Do You Want to End Up Like That?
The night was already deep by the time we finally returned to the academy. Chae Ga-yun, in the passenger seat, kept nodding off—probably because she had pulled another all-nighter yesterday. In the back, Han Min-ha sat silently, staring out the window. No matter how closely I studied her expression, I couldn’t begin to guess what she was thinking.
And directly behind me on the diagonal, lounging arrogantly in the most prestigious seat, was Yoo Hee-won.
“Ugh, this is weird as hell.”
She grumbled while furiously tapping away at her cracked phone screen.
“Hey. Give me your phone.”
Yoo Hee-won practically snatched Han Min-ha’s phone and began hammering the screen with both thumbs at blinding speed. As expected, something wasn’t working the way she wanted, and her face twisted into a scowl.
“What the hell is going on here…”
“What’s wrong? Did you find something?” Han Min-ha asked.
Yoo Hee-won kept fiddling with the phone as she answered. “Didn’t people definitely take pictures of us earlier?”
“Well… I think they did…”
“Then why is it so quiet? Shouldn’t this place be blowing up by now?”
“Blowing up?”
“Like, a video titled ‘Blonde Academy Girl with Killer Body Takes Down Sudden Villain Appearance’ or something.”
I see. Yoo Hee-won was curious about how people were reacting to what happened earlier. This incident was certainly newsworthy enough to dominate the news and online communities. A villain suddenly appearing in the middle of a city right next to the academy, confronted by academy students still wearing their gym uniforms. It was the perfect recipe for sensational headlines.
Yet the actual atmosphere seemed completely different.
“Seriously, why is there nothing? At all?”
“Maybe… there aren’t even any videos?”
“No videos, no news… What the hell? There’s literally nothing?”
Yoo Hee-won tilted her head again and again before finally handing the phone back to Han Min-ha.
“This is seriously fucking weird…”
Yoo Hee-won and Han Min-ha might not understand, but I had a pretty good idea why this was happening. Secreto must be working overtime on monitoring and suppression. The footage of the girls was one thing, but I had stepped in at the very end. There was no way they would allow combat footage featuring a former Secreto agent to circulate openly. They were probably scrubbing every clip that included me and preemptively blocking anything that could even be tangentially connected. That explained why nothing was surfacing.
It was unfortunate for Yoo Hee-won, though.
“Ugh… damn it… I only made a fool of myself… If I’d known this would happen, I should’ve just run away…”
“Still… at least we stepped up and managed to reduce the damage… right?”
At Han Min-ha’s words, Yoo Hee-won bared her teeth.
“We?”
“Ah… right… because you stepped up…”
Honestly, Yoo Hee-won was impossible to pin down. Sometimes she seemed like nothing more than an overconfident girl with a good heart underneath. Other times, she came across as a psychopath completely lacking any sense in certain areas.
“By the way, you really are a total blockhead, aren’t you? How could you not use your aura in a situation like that?”
“I know… I tried, but…”
“If you had been able to fight back then, I could’ve supported you from behind… Ugh, never mind.”
Yoo Hee-won let out a heavy sigh and went back to tapping furiously at her broken phone. Once the conversation died, Han Min-ha turned her gaze back to the window. She didn’t seem particularly hurt by Yoo Hee-won’s harsh words. Had she already grown used to that prickly personality?
It really was a bizarre combination. I still found it hard to believe they were both my mentees. At first I’d wondered how I was supposed to lead this group, but somehow we were making progress. I suppose we would simply have to keep moving forward like this—Golden Viper and her band of grey mold.
I dropped Yoo Hee-won and Han Min-ha off in front of the dormitory. Even though it was late—Friday night during permitted late-night study hours—the dorm was brightly lit and buzzing with noise. If they went in now, they probably wouldn’t draw too much suspicion from the other students.
“You both worked hard today. Hee-won, go straight to the Academy Clinic tomorrow for a check-up.”
“I told you I’m fine.”
“Do it anyway. There are plenty of cases where people seem perfectly fine after a fight, only to drop dead months later.”
At my casual remark, Han Min-ha gasped and looked at Yoo Hee-won.
“Do you want to end up like that?”
“No… but I’m worried, so tomorrow let’s go together…”
“I’ll handle it myself, so mind your own business.”
Chae Ga-yun said she wouldn’t head back to the faculty housing and would walk to the administrative building instead. She still had work to finish over the weekend.
“Everyone get some good rest.”
Han Min-ha bowed deeply toward me as I reversed out of the dormitory parking lot. Yoo Hee-won gave a half-hearted wave.
“Goodbye, Director.”
“Take care, kids. I’m letting this one slide.”
“Thank you.”
