Handling the Aftermath
Finally, Lee Seok-chan spoke up with a deliberately calm expression, but in truth, there was no need to complicate things—this was a clear-cut case of right and wrong.
Jeong Ha-yeon took the lead, explaining the situation from the beginning for the students who hadn't been present the whole time.
"Joo-hwan, you stepped out for a smoke midway, right?"
"Yeah, I did."
Seo Joo-hwan nodded. Up until he'd left the room, nothing out of the ordinary had happened. Sure, there'd been some subtle tension between him and Baek Jeong-gi, but the overall vibe had still been good.
Jeong Ha-yeon continued. "After you left, Baek Jeong-gi kept leaning toward me. At first, I figured he was just drunk and told him off verbally—go sleep it off. The people nearby saw it, right?"
Yoo So-jeong nodded. "Yeah, that's right. Senior Jeong-gi—no, Baek Jeong-gi—kept leaning on Ha-yeon unnie. Even when she told him to go sleep, he said he was fine and stayed put."
She wasn't the only witness, apparently. Several others nodded in agreement.
Jeong Ha-yeon furrowed her brow as she recounted what came next. "When he wouldn't budge, he started groping my thigh. I didn't want to make a big deal out of it, so I tried to let it slide, but he kept going. I held back until I finally snapped and yelled. The rest is as you know it."
There was no need to verify the facts. Plenty of people in the room had witnessed it.
But Seo Joo-hwan's face, absent for the incident itself, darkened menacingly. His low voice carried a curse. "That crazy bastard Baek Jeong-gi..."
"Calm down."
Lee Seok-chan patted Seo Joo-hwan's shoulder to soothe him, though his own face was equally rigid. As Jeong Ha-yeon's longtime friend, his anger burned just as fiercely.
Still, he kept his cool. "The sexual harassment is clear-cut. And what happened after? We need to nail that down too, not just 'as you know.' He might try to spin some bullshit later, even if it's unlikely."
If Baek Jeong-gi snapped out of it and reported the violence, things could get messy. Absurd as it was, assault cases often favored the first victim or the one who took the heavier beating, regardless of context.
Lee Seok-chan turned to Seo Joo-hwan. "You got hit first?"
"Can't you see the red mark on my forehead? He scratched me with his nails—there's a wound. Before that, I was just blocking."
His Punching talent's special ability had even activated, letting him take the first blow. Even in the heat of the moment, he'd subconsciously thought ahead to the fallout.
"Um, oppa?"
Yoo Ji-kyeong, who'd been watching quietly, raised her hand. She waved her phone. "I recorded the whole thing earlier."
Eyes widened around the room. Seo Joo-hwan and Jeong Ha-yeon's faces especially lit up.
Lee Seok-chan, mid-sentence, grinned. "Whoa! Good job. Mind showing us?"
"Here."
"Perfect. That's all we need. Case closed."
He gave her a thumbs-up.
Yoo Ji-kyeong's videos were two clips: one of the altercation between Jeong Ha-yeon, Baek Jeong-gi, and Seo Joo-hwan; the other of carrying the guy out. Perfectly, the part where Seo Joo-hwan punched Baek Jeong-gi's gut wasn't captured.
If this hadn't worked, I'd have used the System somehow.
With his new Memory Vault feature, pulling a video file would've been easy. But proving the source could've complicated things, so he'd held off.
Thanks to Yoo Ji-kyeong, it was smooth sailing now.
"Ji-kyeong, thanks."
Seo Joo-hwan flashed a grin her way. She must've recorded it without anyone noticing—impressive.
As their eyes met, she made a tiny V-sign with her fingers and mouthed silently, Do I get a reward later?
Of course, a big one. Seo Joo-hwan nodded.
Lee Seok-chan pulled Seo Joo-hwan and Jeong Ha-yeon aside privately.
"Ha-yeon, you said all you did was push Baek Jeong-gi, right?"
"Yeah."
"Make it that you didn't push—you reached out because he scared you, saying 'don't.' He was cocking his fist to hit you, so it was a reflexive flinch."
"......"
"It's not even a lie. Who wouldn't instinctively defend when someone's winding up a punch right in front of you? You just extended your hand to block, and the drunk asshole tripped over himself. Got it?"
"Okay."
Jeong Ha-yeon nodded, and Lee Seok-chan turned to Seo Joo-hwan. "You... lucky you didn't hit his face. You've beaten up a lot of people, huh? You pick your spots so clean. Chilling."
He made a creepy shuddering sound. Seo Joo-hwan's face soured instantly.
"Hey, 'a lot'? I was the one getting hit."
Sure, he'd thrown punches too, but he'd taken three or four for every one he landed—so technically, he was the victim.
His aggrieved protest made Jeong Ha-yeon and Lee Seok-chan exchange odd looks.
"You?"
"Bullshit."
"Wow, next you'll make me vouch that you're not a loner-turned-kingpin."
They burst into laughter at his incredulous mutter. Seo Joo-hwan stared at them sullenly.
These guys... friends?
They bickered like sworn enemies, but ganged up like siblings when teasing him. Infuriating.
Seo Joo-hwan let out a long sigh and called out. "Hey, Seok-chan."
"Eek! You gonna hit me too? Scary!"
He dramatically hugged his shoulders in a dainty pose. A vein bulged on Seo Joo-hwan's forehead. Swallowing a curse, he asked,
"Hoo. Not that—why aren't we considering reporting him first?"
"...Huh?"
"Exactly. Forget scripting stories. Just report that bastard for sexual harassment, and it's over. Why assume he'll report us?"
