I didn't know a day in the life of a Girls' Dormitory Warden would be this dangerous.
I didn't know a day in the life of a Girls' Dormitory Warden would be this dangerous.
7:50 AM.
Set the alarm.
10 minutes before roll call.
This 10 minutes is the most tense time of my day.
I washed my face and threw on my uniform.
Opened the door.
Kkii-ik.
The hallway.
This is where the real war begins.
The Warden's room is at the end of the 1st floor.
To get to the lobby, I have to walk the entire hallway.
In between, there's a public washroom, a public shower room, and a public lounge.
7:50 AM in the Girls' Dormitory is.
A combat zone.
The shower room door opened.
Hook-.
Damp wind poured into the hallway.
Shampoo smell.
Body wash smell.
Something sweet and floral.
'Hold my breath.'
A girl came out.
With a towel wrapped around her head.
In her pajamas.
I almost made eye contact.
I lowered my gaze to the floor in 0.5 seconds.
The floor.
Just look at the floor.
The floor is safe.
The floor never betrays me.
"Ah, Warden-seonbae."
"............."
Answering leads to conversation.
Conversation leads to getting involved.
I just nodded.
Not even a proper bow, just a slight neck tilt.
But with these squinty eyes, nodding...
"............."
The girl flinched and walked past.
I heard it from behind.
"So cool."
No.
I was just too scared to answer.
I passed the washroom.
The door was open.
Sound of brushing teeth, sound of running water inside.
"Hey, some toothpaste."
"This is mine?"
"Lend it to me, please."
Two girls were standing in front of the mirror.
In their pajamas.
One was brushing her teeth like a zombie with her eyes half-closed.
I sped up before I entered their field of vision.
Fast walk.
But running is weird.
The floor.
Just look at the floor.
The floor never betrays me.
Made it past safely.
"Huh? Did the Warden-seonbae pass by?"
"Yeah."
"Didn't even say hi."
"He's always like that. Doesn't even make eye contact."
"Guess he's really not interested."
It's not that I'm not interested.
It's that I don't know where to look.
I have to pass this hallway full of girls in pajamas every morning.
Every day.
'Ha.'
'Shit.'
'Life.'
Arrived at the lobby.
Girls were gathered in groups.
They were in better shape than yesterday.
They were wearing their tracksuits properly.
Seems they learned after the first day's "Hey!! Put some clothes on!!" incident.
Still.
There were one or two in shorts and tank tops.
Bare legs were visible.
'Floor.'
I held the list.
My hands were shaking.
They shake every day.
Will a day come when they don't?
"Starting roll call."
My voice was low, as expected.
A product of tension.
"Room 201."
"Yes."
"Room 202."
"Yeees."
"Room 203."
"Here."
I didn't call their names.
I changed it since yesterday.
Calling names feels like I have to make eye contact.
Just calling room numbers means I only have to look at the list.
I thought this was an efficient system improvement.
"Wow, fast again today."
"Didn't even call names. It's really military-style."
"Must be the squinty-eyed Warden style."
It's not a style, it's a survival strategy.
Roll call over.
3 minutes.
"That is all."
Waved a hand and returned to the Warden's room.
Closed the door.
Kung.
'Huuuu.'
Survived.
Survived today too.
But it's still morning.
Why is the day so long?
10:00 AM.
Facility Inspection time.
This is the real problem.
One of the Warden's core duties.
Must check water, windows, heating magic circles, and fire prevention magic circles in each room.
I have a Master Key.
I can open all rooms.
Of course, it's supposed to be done when there are no tenants.
At 10:00 AM, everyone is in class.
It should be empty.
'It should be empty.'
Repeated this sentence three times as I stood in the 2nd-floor hallway.
Room 201.
Elise's room.
'.............'
Must open it.
It's work.
Must open it.
Inserted the Master Key.
Ttal-kkak.
Opened the door.
Hook-.
Flower scent.
Or is it perfume?
It was subtly embedded throughout the room.
Just breathing made it enter.
'Hold my breath.'
Went in.
The room was neat.
The bed was made perfectly.
Books were stacked neatly on the desk.
A small potted plant by the window.
'Just look at the facilities. Just the facilities.'
Water — no issues. Check.
Window — no issues. Check.
Heating magic circle — no issues. Check.
Fire prevention — no issues. Check.
Finished in 30 seconds.
Came out.
Locked the door.
Next.
Room 202.
Ttal-kkak.
Opened it.
The atmosphere of this room was completely different.
Clothes were draped over the chair.
Slippers were upside down on the floor.
Cushions were piled like a mountain on the bed.
Normal.
This is a normal room.
Room 201 is the abnormal one.
Facility check.
Water — no issues.
Window — no issues.
Heating — no issues.
Fire — no issues.
Came out.
Room 203.
Ttal-kkak.
Opened it.
'.............'
There was a drying rack.
In the middle of the room.
Laundry was hanging.
