"Pyup-pyup-pyet!"
"......"
"Pyup-pyup-pyup-pyup!"
"I'll report this."
"Wait, just a moment!"
Without hesitation, Haru grabbed Sihyun, who was about to get up. Sihyun sat in front of him, pulling down the hem of his clothes. As Haru leaned the umbrella towards him, the sound of "pyet" echoed again.
Their rolling gaze landed on a small creature. The crying being, "pyet," didn't seem like an ordinary animal, no matter how much they thought about it. It had a horn on its head and small wings; how could anyone consider this ordinary?
"Pyup-pyup-pyet!"
As if to counter my thoughts, the little creature flapped its wings weakly. It was a feeble movement. Haru's blue gaze met the tiny wings before returning to Haru.
"Just report it, hyung."
"But..."
"Why is it not showing up properly?"
"Ah..."
As if one problem wasn't enough, Haewoon also emerged. Haru's sigh was audible. Right now, all that was visible to me was Haewoon, but a little closer, it would have been close enough to see the strange creature in Haru's arms. Sure enough, as Haewoon approached a few steps closer, he spotted the small creature and his eyes sparkled.
"What's this?"
"Oh, if you put it that way...!"
Haewoon suddenly reached out and picked up the creature in Haru's arms. It was then that the small being got upset and flew away.
"Pyup-pyup-pyup-pyet!"
The yelling creature flew into the room. Due to its small wings, it couldn't fly much, and the place it landed was right in front of Hamin, who had just gotten off the bed. Looking down at the commotion, Hamin looked at the creature with a bewildered expression.
"Pi, pi..."
"What's this crying about?"
In a moment of surprise, Hamin found himself facing an unidentified creature in Room 207.
Ignoring Haru's sigh of frustration, Sihyun entered the room and picked up the flapping creature. It was slightly larger than the size of a palm, making it subtle to hold.
"What is it?"
"The subject for reporting."
"But...!"
Haru reached out, looking perplexed. Looking at his rather baffled expression, it seemed as if someone had snatched away a naughty child's toy. Sihyun, while feeling awkward, looked at Haru, wiping the moisture off the creature as Haru was at a loss.
"Hyung, I..."
"It's not happening."
"Even though I haven't said anything yet."
"Is it about wanting to keep it or asking not to report it? What does it know?"
Despite Haru's denial, to me, it looked unmistakably oddly shaped, quite like an Irregular. Haru, subdued by Sihyun's firm tone, lowered his head. Getting soaked in the rain and now this, he looked utterly forlorn.
"If we report it, where will it be taken...?"
"We'll take it to the faculty office, right?"
"...Won't it be taken to some kind of lab or something?"
"If it's an unidentified organism, it might be."
"......"
There was a temperature difference in their conversation. Haru bit his lip. Only then did Haewoon, noticing the situation, intervene and support Haru.
"Anyway, it looks like it's been rained on; can't we just keep it for today? It's already late. Hyung, you'll regret it too. Right?"
Do you think it'll work out?
Even though I thought that way, the words didn't come out easily. Not to mention, it was already past the time for attendance. Even if we were to go to the faculty office now, there was no guarantee that a teacher would be there. If we went and found only a closed door, it would be a wasted trip, so I hesitated, and the response came from elsewhere.
"I'm fine with it."
"Why?"
"It keeps crying. How can anyone sleep if it keeps crying?"
"...I'll take care of it."
"Who would believe you've taken care of something like this before?"
"Ihahamin."
If you're going to speak, just do it. With a somewhat rough tone, Hamin sighed. Amidst the tense atmosphere, the creature in Sihyun's arms flew up once again.
"Pi-pyet!"
The creature, giving out a seemingly powerful cry, landed on Hamin's head. Flapping its wings twice, it seemed to like that spot.
"What's this again—"
"Pi-pyet?"
"......"
As Hamin roughly raised his hand, the tiny creature on his head tilted its head. Somehow, his large hand momentarily stiffened at the innocent cry. Hamin's hand, which moved again, quickly grabbed the creature.
"Pi-pyup-pyup-pyup."
"......"
"Pi-ee..."
