Prologue Story

“What?!”

It was Min-hee who shouted. We were already surprised by the story we had just heard, but now we were stunned once again. Could it be that even her younger sister, Min-hee, hadn’t known about this?

“Why? How? What happened?”

Min-hee’s face twisted in sudden confusion. Eun-hee unnie, flustered, responded.

“Oh? Well, um, I also just heard about it… I don’t know much. I only know that it happened when Ji-hyun was still in elementary school, maybe third or fourth grade? I heard that a friend of his spread the word about Ji-hyun’s skills. That friend ended up getting suspended because of it, but by then, all of Ji-hyun’s abilities had already been exposed. And the mother of the kid who caused the trouble stormed in, complaining about the suspension, but ended up getting nothing out of it. The family even had to transfer schools. Essentially, it was like being expelled. I don’t know why that friend spread rumors about Ji-hyun. It happened before I came here, so I don’t even know who transferred. I heard about it from Jooyeon. Anyway, there were so many rumors floating around, so…”

As Eun-hee unnie explained, Min-hee rolled her eyes with a confused expression.

“…This is the first time I’m hearing about it.”

“He didn’t tell you anything?”

“He just told me to be very careful about talking to others about his abilities. But I didn’t know anything about this incident.”

Min-hee muttered as she fidgeted with her fingers. I felt a moment of bewilderment, but I thought I understood why Ji-hyun oppa hadn’t told Min-hee. Eun-hee unnie seemed to feel the same, as she gave Min-hee’s shoulder a few light pats with a wry smile.

“Well, it’s not exactly a pleasant story to tell. I can understand why he didn’t bring it up.”

“Is that so…?”

“Yeah, he probably wasn’t avoiding telling you on purpose.”

Eun-hee unnie nodded slowly. Hearing this, my face darkened. So Ji-hyun oppa really went through something like this, and on top of that, it was his own friend who had spread the rumors about him? The suspension must mean that Ji-hyun oppa hadn’t given permission to talk about it. At the very least, he might have said, ‘Don’t go around telling everyone.’ Either way, spreading rumors without consent was a betrayal.

A friend had betrayed him. It wasn’t a story one could easily share with anyone, not even with family. Maybe it was still a source of pain for him.

I held back a sigh. Ji-hyun oppa… You’ve been through more than I realized.

“If you’re curious, wouldn’t it be better to ask him directly? It’s a bitter story, but since you’re his sister, he might share it with you… No, wait. Wouldn’t asking directly be a little insensitive? Did I just mess up? Hmm! Min-hee, just promise me you won’t say I told you! Promise!”

Eun-hee unnie, flustered, extended her pinky finger toward Min-hee. Min-hee tilted her head in confusion before laughing and hooking her finger around Eun-hee unnie’s.

“Okay! I promise.”

Then she turned around, saying she had urgent business to attend to. Hey, don’t just run away like that! I watched Eun-hee unnie dash off with a troubled expression. Was this really okay? It felt like we had stumbled upon something Ji-hyun oppa had wanted to keep buried.

When I glanced back, Min-hee was standing with her arms crossed, deep in thought. After a moment of contemplation, she looked back at us and spoke.

“Hey… Why don’t we visit the high school for a bit?”

“What?”

“Is it because of what we just heard?”

Shia asked cautiously, and Min-hee nodded. The others agreed, saying they didn’t mind.

“Sure, why not? We finished early anyway.”

Han-soo shrugged his shoulders. However, I frowned and crossed my arms amidst the others. I felt hesitant. The fact that this was Ji-hyun oppa’s personal matter made me uneasy.

“But the high school seniors are all in class right now. We’re the only ones who finished early. We can’t just call him out in the middle of class.”

Wanting to visit the high school was just an excuse. The real reason was to hear Ji-hyun oppa’s side of the story. Min-hee hesitated for a moment but soon smiled as usual.

“I know, I know. I’m just saying we could sneak a look. Quietly, without him knowing.”

“Quietly?”

“Yeah, and while we’re at it, we can explore the high school a bit.”

