Fateful Reunion
A new semester.
It should have been the most pleasant start imaginable.
"Not launching any water rockets these days?"
"What's the point? They get shot down every single time."
Until that bitch showed up, that is.
I can hear the students murmuring among themselves.
Fuck.
The moment I started picking fights with the professors, she appeared like she'd been waiting for it and offered free legal defense. Thanks to her, the professors were living large. The atmosphere in the lecture hall was bound to change.
"He's not doing it."
"Looks like he got scared."
"He's just afraid he'll lose to the TA~."
Atmospheres have a way of flipping on a dime. More and more kids were trying to latch onto that bitch.
No, fuck—that shit is something you do with your life on the line!
Risk. Obviously high. Nothing good ever comes of a student talking back to a professor. You do it knowing exactly that. When interference like this shows up, even I find it hard to keep going.
Screech—!
I might have to rebuild my whole plan for recruiting the students. As if my already complicated head needed more complications.
"I'll be conducting today's lecture in place of the professor. Please bear with me if I'm lacking in any way."
That bitch appears—wagging that microeconomics-TA-worthy, micro-level sexy ass of hers.
Do they specifically hire micro-type bitches for microeconomics?
Of course, it was part of a TA's job. Sometimes they taught in the professor's place. Usually that privilege was reserved for senior TAs. Students didn't particularly love it either.
"We're the ones who should be asking you to take care of us~!"
"We love you, TA unnie!"
"Noona, I'm dying!"
With Rachel, it was different. Apparently her fight with me had left a good impression.
Looks play a part too.
Obviously they do. Even the same words carry more weight when said by someone outstandingly attractive. "Looks don't matter"? I've never met anyone who said that who actually meant it.
"Then shall we proceed straight into the lecture……."
"Teacher!"
"Are you referring to me?"
"We don't know anything about you yet. Starting the lecture already seems a bit premature."
"Yeah, yeah!"
"Hear, hear!"
More than anything, they were curious. A foreigner. It would have been stranger not to take interest in a blonde, blue-eyed beauty. This wasn't some Itaewon back alley. This was Hankuk University. International students weren't rare, but she still stood out.
"What is it that I need to do? I'm still not familiar with Korean culture……."
"Exactly that!"
"We'll teach you!"
"How are you so good at Korean??"
Her Korean was fluent. Her knowledge seemed extraordinary too. She didn't seem like an ordinary person.
I did teach her a few things in bed.
A speaking course centered around "Please fuck me" and "Please pound me." Didn't look like the fruit of those tireless efforts, though.
"Am I good at Korean?"
"Yes!"
"You sound just like a real Korean!"
"Female Tyler."
"I studied in America, so there are still many areas where I'm lacking. Please forgive any mistakes."
""Kyaa~!""
Self-taught. For Rachel, that was more than doable. She had a fairly exceptional language brain, and Korean wasn't that hard if you were only talking about speaking.
Did she pick up a Korean boyfriend?
And the easiest way to learn a language is through dating. If that was the reason, everything so far made sense.
"What did you do in America?"
"I was a student, just like all of you."
"Which university?"
"Which uni, which uni!"
"I graduated from Harvard's Department of Economics."
""Whoa!""
"Harvard?!"
Her body was the kind you couldn't just leave alone. When she was shaking that lewd ass around, it would have been stranger if men weren't swarming.
It is weird that she suddenly came to Korea, though.
Just because it was the past didn't mean everything would play out one hundred percent the same as what I knew. I knew that well from living in the world of investing. If I started accumulating a position? From that moment, the worldline split into one where the illicit stock manipulators caught on, and one where they didn't. Rachel's choices could diverge too—into a worldline where she dated some other Korean guy instead of me.
"Teacher, do you have a boyfriend?"
"?!"
It was entirely possible. Separate from that, I was curious too, honestly. Some clueless student asked her straight up.
It's a classic question, sure.
A rite of passage every flustered student teacher had to go through. I wondered how Rachel would react.
"Is that related to class?"
"Just so we can get to know you……."
"Then please confine yourselves to personal questions about me."
"She even knows 'confine'?"
"Wow, she's just a full-on Korean."
"Her Korean language pack came from Hancom Office."
She was deadpan. So she didn't fall for it this far. Regular students would have played along coyly.
Hmm?
But I could see it. Having chewed, torn, tasted, and fucked Rachel, I could say this with certainty. Her brow furrowed slightly. That was the reaction she gave when she heard something she didn't like, or when she was flustered.
"What is it?"
"Huh?"
"Is there something you'd like to point out about my lecture as well?"
I'd been watching her quietly. Apparently my gaze was bothering her, because she suddenly addressed me.
It's not like she's advertising "I am a tsundere."
If you're going to ignore me, just ignore me. Don't make a nuisance of yourself. She was an endlessly difficult bitch.
