At the Academy (2)
Monday morning. The first day of the week.
Baek A-young had said her goodbyes to the people at Chulhyul Hospital on Sunday. And now, for the first time in a good while, she was reporting back to the infirmary.
After the constant bustle of a hospital, stepping into such a quiet workplace felt strangely disorienting. Still, just knowing she shared the same grounds as her darling was enough to set her humming under her breath.
Helping people at Chulhyul Hospital had been rewarding — but Lee Ho-yeon would always come first.
"Hmm-hmm. Ah, maybe I should stop by the medical team."
She needed to let them know she was back, say her hellos — and she had a question or two as well.
Baek A-young unpacked her things and headed straight for the medical team's building. It was right next door, so the walk took no time at all.
The moment she stepped inside, she found the entire staff working with the hollow-eyed stare of the walking dead.
"...What on earth are you all doing?"
It was Monday morning. Eyes that bloodshot could only mean they'd pulled an all-nighter.
As she stood there wondering, the staff member nearest the entrance slowly turned his head toward her. His eyes went wide, and he muttered under his breath.
"S-Saint. You're finally..."
"What? Saint?"
The team leader in the back heard that and shot to his feet. Baek A-young flinched at the sight of his bloodshot eyes. He strode over and bowed at the waist.
"Thank you. Thank you so much for coming back. Saint — I mean, Nurse Baek...!"
"...Excuse me?"
What was wrong with this man?
While she stood there bewildered, the team leader pressed on.
"That damn chairman — no, the higher-ups dumped a mountain of extra work on us the moment they heard you'd be joining the medical team. And they didn't cut any of it even while you were away on assignment... hnngh."
"..."
Whether it was the Association or the Academy, the medical teams always had it rough. Still, they were keeping their promise not to exploit her image, so Baek A-young was reasonably content with the Academy. Being close to Lee Ho-yeon didn't hurt, either.
"It's all right, Team Leader. I'm here now."
She did feel a little sorry for people being worked this hard. She'd just have to throw herself into it starting today.
"Thank you. Thank you..."
Baek A-young offered the grateful team leader a small smile, then asked the question she'd actually come for.
"The first-year mages have practicals right now, don't they? Has the medical team gone out to support?"
She already had Lee Ho-yeon's schedule memorized down to the hour. The medical team was exhausted, so she'd use that as an excuse to go out into the field herself. It had been far too long since she'd seen her darling in his cadet uniform.
"Huh? Ah — no. They didn't come in today."
"...That can't be right. Medical support is mandatory for practicals, isn't it?"
From everything she'd researched, every single practical class had medical team support. She'd been looking forward to today...
"Well, strictly speaking, it isn't mandatory. It's more of an unwritten rule — no professor skips it. But for some reason, no request came in today. If an accident happens, they'll have to take full responsibility."
"The professor in charge of that class is Professor Lim Sol, correct?"
"Let me just check... Ah, yes. That's right. Given that it's Professor Lim Sol, it probably wasn't a mistake. She must be confident nothing will go wrong. Or maybe she just doesn't want the contents of her class made public."
That couldn't be it.
Lim Sol's class was dead simple — cadets cast magic, Lim Sol evaluated them. There was nothing worth leaking. It was as wholesome a lesson as they came.
"...I see. I should get back to my own work."
"Yes, yes. Please do."
Baek A-young left the medical team. From inside came something that sounded a lot like We're finally free—!, but she ignored it and walked back to the infirmary.
Sitting at her desk in the quiet office, she cocked her head.
Sol? The girl who finds everything except magic a chore... volunteered to handle any accidents herself?
That made no sense. There had to be another reason. The most likely explanation was a simple mistake... but another thought crossed Baek A-young's mind.
What if she knew I was coming back today, and this is her way of keeping me away?
Lim Sol was a strong candidate for a rival, after all.
"Come on. No way."
