The Boundary of Dreams (9)
After parting with Yeon Minha, I made my way to Professor Kwon Chan-yeol’s office. It wasn’t the weekend, so leaving the Cradle required a faculty member’s approval.
“Here. No matter how late you stay out, you must be back inside the main gate before midnight. Even recommended students aren’t exempt. You know that, right?”
“I’ll keep it in mind.”
He didn’t even glance at the reason I’d written down. With a tired scrawl, he signed the blank space and shoved the form back at me. Exhaustion clung to his stubbled face like a second skin.
“Sorry for bothering you. I have a meeting with a corporate representative today.”
“Ah, that explains it. I was wondering what the fuss was about. Since you’re a Black Lotus recommendation, it must be S&C, right?”
“Yes, sir. You know about that…?”
“Of course I do. I had a sponsorship contract with them back in my own student days. Thanks to that Jaehyuk bastard, I even got favorable terms…”
His half-asleep murmur carried a name that made me pause.
“By any chance… are you referring to the person I know?”
“…Ah.”
The moment he heard my question, alertness snapped back into his eyes. A quiet sigh slipped from his lips.
“…Jaehyuk and I were classmates here at the Cradle. Don’t mention it to anyone. I’d rather not deal with accusations of unfair treatment.”
This was news to me. Now that I thought about it, the two did look roughly the same age. The unexpected revelation prodded an idle question out of me before I could stop it.
“What was he like as a student?”
“…Impressive. In both the best and worst ways.”
“What do you—”
“That’s enough. Shouldn’t you ask him yourself? I need sleep, and you have somewhere to be.”
Bang!
I was unceremoniously ejected into the hallway. For a moment I simply stood there, unsure where to put my feet. Eventually I started downstairs, turning the conversation with Professor Kwon over in my mind.
Most of the people I’d met at the Cradle regarded our leader as little more than human garbage. The titles they gave him—good-for-nothing, thug, trash, lecher—were all vicious. Yet a few, like the principal or Professor Kwon just now, didn’t seem to hold him in contempt. If anything, they spoke of him with respect or a trace of pity.
My own feelings weren’t so different. His personality was a bit old-mannish and his constant grumbling could be irritating, but that alone wasn’t enough to brand someone a villain. If it were, he never would have taken me in.
I hadn’t cared much about his past at first. Now, though, I found myself growing curious.
Click!
“Huh?”
Lost in thought on the stairs, I heard a doorknob turn in the adjacent corridor. I glanced over reflexively and saw a girl with familiar brown hair stepping out of an office, pulling the door shut behind her.
“Yena?”
“H-Hyun…?”
At the sound of her name she whipped around, startled, as if she’d never imagined running into me here. Her appearance was far from reassuring. Those round eyes were bloodshot and glistening, as though she’d been crying for hours.
“W-why are you…”
She looked embarrassed; when I approached, she hastily turned her face away.
“I was getting an exit pass. I have somewhere to go.”
“I-I see… heh…”
I checked the nameplate above the door she’d just left. Slightly higher than eye level, it read No Jong-ha, Magic Chemistry and Magical Pharmacology. The image of a mustached, arrogant middle-aged professor immediately sprang to mind. I knew his reputation well. He quietly disadvantaged students from provincial or lowly families while treating those from prestigious houses with suspicious warmth. The fact that he skirted the line of official discrimination without quite crossing it only made him more distasteful.
I didn’t care for him either. He’d shown subtle disapproval toward me, which had puzzled me until I learned he was openly backed by the Patcheon Baek family. And if my information was correct, Yena’s background was not one Professor No would favor.
“Why are your eyes so red? Did he scold you? If he was harassing you, I can speak to the principal—”
The top floor of this building housed the principal’s office. There was no need to stay silent about unfair treatment.
“Eh? Oh, no. I just didn’t sleep much last night. Ugh, how embarrassing… heh…”
When I turned to head back upstairs, Yena quickly blocked my path. She insisted the redness came from studying late and that she’d only visited to ask about confusing sections in Magic Chemistry. Sure enough, a thick introductory tome on the subject was clutched in her arms.
