TSIT 05

Chapter 05

The raised cups clinked together with a clear ringing sound.

Shouts of excitement burst out before the lavish feast, and Sora’s heart swelled with giddy delight.

Yes, that’s the spirit—what’s good is good.

Even if Nakga kept looking at her as though trying to see right through her, it wouldn’t matter so long as she wasn’t assigned to his division.

Sora had absolute faith in her luck. After all, she was an otter chosen by heavenly fortune!

“Don’t be scared—drink, drink!”

She brought the cup, filled with a liquid that seemed barely mixed, to her lips. It was the first alcohol she had ever tasted.

The savory yet spicy scent filled her nose as she poured it into her mouth. It tasted very bitter.

The moment she frowned slightly, a sweet flavor washed over her like a wave, as if the bitterness had never been there.

The mysterious taste wasn’t bad at all.

“Where are you from? Are you from the capital?”

“Did you live in Pochon? Or did you catch fish in the estate pond all this time? You probably caught more fish than anyone in the history of the Seowon initiation ceremony.”

“How old are you? You’ve passed twenty, haven’t you?”

The seniors were very interested in Sora, who had performed so spectacularly.

They sat beside her, asking this and that, refilling her cup whenever it emptied and repeatedly drinking with her. She felt a little shy about the attention—but she didn’t dislike it.

To be honest, she rather liked it. Being able to mingle so freely with strangers made her surprisingly happy.

It even faintly reminded her of Dalcheon, where she had lived bustling together with her relatives.

When did I fall asleep?

Sora, who had nodded off, jerked awake in surprise.

Her dried-out body felt languid, and her weary eyelids drooped heavily.

It felt as though she were floating on clouds. The night sky beyond the window was unusually beautiful, and she felt oddly light, as though she might fly.

Around her, the seniors lay half-sprawled, swaying as if dancing. Was something wrong with her eyes?

“Senior… Kyunghwa unni….”

She shook them, but they were fast asleep and showed no sign of waking.

What time could it be now? Judging by the bright, full moon, it didn’t seem like she could afford to linger.

“Ugh….”

Just as she staggered to her feet—

All the doors burst open at once, and men in white robes stormed into the dining hall.

They were the dormitory supervisors.

As if they had expected this scene, they did not look particularly surprised. Shaking their heads with tired expressions, they began hauling students up as though picking up stones.

Sora blankly watched, then awkwardly got to her feet as well. At least the professors weren’t here—that was a relief.

“Except for Professor Nak.”

Just as she was feeling relieved that the notoriously ill-tempered Professor Nak had not appeared—

Speak of the tiger and it appears. The moment she thought of him, he arrived as if summoned by a ghost.

Cheongyeon surveyed the scene with the same cold gaze he had worn on exam day—no, perhaps even angrier.

Sora tried her best to blend into the crowd and avoid his notice. She would pretend to return to the dormitory, then seize a chance to slip outside and escape.

Everyone was in poor condition; surely she could find somewhere suitable to hide.

“Geum Sora.”

At first she thought she had misheard. But when the low voice called her name again, cold as frost, goosebumps rose on her skin.

Oh no.

Like a broken wooden doll, she turned stiffly around.

Cheongyeon gestured for her to come closer, and the frightened otter had no choice but to move forward with heavy steps.

As the distance closed, they could see each other more clearly.

Sora stopped awkwardly at his feet. She could not see herself, so she did not know—

Her clothes were a mess, stained with muddy water; her hair had come loose beneath her scholar’s cap and was disheveled.

She had been tense from early morning when she packed her things and entered the academy, then had gone into the pond in the night wind… even her complexion was pale.

The wound on the back of her hand had reopened at some point, and reddish blood was seeping through her handkerchief.

Seeing her appearance, Cheongyeon pressed his temple.

“Does your… head hurt?”

He glared sharply at Sora, as though she were the cause.

Fear pierced through her drunken haze, and she hunched her shoulders.

