The Distance I Keep

January 1st.

By the fifth day after the dimensional gate opened, ability manifestations were winding down, and the guild's atmosphere was finally settling into something resembling order.

"Finally, a chance to catch my breath…"

Of course, for my team specifically, there hadn't been much to settle in the first place.

Checking each newly manifested ability one by one was the team leader's job. What type it was, whether it was useful in combat, or whether becoming a Settler would be the better path. Making that call was the single most important task in the early days of training.

I lined my four members up along one side of the yard and called them forward in turn.

"Do-hyun first."

Kang Do-hyun. Former fitness trainer. Physical Enhancement type. Of the four, his was by far the most solid ability.

"You've gotten pretty used to it by now, right? Show me the absolute most you can do."

Kang Do-hyun set his stance in front of a training log, drew his fist back, and threw a single short punch.

— CRACK!

The log, thick as a man's forearm, split clean down the middle from the point of impact, snapping into two pieces. Dust still drifted from the fractured surface.

"…How was that, Team Leader?"

Kang Do-hyun asked, catching his breath. He looked fairly confident.

It wasn't just raw strength. Endurance, stamina, the ability to take a hit and keep going — his overall physical capability had jumped an entire tier. Clean, well-balanced combat type.

The problem was that "well-balanced" was a little too vague to call special.

"Hmm. The manifestation level seems a bit underwhelming. Want to spar with me?"

"…Sorry?"

"Lightly. No pressure."

Kang Do-hyun hesitated a moment, then clenched his fists. His form was solid — as expected from someone who actually trained.

"Can I really go all out?"

"Come at me."

Kang Do-hyun charged. His body, enhanced by his ability, had real speed behind it. Not bad for a rookie.

I didn't activate my reinforcement.

I simply caught the incoming fist with my open palm.

— Thud.

Even with Physical Enhancement behind that punch, my hand didn't budge. Instead, Do-hyun was the one who reeled back, clutching his fist and grimacing.

"…Huh?"

"Come again. For real this time."

Kang Do-hyun gritted his teeth and came in harder. Faster than before. I met his shoulder with one hand and shoved.

Just a shove — and Kang Do-hyun's body lifted off the ground, stumbling three or four steps backward before landing hard on his ass. The look on his face said he'd finally realized raw power wasn't going to cut it.

On the third try, he threw his entire body weight into a full charge. I planted my feet shoulder-width apart and took it head-on.

— Thoom.

My feet sank half a handspan into the dirt. That was all. I didn't give a single step.

Kang Do-hyun was pouring everything he had into it, and it must have felt like pushing a wall.

"Team Leader… you really weren't using your reinforcement ability?"

"I wasn't."

"But how is a person supposed to…"

"Four years gets you about this far."

If you steadily train your mana and let it accumulate in your body, your physical capabilities rise on their own even without actively reinforcing. A body that had been through four years of this world had no trouble handling a freshly manifested Physical Enhancement type without any boost at all.

Not that I was trying to put Kang Do-hyun's ability down. Raised properly, it was a perfectly serviceable combat type. But the rookies needed to see, at least once, what a four-year veteran looked like. Better to have their pride take a hit now than get themselves killed later by overestimating their powers.

The three teammates watching from behind had gone wide-eyed.

"…Our Team Leader's a support type and he's still that strong."

Park Jung-woo muttered under his breath.

"Park Jung-woo. You're next."

"Yes, sir!"

Park Jung-woo scrambled forward. Former delivery driver. An Ignition type whose ability produced a feeble spark in his palm — and until yesterday, he'd been the most unenthusiastic of the bunch about it.

Today, his expression was different.

"Team Leader, I think this got bigger than yesterday."

"…Bigger?"

"Yes! Look!"

Park Jung-woo spread his palm. A tiny flame flickered into existence. Identical to yesterday's.

"…And this is bigger than yesterday?"

"Yes! I'm sure of it. Until yesterday it was just a speck, but today it's like — this big."

Park Jung-woo held his thumb and index finger about a centimeter apart.

