After finishing the Golden Bell and having lunch, we finally got a brief break.

Around us, there were lively discussions about the Golden Bell controversy, but our group was not interested at all.

After returning to the classroom and enjoying the cool air conditioning, the rest of the group joined us.

Before the afternoon games started, a brief chat took place.

"Was I the only one who made it all the way to the end of Golden Bell?"

Choi Ye-Seo, who was wearing a unique outfit different from ours, spoke first.

"I made it to question 27."

Ha Soo-Yul might not be the best at studying, but strangely, her guesses were always spot on.

If there’s anyone who has a “lucky guess” ability, it would be Ha Soo-Yul.

"What the heck was with the Leibniz question? How are we supposed to know what kind of fork he liked?!"

Choi Ye-Seo pointed out the most ridiculous question and burst into frustration.

That’s when I, with my random knowledge, stepped in to explain.

"Leibniz was a contemporary of Newton. Interestingly, the two of them almost simultaneously created calculus."

Hong Ye-Hwa, who had stopped drawing for a moment, spoke up.

"But I didn’t know about the fork thing. How did you know that, Lee Ha-Eun?"

Her head tilted slightly, and she looked at me directly. But that was just a lucky guess, too.

Even so, I couldn’t just admit that I guessed. I had to make it sound more believable.

"The fork became popular in England in the 17th century. And Leibniz was active around the 17th and 18th centuries."

"And what does that have to do with anything?" Choi Ye-Seo asked, her eyebrows raised.

I shrugged and continued explaining.

"The type of fork that became popular in the 17th century was the ‘circlet fork,’ which could be used to dip jams or fruit preserves, and the spoon-like end could scoop food."

"But that’s in England."

"Let me finish. Anyway, later, the Germans were the first to create a fork with a rounded handle, which eventually became the spork, or fork-spoon, we use now."

Everyone seemed impressed by my explanation, but to be honest, there was no actual proof of this.

It was just something I randomly came up with, and there wasn’t much relevance or accuracy to it.

Who knows if the Germans really invented the spork or not?

"So, that’s why you picked the fork-spoon?"

When Ha Soo-Yul asked me that, I could only nod. Cold sweat ran down my back, but I kept it a secret.

'It’s a lie…'

It was all made up. I didn’t think they’d believe it entirely.

I awkwardly wrapped up the Golden Bell discussion, and we continued chatting as we waited for the afternoon games.

By the way, my mom and aunt were at the library. They said they preferred somewhere quiet rather than a classroom filled with students.

Both of them planned to watch the afternoon games at the library. If that’s the case, I should’ve given them back the umbrella and blanket.

The library, which is nearly open on all sides, has no blind spots, and you can see all three sports fields from there.

'How is the library this big? It’s like the size of the national library…'

The three-story library was ridiculously spacious.

After the marble game, I’d go find them.

"Oh, I have to go for the group jump rope."

Ha Soo-Yul and Choi Ye-Seo slowly got up and left the classroom.

"We’re doing the color paper flip game. You’ll be here, right?"

Lee Do-Yoon asked me, leading Baek Yoo-Seol out, though he was subtly asking.

I had no intention of going anywhere, so I nodded and waved my hand.

"Yeah, I’ll stay. I’ll probably melt if I go outside. Let me know the results after it’s done."

"Okay~. We’ll be back soon."

With that, they both left, and only Hong Ye-Hwa and I remained in the classroom.

The class members were off doing their own things, and it didn’t seem like they were planning to come back anytime soon.

I stood up from my desk and moved over to sit next to Hong Ye-Hwa.

Thinking about it, I realized we hadn’t really talked much before.

"What are you drawing?"

When I casually asked, Hong Ye-Hwa glanced up at me.

She had a slightly flushed face and a pleasant smile at the corners of her lips.

"I’m thinking of entering the National Art Exhibition in July. I need to decide on a theme before then."

"National Exhibition? That’s going to be tough. If you enter the Youth Art Exhibition, you’ll probably win easily."

Hong Ye-Hwa looked a bit confused.

"No, the National Exhibition is open to all artists in Korea, and you have to create something appropriate for your age group..."

I was taken aback by my own explanation.

I realized what I had just said and was a bit embarrassed.

Reading my expression, Hong Ye-Hwa smiled and chuckled lightly.

"Don’t you think you’re in no position to say that?"

At her words, I automatically closed my mouth.

Come to think of it, I’m 17 and entering an international competition, so I guess I’m not in a position to speak about others’ struggles either.

After a brief silence, Hong Ye-Hwa continued.

"I wish I could enter the prize competition too. But my skills aren’t at that level yet."

It’s true—Hong Ye-Hwa is far more talented than most people, but that "youth" qualifier is important.

Her nickname, "The Hand of God," is something like the late bloomer of the martial arts world.

Her talent hasn’t yet shined brightly in the war of the arts.

"Still, you could probably enter the most competitive stages in the country."

It might be too much for a masterpiece, but she could probably create something similar to Do Won-Hyang’s work.

That thought barely crossed my mind when my eyes fell on her drawing.

"Are you just deciding on the theme?"

"Yeah, I’m not sure what to draw yet."

Hong Ye-Hwa resumed drawing, her hand swiftly moving across the paper.

Since there was still some time, maybe I could help her a bit.

In the original story, Hong Ye-Hwa was talented in many areas, but the thing she was best at was her artistic style—specifically, nature and landscape painting.

