Field Practice in Chaos (4)
Yoo Hee-won continued to trail after Half Wonder like a shadow. What was originally supposed to be only a few days—or even just a few hours—of guidance had been extended after Yoo Hee-won protested. Yet she still couldn’t find any satisfaction in it.
Right now, Yoo Hee-won was wearing the crisp new uniform Half Wonder had bought her, standing in the middle of some association-hosted seminar. Though they called it a seminar, the presence of a full buffet and live orchestra made it look more like a lavish social dinner party. In that glittering atmosphere, all Yoo Hee-won did was follow dutifully behind Half Wonder.
“This is the new intern who just joined our office. She’s the only daughter of the Advisory Chairman, you know?”
Half Wonder, dressed to the nines in an outfit that looked like it belonged to a noblewoman from the French absolute monarchy, introduced Yoo Hee-won to the other attendees.
“She took first place in every single evaluation—an exceptionally talented young woman. And quite beautiful too, wouldn’t you say?”
Half Wonder draped an arm lightly around Yoo Hee-won’s shoulders as if they were old friends.
“What an impressive student. But I thought you didn’t take interns, Hero?”
At the question, Half Wonder covered her mouth with a fan encrusted in cubic zirconia and let out a refined laugh.
“That’s true, but she was so eager to intern at our office that I simply couldn’t refuse. Besides, I had to consider the Advisory Chairman’s reputation. Oh ho ho.”
Yoo Hee-won was so dumbfounded she couldn’t even laugh. Anyone who knew even the slightest thing about Graford Academy’s field practice system would immediately recognize that as a blatant lie. The academy never sent interns unless the office specifically requested them. The fact that Yoo Hee-won was here meant Half Wonder’s office had personally nominated her.
But the other attendees, unaware of this, were too busy showering Half Wonder with praise. What the fuck kind of situation is this? Yoo Hee-won thought, seething.
Half Wonder dragged the visibly displeased girl to the next group, showing her off like a prized purebred dog or an expensive piece of jewelry.
Once the seminar ended and they were in the car heading back to the office, Yoo Hee-won finally spoke.
“Excuse me, Half Wonder.”
“Call me ma’am, won’t you?”
“When exactly are we going to do any actual practice?”
“We’re doing it right now, aren’t we?”
At Half Wonder’s answer, Yoo Hee-won snapped, “You call parading around parties practice?”
“Calling them parties is rather rude, dear. It’s a mistake to think heroes spend every day fighting villains. Once you reach my level, external activities like these become far more important. And you’re receiving a precious experience most interns in mediocre offices could never dream of.”
“Who doesn’t know that? But I have no intention of wearing some chest-baring dress and acting all high and mighty the moment I graduate. I’d appreciate it if you actually taught me field work.”
“This is field work. Does it only count as work if there’s fighting involved?”
“Look. Be honest with me. Why did you take an intern? Want me to guess?”
Half Wonder closed her mouth, as if inviting her to continue.
“Looking at how you’ve decorated the office and watching you these past few days, you seem to have an incredibly strong sense of self-love. You probably only took an intern so you could brag to others, right? Something like, ‘Look how amazing I am—I got such an outstanding intern’?”
“Is it a crime to enjoy beautiful and lovely things?” Half Wonder asked gently, as if soothing a child.
“Liking beautiful things isn’t a crime. It’s only natural. That’s why I love myself and everything that makes me shine even brighter. And you, my dear, are the perfect child to satisfy those desires of mine. Since you excel in every way, becoming the intern at my office was—”
“Ha, this is ridiculous.”
Yoo Hee-won cut her off mid-sentence, immediately pulling out her phone and making a call.
“Professor. I’m not doing this internship anymore. I’m packing my bags and returning to the academy today, so just know that.”
Half Wonder watched her with open interest.
“What? No, I said I’m done. I’m quitting. I can just make up the internship credits with the end-of-term evaluation later. What? You’re on your way now? Ugh, seriously.”
The moment Yoo Hee-won hung up, Half Wonder asked, “What did your professor say?”
“He said he’s almost at the office. Anyway, I’m quitting the internship, so just remember that. People are going to talk. They’ll say Half Wonder’s office is such a mess it can’t even handle a single intern properly.”
Half Wonder’s face stiffened for a brief moment. But only for a moment.
“Suit yourself. It’s your loss, not mine.”
Half Wonder smiled.
While admiring the dazzling interior of Half Wonder’s office, I waited for Yoo Hee-won. She had suddenly called in a frenzy saying she was quitting the internship, and I couldn’t help but wonder what had happened. Given her personality, I suspected some kind of clash with Half Wonder.
When I asked the staff, they told me Half Wonder had taken her to some association seminar. That must have been where the dissatisfaction finally boiled over. Yoo Hee-won might have a rotten personality, but she wasn’t lazy or some idle rich girl who just wanted to play around. She had undoubtedly demanded real, practical training and clashed with Half Wonder over it.
“Um…”
While I was thinking, the receptionist approached hesitantly.
“What is it?”
“Well… this.”
What the employee held out was a sticky note. A phone number was neatly written on it.
“What is this?”
