Girl Detective An Sion (1)
Cheonghwa Academy is cold. Not that it’s stingy with money or devoid of warmth, though.
From the moment you enroll, you no longer have to worry about feeding yourself or your family. After all, they were nationally certified prospective hunters.
Han Shin, the man who had staged a coup and seized the entire nation because the treatment of hunters was absolute garbage, would never neglect his precious juniors. Of course there were sinister intentions hidden behind it… but neither the students nor the citizens particularly cared.
If the power of hunters collapsed in today’s South Korea, the country itself would collapse with it. Thanks to that, almost no one was marching on Gwanghwamun with Taegeukgi flags to complain about how shitty hunters were. Instead, people cheered and admired them. Love it or hate it, Korea had always been a country dead serious about its idols.
If the idols of the past were the ones who wore bizarre plastic disks, danced and sang in VR, and extorted the people watching their monitors, then the idols of today were the ones who livestreamed things like [★C-rank Gate Subjugation Live★], flitting drones around to capture the perfect gyaru poses for Tube thumbnails.
And.
If you wanted to become that kind of hunter and strike it rich overnight, Cheonghwa Academy was the dream destination everyone pictured.
With one single exception: Maeng Ha-na.
“Huuuughhh!!!”
Maeng Ha-na, sporting a bob cut with the volume cranked to maximum, sat collapsed on the counseling room floor, sobbing her heart out.
She really was as clueless as her name implied. Her appearance gave off a soft, quiet, gloomy-girl impression, and her movements were never in a hurry. Yet her chest proudly displayed an overwhelming presence, tormenting the academy uniform buttons every single day. They looked about ten times the size of mine.
Of course, ten times zero is still zero.
“I’m so sick of this!!!”
She poured out her resentment and wailed uncontrollably.
Judging by looks alone she seemed like the classic gloomy pretty girl, so I found it strange how strong her self-assertion was.
“Hic… huuu…”
In truth, there was a reason behind Maeng Ha-na’s tears.
She didn’t want to become a hunter. She hadn’t wanted to come to the academy either.
Han Shin wasn’t exactly a heartless monster without blood or tears.
The academy’s admission criteria didn’t factor in bloodline, regional ties, school connections, academic pedigree, gender, family background, physical disability, or any of the other evils that gnawed at modern society.
Only talent.
They selected those who possessed the minimum required mana and were overflowing with the qualities to become hunters after testing.
And even if they had the talent, if the person themselves refused to enroll, they weren’t forced. Because the most important thing was the individual’s will.
Maeng Ha-na had clearly expressed her refusal, yet—
“This mana capacity! It’s simply impossible! It’s not an amount any individual should possess!!!”
Thanks to the titles of youngest in the country and highest mana capacity, Han Shin had personally selected and enrolled her.
Of course, that wasn’t the only reason she was sobbing and complaining.
“Ah, um, over there…”
I couldn’t easily approach Maeng Ha-na.
Even someone like me—who had been through every kind of battle, scheming, betrayal, and plot—had never dealt with this kind of situation before.
When her breathing grew ragged and she poured out every last tear and drop of snot, I tensed up.
“I need to calm her down first…”
Cold sweat ran down my back as I rose from my seat.
Then I slowly began walking toward the sound of her crying.
While using my ability, of course.
Thought Hearing
'It’s so hard! It’s brutal!!! The whole world hates only me!!!!!!'
I frantically covered my ears.
What kind of lungs did this girl have? Far from the gloomy-girl image, her ego was so powerful that her inner voice tore at my eardrums like a siren.
“I should probably calm her down first… Hmm.”
If this had been the old me—the one without blood or tears—I would have simply chopped the back of her neck and knocked her out cold.
'Me? With my senses maxed out I’m insanely strong… But you guys don’t have any abilities, right? Yeah, you’re all trash.'
That was how I used to think back in the day.
However.
I didn’t actually need to coax or baby a girl bigger than me.
I groped around and turned my face toward Maeng Ha-na.
'The!!! Whole!!! World!!! Hates only!!! Me… Huh?'
The moment I took one more step, Maeng Ha-na’s crying stopped.
'…Cute.'
When I looked down at her with a troubled expression—
'Cute, cute. She’s seriously so cute. What is this? No way. Big Bro was totally right. This is insane…'
Maeng Ha-na stared up at me in a daze, as if enchanted.
Feeling her gaze, I used my fingers to pull the corners of my mouth into a smile.
'Is she… an angel?'
Situation cleared.
Maeng Ha-na, who had suddenly regained her senses after seeing me—
'W-what did I just do…? I’m so embarrassed I could die!!!'
