‘That would explain everything.’
If Baek Seo-jun was indeed the true identity of Kim Ho-jun, then everything began to make sense.
His appointment as the academy's headmaster this year could also be linked to his plans for revenge as Baek Seo-jun.
This was the year Baek Seo-jin had enrolled in the academy. Perhaps Kim Ho-jun's ultimate goal was to ruin Baek Seo-jin and, further, to destroy the Baekho Guild as part of his vengeance.
Even from Baek Seo-jin’s current demeanor, it was clear that Baek Seo-jun's revenge was justified.
Although she didn’t know exactly what kind of treatment Baek Seo-jun had endured in the past, the video from this morning had shown a 10-year-old child subjected to unspeakable torment at the hands of villains. Despite this, Baek Seo-jin had shown no sympathy whatsoever, looking at his older brother as if he were some heinous criminal.
And yet, Baek Seo-jin had willingly accepted a procedure to alter his own memories, avoiding any recollection of his older brother and instead deluding himself with endless fantasies.
From that alone, Moriya Yuka deduced that the likelihood of Baek Seo-jun having committed some grievous crime was extremely low. If he had, Baek Seo-jin wouldn’t have needed to manipulate his own memories to justify his actions.
This implied that there had been events in the past so horrific that Baek Seo-jin couldn’t rationalize them without distorting his memories.
Though she didn’t know all the details, Moriya Yuka strongly suspected that Baek Seo-jun had been the victim in all of this.
She didn’t have concrete evidence, but Baek Seo-jin’s behavior offered plenty of clues. The rest, she simply trusted her instincts.
Whether her suspicions were correct or not, she felt certain that she wouldn’t have to wait long to find out.
***
After dinner at the academy, Baek Seo-jin began to survey his surroundings, utilizing his heightened senses as an SSS-class Hunter.
More discreet than ever, he extended his perception cautiously, focusing on the vicinity of the headmaster’s office.
‘If it’s Kim Ho-jun, he must be plotting something.’
Why had Kim Ho-jun taken the position of headmaster at Kangin Academy? Baek Seo-jin was convinced it was to execute some sort of scheme, leveraging the authority and access the position afforded him.
Perhaps he was secretly abducting people and using them for inhumane experiments. Or maybe he was conspiring with the world’s most notorious villains. No, it had to be that.
After all, Kim Ho-jun had committed heinous acts even nine years ago.
There likely wasn’t anyone who had perpetrated atrocities on the level of Kim Ho-jun—except perhaps Baek Seo-jun, who had been dragged off by villains to atone for his supposed "sins" at the age of ten.
‘I’ll uncover just how vile his deeds truly are.’
At that moment, Baek Seo-jin sensed four presences heading toward the headmaster’s office.
‘Ha-yeon and Se-hee? And the other two... Yuka and Yu-ra?’
Lee Ha-yeon and Han Se-hee were moving toward the office together. But they weren’t alone—Moriya Yuka and Kang Yu-ra were with them.
‘No! It’s too dangerous!’
Panic rose in Baek Seo-jin’s chest.
What were the four of them thinking, heading toward that perilous office?
Maybe they intended to do something risky in order to help him. No, that had to be it.
Moriya Yuka and Kang Yu-ra both held feelings for him, and it seemed they had agreed to assist his friends, Lee Ha-yeon and Han Se-hee, in this endeavor.
Perhaps they thought exposing Kim Ho-jun’s crimes and delivering the evidence to him would earn his gratitude. But this was far too dangerous. What if Kim Ho-jun harmed them? How could the four of them hope to handle him alone?
He needed to intercept them before they confronted Kim Ho-jun.
Determined, Baek Seo-jin set off toward the headmaster’s office, planning to block their approach.
‘Damn it!’
As he hurriedly made his way, he saw the four women approaching the headmaster’s office.
"Ha-yeon! Se-hee!"
Calling out to them as he ran, Baek Seo-jin noticed their startled expressions. They looked slightly guilty, as if caught in the act. But he didn’t have time to dwell on their reactions.
He needed to stop them from attempting something so reckless ever again.
"How could you come here alone, knowing how dangerous it is!"
Baek Seo-jin, who rarely raised his voice at his friends, did so now with uncharacteristic intensity.
"Step aside."
The one to respond first was Kang Yu-ra, stepping forward with a resolute expression.
***
Kang Yu-ra was visibly annoyed by Baek Seo-jin’s attempt to block her path. While she knew he had tampered with his own memories and turned into a delusional case, she had no patience to entertain his nonsense at such a critical moment.
Right now, she was on the verge of confronting her own fate—whether she could finally exact revenge on SSS-class villain Park Hyung-tae. And here he was, getting in the way.
"Yu-ra, you don’t understand how serious the situation you’re in is," Baek Seo-jin said earnestly.
"Don’t say my name like we’re close, Baek Seo-jin."
