EP03. Reception Sensitivity

Characters

• Shinwoo Kang (Protagonist) — Aviation school cadet. An orphan with no family to return to, he is a lonely figure who doesn't know to whom he should report his achievements. His overall physical ability is top-tier, and in crisis situations, his judgment precedes his emotions. He generally uses informal speech with his peers and does not build unnecessary walls. He uses formal language with Seoha out of courtesy, but after their meal, he switches to informal speech at her suggestion. Through the aircraft keychain Seoha gave him, he feels the sensation of a 'place to return to' for the first time and decides not to hide his feelings anymore. He is a roommate and friend to Doyoon, and a peer with whom he shares good synergy in field judgment with Yuri.
• Seoha Yoon — Flight operations and control support intern. Bothered by the fact that she couldn't properly thank Shinwoo after he saved her, she prepares a small emergency kit and an aircraft keychain. While she calls it a thank-you gift, she actually wants to spend time alone with him. Seeing Yuri Han take care of Shinwoo triggers her jealousy, and she realizes her feelings are more than simple worry or responsibility. She decides not to run away after receiving Shinwoo's confession.
• Doyoon Seo — Shinwoo's roommate and friend. He is the closest person to sense that the air between Shinwoo and Seoha has changed. He begins to feel a very slight sense of alienation as he watches Shinwoo show overwhelming performance in training and draw all the attention.
• Yuri Han — Female cadet. The person who recognizes Shinwoo's abilities and danger sense the fastest. She naturally tends to Shinwoo's wounds during communication training and equipment organization, acting as a mirror that triggers Seoha's jealousy. She harbors a quiet attraction to Shinwoo but possesses the dignity not to reveal it recklessly.
• Harin Min — Seoha's friend and fellow trainee. She is the first to notice Seoha wavering toward Shinwoo and plays the role of accurately poking at Seoha's jealousy.
• Minho Jang — A competitive cadet. Acts as a supporting device who grumbles while watching Shinwoo's overwhelming abilities.
• Taesung Park — Aviation school instructor. Emphasizes the message that a pilot is not a machine, but a judge who brings people home safely.

Prologue preview

Cold dawn air settled over the silent runway.

Life at the aviation academy always begins within a framework of strict rules.

Reason over emotion, precise judgment over fear.

That is the only way to prove one is fit to sit in the cockpit.

For Shinwoo Kang, these rules were incredibly familiar and comforting.

Growing up an orphan, he learned early on how to rely on no one.

There was no family to praise his achievements,

and no one to tend to his wounds when he was hurt.

Just enduring in silence and moving forward.

That was the solid wall that had sustained the man known as Shinwoo Kang.

But a few weeks ago, at the scene of the airport crowd crush, a small crack appeared in that wall.

It happened when he shielded Seoha Yoon from falling in the chaotic crowd.

When he got a scratch on the back of his hand.

Shinwoo tried to brush it off as nothing, as he always did.