Chapter 29 Part 17: Adaptation.

The date ended well.

No, even saying it ended well doesn’t do it justice.

It would be better to say it ended in great success.

No matter how much of a grudge you have against a customer.

It was a problematic fact that they tried to attack a customer who came for a deal.

Besides, it would’ve been one thing if the attack had succeeded.

But since it failed, the organization’s future was as good as gone.

Of course, my aunt knew that better than anyone.

I don’t know how much she threatened them… but I could tell by the results.

She brought me the medicine I needed in just one day.

So, all that was left was to make the reagent with that medicine.

My aunt didn’t rest for a moment.

From Sunday morning to evening, she was busy with housework and making the reagent.

And after all that effort, she finished the reagent.

I was happy in many ways, having watched her struggle by her side the whole time.

So I thanked her right away while helping her clean up.

“You did a good job, Auntie.”

“…Don’t blame me if it doesn’t work.”

“Huh?”

“These kinds of reagents usually aren’t a one-time thing.”

I was so dumbfounded that I could only laugh.

I wondered what she was talking about… I didn’t know she’d be worried about that.

It would be one thing if my aunt had kept playing dumb.

But my aunt worked hard for me.

She didn’t even rest today and worked the whole time.

Of course, there was no way I would do anything to someone who worked so hard.

Even if you put aside emotions and think rationally, isn’t it true?

The only person who can make that medicine and immediately check the progress is my aunt.

She’s practically a goose that lays golden eggs for me.

Now, if she didn’t lay eggs, it might be different.

But there’s no way I’d cut open the belly of a goose that laid an egg like this.

And I believe in my aunt.

I know that the way she looks at me isn’t right… but that’s not important.

The important thing is that my aunt made a medicine to get rid of my hallucinations for me.

So I rolled up my sleeve without hesitation and said.

“I want to sleep soon, no need to hesitate, right?”

“That’s right. Let me know if you feel unwell after the injection.”

“Okay.”

“I couldn’t make it into a pill because I didn’t have time, so please understand that.”

“Of course.”

She worked for so long, her hands should have been shaking, but my aunt was the same as always.

She found my vein as if nothing was wrong and injected the needle into it.

It felt a little strange, different from other injections, but nothing really bothered me.

Once the injection was finished, my aunt immediately started cleaning up.

She worked all day today, so it seemed like she wanted to go to bed early.

It didn’t seem like anything was wrong with my body, so I thought it would be okay to just leave her alone.

My aunt needs rest too, and it will take some time for any effect to appear.

So I also went to my room early for tomorrow.

There was nothing to do even if I stayed up longer.

And soon I fell asleep and was able to wake up on time in the morning.

After sleeping like that, I felt strangely good.

Thanks to that, I thought today would be a good day.

Usually, when the start is good, it goes all the way to the end.

It seemed like it would be like that, as long as nothing bad happened.

“Auntie, are you awake?”

So I was going to thank my aunt… but she seemed very tired.

When I went outside, I saw today’s breakfast covered with a lid and a note.

She must have prepared breakfast in advance and went back to sleep.

The contents of the note were indeed like that.

“Auntie, really…”

I saw her working so hard yesterday, so it was okay if she slacked off on breakfast today.

I could understand and let it go even if she was less prepared.

But my aunt prepared breakfast today like any other day.

Thanks to that, I thought I could go to school without much effort today.

“She does this every time…”

I was so dumbfounded that I kept talking to myself.

I could tell why my aunt did that.

She probably wants to avoid any chance of being caught.

Otherwise, there was no reason to do this even when she was tired.

I don’t know how long she’ll keep watching her back.

If she’s going to be so cautious, she should just stop showing her old self.

No matter how uncomfortable our relationship is, it can’t go on like this forever.

But there was nothing I could do.

It didn’t seem like my aunt would listen even if I said something.

So I just ate breakfast and prepared to go to school.

“I’m leaving.”

I didn’t hear a reply, but it didn’t matter.

I didn’t expect a reply in the first place.

So I didn’t dwell on it and continued to hurry my steps.

I wouldn’t be late for the academy even if I dawdled, but it’s fun to arrive early.

Did our paths cross today?

Even when I got on the bus, I didn’t see Siwoo or Sia.

I thought I needed to find out exactly when they go to school later.

