Chapter 99: Resolution (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 99: Resolution (2)
Late at night.
Moonlight streaming through the window bathed Saki's forehead. Under the dazzling silver light, her eyelids slowly fluttered open.
"Ugh..."
A soft groan escaped Saki's lips. As her vision cleared, the numbness in her body receded, replaced by a sudden, overwhelming wave of pain.
Biting her lower lip, Saki slowly pushed herself up. As if he had been waiting for this exact moment, a voice filled with sheer delight pierced her ears.
"Oh! You're awake, Saki!"
"...Weapon?"
Weapon leaped to his feet, welcoming her with open arms. Confusion washed over Saki's face.
Before she could even wonder, Where am I, and why is he here? the resident info-dumper Speed Weapon's mouth began to flap like a busy little sparrow.
"Man, do you have any idea how many days you've been out? It's been almost three days!"
"...What? Th-three days?"
"Yeah. You sleep so much normally, how are you still sleepy?"
Saki's pupils dilated in shock. At the same time, the disastrous events of the final exams rushed back to her.
She had been ambushed by Elio, and she had paid her back in kind.
An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. That was Saki's true nature.
...But still.
Saki pressed her temples, retracing her memories. What was this ticklish feeling in her chest? It felt like she was forgetting something incredibly important.
As she fell deep into thought, Weapon sat back down in his chair and casually remarked,
"Saki, you owe the President your life. Rachel told me that Geomma gave you and Leon emergency first aid right on the spot. I had no idea the President had a healing-type Blessing, but according to the doctors, his treatment was extraordinary. They were completely blown away."
"......?"
Saki's eyes shook violently, and her face flushed a deep crimson. The memory of what she had said and done that day instantly flashed before her eyes.
Collapsing right into Kang Geomma's embrace...
—Just let me stay like this a little longer.
She had actually blurted out those embarrassing words.
...Oh.
Saki's mind went completely blank for a second, and then—
"Aaaaaaaaargh!"
She let out a scream she hadn't even released when she was in agonizing pain. Her feet kicked wildly beneath the blanket. She cringed so hard she felt like she was shriveling up.
"Sa-Saki?! What's wrong all of a sudden?!"
Weapon asked, his eyes wide with alarm. Saki didn't answer. She buried her face in her hands, cold sweat pouring down her spine.
Crazy.
That single word perfectly summarized her current situation.
How on earth was she supposed to look Geomma in the eye after delivering such a cringe-inducing line? Goosebumps broke out all over her arms at the thought of her own behavior.
Her head felt like it was going to split open. Not metaphorically, but literally.
No, actually, she wished it would split open. If only she could get amnesia from a head injury, she could at least pretend it never happened. But her brilliant brain, which possessed near-perfect recall, ruthlessly reminded her that the event was a very vivid reality.
Saki clutched her hair and yanked at it wildly. Her pupils spun like whirlpools. Watching her quietly, Weapon muttered with a deeply worried expression,
"...Is this... what they call Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)? For someone who always acts so haughty and aloof to be like this... just what on earth happened during the finals...?"
Weapon mumbled to himself for a while, shuddering at his own thoughts. Saki shot him a razor-sharp glare.
"And why are you even here in the middle of the night, distracting me?! What, is this a show to you?!"
It was pure venting. But if she didn't do this, she felt like she would literally cough up blood from sheer embarrassment. Saki deliberately sharpened her tone.
Startled by her sudden outburst, Weapon flinched and took a step back. While Saki had been bedridden, the club members had taken turns watching over her. Since she was deeply entangled with the villains, it was a necessary precaution.
And as luck would have it, tonight was Weapon's turn, so he had been keeping watch without a single complaint. Yet here Saki was, fiercely gnashing her teeth right in front of him.
Why is she suddenly acting like this?!
He had no idea. He could only assume her erratic behavior was due to severe psychological trauma.
Weapon hastily reached out and fumbled through his pockets. He pulled out a bar of yanggaeng.
