Interlocked Fingers
"I'm screwed."
Yuna muttered as she washed her face, stroking her disheveled hair. To get good grades, it was important to stay on the homeroom teacher's good side, but what would they think of her suddenly bolting out of class? Her vision was already going dark just imagining it. If she got dinged for this... She didn't even want to think about it. And she'd sworn never to cry ugly like that again, but her eyes were unmistakably red in the mirror.
She firmly believed all of this was the fault of that rumored transfer student, NoName. Si-hu getting 84 points while she got 82—she could have lived with that and aimed for next time. But seeing the transfer student boldly score a perfect 100? That crushed what little self-esteem Yuna had left.
How the hell has she lived? What kind of perfect home did she grow up in? What amazing teachers did she have that she can wield magic so overwhelmingly?
A squeezing pain gripped her chest, leaving Yuna gasping for breath. She envied the other kids. She wanted to grow up in a family so wealthy she'd never spend it all, learning magic without a care in the world. Not worrying about today or tomorrow, but fretting over some distant future. But she couldn't—because she was her family's only hope.
How did I even get into this academy...?
That's why Yuna couldn't put down her pen even in the dead of night. Her reflection stared back from the water-filled sink, dark circles heavy under her eyes. The result of dozing off in fits while cramming for the aptitude test.
If I just smashed my head in here right now...
"You okay?"
"Who's there! Oh... it's you."
Yuna whipped around in surprise. She thought it was a ghost at first, but lowering her gaze revealed a small girl staring up at her intently.
"Get lost."
"Nah."
"I said get lost!"
"I came to take my meds too. The bathroom isn't just yours, you know?"
Yuna couldn't believe this girl. But ignoring her completely, NoName entered the bathroom and dumped a handful of empty potion bottles from her arms onto the sink. The one still containing liquid? She twisted off the cap and downed it in one smooth shot. A clean one-shot. Then, casually, she moved to the next sink and rinsed the glass bottles thoroughly. Black grime bubbled down the drain.
"Hey, you."
"What now? You've seen enough—get out."
"You've got blood on your forehead. Come here."
It was a cut from when Yuna had banged her head on the mirror entering the bathroom. NoName grabbed Yuna's head with both hands and forced it down to her eye level.
"What are you doing?"
"Stop squirming and hold still."
2nd Circle: Tissue Regeneration
When did she...?
A warm glow transferred from NoName's hands to Yuna's forehead. Yuna hadn't even noticed NoName preparing the spell, let alone chanting it—no transmutation circle, just direct casting. She'd never seen this magic before. Green hue suggested something life-related, but that was just a vague guess, and probably off-base.
Unlike the flustered Yuna, NoName remained calm from start to finish, as if it were the most natural thing.
Yuna squinted up at her. Being so short, she'd never gotten a good look at her face before, but now... those eyelashes were insanely long and pretty. How did such delicate features fit on such a small head? Especially those upturned eyes—they reminded her of the Siamese cat she'd had as a kid.
"Don't get hurt."
"What, bragging that you can use magic on me right now?"
Despite the gratitude bubbling inside, her tsundere habit spat out snark first.
"Want me to teach you? Come here."
"Huh?"
NoName's hand overlapped Yuna's. Yuna tried to pull away from the sudden skinship, but their fingers were already interlocked.
"You know runes up to 2nd Circle, right? I'll just show you how to draw it. Memorize it well."
NoName's mana flowed into Yuna's hand through their clasped fingers. A foreign energy. Yuna felt dizzy, her body heating up.
"Tissue Regeneration—you never start with the outer circle. That forces all control runes to match its size, making it tricky. Start with the triangle like this."
Slowly, gently, their overlapped hands moved. NoName explained every detail of the magic circle kindly. Her warm breath occasionally tickled Yuna's shoulder.
"To maintain the circle, use just half of the initial injection mana—actually, half of that half is enough."
"Yeah... got it."
"Your turn?"
"Me? Now? This?"
Does she think everyone's a genius like her?
But Yuna couldn't let herself look weak, so she desperately recalled what NoName had taught.
"Triangle first... 'Maben' three times at each vertex—no, two... one 'El'. Then calculate the area for the circle, and the control rune like this?"
"Yep, perfect."
Yuna infused mana into the completed circle. It vibrated just like NoName's had.
"You're a genius too."
"Duh...! Wait, why are you teaching me this?"
"Childhood illnesses last forever. Use it often."
NoName's cryptic words made Yuna tilt her head, but she quickly figured it out.
"How come you talk like such an adult when you're a kid?"
"I'm an adult."
"Yeah, right."
Peering into the mirror, Yuna saw the wound healed flawlessly, no scar. Experiencing healing magic firsthand, she asked about its origin.
"Who taught you this spell?"
"Taught?"
"Someone had to. Parents? Tutor?"
"Self-taught."
"Liar."
"Magic's best learned solo from the start—builds the knack."
"Still, your parents must've helped."
"They're both gone."
"Liar... right?"
"Yeah. Not lying."
"..."
Speechless, Yuna fidgeted with her fingers. Who could've guessed her parents were gone? In an academy full of rich kids with perfect lives, it hadn't crossed her mind.
Finally, she blurted, "Sorry... My dad's gone too. We're even."
Big trouble...!
NoName had gone to find Yuna 15 minutes ago and still wasn't back. Si-hu grew more anxious by the second. He'd realized NoName's backers were no ordinary people, and Yuna had provoked them outright. What if they weren't just fetching her but had locked her in a janitor's closet and were beating her? No word at all.
Should I check now?
But Si-hu had no excuse to fetch them. Who'd believe a teacher that his students were spies? He tried to dismiss it as ridiculous.
But what if? Even unlikely...
Even if NoName wasn't a spy, Yuna had given her plenty of reason to hate her. If Se-ri was right and NoName could drop upperclassmen with a gesture, overpowering Yuna would take seconds. Maybe she was trapped in the last stall, head dunked in a full sink.
The door rattled.
"...!"
Contrary to Si-hu's fears, they looked fine. NoName entered through the back door first, Yuna following meekly.
But Yuna was utterly docile now—nothing like before.
What happened in there?
"Sorry, Si-hu, Yo-han. We messed up your group work, huh?"
NoName apologized.
"No, it's fine! Yuna, you okay?"
"Huh? Yeah... I'm good..."
Was this the same Yuna spewing curses moments ago? Si-hu wasn't the only one sweating; Yo-han was drenched too.
Korean class—an unimportant subject at Seferon Academy—fizzled out uneventfully. As Yuna feared, no conduct points, just ace the midterms and finals.
"NoName!"
As desks returned and break time hit, Yuna scurried to NoName's seat.
"That thing earlier... teach me again. Forgot how."
"Come here."
"Okay."
"Hand."
"Here."
Yuna knelt by NoName's desk, placing one hand on it. She looked just like a trainer with a puppy.
Si-hu wanted to faint right there.