Chapter 13 : Gap of the battlefield and the battlefield (1)

The bus arrived at school, and Hyun-a and I headed to our respective classrooms.
After opening the classroom door and entering, Su-rim, the class president, and other students greeted me with smiles.
Acknowledging their greetings, I glanced around and saw Kim Ha-neul with his head buried in his phone, just like the other kids.

* * *

……What should I do?

I wasn’t sure how much of Ha-neul’s memory had been modified, so I sat down at my desk, pondering how to approach him.

As I fiddled with my phone, lost in thought, someone spoke to me from behind.
It was Kim Ha-neul, with a serious expression.

“Seo-hyun, can we talk in the hallway for a second?”
“Ah, yes.”

Thinking the conversation would go more smoothly that way, I readily agreed and got up from my seat.
Then, I put my finger to my lips, shushing Su-rim who was looking at me with a puzzled expression from the next seat.

A gesture implying secrecy.
Seeing that, Su-rim seemed to realize that this was a confidential matter, and she clenched her fists with a determined look.
As expected of a prospective A-rank.
Good that she’s quick to understand.

* * *

Perhaps because it was right before the first class of the morning, the hallway was crowded with students.
It wasn’t a place to have this conversation, so we moved to the less crowded staircase area.

“Here, take it.”

Before we talked, I put my hand inside my sleeve to give Ha-neul his sword back.
As the long sword slid out of my uniform sleeve, Ha-neul flinched and stepped back.
This guy, who went through so much yesterday, is surprised by this?

“It’s just an ordinary sword now, but I thought it was precious to you, so I’m returning it. Make up some excuse to the Association. And try to cultivate your mental strength from now on.”

I spoke to Kim Ha-neul, who gratefully accepted the sword without a word, perhaps because only the memory of directly facing my true form was manipulated.
I said that, but there’s another reason why I purified the contaminated sword and returned it instead of destroying it.
To instill a sense of caution in him.

For a former hero with the title of A-rank Guardian to succumb to such a mental attack…
How can someone who will protect humanity in the future be like that?

Moreover, those who make a contract with me gain expanded talents or special powers due to the influence of experiencing transcendental power.
He’ll probably be able to aim for S-rank as well.
As a resident of Earth, I also hope for an increase in powerful Guardians.
So, it would be good to give him hints on how to get stronger from time to time.

Looking up at Kim Ha-neul’s face, I saw an expression of gratitude.
Instead of being moved, why don’t you go and do some more mental training?
I thought about taking out a magic book for him, but stopped. There’s no need to cause any deaths.

Come to think of it, it would be good if he could report the inside of the gate to the Association for me.

“Don’t we have to submit a detailed report about the gate to the Association? I’m new to this, so I don’t really know.”
“Don’t worry. I’ll go to the teacher later and take care of it.”

As I subtly hinted that I found it bothersome, the quick-witted guy responded.
It’s convenient to make him do things since he’s in my debt.
Having swiftly passed on today’s task to him, I walked back to the classroom without hesitation.
Ha-neul’s voice calling out from behind reached my ears.

“Thank you so much!! I’ll buy you a meal next time!”

It wasn’t a bad feeling.
Maintaining my pace, I waved back.
I make a lot of money, so he doesn’t need to buy me a meal, though.

* * *

When I returned to the classroom, Su-rim, from the next seat, looked at me with a subtle gaze and whispered,

“Um, by any chance… what did Ha-neul say?”

At her words, I couldn’t help but sigh deeply.
I clearly said it was confidential, so why is she asking?
Just like for those who use magic, keeping contracts and secrets is the most serious matter in human society as well.
To escape from internal struggles and survive against extraterrestrial forces, keeping social contracts is essential.
Knowing the fatality of internal division, I couldn’t help but react sensitively to her words.
Curiosity about something confidential is a very dangerous behavior.

I put on the most serious expression I could to impress this upon her and opened my mouth.

“Choi Su-rim. Isn’t it bad to be curious about confidential matters?”
“Ah… uh, I’m sorry!!”

Su-rim, clearly embarrassed by my frosty words, abruptly apologized.
She seems to know she did something wrong, but I don’t understand why she asked if she was going to apologize right away.

“…….”
“…….”

Hmm.
… Seeing Su-rim cautiously watching me, I wondered if I had made a mistake, and it felt strange.
It felt like I was in the wrong, even though I wasn’t.
Unable to bear it any longer, I leaned towards Su-rim.

“……Um, why did you ask what Ha-neul said?”
“Uh, huh? Can I tell you…?”
“Yes. I won’t say anything, so tell me.”
“Did, did Kim Ha-neul confess to you, and you’re angry?”
“What?”

A confession? What confession?
An incomprehensible answer came back.

“I thought you were asking about confidential matters.”
“Huh? Wasn’t Ha-neul confessing to you?”

……Putting the pieces together, it seems the conversation got twisted.
I grabbed my head. My soft silver hair felt smooth in my hand.
I thought I had gotten used to it after three weeks of being back, but I made mistakes like this sometimes.
Feeling sorry for being cold to her, I opened my mouth.

“Um… I’m sorry. I think I misunderstood because I haven’t been back for long… The things I talked about with him were confidential.”
“No, no!! I’m sorry too. It was just a silly misunderstanding…….”
“Hey there, you two best friends. Why don’t you stop chatting?”

An uninvited guest interrupted our amicable apology.
Teacher Do-hwa had opened the classroom door and entered.
Su-rim and I, effectively silenced, just exchanged glances.
There was a slight friction due to a small misunderstanding, but for some reason, it was funny, so we ended up laughing silently.

* * *

Today’s morning class was practical training.
The kids gathered on the sports field, chattering noisily.
I, too, joined them and lined up outside.
As if well-trained, they naturally formed ranks.

*Thump!*

The ground shook slightly as if there was an earthquake, and I heard something fall at the front of the line.
Being in the back row, I couldn’t see the front, so I floated my body slightly without anyone noticing.

“Hahaha! Nice to see you all again this week, Class 6!!!”

A macho teacher with otherworldly muscles stood in front of the students with his arms crossed, shouting.
I blinked blankly at the sight I had never seen before.
Even in that other world, there wasn’t anything like that…….

I glanced around.
Everyone stood at attention, listening to him as if they were used to it.
For some reason, they even seemed more serious than usual.

Hmm…….

I put my feet on the ground so as not to stand out.
My ears started to hurt from the loud shouts of the macho teacher with the buzz cut and the students repeating after him.

“You all know what we’re going to do now, right!!”
“Positioning, sir!!”
“That’s right! Continuing from last time, it’s positioning again!!”
“Positioning!!!”

The kids, after shouting at the top of their lungs, scattered quickly, forming groups of three, as if they had planned it in advance.

As I looked around blankly, Su-rim came up to me, raised my hand, and shouted to the teacher.

“Teacher!! We have a transfer student in our class!!”

The teacher’s figure quickly approached.
It was a speed difficult to follow with normal human dynamic vision, so I was slightly surprised by the explosive power of the muscles that acted like magic.
Even in that other world, there were few humans with such enhanced physiques…….
This must be the aftermath of that ‘awakening.’

“Are you the A-rank returnee who joined us? I look forward to working with you for the next six months. I’m Choi Cheol-chu, the A-rank Hunter in charge of the Giant Monster Battle group training.”

He said so and extended his giant hand.
I also extended my small hand to accept his handshake, but his hand was so big that I had to shake hands with three of his fingers.

After shaking hands, he grinned at me fiercely.
I felt like I should do the same, so I smiled back.