'Close my eyes.'
Four things to check.
Memorized the locations.
Water on the left wall. Window in front. Magic circles in the center of the floor and ceiling.
Half-closed my eyes.
Since I'm already squinty, closing them halfway makes me practically blind.
Fumbled my way there.
Something caught my toe.
It was soft.
'Don't know. I don't know. I didn't step on anything.'
Water — check.
Window — check.
Magic circle — check.
Came out.
Locked the door.
'Haa.'
Have to do this for 30 rooms.
Room 204.
205.
206.
Repeated mechanically.
Open, hold breath, half-close eyes, check, come out.
3rd floor.
Room 301.
Lena's room.
Opened it.
Neat.
But the direction was a bit different.
Swords were hanging on the wall.
Training swords.
Two of them.
'First time seeing someone hang swords where they sleep.'
Checked and came out.
Room 302.
Aria's room.
Opened it.
Quiet.
Books were so plentiful the room looked small.
Dried herbs were hanging by the bed.
Smelled like herbs.
'The Saintess's room is holy too.'
Checked and came out.
30 rooms.
Took about 40 minutes.
Came down to the 1st floor.
Entered the Warden's room and closed the door.
Kung.
Wrote the inspection report.
[Facility Inspection Report]
[Room 201~315: No issues]
[Remarks: None]
'What should I write in the remarks?'
[Remarks: Recommend relocating drying rack in Room 203]
Almost wrote that.
'No. If I mention the drying rack, I might get interrogated about what I saw.'
Erased it.
[Remarks: None]
This is safe.
I saw nothing.
And I stepped on nothing.
1:00 PM.
The moment I passed the Academy gate.
The air changed.
In the dormitory, gazes followed me every step.
Flinching when we met in the hallway, whispering behind my back.
But.
Here, no one looked at me.
Second son of a frontier baron.
2nd-year undergraduate.
No special notes.
Walked among the students.
No one looked at me.
The guy who brushed shoulders with me didn't even say "Oh, sorry."
They didn't perceive my existence.
'.............'
Comfortable.
Those suffocating gazes of the dormitory disappeared like a lie.
Here, I was just background.
An NPC.
Air.
This is right.
This is my place.
Entered the lecture hall.
Sat in the corner of the last row.
Seats on both sides were empty.
The seat in front was empty too.
No people within a 2-meter radius.
'Heaven is nowhere else.'
A man who does roll call while receiving the gazes of 30 women in the dormitory.
Here in the lecture hall, I was an invisible man with a 2-meter empty radius.
Class started.
The professor was blabbering about something.
Mana theory or something.
Circuit design or something.
My eyes closed.
I'm squinty anyway, so no one knows if they're closed.
Fell asleep 5 minutes later.
Class ended, walked down the hallway.
Students gathered in groups, chatting.
Club talk.
Festival talk.
Dating talk.
I passed through them like a ghost.
Then.
In the hallway over there.
Saw a familiar face.
Silver hair.
Blue eyes.
Elise.
Wearing a school uniform.
That woman who said "Yes" in a tracksuit this morning.
Here, she was a perfect noble lady.
Surrounded by girls.
"Elise, let's eat lunch together today."
"Young Lady, what class are you taking next?"
Distance between me and Elise.
About 10m.
Almost made eye contact.
I turned my gaze.
Naturally.
Pretending to look at the bulletin board next to me.
Elise, too.
Passed by.
Nothing happened.
Of course.
If she talks to me here, it becomes "How do you know each other?" and "I'm the dormitory warden" and "There's a man in your dormitory?"
There's no benefit to either of us.
Pretending not to know is the correct answer.
I took my eyes off the bulletin board and walked again.
3rd-floor hallway.
Blonde hair, green eyes.
Camilla.
Didn't even look at me.
Passed by.
Central stairs.
Silver hair.
Lena.
Made eye contact.
0.2 seconds.
Lena turned her gaze first.
Casually.
I turned mine too.
Casually.
Rules at school.
Even if we know each other in the dormitory, we're strangers here.
No one talked to me.
No one looked at me.
I liked this implicit rule.
I genuinely liked it.
Stepped out of the school gate and looked up at the sky.
It was clear.
'School is heaven.'
6:00 PM.
Returned to the dormitory.
As soon as I opened the front door, air mixed with humidity, perfume, and flower scent hit my lungs.
'Ah. I've returned.'
'To this battlefield.'
Walked the hallway.
It was noisy because it was dinner time.
Laughter flowed down from the 2nd floor.
Kka-rreu, kka-rreu.
Someone burst into laughter at something.
Sound of doors opening and closing on the 3rd floor.
"Hey, let's go eat!"
"Wait, let me do my makeup!"
1st-floor public lounge.
Had to pass through.
Since the Warden's room is at the end past the lounge.
Took a peek.
Five or six girls were gathered on the sofa.
Shorts.
Tank tops.
