The Unexpected Gatekeeper
I was walking the academy grounds when a forgotten nightmare from the past came creeping up and closed around my heart.
My school days in my previous life.
Being dragged into the PE storage room by a female delinquent and beaten for a full hour.
That trauma was flaring up again—because of the girl walking right beside me. Because it was just the two of us.
This is exactly why I never wanted to be alone with a pretty delinquent…
Even so, I could endure it. I wasn't having a mental collapse or a seizure the way I had in my past life. Maybe the old saying was true, and time really was medicine. Or maybe receiving a transcendent's sturdy body had hardened my mind along with it.
But… why did she hit me that day?
On any other day, maybe. That day I hadn't done a single thing wrong. I hadn't even gotten on her nerves. Even after all this time, I still didn't know why that delinquent had decided to abuse me.
…Forget it. What's the point of figuring out the reason now?
I cut the thought off. There probably hadn't been any particular reason. She'd been the type to invent an excuse and torment someone the moment her mood soured.
And I should stop projecting my past life's delinquents onto Seo I-eung. She might look scary, but she's a completely different person.
By appearance alone she was every inch a delinquent. Her behavior screamed punk, too. But her inner self might not match what she showed on the surface.
I stole a glance at her. She was chewing gum with an expression that said everything was a hassle, eyes fixed straight ahead.
Hmm… no matter how I look at it, her insides don't seem any different. I shouldn't get my hopes up.
I looked away. Staring too openly was dangerous.
And so we wandered the academy with the map the professor had given us, keeping a careful distance and exchanging not a single word.
The academy was far larger than I'd imagined.
A gym. A fitness center. A swimming pool. Convenience facilities and more. For a full two hours we toured building after building without a single rest. When the map alone wasn't enough, we asked the guides stationed throughout the grounds. Surprisingly well-organized place.
"……"
"……"
Silence as ever. The awkwardness was killing me. Still, it wasn't bad. Awkwardness was better than conversation. And I was gradually getting used to being around Seo I-eung.
"Hey."
She suddenly called out to me—the first time she'd spoken since we'd left the classroom.
"Let's grab some food and rest before we hit the training facilities. It's almost lunchtime."
She pointed toward a park. I nodded. I'd been getting hungry anyway.
For the record, our academy didn't provide cafeteria meals. Instead, food shops lined the grounds in abundance. Restaurants everywhere we went. Plenty of places near here, too.
"What do you want to eat? I'll go buy it."
Seo I-eung asked, pulling out her wallet. That simple motion nearly triggered my trauma all over again.
I hate having girls buy me food. The reason is, of course, trauma—the nightmare of a female delinquent forcing me to accept a meal, then beating me for every bite I'd eaten.
But.
"Anything."
I didn't offer to pay. That could turn into a back-and-forth of insisting on treating each other, and I had no interest in arguing with a girl.
"Anything? You got any food you hate?"
"No."
"Then pineapple pizza's fine?"
"No."
I answered instantly in shock. She was about to buy garbage, not food. As expected—a vicious woman.
"What? You said get anything."
"…Anything but pineapple pizza."
Seo I-eung narrowed her eyes and glared at me. Terrifying. I pretended not to be scared and looked away.
"Doesn't hate anything, my ass… Fine. I'll just get lunch boxes."
"Yeah."
At least it wasn't some unholy menu this time. Relief.
"I'll be right back. Wait on a park bench."
Hands in her pockets, Seo I-eung swaggered into a nearby lunch-box shop. Even her walk was pure delinquent.
A quiet park. I sat on a bench and blankly waited for Seo I-eung.
"Hi?"
"What are you doing here alone?"
Two girls approached me—the same ones who'd been sneaking glances for a while. I'd had a feeling they'd come. Ill omens never miss.
"You're a freshman too, right?"
"Where's your partner? Did you two fight or something?"
They casually sat down on either side of me. Needless to say, both were beautiful girls.
"Your name is… Ah. Kang Hahwi. Cool name."
