Chapter 314: Festival Preparations (3)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 314: Festival Preparations (3)
— I went this far to kill you, and it’s still not enough? Kill me. If you don’t kill me now, I’ll kill you for sure. No, I’ll kill you even if I die. You think I’d forgive you just because you died?
I still have nightmares sometimes.
Actually, is it just “sometimes”? Maybe I’m having them every night and just don’t realize it.
It’s clearly a nightmare, yet for some reason, I don’t feel like running away.
As I endure the dream filled with coldness by suppressing it with the warmth I receive in my daily life, the drowsiness fades, and the nightmare finally reaches its end once again.
* * *
“Ah, damn it.”
Maybe I bit my tongue while sleeping, because I felt terrible the moment I woke up.
It was early dawn, before the sun had even risen. I got up carefully so as not to wake Luna and Ha-ni, who were sleeping beside me.
Seeing the two of them sleeping seemed to make my foul mood feel a little better.
“We were busy preparing for the festival yesterday, too. Maybe I should cook today.”
Technically, it was Ha-ni’s turn today, but what’s the harm in swapping for a day?
I was about to reach for the spicy curry Ha-ni likes, but my eyes drifted to the sweet fruit curry I had bought and set aside.
“…Luna has to eat too, so let’s go with this.”
I peeled the onions and soaked them in water to remove the sharp sting, then chopped the vegetables a bit smaller than usual.
While sautéing the onions in a greased pan, I prepped the meat. Once the onions turned translucent, I added the meat, potatoes, and carrots, sautéed them a bit more, then added water and the curry blocks. That was it.
Now, all that was left was to grill Ha-ni’s signature tteok-galbi to serve as the highlight.
“…So-hyun? What are you doing? It’s not your turn for breakfast today.”
I thought I was being careful, but I must have been too loud because Ha-ni had woken up.
“I just woke up a bit early.”
Still half-asleep, Ha-ni stumbled over and looked at me with a worried expression.
“Are you okay…? Did you have another nightmare?”
“No? Who wakes up from a nightmare and starts making curry?”
Well, me, apparently.
“Huh? Curry? But Luna has to eat too. Is it okay?”
“I used the mild, sweet kind. I even soaked the onions to get the sting out, so don’t worry.”
Ha-ni studied my face for a moment before pouting and snatching the ladle from my hand.
“What are you doing all of a sudden?”
“I’ll finish up, so go wash up first.”
“Huh? You don’t really need to—”
“Hurry.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Faced with Ha-ni’s uncharacteristic assertiveness, I ended up surrendering the nearly finished curry.
After I finished showering and stepped out, Ha-ni, who had finished the curry and was waking Luna, spotted me and approached.
“…What?”
“I was checking to see if your face looked better after a wash.”
Hmm, is my expression really that obvious?
“Yeah, extremely obvious. So don’t hide anything, even the small stuff. Tell me everything.”
I was grateful she noticed such subtle changes, and it was adorable how much she cared, but seeing her slightly smug face made me feel a bit mischievous.
“Yes, Mom.”
So, I decided to tease her.
“…Who’s your mom? Seeing as you’re joking around, I guess you really are okay.”
“Of course, Mom. What do I have to be not okay about?”
I expected Ha-ni to secretly enjoy it while pretending not to, but for some reason, her expression darkened.
“So-hyun, I know you’re joking because of what I said before, but honestly, let’s not make jokes that even you wouldn’t like.”
Hmm? Ah, she probably thinks I still have deep trauma regarding family.
It’s not actually that severe anymore.
But since she wouldn’t believe me even if I told her, I needed to pivot the direction of the joke.
“I didn’t call you that because I meant my mother.”
If I left it like this, Ha-ni would be worried all day.
“Huh? What do you mean? You kept calling me Mom…”
“I didn’t mean my mom. I meant you’re Luna’s mom.”
Ha-ni froze mid-motion. Her face slowly turned beet red, and she slumped down where she stood.
“…Don’t just drop lines like that out of nowhere. My heart almost stopped.”
“Really? You look like you like it, though.”
“No—I mean, I do like it, but the fact that I like it is the problem…!”
