The Dawn of Change (2)
Lunchtime at the academy had arrived.
Within the academy grounds, the in-flight restaurant and several other eateries sold affordable meals to the students.
“Mmm~~! It’s really delicious, Seong-ah.”
“Yeah, Yuna-ya.”
Seong agreed with the words of Lee Yuna, who was savoring the steak by slicing it into small pieces. Yet honestly, he wasn’t sure if it was truly tasty.
Every facility at the academy was undoubtedly delicious, given that human chefs were stationed there. But with the volume of dishes being prepared, a sense of passion was lacking in the cooking.
Yuna’s cooking conveyed warmth.
The warmth of someone who had labored with care for those who would eat.
But this meal lacked that feeling.
It was a taste that suggested creation driven not by passion but by efficiency and mere enjoyment.
He found that distasteful.
“Wow… Seong-ah, look over there. She’s eating so happily.”
“Hm? Who are you talking about?”
Following Yuna’s pointing finger, Seong noticed a blonde woman who had stacked a mountain of steak plates and was devouring them with ravenous gusto.
Hae-sol.
Academy second-place student and one of the figures Seong knew the least about.
Among the beastkin species, she belonged to the canine line.
Her combat style was surprisingly a sword.
That was the only known information about her.
“...?”
At that moment, Hae-sol spotted their gazes. She briefly looked toward them, then raised her hand.
Click!
Hae-sol posed with her hand forming a V shape beside her face, as if signaling to take a photo, and simply gazed at them.
“What on earth is she doing?”
“Hehe, yeah, Seong-ah. She’s really fun.”
Even Yuna was momentarily startled by Hae-sol’s appearance, but after a moment she laughed with a knowing smile and waved her hand, calling her fun.
Thus Hae-sol blinked, and soon she was waving back along with Yuna.
It was difficult to understand how such a spacey girl had surpassed Yoo Hwa-young and become second-place.
Seong was thinking this when Hae-sol approached, carrying the plate she had been eating from.
She sat in the empty seat beside him and naturally resumed eating the steak voraciously.
“...What are you doing?”
“Huh? What’s wrong, Seong-ah~?”
With a mouthful of meat, Hae-sol answered his question in a mumbled tone.
“Why suddenly came over here.”
After swallowing the meat in her mouth, Hae-sol replied to Seong’s question.
“Weren’t you my fan? So I was watching you guys, right?”
Hae-sol gazed at him with sparkling eyes, asking if he was not her fan.
Seong looked at her in disbelief, while Yuna looked at Hae-sol as if she were adorable.
Yuna pulled out a napkin and gently wiped the sauce from the corner of Hae-sol’s mouth.
“Mmm…”
Hae-sol was momentarily taken aback by Yuna’s touch, but she quietly accepted it as if she were being pampered.
The gentle acceptance resembled a large dog, and Yuna found Hae-sol endearing.
“Mmm… What’s your name?”
“Ah, me? I’m Yuna. Lee Yuna.”
“You?”
Hae-sol asked Seong his name, but he ignored the question and continued eating.
“What’s your name?”
Again, Seong ignored the repeated question and ate, only for Hae-sol to ask once more.
“Seong-ah? Why are you like that?”
He tried to ignore her once more, but Yuna’s words of “Why?” made him answer with clear reluctance.
“Cheon Seong.”
Seong spoke only his name without any further explanation. Yuna looked at him in disbelief, but Hae-sol showed no concern.
“Now we’re friends, right?”
“...?”
After only a greeting, why was she already calling him a friend?
“No… Yeah, that’s right.”
He was about to deny it, but the glare from Yuna made him nod in agreement.
“We’re friends.”
“Yes. Now we’re friends. My name is Hae-sol, right?”
“Huh? Did I already tell you my name?”
Who in the academy didn’t know Hae-sol?
The academy’s second-place student.
The promising star who would shoulder the future.
One of Korea’s two brightest stars of this era.
Yet ultimately a star destined to be eclipsed by the light of heaven.
“Who wouldn’t know? The student who entered the academy as second-place.”
“Mmm… Am I really that famous? To the point that everyone knows?”
“Yeah. You’re extremely famous.”
While eating, Seong found himself irritated by Hae-sol’s constant questions, but then Hae-sol showed a surprising expression.
“Hehe, so I have a lot of friends now?”
Her pure smile upon discovering she had a friend was so innocent that it seemed impossible for someone like Hae-sol.
