Demir, who was resting on his sick bed after dinner, pulled himself together and sat up when he saw people entering his room. He welcomed Durualp and Tauriel, who came to visit him, with a slight smile on his face.
- Hello Demir, how are you?
- (Tauriel) Hello…
- Welcome. I saw you, I'm better now.
- We tried to come to him several times, but our requests to meet were always rejected.
- (Tauriel) We were very curious about you...
- There's nothing wrong, right? (After taking a good look at Demir's left and right) nothing much can be seen from the outside. You seem to be in good health,
- I'm fine, don't worry. I'm a little tired. The nurse said it will pass when you rest...
- You didn't fall and hurt yourself, did you?
- No no. I lay on my bed at night and when I opened my eyes, I saw that I was here. Thinking that I was late for school, I felt dizzy as soon as I got out of bed. Nurse Oya helped me. He said I should rest well.
- You know you've been gone for nine days, right?
- Yes I know. I've been here for nine days. I can't believe it's actually been nine days. It seems like nine or ten hours have passed to me. I seem to have slept a little too much. Actually, I'm not even sure if I slept. I feel so tired.
- No going to bed just saying "I'm tired." You should get well immediately and come to school as soon as possible. Teacher Ayla was very upset when she couldn't see you. We are studying our lessons very slowly these days. I think it's because of yous absence.
I think Teacher Ayla is waiting for you to come. Most likely, our classes will return to normal when you come to school.
- Ok. I will try to get well and come back immediately...
- … … …
They chatted some more with their classmates. When the children left the room, Demir felt better. "It's nice to be remembered, so is having friends," he said and turned his head and started looking out the window.
After a while, the jug full of water on the desk caught his attention. When his dream came to his mind, he thought (I wonder if it would really work). As his gaze focused on the jug, he couldn't stop himself and got up from his bed and came to the desk. He sat down and poured himself a glass of water. He looked at the water in the plump glass. He concentrated and tried to think of himself as water. Finally, he lifted the glass and drank a large sip of water.
He couldn't go after the water himself like in his dream, but he could feel the coolness of the water as it moved through his body. After a while, the coolness disappeared from his lower abdomen. He took another sip… Another sip… Another glass of water and another huge gulp… In the end, he achieved nothing. He had no idea why it wasn't like his dream. He couldn't go after the water he drank, but it felt good to touch the coolness of his swollen belly filled with water.
He poured another glass of water. He brought the glass close to his nose and smelled it. He shook the glass and watched the water swirl in the glass. He dipped his finger into the water and watched the water drip as he took it out. After many experiments, he got bored and went to the bathroom to get rid of his bloated belly.
When he came back to the room, he took his favorite novel, lay on his bed and started reading. Even though he read it many times, he could still read the book with enthusiasm. As time passed, his eyelids became heavy and he fell asleep...
Two days later…
After a deep sleep, he woke up refreshed and renewed. After having his breakfast, he went through one last health screening. And it was decided that he no longer needed to stay in the health center.
After leaving the health center, he could not decide whether to go to Dean Noyan or not. He went for a short walk to think about what to do.
He got sick on the first day of school. Even though he didn't know the reason, the fact that he had been away from school for eleven days did not change. He knew that he was a sick and weak child. He had barely entered the academy crying. If he hadn't cried, Dean Noyan wouldn't have admitted him to the academy. For this reason, Dean Noyan was likely to say that he did not want him at school.
No one would want a student who was constantly sick and could not attend school. Even though he was feeling uneasy, he had to go to Dean Noyan as he promised... Collecting his thoughts, Demir increased his courage, knowing that he would be fired, and headed towards the administration building...
While Dean Noyan was looking out the window, the security guard opened the door by knocking. "Sir, Demir Han has came to see you." Dean Noyan's eyes were on Demir as he gave the security guard a go sign with his hand.
- Okay, you can come in now, little man. And don't forget to close the door.
- Yes sir.
Demir entered and closed the door. He sat where Dean Noyan indicated. He clasped his trembling hands together. When his uneasy gaze reached Dean Noyan, he had already started speaking.
- How is your health? Did you recover?
- Yes sir. The nurse sister said that I was in good condition. Now I could go to my room in the lodge.
- Beautiful. I am pleased to hear that. I thought it would take a little longer for you to heal, but you got back on your feet right away, little guy.
When Dean Noyan's shining gaze caught Demir, Demir was filled with fear. While he was thinking, (He will tell me now me can leave the academy), his hands began to sweat.
