Then the man spoke again, but this time his voice was quieter, like he was trying to hide something.
"He's arrived at the school today. You know that, right?"
The woman replied, her voice muffled and tense. "Yes… I've seen him."
The guy gave a simple, thoughtful "Hmm," then after a moment of silence added, "Has Master seen him yet?"
"No, but he knows he's arrived."
Another long pause.
Then the man said, almost in a whisper, "I've got some important information on him… follow me. It'll be bad if someone overhears us."
And just like that, the two shadows disappeared. Their footsteps faded with every second until it was dead silent again.
Only then did Doyun let out a quiet breath and finally remove his hand from Yejun's mouth. Yejun sucked in air like he'd been holding his breath for years.
And then it hit him—how close they were.
Like… too close.
There was basically no space between them, and judging by how Doyun shifted away awkwardly before standing up, he noticed too. Yejun scrambled up right after him, brushing nonexistent dust off his clothes just to avoid eye contact.
"Who the hell were those two?" he asked, keeping his voice low.
Doyun looked around cautiously. "I don't know. But they definitely weren't just talking about some casual school gossip. They mentioned a 'master.' What kind of teacher talks like that?"
Yejun was about to respond when Doyun started walking—but not back the way they came. He moved deeper into the dark hallway.
"Wait—where are you going now?"
"I mean, we've already been all over that part of the dungeon. Might as well check out this direction too."
Yejun sighed but followed anyway, muttering a quiet "Yeah, okay," even though he knew Doyun wouldn't hear it.
Strangely enough, it didn't get darker the further they walked. Actually, the opposite. The deeper they went, the more torches lined the walls until the hallway was lit almost like a normal corridor. Maybe they were going the right way after all?
Eventually, they stumbled upon a row of massive wooden doors. Hanging beside each one was a wooden plaque, carved with titles.
In the center stood the largest door, and etched into it in elegant black letters were the words:
"Dark magic common room"
The other doors had numbers instead, like "Dark Magic Rooms 1–5," and so on.
Ohhh… was that why the lady at the desk gave him a number earlier?
They peeked into the common room. Just as expected, it was completely empty.
Or… was it?
Yejun squinted as he looked inside. He could've sworn he saw something move—a quick flash of a shadow darting through the room. Almost like someone had been watching and ran off the moment he looked in.
He blinked. Nah… probably just tired.
His vision was garbage after all. He was supposed to wear glasses 24/7, but he never did. They made him look weird, and honestly, he didn't care. Not like anyone else did.
He brushed the thought off and followed Doyun toward the numbered doors.
"Which number did you get?" he asked casually.
"Twelve. You?"
"Thirteen," Yejun muttered.
Doyun snorted. "Oof. Unlucky number. You cursed or what?"
Yejun rolled his eyes, walking beside him as they reached a door labeled "Rooms 10–15." He was about to speak the password like Hana told him earlier, but Doyun didn't even wait. He just pushed the door open and stepped inside.
But instead of bedrooms—
More. Freaking. Doors.
What the hell?
"Seriously?" Yejun groaned. "How many doors are we gonna walk through before we actually get to our rooms?"
He stepped in behind Doyun, looking around. This time, the layout was circular. Every corner of the room had doors, all labeled with numbers again. But now there were even more than outside.
"How the hell are we supposed to know which one's ours?" Yejun muttered.
That's when he noticed something—every door had some sort of object fixed on top of it. Random stuff. A dagger. A book. A crown. Even a freaking rubber duck.
"What's with the objects?" he asked, pointing up.
Doyun side-eyed him. "Are you stupid? Each door has an item that represents the person it belongs to. That's how you find your room."
He walked over to a door with a stack of money stuck on it, his expression going flat. "Tch."
Yejun peeked over and snorted. "Pfft—money? Damn, they got you real accurate, huh?"
Doyun just glared at him, and Yejun stifled a laugh as he started looking for door number 13.
And then he found it.
Door 13.
The object mounted above it made him stop cold.
It was a gun.
Not just any gun. It looked almost exactly like—
His chest tightened.
No. No, no, no—he didn't want to remember that. Not now, not here.He bit the inside of his cheek hard, hoping the sting would distract him. His throat felt tight, and he could feel something creeping up his spine.Doyun must've noticed him staring.
"Yo, why's yours a gun?" he asked casually.
Yejun didn't answer.
He couldn't.
Because the only thing going through his mind was that memory. That one memory he tried so damn hard to bury.
That gun.
That moment.
The sound.
The blood.
His knees almost bent right then and there.
No. He couldn't go back there. He wouldn't, he cant..
Not now.
Not ever.
Why cant he ever forget that moment, as hard as he tried..
it was like a curse, it was stuck with him until he died.
_______________________________________
(Useful information don't skip you bitch)
-Author
Ok, so if you read the author notes thank you so much gang🥀, anyways I know this chapter was hard to comprehend because of the common room placement and the way the doors are arranged, so me of course being the nice person I am[sigh] ill give you guys an explanation on the arrangement, so here it is:
First, there's a long hallway that leads to the dorm area. At the end of the hallway, you'll find a bunch of doors. The biggest one is the entrance to the Dark magic common room, it's right in the center. Beside it (not inside it) are several other doors, each marked with a number range, for example "Rooms 1–5" or "Rooms 10–15."
Each student is assigned a number by a teacher when they first arrive. That number tells them which entrance door to go through. For example, Yejun was given number 13, so he heads to the door labeled "Rooms 10–15."
When you walk through that door, you enter a circular room filled with individual bedroom doors. But here's the twist: there are multiple doors for the same number. Like, there might be three doors labeled "13."
To figure out which one is yours, you have to look at the object fixed above each door. Each door has something mounted on top—an item that symbolizes something important from your life. That's your clue. Whatever object resonates with your past or who you are? That's your room.