In front of the faculty office, students were already swarming in a dense crowd.
Most of them were first-years eager to hear the details of the situation. Perhaps it was because they were the first to catch wind of the news during the sparring evaluation.
“Why aren’t you going in?”
“It seems like the professors are in a meeting…”
Some already had frightened faces, on the verge of tears, looking utterly pitiful.
-I’m telling you! The Education Committee has to issue an order first!
“Hic…”
At the faint sound of shouting from inside, a few students who had their ears pressed against the faculty office door flinched intermittently.
After a brief moment of hesitation, I secretly drew a magic formula to slightly enhance my hearing. Using magic without permission on campus was grounds for punishment, but… given the circumstances, it couldn’t be helped.
The faint noise leaking from the faculty office soon transformed into indistinct voices.
-Can lectures proceed properly in this situation? Things are already chaotic enough… and now this news on top of it…
-But we can’t just unilaterally decide on a leave of absence! There are procedures for everything.
-The contact station is completely paralyzed. It’s overrun with flocks of crows sent by parents… Anyway, we need to make a decision quickly…
It seemed even the professors didn’t have accurate information yet. Judging by how they were debating among themselves like this.
Well, who could know exactly what happened all the way down at the southernmost end?
“What should we do… Could it really be true about Lady Hae Wolhwa…?”
“That’s nonsense. Do you know who she is?”
Anxiety was gradually spreading among the students, but it seemed there were still more who found the principal’s news hard to believe.
I would have thought the same until not long ago. There’s no way someone hailed as the strongest magician in history could fall to mere rebels.
But…
“What’s this? Why are you all gathered here?”
“At the front! Come out here!”
And then.
From the very back of the gathered students, a familiar voice shouted.
Approaching the faculty office were three first-years: Choi Woojin, Ryu Seunghun, and Jin Yeseo.
“Wow, it’s packed… Oh? Hyun!”
Seunghun, who had been sighing, recognized me and waved. Behind him, Jin Yeseo also smiled and tried to wave but awkwardly lowered her arm again.
Her expression showed a hint of regret. Well, there were dozens of eyes watching here. It wasn’t like the training room where they could casually greet me.
“Did you come after hearing the news too?”
“Yeah. What about you?”
“I was returning from being dispatched for a field investigation. I ran into these two just out front.”
Drenched in sweat, it seemed they had exerted considerable effort despite the heat.
Come to think of it, among the top-ranking students in the first year, was I the only one left out of the investigation team? It felt a bit embarrassing.
“How was it?”
But Seunghun shook his head.
“It doesn’t seem to be an issue with the field. There’s nothing unusual in the flow over there.”
“The investigation team’s tentative conclusion is that it’s more likely an internal problem.”
Choi Woojin, standing beside him, chimed in.
“The speculation is that somewhere, particle energy exceeding the circulation limit is being emitted. That’s also the cause of this heat.”
“But that area is a classified facility, so it’s not under our jurisdiction. That’s why we came to report it to the professors…”
While Seunghun was explaining, the tightly closed faculty office door suddenly swung open.
The students leaning against it screamed and tumbled to the ground in an instant. Emerging from the doorway was Professor Kwon Chanyul, his beard thick and unkempt.
“What is this…?”
Looking bewildered, he was immediately swarmed by the students like a cloud.
“Professor! Is it true that the principal has gone missing?”
“Then what about us…!”
“Enough, enough!”
Finally grasping the situation, Professor Kwon Chanyul waved his hands to disperse the students.
“What kind of frivolous behavior is this! All of you, return to your dormitories! A general notice will be issued soon!”
“But…”
“Ahem! Students of a prestigious academy, swayed by unconfirmed breaking news! Do you think the principal is someone who could be taken down so easily? Go back, now!”
At his roar, the gathered crowd reluctantly began to disperse.
The three who had joined the investigation team moved against the flow of the dispersing students and approached Professor Kwon, who was rubbing his forehead in frustration.
“Professor, we’ve returned from the search. There’s nothing unusual in the field.”
“Tsk, so it’s not that either. Then could it really be the core…”
Muttering something under his breath, he nodded.
“Understood. We’ll handle things from here. You all return to the dormitory and stand by.”
“Understood.”
“Wait.”
As they were about to turn and leave, Professor Kwon Chanyul stopped them again.
“Have any of you seen Professor Shin Jae-yu today?”
At that, we exchanged puzzled glances for a moment.
But soon, we shook our heads reluctantly.
“…No, we haven’t.”
“Neither have I.”
“Same here.”
I was the last to answer.
“Today’s training evaluation was conducted by the assistants.”
Hearing our answers, Professor Kwon Chanyul scratched his head and furrowed his brow.
