Chapter 17
Chapter 17
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 17
Chapter Title: As Expected, Rather Than School...!
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I never imagined the price for wishing for an ordinary school life would be this steep.
To protect my crumbling mental health in real time, I looked into ways to drop out.
There's no need to stick just to elementary school, right?
I can always go to middle or high school later when I'm older.
[Search: How to drop out of elementary school]
[There is no such thing as dropping out of elementary school. As it is a compulsory education process, you must attend school in principle. Additionally, missing more than one-third of class days may result in grade retention.]
"Ah. Dropping out... is impossible...?"
Damn it all.
There is something called homeschooling, but it's generally not an option for most people.
On top of that, dropping out of school requires a valid reason and the principal's permission.
In other words.
Without the principal's approval, dropout is off the table.
I even checked into skipping grades as a backup, but that's also impossible in elementary school through 'normal' means.
In short.
I'm stuck.
For the next six years.
Here.
"Living them out...?"
I looked around with horrified eyes.
"Teacher! Does the teacher have mom and dad too?"
"Of course."
"Then is the teacher's mom a girl too?"
"Yes."
"Wow! That's amazing!"
Spending six years with these pure little devils who haven't been tainted by the world yet...
Together.
My eyes darkened to black.
That's when.
As I sat there lost in thought, a few friendly kids swarmed over.
"Hi! Um... where are you from?"
A boy with short sports-cut hair asked.
He radiated that classic kid vibe.
Should I ignore him? Then a thought struck me.
This kid.
He's speaking.
Not mumbling incoherently.
He was looking straight at me and talking properly.
At least he's at an age with some intellect.
Yeah.
It's too early to judge.
Sure, there's a vast mental age gap between me and these kids.
But that doesn't mean we can't have some emotional exchange, right?
'Even that arrogant wizard hung out giggling with old fogeys over seventy at age eight, so why couldn't I?'
-What the hell, punk? It's not arrogance; I'm just that good. Who masters fifth-circle magic at eight...? Hey!
There was a guy who communicated with stuffy tower lords at age eight.
Unlike those old coots, I have a very broad and kind heart.
'Even if he's a special case. I remember being pretty mature at eight myself, so if they're even half that, we could be friends.'
Not my previous life, but the one before that.
My first life.
When I first turned eight back then.
-Director. Whether you exploited us or not, as long as we were safe, we didn't care much.
I had enough intellect to communicate with adults.
Kwach!
-Aaaagh!!!
-We were your fence. You needed our labor. But now that you're no longer that protective fence for us.
-W-Wait! S-Spare me! Kids! I'll do anything for you...!
-Do we really need to work for you anymore, Director?
Kwaduduk!
I staged an orphanage coup.
Hunted beasts.
Scammed others, caught scammers.
Occasionally fought and rolled around in the tower.
Looking back now, it was an immature time.
But if they're even at that level, I was confident I could get along with the kids just fine.
So, with a kind smile, I pointed behind me.
He asked where I lived, right?
"Over there in the back."
"Huh? There?"
"Yeah, I live there."
"Really?"
"Why?"
Does he know the place? Or does he live nearby too? If he's a neighbor, I'd happily share some rice cakes.
I stared expectantly, and the response that came back was shocking.
"I heard only kids whose moms pay monthly rent live in that officetel over there? They told us not to hang out with kids from there."
What...?
My head went blank for a moment.
As I froze, he tilted his head like what was the problem.
Then came the follow-up punch.
"Are you a beggar or something?"
I'd heard kids these days talk about deposit beggars or rent beggars, but this was the first time hearing it right in my face.
It's like academy nobles sneering at commoners, 'You live in our territory? Trash beggar commoner lol.'
'Huh? Weren't noble personalities average?'
-Don't buy into that analogy, you punk!
I almost fell for the absurd logic but snapped out of it.
More importantly, this kid in front of me wasn't the rightful owner of my land or some authoritative noble.
Therefore.
I gave the nonsense-spouting brat a firm warning and sent him packing.
"Don't go saying crap like that anywhere else."
"Huh? Why?"
"Say it wrong and your face gets scraped on the asphalt."
In reality, it'd be social burial rather than literal scraping.
But wouldn't getting your head ground on asphalt be better than that?
In the old days, I'd have whipped out a handkerchief, challenged to a duel on the spot.