"I haven't even heard anything yet?"
"If not, then I'll begin class as is. If you have something to say, raise your hand anytime."
Her pride was extremely high. She hated losing to anyone. That lofty personality was why men couldn't approach her.
It kills their spirit.
Women who were too outstanding were surprisingly unpopular. She herself had never lived a life leisurely enough for romance. Whether that was true in this life as well—it wasn't one hundred percent, but the conviction that it might be kept building.
"The TA noona is so pretty……."
"That body, holy fuck."
"Is this a hidden camera? How did such a gorgeous TA noona end up here."
"Guess I'll have to settle for Western porn today."
The male students were drooling as they watched her. Every time they did, her brow twitched ever so slightly, almost imperceptibly.
Looks like she's still a virgin after all.
In that case, I could use it.
"Yes. Yes, yes. Understood. Then we'll consider it handled……, yes?"
Rachel was living her graduate school life in Korea. But it wasn't purely for academic purposes. She sent a report once a month. The reason she had come all the way to Northeast Asia in the first place was to grasp the situation here.
"So it turns out there really is a problem with Representative Bill Catarina."
"I see."
"Appropriate measures will likely be taken. Around six months from now, once the evidence has been gathered."
The better the contents of her reports, the higher her own evaluation rose. Looking at it that way—
So it was useful after all.
The argument with Chan-uk had meant something. The points he had raised were worth careful consideration at least once. Representative Bill Catarina as well. Seizing a politician by the throat was a significant gain for a family that controlled the political and financial worlds.
"I had my doubts about why you chose that small country…… but I trust you'll handle it well."
"Thank you for your trust. I won't disappoint you."
The call ended quickly. Conversations were kept under a minute out of concern for wiretapping.
Thump! Thump!
Even so, Rachel's heart pounded. Her expression remained the usual poker face, but—
I'm doing well, aren't I, Grandfather.
This wasn't the ordinary path. There was no one to compare herself against, not even an acquaintance to lean on. All she could do was build things up one by one. That was why being recognized felt good. It was the only way she could know she was moving forward properly.
"Hello!"
"TA unnie, where are you going?"
"Hello. The professor asked me to pass something along."
She was adapting to life in Korea as well. Students were the ones initiating warm greetings now.
I should be doing the same, but it's still hard.
Even back in America, she hadn't been particularly good at human relationships. In faraway Korea, she had no idea how to handle it.
"When are you teaching again?"
"That time the professor had a seminar……."
"Do it again!"
"Honestly, I think you teach better than the professor."
Fortunately, the locals were kind. Having learned Korean in advance was also a great help.
In a way, I suppose I owe that to him as well.
Learning Korean. Coming to Korea to study abroad. She couldn't say Chan-uk's influence hadn't played a part. She hadn't known his personality was such complete garbage, but his ability itself had exceeded expectations. As an individual, he was also growing his capital at a rapid pace.
Maybe I was looking at him through too colored a lens.
People like that showed up from time to time. The type whose personality was full of sharp edges, yet who earned recognition through sheer ability alone. On Wall Street and in Silicon Valley, they were surprisingly common. Trump and Elon Musk were classic examples. He wasn't the type you couldn't communicate with either. If they talked a little more, they might find common ground.
Of course, only if he's worth that much.
The reason she had taken an interest. If he was talent, she intended to scout him. Hiring locals was the easiest way to crack a country. Perhaps even more than that was possible. With the skill he'd shown during the crypto crisis, he might even make it on Wall Street.
No need to overrate him unnecessarily, though.
The bad blood hadn't completely died out. At the very least, she would need an apology—he would need to submit to her—before she would proceed with any discussion.
"Oh."
"?!"
"Where are you rushing off to in such a hurry."
She suddenly ran into the man himself. She flinched in surprise, but quickly settled back into her usual poker face.
Still as rude as ever.
He had appeared without a sound and was spouting flippant remarks. Just when her evaluation of him had been rising a little—
"If you have a moment, why don't we talk for a bit."
"I'm not free."
"Didn't you say I could speak up anytime if I had something to say?"
"Ugh."
He opened with something she hadn't expected. And unlike in the lecture, his attitude was polite.
What…… is this about?
Curiosity stirred. Just as she had been thinking about him, perhaps he had been thinking about her as well. After some deliberation, Rachel decided to grant his request. She could spare a moment, at least.
"I don't know what this is about, but make it quick……."
"Could you look over that way for a second?"
An empty lecture hall with no one around. Rachel looked toward the blackboard as Chan-uk instructed. Nothing was written on it. The arrangement of nearby objects was exactly as she remembered. Was he trying to mess with her? Exasperated, Rachel turned her head back—
"??!!!"
—and experienced her first kiss.