HLSEBT - 90

Lee Kyung-tae had been dead long before his fight with Kwon Min-gi.

Kwon Min-gi and Kang Jin-ho testified to this. Both of them, having clashed significantly with Lee Kyung-tae once, knew that his blood wasn’t in a normal state.

“They were too scared to say anything.”

Yoon Taeha sighed softly as she stood on the rooftop, her slim figure accentuated by a tailored shirt and dress pants.

This rooftop was all too familiar to both of them—the library’s rooftop where countless memories lingered.

“I’d probably be scared too if I were in their shoes.”

“I’ve never seen anything like that before.”

“To be honest, it’s my second time.”

She spoke candidly. Beside her, Cheon Geonyoung also wore a suit. A gentle breeze carried the fresh scent of spring, briefly fluttering his jacket.

“Back then… when we went to clear a dungeon, I encountered something similar once.”

Cheon Geonyoung turned to look at her. Yoon Taeha rubbed her arms over her shirt, as if cold. He promptly removed his jacket.

Holding it out to her with the solemnity of presenting a queen’s cape, he offered it.

Yoon Taeha smirked playfully.

“Someone from somewhere tried to stick a syringe into my neck just like this.”

“My hands are clean, Your Majesty.”

“How absurd.”

As she moved to walk past him, Cheon Geonyoung persistently followed. Lately, he’d been playing soccer with the boys, and his clingy skills seemed to improve daily.

Whether Guides or Espers, male students were going crazy trying to talk to Cheon Geonyoung even just once more. Some even called him a role model.

Yoon Taeha found it puzzling.

He was a man hard to emulate, no matter how much one admired him—his face, wealth, personality. Any aspect of him was unattainable.

Cheon Geonyoung spoke in an elegant yet commanding voice:

“Put it on.”

“You’re being polite for once.”

“You prefer this side of me, don’t you?”

“Your confidence is misplaced. Didn’t you eat with Seo Do-jin yesterday?”

“He said he’d treat me.”

“...Senior?”

The short, intense title was enough to shock her.

Without a word, Cheon Geonyoung draped his jacket over her shoulders. Yoon Taeha didn’t resist.

Adjusting the collar to keep it snug, she walked with him toward the rooftop railing.

“Since when did he become ‘senior’? It feels like just yesterday we were calling him Mr. Seo Do-jin.”

“When someone joins earlier, they’re a senior.”

Cheon Geonyoung’s smile was beautiful but ominous.

“He said he talked about you a lot too.”

“Can’t we switch to someone else? Like Lee Ha-kyung? I’m not confident with him.”

“He said you’d say that. As expected, he was spot-on.”

Yoon Taeha pressed her cheek firmly with her tongue. Seeing this, Cheon Geonyoung’s eyes widened slightly. His voice carried a hint of amusement.

“It’s said that pressing your cheek with your tongue in front of someone means you’ve grown a little closer.”

He didn’t bother hiding his satisfaction.

With both hands resting on her hips, she looked utterly exasperated. Her thin fingers, adorned with only a black ring, rose above her waist.

“You believe everything…”

“So now we’re just a little closer?”

“You’ve just been downgraded to extremely, extremely little.”

“That’s harassment.”

“The first threat came from you during our initial meeting.”

Cheon Geonyoung effortlessly hopped onto the high railing. Extending a hand to her, wearing low-heeled shoes, he waited.

Yoon Taeha tilted her chin slightly and extended her hand. He pulled her up with his non-ringed hand.

She gracefully climbed onto the railing. When he pulled her up, it felt as though gravity had momentarily disappeared.

Cheon Geonyoung didn’t let go of her hand afterward. Their fingers awkwardly intertwined, neither fully letting go nor holding on tightly.

“Thanks to that threat, we’re here now.”

“The weather’s perfect for signing a contract.”

His relaxed expression showed he appreciated her precise response.

“At least let’s get out of this sacred school to do it.”

________________________________________

The day to leave the shelter was still far off.

Yoon Taeha turned her head to avoid the students’ intense gazes, only to meet Cheon Geonyoung’s eyes from where he sat in the stands.

What could that cleanly dressed man possibly be watching from amidst all this dust?

He mimed holding binoculars, signaling that he was observing intently and leaving the rest to her discretion.

“Show us how to pull it quickly!”

Hong Eun-soo, who couldn’t use telekinesis, was surrounded by students. She enthusiastically encouraged responses.

“We’re all seniors here! We don’t have time!”

A large group of telekinetic students made monkey-like noises. Hong Eun-soo was the leader of this mysterious swarm occupying the stands.

Yoon Taeha asked the obvious question.

“Aren’t you supposed to be in class? What are you doing?”

Hong Eun-soo confidently replied.

“I’ve already memorized all the books. When I said I wanted to attend class, Teacher Kim told me to just go.”

