Chapter 52: Back to Daily Life.
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 52: Back to Daily Life.
A bright and energetic morning. If I were to introduce myself, the name’s So-hyun.
That’s right.
Another new day has dawned.
By forcing myself to wake up with a somewhat exaggerated sense of cheer, I felt like my mood was actually improving.
Ahem. Sulking forever over things that have already passed is something a transmigrator in an academy novel should never do.
Isn’t it the golden rule for academy stories to keep things light and bright?
As I got out of bed, I saw Ha-ni, who had finished getting ready before me as usual, preparing breakfast.
I felt a bit guilty seeing her wake up early to cook, but more than that, the delicious aroma stimulated my stomach, which had been empty all night.
“It must be hard enough for you to wake up early, so why are you cooking too? I feel bad.”
“Hey, since when is making stew and rice ‘cooking’? Just go wash up and come eat~”
I offered an apology out of guilt, but she just chuckled and waved it off as if it were nothing.
Yes, this is what an academy novel is all about.
I had almost forgotten because I’ve had so much on my mind lately, but academy stories are all about that slightly B-list vibe. Absolutely.
-Hmm. Why is that young girl dressed like a man? Is she a nun in training?
I almost answered out loud before hesitating.
How on earth was I supposed to explain the concept of a cross-dressing heroine to Sun Wukong?
But as always, I found an answer quickly.
‘Yes, well, it’s something like that.’
A classic trait of an academy novel transmigrator: if you can gloss over it, just gloss over it.
-I see. She walks a difficult path.
And well, entering the Academy in disguise to find a husband is technically a form of training, so it wasn’t entirely a lie, right?
…Is that a bit too much of a stretch?
Thump, thump.
Just as I finished washing up and was about to sit at the table, there was a sudden pounding on the door.
It wasn’t a polite “knock-knock,” but a heavy “thump-thump.” This was the sound made by someone who was considerably angry and looking for a confrontation—an act closer to a threat than a knock.
“…Who is it?”
“The FBI?”
I half-expected a deep, middle-aged man’s voice to roar, “Open the door!” at any moment.
“…Did you go out and do something bad behind our backs yesterday?”
“No?”
I did kill an Elf, but he was a total scumbag, so that shouldn’t count as a crime, right?
“Just go check who it is. I have to finish getting breakfast ready.”
“Got it.”
Honestly, I wasn’t that worried.
If this were the original story where villains were constantly causing trouble and the Academy was being torn apart, it might be different. But in the currently peaceful Leilan Academy dorms, there were very few villains crazy enough to pull a stunt like this.
So, I opened the door without a second thought.
“Yes, who is i—”
Standing before the door was a woman with a suffocating presence.
No, I didn’t misspeak.
She wasn’t just “breathtakingly beautiful”; she was a beauty with a truly suffocating atmosphere.
She had black hair—rarer in this world than green or blonde—and sharp red eyes that looked exactly like mine.
The difference was that, unlike me, she was elegantly groomed, making her a fierce yet eye-catching, glamorous beauty.
From her long black hair to her graceful figure, she seemed to lack nothing.
Professor Cathy and Ha-ni were beautiful too, but this woman possessed a violent, flamboyant kind of beauty that set her apart.
However, the look of sheer annoyance on her face, which seemed to devour everything else about her, was enough to trigger an instinctive fear in me.
“Well, at least this time you didn’t ask who I am after seeing my face.”
Wait, I’ve heard this voice before.
“Hello, Noona…?”
“Why the question mark? What? Did you suddenly decide you don’t want to call me Noona anymore?”
Oh, it really is her.
I mean, she did say she was coming soon.
But usually, wouldn’t it be normal to visit on the weekend? Today is a weekday, and I have to go to class right now…
“…Hup!?”
I could hear our “boy in disguise” behind me gasping for air.
“Hm? Ah, since it’s a dormitory, I suppose you have a roommate. My apologies. It hasn’t been that long since I graduated, but I’ve already forgotten.”
The tone she used for “I suppose you have a roommate” and the tone she used from “My apologies” onward were worlds apart.
Is this the sheer class of a hero who appears on TV?
“A-ah, no. It’s f…! It’s fine!”
