The New Semester Begins

Today is Monday.

The day Frontier's first semester truly begins in earnest.

From early morning, the campus bustled with students. Grade-level evaluation exams had come and gone, but with the first semester officially starting, anticipation lit every face.

Some clustered in twos and threes, chatting with friends; others fussed over newly issued uniforms; still others walked along with tense expressions, anxious about the school life ahead. Everyone wore a different look, yet it was plain that all of them had been waiting for this day.

Frontier.

South Korea's premier hunter training academy — a dream academy where countless talents gathered.

And…

To me, it was hell.

I looked up at the massive school gate rising before me and let out a sigh.

"Haah…"

No matter how many times I saw it, the sight never grew familiar. The time I had spent here in my previous life had been anything but short, and everything I had gone through in those years had been intense enough that I would never forget it for the rest of my life.

Recommendation for expulsion.

Failing student.

Stalker.

Unpleasant memories made my brow furrow on its own.

I'll admit it. Back then I was emotional, and because of that I ruined everything.

The students around me streamed through the gate with excited faces, but I alone couldn't quite bring myself to take that step.

In that moment—

Ding~

With the familiar chime, a blue window appeared before my eyes. After a brief silence, I let out a dry chuckle.

"Still…"

I exhaled softly, then took a step toward the main gate.

"This time might be different."

The moment I stepped into Frontier, strange stares began to prick at my skin.

A sidelong glance. Someone smirked at me; someone else muttered openly. There was even a guy glancing back and forth between his Smart Watch and my face.

…

Ah.

It was because of that video from yesterday.

"Hey, hey. That guy."

"Who?"

"You know. The evaluation match video."

"Oh! I saw it yesterday too! That all-time disaster from the Magic track?"

"Whoa, first time seeing him in person."

"I surrender! I surrender! That's him, right?"

"Pfft—thinking about it still cracks me up."

"Shh, he's gonna hear."

I already heard everything, thanks.

I ignored the stares and kept walking toward the classroom.

Then—

"Move."

A cold voice cut through. The students who'd been mocking me from behind startled and hastily cleared a path. Through that opening came a red-haired girl, and our eyes met.

Kang Harin?

She studied me for a moment, then spoke.

"So you're the star of that video?"

…What was this about.

When I frowned, she added one more line.

"You look even more pathetic in person."

"Move."

"What…?"

"I said move. Don't block the classroom door."

Only then did I realize I was standing right in front of Magic Department, Year 2 Class 1.

"Ah… yeah."

I stepped aside without thinking. Once I cleared the way, Kang Harin brushed past me and walked into the classroom as if nothing had happened.

…

If that was all she was going to do, why pick a fight in the first place.

I'd thought it even while reading the original — her personality really is something else.

…

Wait a second.

Year 2 Class 1???

I hastily opened my Smart Watch and entered the Year 2 Class 1 group chat. Just like yesterday, I tapped the member list in the upper right.

Kim Taeseong.

Park Jihoon.

Yoon Chaerin.

…

Lee Sihyun.

I already saw that far yesterday.

I scrolled farther down.

And at the very bottom—

Kang Harin.

…

You've got to be kidding me.

Why?

First Lee Sihyun, and now Kang Harin. I couldn't even begin to guess how far the original story was about to change.

The thought brought a sudden wave of déjà vu.

The original is changing…?

I turned the idea over slowly in my mind.

—Thump.

My heart was pounding.

Why?

Don't tell me.

Am I… nervous?

Fate changing was clearly good news for me. At the same time, though, every change to the original meant the weapon I'd been counting on — my knowledge of the plot — was starting not to work. Having things shift this fast did me no favors.

Haa…

Calm down. The major flow of the story is still supposed to hold. All I have to do is trust that and keep going.

Ding~

Huh…?

"Haha…"

Two days of grinding myself into the dirt had only gotten me four EXP.

Am I supposed to be happy about this or not?

…

Fine.

Good is good.

I steeled myself once more and stepped into the classroom.

—Creeeak.

For a moment, the buzzing classroom fell quiet.

"Oh."

"He's here."

"He actually came."

Familiar stares poured in from every direction.

…Ah. Of course they'd seen the video here too.

But only for a moment. They soon returned to their own conversations.

Whew…

Lucky they're less interested than I expected.

It had been quiet this morning, and now this starts again. I ignored the system window and decided to find a seat first.

Most of the class had already claimed their spots.

Let's see… what's left…

Oh. There.