Her title as Lee Ah-Reum’s disciple came from her talent in landscape painting.

"Want some help? Just a little bit, though."

"Huh? Uh... yeah, I’d appreciate it, but are you sure? You said you’re preparing for the prize competition."

"I already entered that. I have some time left."

"Oh, then I’ll take you up on that."

Hong Ye-Hwa immediately nodded and handed me a sharp pencil. However, I didn’t take it.

"You should draw it yourself. I’ll just give you advice."

I moved my chair closer to hers, and her face turned a little red. What’s going on?

"First, skip still lifes or portraits. And no still life painting either."

"Why? Isn’t it simple and nice?"

"It’s nice, but... have you ever practiced anatomy or realism?"

"I’ve practiced a little, but not in that much detail."

That makes sense. She’s always been the type to draw trees and oceans.

"I’d recommend a naturalistic style. If you can, try something like an oasis in the middle of a desert."

"Oasis? I’ve never drawn that before."

"The Hand of God talks a lot. Just try sketching it out. I’ll look at it."

I realize I’m sounding a bit arrogant, but who else is going to know more about painting than me?

If it makes her uncomfortable, she can always adjust her position.

Hong Ye-Hwa trusted my words and started drawing lines on the paper.

"Isn’t this curve a bit uncomfortable? It’s too wide."

I gave her occasional feedback and, before I knew it, time passed.

"Oh, the marble game."

I remembered that my game was coming up.

I got up from my seat and whispered to Hong Ye-Hwa, who was still receiving my advice.

"I think Lee Ah-Reum will be able to help you more. She should be in the faculty office now. Go check there."

"Got it. Have a good game, and win."

I’ve never lost a marble game in my life. Of course, that’s only natural.

Oh, wait. Before I left, I turned and remembered something I had forgotten.

"By the way, what was his name? I can’t remember."

"What are you talking about?"

"You suddenly asked me to come to your house, for the painting thing."

"Oh, Ho-Sung. Yeah, why?"

I scratched my cheek, then continued.

"Is next week okay, after the exams?"

Now that I don’t have to worry about the hopeless story, I’m curious about that painting, Ho-Sung’s.

I might as well go visit and catch up on the work I’ve been putting off.

"Sure! That works. My dad actually wants to see you too."

I’m not too interested in your dad, but I’m more interested in Ho-Sung.

Still, I’ll show respect to the homeowner. He’s also my friend’s parent.

"Okay, I’ll see you later."

"Take care."

With a somewhat changed tone, Hong Ye-Hwa waved me off, and I left the classroom.

As I walked down the hallway toward the sports field, I ran into someone.

"Huh? Lee Ha-Eun?"

"Hm? Teacher?"

From across the way, Lee Ah-Reum was walking toward me, greeting me cheerfully.

"Did you stay in the classroom the whole time? You should go out and watch the games."

"If you were planning to kill me, I’d be quite disappointed."

"That’s a pretty harsh thing to say... Anyway. Marble game?"

"Yep. Oh, by the way, Hong Ye-Hwa is alone in the classroom. Can you go check her painting?"

"Of course. What’s she painting?"

"An oasis."

At my answer, Lee Ah-Reum waved her hand and walked off.

The sound of the classroom door opening and her footsteps faded.

I continued my walk, lost in thought.

The reason I suggested the oasis to Hong Ye-Hwa was simple. She had won an award for it in the original story.

But that competition was the Youth Art Exhibition. I wonder what’ll happen this time.

I pushed those thoughts aside and walked out onto the sports field, where a small group of students had gathered.

They were the participants for the marble game.

I quickly recognized a few familiar faces...

Ha Soo-Yul and Choi Ye-Seo. What are they doing here?

Looking at them in surprise, they turned to look at me.

"...Aren’t you supposed to be in a different event?"

"We bought in."

"Yul, it’s not buying in, it’s a trade."

"Neither of those are right..."

What should I do with these troublemakers?

Before I could get more details, the marble game started.

The rules were simple: 3 or 4 people team up and try to collect the other team’s marbles through various games.

These games included traditional activities like Yutnori, spinning tops, and rolling hoops.

Each team had to win their games, and the winning team would get the marbles.

Before I could even figure out what was going on, Ha Soo-Yul and Choi Ye-Seo dragged me to confront other teams and win every match.

Like Pokémon trainers, they picked fights wherever they went, and after crushing everyone, we won.

"Team 7 wins!"

In just 30 minutes, all the other teams were wiped out, and we claimed first place.

The main reason we won was, of course, Ha Soo-Yul. I think she might be a biochemical phenomenon.

'...Now that I think about it, I didn’t really do anything. Is this a win for me?'

Whenever it was my turn, I fought equally, but after that, Ha Soo-Yul carried the team.

Wait, why is the guy from tug-of-war here?

It wasn’t until the end of the sports day that I learned these two had been going around threatening participants for the marble game.

I didn’t want to know the details, so I just let it go.

Whatever. It’s fine.

Also, Hong Ye-Hwa excitedly told me that, thanks to Lee Ah-Reum, she had made significant progress on her painting.

I was curious about what she had done, but I had no intention of digging into it.

After the sports day ended, when I was taking my mom home...

"Son, aren’t there too many girls around you?"

"What are you talking about? Stop saying weird stuff and pick an umbrella already."

My mom randomly said something strange while we were at the convenience store.

What girls? I’m too busy with painting to even think about that.