Chapter 39: Anonymous 59
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 39: Anonymous 59
It was around the time the exam period was slowly drawing to a close.
Voices echoed vibrantly across the campus and on the Bamboo Forest, with people celebrating that their exams were finally over.
But for me, Kim Woo-jin...
I still needed a bit more time. A lecture originally scheduled for Thursday had been pushed to Friday because the professor had some personal business.
Thanks to that, even though I had a Friday free period, I had to head to school today to take an exam.
"Hah."
She must be getting the wrong idea just because we've been hanging out lately.
Sorry, but I’m fundamentally the type of person who doesn't enjoy socializing.
I’ve been hanging around people lately because of various incidents, but it was time to go back to the way things were.
I could feel Choi I-seo’s desire to drag me along just from her tone.
'Sigh, she has so many friends. Why does she insist on me?'
I was just one of many friends to Choi I-seo, but to me, she was my only friend.
In short, if Choi I-seo went off to play with someone else, I’d just be left floating in limbo.
Seo Ye-rin?
Seo Ye-rin was probably even busier than Choi I-seo.
She’d likely be having a blast, being called here and there without even having a moment to say hello to me.
Ever since the last time, Choi I-seo had hated it when I answered with just consonants. Well, whatever. I’d brushed it off, so she probably wouldn't ask again.
Since the library would be empty now, I planned to change the atmosphere and study there today.
'My grades in other subjects aren't exactly great.'
One good thing about the exam period dragging on was that it provided motivation.
Since I’d botched the earlier exams, I felt a stronger urge to work hard on the remaining one, which made me study more.
I entered the now-quiet library and took a seat, passing by other students who, like me, were preparing for their final exam.
The library was good because it was a place to study in silence, but also because it gave me the feeling that others were suffering just as much as I was.
"Hmm."
I opened my book to study but ended up resting my phone on top of it. I thought about listening to music while I worked, but my fingers were already instinctively opening the Bamboo Forest app.
...I still had a few hours before the exam, anyway.
The Bamboo Forest itself was peaceful, though I made sure to delete posts that were overtly racist or heavily political.
There were also several inquiries waiting for me.
Well, I was busy ignoring the usual trivial inquiries that came in every day when...
"Huh?"
I noticed a pile of suggestions at the top that I had forgotten to read.
"What is this?"
A series of spam posts from a single person.
Anonymous 59 was the one who occasionally posted about being bored. You could practically call them the "Boredom Master."
"..."
There were always people like this, but this time, the inquiry gave me a strange, chilling feeling.
The feeling itself was unsettling, but the main problem was that I couldn't check exactly when the inquiries had been sent.
'Ugh, this UI.'
Since the Bamboo Forest app wasn't officially made by a professional organization or the university, but rather by a graduate, it was bound to be inconvenient in many ways.
People said that was part of the charm of the Gahyeon University Bamboo Forest, but from an administrator's perspective, it was honestly frustrating.
'Let's look at Anonymous 59's post history.'
Just as I was about to check the user's history, since I could see their list...
Vibrate!
My phone vibrated. This time it wasn't the Bamboo Forest, but a Tok message.
Yoo Ah-rin sent an emoticon of a cat glaring sharply. She must have heard the news from Choi I-seo.
'Did those two get close?'
I replied, thinking they might have bonded after drinking and sleeping over at my place last week.
The Tok ended with her sending a surprised cat emoticon. I tried to check the Bamboo Forest again, but then I saw I only had about an hour left until my exam.
"Ah, damn it."
I turned off my phone and began to focus on my studies.
* * *
It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say I burned my soul white for that final exam.
'At least that's a relief.'
I had some regrets about the previous exams, but I felt like I’d nailed this one, which put me in a good mood.
'Should I order chicken and have a beer at home?'
And then crush some games?
Hell yeah!
This is what life is about!
As I was humming and heading home, I saw a man who looked handsome even from a distance coming out of the convenience store in front of the school.
"Jeong Chan-woo!"
When I smiled and waved, Jeong Chan-woo saw me and approached with a slight smile.
Since the last incident, we had become quite close. He had acted awkwardly when Yoo Ah-rin slept over at my place, but thanks to Choi I-seo's help, the misunderstanding had been cleared up.
"Woo-jin? Did you have an exam today?"
Jeong Chan-woo greeted me with a smile and a kind question. I honestly couldn't understand why a guy like him liked Yoo Ah-rin.
"Yeah, my last one."
"Good job."
Since we were heading the same way, we chatted as we walked.
"Sigh."
Jeong Chan-woo kept looking at his phone, sighing and typing something.
Since it was Friday evening, I figured he was getting messages from girls.
"The Bamboo Forest?"
I saw the Bamboo Forest app on Chan-woo's screen. When I asked after accidentally seeing it, Chan-woo replied awkwardly.
"I'm in the Department of Architectural Engineering, you know."
"...Ah?!"
If he was in Architectural Engineering, he’d be in the Anonymous 300s. I’d heard that the senior who managed the Bamboo Forest last year got so pissed off that he lumped everyone from Architectural Engineering into the 300s.
"If I don't do this, the seniors give me an earful. They know exactly which numbers are ours."
So they weren't really anonymous to each other.
"What's your number?"
At my question, Jeong Chan-woo replied with a bitter smile.
"321."
Anonymous 321, huh?
Since the 300s were usually such a mess, I don't think I’d ever scrolled down as far as 321.
"They're forcing us to watch Popo's broadcast today too. Ugh, I hate it so much."
"I never liked the name Popo to begin with. It sounds like something an old man came up with."
"That's a taboo word in our department."
I was just thinking about what a good guy he was when Jeong Chan-woo looked at the Bamboo Forest board and frowned.
Then he showed me the screen.
"Woo-jin, this... isn't this about Seo Ye-rin?"
"Hmm?"
What was on the screen was a type of complaint.
It was the kind of post you could see anywhere. A simple vent, a way to blow off stress. But...
"..."
"We have our own problems, but you guys must have it pretty rough too."
Jeong Chan-woo turned off the Bamboo Forest, saying it was a shame, but this wasn't something I could just let slide.
That was clearly about Seo Ye-rin.
And the role of the "socially maladjusted loser" boyfriend they were insulting was...
'Probably me.'
It was obviously an intentional post.
The author, Anonymous 83, had likely created this narrative on purpose with their friends.
Thanks to the accumulated comments, it would naturally draw aggro and be seen by many people.
Even if they didn't know who it was right away, Seo Ye-rin was so famous that people would eventually figure it out.
'Besides, Anonymous 46 is the one who sniped me last time.'
I didn't realize such a disaster would happen while I had my phone off for the exam.
I hurriedly turned on my phone and checked the Bamboo Forest. Inquiries were piling up, and wood was still being added to the fire of Anonymous 83's post.
In the midst of all this, it looked like Seo Ye-rin was typing "sex" on the post that was sniping her.
I suppose that was her own way of resisting.
"Sigh."
Just as I was about to delete the post.
"..."
An inquiry came in right on cue. I frowned, wondering what that meant.
The next words were shocking.
Anonymous 59 had called me by name.
And.
The Tok message that arrived immediately after was...
It was an emoticon of a cat licking its lips while staring at its prey.