Sihyeon, who had fallen asleep under the weight of walking on eggshells and excessive overprotection, only woke up late in the afternoon and blinked at the empty bed. When he checked the time, it read 2 o’clock. After collapsing over and over and even falling into the water, maybe his body had been so drained that he ended up sleeping for a long time. Or perhaps he hadn’t slept properly all night because of the constant scrutiny, only managing to fall asleep when dawn had deepened.
Either way, he had stayed up until dawn, skipped breakfast, and fallen asleep—meaning he’d missed lunch too. After everything he’d been through, his energy consumption had been severe, and since he hadn’t eaten anything, hunger quickly set in. Sihyeon placed a hand over his stomach. It felt hollow. He’d just started to gain a bit of weight, and now it felt like he was about to go right back to skin and bones.
I should eat something.
Even though mealtime had passed, it didn’t seem like the cafeteria would be completely empty. His hunger had gone beyond simple emptiness and was bordering on pain, so Sihyeon got out of bed and reached for the door.
Click!
“…?”
As if it were locked, the door that had opened just fine yesterday suddenly wouldn’t budge. He pushed, pulled, and shook it, but nothing changed. Bang bang—Sihyeon knocked hard and grabbed the handle again.
“Hello?!”
He shouted, but there was no response. Sensing something was off, Sihyeon quickly turned toward the window.
When he lifted the lowered blinds, he saw what looked like wooden planks beyond the glass. As if the window had been boarded up, all he could see was wood. Sihyeon let out a hollow laugh. He opened the window and touched it—this wasn’t some illusion; it was real wood.
No wonder the looks yesterday were strange… Kang Haeun?
There was only one person who would pull something like this. Frowning, Sihyeon walked back to the door and seriously considered whether to break it down. Images of the travel agency staff flashed through his mind. Thinking of them made him feel a bit sorry. But then again, so much was already broken—would one more door really make a difference?
After a long moment of deliberation, just as he decided to break it—
Bang! The closed door suddenly swung open.
“Oh, you’re up? Good morning!”
Haeun greeted him casually, carrying a tray filled with luxurious food. “Sihyeon’s awake!” he called out, and a crowd of students poured in. It was Class A. It looked like other students were trying to follow, but Baek Geonwoo stopped them.
Bang!
Geonwoo shut the door again, leaving everyone except Class A outside. Wondering what on earth was going on, Sihyeon stared blankly at them when Haru approached and guided him back onto the bed. Sihyeon, who had just stepped onto the floor for the first time in half a day, was back on the bed within ten minutes.
“What is this?”
“Are you still hurting?”
“…What?”
A question answered with a question. When Sihyeon said he wasn’t, Haru reached out and placed a hand on his forehead, as if checking his temperature. After a moment, he nodded. Only then did Haeun step forward and place the tray on the table.
“What are you doing?”
“Hm? What do you mean?”
“The door’s locked and the window’s like that. What, are you imprisoning me or something?”
“What? How can you say something so barbaric!”
When Sihyeon asked, Haeun snapped back indignantly and scooped up some soup, bringing it toward Sihyeon’s mouth. Watching him act like he expected to be fed like a baby bird, Sihyeon frowned. It already seemed like the lunatic had eaten something weird overnight.
“What is this?”
“What do you mean, what—this is nursing care! Right?”
Haeun answered brightly, turning to Yoo Seowoo for agreement. Seowoo walked over, sat on the edge of the bed beside him, and smiled warmly.
“You pushed yourself too hard this time. Your body’s weakened too. So we decided to take care of you.”
“With the door and window blocked off?”
“We thought complete rest would be best.”
Calling it “complete rest” while locking someone up. Dumbfounded, Sihyeon glanced around and searched for at least one sane person. His eyes landed on Lee Hamin, who was leaning against the door. When Sihyeon silently questioned why he hadn’t stopped this, Hamin—who would usually sigh or shake his head—returned a look of distrust. Apparently, he was an accomplice too.
“Don’t look at me like that. If we just let you go, who knows if you’d collapse again or fall into the sea.”
