I cautiously looked around the rooftop.
But even when I tried opening the rooftop door, which had once been a portal to another dimension, and wandered all over the rooftop, I didn’t feel anything unusual.
“Status Window.”
I called out, just in case the Status Window might appear, but nothing happened.
Ban Eun-hyeol also wandered around, keeping some distance from me, then tilted his head and said, “Did I sense it wrong? The others mentioned it too, but now I really don’t feel anything at all.”
“Still, just in case, we should keep a close watch.”
It wouldn’t be easy to sneak into Jangnam High School now that I was just an ordinary person, but if Ban Eun-hyeol had felt something, even once, I couldn’t just ignore it.
We decided to check on Jangnam High School from time to time and left the school grounds.
“We should contact Kang Yedam, right?”
Ban Eun-hyeol turned his head, looking up at the rooftop of Jangnam High School.
Even though the future had already changed once, since Kang Yedam was a Regressor, maybe she would know something—at least, that’s what he seemed to be thinking.
“Yeah, it’s probably better to give her a heads-up.”
“I’ll reach out.”
Since Do Ihyeon had left the country because of me, it was a little awkward for me to contact Kang Yedam directly.
“Wait, you said Do Ihyeon left Korea, right?”
“That’s right.”
“Then maybe Kang Yedam doesn’t like me? A call probably won’t work.”
He had originally intended to just call her, but thought Kang Yedam wouldn’t answer, so he sent a text instead.
At least she’d see the message, even if she didn’t answer.
“Once she checks the message, she’ll decide what to do.”
Maybe she’d start patrolling the Jangnam High School rooftop like us, or maybe she’d just ignore us and cut off contact altogether.
I didn’t expect a reply anytime soon.
Sure enough, Kang Yedam didn’t respond right away, and only got back to us after a few days had passed.
***
After Do Ihyeon left the country, the mood in his class was gloomy, to say the least.
Since the ones most responsible for this atmosphere were Kang Yedam and Haemalgeum, no one dared to say anything.
It was bewildering enough that Do Ihyeon had suddenly left for overseas, but for the two people who were his closest friends, it must have been even more upsetting.
Creak—
The back door of the classroom opened, and Kang Yedam and Haemalgeum entered with somber expressions.
The moment the two of them stepped into the classroom, Haemalgeum suddenly rushed over and sat at Do Ihyeon’s desk, rubbing her face against it as if upset, muttering under her breath.
“He just left us behind… Now what am I supposed to do at school, I’m so bored…”
Watching her, Kang Yedam clicked her tongue and walked in, scolding Haemalgeum.
“We’ll be graduating soon anyway. Even if you’re bored, you’ll have to bear with it.”
“Leaving just because his grades were bad—don’t you think his family’s being too harsh?”
“…What can you do? His parents set the conditions first, so if he couldn’t meet them, he had to leave.”
Usually, Haemalgeum would complain and Kang Yedam wouldn’t indulge her, and today was no different.
Then Haemalgeum suddenly lifted her face from the desk and said, “Ban Eun-hyeol got captured and still managed to return to Korea. Couldn’t Ihyeon do the same? He made a lot of money, didn’t he?”
“It’s a little different for him.”
Haemalgeum didn’t know that Do Ihyeon had left because of Dana.
She firmly believed Do Ihyeon’s words that he had no choice but to go to his parents because of his bad grades.
Kang Yedam didn’t want to say that Do Ihyeon had left because of Dana either.
So she had kept it well hidden from the moment she first heard he would be leaving.
But today, Haemalgeum was especially whiny.
With no other choice, Kang Yedam explained the reason why Do Ihyeon wouldn’t be coming back to Korea.
“Ban Eun-hyeol is dating Lee Dana, but Ihyeon got dumped.”
“Why are you bringing her up all of a sudden?”
“I mean, there’s no reason for him to come back. Ban Eun-hyeol must’ve found a way out just to see Dana, but Ihyeon doesn’t have that kind of reason.”
Haemalgeum, listening to this, tilted her head and pointed to herself with her index finger.
“But I’m here. Are we not enough of a reason for him to come back?”
“Love is always stronger than friendship.”
“Wow, that’s cold! Do you know how long we’ve been close?”
Kang Yedam pressed her forehead as if she had a headache.
Then, glaring sharply at Haemalgeum with wide eyes, she said, “When you got a girlfriend, you stopped hanging out with us and spent all your time with her. Don’t you remember?”
“…Ah.”
“You chose love over friendship too, so why are you complaining about Ihyeon?”