"What if it just keeps growing? You said earlier that training builds up mana, right? What if in a month I turn into a flamethrower? I'm starting to get scared of my own power. What if I start launching meteors from my hands and—"

"…Jung-woo."

"Yes!"

"With great power comes great responsibility…"

Park Jung-woo's face lit up.

"Right?! I knew you'd get it, Team Leader!"

From behind, I heard Kang Do-hyun let out a quiet sigh.

I didn't bother correcting him. He'd figure it out in a month. With great power comes great responsibility, sure — but whatever responsibility Jung-woo ended up carrying didn't look like it was going to be all that great.

Still, his drive was the best of the group, rivaling even the veterans. And that kind of thing turned out to matter more for survival than you'd expect.

"Next. Tae-young."

"…Yes."

Jung Tae-young. College student. The last one of the four whose ability hadn't manifested until yesterday. The quietest of the group, and the one with the least presence.

"I heard it finally came in. What is it? Kids whose abilities show up late usually end up with pretty good ones."

"Well… I'm not really sure either. I can feel something… I've been trying in the dorm, but I can't figure out what it is."

"You can feel something?"

Jung Tae-young hesitated, then slowly stretched a hand forward. Even he didn't seem to know what the gesture was supposed to accomplish.

A brief silence fell.

Then, with a flutter of wings, a sparrow flew down and landed on the back of Jung Tae-young's hand.

"…Huh?"

Jung Tae-young froze.

"…Huhhh?"

The sparrow showed no interest in leaving. If anything, it settled in comfortably.

And then more came.

Flutter, flutter.

Two more sparrows landed — one on his shoulder, one on his head. Then, from somewhere, a flock of pigeons came pouring in and began settling around his feet.

"Uh, uhhh. What do I do about this?!"

Jung Tae-young stood frozen, surrounded by pigeons, a sparrow perched on his head.

The rest of the team lost it.

"Dude, he's the pigeon guy!"

"Team Leader, Tae-young looks like some kind of sage!"

Jung Tae-young's face crumpled.

"What is this?! Is this seriously my ability?"

A type that made animals drop their guard and gather around. Uncommon, sure, but it felt pretty ambiguous.

I watched my teammates ribbing Tae-young and thought for a moment. What happens if I reinforce this? Does it go as far as control? If he could command animals, that could be surprisingly useful for scouting and the like…

I decided to check.

"Tae-young. Stay still."

"Huh? What are you—"

I placed a hand on Jung Tae-young's shoulder and let mana flow into him. Just a little. My reinforcement-type mana touched his ability.

A normal reinforcement type wouldn't have been able to boost another person's ability manifestation — but for reasons I still didn't fully understand, mine could.

In that instant, the sky darkened slightly.

Crows, pigeons, sparrows — birds from who knows where came flooding in from every direction at once. Every tree in the yard was packed solid with them. Jung Tae-young's head, shoulders, arms, feet — his entire body was buried under birds.

"AAAAAAAHHH!"

Jung Tae-young screamed from inside the bird pile. The whole yard erupted.

"Holy shit!"

"Dude, look at that! Look!"

"He's a bird-man!"

Kang Do-hyun had collapsed holding his stomach, and Park Jung-woo was laughing so hard he was crying. Even guild members from other teams stopped mid-walk to stare.

I hastily withdrew my mana. The birds began dispersing, almost reluctantly.

Jung Tae-young, covered head to toe in feathers, glared at me with ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠pure resentment.

"Team Leader… that was too much…"

"…Sorry. I was curious. I thought reinforcing it might let you control them."

It just made more of them gather. No control. Completely useless in combat.

Last up was Kim Min-seok. Former convenience store worker. An ability that let him know the condition of any object just by touching it. From the moment I'd seen it yesterday, I'd known this was a type with zero combat applications.

"Min-seok, I already checked yours yesterday, so we can skip the demo."

"Yes."

"But what's the range on that? Ability manifestation levels vary, so I need to confirm. Just spoiled food, or…?"