Both of them are somewhat fun friends… and I haven’t forgotten that promise.

It was my first time going to a friend’s house, so I was quite excited.

I know there’s nothing special, but there’s still the atmosphere and all.

While I was having such pleasant thoughts, the academy came into view in the distance.

Looking at the distance, it seemed like I arrived early again this time.

So I got off the bus feeling good, and I heard a familiar voice from behind.

“Student Yeji, you’re early today?”

“Ah, Homeroom Teacher.”

My homeroom teacher was full of energy as always.

The positive energy of willingly reaching out to her students with kindness, you know?

In the past, I would have been sick of that energy and run away, but not now.

Maybe because I started the day off well, I felt like I could adapt to that energy.

So I slowly started walking, matching the teacher’s pace.

And I joked with the teacher, smiling brightly.

“Do you notice anything different about me?”

“There’s a lot. You’re wearing glasses… should I say you look more like a snake?”

“Training starts this week, you said. So I’ll be like this for a while.”

“I see. Ah, you should be careful not to startle the other students too much.”

“Yes?”

“Some students often forget they have new body parts.”

“Haha…”

Well, I often forgot to wear glasses, too.

If I, who only have to worry about glasses, often forget, how much more so for other friends?

As such, the teacher’s advice was very useful.

As I increasingly manifest and draw out physical characteristics, I’ll have to be that much more careful.

Reflexively attacking moving objects, for instance.

Or startling others by sticking out my tongue without thinking.

Don’t I have things to be careful about, too?

So I have to do well not to cause trouble.

Honestly, it’s fun to watch, but cleaning up afterwards is always a hassle.

So I laughed for a moment and asked the teacher.

“What was the funniest thing you’ve ever known?”

“Hmm… you know how dogs sometimes chase their tails, thinking it’s prey?”

“Ah.”

“They were doing that in the middle of the hallway. There was nothing funnier than that.”

It’s funny, but it was terrible just thinking about it.

If I did that, I wouldn’t be able to hold my head up out of embarrassment.

If I ever saw that, I might close my eyes.

“I definitely think I need to be careful.”

“You’re a snake, so there shouldn’t be a big problem, right? You just need to be careful with your tongue.”

“Haha… I hope so.”

“Well, are you licking your lips at the sight of prey?”

“Ugh.”

I shook my head urgently, but I couldn’t erase the scene that popped into my head.

Coincidentally, Kim Aram is also a mouse-person… and I’m a snake.

It’s unlikely, but if that happened, the situation would be funny.

My homeroom teacher must have thought of that too, because she was laughing with her mouth covered.

Eventually, the teacher joked first.

“You know you can’t eat someone just because you’re hungry, right?”

“Of course.”

“Good. Well, is there anything else you want to talk about? We still have a few minutes left until we reach the classroom.”

“Can you tell me what we’ll learn during night self-study?”

“That’s a secret. It’s better to look forward to it.”

“Then I want to know what we do during special training.”

“If I say it’s… better to look forward to that too, will you be disappointed?”

I nodded instead of answering.

Honestly, it’s okay to tell me one thing, right?

Of course, if the teacher doesn’t want to, there’s nothing I can do.

Still, looking at my homeroom teacher’s expression, I thought she would tell me.

“In special training, you’ll mainly learn how to use your abilities.”

“Ah.”

“How far you can use it. How you can use it. You could say it’s a time to practice all of that.”

“It’s simpler than I thought… yet subtle.”

“Of course it has to be subtle. Abilities are all different depending on how you use them. Was that a good answer?”

“Yes. Thank you for teaching me.”

Night self-study and special training.

Thanks to that, it seemed like I would have a lot to do in the future.

I’ll probably be busy working hard to hone my abilities for a while.

It will be quite difficult, but I have no intention of giving up.

I could do any amount of effort for the future I envision.

So I was thinking for a moment about whether I could adapt, and my homeroom teacher asked.

“Come to think of it, did you have a good day today?”

“Yes? I did, didn’t I? I felt good from the moment I woke up.”

“I see. I hope I can see that expression often in the future.”

“…Is that so?”

“Because it looks good.”

I didn’t think it was that bright of an expression… it was unexpected.

But in any case, she said it looked good.

As the teacher said, it wouldn’t be bad to be bright often in the future.