While Hamin still hadn’t returned even after everyone finished unpacking, the one who turned his gaze toward the entrance wasn’t Haeun or Sihyeon—but Haru. After staring at Hamin’s suitcase left behind all alone, he hesitated before quietly moving it to the corner of the room. Watching that, Sihyeon absently rubbed his stomach as the clock now read 12:30. Come to think of it, he was starting to feel a bit hungry.
“Want to eat?”
“Ah, me too, me too!”
Though the question had been directed at Haru, the answer came from somewhere else entirely. Narrowing his eyes at Haeun, who shamelessly tried to join in, Sihyeon was met with the argument that eating was a personal freedom. Well… he couldn’t exactly deny that.
Grinning like a winner, Haeun stood there as Sihyeon turned his back on him and walked to the door, grabbing the handle and pulling it open.
The moment the door swung open—
“Ugh!”
At the short groan, Sihyeon blinked. The voice sounded familiar. As he opened the door further, a dull thud followed, along with another low groan.
Peeking his head through the doorway, he saw Hamin standing there, frowning while holding his forehead. The skin visible between his long fingers was red, as if he’d just hit something.
No way…
As that uneasy thought crossed his mind, Hamin rubbed his forehead a couple of times before lifting his sharp gaze to glare at Sihyeon. That irritation-filled stare made Sihyeon tighten his grip on the doorknob. He hadn’t expected Hamin—who had stormed off earlier—to be standing right outside.
“…Sorry.”
Then why were you standing there in the first place? He swallowed the added remark, knowing it would only make things more troublesome. Hamin ran a hand through his hair and frowned.
People could open a door without knowing someone was standing in front of it, you know. Muttering inwardly, Sihyeon stepped out into the hallway with Haru. Haeun quickly followed right behind him—and then suddenly grabbed Hamin’s wrist as he was about to head back into the room.
“Min, you should come too!”
It sounded less like an invitation and more like a declaration. Haeun dragged Hamin along with him.
The group going to eat grew from three to four.
It had started as two—now it was four. Feeling uncomfortable with the growing number, Sihyeon quickened his pace. But it made no difference; the others, with their longer strides, easily kept up. Sihyeon pressed his lips together.
Unfortunately, the number didn’t stop there.
The Four Heavenly Kings always moved like they were one body.
That classic web novel rule—these brightly colored-haired characters followed it to an absurd degree. Look at them now, sticking together like glue.
By the time they left the lobby and reached the cafeteria, the group of four had turned into six. Yoo Seowoo and Baek Geonwoo had joined them as naturally as breathing. Turning his head, Sihyeon glanced at the two before shifting his gaze to Haeun—still smiling—and Hamin—still grumbling.
The baggage had increased to four.
No matter how he tried to shake them off, the excuse of “we’re going to eat” shut him down. Even when he stopped walking to let them go ahead, the annoyingly colorful-haired group simply stood still. When he finally gave up and moved behind them with Haru, the result was the same—because the Four Heavenly Kings, led by Haeun, immediately shuffled right back behind him. Of course, Hamin was being dragged along the entire time.
What were they, baby chicks that had imprinted on their mother?
The way they kept trailing after him was unbearably irritating.
Now unintentionally leading around four teenagers, Sihyeon flexed his fingers as he felt the stares pouring onto him. Haru was already drawing attention because of the Placement Test, and now with the Four Heavenly Kings added in, the number of eyes on them was no joke.
And on top of that—he himself was a Quadruple, something anyone who knew would recognize.
Feeling like a mix of envy and jealousy was being directed at him, Sihyeon’s embarrassment hit maximum levels. He sped up even more, thinking they should just eat quickly and be done with it. His walking pace soon reached a near power-walk.
After stepping out of the lobby and spotting the cafeteria, he turned around. His gaze swept across the four members of the Four Heavenly Kings—and met Seowoo’s eyes. His platinum-colored eyes curved into a soft smile.
Sihyeon didn’t return it.
“Eat separately.”
“With you and Haru-hyung?”
“……”
“With us?”
Shooting Haeun a look that clearly said don’t talk nonsense, Sihyeon watched as Haeun corrected himself. Pointing at his own chest in surprise, Haeun looked at him, and Sihyeon gave a small nod. Haeun’s brows drooped.
Muttering under his breath about how cold-hearted he was, Haeun didn’t push further like Sihyeon had expected. The reaction was unexpected.
“That’s harsh….”
The quiet grumble sounded almost like resignation. Letting out a small breath of relief, Sihyeon led Haru and opened the cafeteria doors.
There was only one door—but all six of them walked in together.
As a group of good-looking boys flooded into the cafeteria, the students eating inside all turned to look at them at once.
Ignoring the stares as best as he could, Sihyeon scanned the room—and froze slightly. The cafeteria, much like the dorms that flaunted wealth, was unbelievably… a buffet.
“Wow….”
The reaction slipped out before he could stop it. Turning around in mild embarrassment, he realized he was the only one among the six who had said anything.
Clearing his throat awkwardly, he looked over the vast buffet. Rows upon rows of food stretched out, easily over 120 dishes.