From what Seong knew, Hae-sol came from the prestigious Sunlight family of Korea, and the young miss of that family participating in high-society parties since childhood should have plenty of friends.
“That can’t be the case, Hae-sol.”
“Yes… So I don’t have any friends?”
Upon hearing the question of whether she had no friends, Yuna explained that it was not so, describing what friendship truly meant.
“Being friends isn’t about just knowing each other. It’s about relying on each other and protecting one another… such a being.”
“Then, Yumi, do you rely on me?”
“It’s Yuna, not Yumi. And… I don’t think I can yet.”
Seeing Hae-sol’s disappointment, Yuna gently took her hand.
“So from now on, I’ll try my best to rely on you, Hae-sol. Will you try to rely on me too?”
“Mmm… Yeah, I understand. Yuna-ya.”
Hearing Hae-sol call Yuna “Yuna-ya” again, Yuna smiled and corrected her.
Blin~~~!
“Why, do you have something to say?”
Seong asked Hae-sol why she was staring so intently at him, and she replied.
“We’re friends, right?”
He didn’t know why she was so obsessed with the concept of friends, but if she was Yuna’s friend, his answer was already decided.
“Yeah, we’re friends.”
Hae-sol was strong.
Although she appeared somewhat spacey, becoming second-place by surpassing Yoo Hwa-young meant she had proven ability.
If such a girl became Yuna’s friend, Seong was fine with it.
If she was a spacey yet strong girl, even without him by Yuna’s side, she would protect her instead.
As long as that was the case, he was willing to be her friend no matter what.
Whether that was true friendship or not, he himself was unsure.
After the academy session ended, Seong and Yuna headed back to the dormitory.
As a Lucinus student, Yuna received separate training at the academy.
“Ha… I wish time would pass faster.”
Lying on the soft bed, Seong gazed at the ceiling and hoped for the passage of time.
The academy dormitory was the perfect place.
Every item in the room was top-tier, far superior to even a normal hotel, yet some students commuted from outside.
Seong and Yuna had initially intended to do the same, but the academy’s rules required them to live here for a full week.
Of course, teleportation was an option, but would the academy have prepared defenses against it?
Teleportation was the highest form of magic, used by only a handful of people, yet it existed.
Thus, defensive magic had been prepared within the academy to counter it.
Its strength was such that even Beatrice would have trouble passing through, and Seong would find it impossible to break.
“Ha… Hana.”
“Huh? Why are you calling, Dad?”
Was it an illusion because he missed Hana so much that he heard her voice?
Whoosh!
Someone had hugged him from behind.
“Hehe, Dad~~ I missed you so much.”
“Eh? Hana? How did you get here?”
Looking around in confusion, Seong saw Beatrice sitting on a chair, gazing at him.
“Beatrice? Did you bring Hana? No, more importantly, how did you know I was here?”
[I came to the place where your aura is felt.]
With only a few hundred people living in this dormitory, how was it possible? Yet since it was Beatrice, it seemed natural.
And what did it matter? She had brought Hana here.
“Hana, how was your day today?”
Seong asked while hugging her tightly, and Hana answered by burying her face in his chest.
“Dad wasn’t coming, so I was lonely.”
Today was the graduation ceremony, with all classes being orientation, but the protective barrier around the academy prevented Seong from attending. Even so, the long class time meant he hadn’t been able to bring Hana along.
“Wait, so you brought Hana today, Beatrice?”
[That is correct. Since you did not come, this one brought her.]
Beatrice added that she would have done the same next time, as the defense magic was too strong for Seong to breach.
Seong felt grateful to Beatrice yet worried whether she might have done something inappropriate at kindergarten. Since it was Beatrice, he supposed it was fine.
“Now I have to ask…”
Seong realized he had to ask now.
He should question whether it was truly okay for Hana to be with those two, but he simply could not bring himself to speak.
No, he had to say something.
It wasn’t that he could interfere with her romance, but he hated the thought of their conversations decreasing because of this matter.
“Hana, I have a question.”
“Huh? What?”
Hana looked up at him, waiting for his words.
After taking a deep breath, Seong asked.
“Earlier, on your first day at kindergarten, there was a friend you made, right? Are you really dating those two?”
“Huh? Jun-ho and Min-jun?”
“Yeah. Are you really dating Min-jun and Jun-ho?”
Seong spoke.
He had spoken the truth.
He had asked before, but now he had said it outright.
Once Hana admitted to dating, there was nothing more he could do.
