Early morning... and I was back at Cube, ready to tackle whatever nonsense the day had in store for me. I took a moment to appreciate my trusty crutch, which I was now wielding like a master swordfighter. I mean, I didn’t want to add any more injuries to my already impressive collection. My left arm was busted, and I could swear I felt some of my leg muscles were torn. Not exactly ideal conditions, but hey, this was a fantasy world with magical and science-y stuff.

Healing should be a breeze, right?

I turned right at a corner, hoping to make quick work of things. Because of the recent incident, Kim Soohyuk was on my case, demanding a report to ensure Cube had its story straight. As a good student, it was only right to comply—unless I wanted to end up in detention or worse, in a grueling training session with the instructors.

But then, in a moment of pure, unadulterated clumsiness, I misplaced my crutch and collided with a wheelchair that came zooming from the other corner. In a split second, gravity claimed me as its latest victim, and I fell hard onto my already injured left leg.

“Shit~ Son of a bitch…” I winced, feeling the full force of my unfortunate choices. I looked up at the perpetrator of my misery: Yoo Yeonha, who sat there in her wheelchair, looking like she owned the place.

“Uh, my bad…” she said, with all the sincerity of a rock.

“Why? Can’t you even muster a sincere apology?” I shot back, trying to hide my pain behind a thin veil of sarcasm.

In retaliation, I pressed my crutch against her casted leg, thinking perhaps I could elicit some sympathy… or inflict pain. Nope. Nothing.

“Dumbass,” Yeonha replied coolly. “It’s in a cast. Of course, it’s protected. What do you think? If poking the plaster on my cast just one bit made me scream, then the person who made the cast must be an even greater idiot.”

Great. There it was. No camaraderie, no sympathy—just a confirmation that in my mind, Yeonha was officially the reigning queen of annoyance. I certainly wasn’t about to tell her that; I valued my life a little too much to offend the future Queen of Seoul.

“Riiight… It’s in a cast…” I smirked, using my crutch to poke her other leg, which elicited a delightful yelp.

“Ah—ouch!” she cried, and even though I’d just broken my own rule about offending her, I couldn’t help but feel a little gleeful.

“Well, at least I’m trying,” I said, smirking through the pain. “That’s for the friendly fire…” I added.

“…”

Yeonha shot me a glare that could probably freeze time, but in that moment, I didn’t care. At least I was having fun, and if I was going down, I was going down swinging.

Interrupting my and Yeonha’s spat just in time was Kim Suho.

“Yeonha, it’s good that you are back,” Suho greeted brightly, his smile warm as he addressed the black-haired woman in the wheelchair.

His gaze then shifted to me, tension evident in his expression. “Hyon Hyung, why do you always keep on picking fights? Moreover, you always pick fights with girls. Are you an anti-feminist or something?”

I couldn’t help but feel a mix of confusion and amusement. “W-what? I am not picking fights!”

Suho laughed, offering his hand to me. “Grab my shoulder, Hyon Hyung. Let me help you stand up… And Yeonha… You don’t mind me pushing this, don’t you?”

Oh come on… I was about to suggest doing it myself, so that I could shove her on a cliff!

“Savior-nim, thanks for the save…” I shook my head in disapproval. “I’d rather use my crutch. And look. I have a cast on the other arm. I just cannot use my crutch and your shoulder at the same time, so I have to decline… Just focus on our young lady here; I’m sure she will be delighted to be pushed by you.”

"You!? Im~becile..." Yeonha’s cheeks flushed a bright shade of red as she reprimanded me, her irritation palpable. “I already have someone.”

“What is this? Is this the blush of shame? Is your heart going doki doki?” I teased.

"It is a blush of anger. If you don't shut up, I will kill you."

“Yeah, yeah… Hanabero-san…”

I smiled at the playful banter between the two of us.

“Let’s go,” Yeonha said, eager to get things over with and stop the fooling around.

We arrived just in time, breaking the silence that had filled the room.

In the classroom, Kim Hajin waited with Instructor Kim Soohyuk, who taught the Veritas Class.

The next thing I noticed was how people with strong magic power were gathered in the room.

