## Chapter 128 – 128. Research Society (2)
#128. Research Society (2)
“W, why are you here…?”
Lumina, who met my gaze, took a step back.
“…It’s not what you think, so please don’t misunderstand.”
My head was already a mess, and I didn’t want to add to it with some weird misunderstanding.
“I simply came to join the research society.”
“…You want to join our research society?”
The disbelief in her eyes deepened.
If it were the Central Research Society, I wouldn’t have gotten this kind of reaction.
But Diabology was one of the lowest-ranking personal research societies, so insignificant it could disappear tomorrow without anyone batting an eye.
She was already uncomfortable with the guy she didn’t like sitting next to her in class. Now, out of hundreds of research societies, I’d come to join the exact one she was in. I could only imagine how she felt.
“…I’m interested in demons and stuff like that. But it seems like this is the only place that studies them.”
If you were to ask why Diabology was the only research society out of hundreds that studied demons, the reason was simple.
People might have different reasons for earning money, but a mage’s research always boiled down to one goal: improving their skills.
Unless you were a black magician, studying demons wouldn’t help you improve your skills. Naturally, few people would study them.
If personal curiosity was the goal, you could just ask the church to let you see their records.
The church was the undisputed authority on research related to demons and mana.
However, to do that, you’d have to be investigated to make sure you weren’t a black magician, and you’d have to fulfill some requests from the church.
‘Besides, you can’t even apply to see the records unless you’re a 3rd class or higher.’
As a 5th class elementalist, I didn’t have the authority to view the church’s records.
Promotion exams were also restricted for first-year students. Supposedly to prevent the occasional death.
“Um… the president isn’t here right now, but would you like to fill out a membership application and go?”
It wasn’t really my place to say, but I thought it would be better for her if I looked for another research society. Being in the same research society as someone who was wary of me would be uncomfortable for me too.
Lumina’s reaction of trying to accept my membership was surprisingly difficult to understand.
“No, I’ll just come back next time.”
Of course, there probably wouldn’t be a next time.
“W, wait a minute!”
But Lumina grabbed my arm and stopped me from leaving.
“Please join us…!”
“…I said I’d come back next time, didn’t I?”
“That’s a lie! I can see it in your eyes!”
She was more perceptive than she looked.
“If we don’t fill our quota by the end of the week, we’ll be disbanded…! Please help us!”
Of course, there was a reason she was so willing to accept my membership.
“Still, wouldn’t it be better to find someone else? It’d be uncomfortable for you if someone you didn’t like was in the same research society.”
“…Huh?”
Lumina’s eyes changed. She looked like she didn’t understand.
“You don’t like me, Hyunwoo?”
“Didn’t you?”
“N, no!”
Lumina’s face turned redder than I’d ever seen, and she raised her voice for once.
“Considering you always try to end the conversation quickly when I talk to you, and you only use honorifics with me?”
That wasn’t all. When she talked to other kids, she laughed and had fun, but when I talked to her, she had trouble even answering.
Her answers were always just “Yes,” “No,” or “I’m okay.”
“…It’s not unreasonable for you to think that way, Hyunwoo. But I hope you know that it’s not because I dislike you.”
Lumina looked at me with eyes that didn’t waver, unlike before. It didn’t seem like a lie to get out of the situation.
I wondered if I should ask her why, but it was enough for now to know that she didn’t dislike me.
“Okay.”
“…S, so, about joining…?”
“I’ll do it.”
“Ah…!”
A smile finally appeared on her face. Her eyes, relaxed as if relieved, seemed to stimulate a man’s protective instincts.
I filled out a membership application in the messy club room.
Surprisingly, there were desks and chairs.
“Thank you. The president will process your membership application within this week when he comes.”
“But where did that president go?”
“Ah…”
Lumina gave an awkward smile.
“…Actually, our research society’s funding has been almost completely cut off. So, not only do we not have any research funds, but we’ve also run out of activity funds, so the president is working part-time…”
“…Really?”
“……Yes.”
The president was working part-time because he didn’t have money. At this point, it wasn’t so much a research society as a social club, wasn’t it?
“Y, you can’t return the membership application!”
As if she thought I was going to cancel my membership, Lumina put the application in her robe pocket and desperately defended it.
As expected, she was more perceptive than she looked.
“I’m not going to ask for it back. Instead, can I borrow some books related to demons or black magic?”
“Books…? Wouldn’t it be better to look for those in the main library?”
“I haven’t been here long enough to get a library card yet.”
“Ah…”
Lumina went into the club room, saying to wait a moment. She rummaged through the junk and pulled out a few books.
How did she find the books in that mess?
“I chose the most basic books. You don’t have to return them right away, so you can read them slowly.”
“Thanks.”
With this, I finished joining the research society and got the books I wanted. Now that I had nothing left to do at the Magic Tower, I was about to go home.
