Jin's Apartment – After the Encounter
The rain hadn't started yet, but the sky already looked heavy enough to collapse at any moment.
Dark clouds stretched across the city, swallowing most of the evening light. Near the edge of the district, inside a small and quiet apartment, the bathroom door slowly opened as warm steam drifted into the colder room.
Jin stepped out barefoot, drying his damp hair with a towel. Water still traced down the side of his neck before disappearing beneath the collar of his blue half-sleeve shirt. He wore simple jeans, nothing expensive or noticeable. The kind of appearance that never drew attention to him.
He stopped near the window for a moment.
Outside, the wind pushed against the trees lining the street below, making their branches sway violently every few seconds. The atmosphere felt unstable.
Jin looked at the sky silently before muttering:
"It's going to rain soon."
His expression didn't change.
But his eyes stayed on the clouds a little longer than usual.
Then he turned away.
---
Inside the kitchen area, Jin poured himself a glass of water. The apartment was silent except for the faint sound of water hitting glass.
Before he could take a sip—
Knock. Knock.
He paused slightly.
Another knock followed, calmer this time.
Jin walked toward the door and opened it without hesitation.
Lily stood outside.
She held her notebook tightly against her chest while her schoolbag hung slightly off one shoulder. A few strands of hair moved with the wind drifting through the hallway.
Jin looked at her for a second.
"…You were supposed to wait until ten," he said flatly.
Lily tilted her head slightly.
"I know. But it's probably going to rain soon, and my house is far from here. Walking back in that weather would be annoying."
She lifted the notebook slightly.
"So I thought… why not study a little while I'm already nearby?"
Jin didn't move aside.
That alone should've been enough of an answer.
But Lily stepped forward anyway.
---
Inside the Room – Quiet Resistance
Before Jin could properly stop her, she had already walked inside and sat down on the edge of his bed like she had done it before.
Jin exhaled quietly through his nose and closed the door behind her.
"You're not very subtle," he said.
"I never said I was," Lily replied casually while opening her notebook.
For a while, silence filled the room.
The only sounds were pages turning, pencils moving, and distant wind brushing against the building outside.
They started studying.
Simple equations at first. Basic problems neither of them needed to think too hard about.
But Lily's focus clearly wasn't fully on the notebook.
Every few minutes, her eyes drifted toward Jin instead.
Then she finally spoke.
"That school…"
Jin didn't respond.
Lily continued anyway.
"The abandoned one. The Nameless School."
Her voice stayed calm.
"It's far away from the main schools in the city. No one really goes there anymore."
Still nothing.
Lily watched his face carefully before speaking again.
"That day… when you returned my bag."
A small pause followed.
"I was honestly surprised it wasn't damaged at all."
She leaned slightly closer.
"I didn't think you were the type who could fight."
Then, lightly:
"Or are you just naturally lucky?"
Jin finally looked at her.
"I don't know how to fight," he replied calmly.
Lily blinked once.
Then narrowed her eyes slightly.
"Then how did you come back completely fine from that place?"
Jin looked back down at the book.
"Your bag was in the hallway," he said simply. "I didn't meet anyone."
The answer sounded clean.
Too clean.
Lily slowly closed her notebook.
The atmosphere shifted slightly after that.
Not loudly.
But enough to feel it.
---
When Lily spoke again, her tone had changed completely.
No teasing.
No pretending.
Only focus.
"The rumor from six years ago," she began quietly.
For the first time, Jin's pen paused for a fraction of a second.
Lily noticed.
"The boy who killed a B-rank fighter at the age of ten."
Silence.
Rain finally started tapping softly against the window outside.
"He was sentenced to prison for three years," Lily continued. "And after that… the records became incomplete."
Jin said nothing.
"The Nameless School was abandoned not long after."
The pencil in Jin's hand moved again, but slower this time.
Controlled.
Lily leaned forward slightly.
"And then something strange happens."
Her eyes stayed locked onto him.
"The boy disappears."
"No records. No school history. No proper transition documents. Nothing for years."
A pause.
"Then suddenly… he appears again."
Her voice lowered slightly.
"Ironfall Academy."
The room felt smaller after she said that.
Lily continued carefully.
"That explains everything."
"Why you moved the way you did that night."
"Why nobody there tried stopping you."
"Why you walked back out completely fine."
Her eyes sharpened.
"It wasn't because you beat all of them."
A small pause followed.
"It's because they recognized you."
The rain outside became heavier.
