrong thing by mistake."
I pushed the bundle of checks back toward Ki Cheol-ho.
"…."
"Instructor Seong Su-ho…."
Ki Cheol-ho's pleased smile twisted back into a scowl, while Seong Sua looked shocked.
After fully pushing the checks toward Ki Cheol-ho, I lifted my head and stared him down relentlessly.
If he'd been barely managing his expression before, now it was starting to crack.
"This isn't your place to step in. That wasn't given to you…."
"Then apologize."
"…What?"
Ki Cheol-ho dropped all pretense, glaring at me like I was a bug.
I ignored his gaze and continued.
"Apologize to Instructor Seong Sua for your behavior toward her."
"You… you little…."
Unable to hold back anymore, Ki Cheol-ho stood to chew me out.
Seong Sua bowed her head slightly and spoke.
"I appreciate the consideration."
"…."
"But what you just did wasn't consideration—it was rude."
"Haha…."
Ki Cheol-ho turned to look out the window, swallowing his frustration, then sat back down, putting the checks away and nodding.
"Sorry for being rude."
"I'll pretend I didn't see it."
"Good. Then I trust you'll handle the young lady's issue properly."
As Ki Cheol-ho stood as if conceding,
I tossed one more line at him.
"By the way, did a doctor write those diagnoses?"
"…The young lady's attending physicians did."
Since he answered, I judged conversation was still possible and continued.
"Then those diagnoses aren't helpful."
"…What do you mean?"
His question carried more irritation than curiosity, but I answered kindly.
"Magic is still barely understood through research. Even the Tower, which prides itself as the top mage guild, hasn't grasped the principles fully."
Unlike Strata's world, knowledge of magic here was practically nil.
Only those with talent could wield unknown magic adeptly.
Even celebrated upper-rank hero Seong Sua taught abstractly….
Research continued, but it remained primitive.
In that context, trying to brush it off with a non-specialist's doctor's note?
Ridiculous.
"Not disparaging the physicians, but they're not experts. In my view, the top expert is right here—Instructor Seong Sua. Steady attendance without slacking would be far better."
"Haha…."
Ki Cheol-ho listened without interruption, then bowed his head and muttered to himself.
His mutter was too quiet for even us right in front to hear.
As his instability showed, Seong Sua spoke.
"I want to hear from Cadet Seo Ji-eun herself."
"I've already conveyed the young lady's wishes…."
"No."
Seong Sua shook her head firmly.
"Cadet Seo Ji-eun, your own will matters most. If you refuse to come out, I won't push further. But…."
"…."
"If you want to, I'll help you to the end."
At Seong Sua's words, Ki Cheol-ho stopped muttering, staring at us blankly.
I spoke toward him.
"It'd be best to have at least a short call with Cadet Seo Ji-eun and decide."
"…The young lady isn't in a state for calls right now."
"Then schedule it so we can visit again…."
"This is maddening."
Ki Cheol-ho laughed hollowly, flashing a rotten smile at us as he spoke.
"I didn't expect Instructor Seong Sua to take this stance too."
"…I didn't expect Mr. Se-hyeong to act this way either."
"Hahaha!"
Ki Cheol-ho laughed long, shaking his head.
"I thought you were reasonable, but big mistake. Guess I'll have to go to the principal directly."
"We can handle this at our level…."
"Not anymore."
Ki Cheol-ho looked down at Seong Sua as if she were me and said,
"No more visits. Then…."
As he left those short words and turned to leave with his bodyguards,
Creak.
But on the opposite side, the slowly opening door revealed….
"Mr. Se-hyeong, here as expected."
"Ah… Young lady! Wh-what brings you here…."
Seo Ji-eun stood demurely in her cadet uniform.
She looked up at Ki Cheol-ho with a faint smile, explaining the situation.
"I decided coming to school is best, so I came."
"Young lady… Don't you remember the physicians? This isn't the time for tantrums…."
"It's not a tantrum."
Seo Ji-eun glanced at me and Seong Sua—sitting opposite Ki Cheol-ho—with a peek, then told him,
"I thought the instructors would understand me best, so I came."
"But…."
"And my parents always said."
"…?"
Seo Ji-eun gazed ambiguously our way.
Was it at Seong Sua or me? With that vague look and a smile, she spoke.
"School days are worth ten years after becoming an adult. I don't want to let such valuable time slip away meaninglessly."
"…."
Ki Cheol-ho bowed his head in thought, then smiled at her.
"Understood. I'll come escort you this evening then."
"Thank you."
Seo Ji-eun smiled and greeted Ki Cheol-ho, then passed him and entered the classroom to greet us.
"Sorry I'm late."
The moment Ki Cheol-ho returned home, he summoned Seo Ji-eun's exclusive maid and questioned her.
"Why was the young lady at school?"
"Well… Madam's exclusive secretary permitted it…."
"That woman came to the main house?"
All staff at the Seo household obeyed Ki Cheol-ho's orders faithfully.
Even more than Seo Ji-eun, the current mistress of the house….
The reason was Seo Ji-eun's youth and Ki Cheol-ho's long stewardship.
But one person in the household opposed him.
Seo Ji-eun's birth mother's secretary.
Her birth mother lay comatose in hospital as a vegetable, her secretary guarding her.
The woman he'd thought wouldn't return had suddenly appeared.
"Where is she now?"
"Ah, she left with the young lady for school."
"Escorted her and parted…."
Ki Cheol-ho frowned, picturing the secretary's face.
'Annoying. Can't just kill her though….'
He mulled over the subjectless "kill" in his mind.
Finishing with the maid, Ki Cheol-ho entered his room and methodically rearranged the bookshelf.
The moment the sequence aligned….
Creeeak….
A wooden panel beside where Ki Cheol-ho stood popped out slightly, sliding aside to reveal a small space.
The blue-shrouded space leaked cold fog, indicating its internal chill.
And inside, a slender syringe.
Ki Cheol-ho gazed calmly at the sealed syringe and spoke.
"The last one remaining… Meant for that assistant instructor, but… Need to clean house first."
As if responding, the black liquid inside writhed like a living thing, swirling within the syringe.