Chapter 2 : View Dark History

After the entrance ceremony, the academy’s hallway was still busy.

Most of the students were gathered in small groups, preparing to go home, but I headed in the opposite direction.

[Behind the gym. Observing this scene might pique your interest. I recommend watching.]

The system quietly informed me of my destination.

It didn’t feel very forceful; rather, it seemed more like a suggestion.

I didn’t have to go, but as a fan of the original work, I didn’t want to miss out on an interesting situation.

In a way, I might be well-suited to being an observer.

Behind the gym, there was thick foliage.

The system kindly pointed the way with an arrow.

After walking for quite a while, I came upon a quiet open area.

I could tell just how big the academy was—there were places like this, too.

Anyway, as an observer, this situation seemed like… an excellent scene.

Tap.

The sound of something brushing against the floor.

I instinctively turned my gaze toward the source of the sound.

“Ha_.”

Someone took a deep breath.

What I saw was a person standing in the middle of a somewhat dark clearing, surrounded by thick trees, with a narrow beam of sunlight shining down on them.

It was Lee Jian.

She quietly took a step back.

Her left arm was raised high, and her other arm elegantly stretched out.

A perfect center.

A steady gaze.

In that moment, I instinctively knew she was preparing for something.

And then, she moved.

Her toes lightly brushed the ground, slicing through the air as her arms and legs moved fluidly.

In the unlit space behind the gym, under the sunlight filtering through the leaves, her movements weren’t just actions—they were more like a flow.

She lowered her body while maintaining balance, and with a turn, she rose straight again.

Her speed kept increasing.

A tense silence.

This wasn’t just a simple dance.

She was already on stage.

In an empty space, she had created her own performance.

“……”

I silently watched her.

One step, then another.

Just as she was about to finish her movements—

The sound of her toes brushing against the floor wavered.

Her body lost its center.

In an instant, she tried to regain balance, but it was already too late.

Tap.

She tilted forward, kneeling down and absorbing the shock with her hands.

She didn’t fall hard, but the flow was definitely broken.

And finally,

Our gazes met.

In the quiet forest, an awkward silence.

I didn’t say a word.

But she froze completely.

“…Did you see?”

I didn’t answer.

She squinted her eyes, quickly got up, and adjusted her uniform.

“No, no!

I didn’t do anything.

I just fell!

I tripped on a rock and fell, that’s all!”

I quietly watched her.

“I see.”

“What… what’s with that reaction?!”

“It was just a fall.”

“Exactly!

That’s it!!

…But why am I so embarrassed?”

She covered her face with both hands and sighed.

I quietly adjusted my glasses.

To be honest, the movements she showed earlier were quite impressive.

It was a moment too good to call a “black history” moment.

Still, she was extremely embarrassed just because she’d been caught.

She covered her face again and muttered.

“Please, forget what you saw.”

…As an observer, this was quite an interesting scene.

Possessing the body, maybe it wouldn’t be so bad.

After all, it meant I could witness scenes like this that weren’t in the original, right?

I silently watched her for a moment before speaking quietly.

“Why?”

“Huh?”

“Why should I forget?”

“Well, obviously!”

She glared at me through the gaps between her fingers and shouted.

“I was dancing alone in a place with no one around!

Imagine if someone found out!

How embarrassing would that be?”

I mulled over her words.

“Wasn’t it just a fall?”

“Ah.”

She hesitated, about to refute, then sighed again while sitting back down.

“Ah, I don’t know.

Just!

Forget it!”

I shrugged lightly.

“I won’t forget.”

“What?!”

“It was just nice to watch.”

She stared at me, looking surprised, as if trying to process my words.

Her expression mixed confusion with a hint of flusteredness.

I adjusted my glasses and added, “It was a moment worth remembering.”

I muttered as I nodded.

Her expression subtly changed.

For some reason, it seemed like her face had become even redder than before.

“W-what’s with that sudden comment?”

I simply watched her quietly.

She stood up but didn’t look at me.

“If you go around telling people, I’m not going to let you off the hook!”

I thought for a moment before replying,

“I won’t tell anyone.”

“Really?”

