Episode 21
7 March 2025, Friday. Noon. SNU's chemistry faculty, Building 502, 2nd floor, lab section.
Ha Jun-gi paced back and forth like a predator trapped in a cage.
The first-years stood pressed together along the wall, backpacks clutched to their chests, eyes lowered or darting nervously from side to side. No one spoke. The corridor amplified every footstep, every breath. The silence itself felt like pressure.
Jun-gi was burning.
Ko Su-ho had dismantled him with cold, effortless authority. Den had humiliated him in the pool. That "ruined walk" with Han-bin at the orientation night still itched under his skin.
And now—now people were whispering that Ha Jun-gi had gone soft. That he had let first-years disrespect him. That he was no longer someone to fear.
He clenched his jaw.
Not today.
Today they would remember who he was.
Today he would reclaim his place.
A few steps away stood Baek So-mi, the class representative. She looked like someone who regretted every decision she had made in the last thirty minutes.
Now the consequences stood in front of her.
Phones had buzzed earlier.
Messages had flown through the group chat.
Fear had won.
Everyone had come.
Mi-yeon had come as well. She looked around at the other students.
Soo-yeong watched with cool interest, her lips curved in something close to a smile. Drama obviously did not scare her. It entertained her.
Hwang Se-a looked almost excited, whispering to the girl beside her as if this were a live show. She seemed oblivious to the thickness of the air. Ma Chang-woo leaned against the wall just a few meters away—and with him there, she felt completely safe.
But the rest of the students looked nervous—if not outright scared.
Mi-yeon pressed herself against the wall, fingers twisted together. Her face was pale.
Please don't let this be because of Den.
I don't want him to get into trouble.
Min-jae was not here.
Den was not here.
And Jun-gi noticed.
His gaze landed on the empty space where Den should have been.
His smile was bent, sharp and ugly.
"Where's the Russian?"
Baek So-mi answered, barely containing her irritation.
"He… he went to lunch with Kang Min-jae. They probably haven't seen the message yet."
Jun-gi's anger spiked.
"I said—everyone!"
He raised his voice deliberately, letting it echo down the corridor.
"Until that Russian comes here and apologizes for yesterday, no one leaves. We'll wait. An hour. Two. As long as it takes."
A murmur rippled through the group.
Someone exhaled sharply. Someone shifted their weight, trapped.
So-mi's eyebrow twitched—disdain flickering through her calm.
"For the record, I am against this."
Soo-yeong's smile deepened. This suited her far too well.
Mi-yeon shook her head, her voice barely audible.
"He… he didn't do anything wrong… this isn't right…"
No one answered her.
Hierarchy pressed down like concrete.
7 March 2025, Friday. Early afternoon. Duremidam, Building 75, across the road from SNU's chemistry faculty.
Den and Min-jae were still at the table.
Empty bowls. Cooling coffee.
Easy laughter fading into a quiet pause.
"I am telling you, Hyung, comparing The Elder Scrolls to Final Fantasy is blasphemy! Sacrilege!"
Den only sighed tiredly, already losing faith in his ability to argue with his fanatically opinionated friend.
"The last decent story in the Final Fantasy universe was the one between Squall and Rinoa in Final Fantasy VIII. And that was released before you and I were even born."
Min-jae sputtered, almost choking on his own breath in righteous indignation.
"It's heresy! I'm telling you—pure heresy!"
Then Min-jae's phone vibrated.
Once.
Twice.
Again.
He looked down.
And froze.
"What the—…"
He scrolled.
His expression hardened, all humor draining away.
"Den…" he said slowly. "That asshole Jun-gi gathered the whole group in the lab section on the second floor. He says no one's allowed to leave until you show up and apologize."
Min-jae looked up, anger flashing in his eyes.
"He's bullying everyone because of you. Acting like some kind of authority just because he's a senior. They're all standing there, scared to move."
He clenched his fists.
"We have to go. Now."
Den did not answer.
He calmly reached into his pocket, placed money and a tip on the table, stood up, and slipped on his jacket.
Without a word, he headed for the door.
Min-jae scrambled up after him, grabbing his backpack.
