School Life is Fucking Spectacular # 15
School Life is Fucking Spectacular # 15
ㅡPapapapat!
"Help!!!!!"
I sprinted like a man advertising his need for rescue! I'd have hung a banner if I could, honestly! I'd even have launched an airship over an ad balloon!
"Stop right there!"
Ryu Cheon-hwi was chasing me from behind with a terrifying aura.
First, you scream your lungs out. You have to attract an audience to finish this clean. I'm the type who immediately yells my head off as soon as something like this goes down, alerting everybody around me.
But these sons of bitches, not a single one of them steps up to help!
Aren't you all hero cadets!
How can you just watch injustice and do nothing!
And!
ㅡShwaaaack!
"This bastard is damn fast!"
No surprise, but Ryu Cheon-hwi was clearly good at wielding mana. His speed was ridiculous. I was fleeing with everything I had, but I couldn't open any distance.
No.
Maybe he could have grabbed me immediately if he really wanted to?
"You noisy wretch! Shut your mouth!"
Probably he hasn't caught me because I was making so much goddamn noise and drawing all the aggro. If that's the case, I'll scream even louder!
"Kyaaaaaaaaah!!!"
I am a strict man of principle.
When I scream in an extreme situation, I scream so loud that you could hear it even in outer space.
Because I've upheld that principle, I've survived without seeing anything too ugly to this day. Draw aggro. Get people looking. Then you won't get hit. That's the rule.
"You! Shut up!"
"Would you shut up if you were me! You motherless prick, I sang for you and you're like this?! We are people born to be loved!"
"I am sick of your nonsense!"
"Si-hooooo! If you're there, save me! Your friend's about to get completely wrecked!!!"
"Y-You cowardly cretin who can't even fight alone... how dare you mention my father...!"
If you were that pissed off about me insulting your dad, you shouldn't have started the fight in the first place! This is my conviction: picking a fight with someone is exactly the same as volunteering your own mom and dad for an insult.
You start a fight without even that much resolve? Go screw yourself! I'll make you learn that truth firsthand!
While I was running like that.
"Th-That, Geun-cheol! What's going on!!!"
A sharp voice from over there—huh? Sharp?
"Wait, Si-hoo?!"
I heard Si-hoo's voice!
Must've thought school was canceled, but he happened to be heading in late and heard me! I'm saved! I have to suppress Ryu Cheon-hwi using Si-hoo!
"Help! Ryu Cheon-hwi is trying to kill me!"
"Tch...!"
Si-hoo's brow furrowed at my words, and in that instant—
ㅡFwat!
"Huh?"
Si-hoo, who'd been over there, shot past me in an instant. A fierce gust swept over me. This speed, what the—? It was astonishing.
"Geun-cheol. Stay behind me."
"Uh. Yeah..."
"I'll protect you."
I hid right behind Si-hoo, who was even smaller than me.
"This small back... looks bigger than anything!"
Ryu Cheon-hwi had stopped chasing me and was glaring at Si-hoo!
"Lee Si-hoo. Are you trying to get in my way again?"
"Cheon-hwi? Are you trying to fight Geun-cheol again? I told you. It's not good for friends to fight."
"Who are you calling a friend?"
"Well... even if you say you aren't! You still can't fight like that at school!"
"He insulted my father."
"That's..."
"Hmph. There's no point telling an outsider. Anyway, I'll show you exactly what it means to stop me. Lee Si-hoo."
ㅡSsshng.
Ryu Cheon-hwi, after delivering that cringeworthy line, drew his sword...! No! Is this really Korea! Kids at school brawls pulling out swords! Is this Daelim-dong or something!
"Ah, hell! He's at it again! If you're so determined to fight me, I'll take you on!"
ㅡFwat!
At the same moment, Si-hoo drew his sword too!
Can you get any cooler!
"Si-hoo! You really are my true friend!"
"Geun-cheol, it's dangerous, so stay back! I'll hold him off! Go call an instructor right now!"
"Got it!"
The moment I took a step backward.
ㅡKwoong!
Si-hoo and Ryu Cheon-hwi clashed.
"Whoa!"
A fight worthy of awe. The two warriors' blades swung at high speed, slicing the air. ㅡKwoong! ㅡKwajik! With ugly sounds, shattered particles of mana scattered around.
ㅡPuh-eong!
Mana struck mana, and brilliant light burst out... No. This is no time to watch! I have to report this to an instructor ASAP and get Ryu Cheon-hwi expelled!
