A Prophet?

The violet-swirling entrance spat the four of them back out.
Of the four, all covered in dust, the hunched one spoke in a thin voice.

“I can’t… anymore… save me….”

The mage, weaker than the healer, said that much and collapsed face-first.

“Grrr…”

Judging by the snoring, he wasn’t dead. He had simply fallen asleep from exhaustion.
Ro-un shot Joo Hee-jun a flat glance and started walking toward the treatment room.

“Hahahaha. I’ll carry the bomb freak.”

Fine. Do that.
Ro-un did not even have the energy to answer.
He was holding on by willpower alone, but they had just cleared a C-rank and S-rank dual passage.
And they had cleared that dual passage in a single day, so it was only natural that the healer, the physically weakest member of the party, was exhausted enough to collapse.
The Association employee stopped Ro-un as he was about to go report the passage clear.

“Let us go to the treatment room first. Student Lee Ro-un and student Cheon Su-ho both need treatment.”

This man still looked perfectly fine even after all that chaos.
Ro-un knew the faces of every S-rank Awakener affiliated with the Association, but this man wasn’t one of them.

‘Who exactly is this man?’

What kind of person could carry both me and Joo Hee-jun while escaping from a top-tier S-rank boss and still look completely fine afterward?
Ro-un looked at the healthy Association employee suspiciously, despite his warm appearance, but perhaps because he was exhausted, his head would not work properly.
Deciding to think about it again later, Ro-un dragged his legs, heavy as if stones were tied to them, toward the treatment room.

Shuuuu!

Once the four of them disappeared into the treatment room, the entrance that had expelled the raiders shrank, its vortex gathering into a single point.
Just before the passage vanished completely, Baek Ho-yeon slowly revealed himself and strolled out.
With a satisfied expression, he glanced once toward the treatment room the four had entered, then turned with his hands behind his back and headed for where a car had already been prepared.
Woon Ho, Baek Ho-yeon’s secretary, who had been waiting for him, bowed his head and opened the back door as Baek Ho-yeon approached at an easy pace.
Once inside the car, Baek Ho-yeon awkwardly poked at his D-watch.

“How do you work this thing? Why is making one phone call so complicated?”

As Baek Ho-yeon awkwardly fumbled with the hologram using his thick index finger, his secretary spoke while looking in the rearview mirror.

“Chairman. Say the name saved in your contacts followed by ‘call.’”
“Yong-yong, call.”
-Connecting your call to ‘Yong-yong.’
“Oh!”

The AI recognized Baek Ho-yeon’s voice and connected the call automatically.
The tiger, fascinated by this piece of modern technology, wriggled in delight.

“The world really has improved a lot. They’ve even made things like this now.”

Soon, Baekdu Academy’s chairman, Yong Chang-jin, appeared on the hologram screen.
Perhaps he had been working, because the background behind him looked like an office.
Handling paperwork with a touch pen, Yong Chang-jin spoke without even looking at Baek Ho-yeon.

-What is it this time?
“Now look at that. If you come out like that, it’s no fun.”
-Unlike certain people, I’m busy. Get to the point.
“Hm. Such cold words are a wound to the heart. I may get so sad I forget what I was about to say.”

At Baek Ho-yeon’s shameless tone, Yong Chang-jin’s eyebrow shot up.
But perhaps thanks to his years of experience, Yong Chang-jin did not let himself get dragged into Baek Ho-yeon’s pace.

-Just get to the point.
“What a dull man.”

Baek Ho-yeon leaned back against the seat with a bored expression.
The back seat, lined with premium interior materials, let out a strained sound under his heavy body.

-I’m hanging up.
“Lee Ro-un saved someone again.”

Yong Chang-jin’s eyebrow twitched again, and he set down his pen and straightened his posture.
Seeing that his old friend was finally ready to listen, Baek Ho-yeon tapped his knee with his index finger and smiled leisurely.
At Baek Ho-yeon’s deliberate stalling, Yong Chang-jin’s remaining eyebrow bent like a mountain ridge.

-You bastard, just say it alre—
-Ro-uuung?

Another dragon suddenly appeared on the screen.
At the appearance of the child with white hair and shining black eyes, both Yong Chang-jin and Baek Ho-yeon were momentarily taken aback.

-Ro-uung?
“What the. You were with your son? Weren’t you working?”
-I’m keeping him with me while Mugi is away. There’s no safer place than by my side.
-Ro-uung!
“Hahahaha. Little dragon, the Saint is not here.”
-Ro-uuung.

At Baek Ho-yeon’s words, Yu-jeong’s eyes drooped sadly.
Yong Chang-jin glared at Baek Ho-yeon as if asking why he was crushing his child’s spirit.

‘He really is hopelessly doting. Is that thing actually a dragon?’

The big tiger who held his whole clan close clicked his tongue at the sight of Yong Chang-jin.

