"......What Kind of Person Are You?"
I didn't immediately understand Seong Ha-yeon's question.
She stared right through me, as if demanding an answer. It was a far cry from how she'd avoided my gaze on the plane. Her pupils were slightly dilated from the alcohol, but that intense look in her eyes made it clear she was determined to get a response out of me.
"What do you mean?" I asked, meeting her stare. I was testing the waters.
Ever since her meeting with Seong Yu-da, Seong Ha-yeon hadn't shown up at school, and she'd openly avoided me at the airport. Seong Yu-da had clearly said something to her about me. I'd known that much for a while.
But now, hearing her ask what kind of person I was, I could roughly guess what he'd told her. He must've skipped any explanation of who I was and just hit her with heavy-handed warnings like "He's dangerous" or "Stay away from him." Otherwise, there'd be no reason for her to throw that question at me.
"......You seem to know exactly what I mean."
Seong Ha-yeon narrowed her eyes and glared at me. She was probing me just like I was her, but I had no intention of biting.
"No idea."
I answered nonchalantly. Playing dumb was the best move right now. There were too many eyes around.
I'd knocked out Yeo Min-seo and Kang Dae-man with spells, but Ma Yu-hyeon and Han Su-ryeon were still awake, and Kim Jin-seo seemed to be coming around.
Dragging this out with Seong Ha-yeon wouldn't gain me anything. I'd just lose a lot.
"......I have no clue why you're suddenly like this. You seem drunk. Just go inside and sleep it off."
I reached out to escort her to her room.
Slap!
"I'm not drunk."
But Seong Ha-yeon slapped my hand away with cold finality, glaring at me with venomous eyes.
This was getting annoying. Spells didn't work on Seong Ha-yeon, so I couldn't knock her out like Kang Dae-man or Yeo Min-seo. That was why I hated the Purification Clan. They never danced to my tune.
"Since I'm not drunk, just answer my─!"
Right as Seong Ha-yeon continued,
"Huh......?"
Her body tilted sideways. She collapsed onto the floor.
I was baffled. I hadn't cast any spell, and even if I had, it wouldn't work on someone from the Purification Clan.
Seong Ha-yeon groped at the floor, blinking, then looked up at me with unfocused eyes and opened her mouth.
"It's...... spinning......"
"What's spinning?"
"The...... ground...... the ground's spinning......"
Seong Ha-yeon mumbled. It wasn't the ground spinning—it was her head—but I didn't bother saying so. She wouldn't get it anyway.
I checked her condition. She wasn't under any spell. She was just plain drunk.
She must've gotten worked up confronting me and hit her limit all at once. Lucky break for me. No need to answer her questions now.
I scooped her up.
"Put me down. Just answer. Answer my question from earlier......"
"Shut up before I toss you out the window."
"......"
She probably wouldn't remember tomorrow anyway, so I spoke my mind. A little scare, and she went quiet without resisting.
I dumped her on an empty bed in some random bedroom. She flailed around for a bit before passing out.
The others had only been buzzed from the intoxication spell, but pure alcohol-wise, Seong Ha-yeon was the most wasted.
Anyway, relief.
I headed back to the living room to clean up. Ma Yu-hyeon caught my eye and started helping.
"......Hey, sorry. Didn't think it'd turn out like this."
"Forget it. Just clean."
I brushed it off. At first, I was pissed that Ma Yu-hyeon ignored me and opened Yeom Man-geun's special brew. But I decided not to blow up.
I didn't have the energy, and more importantly, the kids were holding up better than I'd expected.
I'd seen people do utterly insane things when drunk on intoxication spells—like charging into a burning shopping mall.
So I'd figured kids like Kang Dae-man or Yeo Min-seo would cause major trouble, but they'd only pulled minor, almost cute antics I could brush off.
[The mist of the spell they drank is less than a grain of rice compared to what you usually consume.]
"......"
I ignored Legba and kept cleaning silently.
Come to think of it, the intoxication spell engraved in Yeom Man-geun's brew was a tiny dose. Like diluting the pure stuff to a very low concentration.
What I usually drank was full strength—the pure stuff. Sometimes I'd push it to near-lethal doses.
Legba was right. I really needed to cut back.
"Haa...... ugh......!"
Then Kim Jin-seo groaned, clutching her forehead. Headache, probably.
She was better than before, but not fully recovered.
I tried to help her up, but she staggered away, stubbornly refusing my support.
"I-I can walk. I'm fine."
"You sure you're okay?"
"Yeah, I can...... manage."
She panted it out, then shuffled to a room, leaning on the wall.
Lucky there were plenty of rooms in the dorm, so everyone had space. The bedrooms went to whoever passed out first, and I might end up on the living room sofa, but whatever.
