Choi Ilhyeon was watching the Taehwi Festival through a television screen in the faculty lounge of the Mage Academy.
On the giant screen, the award ceremony for the main event of today’s festival—the “Ghost Island” hunt—was taking place.
Due to the island’s mana disaster, the inside of the island couldn’t be recorded, so he had no way of knowing what had happened there.
But from watching the award ceremony, it was clear that Kim Sunwoo had taken first place.
“Didn’t even teach him anything, and he’s already making me proud.”
Choi Ilhyeon murmured to himself.
Then suddenly, he recalled his own experience visiting Ghost Island back when he was a student at the Mage Academy. A wave of quiet sadness settled in his chest.
“……”
He pulled a cigarette from his pocket and placed it in his mouth.
With a light flick of his fingers—flick—the tip of the cigarette flared to life.
“Hoo…”
A thought crossed his mind.
What if Lee Seo-jun saw our ghosts on Ghost Island?
And maybe he found the ruin because he was drawn to us…?
Back then, they had failed to meet the entry qualifications and had to give up on exploring the ruin.
But the current Lee Seo-jun might have met the requirements.
Of course, this was all just speculation.
“Well, doesn’t matter anymore.”
Clues to immortality or whatever—it was all meaningless now.
That guy was already—
“Cough! Cough! Dammit! Who the hell is smoking?!”
A voice filled with irritation rang out suddenly, startling Choi Ilhyeon into standing up.
“…Oh? Professor Choi?”
The voice belonged to none other than manifestation-type magic instructor Lee Hee-young.
She blinked in surprise, then stared directly at Choi Ilhyeon. Then she said curtly:
“This is a non-smoking ar—”
“Ha ha. Yes, of course. I’ll put it out immediately.”
Before doing so, Choi Ilhyeon took one last deep drag from the cigarette.
He figured—if he was going to get scolded anyway, he might as well enjoy a final puff.
“Hoo. Ha ha. Sorry. I’ll put it out righ—”
“Excuse me, professor. What exactly do you think you’re doing?”
“…Sorry?”
Lee Hee-young was staring at him with eyes full of murderous intent.
The two things she hated most in the world were: someone taking away the students she cherished, and cigarettes.
And right now, Choi Ilhyeon ticked both boxes.
Even though she had let go of a student like Kim Sunwoo out of respect for his will, there was still a lingering resentment buried in her heart.
Sensing the danger instinctively, Choi Ilhyeon gave a deep bow.
“…I apologize.”
Flash!
As the portal flashed, the familiar scenery of the Mage Academy came into view.
Lively music, laughing people, the sweet smell of food, and the colorful lights beautifully illuminating the surroundings.
Though they had spent the entire day in life-and-death battles, the school festival—the Taehwi Festival—remained peaceful.
“Feels weird being back here after seeing ghosts all day.”
“Yeah. Feels kinda off.”
It had only been eight hours, but everyone looked slightly worn out from the sheer number of unreal experiences.
Plus, the award ceremony for the hunt event had been delayed due to a mistake by the announcer.
I was starting to feel the fatigue too.
Even with all the stamina recovery traits, mental exhaustion was unavoidable.
That’s when Lee Seo-jun glanced around and said:
“Way more people here today than yesterday.”
“Well, duh. The fireworks festival’s tonight. Forgot?”
“Oh, right.”
The Mana Fireworks Festival, the true highlight of the second night of Taehwi Festival.
It was a massive event, praised even by the global press.
People from all over the world had gathered here just to see the fireworks.
“What, Lee Seo-jun. You didn’t forget, did you? You said you’d watch it with me.”
Lee Hyun-joo gave Lee Seo-jun a sharp look.
“I know. I’m going, okay?”
“Hehe. Then let’s hurry and grab a spot. I found a perfect one. Oh—do you guys want to watch too?”
She turned to the rest of us.
“No thanks. I’m tired,” Yoo Ara declined.
“I’ll pass too,” said Song Seung-ah, shaking her head.
“I…”
Choi Seo-yoon trailed off, then clamped her mouth shut.
Then she turned her gaze toward me.
“Sunbae, would you like to watch with me?”
