Chapter 9

Asking Harensys directly would be best, but she wasn’t ready for that, so she resolved to ask his friends instead.

She flung open the lab door. Only Mel was there, lounging in a wobbly chair, eating candy, making the place feel empty.

There was only one person, but Mel was a friend too, so he should know. If there were more people, it would be noisy and complicated.

Mel nodded as if to say, “Go ahead.”

“I have something I want to ask.”

“Is it this?” 

Mel made a small heart with both hands. That idiot. Of Harensys’s friends, Mel was the strangest. She moved closer and flicked his forehead. Even though she was in a position to ask for help, he deserved it.

“No. I’m curious if Harensys likes me.”

“So it’s love, huh.”

“Quiet. I can read his mind, and I’m starting to think he really likes me and maybe I misunderstood him. I came to see if you guys know how Harensys feels.”

Mel’s expression grew serious at her words. The mischievous look vanished. Looking serious, Mel took the candy out of his mouth. She could tell it was a pink strawberry candy.

With half-closed, serious eyes, Mel looked up at her and spoke. Even the faint breath he let out was deeply serious.

“Harensys is sincere about you. He hates misunderstandings more than anything. Whatever misunderstanding you have, unless he was cold to you, it’s all a misunderstanding. In the past, he was cold to you, but not because of us—he had his reasons, so that’s a misunderstanding too.”

“What?”

The past—he must mean when she used to chase after Harensys. But even his coldness back then was a misunderstanding?

Ugh. Her head throbbed with confusion. It felt like fireworks of new facts were exploding in her mind.

She grabbed her aching head, and then something round and sweet was placed in her open mouth.

‘What is this?’

She stopped holding her head and glanced at her mouth. There was a thin white stick. The sweet strawberry scent meant Mel had put a strawberry lollipop in her mouth.

The sugar calmed her headache and let her think more clearly.

As she calmed down, Mel waggled his own strawberry lollipop.

“Do you want to know all the secrets?”

“Can I?”

“Harensys likes you, so you should know.”

“Then tell me.”

She wanted to know quickly. She wanted to know the truth behind her confusion, whether it was all a misunderstanding. If she’d been wrong all this time, she’d beg Harensys for forgiveness.

Mel crossed his legs and hesitated, lips twitching. It seemed hard for him to say. She waited until he gathered himself.

After a moment, Mel spoke.

“Before I tell you, do you believe in regression like in novels?”

Thump, thump. It felt like a stone had dropped onto her heart. Her breath quickened, her expression froze.

All the secrets, regression. And if her regression wasn’t something granted by a god….

The only possible conclusion was that Mel had experienced regression himself.

‘I wasn’t the only one.’

Her heart raced with shock. She needed to be sure of her thoughts, so she calmed herself and spoke.

“I’ve experienced regression.”

“So you came back, too.”

“If you did, then did Harensys also experience it? Or everyone in the lab?”

Was it not just Mel, but others too? She’d come here for comfort, but things were getting more complicated and unsettling.

“No. Just me and Harensys.”

Suddenly, a terrifying thought struck her, and she asked cautiously.

“Was it because of you that regression was possible?”

‘Please don’t nod. Please don’t say yes. Please say no.’

She wished with all her heart that she was wrong.

But Mel nodded.

“Yeah. I researched for a long time and made something that could turn back time. The name was so long, so I called it regression, like in novels. It was basically the same.”

“Why? Why did you spend so much time researching how to turn back time?”

She desperately hoped it wasn’t for the reason she was thinking. They weren’t even close, just acquaintances, so why would he spend so long researching regression? She hoped she was wrong.

Mel bowed his head and sighed deeply before looking up at her. The painful look on his face told her she’d guessed right.

“You died, and Harensys went mad. He blamed himself for your death and suffered terribly. He knelt before me and begged. He said he’d do anything, just please save you.”

…Lies. It had to be a lie.

She shook her head. Mel closed his eyes briefly and opened them, as if saying she had to believe.

“I was the most talented in the lab, so it made sense to ask me. If I didn’t do something, he’d have lost his mind. So I agreed, on the condition that he’d be my magic experiment subject.”

“Then…”

”That story about stepping on a magic circle and getting multiple personalities was something we made up together.”

“Ha. You want me to believe all this?”

Accept this nearly unbelievable reality?

Unable to accept it, she shook her head. Mel grabbed her shoulders as she was about to lose her mind. His serious, clear eyes met hers.