I returned to the living room and resumed cleaning. But it never seemed to end.
"No matter how much we clean, it doesn't finish."
Ma Yu-hyeon, who'd been scrubbing the floor, stood and stretched.
"Ugh, these so-called clerics......"
I sighed. Seeing holy folk who pretended to be so pure turn into slaves to booze made me lose all respect for Romanica.
[You're no different from them.]
I ignored Legba again. Ma Yu-hyeon sat back down after stretching and spoke while gathering trash.
"Clerics love booze by nature of the job. Can't be helped."
"Shut your mouth."
"Yeah...... fair enough?"
By the time we finished the living room, it was late.
*
Yeo Min-seo and Han Su-ryeon took the room that used to be Ma Yu-hyeon's. Seong Ha-yeon ended up in Kang Dae-man's. Ma Yu-hyeon claimed the living room sofa, and Kang Dae-man was wherever I'd tossed him—he'd figure it out. One room left, probably for Kim Jin-seo.
I'd have preferred sending them all back to their own dorms, but they weren't in any state for that. I'd ship them out early morning—no way Han Dae-ho would notice.
Anyway, I got to lie comfortably in my own bed. As I pulled up the covers and closed my eyes, Damballa slithered up from under the bed and coiled beside my head.
[Can't sleep, little one?]
"A bit."
I answered Damballa. Felt safe enough—everyone was probably asleep by now.
[Put tomorrow's worries aside for now. Losing sleep over it will just ruin tomorrow anyway.]
Damballa pierced right through me. I closed my eyes without responding.
Sleep wouldn't come. My head was spinning with thoughts of stealing the Retrograde Staff from the museum tomorrow.
What if it wasn't there? What if the staff ignored Yun Chang-su's letter and wouldn't cooperate? What if I got caught mid-theft? What if the schedule changed and I couldn't go? What if I failed tomorrow and couldn't turn Jeong Yun-ah human again......?
Those worries chased sleep away. No point closing my eyes.
I almost channeled Voodoo magic for an intoxication spell, then stopped. Suddenly hit me: I couldn't rely on it forever.
[Want a lullaby, little one? Mine work great.]
"Last time I slept to your lullaby, I had nightmares."
[True. But you sleep, don't you?]
Damballa said shamelessly. I chuckled instead of replying.
Maybe nightmares were better than this. Sleepless anxiety or nightmarish sleep—same difference. If anything, sleep won out.
"Give me a song."
[Little one, watch your manners─]
Crunch─!
Damballa cut off mid-sentence and dove under the bed. In a hushed voice,
[......Someone's coming. I hear footsteps.]
I bolted upright in surprise and listened. Footsteps—faint, light, irregular. Stumbling, like someone drunk waking up.
But they were getting closer. Definitely heading my way.
Click.
The door opened. Dim light from the living room spilled in through the crack.
She stepped inside, climbed onto the bed like it was natural, and lay down beside me.
In the dark, I saw her unfocused eyes. Still not fully with it.
"......Can't sleep. My heart's racing weird."
Kim Jin-seo panted. Racing heartbeat—a side effect of overusing the intoxication spell.
She curled into me. I pulled back in panic.
She looked up, staring. Eyes full of sorrow, resentment—maybe both.
"I didn't drink. I just opened the bottle, and suddenly......"
Kim Jin-seo started explaining unprompted, voice thick with grievance. She'd overheard my mutter during cleanup: "these so-called clerics."
"So don't be disappointed."
"......"
"Really, I didn't drink."
"Got it."
"You believe me?"
"I believe you."
She smiled at my firm words. Her vacant, hazy eyes fixed on me.
"Don't abandon me."
"......I won't."
"Promise."
I knew better, but nodded anyway. Figured she wouldn't remember tomorrow. Or maybe her tiny, curled-up form looked smaller than usual tonight.
Soon, she was out. Intoxication spells brought euphoria and alertness at first, then crushing drowsiness.
I'd used that myself to force sleep sometimes.
"......"
I watched sleeping Kim Jin-seo. If she was telling the truth—no drop of alcohol—then pure spell did this.
She was extremely vulnerable to it. Maybe no natural resistance to spells at all.
If so, I could've knocked her out with a faint spell the moment she entered.
No need for her rambling excuses or impossible promises.
Yet I hadn't pushed her away.
Why? No idea.
[Don't look away. You already know why.]
[People with family voids treat those around them like family to fill it. That's her psyche too.]
"......"
[And yours.]
A few names came to mind. People so precious that imagining them hurt or in trouble shattered my reason.
Sleep still wouldn't come. I gave her the bed and headed to the living room.
Opened the sliding door to the small terrace off the room. The city's garish lights had faded with night, revealing stars hidden before.
I counted them, steadying my heart.
(To be continued)