Poor Ha-ni. Just how shocked was she to trip over her own tongue like that?
On the other hand, my Noona, seemingly used to such reactions, gave a thin smile before looking back at me.
“Hmm.”
Up, down, up-up, down.
After checking me over thoroughly, she marched right into the room.
“Oh? My, two male students living together and you even cook your own meals? How admirable.”
Then, she naturally took a seat at the dining table.
“I haven’t had breakfast yet either. May I join you?”
“I… I don’t know if it’ll be to your taste, but please!”
“Thank you.”
…Ha-ni, you do realize we’re going to be late if we don’t eat fast, right?
* * *
I, who had declared I would become the Academy’s new Mastermind (temporary) after a brief period of rest—what exactly am I doing right now?
“Hmm, then shall our Kang So-hyun answer today’s question as well!?”
What am I doing? I’m sitting through Academy Basic Tactics, that’s what.
“Yes, but Professor, this humble cadet has a doubt. May I ask a question first?”
“Hmm? What is it? If it’s a question from our honor student Kang So-hyun, I should answer almost anything. Oh, for the record, I don’t have a boyfriend, but So-hyun isn’t really my type.”
The reason the usually playful professor was twice as mischievous today was because of the woman sitting at the very back of the classroom.
“…Is it normal for a cadet’s family to just barge into the Academy and observe classes whenever they want?”
“Aha, so that’s what you were curious about. Our So-hyun is more innocent than I thought. No, of course not! The Academy is an educational institution as well as a training facility! While cadets are relatively free to go out, naturally, not just anyone can observe a class in session!”
“…Then why exactly is my Noona sitting back there?”
“How can Hero Kang Na-hyun be ‘just anyone’? I doubt there’s a single person in this room who doesn’t know who Hero Kang Na-hyun is. Besides, I thought you two looked alike, but it seems an honor student brother always has an honor student sister!”
…Is this Academy really going to be okay?
“I’m joking. Relax your face. Her status right now isn’t just an observer; she’s an External Inspector. That means she naturally has the right to inspect the quality of the lessons. You all know the story about an External Inspector joining the Academy recently, right?”
Aha, I see.
Though it was less severe than in the original story, due to the series of accidents that had occurred, external forces were slated to enter Leilan Academy.
It seemed my father had used either the power of money or his personal connections to secure one of those spots for my Noona.
Right, I get it.
I accept it, and I understand, but how am I supposed to handle this embarrassment welling up from deep within my chest?
I had already been suffering from the stares of everyone around me all day.
Before the morning assembly, Kim Ga-eul, who had been sitting at my desk, jumped up, bowed her head, and ran away. Cheon Yu-hak wouldn’t even look in my direction.
And as for Lilac…
-Wow, So-hyun, your sister is really pretty.
He was diligently shaving off Lee Yu-na’s affection level. What an idiot.
-…Let’s talk for a bit after school, okay?
And thanks to that bastard, I got summoned by Lee Yu-na too. I’m freaking terrified.
“Anyway, I absolutely must see our Kang So-hyun answer while acting all shy in front of his sister, so stop trying to change the subject and answer the question!”
“Um, Professor, do you know your personality is actually kind of terrible?”
“Well, that’s because I’m a witch.”
Haha, damn it. Right. Our future traitor’s personality hasn’t gone anywhere.
* * *
Kang Na-hyun.
A hero who ranked in the Top 5 Best New Heroes in South Korea last year. To others, she was a woman who lacked nothing in terms of family background or appearance, but in reality, she was currently quite flustered.
“Sorry, friends. So-hyun is going to eat out with me today. I think we need to have a private conversation for the first time in a while.”
To resolve that flustered feeling, she needed her brother—who was currently looking at her with a face that screamed, ‘Huh? Me? Why? I don’t want to’—so she came up with a suitable excuse.
“Ah, is that so…?”
The boy who was her brother’s roommate looked openly disappointed, but the others seemed to accept it.
…By the way, how is it that all of her brother’s friends are so incredibly good-looking? Her brother, standing among them, stood out in a bad way no matter how she looked at it.
If only he would tidy up his hair and dress a bit more neatly.
“Shall we go?”
“Just asking in case, but do I have a right to refuse?”
