Chapter 4
Chapter 4
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 4
Chapter Title: The Outsider in a World Where Everyone Gets Hurt
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◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ *** Han Si-a's Point of View
I had just finished a secret meeting in the music room with that "sneaky guy who pretends not to care about studying but crams like crazy behind everyone's back," and returned to my class.
Is he on guard because he's afraid his study habits will get exposed and he'll fall behind in school rankings?
When we met at the sandwich shop, he saw right through my psychology and was so considerate...
It felt like talking to my therapist... so I thought he was a bit of an old soul...
But after getting a perfect score on the high school entrance exam, seeing him say things like "I don't study, I don't go to cram school" just now was like a big dog with food crumbs all over its mouth trying to play innocent. Surprisingly, he had this cute side to him.
I wonder what face he'd make if I dug up his hidden stash of dog food and dangled it right in front of him. I'm looking forward to it.
"Si-a, Si-a, who was that guy just now? He looked like he's from the next class. A friend?"
"Hey, hey, you don't know that asshole? That guy from the next class who struts around like he's hot shit and still doesn't have a single friend! Does he think he's on Si-a's level?"
"Heh heh... No way he doesn't know his place and just messaged her a confession on KakaoTalk or something, right? Si-a must be tired with all the popularity..."
Haa... Yeah. I'm really tired.
Dealing with these vermin who won't listen to reason.
Just because I took a guy from the next class aside for a quick chat, these bugs come swarming.
Still, I always try talking first.
"It's not like that~ I just had something I wanted to ask him, so I called him over. Why would I suddenly get a confession?"
"Whoa... Si-a's so kind, even caring about losers like that~ But no way! Those types get the wrong idea quick and stick like glue..."
"If that bastard starts bothering you, just tell me! I'll drag him behind the school and beat him half to death."
As expected, talking doesn't work. Zero information exchanged on either side.
For reference, the bug who just threatened to half-kill Jeong Yi-an is the smoking loser who confessed to me on the first day of school and got rejected.
Every time I see him, the cigarette stench makes me want to puke, so honestly, I'd prefer if he stayed away.
No, what I really want is for all of them to shut up and go back to their seats. Break time's over, so why are they crowding my desk?
But thinking about my school life ahead, I can't say that.
A girl like me—top grades, great looks, impeccable behavior—is like ripe fruit on a tree. Take your eyes off for a second, and she'll hit the ground, smashed into bug food.
So today, like always, I give up on real talk.
Just like I was taught at home, I plaster on a bright fake smile, spout meaningless words, laugh like their boring stories are hilarious even though I'm not listening, and subtly herd them back to their seats.
Having to use pointless noises and gestures to guide them because words don't work. They're truly vermin.
.
.
.
That said, I don't get it.
Why does that guy just sit there taking insults from these vermin? If it were me... at least one of them would be in the hospital.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ After coming back from the music room on the upper floor with Han Si-a, the boys in class were in the middle of a heated "Prettiest Girls in School World Cup: Quarterfinals (1st Years Only)."
The spark was some guy spotting Han Si-a's overwhelming beauty out of nowhere and declaring, "Whoa, she's definitely the top looker in school."
Then another guy chimed in, "Nah, there's cuter than Han Si-a, like that girl in Class 5..."
Of course, the girls mentioned were all stunners whose looks would spread rumors across classes, and other boys piled on, pouring fuel on the fire.
The class vibe ignited from there.
...
Good lord. Rating girls' looks out in the open like this. You crazy bastards!!
Right now!!! Our class girls' eyes!!! Are burning with rage!!!!!
Oh no... Dear female classmates... I know nothing... I heard nothing...
Look at me. I'm just an outsider, face down at my desk...
...
The girls despised the boys, and the boys couldn't understand the girls at all.
Some guys even teased that the girls were jealous of the pretty ones.
If the girls had stayed calm, they could've shut it down quick and gotten apologies. But they got too emotional.
Crying and suddenly cursing out parents—how do you apologize to that...?
When the teacher comes in and starts class, things cool off. But at break after class, the glaring resumes.
This fractured boy-girl dynamic in class didn't heal even past lunch.
Watching my classmates divide, hate, and fight each other like this,
it feels so...
.
.
.
refreshing!!
Come to think of it, none of those jerks are my friends.
I didn't do shit, but in group work, they subtly distance themselves from me.
Especially those thug wannabe guys—I've caught them eyeing me lately to turn me into their Bread Shuttle. Fuckers. If they cross the line, I'll smash 'em. Been working out my upper body for that.
You girls pretend you're above it, but think I didn't hear you giggling "Hey, your boyfriend just walked by"?
I shifted my view of this school feud from innocent victim to popcorn-munching spectator.
Once they've traded parent insults, smooth reconciliation's off the table. Now it's all about dragging out the middle.
Fight. Fight harder. You little shits haven't learned our people's wisdom that we thrive when China fractures.
While you're busy checking each other,
.
.
.
I'll stand tall in the sky.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Question. You're the homeroom teacher for Baekseung High School 1st Year Class 2. Unluckily, your kids have split into boys vs. girls and are fighting.
April's packed: mock exams, performance assessments piling up, club activities starting, Science Day event, career experience field trips.
But with your class in this mess, nothing's getting done right.
Pick a student to help smooth things over.
1. Class president who smashed his desk in rage after a girl insulted his parents, cracked a finger bone, and got a cast.
2. Vice president who hurled parent insults at the class president.
3. Student A who posted graphic details of the "class vibe going to shit" on a community site, landing the homeroom teacher in the principal's office.
4. Student J, the only one uninvolved in the conflict, perfect high school entrance exam score, award for top freshman.
The day after the school feud blew up, I got called to the teachers' office by the homeroom teacher.
Our homeroom teacher's subject is math, early 40s guy. From a regressor's eyes, he's like an older bro, not much age gap.
His eyes look a bit sunken. April's busy even without drama, and now his class is fucked—makes sense.
He looked exhausted, but put on a calm front and said to me,
"Yi-an. Sorry for calling you suddenly; you might be startled, but it's not 'cause you did anything wrong, so relax. You know how our class is right now... I didn't want to pull you away from studying, but boys only whine about girls' faults, girls only about boys'... So I need your unbiased take since you're not involved."
"Sure, I'm fine with it. I hope our classmates reconcile soon and get back to normal too."
Total lie. They need to keep hating each other until my safety's guaranteed.
I hate lying for no reason, but this is survival. I'm no pushover; I seize opportunities.
He asked for the full story, and I fed him the classic info manipulation: 90% truth, 10% lies golden ratio distortion.
Exaggerated the thug group's fault big time—like they dropped sex jokes on girls from other classes (they kinda did).
Downplayed and distributed the fault of the main instigators, the non-athletic boys who don't bother me much.
Amplified the makeup girls' rudeness to me.
The natural girls who lack emotional control and cried while dropping parent bombs, complicating things... They're rude to me too, but need 'em fighting more, so downplay and distribute.
As long as I don't fuck up the lie ratio, by case close, the official school truth will mostly match my version.
Those who pissed me off get marked by teachers, restricted more than before, wasting energy on discipline committees.
The ones with reduced blame... keep clashing in the gray zone teachers overlook, draining energy checking each other.
Soon, no one in my class will have time to mess with an outsider like me.