Chapter 33
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 33
Chapter Title: The Walk Home from Back Then
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After finishing Lee A-ram's quest.
Ding!
"Ugh, fine, you win. I'll wear it, okay? I'll wear it."
The Status Window presented me with the same reward selection screen as always.
The +3 Reinforced NoXface Himalaya was right at the top, just like before.
It seemed the Status Window was dead set on turning me into a popular kid somehow.
Acquired 『NoXface Himalaya +3 Reinforcement, Essential Inssa Item from Back Then』.
Acquired 『Essence of the Loser Saturated with 37 Years of Negative Energy』.
For the Lee A-ram quest reward, I picked the +3 Reinforced Himalaya.
And while I was at it, I claimed the reward from the ethics debate class quest I'd put on hold last time.
One different item from each.
Thinking about it, snagging all these rewards from the selection screens didn't seem like such a bad deal.
『NoXface Himalaya +3 Reinforcement, Essential Inssa Item from Back Then』
▶ Description: The ultimate inssa item from back in the day.
▶ Effect: Durability stat surges by +3 during fights. While the trend lasts, Charm stat rises by +3.
(※If no Durability stat exists, one will be created.)
Humm.
In an empty bathroom where no one could see, I claimed the +3 Reinforced Himalaya as my reward.
And tried it on right away.
True to my loser-optimized self, the starting value was already sky-high.
"Doesn't feel like much."
It just created a stat that hadn't existed before, so now I could invest in Durability going forward.
The Durability itself hadn't actually increased from before.
It said it'd add +3 during fights, but when would I ever need that?
Trend is currently ongoing.
Charm stat +3 while wearing.
▶ Charm: 10 → 13 (10+3)
"Oh... do I look kinda handsome now?"
My reflection in the bathroom mirror.
For some reason, my shoulders looked way broader.
Unlike other NoXface gear, the Himalaya didn't make me look bulky and ridiculous.
"...This is actually pretty good."
A crooked grin crept onto my face without me realizing.
Somehow, beaming like an idiot felt like losing to the Status Window.
But it wasn't bad enough to suppress the smile entirely.
"Damn, it's hot though."
And it was—this was outdoor gear.
Not made for classrooms, but for hiking.
Plus, it was late April now.
The chill was gone, prime time for flower viewing.
"Guess I'll head home."
I left the bathroom and headed to the classroom.
I'd been holed up in there claiming my rewards, but everyone else had already gone home by now.
Slide.
But when I got to the classroom, one student was still there.
"...What the hell took you so long?"
Lee A-ram.
She closed her book at my desk in front of hers and turned around.
"...?!"
But the moment she saw me, she flinched and made a hilarious face.
Thud!
She even smacked her knee on the desk leg.
Lee A-ram gritted her teeth without a single groan of pain, hunching over.
"Uh... are you an idiot by any chance?"
I asked sincerely.
"It's your fault...! Ow..."
Lee A-ram jerked her head up to glare at me, then hugged her knee and let out the pain she'd been holding back.
Weak.
Maybe I should call in Lee Ho-kwon from the hospital for some Durability training like mine.
"Tch, such a drama queen."
Swoosh.
I took off the Himalaya and draped it over Lee A-ram's shoulders.
It was so big for my size that she looked like a cat buried in a blanket.
"...What the hell is this now?"
Except this cat was seriously pissed.
"Come on, just imagine wanting to throw down with me once."
"I've been thinking that since earlier?"
This was why you shouldn't keep cats.
Better to raise a good, loyal dog that rolls over and shows its belly when the owner comes home.
Still, thanks to that ungrateful streak,
Lee A-ram's Durability temporarily +3.
The +3 Reinforced Himalaya's effect kicked in immediately.
"How's that? Not hurting anymore?"
"What? What kinda bullshit... Uh...?"
And Lee A-ram felt it right away too.
The pain seemed to vanish from her face.
Then she lifted her gaze from her knee to me, looking utterly baffled.
"What the...?"
"Truth is, I'm a Status Window user. Got it as a quest reward. It's called +3 Reinforced Himalaya."
I explained the facts straight.