But the world's improved.
You can get insulted to your face and just get a verbal warning.
I think that was pretty kind of me.
But after that, no more kids approached me.
Some whispered from afar.
"What that kid said to me earlier..."
"Their family's poor."
"Bad personality too."
"Mom was totally right."
"Yeah. Trash personality beggar."
It was the first day of the new semester.
Is this bullying...?
Well...
It's fine.
I didn't need friends anyway.
"......"
It really was fine.
Ten years as an elementary school teacher.
Oh Eun-ye realized there was one unusual kid among her students the moment she faced them.
A boy sitting in the corner, staring intently only at his Korean textbook.
'That kid.'
Before school starts, they usually send a notice for parents to visit with their children.
And Oh Eun-ye had never seen a child muttering quietly to themselves alone.
Usually, kids show up on observation day.
She didn't know the family details like jobs or special notes, but she knew both parents were alive.
So Oh Eun-ye prepared for the worst, even considering domestic violence.
Fortunately, the child had no typical bruises or cuts.
Clean skin.
He seemed well-fed and grown, taller than average with good teeth alignment.
'But my eyes keep going back to him.'
Knowing there was no issue should have lessened her interest.
But strangely, her gaze kept drifting to him.
The reason was probably...
'He looks like someone who dreamed of turning their life around, invested all their savings in coins, and crashed.'
That hollow, amused smile.
Even other kids weren't approaching him.
On the first day, kids might be awkward with each other, but by second period, they start grouping up.
Yet they avoided only that boy.
And it didn't stop there.
"Joo-chan says he has a weird personality."
"Shh! Talk quietly. Too loud."
"Oops! Okay."
Like the eye of a typhoon, kids swirled around whispering.
Eavesdropping revealed why they avoided him.
'Weird among the kids?'
Maybe emotionally unstable, so Oh Eun-ye felt the need for ongoing observation.
A true veteran's instinct after ten years.
In the third period that followed.
The boy was still alone.
This could lead to bullying.
After watching him the whole period, she noted he was calm enough.
Maybe not emotional issues, just low social skills, unable to mix with others.
She thought the latter more likely.
No reports indicated otherwise.
And he followed lessons normally.
If he couldn't blend in, it'd be hard on her as homeroom teacher later.
So Oh Eun-ye pulled out an emergency measure.
"It's already fourth period. Shall we all stand and do a rhythm dance?"
"Yes~!"
Unlike the enthusiastic other kids, the boy's eyes shook violently.
'Me do that?'
He tried to slip to the back and fake it.
But Oh Eun-ye called him to the center.
"Let's see, our class has an odd number. Number 8, want to come here and dance with the teacher?"
Calling by number for fairness.
Oh Eun-ye extended her hand from the class center.
Kids nearby formed a circle around the teacher and spun.
Going there meant dancing with all eyes on him.
He desperately shook his head.
"No. I'm fine. Really fine."
He said seriously, but to her, it looked like nervous refusal.
Forcing him wouldn't help, so she didn't push.
Instead, she added one line.
"If anyone can't find a partner, come to the teacher."
The boy glanced around in dread, but no one wanted to pair with the now-'weird kid.'
His last resort was to bail entirely.
But that would inconvenience the teacher, his main job here.
Something even wizard old-timers wouldn't do.
"......"
"Dance with the teacher?"
He nodded reluctantly, took her hand.
[Through the white snow~]
And did rhythm dance to some inexplicable Christmas song.
'Where am I? Who am I?'
"You're doing great. Want to try with the other kids too?"
Oh Eun-ye praised him sincerely, but it only eroded his sanity further.
'I thought g-na-da-ra-ma-ba-sa was the end...'
There was deeper hell below.
If classes continued like this, he couldn't endure.
Seeing him relax a bit, Oh Eun-ye suggested dancing with others.
"Everyone switch partners? Hwa, want to dance with the teacher?"
Kids with fewer prejudices danced with the now-labeled-weird boy.
Oh Eun-ye thought harmony was good.
But it was clear delusion.
The utterly zoned-out boy fluttered like a paper doll, unable to refuse.
Precisely the next day, the boy didn't show up to school.
So-called.
The ultimate student rebellion.
Unauthorized school refusal.
8 a.m.
Time for kids to head to school.
I logged into League of Worlds.
As expected, games over school.