“Why is Shihu taking her? Are they close? Did she go over to his house?”  

I still don’t understand.  
Shihu wouldn’t be living with another girl.  
It’s strange.  

“Uh... if I had to pinpoint it, it might be a kidnapping?”  

“Uh?”  

“Honestly, no one would believe me if I told them... Even if I went directly to Teacher Lee Yuram, she would completely deny her sister’s existence.”  

What are you talking about?  

“…It isn’t her sister?”  

“No, I confirmed it with my ability. I haven’t told anyone, but it’s clear that Shihu is involved in kidnapping and confinement... even intimidation.”  

“Why...?”  

I still don’t get it.  
Seol Hanjin, is your head messed up or something?  
Or am I the one who’s weird?  
Kidnapping, confinement, intimidation?  

“I can see you’re struggling to believe it. But since you seem to be interested in Shihu, I’m telling you.”  

“No, Shihu lives in the dormitory. In the first place...”  

Let’s accept the reasoning.  
Fine.  
Where is he supposedly kidnapping and confining her?  

“That guy... seems to have some kind of space travel skill. It looks like he has plenty of hidden locations and residences.”  

“Surely the people around him wouldn’t be unaware. If he’s causing such a major incident.”  

“I don’t think the people around Shihu are entirely ignorant. He might have accomplices...”  

What are you saying?  
What on earth are you talking about?  

“So, what’s wrong with that teacher’s sister?”  

“I’m not sure. I just know she’s sick. The only thing I know is that Shihu is using that to hold something over Teacher Lee Yuram.”  

Everything he says is just strange.  

“So what do you want me to do? Are you close to that sister? Is that why?”  

“No, I’ve never met her.”  

Seol Hanjin answers nonchalantly.  

“Are you trying to mess with me?”  

“Check it out. It’s the truth. The promise to treat her, a promise is a promise, right?”  

“What...?”  

“It’s true. Shihu is a bad guy.”  

He seems to dislike Shihu.  

“Impossible.”  

“The perception is that he’s a good person, but that Seo Ah from earlier and the way he behaves is odd.”  

“......”  

“Wow, I haven’t had anyone to talk to about this. Shihu is a frightening guy.”  

Isn’t that a conspiracy theory level of slander?  
It’s easier to believe he just dislikes Shihu and is making up stories.  
I’m going crazy.  

“No, I just don’t understand the kidnapping and confinement...”  

I’m confused about what I’m even hearing.  
Isn’t it this guy who should be getting treatment?  

“I didn’t ask him directly because I thought he’d kill me, but please check with the saint. If there’s no kidnapping or anything similar... then it’s all good.”  

He says this in a serious tone.  
Still, it’s a strange story.  

“Really.”  

He opens his mouth again.  
This time, his playful tone is gone.  

“Shihu is not normal.”  

He must have had more dealings with him than I have.  
It’s new for someone to be hostile towards Shihu.  
It’s unusual for someone to say he’s not normal.  

I don’t know Shihu well.  
We haven’t become truly close yet.  

“Fine. I’ll check about the kidnapping and that kind of stuff.”  

Kidnapping, confinement, and intimidation of the teacher’s sister?  
Shihu is doing that?  

That doesn’t match his image.  
He seems kind, good, and righteous.  

Is he in the same department as me?  
Many people think he’s good just because of the title of saint.  
But Shihu is genuinely kind.  

It doesn’t matter.  
I’ll get to know more as I go along.  

But kidnapping and confinement is...  

There must be some misunderstanding.  
The most likely scenario is that Seol Hanjin is the one who’s lost it.  

---

I returned home.  
Thinking it over and over again feels strange.  
Something has gotten tangled up.  
I intended to use Seo Ah to get close to Shihu.  

But for some reason, the sister of a teacher whose name I didn’t even know popped up.  
Kidnapping, confinement, intimidation.  
It still feels strange no matter how many times I mull it over.  

“Why would Shihu do such a thing...”  

Should I doubt him?  
If Seo Ah was a really close friend, why did she let him use drugs?  
Is there a darkness to Shihu that I don’t know about?  
There are many strange people in the slums.  

But I still like Shihu.  
So I’m not going to give up.  

“I guess I need to get closer.”  

What’s the best way to get close to someone?  
To do a favor?  

What if I rescue Seo Ah?  
That would be a new approach.  

No... Just providing some information about Seo Ah might increase our intimacy.  
I could prompt Shihu to bring it up.  
And after hearing about Seo Ah, I could say I’ll check into it.  
I’m not lacking in information either.  

Ding.  

A text has arrived.  

This time it’s a photo, not a video.  

“Wow...”  

It looks broken.  
Was it taken right after the experiment?  
But the subject is smiling, which makes it even stranger.  

It’s good that I have more material to share with Shihu, but who is doing this?  
I have no idea who would pull something like this.  

Why wouldn’t they send this picture or video straight to Shihu?  
They must know I could bring Shihu into this.  
They even emphasized that Seo Ah and Shihu are friends...  

