Chapter 6
“......”
“Kang Moon-soo, come up and solve problem 3 on page 338.”
“......”
“Kang Moon-soo?”
“Hmm...”
I definitely left through the school gate, didn’t I...?
Why was I in the classroom?
I wasn’t shocked—thanks to that time I’d instantly teleported to the gym without any warning—but that didn’t mean it was okay by any stretch.
Why had it happened again—
“Kang Moon-soo, come up and solve problem 3 on page 338.”
“Ah, yes.”
The familiar teacher’s voice snapped me out of my thoughts.
No dusty rooftop this time, but our cozy third-year classroom filled with classmates. And it was right in the middle of class.
This is driving me crazy!
I hadn’t even run into that girl from the problem, but the occult had triggered anyway. And now the time and place had shifted too.
“Kang Moon-soo?”
“Sorry, teacher. My head’s just a little dizzy.”
I really did feel lightheaded.
“Hmm~ You do look pretty pale... Are you feeling sick?”
“No, I’m fine.”
“Then solve problem 3 on page 338.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
For now, I’d tackle the problem in front of me and think later.
* * *
I vaguely remembered stepping up to the front of the class like this and solving problem 3 on page 338 before.
Vaguely.
Meaning this wasn’t the third time. If it were, I’d remember it crystal clear.
Still, to be sure, the moment class ended, I checked the date on my smartphone.
“As expected...”
I’d gone back much further than the day I took the Aptitude Test at the gym.
The occult had triggered another occult, so no big surprise there... but...
Why all of a sudden?
I didn’t know the reason, and that was the problem. I still hadn’t figured out what caused me to get caught in this time-rewinding occult, and now even the timeframe had changed?
“Aigoo...”
Too much to think about—my head throbbed.
That’s when I overheard a group of friends gathered around one guy’s desk like knights of the round table.
“Dude, looking at law books won’t change your Aptitude Test results.”
“Yeah, give it up. They say even a retest after ten years comes out the same.”
“Hilarious seeing a slacker like you cracking open law books.”
“Why not borrow the power of faith like me?”
“Just accept your fate.”
With the one-and-only Aptitude Test of their lives looming, everyone was on edge.
Very few students waited patiently for it.
Thud!
“Leave me alone!”
The guy, fed up with ignoring the jabs, slammed his thick law book shut and yelled.
...I remember this too.
I hadn’t seen it myself—I was in the bathroom—but I’d heard it nearly turned into a full-on brawl.
No choice, then.
I’d always thought I wasn’t the meddling type, but my feet were already carrying me over to intervene.
“Cut it out. He wants to be a great judge like his dad. With his two older brothers already working as a lawyer and a judge, it’s gotta be a ton of pressure.”
“......”
“......”
All eyes turned to me as I stepped in to mediate. But...
What’s this?
Their expressions looking at me were... weird.
“Hey, Moon-soo.”
“Yeah?”
“I’ve never told anyone at school about my family. How’d you know?”
“Uh...”
Because he’d spilled it during the argument. The rumors had spread like wildfire back then.
But that was a future that hadn’t happened yet. A future that wouldn’t happen now.
The family jobs getting outed was the same, though.
No big deal.
...Or is it?
Me knowing unpublished info could definitely be a problem.
“Moon-soo’s a stalker...”
“No way, you...?”
“Didn’t know you swung that way!”
“I’m disappointed, Kang Moon-soo.”
My friends were jumping to bizarre conclusions.
“No, it’s not like that!”
“Let’s just stay friends.”
“I said it’s not!”
“Moon-soo, it’s too late to hide it now.”
“Hide what?!”
I wanted to go back in time again.
* * *
Dream? What dream...
At some point, I found myself accepting this situation as reality.
Plenty of reasons, but it was too long and vivid to be a dream.
I gave up on scientific explanations.
Besides,
“Moon-soo, thanks for the help.”
