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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Chaos
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Han Min-ha recoiled in horror, pulling the phone away from her ear.
Yoo Hee-won’s voice grew even louder.
[Hey! Purple Pig! Titty Monster! Are you listening?!]
I gestured for Han Min-ha to put the phone back to her ear, but she shook her head vehemently.
I couldn’t answer the phone for her, though.
Finally, Han Min-ha spoke in a trembling voice.
“Um… Hee-won…”
[&$%^*@*$@($!!!]
“Uh… um, yeah… I’m in a meeting with the professor… uh…? Hold on…?”
Han Min-ha stammered, holding out the phone to me.
“Professor… she wants to talk to you…”
“Give it to me.”
I took the phone.
“Hee-won.”
[Professor?! Why didn’t you answer the phone?]
“I’m on a home visit, talking to Han Min-ha. And we already agreed that I would go to your house in the afternoon.”
[So when will you be finished?]
“I just got here. We just started talking.”
[Hmm…]
Yoo Hee-won paused, seemingly thinking, then said something unexpected.
[Han Min-ha’s alone at home, right?]
“Yes.”
[She doesn’t have anywhere to go during the break, does she?]
“I don’t know. I didn’t ask.”
[Put me on speakerphone.]
Unsure of her intentions, I turned on the speakerphone.
[Hey, Purple Pig. You haven’t left the house once since you got back, have you?]
“Huh? No? I went out. I went to the supermarket to buy groceries.”
[That’s not what I mean. Have you gone anywhere fun?!]
“Fun…? No.”
[And you don’t have any plans to, right?]
Han Min-ha, completely baffled, stared at me with wide eyes.
I shrugged, equally clueless.
“Um… no.”
[Then come to my house with the professor.]
“What?! Go to your house?”
Han Min-ha’s eyes darted between me and the phone.
“Uh… why?”
[Pack your things and come. So you can go straight to the academy from my house.]
“Um… why?”
But Yoo Hee-won had already hung up.
Han Min-ha stared blankly at the phone, and I tried to figure out Yoo Hee-won’s motives.
It was simple.
She wanted to invite Han Min-ha over, considering her a friend.
Knowing Yoo Hee-won, there couldn’t be any other ulterior motive.
She seemed wicked and cunning, but she was actually a surprisingly kind, albeit strange, girl.
I figured she was trying to make up for her earlier insensitive remarks about Han Min-ha’s parents, driven by guilt.
“Professor, Hee-won really told me to pack my bags and go to her house, right…? I didn’t mishear, did I?”
“That’s what she said. What are you going to do?”
“Um… well…? The break ends in a few days… I’m just surprised by the sudden invitation.”
“Don’t overthink it. Hee-won probably just wants to spend the rest of the break with you.”
“Really?”
Han Min-ha slowly nodded.
“You seem confused because you don’t understand Hee-won. She considers you a friend, just like you consider her one.”
“A friend…”
“Yes. So let’s go. Hee-won is rich; she has a big house and lots of good food.”
Han Min-ha smiled faintly at my joke.
“Then please wait a moment. I’ll pack my things.”
Han Min-ha jumped up and hurried up the stairs to the second floor.
While waiting, I took the empty glasses to the kitchen and washed them.
Yoo Hee-won.
Inviting Han Min-ha to her house.
She truly was full of surprises.
A moment later,
There was a loud thud, and Han Min-ha came down the stairs, dragging a large suitcase.
“Sorry! Did you wait long?! Whoa!”
Her heel caught on the suitcase wheel, and she stumbled down a few steps.
I quickly deployed my Aura, creating a concave barrier mid-air to stop her fall.
“Thank you… Whew…”
“You’re an aspiring hero, Han Min-ha. Get used to using your Aura in everyday life.”
“Understood!”
Han Min-ha adjusted her glasses and smiled awkwardly.
Her long hair, which usually reached her waist, was tied up.
She wore a white shirt and short pants.
The second floor must not have had air conditioning, as she was drenched in sweat.
As she smiled at me, I saw the face of her mother, Seo Ji-ah, superimposed on hers.
