TBF 10

Chapter: 10

“…….”

A suffocating silence.

Suddenly, Teacher Yang Mira charged forward and grabbed Saebyeok by the collar roughly.

“Are you out of your mind right now…?! Are you in your right senses?! How could you just open the door there!”

“W-what?”

“Rule 7! Ignore any knocks that happen during class! How could you not have even memorized the rules listed on the very first page? Are you trying to get yourself killed?!”

“What are you talking about? Rule 7 is about maintaining the dignity befitting a faculty member…”

The two exchanged confused words, each glance tinged with awkwardness.

Yang Mira, who had been frozen in a scary glare, suddenly sprang up and began rifling through Saebyeok’s desk.

Feeling nauseous, Saebyeok staggered to his feet and, forcing a smile, approached the students’ desks.

“Uh… Teacher Yang Mira?”

“Who gave you this?”

Before he knew it, Yang Mira held Saebyeok’s rulebook in her hands.

“Check it yourself. Rule 7 is about maintaining dignity—”

“I’m asking who gave it to you.”

“Well….”

Who was it?

A cold chill ran down Saebyeok’s spine.

He had received the rulebook. But when?

He didn’t remember exactly when or from whom, yet he had been studying it diligently all this time. Even before receiving orders from the Head of Academic Affairs.

Why?

Because he had been told he absolutely had to memorize it.

From whom?

Who had handed him this rulebook and told him he must memorize it?

“…Let’s just finish the class first.”

Yang Mira placed a hand on Saebyeok’s shoulder and whispered tensely.

“Ignore any abnormal phenomena outside of class. And as soon as break time comes, go to the staff restroom. Got it?”

Frozen, Saebyeok barely nodded.

Yang Mira cautiously scanned the corridor at the doorway before quickly leaving the classroom.

Saebyeok forced a smile and looked back at the young students.

“…Then, Chulsoo, why don’t you start with a self-introduction?”

It felt as if he were standing naked in front of thousands of eyes, all bared teeth.

During break, Yang Mira unloaded a barrage of precautions.

“Don’t respond to any sounds coming from the hallway during class. Ignore bells that ring off-schedule, and always take attendance at the start of class. If students are missing… just continue with class first. Then come to me immediately after. If there are too many students… that’s a problem…”

Ten minutes of break time were barely enough to memorize all the instructions.

Saebyeok swallowed three pills that Yang Mira had handed him and somehow managed to proceed with class, fueled by unknown energy.

He conducted self-introductions, explained future schedules and school life, and assessed the students’ academic abilities.

All the while pretending not to notice knocks from the hallway and restraining students who jumped up from the bell ringing at the wrong time.

Thankfully, the number of students neither decreased nor increased.

“We were lucky. Nothing strange happened during the break.”

Saebyeok finally had a chance to speak with Yang Mira toward the end of lunch.

“How did the students’ after-school activities go?”

“Good, I fed them lunch and handed them over to the instructor.”

“You verified their identities as I instructed, right?”

“Yes, we exchanged the code words and even checked their ID cards, just like you said.”

“Finally, a sigh of relief…”

Yang Mira slumped onto a bench with a groan.

They were having a secret meeting in a secluded smoking area.

“What happened earlier… is a kind of security system.”

Yang Mira took out her e-cigarette and continued, looking troubled.

“I heard that the Foundation modifies captured mysterious entities to act as guardians protecting the school. It’s a sort of ‘using the enemy’s strength’ system, but since they can’t distinguish friend from foe, they rely on complicated school rules.”

In short, any entity that violates the rules is classified as an enemy and considered a target.

“That’s why the rules are important. Not just for smooth community life, but literally for my survival. And yet, someone brought out an old rulebook that even grandfathers wouldn’t use…”

“……”

“You didn’t know, right? The rulebook you had is over 30 years old. It’s from before the security system became this complicated.”

“…I was thinking about that too.”

He had trusted the wrong rulebook blindly but had no idea from whom he had received it.

Memories can’t be erased so cleanly. It just didn’t feel natural.

“Someone at the school must be targeting me, right?”

“Do you need to think about that so deeply? It’s obvious.”

Yang Mira exhaled cigarette smoke with a somewhat disdainful look.

Saebyeok was left dumbfounded.

“Why me…? What did I do…?”