I’d even become friends with the guy I wasn’t close to before.
“No biggie. Friends gotta look out for each other. Who knows? Maybe one day you’ll be a great judge and return the favor.”
I waved it off with a humble smile.
“I hope that day comes. But no illegal stuff, okay?”
The aspiring judge grinned back.
“Got it.”
“Oh! And Moon-soo, one more thing to watch out for.”
“What?”
“No matter what the Aptitude Test says, don’t cross the line with friends. I like girls, not guys.”
“That’s a misunderstanding~!”
Coming back right before the Aptitude Test hadn’t stirred much emotion at first.
But seeing my classmate poring over law books during breaks, dreaming of becoming a judge like his dad... I’d been indifferent before, but looping back had changed my mind.
This could be an opportunity?
Common wisdom said even a retest years later wouldn’t flip Aptitude Test results—never.
Innate talent doesn’t change, so it made sense.
But that didn’t mean the first test’s outcome was set in stone.
Forced? Didn’t matter.
Nothing to lose by trying, right?
No one in human history had ever gone back in time, so no one could say it was impossible.
I’d pioneer this field and become a trailblazer.
“Hmm... Oh! Maybe I should read some fantasy novels while I’m at it?”
A whole new world I knew nothing about! Science fiction instead of science!
Doing something totally out of character had to influence the Aptitude Test somehow.
But they better not be pricey...
I searched online bookstores on my phone, checking fantasy novel prices.
“Cheaper than I thought?”
The cost of one Americano got me two books.
Perfect.
About three days left until the fateful Aptitude Test day.
I’d read them in between convenience store shifts.
* * *
Fantasy novels had tons of time-loop plots.
I didn’t have time to finish them all, but they featured protagonists rewriting failed lives from past mistakes or choices.
Such an appealing trope. Everyone’s thought about changing the past at least once.
Easy to relate to.
Should I get my hopes up too?
Not intentional, but my situation mirrored a fantasy novel. Right down to the unclear cause or mechanism of the loop.
All that was left? Ditch scientific analysis like those protagonists and rewrite my failed future!
“Gasp!”
“He’s here!”
“Everyone, take your seats!”
Our homeroom teacher—who’d gotten “high school teacher” on her own Aptitude Test—burst in carrying a stack of envelopes.
“Have you all been waiting long?”
“......”
“Yes!”
We’d been waiting forever. From three days before the results dropped to today, time had crawled.
All that effort...
I’d crammed fantasy novels—ones where the premise was hard to buy from the prologue—and taken the test.
Hoping they’d wormed into my rational brain and swayed the Aptitude Test.
“Number 1, Kang Moon-soo.”
“Yes!”
“Number 2—hey! No running in the classroom.”
“Sorry!”
“Number 2, Kang Seung-ho.”
“Yes.”
I bolted like the wind the second she called my name and snatched the envelope.
...Nervous as hell.
I wanted to change my future like a fantasy protag.
Should I have read academic books or papers instead? The doubt flashed, but right now, anything but shaman was fine.
“Please...!”
I opened the Aptitude Test results with desperate hope.
“Ah...”
「Shaman」
No miracle.
* * *
Were three days too short to change my aptitude? Or was reading fantasy novels the wrong direction...
Either way, no time to mope leisurely over failure.
Number 5 crossed the line!
I just wanted to avoid triggering another loop.
If I could dodge that, even shaman was okay.
Of course,
“Hey, Kang Moon-soo, how long you gonna hide it?”
“Yeah, you’re the only one in class not sharing your Aptitude Test result.”
That didn’t mean I’d reveal mine.
I didn’t want to run into that fake shaman Yuil-am again.
“That’s sneaky, Kang Moon-soo!”
“Dude, don’t live like that!”
Their nagging didn’t faze me. I’d heard those exact lines at least once each.
Sheesh...
How do they say it word-for-word every time?
Repeating the same situations five times would drive anyone insane.
