That's Not Me...? (2)
That's Not Me...? (2)
Baek Ha-na opened the door and blinked at Nam Seo-hee, who had changed into casual clothes.
"We're allowed to change?"
"It's twelve hours until we land. I'll change back before we arrive."
"Ah, I see."
"Do you want to change too?"
"No, I'll do it after I eat."
"Then let's head to the dining room."
Nam Seo-hee had just taken Ha-na's hand and started down the corridor when the doors on both sides opened and Yoon I-seul and Na Ju-hee stepped out.
Their timing was so deliberate it could have been staged. Nam Seo-hee's eyes narrowed.
"Oh my, are you on your way to eat?"
"Yes. I overslept and missed breakfast."
"Would you mind if we joined you?"
"......? Go ahead."
Why were they asking her permission to eat? The question puzzled her.
"You eating too?"
"Yeah. Me too."
Na Ju-hee wasn't particularly hungry, but she nodded and fell in with them.
The corridor felt less like an airplane and more like a finely appointed hotel. Baek Ha-na's eyes sparkled as she turned to Nam Seo-hee.
"Are all planes like this?"
"No."
Nam Seo-hee had learned a little about Ha-na's upbringing through Maria and Idni. She answered with a gentle smile.
"This particular plane is special."
"Ah, I see."
They reached the end of the corridor and stopped before the door to the next section.
"The aircraft we're on right now was custom-commissioned by the Chairman. It's the third largest private plane in the world."
Yoon I-seul held the door open for them, adding to Nam Seo-hee's explanation.
They stepped through into a completely different section. Ha-na looked around, taking it all in, then asked another question.
"So numbers one and two are even bigger?"
"Not noticeably so. The difference is quite marginal. The dining room is this way, downstairs."
By now Yoon I-seul had fully assumed the role of guide. She walked ahead, fielding Ha-na's questions with the polished ease of a tour guide, and led the group toward the dining room.
"Here we are."
Tables lined the windows with a view of the blue sky. At the center of the lounge sat a circular counter that doubled as the kitchen.
A few seats were occupied by students from Hwarang Academy, recognizable by their white-based uniforms, distinct from the Arena group.
The group headed for the counter to order.
"I'll bring the food over once it's ready. Please find a seat."
"Thank you."
Ha-na thanked Yoon I-seul with simple sincerity and took a window seat with a view of the sky outside.
Eyes bright, she started chatting with Nam Seo-hee and Na Ju-hee.
Yoon I-seul stood by the counter, watching the scene with quiet satisfaction. A female student from Hwarang Academy approached her.
"Well, this is new. You fussing over underclassmen."
Short bob. Dark, thick eyebrows.
Yoon I-seul offered only a faint smile in response.
And then.
*Scrape.*
A fork—where she had gotten it was a mystery—pressed against the girl's throat.
"H-have you lost your mind...?"
"The one who's lost her mind isn't me. It's you, Kang Min-ji."
Vice President of Hwarang Academy. Ranked first in the academy's hierarchy.
Yoon I-seul leaned in close to her ear.
"Our king is very curious, you see."
"...W-wait, king?"
"Yes."
She used the fork still pressed against Kang Min-ji's throat to tilt her chin up.
"So take your strays and stay quietly in your room. No trouble."
*Scrape.*
"Understood?"
"......."
Kang Min-ji couldn't even swallow. Her eyes just twitched up and down.
**
—We will soon be landing at Heathrow Airport. Please remain seated and wait.
After the announcement ended, Baek Ha-na looked out the window at the darkening world below.
"...It's beautiful."
Tiny lights in countless colors glittered brightly against the darkness.
'Ppiyaki would have loved this.'
With eyesight sharp enough to distinguish objects even in the dark, Ha-na watched the miniature cars crawling along the roads and the buildings that looked like children's toys. She snapped a few pictures.
*Thump.*
Before long, the tiny shapes below began to regain their true size. The plane touched down on the runway and gradually slowed.
-Everyone, gather your luggage and wait by your doors.
Kang Han-na's voice came over the intercom.
"Up we go."
Baek Ha-na unbuckled her seatbelt and stood. She tied back her loose hair neatly, slipped into the coat she had taken off, grabbed the handle of her stowed carry-on, and opened the door.
"Did you sleep a little?"
"Yeah. The bed was really soft. I feel good."
"Glad to hear it."
Ha-na and Nam Seo-hee were murmuring quietly to each other.
"We've just been informed that Prince Jossi is waiting to receive us at the airport. He has his entourage and a contingent of reporters with him."
The sealed door opened, and Kang Han-na's mana-infused voice cut through the entire corridor.