-Yong Yu-jeong. Didn’t I say I’d let you meet the Saint if you obediently learned human speech? If you want to meet the Saint, then hurry and learn to speak like a human.
-Mm.
-Go finish your homework.
-Byeee.

Yu-jeong nodded, said goodbye to Baek Ho-yeon as well, and disappeared from the screen.
After confirming that the child was gone, Baek Ho-yeon burst out laughing.

“Puhahahahaha! Yong Chang-jin, your temper’s gone soft! Weren’t you the one who stayed shut up in your nest saying dragons ought to be lofty and dignified? Where did that fellow go?”
-And what about you? You were the one who said you hated being shut up anywhere, and yet somehow you’ve planted yourself in a corner of Jiri Mountain.
“I’m observing our Saint.”
-So. Say what you just said again. Lee Ro-un saved who, exactly?
“He saved a Hero who couldn’t use mana.”
-In detail.

Yong Chang-jin’s eyes lit up as he pressed for details, and Baek Ho-yeon explained everything he had seen without leaving anything out.

-I remember the Gokseong C-rank passage as well. So a trial-type passage was hidden inside it. And not just that, but an S-rank passage testing the qualifications of a Hero. Could Lee Ro-un really have known all of this?
“The important part is that Lee Ro-un changed someone’s fate again.”

The two beings whose names were etched into myth looked at one another with the expressions of Divine Beasts.

“Doesn’t something come to mind?”
-I think I know what you mean.

Having known each other for so long, Yong Chang-jin immediately understood what Baek Ho-yeon meant, and his face turned serious.

-The prophets. Their actions were exactly like this.
“The way he moves, as though he knows everything that’s going to happen ahead of time, is the same. And even the part where he hides that fact from those around him while twisting other people’s fates is identical.”
-A prophet’s prophecy can bring blessing or disaster, so it cannot be helped. There have even been cases where the moment the prophet spoke what they knew aloud, calamity followed.
“Changing fate does not always lead in a good direction. If this becomes known, those who are fond of will target Lee Ro-un.”

The two of them had begun to vaguely grasp the truth Lee Ro-un was hiding.
The two beings, now half certain that Lee Ro-un knew the future, looked at each other. One frowned, while the other smiled.

-Baek Ho-yeon. What is that expression on your face?
“What about it?”
-You haven’t forgotten that Lee Ro-un is your benefactor, have you?
“He’s yours too.”

No matter what was said, it seemed impossible to wipe the curiosity and mischief from that face.
Yong Chang-jin swallowed a sigh and asked,

-So what are you going to do?
“If Lee Ro-un really has prophetic power, then we should hide him and protect him. You know it too, don’t you? Just how much power a single prophet can wield.”
-It is still not certain. And acts that attempt to change fate belong to the realm of taboo.
“Don’t worry. Lee Ro-un has no intention of telling anyone any prophecy. If he doesn’t speak it, then there’s no problem, right?”
-But someone’s life was saved because of Lee Ro-un’s actions.
“You haven’t forgotten that your child and mine were among them, have you?”
-Baek Ho-yeon….
“This isn’t just anyone. He’s . It’s certain that the fate he changes won’t be some ordinary one. And I’ve got a feeling that the fate Lee Ro-un is trying to change isn’t something as small as this. I want to see with my own eyes what it is.”
-Even if it brings disaster?
“If that is what my benefactor wants, I’ll help.”
-Hoo. You’re impossible.

and prophecy.
If the owner of prophecy, something that could bring blessing or disaster, was , then would not his prophecy bring blessing?
At Baek Ho-yeon’s words, Yong Chang-jin’s heart wavered like a tiny boat on a storm-tossed sea.

-Very well. I too will watch.
-What kind of watching can someone far away do? I’ll be the one watching, so you stay there and raise your child properly.
-…Baek Ho!

Yong Chang-jin finally shouted in exasperation.

Among the long list of incidents, Lee Ro-un checked off .
Perhaps because he had managed to stop an incident he once thought impossible to prevent, Ro-un’s hand moved lightly as he marked the box.

“Good. That takes care of the urgent ones, so all that’s left now is the jackpot item and dropping out?”

That damned withdrawal.
He had filled out the paperwork in early spring, and yet somehow summer was already drawing near.
May, when the blossoms had bloomed and fallen, and the green leaves were vivid.
Unable to put off dropping out any longer, Ro-un brushed himself off, stood up, and left the dormitory.
And the moment he stepped outside, Cheon Su-ho appeared as if he had been waiting for him.

‘Run.’

But Cheon Su-ho, a combat-type, was faster to spot Ro-un and run over than Ro-un, a healer, could be at running away.

“Lee Ro-un!”

Cheon Su-ho ran toward him, waving like a dog that had found its owner.
At the arrival of such a troublesome person, Ro-un turned and tried to walk right back the way he had come, but Cheon Su-ho immediately grabbed him.
Looking at Cheon Su-ho, now practically flying around the moment his was resolved, Ro-un wore a thoroughly bothered expression.

