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We watched the performance art happening right before our eyes and then headed to our respective classrooms.

Hayan and I were in the same A1 classroom.

But…

Choi Ye-na, who I thought would definitely be there, was nowhere to be found.

“…Where did she go?”

“I think this is the first time Teacher Ye-na has been late.”

Choi Ye-na, who had never been late even once during her time at Cheongdam Elementary School…

“Is something going on?”

“People have been making a fuss since this morning about a murder case. Could it be…?”

“R-really? That happened?”

Hayan seemed unaware of the situation, probably because she woke up late.

Could the victim be Choi Ye-na?

Hayan and I locked eyes.

I could see her pupils shaking.

“No, no, Hayan! Don’t worry!”

My intuition is still quiet.

That means there’s a high probability that nothing happened to Choi Ye-na.

While I was comforting Hayan by hugging her…

Creak—

The classroom door opened.

“Sorry, kids. I’m late.”

“Teacher!”

Hayan, who was in my arms, ran to Choi Ye-na and hugged her.

“H-Hayan? Why all of a sudden…?”

“…I thought you might have been the victim of the murder case.”

“…?”

“By the way, why were you late? Did something happen?”

I asked out of concern, but it came out sounding like an interrogation. Still, she’d understand my feelings.

“Sorry… The academy’s security has tightened, so it took some time to get in. I’ll leave earlier next time.”

Choi Ye-na commutes from home to the academy.

If the security has tightened due to the murder case, it makes sense that she’d be late.

And whether class starts early or late, it doesn’t really matter to me.

“Let’s start class. Should we do science first today?”

I brought out the science materials prepared in the A1 classroom.

Since only Hayan and I are taking the middle school curriculum, we just wrote our names on them and left them in the classroom.

“This is what the Earth looks like based on seismic waves. It’s divided into the crust, mantle, outer core, and inner core.”

As expected, within ten minutes of starting class, I started to slide down.

It’s not my will.

It’s… gravity pulling me down.

“The boundary between the crust and the mantle is named after the scientist ‘Mohorovičić,’ who first discovered it…”

As usual, the teacher covered me with a blanket and continued the lesson.

“Gyeoul!”

Damn it.

“I love you, Gyeoul!”

“Get lost!”

It’s Choi Jeong-min and Kim Su-chan again.

Can’t they change their lines?

I tried to gather my magic power to knock them down, but it was the same as last time.

But… they’re the kind of guys who would get beaten by me even without using magic.

“Ugh!”

“G-Gyeoul!”

I kicked Choi Jeong-min’s calf, making him fall, and then immediately charged at Kim Su-chan.

Using the rotational force from my foot, I aimed a weighted left fist at Kim Su-chan’s liver.

It’s Jeong Ha-yul’s favorite technique, the Liver Shot.

Somehow, I’ve started using it too.

“Ugh!”

Even a martial artist would fall if hit properly, so there’s no way dream Kim Su-chan could withstand it.

After quickly knocking both of them down, I walked in the direction they came from.

Since it’s definitely not a natural dream, I thought I might find something.

After walking for about twenty minutes…

A magic circle?

It looked slightly different from the usual magic circles I often see at the Clock Tower.

It looked like an inverted pentagram.

And in the center, there was a drawing of something that looked like a monster.

A goat… maybe?

Just looking at it made me feel uneasy.

I wanted to wake up from the dream quickly.

…But how do I wake up?

Do I have to jump off a cliff or something?

Last time, I definitely woke up after falling somewhere and rolling down with my body.

Back then, I fell while running away without realizing it.

Even though it’s a dream, jumping off a cliff is still scary…

Is there no other way?

While sitting and pondering for a moment…

“Gyeoul!”

I faintly heard Hayan’s voice from somewhere.

“Gyeoul!”

After hearing Hayan’s voice, the ground started shaking, and the space began to distort.

Oh, damn.

“Jeong Gyeoul!”

As Hayan’s voice became clearer, the situation worsened.

The shaking ground cracked and split, creating gaps.

Eventually, the ground I was standing on also split, and I fell through it.

Why does it always end with falling…

I tightly closed my eyes.

It’s not because I was scared.

Really.

“Jeong Gyeoul!”

When I came to my senses, Hayan and the teacher were looking at me with worried eyes.

“What…?”

“You finally woke up… You were sweating a lot. Did you have a nightmare?”

“A nightmare… If it’s a nightmare, then it’s a nightmare.”

If dreaming about Choi Jeong-min and Kim Su-chan confessing their love is a nightmare, then it’s fair to call it that.

I don’t know why I keep having these dreams whenever class starts.

And what was that strange magic circle I saw in the dream?

While I was having the nightmare, class had already ended, and Choi Ye-na, who had been worried about me, left reassured.