"Hmm… a bit more than that. I walked through the warehouse yesterday, and I could roughly tell which mana stones were high quality and which were defective just by touching them. Food condition, equipment wear, that kind of thing too."

I inhaled sharply before I could stop myself.

"…You can do all of that?"

"Huh? But it wouldn't ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠help in combat… is that a bad thing?"

Good. Extremely good.

Mana stone quality appraisal was important enough that the guild kept dedicated specialists for it. Food management, equipment inspection, supply sorting — it might be worthless in a fight, but for running a guild's logistics, there was nothing better. Among Settler-classified abilities, this was top-tier manifestation quality, even among the well-regarded ones.

"Min-seok, you're not big on combat, right?"

"…No. Honestly, it scares me a little."

"Perfect. You won't have to fight."

Kim Min-seok's face brightened noticeably.

And just like that, things were sorted. Kang Do-hyun would be trained as a combat type. Park Jung-woo… I'd support his dreams for now. Jung Tae-young and Kim Min-seok were headed for Settler status.

Jung Tae-young seemed to figure that was better than being swarmed by birds, and accepted it without complaint.

"I'd rather farm than deal with birds…"

"What are you talking about? You should farm while dealing with birds."

Jung Tae-young went blank for a second, and then the team burst out laughing all over again.

"Oh, wait. You wouldn't even need a scarecrow."

"Dude, Jung Tae-young, you're gonna be the god of agriculture."

"The birds would just eat all the bugs for you."

"…That actually might not be bad."

And so, leaving a yard full of feathers behind, we wrapped up the team assessment and everyone dispersed.

I compiled the results and reported them to Ye-rin. A few days later, Kim Min-seok and Jung Tae-young's transfer to Settler status was officially confirmed. Both of them seemed to have solid Settler-grade abilities, so ending up in supply management, logistics, and mana stone appraisal wasn't a bad outcome at all.

On the day their Settler assignments were finalized, I called them over with a slightly guilty conscience. I figured I should at least try to console them.

"…Don't be too disappointed. Settlers are essential to the guild—"

"Hell yeah. Easy mode."

Jung Tae-young's face lit up completely.

"…Huh?"

"So I don't have to go fight monsters, right? I was worried they'd try to drag me into some druid-type combat role."

Kim Min-seok looked equally relieved.

"This actually suits me better… If I'm on supply duty, I won't die."

"……"

I'd called them over to offer comfort, and they looked more excited than I did.

"Team Leader, thank you for everything. Once we're working at guild headquarters, we'll make sure to save you the good food."

"…Yeah. Surviving is… what matters most."

It was somehow both touching and completely absurd. Well, if they were happy about it. Not dying and living well really was the most important thing. What was the point of earning a mountain of mana stones if you couldn't spend them? Knowing how to be satisfied with enough to eat and live on — that was the real skill.

And just like that, my team went from five to three.

What remained was me, Kang Do-hyun, and Park Jung-woo. Three guys sharing a cramped room came with its own set of stories.

Kang Do-hyun woke up at dawn every morning to do push-ups. Ever since his Physical Enhancement manifested, it had only gotten worse. I'd wake up to the bed creaking and hear him counting in the dark — one… two… three…

"…Do-hyun. Go to sleep."

"Team Leader, muscle never sleeps."

"Muscle doesn't need to sleep. I do."

Park Jung-woo, the moment he lay down to sleep, would light that little match-flame of his. Spark on, spark off, spark on, spark off. He called it training.

"You said consistent training makes you strong like you, Team Leader. Looking at how this thing grows every day, I think a Flame Dragon might awaken any day now."

"…Yeah. Dream big. Bigger, even."

"You just laughed at me, didn't you."

"I didn't."

I did. A little.

But strangely, I didn't mind it. It wasn't as loud and chaotic as Jae-hyuk's team… but the quiet, mundane daily life of three ordinary guys had its own kind of warmth. At least here, I didn't have to think about the things that gave me headaches.

…Headaches.

The moment that word crossed my mind, one person followed it naturally.

