SRS 31

“Mikael, you’ll come when Yohan leaves, right?”

Suhyeok adjusted his grip on Yohan when he struggled to pull his body free, then he winked at Mikael and dragged Yohan away. The two men had always been strong, and since they made up their minds, Yohan could only follow.

“Hey…!”

He looked at his two friends like they were out of their minds. Fantasiademia was already dangerous when they went out at 9 at night, and now it was 1:12 in the morning. He whispered, wondering what they planned to run into by going out at this hour and trying to warn them, but the two had their own plan.

“It’s fine, Yohan. We knew you’d react like this, so we brought Mikael too.”

Mikael, the forever first-year, was their solution. Yohan was dumbfounded at the shameless words and hurried to ask Isaac and Mikael, who were following behind him, for help.

“…Sorry, Yohan. I want to help, but you know I’m a mage so I can’t beat physical types…”

Isaac turned his head away, ignoring the request. Mikael…

“……”

It was hopeless. He followed slowly with a slightly mischievous smile, and he didn’t look like he planned to help. Left to resist alone, Yohan tried to persuade his friends calmly.

“Suhyeok, Kylus. You’re acting too rash. Did you forget how we got attacked by illusions last time we went out?”

“Yes, illusions are scary. But the commercial district looks so fun. I want to know what it is. When I get curious, I have to figure it out.”

“…I’m sorry. But if I want to beat the Phantom Sword Master, I need a good sword. If Fantasiademia has a weapon shop, they must handle rare weapons.”

You materialistic people!

Kylus had definitely damaged a corner of his mind after sparring with the Phantom Sword Master. A noble shouldn’t act like this, and yet he said things like that…

Yohan realized he couldn’t go against the flow and gave up.

When they stepped outside the dorm, a cold breeze wrapped around them. Yohan thought it was lucky he’d worn an outer coat and swung his arms as a signal to let him go since he’d been dragged out. Suhyeok finally released him and looked around the Rose Garden.

“Hm… the statues don’t look like they moved.”

“The night illusions only start once you leave the dorm.”

“Oh, good explanation.”

Suhyeok snapped his fingers at Mikael in thanks, then told everyone to move forward. Yohan was nervous and glanced back at Mikael. The others were new to Fantasiademia, so they could act reckless out of curiosity, but Mikael was familiar with this place. Yohan didn’t understand why he joined in for fun.

“You know anything about Fantasiademia ghost stories?”

“Yes.”

“Oh.”

Suhyeok’s eyes lit up too brightly at the answer.

“So? Are the ghost stories true?”

“Well… about half. The dragon lair does exist. You can find it if you get through the illusion labyrinth. But I’m not sure if it always happens at 1 in the morning. And I’ve never heard anything about a permit to enter the lair.”

“What ghost story did you hear then?”

“Last year I heard if a statue in Fantasiademia moves, a dragon comes down and burns the dorm. It’s a disaster, but since the lair appears with it, people said you could get treasure.”

“That’s different from this year.”

“Yes. It changes a little every year.”

Hm?

After listening for a while, something felt strange. Yohan tilted his head and joined their conversation.

“If rumors circulate every year, that means someone spreads them every year, right?”

“I guess?”

“Then… doesn’t it feel like someone spreads them on purpose? Like they want the new students to cause trouble…”

Yohan muttered, then grabbed Mikael when a thought suddenly occurred to him.

“Mikael. How did you know the lair exists?”

“Second-year seniors found it 2 years ago. I didn’t see it myself.”

“Then did the first-years go out looking for the lair 2 years ago, and last year too?”

“Yes.”

“And each time the first-years…”

“Failed.”

Mikael answered plainly. Yohan massaged his temple because his head ached.

“Then why didn’t you stop Suhyeok and Kylus? They’ll fail again. This rumor is obviously a trap for new students.”

He glared at Suhyeok and Kylus, and the two looked away. Yohan let out a dry laugh. He was just about to turn around and say he’d go back.

“I’m curious.”

“What?”

“I followed because I think we might succeed this time.”

Mikael’s voice blocked Yohan’s attempt to return. Yohan froze when he saw Mikael smiling at him, then slowly closed his eyes.

“…I feel like I become weird too because I spend too much time with you.”

He complained, saying he just wanted to go back, but Suhyeok grabbed Yohan’s shoulder and pulled him toward him. With their upper bodies close, Suhyeok whispered softly.

“But Yohan. If Mikael says that, doesn’t it mean we might have a chance too?”

“Suhyeok. You trust Mikael?”

“Don’t you?”

