Lee Dowon (1)

[Hmm. So… you said you'd investigate that place we talked about last time?]

Byeol's voice came through the phone.

It was the dead of night, as Shiba slept.

After the academy, I made my own plans.

Leaning on the bed, I carefully spoke to Byeol so as not to wake Shiba.

"Yes. I know someone there, and I'm also worried."

[If you say so, Shiheon. But Seyeong will probably oppose it, saying it's too dangerous.]

I planned to act without informing Lee Seyeong.

It's complicated to explain the power I now possessed, and above all, that person was someone who would worry no matter how strong I was.

[…Are you serious?]

"Yes."

[Ah, you two are exactly alike.]

Byeol groaned as if having a headache from the honest truth but soon seemed to accept my decision.

[So… how do you plan to hide it? If you act openly, the information will leak. Seyeong is cunning enough to figure it out quickly.]

"I have some measures in mind."

I reached for the mask on the nightstand that I hadn't used in a long time. The dim dawn light made it seem like a glint of determination shone in my eyes.

"Hunter license… Can I make one? Completely disguise myself and go around. Hide my academy identity too."

[Hmm? You mean to create a completely fake identity? It's not difficult, but it's going to complicate things.]

"Is it tough?"

Byeol giggled and playfully whispered back.

[Not just tough—probably very tough. This isn't something a single kiss can settle. Hey Lee! It's going to be expensive.]

"…Hahaha. I'll do whatever you ask."

[Really?! Did I record that? Is it for real?]

Byeol shrieked with laughter.

I could imagine her, twirling her blonde hair with her fingers, laughing in her pajamas.

"Jae! You keep screaming 'Hojae~'," she eventually asked about the task again.

[So. I can decide on the name and age details myself, right?]

"Age doesn't matter and for the details… just keep it vague. These kinds of tasks are quite common, aren't they?"

[Right. To the association, it's no different than any other commodity.]

She seemed to have quickly forgotten her earlier exaggeration about the difficulty of creating an identity.

Byeol said it was simple.

[So, I'll just create one? But the highest will be C-class.]

"Yes. Oh right."

[Huh?]

I might use this identity several times in the future.

Although it's C-class, not all hunters were the same. The identity I would receive was similar to that of a mercenary.

Not affiliated with any association and truly free.

It's easy to obtain, so those with criminal pasts or those who wanted to wash away their past often chose this path.

'…Acting with this identity means.'

Becoming a shadow straddling both the light and the dark.

To catch something called Flower, you must enter its shadow.

Fortunately, I know how this world works.

'Drug trafficking… Murder. Smuggling.'

Not only something learned through sideways glances but directly experienced and painfully felt.

It's time to use that disillusionment from the past.

A future as muddy as dirt.

Dark, slimy, sticky, and unpleasant shadows.

These were fragments of society that might thrust at me unknowingly.

'The teachers and masters will try to stop me.'

This was my stubbornness.

Could I just watch the specially prepared mosquitoes ready to suck my blood?

Right now, I needed a name that I could freely declare.

And just then, I had the perfect name.

"Dowon."

Lee Dowon.

The newly received hunter's name.

A precious name once given to me by her, each character wrapped in the pink hue of peach blossoms.

It's a pity that Cheondo couldn't remember it now.

But one day, when she knew, or if she disappeared before my eyes, she could hear this name and come looking for me.

"I'll go with Dowon."

In the late dawn,

I placed a simple mask over my face.

And looked straight into the mirror next to me.

-Crack.

The light from the nightstand's lamp was reflected in my eyes.

Deep black pupils.

The brownish hue in my irises began to slowly emanate from within the mask.

"Welcome once again to those of you selected for the Forester competition."

El Academy, main building, 12th floor.

As participants in the global event, the Forester competition, we have been relocated to classes outside the Korean branch.

"…El Academy's fine talents. Wood. It would be good if among you, someone could take on the role of Forest Keeper after successfully completing this training."

In the Korean branch, only students with outstanding grades are selected for the Jungjin Class.

Focused education was far more suited to developing students to their full potential.

In that sense, this place ranked higher than the Jungjin Class.

Only those with the best talent among the elite belong here.

Fifteen people. Everyone here was participating in the selection.

Students from El Academy from countries like Japan, China, the USA, etc., all looking forward with determination.

"We won't be studying textbooks for a while. To purely cultivate skills, we will overhaul the curriculum and go through special training."

Did I really need this now?

I might learn something from this instructor, but I didn't feel there's much merit in it.

