Field Training (4)

On a warm afternoon.

The sun was shining brightly.

Sayeran Orkan found herself having tea time with the princess she served, Hong Si-Hwa Adolevit, at the Stella Sky Terrace Café. 

It was not something that happened often.

Although Hong Si-Hwa had extended her influence within Stella, she had many duties outside as well, so she usually left internal affairs entirely to Sayeran .

"How did it go?"

It was a sudden question. 

Hong Si-Hwa, who had been elegantly sipping her tea while keeping her eyes on some documents, finally spoke after thirty minutes.

Sayeran thought for a moment, then responded as she always did. 

"It was a method fitting for a princess."

"Hehe, not that. I mean your impression. Was it disgusting? Did you come to hate me?"

"... Not at all."

How could she dare to use the word 'disgusting' for the master she served? 

Even knowing that, Hong Si-Hwa asked such questions—was it fair to describe her as playful with such an impish word?

"Then let me ask another question. What did you think of my sister? Hm? How did she react?"

With a sparkle in her eyes and like a curious child resting her chin on both hands, the princess asked. 

What exactly was she thinking?

"Well... She was quite indifferent. Does Princess Hong Bi-Yeon's reaction matter?"

"Yes, it matters a lot. I intentionally revealed my secret to her after all."

"I did think it was a rather sensitive secret…"

"No. You don't understand. It's not that kind of secret."

"... Pardon?"

Sealing Isaac Morph's body in the altar—was that not the entirety of the secret Hong Si-Hwa had been hiding?

"You may not realize it, but she might have figured it out. She's a smart girl."

"... Is that so?"

"Yes. Did it bother you that I disregarded you?"

"No. It did not."

"Don't worry. If it weren't for you, I wouldn't be where I am now. I can't even imagine a life without you, so there's no need to worry."

In her very early childhood, when Sayeran had just started learning letters and the concept of etiquette, her parents introduced her to Princess Hong Si-Hwa for the first time. 

Hearing that the princess was preparing to enter Stella Academy, Sayeran's eyes sparkled with anticipation. 

She was too young to understand much, but she knew that Stella Academy was a place for only the world's elite mages.

However, when she finally met the princess, Sayeran elt a bit... creeped out by how different she was from what she had imagined. 

She had eyes that appeared hollow as if the soul had left them. 

A lifeless gaze. 

Even her movements lacked any motive. It was as if she existed not in this world but somewhere else. It made Sayeran 's heart ache.

'So brilliant and beautiful, yet unable to shine on her own.'

Though she was made to serve the princess by her parents, Sayeran had made a vow to herself back then. She vowed to heal the princess no matter what.

… She didn't know then what that decision would come to mean.

"I think I'll be going now. Make sure to get along well with Bi-Yeon!"

She knew better than anyone that it wasn't possible, yet why did she insist on it?

After Hong Si-Hwa left, Sayeran stared blankly at the tea she had been drinking.

'Princess Hong Bi-Yeon…

The 'Purification Ritual' that took place this past weekend. 

It was an unfamiliar and horrifying experience for Sayeran as well. 

Hong Bi-Yeon, who must have felt disgusted more than anyone else, didn't show it anywhere. She calmly completed the purification ritual and gracefully walked away.

It was only natural that the nobles in Hong Si-Hwa's faction were disappointed too.

She had imagined a young princess coming to uncover a secret only to be horrified by an unimaginable truth.

However, from beginning to end, Hong Bi-Yeon remained composed and elegantly fulfilled her role before calmly disappearing. 

Even though she was her rival, Sayeran couldn't help but think that was quite impressive.

And yet, one thing puzzled her.

'The Restriction.'

At that time, it seemed like Hong Bi-Yeon was seriously affected by the side effects of the restriction. 

However, from what Sayeran knew of Hong Bi-Yeon's personality, she would have certainly resisted the restriction.

Would someone as proud as Hong Bi-Yeon really accept the restriction created by the Queen and Hong Si-Hwa without a fight? 

Terriban appeared to have dismissed his suspicions, thinking Hong Bi-Yeon couldn't deceive his eyes, but Sayeran, who had less ability to discern magic, found herself more suspicious of Hong Bi-Yeon.

'She must have done something.'

It was an unrealistic thought. 

How could a mere seventeen-year-old girl dare to resist the Restriction Magic created by Queen Hong Se-ryu?

Sayeran Orkan viewed the world pragmatically and thought rationally. 

Despite this, she couldn't help but feel there was something in Hong Bi-Yeon's gaze at that moment… Should she just chalk it up to her imagination?

Back then, Sayeran had thought about pointing it out. 

If she had said just one word to Terriban, suggesting they go back and scan to confirm whether the restriction on Princess Hong Bi-Yeon was properly in place, they might have discovered the truth.

However, she didn't do that.

Strangely, she couldn't bring herself to do it.

She couldn't bring herself to attack Princess Hong Bi-Yeon.

In her entire life, she had never hesitated. 

Why now? 

Thinking back…

It was the first time she had met her gaze, face to face, person to person. 

How often had they truly confronted each other personally rather than attacking each other from a distance?

Clatter! 

She calmly closed her eyes while touching the teacup used by the princess.

The secret of Morfren Forest was so horrifying and disgusting that even Sayeran's cold, rational mind struggled to comprehend it.

Knowing that the princess had caused all of it, could she still serve her sincerely as she had in the past? 

When her sincerity no longer lay in the same place, what should she do?

Crash!

"… Ah."

The teacup used by Hong Si-Hwa slipped from her hand and shattered under the table. 

The waiter quickly rushed over to clean up the mess, but...

'Is it too late?'

She wouldn't be able to restore the already broken teacup of Princess Hong Si-Hwa. 