“That’s the question I want to ask. Who are you, really? I thought you were some parachuted-in person from the Foundation who knew everything, but you’re just… bland. You’re not even a magician, right?”

“You can tell…?”

“If you couldn’t, you wouldn’t be here. Seriously, the Foundation should send competent people. Didn’t your husband come with you? Was he silent?”

Where was he, doing who knows what.

Saebyeok gave an awkward smile, and Yang Mira let out a long, heavy sigh.

“Anyway, I’ll lend you my rulebook. Copy it by hand; no photocopies. It’s mandatory to transcribe the school’s rules manually.”

“Thank you so much, Teacher Yang.”

“Don’t say that until you’ve survived at least a week. Why does it feel like the vice-principal and Head of Academic Affairs just leave you hanging?”

“Hmm… maybe because I’m an external appointee from the Foundation?”

Neither the vice-principal nor the Head of Academic Affairs seemed particularly welcoming.

“That’s… not wrong. But I don’t know the political struggles upstairs. The important thing is, unlike us, they’re somewhat immune to the supernatural.”

The vice-principal, shifting between hawk and human forms, was obviously a mysterious entity.

And the Head of Academic Affairs…

“Just by looking, you can tell they’re a stubborn magician. Magicians are half human, half supernatural. Even if they make mistakes like you did, they just shrug it off. Why? Because they don’t die from it.”

But today, Saebyeok almost did.

If not for someone timely grabbing his ankle and Yang Mira’s whistle, who knows what would have happened.

“Magicians just can’t understand ordinary humans like us. Don’t try to be understood; find a way to survive. Copy the rules and memorize them. Got it?”

Yang Mira thrust an old notebook into Saebyeok’s arms. Surprised, he accepted it and nodded.

“This damn school… if it weren’t for the money, I would’ve bolted already…”

Saebyeok glanced at Yang Mira muttering fiercely, then lowered his eyes to the worn notebook.

Scrawled messily on the rulebook, it read:

♧♣♧♣♧

Welcome to Beodeul School.

This book compiles the rules of Beodeul School, established over several decades.

The school is larger than it seems and is exposed to supernatural dangers targeting young students both inside and outside. Therefore, complex and convoluted rules are applied to distinguish between the supernatural and ordinary.

Rules apply uniformly on school grounds and take precedence over all laws, including the Constitution of the Republic of Korea.

Once again: there are no higher laws than these rules on campus.

From an outsider’s perspective, some of this may seem illogical, but all measures are to ensure the safety of students and staff. Please recall the 1976 Beodeul Elementary 4th Grade Star Class massacre.

Rules apply differently according to identity and grade, and each person should prioritize the rulebook assigned to them.

Never leak the rulebook. If a spare is needed, it should be transcribed by hand. Many entities seek knowledge of the rules, and there is no guarantee they won’t tempt you.

Beodeul School welcomes students, staff, invited guests, and even uninvited intruders who obey the rules.

.

.

.

Beodeul School Rule 1

Refrain from going out after sunset. Night has always been a time of the supernatural, and hunters tracking them are most active then.

Walking up the dark path, he thought:

Then finish your work before sunset.

In unavoidable cases, always carry a flashlight. Candles or hand-cranked flashlights that don’t maintain long light are not recommended.

Let us be modern humans who use civilized tools.

“Instead of exceptions, just let us leave early.”

Saebyeok muttered to himself, shining his phone’s flashlight cautiously.

Beodeul School Rule 2

Respect the willows by the lake.

Willows are sacred beings that protect the school. Bow and give thanks as you pass; fortune may come to you.

“Even magicians follow this tradition…”

He sighed and bowed to the bare willow, turning his steps back.

Beodeul School Rule 3

Do not respond to sounds coming from strange places, including phone rings, radios, and voices of people who shouldn’t exist there.

This isn’t even a horror movie…

Hearing a ringing in the dark, Saebyeok laughed hollowly, unaware of the entity silently following him.

Beodeul School Rule 5

Stay calm in unexpected situations. Fear only provokes them further.

Behind him, beyond the phone light, something crawled silently toward Saebyeok’s heel.

Just as it opened its mouth to devour him,

Thud.

A faint tremor spread in all directions.

Flocks of birds scattered, and ripples spread across the still lake.

Sensing something strange, Saebyeok looked around and spotted Dongbaek standing a few steps behind like a ghost.

“Dongbaek…?”