It registered to me slowly: the leaders of other guilds were here.

The atmosphere was tense, and I couldn’t help but notice the other notable character present: Yun Seung-Ah, the vice guild leader of the Creator’s Sacred Grace Guild. There was a silence that hung heavy in the air, yet Hajin didn’t seem affected by it at all. Meanwhile, Yeonha was trying her best to keep her poker face. Kim Suho however didn’t show any attempts of even trying to play it cool as he smiled and perfunctorily struck a conversation with the people inside

“Ah~ what should I eat for dinner? I forgot to eat anything since breakfast, and even skipped lunch…” Kim Hajin muttered to himself, his desperation for food evident.

Stolen story; please report.

I imagined him being so wrapped up in his training, research, and experimenting with SP that he barely had time to eat, let alone grab a quick meal.

Suho, Yeonha, and I found our seats quickly—I sat next to Hajin and Suho beside him, while Yeonha remained in her wheelchair. The tension in the air seemed to intensify as we settled in.

“Hey man, are you doing fine? I hear you fought a Djinn…” I whispered softly to Hajin.

Hajin nodded, keeping his response vague. It seemed he wasn’t in the mood to share more than necessary. With that, the unofficial meeting finally commenced, and I braced myself for whatever serious discussions lay ahead.

“Kim Suho, Kim Hajin, Yoo Yeonha, and Hyon Hyung. Do all of you testify that these names are yours? And that you are all not under the effects of any demonic power?” Instructor Kim Soohyuk started with a pair of mind-boggling questions. I simply nodded in response to his inquiry.

The others did the same, affirming that these were indeed their names and that we weren’t under the influence of any demonic power.

Soohyuk then focused his gaze on a particular person in the room. After receiving a nod from them, he continued to host this off-the-books meeting. “You all know that for Guilds to meet Cadets privately is wrong and illegal. The government is allowing a lot of leeway for all of you to gather here. Unfortunately, we cannot have Essence of the Strait’s Guild Leader present…”

I observed Yeonha, who wore a look of confusion, and it didn’t take long for her to intervene. “Instructor Kim Soohyuk, what is the meaning of this? Why are Guild Leaders of ranks fifty and above here? And where is my father? As rank 2, where is Essence of the Strait's representative?”

“Please be patient, Miss Yoo Yeonha…” Soohyuk calmly addressed her concern. “I am officiating this incident not as an instructor of Cube but as a medium for the Hero Association. All of this is off the books.”

“Then where is Yeonha’s father?” Hajin blurted out defensively.

I found myself agreeing with him. I didn’t like being put on a private trial. “If we abide by what you are saying, Mr. Kim Soohyuk, then where is her father? As Yeonha’s father, doesn’t he need to be here? Hey, Savior-nim, where are your parents? Shouldn’t they be here if you are going to be ostracized?”

Hajin added further to the growing tension. “I am an orphan, so I have no parents, but my dear classmates should at least have their parents, right?”

“Yeah, this is just unfair… Oh, so to add… I am also an orphan… man, the world is going to burn at this rate…” I commented playfully, trying to lighten the mood, but I could feel the pressure in the air.

Kim Soohyuk nervously glanced at the Guild Leaders, clearly looking for backup. In his mind, he was probably blaming himself for bending his knee to the Association’s power.

Help came, but it wasn’t from someone I expected.

Yun Seung-Ah piped in with her usual promotional pitch. “Kim Suho, Kim Hajin, Hyon Hyung… Come to the Creator’s Sacred Grace, and I will immediately give you 10 billion won as a Signing Bonus. Even if you get suddenly expelled, my guild will still take care of you and, while at it, groom you to become the best!”

“Ah~ bollocks,” Kim Soohyuk interrupted, raising his voice an octave higher. “You know that is illegal, right? Anyway, this is not a trial of any sorts. All of you are young heroes who rose to the occasion. All of you should be commended.”

“Then what is the problem?” Kim Suho glared at Soohyuk, his eyes sharp. “The last time I gave my report, there wasn't anything like this. So what is this?”

