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Chapter 45: Well, your house is just too warm.
On one side of the living room, two study guides lay half-open on a wide desk, spread out over an electric mat.
Seol Yeonhwa quietly spun her pen and stared into her workbook.
Her blue hair fell slightly over her shoulder, gleaming softly under the overhead light.
“Hey, do you know how to solve this problem?”
At Shin Yuseong’s voice, Seol Yeonhwa turned her head.
A slight tension passed across her pale face.
That subtle emotion you feel when your breath catches, when your eyes suddenly meet someone else's.
‘I asked because it's exam season, but still...’
She hadn’t expected him to actually say she could come study.
Especially not under the pretense of being neighbors.
Not in some reading room, but here—at his house, just the two of them, sitting this close.
Well, "this close" might be an exaggeration.
They were seated with a bit of distance between them, facing each other.
But for her, whose heart was pounding so hard it could burst, it felt very close.
And now, she moved even closer.
“…I know it. I’ll explain.”
Yeonhwa cautiously got up and kneeled next to Yuseong.
Since they were in the same class, the parts they were reviewing for midterms were almost identical.
The subject they’d be tested on Monday: Dungeon Management and Hunter Law.
The part he was confused about was how to measure the mana saturation in a spontaneous dungeon and dispatch the appropriate hunter force—a task expected of a proper manager.
“Here, this formula can actually be rearranged like this. So, this part...”
Someday, she might have to take responsibility for the Blue Mage Tower and its mages as the Tower Master.
This academic and managerial part—this was what Seol Yeonhwa was most confident in.
She wondered if this man, perfect in every other way, might just be a little weak with numbers.
She didn’t show it, but a small smile tugged at her lips.
It wasn’t mockery.
It was more like the joy of discovering something endearing about someone you liked.
Honestly, she didn’t know why she liked him so much.
The first time they met, she just thought, "He’s strong."
That was the lasting impression.
Then the next time, when they bickered, it was bewildering—but also sparked her curiosity.
After they exchanged contact information, a sense of closeness began to grow.
And then, when they met again atop the Mage Tower—
Her heart simply began to race.
Maybe it was a brain response triggered by escaping near-death, but she had no intention of snapping herself out of that illusion.
Maybe it was a betrayal of the cool-headed judgment a mage was supposed to uphold.
But for the first time in her life, she wanted to be swept away like this.
She just wanted to keep feeling her heart flutter like this.
Every time her hand moved across the workbook, it brushed dangerously close to the back of his hand.
The warmth he gave off against her skin was both blissful and electrifying.
Yeonhwa paused mid-explanation.
“Hm?”
“…You're too close.”
Yeonhwa murmured softly and averted her gaze.
The tips of her ears were tinged with red.
Normally, she would’ve stood up already if she felt this unwell—but today, for some reason, she didn’t want to.
It wasn’t that she felt awkward around him.
Her condition wasn’t bad, either.
On the contrary, his face looked especially good today, and her body seemed to hum like it was singing a happy tune.
“I don’t hate it, but... you’re close.”
“What the heck is that supposed to mean?”
Yuseong laughed, as if he’d just heard something ridiculous, and Yeonhwa furrowed her brow slightly.
Not because she was offended—just because she didn’t want to look too smitten.
She brushed her hair behind her ear with the hand holding her pen and added in a quiet, barely audible voice:
“Well, your house is just too warm.”
Even though she'd been in warmer places before, it truly felt that way.
A kind of warmth that hadn't approached her in a long time was now reaching her far too easily.
And with his sudden glances—
It felt like her body temperature, and the air around her, were heating up.
So right now, she was too warm.
Warm enough that her heart was pounding like it might burst.
* * *
They did study for two or three hours for midterms, but honestly, he couldn’t concentrate.
Was it because they were at home?
Because it was the first time a girl had ever come over?
Because that girl was pretty, and kept looking at his face?
No, none of those were the real reason.
Each factor played a part, sure—but the main issue was this person.
No, more precisely—this god.
[A goddess claps her hands in delight, nodding in awe.]
Damn goddess.
Just when he was trying to concentrate, she’d pop up in his vision and throw him off.