——-

As expected of a dating simulation game, there were choices to be made in this episode. 

It wasn't about choosing a hero (a male character), but deciding where to be dispatched for a mission.

Most players chose monster hunting.

There was no need to tackle the difficult Persona Gate in an episode meant to be a breather.

However, there were rare instances of this happening.

Players who had built up their relationships with characters thoroughly might find themselves caught up and forced into certain choices by the characters.

Baek Yu-Seol played the game casually, so naturally, that never happened to him. 

He'd heard that it wasn't common even among the most dedicated players, but…

"You're choosing the Persona Gate mission?"

'How did I end up getting swept up by Hong Bi-Yeon like this?'

Well… They did sneak into the Adolevit palace together and melted the frozen Levian coast, so perhaps they'd shared a significant enough bond, but Hong Bi-Yeon wasn't the type to obsess over someone for something like that.

'Hmm. Is she interested in me?' 

A thought every man has at least once. When a beautiful woman makes eye contact with you, you can't help but think, 'Is she interested in me?' 

Of course, 99% of the time, it's just wishful thinking.

Baek Yu-Seol didn't believe it's 100% because occasionally, just occasionally, he'd heard (source: the internet) that such things do happen. 

The way to confirm that 1% possibility is actually very simple.

"Hey."

"… Speak."

When he spoke to Hong Bi-Yeon, who was filling out a mission application form, she glanced at him sideways and responded dismissively. 

Just looking at that expression, he could already tell.

"Do you like me?"

At that, Hong Bi-Yeon's hand, which was writing the document, stopped abruptly. She forced her head to turn toward Baek Yu-Seol with a creak.

'Was it just my imagination, or did her bright red eyes really seem to burn with a dangerous intensity?'

'Was it an illusion, or was it a magical phenomenon?'

"… Are you crazy?"

"Ahem! If not, then it's not. No need to glare as if you want to kill me, right?"

Baek Yu-Seol quickly snatched the document that Hong Bi-Yeon was filling out and read the mission application form.

[Persona Gate Raid Application] 

[Difficulty: Danger Level 3]

A Danger Level 3 Persona Gate usually required at least five class 3 mages to safely clear it. Therefore, the Magic Society set the minimum requirement as one class 4 mage and seven class 3 mages.

To ensure a 100% safe and certain raid without casualties, sufficient forces needed to be prepared.

"Are you two a team?"

"Yes."

"That's right."

The assistant taking our application eyed us suspiciously. 

Sometimes, when a male and female pair submit an application together, they joke around, saying, 'Campus romance is forbidden.' 

But with the combination of a commoner and a noble, it appeared even joking wasn't an option.

"You two will be merged with another team. Cadet Hong Bi-Yeon is still a student and hasn't officially registered as a class 4 mage, and you… Well, you're registered as a class 0 mage with the magic society."

"Uhm. Okay?"

"So, we will exclude you from the main forces and fill the numbers from another group."

This was an unavoidable reality. 

Baek Yu-Seol was officially a class 0 mage, so he was often criticized as just a porter or a burden in the game.

This negative treatment even within the game was one of the reasons why the character 'Baek Yu-Seol' wasn't popular.

"Anyway, the mission notice will be distributed later, so…"

"Wait."

As the assistant was speaking, Hong Bi-Yeon cut him off.

"Commoner... is registered as a class 0 with the Magic Society?'

"Huh? Yes... I mean, uh, yes."

The assistant was intimidated by Hong Bi-Yeon's demeanor. He unconsciously spoke politely, then quickly cleared his throat and corrected his tone.

"Why?"

"Why… You ask... Well, it's because the mana measurement couldn't be done properly, of course."

The most basic unit for classifying a mage's class is total mana capacity. The number of mana circles created by one was the clear standard that determined a mage's level.

A class 2 mage wasn't necessarily superior to a class 1 mage. One could perform great magic even with class 1 mana. However, the stereotype existed.

It was common knowledge that, on average, a mage with denser and more mana circles could perform more powerful magic.

"I don't understand…"

"Ahem! I agree to some extent. Just looking at recent events, it's clear that Cadet Baek Yu-Seol is no ordinary person. But what can we do about reality? Cadet Hong Bi-Yeon knows as well. The Magic Society is notoriously strict."

The older the mage, the more they dislike change and tend to cling to tradition. 

Even though they know that they need to break free of this mold to move to the next level, they remain stagnant.

This was the physiological limitation of mages. To them, a class 0 mage was a being that threatened the firm structure they had established, and the arrogant rebellion was something the old mages couldn't tolerate. Thus, they labeled Baek Yu-Seok as class 0.

"It's stupid... utterly foolish. If it were up to me, I would issue an identification based on pure combat power, not some useless mana capacity."

"C-Cadet Hong Bi-Yeon? This is beyond my control. I didn't make the rules."

"Hoo…"

Baek Yu-Seol blinked his eyes while looking at the flustered assistant and the furious Hong Bi-Yeon. 

He didn't know why she was suddenly so angry, but he knew that once she started, there was no stopping her.

"Uh, excuse me, Princess. I don't mind being class 0, so can we just...?"

Hong Bi-Yeon shot him a sharp look and snatched the mission guidebook from the assistant's hand.

"I care."

Then, she left to attend the Persona Gate mission orientation. Following her immediately felt somewhat intimidating.

"Is... this really okay?"

As I stared blankly at her back, the assistant poked my shoulder.

"Cadet Baek Yu-Seol...? This guidebook…"

"Ah! Yes."

He hesitated and glanced between the retreating Hong Bi-Yeon and Baek Yu-Seol, then awkwardly clenched his fist and revealed a forced smile.

"I-I wish you good luck."

"... Thanks."

It was truly a helpful encouragement.