Chapter 5: Not Anonymous
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 5: Not Anonymous
“Food?”
“Yeah, food. Why else would I be at a pork cutlet place?”
“Tsk.”
Ahn Hyun-ho sucked in a sharp breath, clearly annoyed that I was the one who answered.
It wasn’t hard to figure out why he was acting like this, but I didn’t see why he had to be so blatant about it.
“Mind if I join you?”
Hyun-ho, who had been looking disgruntled just a second ago, suddenly flashed a bright smile and asked Choi I-seo smoothly.
“...”
Choi I-seo’s expression, which had been somewhat relaxed until now, turned stony.
“No,” I answered from the other side before she could. Both of their eyes snapped toward me.
“Sorry, but I’m in the middle of a private conversation with Choi I-seo. It’d be a bit uncomfortable to have someone else jump in.”
I said "sorry," but the subtext was clear: get lost.
“Ah... ha, interesting.”
Ahn Hyun-ho scratched his head and nodded, staring intently at me.
“Fine. My bad for not reading the room.”
With that, he walked away.
He didn't apologize, and even after returning to his seat, he kept glaring at me, trying to catch my eye.
He still hasn't grown out of his high school phase.
Well, it made sense. It hadn't even been a year since he graduated. He was probably one of those "iljin" types—a high school bully. He was well-built and good-looking, after all.
“...”
Choi I-seo watched me with eyes full of complex emotions.
I couldn't tell exactly what she was thinking, but her gaze confirmed one thing: she hadn't approached me out of simple goodwill.
“About the running shoes... I think the black ones we saw earlier would be the best. They’re simple and versatile.”
“...Oh, so you like simple things.”
Nodding, Choi I-seo began searching for running shoes in earnest. She glanced toward Ahn Hyun-ho once, looking like she wanted to say something, but in the end, she kept her mouth shut.
*
“...”
After having dinner with Kim Woo-jin, Choi I-seo was on her way back to her studio apartment. She shared the place with a high school friend, and for some reason, her legs felt unusually heavy on the walk home.
Vibrate.
Her phone buzzed.
The caller ID showed a generic name: [Min-ji].
“Hello?”
— How was it?
Min-ji asked immediately. Choi I-seo let out a sigh and sat down on a bench along the riverside path, using the call as an excuse to rest.
“How was what? We just ate.”
When she gave a blunt answer, Min-ji snapped back in annoyance.
— No, that’s not what I’m asking. How was he? Weren't you eating with that Shit-Woo-jin?
“Yeah...”
Did she really have to call him that?
Min-ji had never even met Kim Woo-jin; she only knew him through stories, yet she treated him like garbage. If I-seo tried to be serious about it, Min-ji would probably accuse her of taking his side.
— How is that Shit-Woo-jin doing? Is he still moping over the breakup with Yun-ji? Or is he already hunting for his next target?
“He’s not hunting for anyone. There’s no sign of that. And we didn't talk about Yun-ji.”
— Ugh, what a waste. You have to be nice to him for now. You know Yun-ji is still having a hard time, right?
“...I know.”
— Just catch him doing one thing wrong. Then we can blow it out of proportion and start a smear campaign on the forums. Your school’s Bamboo Forest is pretty active, isn't it?
The Bamboo Forest.
Gahyeon University’s anonymous community.
Choi I-seo didn't really use it.
Sensing that I-seo was losing interest, Min-ji offered a more provocative suggestion.
— Or, why don't you try flirting with him a little?
“What?”
Had she heard that right? Choi I-seo was dumbfounded, but Min-ji pressed on confidently.
— I mean, it’s for Yun-ji. The three of us were best friends in high school. I thought you could help her out this way.
“I mean, still...”
— Yun-ji dropped out, remember? She wouldn't even tell us what happened. That bastard definitely did something to her!
I’m her friend too.
The words hovered at the tip of I-seo’s tongue but never came out.
— Well, it was just a suggestion. You don't actually have to do it. Oh, and buy some shampoo on your way back. We’re out.
“...Okay.”
Click.
The call ended. Choi I-seo gripped her phone with both hands and let out a long sigh.
How did things end up like this?
They were such close friends in high school. Why had their relationships become so twisted?
Min-ji blames Kim Woo-jin, but...
Choi I-seo coldly judged that it was just a way to shift responsibility.
Besides, even though it had only been a day, Kim Woo-jin didn't seem like a bad person to her. If anything, the problem was the Department Vice-Representative, Ahn Hyun-ho, who kept subtly demanding her attention.