Techniques that could be learned just by watching.

When I first came to the academy, when my potential was at its peak, I could mimic magic and swordsmanship just by observing them.

Of course, this was only up to a certain level, but it's still an astonishing talent.

'…There must be some use for it somewhere.'

There's frankly nothing to learn at the academy.

Just taking away knowledge about magic that I didn't know.

In the Forester competition, I planned to use magic without necessarily showing off my skills.

"..."

I sorted my thoughts and casually glanced at the seat next to me.

Her chest, which entered the field of vision before her face.

Even with a sports bra, her beauty shone through here too.

Sansuyu.

She had been subtly avoiding me until now.

"…Hey."

"..."

Sansuyu glanced over in response to my voice, then puffed her cheeks emotionlessly.

"Why are you so upset? Did I do something wrong?"

I spoke as softly as possible.

Sansuyu pursed her lips and then raised her small hand to hit my shoulder.

-Thud.

A slight pain.

It was a strong hit for Sansuyu.

"…You left without saying anything."

Her reproachful gaze, lips pouted, didn't subside.

"I hate you, Shiheon. You promised to make friends for me."

"But you did make a lot of friends. They seemed close when I saw you last time."

Sansuyu's wish was somewhat misdirected, but it had been fulfilled.

That's what I meant, but Sansuyu puffed her cheeks out even more, looking even more dissatisfied.

Her face puffed up like Shiba.

"…I couldn't enjoy the training camp together."

She spoke and then puffed out her cheeks again.

A pretty person like Sansuyu changing her face like that tends to draw attention.

A few foreign students occasionally glanced at Sansuyu.

"…Yasu said he would do it too."

That comment was a bit…

Wasn't it inappropriate for this situation?

Fortunately, Sansuyu's whiny comment wasn't loud enough for the other students to hear.

I swallowed a sigh and grabbed the back of Sansuyu's neck.

"Let's not use that phrase here… it might cause misunderstandings."

Where did she learn that phrase?

Definitely from that malicious site, TreeInside.

I gently stroked the back of Sansuyu's neck to calm her, and she shivered.

"Stop it."

The air went out of her cheeks, and she reverted back to stage one of being upset.

Stage one involved just pursing her lips and glaring subtly.

Stage two involved glaring openly while puffing up her cheeks as much as possible.

I was curious about what stage three would be, but calming her down was the immediate priority.

"Ah, do you want to go try the new tteokbokki place?"

"Tteokbokki?"

I whispered quietly in her ear, and Sansuyu's face softened.

It was a dish I hadn't heard of in a while: spicy and chewy tteokbokki.

Sansuyu seemed to seriously consider it, then looked back at me with a "Ha!".

"…Trying to settle it with food."

It didn't work.

Clearly, she was different from the old Sansuyu.

Before, she would have followed even a stranger if they promised to buy her tteokbokki.

Now, she seemed to exhibit more self-control.

'Has she become too accustomed to spicy flavors?'

Perhaps she couldn't be satisfied with just tteokbokki anymore?

I remembered Sansuyu going out to eat delicious things like chicken and beer with friends.

If she's indulged that much, tteokbokki might not seem so appealing anymore.

My original sin was deep.

"Hmm… what can I do to appease you?"

I muttered to myself.

Sansuyu, with her arms crossed under her chest and eyes rolling, seemed amused by my muttering and sent subtle signals.

I pretended not to notice, and finally, she spoke first.

"…Alcohol."

"Huh?"

Alcohol?

"I want to drink a cocktail."

"Cocktail? Why all of a sudden?"

"…The kids tell me not to drink."

I had never seen Sansuyu drink to excess.

Just a pleasant beer, and then we'd part ways.

How bad must her drunken antics be for them to tell her not to drink?

It was an easy request, so I nodded.

"Then it'll settle your anger?"

Sansuyu, seemingly indifferent, rolled her eyes and nodded with an expressionless face.

To others, it might seem like an eerie scene of an emotionless girl simply inflating and deflating her cheeks, but I could read her emotions.

Before I turned back to the instructor, I asked Sansuyu,

"Right."

"Hmm?"

"Nothing tough going on for you, right?"

"What are you talking about?"

I threw it out there, but the response was nonchalant.

Sansuyu was also someone who suddenly disappeared, making her one of the people I needed to keep an eye on continuously.

"Well, it's good if there's nothing special."

I hoped the series of incidents wouldn't spread uncontrollably before we could intervene.

I thought this to myself as I let out a light breath.