Chapter 47
Chapter 47
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 47
Chapter Title: The Outsider Receiving Comfort
-----------------------------------------------------------------
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Going to find Professor Park Jong-chan with Han Si-a and spending time together had brought significant progress to our project preparations.
But since Professor Park was one of the judges for this assignment, at least in the early part of our conversation, he was reluctant to reveal details about the judging criteria to maintain fairness in the evaluation...
Still, as we kept talking and built up some rapport, and with the alcohol starting to flow, the walls he'd built up in his mind began to crumble bit by bit.
On top of that, the fact that we were just naive high school kids turned out to be a huge advantage.
He probably never imagined that high schoolers with such innocent faces would approach a university professor just to pry information out of him.
"Whew... Extracting info from adults is more exhausting than I thought. I think I get a little why Dad works with my stepmom now."
"But it was worth it, right?"
"...Yeah. Enough to make me feel a bit sorry for people who actually work hard at this."
We exchanged grins and bumped fists.
Buoyed by the booze and in high spirits, Professor Park spilled everything—from the background behind selecting this assignment, to what he ultimately expected from the students, and even which aspects carried the most weight in scoring.
The professor himself, utterly drunk, probably wouldn't remember spilling it all.
Plus, we'd won over one of the judges, which should work in our favor during the final evaluation.
We'd gone in with the mindset that just getting friendly with the professor would be breaking even, but we'd massively overachieved our goal.
Han Si-a and I sorted through our haul from the day and shared notes before heading to our rooms. We paused for a chat in the dark hallway of the pitch-black Daegwallyeong pension.
"I've worked with all sorts of people up until now, but no one's synced up with me like you do. Jeong Yi-an, why not ditch the Bitcoin stuff, graduate college decently, and aim for a real career?"
Han Si-a seemed really impressed by everything we'd pulled off together today.
But no matter what I did, nothing would outpace Bitcoin's returns.
Of course, she had no way of knowing that, so she pressed on with a serious look.
"You're not prickly, your knowledge goes beyond college level, and you've got the savvy to extract info from a professor. I've met plenty of kids my age labeled as 'geniuses,' but they all seem way inferior to you."
"If you didn't waste time on something like Bitcoin and actually put in effort, you could become such a capable worker that companies would throw money at you to hire you in a decade or so."
"..."
Han Si-a had no idea I was just coasting on knowledge from my past life, and she was overestimating me wildly.
I'm just a washed-up guy who's already tossed aside his dreams and passion. No doubt I'd be stuck in place no matter how many years passed.
The thought that she'd eventually be disappointed in me someday left me feeling a little down.
But Han Si-a kept praising me anyway.
"Connections with people are fleeting, Yi-an. Right now, we're friends by some coincidence, but if we get complacent and settle for this... I'm scared you won't be there when I really need you someday."
"So promise me you'll at least think about joining my company if I start one someday? I'll make sure to prepare treatment better than what you expect."
Outside the window in the darkened hallway of the Daegwallyeong pension, countless stars that you rarely see in the city adorned the night sky.
I had no idea what expression she was wearing right now—or what mine looked like.
So, in a truly cowardly way, I felt a quiet sense of relief about that.
I didn't have to show her the face twisted by the guilt of a 35-year-old man.
I'm the pathetic type who gets intimidated by some punk's backing and takes undeserved crap from him. Even with PhD-level knowledge, I drag an earnest girl into cheating just to beat high schoolers. I'm despicable.
If she found out I was a 35-year-old regressor, Han Si-a would surely despise me.
Having objectified myself like that, I spoke to her—who mistakenly saw me as capable—with genuine sincerity.
"I'm not as great as you think, Si-a. I'm just some nobody with no money, no backing, no guts. So if you're picking someone to share your ambitions with, it'd be better to find a straighter shooter than me, for sure."
...
But Han Si-a immediately got mad at my words.
"Don't talk nonsense, Yi-an. I've never met anyone whose mind clicks with mine like yours does. It's not just because you're quick on the uptake, good at reading the room, or smart. You know it too, right? We need each other."
"...?"
"See? All the people who glom onto me are full of hot air and drag me down when it matters. Meanwhile, the one person I actually need is trying to leave me like this. It proves what I thought. You can't hold onto someone precious with lies dressed up as friendship or love."
The hallway was so dark I couldn't make out her expression, but from her words, her head seemed to be a total mess right now.