Once Chae Ga-yun left as well, the two girls were alone. Yoo Hee-won nudged Han Min-ha’s arm with her elbow.
“Do you want to end up like that?”
“Like what?”
“Like Professor Kyo. Do you want to be the kind of person who just flicks a finger and takes down villains?”
“Um… yeah, I do want that…”
“Then use your aura, damn it. It’s seriously not that hard, so just use it already.”
“Y-yes… I’ll try harder…”
Yoo Hee-won, who had been about to unload another tirade on Han Min-ha, seemed to change her mind and spoke in a slightly softer tone.
“Still, your stamina does seem to have improved a bit?”
“R-really…? I guess all that running while throwing up every day paid off.”
“I’m going to push you even harder from now on, so brace yourself.”
“Y-yes…!”
Yoo Hee-won flashed her signature wicked smile, lightly patted Han Min-ha’s cheek, and disappeared into the dormitory. Han Min-ha, having received what barely counted as praise, looked absolutely thrilled. She hurried after Yoo Hee-won with quick, excited steps.
At that very moment, Song Do-yun, who had been leaning against Yoo Hee-won’s door, heard her voice and rushed to the hallway window. From there, she witnessed Yoo Hee-won gently stroking Han Min-ha’s cheek with an affectionate smile.
Song Do-yun watched with ice-cold eyes.
Yoo Hee-won whispered something while caressing her cheek. Han Min-ha smiled in a way she rarely showed and nodded. Then the two of them entered the dormitory together, disappearing from Song Do-yun’s sight.
Standing motionless like a statue in the dark, unlit hallway, Song Do-yun suddenly smashed the bottle of alcohol she was holding against the wall with all her strength. The bottle she had secretly brought to share with Yoo Hee-won shattered into pieces, leaving scratches across her face.
Without even noticing the blood trickling from the cuts on her cheek, Song Do-yun stared down at the red puddle forming on the floor as it flowed down the wall.
Han Min-ha...
What were you doing with Hee-won this late at night...?
What exactly did you two do for Hee-won to treat you so gently like that?
Han Min-ha... you sly fox... I thought you were just a dull, stupid girl, but now I see you're actually a cunning bitch, aren't you?
Where did you go? What did you do?
What exactly did you do? Huh?
Han Min-ha... Did you seduce her with those huge tits?
What did you do to make Hee-won lose her mind like that?
Tell me too. I want to know.
Han Min-ha...
Song Do-yun slowly raised her eyes. A dark navy aura flickered around her body, and a faint glow appeared in her eyes.
Han Min-ha... How can I separate you from my Yoo Hee-won...?
The vague concepts swirling in Song Do-yun’s mind gradually sharpened, and a more concrete plan began to take shape.
The next day, I woke up a still-sleepy Yoo Hee-won and headed to the Academy Clinic with her. She stubbornly insisted on only getting an X-ray, but Chief Surgeon Choi Seongjun, who was on weekend duty, ultimately dragged her inside. After fighting a villain, a thorough examination was mandatory. The unique characteristics and abilities of villains could have unpredictable effects on the human body. What seemed like a simple bruise could cause flesh to rot weeks later. Simply hearing a villain’s voice could result in severe hearing loss.
A full comprehensive examination after combat usually took anywhere from one to two hours. While I waited, I decided to have a talk with Han Min-ha. The guardian waiting room happened to be the perfect place for a quiet conversation between just the two of us.
“Min-ha. Did you sleep well last night?”
“Yes. What about you, Professor?”
“I slept well.”
That was a lie. I had that dream again last night—the one where Min-ha’s parents were falling.
“During our last counseling session, I promised I would look into your parents.”
“Ah, yes.”
“The reason I took time off this time was to investigate that matter.”
“What…?!”
Han Min-ha’s eyes widened in genuine shock.
“You didn’t have to go that far…”
“I did. You are my mentee, and I have a responsibility to guide my students properly.”
“Ah…”
“You need to be able to use your aura if you want to keep moving forward. I believed the key lay in what happened to your parents… their disappearance. That’s why I did it.”
Han Min-ha slowly nodded.
“Min-ha. You said you wanted to know what happened to your parents.”
“Yes…”
“If you’re okay with it, I’ll tell you.”
Han Min-ha’s face fell into shadow as she closed her mouth. I decided to wait until she had gathered her thoughts. She must be curious… but perhaps she didn’t want to hear it at all. Maybe she wanted to avoid it, to cover it up and push it out of sight. That was why I couldn’t simply tell her. Discovering the truth was my role, but whether to hear it was her choice.
“My mom and dad…”
After a while, Han Min-ha spoke in a dry, cracked voice.
“What happened to them…?”
“Your parents… died during a mission.”
“Ah…”