The truth was, I'd been avoiding Seo-yoon lately. The reason was simple: her ability. The power to read lies and sense what was being ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠hidden. Ever since I'd heard about it, standing in front of her had become terrifying.

Because of what I was hiding… those feelings I didn't want to acknowledge… I was afraid she'd read them.

So I avoided her. Thoroughly.

If I was eating in the cafeteria and Seo-yoon walked in, I'd wrap up whatever was left on my tray and leave. If I spotted her coming down the hallway, I'd quietly take a different route. If our training schedule looked like it might overlap with Jae-hyuk's team, I'd move our entire session to the opposite side of the grounds.

The problem was that it was starting to show.

"Team Leader."

Kang Do-hyun asked.

"Why do you keep hiding whenever that other team shows up? Weren't you close with Team Leader Jae-hyuk?"

"…When did I hide."

"Just now you ducked behind a pillar. You stayed there until their whole team walked past."

Park Jung-woo piled on.

"Did you… maybe make some kind of bet with Team Leader Jae-hyuk involving your teams' abilities? I heard other team leaders do that kind of thing… If that's the case… you probably lost because of us…"

"What? No."

"Then why? Don't worry, though, Team Leader. I think I'll be able to shoot fire pillars pretty soon. Once the Flame Dragon awakens—"

That seemed… unlikely. A flame earthworm, maybe…

"…It's not that. Our paths just didn't line up."

Both of them looked at me with open suspicion. I cleared my throat and changed the subject.

It was all because of that damn Insight ability of Seo-yoon's. If it weren't for that power, I wouldn't have to sneak around like a thief. But the world was never that accommodating.

That afternoon, I rounded a corner of the training grounds and ran straight into Seo-yoon.

"Oh."

"…Oh."

Seo-yoon was holding a laundry basket. During the training period, everyone rotated through chores as part of adapting to the other world — so she must have been on laundry duty.

I instinctively took a step back.

"…Teacher. Fancy running into you here."

"…Yeah. Laundry?"

"Yes. I'm on duty today, so I was heading over."

Seo-yoon looked at me and casually closed the distance.

"R-right… Well, good luck with the laundry. I'll just—"

As I tried to put more space between us, Seo-yoon spoke up.

"Should I… wash yours too, Teacher?"

"…Huh?"

"Yours, Teacher. Want me to wash them for you?"

Seo-yoon smiled, her eyes curving into crescents.

"I'm good at it. Very thorough."

She was definitely talking about laundry. But the look in her eyes when she said it didn't seem like a laundry look. She knew exactly what I'd think. She was saying it so I'd think it.

"…I'm fine. Why would I hand my laundry off to another team."

"Why not? Embarrassed? I'd make a special exception for yours, Teacher…"

Seo-yoon stepped closer, her voice dropping slightly.

"Teacher, your face is red."

"…It's not."

"It is, though."

Seo-yoon tilted her head toward me, and her long hair spilled over her shoulder.

"You can't lie to me anymore, Teacher."

In front of Seo-yoon's Insight ability, lies were completely powerless. So the answer was not to answer at all. The moment I opened my mouth, she'd read everything.

I frantically changed the subject.

"Uh… I actually need to get to the warehouse pretty urgently, so sorry, but—"

"I'll go with you. It's on the way anyway."

Seo-yoon cut me off, and there was no reasonable grounds to refuse. I had no choice but to head toward the warehouse alongside her — keeping about one person's worth of distance between us. Hoping that even a little separation might keep her ability from working properly.

"…Um, Teacher."

"Y-yeah."

"Did I do something wrong? Why do you keep looking away?"

And then she closed that distance again.

"…Huh?"

"You keep walking farther away. Do I smell or something?"

Seo-yoon tugged at the front of her training top, made a show of sniffing it, then looked back at me.

"I don't think so. Right?"

She pressed even closer, as if inviting me to check. As the space between us collapsed, I caught a glimpse past the neckline she was holding open — her cleavage… oh for fuck's sake.

