The moment Sihyeon’s eyes widened at the flying knife and the black figure suddenly stepping in front of him happened at the same time.
The knife, propelled with speed, grazed past Haru’s eye. Even though he had been right beside him, Sihyeon found himself startled, wondering if it was even possible for someone to reach in front of him in that brief instant the knife flew. Then, from the pairing ring on his finger, a beep—beep warning sound rang out. It was the alert signaling the use of an ability.
The use of abilities was prohibited on campus. It had only been a few hours since he’d heard that if someone used an ability outside of evaluations, an alert would be sent to the faculty office through the pairing, yet Sihyeon hadn’t expected to witness it so soon as he stared at the knife that had fallen to the ground.
The tip of the blade was red. Sihyeon’s blue eyes flickered.
“Haru hyung!”
Rushing over and grabbing his shoulder, he saw Haru covering his eye with one hand. The large hand concealed the injured area, making it impossible to tell how bad it was.
“Hyung, are you okay?”
“…Ah.”
As he leaned in close, he caught a glimpse of red eyes flashing between strands of dark hair. Wondering if the place Haru was covering was soaked with liquid the same color as his irises, Sihyeon reached his hand toward Haru’s to check the injury.
Smack!
Before he could even extend it fully, Haru knocked his hand away. It was such a quick movement it felt like pure reflex. Sihyeon’s hand, having lost its destination, lingered awkwardly in the air.
As if only then realizing what he had done, Haru’s partially visible eye widened before he lowered his head. He’d always seemed somewhat timid, but this time especially so.
“S-sorry….”
“No, it’s fine—”
“I… I’ll go first.”
With that, Haru left. A person who couldn’t even properly say a single trivial word, who had always been passive, had just cut Sihyeon off mid-sentence and turned his back.
His steps quickened, turning into a near run, and soon he broke into a sprint. Watching blankly as Haru fled the cafeteria as if being chased by something, Sihyeon lowered his gaze to the hand that had been pushed away.
It felt like becoming a parent witnessing their well-behaved child’s first rebellion.
“Got stood up.”
Despite the obvious fact that someone had been injured, Seowoo spoke as if nothing had happened. Sihyeon frowned and brushed his hair back. His eyes rolled toward the knife.
The silver blade became a medium through which the earlier scene replayed vividly in his mind.
The knife that had clearly been aimed at him, Haru stepping in to block it, and the red blood staining the blade after it grazed him.
“Ha.”
A clear scoff escaped his lips. The past version of himself who had thought Kang Donghyeok had at least some sense now felt laughable.
What sense? He couldn’t even handle what was right in front of him, nor control his emotions.
It even made Sihyeon question whether someone with that kind of personality should possess such ability. And yet, he was ranked 10th. That meant he had achieved fairly decent results on the Placement Test.
The future of Mir Military Academy High School suddenly seemed bleak.
“If you’re going to throw it, at least do it properly. You hit the wrong person and don’t even apologize….”
Sihyeon’s low voice spread slowly across the cafeteria. Bending down, he picked up the knife from the floor and lifted his head to look at Donghyeok. His expression was still crumpled, but his face had gone pale—ridiculously enough, he looked more shocked by the knife he had thrown himself.
“Kang Donghyeok.”
“……”
“Can you take responsibility?”
“……”
“If something had happened to Haru hyung because of that knife you just threw, could you take responsibility?”
No answer came to his cold voice. Just moments ago, he’d been spewing curses, but now that something had actually happened, he kept his mouth shut. It was pathetically cowardly.
All because he couldn’t restrain that brief impulse when they could have just let it pass.
Haru got hurt. If it had been him, it wouldn’t have mattered much—but Haru got hurt protecting him. Both Haru, who got injured doing something no one asked him to do, and Donghyeok, who threw the knife, irritated him. Sihyeon spun the knife once in his hand, then scratched at his neck with his free hand. An uncomfortable, unpleasant feeling crept over him, swallowing him whole.
It sank in.
“You seem to think throwing this around makes you something.”
As his mood settled, his tone dropped accordingly, and Donghyeok’s brow twitched. Walking slowly until he stood in front of him, Sihyeon looked down at Donghyeok’s hand braced on the desk—the same hand that had slammed it earlier.
His dry gaze blinked as he stared at the rough hand. The indifference in his eyes bordered on chilling, making Donghyeok flinch. Just as Donghyeok tried to pull his hand away, Sihyeon moved.
Bang!
“Aaaah!”
One of the watching students screamed. The sharp cry heightened the tension. Stiffened, Donghyeok slowly looked at his hand. The sight of the silver knife lodged between his fingers was enough to send chills down his spine.
Pressing his hand down as if to drive the knife into the desk, Sihyeon stared at him with calm eyes that didn’t match his actions. Donghyeok’s fear-shrunken pupils were quite a sight.
“Don’t get carried away.”
It’s not like you’re the only one who knows how to use a knife.
