Chapter 7: A Mentor is Someone Who Helps You Awaken, What Else Could They Be?
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 7: A Mentor is Someone Who Helps You Awaken, What Else Could They Be?
The moment Mother returned, the sisters—who until just a second ago were spouting crazy nonsense about how to "breed" me properly—immediately began their "normal person" cosplay.
"He really looks like he’ll have girls lining up for him when he grows up. How about leaving him to me? I feel like I could raise him well this time. I even have experience in childcare."
The Vampire.
"I heard boys only listen when they’re beaten a bit. How many times a week do you hit him? There was a rumor in our unit that a man shouldn't be hit every three days, but every two. Want to leave him to me? I’ll turn him into a proper little lady."
The Soldier.
"Is he getting along with Iris and Grasha? They say boys are so full of jealousy that they do weird things. Like constantly slandering their sisters, claiming they’re being bullied or that the younger sister is up to something. If there’s a problem, you can leave him with me. I also think he’d be great as a child model for my advertising business..."
The Snow Woman.
"He seems quite bright for a boy. I think he could handle our academy’s curriculum. Why not leave him to us, from the basic education institute all the way to the adult academy? That way, we can raise him to be a diligent child instead of some maggot-like man."
The King Milk Cow.
Normal person cosplay?
I hope none of you were naive enough to believe that.
Mother smiled warmly at her friends, even as their interest in her son manifested in such twisted and distorted ways.
Beside Mother, the red-haired monster named Hindel was still stuck to her like glue. She was growling at the others as if warning them not to come near me.
To an outsider, it would look like that sister was my mother’s actual daughter.
"...These crazy bitches begged and pleaded for me to bring him, and now what???"
All emotion vanished from Mother’s face. Seeing a side of her I’d never seen before, I immediately grabbed Iris’s hand and pulled her toward me. I spoke to my sister, who was looking at me with a clueless expression.
"Noona, cover your ears and close your eyes."
"Huh? Why?"
"If you do, I’ll grant you one wish! But only until I take my hands off, okay?"
"Okay!!!"
She never listened to Mom, but she sure listened to her brother. As she crouched down and covered her ears, I stroked her hair while she stared blankly at me.
I told her to close her eyes, but she didn't seem to listen. When I reached out to cover them for her, she took my hand, placed it on her head, and closed her eyes herself. She was a good girl.
"...Hindel. I have a favor. Can you do it?"
"Sure. Who do you want me to kill?"
Seeing Mother command this crazed monster like a pet dog made me intensely curious about their relationship. Assuming I didn't have a father, I wouldn't mind having two moms—no, even five would be fine.
"Don't kill them. Just bite those bitches. Breaking a bone or two is fine. Just make sure it doesn't interfere with their daily lives, okay?"
"Like usual...?"
Judging by the way the monster asked Mother, it seemed this wasn't the first or second time this had happened.
"This dog-like bitch, using a dragon! That's cheating!"
The Vampire pulled a halberd that looked at least three meters long out of the shadows.
"Defensive magic first! Use Camel’s blood! I’ll provide support!"
The Soldier Sister thrust her hand into the air, causing space itself to crack as she pulled out a staff, her face twisted in a scowl.
"You crazy elf bitch, seriously...! I only said I could take good care of him!"
The Snow Woman Sister raised her hand, and a sphere of snowflakes bloomed as if to protect the four of them.
"Ugh... why am I getting dragged into this again...? My chest hurts... Don't use my breast milk instead of blood..."
I heard the King Milk Cow Sister’s voice, sounding like she was on the verge of tears from the headache of it all.
"Grrrrrrr...!"
Hindel, was it? As she began to howl like a beast, Mother tucked Iris and me under her arms and walked straight toward the elevator.
"What was I expecting from those idiots when I brought them here... Let's go home, daughter, and son."
"Okay~!"
Perhaps because I was tucked under her arm, my face and upper body were being pressed firmly against Mother’s chest. A sense of guilt for almost betraying Mother because of the King Milk Cow began to weigh on me.
As we rode the elevator down, Iris remained curled up with her ears covered and eyes shut. We exited the building without further incident. By the time we were driving away in Mother’s car, I could see things exploding from the top floor through the back window, as if a bomb had gone off.
"Son~ The aunties only acted like that because they like our Yong-hwan so much, so don't hate them, okay~?"
"Okay~! The aunties are all pretty and nice!"
"Hehe, our son is so gentle it’s almost a problem."
Mother hummed a tune as she slowly turned the steering wheel. Beside me, Iris was still covering her ears and closing her eyes.
Being doted on is a chore, so I should probably stay like this at least until we get home.
Anyway, that was my first serious encounter with the malice this world harbored.
***
Because of the shocking incident the day before, I couldn't fall asleep during nap time at the academy. The girls were still trying to get my attention by bragging about what they’d bought, what delicious snacks they’d hidden, asking to play house, or trying to pinch me and pull my hair.