The very back seat by the window — the one people half-jokingly called the protagonist's seat. At least I wouldn't end up as the cafeteria stray like last time.

I was heading for it when—

My feet stopped cold.

Why is she sitting there.

The back window seat. And the seat right in front of it.

Lee Sihyun ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠was sitting there.

I scanned the classroom, hoping for any other empty desk. But—

…None.

That one seat was all that remained.

"Haah…"

I let out a small sigh. Resigning myself, I walked to the back window seat.

The ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠moment I started to sit, Lee Sihyun glanced back at me, her brow faintly creasing. Without a word she scooted her chair a little farther forward, then sighed under her breath.

"Haah…"

"Why are you sitting here of all places…"

That felt a little unfair. It wasn't like I'd chosen the seat behind Lee Sihyun for fun — it was the only one left.

…

Leaving that aside.

I stared at the red window blinking in front of me.

How far down does this thing even go, anyway. It felt exactly like buying a stock I thought had hit bottom, only to watch it keep digging a basement.

Then—

Lee Sihyun shot up from her seat and walked over to a girl a few rows ahead.

…What?

The two of them exchanged a few quiet words.

…What are they talking about?

Wait… is that Yoon Chaerin?

Yoon Chaerin.

A supporting character who'd appeared from the early chapters of the original — Lee Sihyun's closest friend. They'd met at the first-year entrance ceremony and stuck together ever since; the story painted them as inseparable. She was also the only person Lee Sihyun ever opened up to.

Of course, her role itself wasn't major. She existed mostly to illustrate Lee Sihyun's social circle.

A moment later, fragments of their conversation drifted over.

"So I just need to switch seats with you, right?"

"Yeah… I didn't want to bother you over something like this. Sorry…"

"It's fine. This much is nothing."

"Thanks."

"I'll keep Seol Dam completely under control, so don't worry."

"Yeah! You're the best!"

When the conversation ended, Yoon Chaerin stood up and came straight toward me. A moment later she settled into the seat in front of mine. As she adjusted her chair, she turned her head and looked at me.

"Seol Dam."

"I'll say this now."

She spoke with a small smile.

"Don't go near Sihyun for no reason."

With that, she faced forward again.

…

Haha…

It's been a while.

I let out a dry laugh.

There was a reason Yoon Chaerin stuck in my memory more than most. In the original she was a minor supporting character. From my perspective, though, it had been different.

In my previous life at Frontier, Yoon Chaerin had been…

basically my personal bully.

Whenever she decided Lee Sihyun was in danger, she would come running to keep me in check, and the second I did anything even slightly off, she shut it down. In short, she was Lee Sihyun's dedicated bodyguard.

Looking back, I really was out of my mind back then.

Even now, half the things I did still don't make any sense.

Oh.

That was unexpected. Normally it would have thrown up some achievement just to mock me. This time the reward was almost reasonable.

Three hundred points.

Not bad.

Then—

—Creeeak.

The classroom door opened. Instantly the noisy room fell silent.

"Everyone seated?"

A calm voice, and a woman stepped inside. Black hair falling to her shoulders. A neat teacher's uniform. At ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠a glance, pure field-manual type.

"Lots of new faces."

She took her place at the front desk and spoke.

"Hello. I'm Han Seorin, your homeroom teacher starting today."

"We'll keep morning assembly short, then."

After roll call and a brief rundown, Han Seorin closed the attendance book. She looked over the students and smiled gently.

"Ah, and one last thing."

"We're changing seats."

…

Excuse me…?

This is unfair.

Genuinely unfair. Absolutely fucking unfair.

This is pure scripted harassment.

Five minutes earlier.

"All right, move to your seats in the order you drew."

I looked down at the slip in my hand and checked the seating chart. The seat I'd been assigned was the same back window seat as before. I was walking toward it when I saw a familiar head of pure white hair in the desk right in front of mine.

…No way.

It couldn't be, right?

"……"

"……"

Our eyes met. Her expression hardened at once.

And then—

Son of a—

And now.

I quietly faced forward. Right in front of me was the back of Lee Sihyun's head.

—Murmur murmur.

The seat shuffle wasn't fully finished yet, so people were still moving around, hunting for their new desks.

Then—

"……"

Someone approached from my side. I turned my head without thinking and found myself looking at a familiar face.

Kang Harin…?

As I ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠stared at her for a second, her brow twitched faintly.

"What are you looking at."

"……"

Without another word she checked her seating slip and sat down in the desk right beside mine.

…

Lee Sihyun in front of me.

Kang Harin beside me.

…This is the worst.