“If you can’t trust words, trust what you see. Actually, you already know. You just can’t accept it.”

“…….”

She clamped her mouth shut, because he was right. Hearing such true words snapped her out of it. Mel kept saying things that struck home.

“Harensys tried to become your ideal type. He didn’t succeed, but he tried. The reason he acted cold was so you wouldn’t be disappointed—he wanted you not to like him.”

For a moment, she was so shocked her mind went blank.

Her ideal type: top student, humorous, kind, wealthy. Her ideal type had changed to Harensys, but she’d never mentioned it during all those years she liked him.

Harensys must have known she liked him and tried to become her ideal. That meant he thought she liked him because he fit her ideal, so he tried to change himself and acted cold toward her.

She’d never mentioned her ideal type, like a fool. If she had, maybe she wouldn’t have hurt him.

Yet, even for a fool like her, he’d given up himself to let her live.

Tears fell from her eyes, soaking her shoes.

“What do I do? I feel so sorry for Harensys. I’m so sorry, and so grateful….”

“What are you doing? Go apologize, not cry.”

Mel’s words snapped her out of it. She shouldn’t be crying and clinging to Mel. Now that she knew everything, she had to run to Harensys and apologize.

She moved her feet and rushed out of the lab. She hurried to find Harensys, searching the classroom and hallways, but couldn’t find him. She was so desperate, running and crying, that Lea and other friends said they’d help look for him.

She wanted to thank them profusely, but didn’t have time.

Grateful inside, she ran without looking ahead, and bumped into a large, solid back. Ouch, her nose stung.

“Prezia!”

That voice—Loren? Loren looked at her with a worried face, his brow furrowed.

Unlike with a stranger, she was relieved she’d bumped into Loren. That thought flashed by as she moved forward.

“Lo-Loren. Sorry, I’m in a hurry.”

But Loren grabbed her wrist firmly. His grip turned her body so their eyes met. Through her tears, his face looked very angry—a face she hadn’t seen in a long time.

Loren wiped her tears. Her blurry vision cleared, and she could see brightly again. Loren frowned and looked her up and down.

“Why are you crying? Your knee is bleeding, too.”

She looked down at her knee at his words. Sure enough, blood was streaming from her right knee. She must have tripped while running earlier, but was so focused on finding Harensys she hadn’t realized she was hurt.

“Oh, I got hurt.”

“Did you not even realize you were hurt?”

Loren’s brow furrowed even more, wrinkles forming on his forehead. Loren knelt down on one knee. Then he took out a white handkerchief from his pocket.

That handkerchief was Loren’s most treasured item.

She didn’t want him to use his precious handkerchief, and her body was burning to go see Harensys quickly, so she pulled her knee back.

“There’s no time for treatment, Loren. I have to go right now.”

“Calm down while I treat you. If you don’t calm down, your body, words, and heart will all rush ahead. Then things won’t go the way you want.”

He knew she was in a hurry. His words were all true, which made her a little embarrassed. At the same time, her heart warmed.

“…Thank you.”

Loren wrapped her wound with his cherished handkerchief. Her red blood stained the pure white cloth. Loren didn’t say it was a waste, but she felt it keenly.

After wrapping it, Loren stood up. He tied the handkerchief into a ribbon to finish.

He tied it so prettily.

“So, what happened?”

Of course, he asked. It would be odd if he didn’t.

She tried hard not to cry again, holding back her tears, and slowly explained.

“I misunderstood everything. I hated Harensys, even tried to get back at him, but it was all a misunderstanding. I acted so badly, but Harensys still came to me with a smile. I need to beg for forgiveness right away.”

D*mn. She didn’t want to cry and make him worry, but the tears burst out. Loren wiped her falling tears and firmly held her cheeks.

“Prezia, look at me. Look into my eyes.”

She sniffled and listened to Loren. When she raised her bowed head, Loren’s eyes came into her blurry view.

Brilliant emerald green eyes. They brought her comfort and stability.

“If you apologize slowly and sincerely, your feelings will come through. If you rush, your sincerity won’t be conveyed. So let’s calm down a little.”

“Okay!”

She swallowed her tears and gave him a bright smile, grateful for his comfort and encouragement. Loren lifted the corners of his mouth in a soft smile and stroked her hair gently.

“Look for him slowly so you don’t get hurt. If I find him, I’ll let you know.”

“Thank you so much.”

After expressing her gratitude to Loren, she waved goodbye and parted ways. Repeating his words in her mind, she searched for Harensys with a much calmer heart than before.