“Damn it, where has she gone now? She said she’d be back after a quick check… and she didn’t even show up to the meeting…”
“Um, is there something wrong with Professor Shin Jae-yu…?”
“It’s nothing. What could be wrong? She’s probably holed up somewhere, goofing off.”
At Seunghun’s cautious question, the professor waved dismissively.
“Thanks for letting me know. Now, really, go on. I’ve got things to handle…”
Without waiting for a response, he hurriedly left.
Before we knew it, the four of us were left standing there in the now-empty surroundings.
Breaking the silence was Seunghun, Sehwa’s younger brother.
“Professor Shin Jae-yu… could something have happened to her?”
“It wasn’t exactly a normal reaction. And she’s not the type to just goof off, as he said.”
Choi Woojin quickly followed up on his words.
“Seriously, what is going on… It’s getting crazier by the minute…”
Jin Yeseo, fanning herself with her collar as if the heat was getting to her, grumbled and then abruptly turned around.
“…We’ve reported in, so I’m leaving. You guys should hurry too…”
“Wait.”
But Choi Woojin stopped her. Jin Yeseo, turning back, snapped irritably.
“What now?”
“Jin Yeseo. Are you really planning to obediently go back and wait? In this situation?”
“What nonsense are you spouting? Then what do you suggest we do?”
Jin Yeseo’s glare grew even sharper.
“We’ve already confirmed there’s nothing wrong with the field. What more can we do here? Sneak into a classified facility? No thanks, I’m not going to prison. If you want to go, go alone…”
“Calm down, that’s obviously not an option.”
Choi Woojin shrugged his shoulders.
“I was just thinking, what if we tried looking for Professor Shin Jae-yu? Didn’t Professor Kwon Chanyul seem pretty urgent earlier? It was clearly unusual…”
“He told us to wait. He said there’d be a notice soon. How long has it even been since we heard that… Has your brain turned entirely into muscle…?”
“Tsk, that’s only in normal situations. Does this look like a normal situation to you? Lady Hae Wolhwa is missing, there’s this unexplained abnormal heat…”
“Or what? They said Lady Hae Wolhwa’s disappearance could be misinformation. That seems more likely to me. As for the heat, can’t the engineers just seal the energy over-emission point once they find it?”
Jin Yeseo jabbed her finger at Choi Woojin as if to punctuate her words.
“And what if we stir things up for no reason and nothing happens?”
“Then we’ll just get disciplined, and our ranking scores will drop a bit.”
“What? Did you think I’d spout nonsense? While some of us are busting our asses to raise our ranking scores…”
“Even now, you’re whining about scores… Seriously, who told you to lose to Moon Yeowool in the ranking match? You’re just taking out your frustration because you couldn’t perform well and dropped.”
“Hey, you little punk, do you really want to go at it…?”
“Guys… stop it…”
The fight escalates before I know it. It’s a sight I haven’t seen in quite a long time.
While Seunghun steps in to break them apart, I find myself lost in thought over their arguments.
Jin Yeseo’s assertion is, of course, the orthodox one. Yet, for some reason, I find myself leaning more toward Choi Woojin’s proposal.
When I thought it was just a simple investigation, I dismissed it as outside my jurisdiction… but now, in this situation, it’s hard to ignore.
A series of events like this is undeniably suspicious. It almost feels like a sign of a big event.
Of course, it could just be an overreaction brought on by hearing about the monster’s existence, but for now, resolving this anxiety seems far more comforting than worrying about a drop in ranking scores.
Besides, didn’t the leader say it himself?
That sending me to the cradle was to foster independent thinking.
Now that he and my sisters are gone, all judgments and decisions will be my responsibility.
His concern is something I can understand.
Ever since that day, I’ve been drifting aimlessly, without any proper plans or goals.
If that’s the case, the choice I need to make in this situation is…
“…”
After much deliberation, I finally opened my mouth.
“…Let’s go with Choi Woojin’s suggestion.”
“What?”
“Oh…”
At that, the two, who had been hurling foul language at each other, turned to look at me with contrasting expressions.
Choi Woojin grinned smugly, which somehow annoyed me. On the other hand, a hint of disappointment flickered in Jin Yeseo’s eyes.
Perhaps she thought I was siding with Choi Woojin instead of her. That wasn’t really my intention, though…
“It’s just that the professor’s expression earlier bothered me. Let’s just check it out for a moment. If it turns out to be nothing, then that’s a relief…”
“Heh, finally, someone who makes sense.”
Nodding in agreement, Choi Woojin turned to Seunghun, who was standing between us.
“So, that’s how it is, Seunghun. What do you plan to do? It’s two to one now.”
“I…”
After a moment of hesitation, he let out a sigh and spoke as if in submission.
“…Let’s look for Professor Shin.”