He had to respect her choice.
Swallow!
Seong’s Adam’s apple moved involuntarily.
Waiting for Hana’s answer, she slowly opened her mouth.
“What does ‘dating’ mean?”
Seong’s mind went blank.
Yet within that blankness, he held a glimmer of hope.
That Hana was not dating those two.
He explained simply what dating meant and what boyfriend and girlfriend were, so that Hana could understand.
After the explanation, Hana shook her head.
“No, I’m not dating. Jun-ho and Min-jun are just friends, right?”
Hana’s answer was that they were not dating.
Seong’s face brightened rapidly.
It was as if a knot that had been tangled for so long had finally been untied.
“Really? You’re not dating them at all?”
His emotions surged intensely, unlike his usual self.
“Yes, that’s not it. Jun-ho and Min-jun are just friends?”
Seong embraced Hana tightly upon her confirmation.
It was truly fortunate.
Even if her possessiveness was strong, this was more than fortunate enough.
[Prophecy line 1]
[Prophecy line 2]
“Mom… Can’t I sleep with Dad?”
Hana looked at Beatrice with pleading eyes and asked.
[You cannot look at me like that.]
Yet no matter how earnestly Hana gazed at her, Beatrice refused to change her decision.
The reason was that staying at the academy might make attending kindergarten difficult.
When Seong asked Hana why she couldn’t stay here instead, Beatrice’s glare made him unable to protest.
As a father, he wanted to do exactly what Hana desired… but he could not stand up to Beatrice and Yuna.
“Dad… Can’t I really stay and sleep here…?”
Hana, who had given up on persuading Beatrice, switched her target to Seong, but he averted his gaze.
“I’m sorry, Hana… Dad and Mom can’t win.”
How could Seong dare oppose Beatrice?
She was already struggling enough, and now she seemed to radiate an aura of strength that made resistance impossible.
Father is strong, but weak toward family.
“No, I have to gather my strength now.”
Finally, there was a chance to dispel Hana’s misunderstanding and become close again, yet how could he let it go?
Therefore, he had to muster every ounce of strength possible this time.
“Beatrice, even so, couldn’t you at least stay for just today…?”
[Be quiet. Bringing Hana here is my duty, is it not? And something that might cause problems…]
Yet his words were cut off and immediately rejected.
“Dad… please.”
“Y-yet on another day… today at least…”
Should he mention the secret card he still held?
Honestly, he was too embarrassed to say it when Hana was not present.
Yet now he had to say it with Hana right there?
“Dad…”
Seong hugged Hana tightly and, looking up at him with longing eyes, said with determination.
“B-Bea… Beatrice noona. Can’t you please not…?”
[What did you just say…?]
Beatrice asked in disbelief, as if she hadn’t heard correctly.
Even after her question, Seong could say nothing.
If asked why it was embarrassing, he could reply that he had never called anyone “noona” before, not even in his previous life.
The only woman he knew was Yuna.
Actually, Imir and Ga-eun, who were friends and colleagues, existed.
But to him, the only one who could truly be called an older sister was Imir alone.
Thus, the first time he had used the word “noona” was now.
What was there to be embarrassed about?
“I… I don’t even know why I’m embarrassed.”
He knew that the word “noona” had no reason to be embarrassing.
Yet he still couldn’t understand why he felt this way.
It was simply embarrassing.
The single word “noona” added to Beatrice’s name.
He didn’t understand why this was embarrassing.
[You. Please call me that one more time.]
Even though he was already about to die of embarrassment, Beatrice asked him to call her again.
“Bea… Beatrice noona. Just once more…”
His face flushed red.
And it burned.
Hotter than if he had sustained a burn.
[…Very well. In exchange, I will remain by your side today as well. And for now, call me noona.]
Beatrice’s permission was granted.
Granted, but he had to call her “noona” for the entire day.
“Even calling it twice would be embarrassing enough to die, and now I have to call her noona all day…?”
He couldn’t. He would die before he could do it.
Even two times were too much, and with the remaining time, at the current time of 5:48, if she went to bed at ten, he would have to call her noona for four hours and twelve minutes.
Beatrice would not tolerate him not calling her.
But…
“Waaah!! Mom is the best!! I love you!!”
If she reacted like this… he had no choice.
“Yeah… by sacrificing myself like this, if Hana is happy, it’ll be okay.”
In this situation, refusing his daughter’s opinion would mean being the lowest in the household hierarchy.
