Time Bomb (Revised Version)

I walked down the corridor on my way to school, feeling a strange sense of unease. How should I put it... It was far too quiet on both sides of me. One step behind on my right. Seo Yoona. One step behind on my left. Han Soeun. They followed me like shadows. They didn't say a single word, but the gazes boring into my back were unbearably intense. Not sharp or stinging, but a sticky, clinging sensation. It felt like I'd been caught in a spider's web.

I glanced back casually.

"Hey, what are you two doing? Isn't it hard to breathe like that?"

At my words, Han Soeun flinched and lifted her head. Her face was flushed bright red.

"Pardon? Oh, no... It's just... Young Master's back view is just too wonderful..."

Her gaze traced the line of my shoulders before settling on my Adam's apple, visible above my shirt collar. I thought I heard her swallow hard. Her eyes had gone strangely ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠hazy. Like a predator staring at delicious prey.

"What about you, Yoona? Why are you standing so stiff?"

"I am on guard."

Seo Yoona answered in a low voice, her eyes sweeping the surroundings. Her tone had shifted from that old rigid military style to something closer to a worried bodyguard.

"There are too many blind spots. Senior stands out far too much... I must block everything."

Her hand never left the hilt of her sword. When a passing male student glanced at me, Seo Yoona's golden eyes flashed with cold light. The student yelped and bolted away.

......Scary bunch.

It would be better if they just nagged me. This silent stalking gave me the creeps even more.

At that moment, someone stepped in front of me. A familiar face wrapped in bandages. It was Park Minsu.

"Hello, Senior!" He greeted me with a bright, innocent smile.

In that instant, I felt the air behind me freeze solid. Seo Yoona and Han Soeun stopped walking at the same time. Killing intent. It wasn't outright hostility. But the way they looked at Park Minsu seemed to say, How dare you block our master's path? Their eyes were ice-cold and murky.

"Oh, Minsu. How's your body holding up?" I tried to lighten the mood and greeted him warmly.

"Yes, thanks to you. Ah, Senior. Did you attend the afternoon class today?"

"Afternoon? What's that about?"

"They say the Virtual Dungeon Simulation starts this week. It's in the underground third-floor training area. I heard it's a team competition..."

While Park Minsu kept explaining, I felt Han Soeun's gaze on me. She wasn't listening to a word he said. She was simply staring at my lips every time I spoke, as if licking each movement with her eyes.

......Ah, is that so? What a pain.

I gave a vague reply to shake off the discomfort and walked away. Park Minsu bowed politely, but I hurried my steps. The two shadows trailing me felt unusually heavy today.

Two o'clock in the afternoon. Underground third-floor arena. Team assignments began according to Instructor Kang Cheolmin's orders.

"To balance positions, the dealer group and supporter group will start from different locations. Supporter team, move to the control room in Area C."

That meant I had to separate from Han Soeun.

She gently tugged at my sleeve.

"Young Master."

"Yeah, go on. It'll be over quick."

I waved her off as if annoyed. Normally she would have thrown a tantrum, whining that she wanted to stay with me, but the Han Soeun of now was different.

"Yes. I'll be right back."

She obediently released my sleeve. But before turning away, she stepped close and fussed with my loosened tie. Her touch was far too slow. Her fingers brushed against my collarbone and chest.

"Please wait for me. I'll... come back soon."

She looked up at me with a smile. Her eyes were wet and red. It wasn't even a real farewell, yet she gazed at me with the sorrowful, clinging look of someone seeing their lover off to war. She took a deep breath of my scent, then walked away with reluctant steps that refused to separate.

The combat team—including me, Seo Yoona, and Park Minsu—remained in the plaza that served as Area A.

"Senior, please stay right behind me."

Seo Yoona drew her sword and positioned herself in front of me.

"If any fragments fly out, I'll block them with my body."

"Hey, it's not that serious."

"No. Senior's body is a national treasure. We must be extremely careful."

Seo Yoona was dead serious. I sighed and clasped my hands behind my back. Park Minsu subtly moved behind me with his shield raised.

"All right, simulation starting!"

With a wailing siren, the training area's lights turned blood red. Holographic monsters ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠began pouring out. I simply yawned. After all, Seo Yoona was cutting down anything that entered within two meters of me.

But then.

With a heavy thud, the steel door to distant Area C slammed shut. Screams erupted from inside.

"Kyaaaak!"

"What is this? Are these really virtual monsters? They're bleeding!"

"Young Master...!"

Han Soeun's voice reached me—faint, yet crystal clear to my ears.

"Damn it."

I instinctively broke into a run toward Area C. Seo Yoona hurriedly blocked my path.

"Move aside."

"You can't! It's dangerous!"

Seo Yoona's voice trembled.

"The mana readings are going berserk over there. If you go in now, even you will be at risk, Senior! The instructors will handle it!"

"Soeun is in there."

At my words, Seo Yoona's eyes wavered. Jealousy. And a hint of resentment. Why risk yourself for that woman? What about me?

Seo Yoona bit her lip hard.

"......I'll go instead."

She spoke with grim resolve.

"I'll go rescue her. Please stay here, Senior. I beg you."

"You can't handle it alone."

I pushed Seo Yoona aside and ran to the door. Instructor Kang Cheolmin was hammering at the control panel, but the door refused to budge.

"It's not opening! It's been hacked!"

Not opening? Then I'll just break it down.

My future safety was trapped inside. A mere door meant nothing.