Belated regret and a typhoon of shame hit her all at once, and she couldn’t even lift her head.
“Um, if you’ve calmed down now, shall we talk, student…”
“…I’m sorry, teacher!!!”
Shouting that, Maeng Ha-na shot out of the counseling room like an arrow.
She was so worked up that she tripped with a loud thud right in the middle of the hallway, but she didn’t even notice the nosebleed. She just kept running and running.
'To show such a pathetic side to an angel like that!!!'
All because of that bulletin post saying the counselor would listen to any worry or concern…!
'I met an angel!'
A bright smile—one that had never appeared on gloomy-girl Maeng Ha-na’s face before—spread across her lips.
“…What the hell was that?”
I had stood up in surprise and ended up falling backwards myself.
…Just what is going on here?
It’s only been a little over a month since I started this job, and I’ve already run into a new type. This is ridiculous.
“Sigh.”
Making money really is too damn hard.
“You think so too… Oh, you’re not even here.”
An Nureongi must have gone out for a solo auto-walk, true to his self-driving dog nature.
Honestly, keeping him cooped up in the counseling room all the time wasn’t great—some students had dog allergies.
Anyway, I stretched luxuriously.
I’d forget about what just happened.
Then I’d pretend to do important paperwork, slump over the computer desk, and sleep.
…But first.
I should drink a glass of milk to calm my startled heart. It was part of my daily routine anyway.
I fumbled around, found the refrigerator handle on the left side of the desk, and opened it wide.
Then I grabbed the milk carton.
'…I’ve felt this since the beginning, but every time I drink milk I sense some weird gaze on me.'
Even when I asked “Is someone there?” the only reply was silence.
It felt unsettling, but after confirming no one was around I chugged the milk.
'Please grow bigger, please, I’m begging you.'
Okay, my mind feels a little calmer now.
…It almost did.
Slide. Slam!
“Teacher.”
This time the voice was so cold, rude, and bloodless that I recognized it instantly.
“Hmm?”
Was it a student who knew me?
But I had no idea who this person was. The only student data in my head was Han Yea, my employer’s daughter and the young lady of the de-facto president.
So when a student acted familiar, it was extremely inconvenient.
“That kid from earlier was here, wasn’t she.”
“Who?”
“Don’t play dumb with me.”
My body flinched.
What the—?
Rattle.
The student calmly and quietly closed the door, then walked toward me with crisp, clicking steps.
I could feel her stop right in front of me.
“Do you need counseling? Please take a seat over there and give me your ID and name—”
“Teacher.”
“Eek?”
Ack. To think that I—a former alpha male—would unconsciously let out a girly scream.
It was because I felt something cold… touching my chin.
It wasn’t a blade; from experience, it was a finger. The student seemed to have gently lifted my chin with her index finger and thumb.
'Is this bitch insane?'
A completely nonsensical scene of collapsing teacher authority.
There was no time to hesitate, so I activated my ability immediately.
Then I heard the student’s inner voice.
'Ha, this. Really. What the… No… Wow. Ha. Even up close it’s…'
…What?
'…First, close your eyes and calm down. All the rumors were true. This is a huge find. Mother will be very pleased if I report this.'
What kind of suspicious thoughts are these…?
Mother? Is that the name of some organization’s boss? Was this crazy girl actually a spy?
Just as I reached that conclusion—
'Just a little longer… I’d like to stay like this, but there’s no time. And if we stay together too much…'
Thinking that, the girl moved away from me.
If I kept the ability on any longer my bladder would give out, so I turned it off at the same time.
“Teacher. I’ll come again. Don’t believe anything that kid says. It’s all exaggeration.”
Rattle.
'Hey, what the actual fuck.'
Today had been so eventful that my head hurt.
…For now, I should hit the bathroom first.
I even had a private restroom just for me—right inside the counseling room.
“Hehehe.”
Humming cheerfully, I finished my business and was about to leave the bathroom.
Finally, I could get some real sleep—
“…Teacher? Are you in? May I come in?”
This time a familiar voice arrived.
It was Han Yea.
'Can’t a guy get some rest!!!'
I couldn’t exactly yell that at the president’s daughter, so I hurriedly ran over and opened the door.
“Welcome! I mean, come in!”
“Ah, yes…”
Han Yea hesitated as she took a seat, then let out a very deep sigh.
“Sigh… Teacher…”
“Yeah? What’s up?”
“…Sigh. Never mind.”
Are you messing with me right now?
“It’s something… you wouldn’t understand anyway, Teacher.”
Huh?
Alright. New job title, effective immediately: detective.
Thought Hearing
ON