Min-hee nodded eagerly. That was a problem in itself.

“Most high school classes move between rooms. How are we supposed to find him without calling? He could even be out practicing somewhere.”

When I pointed this out, the others looked around awkwardly. But Min-hee didn’t care, grabbing my arm as if to persuade me.

“It’s fine. We can just take a quick look around. Come on? I used to visit the high school to look for oppa sometimes, you know. Please, Eun-ha~.”

I stared at Min-hee, feeling conflicted. Then, the others joined in, looking at me with sparkling eyes. Their eager expressions reminded me of puppies waiting to be fed, making me feel a bit strange.

…Would this really be okay? After a moment of hesitation, I nodded. Well, they’re siblings. They’ll handle it.

“Fine… Let’s go. Just for a little while.”

There wasn’t a rule saying elementary school students couldn’t enter the high school. High school seniors sometimes visited our elementary school labs too. Once I gave my approval, Min-hee and Hyun-ho cheered loudly.

“Yes!”

“Let’s go right now! Quickly!”

In-ha, Shia, and Han-soo laughed as they followed the two excitedly. Letting out another sigh, I trailed behind them.

But there were still a few things that worried me. If we needed to search classrooms, would wandering around the high school as elementary students cause trouble?

‘Well, Min-hee says she’s done it before, so it should be okay…’

We passed through the warp hole to head to the high school. The warp hole connected to a park near the high school’s entrance. Seniors who didn’t have classes were strolling around the park. They glanced curiously at us, clearly wondering why elementary schoolers were wandering around during class time. I felt embarrassed under their stares.

“What are you doing here? Isn’t it class time for you?”

“Oh, no. We finished early today because of something that came up. I came to see my oppa.”

“Oppa?”

“Can you find your way there?”

“Yes. I’ve been here a few times, so it’s fine!”

“I see. That’s a relief.”

Min-hee spoke confidently in front of the seniors.

We followed Min-hee through the park, approaching the school building.

Several large buildings were connected together.

There weren’t many people near the buildings.

Peeking through the windows, most classrooms appeared empty.

“Where should we start?”

“I think we should start with oppa’s class.”

I sighed lightly at those words.

Unless he was studying by himself, high school classes were on a rotation schedule, weren’t they?

“It’s fine. I have a rough idea where oppa might be.”

“Why not just call him? You can contact him using his student ID… And if he’s in class and can’t meet, we could go back or wait.”

“I don’t want to!”

“What?”

“I just don’t want to!”

“What kind of reasoning is that?”

“Hehehe.”

I sighed again, looking at Min-hee’s sly grin.

The other friends seemed to enjoy sneaking quietly between the empty buildings, saying it felt like a scene from a drama.

We wandered around the high school buildings for a while.

We checked Ji-hyun oppa’s classroom and even the rooms and gymnasium he might have gone to during rotating classes.

Even Min-hee didn’t seem to have memorized oppa’s schedule completely.

“High school schedules change a lot. Practical training takes priority if it’s scheduled.”

Hearing that, I pinched Min-hee’s cheek—hard.

Despite wandering for quite some time, we couldn’t find Ji-hyun oppa.

Min-hee sat down near a flowerbed, looking dejected.

After all that walking, my legs ached.

I kicked at the ground with my toes.

I tried writing Ji-hyun oppa’s name on the map using magic, but the spell just broke.

It seemed that my current magic wasn’t strong enough to locate him.

“Ugh… I usually don’t have this much trouble finding him.”

Listening to Min-hee’s whiny voice, I checked the time.

“It’ll be third period soon. Let’s just call him.”

“But…”

Min-hee whispered with a downcast face.

“But I didn’t hear it directly from oppa… Calling him to meet and then asking about it feels… too heavy…”

We all fell silent.

So that’s how it was.

Min-hee had been thinking about this in her own way.

If that’s the case, then there’s nothing we can do.

“Let’s just go back for today.”

“What~? But…”

“Then ask him at home later…”

“That’s not ideal either…”

“Then let’s go back and bring it up another time.”

Min-hee hesitated with a dissatisfied expression but soon nodded reluctantly.