Her voice was cold, sharp enough to send a shiver through even Lee Ha-yeon and Han Se-hee, who stood nearby. Kang Yu-ra, usually introverted and soft-spoken, speaking with such authority was something they had never imagined.
"Yu-ra, I can’t let you go any further! I know you want to help me, and I appreciate it, but... it’s too dangerous!"
Kang Yu-ra was stunned, incredulous at his words. Help him? Since when did she have any such intentions?
How could someone twist reality so much to indulge in such delusions? She couldn’t comprehend it.
‘Dad, Mom... How is it even possible for someone to think like this?’
Her disbelief was so overwhelming that she found herself mentally seeking the guidance of her deceased parents.
It was unfathomable to her how memory-distorting procedures could have such devastating effects. Was this really the result of such a procedure? If so, she couldn’t help but wonder how despicable he must have been to need such a thing in the first place.
"I have no desire to help you," she said icily, her tone unyielding. "Stop imagining things and move aside. I have something important to ask of Headmaster Kim Ho-jun."
***
Baek Seo-jin was momentarily confused by Kang Yu-ra’s mention of a “request.”
A request? Yu-ra is going to make a request of Kim Ho-jun?
What could be so important that someone as introverted as Kang Yu-ra would approach someone as dangerous as Kim Ho-jun?
"I have no intention of helping you."
Her blunt dismissal made no sense to Baek Seo-jin. He couldn’t believe it.
Kang Yu-ra getting involved with Kim Ho-jun? That can’t happen—it shouldn’t happen.
And then it hit him.
"Ah, I see."
Baek Seo-jin was now convinced he understood what was going on. He was absolutely certain his conclusion was correct.
"If you’re planning to ask him to release Ye-jin noona, it won’t work," he said, his voice filled with an air of certainty.
"What are you talking about?" Yu-ra shot back, irritation rising in her tone.
"You’re here to plead with Kim Ho-jun to release Ye-jin noona, aren’t you? I’m telling you, it’s pointless."
"You really don’t make any sense," she muttered, exasperated.
At that moment, Moriya Yuka stepped forward, her gaze sharp and unwavering.
"Baek Seo-jin, I don’t care what kind of delusions you’re suffering from," she began, her voice cold. "But Yu-ra has a personal matter she absolutely needs to discuss with Headmaster Kim Ho-jun. You’re the one standing in the way of something important right now. If you don’t step aside, I’ll have no choice but to report you as mentally unstable."
The blunt declaration stunned Baek Seo-jin. The word mentally unstable struck a chord, leaving him momentarily shaken.
"What? She really isn’t here to help me and has her own reasons to meet Kim Ho-jun?"
No, that couldn’t be true. That would be ridiculous.
How could she, Lee Ha-yeon, and Han Se-hee, all be heading to see Kim Ho-jun without some plan connected to him? It didn’t add up.
They must be trying to help me secretly but are too embarrassed to admit it now that they’ve been caught.
Convinced of his reasoning, Baek Seo-jin felt no conflict. His gaze remained steady as he looked at Moriya Yuka.
"Yuka, you..."
Before he could finish, the door to the headmaster’s office swung open, and Kim Ho-jun emerged.
"Kim Ho-jun!" Baek Seo-jin turned sharply, immediately on guard.
"Baek Seo-jin, stop harassing my guests and leave at once," Kim Ho-jun said, his tone calm but commanding.
"Harassing? Are you insulting my friends right now?" Baek Seo-jin’s voice rose with anger. The word harassing felt like a personal attack, not just on him but on his friends.
"Blocking students who came to consult me about their grades and spouting nonsense—if that’s not harassment, then what is?"
Foll𝑜w current novels on fɾēewebnσveℓ.com.
Kim Ho-jun’s response stopped Baek Seo-jin in his tracks.
"Grades? They’re here for a consultation about their grades?"
Seeing that none of the women refuted Kim Ho-jun’s explanation, Baek Seo-jin began to doubt his earlier assumptions.
Was it possible he had misunderstood the situation? Maybe he owed his friends an apology.
But just as he began to reconsider, a new thought dawned on him.
"Ah, that’s right. My friends are using this consultation as an excuse to get close to Kim Ho-jun. I was trying to stop them because it’s dangerous."
He recalled snippets of the conversation with Yu-ra and Yuka earlier:
"We’ll do whatever it takes to help you."
"We’re willing to take risks for your sake. Trust us."
It had to have been something along those lines. Even if he couldn’t remember the exact words, the sentiment was clear.
Certain of his reasoning, Baek Seo-jin clenched his teeth.
"For now, I’ll trust them and step aside."
If his friends were risking themselves to help him, he couldn’t refuse their request. But he silently vowed that if anything went wrong, he would charge in without hesitation.
For now, he resolved to trust his friends—after all, they were doing this for him.