“Oh, Luna, you’re awake? Shall we have curry once Mom finishes washing up?”
“Yes!”
When I spoke to Luna, who had woken up at the perfect time, Ha-ni trembled with a look of utter defeat before giving up and heading to the bathroom.
Hmph, another victory for me today. She really is cute.
The gloomy mood from the nightmare had almost entirely vanished.
* * *
After arriving at the classroom, I was caught by Lee Yu-na and Ju Ri-ra and was currently undergoing a makeup session.
“…This is more serious than I thought.”
“Don’t talk until the makeup is done. And we’re only doing the basics right now. The canvas is so good that we don’t really need to touch much.”
Well, as a man, hearing that I only need basic makeup for cross-dressing isn’t exactly flattering, but everyone seems excited, so I’ll just stay quiet.
“If you were a bit taller, it might have looked awkward, but fortunately, you still just look like a slightly tall girl.”
“…I’m going to grow more. I’m still in my growth spurt.”
“I told you not to talk.”
This is unfair. Ju Ri-ra spoke to me first, but I’m the one getting scolded.
“Do you take good care of yourself? Your skin is so clear.”
I wash thoroughly, but I don’t use any skincare products. Ever since I took the Elixir, I haven’t really had any skin trouble.
“…And why is your hair texture so good?”
Rose made me some handmade shampoo, saying it would be hard to manage if my hair got long.
She told me I wasn’t allowed to cut it.
By the time the makeup was finished, under the expectant gazes of my classmates and those from other classes who had come to help…
“…Wow.”
“I forget sometimes, but you really are Na-hyun Senior’s brother…?”
“He’s actually pretty…?”
“I would.”
The reaction was unexpectedly quiet.
Personally, I was hoping they’d burst out laughing. Is it because the makeup is too light?
…The last guy’s comment was a bit weird, but either way, it was different from the reaction I anticipated.
As I opened my eyes, my eyelashes felt a bit ticklish.
“…You said you were only doing basic makeup, but did you put something on my eyelashes too?”
But for some reason, once I opened my eyes, the already faint reactions from the kids vanished completely.
“Hello?”
The first one to snap out of it was Lee Yu-na, who was standing blankly in front of me holding a cosmetic tool.
“Usually, eyelashes are considered part of basic makeup. And we really did only the bare minimum, so how can a boy look like this?”
“…You’re not insulting me, right?”
“…Depending on the context, it could be taken as an insult, but that’s not what I meant. It’s just, how should I put it…”
She glanced at Ga-eul, who was babbling incoherently beside her, and then at Ha-ni, who was staring at me from the other side with an expression even more serious than this morning.
“…I just feel bad for those two. It looks like their list of rivals is expanding from girls to boys now.”
“What kind of horrifying thing is that to say?”
“Ah, if you’re going to walk around like that today, please stay away from Lilac. I want to stay friends with you.”
“No, what kind of horrifying thing is that to say!?”
“Oh, and I’d prefer if you didn’t go near Yu-hak, either.”
I don’t know what this crazy Pink Chihuahua and Purple Cat take people for.
I hate the idea too, but do they think Lilac and Cheon Yu-hak would be happy to be misunderstood like that?
“Right?”
“Indeed. Everyone is too caught up in the atmosphere.”
“Exactly, guys. Even with makeup, So-hyun is still So-hyun. His essence hasn’t changed. Let’s not say things like that, even as a joke.”
Yeah, sure. You guys talk a big game, but why aren’t you looking at me? Why are you subtly keeping more distance than usual?
…It’s not that, right? You bastards. Tell me it’s not that.
As the classmates gradually thawed out and even people I usually didn’t talk to crowded around me, making the place noisy…
“Good morning, everyone…?”
Cathy Noona spotted me and froze with a look of pure shock.
She then lowered her head and walked up to stand right in front of me without a word. I couldn’t see her expression, which was a bit scary.
What is it? Does she really hate this kind of thing?
Or is she going to scold us for being too rowdy during academy hours, even if it is festival prep?
“So-hyun.”
Well, since she called me “So-hyun” instead of “Cadet So-hyun” in front of everyone, she’s clearly in an emotional state.
