Chapter 365: Elena Black [5]
Elena Black walked down the quiet hospital corridor with unhurried steps.
The afternoon sunlight streamed through the windows, casting long shadows across the polished floor.
Behind her, conversations slowly resumed inside the hospital room she had just left.
She found herself smiling.
A genuine smile.
Not the practiced one she usually wore.
Not the carefully measured expression she had learned produced the best results.
A real one.
"...He’s like a cat."
The comparison appeared in her mind naturally.
The moment she thought about Rin, that was the first image that surfaced.
A small cat with its fur standing on end.
Cute.
Suspicious.
Ready to scratch anyone who got too close.
The more she thought about it, the more fitting it seemed.
His appearance certainly contributed to the comparison.
The soft features.
The deceptively harmless face.
The sort of appearance that naturally lowered people’s guard.
Yet the moment someone approached—
Claws.
Suspicion.
Hostility.
A surprisingly sharp edge hidden beneath the surface.
It was amusing.
Very amusing.
And unlike most people, Elena preferred cats.
Dogs were loyal.
Friendly.
Predictable.
They welcomed affection.
They trusted easily.
There was nothing wrong with that.
But cats were different.
Cats chose.
They judged.
They decided for themselves whether someone deserved their trust.
Perhaps that was why she found them more interesting.
"Hehe."
A soft laugh escaped her lips.
Several people passing through the corridor unconsciously glanced in her direction.
Some immediately looked away.
Others stared a little too long.
Nothing unusual.
It happened constantly.
Men.
Women.
Students.
Heroes.
Civilians.
People tended to react to her.
Her appearance certainly played a role.
So did her reputation.
Most importantly, though, her carefully cultivated personality always produced favorable results.
People trusted her.
Admired her.
Liked her.
That was normal.
Expected.
Rational.
Which only made Rin stranger.
Because none of it had worked.
Not her reputation.
Not her appearance.
Not her smile.
Not her kindness.
If anything, the more pleasant she acted, the more annoyed he seemed to become.
Elena found herself replaying their conversation.
The blunt refusals.
The suspicious looks.
The way his expression visibly worsened whenever she smiled.
A small laugh escaped her again.
That reaction alone had been worth the visit.
Because it was honest.
Completely honest.
Most people filtered themselves when speaking to her.
They became nervous.
Respectful.
Careful.
Rin didn’t.
If he disliked something, it showed.
If he was annoyed, it showed.
There was something refreshingly straightforward about that.
Even if the target happened to be her.
The thought brought another question.
Why?
That remained the mystery.
She couldn’t find a logical explanation.
She had never met him before.
She was certain of that.
Yet the hostility in his eyes hadn’t looked like the reaction of a stranger.
It had looked personal.
As though he already knew her.
As though he had reached a conclusion about her long before they met.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
Elena stepped outside the hospital.
A gentle breeze stirred her silver hair.
The academy grounds stretched before her.
Students moved between buildings.
Professors carried stacks of documents.
Everything appeared peaceful.
Yet her thoughts remained fixed on a single person.
Why do you dislike me so much?
The question lingered.
And the more she considered it, the more curious she became.
She wasn’t offended.
Wasn’t angry.
If anything—
She found it entertaining.
For years, people had reacted to her in predictable ways.
Admiration.
Respect.
Jealousy.
Affection.
Fear.
Nothing new.
Nothing surprising.
Then Rin appeared.
And suddenly she had encountered something she hadn’t experienced in a very long time.
Someone who genuinely disliked her.
Not because of rumors.
Not because of competition.
Not because of some misunderstanding.
No.
The feeling seemed deeper than that.
More instinctive.
More genuine.
And Elena couldn’t help wanting to understand it.
Or perhaps...
A small smile appeared on her lips.
Perhaps she wanted to change it.
After all, cats eventually warmed up to people.
Sometimes.
With enough patience.
Enough trust.
Enough persistence.
The image of Rin glaring at her surfaced in her mind.
The memory was strangely amusing.
"I should observe him for a while."
The words escaped softly.
Not as an order.
Not as a mission.
Simply as a decision.
The academy had suddenly become more interesting.
Far more interesting than before.
She had originally come because she was curious about the unusual cadet who kept appearing at the center of increasingly strange incidents.
Instead, she had found something entirely unexpected.
A mystery.
A challenge.
An amusing little beast that refused to lower its guard.
And Elena liked interesting things.
Very much.
As she continued walking across the academy grounds, a faint tune escaped her lips.
Light.
Relaxed.
Almost cheerful.
The recent incident had caused countless problems.
Terrorists.
Villains.