Awkwardly smiling, Haemalgeum edged away from Kang Yedam, who was gritting her teeth as she spoke.
Trying to lighten the mood, Haemalgeum said in an overly bright voice, “H-hey, should we go visit Ihyeon after we graduate? It’d be fun as a graduation trip!”
“That sounds good.”
Relieved by the positive answer, Haemalgeum let out a discreet sigh of relief.
Watching her, Kang Yedam shook her head and took out her phone.
Reading the new message, she frowned.
“What’s this supposed to mean?”
The message was from Ban Eun-hyeol.
It was a warning, saying he’d sensed something strange at Jangnam High School and that they should be careful.
“Something strange? All the Gates are gone, so what strange energy is there to sense?”
She sat at her desk, looking out the window.
Iljin High, Gamseong High, and Jangnam High were arranged in a large triangle.
Gamseong High was on higher ground, so you could see Jangnam High clearly with no obstructions, but from Iljin High, you could barely see just the rooftop of Jangnam High.
“I guess I can keep watch from here.”
She stared at the rooftop of Jangnam High, then tapped Haemalgeum on the arm.
“Hey, what do you think would happen if a Gate opened again?”
“I’d like that. Closing Gates was way more fun than studying.”
Without a moment’s hesitation, Haemalgeum formed a circle with her thumb and index finger.
“The money was good, too.”
Since she was the sub-Guild Master of Onsaemiro, and among the higher-ranked Awakened, her income was substantial.
If she could keep closing Gates, there was no need to worry about her career path.
That’s why Haemalgeum enjoyed being an Awakened even more than most.
Hearing her answer, Kang Yedam smirked as if she’d expected it.
‘If the Gates really open again… Will the future I saw become reality?’
Just imagining it was dreadful.
She made a mental note to visit Jangnam High soon as she put her phone away.
Just then, she caught sight of Do Ihyeon’s last message.
When they’d said goodbye at the airport and Do Ihyeon had entered the departures gate, he’d sent Kang Yedam and Haemalgeum a text each.
A message asking them to take care of Dana.
‘What’s the point of us taking care of her?’
Even if she needed someone, Ban Eun-hyeol would take care of her. Why should we be responsible for her?
Frowning in annoyance, Kang Yedam gazed out the window, lost in thought.
In the future she had experienced, the one who died while saving Dana was Do Ihyeon.
But now, Do Ihyeon was no longer in Korea.
If a Gate did appear again at Jangnam High and, like in the future, an S-class Gate appeared on the Gamseong High rooftop, there would be no one to save Dana and die in his place.
‘If things unfold just as they did in the future, will Lee Dana die?’
Resting her chin on her hand, she looked toward Gamseong High with empty eyes.
‘No, Ban Eun-hyeol, who knows the future, would save her.’
With Dana, the Four Heavenly Kings, and Yeon Ha-yeon all knowing the future, maybe everyone would try to save Dana.
Imagining them filling the gap left by Do Ihyeon, she shook her head vigorously.
‘What’s the point of thinking about this? There’s no way the Gates will open again.’
She’d heard that the process of closing the Gates hadn’t been easy; after going through so much trouble, it would make no sense for them to open again.
The future had already changed.
The Gates had vanished, the Awakened had lost their powers. And the one who fought until the end and died saving Dana, Do Ihyeon, was no longer in Korea.
With things changed this much, even if Gates appeared again, the future would not play out as she had seen.
She checked Ban Eun-hyeol’s message again.
Her finger, about to reply, hesitated on the screen.
‘I’ll reply later.’
It was a bit of petty spite.
She didn’t want to reply right away to those who’d made Do Ihyeon leave.
It was only after a few days that she finally sent Ban Eun-hyeol a reply.
The reply was very short and simple.
Kang Yedam smiled in satisfaction after sending the reply.
***
Morning dawned on the first weekend since Ban Eun-hyeol had returned to school.
Today was the day to visit the new house Ban Eun-hyeol had found, together with the Four Heavenly Kings and Yeon Ha-yeon.
I’d wanted to go see it right away on a weekday evening, but was told no since the moving wasn’t done yet.
Finally, after hearing the unpacking was finished, we arranged to visit today.
“I’m heading out!”
“Going to the library?”
“Yes, I’ll be back by evening.”
If my family knew I was going out to play at a time like this, they’d have something to say.
I lied as naturally as possible, then hurried out the door.
And I headed to the house where Ban Eun-hyeol was planning to stay for a while.