"H-here, look! I even bought that premium yanggaeng you love! So, please, just calm down!"
Gently placing the yanggaeng on the bed, Weapon raised both hands in surrender.
Saki stared blankly at the yanggaeng resting on the blanket. Then, she slowly raised her eyes and glared at Weapon.
"……."
Silence settled over the hospital room. The air, thick with the smell of medicine, tasted incredibly bitter. Soon, a vein throbbed on Saki's temple.
Thwack!
A tightly rolled-up pillow smacked Weapon square in the face.
"Gah!"
"Do you seriously think I'm some kind of pushover who'll drool and roll over just because you throw some yanggaeng at me?!"
Earlier, she was just venting. But now, Saki was genuinely pissed off at Weapon for treating her like a dog.
As she grabbed another pillow, Weapon waved his hands frantically and bolted for the door.
"Y-you'll pay for this!"
Weapon pointed a trembling finger in the air, then slammed the door shut behind him. Saki stared at the door with a dazed expression.
"...Sigh."
She let out a long breath. A pang of guilt hit her a moment too late.
"...I shouldn't have taken it out on him."
It was annoying that he tried to bribe her with yanggaeng like she was a pet, but she had been a bit too harsh on someone who had stayed by her side late into the night.
I'll apologize properly later.
As her flared-up temper gradually cooled, Saki glanced to the side. The yanggaeng Weapon had abandoned in his escape was sitting neatly on the bedsheet.
"……."
After staring at it for a long moment, Saki snatched it up with lightning speed. She quickly looked left and right, making sure no one was watching.
Only the pale moon shone down on her; there was no sign of anyone else. Satisfied, Saki swallowed hard and took a massive bite.
An intense sweetness wrapped around her tongue, making her jaw tingle.
"...This is so damn good."
Saki scrunched up her nose to hold back her tears and wolfed down the rest of the yanggaeng.
The midnight full moon was the sole witness to the scene.
* * *
The hospital was shrouded in a dim, quiet gloom.
Step, step.
I walked through the dark corridor. Weapon was on night watch duty today, but since I couldn't sleep, I figured I'd go keep him company.
He's already a chatterbox, so his mouth must be itching to talk after being alone for so long.
Chuckling softly, I continued toward the hospital room.
Three days had passed since the final exams.
Due to the sudden appearance of the villains, Ryozo and Leon had suffered critical injuries. Looking back at the situation, it wouldn't have been surprising if either of them had died right then and there.
Fortunately, my gamble to manifest four Blessings at once to heal them paid off, and both survived.
The backlash almost knocked me unconscious on the spot, but... thanks to my pain reduction rate, I managed to avoid being hospitalized myself.
Rachel and Choi Seol-ah had carried Saki and Leon on their backs, escaping the Special Pavilion. Senior Hana had supported me when my knees buckled.
I'm just glad those three were unharmed.
After wrapping up that horrific final exam, we had headed straight to the hospital.
Immediately after they were admitted, Medea came to find me and asked for an explanation. When bombarded with questions about what had happened, I didn't answer right away and put her off. Tending to the two injured was my top priority.
I asked Medea for a week's grace period. Though it was just a phone call, her voice had fluctuated between anxiety and fury.
Another disgraceful incident had occurred during an exam. Even though we had learned from the midterm exams and moved the testing site inside the academy, two cadets had still returned hovering on the brink of death.
Medea seemed to have a rough idea of what had happened, judging by Leon and Saki's injuries.
No matter how harsh the environment of the Special Pavilion was, there was no way their bones would be shattered and their flesh gouged out like that. I could still clearly picture Medea muttering, her voice trembling with rage.
Of course, I was even more furious than she was. I wanted nothing more than to round up the villains right this instant and start a bloodbath.
But knowing that acting on raw emotion would only ruin things, I clenched my teeth and suppressed my anger.