He hated troublesome things, and he hated fighting even more. That was why he usually endured, giving up and letting things go. But people like Donghyeok, if left alone, would spiral out of control—so they needed to be dealt with. After issuing his warning, Sihyeon let go of the knife.
Thud. The knife toppled to the side, tapping against the back of Donghyeok’s hand. He flinched, his shoulders jerking as a sound like a swallowed breath escaped him.
“…I think I’m in love.”
A voice that didn’t fit the mood broke the silence. Without a trace of hesitation, Sihyeon turned his back on Donghyeok and looked at Haeun, who had spouted the nonsense. He wasn’t in the mood to play along.
“I’m skipping dinner, so you guys eat without me. Better yet, come back late.”
“On an empty stomach?”
“Why, do you need a knife too?”
“I’ll enjoy the meal~”
Already on edge, Sihyeon frowned at the unnecessary remark. Haeun just smiled brightly and waved at him. Leaving that swift shift in attitude behind, Sihyeon exited the cafeteria. It was obvious where Haru, who preferred places without people, would have gone.
“Haru hyung.”
As soon as he returned to the dorm, Sihyeon called out at the sight of the shoes visible from the entrance. He had been fairly certain, but he hadn’t expected Haru to actually be there. The fact that after running off like a squirrel, this was the place he chose—it was both pitiful and understandable.
“I know you’re here. Let’s talk.”
Receiving no response, Sihyeon took off his shoes and entered the room, heading toward the bed. He briefly glanced at his own bed, then lifted his gaze to see Haru curled up under the blanket, completely covered. He looked like a stray cat wary of people.
“…I’m coming up.”
There was no reply, but Sihyeon didn’t hesitate. If he waited for Haru’s permission, it felt like it would take a week.
Climbing the ladder and placing his knees on the bed, the large frame creaked. No matter how good the bed was, it seemed two people on the top bunk was too much.
As he moved toward Haru, who was tucked into the corner, Haru kept shrinking back despite having nowhere left to go. With his face hidden as much as possible by the blanket and his hair, Sihyeon grabbed hold of the blanket Haru was clutching.
Tug.
When he pulled, a stronger force resisted, refusing to let go. It felt like a tug-of-war.
After trying a couple more times with no change, Sihyeon sighed and decided to coax him with words.
“You’re hurt.”
“…I’m fine.”
“I’m not, so lower this.”
He kept pulling insistently, but Haru shook his head. Already irritated, Sihyeon’s brow furrowed further at Haru’s stubbornness.
“You’re not hurt?”
“…No.”
“Then move the blanket. If you didn’t want me doing this, you shouldn’t have taken the hit.”
Why did you take something meant for me?
As he scolded him, the blanket lowered ever so slightly.
Haru, who had shrunk at a single remark and lowered his head, loosened his grip for a moment—and Sihyeon seized the chance, yanking the blanket away. Haru lifted his head in surprise, and their eyes met.
Finally, he saw his face. Just to pull off a blanket—what even was this situation?
“Hello, hyung.”
For some reason, he greeted him. Haru immediately tried to grab the blanket back, but Sihyeon decisively threw it off the bed and leaned toward him. Haru flinched and retreated further into the corner.
“I-it’s okay!”
“What do you mean it’s okay? I’ll treat you, so come here. It’s not like you have anywhere else to go anyway.”
“……”
“Haru hyung.”
Sihyeon’s eyes narrowed at Haru’s stubbornness. He couldn’t understand why he was being this desperate. What, did he have burn scars? Was there a monster living in his eye? Or did he have three eyes or something?
Whatever it was, Sihyeon was confident he wouldn’t be surprised—and that he wouldn’t care.
What mattered right now was that Haru’s face was injured and needed treatment, not how he looked or what he was trying to hide.
“I won’t say anything about how you look, so lift your head.”
“……”
“Let me see.”
He’s not even five—why is an eighteen-year-old this disobedient? Is this why people say raising kids is pointless? After a brief internal truce, Sihyeon finally spoke again. Persuasion and coaxing hadn’t worked—so now all that remained was bluffing and threats.
“If you don’t lift your head now, don’t expect to see me again.”
“…!”
Haru’s shoulders flinched. Finally, a reaction.
“I’m not lying.”
“……”
“I’ll count to three. One, two….”
Three.
Right on cue, Haru hurriedly lifted his head. Not missing the moment, Sihyeon quickly reached out and brushed aside Haru’s bangs.
In an instant, the distance between them closed, and the suffocating fringe was swept away. Sihyeon was about to say it was nothing special when his gaze shifted upward—to Haru’s eye—and his body jolted.
“……”
Silence fell.
He had thought nothing would surprise him, but he hadn’t expected something beyond his imagination. His lips parted slightly.
“Ah….”
A soft exclamation, tinged with faint bewilderment, escaped him. On Haru’s forehead, where Sihyeon’s gaze was fixed, was a brilliantly colored blue Awakening Mark.