7 March 2025, Friday. Early afternoon. SNU's chemistry faculty, student council office.
Ko Su-ho sat at his desk before a towering stack of lab reports he had to grade for Professor Park, a look of profound despair etched on his face.
At that moment, a breathless freshman burst into the student council office, her face pale. Without even a greeting, she blurted out,
"Sunbae! Over by the labs, there's some aggressive sophomore screaming at the newcomers and demanding some kind of public apology! He looks furious! Please—I'm begging you—come with me and stop him. It's terrifying!"
Startled, Su-ho stood up so abruptly that he did not even have time to push back his chair; instead, his legs shoved the desk forward as he rose.
"A sophomore is doing WHAT to the freshmen?!"
7 March 2025, Friday. Early afternoon. SNU's chemistry faculty, 2nd floor, lab section
Jun-gi laughed softly—cruelly.
"Let's see how brave Russians are when it's not a swimming pool."
He spread his arms slightly. Enjoying the attention.
Enjoying the fear.
And down the corridor, footsteps approached—brisk and purposeful.
Someone was coming—and fast.
The corridor outside Laboratory No. 2 felt narrower than usual, the ceiling pressing down with fluorescent indifference. The first-years were lined up along the wall like evidence, backpacks clutched tight, breaths shallow.
From around the corner, Den and Min-jae were already walking toward the lab section. Their footsteps were still distant—too distant.
Jun-gi snapped.
"So the Russian is too weak," he spat, humiliation sharpening his voice. "Too much of a coward to come himself. Fine. Then others will have to apologize for him."
He jabbed his finger toward Mi-yeon and So-mi.
"You. And you. On your knees. Apologize for the behavior of your classmate. Men behave like that because girls like you forget their place."
For a heartbeat, no one breathed.
So-mi's eyebrows shot up, anger flashing clean and bright.
"I'm not doing that. I think it is you who forgot your place, Ha Jun-gi!"
The refusal hit Jun-gi like gasoline on an open flame. His face twisted, his hand lifting without thought, shoulder rolling back for a strike.
"What did you say?!"
Mi-yeon moved before fear could stop her. She stepped between them, hands raised, her voice breaking.
"No—don't touch her!"
Jun-gi did not even slow down. He shoved her aside with brutal ease.
Mi-yeon lost her balance and went down hard, her palms scraping against the floor.
"Stay out of it, you cheap village trash!"
The words echoed.
And at that exact moment, Den stepped into the corridor.
He saw everything at once: So-mi's furious, helpless glare. Jun-gi, flushed and out of control. And Mi-yeon—small, seated on the floor, eyes wide, tears trembling but not yet falling, trying to push herself up with shaking hands.
The corridor seemed to freeze for half a second.
A few students flinched, breaths catching.
Ma Chang-woo pushed off the wall—half a step forward, fist tightening, a protest already rising in his throat.
"Hey, Sunbae…!"
He hesitated for just a moment, choosing his course of action.
Den did not hesitate at all.
He walked straight toward Jun-gi, his pace steady, his expression emptied of everything except focus.
Jun-gi turned at the sound of approaching footsteps, thrusting out an accusing finger, his mouth opening to assert authority—
He never got the chance.
Den caught the sleeve of Jun-gi's extended arm with one hand and his wrist with the other. The movement was clean and economical. A sharp pull, a pivot through the shoulder—and the world flipped.
Jun-gi let out a startled, undignified shriek as his feet left the ground. His body arced helplessly before crashing onto the floor with a heavy thud.
Before anyone could react, Den was already on him.
He dropped down on top of him—his knee pinning Jun-gi's head to the cold tile, his hands locking the arm into a precise, merciless angle. The joint screamed before Jun-gi did.
Jun-gi thrashed once.
The pain spiked instantly, sharp and absolute, sending a clear message straight to his spine.
"Ahh! It hurts! It hurts!" Jun-gi howled, panic tearing through his voice.
Den leaned closer, his breath steady, his voice low and controlled—each word pressed down by restrained rage.
"Touch that girl again," he said quietly, "and you will regret it for the rest of your life. Understood?"