"What kinda insane, retarded nonsense is that? Hanging with Hong Ja-hee got you addicted to games too?"
Of course, she didn't buy it for a second.
Yeah, who would?
"When your body temp rises, pain feels duller."
Rattle.
I grabbed my bag from the latch on my desk behind hers and added,
"Try cutting your frozen hand in the dead of winter. Hurts way more than usual."
Not sure if that's medically accurate—pure brain fart pseudoscience from me.
"...Really?"
"Yeah. Didn't you hear my presentation in home ec?"
Lee A-ram looked half-doubting, then shrugged it off as plausible enough.
That sixth-period home ec presentation of mine had looked like it came from a kid seriously prepping for med school.
Even for a bookworm like her, middle school knowledge had its limits.
"..."
Silence followed.
No small talk—she just stared at her flushed knee.
I busied myself packing the super important notes I'd jotted down today into my bag.
Just as I finished and was about to head out,
"...Aren't you scared of people hating you?"
Lee A-ram asked out of nowhere.
I almost said What the sudden?,
But I swallowed it.
That silence earlier? Prep time for this question.
Aren't you scared of being hated?
Honestly, after 37 years where hatred and disgust were my default—no kindness ever—I had no clue.
As I mulled it over with an ambiguous look, another line came.
"...Like I said earlier, that Park Ra-heol chick is a real piece of work."
"How bad?"
I asked flatly.
"Even the rowdy kids avoid her 'cause she's too nasty."
"Ah..."
Come to think of it, Lee Ho-kwon said something similar in my first life.
Vague memory.
Aside from our current homeroom teacher, that old toad garbage previous one—there was a girl he tormented, always scrambling.
She'd probably show up with her parents causing a huge scene.
Like suddenly calling my house, ranting that her kid can't go to school because of mine.
I wasn't clueless this would happen.
Quite the opposite—I knew full well.
And judged it no big deal, so I did it anyway.
"Eh, if shit hits the fan, handle it for me."
"...What?"
Lee A-ram's eyes went wide as saucers.
Her pumpkin-colored irises flailing without direction.
"You're the Park Ra-heol expert. You two were pretty tight in elementary, right?"
"Tight? Me and her... No, why the hell would I—"
Her baffled face started shifting to a glare,
"Aren't I your friend?"
Her eyes froze solid, locked on me.
Like ice.
The reason Lee A-ram could rage that hard at Park Ra-heol?
Because Yu Eun-ha was her friend.
Even if she denied it.
In my first life, I never exchanged a word with her, let alone friends.
Yet Lee A-ram saved me anyway.
By flipping the whole damn school upside down.
What an incredible kid.
If she'd been born in the Soviet Union, she'd have sparked the Luddite riots and proletarian revolution.
Hell, maybe the Korean Peninsula would've ended up with just North Korea.
Why the random thought?
"..."
Her face right now looked exactly like the Soviet flag plastered on it.
Bright red.
Just like mine must've been.
Clearly a first for her too.
"..."
Like black storm clouds over '90s USSR, her dark hair veiled her face.
A tiny voice leaked from her bowed head.
"...Don't get your hopes up."
I just grinned wide without replying.
In my first life, it'd have been repulsive.
But with Charm at 10 now, it shouldn't warrant straight-up insults.
She'd handle it fine on her own.
You might think she has no reason to cover for me,
But somehow, I felt she would.
Her words might be sharp, but her nature was straight-up good.
Swoosh.
Suddenly, a hand poked out from between her bangs.
"Phone?"
Not a smartphone, not even a sleek slider.
An old clunky flip phone.
"You changed it?"
Now I was the confused one.
"No, that's not—!"
Lee A-ram seemed annoyed, then
"...Ugh, I mean... you... called me... your friend..."
Her voice sank even lower than before as she continued.
"...Damn it, gimme your number already. We need to stay in touch, right? You set this up and don't get it? Idiot? Hurry up before I call you a dumbass later."
Then she rapid-fired it out.
Whoa.
This the tsundere thing?
Spicy kimchi style.
Hot as hell.
Beep. Beep beep.