In any case, the time for revenge was drawing near. The club members were already moving quickly, thoroughly investigating the suspects.
I took a deep breath. As the cool night air filled my lungs, my mind cleared.
I casually turned my gaze toward the corridor window, looking up at the dark, hazy night sky. The brilliant moonlight completely obscured the twinkling of the stars.
"……."
Lost in thought, I kept walking until I found myself right outside Saki's hospital room. Just then, a small commotion echoed from inside, and—
Slam!
Weapon burst out of the room in a panic. Catching his breath, he must have felt my gaze because he turned his head toward me.
"Huh? President. What are you doing here at this hour?"
Scratching my chin, I replied to a flustered Weapon, "I just couldn't sleep. Thought I'd come keep you company so you wouldn't get bored."
"President..."
Weapon looked at me with puppy-dog eyes. Seeing a fully grown guy tearing up was honestly a bit uncomfortable. Wiping his watery eyes, Weapon spoke in a low voice.
"President, Saki's awake."
"……!"
"...And from what I can tell, her body is mostly fine thanks to you. But the problem is..."
"The problem?"
When I asked, Weapon let out a heavy sigh before continuing.
"...I think she developed PTSD. She suddenly started screaming, throwing pillows... Her personality was already trash, but now her mouth is even dirtier. I even tried to comfort her by giving her some yanggaeng, but she rejected it instantly. The situation looks really bad, President."
"……."
I stared at Weapon as he let out a dramatic, suffering sigh, and thought:
...What is wrong with this guy?
He usually got beaten to a pulp by Ryozo, yet here he was, pouting and complaining over getting hit by a pillow.
If what Weapon said was true, Ryozo's attitude toward him hadn't really changed at all. If anything, she had actually softened up.
And she probably rejected the yanggaeng because she was annoyed by Weapon trying to brush things over so easily.
Yet, Weapon had jumped straight to diagnosing her with PTSD, clicking his tongue in pity all by himself.
If I were Ryozo, I would have knocked his teeth out right then and there.
...No wonder he has no idea Ryozo likes him when he's this dense.
Still, since his concern for her was genuine, I didn't bother correcting him. I just felt incredibly sorry for Ryozo—who was usually the type to resolve frustrating situations instantly—for having to deal with such a dense guy. I sent her my silent condolences and support.
Anyway.
I remembered something I needed to tell him. Things had been so hectic lately that we hadn't had a proper chance to talk. And since Saki had just woken up, the timing was perfect.
I asked Weapon, "By the way, how far along is the search for the villains?"
The final exam period was drawing to a close. With vacation just around the corner, any further delay would ruin our plans.
Guessing my intentions, Weapon nodded. "Not just our club members, but Rachel also stepped up to help. We've narrowed down the suspicious faculty members to about five people."
"Are you sure about them?"
At my question, Weapon nodded in confirmation. Considering his sharp mind and cautious nature, this was as good as a definitive answer.
Five, huh...
In reality, there were probably far more than five, but pulling just those five out would likely drag the rest of them up like potatoes on a single vine.
After pondering for a moment, I turned my gaze back to Weapon. He was waiting expectantly for me to speak. I patted his shoulder lightly and said,
"Weapon, if you have time after school tomorrow, let's go somewhere together. Sound good?"
"Yeah, I'm free. But Saki just woke up. Shouldn't we bring everyone here after school tomorrow?"
"...Do you really not know her personality after spending so much time with her? Does Ryozo look like the type of person who'd enjoy a whole crowd of people barging in on her?"
"...Ah."
Weapon nodded, finally understanding. I sighed at his complete lack of perception. He was the first person I'd met who was even more clueless than me, a lifelong solo.
As I stared at him with furrowed brows, Weapon tilted his head and asked,
"So, where are we going tomorrow?"
I replied with a bright smile.
"The Principal's office."
It was time to strike while the iron was hot.
In the few days remaining before the vacation ceremony, I was going to beat the living daylights out of those villain bastards.