I Became the Academy's Disabled Student-Chapter 276: Squat?

After taking turns hitting the punching machine, we decided to take a short break.

It seemed a bit excessive to rest after only a few punches on the machine, but having already wandered around a fair bit earlier, time had passed.

“You know, the fireworks will start soon. It’d be good to go ahead and find a spot to watch from, and buy some snacks while waiting there, so it’s better to go early.”

I nodded at Elia’s explanation, understanding that it would be hard to synchronize everything if we went separately later.

We took care of some personal matters and set a time and place to gather.

[Seo Yul, make sure you follow the adults carefully, okay? Don’t let go of their hand.]

Since I also needed to stop by the restroom, I had no choice but to send Seo Yul off in that direction.

Of course, that wasn’t the only thing I had to do.

“...Okay.”

Seo Yul pouted her lips and tightly held my hand, but eventually, she let go with a look full of lingering attachment, as if there was nothing else to do.

I felt a pang of guilt for not spending more time with her, seeing her dislike of being separated for even a short moment...

“Alright, come here.”

With a pout, Seo Yul skipped toward Elia, who was holding her arms out. Yeonhwa, who was standing next to her, clenched her fists in a bit of frustration.

“...Didn’t you say that fairies are affected by spirit affinity?”

“Heh, yes, that’s what I’ve heard.”

Elia, who had taken Seo Yul’s hand, replied with a somewhat awkward smile.

“Well, let’s all finish up our preparations and meet here.”

Anyway, for that reason, everyone scattered for a bit.

“Master?”

However, the master stayed behind instead of leaving. Tilting my head in confusion, I noticed Master carefully fixing my hair and staring fixedly in one direction.

“What about going together?”

That sudden question. But when I confirmed what Master was looking at, I couldn’t help but exclaim in surprise.

“It’s fine. I’ll just quickly greet them and come back, so I’ll be back soon.”

Shaking my head, Master looked at me with a worried gaze. But then, perhaps recalling that this was Siyoram, her expression softened as the concern faded.

“It should be safe here... it’s close, so... alright, take care.”

‘...’

I felt a bit annoyed by the look of someone watching a troublesome child, but in the end, it was all my own fault, so I couldn’t blame anyone.

“I’ll be back soon.”

Kiss

“Eep.”

In any case, it felt a bit inappropriate to waste more time like this. I pressed a kiss on Master’s palm, turned around, and quickly walked off.

.

.

.

I headed to a nearby café.

Out of the many cafes in Siyoram, it wasn’t anything particularly special. The only small distinguishing feature was that the top floor had a small balcony sticking out.

Mmm...I entered the balcony and dispelled the recognition-disruption magic.

The café, busier than usual due to the ongoing festival, had more people than normal, but the terrace at the top had only a few customers.

“......”

“......”

To be precise, there were two customers.

At the very edge of the terrace, where the view of the bustling crowd below was clear, I approached and saw Lee Ji-yeon, who was looking down at her cup of coffee, glancing toward me.

Her posture was stiff. Normally, she had a firm, confident air, but this time it felt different.

Usually, her solidness came from confidence, but now it was the tension that made her body stiffen.

Thinking about Lee Ji-yeon’s past, it wasn’t so strange.

It hadn’t been long since things changed so quickly, but the Lee Ji-yeon I knew from Siyoram was used to acting like that.

Responding to Lee Ji-yeon’s greeting, I calmly caressed my necklace.

[Good evening.]

At the same time, I could also sense the aura emanating from her, and I could understand it immediately.

Across from Lee Ji-yeon, a woman sitting with her legs crossed, looking down the street, turned her head.

“Yes, it’s a pleasure to meet you.”

She uncrossed her legs, bowed slightly, and stood up.

The evening was approaching, and the shadows stretched long beneath the lanterns placed on the terrace.

A tall woman, who had spent quite a bit of time in this world and had grown familiar with it, now stood before me.

Her brown hair cascaded down to her shoulders, and her face was sharp and featureless, like it had been sculpted from stone.