A place fit for a criminal like him isn't school—it's jail...!
Anyway, I have to call an adult, fast!
"INSTRUCTOR!!! INSTRUCTOR!!! ATTEMPTED MURDER INCIDENT IN PROGRESS!!! WAAAAAAAH!!!"
I screamed toward a nearby building with all my might, kicking up a ruckus! Adults only move when there's a disturbance! At that, the students who'd been filming the duel between Si-hoo and Ryu Cheon-hwi started turning their cameras on me instead.
"H-he's nuts! Must be a total psycho!"
"What's with that guy!"
"Gah... my ears!"
"That's the loudest guy I've ever seen!"
"Is he a master of sonic arts?!"
These crazy bastards aren't stopping the fight but they're filming!
"Instruc—"
Just as I was about to yell again.
"Quiet. I've already arrived."
A low voice reached my ear and.
"Stop, you idiots."
And with that, the fight was over.
"...!"
"Hurk!"
Instructor Lee So-ra had descended out of nowhere and stepped right between the two men, blades crossed—and grabbed both sword blades with her hands...!
"Ryu Cheon-hwi? Lee Si-hoo? The absentees are having quite a scrap among themselves. Were you trying to compete over who's better at playing hooky?"
"In-Instructor! This is—!"
"Le-Let go!"
"You can tell me the story in the cadet counseling room. Follow me."
ㅡFwat!
Instructor Lee So-ra grabbed Si-hoo and Ryu Cheon-hwi by the wrists, and the two of them were dragged along helplessly. The power gap was enormous. It was like watching newborn babies being towed by an elephant.
No!
I can't let Si-hoo get dragged off like this!
"Instructor Lee So-ra! Wait a moment!"
"Kim Geun-cheol?"
"Si-hoo isn't at fault! Everything bad was done by that guy Ryu Cheon-hwi!"
"What kind of snitching is that, you—!"
"Shut up, you weapon-wielding criminal! This bastard swings a sword in a sacred school!"
"That's—"
"Quiet."
A terrifying voice.
"..."
Just meeting Instructor Lee So-ra's flat, dead-eyed glare instantly cooled my excitement.
"I said I would hear you all out. Kim Geun-cheol, you're coming with us."
"Yes, ma'am!"
And so the three of us were dragged off to a place called the cadet counseling room.
* * *
And so began the hearing.
"First of all, Si-hoo is not at fault. This only happened because he was trying to save me, pure and simple."
"Geun-cheol..."
As the first to speak, I fixed a very intense gaze on Instructor Lee So-ra's eyes and spoke with all the appeal and sincerity I could muster.
"Shut your mouth! Your insolence toward my father—!"
"Ryu Cheon-hwi. If you keep speaking out of turn, I have no choice but to physically restrain you. It is Kim Geun-cheol's turn right now, so remain silent."
"Krrrgh!"
Ryu Cheon-hwi, who had been butting in as he pleased, immediately tucked his tail. Instructor Lee So-ra's low voice carried that much pressure.
No, seriously, she's terrifying.
She's the kind of woman who'd beat someone to death without batting an eye, which makes her even scarier.
"Kim Geun-cheol? Continue your story."
"Ah! Yes!"
So I told Instructor Lee So-ra everything.
The origin of the incident. It began when that bastard kicked me in the back. So I threw a family insult at him, which was how we had reached that point.
"Hmm, so you insulted his father."
"Yes. I insulted Ryu Cheon-hwi's father. Quite unapologetically."
"Insulting someone's parents... I find it hard to understand. I can see the fight, but to insult Ryu Cheon-hwi's father?"
Instructor Lee So-ra rubbed her forehead and said that. Well, that makes sense. Instructor Lee So-ra is an adult. She belongs to an entirely different generation than us, one where family insults aren't a normal part of daily life.
She probably sees insulting someone's parents as the worst possible thing.
"Indeed. He insulted my father."
"Ryu Cheon-hwi? Are you permitted to speak informally to an instructor?"
"He... insulted my father."
"I already heard that. And that is why you attacked."
"Yes."
When Ryu Cheon-hwi gave his low reply, the instructor's gaze turned toward me.
"Anyone would have trouble holding back after hearing their parents insulted. Isn't that right? Kim Geun-cheol."
It's a fair point.
Honestly, that's what common sense dictates.
In Korea, a Confucian country, insulting someone's parents is an unbelievably outrageous thing.
