“Your wrist is pretty much healed. You can be discharged now. Just be careful when using scissors, okay?”
As soon as I got the green light from my attending physician early on Sunday morning, I headed over to the payment counter.
And there, I saw some familiar faces.
“Hello.”
“Na-me!”
Yuna’s two older brothers, Seo Maru and Seo No-eul, waved their hands cheerfully.
“Are you getting discharged?”
“Yeah. I was moved to a shared room yesterday, but I ended up costing 900,000 won in just two days. My mom was completely against staying in the hospital. Mom, this is Yuna’s friend. The one who treated me.”
“Hello.”
Yuna’s mother looked much better than before.
She manipulated the buttons with her fingers and wheeled herself over to me.
For a while, she just stared at me without saying anything.
Her finger lifted off the button.
Then her hand, her wrist, and eventually her whole arm shook and touched my hand.
“Thank you… student…”
The joints that seemed immovable started moving again.
The distance that couldn’t be bridged was beginning to close.
“Thank you… really, thank you…”
And as her strength waned, I caught her hand as it was about to drop helplessly.
“You’ll have to work hard on your rehabilitation exercises if you want to hold Yuna’s hand too.”
She wasn’t fully healed yet.
Since it had probably been a long time since she used those muscles, it might take a while for her to adjust.
I had already passed on all the instructions to Seo Maru, but just to be safe, I should remind her as well.
“Can I take a walk with your mom in the garden while you’re settling the bill? It seems to take a long time because it’s the weekend.”
“Oh, sure! Mom will like that.”
Even though the hospital was built in the middle of the city, the garden was filled with blossoming cherry trees, creating a unique scenery.
I breathed in the spring fragrance of the flowers as I walked along the garden path with her.
“Can you see a little bit in front? If you try to look at too many things all at once, it might give you a headache, so don’t overdo it.”
“I used to only see light and darkness, but now I can see shapes a bit…”
“That tattoo on your left arm is a semi-permanent summoning circle. Don’t forget to go refill your mana with Maru Oppa or No-eul Oppa every day. Don’t overcharge or undercharge. The right amount is when all the circuits of the summoning circle glow after you inject mana.”
What was I about to say again?
“In about a month, you might be able to sit up by yourself. But don’t hesitate to spend money and get a medical capsule as soon as possible for treatment. Think of it as something for Yuna.”
“Yuna is really lucky to have a friend like you…”
“Haha… yeah.”
“Maru, No-eul, and Yuna… I always felt sorry for my kids because of my condition.”
“No one will think like that.”
“I used to think that dying would be better than living. Whenever I saw my children suffering…”
“It’s rude to say that in front of someone who went through the effort to save you.”
“Haha, you sound just like my husband.”
“Really?”
A cherry blossom leaf fell onto the wheelchair and stuck there.
She picked up the thin leaf with her fingers and held it up to the sunlight.
“I am truly a blessed person.”
All her senses might feel awkward still, but even the slightest action was a remarkable event for her.
“Don’t you think there are many mysteries in this world?”
At her sudden remark, I tilted my head slightly.
She smiled and rolled up the other sleeve of her shirt.
“You’ve been saved by the same magic twice. It’s the Akashic Records.”
On her opposite arm was a similar summoning circle to the one I had etched, but in a smaller size.
She already knew about this magic.
“It’s a secret from the kids.”
As the injected mana dispersed, the summoning circle faded again.
“How… Moreover, that summoning circle is more than 20 years old.”
“Well, my husband had it etched for me back then. I’ve kept it as a memento without dissolving it.”
“Fentanyl…”
“What? You figured it out that quickly while I showed you for just a second…? You really are amazing, Yuna’s friend!”
There were traces of fentanyl remaining in her body.
The Akashic Records on her right arm had formulas for breaking down fentanyl inscribed on it.
Now, everything is starting to make sense.
“I was a student at the Academy too a long time ago. It was called Nahit Academy, but it no longer exists. I was actually pretty clever back then, just like Yuna is now.”
“How did you end up getting involved with drugs?”
“Well… it all started innocently. When I was young and clueless, I went to a club with an older girl and someone mistakenly gave me a spiked drink.”
Back then, the Academy had a severe educational atmosphere just like now.
She explained how she faced extreme burnout at the age of eighteen after running non-stop for ten years and planned her first act of rebellion.
The club she sneaked into was a whole new world for her, and just watching people dance made her incredibly happy.
She never imagined that it would lead her life to ruin.
“I thought the world wasn’t all about the Academy… But after I started taking fentanyl, my life slowly fell apart.”
One day, during a magic practice evaluation, she couldn’t inject mana.
Normally focused when studying, she said her grades plummeted to the level where she got academic warnings after just one semester.
When she returned to the club and drank the same spiked drink again, that was when she realized it was a drug.
“But you know how it is with drugs. Even if you want to quit, you can’t. Even knowing that this will make you unable to use magic again, you just can’t stop.”
