Prologue Story

I hesitated briefly, then patted Min-hee on the head, saying she did well.

At that, In-ha and Hyun-ho started begging for head pats, acting cute.

Oh, these kids~. I patted both of their heads too.

Han-soo, trying to act like he didn’t care, clearly wanted one as well, so I playfully patted his head too.

Surprisingly, Han-soo quietly accepted the pat.

Afterward, I asked them.

“So? What do your mana crystals look like?”

“Hehe, ta-da! Look! Mine’s huge, right?”

Min-hee grinned and pulled her mana crystal out of her pocket.

It was certainly as big as she had boasted—about the size of a 500-won coin.

It was a golden-green color, close to a light green, just like her mana color.

“Yeah, it’s big.”

“Isn’t it pretty?”

“It is. Can I touch it?”

“Of course, you can!”

Min-hee proudly held out her mana crystal to me.

I ran my finger across it.

A large mana crystal felt different compared to smaller ones.

“Hey, Min-hee’s isn’t the only big one! I made mine big too! Look!”

Hyun-ho also held out his mana crystal, making a similar claim.

His mana crystal was just as large as Min-hee’s.

Seeing this, In-ha and Han-soo also pulled out their crystals to show me.

In-ha’s was golden, resembling a lemon hue, just like her mana color.

Han-soo’s crystal was a deep brown.

Looking at the crystals resting in my hands, I laughed.

“They’re beautiful.”

“We think Eun-ha’s crystal is the prettiest and most amazing! When In-ha showed us, Eun-ha’s crystal was navy blue, but it shimmered silver when it caught the light! I want to see a big one of Eun-ha’s crystals.”

“Well… if you want, I can make one at home and show you tomorrow.”

“Really?!”

“Yeah, sure.”

I nodded lightly.

The kids beamed with joy.

“Awesome!”

“Wow!”

At that moment, In-ha spoke proudly.

“I’ll get to see it first at home anyway.”

“That’s unfair!”

“Do you have to brag like that?”

“Hmph.”

“In-ha really likes Eun-ha, doesn’t she?”

Min-hee poked In-ha with a pouty face, and Han-soo glared at her with displeasure.

I smiled faintly at the bickering between Han-soo and In-ha.

This thought just came to me—could these two end up dating after all their squabbles?

You know, like in those stories or comics about bickering couples.

Dislike eventually turns to fondness, and then love grows.

But for now, it just looked like kids teasing each other.

I chuckled, brushing off my silly thought.

Anyway, making a large mana crystal seemed like a good idea.

It had been a while since I last made one, and I’d never made one that big before.

When I usually made mana crystals out of boredom, I just created small ones about the size of marbles…

‘This should be fun.’

If I was making one, I thought I might as well make it into an interesting shape.

While walking and mulling over the idea, we reached the classroom.

I parted ways with my friends and entered, still pondering what shape to make the crystal.

I decided I’d show it to In-ha tomorrow as well, to be fair.

However, by the end of homeroom, the kids had apparently talked it over and insisted on seeing it today, demanding to come to my house.

Somehow, Han-soo and In-ha’s argument escalated into a group decision to visit my house and watch me make the crystal.

“What?”

I looked at Han-soo and In-ha, feeling conflicted.

“You guys…”

Han-soo pointed at In-ha with a guilty expression.

“Well, she started it by saying something rude first!”

“…Hmph. I was just stating facts.”

“So, I said I’d make it fair for everyone!”

“Stop interfering between me and Eun-ha.”

“I won’t!”

I sighed, exasperated, as the two growled and snapped at each other.

Although they bickered often, this time they were seriously fighting.

“Both of you, stop it. Don’t fight.”

“What’s the big deal about looking at one mana crystal together?”

“You said to me, ‘It’s annoying you get to see it first’.”

“Well, you said, ‘I’ll see it first, and you’ll see it last,’ to mock me!”

“You…!”

“In-ha, you…!”

Oh, for crying out loud…

They’re such kids, totally immature.

And they’re so similar, too.

There’s a saying that people who are alike don’t get along well, and it fits them perfectly.

Finally, I couldn’t hold back and shouted.

“Stop it! Enough!”

Startled, the friends who had been watching quietly took a few steps back.

The two who had been fighting froze in place.

“I told you to stop fighting, didn’t I? Are you going to keep this up in front of everyone?”

“But…”

They shot sharp glares at each other again.

I sighed heavily, looking at them both.

“I’m not making the mana crystal.”

The cause of all this was obvious—my mana crystal, just one.

Before the argument could get any worse, I said irritably.

Han-soo, In-ha, and even the others looked at me in shock.

“Huh? Why?”

I swallowed my frustration and faced In-ha.

“You’re fighting over it, aren’t you? So, I’m not making it. Honestly, there’s no reason or need to make it right now. I’ll make one during class later and show you. A small, tiny one.”

“Uh…”

“That’s…”

Hearing my decision, Min-hee, Hyun-ho, and Shia visibly deflated.

Han-soo and In-ha, flustered, approached me.

In-ha spoke hesitantly, looking downcast.

“E-Eun-ha…”

“…What?”

“Are you mad?”

I sighed again.

“What’s there for me to be mad about? I just don’t like seeing you fight.”

“Then you’re mad… ugh…!”

Han-soo’s thoughtless words were quickly stopped by Min-hee and Hyun-ho, who poked him to silence him.

I glared sharply at Han-soo.

He winced and held back a groan.

“Seriously… Of course, friends sometimes fight. But if you two keep fighting over trivial things, it’s hard for the rest of us too.

Usually, I let it slide as playful banter, but when it turns into a real fight, it gets tiring for everyone.”