She was truly the spitting image of her mother, like a twin.
Then, the image of Han Tae-woo, always smiling brightly at me, flashed through my mind.
A wave of intense emotions, too strong even for my Mental Barrier, washed over me.
Guilt, longing, sadness.
Damn it.
That damned couple…
They had entrusted their daughter to me with that promise.
I smiled bitterly, feeling dizzy.
“Professor!”
Seeing me stumble and clutch my forehead, Han Min-ha dropped her suitcase and rushed over.
“Professor, are you alright?”
She grabbed my arm.
She had considerable strength for a first-year student starting her second semester.
“I’m fine. It’s nothing, don’t worry.”
I gently pushed her arm away and smiled.
“I’m really okay.”
“Is your cough coming back…?”
“It’s summer. And my cough is completely gone, thanks to you.”
Not understanding what I meant, Han Min-ha just smiled.
She rarely smiled when we first met, but she was smiling more often now.
It was good to see.
Behind those thick glasses, she was quite pretty.
More than anything, seeing my student become brighter filled me with pride as her advisor.
It seemed even the Mental Barrier, the ultimate defense technique, couldn’t completely suppress human emotions.
“Let’s go, then.”
Han Min-ha turned off the air conditioner and lights, checked the windows, and locked the door.
“I won’t be back for a few months.”
We loaded the suitcase into the car and headed towards Yoo Hee-won’s house.
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The place Yoo Hee-won lived was not far from the Administration, it was in an area next to the government offices and embassies.
It was about a two-hour drive from Han Min-ha’s house.
We talked about various things on the highway.
Mostly about the academy and the “field.”
The upcoming internships in the second semester.
The curriculum for the second and third years.
Career paths they had to choose before graduation.
Whether to become a sidekick at a hero agency or work for the Administration as a civil servant.
Han Min-ha diligently noted everything I said in a small notebook.
The corners of the notebook were frayed from use.
She always carried a notebook and notepad, even during our advisory meetings.
“Professor, I have a question.”
“Go ahead.”
“How do I join Secreto, the organization you and my parents were in?”
“Ah, Secreto. There’s only one way to join. Luck.”
I explained how to join Secreto.
“It’s actually illegal for me to tell you about Secreto. They might penalize me if they find out. They’re very strict about confidentiality. That’s why they don’t publicly recruit.”
“Then how?”
“They’ll contact you discreetly around the time of graduation. They’ll ask if you’re interested in working for humanity.”
“Really? They ask like that?”
“Yes. And not everyone with good grades gets contacted. Secreto handles special missions, so they look for heroes with specific abilities.”
“So that’s why you joined Secreto.”
“That’s right. There are very few heroes specializing in defense techniques.”
Han Min-ha nodded, diligently taking notes.
“So you joined Secreto with the noble intention of working for humanity?”
“No. I joined because they offered a stable salary.”
“Huh…”
Han Min-ha gasped softly.
“Surprised? My grades weren’t very good. I focused on defense techniques and neglected the abilities the academy valued. So I graduated with a D-Rank. As you know, the future is uncertain for a D-Rank hero.”
A D-Rank, not even a C-Rank, made it difficult to follow a normal hero career path.
Heroes sometimes used the expression “talking heavy machinery” to belittle each other, referring to the kind of work D-Rank and lower heroes usually did.
They worked at construction sites, lifting heavy materials instead of excavators or cranes, for low wages.
Who would refuse an offer to join an Administration-affiliated organization after receiving an unexpected D-Rank?
That’s how I ended up in Secreto.
“What about Mom and Dad?”
“Your father was foolish enough to believe the noble cause of sacrifice and service for humanity, and your mother was tricked by him.”
“Hee…”
Han Min-ha continued to take notes.
“But you should never join Secreto.”
“Why not?”
“Secreto is a dirty place. It’s not for you. And promotions are extremely difficult. So don’t even think about Secreto…”
Suddenly, Han Min-ha dropped her pen and yelled.
“Professor! Look out!”
I slammed on the brakes and deployed barriers in front of and behind the car.
Crash!!
A car falling from the sky hit the barrier and bounced off.
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