Chapter 225 – Professor (1)

Light green hair braided like a model student’s, and skin so pale you could see the veins. The skirt, without any adornment, fell to the knees.

Up to that point, it was the usual image of her I knew well. But today, something was different. Very different.

‘Senior…? Ha-na?’

Senior Ha-na smiled softly and gently closed the door. She walked in with light steps, hands behind her back, and asked.

“Are you busy?”

I looked at her, stunned.

“Senior Ha-na, where are your glasses?”

Yes. Right now, Senior Ha-na wasn’t wearing glasses.

That was all. But how could someone change so much just by taking off their glasses?

Senior Ha-na had always been a girl with a plain appearance.

It’s not that I want to judge by looks, but that was the reality.

In an academy full of beauties, she stood out precisely because of how normal she looked—or so I thought.

“Ah, that?”

Senior Ha-na smiled slightly and pulled the glasses from the pocket of her skirt.

Then she twirled them lightly between her white fingers.

“These glasses don’t have a prescription. You know? Would you have preferred I wore them?”

“…I didn’t mean it like that.”

“If you don’t like it, I can put them back on.”

“No, no.”

I quickly shook my head. She smiled with her eyes and put the glasses away again.

“Kang Geom-Ma, you’ve figured it out by now, haven’t you? These glasses aren’t normal. They’re an artifact called ‘Veil Mirror,’ made by the Association to conceal identity.”

Right now, I was completely bewildered—something unusual for me. The reason my eyes were so wide open was the change in Senior Ha-na’s appearance.

Her name was San Ha-na, but it felt like a complete stranger was approaching me.

“And why did the Association give you that, Senior? More importantly, why are you showing your real face now…?”

“Well, because there’s no longer a need to hide it. To put it simply, when someone goes to a job interview, they take off their glasses too, right? It’s kind of like that!”

Job interview? What the hell was she talking about?

And more importantly…

Despite my mastery of the “Mental Spirit Level,” which allowed me to stay calm in almost any situation, I was now stammering—unlike Senior Ha-na’s serene demeanor.

‘Not even when I faced Kuarne did I feel like this.’

She had only taken off her glasses. And with that single change, the person before me seemed completely different.

Normal appearance? I take it back.

That girl was anything but ordinary. Even among the countless beauties at this academy, she stood out overwhelmingly.

One could say she was on the same level as Abel, considered the most beautiful woman in this world. In fact, depending on perspective, some might find her even more attractive.

Her crescent-shaped eyes and long lashes that shimmered like petals. Saying she was “cute” didn’t do it justice. That harmony of features deserved to be called “beautiful.”

‘Why had she been hiding such a face behind glasses?’

Any average actress would be overshadowed standing next to her. She’d steal all the spotlight.

And now she was alone with me, in this private library, in the middle of the night. Maybe because of the curve of her lips, the atmosphere turned strangely seductive.

Thud.

Senior Ha-na stood right in front of me. The distance between us was barely the width of the desk.

She was the first to speak.

“Oh dear, what a scatterbrain I am. This is the first time I’m seeing you since you became a Hero of the Seven Stars, isn’t it? I almost forgot the basics. My apologies, my apologies~ Age is catching up with me.”

Senior Ha-na tapped her head lightly. Then she held her skirt with both hands and bowed in a formal greeting.

“I, Meain Poison, former director of Joaquin Academy, humbly greet the great Heavens, the Heavenly Sword.”

She raised her face slightly.

Her braided hair fell over her left cheek, and as she tilted her pale neck, her eyes locked with mine.

“Or would you prefer I call you Demon King?”

I felt as if a block of ice had settled in my chest.

***

First floor of the main building of Joaquin Academy, Starbucks.

As expected of a café during exam season, it was packed with students even at night.

At a table in the corner, Saki and Speedweapon were seated.

Both had come to discuss the creation of the Heavenly Class , as well as prepare for exams.

“Hmm.”

Speedweapon was resting his chin in his hand, staring into space, with a pencil stuck between his upper lip and nose.

Seeing this, Saki frowned.

“Speedweapon, I skipped my nap because you insisted, and now you’re the one zoning out. What is that supposed to be?”

“Ah, sorry.”

The pencil slid off his nose and rolled across the table. Speedweapon scratched the back of his head, embarrassed.

“It’s just that I remembered something right before I saw the Director.”

“If you’re going to brag about meeting the Academy Director one-on-one, you can stop right there. I’m not jealous.”

“Well… I did want to brag a little… No, that’s not it!”

Saki glanced at him sideways while bringing the straw of her drink to her mouth.

“What happened? Tell me.”

Not that she was really interested.

She just thought it might be a bit of entertainment to kill the boredom.

“Well…”

Speedweapon hesitated. He looked around once. Then he leaned toward Saki and spoke in a low voice.

“Just as I arrived at the Director’s office, before opening the door, I happened to overhear her on a call. And the person on the other end…”

“Were you eavesdropping? Don’t you know that’s a crime?”

Saki leaned back, disgusted. At her reaction, Speedweapon quickly raised his voice.

“No, no, it’s not that! Really!”

At that moment, all the students’ eyes locked onto him.

“……”

The students, tense from exam season, looked at him like they were about to stab him with the pencils in their hands.

“Urgh.”

Speedweapon shrank in his seat, almost hiding himself. After about thirty seconds of uncomfortable silence, the stares finally dispersed.

Relieved, Speedweapon glared at Saki, who continued sipping her iced americano like it wasn’t her problem.

