Chapter 39: The Meaning of School
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 39: The Meaning of School
‘The bigger problem is whether I can even get Catherine out of here.’
The World Returnee Association was currently in charge of her. I couldn’t just take her out on a whim.
‘Then I just have to talk to them.’
That’s why people communicate.
Besides, with the incident having grown this large, the Association's help was inevitable. This wasn't something an individual could handle.
“Alright. Thanks for telling me.”
With that, I stood up, opened the door, and stepped out.
Eunhyeon, who had been sitting on a chair by the door and fiddling with her nails, looked up at me.
“Is your conversation finished?”
“Yes, thank you for waiting.”
After thanking her, I cautiously posed a question.
“I heard a bit about Girasung from Catherine. I was wondering if I could discuss it with someone?”
“That would be…”
“You can discuss that with me.”
At that moment, the sound of heels clicking was accompanied by a clear, beautiful voice.
Her silver hair, flowing down, shimmered under the light.
The woman with the exquisitely beautiful face gave me a faint smile as soon as she saw me.
That simple gesture seemed to change the entire atmosphere.
She was none other than Baek Seol-hyang.
My eyes widened in surprise, not having expected her to appear at this exact moment. She offered a shy smile.
“Ha-chan, we seem to be seeing each other quite often.”
“We do. Haha, I seem to be causing you a lot of trouble.”
“Trouble? Not at all. You’re always welcome, Ha-chan. Please feel free to visit anytime.”
Just as Eunhyeon had told me, it seemed the World Returnee Association thought highly of me. And since the chairperson herself, Baek Seol-hyang, was saying it, it had to be true.
I was truly grateful for how kind she always was to me.
“Wow, look at her putting on an act.”
Just then, Baeksan spoke up from beside me, his voice dripping with disdain.
Come to think of it, it seemed Baeksan knew Baek Seol-hyang before his regression.
An act, he says.
I was a little curious what side of Baek Seol-hyang he must have seen.
“You wanted to talk about Girasung, correct?”
As if she already knew everything, Baek Seol-hyang asked, and I nodded.
It would probably be more productive to talk with the chairperson than with Eunhyeon.
“Follow me. I’ll guide you to a room where we can talk comfortably. Eunhyeon, please take care of things over there.”
“Yes, understood.”
Leaving Catherine in Eunhyeon’s care, I immediately began to follow Baek Seol-hyang.
Then, remembering Ahyu, I sent her a quick text letting her know I was going to meet with Baek Seol-hyang. She had said she would be somewhere else, but it would be a pain if we missed each other.
“This room should be fine.”
In the meantime, Baek Seol-hyang led me to a room on the second floor.
It was less of a room and more of a spacious break lounge. With a simple cot in the corner, a sofa, a coffee pot, drinks, and a refrigerator, it was the perfect place to relax.
‘I guess this is where the Association’s employees take their breaks.’
Since it was after work hours, there were no other employees in sight. That was likely why Baek Seol-hyang had chosen this place.
“Please, make yourself comfortable.”
Baek Seol-hyang said as she sat on the sofa, and I sat down across from her.
From this distance, I could see her face clearly.
The word ‘beautiful’ always seemed to fit her perfectly. Our eyes met, and she blinked her long eyelashes once. Then, with her long, elegant fingers, she lightly touched the ends of her hair, her gaze shyly drifting downward.
“Staring so intently like that… it makes even me a little self-conscious.”
“Ah, s-sorry.”
It was my mistake for spacing out and staring.
I probably wouldn’t get sued at this point, but I doubted anyone enjoyed being stared at so openly.
As I scratched my head sheepishly, Baek Seol-hyang covered her mouth and laughed as if she found it amusing.
A beauty makes any scene picturesque.
Just the thought that I had made her laugh filled me with a sense of pride.
“Give me a fucking break.”
And Baeksan was looking at the two of us with an expression like he’d just chewed on shit.
“Goddamn it, why did I even regress? Shit, look at them, both acting all shy. They’re a perfect match, it’s fucking nauseating. Absolutely.”
With that, Baeksan phased through the wall as if he couldn’t bear to watch any longer.
Hey, what did I even do?
“Ha-chan, you once said you liked men, but it seems that might not be the case?”
“Huh? Oh, that.”
I shot a glare in Baeksan’s direction before turning back to Baek Seol-hyang with a hollow laugh.
Right, I had that conditioned reflex, my ultimate move to shield myself from lawsuits.
“I ran into some trouble a long time ago. It’s a coping mechanism I developed after that.”
“If you don’t mind my asking, what happened?”
Baek Seol-hyang responded with clear interest.
It was a little difficult to talk about.
‘Come to think of it, I don’t think I’ve told anyone this story besides Ahyu.’
And I only told Ahyu because I thought he was a guy.
It was a part of my past I’d never even told my other guild members. Even Ahyu only knew the general story; she didn’t know the details of the bitch who falsely accused me.
‘Now that I think about it, back then, Ahyu…’
She had said she’d go beat the woman up for me and demanded to know who it was. At the time, I took it as a joke and said how reassuring that was, but thinking back, I wonder if she was being serious.