“Lee Ro-un, where are you going?”
“To the dorm.”
“Wasn’t that not the direction you were heading first?”
“I was going for a walk.”
“Hahahaha. Then I’ll come too!”

Cheon Su-ho grabbed Ro-un’s arm and pulled.

‘If you want a walk, do it by yourself.’

For some reason, it felt like he had become the owner being dragged around by a large dog.
Cheon Su-ho was already dragging him this way and that, and Ro-un was tired just from that.

‘I guess I’ll see the chairman tomorrow instead.’

Just as Ro-un decided to postpone the real purpose of going out until tomorrow and head back into the dormitory, someone stepped in front of the two of them.

“Um, excuse me. P-president!”

What was this one now?
Already quite tired from Cheon Su-ho’s ‘walk,’ Ro-un looked at the student with sharp eyes.
The student flinched under Ro-un’s gaze for a moment, but soon gathered his courage, clenched his fist, and blurted out,

“The reason I called you! It’s just, I mean…!”

Watching the student stumble over his words, Ro-un tilted his head and said,

“Lee Ro-un.”
“Uh, yeah?”
“Lee Ro-un. That’s my name. It’s not President. It’s Lee Ro-un.”
“Oh?! O-okay! Hi, Lee Ro-un.”
“Hi.”
“Hahahahahaha! There really are a lot of students who still don’t know your name changed, Ro-un!”

Ro-un ignored Cheon Su-ho’s remark.

“So. Why did you call me?”
“Huh? Ah! Well, it’s about Cheon Su-ho. Is it true that you really fixed his ?”
“I didn’t fix it.”
“Hahahaha! That’s right. If not for Lee Ro-un, I never would have overcome .”

What the hell is this idiot saying right now!
If he said things like that, these idiots would misunderstand again!

“You can really fix something like that too?!”
“What? The president fixed Cheon Su-ho?”
“I heard the president can fix traits too.”
“I saw it myself! Even demolition crew is getting treated by Lee Ro-un!”

Perhaps because the student had spoken so loudly, other students began popping out from all over the place.
Why were these idiots here instead of in class?
And why were they deciding on their own that he was someone who could even fix traits?
Just as Ro-un, sensing a deeply exhausting situation coming on, tried to step back, Cheon Su-ho gripped his shoulder tightly and said,

“Hahahahaha! That’s right. Lee Ro-un can fix not only my , but bomb freak’s trait too.”
“You lunatic!”

At Cheon Su-ho’s words, Ro-un let slip a vulgar curse.
The eyes of the students looking at him lit up at once.
He had a bad feeling that leaving the dormitory from now on was going to become a difficult journey.

Ro-un brushed it off vaguely and hurriedly fled the scene.
As Ro-un entered the dormitory and tried to steady his breath after that absurd situation, Cheon Su-ho puffed out his chest with a proud expression.
At that dog-like behavior of looking proud after causing trouble, Ro-un bristled.

“Why are you going around saying things that aren’t even true?”
“Hahahaha! Because it’s true. And merits ought to be made known clearly, shouldn’t they! The deeds of a Hero are meant to be widely known! I simply said that with your help I resolved my status ailment, and that you were also working to help Joo Hee-jun.”

So that was why it had felt like those idiots were waiting for him to come out.
Only then did Ro-un realize why the students had all come swarming in.

This was Jiri Academy.
A place where the worst of the worst were gathered.
Among them were a few with trashy personalities, but most had ended up here because some flaw in their abilities had branded them as failures.

‘And now a rumor’s spread that I can fix that, so how could they possibly stay quiet!’

Ro-un realized at once that his academy life had become extremely tangled.
To begin with, his life had been twisted from the moment he first came here, no, even from far earlier, from the moment he awakened. This only drove the nail in deeper.

‘Even after regressing, my life is still a mess.’

As Ro-un briefly pitied his own fate, one thought suddenly flashed through his mind.

‘Wait. If I just drop out, that solves it. If I drop out, why would I have to deal with these idiots at all?’

The answer was dropping out.
As his tangled thoughts reached that conclusion, Ro-un jumped to his feet.
Cheon Su-ho, standing beside him, got up as well.

“Lee Ro-un! Are you going to help your friends?”
“Help them? I’ve got somewhere to go, so you deal with the idiots outside.”
“? Where are you going?”
“What would you do even if you knew?”

At Ro-un’s cold reply, Cheon Su-ho’s face fell.

“Lee Ro-un. Are you angry? Did I do something wrong?”

Ugh. Why was this giant idiot looking at him like that?
I even took you for a walk!
What now?

“…I’m not angry. I’ve got an appointment with the chairman, that’s all.”
“Is that so! Understood! Then go, Lee Ro-un!”

Watching him puff out his chest, grin broadly, and head out as if nothing had happened, saying he would hold the students off himself, Ro-un let out a long, deep sigh.