"Everyone clear out!"

I shoved the students aside and stood before the door. Park Minsu quietly slipped behind me and asked in a worried tone.

"Senior? What are you planning? Are you going to use a scroll...?"

The boy's eyes sparkled with curiosity.

A scroll? Sure, keep thinking that.

I pressed my palm against the door. I released the power of the S-Class Flame Core. Scorching mana surged through every vein in my body. I murmured under my breath.

Explode.

BOOM—!

A massive explosion tore the thick steel door apart like paper. It wasn't mere physical force. The high-temperature blast had melted and blown the door away.

"Huk!"

"Crazy... He blew the door off?"

The students collapsed in shock. Instructor Kang Cheolmin's jaw hung open. I stepped through the torn opening.

The heat was intense, but with my S-Class Flame Resistance it felt like nothing more than a warm breeze.

Inside Area C, it was pure hell. Ogres and trolls were slaughtering the supporters.

"Huu..."

Han Soeun, cornered in the back. Her robe was torn, blood streaking her pale legs. Her mana shield had already shattered.

Even so, she clutched something tightly in her hand. It was the tie I had been wearing earlier. She must have taken it at some point—despite her terror, she held it to her chest like a talisman.

An ogre raised its club.

"Who gave you permission ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠to touch her?"

At my voice the ogre froze. I kept one hand in my pocket and snapped my fingers.

Ping—!

An invisible bullet of flame pierced straight through the ogre's head.

Bang!

The ogre's head exploded like a watermelon.

"......Young Master?"

Han Soeun looked up. The terror in her eyes sank into a murky haze the moment they met mine. Pure ecstasy. It was the face of a slave greeting her master who had come to save her.

"Can you stand?"

"Ah... it hurts..."

She looked perfectly capable of standing, but she deliberately staggered and sat back down. Normally I would have ignored it, but since she was actually bleeding, I let it slide.

I sighed and raised my right hand. The monsters surrounding us. Time to clean house.

"Burn away."

From my palm surged not red, but blue flames. They spread across the floor like living serpents.

WHOOOOSH—!

In an instant the entire Area C was engulfed in blue fire. The monsters didn't even have time to scream. The heat was so extreme that anything it touched had its data erased completely.

Ten seconds later, the flames died down. The monsters had vanished without a trace. All that remained were the blackened floor and walls.

Silence. A quiet so absolute that even breathing could not be heard.

I walked over to Han Soeun and lifted her in a princess carry.

"Look at the state you're in. I told you to maintain your dignity."

I pretended to scold her while wiping the blood away with a handkerchief. Han Soeun didn't flinch in pain. Instead she rubbed her face against my hand, gazing up at me with a dreamy, hazy expression.

"Young Master... came to rescue me."

She wrapped her arms around my neck. Then she breathed hotly into my ear and whispered.

"I saw it. That flame... It wasn't from an item, was it?"

"......"

"It was your power, right? You used it... for me. To save me, didn't you?"

Her body trembled with ecstasy. The thrill she felt seemed far greater than any fear of her secret being exposed.

This man revealed his greatest secret to the world... for my sake. That means I am that special.

"Be quiet."

When I threatened her, she smiled brightly and buried her face in my chest.

"I won't tell a soul. I'll keep it all to myself. Your true self, Young Master..."

Her hand slipped inside my shirt and traced the area around my heart. Goosebumps rose across my skin.

What's with her... Didn't she ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠just get rescued? Why does it feel like I'm the one being eaten alive?

"And this..."

She lifted the tie she had been clutching.

"Can I keep it?"

"Why did you even take that?"

"It smells like you, Young Master. Whenever I'm scared, holding it makes me feel like you're protecting me."

She pressed her nose into the tie and inhaled deeply.

That expression... is dangerous.

I quickly carried Han Soeun outside. Park Minsu stood there with his mouth hanging open.

"Whoa! Senior! What was that just now? Some new kind of bomb?! Wow, that's insane!"

At that moment Seo Yoona approached. She looked at Han Soeun in my arms, then her gaze locked onto the tie in Han Soeun's hand. She saw the strange, triumphant smile Han Soeun was giving her.

Seo Yoona's fists trembled violently.

"Senior... Are you injured anywhere?"

"Yeah, I'm fine."

"That's... a relief."

Seo Yoona's voice sank. She lowered her head. Jealousy. Isolation. And powerlessness.

I was right there. I should have been the one protecting her. In the end I made Senior step forward himself. I made him only take care of that fox-like bitch.

I have to become stronger.

Seo Yoona's eyes gleamed darkly.

I'll make Senior look only at me. I'll become his one and only sword. Not someone like her.

The next morning, the classroom door slid open with a rattle. Amid the whispering voices, I noticed a girl I'd never seen before—an incredibly beautiful one who seemed to have just entered the room.

Who is she? A transfer student?

With looks like that she should at least be a supporting character, yet I'd never seen her face once in the novel. Strangely, my chest ached a little. Arrhythmia?

When that strange girl drew near, voices rose from both sides of me.

"Who are you?"

"Stop right there."

I was momentarily flustered and asked.

".....Who?"

"...Hello, Lee Dohyun."

It wouldn't be strange for her to know my name since it was famous, but something about her sad-looking eyes made me unconsciously ask a strange question.

"But do you know me?"

She smiled with slightly moist eyes.

"Yes. I know you."

Then she said something I couldn't understand and vanished right before my eyes.