Amid the loud music and the chattering crowd, Choi Seo-yoon asked in a clear voice.
That’s when the quietly observing Lee Hyun-joo stepped up and grabbed both my arm and Choi Seo-yoon’s.
“You two don’t get a say.”
“…What?”
“C’mon. Follow me.”
And just like that, Choi Seo-yoon and I were dragged away by Lee Hyun-joo.
Song Seung-ah gave us a vague smile and waved goodbye. Yoo Ara told us to enjoy ourselves and left.
Lee Hyun-joo brought us to a hill in the school park.
“You can see everything from here. The vibe is nice too.”
Then she sat down.
“What are you waiting for? Sit.”
I stood there for a second, then gave a small nod.
Yeah, just for today… maybe enjoying this kind of peaceful cultural moment isn’t so bad.
I sat on a cozy patch of hill. Naturally, Choi Seo-yoon sat down beside me.
Lee Seo-jun and Lee Hyun-joo sat farther uphill, saying it had a better view.
An awkward silence passed.
Felt like I should say something, but nothing came to mind.
Behind us, Lee Seo-jun and Lee Hyun-joo were talking about the ghost they saw earlier.
They were suggesting they should investigate “Lee Yoon-kyung,” the ghost who looked exactly like Lee Seo-jun.
In the process of investigating Lee Yoon-kyung, Lee Seo-jun would probably start questioning his own origins.
And bit by bit, he would begin to unravel the mysteries surrounding him.
“Sunbae.”
Lost in thought, I heard Choi Seo-yoon call out to me.
“Yeah?”
“Are you thirsty? I could go buy something to drink.”
Something to drink, huh. It did feel like we were at a river festival or something, and a cold beer sounded tempting—but not with this underage identity.
I shook my head.
“Nah, I’m good.”
“Mm, okay.”
And so we went back to silently sitting side by side.
Time passed without meaning, and a ticklish sensation began to bubble up from deep in my chest.
The cool night air.
The faint scent of grass.
The background music.
The people waiting happily for the fireworks to begin.
It felt like a scene out of a coming-of-age drama. Which made it all the more ticklish and strangely emotional.
“We saw ghosts today, didn’t we?”
That’s when Choi Seo-yoon broke the silence.
“I’ve always had this feeling… like each of you sunbae’s has a unique past.”
She suddenly brought up the past. I was curious what she was getting at, so I looked at her.
“Sometimes when I overhear you all talking, I can’t understand a single thing. Like when you and Yoo Ara sunabe are talking, for example.”
I finally opened my mouth.
“You’ve been misunderstanding something since before—but there’s nothing between me and her. And why do you even care?”
At my answer, Choi Seo-yoon glanced at me sideways.
“Why not? I’m allowed to be curious. We’ve gotten close enough to watch fireworks together, haven’t we?”
She chuckled softly and hugged her knees to her chest.
“So sometimes, I feel a little left out. But when I think about it, it makes sense. You guys spent a whole year together.”
Then in a calm voice, she added:
“That’s all. Just saying.”
And in a whisper, almost to herself, she muttered:
“I wish I’d been born a year earlier.”
Pew—
The sound of fireworks shot into the sky echoed above. Soon after, pop—a dazzling light lit up the night sky.
Choi Seo-yoon and I silently watched the fireworks. The radiant display filling the sky carried a magical energy, moving us in a way ordinary fireworks couldn’t.
I turned my head to look at Choi Seo-yoon. She was watching the sky with a faint smile.
I felt like there was something I wanted to say to her just a moment ago, but as the fireworks faded, the thought vanished from my mind as well.
When I opened the dorm door, Gretel came running toward me on her short legs. I lifted her by the torso.
“Gretel. Were you waiting for me?”
Gretel nodded brightly with a smile.
“Did you see the fireworks festival earlier? It was super cool.”
“Ung-ae.”
I didn’t know what she meant exactly, but her tone was energetic, so I decided it meant yes.
“Oh, right. I bought something tasty for you to eat.”
I pulled out various street foods sold during the festival.
Chicken skewers, spicy rice cakes, stir-fried squid, and more.
Gretel’s eyes widened as she eagerly grabbed a chicken skewer.