Tears spilled freely now, mixing with humiliation and pain.
"Yes—yes, I understand!" Jun-gi squealed, his voice cracking. "I understand! Let go—it hurts!"
A second passed.
For Den, it felt as if he had fallen back into time from somewhere outside it. The noise returned. The corridor breathed again. The fluorescent lights hummed.
His grip loosened.
Min-jae rushed in, grabbing Den by the sleeve, his voice sharp with panic.
"That's enough! That's enough—let him go! You'll tear his arm off! He's had enough! Hyung!"
Den released him.
He rose from his knees slowly, brushed the dust from his trousers, and looked down at Jun-gi with cold finality.
"Get out."
Jun-gi, white with terror, scrambled away. He bowed chaotically, muttering incoherent apologies, tripped over his own feet, and fled down the corridor as if chased by something invisible.
Silence followed.
Den looked around.
Their classmates stood frozen, faces twisted into a chaotic mixture of fear, shock, awe, and confusion. No one spoke.
So-mi was already kneeling beside Mi-yeon, carefully turning her scraped palm in her hands. For a brief moment, she seemed to have forgotten that campus queens were not supposed to worry about "ordinary" girls.
Den's gaze met Mi-yeon's.
The hard lines in his face softened instantly.
The cold fury drained away, replaced by something sharper and far more dangerous—worry.
Min-jae stood nearby, still trying to process what he had just witnessed.
Den stepped closer to Mi-yeon and held out his hand.
She hesitated for a moment, gathering herself before taking it.
He helped her to her feet.
"Are you okay?" he asked quietly. "Did you hurt yourself? Does it hurt?"
Mi-yeon's thoughts spun wildly.
Cheap.
Village trash.
Den standing over her. Den's voice. Den's hands.
Does it hurt?
Yes. It hurt.
But not where the skin was scraped. She barely felt the scratches at all.
What hurt was the gap between worlds—the reminder of what he was, and what she was not.
She nodded, agreeing—and said something else entirely.
"No… it's okay… I'm fine. We just need to go to the class reps' room, get a first-aid kit, and it'll be fine…"
So-mi spoke before Den could respond, her voice quick but sincere.
"Come on. I'll help you clean it and put a bandage on."
She gently took Mi-yeon by the arm and led her away.
Den stayed where he was for a moment longer, scanning the corridor. His hands still trembled slightly from the adrenaline.
"The disciplinary meeting is over," he said calmly. "You can all go."
No one argued.
Den slung his bag over his shoulder and was about to head toward the elevator, leaving the corridor behind.
But Su-ho and a freshman girl who guided him burst into the hallway from the stairwell.
"Nobody moves! What is going on here?!"
The corridor fell silent. Uneasy glances were exchanged as Su-ho spoke again, irritation creeping into his voice.
"Do you think I'm playing games with you? I know everything. Where is the sophomore who gathered you all?"
Den answered—technically not lying.
"He flew away, Sunbae."
"What do you mean, 'flew away'? Are you mocking me? Because I'm telling you right now—"
Den shook his head.
"My apologies, Sunbae. Perhaps I chose the wrong words. He left us in the direction of the stairs a few minutes ago. He was in a great hurry."
Su-ho noticed several satisfied smirks among the students around him.
"Fine. I'll deal with you in the student council office. Follow me there," he said angrily. "As for the rest of you—if an upperclassman ever gathers you like this again for no apparent reason, you are not going anywhere. You are to tell me immediately. Is that understood?"
The students nodded readily and began to disperse.
7 March 2025, Friday. Early afternoon. SNU's chemistry faculty, Building 501, class representative room.
So-mi led Mi-yeon into the class representatives' room and seated her gently on a chair near the wall. Reaching up on her toes, she took a first-aid kit from a high cabinet, then sat back down beside her.
Without a word, she disinfected the scraped skin and carefully placed a bandage over it, her movements precise and practiced.
Mi-yeon watched her quietly for a moment, then spoke.
"Thank you, So-mi."
So-mi met her gaze and held it for several seconds.