In the end, the troubled look on her face made me drop the subject. We continued down the stairs together to the lower level of the faculty building. With even Yena—who usually filled the silence for unsociable me—remaining quiet, the air grew unbearably awkward.
“…It’s the second request already. Are you preparing properly…?”
Yena only spoke again once we’d left the faculty building.
“More or less. Where’s your group headed?”
“We’re assisting with patrols on the capital outskirts. They’re so short-staffed they’d accept help from a cat’s paw at this point… It doesn’t seem too bad…”
Yena gave a small nod. Even I thought it was a decent assignment. She was timid by nature, and after the last request she had seemed far more afraid of demonic beasts than of criminals or mutants.
“A-and you…?”
“We’re on transport escort duty. We’ll be heading down to the southern agricultural zone…”
Clatter!
The sound of something dropping cut me off. I looked over to see the thick textbook that had been in Yena’s arms now rolling across the dirt ground. Her face had gone deathly pale as she stared at me.
“The south…?”
“…? Yeah. The south. It’ll probably take a while. We leave this week, so even at the earliest we won’t be back until next week…”
“N-no…!”
Yena suddenly cried out. The violent reaction caught me off guard.
“Yena?”
“You can’t…! The south is dangerous… cough!Cough!!”
She broke into a fit of coughing so violent it sounded as if she were trying to expel her own organs.
“Cough!Cough!! Hic…! Cough…! Heu…”
“Are you all right? You’ve been acting strange all day. Let’s get you to the infirmary. I’ll take you—”
“Heu… No. I just swallowed the wrong way…”
“That was more than just swallowing the wrong way…”
“I’m really fine… But the south, of all places…”
After several minutes, Yena finally regained control of her breathing. She muttered blankly, then looked at me with pleading eyes.
“…Hyun. Can’t you skip it…? Or ask to change the request…”
“It’s far more important than the first one. How could I skip it? Besides, our mentor has probably already submitted the form. You know once a professor approves it, changes are impossible.”
“No… you can’t…”
“Why are you so upset?”
“Cough… I’m just worried… It’s too dangerous… It’s far away… There are demonic beasts… And they say the south is the rebels’ main stronghold…”
It seemed her timid, worry-filled nature had flared up again. But today it felt excessive, almost solemn—like she was trying to stop someone from marching off to war. Combined with how unwell she clearly was, the whole situation left me with an odd, uneasy feeling.
“You know my skill level. Ordinary demonic beasts aren’t even a threat. And the rebels’ forces were shattered during the subjugation. They’ve lost nearly all their power.”
“Even so…”
“I told you, I’ll be fine.”
“Ugh…”
Yena’s expression crumpled as if she were about to cry.
“…Then will you make me one promise…?”
“What is it?”
“No matter what happens, promise you won’t push yourself. Don’t go off alone like you did during training…”
The memory of me leaving by myself during the practical exam still seemed burned into her mind. I recalled how she had sulked and worried in equal measure.
But I couldn’t give her an easy assurance. Safety was assured in theory, yet the unexpected always lurked. If I happened to run into that one-in-a-million disaster, I would end up breaking the promise.
“…I can’t guarantee that.”
“…”
My evasive answer left her silent. Then she offered a lonely, resigned smile.
“…I thought you’d say that. It’s just like you, Hyun…”
“Don’t worry. Nothing’s going to happen.”
“…Yeah. I hope you’re right. Hyun, I have my next lecture soon, so I should go. See you later…?”
Yena gave a small nod. She checked the clock tower, waved lightly, then turned and walked away in the opposite direction. Her steps looked heavy, weighed down the entire way.
I arrived at the café fifteen minutes early, yet a woman was already seated there waiting for me. Her long hair was neatly tied back in a tidy style. She looked slightly older than me and wore a crisp, expensive suit that gave the immediate impression of someone employed at a prestigious firm.
The moment the door chimed open, her gaze snapped toward me. She rose at once and bowed deeply—nearly ninety degrees—when I approached.
“It is an honor to meet you for the first time, little young master. My name is Myo Sang-a of S&C Defense’s VIP exclusive team. I am truly grateful to have the opportunity to greet you in per—”
“…”
The fluid introduction broke off mid-sentence with the unmistakable sound of her biting her tongue. An awkward silence swallowed the entire space.