Chapter 40


Jeong Ha-yul is staring at me with a mysterious smile.

“…Didn’t you hear anything?”

“Huh? What sound? There was no sound until Gyeoul came into the room.”

Should I say it or not?

“Ear, ear…”

“Ear?”

“Can you spare me the precious spot next to the bed?”

“…?”

“….”

If I talk about ghosts, I might be teased for the rest of my life.

I decided to keep my mouth shut.

A moment of silence passed.

Why aren’t you answering, you jerk.

Are you saying you’re scared to sleep alone?

I threw the pillow I was hugging next to Jeong Ha-yul’s pillow and climbed onto the bed.

“If you’re going to lie down without waiting for an answer, why did you even ask?”

“You should have answered quickly.”

I shamelessly lay down and answered boldly.

Jeong Ha-yul, who seemed to find it ridiculous, also climbed onto the bed.

She put her arm under the pillow to use it as a cushion and turned to face me…

Something big and soft is pressing against my face.

“I’m being crushed…”

“By what?”

“Your chest.”

“Ah, sorry.”

Jeong Ha-yul slightly moved her body back, freeing me from the chest pressure.

“But why did you really come?”

Not satisfied with the “precious spot next to the bed,” she asked why I came to her room.

“I came because I missed you…”

Desperately trying to stay on her good side so I wouldn’t be kicked out.

“You came because you’re scared to sleep alone, right? Did you dream about a ghost?”

It seems Jeong Ha-yul had noticed from the moment I asked if she heard anything.

Since it’s come to this, it might not be bad to swallow my pride and ask for the Demon King’s help.

There’s no guarantee that ghost will only appear today.

I think our Demon King could even crush a ghost.

“There’s a ghost in this house…”

“What? Pfft… Did you get scared because of what I said earlier? There’s no ghost, silly.”

Damn, she doesn’t believe me.

Judging by her laughter, it seems I’m destined to be teased forever.

“It’s true! I was training in my room when I heard creaking sounds from the 5th floor, then the 3rd, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 2nd, 5th, 1st, 3rd floors, like this…”

“Oh, really? That must have been scary, come sleep with me.”

She doesn’t believe me at all.

Just like soothing a baby, she pats my chest.

“Mommy in the shade of the island~”

This crazy woman!

“Don’t sing that!”

I covered my ears with both hands and frowned.

I’m scared because of the ghost, and she’s singing a scary lullaby.

Is she sane?

“Pfft. Gyeoul, you’re so cute!”

“….”

I guess the song choice was intentional.

“Sorry, let’s really sleep now.”

I thought I’d stay up all night with my eyes open because of the ghost.

But thanks to the rhythm of Jeong Ha-yul’s hand, I fell asleep.

It’s like… a mother’s touch.

And so, I fell asleep next to Jeong Ha-yul, and the day passed safely.

When I woke up, Jeong Ha-yul was gone.

I must have slept deeply and didn’t even notice her removing the arm pillow.

‘What should I do today… Will the ghost appear again…’

Going to Jeong Ha-yul two days in a row hurts my pride.

I hope it ended yesterday.

I tidied the bed and went back to my room to wash up.

Thanks to the footrest Butler Grundel placed in the bathroom, washing at the sink wasn’t a problem.

“Hum hum hum~”

The feeling of brushing my hair is so good.

I can’t escape the addiction.

Even though I brush my hair every morning, I never get tired or annoyed.

A magical brushing that revives my fragile morning condition.

Thanks to the brushing, I feel refreshed.

I also feel refreshed seeing this face every day.

Honestly, even to my own eyes, I’m too cute and pretty.

I don’t mean to, but I look like I could make several men cry.

A man crying because of me.

Just imagining it is disgusting.

Narcissism.

I never thought I’d develop self-love.

If I grow up like this, I’ll become a beautiful girl with Jeong Ha-yul’s face.

Just thinking about it makes me happy.

Finishing the grooming mixed with excessive self-love.

I should go have breakfast with a solemn heart.

***

Before I knew it, the word “ghost” had disappeared from Jeong Gyeoul’s mind as she hurriedly ran.

Her steps towards the dining hall seemed very excited.

The group was already sitting at the table, sipping the black tea Butler Grundel had served.

She energetically bowed and greeted everyone.

“Good morning!”

“Did you sleep well, Gyeoul?”

“You seem so excited this morning? What’s going on?”

“Nothing!”

She was intoxicated by her reflection in the mirror, excited for breakfast.

The reasons for Jeong Gyeoul’s excitement were things she was too embarrassed to tell others.

She brushed it off with “nothing” and sat down, and Grundel appeared with a vintage-looking teapot at the perfect timing.

He looked at Jeong Gyeoul with a pleased smile.

“Good morning.”

“Hello, Butler! It smells good! What’s for breakfast today?”

“Crispy bacon and sausage. Sunny-side-up eggs, toast, boiled beans, roasted tomatoes and mushrooms. Black pudding and hash browns.”

