Main Quest, This Bullshit # 4
Main Quest, This Bullshit # 4
So I ate while goofing around with my classmates.
"Speaking of this guy, he's the one who started pounding on the door right after you screamed, Scream Man! His name is Oh Min-sik!"
"But honestly, if this guy hadn't flipped out, I wouldn't have done it either. He started yelling for no reason and made me anxious too. It's all Scream Man's fault."
Oh, so this guy was one of the ones who screamed and smashed the window back then too? Oh Min-sik, a guy I can really relate to.
Basically, everyone who collectively screamed and caused that panic is good in my book. I'd go so far as to call all of them my friends.
"Don't bullshit me, man. It's a bit much for me to say this after I instigated it, but everyone was in a panic back then."
"And that panic happened because of you, Kim Geun-cheol."
"Wrong. Think about it. When a high-rank monster appears, running away is just common sense, right? If you think about it, I acted the most rationally."
I considered it seriously and came to that conclusion. Honestly, I was the most rational one.
"Whoa! He's spinning it like this! You're a total nutcase!"
Oh Min-sik said that and burst out laughing, clutching his stomach.
"Oh, madness! Kim Big Cheol! You're so funny! Very, very funny it is!"
"Wha, what? What did you say?"
What's with this blond big-nose?
He'd been sitting next to me for a while.
"Ah. I'm late with the introduction. His name is Brian. He's Japanese-American...? American-Japanese? Anyway, that's his background."
"Hello! My name is Yukinoshita Brian! How you doing!"
"Uh. Yeah, sure... N-nice to meet you."
The big-nose beamed and held out his hand. I took his hand and shook it, but... this is a bit bewildering. What the hell is this guy's deal?
Seriously, what kind of school is this?
"You are Madness Screamer! And next to you, Si-hoo? How you doing too!"
Brian greeted us warmly using truly ridiculous speech patterns, vocabulary, and an awkward mix of Korean and English.
I guarantee it, this guy is definitely a psycho.
"Ah, yeah... nice to meet you. Brian?"
"Oh Brian! You Si-hoo. I from—"
"H-hey, Geun-cheol!"
As the suddenly-intense big-nose leaned in with his blue eyes, a flustered Si-hoo latched onto my side and called for help.
"What, is the foreigner dragging you off? Why are you scared, man? Hey, Ken. But Brian, is he really that? A foreigner?"
"Yeah."
Ken nodded at my question.
"He's a case who lived in Japan as a kid, went back to the US, and then came to Korea. A pretty unusual guy. Ah. For reference, I'm from Japan."
"Ken is Boat People! He illegally immigrated to escape the Neo Daimyo! Criminal offender!"
What?
"Wha, what did this bastard just say?"
"Urgh... well, the Boat People part is true. I did stow away on a boat and enter the country illegally."
"What the hell is this guy?! Call the cops right now!!!"
We've got an illegal here!
"Hahaha! Scream Man is loud, too! Calm down. I've properly acquired Korean citizenship now."
Then he's Korean but his name is Ken?
"To explain the reason... to succeed under the Neo Daimyo, blood ties and regional connections are absolutely mandatory. So I escaped. It's better to live as a hero in Korea than as a bottom-rung samurai."
This guy's a real crazy bastard too.
He's really something else.
Anyway. Everyone's bursting with personality. The native Korean Oh Min-sik, that's whatever, but Ken the Boat Person and Yukinoshita Brian? Is this a den of lunatics? No one's in their right mind. I have to go through school life with these peculiar, bizarre guys... Haah. I'm worried about the days ahead.
* * *
Anyway, I wrapped up the meal while talking with the guys and stepped outside with Si-hoo.
"Kyah! Seriously! Si-hoo! Isn't this buffet stupidly delicious!"
"Heheheh. Yeah, it really is delicious."
"Right! It's seriously heaven, heaven!"
"But Geun-cheol."
"Huh?"
Si-hoo, who had been talking and laughing, suddenly changed his expression.
"Now's not the time to be thinking about that."
"Then what should I be thinking about?"
"Meal vouchers."
"Uh. Meal vouchers."
"We only have one left now, you know...?"
What?
Only one meal voucher left?
"So Geun-cheol can't eat at the buffet anymore, right? You're going to return the rest of the vouchers to Leona."
Ah.
"Ah."
The moment I realized it.
"Aah...!"
An unimaginable despair settled into my mind.
"Ah! Aah! Aaaaaaaah! No...! That can't be! Th-this happiness!"
That's right! If I go one more time, I can never go again!
They built me up just to tear me down!
I can never reach that heaven again!
I can't go back!
It crumbles and falls away, never to be reached again...!
"Telling me I'll never taste it again after experiencing the ultimate happiness...! Si-hoo, you bastard, are you a demon?! Are you a demon!"
