Chapter 42
Chapter 42
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 42
Chapter Title: Midterms #2
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"Done..."
Hong Yeonseo flopped onto her desk, utterly drained of energy.
Looking around, several other classmates besides her were sprawled out in the same exhausted pose, practically draped over their desks.
It was the last day of midterms, and the final subject had just wrapped up.
"How'd you think the exam went?"
"No clue... I'm done thinking. Time to play."
Hong Yeonseo shook her head with a half-hearted reply to my question.
She must have decided to wipe the exams from her mind entirely.
Hey, I got her there. Time for a break, at least for a while.
"That English exam was brutal."
Yoon Jiu grumbled, and I recalled the test questions.
...Hmm, was it? I guess.
I tuned out the kids chattering as they compared answers on today's exam and turned on my phone, which I'd silenced earlier.
💬 Subculture Club Chat [President]: [Ju]
[ni]
[or]
[!!!]
If you're not busy today, please come to the clubroom!!
Our cosplay outfits have arrived!
Ah.
They'd finally arrived. Those outfits...
After checking the president's message, I reflexively clutched my head.
Sure, I'd caved to the president's persistence and agreed to do it, but now that it was right in front of me, the reality was finally sinking in.
As a headache throbbed sharply, a concerned voice came from beside me.
"Ijin. You okay? Does something hurt?"
Lee Soyun had noticed me holding my head and spoken up.
Hearing her, Lee Sea whipped her head around and stared at me with a stiff expression.
"Ijin, you feeling sick?"
She reached out to touch my forehead...
"Nah, it's nothing. Just got some annoying stuff to deal with."
I dodged Lee Sea's hand with a quick flick.
She puffed out her cheeks and protested.
"Why dodge? It's a tender touch full of love."
"Love, my ass."
I pocketed my phone, propped my chin on my hand, and sat back. Lee Sea deflated her cheeks and spoke up.
"Midterms are done, and the holiday starts tomorrow. Wanna go hang out somewhere today?"
"Ooh, what's this? Going out?"
Hearing Lee Sea, Hong Yeonseo and Seong Yurin approached our area.
They had ears like radars for fun plans.
As the excited group started making schedules without me, I cut in.
"I've got stuff to do today. Sorry."
"Huh?"
"What?"
"Eh?"
"Hmm?"
A barrage of surprised exclamations and stares poured my way.
...What.
"There's no way Ijin has stuff to do."
"Right? On a day like this?"
Lee Sea and Hong Yeonseo teamed up to pressure me. Lee Soyun and Seong Yurin didn't say anything, but their glares matched.
"No, really. Club activities."
"Eww~ What club stuff on the day midterms end?"
Hong Yeonseo whined that even the intense Handball Club took days like this off.
The others looked disappointed too, but my solid excuse of club activities noticeably eased the pressure.
"Aw... Guess it's just us then."
Everyone nodded at Hong Yeonseo's words.
"Why? Go without me."
"...How could we?"
Seong Yurin said matter-of-factly.
The others seemed to agree.
"Ijin gets sulky if we leave him out~ Hehe."
"Sulky? Whatever. Go have fun if you want."
I denied Lee Sea's claim and packed my bag.
"Aw~ Too bad."
"Yeah..."
Realizing they'd failed to convince me, they all slunk back to their seats.
Soon after, Teacher Jeong Chaeyeon entered the class.
"Alright, how'd everyone do on the exams?"
"Teacher! English was way too hard!"
The teacher burst out laughing at the kids' complaints.
"It was all stuff we covered in class. What can you do if that's hard?"
After some back-and-forth, she quieted the room and spoke.
"Still, as your homeroom teacher for English, our class better take first place in first-year English, right?"
"Yes-!"
With early dismissal and holiday vibes, the whole class replied energetically.
Hearing us, the teacher chuckled like she couldn't help it.