I nodded lightly.

She sighed, grabbed her uniform jacket, and said again,

“Today’s event… let’s just keep it as our little secret, okay?”

She took a step closer and made a gesture as if to indicate she was watching me.

“Kim Dohyun, I’ll be watching you.”

She stared at me for a few more seconds, pouted, and then turned to leave.

“Well, I’m off!

You better head home soon too!”

With that, she walked away quickly.

I silently watched her back for a moment before noticing a small mark on the ground at my feet.

It was where she had lost her balance and fallen earlier.

There was still a faint imprint of her toes.

“I’ve never experienced anything like this before.”

This was the first time someone had noticed me before I made any noise.

And the first time someone had remembered my name.

It was kind of funny—kids from the same class couldn’t even remember my name.

For some reason, that simple fact felt strangely comforting.

How long had I been standing there?

The chilly spring breeze brushed past me.

I slowly turned and left behind the area near the gym.

The surroundings were getting darker, and the red sunset was disappearing behind the school buildings.

I’d never seen anyone so completely immersed in dancing, even in a non-stage setting, before.

As I left, I muttered,

“Really, it was nice to watch.”

I wasn’t entirely sure why I said that, but I quietly moved forward.

I didn’t know who had possessed me, but at least they seemed to have a conscience.

They’d provided me with a place to stay and sent quite a bit of money every month.

Thanks to that, I could live without worrying about money.

It made me think, maybe it wouldn’t be so bad to live here forever.

Well, I was just saying that. I still felt like the world here was strange and unfamiliar.

Waving my fingers, mana spread through the air, and the lights in the house flickered on.

It was a world powered by mana instead of electricity.

At first, I had no idea how to use mana and struggled a lot.

“I almost starved to death at home, so yeah, that was fun.”

I sat down at my desk and turned on the computer.

When I entered my email address, a system window popped up in mid-air.

[Would you like to report the results of your observation today?]

[Y/N]

After submitting the report, the familiar loading message appeared.

But then—

[A singularity has been detected.]

For a moment, my fingers froze.

“A singularity?”

Was this the real beginning of the original story?

Now that I was starting to get involved with the original characters, maybe it was finally starting.

Before the classes started, there was a chaotic atmosphere in the classroom.

A new class, unfamiliar seats, and faces I hadn’t even memorized yet.

I sat by the window, in a quiet spot, and opened my book.

And then,

Thud.

Something lightly hit the surface of my desk.

Looking up, I saw Lee Jian standing there.

“……”

The moment our eyes met, she flinched slightly.

Then, she lifted her chin as if trying to act casual.

“Oh, you were here?”

“Yeah.”

“Well, you seem pretty diligent, studying from the morning.”

“I was just looking.”

“Hmm…”

She awkwardly turned her head, then suddenly tapped her fingers on my desk.

“About yesterday…”

“Yeah?”

She glanced around the classroom before whispering in a low voice,

“You really didn’t tell anyone, right?”

I blinked.

“I said I wouldn’t tell anyone.”

“Really?”

She looked at me carefully, then finally sighed and muttered softly.

“That’s a relief.”

After saying that, her expression relaxed a bit.

But then, as if she had just remembered something, she suddenly raised a finger and waved it in front of my face.

“But!

If you go around telling people later…

I really won’t let you off the hook, got it?”

She shook her small fist, though it didn’t feel particularly threatening.

“I told you, I won’t.”

“Really?”

I nodded briefly.

Honestly, even if I wanted to tell someone, I didn’t have any friends to tell.

My faint presence had always made me drift on the outskirts of this world.

She continued to eye me with suspicion, but eventually, she seemed to give in and shook her head in resignation.

“Yeah.

Well, if you say so, I guess I’ll trust you.”

Her fingers once again tapped lightly on my desk.

“Alright, then.”

She said that, and then, as if it were nothing, turned around.

However, as she walked back to her seat, I didn’t miss the faint redness at the tips of her ears.

How does she always find me like that?

Thud.

Someone sitting at my desk had noticed me and jumped up in surprise.

“Oh, sorry.”

“It’s fine.”

Yeah, this was normal.