"Heheheh. Geun-cheol's scream sounds more demonic. Now you'll have to save it and eat carefully, huh?"
"Aaaaaaaaaaugh!"
This is seriously so painful!
I mean, it was fucking delicious! Seriously the most delicious thing in the world! But isn't it over 30,000 won? Should I just get a part-time job? But during that time I have to train and study and work out?
Totally screwed!
"So anyway, Geun-cheol. What exactly happened on the first day that made everyone like that?"
"First day? Ah. You weren't there back then, were you?"
I immediately explained the Phantom Spider Incident to Si-hoo.
Well, Si-hoo burst out laughing right after hearing the story.
"Puhahahahaha! Because of Geun-cheol, everyone was practically as good as dead."
"On the contrary, I practically saved everyone. It's better to make them run than just stand there stupidly. That was the optimal decision."
"But you couldn't break the window."
"That was the one and only miscalculation. Who knew hero cadets couldn't break a window?"
"Anyway. Geun-cheol is a one-trick pony with screaming. A scream one-trick."
This heartless bastard.
Anyway.
We made small talk like that for a while, then entered the building.
We went inside and went right up to the floor where our class was.
—Thud.
"Huh?"
Some shadow from above, no!
"Ryu Cheon-hwi!"
"You...!"
Up there on the stairs!
Ryu Cheon-hwi was glaring down at me with burning eyes!
"Hey! This bastard! Si-hoo!"
"Uh-huh!"
I tried to hide behind Si-hoo immediately, but the guy grabbed something like a brick and slowly descended the stairs. This bastard is finally thinking about murder!
No more compromise now!
"Take it."
"What?"
But what?
Wasn't Ryu Cheon-hwi holding out a brick to me?
"This is... huh?"
Meal vouchers?
It was a wad of meal vouchers!
And judging by the thickness, it was thicker than the 50 Leona gave me!
"What the fuck?! Hey! What is this!"
"Shut your mouth a little, you noisy bastard! I don't want to exchange words with the likes of you!"
What's he going on about!
"No, hey! Still, fuck, what's with this! How many meal vouchers is this!"
"Hah. Is it not enough?"
"What, man?"
Suddenly, Ryu Cheon-hwi made a baffled face and let out a mocking laugh.
"How much will it take?"
"Huh?"
"How much will it take!"
This bastard is saying what now.
"A few measly meal vouchers like these, I can pull as many as you want. Name your price, commoner. I'll grant your damn request."
This bastard?
"..."
So right now.
Ryu Cheon-hwi, this bastard, is doing this to give me meal vouchers? The question of why briefly flashed through my head, but.
The reason was extremely simple.
"Hey. Ryu Cheon-hwi."
"Hah. Is meal vouchers insufficient? Fine. State what you want."
"No. Forget it. Are you trying to apologize to me right now?"
"What?"
"I said, are you trying to apologize."
When I asked that.
"Shut... shut up!!!"
The guy yelled, his face turning bright red.
"Why on earth would I have to apologize to the likes of you!"
"Because you kicked me in the back."
"Shut up! I don't want to exchange words with you!"
"Hey! Wait!"
—Fwoosh!
In an instant, Ryu Cheon-hwi threw the wad of vouchers on the floor, turned around, and started running away insanely fast.
Run.
"What the fuck."
Is this bastard, no way... a male tsundere?
Is it actually okay for a concept that ridiculous to exist in this world!
"Geun-cheol...? Cheon-hwi just apologized, didn't he?"
"Seems like it."
"More importantly, the meal vouchers! How many sheets is all this!"
Si-hoo grabbed the wad of vouchers and exclaimed in surprise.
"Hm."
Lots of meal vouchers, huh.
"Angel Ryu Cheon-hwi?"
"No! Geun-cheol! You took the vouchers and he's an Angel again!"
"Si-hoo... you seem to not get it. There are a huge variety of angels. Among them, there's also Angel Ryu Cheon-hwi."
"Pfft! Keuheu...! P-please! Just pick one!"
If you give meal vouchers, you're an Angel. That's right.
"The kid."
I picked up the wad of vouchers.
I can feel the warmth.
"He was just a bit of a rude punk."
If he'd acted like a dick to the bitter end, that'd be one thing, but seeing how he came to apologize in person like this, he didn't seem to be a truly evil bastard. Yeah. So that's what it is.
In a world full of bastards who, once they start causing trouble, commit all kinds of criminal acts until the bitter end, coming to apologize first means there's room for rehabilitation.
Yeah, well, he's young so he might not have common sense. That's possible.
"Well, thanks, I'll accept it."
Leona bombarded me with vouchers out of pure goodwill. But Ryu Cheon-hwi really gave me these to apologize. Let's see. They said the Ryuseong Group is the biggest corporation in the Republic of Korea, didn't they?
