SPO 51

‘Santaléa District 12.’

It belonged to the capital of Tersen, yet it was a place where people with difficult lives gathered and lived.

Though the degree differed, every area there was equally underdeveloped.

‘And right at the boundary between District 12 and District 11 is…’

“Talent Classroom.”

The moment I hurriedly put my feet down from the bed, the strength drained from my legs.

“Archel!”

Startled, Janet supported me and helped me sit back down on the bed.

“Don’t worry too much. The monsters appeared massively in Streets 2 and 3. It’s close to Street 5, but most of the kids live there.”

I nodded while drinking the water Janet hastily handed me, and she plopped down beside me.

“I checked the identities of the deceased and injured too. None of the Talent Classroom kids were among them. Still, I thought it’d be better if you knew.”

“…Didn’t this article just come out?”

I pointed to the date on the newspaper and the dark window outside, where the sun hadn’t fully risen yet.

Janet rolled her eyes several times and quickly made an excuse.

“The other paper had more detailed information. Um, the guy next door, Benzel, reads the Santaléa Daily… I just happened to glance at it…”

With both hands spread wide, Janet insisted that the Santaléa Daily delivered news faster than the Tersen Daily. I calmed my racing heart.

Judging by how awkwardly she lied, she had clearly checked additional details through the information guild.

Even if it was only for a short time, she had grown attached to the children too. Of course she’d be worried.

Feeling somewhat relieved, I nodded absentmindedly and glanced at the clock.

‘6 a.m.’

Unlike usual, the sky was still pitch black.

“Gloomy.”

The weather wasn’t good.

Worry aside, a student must fulfill her duties.

Just like in my previous life when I had to go to work no matter what, I went to Judea.

“Did you guys hear the news?”

“Monsters appeared…”

“And of all places, in District 12.”

The headline that had already decorated the front pages of the Tersen Daily and the Santaléa Daily quickly swept through the classroom.

In a way, it was a positive reaction.

‘The reason they’re interested in a place like District 12, where they’d normally never go, is because of the Talent Classroom.’

Although the unusually large number of monsters was also of interest, to nobles who always lived in safety, it wasn’t a threat they could truly feel in their skin.

Normally, it would have been nothing more than brief sympathy for a disaster that happened to strangers whose names and faces they didn’t even know.

But their direct encounters with the children had sparked genuine concern.

After school, the atmosphere at the Talent Classroom wasn’t much different.

Fortunately, none of the children seemed physically harmed, but deep shadows lingered on their faces.

The biggest problem was the collapse of the Lartova Factory, the largest source of employment in District 12.

I heard here and there that parents were staying home because work had stopped.

Amid that unsettled atmosphere, just as we finished the last lesson—

“Archel, I don’t see Benjamin.”

Aben approached me with a dark expression.

“Where exactly is this?”

I looked down at the note with Benjamin’s address and glanced around.

Santaléa District 12, Street 4.

Somewhere not far from the Talent Classroom was Benjamin’s house.

“If it’s Seventh Alley on Street 4, we need to turn one more corner.”

After checking a nearly collapsed signpost, Aben turned past a grocery store with a large sign covered in dust.

The pink brick road, stained with age, was lined with old, deteriorating buildings.

With the weather so dark, the street felt like a winter evening.

Watching Aben’s blue hair blend into the darkness as he walked ahead briskly, I quickened my pace to close the distance.

“There aren’t many people around.”

“After something so terrible, it’s wise not to come out in the evening.”

Still, he added in a bright tone that knights were patrolling the area—then suddenly stopped.

“Do you want to go back to Judea now?”

He looked down at me cautiously. I lightly patted his shoulder.

“I don’t want to go alone.”

It had been me who insisted on coming along when he said he’d just get Benjamin’s address.

There was no episode in Dumea where Aben was attacked by a monster.

‘Besides, I’m worried about Benjamin too.’

I was worried about Aben walking around District 12 alone, and about Benjamin, who hadn’t shown up at the Talent Classroom.