“……”

It was a complicated question. Yohan could say he trusted Mikael himself, but it was hard to trust Mikael when he was playful like this. While he was picking his words, Suhyeok changed his tactic.

“Yohan. Think about it carefully. If we’re lucky enough to find a permit to the commercial district, it’s good for all of us.”

“How’s that good for everyone? I don’t really want to go to the commercial district…”

“Don’t you feel bad for Kylus? When you think about how he loses to the Phantom Sword Master every dawn, you’d want to take him to the commercial district. Am I the only one who feels that way?”

The unexpected argument made Yohan flinch. Suhyeok caught the reaction and pointed his chin at Kylus’s sword with a pitiful look.

“Look, Yohan. The sword Kylus uses now is a basic training iron sword they hand out in swordsmanship class. The edge is chipped, the blade is dull, and the weight isn’t balanced. How hard do you think it is for Kylus to spar with a professor every day using something like that? My friend wanting a new sword isn’t greed. It’s just something he needs.”

“……”

“Or do you want Kylus to lose to the Phantom Sword Master every time and go crazy?”

The gentle whisper poked at Yohan’s heart. He looked at Kylus’s hand. Just as Suhyeok said, the sword he held was in terrible shape. Yohan had never cared about weapons before so he didn’t notice, but once he paid attention, the flaws were endless.

“Yohan, you want to save Kylus from the insane Phantom Sword Master too. So do I.”

The coaxing started shaking Yohan little by little. The temptation was strong enough that he felt like Suhyeok might as well be a demon. Yohan pushed Suhyeok’s face away and sighed.

Kylus had definitely gotten more on edge in the past few days. If this kept going, he really would lose his mind like Suhyeok said.

Heavens…

Yohan stood and agonized for a while, then sighed. Suhyeok grinned, he sensed the shift in Yohan’s heart.

Feeling like he’d somehow lost, Yohan looked for Mikael.

“Mikael. Do you know how to deal with Fantasiademia’s illusions?”

“Who knows.”

“Don’t pretend. Every word and action of yours was a clue.”

He followed them even though he knew it was dangerous, he said they might succeed this time, and he acted like he was familiar with the night illusions.

Everything pointed to Mikael being a student who’d come out at night many times. When Yohan urged him, Mikael laughed.

“If I do, do you have something you want to ask me?”

“…If we fall into illusions and things get dangerous, help us escape. That’s the condition for me going with you.”

“If I help you…”

“If the permit really exists, I’ll give you mine. If they don’t give one per person, I’ll repay you in another way. And…”

Yohan grabbed Suhyeok, who had stepped aside to listen to the conversation like he was watching a fire from a distance.

“Suhyeok will repay you too.”

“Yohan, why am I…”

“Im Suhyeok.”

“…Oh. Right. I’ll repay you too.”

Yohan narrowed his eyes and lowered his voice, and Suhyeok quickly raised both hands in surrender and agreed. Mikael watched them for a moment, then nodded. Yohan let out a long breath, wondering how things ended up like this, then looked at the Rose Garden.

“We can’t stay long. We need to sleep and we have zero period class, so only until two. If we don’t find it or it gets dangerous, we immediately escape and go back. Everyone agree.”

“Yohan…”

Isaac was moved by Yohan’s decision. Yohan cleared his throat because it wasn’t really for Melek and the others. If he only wanted to help the group that had left earlier, he would’ve asked the dorm supervisor for help. But the supervisor couldn’t replace Kylus’s sword, so this heavy choice was all he could make.

Suhyeok smiled in satisfaction at Yohan’s resolve. Yohan glared at these people he couldn’t tell were friends or enemies, then walked toward the Rose Garden. When they all approached the statues huddled together, creak, the two knight statues moved and merged into one.

Bang!

A roar echoed and the ground shook. Since the illusion was changing the whole area, Yohan grabbed his friends, steeled his nerves, and gathered his divine power just in case.

After a moment the trembling stopped, and a path completely different from the Rose Garden Yohan knew appeared before them.

Thick bushes had grown into walls, and like Mikael said, the path looked like a labyrinth.

If they escaped this place, would they reach the lair?

There was a sign they hadn’t seen before at the entrance.

“Prove your worth if you seek treasure by passing through the illusion labyrinth.”

The command made Yohan clench both hands and look at his friends.

“This is the last chance. If you want to go back, go now.”

The students exchanged looks, then nodded. They all seemed determined.

“Let’s go.”

Since Suhyeok was a hunter, he switched places with Yohan and led the group from the front. That was how the 5 of them, the 4 from room 304 with Isaac added in, stepped into the labyrinth that had replaced the Rose Garden.