Thud… The size was so massive that I couldn’t recognize it right away.
To begin with, it was second-rate junk, but the content was even more malicious.
Words filled with disdain and mockery towards Yeon Minha were messily plastered on the outer wall.
“This is…”
And the moment I checked that they were indeed graffiti, anger surged up from deep within my heart, even though I wasn’t the target.
I barely swallowed my curses, but the thought of wanting to catch the culprits and smack them around was still there.
“Wh-why the sudden change… what are you trying to do…?”
But as I turned my body, Yeon Minha hurriedly stopped me.
“What do you mean? Of course, we need to catch the ones who did this.”
“What…?”
“Since your dorm is quite deep down, it’ll be hard for them to escape without leaving traces after coming all the way here. First, we should go to the office and compare the list of dormitory residents nearby…”
“No, no! That’s not right…”
But Yeon Minha still wanted to hold me back.
“Why? Even though it’s Sunday, there should be someone on duty at the office…”
“No, that’s not what I mean. This isn’t a situation that can be solved like that…”
Yeon Minha stepped closer, almost feeling her breath.
She reached out her arms, held my hands tightly, took a small breath, and looked up at me.
Yeon Minha remained calm and collected.
When our eyes met, I could feel my heated heart settle down a bit.
Eventually, as I managed to cool off my anger, Yeon Minha let out a sigh of relief, almost like she was reassured.
Then, she continued explaining in a gentle voice.
“Methods like that would only lead to the other side looking down on you more. This needs to be resolved on a student level.”
“…”
“It’s okay. This was something I anticipated when you decided to return to the cradle.”
Yeon Minha, the very one involved, said it in a way that seemed like it wasn’t a big deal.
“And it’s not really difficult to resolve. This is the kind of work cowards do who don’t have the courage to step up. Just crush a couple of suitable guys later, and they’ll bow their heads again like it never happened.”
“But…”
As I trailed off staring at the graffiti, Yeon Minha suddenly grabbed my wrist and started walking toward the back door of the dormitory.
“Enough. We can erase the graffiti tomorrow when it gets light. Come on, let’s get inside quickly. What if someone sees us…”
I was dragged along by Yeon Minha, swaying like a balloon.
She hurried into the dormitory and locked the back door.
Finally, she stood upright, slightly turning her head in my direction at an angle where I could barely see her face.
I could only see her slender, prominent nose.
“Uh, are you…really mad…?”
It was true that anger had surged, but right now, embarrassment was much greater.
As I calmed down and thought about it, I realized that the method Yeon Minha suggested was far wiser than my reckless approach.
Even if I were to use force, I would need a proper plan.
“A little…”
“I see…”
Upon hearing my somewhat bashful reply, Yeon Minha suddenly dropped her head.
Then she started mumbling something nonsensical.
“Uh, but you must be tired… hurry and go lie down… I think I need to rest early too…”
“Sleep…”
Before I could even respond, Yeon Minha dashed up to the second floor and slammed the bedroom door shut.
The sound of the door and the frame clashing bang! loudly echoed through the dormitory.
“…”
I was left alone in silence and darkness.
I felt like my brain couldn’t keep up with the rapid sequence of events.
I pondered for a while over the meaning of joy that had been in Yeon Minha’s voice.
*
Slurp… Slurp…
Suddenly waking up, I realized it was still an hour where the darkness hadn’t yet faded outside the window.
I kept feeling the damp, rough sensation of something on my lips.
I locked eyes momentarily with the little cat that was licking my face.
“Meow~”
Like it was greeting me in the morning, Peanut let out a soft meow.
That cute sound unconsciously made the corners of my mouth lift slightly.
“Geez… why do you like my lips so much?”
Maybe it was because that’s all that was exposed at the moment.
Since we met again, I had been wearing a mask every day.
Since I woke up earlier than usual, I took a moment to lazily pet Peanut.
Peanut’s eyelids slowly drooped, and soon enough, it started to purr.
It’s amusing that a simple touch that tickles its head could send it back to sleep.
It woke me fully, though.
Why on earth was I trying to push away such a cute creature?
I covered the sleeping Peanut with a blanket and got out of bed.
But today, I felt particularly refreshed… was that just my imagination?
After a few days of a grueling schedule, I had felt quite fatigued just last night.
But right now, I hardly sensed any exhaustion or weariness.
In fact, I even woke up much earlier than usual because of Peanut.
I racked my memory and felt like I had experienced this kind of refreshment before.