Her dull, deep green eyes looked down at me.

“I am Lee Ji-ah, the head of Taesan.”

[Yes, I am Iha-yul.]

Lee Ji-ah, the head of Taesan and Lee Ji-yeon’s mother, responded to my greeting with a slight bow.

“I apologize for disturbing you while you were enjoying your time with your companions. My daughter and I were walking down the street, and I must have attracted your attention from a distance. I didn’t mean to cause any disturbance.”

[No offense taken. I also heard from Lee Ji-yeon that you had come, so I was planning to greet you later.]

In truth, I wondered how she had recognized me despite the recognition-disruption magic, but I kept it to myself for now.

After all, it wouldn’t be strange if Lee Ji-ah had similar abilities, given her status.

“Thank you for saying that,” Lee Ji-ah said with a nod, taking a sip of her coffee.

The coffee was black... but it wasn’t just dark brown, it was almost pure black. It felt as if the liquid had no sweetness at all, just bitter chunks of something.

I observed the ingredients briefly; it had no sugar or sweeteners—just the taste of bitterness.

I found it odd that she was able to swallow that without any hesitation.

‘...Is her sense of taste strange?’

For me, who has a messed-up sense of taste, I could drink it easily, but I couldn’t imagine someone with normal taste buds actually savoring it.

Maybe it’s just a matter of preference.

I took a seat across from Lee Ji-yeon’s empty spot.

Sitting next to Lee Ji-yeon, I could feel just how stiff she had become.

She had completely shrunk, like she was a frightened, crouched version of herself.

It wasn’t hard to confirm in the original story, but... had her relationship with her family, especially with Lee Ji-ah, really been so distant? Was she so nervous and stiff?

I didn’t know. In the original, Lee Ji-yeon wasn’t someone who talked about her family often. It was just that their relationship seemed a bit distant, and it showed in the story.

‘...This doesn’t feel right.’

Lee Ji-yeon’s behavior made me feel uneasy.

I sighed deeply and listened carefully.

‘...The sound...’

There was almost no sound from around here.

Outside, the festival was still going on. Even though it was evening, the excitement hadn’t died down.

Countless noises filled the air, but somehow, in this terrace, it felt like all the sounds were being suppressed.

It was all because of the person sitting across from me.

Just the aura left behind seemed to crush all the little sounds in the air.

‘Was there such an effect from Taesan?’

Lee Ji-ah, the head of Taesan, of course, manifested her unique ability, Taesan.

And, as expected, someone in her position, as the head of one of the three great families, couldn’t have gotten there with a mediocre ability.

‘She’s in the same league as Yeonhwa and Baek Ah-Rin.’

But even among them, Lee Ji-ah was special. She was the strongest head Taesan had ever had, and even stronger than the heads of Geobhwa and Changhae from the same generation.

Taesan, her unique ability, was described as something extraordinary.

Just like Yeonhwa’s Geobhwa and Baek Ah-Rin’s Changhae, it was treated as unprecedented in the family’s history.

This was one of the main reasons Lee Ji-yeon had developed feelings of inferiority and self-hatred... but, anyway.

“Since you have prior commitments, I’ll keep this short.”

Putting her coffee down, Lee Ji-ah spoke again.

“Last time, my daughter received a great favor. I wanted to meet you personally to express my gratitude.”

Last time... I guessed it must have been when we encountered the twin-headed dragon in China.

[It wasn’t so much a favor as it was mutual help. I wouldn’t have made it without Lee Ji-yeon’s help.]

“But my daughter’s survival was thanks to Iha-yul.”

Lee Ji-ah nodded.

“I’ve faced the twin-headed dragon in my life.”

[Ah.]

“It was classified as a third-tier Alpha-class creature, but its actual destructive power was even greater, as was widely acknowledged, and I felt the same.”

Lee Ji-ah, who had been the head of Taesan at the time, participated in the campaign against the twin-headed dragon, leading the charge and earning the greatest merit.

“I know how strong and vicious that monster was, having fought it firsthand. Even though it was an incomplete spirit, it would have been impossible for my daughter and her squad to survive without your help.”

