109) Chapter 17. What Should I Do? (4)
Before heading back to school, I was a little worried.
What if people thought strangely of me?
It was like that at the start of the semester—there were kids who picked fights with me for no reason.
And even though everyone already knew, the fact that it had been emphasized again made me worry that someone might start trouble.
Soi and Chae‑yi seemed tense too, ready to jump out if anyone tried anything.
But once we actually got to class, nothing felt different from usual.
No—if anything…
“Are you feeling okay?”
“Uh, y‑yeah.”
“Want to eat lunch together? I usually eat with those guys over there.”
“Uh… um…”
“Rua already has people she eats lunch with. Sorry.”
“Oh, really? Then it can’t be helped.”
While I hesitated, Soi smoothly stepped in and handled the situation.
Honestly, my feelings were mixed.
I wanted to make lots of friends, so I wanted to go… but eating with kids I’d never talked to before felt like I’d choke on my food.
But even after declining, no one seemed upset. During breaks, some kids naturally came over to talk or joined our conversations.
Strange.
Thinking about it, none of the kids in our class had actually seen what happened. The ones who went up the mountain were from other classes.
So instead of having a bad impression of me, maybe they only heard rumors that I climbed the mountain to help the other kids?
Or maybe it was because so many of them came from hero families.
Their parents fought villains for a living, and many of them dreamed of becoming heroes too. So fighting a villain might seem like a badge of honor, something to admire.
“Tsk.”
The more kids who smiled at me, the more I heard Soi clicking her tongue—but I ignored it.
Anyway—
This wasn’t bad for me.
A classroom full of kids who picked fights with me would be awful. A classroom where kids greeted me and talked to me was much better.
It even made me feel a little hopeful.
Made me imagine things. Like maybe in second or third year, things would get even better.
Time passed, and lunchtime came.
As we were about to leave the classroom, fear suddenly hit me again. What if kids from other classes didn’t like me? They saw the witch call me her daughter, and they got dragged into the mess—maybe they hated me for it.
But—
“Hey!”
Whack.
Someone shouted and smacked my shoulder.
Soi and Chae‑yi immediately spun around with murder in their eyes.
“Uh—uh?”
The girl who hit me flinched in panic.
She hit me hard enough to sting, but she clearly didn’t mean harm.
It was more like how same‑gender friends in my previous life would run up and throw an arm around your shoulder.
“W‑who is it?”
I awkwardly tried to turn around, but Soi and Chae‑yi spun me instead. Being rotated like a doll between them made my face heat up, and only then did they let go of my hands.
“H‑hi.”
The girl who hit me was the one I saw on the mountain.
Her hair was tied into two high pigtails, and she looked extremely energetic.
Not just “looked”—she was energetic. In the original story, she was the mood‑maker type.
Different from elementary‑school Soi. Soi had a sly, mischievous brightness; this girl was pure energy. A bit tomboyish, but not exactly a tomboy.
“Uh, is it okay if I talk to you? Or did I hit too hard? Is your leg still not healed?”
“N‑no, it’s healed. I’m fine.”
I lifted my leg and tapped the floor. She shrugged.
“A‑are you okay?”
“I’m fine. I didn’t really get hurt. Didn’t I say it before? My ability makes me hard to break.”
“Oh, right.”
Originally, she said that line to Jinwoo.
“I just wanted to check on you. I saw you passing by. You’re really easy to spot, you know? You always walk around like you’re being escorted by two girls.”
“…D‑does it look like that?”
“I’m joking, but… well, yeah, it kinda looks like that. But it doesn’t look like they’re bullying you, so don’t worry.”
“I see…”
Well, even I thought it looked like that.
“Anyway, you were amazing.”
“Huh?”
I snapped my head up at the sudden compliment.
“That woman was holding us hostage, right?”
“Uh… yeah?”
“So she threatened you to come, right?”
She didn’t know exactly how the witch threatened me, but from the outside, that’s how it looked.
“Y‑yeah…”
My face felt hot.
I could already guess what she’d say next.
“So you came to save us, right?”
“Uh—no.”
“Huh? No?”
“I… didn’t really help…”
“What? How is that not helping?”
“I… I just collapsed on the ground halfway through…”
She tilted her head like she truly didn’t understand.
“But you bought us time, didn’t you? If she wanted, she could’ve collapsed the building instantly.”
“S‑she could?”
“Her power works that way, right? She waited before you came, then waited while you talked, then fought the kids who came to help you. All that time added up until the principal arrived.”
I blinked at her, stunned.
Was… was that how it worked?
“And even if your body was down, your ability was working. All those falling shards—you blocked them, didn’t you?”
“N‑not just me. The others helped too…”
“Just because others helped doesn’t erase what you did. That’s weird logic.”
“Uh…”
My face felt like it was on fire.
But…
It was so much better than being blamed. She was genuinely praising me.
And honestly, I’d never been praised like this by someone my age.
Auntie Yujin and Uncle Dohyun praised me often, but that was different—they adored me. And adults praising me felt different too.
“Anyway, you were amazing. And… thanks. That’s what I wanted to say.”
“O‑okay.”
I answered dazedly and glanced at Soi and Chae‑yi.
They had been wary of the girl at first, but seeing her speak so earnestly, they looked just as startled as I felt.
Jinwoo was—well, Jinwoo was always startled, so nothing new there.
Hyeonji was expressionless as usual, but somehow… softer?
“Come on, why are you getting all shy? You’re making me shy.”
Whap whap.
She hit my shoulder again—lighter this time, but still with some force.
“Oh?”
Unfortunately, it was my right shoulder.
And my injured leg had also been the right one.
Medically, it was healed—but apparently not completely fine.
It didn’t break again, but—
Something felt off.
I stumbled forward—
Thump.
“Heuhek.”
Huh.
I thought I was falling, but I stopped mid‑air.
And something soft and squishy was pressed against my face.
“Uh.”
I slowly realized what it was and looked up.
My eyes met a pair of eyes very, very close to mine.
Eyes that were always steady and upright.
…More precisely, the girl who shared my dorm room but not my bed.
Which sounded weird, but—
“……”
Tremble tremble.
Something vibrated in Hyeonji’s chest.
“Heuhek!?”
I panicked and jerked back, almost falling again—Soi caught me this time.
“S‑s‑sorry!”
“……”
Hyeonji’s face turned bright red. She trembled for a moment—
Then spun around and marched away.
Soi, Chae‑yi, Jinwoo, and I hurried after her.
“Huh? What? What happened? What’s going on?”
The energetic girl followed us, confused—
And then I realized.
I still didn’t know her name.