Ding.
If it weren’t for the unexpected message.
***
There were several empty classrooms in the Magic Tower that weren’t used much anymore. This was one of those classrooms.
Choi Hyena was in an empty classroom, watching the setting sun and waiting for someone.
Each second felt like an hour.
Her heart was beating faster than ever, and her legs kept shaking.
She had been agonizing over this for the past two days.
Should she tell the truth, or should she just bury it?
Could she excuse her lie by saying it was just because she was jealous, because she loved him so much?
Choi Hyena had been solving even the most difficult magic problems that adults struggled with since she was a child, but this time, she couldn’t answer easily.
The thought that her lie might hurt him more deeply than she thought kept running through her head.
‘…Can I make up for the mistake I made?’
When Kang Hyunwoo brought up the pregnancy and worried about her, she was happy, but more than anything, she was anxious.
No matter how well she tried to package it, she was just a villain who had used the pregnancy card to tie him down.
‘…I have to tell him now.’
She had so many thoughts.
But there was only one thing that always lingered in her mind like the right answer.
Creak, the classroom door opened, and a familiar face appeared.
“I thought you were absent today?”
She had locked herself in her workshop and thought of his face countless times a day, but she had never once told him the truth.
Her hands and feet would always stiffen, and she couldn’t speak as if something was stuck in her throat.
“I have something to tell you.”
But she had to tell him the truth now.
She took a difficult step forward and stood in front of Kang Hyunwoo.
As she looked at his face, she remembered the smile he had shown her. That gentle, warm smile he had given her to reassure her in a situation where he might die. No lie could stand before that smile.
She had betrayed his smile.
She had practiced countless times in her head, but every time she tried to open her mouth, her heart would pound.
What if he hated her? What if he was disappointed? Just the thought of it made her feel like she couldn’t breathe.
But she didn’t want her lie to divide them.
“…It was a lie.”
“Huh?”
She had been comforting herself by saying that her lie was too small and trivial. But now, that small lie was growing bigger and bigger.
She was afraid that she would hurt him even more if she wasn’t honest. Knowing that she couldn’t run away anymore, it was too difficult to take a step forward.
Even so, she wanted to approach him.
To become herself, not a villain.
“The pregnancy was actually a lie.”
She mustered her courage before this lie could drive them further apart.
“…I’m sorry. I didn’t intend to deceive you… no, I did intend to deceive you. It was because I was jealous. I didn’t like that you had another woman, and I thought that if things continued like this, you would leave me for another woman soon…!”
With the hope that Kang Hyunwoo would understand her, she blurted out her disorganized words and looked at him.
And she realized.
Reality was not a fairy tale or drama full of hope.
She was not in Kang Hyunwoo’s coldly frozen eyes. His gaze pierced her heart like a sharp blade.
Her words gradually lost their shape and collapsed under that gaze.
She saw her pathetic self in the miserably crushed voice, not even knowing what she was saying.
Her face had long been a mess of cold sweat.
Even so, she swallowed hard, wondering if there was still hope, and looked at him.
“…Let’s take some time apart.”
“Huh…?”
But that short, decisive word was all it took to end everything.
“I’ll contact you later.”
At first, she thought she had misheard. She had expected everything to go well, as she had hoped.
It wasn’t like that at all.
Countless questions arose in her mind. Why couldn’t she change his mind? Was she not good enough?
Even after Kang Hyunwoo left, she stood there for a long time, watching his back.
Only a cruel silence settled in the classroom where she was left alone.
Why did this happen? What else should she have said? No matter how much she thought about it, she couldn’t find the answer.
***
After a brief meeting with Choi Hyena, I returned home and lay down.
I didn’t even feel like going to the dojo today.
“…It’s not easy.”
In fact, when Choi Hyena suddenly contacted me to meet in an empty classroom, I vaguely knew that she would talk about the pregnancy.
I had prepared myself not to just let it go, no matter what Choi Hyena said. That way, she wouldn’t lie next time.
But when I saw Choi Hyena admitting her mistake and sincerely asking for forgiveness, my heart wavered for a moment.
Seeing her precarious appearance, I wondered if it would be right to just forgive her here and end it.
Ding-
[Tip. Don’t be lenient with your lover’s mistakes. It will only ruin the relationship in the long run and make you suffer. The important thing is that the other person deeply realizes what their actions meant. A light and quick forgiveness can be even more hurtful to each other.]
However, one screen that appeared before my eyes changed my decision.
“…Dating app advocate.”
But this time, he was right.
I put aside my uneasy feelings and hurried to get ready to go out. I wasn’t going to the dojo. There was no way I could train properly at the dojo with the way I was feeling now.
[Phantom Shifter]
My body becomes transparent.
I’m going to move up the assassination of the district mayor, which was originally scheduled for two days later, to today.
That’s right. This was revenge and a way to vent my feelings.
