The Girl Peeling Apples
The girl peeling apples.
‘Eh……?’
Renka’s head snapped to the side from the sudden slap. Her eyes widened as she froze for a moment, then she turned stiffly toward me.
“Sh-Shirabayashi-sama? Why……?” she stammered, her voice trembling.
But I only sneered, “Why? What do you mean, why?”
Slap—!
I struck her cheek again.
“……!”
Renka stared up at me with shaking pupils. She was probably too stunned to even feel angry yet—her mind simply hadn’t caught up. As a highborn lady of the noble kazoku class, she could never have imagined in her wildest dreams that a Korean would dare slap her. And honestly, the same went for me. I never thought the modern Korean hunter who’d reincarnated into this body would end up hitting a girl of such high status. Not until yesterday, anyway.
‘What kind of fucking country is this?’
I’d thought I was getting used to this era—where rigid class hierarchies existed and the discrimination between Japanese and Koreans was baked into daily life. But I wasn’t. The man from the twenty-first century still couldn’t adapt to this rotten world. No… I refused to adapt.
The kazoku could run wild above the law, while powerless Koreans were treated as potential criminals or punching bags. After watching that kind of behavior day after day, my resentment toward the way the Japanese elite trampled on poor Koreans had been building and building. The final straw was seeing the boarding house owner beaten half to death.
Of course, if it had just been some random person getting beaten, I might have told myself it was none of my business. But there was a reason I couldn’t just let this slide anymore.
This was a threat directed at me.
‘She must be doing this because I turned down her offer to work under her last time.’
When I’d openly rejected the proposal Renka made during the preliminary practical training, this was the only way I could interpret her response—cowardly intimidation by targeting the people around me. This time the target had been Ham Won-sam, the boarding house owner, but next it could be his daughter Ham Seoju. After that, it might be my squad members like Lee Yuha or Song Byeong-o.
I spoke to Renka, who was still standing there in a daze.
“If you want to mess with someone, mess with me. Don’t cowardly touch the people around me.”
“……!”
Of course, this was on a completely different level from when I’d slapped Murasaki. No matter how much of a Korean noble I might be, in front of this girl named Renka I was nothing but a powerless Korean. If she really decided to harm me… well, fuck it. What else could I do but die? A man has his pride. It was better to bleed myself than to watch other people die or get hurt because of me.
‘There may be no country, but there’s still face, you bastards.’
Renka stammered, “Sh-Shirabayashi-sama. There seems to have been some misunderstanding……”
“Misunderstanding? You threaten me by turning the people around me into bloody messes, and you call that a misunderstanding?”
“……!”
“Well, to someone like you, killing or sparing a single Korean like me probably doesn’t mean anything anyway. So go ahead—kill me or spare me, whatever you want. Just don’t touch the people around me.”
At those words, Renka’s eyes shook violently, as if an earthquake had struck inside them. Then she whispered, “……Ah,” nodded faintly to herself, and straightened up.
She bowed deeply at a perfect ninety degrees.
“Mōshiwake gozaimasen (I am deeply sorry).”
It was an apology delivered with the utmost respect. This time, I was the one thrown off balance. After I’d slapped her twice and poured out everything I wanted to say, I’d expected her to snap back with something like, “Do you really think you’ll get away with this?” But instead…
‘……What the hell?’
Was this some kind of trick too? But unlike the way she’d always smiled and spoken with relaxed confidence whenever she approached me before, Renka’s attitude this time was unmistakably serious.
She straightened up again, looked me straight in the eye, and continued in a lower, graver tone than usual.
“From the bottom of my heart, I have no excuse. I will handle this matter with utmost sincerity, so please be lenient.”
“Uh……”
“Then, I shall take my leave. Shirabayashi-sama.”
Even as she finished speaking, Renka remained perfectly deferential. She spun on her heel, her long black hair whipping through the air, and strode away with frightening purpose. The students who had gathered around us parted like the Red Sea, and Renka disappeared down the far end of the corridor.
‘……’
I stood there, still feeling the sting in my palm from how hard I’d slapped her cheek, and thought,
‘It actually worked……?’
With the matter of Renka settled for now, there was still one more thing weighing on my mind as I headed to Saturday’s first class. Lee Yuha had been missing since morning roll call.
“Has anyone seen Lee Yuha?” I asked, turning to my squad members—still excluding Murasaki, of course.