A bald middle-aged man interjected. “Forgive us, Guild Leaders, young man. There is a reason for us to be tense. Three Djinns attacked, seemingly targeting Cube Cadets. The government tried to hide it with media manipulation to suppress the possibility of unrest, but despite such efforts, news of your feats has spread on the internet like wildfire.”

Yun Seung-Ah seized the moment to add a word or two. “And the government, for some reason, instead of giving the job to the Hero Association, has decided to drop it on the Guilds.”

“What is it?” Hajin asked tensely.

And Kim Soohyuk answered. “We believe there might be strong Djinn activity within Cube. Among the Traveling Club members is a Djinn who helped perpetrate the attack. I know it is not enough grounds to conduct a manhunt within Cube, but it is highly likely that the Hero Association has a hand in putting Djinns on Cube…”

The room felt even tenser after that revelation.

I couldn’t shake the feeling that the trajectory of the future had gone to shit, and I was just left to helplessly watch it unfold.

From my perspective, everything started to shift. I could see the worry in my friends’ eyes, the uncertainty hanging in the air like a storm cloud. Suddenly, I was watching this unfold like a third person, but then it flipped back to me, breaking the fourth wall.

After recounting the events and giving everyone the full picture, we little heroes could finally disperse. I bid Suho farewell while he kindly helped Yeonha back to her dorm, then I trailed behind Hajin.

“That is nuts, man… I thought I was gonna die…” I placed my hand on Hajin’s shoulder as a show of friendly affection, but he simply shoved my hand away.

“Tell me, Hyon Hyung… Who are you?” He shot me a glare that could probably melt steel.

“What do you mean?” I calmly responded, trying to mask the creeping fear in my heart that he might uncover my real identity.

With a jerk, he pointed his gun at me. “It was you who told me to prepare more bullets, right? And what was with your bullshit remarks about luck a few days ago? Why are you being so purposefully suspicious?”

Ah, fuck. You are cheating! Bringing your weapon outside of training is grounds for suspension, if not worse, expulsion. I didn’t have my dagger on me. "I don't understand..." I played dumb, but inside, I felt a rush of happiness that Kim Hajin was finally confronting me.

Kim Hajin was a righteous person. He didn’t act on misunderstandings and always sought the truth. I trusted he wouldn’t pull the trigger without solid evidence against me. Well, I wasn't even evil... just chaotic neutral...

“It was you who tucked a piece of paper in my textbook, telling me to bring more light-attribute bullets, wasn’t it?” He pressed, his eyes never leaving mine.

Wait. Wait. Wait.

This was new.

What the hell was happening? I remembered tucking a piece of paper on Yeonha’s desk, but on Hajin? I had no clue, man! Maybe I was sleepwalking or something. But if it wasn’t me, then who the hell could it be?

Was there someone else besides me who knew about Hajin needing light-attribute bullets? I was pretty sure he would need them, but what good would it do if I already knew he knew?

This was freaking trippy.

Then, Chae Nayun popped into my mind.

What were the chances of Nayun informing Hajin to bring more light-attribute bullets?

“Oh, fucking self-privileged regressor! You are not the only person who knows the future, and your tricks are causing me my ass! Agh~! I swear, she’ll hear an earful from me! That woman! AGH~! DAMN IT... MY LUCK...”

I wanted to scold Nayun badly, but first, I had to get out of this situation.

This was both a good situation and a bad situation for me. I needed to get rid of the 'bad' first.

"Uuhmmm... Parley?" I shyly requested while raising both hands in a defensive gesture.

Hajin’s gaze narrowed further, skepticism radiating off him like heat from a fire. “Parley?” he echoed, clearly unimpressed. “This isn’t a game, Hyung. I want to know what you’re up to.”

“Alright, alright!” I exclaimed, trying to regain control of the situation. “Maybe it was a joke… or an experiment! You know me, always messing around!”

“Messing around?” he repeated incredulously, lowering the gun slightly but still keeping it aimed at me. “You think this is funny?”

“I mean, I didn’t mean any harm!” I insisted, trying to sound as innocent as possible. “Just a little nudge in the right direction! Light bullets are cool, right?”

“Cool?” He raised an eyebrow, still not convinced. “I could’ve been hurt. You can’t just mess with people’s lives like that!”