That Damned School
"Nice to meet you, students! My name is Kim Tler! From now on, for the next year, I'll be your history teacher!"
...Had I come to the wrong school?
His entrance was so intense that the thought flashed through my mind for a moment.
Whether he knew what I was thinking or not, he picked up the chalk on the blackboard stand and launched into his orientation speech.
"First off, my class will cover history—specifically, modern history!"
...Hmm.
"There's a lot of talk about modern history. In the West, after passing through the Renaissance of the Middle Ages, the reforms that came with modernization still influence us to this day in many cases."
"This isn't just the West—it's the same in the East. A bit later than the West, but they interpreted Western culture in their own way and created a new history."
"In our country, this modernization happened through an extremely radical method. Because it came with so many sacrifices, we call it 'wrong,' but we often can't answer the question 'Why was it wrong?'"
"To answer that question, we must study history. By looking at the countless mistakes in history, learning from them, and understanding why they were wrong—that's how we can truly grow."
"Especially the part about World War II—there's so much to say. I know that's what you students are expecting from me. So, let's do our best together. We'll conduct a proper history class."
His speech—no, his OT—passed like a storm: short but intense.
For some reason, I felt like standing up and applauding, but purely judging by the class itself, it seemed like it would be fun.
Modern history taught directly by Hitler—no, Kim Tler. It felt like it would be incredibly immersive.
"If you have any questions, ask now. If not... Hm?"
As the teacher opened the floor for questions, one student immediately raised their hand.
I didn't even need to recall who it was—Kim Yena.
I wasn't sure if she really had something she desperately wanted to ask or if it was something else, but she had a pretty serious expression on her face.
"Ask away."
At the teacher's command, she stood up from her seat and spoke.
"Then, teacher, will you cover the history of kaijin and magic beasts too?"
I was curious about that too. It had been 30 years since magic beasts and kaijin appeared, and the past was called the Turbulent Era for good reason—tons of stuff had happened.
But.
"Hmmm. Setting aside why you're asking... at least in my class, I won't cover that."
As expected, he didn't touch on it.
"Modern history is still full of debates even now. Especially after kaijin and magic beasts appeared in the world—they've had an impact greater than World War itself."
"Among them are A-rank kaijin designated by the Association. Some were successfully subjugated, but others are still out there, hiding after evading capture."
"To put it simply, there's too little known information for me to evaluate them. Yes, magic beasts and kaijin are undoubtedly evil. They mercilessly kill and exploit humans, so we can call them clear evil."
"But I don't know their intentions. It's said that magic beasts and kaijin kill humans to obtain magical power, a special energy. Magic beasts, fine—but kaijin are far too alien for that."
With that, the teacher wrapped up.
"Hmmm... I've talked too long. Anyway, take it as 'I won't cover it in my class because I don't have enough info.' Any more questions?"
At his words, she flashed a bright smile.
"No, that's fine!"
"We'll cover modern history starting in second year. It's good to be interested as a student, but don't get too hasty. Building patience is one of the trials of becoming an adult."
"Yes! Thank you!"
With that, she sat back down.
"No more questions? Then free time. If my class is boring, you can use your phones as long as it doesn't disturb others."
At those words, the students—who'd been staring at the teacher like he was some freak—erupted in cheers.
""Woooaaah!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!""
Hitler—no, Kim Tler—basking in the cheers. He looked a little dangerous somehow.
♪~
The intense first period ended, and break time arrived before I knew it.
"Then, take care, students."
Drag.
The moment he left the classroom, the kids started buzzing about him.
"He's totally Hitler reincarnated, right?"
"Yeah, that OT felt like a full-on speech."
"Think second period will be like that too?"
Honestly, I was just as shocked.
I'd done some basic research on the school, but I'd never heard about a teacher like this.
Hadn't there ever been complaints about a guy like that? It seemed like there should have been at least once, but since classes were going smoothly, maybe the principal was handling it well.
For someone who looked so young, was she more capable than she seemed—or did she have something even more?
