Ch 136
Became a swordsmanship instructor at the academy
Chapter 136
Shouldn't I have stopped Lee Ji-sung from bullying my classmates?
I didn't particularly want praise or to become a hero.
Both at school and at home, I was taught not to stand by when witnessing injustice, but to help.
So I stepped in.
I had no intention of fighting.
I only tried to break it up moderately, but that bastard Lee Ji-sung threw the first punch.
While dodging, I reflexively struck back, and as that bastard rushed at me, his nose bone broke.
I didn't know that bastard who always bullied other friends and acted arrogantly would be such a weakling.
After that, a disciplinary committee was convened and my mother was called to the school.
Lee Ji-sung's mother didn't care at all that her son had bullied another friend first, and threw a fit demanding that I be forcibly transferred.
Thanks to my homeroom teacher's protection and my classmates' testimonies, I didn't receive disciplinary action.
But clearly it was Lee Ji-sung who bullied other friends first, yet somehow I had become the bad person.
Moreover, Lee Ji-sung's mom told my mom that instead of accepting medical expenses and settlement money, she should at least kneel and apologize properly.
My mom even knelt because of me.
I really felt so sorry I wanted to die.
After hearing the whole situation, mom said I did well and it was okay, but it wasn't okay at all.
Lee Ji-sung was the bad one, so why did I and mom have to...
I said I would avoid causing trouble in the future and just quietly focus on school life.
But from that day on, Lee Ji-sung kept picking fights with me.
At first, it was minor things like throwing eraser shavings during class or tripping me as I walked by.
He was a guy who wouldn't even be worth one punch in a fight.
I was annoyed, but I endured it thinking of mom.
Fortunately, since I didn't react and didn't engage with him, he seemed to tire himself out and stopped bothering me.
...I thought it was fortunate, but I was completely mistaken.
Lee Ji-sung began bullying the friends who hung out with me, picking unreasonable fights.
Hitting them, stealing their things, ostracizing them.
Several friends couldn't bear it anymore and told the teacher, and he received disciplinary action, but the punishment handed down was merely school community service.
I thought he would at least get suspended if not forced transfer...
Instead, the bastard bullied even more severely the friends who got him disciplined.
Eventually, one by one they started avoiding me, and before I knew it, everyone in the class stopped talking to me.
At least the kids from other classes didn't avoid me, but it was too hard.
Even the friend I had helped when being bullied by Lee Ji-sung abandoned me.
When everyone in the class stopped hanging out with me, now he openly picked fights with his gang.
"Hey, you know what? Your beggar mom is a master at kneeling, right?"
"Master at kneeling?"
"Your beggar mom, how broke must she be that when my mom said she wouldn't take settlement money or medical expenses, she knelt right away without even thinking. Isn't that hilarious?"
"Amazing, so funny. Guess she has no self-respect."
"Where would a beggar have that? Hey, beggar, did your family get the house you live in by kneeling and begging too?"
"What... Wasn't there news about this before?"
"Right. Kang Shin-hyeok, was it? Some high school teacher helped, and that teacher made your mom fall down."
I endured most things, but I absolutely couldn't stand them insulting my mom and the teacher who helped us.
I grabbed his collar telling him not to talk nonsense.
"Wow, trying to hit again? Go ahead, hit me. You know if you hit me once, you'll be immediately expelled, right? Didn't you write in your reflection letter that you wouldn't use violence against fellow students again? You agreed to pay all the medical expenses from last time too, do you have the money?"
"Exactly. Who are you to interfere? Should we call your mom again to make her kneel?"
Sometimes my homeroom teacher would ask if I had any difficulties, but I didn't tell her.
No, I couldn't.
My homeroom teacher who cared about me and treated me well might suffer because of me.
Lee Ji-sung openly said he found it disgusting that even the homeroom teacher took my side and that he should get rid of her.
It wasn't just empty bravado - a friend from the sword club told me that Lee Ji-sung had made a teacher who scolded him in second year quit the school.
Since he had never received proper punishment even once until now, nothing would change even if I spoke up.
If I just endured a little, I wouldn't cause trouble for the people around me.
Just endure a little more…
***
I had somewhat organized my thoughts, but I thought I should hear Do-hyun's story directly, so I called Do-hyun's mother.
Yesterday Do-hyun's mother also received Seo-ra's call and talked with Do-hyun, but Do-hyun kept saying he was fine.
It didn't seem like the bullying was as severe as I thought.
But just in case, I told her I would talk to him separately.
I called Do-hyun out under the pretense of buying him lunch, fed him, went to a cafe, and carefully brought up the topic.
At first he hesitated, but when I told him to tell me it was okay, he finally opened his mouth.
Throughout listening to his story, I was seething with anger.
It was definitely not at an appropriate level.
Actually, after thinking about it all day yesterday, I had decided not to intervene.
In the original work, Choi Seo-ra didn't particularly look after Do-hyun either, and Do-hyun's family circumstances were much worse.
But now the situation is different.
Choi Seo-ra is paying quite a lot of attention to Do-hyun at my request, and I solved the difficult family circumstances.
He endured and grew well even in much more difficult situations, so I wondered if I was being overly concerned.
Actually, it's inevitable for the protagonist to face some trials to become strong.
"Thank you for trusting me and telling me, Teacher."
But I was completely wrong in my thinking.
