Midterms (8): The Black Sky
“Phew… that was brutal.”
I stepped out after finishing today's final duel.
It was day four of the duels.
The last day.
With this, the duels were over.
And the one I'd just finished was my final midterm duel.
My record so far: twelve wins, zero losses.
I'd wrapped it up undefeated, just as planned.
As my win streak piled up day by day, most of the looks that had underestimated me had faded away.
Sure, there were still a few calling me a parachute—a nepotism hire.
But those were usually just plain jealousy.
The more wins I racked up, the more mediocre opponents gave up challenging me.
So the quality of my foes kept rising with each passing day, peaking in that last duel just now.
My combos finally broke into double digits for the first time—need I say more?
Thanks to that, I got to clock out later than usual today.
The view outside was the same late night as always.
Stars twinkling across the sky, moonlight filtering through the clouds.
Tree leaves rustling faintly in the breeze, and straight ahead, a wooden bench.
For the first two days of duels, Sellin El Soladion had been sitting there waiting for me.
From day three on, she was gone.
Eh, everyone has their own stuff to do. I didn't dwell on it.
That said, tomorrow was the final day of midterms, just like Sellin El Soladion had mentioned.
With duels done, next up were exams testing us cadets' scholarly knowledge.
The content still hadn't been revealed.
They said it'd be announced on the day itself, right?
For someone like me who never cracks a book, that was a blessing.
This midterm had gone surprisingly smoothly so far.
The duels turned out exactly as I'd hoped.
No major hiccups.
Sellin El Soladion's sudden attitude shift felt a bit off, sure.
But honestly, it didn't seem like a big deal.
Right now, I just needed to quietly wait for tomorrow's exam.
Whenever the Academy pulled off something this big, drama always erupted.
But this time, it felt eerily quiet.
Like the calm before the storm—made me uneasy.
Or maybe I was just overthinking it…
Eh, good is good. Better to stay chill for now.
Just securing my grades was tough enough.
And info was scarce.
I still wasn't even sure what my Quest really was.
Lately, I'd built rapport with most of the reincarnated hero's party members.
Bonded deeply with a few, even.
But what if my Quest meant harming them?
Could I hurt them without hesitation?
No guarantees.
That's why my thoughts had been getting heavier lately.
Was it okay to keep building these relationships?
I still hadn't found Yusiel's reincarnation.
Was I chasing the Quest, or just living as an Academy cadet?
My sense of self was still fuzzy.
Stuck in limbo, somehow.
Sure, I knew it'd sort itself out as I pushed forward.
But the anxiety lingered anyway.
That's just how people are.
Without certainty, doubts sprout everywhere.
I'm no exception.
“…Fuck it, whatever.”
I try to avoid overcomplicating things.
So for now, I follow the path in front of me.
I'm an Academy cadet right now.
So I give it my all.
Building ties with the heroes is part of that.
If it bites me later… cross that bridge when I get there.
Not in the mood to dwell on it now.
“The night sky… it's pretty.”
The question Sellin had asked me the other day.
What I liked about the night sky—I'd said the black sky itself.
Partly for its signature quiet.
But there was another reason.
The black sky is the backdrop.
The canvas that lets the twinkling stars shine.
It doesn't flaunt itself.
That quiet appeal was part of it too.
Quietly highlighting others' stories.
Thinking like that, I kinda liked it.
I'm not ambitious.
Not itching to be the protagonist or stand out.
Just a regular guy chasing normalcy.
That's why I love others' stories.
Heroic epics that sparkle, sweet romances of young lovers, dramatic odes to humanity… you know.
I'm the black sky pursuing normalcy.
And those tales are the stars glittering against my backdrop.
My role—making those stars shine—is enough.
So even though my own records vanished from history, it stung but didn't shatter me.
My story probably didn't sparkle anyway.
Of course, a story's shine comes from the listener.
The meaning you pour in is the teller's, but how you interpret it is the hearer's.
So tomorrow, the story Sellin El Soladion tells me.
What sparkle would it hold…?
Lost in those thoughts, time slipped away.
I trudged past the bench, by buildings, until I reached the Dormitory.
Beautiful scenery around me? Didn't register. Just that one thought consuming me as I walked.
Even after reaching my room, flopping onto bed—it continued.
Until sleep finally came, those thoughts turned to anticipation.
Pillow of expectation, I closed my eyes.
Unaware what tomorrow might bring.
Sellin El Soladion, the empire's fallen princess.
She sat alone in her room, staring into empty space.
Tomorrow was her day of reckoning.
The day she'd settle things with him—the one who'd abandoned her and the others, forgotten everything, and returned.
Part of her saw a changed man.
But another part knew he was the same as ever.
That's why Sellin El Soladion hesitated.
Was Shin Iheon really the man she thought he was?
Or was this amnesiac a different person entirely?
But tonight, the eve of confrontation, she'd found her answer.
Or rather, she'd given up thinking about it.
Just decided: Shin Iheon was that same guy who'd ditched them.
The selfish bastard who'd chosen ease over them, forgetting it all.
A monumental piece of trash.
That was the choice she'd made for her own peace.
The more she thought, the more he seemed altered somehow.
“If the things you've built start dragging you down, just tear them down yourself…”
That answer had made her think he was a total stranger.
The old him would've said the exact opposite.
Just two days of talks.
But through them, Sellin El Soladion had gleaned a ton of info.
Which led to her agonizing over the choice—and ultimately ditching the overthinking.
She hadn't even sorted out what to say tomorrow.
What story to tell him?
Words of resentment?
Explanations of the memories he'd forgotten?
Or torture him enough to feel a sliver of their pain?
Extreme ideas flashed through her mind.
Everything else wiped clean from her head.
The exam tomorrow? Erased.
Even the emperor who'd clearly come for her.
All her focus on one man: Shin Iheon.
He mattered that much to Sellin El Soladion… no, to her and her comrades.
Building emotions this deep wasn't easy.
But hope's torment was that cruel.
People lost in darkness, blinded by light.
That was the hero's party.
She was no different.
As stories piled up, emotions wore thin.
Shin Iheon was the one who'd let them cling to those fraying feelings.
First, gratitude. He'd given her meaning.
Second, affection. Handsome face, noble heart.
Third, guilt. She'd burdened him too much.
Fourth, remorse. First time she'd seen him lose everything.
Fifth, kinship. Never dreamed she'd wear that same grim face.
After that, repeats of the fifth.
As ruin deepened, a few more cycles later.
He left them.
At first, denial. He wouldn't.
But reality didn't budge.
Just endless despair without him.
After more despair, Sellin El Soladion and most of the party accepted it.
The darker emotions toward him thickened, persisting to now.
The deeper the feelings, the more reason slips.
Sellin El Soladion's state was perfect for that description.
Reason lost.
Having abandoned pondering Shin Iheon.
She planned to unleash her pent-up emotions in one day.
Tomorrow. Ignoring the emperor she hadn't even spared a thought for.
Unaware what that trash might unleash.