RASL 04

Chapter 04

Warm late-spring sunlight streamed into the classroom.

Just before the second period began, the homeroom teacher entered Class 1-2 of the first-year high school division.

Only moments ago, an ear-splitting emergency alarm had echoed through the academy.

Had one of the “Abysses” on campus overflowed again?

The teacher had rushed over, most likely to warn everyone not to leave the school building carelessly.

The students waited with tense expressions for their teacher’s instructions.

Then—

“…Huh? That’s…”

The moment they saw the girl who entered through the front door alongside the teacher, the entire class froze.

Standing before the blackboard, the teacher lightly tapped the podium.

“As you all know, Ji Hyo recently returned after being seriously injured. Please keep that in mind and help her avoid overexerting herself for the time being.”

Dozens of eyes turned toward the expressionless girl standing in front of the class.

Her straight hair fell neatly to her waist, and a faint shadow lingered within her deep, lake-blue eyes.

A transfer student? No—there was no such thing as transferring into this school.

“…Seol Ji Hyo?”

“Hey, that’s really Seol Ji Hyo.”

She was the girl who had been involved in an accident just before graduating from middle school.

Of course, the real Seol Ji Hyo was still recovering at her family’s estate, but no one in the classroom realized the truth.

“How is she back at school already?”

“She looks way too fine for someone who went through something like that…”

“Her Core is regeneration, isn’t it?”

“Even so…”

Their murmurs were filled with unease and unfamiliarity.

Anyone with half a brain could tell that not a single person was happy to see her back.

“Ji Hyo, if you’d like to say something to your classmates, go ahead.”

Ji Woo slowly looked around the classroom.

Everyone stared at her with curious eyes, as if a pig that had been dragged into a slaughterhouse had somehow returned alive.

Some of the people who bullied Ji Hyo are in this room.

…Maybe most of them.

Maybe all of them.

Ji Woo tightened her grip on her bag strap.

Among the “memories of Ji Hyo” that So Young had shown her that day were far more than just the accident inside the Abyss.

Unfortunately, in none of those memories could she clearly see the faces of Ji Hyo’s classmates.

Even so, there was one person she remembered.

“Ah, that’s right. Seol Ji Hyo. You go.”

The boy who had shoved Ji Hyo toward the infected creature.

As Ji Hyo was pushed violently, his face had flashed across the memory for less than a second.

It had been only an instant, but Ji Woo remembered it perfectly.

He’s definitely in this class too.

Among the dozens of eyes fixed on her, one gaze stood out for staring at her without the slightest hesitation.

Ji Woo naturally turned toward it.

“…”

Bright fluorescent orange hair.

Piercings covering his nose and lips.

The moment their eyes met, Ji Woo narrowed hers ever so slightly.

Found you.

It’s him.

Although Ji Woo had finally come outside after twelve long years, she had no time to be excited.

There was a saying:

If you want to catch a tiger, you have to enter its den.

By that logic, Gaon Special Academy was Ji Woo’s tiger’s den.

That infected creature she had encountered earlier?

It didn’t bother her in the slightest.

The truly disgusting things were right here.

“Damn, did you watch that movie? I nearly pissed myself watching it.”

The guy who couldn’t finish a sentence without saying “damn.”

His face was covered in piercings, and he didn’t even bother wearing his uniform jacket or tying his necktie properly.

The boy with the fluorescent-colored hair made as much noise as ever.

The entire time she sat in the back row, Ji Woo quietly watched him.

“You want your phone back, don’t you?”

“Try understanding what I’m saying the first time, got it?”

…No doubt about it.

He was the same boy she had seen in the memory.

Just as I thought. He’s in the same class.

Of course, he was only the one whose face had been clearly captured.

There had been others who entered the Abyss with Ji Hyo.

For example, the hand that had shoved Ji Hyo’s shoulder. Around its wrist had been a bracelet with a tiny four-leaf clover charm.

Or the feet walking close beside Ji Hyo. They had been wearing red sneakers from a well-known brand.

The voices, the color of someone’s nail polish, even the shape of a backpack that had briefly appeared…

Every tiny detail was engraved clearly into Ji Woo’s memory.

But at the moment, she couldn’t find anyone who matched those clues.

…Except for that fluorescent-haired idiot.

If I deal with him first, the others might come spilling out like links in a chain.

Scrape.

Just as she pushed back her chair and stood up—

“Hey! Did you hear? About the alarm that went off earlier.”

Someone burst through the back door.

“Why’s everyone making such a big deal out of it? Wasn’t it just a malfunction? The homeroom teacher didn’t say anything.”

Ah. The siren.

Ji Woo had heard it too.

Right in front of the Abyss.

So it had been loud enough to reach the classroom.

“No, it wasn’t a malfunction. I heard the Purification Squad was dispatched after the alarm, and when they got there, an infected creature was already dead.”

“Huh? Then who killed it?”

“Exactly! The chairman is gathering all the teachers right now to figure out who did it. The faculty office is in complete chaos.”

…

Ji Woo quietly sat back down.

“The Purification Squad arrived less than five minutes after the alarm, but whoever it was had already killed it before they got there.”

“That fast?”

“And not just killed it. It was completely smashed. Every bone in its body was crushed. At first, they thought it was a human corpse instead of an infected creature.”

…Was it really that bad?

She didn’t know.

She hadn’t bothered to check.

“Maybe one of the combat instructors happened to be passing by? Didn’t the security cameras catch anything?”

There were security cameras?

Ji Woo’s head snapped around.

“I heard it was a student in uniform.”

“A student? Then maybe one of the Special Division students?”

“No idea. They couldn’t see the person’s face.”

The classroom grew increasingly restless.

An action she had taken without much thought had unexpectedly become the center of attention.

This was starting to become dangerous.

Seol Ji Hyo’s Core was known for regeneration.

It wasn’t exactly a Core suited for defeating infected creatures.

If it became known that “Seol Ji Hyo” had single-handedly defeated an infected creature barehanded, people would naturally become suspicious.

And if word reaches the main family… Grandfather will definitely drag me back by force.

Grandfather hated seeing Ji Woo use her Core.

More accurately, he hated the idea of “Seol Ji Woo” becoming known to the world.

If Grandfather found out, her revenge would be over before it even began.

I can’t let that happen.

After all, even after Ji Hyo ended up in that condition, Grandfather had remained silent.

That was just how much he hated unnecessary commotion.

Still… if they didn’t capture my face, I should be okay… right?

She had to be.

Suppressing the unease creeping into her chest, Ji Woo absentmindedly flipped through her textbook.

Then suddenly, she felt someone’s gaze fixed on the right side of her face.

“…?”

She instinctively turned her head.

A male student was staring straight at her.

Her deskmate.

…What? Don’t tell me he figured out I was the one who did it—

…Ah.

The moment their eyes met, Ji Woo unconsciously held her breath.

His appearance was striking enough to steal anyone’s attention.

The hair swaying gently before her eyes was so black that it seemed to swallow even the sunlight.

Jet-black hair, as though it had absorbed every color in the world itself.

In contrast, the ash-gray eyes staring directly at her were empty, as though they reflected nothing at all.

Almost reflexively, Ji Woo looked at the name tag pinned to the left side of his chest.

—Moon Yujin.

There was always the possibility that he had been one of the people who bullied Ji Hyo.

Thinking that, she glanced down at his shoes.

Black dress shoes.

Neither the brand nor the style matched what she had seen in the memory.

Shoes don’t match. Pass.

Next, she examined his hands.

There were no bracelets or any other distinctive accessories.

No accessories either. Pass.

In that case…

“Hello.”

She decided to speak to him.

She wanted to hear his voice.