Chapter 17: The Fire That Shouldn’t Have Been

The shocking news reached Sung Ji-woo just before he was about to head to his mentoring session.
He had just begun changing into his training uniform when Hye-rin burst into the room.

“Ji-woo! Did you hear? Yoo Hee-ro ranked 30th in the entire school this time!”

Ji-woo paused, trying to process what that meant.

He’d never been one to obsess over rankings — even though he had held first in theory and second in practicals for three consecutive years.
So, the number 30 didn’t sound particularly impressive to him at first.

“Thirtieth means…”

“It’s amazing! Compared to his last score, he went up a hundred and seventy-seven ranks!”

A hundred and seventy-seven.
Only then did it click for Ji-woo. His face brightened.

“Wait—177 ranks? That’s huge!”

Even if thirty didn’t sound extraordinary, overtaking 177 people absolutely was.
Whether or not Hee-ro had started from the bottom didn’t matter — Ji-woo and Hye-rin were both genuinely impressed by his progress.

“I’ve got to go praise him in person.”

Ji-woo quickly finished changing into his uniform.

“Wait, hold up. That’s not all. I heard the second-years have been scared of Hee-ro ever since the finals.”

“What? What kind of nonsense is that? They ignored him before, and now they’re afraid of him?”

They must not have any idea what true terror looked like.
If Yoo Hee-ro were ever truly terrifying, he’d probably wipe the planet clean.

‘If that kid ever did get scary, there wouldn’t even be ashes left of you guys…’

Ji-woo snorted in disbelief.

“I guess they’re just scared they’ll lose their spots now that he’s shot up the ranks.”

“Do they not even consider their own skill level? They should be embarrassed.”

“Right? It’s ridiculous. I nearly threw up when I heard it.”

Hye-rin made a gagging gesture, full of disgust.

“But if they’re that intimidated, doesn’t that just mean Hee-ro did incredibly well?”

“Exactly!”

It was deeply satisfying.
The same jerks who used to bully him were now shaking in their boots.
Nothing could be more rewarding than seeing Hee-ro’s well-deserved comeback.

“I’m definitely going to congratulate him.”

“Me too! Tell him I said congrats!”

“Yeah!”

With a grin stretching from ear to ear, Ji-woo strode off toward the training room, his steps light with pride.

“Hee~ro~!”

He threw the door open cheerfully, shouting his name.

Inside, Hee-ro had been stretching, arms raised high above his head.
He froze mid-motion, staring wide-eyed at Ji-woo.
The sudden burst of energy from the older boy caught him completely off guard.

“S–Sunbae?”

His voice was full of disbelief, as though he couldn’t quite believe his own eyes.

“You little punk! I’m proud of you!”

Ji-woo lunged forward, completely ignoring Hee-ro’s confusion.
He threw his arms around the younger boy and began ruffling his hair mercilessly.

“U-ugh… I’m getting dizzy!”

“By the way, did you grow taller while I wasn’t looking?”

Their eye level had been even before, but now Hee-ro’s gaze sat just slightly higher.
Ji-woo, according to his memories, wasn’t supposed to grow even 0.1 cm more.

“Did I?”

Hee-ro tilted his head, unsure.
Ji-woo sighed as he tried to smooth out the hair he’d just messed up.
He had to stretch his arm higher than before, which slightly bruised his pride.
Noticing this, Hee-ro discreetly bent his knees a little.

“Anyway, congratulations. I heard your grades shot up this time.”

“Ah… that.”

Hee-ro shifted his eyes around nervously, as if he’d been caught doing something wrong.

“What? You did great!”

“Um… actually, my practical score didn’t improve much. It’s just my theory score that pulled me up.”

Ji-woo waved it off.

“Doesn’t matter. Theory or practical — work is work. What matters is that you grew.”

“But… you took the time to mentor me, Sunbae. If I hadn’t shown any progress, you’d have been disappointed.”

“So you worked hard because of that?”

“Yes…”

His voice was small, bashful — yet quietly proud.
Ji-woo couldn’t help but smile.
How could someone be this earnest in a world like this?
It still felt surreal that this same boy would one day become the world’s greatest villain.

‘Really… this kid?’

“You’re too good for this world. Fine then — as a reward, I’ll grant you one wish.”

It was a spontaneous promise, but Ji-woo meant it.
Hee-ro had truly earned it.

“A wish?”

Hee-ro blinked, as if he’d never even heard the word before.
Ji-woo suddenly wondered if he’d come off as stingy until now.

“Yeah, like… as long as it’s nothing too expensive, I can manage it.”

“I couldn’t possibly wish for something so material.”

“Huh?”

‘What do you mean? Material things are the best kind of wish!’
Ji-woo had spent his whole life convinced that if he ever met a genie, his three wishes would be a house, a car, and cash.

He couldn’t tell if he was the jaded one, or if Hee-ro was just too pure.