‘Damn it.’

He muttered, nearly inaudibly, seething inside.

“It’s not like I tried to listen. She was using speakerphone…!”

“Ah, well. Then you should’ve clarified that earlier. Do you know how easily people can misunderstand you with the way you phrased it? Also, you want to be Kang Geom-Ma’s right hand, and you’re reacting like that, raising your voice? Remember the higher your position, the more you have to watch your words and behavior. That’s one and two.”

Speedweapon clenched his teeth, swallowing his anger.

Saki’s words were right—painfully right.

From now on, he would have to behave like a rock.

“Whew…”

Speedweapon sighed in resignation.

Saki looked at him indifferently.

“So, who was the person on the other end of the call?”

“…It’s not a big deal… It’s just that the voice sounded way too familiar. So I replayed it in my head and suddenly realized. The person talking so casually with the Director…”

Saki tilted her head, curious about Speedweapon’s suddenly serious face.

Who could it be to make him this solemn? Speedweapon continued.

“It was Senior Ha-na… I’m sure of it, it was Senior Ha-na’s voice. And she was calling the Director ‘our little sister~,’ like really affectionately.”

Saki’s sky-blue eyes widened to twice their size.

***

“…….”

The confusion and shock swirled in my head. It was the same feeling as when Senior Ha-na wrote that postscript in her message.

But at the time I thought it was just a joke playing on my name, “Kang Geom-Ma.”

‘And yet…’

San Ha-na… no, Meain Poison, drew a thin curve with her lips.

Seeing that, it became clear. She was definitely Media’s twin.

The Senior Ha-na before me looked like a slightly younger version of the director.

Senior Ha-na spoke again, with diction as clear as a news anchor.

“Hello, Mr. Demon King?”

…Hearing it again chilled my chest. It was hard to maintain composure.

“Ugh.”

Senior Ha-na lifted herself and sat on the desk, twisting slightly to look at me.

She laughed heartily.

“Pff, are you really making that ‘how the hell did she know?’ face? Well, I guess it’s normal to react like that. After all, we’re talking about the entity that inhabits you being the Demon King.”

A chill ran down my spine. Her words hit the core like a spear. She spoke as if she’d known for a long time something I had only recently discovered.

“I won’t tell anyone. So don’t make that scary face.”

“…Where? No, how did you find out?”

“Ugh! Using honorifics all of a sudden makes it feel like we’re distant… can’t you just talk to me like always?”

“I can’t…”

I felt a sense of déjà vu.

I’d said something similar to Speedweapon myself.

“It’s fine.”

Senior Ha-na smiled, satisfied.

“Let’s cut to the chase. Where did you hear that?”

I raised my tone, making my distrust clear in my eyes. I didn’t care if she was a former director. I was ready to draw my sword if needed.

That’s when Senior Ha-na abruptly leaned in.

“Let the title make the man… even if we know each other, suspicion is a healthy habit. Congratulations, Cadet Kang Geom-Ma!”

She patted my head like a teacher praising her student.

“You probably already guessed, but… ah! When I say ‘Duri,’ I’m referring to Media. Dad and I always called her Duri.”

First daughter: Ha-na.

Second daughter: Duri.

Her surname “San,” in ancient Korean, would be “Mea,” which explains her name Meain.

‘From the start, I’d thought her surname was odd.’

It all fit. Senior Ha-na withdrew her hand, which had been impossible to reject.

“Anyway. Around 40 years ago, after handing over the director’s post to Duri, I went wandering through the Demon Territories. During that time, I discovered several things. Among them, that the power dwelling inside you is that of the Demon King. What was the exact source? I can’t tell you. It’s been so long I forgot.”

She undid the braid in her hair and shook it gently. Her mint-colored hair swayed in the air.

With a fresh expression on her face, Senior Ha-na continued.

“Honestly, I didn’t really believe it. The Demon King? It sounded ridiculous. So, to confirm, I came back to the academy undercover as a student. Maybe it was a bit of a hassle, but I couldn’t resist the curiosity. Though it may not look like it, I was once the director.”

She stuck out her tongue playfully. I ignored it and asked directly.

“Why as a student? Even with those weird glasses?”

“If I came as-is, Duri would’ve found out right away. And then, she’d probably try to hand the director’s job back to me.”

“Couldn’t you have come as an instructor or professor?”

“I’d be found out too quickly. Students were the safer option. Duri is so strict she never checks student records. Even if we’re twins, I have to admit her love for the students is admirable.”

With an innocent tone, Senior Ha-na lightened the mood.

“That’s how I joined the exploration club~ and watched you from the side. I wanted to make sure the prophecy was real. And wow, so far, everything fits perfectly!”

“Prophecy?”

“Oh, that slipped out.” She smiled.

She was slippery. Was this a skill honed with age?

If she was Media’s twin, then Senior Ha-na must also be fairly old.

“Don’t worry. If you don’t want to tell me everything, I won’t press.”

I crossed my arms, staring indifferently.

“More importantly why reveal yourself now?”

Senior Ha-na made a “V” sign with her fingers.

“For two reasons. First, because it looks like humanity might be wiped out in less than two years, and I can’t just sit back. And second, like I said…”

“……?”

“I want to work as the professor in charge of the special class you’re creating, Geom-Ma.”

She flashed a flawless smile, showing her white teeth.

“We’re in the same club, right? Wouldn’t it be so sad to leave me out?”