Aikawa raised her hand. “Oh, me! Ri-san is in the dormitory.”
“The dormitory?”
“Yes! I live in the dorm too, so I went to check on her this morning. She said she’d feel better if she rested just for today.”
As she said, Aikawa was one of the students who boarded in the dormitory with Lee Yuha. And since Aikawa specialized in healing, I figured she might have noticed something I wouldn’t, so I asked her directly.
“Did anything seem off to you? You’re in the healing department, right?”
“Hmm… Other than her energy seeming quite low, I didn’t notice any particular problems… Anyway, I did what I could and helped restore some of her vitality before I left.”
If it was just a drop in energy, that could happen from any number of ordinary things—normal physiological cycles or simply being under the weather. In that case, it probably wasn’t anything serious, but still……
“Thanks. I’m counting on you.”
I asked Aikawa to keep an eye on her. It wasn’t as if I could just barge into the girls’ dormitory because I was worried. Besides, if even a healer like Aikawa said it didn’t seem serious, then it probably wasn’t.
After finishing the common classes and passing by the main building at the end of third period, someone called out from behind me.
“Ah! Cadet Shirabayashi! I’ve been looking for you.”
It was a tall, clean-cut young professor—Professor Saigane Seiji.
“Ah, yes, sir.”
When I approached to greet him, I noticed Professor Saigane had a bandage on one side of his face.
“Are you injured?”
“Ah, this… Well, you remember how I suffered from that poison at the teahouse the other day. It’s an aftereffect.”
“That’s unfortunate.”
Looking closer, I could see what looked like hives around the edges of the bandage. He had mentioned having an allergy to certain toxins. I, on the other hand, had poison resistance, so I’d never have to worry about something like that for the rest of my life.
Since the topic had come up, I asked, “By the way, what happened to that Korean awakener……”
“Haha! You’re just as concerned about him as I am!”
He clapped me on the shoulder with a good-natured laugh, then his expression grew serious.
“Yes. Actually… to put it simply, he has been released on probation.”
“Really?”
“Mm. It seems my request to the police for leniency and probation had an effect. They accepted it for now. Of course, from the police’s perspective, they were probably planning to release him as bait and monitor his movements to wipe out any remaining hidden accomplices……”
Releasing a caught criminal on probation in just one day sounded absurd, but I’d seen similar things in cop movies—letting a criminal go only to tail him and raid his hideout. The professor continued.
“However, he went missing last night.”
“Missing?”
“Yes. I only heard about it this morning.”
Missing. It was an ending that felt both suspicious and unsatisfying. In the end, it just meant the police had lost him.
‘It’s a relief he wasn’t executed, but still… he’s a criminal and they let him slip away……’
While I was thinking that, Professor Saigane suddenly went “Ah!” and pulled a small slip of paper from his pocket.
“This is actually why I was looking for you, but we got sidetracked. A Korean girl called the faculty office asking for you.”
A Korean girl… That had to be Ham Seoju, the landlord’s daughter. As I took the note, Professor Saigane added,
“She asked me to tell you she’s at the hospital. She said she was admitted to Keijo Citizens’ Hospital.”
Admitted? Ham Won-sam had been beaten black and blue, but his injuries hadn’t seemed serious enough to require hospitalization. So why the hospital?
‘Don’t tell me… that bitch Renka apologized to my face but then went behind my back and hurt Ham Seoju too?’
I thanked Professor Saigane, hurried out of school, and took a taxi straight to the hospital written on the note. At the reception desk I asked for Ham Won-sam and Ham Seoju, then headed to the second-floor ward. There I found Ham Won-sam lying in bed covered in bandages, with Ham Seoju sitting beside him. When she saw me come in, she stood up.
“Guest! What brings you here? It’s still school hours……”
I burst into the room and asked, “Never mind me—what happened to you? Why is your father covered in bandages?!”
“Well……”
Ham Seoju glanced at me nervously before continuing.
“This morning, people from the Shimazu family came and said they were sorry, and that they’d pay for the hospital……”
“What?”
“They even drove us here in a car. Then they had the doctor treat him and paid for all the treatment and hospitalization fees……”
The Shimazu-gumi had put him in the hospital? So Renka really had apologized out of genuine remorse?