“Like last time.”

At the mention of “last time,” In-ha flinched.

She lowered her head more and more.

“Hey, why bring up the past…?”

Oh, here we go again!

This guy really has no tact!

Having had enough, I grabbed Han-soo’s cheek and gave it a good pull as punishment.

“You need to learn to be more considerate~! You’re not in the right either, so knock it off!”

“Ow, seriously!?”

“I want it to hurt! And learn to read the room, you idiot!”

Of course, fighting might not mean much to these kids.

It had always been like this.

Even after they fought, they’d be back to playing together as if nothing happened, sometimes within minutes, at most by the next day.

Then they’d bicker again.

Because of this, I usually let their fights slide, watching with a fond smile.

But there were times when I couldn’t.

Like now.

I relaxed my grip on Han-soo’s cheek after pinching it for a while.

“I know that fighting is one way you express your closeness.”

“Closeness…!”

“Not at all…!”

“But you need to know when to stop. Got it? If you want us all to have fun together.”

You little tsunderes.

This wasn’t the first time their bickering escalated, which was why I decided to give them some advice now.

When I looked at them sternly, they glanced at each other, then quickly turned away with slightly deflated expressions.

“Fine…”

“Got it…”

Both of their faces flushed red as they responded.

It was probably because they felt embarrassed.

Good.

I smiled lightly.

Behind me, Min-hee, Hyun-ho, and Shia clapped enthusiastically as they watched the scene.

“Wow! Eun-ha’s amazing, as expected!”

“Of course! In-ha really likes Eun-ha a lot, but Han-soo also really…”

“Ah, shut up, Hyun-ho! You’re noisy!”

“Hey, I was about to say something important…”

“If you don’t shut up right now, I’ll tell everyone about the vase you broke yesterday…”

“Zip it! Okay, okay!”

Huh? Did a sneaky deal just happen in front of me?

I narrowed my eyes at Hyun-ho but decided to let it slide.

Well, anyway, it wouldn’t be long before it came to light that Hyun-ho broke the vase.

He’s not the type to successfully cover up evidence.

“So, are we making the mana crystal now?”

“Yeah. Since I’m making one, I’ll give it a fun shape.”

“Wow, that sounds fun. I wish I could make one soon too…”

Shia looked amazed but also a little dejected, lowering his head.

I was wondering what to say to him when Min-hee abruptly pulled on my arm.

“Then let’s go to Eun-ha’s house! Go, go!”

I glanced back at Shia, who was smiling now, then turned forward again.

I nodded, leading the two kids who still wore sullen expressions.

“Alright, let’s go!”

We used a teleportation badge to head to my house.

When we arrived home, my mom greeted us warmly.

My friends greeted her quite politely.

We immediately headed upstairs to my room to make the mana crystal.

“It’s been a while since I’ve been to Eun-ha’s house.”

There was a cute nameplate hanging on my door.

It was decorated with hearts and arabesque patterns, giving it a delicate look.

I turned the doorknob and opened the door.

“Oh? You put down a carpet? It’s so soft!”

Min-hee quickly plopped herself down on the white carpet spread across the floor.

I glanced around the room.

“We’ll need a big mat for this. I’ll go grab one.”

“Okay, okay!”

I remembered seeing a large mat in the storage room.

Carrying it up the stairs was a bit difficult since it was heavy, so I levitated it beside me.

When I returned to the room, my friends were exploring and chatting while looking around.

Luckily, my mom had cleaned the room while I was out.

“Wow, you’ve got more accessories! Bracelets, earrings… even though you don’t have pierced ears. Hairpins, hair ties…”

Min-hee was examining the accessories I had collected on one of my shelves.

“Whoa, are all of these books?”

“What are you studying? Isn’t it hard?”

Hyun-ho pulled out book after book, looking overwhelmed, while Han-soo flipped through the notebooks stacked beside my desk in fascination.

My temper flared.

In a low, sharp voice, I warned them.

“You little…!”

“Huh?”

I took a deep breath and shouted.

“Don’t touch my stuff without permission!”

It went silent.

In-ha sat calmly, as if expecting this.

I tossed the mat against the wall and rushed to Hyun-ho, who had a book in his hands.

“Don’t pull out books without asking, and don’t put them in the wrong place… Ugh, you bent the cover! That’s one of my favorites!”

“S-sorry…”

“Handle books carefully! Han-soo, don’t mess up the bookmarks in my study notes! And don’t read someone else’s notes—it’s embarrassing!”

“Oh, uh, okay…”

“Min-hee! If you leave those accessories tangled like that, it’ll be a pain to fix. Ugh, really.”

I had always thought of my friends as mature, so I didn’t expect them to rummage through my room while I was out.

I’m pretty finicky and particular about my belongings, even though I’m not great at organizing them.

I can’t stand it when someone touches my things without permission.

Well, it’s not like they’d been to my room often before.

I carefully re-shelved my books, folded my study notes neatly on my desk, and untangled the accessory strings.

Then, I let out a deep sigh.

“Seriously, even if it’s a friend’s or family member’s stuff, you shouldn’t touch it without asking.”

“Is that really a thing?”

“Yeah.”

“Okay, I get it. I won’t do it again.”

My friends drooped their shoulders, looking deflated.

I had been sterner than usual today.

I quickly spread the mat on the carpet.

Just then, my mom opened the door and entered.

“I brought some snacks. Eat these while you work.”

“Thank you!”

My friends instantly forgot their deflation and eagerly thanked her, bowing their heads.

Mom beamed at us.

After she left, we began making the mana crystal.

Though my friends seemed cautious at first, they soon returned to their usual lively selves.