Then she immediately bit into it.
Nom nom. Her eyes sparkled.
“Is it good?”
“Ung-ae!”
Her enthusiastic answer made me smile without realizing it.
Leaving Gretel to enjoy her meal, I collapsed onto the sofa.
Staring blankly into space and lost in thought, my smartphone vibrated in my pocket.
[Jinwoo, what are you doing?]
It was Han Se-yeon.
She called yesterday, and today, as usual, she messaged again. Well, she tends to reach out around this time lately, so I’ve gotten used to it.
[Just resting..]
Less than ten seconds later, a reply came.
[What’s with the two dots at the end..? It feels strangely reflective..]
[I meant to type one, but accidentally hit it again.]
[Yeah yeah, sure ㅎㅎ. By the way, can I call you for a second? I have something to say.]
“A call?”
Well, I didn’t mind. Without bothering to reply, I just called her first.
Before the ringtone even played, Han Se-yeon’s energetic voice came through.
[Ah, I was just about to call, but you beat me to it.]
“What’s up?”
[Nothing really. I just wanted to see if you’re free next Saturday.]
“Next week? Is something going on?”
[Not really. I just figured it’s about time we met up again.]
Meeting for no reason, huh.
Well, I don’t mind. I actually enjoy talking with Han Se-yeon. Especially over drinks, the conversation flows surprisingly well.
To be honest, it’s pretty fun.
“Sure, that’s fine with me.”
[Oh, and I was thinking of going to a party.]
“A party?”
[Yeah. Nothing huge like ‘Night of the Pioneers.’ Just a casual social gathering. It’s not full of fancy people, so no pressure.]
What the. Why is she taking me to a place like that?
“Hm. I’ll have to think about that.”
[…If not, I understand. It’s one of the few days I can legally have fun, so I just thought I’d ask. You know how busy I am.]
Her voice over the speaker turned gloomy.
When she puts it that way, I can’t help but give in. I made up my mind.
“Alright, let’s meet. Where is it?”
A small villa somewhere in Gangwon Province.
Fifteen mercenaries, led by Han Se-jin, had gathered again.
Yesterday and today, they went through a simple skill test—evaluating their magic abilities, espionage skills, and overall competence.
For reference, the test involved raiding an actual criminal organization.
The result? The enemy was annihilated.
“Everyone, thank you for your hard work on the test. The results are in—everyone passed.”
Han Se-jin’s personal assistant, Gwak Byungjin, spoke in a calm voice.
“And we’ve scored each of you. The highest scorer is Elin.”
“…Who’s Elin?”
S-rank mercenary, Jung Kyungwon, looked around. Then his gaze fell on a hooded woman.
“Oh, it’s you? Kinda surprising name.”
“Shut up.”
The hooded woman, Elin, replied harshly.
Then she continued.
“And seriously, just do me a favour and leave me alone.”
“…You got a screw loose or something?”
“…”
As the exchange went on, Gwak Byungjin, who had been silently watching, spoke.
“Elin, please come with me for a moment.”
Elin nodded and stood up, following Gwak Byungjin.
They passed through the villa’s long corridor and arrived at a room.
When the door opened, a man in a black suit was standing there, looking out at the scenery.
“Vice President, I’ve brought her.”
“Thank you.”
The man in the black suit, Han Se-jin, smiled as he spoke. Gwak Byungjin bowed and stepped out of the room.
Now only Han Se-jin and Elin remained.
Elin stared at Han Se-jin’s face for a moment, then opened her mouth.
“You’re the boss?”
“Yes, I am.”
“Really? You look more normal than I expected.”
Han Se-jin tilted his head at her words.
“Is this your first time seeing me?”
“Yeah.”
“Huh. You must not watch the news at all. I’m actually pretty famous, you know.”
“I only watch news about terrorism.”
“Well, that’s not important. I’ve got a personal mission for you.”
“A mission?”
Han Se-jin nodded.
“Yes, this’ll be your first task. It’s simple. I’ll be attending a social event next week, and I want you to act as my escort. There’ve been rumors that some crazy person has been targeting me lately.”
Elin nodded.
“Well, that’s not too hard.”
Leave a Reply to Traveler Cancel reply