Reason and regret seemed to be on very familiar terms.The moment he woke, Taeui blinked up at the ceiling and thought so. Even if one’s mind is slightly scrambled by exhaustion, with a proper meal and a good night’s sleep one’s reason returns…along with the old regrets.A sudden throbbing pain seized his head.“Ugh…”Clutching his head, he curled up like a shrimp and let out a beastly groan. What on earth gave me the nerve to strike him? He’d actually taken it quietly—but that didn’t mean he’d forgotten. Who knew how he’d repay me?“But still…last night in the corridor he passed by without a word. He must have pretended not to notice…there’s no way he really forgot.”His conclusion was negative. Taeui rolled over with another groan, the pain intensifying.It was strange. No matter how much he reconsidered, the relationship was inexplicable. Why did he always worry so much, even though he didn’t recall doing anything all that wrong? The root cause lay elsewhere.If he instead spent that time trying to improve the situation, it would be a hundred times better—an eternal truth. Taeui sat bolt upright.“Ah—damn it!”His head still pounding, he rubbed his temple, and his eyes fell on the bottle of supplements Hogan had tossed him last night. That can’t be why my head hurts—I’ve never heard of supplements singling out individuals. Besides, Hogan had clicked his tongue, taken one himself…is he okay?As he stared at the clock on the bedside table, the time read just before seven.“6:45…so I slept right through my alarm.”I must have been more tired than I thought…and I never did go to Ilrey’s room. Why didn’t he come either? Taeui blinked, watching the clock tick. Something felt off.He noticed the slightly open door to Hogan’s room. At this hour, Hogan should have been up and preparing for the day…but it was silent, as if no one were there.“…!!”A chill jolted his foggy head awake. Taeui bolted from bed, smacking his head as he ran to Hogan’s door and flung it open—no thought of what he’d do if someone were inside.The room was empty. The bed was neatly made; Hogan’s uniform hung absent from the rack. He must have left after finishing his morning routine.“Damn it…!”He dashed back out without even stopping to put on shoes.His first destination was the system room, where most data were aggregated. Access was blocked until seven—except for a few internal lines—and the door wouldn’t open until then, so he wouldn’t find Hogan there. Yet it was still the logical first stop.He sprinted down the stairs, his reason returning along with the headache. How could he have slept so deeply? He’d hear someone leaving…unless he’d taken some drug without realizing.“…Damn.”That must be it. The only suspect was that supplement drink from last night. No wonder sleep overtook him so quickly.“If you’d given me something decent instead of this headache-inducing crap…”His anxiety deepened. If Hogan had drugged him, then intended worse mischief, it was dangerous. For safety, he should check Ilrey’s room first—but if data were being siphoned while he delayed, that was a problem. He remembered falling asleep around two, so it couldn’t have been last night. And the system room access was blocked until six. Now it was past six but not yet seven; still closed. So if not the system room…where then?Running to the system room, he found no need to ponder further.At the end of the hall—dimly lit by sparse pale lights—a black aperture yawned like the gates of hell.The system room door stood ajar. Glancing at his watch, it was still before seven. Yet the door was cracked open, faint light spilling out.“…—”His heart pounded. Was Hogan inside? Or simply the duty officer, opening early? Please, not Hogan’s corpse with Ilrey.He strode forward, gripped the doorknob, and pulled. The heavy thunk of his boots accompanied him in.And there, he found the man he’d been looking for.Hogan was there, peering at the sub-computer monitor, tapping away at the keyboard.Relief flooded Taeui—at least he wasn’t dead. Only then did he approach.Hogan glanced up, frowning briefly before speaking calmly.“What brings you here at this hour?”“I woke early and thought I’d check around. I thought this room didn’t open until seven—I’m surprised. But what are you doing here?”Hogan stopped typing and clicked his tongue, clearly annoyed.“I forgot the report that was due yesterday. I heard it would still process with yesterday’s date until the system opened at seven, so I hurried here. But you—what brings you to this ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) remote corner? Just ‘checking around,’ or did you have something to report?”Hogan’s eyes revealed hostility; he clearly knew Taeui had followed him. Taeui looked at the screen—just Hogan’s unremarkable report. The delayed submission likely served as a pretext, to cover whatever else might be done if someone noticed. He must have come early, thinking, Why not submit while there’s no one here?But the system room shouldn’t open until seven. He looked at the clock: still a bit before seven. So either someone opened the door for him, or he knew the access code.“The code shouldn’t leak. Even an instructor wouldn’t know unless you had someone inside. How did you get it?”Tracing the leaker could lead to trouble. There was no courtesy between them anymore; Taeui met Hogan’s gaze and asked boldly. Hogan merely smirked.“It wasn’t secret, I suppose. You looked flustered about the report, and without asking for details, they told me. Anyone could know it, I thought.”“Who told you? The duty officer?”Taeui scoffed. Of course it shouldn’t leak. Even if he’d asked Chang-in, Uncle would have come and opened the door himself rather than reveal the code. Who would blurt that out? He should report this.Hogan’s eyes glinted as if sharing a juicy secret.“No. The man with the duty officer told me in the corridor later. He said the system room would be empty before seven, so we could finish the entry at our leisure. And I hear you and that man are very close.”Hogan laughed as though daring him to report up the chain—he’d claim ignorance, here simply to enter the report. Taeui stared, speechless.“Who is it?”“The man rumored to be in an inappropriate relationship with you. Ilrey, was it?”“He gave you the code?”“Why not?”At Taeui’s stunned look, Hogan beamed and began packing up.Taeui, momentarily dazed, suddenly stormed out and flung the door open. The corridor was empty—he thought he saw a fading silhouette, but it vanished.“….”A chill ran through him. If he’d been even a minute later—if Ilrey, with that helpful kindness, planned more than a report entry—he might have walked into hell.Behind him, Hogan called out in a leisurely tone.“I’m curious—what brings you here at this hour? Or do you enjoy exploring every nook and cranny? No secret business, I hope?”Unaware he’d just emerged from the gates of hell, Hogan pressed him. Taeui scratched his head, forcing out a disgruntled reply.“The stairs here lead directly to the infirmary. My head’s killing me—like I took bad medicine, though I haven’t taken any. I was going to see the medic.”At once, Hogan fell silent, his lips twitching. Sleep aid, huh…damn. I get it, you’ll do whatever it takes, but next time pick something decent. This stuff’s useless and just gives me a headache.Hogan seemed to sense his suspicion but was too clever to press it. Better to let it slide here.“Well, I’m done with the report. I’ll head to the instructor’s office early to prepare. You? You look like you ran out of your room. Shouldn’t you freshen up first?”“…You’re right. Better do that. Luther might already be up by now, too.”It was a farce of mutual mind-reading—Hogan, though mistaken about Taeui, and Taeui, conscientiously covering his tracks. Still, this morning’s crisis seemed contained.

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