Baek A-young slapped her own cheeks and shook her head hard. All that intense fieldwork must have sharpened her instincts a little too much. Her friend Lim Sol would never do something like that.
Besides, she was at the Academy now. There would be plenty of chances to see her darling.
"He'll come find me later. And if he doesn't, I'll just contact him myself."
Pushing the disappointment aside, Baek A-young turned to the work that had piled up in the infirmary — if she could take some of the load off the struggling medical team, that was enough.
Watching Lucy blast magic into the distance, Lim Sol looked over at me and opened her mouth.
"Even a disciple like you still has to take class. Show me some magic."
She stood with her arms crossed, watching me with open interest.
"Hmm..."
This was going to surprise her.
The last time I'd properly shown my magic in front of other people was the duel with the vice president. But I've improved a lot since then.
I drew mana from my fingertips, shaping it into the most elementary of forms: an Ice Spear, a spell designed for nothing more than punching clean through a practice target. But the more fundamental the magic, the more nakedly it laid a caster's skill bare.
As the magic circle neared completion, Lim Sol's brow furrowed. The same circle looked entirely different depending on who wove it. First there was the speed of construction — no words needed there. I was confident I could deploy a spell faster than Lim Sol herself. Then there was the quality of the mana. With Mana Resonance, I could draw out only the purest essence. Blue, flawless mana, without a single impurity, traced the circle into being.
The circle's completeness was naturally perfect. And last came the core formulas — a field no one but Lim Sol even understood yet. But that Lim Sol was standing right here, so she would recognize the true value of what she was seeing.
"Huh...?"
Just as I'd expected, something had caught her attention. Mana poured into the core formulas, honing the spear's tip to a razor's edge and amplifying the frost. Accelerating its flight. Increasing its piercing power. Watching a magic circle layered with countless overlapping formulas, Lim Sol let out a hollow laugh.
"...My disciple. You've grown a lot."
"Thank you, Professor."
Seeing her reaction put a real spring in my step.
Crack. Crrrack.
In front of my outstretched hand, a densely frozen ice spear launched itself at the target.
SKREEE-CRASH!
The target shattered with a tremendous noise, and I felt a deep satisfaction settle in my chest. I'd put that one together pretty well.
"Whoa, Lee Ho-yeon's insane."
"Right? But isn't that kinda basic for a genius mage?"
From behind us, cadets who'd been watching this way poured out their admiration. Lim Sol whipped her head toward the second voice — the cadet who'd called it ordinary for a genius. The crease between her brows looked a lot like genuine offense.
"Eep—! P-practice. I should practice."
"What kind of bullsh—"
"Professor. Please hold back. An ordinary cadet might not be able to tell."
I cut her off before she could spit something truly ugly. There was no way any mage here would catch all the subtleties packed into that spell. Fortunately, Lim Sol picked up on what I meant and met my eyes.
"...Did you dope or something?"
"You already know I didn't. Why even ask?"
"True enough. Haa... you're really something."
A combative little smile tugged at her mouth, like her competitive streak had just caught fire.
"I'll have to work harder. I'll admit it. You're definitely stronger than I was at twenty."
"Thank you. But you've improved far more over these eight years too, Professor."
"...That's true. I was always more suited to researching alone. And don't talk about my age."
She seemed pleased that my mana realm had advanced. If the disciple got stronger, the master felt good too — something like that, I supposed.
"Nothing to criticize, really... If I had to pick something, you used way too much mana just to show off for me. You only needed to smash the target."
"Hehe. Well, yeah."
I had poured in extra mana because I wanted to look good. But these days my reserves had grown so much that this amount barely registered. Unlike before, the mana accumulating in my body had become considerable.
"You did well, though. Ah — speaking of which, what do you want to do about the Magic Expo this week? I can match whatever schedule you want."
"The Magic Expo? I'm fine anytime, really."
"Then how about today? We could go right after class."
"Uh..."
Not today. Lucy and Rumi had told me I had to come.