Monsters.
Conspiracies.
The continent would be dealing with the consequences for months.
Yet despite all of that—
The most interesting thing she discovered had been a single irritated boy in a hospital bed.
And somehow, she couldn’t stop thinking about him.
Which, Elena admitted to herself, was probably a little strange.
---
The moment Elena left, the atmosphere in the room noticeably relaxed.
As if a storm had passed.
Or maybe everyone had simply been holding their breath without realizing it.
Ryan let out a long sigh and flopped backward onto his bed.
"That woman is terrifying."
Leo nodded immediately.
"Agreed."
"She’s nice, though."
"That’s what makes her terrifying."
"That’s not how that works."
"It absolutely is."
The two continued their argument while I stared at the closed door.
A strange feeling lingered in my chest.
An unpleasant one.
Like seeing a ticking bomb and being the only person who knew it was going to explode.
The problem was that I couldn’t exactly explain why.
What was I supposed to say?
"Trust me, guys. The perfect senior hero candidate eventually turns this story into a complete train wreck."
Yeah.
That would go over well.
I sighed.
Unfortunately, my expression didn’t go unnoticed.
Leona narrowed her eyes.
"There it is again."
"What?"
"That look."
"What look?"
"The one you make whenever Elena is mentioned."
Damn it.
I looked away.
Immediately suspicious.
That only made everyone more suspicious.
Ryan sat up.
"Oh, we’re doing this now."
"We’re not doing anything."
"We’re absolutely doing something."
Leo crossed his arms.
"I’ve been curious too."
Traitor.
Another traitor.
The room was filled with traitors.
Nora looked hesitant.
Kiera looked curious.
Even Professor Lena lifted her head slightly from where she was still attached to my abdomen like some kind of emotional parasite.
Everyone was looking at me.
Wonderful.
"Rin."
Leona pointed at me.
"Explain."
"There’s nothing to explain."
"That’s a lie."
"How do you know?"
"Because you’re terrible at lying."
The confidence in her voice was frankly insulting.
Unfortunately, she wasn’t wrong.
I rubbed my forehead.
"It’s complicated."
Ryan immediately pointed at me.
"There!"
"What?"
"That’s exactly what people say before revealing something important."
"There is nothing important."
"Now I know there’s definitely something important."
I wanted to hit him.
The doctors would probably disapprove.
That was the only thing saving him.
Eventually, Leo spoke.
More seriously this time.
"Do you know her?"
The question made me pause.
Because the answer wasn’t simple.
Did I know Elena Black?
No.
Not personally.
Not really.
But I knew things about her that nobody here should know.
I knew her future.
Or at least, the future that should have happened.
The problem was that future had already started changing.
The masked woman.
The missing memories.
The strange voices.
None of that belonged in the original story.
Which meant my advantage was becoming less reliable by the day.
A dangerous thought.
Very dangerous.
"...Not exactly."
That was the safest answer.
Ryan frowned.
"Not exactly?"
"I know about her."
Leona blinked.
"Everyone knows about her."
"No, I mean..."
I stopped.
How was I supposed to explain this?
That’s why I just kept my silence.
After all silence is gold.
Nobody seemed interested in questioning it further after they saw I don’t have any intention to say anything.
A few moments later, the room gradually returned to normal.
Ryan and Leo resumed arguing.
Leona scolded Ryan for something.
Nora and Kiera joined the conversation.
The tension disappeared.
For the first time since waking up, things felt... peaceful.
Normal.
I leaned back against the pillow.
My eyes drifted toward the window.
The sky outside was clear.
Bright.
Calm.
For a brief moment, I allowed myself to relax.
The masked woman was gone.
The cult was finished.
Professor Lena was safe.
Everyone had survived.
Things were finally settling down.
Which was exactly why I became nervous.
Because every single time I thought things were becoming peaceful...
Something went wrong.
Every.
Single.
Time.
The thought had barely crossed my mind when Zhao Yuren’s voice echoed inside my head.
—Rin.
I frowned.
What?
His tone was unusually serious.
—Someone is watching this room.
My body instantly tensed.
The relaxed atmosphere vanished.
What?
—Outside.
The window.
A chill ran down my spine.
Slowly, carefully, I turned my head toward the glass.
At first, I saw nothing.
Just the academy grounds.
Students.
Trees.
Sunlight.
Then—
For the briefest moment—
A figure stood atop a distant building.
Watching.
Silver hair fluttered in the wind.
The figure smiled.
Then disappeared.
My eye twitched.
"..."
Of course.
Of course it was her.
Elena Black.
For some reason, I had the horrible feeling this was only the beginning.