“You’re so incredibly cute! You even braided your hair!?”
But it didn’t seem like she was angry.
Her eyes were out of focus, but seeing her flushed cheeks, it seemed she didn’t hate it—she loved it.
Well, since I didn’t have a mirror, I had no way of knowing for sure.
“Photos. Let’s take some photos!”
“Shouldn’t we do that on the actual festival day?”
“We can just take more on the festival day!”
“Ah.”
So, at Cathy Noona’s suggestion, not just my classmates but even friends from other classes gathered around, insisting on taking photos, resulting in an impromptu group photoshoot.
After that, the festival preparations at the academy proceeded quite smoothly, with everyone working on their projects after classes ended.
* * *
Or rather, it seemed to be proceeding smoothly.
“Mmm! A school festival definitely needs fresh vegetables!”
If only that crazy bastard Lilac hadn’t called Ban Gi-san, today might have ended as a fairly decent day.
“Lilac. You crazy bastard. What the hell are you doing? You invited a terrorist to the academy.”
“Hey, he’s a good person. No one was seriously hurt in that terror incident, so he still has his hero license. Plus, vegetables are expensive these days, and he agreed to supply them almost for free.”
Oh, I see. So as long as you keep your hero license, a madman who crashes an academy ranking tournament and stuffs eggplants into female students’ mouths can be a “good person”!
I didn’t know that!
The handsome man with a bare torso approached, his white teeth gleaming. His muscles rippled as he walked over to greet me.
“Mmm, it seems you still haven’t become a picky eater. This old man is pleased.”
To be honest, I don’t find this man as repulsive as I used to.
After all, he’s helped me a lot, and we’ve met frequently.
“I’d like to chat more, but I have a request from Cadet Lilac, so I shall head to the Chairperson’s office.”
“…Why the Chairperson’s office?”
“To negotiate so that I can supply all the vegetables for the festival, of course! I shall provide quality and prices the likes of which you’ve never seen anywhere else…!”
With those words, the madman began sprinting toward the Chairperson’s office without a moment’s hesitation.
“See? He’s a good guy.”
“Lilac, I think about this seriously sometimes, but you really have no eye for people.”
“That’s harsh. Just watch. It’ll pass without much trouble.”
“Your words just gave me absolute certainty. An accident will happen by tomorrow.”
Lilac laughed, thinking I was joking, but I was being entirely sincere.
* * *
And in a sense, that prediction was spot on.
Upon reaching the Chairperson’s office, Ban Gi-san came to a halt as he came face-to-face with a certain man.
It was the War Demon, Seo Tae-ho, who was currently meeting with the Chairperson.
Unluckily, he had recently been defeated in a duel with Kang So-hyun and had been summoned by the Chairperson because of it.
The two men had seen each other’s faces during the war against the demons, but since Seo Tae-ho was currently wearing a fake face, it was normal for Ban Gi-san not to recognize him.
“Hmm? The one from last time?”
That is, if Ban Gi-san were a normal person.
The War Demon didn’t act wary of the man who recognized him; instead, he felt a strange sense of intrigue.
The performance Ban Gi-san had shown that day was more than enough to pique his interest, so it was only natural.
He saw through the perception interference and the disguise the Boss made?
— I’m warning you, if you get caught fighting a cadet without my permission, it won’t end like this.
Heh, this guy isn’t even a cadet.
“…Have you fixed your picky eating habits a bit?”
“Hmm?”
“But it seems you still hate bamboo shoots.”
The Chairperson, sensing a bizarre atmosphere flowing between the two fiercely grinning men, muttered with a worried face.
“…I don’t know what you’re thinking, but I beg of you, please stop.”
However, her words could never reach the two madmen.
“I am glad to have the chance to convey the charm of bamboo shoots to a powerhouse like you…!”
“You! I don’t know what you’re talking about, but I’ve been bored lately, so this is perfect! Let’s go!”
Quite out of the blue, a battle between two monsters began at Leilan Academy.
“You crazy bastards…! Please, take it outside…!”
And the scream of Chairperson Leilan echoed through the halls.