“If anything happens, we’ll just run like the wind. Don’t worry.”

I showed him what was hanging over my right shoulder.

A black disk dangled from a strap like a bag. Aben’s eyes filled with curiosity.

“I’ve been wanting to ask since earlier—what is that? A new designer bag?”

He gave it a rather harsh evaluation, saying it was so ahead of fashion it might have gone too far.

Before he could hurt my precious invention’s feelings, I quickly covered his mouth.

“Say hello. This is my magic tool, Ssaengssaengi.”

“A magic tool? You made it, Archel?”

Oh? Such a drastic difference in reaction.

I let out a dry laugh at how his face instantly brightened.

Then I introduced the beta version of Ssaengssaengi, which still had many flaws.

“It’s an escape magic tool for monsters I made in crafting class…”

By the time I finished my brief yet detailed explanation, we had arrived at Seventh Alley.

We carefully approached Unit 21, written on the note, and knocked on the door.

Knock, knock.

“….”

Silence.

“We’re from Judea. Is student Benjamin here?”

Knock, knock, knock.

Aben knocked politely three times.

Only then did we hear movement inside, and a man appeared through a crack in the door.

“Who is it?”

Leaving only a small gap where a foot could fit, a brown-haired man with messy hair asked cautiously.

Trying to see if he resembled Benjamin at all, we introduced ourselves and mentioned Benjamin’s name.

The man looked bewildered.

Then he dropped a thunderbolt.

“That family moved.”

“What?”

He opened the door a bit wider and looked us up and down.

After inspecting Aben’s neat—almost extravagant—appearance and confirming we truly were from Judea, he spoke more calmly.

“District 12, Street 2, Fourth Alley, Unit 27. They moved there last week.”

Bang!

With that, the door shut in our faces.

Aben and I stood there like stone statues for a while.

“Street 2…”

Not only was it much farther in, it was where the monsters had appeared.

And Benjamin had moved to a place known for being so poor it was called a slum.

What had happened to Benjamin?

“Archel, you go back. Since we’re already here, I’ll go see Benjamin and then leave.”

Aben glanced between the dark sky and the watch on his wrist.

But I silently grabbed his arm.

If I sent him alone, I wouldn’t be able to sleep from worry.

“Archel?”

“There’s no time. Let’s go.”

If it was Street 2, it had to be farther out.

The deeper we went, the more the road grew shabby—almost eerie—serving as its own signpost.

‘At this point, it’s not just monsters we need to be wary of.’

The stale air that clung to my skin made me shiver.

The further inside we went, the more tilted the buildings became. By the time we reached Street 2, they looked like abandoned houses on the verge of collapse.

Though it was only 7 p.m., darkness hung over the area like deep night. It felt like someone could disappear at any moment and no one would notice.

“Goodness.”

Aben inhaled sharply beside me.

“People live in a place like this? Benjamin too?”

Straining to see in the dark, he turned on a faint mana lamp and found Benjamin’s house.

At last, we stood before a shack without even a proper window.

Staring at the shabby outer walls where even rats seemed to roam, Aben slowly approached and knocked.

His touch was as careful as if handling glass.

“Is Benjamin here?”

We pressed our ears against the door, determined not to miss even the smallest sound.

“Benjamin? It’s Archel and Teacher Aben. Are you inside?”

Holding our breath, we listened.

A rustling sound came from within.

Exchanging a glance with Aben, we patiently waited for the door to open.

After a long, silent wait, the wooden door let out a piercing creak and slowly opened.

Contrary to our expectation that there would be light inside, it was even darker than outside.

Startled, I lowered my gaze.

There, at last, was Benjamin.

“Benjamin!”

I bent down, whispering his name.

I asked why he hadn’t come to the Talent Classroom and wrapped my arms around his shoulders.

The small body in my arms was trembling.

“Benjamin?”

That wasn’t all.

From his face to his neck and hands, his body was drenched in sweat.

“Danger…”

When a tiny, metallic warning slipped from his lips, Aben immediately pulled both Benjamin and me away from the doorway.