The Conjurer of the Academy

Chapter 32

That evening, I visited the special training room. Not that I was there to train.

[You’re going to meet that big guy, aren’t you?]

“Well, yeah. But why are you in that form again?”

[It’s quite comfortable riding on your shoulder like this. You should consider it an honor!]

For some reason, Yomi had reverted to her fluffball form and nestled on my shoulder.

I was getting used to Yomi chattering on my shoulder, so I didn’t mind. I glanced down at a text message that had arrived on my smartphone.

【Ha-baek, I feel like I’m coming down with something today, so I don’t think I can make it to the workout. Sorry ㅠ.ㅜ】

The sender of this irritating message was none other than Han Yu-seong. For him to cancel a workout session first!

‘Could he be here?’

I arrived at the special training room with cautious curiosity.

The special training room was designed for students to train their abilities. For safety reasons, the room was divided into several rooms, and it was only accessible by entering the user’s name on the pad installed at the entrance.

I easily found Han Yu-seong’s name.

‘7-C.’

The training room is located in the most secluded area.

You couldn’t enter a sector without the user’s permission. I went to Han Yu-seong’s sector and pressed the bell.

“It’s me, Yu-seong.”

“It’s open, come in!”

When I placed my hand on the alloy door, it slid open with a creaking sound.

Whoosh!

As the door opened, hot and humid air blasted out.

“Huff, huff, huff!”

Inside, Han Yu-seong, bare-chested, was squatting at an incredible speed with a barbell on his shoulders. Despite the barbell being loaded with enough weight to bend the bar, he seemed far from satisfied.

“Don’t come, closer! I’ve, increased, the gravity!”

The space around Han Yu-seong distorted like a mirage as he lifted the already heavy weights under multiple times the normal gravity.

“What’s someone who claims to be sick doing here?”

“When you’re sick, moving your body is the best medicine!”

With each squat, a wave of hot air slammed into me. Even without reading his spirit, I could tell Han Yu-seong was troubled by something.

Being the straightforward guy he is, his emotions were easy to read on his face.

“You’re not really sick, are you? Got something on your mind?”

“Hah, as expected of the guy I acknowledge. You figured it out right away.”

“What do you mean acknowledge?”

Han Yu-seong stopped squatting and set the barbell down. Even though he set it down gently, its weight was enough to dent the floor.

“Did you come because you were worried about me?”

“Well, partly…”

“That’s touching.”

Han Yu-seong opened a water bottle and poured it over his head. As expected, his muscles were enormous.

His heated biceps and triceps, along with his abs, glistened under the increased gravity. The muscles, reddened from exertion, twitched as if they were alive with every movement Han Yu-seong made.

“So, what is it?”

I went over to the bench and sat down.

Usually, Han Yu-seong would sit right next to me, but today, he sat a seat away.

“It’s nothing much, but I realized something during the mock subjugation…”

So it’s because of the mock subjugation.

I knew the events there had affected Han Yu-seong, but I didn’t think it would be to this extent.

“Haha.”

Han Yu-seong chuckled awkwardly and spoke.

“I think I realized my limits during the mock subjugation.”

“Limits?”

Han Yu-seong scratched his head sheepishly. Knowing him, he wasn’t one to worry needlessly, so I decided to listen a bit more.

“We both did our best during the mock subjugation. What made you think that?”

“I just feel that if I had done a bit better, maybe Sang-don or Seo-ha wouldn’t have gotten hurt.”

“Really? I don’t think they’d agree with you.”

If Shin Seo-ha heard this, she would undoubtedly throw a fit.

‘Could it be…’

I adjusted my posture to face Han Yu-seong.

“Do you perhaps want to make up with Shin Seo-ha?”

“W-What are you talking about!”

Han Yu-seong’s face turned red, quite unfitting for his build.

It’s common for boys his age to hide their true feelings and beat around the bush.

‘Judging by his reaction, I hit the nail on the head.’

From the beginning, Han Yu-seong’s character has valued harmony with others more than pushing his own limits. However, I suspected that his true feelings were something else entirely.

“Just answer yes or no.”

“If I have to be honest, then yes…”

Han Yu-seong lowered his head in embarrassment.

‘It’s like an emotional girl is inside this muscle-bound body.’

I took a deep breath.

Han Yu-seong had always been a great help to me, so maybe it was time to return the favor.

“Alright!”

Borrowing Han Yu-seong’s usual enthusiasm, I sprang up from my seat.

“If it’s okay with you, I’ll set up a meeting.”

“I don’t mind, but are you sure you’re okay with it?”

“I have things to discuss with both you and Shin Seo-ha anyway. Plus, knowing that Shin Seo-ha isn’t too concerned about it will make things easier for you, right?”

I approached the training room exit. They say you should strike while the iron is hot, so I planned to act on this immediately.

“I’ll text you later, so grab some food and come to my place.”

“To your place?”

“The door will be open. Just make sure you shower first. It’s small, so if it starts smelling like sweat, there’s no getting rid of it.”

“Smell? What smell! It’s the scent of hard work, proof of effort!”

“…Anyway.”

This was the best way to avoid drawing attention. Still, if he came without showering, I’d expel him using any means necessary.

“But will Seo-ha even show up?”

Han Yu-seong’s eyes were filled with worry. There was only one thing I could say.

“You’ll find out, you big musclehead.”

With those words, I dashed out of the training room.

* * *

Tap, tap

– Hello.