I have something to do now.

“…Let’s eat first.”

“Yeah, the others are done too, so they’re waiting in front of the cafeteria.”

Ten minutes late.

Even if class is late, I’ve never been late for lunch…

I need to solve this dream issue as soon as possible.

I also got a text.

[All afternoon classes scheduled for today are canceled.]

Is this… a divine sign to solve the case?

***

Beep beep beep beep—

A strange alarm sound went off.

“Ugh… This is the alarm Gyeoul set for calls…”

I picked up my phone, and sure enough, Jeong Gyeoul’s name was on the screen.

The time displayed above it…

AM 05.

…

I was furious.

Why can’t this genius calculate time zones?

Or maybe she just doesn’t bother.

This isn’t the first time this has happened.

Ever since I started teaching Gyeoul at the Clock Tower.

Gyeoul calls me at all hours—night, dawn, morning—without any regard for time, completely ruining my sleep pattern.

This has been going on for years now…

I want to stop, but I can’t because of the Demon King and the Tower Master’s watchful eyes.

I tried to comfort myself with the fact that the money I get from them is enormous.

But the Hazel family is already wealthy.

I get an allowance of ten thousand pounds a month, so there’s no real need to earn money.

The huge salary doesn’t comfort me at all.

“I’d rather sleep more…”

I thought about ignoring the call, but…

If I don’t answer, she might come to England in person.

“Hello?”

“Why did you take so long to answer?”

“Do you know what time it is?”

“It’s a good time to relax after lunch, but aren’t you being too relaxed?”

“It’s London here. There’s an 8 to 9-hour time difference with Korea.”

“Right… So why are you in England? It would be easier for both of us if you were in Korea.”

“…I’m British.”

This genius is still out of her mind today.

There are hardly any days when she’s sane.

Out of all the people I’ve met, she’s the one who fits the word “crazy” the most.

“Anyway, what’s up?”

“I saw a strange magic circle in my dream.”

…

Did she call me at this ungodly hour just to talk about a dream?

“And?”

“…Listen, this isn’t just a normal dream. It always ends with me falling, and multiple people have the same dream at the same time. And when the dream ends, a small amount of magic power leaves my body. There’s also this creepy magic power that seems to guide it.”

This definitely sounds like something I’ve heard before.

The fact that it’s stuck in my head means it’s not a trivial matter.

“What did the magic circle look like?”

“Hold on.”

Gyeoul switched to a video call and started drawing the magic circle with her magic power.

A circle began to form with lines inside.

A pentagram?

Pentagrams are almost obsolete now.

After the hexagram appeared, there’s no reason to use a pentagram.

But looking closely, something was different.

…!

An inverted pentagram?

And there’s even a goat drawing in the center.

“The Mendes goat…”

“What’s that?”

“It’s a symbol of the Satanic Church.”

“Satanic Church?”

To understand the Satanic Church, you need to know about Alister Crowley, a dark mage.

He’s the person who laid the foundation for modern Satanism and created the Satanic Bible.

Crowley, a member of the Golden Dawn, the origin of the Clock Tower, used the Golden Dawn’s power to read all ancient texts and magic books, completing the Satanic Bible and becoming the father of Satanism.

“From then on, she called herself the daughter of Satan and was eventually expelled from the Golden Dawn.”

“…But that’s all in the past, right?”

“Listen, in 1966, Anton LaVey, a traitor of the Clock Tower, inherited Crowley’s ideas and moved to America, establishing the Satanic Church, which once had millions of followers.”

Now, all Satanic Churches are essentially groups that revere Anton LaVey.

But…

“We definitely eradicated all Satanic Churches from the Clock Tower…”

“…So a failed Satanic Church has returned? Even to Korea?”

“I’m not sure, but the magic circle you saw in your dream is the kind used by the Satanic Church.”

“Hmm, this could be a big problem, right?”

“If it’s really connected to the Satanic Church, we need to act fast. They can expand and grow powerful using all sorts of bizarre methods.”

After this call, I need to report to the Tower Master immediately.

The return of the Satanic Church…

It’s clear that there are Awakened Ones among them now.

If that’s the case, a disaster beyond comparison to monsters or villains could be coming.

I don’t know what they’re up to in Korea, but…

We need to find and eliminate them as soon as possible.

“Got it, thanks.”

“I’ll report to the Tower Master right away. The Clock Tower will probably send mages. Be careful until then.”

“Okay.”

Judging by her tone, she doesn’t seem like she’ll stay put.

“This is really dangerous, not something to take lightly. If you act recklessly…”

Beep—beep—beep—

…

She hung up?

I need to put my name on the list of mages being sent to Korea.

If I don’t go and give her a knuckle sandwich, I might go crazy from stress.

 

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