What kind of scholar had eyes as murderous as a hunter’s?

She was so frightened it felt as though a nonexistent tail might start trembling.

“W–wait…!”

Cheongyeon grabbed her sleeve firmly and began striding somewhere.

Because of that, Sora stepped on her dragging clothes and stumbled badly.

With a shallow sigh, he slowed his pace to match her stride.

The two left the chaotic dining hall.

Under the blue moonlight, only the soft sound of their footsteps echoed. Neither spoke easily.

Sora was still afraid, and the alcohol was steadily deepening its hold. Her head was hazy, her heart echoing dully.

In that half-delirious state, she was led to the infirmary.

It was the hour when day and night shifts changed, so the physician was absent. The empty hall was thick with the scent of medicinal herbs.

“Where… is this…?”

“It is the Hour of the Rat. The gates to the dormitory are locked. Show your hand to the physician, and rest here until sunrise.”

He could have explained the situation to the gatekeeper and had her let in—but Cheongyeon did not trust Sora.

The initiation banquet was something he himself had experienced every year since he was a student. Cleaning up afterward was nothing new to him.

A young student like her, in such poor condition, required special protection. If she were sent back to the dormitory and something happened, it would become troublesome.

Sora nodded vaguely—then suddenly startled.

“The R–Rat Hour?!”

It was already midnight. The dormitory gates were closed!

According to her original plan, she should have slipped out to a secluded place by now.

During the coming Ox Hour and Tiger Hour, she had to become an otter!

She absolutely could not let everyone discover her identity on the first day. She could not be expelled from Baekryeon Seowon after all the effort she had made to enter.

She had to become an otter immediately—no matter what.

“How did it… get so late at night…?”

She forced an awkward laugh, steadying her increasingly tangled tongue.

“Now we just have to wait for the physician, right? You must be tired too, Professor. You should go.”

“I will leave when the physician arrives.”

Cheongyeon remained unmoving, as if guarding her.

Her anxiety burned hotter.

Her body was beginning to signal, too. It felt as though she would soon transform into a fluffy beast.

She lay down on the bed, intending first to lower her watcher’s guard.

Even lying still with her eyes closed, her stomach churned like she was on water. Resisting the urge to sit up, she pretended to fall asleep.

If she stayed like this, surely Professor Nak would leave…

But when she opened her eyes a sliver, Cheongyeon was still there.

He sat in a chair by the door with his arms crossed, like a gatekeeper.

Her heart pounded wildly. If this went on any longer, it would truly be disastrous.

Whatever happens—just don’t turn into an otter!

Growing desperate, she suddenly sprang up and rushed toward the door.

Consequences no longer mattered. She ran with a single thought: escape.

Just as she was about to reach the outside—

An arm shot out instantly, bracing against the doorframe.

Her escape route was blocked in an instant, and Sora’s forehead collided with his solid forearm.

She bounced backward, and something loose within her garments fell to the floor.

Catching the staggering Sora, Cheongyeon’s gaze shifted to the object she had dropped.

Its split shape—and the character “Cheon” engraved on it.

It was unmistakably identical to the white jade token he knew.

“How did you come by this…?”

His voice, stern as he questioned her, trembled with agitation.

Dazed, Sora shook her head, trying to steady herself.

Suddenly she remembered drunken seniors gossiping about Professor Nak.

“If only someone would disgrace and drive Nak out. But that stiff scholar would never. That man who treats women like stones—what could he possibly do?”

Like dried fish strung together, memories followed one after another—schemes from the sensational novels she had read.

Strategy Thirty-One: The Beauty Trap.

It was certainly a bad deed… and beauties in those books never met good ends.

If she were caught here and even lost the jade token, everything—her humanity, her debt of gratitude—would vanish like foam.

Her bursting heart urged her on. The last thread of reason snapped.

Her round head shot forward like lightning.

Like a bee attacking its enemy, she slammed her own face straight into Cheongyeon’s.