“Do you want me to observe your classes tomorrow too? Noona is a bit busy, though.”
“Let’s go. I’ll take you to a decent restaurant nearby.”
Yes.
It was exactly this part.
To be honest, it went beyond being hard to adjust to—it was scary.
Seeing her brother act so casually, as if they were still close like they used to be years ago, felt utterly alien.
“Noona?”
-Right, so you’re saying you’re not your mother’s son…? Pffft. Then I guess I’m not like a sister to you either? Ah! So that’s why you’ve been acting like such a piece of shit all this time! I didn’t know! I really didn’t know!
“Ah, right. I’m coming.”
She wondered if this was the same brother who had glared at her so fiercely while coughing up blood that day.
Was it possible they could reconcile?
It was something she had hoped for for a long time.
That was why…
“No?”
The single word her brother uttered after they arrived at the restaurant felt like it was crushing her heart.
“We can’t reconcile that easily.”
* * *
“Have you forgiven us now?”
Before the omurice arrived, my Noona asked me that.
“No?”
To say I had simply forgiven them would make the reactions of the people around me too heavy.
In the first place, I wasn’t sure if it was even my place to forgive them as I pleased. Even if the situation wasn’t as bad as I thought, changing my attitude too suddenly would only invite unnecessary suspicion.
“But I do think I want to forgive you if possible.”
It wasn’t a lie.
If I have to continue living in this world from now on, even if I can’t be a good family member to them, I can’t just heartlessly steal their family away.
As the omurice arrived at the perfect time, I took a bite, and Noona spoke as if tossing the words out.
“It’s true. You weren’t forcing yourself to eat this morning, were you?”
“Pardon?”
“Dad told me. He said you ate meat.”
Ah, the roast beef? It was delicious. It was my first time eating expensive beef in a novel, and it was amazing.
“I wondered how a kid who couldn’t even handle porridge and was always irritable could eat meat, but you really have become healthy.”
“Yeah, well. I had a bit of a fortuitous encounter.”
“Really? Then are you okay now? No more bleeding? Any pain?”
There was clear worry reflected in her eyes as she spoke.
Well, I guess that’s natural for family.
“Yes, I’m really fine now. Don’t worry, Noona.”
Her face, which had been clouded with a frown, brightened just a little.
She’s even prettier when she smiles, my Noona.
“So-hyun.”
However, the tone that followed when she opened her mouth next wasn’t very positive.
Usually, sentences that started with that kind of voice had a high probability of being unpleasant to hear, and my intuition was spot on.
“Yes?”
“Quit the Academy and come home. You don’t have to be a hero. You’ve finally gotten healthy; what if something happens again?”
Hmm. I thought I was done with this conversation after talking to Father, but I have to do this again with Noona?
“I’ll take care of the revenge. It was supposed to be my job anyway. It doesn’t have to be you.”
Revenge.
A piece of information about the past popped up from an unexpected place.
Kang So-hyun had been burning with a desire for revenge, and his relationship with his family was terrible.
And his mother had passed away.
I can pretty much see the outline of the story now.
“Hmm? So-hyun. Please…”
“Noona, I—”
Just as I was about to answer, an unexpected voice cut in.
“For an External Inspector, that seems like quite an overstep into a cadet’s Academy life. External Inspector Kang Na-hyun.”
…Cathy Noona, why are you coming out from there…?
I turned my head toward the familiar voice and saw our “secret friend” smiling as usual.
“…I’m not speaking as an External Inspector right now, but as family. So, would the outsider please stay out of this? Professor Cathy.”
Um, I get that you showed up, but why did the atmosphere between you two suddenly become so murderous?
“Family, you say.”
Good heavens, Professor Cathy actually let out a scoffing laugh.
Wait, the Professor Cathy in my heart wasn’t the type to scoff like that…?
“…You’re laughing? Who do you think you are, suddenly jumping into our family matters with that attitude?”
“Of course, a mere homeroom teacher can’t interfere in family matters, External Inspector Kang Na-hyun. That is, if the family in question is actually a normal one.”
“…What did you just say?”
Excuse me? You two? Please calm down.
“Did I say something wrong?”
…Shit, I’m so scared…! Everyone’s going to die at this rate…!