Chapter 49
I just left Eiden Hill, which was a 'no-entry zone,' and someone saw me. I couldn't tell who it was from just their voice alone, but it was clearly a female voice. If it was a student, then that would be somewhat fortunate, but if it was a teacher, then that would be a problem.
I would be referred to the disciplinary committee for violating school rules and would be disciplined without mercy. The Florence Disciplinary Commission had a reputation for being inflexible. However, if it was Ye-Jin, then it might be possible to convince her. If I persuaded her well, she might forgive me somehow. In the worst-case scenario, it could be Min-Seo instead of Ye-Jin. Then, in one way or another, the future of my school life would be tiring. If things went wrong, I decided to cast the curse of fainting and run away.
These were the thoughts that passed through my mind in the span of a second. I resigned myself to my fate and turned my head to identify the owner of the voice.
"Oh."
Fortunately, it was neither Ye-Jin nor Min-Seo. My stiff facial muscles relaxed, and a smile automatically formed on my face. I couldn't be any happier to see her face.
“Ah, it was... you,” Jin-Seo said after seeing my face as if she was relieved.
Then she brought the cigarette wedged between her fingers to her mouth and deeply inhaled a breath of smoke. The series of actions that took place felt so obvious and natural. I wasn’t particularly a goody two shoes myself, but wasn’t she a bit too brazen?
“You don’t even put it out anymore.”
It felt like Jin-Seo was glancing at me, but she quickly turned her head and continued to burn her cigarette. I wasn’t entirely sure, but it seemed like she was a little angry. Jin-Seo was the type of person that didn’t show her feelings on her face, so it was difficult to tell.
The smoke she exhaled was blown away by the wind. The smoke smelled like fragrant coffee. Come to think of it, there was always the faint scent of coffee on her. I quietly watched her smoke. Only after the cigarette was burnt out, and once only the butt of the cigarette remained, was I barely able to open my mouth to speak.
“Why are you—”
Flick.
Jin-Seo took out another cigarette, put it in her mouth, and lit the cigarette using the lighter. The words that I was about to say faded into oblivion. It seemed like she was completely uninterested in listening to what I had to say. I also didn’t want to talk to someone who didn’t want to listen. I just looked around as I soothed my heart. There was a crackling sound from flying insects hitting the street lamp, and ants were crawling on the ground while carrying various things.
This was a very remote place in Florence Academy, so no one was here.
‘Oh, but isn’t that...’
“Isn’t that Teacher Ye-Jin?”
“Cough! Ugh... What?" Jin-Seo let out a shrill cough, and she quickly threw her cigarette down the drain. Her movements were very swift. Then she glanced around her surroundings. Her eyes, which widened in surprise, soon narrowed.
"Where?"
"Right there. She’s coming.”
“I don’t see her.”
"Of course. It was a lie."
Jin-Seo looked at me blankly. It was a dumbfounded expression.
"What are you doing?"
“Why do you keep smoking that stuff when it’s bad for you?” I said with the kindest smile I could muster.
In situations like this, it was best to smile and see how things would play out. After all, there was a saying that one couldn’t spit on a smiling face.
“...”
As expected, she put the pack of cigarettes back into her pocket in silence. If possible, I would have liked to confiscate it entirely, but there was no justification for doing so, and I was not in a position to do so either. I was not a teacher, after all.
“Smoking on campus results in expulsion.”
That was why I mentioned the school rules. Jin-Seo didn't show any signs of fluster and said right away, “Entering a prohibited zone also results in expulsion.”
"Is that so? I didn't know.”
I knew that the school rules were strict, but I had no idea that someone could get expelled from school just by entering a prohibited area.
“Then let’s just ignore each other’s transgressions. Why are you here?”
I quickly changed the topic. If I continued to talk about the school rules, it would be my loss. No matter how inflexible the Florence Disciplinary Committee was, it wouldn’t be inflexible to even Jin-Seo, the chairman’s daughter. She lowered her gaze to the drain where she had dumped the cigarette butt.
“I dropped my phone, you see.”
I glanced inside the sewer. I couldn't see anything because it was too dark. With the naked eye, it was impossible to tell whether there was a phone down there or not. It seemed that it would be difficult to lift the drainage lid and take out the phone. I couldn't even see her phone in the first place, and I didn't even know how deep the sewer was.
“Is that why you were standing around here?”
"Yeah." Jin-Seo nodded.
If her phone had fallen down the drain, then all she had to do was go home and ask her dad to buy her a new one. Why was she just sitting here while smoking a cigarette? Sometimes she did things I couldn’t understand. Perhaps it would be accurate to say that she did things that were asinine.