But without knowing the trigger or cause of this occult—what fantasy novels called “regression”—I had no clue where to start.
First things first: Text the homeroom teacher to prevent that girl’s suicide—
“Nah.”
The loop had triggered without contacting her, so no need to avoid her anymore.
Instead, head to the rooftop early and wait?
Asking her directly why she was suicidal would make handling it easier next loop.
...I hated accepting loop number 4 as inevitable.
“Quiet down. Class is starting.”
“Yes, teacher!”
In unison. Me included, every student in the room sat.
“Open your textbooks to page 427.”
“Page 427...”
After this class, I’d wait on the rooftop for the girl.
“......”
“......”
“Kang Moon-soo, come up and solve problem 3 on page 338.”
“Hm?”
* * *
All previous loops had happened after school.
This one hit way earlier—mid-class.
The one pattern I thought I’d nailed down was gone!
Now I couldn’t be sure of anything.
This is insane!
I had to find a way out of this occult before I really lost it.
“Kang Moon-soo.”
“Yes.”
“Solving this tough problem like it’s memorized. Did you preview it?”
“Yes.”
Three times, actually.
“Impressive! Everyone else, take a page from Kang Moon-soo.”
Nailing the problem and impressing the teacher was great the first couple times. But the third? Zero thrill.
So, I gotta find it!
Uncover the trigger for this occult that defied physics and rewound time.
What’s the cause?
I’d thought it was the girl collapsing on the rooftop... but now?
Confusion city.
...No, it’s definitely tied to her.
I wasn’t an occult expert, but call it intuition? A weird certainty hit me.
Problem was, I didn’t know her name or face, and her uniform made her indistinguishable.
My only clue?
That backpack.
I hadn’t paid it much mind then, so all I remembered was pink. No other design details.
Guess I had no choice but to head to the rooftop early and stake it out as planned...
Only one girl with a pink backpack in school? Not as common as black or brown, but not rare either.
“Alright.”
Don’t rush. Enjoy the situation.
The money spent on fantasy novels reset with each loop anyway.
Free reads—small comfort—
“Hyung Moon-soo! Hey!”
“Hm?”
My brain froze at the voice calling from behind.
“Hyung Moon-soo?”
“Wha—?!”
I whipped around reflexively at the follow-up and plunged into chaos.
What the hell is this...?
I couldn’t believe my eyes.
“Hyung, why so shocked? You look like you saw a scary ghost. Do I look like one?”
The delicate pretty boy—radiating pampered only-child vibes—tilted his head innocently.
“Not exactly...”
I stared at the face of my second-year junior I’d known since elementary school.
Choi Kang-hun. Rich kid with a complex about his girlier-than-girl looks.
“Hyung, something wrong?”
“Kang-hun.”
“Yeah?”
“Weird question, I know, but why are you in the third-year classroom?”
“That is weird. I come by sometimes to see you.”
“Right... yeah.”
The timing’s the issue!
He’d drop by often enough before, but not now.
Meaning someone else was involved!
Someone who’d altered the fixed future by luring Choi Kang-hun here at this exact time!
I had to meet them ASAP.
Tap.
To that end, I slung an arm around Choi Kang-hun’s shoulder and opened casually.
“Kang-hun.”
“Yeah!”
His face lit up—he loved how “manly” arm-around-shoulder felt, for some baseless reason.
Smiling, he really does look like a girl.
Burying the thought that’d hurt my little bro’s feelings, I smiled back and eased in.
“Tell me about your day.”
“My day?”
“Yeah. Stuff at school today. Even the little things.”
I was done with problem 3 on page 338. Aptitude Test too.
“Little things... Oh! Yeah, there is one.”
“What?”
“Got a confession from a senior.”
“Confession? From a girl?”
“Yep.”
“...And that’s a ‘little thing’?”
“Yep!”
“I see~”
I could always punish this smug pretty boy later and still get the story.