Chapter 237 – The First Snowfall (1)

From the very first day, the Heavenly Class creaked a little.

As its de facto founder, I was genuinely worried about its future. I feared I had created something unnatural. After all, the Heavenly Class was unprecedented.

If this world was based on Miracle Blessing M, then in game terms.

‘A system error. A bug.’

Not only had a background character A become one of the Seven Heroes, but he had also founded his own class. Things going off balance was hardly surprising. Though I had anticipated that.

‘Being prepared is one thing—accepting it is another.’

But over time, I came to realize. All those worries had been unfounded.

The students followed Meain’s instructions without complaint. Yesterday, today, tomorrow, the day after, and the next. They died twenty times a day.

The ways they died were varied. Out of respect for their rights and mental health, I’ll refrain from sharing the details.

Even so, they didn’t give up.

Even if they vomited breakfast, fainted from nosebleeds, or their skin turned ashen—they leaned on trembling knees to rise again.

They straightened backs bent from exhaustion. They somehow revived their bodies and minds soaked in fatigue.

All to build immunity against the primal fear of death.

‘Why are they pushing themselves this hard?’

There was no material reward involved. The fact that not a single one complained made me even more concerned.

If any of them had said they were going insane, I would’ve gladly spoken with Meain. I’d have asked her to tone the class down. This was bordering on abuse.

They were kids who had joined the class simply because they trusted me. They could’ve asked for that and more. They even had the backing of the resources promised by the Prime Minister.

Yet they remained silent. Even with faces like corpses—not a single complaint.

‘Even if they are students from Joaquin Academy, even if they were carefully selected…’

In the end, they were still minors. If something bothered them, they had every right to say so. No one would blame them for that.

It was a right any teenager should be able to exercise. At least, that’s what my first teacher used to preach.

—A child has the right to be a child. It’s much better to cry out when something hurts than to pretend to be mature. Holding it in just makes it rot inside.

‘Master, but why are the teens in this world like this?’

So, about a week after the Heavenly Class started, I asked Speedweapon.

His answer was this.

“Of course it’s tough. Dying is still something I haven’t gotten used to. Every time my vision fades, I get scared. I think, ‘What if this time I really die?’ ‘What if, when I open my eyes, I’m already in the afterlife?’ But why do we endure it? Well… I hadn’t really thought about it because the days have been so chaotic. But now that I do, it must be ambition. A near-voracious desire to be stronger. I think that’s why everyone grits their teeth and bears it. At least, that’s my reason.”

In that moment, I shuddered.

His words eased the uneasiness that had been circling in my heart. To think this was the same Speedweapon who had trembled in fear before the Demonic Siren just six months ago.

‘I never imagined hearing something like that from him.’

At this age, you relearn what strength is—from someone far younger than you.

I was filled with remorse.

“Without realizing it, I kept treating them like mere teenagers.”

Maybe, unknowingly, I had become the very thing I hated most when I was young—a condescending adult. A bitter old man.

***

Time passed mercilessly.

It had already been a month since the yellow and red colors of autumn had vanished. The sky remained covered with gray clouds, and the days repeated their gloomy tone. In tune with that, the students’ clothes grew thicker with each passing day.

Whoosh.

The cold air cut to the bone. The true start of winter. The wind was biting.

“Ugh… brrr.”

I buried my mouth in my scarf. Buttoned up my coat tightly and rubbed my hands together like a mosquito.

“Why is it so cold?”

I didn’t have a mirror, but my lips must have been purple. My hands, ears, and the tip of my nose were red from the blood pooling at my extremities.

Winter in this world felt colder than usual. Before leaving the dorm, I checked—it was around ten below zero. Even for December, it was freezing.

‘If this is just the beginning of winter, what’s the full season going to be like?’

Grumbling from the cold, I picked up the pace.

I was heading to the director’s office. Ever since the Celestial Class was created, I’d been meeting with her every week.

‘Though calling it a “meeting” is a stretch—it’s more like a tutorial.’

When I met with Media, we usually discussed strategies. Not just about the Celestial Class, but also about international affairs, demon movements, etc. Topics you wouldn’t learn in class.

Thanks to that, my narrow perspective had expanded over time. Of course, it also meant extra work, but Media wasn’t free either. She juggled just as much to make time.

Complaining alone would’ve been inconsiderate. Still, with today’s cold, it was hard to get out.

“If it were closer, I wouldn’t even complain.”

Joaquin Academy was huge. Enormous. Ridiculously huge. And with the freezing wind, I noticed it even more.

The dry leaves crunched coldly beneath my feet. If only it snowed, I could at least enjoy the sound of stepping on snow.

I tilted my head back to look at the sky. It remained gray, the clouds moving slowly. It didn’t look like it would snow.