"They're royalty, but we have nothing to be self-conscious about. That said, public image matters. Keep your words to a minimum and do your best to look dignified."
-Professor.
"Ah, yes."
Kang Han-na stepped aside, and a crew member moved to the door.
*Pssshhht—*
The door, connected directly to the gate, slid upward.
"We're only out here because of the Exec—... the Associate Professor, anyway. No need to be too tense. Understood?"
"Yes!!"
Kang Han-na nodded, satisfied with the students' resounding reply.
"We're the main event for now, so this time we go out before the professors. Two lines. Follow closely."
She moved. Baek Ha-na and Yoon I-seul led the students off the plane.
'Airports really are huge everywhere.'
A British prince had come to meet them, but Ha-na's attention was entirely absorbed by the airport itself.
"There's a famous dessert shop. Shall we go together later?"
Ha-na had been looking at the signs and billboards plastered everywhere in English. She turned, eyes wide.
"D, dessert...?"
"They're particularly known for a Mont Blanc loaded with chocolate."
Yoon I-seul smiled softly as she added the detail.
"I want to go...."
"We'll go together after the Ceremony."
*Gulp.*
Ha-na was already salivating. She swallowed and nodded. Yoon I-seul's eyes grew noticeably warmer.
Behind them, Nam Seo-hee and Na Ju-hee watched the exchange with looks that were anything but warm.
"The moment we pass through this door, we're on. No more chatter."
Ha-na, who had been lost in a brief daydream about the dessert shop she would visit with Yoon I-seul, shook her head lightly to refocus.
"Alright. Let's go."
The moment they followed Kang Han-na around the corner.
*Flash, flash—!!*
Short, intense bursts of light erupted from every direction.
It was the cameras of the waiting reporters.
"Shall I shield your eyes?"
"...I'm fine."
The situation was far from pleasant for Ha-na, whose senses were keener than most Awakened.
But she declined Yoon I-seul's offer.
'I have to endure it....'
She was one of the academy's representatives. This was a public setting. She couldn't just seek her own comfort like a child.
"Welcome to England."
"Thank you for coming to meet us, Prince Jossi. Your Korean is excellent."
At the head of the group, Kang Han-na and Prince Jossi shook hands briefly and exchanged greetings.
'I want to get out of here....'
Being surrounded by crowds was unpleasant to begin with, and the incomprehensible flood of English battered her ears, fraying her nerves.
"Ah, so you're the new king."
"......?"
Ha-na, who had been single-mindedly wishing for an escape, found herself looking at a man approaching her.
Neatly styled bangs swept to one side. A soft, smiling gaze.
"A pleasure to meet you. My name is Jossi Edward Alexander Louis. I would be delighted if you'd simply call me Jossi."
"...Baek Ha-na."
He had extended his hand first, so Ha-na extended hers in return.
She had watched him shake hands with Kang Han-na. She assumed that was the intent.
But Jossi did something no one expected once he had her hand.
"You are truly beautiful."
He murmured it quietly, too low for anyone else to hear. Then he bent at the waist, slowly bringing his lips toward the back of her hand.
It was sudden. Yet it was still a situation she could easily have refused.
'I can't cause an incident....'
Conscious of all the eyes on them, Ha-na suppressed her instinct. And in that moment.
*WHAM—!!*
A heavy impact. Prince Jossi's body lifted off the ground and sailed backward.
Head snapping back. The Second Prince toppled over.
*Thud.*
He lay sprawled across the airport lobby floor.
"Y-Your Highness?!"
"Someone bring Priestess Rachel at once!!"
"What is the meaning of this?!"
The atmosphere turned hostile in an instant. Sweat beaded on Kang Han-na's forehead.
She glanced around at the prince's attendants closing in like they were ready to pounce, and hissed under her breath.
"You crazy little darling!! Even so, you can't just deck a prince—what were you thinking?!"
"I didn't...."
Ha-na tried to say she hadn't done anything. She didn't finish.
Click— clack—
The sharp, arrogant sound of dress shoes echoed through the airport lobby.
A cool resonance that carried tension with it.
The attendants who had been shouting stopped. The reporters who had been busy pressing shutters stopped. Everyone fell silent, holding their breath.
Because it felt like they had to.
Click—
The sound that had stolen every breath in the room finally stopped.
A tall man with unkempt black hair and large glasses that didn't quite suit him.
*Snap.*
Baek Woo-jin flicked his fingers.
"Uh, uhhh...?"
"Aaaah?!"
The prince's entourage, who had been encircling them, floated up into the air and were hurled away to some corner of the lobby.
No one could process what they had just seen. Everyone froze.
'Hehe....'
Only Baek Ha-na was silently, thoroughly delighted.