The captive creature cried several times in Hamin's hand, then, seeing no response, bowed its head, crying softly. The creature, crying "pi-ee, pi-ee," nuzzled the hand that was holding it. A sigh that seemed to surrender followed a moment later.
"Fine, it's fine."
Do as you please.
Giving up on letting the creature out, Hamin placed it on the floor and climbed onto the bed.
"Pi-ee, pi-ee."
The creature on the floor cried pitifully, as if it had lost its parents. Sihyun, who held the creature, took out a towel for its damp arms.
Tal-tal, as Sihyun wiped the wet fur, the creature cried happily. An embarrassed breath escaped. It seemed a bit too much to send it away right now.
"...Just for today."
Reluctantly agreeing, Haru nodded. Watching Sihyun carefully take care of the creature, my heart was oddly swayed. The voice asking if it might be taken to the research lab echoed in my ears as if it were haunting me.
"Pyup-pyet!" As the lights went out, the small creature cried in the dark room where everyone lay down. As if to prove that I was there in that darkness. It cried intermittently.
And when the sun rose, Sihyun, with a refreshed appearance, got up from bed.
8:10 AM.
Even being late for breakfast was already late. Sihyun, with a grumpy touch, tousled his hair and woke up the others in Room 207. Except for Hamin, who had already gotten up, the faces of the others were absolutely exhausted.
"...Are you going to report it?"
Haru, who was frightened to get up, was the first to ask. Instead, Sihyun showed his phone screen to Haru. The display showed a whopping 8:12.
"It's not the time to ask about that; we overslept."
Unable to sleep due to the crying creature all night. Thank goodness the dormitory had good soundproofing; otherwise, it was at a level where even if it had come in crying loudly from the next room, it wouldn't have been surprising.
Forget about putting it to sleep. Except for Hamin, who could fall into a deep sleep just by lightly
patting his head, everyone was in a wake-up crisis. Sihyun rubbed his tired under-eye. Considering that they couldn't sleep well, it seemed like he really wanted to keep it.
Sighing, Sihyun glanced at Haru. Haru, who hadn't slept much either, seemed to be trying hard to get it, despite being visibly tired.
"I'll go. Pya."
"...Yes?"
"...What?"
"What did you just say..."
"Ah..."
When Sihyun asked, Haru scratched his cheek nervously. His usually pale complexion turned slightly red, looking somewhat embarrassed.
"Keep crying 'Phee' or 'Pye,' so... Pia?"
"Is that my name?"
"Yeah."
Haru tilted his head, asking if Sihyun was okay, and gave a small smile. Sihyun let out a hollow laugh.
The guy smiling innocently like a rural youth was from the Assassin class. Naming that strange creature he saw for the first time yesterday and managing to laugh after over a month... it was quite something.
"Why do I feel inferior?"
Sihyun wrinkled his nose in response to Haru's expression. Dealing with this innocent eighteen-year-old was perplexing.
"You're about to send him away, why bother naming him?"
"Whoa, Sihyun's demolishing his innocence."
"...!"
Haewoon unexpectedly chimed in, interrupting with a weighty statement. He scolded the cheerful-faced guy for saying something unpleasant. "That's just who he is, hyung," he comforted, but Sihyun was taken aback.
"Why does it matter?"
"Nothing."
Sihyun adjusted his tie, feeling like speaking up would be futile. Meanwhile, Haewoon greeted the newly named creature with a bright "Hey, Pia!" To Sihyun, it seemed like a sort of challenge.
Can I report this without any trouble?
If I mention it, will it create a storm of tears from the little guy? He felt a sudden fear. He brushed off the discomfort, thinking the only solution was to ignore both the feelings that exist and those that don't if they're going to part ways anyway.
Sihyun lowered his gaze, fixing his tie, not expecting anyone to listen even if he spoke. During this, Hamin appeared in his line of sight, looking at the small creature with a subtle expression.
"What's wrong?"
"With what?"
"You're staring at him like he's an ex-girlfriend."
"Are you friends with Kang Haewoon? You don't even know how to handle a simple statement," Sihyun stared at Hamin, unsure if it was right or wrong, why anger was the response.