“Is it a difficult story to tell?”
Baek Seol-hyang smiled, looking slightly apologetic, and I shook my head.
“No. It was a long time ago, so it’s not something I dwell on. I was reported for sexual harassment back when I was in university. Of course, I never did anything.”
“What? You mean it was a false accusation?”
“I guess she had some kind of grudge against me. She also came from a powerful background, so I couldn’t do anything and ended up just leaving. Thinking about it now, I was pretty pathetic.”
I should have gone back and given that woman a thousand smacks on the ass.
Just then, I sensed an unsettling aura and looked up.
For some reason, though Baek Seol-hyang was smiling, it didn’t feel like a smile at all.
The corners of her mouth trembled.
“So that’s why you had to quit university, Ha-chan?”
“Ah, yes.”
Perhaps because she was not only the Association’s chairperson but also the CEO of the Rodri Company, she seemed to know how I, one of her employees, had ended up there.
“For something like that to have happened without my knowledge…”
She let out a short breath, then placed her hand over mine on the table.
The soft touch of her hand was quite distracting.
Ignoring my reaction, she gently caressed the back of my hand with her thumb and spoke quietly.
“Don’t you want to go back to university?”
“Pardon?”
“You had to leave because of a false accusation. If it were me, I think I’d have lingering regrets.”
I couldn’t say I had no regrets.
After all, it was a place where I had once staked my dreams.
But too much time had passed since then.
“I’ve never been to university. To be precise, I was swept up in a dimensional shift, so I couldn’t even attend middle or high school.”
She smiled faintly and looked into my eyes.
“I have memories from elementary school. There was a friend in my grade I walked to school with every day. But they moved away in the middle of the year, and we ended up parting ways.”
“Could it be…”
“Yes, on the very day I moved, I was caught in a dimensional shift. I feel bad for that friend. I’m sure we promised to keep in touch, but they would have never been able to reach me. That’s why I also have lingering feelings about school.”
Her eyes were filled with a sense of longing.
“It’s probably something like nostalgia. You can’t go back to those days, but you miss them so much you keep reminiscing… maybe that’s why you become more attached.”
She smiled faintly, looking serene.
“You asked me before if I play games, Ha-chan. Actually, it was that friend who loved games. I used to just watch from the side. Remembering those times, I started playing on a whim, and I’ve been doing it ever since.”
Though she was the chairperson of the World Returnee Association, Baek Seol-hyang was, before all else, a returnee herself.
Like all the others, she was a victim who had been swept away by a dimensional shift, forced to part with her family. Even after returning, that pain must have still been knotted up inside her.
Baek Seol-hyang had always seemed so perfect, but today, she looked so fragile.
Perhaps that’s why I impulsively took her hand in mine.
Startled, Baek Seol-hyang flinched and looked at me, her face turning a light shade of pink as her eyes darted around.
She looked quite cute.
“Let’s go.”
“Wh-what?”
“It can be later, but let’s go to university together. I’ll go with you.”
I didn’t know if it would be the kind of school life she imagined, but if this was a lingering regret of hers, I wanted to help her resolve it.
I owed Baek Seol-hyang for more than just one or two things.
If I could repay even a small part of that debt, I was willing to do whatever it took.
“I-Is that… a-are you serious?”
Baek Seol-hyang’s expression brightened noticeably.
She looked so overjoyed she didn’t know what to do with herself, just like a young girl.
Come to think of it, how old was Baek Seol-hyang?
“Hey, you turn your back for one second and you’re at it again.”
Just then, Baeksan abruptly reappeared.
Startled, I finally let go of her hand. Baek Seol-hyang wiggled her fingers, looking somewhat disappointed, before placing her hands on her lap.
No matter how pitiful she seemed, I had just grabbed a woman’s hand without permission.
‘Still, she reached out first this time.’
She was probably just trying to comfort me, so it was mutual. It should be fine.
“More importantly, you’re in deep shit.”
Deep shit?
Since Baek Seol-hyang was right next to me, I could only question him with my eyes. I glared at Baeksan, and he silently pointed a finger toward the door.
Wondering what was going on, I turned my head toward the door just as it slammed open with a clatter.
“Do. Re. Mi. Oppa?”
The person who appeared, calling my name syllable by syllable, was none other than Ahyu.
For some reason, her hair was slowly turning red, just like Cheon Hong-ryeon’s, which sent a chill down my spine.
“Leaving cute little me all alone to talk with another woman? And that one, at that? Just the two of you? Talking?! Is that what you call it?!”
Fuming with anger, Ahyu stomped toward me, her feet slamming against the floor.
What on earth was wrong with her?
I glanced back at Baeksan, but he just gave me a pathetic look and said nothing.
“Heavenly Demon, if you walk like that, you’ll disturb the floor below.”
“I’m light, so I don’t make a sound! You’re the one who’s heavy enough to make it shake!”
“You’re right. You are indeed lighter than me.”
“Wh-what, you—where are you looking when you say that!”
Why did these two start fighting the moment they saw each other?
It felt like they were getting on worse terms with each passing day.