Jin still didn't look at her directly.
But he wasn't reading anymore either.
"You're sixteen now," Lily continued quietly.
"Six years ago… you were ten."
Her fingers tightened around the edge of the notebook.
"The same age as the rumor."
A breath escaped her slowly.
"And after prison… there's nothing."
She stared directly at him now.
"No history. No explanation. Nothing."
Then softly:
"That doesn't happen naturally."
Silence filled the room.
Heavy.
Still.
Lily finally said the words she had been building toward from the beginning.
"The person who killed that B-rank fighter…"
Her gaze locked onto him completely.
"…was you."
The sentence stayed in the room like weight pressing against the walls.
Lily's breathing slowed slightly as she continued.
"I searched for a long time. Nothing connected properly at first."
"But after I saw you… after comparing everything…"
She exhaled quietly.
"It all started making sense."
A faint tremor passed through her voice despite her calm expression.
"The missing records weren't erased randomly."
"They were hidden carefully."
Her eyes narrowed slightly.
"Smarter than I expected."
Then, almost quietly:
"But not perfect."
A pause.
"…And that's how I found you."
---
The silence shattered instantly.
Jin moved.
Fast.
The chair scraped sharply against the floor as he crossed the distance in a single step.
His hand grabbed Lily by the shoulder and forced her backward onto the bed.
Her notebook slipped from her grip.
"What are you doing?" he asked quietly.
But his voice no longer sounded calm.
It sounded dangerous.
His grip tightened slightly.
"Why would you dig into something like that?"
Lily tried pushing herself up, but his strength held her down easily.
"Let go," she said, breathing unevenly now. "You're hurting me."
Jin didn't respond.
His fingers tightened again—not enough to seriously injure her, but enough to make it clear he wasn't joking anymore.
The room suddenly felt too small.
Too closed in.
Lily's eyes hardened.
Then she moved.
Her knee slammed sharply into Jin's stomach.
His grip loosened for a split second.
That was enough.
A slap landed across his face immediately after, sharp enough to force distance between them.
Jin froze.
Lily quickly grabbed her notebook and bag before stepping backward toward the door.
"I'm going back," she said.
Her voice was emotional and hurt.
Then she left.
The apartment door shut behind her.
---
Jin stood there silently for several seconds.
Then he slowly sat back down.
Rain tapped heavily against the window now, filling the apartment with constant noise.
The room somehow felt emptier than before.
He glanced at the clock.
9:32 PM.
Five whole minutes passed without movement.
Then finally, Jin stood up again.
He grabbed his keys from the table and left.
---
Cinema – Meanwhile
The city center looked brighter under the rain-soaked streets, lights reflecting off the wet pavement in long streaks of color.
Inside the cinema lobby, Ellie stood excitedly near the movie posters while Alan waited beside her quietly.
A few minutes later, Daniel and Daisy arrived.
Ellie smiled immediately.
"Finally. I've been waiting all day for this."
Daisy laughed softly while Daniel greeted Alan with a nod.
Then Ellie suddenly noticed something parked outside near the glass entrance.
A pearl white motorbike.
Her eyes widened slightly.
"…Alan, since when do you have a motorcycle?"
Alan glanced outside briefly.
"I bought it recently," he replied simply. "Saved money for it."
The bike stood out clearly even in the rain outside—a pearl white Indian Chief Vintage with chrome details reflecting under the streetlights, its heavy Thunder Stroke 111 engine giving it a powerful presence even while parked still.
Ellie smiled brightly.
"That actually looks really cool."
Daniel chuckled.
"Let's go inside before you two start talking about motorcycles for an hour."
Ellie puffed her cheeks slightly while Daisy laughed.
Then all four of them headed toward the theater together.
---
At the same time, inside one of Ironfall Academy's dorm areas, several students sat together casually talking.
Snacks and drinks were scattered across the table while light laughter filled the room.
Eventually, the topic shifted.
"The Nameless School still exists, right?" one student asked.
Another shrugged.
"Doesn't matter anymore. It's basically a dead place."
A few others laughed lightly.
Mocking.
Dismissive.
But nearby, a boy sitting slightly away from the group suddenly went still.
His hood shadowed most of his face.
Slowly, his hand tightened inside his pocket.
A knife shifted faintly beneath the fabric.
Nobody noticed.
But his breathing changed.
And suddenly—
the room didn't feel casual anymore.
The silence felt dangerous.
---
TO BE CONTINUED