"Why get mad if it's not true? If not, why get mad? Anyway, help me when I release him later. Hyung and Kang Haewoon seem to want to raise it, I don't know what they see in it."
"..."
"Lee Hamin?"
"...Yeah?"
Today, he seemed unusually absent-minded. Sihyun noticed Hamin's gaze, which, having naturally moved, landed on the small creature. Then, it swept over them, and eventually, it landed on the boy in front of him.
Within half a day, three out of four in Room 207 were captivated. Sihyun couldn't shake the thought that if this small creature was an Irregular, its ability might be fascinating.
Just in case, Sihyun suggested not calling him Pia, but by now, everyone in Room 207 except for him had engraved the small creature's name as Pia. He strongly advised not to talk to others about Pia and glanced at the door that had already been passed by, worriedly.
Feeling the remnants of regret, he worried unnecessarily. If he let his emotions take over and decided to keep him, he'd surely lose.
In a confused state, while attending classes, half of the content got stuck in his head, while the other half seemed to escape through the opposite ear. Periodically, he imagined Haru holding Pia and crying, locking him into multiple considerations, thinking about the small creature inside the dormitory.
It was happy to meet people even after being drenched in the rain. Though he didn't know its true identity, judging solely from the impressions so far, it seemed like a helpless creature needing protection. Yes, he agreed up to that point. But agreeing that they had to protect this creature themselves was difficult.
To raise something, one needed a sense of responsibility. If they were to bring it up haphazardly, something was bound to happen sooner or later. Moreover, not knowing what it was, where would they find information related to it?
No matter how much he thought, reporting it seemed like the right choice.
With his decision made, Sihyun kept looking at the door Haru kept hesitating at. Even if Haru wanted to raise him, it seemed likely that if he appealed the potential danger of raising him without information, opinions might shift.
It was an ideal plan.
However, the argument with Haru didn't end as easily as Sihyun had thought, just like in a parent-child argument.
"Why do you keep insisting, hyung?"
"Because going to the lab doesn't guarantee safety..."
"If we raise him, will it be safe?"
"At least we can check Pia's condition ourselves."
"Ha..."
The last time Haru actively expressed his opinion was during the incident with the Mark. Now, he was fiercely arguing to raise an unidentified life form. It seemed he was desperate, and Sihyun was just as stubborn.
Bringing up the risk factor might convince him, but Haru wasn't backing down until he was assured of Pia's safety. And Sihyun couldn't assure that. In fact, nobody could.
"...!"
As they continued their debate until they returned to the dormitory after work, the two couldn't find common ground and fell into an uncomfortable silence. In the silence, Hamin, feeling awkward, nudged Haewoon's side with his elbow, causing Haewoon to yelp and punch him back. Hesitantly, Haewoon opened up amidst the awkwardness.
"So, Sihyun wants to report first, and Haru hyung wants assurance of Pia's safety before reporting? And since that's unlikely, he wants to raise him?"
"...Yeah."
When put that way, I felt a bit trashy. I'd considered various situations, but now it seemed like I'm indifferent, not caring about Pia's fate. To be fair, it wasn't entirely inaccurate to argue against that.
"How about asking the teacher? What to do if we find an unidentified organism."
"Do we have to brag that we have an unidentified organism?"
"Then what should we do?"
"That's for you to figure out."
Haewoon didn't provide a solution, only countered Haewoon's argument, leaving once they reached the dorm. Once inside, Haewoon immediately started searching the room like he was escaping from the situation. He looked in the wardrobe, opened the terrace door, even checked under the bed. After a while of searching frantically, Haewoon approached Sihyun.
"Why are you like this?"
"...Nothing."
"What?"
When asked again without a subject, Haru, who had been flipping the covers, got off the bed. Then, he frantically searched the room, opening wardrobes, the terrace door, and even peeking under the bed. After running around busily for a while, he approached Sihyun.
"Why are you doing this?"
"...It's not here."
In a small voice, the silence deepened. It had been hours since they debated what to do about Pia.
Ironically, upon entering the dormitory, the small creature that should have been there had vanished into thin air.
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