If he's a kid from a family like that, returning this would probably be seen as an insult. He's the type to think he has to do at least this much for it to count as an apology. Even though he talks like a crazy, fucking bastard, he has his own personal standards for what an apology is.
"Geun-cheol? Are you really going to take that?"
Si-hoo asked with a worried face.
"I should take this."
It's okay to take this.
Because sympathy and atonement are different... Hell yeah!
"Yeeehawwwwwwwwww!!! Si-hoo, link arms! Quick! Don't just stand there beside me, get behind me! There we go!"
"Ah! Aaah! Geun-cheolaaaaah!"
"Hell yeah, we're back at it! Me! Feeling so good, I'll sing a song! One! Two! Three! Four!"
With a feeling of happiness about to burst, I linked arms with Si-hoo and spun us like a carousel!
How many fucking meal vouchers are there!
* * *
A cozy heart.
Warm sunlight.
The afternoon classes were truly beautiful.
A fresh spring breeze tickled my heart.
—Creeeak.
As I was in class like that, Instructor Lee So-ra opened the door.
"Kim Geun-cheol? Come out."
"Ah."
She's calling me?
"Yes. I'll be back in a moment."
I got up from my seat right away and followed Instructor Lee So-ra.
"Instructor? What's the matter?"
"Disciplinary Committee. Do you remember?"
"Of course I remember. If I forgot that, I'd be a sea cucumber. A sea cucumber. Hehehe."
"You seem to be in a good mood?"
"I have reason to be. Instructor. Have you ever had moments where you feel the world is warm, or something like that?"
"The, the world is warm? What an utterly peculiar question you're asking?"
It's not a peculiar question at all.
"Well, that's just how it is. I felt it just now."
"Well... I suppose everyone does from time to time."
"But this world is densely packed with people who can't even feel that. Because I was one of them until just yesterday."
"No, really, you only say incomprehensible things, Kim Geun-cheol. Anyway, let's go."
"Yes, ma'am."
So I followed Instructor Lee So-ra and walked down the hallway. Everywhere else was in the middle of class, and looking out the window, I could see cadets on the training ground demonstrating their superpowers.
Seeing their high level, they're probably upperclassmen.
"Here."
"This is."
"The Disciplinary Committee room. Go inside."
—Creeeak.
I opened the door and went right in.
"Oh."
The surroundings are dark.
And it's a bit spacious.
What was most peculiar was that there was a big glass window mounted up on that wall, and behind that glass window, people who looked like some kind of judges were visible!
"What is this place!"
Is this some kind of judgment chamber?!
"And Ryu Cheon-hwi is next to me too!"
"I told you to be quiet, you noisy bastard...!"
Looking over, he's just standing there silently.
—Bang bang bang!
And the sound of a gavel rings out.
"Then we will now commence the Disciplinary Committee. Instructor Lee So-ra. Prepare for any unforeseen circumstances."
"I will."
We're starting right away?
Thinking that, I looked at Ryu Cheon-hwi.
"..."
The guy's standing still, having turned his gaze away to the side.
He's wearing an expression like he's utterly dying of discontent.
Yeah.
Well.
He's a punk kid, so he can be like that.
"Cadet Kim Geun-cheol. Cadet Ryu Cheon-hwi. Regarding the one-sided act of violence that occurred between the two of you—"
I immediately cut off the judge's words.
"Ah, Instructor. And Your Honor? It's a bit weird of me to say this now, coming here. But I have to say my piece. Would you listen for a moment?"
"What?"
Instructor Lee So-ra tilted her head.
"Would it be alright if Cadet Kim Geun-cheol speaks first for a moment?"
Then she spoke while looking at the window where the judges were seated.
"We're already fully aware of the situation, so it won't matter much."
"In that case, permission granted. Cadet Kim Geun-cheol? You may speak."
"Yes, sir."
I immediately bowed in greeting and spoke.
"There was a disgraceful incident, but I'm just going to forgive Ryu Cheon-hwi here. He came to apologize to me earlier. So, Your Honors, would you also forgive him a little? Since the parties involved themselves resolved it well, something like that."
Typical Real Man Trait.
When I get an apology, I brush it all off.
"Wha, what?! It's unnecessary! How dare a lowly creature like you say you'll forgive me!!!"
As expected, he immediately throws a fit.
I figured he would.
"Hey, hey. Stop being a jackass. You came to apologize first and now it's ‘unnecessary’? What bullshit. Right, Mr. Ryu Cheon-hwi? I shall generously accept your apology. The kid's young; that happens. It's not hard to understand. So let's get along as friends from now on."
"Who dares call me a friend! And 'big bro'?! I'm sick to death of your nonsense!!!"
Uh-huh. But I already accepted the apology.
No take-backs.