“Wow! A traditional English breakfast.”

Grundel looked surprised at Jeong Gyeoul’s excited words.

“Since you’re in England, I thought it would be nice to try an English breakfast.”

“Is that a breakfast tea in the teapot you’re holding?”

“Exactly. You have quite the knowledge for your young age.”

“Hehe.”

The group was also surprised by the conversation between Grundel and Jeong Gyeoul.

“How did you know that?”

“Gyeoul is amazing! Even we didn’t know that.”

“I learned it at school.”

“Do schools teach that these days?”

Jeong Gyeoul, who couldn’t say she knew it from before the possession, used school as a shield.

Just then, the food cart arrived.

The group had a very pleasant breakfast and headed to Heinz’s office together.

Today is the day Jeong Gyeoul is to attend classes at the Clock Tower.

It’s Monday, just after the weekend.

A perfect day to start something new.

“Classes at the Clock Tower are run similarly to universities. Instructors open classes they want to teach, and students apply for the classes they want to attend.”

“So I can just apply for any class I want to take?”

“That would be nice, but unfortunately, classes are divided into A, B, C, and D ranks. Students are also ranked, and they can’t attend classes above their rank.”

“It’s a strict class system here too.”

“…Where did you learn to say that?”

Heinz looked at Jeong Ha-yul and the others, but they all desperately shook their heads.

“We wouldn’t teach her that, and we haven’t taught her anything in the first place. Gyeoul’s vocabulary is better than Eun-chae’s.”

“Oppa, why are you…”

“Let’s be honest, sometimes Gyeoul seems more mature than you two.”

“….”

After Kang-woo’s fact bombardment, Heinz continued his explanation.

To move up from A, B, C, and D ranks, you need to earn the required credits by attending classes or get recognition from all instructors of that rank.

Mostly, awakened ones in the magic category rise to higher ranks by getting recognition from instructors.

“The most famous was alchemist Park Seol-hwa. She graduated from the Clock Tower in less than three months.”

“Wow, did Seol-hwa unni also study at the Clock Tower?”

“Huh? You know the alchemist. Well, there were even rumors that she was the Demon King’s lover.”

“…Don’t talk about unnecessary things.”

When the topic of Park Seol-hwa’s relationship came up, Jeong Ha-yul growled.

‘Too bad, I’ll have to ask secretly when Jeong Ha-yul isn’t around.’

Jeong Gyeoul, who had always been curious about the relationship between Park Seol-hwa and Jeong Ha-yul, found a clue with Heinz.

Looking forward to later, she focused on the story about the Clock Tower’s classes for now.

“But from what you’re saying, it sounds like there are people who aren’t awakened ones?”

“The Clock Tower has existed as a magic association since before monsters and awakened ones appeared.”

“Really?”

Jeong Gyeoul was unaware of this secret of the world.

‘Did Harry Potter really exist?!’

“People have been learning magic since ancient times. I was one of them.”

“Wow, I had no idea.”

“Of course, we kept it a strict secret back then.”

Then, do organizations like the Freemasons, Knights Templar, and Illuminati really exist?

Jeong Gyeoul’s mind started to get complicated.

“You’ve been assigned as a temporary student at the Clock Tower with a D-rank. Since you don’t know what’s what yet, I’ve arbitrarily chosen your classes.”

“Yes, that’s more convenient for me too.”

“Your first class is from 10 to 12. It should start in about 30 minutes. Go to D Hall and find Lianna. After it’s over, report to your grandfather.”

“Yes!”

After hearing the general explanation, Jeong Gyeoul said goodbye to the group and boldly set out to find the classroom.

And then she got lost.

“…This place seems familiar.”

She definitely looked at the building map and moved straight to D Hall.

But she arrived at the dining hall instead of D Hall.

Jeong Gyeoul carefully examined the map on the dining hall wall.

‘Ah, this isn’t it. I should have turned up earlier.’

And then she arrived at the male dormitory.

She tried to ask someone for directions, but everyone seemed to have gone to class, and no one was around.

‘If I had known this would happen, I should have asked the staff at the dining hall for directions before leaving.’

Now, instead of looking at the map, she just walked wherever her feet took her.

“…Where on earth is D Hall?”

When she was in Korea, she only went to school, home, and Lee Ha-yoon’s house.

And even then, she was always in a car.

Jeong Gyeoul had never moved around alone before.

Only now did it become clear.

Jeong Gyeoul was. A severe direction-challenged person.

‘…It wasn’t like this before the possession. The original Jeong Gyeoul must have been direction-challenged.’

Absolutely refusing to admit that she was direction-challenged, she set out to find the classroom.

After about 5 minutes.

She arrived at the female dormitory.

‘I’m going crazy… I’m going to be absent on the first day.’

As Jeong Gyeoul slumped down, a woman in a pure white robe approached.

“What are you doing here, kid?”

“…I’m saved.”

She was Jeong Gyeoul’s savior.