If she appeared constantly, he could just block her out—but she appeared sporadically.
That made it harder, because he was always wondering when she’d show up again.
If Seol Yeonhwa hadn’t helped him, he wouldn’t have even made it halfway through the plan he set for today.
And yet, it was her getting closer to him that triggered the goddess’s reactions.
Hmm.
What kind of paradox was this?
Maybe he should just study alone.
But with how smart Seol Yeonhwa seemed, that felt like a waste.
You could just tell when someone was going to ace a written test.
And she had that vibe—like she’d take first place, at least in the written portion.
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After studying with her today, he was convinced his own grades would shoot up if they kept doing this for a few days.
So, the conclusion was obvious.
“I guess I just have to block the goddess.”
[The goddess gasps in horror and begs him not to do anything so cruel.]
"Well, what can I do? You wouldn’t want your champion to be at the bottom of the class, would you? I’ve got to study hard and at least hit the department average."
The others were trying to cram now after barely studying before.
There was no other choice.
For now, I had to set the goddess aside and make a final push.
[The goddess pleads pitifully with a gloomy face, asking not to be blocked, promising to be quiet.]
"No need to beg like that."
When the goddess I serve begs this earnestly, what can I do?
Really, being heartless is harder than it looks.
I decided to watch how quiet she’d be this time and, if she got noisy again, I’d definitely block her.
[The goddess smiles brightly, full of innocence.]
Thinking that, I flipped through the reference book for Monday’s exam to brush up a bit.
If I’d studied like this all along, I might’ve made it into Seoul National University.
But what can you do?
Ending up at the bottom just because I started late would be a disgrace to a hero.
It wasn’t really about others’ opinions.
I just couldn’t stand it myself.
So I focused on studying harder than I had in the past twenty years, harder than when I was a student in middle or high school.
* * *
And so came Monday.
All classes at the Seoul Academy of Supernatural Abilities shifted to self-study, free periods, or exams as the midterm period began.
Those who valued their grades would focus on studying, while others who didn’t care would go their own way.
Sephine Alavad fell into the latter group.
She might get nagged by her family if she ended up in the lower ranks, but she didn’t really care.
Just now, she’d failed to solve the last question on her test.
It made her a bit sad, but there was something else on her mind.
‘…Ah, time lately feels so fast and yet so slow.’
As the day she’d been looking forward to approached, time and space themselves seemed to warp.
It was hard to believe, exciting, and nerve-wracking all at once.
The fact that the person she liked had a birthday just two days away was making her anxious.
Wednesday.
It was the final day of exams at the academy—a short but intense period.
It was also Shin Yuseong’s birthday.
* * *
Tuesday.
As midterms hit their peak, wails of despair started erupting across campus.
Among the students, there were also those preparing for a certain operation.
"Is the operation proceeding smoothly?"
"Being carried out thoroughly."
"It’s not our first time handling a mission like this."
"Still, don’t let your guard down. Treat the target as if they’re an SSS-rank hunter—or a monster capable of destroying the world. It has to be flawless, thorough, and completely natural."
"…You make it sound like we’re saving the world, not prepping a birthday surprise."
"Honestly, we’ve never prepared this thoroughly—not even for the cult leader."
"Quiet. Stay focused."
"But you brought it up first…"
It was more of a celebration than a mission, to be honest.
"Focus!"
Still, to them, it was a serious operation.
* * *
And so, time crept forward again.
"…Finally!"
Wednesday had arrived.
The final exam day—and someone’s birthday.
Many had eagerly awaited it.
[Hehehe, yes! See? We can accomplish something if we work together!]
Even non-human beings joined in.
The count-ranked demon Albania looked down at the "tribute" with a satisfied smile.
Offerings fit for a great master, plundered from captured victims.
As a demon, she’d emptied her soul pouch, filled with rare and precious treasures, and piled them high like a mountain.
Albania nodded proudly.
"Yes, this is it."
She didn’t even know it was her master’s birthday.
It had just ended up that way by coincidence.
* * *
And then there was the goddess.
"One, two, check. Mm, perfect!"
A god from beyond was preparing for a descent into the mortal world.
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