Registering the Dolphin Class

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At this point, there was one thing I needed to address.

Had I truly accepted this bizarre, human-rights-trampling ability of mine — the Status Window?

Well, to give the answer first….

'I honestly can't say.'

Having used its functions several times now, albeit unintentionally, I was certainly aware of how useful it was.

But if you asked me whether my discomfort with it had completely vanished?

'I can't say for sure it has.'

For one thing, among the Status Window's functions, I had made a point of never touching anything related to commands or training — anything beyond the ability to glimpse into someone's past.

'I've been unconsciously avoiding my own options this whole time.'

Maybe, if I had actually used the command-training function, I could have broken through some of the crises I'd faced faster and more decisively.

…I had plenty of excuses lined up for why I never used it.

Using something like that on a person made my conscience prickle, and I was sure that anyone I used it on would notice eventually.

'And who knows how they'd react once they did?'

What if they reported me to a broadcasting station, screaming that such an ability actually existed — or sold me out to some remote research facility in the middle of nowhere?

And besides, let's not forget.

Awakeners with mind-control or manipulation abilities were flagged as surveillance targets even among offensive-class hunters.

I still remembered losing sleep for nights after I'd casually told Kwon Haeseong to "sit" during an underground dungeon run.

'I don't know whether he politely ignored it or just forgot, but either way, I was grateful.'

Just off the top of my head, that was already a mountain of worries…. But the real problem was that, despite all of it, I'd come to the conclusion that I needed to diligently dig out every single function the Status Window had to offer and use them to the fullest.

It was Seora's secondary awakening that had cemented that resolve.

I had watched the children refuse to come out of their blanket fort — and Nabi, who had wedged herself right in among them.

"What's this? Is it cold outside? Don't go out!"

"It's snowing really hard? But I can't see any snow. What bear? How is this a bear? Have you never seen a bear?"

"Ahh! It's cold~ It's cold~!"

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Like a kid desperate to join in the game, echoing a line of her own after every word the children exchanged.

"…Whew."

Thankfully, during Seora's secondary awakening — whether by some whim of Nabi's or not — she had handed over a 'gift' in the form of skill sharing. If she hadn't, I didn't even want to imagine how it might have ended.

The problem was…. there was zero guarantee that Nabi would warn me every single time the children were in danger, the way she had this time.

So what was I supposed to do about it?

'Use what I've got, obviously.'

I couldn't promise that Seora's awakening would be the last time the children faced danger.

At the very least, choosing not to use an ability that let me identify risks in advance and act in an emergency would be irrational and inefficient to a fault.

Therefore, from now on….

For the children's safety, I intended to use my ability far more actively.

"Hoo…."

Having finally reached the decision, I felt conflicted and relieved all at once.

And right now, the very first thing on my list was registering the children in the Status Window.

'Status Window.'

The moment I thought it, the children's status windows bloomed one after another in the empty air.

I'd known it already, but it was a truly terrifying ability — doubling and tripling every effect of another person's power.

Then what would happen if Cheonji ever used it on me?

Don't tell me it lets him command anything — people, beasts, monsters, all of it?… Yeah. Absolutely not. Hard pass.

So Seoro's status condition is basically his dream? Being that obsessed with a goal can't be good for you, kid.

Seora's…. status condition had been wiped clean? I had no idea how, but good for her. The water attribute from her secondary awakening seemed to be properly reflected in the window, too.

Our Noah's status window was just as Noah-like as the boy himself. Refreshingly straightforward.

Taejae was….

Reading down the children's status windows one by one, I found a few things that caught in my throat.

Cheonji's status condition. And Taejae's.

Neither looked like something a seven-year-old kindergartner should carry, and their effects were far too unsettling to brush aside.

'And what on earth is this?'

Taejae's window had something none of the others' had.

- STORY 1. Imaginary Friend

'An imaginary friend?'

For now, this chapter clearly didn't seem tied to Taejae's status condition itself.

Going by what had happened with Kwon Haeseong and Yoo Jinchae, the chapter bearing a person's status condition had been directly linked to it.

'But still…. it's worth checking out.'

I went straight to the blanket fort where the children were gathered and announced,

"All right, everyone, playtime's over for now — ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠how ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠about some drawing time? It's been a while! Today's topic is drawing a picture of a friend's face!"

The kids wriggled out of the blanket pile with visibly reluctant, sulky faces, dragging their feet the whole way.

I quickly seated them at the table and scattered out drawing paper before they could switch back into play mode.

A kindergarten friend, a neighborhood friend — didn't matter which.

"A friend from your imagination is fine too~"

All I had to do was drop that little hint, ever so casually.

"Teacher! What's an imaginary friend?"

"It means a secret friend who's all yours — one nobody else can see~"

'There are ways to find things out without resorting to my ability, after all.'

And then, at last.

When Taejae handed me his drawing of a friend…. I was a little taken aback.

'What am I looking at here.'

It looked like an evil spirit had possessed his imaginary friend.

For the record, Nabi's review went like this.

"Whoa. So cool!"

An imaginary friend.

Just as the words suggested, it meant a friend a child dreamed up inside their own heart.

Usually it was a beloved stuffed animal or the hero of some cartoon, but Taejae's imaginary friend was….

"Look, it's got no eye — just like me!"

— the shape of it was quite grotesque.

I studied Taejae's imaginary friend: a floppy-eared, fluffy dog head, a bright red button sunk into the right eye socket, and the other eye wrapped tight in bandages.

On top of that, its body was covered in wounds big and small, and it wore a tattered, threadbare straw hat.

But what stood out more than the grotesque appearance was this: despite its gloomy aura, Taejae's imaginary friend was smiling.

Radiantly, without a care in the world.

Even through the clumsy, childish drawing, there was no mistaking the smile on the friend's face.

'Honestly, judging on looks alone….'

It looked like a cursed doll.

Still, setting my own impressions aside, I asked in a bright voice,

"And who is this? Is this Taejae's imaginary friend?"

Taejae nodded solemnly and answered.

"Yes. His name is 'Gudari.'"

Gudari? For something with that appearance, it was a surprisingly friendly name.

"But why does Gudari have so many injuries, hmm? And there's a bandage over his eye. Is Gudari hurt somewhere?"

"No. Gudari isn't hurt."

"Oh, I see~ So Gudari just likes dressing up like this, then?"

Taejae seemed to ponder this for a moment, then beckoned me closer with a small motion of his hand.

Did he want me to come closer?

I bent down and brought my ear to Taejae's lips.

A faint breath of warm air, and then a whisper.

"Actually, Gudari is only pretending to be hurt. So he can stay with me forever. He's a good friend."

…I hadn't the faintest idea what he meant.

An imaginary friend who pretends to be injured so he can stay by your side?

But whatever my bewilderment, my expression didn't so much as waver — it simply held its smile.

"…Mm, is that so. What a very good friend he is."

"Yes."

Something about this was off, wasn't it?

Status Condition: The injured must be healed. An illness he cannot look past.

Thinking about that status condition, shouldn't his imaginary friend be the picture of health instead?

'With an obsession like that, most people would find it agonizing to keep seeing the hurt and wounded.'

But then again…. neither Cheonji nor Taejae showed any obvious signs of their conditions right now, so I decided to wait and watch.

'I'll register all the kids officially and keep checking on them regularly.'

And with that, I formally registered every child in the Dolphin Class into the Status Window.

Leaving that vague, unshakeable sense of unease buried where it was.