Why wasn't she wearing a bra.

The second I saw it, I recoiled on pure reflex. There was no way Seo-yoon missed that reaction.

"…You just looked, didn't you."

"…I didn't."

"Teacher."

"…What."

"Haven't I gotten a lot bigger since back then?"

"…What?"

"My height. And other things."

Seo-yoon pushed her chest out slightly. She knew exactly how lost I was about where to put my eyes, and she said it anyway.

"Four years ago you used to look down at me, but not so much anymore."

At those words, I instinctively looked down at her — and my gaze snagged on her chest before I wrenched it away. She caught that too.

"You looked again just now. Total pervert teacher."

"…I didn't look."

"You keep saying that even though you know lies don't work. Fine. I'll stop teasing you now."

Seo-yoon giggled and shifted the laundry basket to one hand. Then, with her free hand, she casually took hold of my arm. Not gripping to keep me from running — just lightly. Too ambiguous to call linking arms, too deliberate to call resting a hand.

"Let's walk like this. Reminds me of when I used to get tutoring next to you."

"…If people from other teams see this, they'll start talking for no reason."

I peeled Seo-yoon's hand off and put distance between us again.

"I wouldn't mind that, actually."

Seo-yoon looked at me and smiled softly. If the earlier smiles had been full of teasing mischief, this one seemed to have slipped out simply because she was happy.

I was about to fire something back at that smile. But the question that followed stuck the words in my throat.

"Teacher, do you have a girlfriend here?"

"…Seo-yoon."

"Yes."

"You shouldn't ask things like that."

"Why not."

Why not? Even I didn't know.

"…Just don't."

A pathetic answer. It was going to come out eventually anyway — so why couldn't I say it? I didn't know. If I hadn't overheard what Seo-yoon said back then, would my answer have been different? There was no point thinking about it. This was the best I could manage right now.

Seo-yoon looked up at me for a moment, then unexpectedly took a step back without pushing further.

"By the way… walking like this with you. Four years ago I never would have imagined it. You were always buried in problem sets, and I was always spacing out next to you."

"…Spacing out?"

"Yes. Spacing out. The kind of thoughts I'd get scolded for if I said them out loud."

I wanted to ask what those thoughts were, but something told me I shouldn't, so I swallowed it.

"…That's why your grades were always like that."

"How is that my fault? You're the one who made it impossible to concentrate."

"…When did I."

"Of everything you taught me back then, I don't remember a single bit of math. I only remember the other stuff."

"…What other stuff."

"If I tell you, you won't be able to sleep tonight."

"…I'm not curious."

"You are, though."

She tossed it out so casually that a laugh escaped me before I could stop it. The air around us was cold, but a mild sun was laid over everything, and I was walking side by side with Seo-yoon through it.

I shouldn't be doing this.

Even thinking that, I couldn't bring myself to put the distance back between us.

We walked a few more minutes like that before Seo-yoon ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠stopped in front of the warehouse.

"We're here. I'm going to hang the laundry. Want to walk back together after?"

"No, I'll be done quick. I'll head in first. See you next time."

"Okay. See you next…"

Seo-yoon adjusted her grip on the laundry basket and turned away. Then, as if something had just occurred to her, she looked back over her shoulder.

"Teacher."

"…What now."

"You… lie too much. You always have."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Earlier, about the girlfriend thing. Saying I shouldn't ask — that was a lie. I can tell that much without my ability. You not answering the question… I'll let it slide today. But next time, I won't."

Leaving only those words, Seo-yoon walked away with slightly heavy steps.

I watched her go, then stood inside the warehouse for a long time even after I'd entered.

I should have explained something. Anything.

But what had really stopped me wasn't the inability to explain —

It was that, in that moment, I hadn't wanted to explain.

She wouldn't let it slide next time.

I couldn't keep dodging her forever either.

If I just told Seo-yoon I had a girlfriend, it'd be simple, right?

So why couldn't I do it.

While I spent the next few days turning that over in my head, the "next time" arrived sooner than I'd expected.