While entering my number in Lee A-ram's phone, I sneaked a peek at her contacts.
Contacts: 6
Pathetic.
Still, four more than mine—major win for her.
Contacts: 7
Added one to hers, called myself to register it in mine too.
Now my phone had Mom, Dad, and Lee A-ram—three total.
Considering the shrinking family home ahead thanks to housing costs, this minimalism wasn't bad.
"There. Now we're sworn bros."
"...Sworn bros? What the hell's that obscure crap?"
"Means friends. It'll trend later—remember it."
"...Yeah, right. Like that's gonna catch on. You're no old geezer."
Maybe time had calmed her down.
Lee A-ram was finally talking like herself.
There in the empty classroom, just us two.
"You totally knew about the science club thing, right? Just played dumb."
"Dunno~?"
"That ain't trending either, so drop it. Annoying."
Thud, thud. Swish.
Lee A-ram closed the windows, drew the curtains.
"But seemed like you were waiting for me."
"Oh yeah... Uh... Eun-ha said to invite you to karaoke."
"Karaoke?"
"Yeah. She's buying. Just you."
Slide. Click.
I shut the back door, locked the lower latch.
"Buying what? Middle schoolers got no cash."
"Felt grateful, I guess. Said she was touched or whatever. From home ec today."
"Nah. Places like that's for delinquents. Students should study."
"...What kinda twisted brain says shit like that? Pervert?"
With after-school prep done, we met up in front of the classroom.
I strolled out to the hallway, grinning like an idiot.
Lee A-ram, sour-faced, grabbed the teacher's desk key and followed late.
"Midterms soon, though."
"...Eun-ha actually wants to go then. Said middle schoolers all do that during exams. Since we're middle schoolers now, we gotta follow suit."
"That girl's idol material for sure."
Just like this.
Slide.
We closed from hallway to front door, locked the padlock with Lee A-ram's classroom key.
Really time to go home now.
"Gotta drop the key at the office? I'm out."
I shouldered my bag to leave first.
"...Hey."
Lee A-ram stopped me with a word.
"What about this jacket?"
"Oh, right."
Only now hitting me—she was still in full delinquent girl mode, draped in my stolen Himalaya.
"Too hot to keep wearing."
"...So just toss it?"
"No way. Do you know how I got it?"
What to do?
"Ah."
She was heading to the office anyway—tell her to leave it on the homeroom teacher's desk.
Mi Teacher would freak seeing it, but wouldn't trash it like her.
"Just on the teacher's desk."
"You... "
As I started to say,
"...Building 21, right? Sunshine Village."
Up to now, Lee A-ram had been the one reeling.
Guess it was my turn.
"What? How'd you know? Don't tell me you stalked my—"
"Shut your damn stalker mouth."
"Then?"
"...I live in 19. Seen you around sometimes. Your big-ass build stands out."
19 and 21 Complexes.
Sunsung Elementary—my alma mater—sat between them.
Neighboring blocks, same walk home.
First I'd heard.
Status Window never mentioned her address.
It just summarized long journeys short.
"So..."
Lee A-ram paused a beat,
"...I hate detouring 'cause of you, but splitting off suddenly feels lame too."
Ah.
Got it.
"No prob. I'll sprint way ahead."
"... "
Icy silence.
Suddenly so cold I considered yanking back the +3 Himalaya she had on.
I knew.
I wasn't a total idiot.
Non-marriage protagonist? That's bottom-feeder Japanese trope.
They preach vibe-reading, but their guys are all passive wimps who can't.
But this regressed world was spicy kimchi land.
"Kidding."
I chuckled,
"Wanna go together? To the office?"
"...Yeah."
We headed to the staff room together.
And so,
"Hmm, what to chat about? Oh yeah, you know KAIST? In Daejeon where it is, there's this Expo Bridge—know why the rebar doesn't snap?"
"...No, and I don't care."
"Ah, see, they twisted the rebar on purpose for tension. Simulations during design showed arch-shaped load-distributing towers pulled max load from same rebar volume most economically and efficiently—"
"...Said I don't wanna know, you freak!!"
More or less like that.
The walk home from back then.