One was lying on the floor eating snacks.
'Detour.'
I took a route that goes around without passing the lounge.
The path to the back hallway on the 1st floor using the emergency stairs.
In short, a much longer way around.
Takes 3 more minutes.
But 3 minutes is better for mental health than worrying about where to put my gaze while passing in front of them.
Walked the back hallway.
No one there.
Quiet.
Arrived in front of the Warden's room door.
'Almost there.'
Tried to insert the key.
"Warden-seonbae-nim."
Heard a sound from behind.
Turned around.
A girl was standing there.
3rd-floor tenant.
Don't remember the name.
A regular student, not a named one.
Wearing a cardigan over her uniform.
Holding something in her hand.
"Um, this......"
Held it out.
Paper bag.
"I bought bread in town today, I wanted to give you one. You always work hard in the morning."
'.............'
I looked at the paper bag.
Bread.
"It's not like a reward, just a thank you."
I debated whether to accept this or not.
If I accept.
→ "Gave bread to the Warden" → Rumor → "What's your relationship?" → Involved.
If I don't accept.
→ Awkwardness → A weird guy who chews on goodwill → That's a rumor too.
'............What do I do.'
3 seconds of deliberation.
'Just take it and go in quickly.'
"Thank you."
Accepted it.
Opened the door and went in.
Closed it.
Kung.
Looked down at the paper bag.
It was a cream bun.
Took a bite.
It was sweet.
'.............'
Not bad.
'Shouldn't be moved by something like this.'
Not moved, just that the bread is tasty.
10:00 PM.
Curfew.
This is also Warden work.
Check outside entries after 10 PM.
Lock the dormitory front door and check the headcount.
Stood at the 1st-floor entrance.
Girls came in in groups.
Kid from the library.
Kid from the cafeteria.
Kid from a friend's dormitory.
Checked the room numbers one by one.
"Room 301."
"Yes~"
"Room 308."
"Here."
It was dark because it was night.
My squinty eyes must have looked narrower.
"The Warden-seonbae looks a bit scary at night."
"For real. His eyes look like they're glowing."
"Like a cat."
A cat.
A hundred times better than being scary because I'm squinty.
Then.
There was one room that hadn't come in.
"Room 310."
No answer.
I checked the list.
Room 310.
Regular student.
Not a named one.
'Did she report an overnight stay?'
Checked the documents.
She didn't.
'.............'
Waited until 10:15 PM.
Didn't come.
According to regulations, the Warden must search if curfew is exceeded.
'Ha. Seriously.'
'Why are you doing this to me.'
Went outside.
Walked around the dormitory.
Garden.
Bench.
Back path.
Wasn't there.
'Where did she go at this hour.'
Walked toward the school.
In front of the library.
It was closed.
School garden.
No one there.
'............Don't tell me the boys' dormitory side?'
I stopped.
If I go to the boys' dormitory to find her, it becomes "The Girls' Dormitory Warden was lurking in front of the boys' dormitory."
That's even more dangerous.
Came back.
Waited in front of the dormitory main gate.
10:40 PM.
Heard footsteps from far away.
A girl was running.
Panting.
Panting.
It was Room 310.
"Wa, Warden-seonbae-nim! So, sorry!"
I was standing with my arms crossed.
Crossed them because I was cold.
But if I stand at the main gate with my arms crossed with these squinty eyes.
"Hiiik."
The girl flinched.
'Ah.'
'She's scared.'
'Ha. Shit. It's miserable.'
It's not like I wanted to be born with squinty eyes.
I slowly uncrossed my arms.
"Please submit an excuse by tomorrow morning."
As calmly as possible.
But I was nervous, so my voice was low again.
"Ye, yes!"
The girl scurried inside.
I locked the main gate.
Ttal-kkak.
This sound was the notification that my day's work was finished.
'Finished.'
Returned to the Warden's room.
Locked the door.
Changed clothes.
Comfortable pants and a t-shirt.
Turned on the game console.
Ttal-kkak.
[STAGE 48 — Guardian of Twilight]
New boss.
New war.
But this is a war I like.
Pulled up the blanket.
Stacked the pillows.
Grabbed the controller.
"Alright, let's go."
Heard laughter from beyond the wall.
Kka-rreu.
Someone's chatter.
The wall was thin.
Usually, it would be annoying.
But today.
'.............'
Not bad.
The light from the game screen.
And the laughter beyond the wall.
Today.
Shook in front of 30 people in the morning.
Smelled shampoo in the hallway.
Was an invisible man at school.
Received bread in the evening.
Delayed curfew.
Waited for a late kid.
Didn't get involved with a heroine.
No incident exploded.
The spoon didn't bend.
It was just a day.
A normal day for a Girls' Dormitory Warden.
But this normal day.
Was survival for me.
Every day is like this.
Every day.
'Ha.'
'Life.'
Ttal-kkak ttal-kkak ttal-kkak—