And for whatever reason, she grabbed both my hands with hers and roughly dragged me into my room.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ *** Han Si-a’s POV
I dragged Jeong Yi-an into his room.
Because yelling loudly in the hallway would disturb everyone.
Jeong Yi-an tried talking me out of it with stuff about the time of night and how we're guy and girl, but I shoved the authority So-mi granted me yesterday under his nose and shut him up.
Unlike the pitch-black hallway, this guy's room was lit up, so I could see his deathly pale face perfectly.
And I could read exactly what he was thinking.
From his expression, he figures I'm overestimating him way too much.
How can I tell just from his face?
We have so many similarities that now, just by thinking 'What would I be thinking in his shoes?' I can guess pretty accurately.
That's why we've always been able to read each other's thoughts without saying much—we're so alike deep down.
We always try to flaunt our knowledge on the outside to get recognition,
yet when it comes to self-evaluation, we're endlessly stingy, constantly engaging in mental self-harm like broken people.
Maybe this guy’s had some awful experiences like mine.
Sadly, normal people can't really understand folks like us.
Since we can only understand each other, we’re destined to be each other’s other half.
Broken people like us don’t need lies like friendship or love.
The simple reason that 'we need each other' is enough for us to stick together.
"Jeong Yi-an. Let me say it again. If I start a company someday... promise you'll at least think about joining it."
"..."
Even in this situation, Jeong Yi-an looks apologetic toward me.
He feels guilty about living up to my expectations.
Actually, I can guess a lot of the reasons why. We're each other's other half, after all—we see right through one another.
Getting looked down on by the other students here because his family’s ordinary.
Not being able to respond properly when Song Chang-won insulted him.
Making me step up for stuff like that.
Which kept me from joining Song Chang-won’s team.
Forcing us to use backdoor methods instead of going straight at the project, and so on.
Truth is, I don’t care about any of that at all—in fact, I think Jeong Yi-an’s approach is the right one.
But for broken people like us, other people’s approval doesn’t provide any comfort, so there’s no point in tediously trying to console him with words.
And we’re the kind who understand each other without needing to say it, right?
I’ve got a more rational way than emotional nonsense.
"From now on, whatever I say, you reply with 'Got it.' Even if it’s a lie. That’s an order."
I probably don’t even need So-mi’s permission for something this minor, right?
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ When Han Si-a dragged me into my room, I was worried about what might happen... but thankfully, it wasn’t what I feared.
"You getting looked down on by the other students here isn’t your fault. It’s their parents who screwed up their upbringing. Got it?"
"Yeah. Got it."
"You not responding to Song Chang-won wasn’t because you were scared. It was just a strategic retreat since the situation sucked right then. Got it?"
"Uh... Got it."
"We’re not cheating on this project. We’re just solving it in a creative way, and those guys are the incompetent ones for working inefficiently. Got it?"
"Got it."
"Your replies are getting shorter. From now on, say 'Understood.'"
"....Understood...?"
At first, I wondered what the hell this was.
But as I answered her one by one...
Strangely, the guilt piled up in my heart started to fade away little by little.
"Me hitting Song Chang-won was because he had it coming. And I’ve got backing, so I stepped up—that’s no reason for you to feel sorry. Got it?"
Han Si-a was digging up every single thing I’d been hung up on and soothing it.
Was I actually getting comforted by her right now?
Still, this feels kinda... embarrassing, like she’s reading my every thought.
"Don’t mess around. Answer."
"Understood."
"Me not joining Song Chang-won’s team was because theirs was trash. Teaming up with someone who gets me like you is the most rational choice. Got it?"
"Understood."
"...If I start a company someday... promise you’ll at least think about joining."
We’d circled back to that again, huh.
I almost laughed at her persistence, but my heart felt way lighter than before.
Well... by then, I’d probably have made a fortune off Bitcoin, so thinking it over wouldn’t hurt.
"....Understood."
"Even after this program ends, promise you’ll hang out with me whenever our schedules match."
"Understood."
"When I invite you to a movie, promise you won’t refuse for no reason."
"Understood."
"Even if we’re in different grades, or graduate school, or you go broke betting on Bitcoin, or we fight and it gets awkward to contact each other, or one day you suddenly see me as a girl and get shy around me—promise we’ll always be on each other’s side."
"...Kinda feels like personal feelings keep sneaking in there lately?"
"Shut up and answer!"
Han Si-a seemed to feel a bit embarrassed even as she said it—her face turned bright red.