To me, the basic education institute was a cruel and terrifying world, but even so, the Fluffy Teacher was the only one providing me with happiness.
"Hm? Yong-hwan, can't you sleep?"
"Teache~r!"
How could hair be this fluffy? I felt like I could sleep just by hugging her hair instead of a person.
"Shall we go night-night with Teacher?"
"Teache~r, I can't sleep."
"Nap time is important. You have to go night-night to become a cool man, okay?"
To be honest, when I was a kid, I never understood why nap time was necessary. But now that my 2nd playthrough has begun, I’ve started to think that nap time exists for the teachers, not for us.
"I want to play with Teacher a little more..."
"Hehe, Teacher wants to play with Yong-hwan more too, but we can't help it."
My eyes began to close at the touch of the teacher stroking my head. My damn child’s body began to demand sleep. I couldn't win against the hand patting my stomach.
"There, there, let's sleep quickly, our Yong-hwan?"
"Teacher, your hand is warm..."
"Yes, do you want me to touch you directly?"
"Yeeees..."
My academy uniform was slowly pulled up, and the soft hand stroking my belly felt good. As she traced circles on my stomach and then moved to stroke my sides as if tickling me, I let out a giggle.
"It, it tickles..."
"You asked me to touch you, didn't you?"
That was true, but I felt like her movements were a bit too slow. The teacher’s hand began to press down on my belly button and play around, and I just stayed there in a daze because it felt nice.
"Yong-hwan, are you asleep?"
"Mmm..."
It was a sensation that was hard to call tickling, yet also hard to call just stroking. My consciousness didn't fade away but lingered faintly in my body.
"Yong-hwan is sleeping. What a good boy..."
I started to snap out of it as I felt long, slender fingers slowly moving upward.
"Cute Yong-hwan. I wish you’d grow up fast, hehe..."
The sensation of the Fluffy Teacher’s hand fondling my upper body brought me fully awake. I felt like my eyes were about to snap open, but I forced them shut and breathed slowly.
"This side is cute too, isn't it?"
Hearing the teacher’s voice whispering in my ear was more terrifying than arousing. Right now, I was a student. And the fluffy Teacher Yang was an adult.
At the same time, I realized that the teacher’s past actions had been a bit too strange to be dismissed as just handling a child. The hand kneading my butt, holding my "thing" to help me aim in the bathroom, or grabbing my chest when she picked me up.
I had to stay calm. I felt a desperate sense of betrayal from the Fluffy Teacher—my only hope, my only sanctuary—but I had to endure.
"Hehe, Yong-hwan must feel good?"
I felt like I was going to cry. Not out of fear, but out of sadness that my only sanctuary was actually a total pervert whore of a teacher.
Perhaps this was the "default value" of this godforsaken world. My feelings for the Fluffy Teacher, who had trampled on my innocent childhood heart, began to burn fiercely.
Love? No, this was a much more intense and burning emotion.
Revenge. Yes, I wanted revenge.
I could have reported her for child molestation, but I didn't want to rely on the judicial system of this shitty world.
"Mmm... Teacher."
I pretended to be asleep. I reached out, grabbed her horn, and hugged her.
"Ngh?! Yo-Yong-hwan?"
"Teacher smells nice..."
Let's see how far she goes. That was my only thought. The Fluffy Teacher was human too, this was a Chastity Reversal World, and I considered myself a very "hot commodity." Since this wasn't the world I used to live in, I believed that at least in this neighborhood, such things could happen.
"I-I shouldn't... slurp... slurp..."
The moment I gave her the chance, the Fluffy Teacher—no, Lee Ji-yeon—immediately began sucking on my chest. Her actions made me want to laugh.
It seemed I had looked at this world far too naively.
"Teacher, it tickles. Don't suck my belly button..."
Lee Ji-yeon’s body flinched. She slowly raised her head and met my eyes.
"Teacher, you shouldn't suck my belly button. Don't do that. I don't like it."
I quietly repeated the words to the teacher that one is supposed to use when strange ladies try to touch your body.
Lee Ji-yeon’s face turned deathly pale, all the blood draining from it.
"Teacher, I don't like it. Stop. Don't do that."
"Yo-Yong-hwan, th-this is... you see... Teacher was just sleep-talking."
Seeing her try to brush off the situation with a ridiculous excuse instead of an apology, I had to accept the truth.
"Teacher touched my belly button and sucked it."
"N-No... Yo-Yong-hwan... th-that's..."
Lee Ji-yeon was now looking at me with a face that looked like she was about to burst into tears.
"Should I keep it a secret?"
"Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes!"
How pathetic. As I watched my source of healing and my first love frantically nodding her head, begging mercy from a young boy, I realized something. No, I was grateful.
Lee Ji-yeon was a low-life, perverted, trashy teacher, but in a way, she was my mentor. Thanks to her, I found the courage to face the malice I had tried so hard to ignore the day before.
Because of this trashy female teacher—no, because of my mentor—I had truly awakened in this godforsaken world.