One of them said it while reading my name tag, then kept talking with a sly smile.
"Hahwi, what class are you in?"
"…Class 3."
I forced my mouth open. I couldn't just ignore the question.
"Really? We're Class 5—that's super close!"
"Wow. His voice is amazing too."
They burst into giggles among themselves about who knows what. Their laughter was cute. The girls closed the distance even more. My heart was pounding so hard I thought I'd lose my mind.
I'm going to lose it. When is Seo I-eung getting back…
This hadn't happened earlier. There had been girls staring at me openly, but none of them had dared come up and talk. Thinking about it now, it must have been thanks to Seo I-eung at my side. She'd unintentionally been serving as my gatekeeper. I never thought walking with her would actually help.
Just as I was realizing how valuable she was—
"Hey, if it's okay, could I get your number—"
"Who the hell are you?"
A voice of salvation. Seo I-eung had returned with the lunch boxes.
"Kang Hahwi. You know these girls?"
She asked, jerking her chin toward them. I shook my head.
"If you're not acquaintances, then this is just hunting…"
Seo I-eung looked back and forth between the two girls. Her eyes were as murderous as ever.
"You think this is some pickup bar? If you don't want to die, stop clinging and get lost, you horny bitches."
"What? Who's this crazy bitch cursing—"
"Hey, hey…!"
One girl stood up with an angry face. The other hurriedly stopped her.
"Just leave… Don't you see her name tag? That's Seo I-eung…"
"…Seo I-eung? The mob boss's daughter?"
For a second I thought I'd misheard. Mob boss's daughter?
"Uh, um… Sorry. We just saw him sitting alone looking lonely, so we were trying to look out for him…"
The girl who'd been about to snap quickly changed her attitude.
"Really sorry…"
"L-Let's go, quick…"
They were scared—couldn't even speak properly. They kept apologizing as they fled the scene.
Seo I-eung. Crushing people with just her name. She was scarier than I'd thought.
She watched their retreating backs with a look of pure disdain, then turned to me.
"Hey."
"Yes?"
Honorifics slipped out before I could stop them. Survival instinct.
"Why'd you suddenly go formal?"
"Ah. Accident…"
"Weird guy. Anyway, I didn't just mess up for nothing just now, right?"
"Mess up?"
"I mean. If you'd been enjoying that situation, then I just interrupted you."
"…You didn't interrupt. Thanks."
I answered at some length. I couldn't give a half-hearted thank-you. More than that, I was surprised. I wouldn't have expected her to care about details like that. Maybe she was more considerate than she looked.
"Yeah? Good then. Just as I thought, girls…"
Seo I-eung trailed off mid-sentence. When I glanced at her curiously, she scratched her head and thrust a lunch box at me without much ceremony.
"Whatever. Let's just eat."
"Yeah."
She sat beside me. And so we began our meal in silence. The menu was an ordinary well-done bulgogi lunch box.
After we finished eating, Seo I-eung left for a moment, saying she was going to the bathroom. Alone, I strolled through the park—and happened upon a small, adorable cat.
"Myaoong."
A kitten with its whole body trembling, tail standing straight up. Unbearable cuteness. My gaze was stolen and I froze in place.
"Myaang?"
The cat spotted me too. It strode right up—and then:
"Myaang!"
It started rubbing its face all over my leg. A dog-cat, huh.
I was happy. My heart felt healed. The tension that had been building since I'd entered the academy melted away, and my stiff facial muscles slowly softened.
"Myaong! Mya-mya!"
The cat's deadly charms. I wanted to pet it right that second. Opportunities to freely touch a stray weren't common.
Nobody's watching, right?
I checked my surroundings first. No one nearby. Confirmation complete. I crouched down and stroked the cat's back to my heart's content.
"Hehehe."
I lost track of time, grinning like an idiot as I pet the cat—when a human shadow fell across the ground. Startled, I stopped moving. Face going rigid, I slowly lifted my head.
"……"
Seo I-eung was looking down at me with a look of pure shock.