“What?”
“Exactly, exactly! You might still have trauma!”
“…Don’t go out, Sihyeon. Okay?”
“……”
Sihyeon looked at the people who each added a word, worrying over him. Haru, still holding his hand, asked once more for him not to go out. Sihyeon let out a hollow laugh, wondering if leaving a room had always been this difficult.
“Sihyeon, say ah~!”
Even now, Haeun was trying to feed him. Frowning, Sihyeon looked at the seven people in front of him. Starting with Jung Dawoon, who was aggressively asking for the spoon so she could feed him if he refused, to Hamin, who was uncharacteristically worried—none of them were in their right minds.
It’s not like I’m a child….
The fact that they had locked him up because they thought he might see the ocean and collapse again made his head throb. As he pressed his forehead, Haru grabbed his hand.
“Does it hurt again?”
“…It doesn’t.”
“Really?”
Leaning in slightly, Haru asked. His red eyes, so close up, glimmered as if he might cry. Thinking they looked pretty, Sihyeon nodded. Haru then held out the bowl of soup again, telling him to eat. He, too, seemed to have been completely influenced.
Letting out a sigh at the sight of even gentle Haru being swept up in this, Sihyeon made his annoyance obvious.
“You guys are being overprotective.”
“We know!”
“……”
If they knew, there was nothing to say. Their bold answer gave him a headache. Wondering if he might actually die of stress at this rate, Sihyeon tried to compromise with himself.
It made sense they’d be worried after seeing him collapse right in front of them. It probably wouldn’t last—later, they’d forget all about it. So maybe putting up with it for now wouldn’t be so bad.
Having reached a near-resigned compromise, Sihyeon muttered to himself and snatched the spoon from Haeun.
Even as he slowly ate the soup, their gazes didn’t change. It felt like they wouldn’t be satisfied unless he finished the entire plate.
I’m going to get indigestion.
Feeling their piercing stares, Sihyeon muttered as he took another spoonful.
Once I finish this, I’m kicking them all out.
Since they said he needed complete rest, he might as well rest properly—alone, without all this hassle. With that resolve, Sihyeon moved his spoon again under their unwavering gazes.
***
The ship that had been scheduled to go to Germany didn’t even reach it and instead returned to Korea. The only things Sihyeon had seen on what was supposed to be a school trip were three types of Irregulars and the ship’s luxurious interior. He pushed himself up from where he had been lying down.
He’d thought it was half a joke, but the Class A students—except him—had really stood guard at his door until the ship arrived, preventing him from going out and others from coming in. They called it protection, but to Sihyeon, it just looked like madness.
As if that weren’t enough, they even put Baek Geonwoo’s sleep eye mask on him and escorted him all the way to the bus. With his vision completely blocked, nearly tripping about eighteen times was entirely Sihyeon’s problem.
After repeatedly feeling like his life was in danger while walking blindfolded, he finally boarded the bus in a ragged state. Only then did they allow him to take off the eye mask. Sitting down, Sihyeon looked out the window, finally able to see again. He spotted Luce being escorted away by Awakened Association members as if under arrest. It seemed he was keeping his promise to stop by the Association before returning to the U.S. Watching him grin like a madman until the very end, Sihyeon shook his head and fastened his seatbelt as the teacher announced their departure.
The bus gave a small jolt before its wheels began to roll. Baek Geonwoo, apparently used to it now, handed him the sleep eye mask again. Sihyeon frowned and looked at him. Those bright blue eyes showed not a trace of malice.
Should I call this innocence… or what?
After briefly pondering it for the first time in a while, Sihyeon refused the mask and leaned his head against the window. On the way here, he’d sat by the aisle; on the way back, he had the window seat. Just as taking the aisle had been his concession before, this was Haru’s consideration now.
Feeling his head shake along with the rattling bus, Sihyeon suddenly remembered something he’d forgotten and called out to Haeun.
“Can you give me a buff?”