Seeing the text pop up, Choi I-seo closed her eyes in exhaustion.
I just want to throw this phone away.
Come to think of it, she had debated whether to tell Kim Woo-jin that Ahn Hyun-ho was a notorious bully in high school. She had avoided it because it felt like badmouthing someone behind their back, but now she wondered if she’d made a mistake.
“Ugh, I don't know anymore.”
After sitting under the streetlight with her eyes closed for a moment, she gathered her strength from the night breeze and started typing on her phone.
Actually...
She found herself thinking that she felt more at ease back when she was just eating pork cutlet.
*
“What is this now?”
Early morning.
Yesterday I had a 9 AM lecture, but today my classes were all in the afternoon, so I could afford a lazy morning.
While brushing my teeth, I was scrolling through the Bamboo Forest posts from the night before when I saw something strange.
If it had just been that, I would have dismissed it as typical venting. But...
“Is this about me?”
The rest of the conversation made it impossible to conclude otherwise. The timing was too perfect.
Just yesterday, Ahn Hyun-ho had shown his jealousy when he saw Choi I-seo and me alone together. And Manna Pork Cutlet was the name of the place we ate at.
Then, the final blow:
It was a blatant threat.
“He really has nothing better to do.”
I simply added "Anonymous 287 is Ahn Hyun-ho" to my mental notes and didn't have much of a reaction. If he hits me, I’ll just take the hit and collect the settlement money. My parents give me enough allowance, but I might as well show some filial piety by earning some extra cash that way.
I’ve already identified two people from my department.
Anonymous 69 was Seo Ye-rin.
Anonymous 287 was Ahn Hyun-ho.
Both were popular in the department, but in reality, they were ugly and driven by their basest desires.
Case in point:
I saw a post Seo Ye-rin uploaded today. In the past, people would have replied telling her to stop or saying they were sick of it. Now, there was nothing.
"Don't feed the trolls."
The Bamboo Forest was doing an excellent job of practicing that mantra.
Just then...
The moment I refreshed the board, Seo Ye-rin’s post appeared. I hurriedly checked the content, and there was a photo of a woman exposing her panties.
“This crazy bitch!”
I banned her immediately.
[You have been banned from the board for 1 day for posting obscene material.]
I wondered if a one-day ban was too light. But honestly, she had made such a fuss in the 1:1 inquiries after the last one-day ban. I didn't have the confidence to endure two days of her rampage.
Did she actually post a photo of herself?
On an anonymous community?
Just to be sure, I re-examined the post. Fortunately—if you could call it that—it wasn't Seo Ye-rin’s legs. There was no mole on the thigh, and the legs were thicker than hers.
At least she’s still wearing a human mask.
The moment I felt relieved...
Vibrate!
As expected.
A 1:1 inquiry from Seo Ye-rin came in.
*
Lying on her bed and staring up at her phone, Seo Ye-rin smirked, quite pleased with her own comment.
When she was banned for a day from the Bamboo Forest—the community where she released her hidden desires—she felt like she had no will to live. She kept checking the clock, wondering when the ban would finally be lifted.
So, she had complained to the administrator and even secretly sent him photos of herself.
It provided an incredible rush. A sort of provocative liberation.
She couldn't post her own photos on the community because she didn't know who might see them, but the administrator was just one person, and since he had to keep his own identity secret, it didn't matter.
Why isn't he replying?
As Seo Ye-rin kicked her blankets in frustration...
Vibrate!
An alert popped up immediately.
“Hehe, hihi!”
Seo Ye-rin sat up abruptly on the edge of her bed, her fingers moving rapidly.
She stared at the chat, her heart racing.
Even though it hadn't even been thirty seconds, she felt like he was being too slow.
“Ugh, seriously.”
Instead of the reply she wanted, a message came from some annoying senior. She ignored it without even opening it. She only had afternoon classes today anyway, so she could just say she was asleep and didn't see it.
“Hehehehe!”
Why was this person’s reaction so fun?
His childish complaining was hilarious, but she had no intention of stopping.
Don't lift it.
To be honest, Seo Ye-rin was starting to find the 1:1 inquiries more fun than the anonymous board. Here, she got immediate responses, and she could satisfy her urges in a much more provocative way.
“Hehe!”
Seo Ye-rin jumped up and immediately turned on her camera.
What kind of photo should she send this time?
Wearing only pajama pants and a baggy T-shirt, she struck various poses in front of her full-length mirror.
“I should ask I-seo to introduce me to her PT trainer.”
She felt a surge of passion, determined to get revenge for the time the administrator had dismissed her as "not a turn-on."