Flinch

Lee Ji-yeon’s shoulder trembled slightly at Lee Ji-ah’s emotionless gaze. She didn’t deny the fact that it had been difficult to survive without me.

Without flinching, Lee Ji-ah, who had been staring at Lee Ji-yeon, turned her gaze back to me and bowed her head again.

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“No matter what, Iha-yul, you are the one who saved my daughter’s life.”

[...I’ve also received a lot of help from Lee Ji-yeon. I’m equally grateful.]

“Yes, but our debt is heavier, and we haven’t been able to repay it yet. Please don’t think of us as ungrateful. If you ever need anything, please don’t hesitate to ask my daughter.”

Lee Ji-ah emphasized our debt and expressed her gratitude. I felt a little uncomfortable and bowed my head slightly in response.

‘What is that presence?’

Unlike the strange and ominous sensation I felt before, this one felt more like a normal reaction.

That presence bothered me. I had to adjust my necklace carefully, fearing that I might say something wrong. I also needed to make sure I wasn’t showing any hostility.

It felt foreign and ominous. I instinctively recoiled from it.

‘...I don’t know what it is.’

But I had felt something similar before. It wasn’t too far in the past.

“May I say something?”

[Huh? Yes.]

Suddenly, Lee Ji-ah, who had been sipping her coffee, spoke up.

I tilted my head in confusion, but after a brief moment, I nodded in acknowledgment.

She gently set down her cup. Her dull green eyes engulfed me.

Her gaze felt strange. She was looking at me, but it didn’t feel like she was really seeing me.

“Iha-yul, death is close to you.”

[Excuse me?]

“I’m not talking about the simple consumption of lifespan.”

I leaned in closer, perplexed by her unexpected words.

Death is close?

The words sounded ominous, and I instinctively stiffened my face.

Normally, I’d scoff and ignore it, but the one saying it... the messenger was a big deal.

Lee Ji-ah, the one handling the strongest Taesan, had said it.

Taesan is a unique ability that controls the land, the foundation of life, and even life and death.

At the peak of that ability, Lee Ji-ah was an expert in sensing life and death.

The ominous presence was unsettling, but now that someone like her was telling me that death was near, I had to pay attention.

“It’s not just that death is approaching; it feels more like you’re unknowingly walking toward it.”

That curse is gnawing at Iha-yul’s life.

Thinking about it along with my curse, this was no simple matter.

I shut my mouth tightly and calmly touched my confession necklace.

[What do you mean by—]

“Mother, that’s enough.”

At that moment, Lee Ji-yeon, who had been silent until now, finally spoke up.

...! ...? ...!

Suddenly, there was a sound. The laughter of people enjoying the festival, along with various noises, all flooded the terrace.

The energy that had been suppressing the sounds in the terrace suddenly shattered.

The force that pushed the silence away from the terrace was now rising beside me.

“Death is close? Such words are extremely rude to say to the living. And to say that it’s unavoidable, or that you are walking toward death... Even if you were given permission to speak, I can’t tolerate such disrespectful words.”

Lee Ji-yeon, who had been staring down at her coffee, lifted her head stiffly.

“Didn’t you say, Mother, that the absolute prediction of life and death is impossible? That even if death approaches, it’s not something that cannot be avoided? The one who said that is now arbitrarily deciding someone else’s death and speaking about it?”

The fearful, cautious demeanor that had been present earlier was gone, and Lee Ji-yeon stood proudly, looking directly into Lee Ji-ah’s eyes.

Her dull, bright green eyes locked with Lee Ji-ah’s.

“It’s not absolute, so it can be avoided. If one makes an effort, it can be overcome. That’s how I was taught.”

“......”

“In a world where even lifespan can be extended through effort, I haven’t been taught to believe that death is unavoidable for a young child.”

Lee Ji-yeon’s fluent words were suddenly cut off.

I, who had been crouched down, was now stunned as Lee Ji-yeon suddenly charged at Lee Ji-ah.