It looked like something straight out of a movie or drama. Having never stepped foot in a buffet in his life, Sihyeon hesitated—until Seowoo stepped forward and came to stand beside him.
Seowoo on the left, Haru on the right.
Feeling Seowoo’s gaze lingering on him, Sihyeon showed his annoyance.
“What.”
“I was just wondering if this is your first time at a buffet.”
“……”
“Am I right?”
Instead of answering, Sihyeon frowned. Seowoo’s eyes curved again in amusement. Choosing food over pressing further, Seowoo walked ahead.
Watching him move with ease, as if he were used to places like this, Sihyeon hesitated before following. Haru trailed right behind him.
At the end of the buffet, Seowoo picked up a round plate. Mimicking him, Sihyeon took one as well and began selecting food.
He hadn’t thought of himself as someone with much of an appetite—but faced with such an extravagant spread, something like a collector’s urge kicked in, and his plate quickly filled up. It seemed his appetite was directly proportional to the quality of the food.
Sneaking glances at what Seowoo was picking, Sihyeon chose what looked the best and placed it onto Haru’s plate as well. Like a mother bird feeding her chick, he added pieces of sushi one by one. Haru shifted awkwardly.
Sihyeon had half-hoped Haru might return the gesture—but maybe they weren’t at that stage yet. Setting down the tongs, he reached for something else—
Tap.
Two or three pieces of perfectly cooked meat landed on his plate.
Looking up, he saw Seowoo smiling, tongs still in hand, shrugging lightly.
“I figured feeding you some lamb might help you put on weight.”
At the casual tone, Sihyeon instinctively glanced down at his own arm. It looked thin enough to snap. With no rebuttal, he looked back at the lamb—something he’d only heard of, never eaten.
It looked appetizing—thick cuts, glistening with oil.
But three pieces was too much.
After a brief moment of consideration, Sihyeon suddenly snatched the tongs from Seowoo.
Seowoo looked at him—not surprised, but as if observing what he’d do next. Picking up one piece of meat from his own plate, Sihyeon dropped it onto Seowoo’s.
“It’s too much.”
He said it quietly, almost like tossing it back out of obligation. Seowoo stared at him for a moment—then burst into laughter. A soft, pleasant laugh spread through the air.
Leaving him behind, Sihyeon moved away. Seeing that both his and Haru’s plates were nearly full, he searched for a place to sit. Luckily, a table by the window was empty.
“I’ll grab drinks.”
“Ah… I—I can—”
“Just stay here. It’ll only take a second.”
Leaving Haru seated, Sihyeon headed to the drinks section. He poured himself something familiar—then paused, looking at the two cups of water.
It was fine for him, but giving Haru just water felt a bit much. After a moment’s thought, he dumped the water and poured mango juice instead. Carbonated drinks weren’t good for you, after all.
Holding one cup of iced water and one glass of mango juice, he headed back—then stopped.
His face twisted at the sight.
At the table where Haru should’ve been alone, there were three extra, very unwelcome faces.
“…I said we’d eat separately.”
Setting the juice down in front of Haru, Sihyeon narrowed his eyes at Haeun. Haeun wiped at imaginary tears and pointed to the table next to them.
“That’s why poor Geonwoo is eating separately over there.”
“…What?”
Following his gesture, Sihyeon saw Geonwoo sitting alone at another table, quietly eating by himself.
It looked… pitiful.
Turning back in disbelief, Sihyeon saw Haeun grinning.
At this point, Kang Haeun wasn’t cute—he was insane.
I said eat separately from us, not separately among yourselves.
As Sihyeon let out a hollow laugh, Seowoo returned, carrying two plates. He set down a salad and soup in front of Sihyeon, along with a fork.
“You might upset your stomach if you eat right away. Have the soup first—and don’t skip the salad.”
His tone was gentle, considerate.
Which only made it more absurd—because his own friend was sitting alone.
Shouldn’t you be taking care of Baek Geonwoo instead of me?
Swallowing the pointless thought, Sihyeon glanced sideways. Hamin, looking fed up, was watching Haeun and Seowoo. The whole situation was a mess.
With a growing headache, Sihyeon looked back at Geonwoo. As if sensing his gaze, Geonwoo lifted his head.
His usually indifferent brows drooped, and suddenly—he looked like a drenched puppy.
Sihyeon inhaled sharply and looked back at the lunatics who had abandoned their friend.
Haeun was clapping and laughing while watching Geonwoo. Seowoo was calmly urging Sihyeon to eat. And Hamin—true to a teenager’s appetite—was steadily clearing his plate, unfazed by the chaos.
At this rate, he’d finish an entire plate in no time.
Sihyeon pressed a hand to his forehead.
He wanted to tell them all to get lost—but the Four Heavenly Kings weren’t the type to listen.
“…Call him over.”
Reluctantly, Sihyeon gave in.
“Yay!” Haeun cheered, and Geonwoo walked over with his plate.
“You should eat now, Sihyeon.”
Even now, Seowoo was still fussing over his meal. Sihyeon let out a hollow laugh.
Four Heavenly Kings, my ass. They were nothing but four lunatics.