"Perfect answers, all of you. Anyway, midterms are over! Enjoy the four-day holiday, have fun, and we'll see you Monday. No going anywhere too dangerous, okay?"
"Yes-!"
She gave a holiday pep talk after that.
"You don't want a long lecture from me, right? See you Monday~"
She wrapped up at the perfect moment and said goodbye.
"Woo~"
The second the closing ceremony ended, the impatient ones bolted from their seats and out of the room.
This vibrant energy on the day exams fully end... You only feel it in school.
I grabbed my bag and stood.
Seeing me, Lee Soyun tugged my sleeve for one last pitch.
"Hey, Ijin... You really busy today? Can't even do dinner later?"
"Well... Yeah, I'll have time eventually. But regrouping would be a hassle."
She looked dejected, convinced by my words.
Seeing that made me think of the others, hypocritically.
I felt like a bit of a jerk for unilaterally pushing off plans with lame excuses, and it sparked a touch of reflection on recent events.
With the holiday starting, time to break my own rule and knock out my outings this week.
While at the club today, sort dinner with Senior Yu Seol too.
From tomorrow—Thursday through Sunday—one meetup per day lines up perfectly.
Since Lee Soyun's birthday falls in those four days.
Who to see first... I'll figure out the order now.
"See you the day after tomorrow then, on your birthday."
"Yeah."
I said goodbye to everyone and headed to the old building for the Subculture Club.
Come to think of it, I need to finish the painting I prepared as Lee Soyun's birthday gift, but time's tight.
I'd originally planned to just get her a cute girly outfit without much thought, but now I'd added a custom painting.
If I only give one to Lee Sea, it feels discriminatory, and it'd look weird to others.
Now my body's paying for it. Still, thinking of Lee Sea's reaction, Lee Soyun should love it too.
Once I give her the gift, I'm locked into painting for the others too.
Lost in thoughts of Lee Soyun's birthday gift, I arrived at the old building in no time.
The interior felt mostly deserted, as expected.
Who comes to club rooms the day exams end?
Everyone's rushing home or out to play.
.........Ah, me.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ I opened the club room door, and familiar faces greeted me.
The sound drew four seniors—two guys and two girls—their gazes converging on me.
My eyes, though, went straight to the large boxes on the desk.
"Junior! Check this out. It finally arrived~"
The president's excited voice pierced my ears.
"Ooh... So, Ijin and sis... I mean, the president are cosplaying these two characters?"
Yu Seol, who'd turned from me, admired the game character images the vice president was showing.
"They really came."
The president replied to my self-deprecating mutter.
"Of course! I've been so looking forward to this."
With that, she started unpacking the boxes.
She carefully sliced the tape, revealing the first cosplay outfit—the president's, for the female mage character Irina.
Ignoring the hat and accessories for now, she lifted the main witch costume.
A feminine mage outfit with an overall blue hue came into view.
"Ooooh..."
The vice president and treasurer gaped in awe.
I might have too. The quality exceeded expectations.
No rough edges like cheap cosplay gear, and the sturdy build screamed durability—you could wear it outside without issue.
Though actually doing so might land you in a psych ward.
"Mmm~ Totally satisfied!"
"Wow, it's pretty."
The president seemed pleased with the craftsmanship too, while Yu Seol eyed her enviously.
She neatly refolded and set aside her outfit, then tore into the box that was clearly mine.
It looked at least twice as big as the president's.
Makes sense—my character, Crowd, was a knight in armor.
"Ta-da!"
Everyone's faces crowded the box as she opened it.
First up: another blue-tinged outfit, a shade deeper than Irina's.
"Guess this goes under the armor."
"Why just look? Try it on."
The president shook her head vigorously at Yu Seol's suggestion.
"Exactly. Seeing is believing, junior!"
Before I could react, the cosplay box was thrust into my arms.
"You first. Call if it's tricky to put on."
With the president shoving my back, I had no choice but to head to the darkroom.