When I looked around, I saw it was a proper single-patient intensive care room—equipped with a radio and even a telephone. It was clearly a high-class room that ordinary people could never enter. On top of that, one corner of the room was stacked with all kinds of fruit and drinks.
I turned to Ham Seoju and asked about the man lying in the bed.
“What about your father?”
“He’s sleeping.”
What I’d thought were bandages were actually just a lot of plasters stuck over the bruises. There was no doubt about it now—Renka had officially apologized to me.
‘So getting slapped actually worked.’
The tension drained out of me. I sat down and let out a sigh of relief.
“Huu……”
“Why are you sighing like that?”
“You have no idea how nervous I was today.”
“There you go saying weird things again……”
I had been planning to go down to the main house this evening anyway, and I’d been worried that Renka might still target the Ham family. Now I could visit with my mind at ease.
Feeling much lighter than before, I started to stand up when Ham Seoju stopped me.
“You’re leaving already? At least have some fruit before you go.”
‘Hmm……’
I checked my wristwatch. I’d left school in the morning and my train wasn’t until evening, so I still had plenty of time. I might as well rest a bit. When I sat back down, Ham Seoju rummaged through a paper box in the corner and pulled out a few apples.
“I’ll go borrow a knife from the nurse.”
She scampered off and soon returned with a paring knife. Then she sat down, picked up a large apple with her small hands, and began peeling it. Her knife work was terribly clumsy. Looking closer, I saw her fingers were covered in little cuts. The thought that those same hands had packed my lunch for me made the sight strangely heartbreaking.
“You’re really bad at that. Give it here. I’ll peel it for you.”
I took the apple and knife from her and began peeling with practiced ease. I’d gotten pretty good at this, if I did say so myself.
“Wow……”
Ham Seoju watched in awe with her mouth open as I peeled the entire apple in one long, unbroken strip without ever cutting the peel.
Amused by her reaction, I joked, “See? They say if you can peel an apple in one strip without breaking it, you’ll marry well.”
That must have stung her pride, because she cried, “Pfft! Who can’t do that? Give it here!”
She snatched the knife back, grabbed a new apple, and tried to peel it in one strip. But the peel broke halfway through and her attempt failed.
“Ugh, so frustrating……”
It was surprisingly difficult. Still, Ham Seoju’s competitive spirit kicked in. She picked up another apple and tried again. Finding the sight amusing, I teased her from the side.
“Hey, I told you not to break it in the middle. You won’t get married!”
“That’s not true!”
“It’s breaking, it’s breaking……”
Meanwhile, that same morning—right after Baek Chulyeon had slapped Renka’s cheek—
‘Where exactly did it all go wrong?’
Renka thought to herself.
‘Wasn’t everything going so well?’
To her, the fact that her plan had gone off the rails was far more shocking than the reality that a Korean named Baek Chulyeon had slapped her. She had believed she was earning his favor according to her plan in order to uncover his secrets—only to learn that she had actually earned his hatred instead.
‘My plan was wrong?’
Born as a noble kazoku, winning people’s affection had always been easier for Renka than twisting a child’s fingers. Moreover, she had never experienced failure before. Setting aside the humiliation of being slapped in front of others, the fact that her own plan had failed was the truly devastating blow.
So Renka began calmly analyzing exactly where things had gone wrong.
…Cowardly touching the people around him…?
As Baek Chulyeon’s words echoed in her ears, she thought, Yes. I ordered them to test the boarding house owner. Did he dislike that?
…Turning people into bloody messes…
At that part, Renka became confused. Bloody mess? The boarding house owner had been turned into a bloody mess? She had only told them to test him……
Suddenly, Renka recalled the conversation at the mansion yesterday.
…Takahiro. You didn’t cause him any more harm than necessary, did you?
…Ah, yes. Of course not. He was just an ordinary middle-aged man, so we only tested him moderately and left it at that……
Finally, Renka realized the true cause of this incident.
‘So that’s what happened.’
Yes. That was where it had gone wrong.
‘Hehe…… In that case, Shirabayashi-sama, I must show you a proper apology.’
Even if a belated apology after making a mistake was like offering iris on May 6th or chrysanthemum on September 10th, she had no intention of giving up on Baek Chulyeon yet. Giving up on him would mean admitting that she herself was wrong.
If she showed him a sufficient apology, she could win back his heart. If she simply cut out the mistakes, her plan would no longer go astray.