I don’t understand the purpose.  

I really can’t figure it out.  
I’ve been trying to ignore it, but seriously, who are you?  
Ah.  
It hurts my head.  

Why are they doing this to me?  

Last time I panicked and used drugs.  
No matter how much I can heal myself, I should hold off on using drugs.  
I might do something nonsensical in my excitement.  

“…Using the drug feels good.”  

Maybe Seo Ah in that photo didn’t mind at all.  
As long as they get drugs, there are tons of people willing to do anything.  

“Shihu is unfortunate. If his friend is in this state…”  

But really, why are they friends?  
What did Shihu do to have Seo Ah in that condition?  
Shihu is someone who has the conviction to protect his friends.  

When I first met Seo Ah, it didn’t seem like he had a friend.  
Did Shihu discard her?  
No, that’s strange too.  

“Shihu... should I just ask him directly?”  

My head is too muddled.  
I’m filled with unrealistic stories.  

“What if...?”  

What’s the worst-case scenario?  

“If Shihu really is a piece of trash who discarded his friends from the slums and is now kidnapping and holding the teacher’s family hostage.”  

Why would he do such a thing?  
But what if, just hypothetically.  

“Then mentioning Seo Ah could have a counterproductive effect...?”  

I need to know what happened between them.  
Without that knowledge, all this mess will continue.  

“Still, I thought we were a bit close, but I guess not.”  

No matter how close you are, it’s hard to say something like, “I have a friend like Seo Ah.”  
I only have hearsay to work with.  
If I want to ascertain the truth...  

Ah, right.  
There’s no need for me to leak information about Seo Ah.  

Pretending to be an anonymous person, I could pass on information about Seo Ah and see how he reacts?  
That’s good, right?  
Let’s put it into action.  

---

***

Taking back the number one ranking.  
Shihu officially became number one after ending the tyranny of Cheon Yuhwa.  

The ranking list hanging on the bulletin board.  
Although I can check the rankings on my device, it feels different to see them printed and posted like this.  

The problem isn’t the ranking list.  

What’s posted on the bulletin board is a photo.  

“...Who did this...”  

It’s a photo of Seo Ah eating with someone.  
The reason it’s on the bulletin board is unknown.  

There’s no one around but Shihu.  
The photo was clearly posted to draw attention to Shihu.  

With a soft thud, a thumbtack falls.  
Though it’s my first time seeing this photo, I can tell when it was taken.  

On the back of the photo, something is written.  

“Come to the alley next to the bookstore outside the academy. At 6:30 PM.”  

I don’t know who did this.  
It’s rare for anyone to know of Seo Ah’s existence.  

“Is someone trying to set up a secret meeting?”  
That’s what I hoped for.  
I need to find out who’s doing this.  

“…I have an appointment at 7 anyway.”  

I have an appointment with the saint.  
I can check out the alley before I meet her.  

Is it really necessary to meet precisely at 

6:30 PM?  
Is it essential?  

Of course, Shihu would skip class without a second thought.  
By 1 PM, he’d already arrive at the alley.  
For someone ranked number one, class has no significant meaning.  
Neither teacher nor anyone can stop him.  

And wait.  
There’s nothing special in the alley yet.  

Entering the bookstore, I sit in a chair.  
I plan to observe who comes into the alley.  
If it’s an alley nearby, I should be able to detect people passing by even from inside the bookstore.  
Given Shihu’s current abilities, it’s possible.  

I can just read a book while waiting.  

2 PM.  
No one is around.  

3 PM.  
Still no one.  

The alley is completely empty.  
There’s almost no one at the bookstore either.  

No, not anymore.  
The saint is here.  
The saint has come to the bookstore.  

“Eh, Shihu?”  

“Hey.”  

“Ah, it’s good to see you early. What about school?”  

“None.”  

I skipped it.  
All of it.  

“Oh, I see. I came here to wait for you.”  

“Right.”  

“Are you busy with something?”  

I have.  
Surveillance.  

“I heard someone’s messing around.”  

The ventilation fan located in the middle of the alley.  
There’s a letter there that wasn’t there earlier.  

“Messing around?”  

The saint has followed me.  

“They told me to come here, I wonder who it could be.”  

I rip open the newly discovered letter.  
The name of the recipient is Shihu.  
Inside is another photo.  

It’s a photo of Shihu staring at the camera.  
And he remained silent for a while.  

“…What the...”  

It’s a picture of Seo Ah smiling.  
It looks like she’s lying on the floor.  
There are several empty syringes scattered next to her.  

Someone is stepping on Seo Ah’s stomach.  

It seems they took the photo while stepping on her.  
The one being stepped on looks perfectly fine.  
In any case, she’s smiling happily.  

“......”  

Is that Seo Ah...?  
Who took this photo and when?  
Why?  

Is it a manipulated photo?  
No, it doesn’t matter.  
I can just ask the target who pulled this stunt.  

And fortunately, I have the saint right next to me.  

Should I step on her?  
I wonder if I need to frame it in the same angle as the photo.