Figures with sharp minds truly excelled at deceiving others.

Yoon Taeha addressed the youthful faces staring at her with a final proposal.

“If I show you how to pull it, will all of you leave?”

“No way! Teacher, you’re just sitting there too.”

Turning around, she spotted the original teacher conducting the class smiling kindly. Instead of a helmet, he wore a straw hat, looking genuinely happy.

“Let the special instructor handle everything! Don’t look for me!”

His face flushed red, as if he’d had a drink, he sprawled lazily under the shaded stand. Groaning, he stretched luxuriously.

Yoon Taeha rolled up her sleeve and spoke.

“So, what should I do instead of pulling it?”

One of the telekinetic students from another class shouted loudly.

“Pull it and stick it back in!”

“That sounds like a really boring old game.”

“Teacher! Are you an old-timer?”

“I’m twenty-three.”

“Three years older! Why not four? If it were four, I’d propose!”

The students delighted in teasing her. Everyone’s cheeks were rosy with laughter.

She quickly gave up.

After all, they were all Espers. If sacrificing herself as a source of amusement could positively impact the majority’s health, it wasn’t entirely bad.

Yoon Taeha switched the ring to her right index finger.

“Ring! Ring!”

“No need for the ring.”

She stated firmly, and instantly the chant changed.

“No need! No need!”

“...What was today’s cafeteria menu? You guys are acting strange.”

“Thanks to you destroying the cafeteria and restaurant, we had cream pasta and chili tacos today!”

“The tacos were amazing… The shrimp was so bouncy.”

One female student murmured blissfully.

“Shrimp tacos? I didn’t know.”

“It was the best! Try to get the recipe. You have to try it—it’s incredible.”

Damn shrimp.

Because of shrimp, Yoon Taeha hadn’t gone to the cafeteria today. Cheon Geonyoung had flatly refused to eat it.

Instead, the two had cooked kimchi fried rice in the kitchen for lunch.

She silently mouthed “It was delicious!” to Cheon Geonyoung from afar. He pretended to hang his head in shame but lifted it proudly after three seconds.

“I’m quitting Yeouido and opening a taco restaurant with the head chef!”

“Hey, that was my idea.”

“Shut up. If the head chef chooses me, it’s over. Just wait and see.”

A fierce rivalry erupted over the newly arrived head chef.

Amidst the commotion, one student sitting at the front cautiously spoke up. Yoon Taeha knew her as one of the non-amplifier users with the strongest telekinesis.

“I know it’s thanks to you, Teacher.”

Her cautious voice carried gratitude. The girl shyly smiled.

“My friends don’t pressure me to do it anymore. They don’t treat me like an idiot either.”

Yoon Taeha felt awkward. Strictly speaking, this wasn’t entirely her doing.

She tried to explain, but the other students dismissed her attempts with expressions saying, “We don’t care.”

As the chaos subsided, Yoon Taeha reached out toward her first karmic debt.

The iron rod she had planted in the ground during the first class.

Even after all this time, it stood quietly in the corner of the field like a steadfast blue tree.

Suddenly spotting something unfamiliar, she turned to the students and asked.

“What’s with the red ribbon on the stick? And the blue one too?”

“It’s a talisman.”

“Do you Espers believe in superstitions now? Life must be busy.”

“Because we’re Espers, we believe. Superstitions might actually be someone else’s Esper power.”

There was no countering the spontaneity of twenty-year-olds.

She reached out into the air again. Truthfully, removing it didn’t require any dramatic gestures, but she maximized the showmanship she’d learned from Han Gyewol, elegantly waving her hand once.

“It’s coming out!”

The stick, which hadn’t budged even when tackled by crowds of students, came out cleanly. Several kids rushed to inspect the ground, marveling among themselves and even taking photos.

“Where should I stick it back?”

As soon as her question ended, answers erupted from all directions.

After enduring thirty seconds of cacophony, she demanded consensus. If she followed the students’ wishes, the field would end up looking like a porcupine.

Finally, an agreement was reached.

The iron rod was moved to a location that wouldn’t interfere with the tree roots but remained accessible for anyone to attempt. The students requested it be fixed in a way that made it difficult to pull, and she gladly complied.

“Five hundred thousand won for whoever pulls it first.”

“One million. Let’s make it one million.”

As expected, a gambling scene unfolded.

But Yoon Taeha had no intention of policing their behavior beyond finishing her task. With measured steps, she crossed the field and headed toward the stands.

Cheon Geonyoung was waiting for her.

“Want to hammer stakes here?”

“It feels weird hearing that from a soldier.”

“It suits your constitution.”

“One Esper is enough for your constitution.”

Just then, a second-floor window burst open. The staff member who had handed her clothes at the sports field called out sweetly.

“The principal wants to see both of you.”