She headed straight for the faculty office. The place she went to was the student armory located next to it. Since personal weapons had to be turned in on campus, her own sword was stored there.
“Cadet Shima—Lady Shimazu?!”
The low-ranking faculty member guarding the armory hesitated over whether to call her “cadet” or “lady,” eventually settling on “lady” as he opened the door.
Renka retrieved her sword, left the main building without another word, and headed for the school parking lot.
In one corner of the parking lot stood a black Buick sedan bearing the Shimazu-gumi emblem. It was a vehicle the Shimazu-gumi kept on standby at the school parking lot at all times, separate from Renka’s usual commute, in case of emergencies.
A low-ranking member who had been flipping through a magazine while waiting spotted the approaching Renka and cried,
“O-ojōsama (Young lady)!”
He hurriedly got out and opened the rear door for her. Once Renka silently climbed into the back seat, the member returned to the driver’s seat and asked,
“Where shall I take you? Back home? Or to the Keijo branch office……”
But the Shimazu lady said nothing. The member swallowed hard as he glanced at her through the rearview mirror. He had heard from his seniors in the organization: the time to be most careful around Lady Shimazu was when she said nothing at all. That was when she was extremely angry.
He realized that was exactly the situation now. Even without words, the oppressive pressure of the magical power radiating from her made her fury unmistakable. Cold sweat broke out on the member’s back.
In times like this, one had to read the atmosphere and act accordingly. Otherwise……
“W-we’re departing.”
He started driving first and kept checking her expression in the mirror. But the young lady sat completely still and expressionless, like a princess doll placed on an altar during Hinamatsuri. The member felt like he was losing his mind.
‘I don’t know… I don’t know!’
His anxiety reached its peak when they crossed the Cheonggyecheon boat bridge and arrived at the four-way intersection in Hwanggeumjeong 4-jeongmok. This was a fork in the road. Going straight toward Namsan would take them to Renka’s official residence, while turning toward the Keijo Government Office direction would lead to the organization’s office.
‘Where? Where does she want to go?’
She had left school less than an hour after arriving. So? Had she forgotten something at home? Or did she have urgent business at the office? If she were just stopping by home, she probably wouldn’t have brought her sword…… In that case, the office?
‘The office!’
The member turned the steering wheel to the right. At that exact moment, through the rearview mirror, he saw the young lady move—and her hand grasp the hilt of her sword.
‘Hiiik……!’
Was this wrong? Had she actually wanted to go home, not the office? For a second the member thought the sky had turned yellow…… No, the car had just shaken and his body had jolted; he had only grabbed the hilt so he wouldn’t drop the sword.
With sweat-slicked hands barely gripping the wheel, the member finally stopped the car in front of a grand four-story stone building on the main street of Hwanggeumjeong 1-jeongmok. It was the Shimazu-gumi Keijo Branch Office.
The member rushed out and opened the rear door. The young lady stepped out without a word and strode briskly toward the entrance. The member thought, drenched in cold sweat,
‘I survived……’
“W-welcome, Young Lady!”
The members waiting at the door opened it in a panic. Renka walked straight inside. The first-floor lobby was crowded with low-ranking members and outsiders who had come to request jobs from the organization.
“Young Lady!”
“W-what brings you to the office at this hour……”
Several members in the lobby hurried after her, greeting her, but Renka said nothing and headed straight for the elevator.
The low-ranking member acting as “boy” in front of the “elevator” also sensed her unusual mood and asked, “W-which floor, miss?” but the young lady remained silent. The boy realized her mood was far from normal. After a moment’s hesitation, he operated the elevator to stop at the fourth floor, where the organization’s highest executives were located.
After what felt like the longest few seconds of the boy’s life, the elevator finally reached the fourth floor. In a trembling voice, he opened the door.
“Fourth floor, Young Lady!”
The moment the elevator doors opened, Renka walked straight down the long fourth-floor corridor. The boy let out a sigh of relief. Several members on the fourth floor greeted her as well, but she ignored them all. Standing in the center of the hall, Renka drew her sword in a flash. Her red lips, which had remained tightly closed until now, parted, and a thunderous roar burst forth.
“TAKAHIROOOOOO!!!”
“Hey, it’s breaking, it’s breaking! Watch the knife!”
“Ah! Don’t say that! It really is going to—……”
“Ooooh!”