- Little man, you have the right to know some facts... Even though we enrolled you in the academy, you are not actually an official student of the academy. You are a trial student. If you are successful as a trial student and pass the final exams, you can become an outfield student...
Drops of water began to form on the edge of Demir's forehead as he thought, "I knew it... I wasn't successful and now I have to leave." He couldn't look at Dean Noyan anymore and bowed his head. He squeezed his sweating hands tightly. Dean Noyan was continuing his speech when the psychology of guilt and failure began to cover his body with a light sweat.
- If you are successful as an external field student, you will become an internal field inspection student. This means more opportunities and development. If your teachers like you and at least four teachers give advice on your behalf, you can be a core student...
Even though Dean Noyan explained it, nothing much changed for Demir. He was just waiting for word that he was expelled from the academy. When he looked at Dean Noyan with one last hope, he encountered Dean Noyan's astonished gaze.
(What happened to this child? He was sweating a lot. Did being in the dean's office stress him out? Or...) thought Dean Noyan and slowly turned his back to the child. When he released his senses, his blue eyes also glowed for a moment and returned to their original state. After making sure that there was no one around, he turned back to Demir,
- You look very nervous, don't be so nervous. Relax, little man. (Although Demir nodded, his tension increased) Yes, where was I...
There is another way to become a core student, which is to directly get the Dean's approval. There are many advantages of being a core student... (Dean Noyan asked after explaining the advantages of a core student) Do you want to be a core student of our academy?
- Heh!!!…
Demir didn't know what to say to the sudden question. When he thought he would be fired, he never thought there would be such an outcome. He looked at Dean Noyan in surprise.
- It's okay if you want time to decide…
- No no. (He quickly stood up and bowed to Dean Noyan) I accept. As long as I stay in this academy, I will accept whatever you want. Just don't fire me.
- !!... Nobody will fire you. Where did you hear this?
- I... I thought it would be like that. I was injured when I first came here. It took me a long time to come to my behave. And after right away I got sick on the first day of school. Because of this… I thought I was going to get fired. I am sorry.
Dean Noyan finally understood why Demir was so nervous. So... Was he expecting to be fired?
- Little man, you should observe carefully and evaluate thoroughly before getting carried away by your own thoughts. Then you can make better decisions... As I just said, being a core student means sharing the entire burden of our academy and its founders. Now I ask again, do you agree to share all this burden and be a core student?
Demir gathered his thoughts, he no longer had to worry about being expelled from the academy. As long as he was here, he could easily become stronger. So it didn't matter what type of student he was. He took a deep breath and bowed to Dean Noyan.
- This student is willing to become a core student. I will do my best and I hope I will be successful, sir.
After accepting Demir's greeting, Dean Noyan sent him away and then informed his subordinates...
An hour later in the meeting room…
- Yes, What did you do? Is everything okay?
- Sir, all necessary procedures for complete closure and disconnection of the academy from the world are ready. It will be activated whenever you want.
A word was sent to our men outside regarding communication problems. They won't contact us unless we call. We issued a declaration to them stating their directives and our wishes.
In addition, work has been initiated for the structuring we may need in the future. I sent you the details. If there is anything you would like to intervene in, please let me know sir.
When Baran sat down, Dean Noyan turned to Ms. Esin,
- How will the adaptation process work?
- Due to the child's being under age and lack of stamina, we will solve the day adjustment by increasing it by ten percent for each week. In this case, it will take us approximately two months for the days to align with each other.
Our intervention teams will be ready in case of any negativity. We will keep the child within our surveillance and quarantine system at all times.
Since it will not be easy to change the order that the child has been accustomed to for years in a short time, we will work in coordination with Chief Atay as support. I guess we won't encounter any problems...
- You know that your predictions don't come true, right? Atay, what's the situation with you?
- Sir (Administrative and general affairs chief Atay stood up and responded) We will arrange the child's nutrition and daily behavior together with the health unit. We will ensure that he/she has the energy required during training. It will not be possible for him to run out of energy and become sluggish...
Dean Noyan gave his order after looking at his subordinates.
- Baran, start the isolation process when the child is in deep sleep.
And now… The child will continue his normal education. There will be no class change, but Turan, you stay. Let's review the education process and lessons... Others can leave the room...
…
World history; On October 1, 2038, at 03:26 at night, the academy shut down all its systems to erase its existence from the world…