The night grew deeper. The small oil lamp in their room burned steady now, no longer flickering. The shadows on the walls danced slower, quieter. The three sat close, the mood finally settling into something heavier.
Gao Zhi (clearing his throat):"All right… let's explain our world to you. So you're not walking around totally blind."
Stranger (sighing): "Thanks. I thought you were gonna help me live or something."
Gao Zhi (flatly): "We never said that."
Cheol Gae: "You looked like you'd been hit by a wagon and dropped into a street play. That's why we helped. It wasn't an adoption."Gao Zhi: "We helped you recover. That's already more than most would do. Responsibility? We can't take that on—we don't even know your name."
Stranger (quietly): "Please… at least let me stay the night?"
A pause. Gao Zhi looked at Cheol. Cheol still wasn't convinced. His arms crossed, his eyes suspicious.
Gao Zhi (reluctantly): "Fine. For tonight. But tomorrow, we figure something out."
Cheol Gae (grunting): "…Fine."
A moment passed before Gao continued.
Gao Zhi:"Now, about this world. We live on the human continent. Just one of four. The other three belong to the elves, the dwarves, and the demihumans."
Stranger: "Elves and dwarves I've heard of… fantasy stuff. But what are demihumans?"
Cheol Gae (calmly): "They were… created. The result of a mad alchemist's experiments long ago."
Gao Zhi (nodding):"For generations, they were seen as mistakes—mutations. They were forced into the margins of society, not seen as equals. A kind of… caste shadow, you could say. But one day, a leader rose from among them. A powerful speaker. Smart. Brave. Dangerous in the way only desperate people can be.""They fought back. Hard. And eventually, the human empires agreed to cede a part of our land—a connecting island-continent between the mainlands. That became their own nation. Now it's theirs, by history and blood."
Stranger (processing): "So… what about the elves and dwarves? How did they react?"
Gao Zhi:"The dwarves didn't speak out. Not their problem, they said. They build and mine. Politics isn't their concern.""And the elves… well, they're too arrogant to care. They live long, they think slow, and they judge quick. They watched from afar like gods who didn't want to dirty their hands."
Stranger: "And this… alchemist? What even is an alchemist in this world?"
Gao Zhi (leaning forward):"Alchemists are scholars and breakers of nature. They study things no one understands. They destroy the known, reconstruct the broken, and try to remake the world—not always for the better. ""And you… you remember and fantasy stories, but you don't know the word alchemist?"
The stranger shook his head. Genuinely lost. His confusion was starting to look less like fog and more like a void.
Cheol Gae (quietly): "At this point… he's barely functional. Doesn't even know the basics."
There was a silence after that. Even Gao Zhi seemed unsure. Then, the pity returned to his expression—not soft, but thoughtful.
Gao Zhi:"Look… we'll talk to the landlord. There's an empty room next door. You can stay there for now. We'll say you're a student. Fake your records if we have to. But you'll need to work—janitor maybe. Are you okay with that?"
Stranger (nodding quickly): "Yes. Anything."
Cheol Gae: "Then we should recommend him to the Dean. At least to keep an eye on him."
Gao nodded, almost distracted by his own thoughts. His eyes were no longer on the stranger but somewhere distant. A part of his mind was turning like an old clock gear.
Gao Zhi (half to himself):"This could be… something. Something strange. A real mystery. I haven't felt this excietment since my last time when I solved one of the quiz cases of my grandfather."
Cheol gae : "Are you talking about that hypothetical situation book your grandfather created? That book yeah considering your antics you would feel good by solving the book made by the great detective of the Eastern nation of the Yunlong Dynasty"