“…I don’t know what to do. I can’t choose right now.”

“Too sudden, huh? Can’t think of one on the spot?”

Ji-woo thought maybe Hee-ro just didn’t have many desires.
But Hee-ro shook his head firmly.

“No, I have a lot of things in mind… I just don’t know which one to say first.”

“Ah, I see.”

So he did have wishes after all — just too many.
Watching Hee-ro’s delighted expression made Ji-woo feel like Santa Claus.
Not a bad feeling, honestly.

“Alright. Tell me when you’ve decided.”

“I will! Definitely! But, um…”

“Hm?”

Hee-ro opened his mouth to say something —

BEEEEEP! WEEEEE-OOOO!

A piercing fire alarm suddenly blared through the building.
Whatever Hee-ro was about to say vanished beneath the noise.

“What the hell?”

Ji-woo frowned.
He assumed it was a malfunction — or maybe a student prank.
But then the school’s announcement system kicked in.

[Attention all students and staff. A fire has broken out in the research building. Please evacuate the premises immediately. I repeat—]

“What?! A fire, out of nowhere?!”

This wasn’t a drill.
Ji-woo grabbed Hee-ro’s arm and dashed toward the exit.

‘Don’t tell me this is another ripple from changing the future…’

This incident definitely hadn’t happened in his previous life.

They raced down the corridor, reaching the central staircase within seconds.
Since the research building was behind the main complex, they needed to head the opposite direction — toward the field.
Students flooded the stairs in a chaotic wave, panicking as they tried to escape.

To avoid losing him in the crowd, Ji-woo stayed close, gripping Hee-ro’s sleeve tightly.

“You still with me?”

“Yes!”

Pushed and pulled by the flow of students, they finally reached the first floor.
They burst through the lobby doors and ran out onto the school grounds, where students were gathering in clusters on the field.

Thick gray smoke billowed violently from the back of the campus.
It was worse than expected.
The research building stood right behind the training hall — if the wind had shifted, the toxic fumes would’ve swept straight through the windows.

Three windows on the second floor were scorched black.
Flames raged inside, belching clouds of dark smoke.

“Everyone, get back!”

Teachers shouted orders while calling for students with water-based abilities.
Within minutes, fire trucks arrived, and firefighters rushed into the burning structure.
Two people were carried out on stretchers — both in lab coats.
They must’ve been researchers working in the second-floor lab where the fire had started.

“This feels like arson.”

Hye-rin’s voice came low beside Ji-woo’s ear.

“Who would do that? And why?”

Ji-woo had been thinking the same thing.
It was too big to be a simple accident.

“No idea.”

Hye-rin shrugged.

Then—

“Hee-ro!”

A man in a lab coat came charging toward them, his expression twisted in fury.
The hem of his coat was singed black.
He seized Hee-ro by the shoulders and began shaking him violently.

Hee-ro winced in pain, and Ji-woo rushed forward to intervene.

“You little bastard! You set the fire, didn’t you?!”

“What are you talking about?”

Ji-woo stepped between them, glaring.
The man ignored him completely, eyes bloodshot, voice trembling with rage.

“You think you can fool me? You think I wouldn’t recognize your handiwork?!”

Hee-ro stood frozen, saying nothing.
His eyes were wide and glassy, fixed on Ji-woo like a frightened child seeking help.
Seeing that expression made Ji-woo’s anger flare white-hot.

“What are you doing, yelling at a kid like this? What the hell are you accusing him of?”

“Who the hell are you? Stay out of this! Hee-ro, you—damn brat! Did you think I wouldn’t notice? You think I’m blind?!”

The commotion drew attention.
Students began to gather, whispering among themselves.
Ji-woo grabbed the man’s arm and forced it off Hee-ro’s collar.

“He’s been with me this whole time. We heard the alarm and evacuated together! How exactly could he have started that fire, huh?!”

“What’s going on over there?”

Their shouting caught the attention of their homeroom teacher, who came running.
The researcher finally released Hee-ro, breathing hard.
Hee-ro still said nothing, only staring at the ground.

The teacher questioned both sides, while murmurs rippled through the watching students.

“I heard Hee-ro started the fire.”

“No way…”

“Ji-woo,” the teacher asked, “you were really with Hee-ro the whole time?”

Ji-woo nodded firmly.

“Yes. Check the CCTV if you want. It was during our mentoring session — Hee-ro was with me the entire time. Then the alarm went off, and we evacuated immediately.”

“When did the fire start?”

The teacher turned to the researcher.
The man scowled and glanced at his watch.

“…About thirty minutes ago.”

Ji-woo’s eyes lit up.

“See? He was with me exactly fifty-five minutes ago. That’s when mentoring began. He got to the training room before I did, so there’s no way he could’ve been there. It’s physically impossible! Why are you blaming the wrong person?!”