As I was preparing for the next class, Seoyeon's voice came from beside me.
"Next is science, right? Can't wait to see who's coming already."
"Yeah."
...Honestly, I was a little excited.
If first period kicked off with a teacher this intense, of course the next one would build anticipation. At this rate, maybe Einstein himself would show up.
"Hello, everyone. I'm Goo Jinsu, your science teacher this semester. Since it's the first day, I'll just do a quick OT and wrap up."
Nope.
At that moment, I bet every kid in the class was thinking the same thing as me.
"First... my class is integrated science, so it'll cover physics, chemistry, earth science, and life science all at once..."
Surprisingly ordinary.
Or maybe this was normal. First period had been so over-the-top that I'd assumed the rest would follow suit—probably jumping to conclusions.
Maybe he read the disappointment on our faces, because the teacher at the front glanced around at everyone's expressions and voiced his confusion.
"Why's everyone like that? You all look disappointed..."
Soon enough, he glanced at the timetable on the blackboard and nodded in understanding.
"Ah, the previous class was Kim Tler's. He's always like that even in the staff room, so it'll be normal from the next class on."
A strange sense of disappointment washed over me.
...What was this feeling?
"Anyway, OT's over. Any questions?"
A bunch of kids raised their hands.
In first period, everyone had been too tense to ask anything except Yena, but now that the tension eased, questions flew.
"Tell us about your first love~!"
"How do grades work?"
"What's performance assessment like?"
"You're hot!"
He was pretty handsome in a wholesome way, so mostly the girls were asking.
He smiled comfortably amid the barrage and answered one by one.
"My first love is my wife now. Guess we were meant to be."
"Grades and performance assessments: midterms 40, finals 40, performance 20. Assessments will mostly be experiments."
"I know I'm handsome. Thanks."
?
It was going fine until that last bit got weird.
"No more questions? Then free time. Talk to other students if you want, but keep it down."
With that, he sat at the podium and started fiddling with his phone.
I figured I'd chat with Seoyeun a bit and glanced over, but.
"Ugh... my head..."
Oh.
"You okay?"
Seemed like anemia symptoms from the nosebleed earlier.
"Yeah... I'm fine..."
Iron supplements weren't quite enough, huh.
"Shouldn't you tell the teacher and rest in the health room?"
"...Yeah."
In the end, I told the teacher, and we headed to the health room together.
It was still OT time, and he gave a light warning about skipping on the first day of class, but it wasn't a big deal.
The teacher knew about Seoyeon's anemia symptoms and approved readily.
"Can you walk?"
"Yeah..."
Good. Not too serious, then.
The health room was on the first floor near the vice-principal's office, according to the map, right?
Our first-year classrooms were on the second floor, so just one flight of stairs down—but.
"Ugh..."
Good thing there's an elevator. No need for stairs.
'Students prohibited.'
...Should be fine, right?
Making sure no one was around, I got on the elevator with her.
-Ding!
Even when getting off, I crept around cautiously, glancing about—then Seoyeon, who'd been following me, suddenly let out a small laugh.
"Pfft..."
...?
Why's she laughing?
I gave her a puzzled look, but she acted like nothing happened and kept walking.
Maybe she just thought of something funny.
Anyway, after the elevator and a short walk, the health room came into view.
"—No way! If your head—hurts!"
...Super noisy in there.
"You going in?"
She didn't seem to hear it, just urging me to hurry up and go in.
It'll be fine...?
No other choice, so I opened the health room door.
And came face-to-face with it.
"No! I'm fine, so please put down that chainsaw!!!!"
Vrooom────!!!!
The health teacher—wielding a chainsaw, about to slice into a delinquent-looking guy's neck.
"If your head hurts, just get rid of your head and it'll be sol— Oh, you two hurting too? Wait a sec. Let me finish this guy first..."
"Seah, should we come back later?"
I put a hand to my forehead and thought.
What the hell is this school?
It feels like it should be shut down immediately.