Thinking about it, I remembered feeling a similar sensation when I woke up in the ward after returning from the south.
The common link was… waking up due to Peanut’s damp tongue.
I glanced at the now peacefully sleeping little cat.
Perhaps Peanut’s very existence provided me with a sense of stability.
It felt like the only connection bridging my current self and my past self.
“…”
After a while of deep thought, I stepped out into the hallway and saw Yeon Minha’s bedroom door wide open for some reason.
The familiar scent of daffodil filled the hallway.
She was combing her still slightly damp hair with a brush.
The vanity faced the door, so all I could see was her back, with her neck and waist curves clearly visible.
Her hair was so long that she struggled a bit while grooming it.
I watched her for just a moment, but it seemed as if Yeon Minha sensed my presence like a ghost.
She flinched a bit and spoke first.
“How dare you sneak a peek at the senior’s grooming? Now you’re boldly sending perverse looks…?”
“…”
Wasn’t she the one who left the door open?
It was surprising how quickly she caught on even when I had only stood there for a moment.
I felt a bit indignant and a twinge of heat rose.
This feeling was somewhat different from yesterday’s emotions.
I walked into her bedroom without hesitation.
“Enough. I already know you’re enlightened enough, so as a senior, I should embrace you with wide arms… squeak! Wh-what!?”
Suddenly, as she was tearing into me, Yeon Minha let out a sharp shriek.
Seeing her like that filled me with a sense of satisfaction.
“Ah, no matter how much, it’s too much to do this in the morning…”
“Be still.”
I snatched the brush from Yeon Minha’s hand.
Then I grabbed her shoulders and turned her to face the vanity.
She looked quite bewildered by the surprise attack and stood there like a wooden puppet.
I took the chance to start combing her hair.
“Senior.”
“…”
“Minha, senior.”
“Uh, uh? Wh-why are you calling me…”
“Good morning.”
“…You really are a perv.”
Though I greeted her, she shot back with another insult.
“What brings you up so early?”
“Uh, um, if someone sees it, they might think I always sleep in…”
“Hey! That’s not the case!”
Yeon Minha, who had her head bowed deeply, finally shouted with a flustered expression.
And it wasn’t an overstatement; it was a fact.
Recently, hasn’t waking up late become one of her favorite things?
Since entering the Acorn dormitory, this was the first time I had seen her awake at this hour.
Unlike freshmen, the second-year students had their morning training up to their discretion, so she never left her bedroom until sunlight flooded her room.
“Today, I’ve got somewhere to go… I was in a hurry…”
Only then did she confess her unusual behavior.
“Somewhere to go? Where?”
But then Yeon Minha said something unexpected.
“I’m going to apply for readmission to the student council.”
“Why the sudden change… more importantly, the student council?”
“Originally, students from the five families are required to take a seat when they enroll. I had to refuse for a while because I was busy with my mental detox, but now it’s better thanks to you.”
I could feel her subtly glancing at the mirror.
“And I need to grow my influence even more…”
“…Is the student council really that powerful? I’ve heard about it, but…”
“Of course! The Cradle Student Council is essentially a miniaturized version of the Supreme Council of the Republic. Although it has taken over some functions of the Education Committee, it can handle its own budget and enforce school laws.”
Yeon Minha readily answered.
If she was planning to step into the Supreme Council in the future, then having a background in the Cradle Student Council was like taking the first step.
There were also dozens of perks given to student council members after graduation, like reduced military service time, guaranteed postings to the capital, access to classified information, and so on…
All of this flowed out of her lips effortlessly.
I briefly recalled the images of a few students who had fought tooth and nail to get into the student council.
Now, I understood a little why they had acted that way.
“And by the way, do you remember Chun Harin?”
“Chun Harin is…”
I was about to recall when suddenly the face of a second-year senior who nearly fought Yeon Minha came to my mind.
It was definitely just before she left for the south for an external request.
She was a member of the noble Ma Do 27 clan and had openly supported the Paecheon while showing animosity towards the Jeokhwa.
Her unmistakable intensity was quite impressive and, besides, she lost her pinky finger during her duel with Yeon Minha…
“That girl is running rampant because she’s on the student council as an executive member. It’s a perfect position to stomp on others with power. Now that those types of people will be more active, it’s natural that I need to counter them, right?”
I found her reasoning somewhat understandable, but the following words momentarily rendered me speechless.
“And we also need to make a position for you.”
“Uh?”
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