“So, do you mind if you lend me your phone?” Jin-Seo asked while reaching out to me. I was surprised, so I retreated backward a little.
“My phone? Why?"
“I have to call home right now."
"Now?"
"Now."
Her tone was firm. Her face was expressionless as always, but there also seemed to be hints of anxiousness. It looked like her saying that she needed to call home was not a lie. I readily handed my phone over to her. All information related to the Voodoo Cult was hidden and locked, so there was nothing to worry about.
Jin-Seo used my phone to call someone.
Buzz buzz–!
Then, a vibrating sound came out from somewhere. Jin-Seo took her phone out of her pocket with a nonchalant expression. Then she hung up on her incoming call.
She had called her own phone number with my phone.
Jin-Seo returned my phone to me.
“My number.”
I was speechless.
"You... No, earlier... You said your phone fell down the drain.”
“That was a lie.”
“You said you had to call home.”
“That was a lie too.”
I bitterly picked up the phone. Even after picking up the phone, I was unable to formulate any words for a while. It felt like I had been stabbed in the back.
“You’re lying a bit too much, don’t you think?”
“You did it earlier too.”
She wasn’t wrong. I stared at her face. As always, she was staring at me with her transparent eyes that showed no emotion. It smelled a little like coffee.
“Then let’s just ignore each other’s transgressions. Right?"
"Huh?"
When Jin-Seo said that, she had a smile that was as clear as the azure skies. This was the first time she had looked at me in the face and smiled. I didn't know if it was actually the first time, but at the very least, it felt like this was the first time.
The sun was setting, and her smile was slowly tinged with the sunset.
“Revenge,” she said.
I had no way of comprehending the meaning behind those words.
* * *
I returned home straight away. I felt weird for some reason. It was a strange feeling, like my mind was floating.
[She got you.] Legba said as if he was making fun of me. I felt offended by the way he was speaking to me.
“What are you talking about?”
[Just admit it. Are you still trying to salvage your self-esteem?]
“No, I mean, what in the world do you want me to admit?”
[Oh, look at the temper.]
I ignored Legba's words and ejected voodoo magic from my fingertips.
I was planning to organize my thoughts by roughly drawing any spell array, but somehow it didn't come out well. It was because my head was cluttered with thoughts. So many things happened in just one day. What could have taken weeks to happen happened in a single day. It would be strange if I wasn't tired. I lay down on the bed and closed my eyes, but sleep still did not come. I tossed and turned like that for several minutes.
[If you don't like sleeping pills, how about sleep inducers?] Legba subtly suggested. I shook my head. They were both similar stuff, anyway.
[Alright. Sleep when you die, then. I can’t believe this guy.] Legba clicked his tongue. It was not because I didn’t want to sleep. I just didn’t want to depend on drugs.
Then, a brilliant idea occurred to me—casting a voodoo spell on myself.
If I used the curse of fainting on myself, then I would be able to wake up after passing out for thirty minutes. Then I wouldn’t have to suffer from a lack of sleep. Whenever I was tired, I could cast a voodoo spell on myself. It was almost like taking a nap.
“Wait, why didn’t I think of this before?”
[Because it doesn’t make sense. Fainting and sleeping are distinctly different concepts.]
"Is that so?"
It was a little regretful. I thought it was a pretty good idea.
[For your information, it is possible to cast a voodoo spell on yourself. Although it is not very useful to do so.]
While I was thinking about things in a daze, Legba's voice leaked through. This was the first time hearing that I could cast a spell on myself. It was also information that I hadn't been curious about in the first place. After all, there was no reason to cast a spell on myself.
[Indeed. That's why it's useless.]
“Then why did you tell me all that?”
[The teacher that you saw during the day. I think his name was Do-Jin, the guy with dark circles under his eyes who carries around a blade.] Legba muttered as if searching for his memory.
Do-Jin was the only one with dark circles who carried around a blade. I nodded.
"Yes. Why are you talking about him all of a sudden?”
[He seemed to be able to use blessings without drawing blessing arrays. Am I right?]
I searched my memory.
Come to think of it, I had never seen Do-Jin draw a blessing array. Nevertheless, he was always able to maintain excellent physical abilities. It was as if the blessings were permanently active.
"That's right."
[Casting a spell on oneself. If you are able to learn that skill, you can constantly maintain the voodoo spells throughout your body at all times, just like Do-Jin. If you can understand it properly, you can use that skill for blessings as well.] Legba said calmly.
“...Really?" I asked, trembling. I couldn't quite understand what he was saying.
Since I was tilting my head for a while, Legba spoke first as if he was frustrated.
[What I mean is that you can use Do-Jin's tricks too.]
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