“My number… If you’d like…”
I understood her intention immediately. But I had to decline. There was no point in accepting when I had no interest; it would only give her false hope.
“I’m sorry. I’m married.”
“Ah? Oh! Yes, of course! I’m so sorry!”
The female employee jumped in surprise and scurried away with quick steps.
Just then, the office doors opened and Half Wonder entered with Yoo Hee-won. Half Wonder was wearing an extravagantly ornate dress fit for a queen, while Yoo Hee-won was dressed in a neat uniform I had never seen before. Just from that, I could roughly piece together the situation. Half Wonder had been using Yoo Hee-won as a decorative accessory to enhance her own image. No wonder the proud Yoo Hee-won was so offended.
“Professor!”
The moment she saw me, Yoo Hee-won ran over.
“Hee-won.”
“Take me with you when you leave. I really can’t do any internship in a place like this.”
“Let’s calm down and talk first. I only just arrived.”
I soothed her, stood up, and greeted Half Wonder.
“Hello. I’m Kyo Suhyeon, a professor at Graford Academy. I specialize in Basic Defense.”
“Ah…”
For some reason, Half Wonder didn’t return my greeting right away. She simply stared at me with a slightly dazed expression.
“Oh, yes… Yes, Professor. Nice to meet you. I’m Half Wonder.”
After standing there as if momentarily glitched, Half Wonder soon offered an elegant smile and extended her hand.
“I’ve heard so much about you. They say you’re an absolutely wonderful person…”
“When did I ever talk to you about my professor?” Yoo Hee-won snarled, practically leaping forward.
I raised a hand to stop her.
“Stay quiet, Hee-won. I’m currently greeting the Hero.”
“But Professor, why would I talk about you to someone like her? I’d rather keep you all to myself. It makes me feel sick!”
“Just be quiet. Don’t make this any more difficult for me.”
After finally managing to silence Yoo Hee-won, I turned back to Half Wonder with a smile.
“I apologize, Hero.”
“It’s quite all right. At that age, adults always seem ridiculous, don’t they?”
“Grr!”
Golden aura sparked in Yoo Hee-won’s eyes, but Half Wonder ignored it completely.
“By the way, I was under the impression that only current or former heroes become academy professors. I don’t recall ever seeing your face before.”
“Ah, yes. I kept a rather low profile and somehow lucked into the position.”
“How fascinating. If you’ll pardon my asking, Professor—are you unmarried?”
Half Wonder glanced at my finger as she asked.
Before I could answer, Yoo Hee-won finally exploded.
“Why the hell do you care whether my professor is married or not?”
“Hee-won. Don’t interfere.”
Despite my attempt to restrain her, Yoo Hee-won continued to lash out at Half Wonder.
“You said you like beautiful and pretty things, right? So now you’re trying to make a move on my professor too? Huh? Professor, let’s go!”
Yoo Hee-won grabbed my wrist and tried to drag me away. But I couldn’t leave just yet.
“Hee-won. Calm down. We’ll talk again after I finish my conversation with the Hero. Please wait outside for a moment.”
“No, no.”
Half Wonder gracefully waved her hands in protest.
“I’ll apologize, Hee-won. I’m sorry. Honestly, you were so outstanding that I wanted to show you off to everyone. Just like you said.”
At Half Wonder’s sudden confession, Yoo Hee-won stopped her rampage.
“But anyone who received an intern like you would have done the same. The office chosen by the top student of Graford. How could anyone resist bragging about that? Right?”
“What is she even saying? It’s annoying.”
“That’s all it was. So please forgive me. From now on, I’ll truly teach you about field work. Professor, I’m sorry. My vanity seems to have made Hee-won uncomfortable.”
“Ah, yes.”
Faced with the repeated apologies, neither I nor Yoo Hee-won knew what to say and simply remained silent. Then Half Wonder smiled with her eyes and continued.
“I will properly educate Hee-won. So could you visit our office one more time? We can prepare a proper meal and dine together, the three of us…”
“That was your goal all along! You were making a move on my professor!!”
In the end, Yoo Hee-won’s aura exploded outward.
“Hee-won.”
Yoo Hee-won sat in the passenger seat with her arms crossed and didn’t answer. I had barely managed to pull her off Half Wonder, and we had decided to suspend the internship. There was no choice. At this point, continuing the internship would be meaningless.
“Hee-won.”
“What?”
“What were you thinking, releasing your aura in front of an S-class hero?”
“That woman was trying to do weird stuff to you, Professor.”
“That’s for me to handle. This industry is small. Antagonizing an S-class hero brings nothing good.”
“You think I’d be scared of that? Whatever. Just drive properly.”
Yeah. She probably wasn’t scared. In truth, falling out with Half Wonder wouldn’t cause Yoo Hee-won any real loss. As for the failed internship, I’d just get a scolding from the department head and that would be the end of it.
Wait. Did she just speak informally to me? Must have misheard.
“All right. Since it’s come to this, there’s nothing we can do. We’re heading to Min-ha’s internship site now, so please behave yourself there.”
“Yeah.”
“Stop speaking to me so casually. And get your feet off the dashboard.”
Yoo Hee-won playfully wiggled her stocking-clad toes where they rested on the dashboard.
“Honestly…”