I sighed and lowered my head. Just then, a hint of color appeared at the edge of my vision. Sky blue. A color forgotten in winter fluttered softly. I called her name without thinking.

“Ryozo.”

Ryozo turned her head toward me. She wore a red scarf that matched well with her hair.

She looked at me with a serious expression.

“What’s this? You, outside on a weekend?”

Her tone was cold. I gave a sheepish smile.

“Going to the director’s office. I’ve got weekly meetings with her.”

“I see. What a pain in this cold.”

“Yeah, something like that.”

Dry exchange of words.

Since the Heavenly Class was formed, my relationship with Ryozo had cooled a bit. Not for any particular reason—just because we didn’t cross paths as much.

I had a lot on my plate, and Ryozo seemed busy too. Dying twenty times a day in a subdimensional space and still studying wasn’t easy. I wasn’t the only one strapped for time.

‘But this is just too awkward.’

Ryozo was one of the founding members of the exploration club, the precursor to the Heavenly Class. Even if we were a bit distant now, she was a very special friend to me.

‘There’s still time before my appointment with the director.’

I decided to start a conversation.

“Ryozo, you don’t usually come out on weekends either.”

She stared at me. It was a strange look. Cold yet warm, but not lukewarm.

“I…”

After a short pause, Ryozo spoke. It seemed hard for her, but she finally said it.

“…I’m going to see my mother.”

I blinked. From her point of view, my face must’ve looked ridiculous. Maybe that’s why she gave a faint smile.

“Isn’t it a little cruel to make that face after asking?”

I got flustered.

“Ah, it’s just… well… I’m happy for you.”

“Pfft.”

A short laugh. Her breath dissipated from her tense lips.

“Did you know you’ve changed a lot since I met you? Back when you showed off by throwing that knife at the target…”

“……”

That was when I was completely unhinged. Deep in the adjustment phase to the “Blessing of the Sword God.” A kind of adolescence.

After overcoming that process, as my “character level” rose, I became more normal.

‘Thinking about it now, I was totally insane.’

I scratched my brow with my thumb, embarrassed. Ryozo took the opportunity to tease me.

“Seriously, I thought, ‘What kind of idiot is this?’ But now you’re all sentimental.”

Ryozo spun on her heels and started walking alongside me. Through her sky-blue hair, her profile appeared from time to time.

“Actually, yesterday Saki Hina sent me a message. It was a link with my mother’s current address.”

“……”

“To be honest, I didn’t expect anything. I thought the promise back then was just a way to dodge the issue. But something must’ve changed, because Hina surprised me.”

Something in her words didn’t sit right with me. Ryozo was cautious. The type to check a bridge a thousand times before crossing. But now…

‘She’s convinced.’

She had no doubt that the address was her mother’s. That wasn’t like her.

And it wasn’t that her personality had changed. If it had, I would’ve noticed the moment I saw her today.

‘After nearly a year together…’

So, why was she so sure? The reason was simple.

Ryozo tilted her head slightly.

“Did you figure it out?”

“……”

I didn’t respond. Sometimes silence is the best answer.

Ryozo looked forward again. As if she didn’t want me to see her expression.

“Yes. I already knew my mother’s address. The first thing I did after creating Vixbig was to search for it. And since Vixbig is so powerful, it found her instantly.”

Maybe because she was touching on something painful, her breathing and pulse were uneven.

“But once I had it, I didn’t know what to do. I couldn’t just show up and say, ‘Your daughter’s here.’”

As a child, she must’ve been afraid. Maybe her mother didn’t want to see her. Maybe she’d be rejected. Maybe she had a new family already.

“What’s the point in knowing where she lives if I don’t know what she wants? And if she doesn’t want me, I’d just be a bother. So even though I knew, I pretended I didn’t. But…”

The wind paused for a moment. Her voice, previously barely audible, became clear.

“…For Saki Hina to know means my mother agreed to give her address. Yes. That has to be it.”

Ryozo clenched her fists.

“If Hina knows, it’s because she got it from the Foundation. And of course, that means they asked my mother if she was okay with giving it to me.”

Maybe it was all just rationalization. But even so, she decided to believe it.

Maybe it was just an excuse to justify her impulse. But even so. She made a choice. She’d go see her mother. She gathered her courage.

‘But…’

She couldn’t take the step. That’s why she wandered around campus in the middle of winter. Hesitating.

Then I showed up. And seeing my face amidst all that confusion, she felt like crying.

She tried to run. But she couldn’t move. It had been a month since she last saw me up close. And she had missed me. A lot.

Even though she knew she’d be embarrassed, she stayed. Standing still. And that led to this. To confessing her weaknesses and justifying her decisions.

The metallic taste of blood spread through her mouth as she bit her cheek in embarrassment.

Then—

“Ryozo.”

She looked up at the sound of my voice.

With a smile that could melt the winter cold, I said,

“Let’s go together.”