At the request, Haeun readily nodded and applied a status resistance buff. Having benefited quite a bit from Haeun’s buff on the way here, Sihyeon was finally able to relax and close his eyes.
Perhaps Haeun had learned his lesson this time, because he didn’t make a fuss about playing “I Am Ground” or anything like that. With his eyes closed, Sihyeon let out a quiet breath. Unlike before, he could fall into a deep sleep without needing an eye mask or earplugs.
The school trip that had been planned for three nights and four days ended in just one night and two days.
“Class A, wake up now! Check again to make sure you didn’t leave anything behind!”
At the homeroom teacher’s voice, Sihyeon slowly opened his eyes. Perhaps because he hadn’t woken even once—not even at rest stops—his body felt refreshed despite sleeping on the bus.
“How do you not wake up even once?”
Hamin spoke with mild amazement as Sihyeon got up late and gathered his belongings. Whether it was a jab or praise, Sihyeon didn’t care. He waved his hand dismissively—a clear signal not to talk to him because he had things to do.
After double-checking he hadn’t left anything behind and picking up his bag, the bus came to a stop. Even though it had only been a day, the schoolyard looked strangely unfamiliar, as if it had been much longer. Sihyeon stepped off the bus, taking in the sight. The moment his feet lightly touched the ground, it finally felt real—they were back. The school trip was truly over.
I wonder if Pia is okay.
It had cried so much before he left. What if it kept crying after he was gone and ended up dehydrated? As his gaze drifted toward the faculty office, worried, the teacher who had just gotten off the bus after final checks approached him.
“Since the timing for dinner is awkward and we arrived without eating, how about doing the Class Engraving tomorrow after dinner? Of course, that’s assuming you haven’t changed your mind, Sihyeon.”
The teacher still seemed reluctant to give up on persuading him to cancel the Elemental Ability User Class Engraving. With no intention of backing down, Sihyeon looked toward the principal’s office.
“Can we do it today?”
“Are you sure you don’t want more time to think it over?”
“Yes.”
The teacher, who had tried to dissuade him until the very end, let out a sigh at Sihyeon’s firm attitude. It meant he was conceding. At the teacher’s instruction to follow, Sihyeon sent the other students ahead and followed him. They stopped at the principal’s office. As if he had already been informed, the principal—who had been handling the engraving device—welcomed Sihyeon.
“Pya-pya!”
Pia was there too, looking healthy.
“I heard about what happened on the school trip. You went through a lot.”
“Yes, well….”
It was the same concern he’d heard several times already. While the principal apologized and asked about his condition, Sihyeon reached out toward Pia. Aside from slightly swollen eyes, it looked fine. Thankfully, it didn’t seem dehydrated.
“Pya!”
The creature climbed onto his hand and flopped onto his palm, rubbing its body against him as if it had missed him dearly. Watching the rather cute sight in silence, Sihyeon stayed like that until the principal, who had been quietly giving him the moment, slid the engraving device toward him. Only then did Sihyeon’s gaze leave Pia.
“You know the method.”
“Yes.”
“Do you have any regrets?”
“No.”
“If that’s your decision, then so be it.”
It was refreshingly straightforward. Unlike the other teachers, the principal didn’t try to delay or dissuade him. Nodding, Sihyeon gently stroked Pia’s head, set it down on the table, and placed his hand on the device. The sensation he had felt months ago spread across his palm again. Swallowing once, Sihyeon slowly spoke.
“Class Engraving.”
Light bloomed, and the familiar sensation he had experienced twice before wrapped around his body. He felt a slight sting at the Awakening Mark on the back of his neck as he took in the skills unfolding in the darkness behind his eyes. A cold, chilling energy seemed to settle around his heart before the light faded. His closed eyes opened again.
It felt strange. As if all five senses had become sharper.
Narrowing his eyes at the unfamiliar sensation, Sihyeon looked at his hand. His rounded fingertips were trembling slightly.
Is it just fatigue from the trip catching up to me?
Tilting his head as he thought—
“Cough!”
Red blood spilled from Sihyeon’s mouth.