Sexual crimes hit harder than assault. Korea especially favored women in such cases. With clear guilt on Baek Jeong-gi's side and multiple witnesses, they'd have the upper hand.
But Lee Seok-chan scratched his head awkwardly. Even Jeong Ha-yeon looked reluctant.
"Some reason?"
"Eh, too detailed to get into, but reporting for real would just make things annoying."
Reports did bring hassle. But ignoring it could lead to bigger problems later.
"Better to deal with it once and done."
Lee Seok-chan shook his head. "Not about legal hassle. If it gets back to our parents after reporting... Ha-yeon especially would be in deep shit. Me too."
"Worried about them freaking out?"
"Not wrong, but... hard to explain. Worst case, she drops out—or takes a leave. Not me, but her."
"What? For real?"
Jeong Ha-yeon nodded awkwardly at Seo Joo-hwan's glance. "Dropping out's overkill, but... yeah, I don't wanna broadcast it."
Seo Joo-hwan stared at them baffled, then nodded. Pushing for details felt wrong.
Overprotective parents, I guess.
"Fine. But we clean this up thoroughly. No report, but a warning's fair game."
Lee Seok-chan grinned and nodded. "Thanks. I'll handle the rest. Heh."
How? Seo Joo-hwan just shrugged.
After their talk, the second-year student council and MC head Min Hye-young came to apologize separately.
"Sorry. We should've prevented this..."
"It's fine. Not your fault. The drunk asshole's the problem."
Jeong Ha-yeon waved it off. Who could've predicted it from the second-years?
Instead, she held up a finger playfully. "But from now on, watch out for the other first-years more. Truth is, some were uneasy about second-years because of Baek Jeong-gi."
"Oh... really?"
"Yeah. You see it now, but our department doesn't do that senior-junior hierarchy crap, right?"
"Of course. We're not PE or aviation."
"Yet that guy was on about senior-junior stuff in group chat before semester even started. Made first-years intimidated."
The council members' jaws dropped. Only Min Hye-young and Do Yu-i—who'd hosted the whole MT—grimaced like they'd suspected as much.
Do Yu-i clicked her tongue and spat curses. "That psycho... Talks age with peers, then year with juniors? Fucked-up bastard."
After venting, she whipped around to glare at the council. "And you lot have issues too. Slacked off 'cause it was a hassle, huh? I made up some games on the spot—you know that? Obvious. Used that moron 'cause he was convenient, pretended not to notice."
"Y-Yu-i, what're you—"
"What? Wrong? Even before MT, only Hye-young worked. Is she student council or MC?"
"......"
"They begged for one last event—do it right! Get ready. I'll audit your records back home. If you fucked with dues, no mercy."
"N-No! We didn't! We can show everything!"
"Hmph. We'll see."
Do Yu-i narrowed her eyes. After the storm, she turned to Jeong Ha-yeon with a totally different, gentle tone.
"Sorry again. Won't happen anymore. And, um..."
"Yeah?"
"Can I call you Ha-yeon unnie? You were badass earlier."
She punched the air playfully. Seo Joo-hwan, watching blankly, chuckled.
Another Ha-yeon type in second-year. Wait, tougher?
Sweet face, but uncle-like MC comments, then spicy curses when mad. Like sisters, just different vibes.
Jeong Ha-yeon grinned and offered her hand. They shook, with a little shake-shake.
"Sure. I like you too, Yu-i. Let's be close."
"Awesome, unnie!"
Do Yu-i beamed like they'd sworn sisterhood.
Seo Joo-hwan corrected himself watching. Ha-yeon's tougher.
Do Yu-i's smile looked strained, pained even. Jeong Ha-yeon had shaken casually... but ex-judo club grip strength was no joke.
Not a single soul—not even among the sparse third-years or second-years—sided with Baek Jeong-gi. Even girls who'd seemed close spat that they hadn't known his true colors.
His fake bonds crumbled fast while he slept like the dead.
Seo Joo-hwan stepped out once things wrapped, heading to the smoking area. Nicotine cravings hit hard now.
He lit up and inhaled deeply.
Could've let it slide if he'd known his limits.
Baek Jeong-gi. Never liked him pre-regression, but no need to fight. Mild old-man antics weren't aimed at him anyway.
As long as he didn't harm others, Seo Joo-hwan didn't care.
He saw himself as pretty selfish. But Baek Jeong-gi crossed the line.
Sure, prodded by Seo Joo-hwan's drinks, but that personality would've blown up someday anyway.
Good riddance early in the semester. Pity the first-years, though.
"Ruined their memories."
MT had been fun; could've ended perfectly. One mudfish soured it.
Bitter, he craved more smokes. He pulled out a second.
As he lit it, footsteps approached.
"Joo-hwan, spare one?"
"...Thought you quit."
Jeong Ha-yeon. She chuckled with a sigh. "Personality's out now—what's the point? Done pretending."
"Music to my ears. Good call. Here."
Seo Joo-hwan handed her a cig and his lighter.
"Thanks."
She took them, then smirked. Handing her cig and lighter like this gave him odd déjà vu.
No more hiding now; no future repeats.
Click-click.
"Huh? No spark?"
A few futile flicks, then nothing. Out of gas.
"No flame? Gimme."
"Pfft. Like you'll make it work?"
"Tch. Out of fluid. Only one lighter. Borrow Seok-chan's?"
He looked troubled. Jeong Ha-yeon shook her head.
"Nah. Joo-hwan, look at me."
"Huh?"
"Stay still."
She put the cig in her mouth, leaned in close. Touched the tips and sucked—sizzle—the ember transferred.
Fwhoosh. She exhaled a long plume, the glow hers now.