"Today's a bit tough. Tomorrow?"
"Why, going to see A-young?"
"No. I have another appointment."
I was planning to meet Baek A-young at lunch. I couldn't skip the day the school nurse returned to the Academy.
"Hmm. Then let's do tomorrow."
"Yes, yes. After class tomorrow is fine."
I had nothing scheduled tomorrow, so making plans was no problem.
"No. After class I have research to do."
Lim Sol shook her head with absolute finality.
"...You just said tomorrow, Professor. Then what are we supposed to do?"
"We'll just go in the morning and come right back."
"What? I have Academy classes in the morning."
"Skip morning class."
"Is that something a professor should be saying?"
No matter how I looked at it, this person was not a professor. Having cadets do the grading had already been absurd. And if she had nothing to do during morning class hours, she could just research then. Shouldn't we simply go to the Magic Expo after the Academy let out?
"You've already filled all your attendance credits anyway. And if it really bothers you, just use a professor's authority. Call it a field study or something."
"...I like that."
A capable woman really was the best. Other people throwing their weight around pissed me off — but when I was the one who benefited, it was a different story entirely.
After lunch with Lucy and Rumi, I mentioned that I had somewhere to be.
"Ehh? Where're you going?"
Lucy grabbed my arm and shook it this way and that. She seemed more energetic than she had this morning, which was a relief.
"To see the school nurse. I need to pick up some medicine."
"Ah... so that's why you visit the infirmary so often."
"Yeah. There's something I get treated for."
I looked at Lucy and Rumi with an apologetic face.
"Well, if that's the case, can't be helped. Go on."
"See you in afternoon class, Ho-yeon."
"Yeah. See you later."
Lucy and Rumi headed back to the lecture hall, and I stepped outside for a bit.
Somehow I ended up being the one receiving treatment.
After Baek A-young took the post as school nurse, no cadet visited as often as I did, so quite a few people had gotten the wrong idea. Elise had even mistaken me for having a Congenital Mana Disorder because of it. Well — this was the easiest cover to maintain. As long as Baek A-young kept the secret, it was fine.
A lunch-break sign hung on the infirmary door, but I ignored it and walked in. As I entered the lobby, staff resting on the sofas spotted me, and a man who looked like the youngest of them came jogging over.
"I'm sorry. Lunch hours are break time, so..."
"Hey! Hey!"
"Y-yes?"
At the same moment, a staff member sitting in the back called out to the junior who'd approached me.
"Just let him through. He's a patient the nurse manages personally. Treatment takes a while, so he usually comes during break."
"Ah — I'm sorry!"
The junior staff bowed his head in apology, and I smiled awkwardly.
"It's fine. Please, rest easy."
So Baek A-young already told them that.
Well, that would be the most convenient arrangement.
"So when does the nurse even get to rest?"
"Beats me. That's what makes her so amazing."
Hearing Baek A-young's praises circulating among the staff, it seemed her reputation was excellent too. Our darling was the best. The absolute best.
I went to the office where Baek A-young would be and knocked.
Knock, knock.
"Who is it?"
"It's me, ma'am. Lee Ho-yeon."
"Ah — yes. Come in."
I pushed the door open, and there she was in her familiar work clothes, taking a break. A white blouse, a black miniskirt, black stockings to match. This was Baek A-young's work outfit. How were the men getting treated supposed to stay sane looking at that?
Click.
I shut the door firmly and locked it for good measure.
"It really has been a long time since we saw each other at the Academy."
"Darling... I missed you so much..."
Only after the door was locked did Baek A-young rise from her seat and come to me. It was the complete opposite of the composed, adult figure who'd been sitting there so properly.
Fwoomp.
Watching her bury herself against me and nuzzle her face into my chest, I smiled and stroked her hair.
"I missed you too. I love you, darling."
"Mmh... me too."
Having become a baby's father while leaving my darling behind did sting my conscience, just a little.