"Don't get the wrong idea," she said calmly. "I'm not trying to act like we're close. We're not."
She paused, then added more quietly,
"But… you're brave."
Mi-yeon opened her mouth to reply. Her hand was still lightly held in So-mi's.
Before she could speak, the office door burst open.
Han-bin rushed in, slightly out of breath.
"There you are! Mi-yeon, I was looking for you everywhere! I was so shocked, I didn't even realize when you disappeared!"
Her eyes fell on the bandage.
"You're hurt?! That Jun-gi bastard! What a creep! But now everyone knows what kind of person he is. No one's going to want to even sit next to him after this."
So-mi stood up, smoothing her hair back into place.
"That's enough for me. You can gossip about boys and fights without me. I need to be elsewhere."
She left without waiting for a reply.
Han-bin dropped into the chair beside Mi-yeon and pulled a face at So-mi's retreating back.
"Good riddance. Probably went to the library again. Go rot in your library until old age!"
Then she turned to Mi-yeon and smiled brightly.
"Oh, Mi-yeon! Let's go eat kimchi and fried chicken, yeah? I have so much to tell you, you won't believe it. When you two left—"
Her voice lifted with excitement, and for the first time since the incident in the corridor, the tension in Mi-yeon's chest loosened just a little.
7 March 2025, Friday. Early afternoon. SNU's chemistry faculty, student council office.
When Baek So-mi entered the student council office, Su-ho was already seated behind his desk, facing Den. His expression resembled that of a prosecutor mid-interrogation.
"I'm giving you one last chance," Su-ho said sharply. "Explain properly what the hell happened. I can tell just by looking at your face that you're neck-deep in trouble. So do both of us a favor and tell it straight."
So-mi stepped inside, bowed politely but with restraint, and asked in an even, almost indifferent tone,
"So? What is he saying?"
Su-ho let out a quiet, humorless breath.
"Nothing useful. He says some sophomore showed up. Doesn't know his name. Started yelling about something, then suddenly changed his mind and ran off."
So-mi leaned back against the wall, folded her hands behind her back, and allowed herself a small, ironic smile.
"Well," she said calmly, "that's more or less how it happened."
Su-ho closed his eyes briefly, suppressing the urge to raise his voice.
"Are you two serious right now?" he asked evenly. "Do you understand what it means when a sophomore loses it at freshmen in a public place? That alone is already a scandal. An incident."
He exhaled slowly.
"I'll find out the truth anyway. I always do. I just wish, for once, you'd stop making this harder than it has to be."
So-mi answered quietly. Steadily. Without challenge.
"No, Sunbae. You would see no reason to dig into it. Nothing really happened. Whatever conflict there was—it ended. And if you start chasing rumors, you'll hear all kinds of absurd things."
Su-ho looked at her tiredly.
"Such as?"
So-mi shrugged lightly.
"Such as a senior behaving inappropriately with a freshman girl at the pool. Then demanding that the freshmen kneel and apologize publicly. Pushing one of them so hard she fell. And finally being stopped by a foreign student who threw him over his shoulder—several meters."
She tilted her head slightly.
"Just think about it, Sunbae. How realistic does that sound? Is it worth even considering? Compared to that, Den-ssi's version sounds… reasonable. And believable."
Su-ho looked at Den, displeased.
"So 'he flew away' wasn't such a wrong choice of words after all?"
Den nodded uncertainly.
Su-ho sighed.
"Why do I always have to clean up after you?"
Then, turning to So-mi, he added,
"Take your classmate and get out of here. And pray that no one comes to me to file an official complaint."
So-mi nodded once and headed for the door.
"Thank you, Sunbae."
Den followed—but at the door, he stopped, turned back, and asked,
"Sunbae. Honestly… would you have done anything differently?"
Su-ho gave a short, tired snort.
"I did something foolish like that before."
He paused, looking past Den rather than at him.
"The difference is—it happened to me once."
His eyes returned, sharp despite the exhaustion.
"It happened to you, three times in one week."
Another pause.
"Understand the difference. Or you won't even make it to the second semester."
He waved a hand.
"Go."