The sound of fingers nervously tapping on the smartphone keyboard. The text quickly filled the white screen.

– This is about my friend. She dreamed about someone who annoys her in real life. What could this mean? Please interpret the dream.

The fingers hesitated to press the ‘Submit’ button.

‘What am I even doing?’

Shin Seo-ha lay sprawled out on her bed, staring at her smartphone. After a long period of contemplation, she let out a deep sigh.

“I don’t even know.”

Ding!

Once she clicked the submit button, the post was published. Shin Seo-ha turned over and buried her face in her bed sheets as if getting past a difficult milestone.

“What’s the point of knowing this, Shin Seo-ha. Forget it, just go to sleep.”

Just as Shin Seo-ha was about to close her eyes tightly—

Ding! Ding!

Despite saying she didn’t expect anything, Shin Seo-ha quickly picked up her smartphone. In just a few minutes, a considerable number of comments had accumulated.

– What dream interpretation? Lol, we all know the answer~^^

– Lol, “It’s about my friend.” This is definitely about you.

– By the way, the poster seems to be a girl. If the person in the dream is a guy, then it’s a
dead giveaway…

Grinding her teeth, Shin Seo-ha scrolled down slowly.

– Maybe you like him?

“What the hell!?”

Wham!

Shin Seo-ha threw her smartphone with all her might. Intending to hit the wall, the phone went out the open window instead.

“No way I would like an idiot like that!”

Gasping for breath, Shin Seo-ha’s face was blazing red, as if on fire.

“Oh, my phone!”

Realizing a beat too late that she had thrown her phone out the window.

“No way I would like such a wimp! This is why you can’t trust the internet!”

Panting with frustration, Shin Seo-ha left her room. The phone was likely broken, but she couldn’t just leave it there. She had to retrieve it before the dorm supervisor found out.

‘No way I like him…’

For some reason, the scene in the infirmary from earlier kept resurfacing in her mind.

She didn’t know why. The sight of him with that girl she had never seen before wouldn’t leave her head.

Whirr

As the automatic door at the entrance opened.

“Shin Seo-ha? What a coincidence. I was looking for you.”

Speaking of the devil. Standing there was that annoying guy.

“By the way, is this phone yours?”

Caught off guard, Shin Seo-ha responded.

“Hic.”

“What’s with the hiccuping?”

The first step to alleviating Han Yu-seong’s burden. After leaving the special training room, I rushed to find Shin Seo-ha.

By coincidence, a smartphone that seemed to be Shin Seo-ha’s fell on my head, and just then, I ran into her as she was leaving the dorm.

‘Is she sick?’

Something seemed off.

Her face was flushed as if she had a fever, and the hiccuping made her look like she was about to faint.

“Are you feeling sick?”

“Damn it, give me that!”

Shin Seo-ha snatched the smartphone out of my hand. Her eyes were weary, and she immediately turned away.

“Hey, wait a sec.”

“What? Why?”

There was a sharp edge to her voice.

‘Come to think of it, earlier too…’

She had gone through the trouble of visiting the infirmary, only to leave the fruit basket behind without a word. Although Shin Seo-ha was usually prickly, she wasn’t usually this sharp.

“Thanks for the fruit.”

“If you came just to thank me, then fine.”

As she turned to head back into the dorm—

“Wait, I have a request.”

“A request?”

Shin Seo-ha halted once again.

“I’d like you to come with me somewhere right now.”

“Where exactly?”

“To my place.”

Shin Seo-ha’s mouth dropped open at my response. Honestly, her reaction was beyond what I had imagined.

“You, you shameless pervert! You’ve been looking at me that way all this time, haven’t you!”

“No, calm down and listen.”

I racked my brain to figure out how to get her to come along. The answer lay in something she had said before.

“Remember when you asked me what I wanted from you, why do I keep bothering you? Just to clarify, it’s nothing like what you’re thinking.”

“W-Who said I was thinking anything like that!”

Shin Seo-ha stuttered.

“Then what is it? Why would you want to take me to your place?”

“Han Yu-seong wants to make up with you.”

“…What?”

Shin Seo-ha’s brows furrowed.

“He’s waiting at my place. Can’t you go and talk to Han Yu-seong?”

“Why are you bringing that guy up here? If he really wants to make up, tell him to come himself.”

That’s Shin Seo-ha for you—sharp as ever.

I had no choice but to come clean about my true feelings.

“This is just me meddling. When you two are at each other’s throats, it’s exhausting for me being in the middle.”

I shrugged my shoulders.

“And there are things I need to say to both of you.”

I could guess her reaction. Bringing up Han Yu-seong’s name would likely provoke her, so I needed another reason—

“Is that all? You want me to go talk to Han Yu-seong?”

“Huh?”

“Why are you surprised? You asked me to come along, didn’t you?”

I was surprised she accepted so easily. Never expected Shin Seo-ha to take the offer without throwing a fit.

“Just to be clear, don’t start hitting him the moment you see him, okay?”

“Who do you think I am, a gorilla? Lead the way.”

“You’re not quite a gorilla, but…”

“What did you say?”

“Nothing at all.”

If she says let’s go, then let’s go.

Following Shin Seo-ha’s words, I turned toward the convenience store. Just then, I heard a slight chuckle from behind.

“With this, we’re even?”

That’s the Shin Seo-ha I know.

She seemed to think she owed me for my actions up to this point, even though I hadn’t really done much. It wasn’t a loss for me, either.

“Of course.”

I could always accumulate more debts in the future.