The others, massaging their sore legs, agreed as well.

“Yeah. My legs hurt now.”

“Alright… We couldn’t find him anyway…”

“Hey! Isn’t that Min-hee? And the others are here too. What brings you all here?”

At that moment, a familiar voice called out from above.

We looked up in surprise.

“…!”

At the same time, a shadow swiftly descended from above.

Black hair with white-tipped ends swayed as it landed.

It was Chunho oppa.

“What are you doing here at this time? Isn’t it class time?”

“We had shortened classes today.”

“Shortened classes? Come to think of it, I heard about some commotion at the elementary school today. Is it because of that? But why are you all here at the high school together?”

Oh, this worked out well.

I smiled faintly, watching Chunho oppa chat with my friends.

Yes, this might be better than asking Ji-hyun oppa directly.

I leaned over and whispered softly into Min-hee’s ear.

“This is perfect. Since it’s awkward to ask Ji-hyun oppa directly, let’s ask Chunho oppa instead. He was friends with Ji-hyun oppa back in elementary school, right?”

“Oh! Okay!”

Min-hee grinned confidently and walked toward Chunho oppa.

I watched Min-hee with a pleased expression.

I felt a little like a mastermind pulling the strings from behind.

Hmm, being the mastermind doesn’t feel too bad~.

“Hey, oppa, we actually came to ask you something~.”

“Oh, really? What is it?”

“Today, someone in our grade broke the rules, and there was a big fuss in the auditorium about expelling them. So, we wanted to ask you something related to that.”

Min-hee spoke indirectly, which was unusual for her.

The reason was simple.

Just like earlier, she didn’t want to make things heavy.

She was worried about making someone feel bad.

It wasn’t exactly a pleasant topic, so it was understandable.

If it were me, I wouldn’t have been able to ask even after agonizing over it.

But Min-hee wasn’t the type to agonize in silence.

And since this was a story about Ji-hyun oppa that even Min-hee didn’t know, I was a bit curious too.

Especially after realizing the dangers of this world through recent events.

Hearing Min-hee’s words, Chunho oppa’s eyes narrowed.

“So, you’ve heard? From who? Eun-hee Senior? Jooyeon noona?”

“…I promised not to tell!”

“Alright. Fine. You’re at an age where you’re naturally curious, so I’ll let it slide this time.”

Chunho oppa ruffled Min-hee’s hair with an indulgent expression.

I carefully observed Chunho oppa’s mood.

However, Han-soo, being blunt as always, jumped in with a direct question.

“So? Can you tell us or not?”

“Oh, I can. It’s fine. Telling you once won’t hurt. There’s even a lesson in it.”

Chunho oppa glanced around.

“But this isn’t the right place to talk. Let’s move somewhere quieter.”

We nodded in agreement.

After a moment of thought, Chunho oppa used teleportation magic to move us.

I looked around curiously, puzzled.

“This place is…?”

It was an unfamiliar location.

The floor was cluttered with scattered items, and there were simple furniture, a bed, and a desk.

It was clearly someone’s room.

Which meant this was probably Chunho oppa’s room.

Unlike my slight embarrassment, my friends roamed around the room curiously.

Only Min-hee and Shia acted as if they were used to it.

Min-hee plopped down on the messy bed without hesitation.

“It’s been a while since I last came to Chunho oppa’s room.”

As expected.

Hyun-ho glanced around the room with newfound interest.

“So, this is Chunho Hyung’s room.”

“Shia and I have been here a few times.”

“Hmm. So, this is the high school dormitory…”

Han-soo and In-ha also inspected the room with interest.

Eventually, we’d live in dorms like this when we became middle schoolers.

It was natural to be curious.

After looking around for a bit, we each found a place to sit—on the bed or the floor.

Min-hee, Shia, Hyun-ho, and Han-soo sat on the bed.

In-ha and I leaned against the bed, sitting on the floor.

Chunho oppa sat across from us, leaning against the wardrobe.

We all looked at Chunho oppa expectantly.

Finally, Chunho oppa began to speak.