Sigh... In the original work, it only briefly mentioned that Lee Ji-sung bullied and ostracized Kim Do-hyun in middle school year 3, without detailing exactly how he bullied him, so I didn't know it would be to this extent.
No matter how much of a scoundrel Lee Ji-sung is, he's only in middle school year 3.
Besides, Seo-ra often asked Do-hyun if he had any difficulties, but he didn't speak up.
When his mother asked, he also said he was fine, so I really thought he was okay...
Even though he's not a student I teach, to think I tried to overlook school violence while knowing about it - as an educator... No, as an adult, I'm completely disqualified.
"Um... Teacher, what are you thinking of doing?"
"That's what I want to ask you. What would you like me to do, Do-hyun?"
"I... I'd like you not to do anything."
"Huh? What? Don't do anything... What do you mean?"
I asked back to handle it the way Do-hyun wanted, but it was a completely unexpected answer.
"It's vacation now and I just need to endure one more semester, so it's okay."
"What do you mean endure? And what's okay about this? Aren't you frustrated? Don't you get angry?"
"There's nothing I can do about it. That bastard's dad is the president of Hwasin Electronics, so all the teachers only take that bastard's side... Even when disciplinary committees were held, he only got light punishments."
"No, Do-hyun..."
"It's my fault to begin with."
"How is that your fault?"
"I realized last time. If I hadn't stepped forward with half-baked sense of justice to help a friend, mother wouldn't have suffered like that and this wouldn't have happened... So I just need to endure and bear it a little."
Seeing Do-hyun speak with an awkward smile makes me feel frustrated as if I ate 100 sweet potatoes without water.
"Sorry, but I can't do that."
"What? But Hwasin Electronics is the top conglomerate in our country. It's also the school's biggest sponsor..."
"So what?"
"If you step forward and get in trouble because of me, I'd feel too sorry..."
"Why worry about that? I'm not afraid of something like Hwasin Group at all."
It's sincere.
I'm an S-rank Hunter and an honorary director of the Hunter Association, but aside from all that, even the top conglomerate in Korea... No, even the world's top conglomerate would die the same if stabbed with a sword.
"But realistically speaking..."
"Why are you considering such things at your age? Do-hyun, at your age you don't need to think about such things. Think simply."
"Simply?"
"Bad guys should be punished. You did nothing wrong, so why endure?"
If you endure, you're a pushover.
Of course, I didn't say that last part out loud.
***
After finishing the conversation with Do-hyun, I walked him home and returned to the hotel.
I had to speak strongly in front of Do-hyun to not show weakness, but I'm troubled about how to deal with Lee Ji-sung.
First, I called Choi Seo-ra, and she said tomorrow they plan to have Do-hyun's phone restored by a company to recover the messages exchanged so far and use them as evidence to convene a disciplinary committee.
No matter how much Lee Ji-sung bullied him, she seems quite determined, saying she's extremely disappointed in the classmates too.
But the disciplinary committee won't be very effective.
As Do-hyun said, if he hasn't received proper punishment so far, there's a high possibility that the vice principal or principal who has the greatest authority in the disciplinary committee is backing him up.
Even if the guys who bullied alongside Lee Ji-sung get punished, Lee Ji-sung will slip away like an eel again.
Choi Seo-ra said she'll report to the police if the disciplinary committee doesn't punish properly, but that also seems unlikely to be effective.
Even the police aren't beyond the reach of Hwasin Group's influence.
I'm worried that only Choi Seo-ra will get in trouble for nothing.
At least since what Lee Ji-sung fears is his father, should I go find his father?
Since he has social status, it shouldn't be too difficult to meet if we make an appointment, but this also doesn't seem like a very good method.
Unlike his extreme mother, the father is quite a reasonable person, but arms bend inward, so he might take his child's side.
If he listens to my story and sends him away to transfer schools or something, that would also greatly derail the future, which would be troublesome.
It's really complicated.
What on earth should I do...
If it were up to my feelings, I'd want to kidnap him and dump him on some deserted island.
Right, tie him up and give him only minimal food and water, then release him around the end of the second semester, wouldn't that work?
Since he's a third-generation chaebol heir, kidnapping would take some effort, but considering my abilities, it shouldn't be too difficult...
Lee Ji-sung can also remember the past if he possesses someone like me.
But I could just pretend to be Antas and kidnap him, so it's a good method... Oh, if he misses the entire second semester, he'll have to repeat the grade.
If you don't attend more than 1/3 of that grade's classes, you repeat.
I can't kidnap him and then make him attend every day only to kidnap him again...
If Lee Ji-sung repeats a grade, the grade level changes, and then it's no different from being forcibly transferred.
Wait, as long as he attends, he won't repeat the grade...
"Luciel, could you come out?"
I found a method.
***
Just past midnight at this late hour, I'm now in Hannam-dong where Lee Ji-sung's house is located, together with Luciel.
Since he's from Korea's top conglomerate family, I could easily find the address with a few internet searches.
In the original work, it was said he always lived with his parents at home during vacations, and given the current time, Lee Ji-sung should be at home too.
It seems much larger than Hong Man-sik's mansion I went to last time, with many CCTVs and I can see several security guards and dogs inside.
But no problem.
"Ready? Kang."
"Huh?"
"What, you don't know this?"
Lately she's been playing games with her laptop frequently and learned all sorts of things.
I was about to tell her to stop talking nonsense and focus, but seeing her eyes sparkling with anticipation, I had no choice but to answer.
"Of course, Lu."