"Instructor Lee So-ra. I did insult Ryu Cheon-hwi's father. I won't make excuses. But that was only because that bastard kicked me in the back first for absolutely no reason."
So I nodded and answered.
"Therefore I will absolutely not compromise. This is a matter of pride. A man's pride."
"Hoh?"
"Even if I'm weaker than Ryu Cheon-hwi, I cannot bow to injustice. He picked a fight for no reason? Then that person deserves to have his parents insulted! Without a moment's hesitation, I insulted Ryu Cheon-hwi's father!"
I'm on my feet as I shout!
I am unashamed!
I do not compromise on my conviction!
"That is my conviction as a man! If you've done something worthy of being cursed out, then take the cursing! If you picked a fight with someone for no reason, you deserve to have your parents insulted!"
"G-Geun-cheol! Calm down...!"
"It's fine, Si-hoo. I have to say what needs to be said."
To Instructor Lee So-ra, who was watching me as if intrigued, I conveyed my full intent.
"Furthermore, Ryu Cheon-hwi is still a minor! Because he's not an adult, it's impossible to hold him fully accountable for his mistakes! Therefore, his parents must receive the insult for him! Is it not the parents' fault when a child acts this way?"
"You bastard...!"
Even so, Ryu Cheon-hwi doesn't realize his own wrongdoing and keeps reddening in the face!
"Ryu Cheon-hwi!!!"
ㅡCheoeok!
So I instantly jabbed a finger right in Ryu Cheon-hwi's face and yelled!
"You piece of crap, from the very first day you kicked me in the back for absolutely no reason! Why did you do that!"
"Because you were annoying me!"
I need to give this bastard a serious dressing-down!
"Annoying? All I did was ask you to take your feet off my chair! Do you honestly believe that was a proper thing to do! And with that much arrogance!"
"That's...!"
"Is that how you treat a fellow human being? Just because you were slightly annoyed, you kick them? A complete stranger at that!"
"..."
"And yet—just because you heard a little insult about your dad, you swing a sword at someone? Are you a normal human being?! No person with common sense does that!"
After I'd said about that much, Ryu Cheon-hwi only glared at me, unable to say anything.
"That is exactly why I insulted your dad! Because when you act like that, people can't help but question your parents' upbringing! If your parents had taught you basic common sense, you wouldn't have done it!"
"...!"
"It was your own actions that made your father get insulted! Then you should be angry at yourself—why the hell are you angry at me! What kind of education did you get from that fine father of yours!"
Since Ryu Cheon-hwi can't hit me while Instructor Lee So-ra is here, I run my mouth and say everything I want to say! My favorite thing in the world!
"Every time I see a guy like you, I can't help wanting to throw a family insult...! You're such a brat that you don't even realize what you did wrong. I can't even understand the mindset that thinks it's okay to hit someone for no reason. So as a man, I will never compromise! You're a guy whose parents deserve to be insulted!"
"Th-this bastard...!"
"This is a matter of pride! Any time I find a guy like you, I'll fire off a parental insult without hesitation! I don't care whether you're stronger than me or not! Because wrong is wrong!"
By the time I'd yelled that far, Ryu Cheon-hwi had started trembling.
"...!"
No. He'd actually been vibrating for a long while already.
"Th-Then what about your parents!"
Still trembling, he slowly spoke.
"Huh?"
"Did they teach you that! To repay an unprovoked fight... with an insult to their parents!"
Not exactly.
"I don't have parents."
"What...?"
"No parents. Both of them have passed away."
When I said that.
"...Oh."
Ryu Cheon-hwi suddenly covered his face with his hand and hung his head. Wait, is this bastard thinking of laughing at me?
But when I looked, it wasn't a laughing face.
It looked like he was getting all serious on his own.
What's with this bastard?
"I've heard you clearly, Kim Geun-cheol."
"Yes. I'm done."
"I can understand Kim Geun-cheol's position as well. Yes... a conviction as a man. A man's conviction is important. And an admirable conviction you don't compromise on... Though the parental insult was a bit much, if you hold such a confident conviction, I suppose I cannot say anything."
Did I win her over?
"Next, Lee Si-hoo? Do you have anything to say?"
"N-No, nothing. It was just as Geun-cheol said..."
"Si-hoo was only trying to save me."
"Understood. Then Ryu Cheon-hwi? Speak."
Everyone's gaze turned to the head-hung Ryu Cheon-hwi.