The club was eventually shut down after a drug distribution ring got busted, but her life was in tatters, a mess her parents couldn’t fix.
After years of suffering through withdrawal in a mental hospital, she said she randomly met Yuna’s father.
“I don’t think I’ve ever felt as miserable as that moment. I was very naive. I kept reminiscing about the moments when I sparkled in the past, drowning in a pool of regrets, and felt so embarrassed to show my former classmates that side of me. So, I often said harsh things.”
She had been ranking within the top 100 in the nationwide KGSAT mock tests and had a bright future ahead of her, and her reunion with her husband, who merely floated along as a middle-to-low-tier student at the Academy, was flipped upside down.
“So your husband designed the Akashic Records himself?”
“Yuna’s dad was stubborn, if nothing else. For two years. Even after completing his alternative service, he kept coming back for six months to perfect the summoning circle, every single day. I mean, he was probably busy with his college studies too, and here I was…”
How could anyone not fall in love?
She seemed to drift off into memories as she mumbled the last words.
“You found a wonderful partner. How romantic.”
“Yeah, he was such a great person, you know…”
Suddenly, Yuna’s words popped into my mind.
[I’m sorry… I don’t have a dad either, so let’s just say we’re even.]
And as if to affirm my suspicion, her mother spoke again.
“Yuna’s dad passed away when she was really young, so it hasn’t been easy for a woman without a high school diploma to earn enough to raise three kids. Honestly, in Korea, it’s really tough when you can’t use magic and have a low education.”
“You must have had a really tough time.”
“I think of it as my unfulfilled atonement. I thought I wouldn’t achieve anything in this life before meeting my husband.”
“Did you have dreams? I bet you had many things you wanted to do.”
“Dreams? Yeah… dreams.”
A gentle breeze blew.
Now she didn’t even have to try to catch the falling cherry blossom petals; they fluttered gracefully onto her lap.
“I wanted to be a college student. Just any college would do… I wanted to go to class with my husband and have dates on campus, holding hands under the cherry blossom trees.”
Sifting through the pile of pink leaves, she smiled softly.
“So you know, at first I didn’t want Yuna to go to the Academy. I hoped she wouldn’t walk the same path as me. But that kid’s brain resembles her mom and dad, and she must be really something. I hope she doesn’t struggle too much at the Academy.”
“Does she often throw tantrums?”
Yuna’s mother shook her head.
“Not once. But I know without her saying. Na-me, I hope you take good care of our daughter. I’m sorry to ask, but it’s a favor.”
“Yes, of course.”
“I want you to let Yuna know that the world isn’t just what you see. I hope she enjoys a fun school life without getting too fixated on grades.”
“A fun school life… I’ll definitely make sure of it.”
“And about the Akashic Records, I’ll talk about it later when I’m feeling better and after saving some money—”
“Shh, that’s not necessary.”
After our stroll through the garden, Seo Maru and Seo No-eul were waiting for us at the hospital’s main gate.
Each of them was carrying a cake they’d bought from the bakery.
“Here you go.”
“What’s this?”
“What do you mean, what is it? It’s a birthday cake. Yuna’s birthday cake. Na-me, take one and go home to eat it with your family.”
“Mom, let’s hurry home and celebrate Mom’s discharge while having the birthday party for Yuna that we missed yesterday.”
“Why on earth did you buy something expensive like this?”
“Shh! No talking about that today. I brought Yuna and Mom’s favorite strawberry cream cake, so you can look forward to it!”
“How are you going home, Na-me?”
“Professor Chun… I mean, my dad is coming to pick me up.”
“Alright then, we’ll head out first. Really, thank you for everything.”
Seo Maru helped his mom into the taxi and carefully folded the wheelchair so it could fit in the trunk.
“Isn’t No-eul oppa gonna help out too? Big bro is doing all the work here.”
“Hey, I’m holding the cake. Besides, I bet I’m stronger than big bro now, right? He looks weak, but he’s got some serious muscles.”
“Ah, yes, sure.”
“Anyway, I really appreciate it. You’re definitely going to become an outstanding person, no doubt about it. Just don’t forget us later.”
“Maybe Yuna, but I don’t think I’ll forget No-eul oppa. If you become a basketball player, I might reconsider.”
“Hahaha, you really can’t shut up.”
He patted my back bam bam.
I felt a gentle thump, yet his large hands made my skin tingle.
Tall people really do have massive hands.
*
“Um, what’s that?”
“I got it as a gift. Just to say thank you.”
“Ah, I see. Is your wrist okay now?”
“Of course! This is hardly even a scratch.”
“…”
“I’ll be careful from now on! No, I won’t let anything like this happen again!”
“Haha, let’s hurry home, Na-me. You must be starving. I’ve already prepared the meat.”
“Chateaubriand?”
“Of course! Just what you wanted.”
“Uh, Professor Chun?”
“What’s up?”
“Is there… red wine…?”
“…?”
“Never mind… let’s go, I’m hungry!”
