I-I'll Give It
"You're here."
"Yes."
"Before we get to business, there's something I want to ask..."
Right now, I've been dragged into the Chairman's office. There's only one day left before the new semester begins. I'd been summoned out of nowhere by the Chairman and hauled in without even getting a chance to rest.
"......Why the hell does your face look like that?"
"Don't ask."
The Chairman was wearing an expression of genuine pity, something I'd rarely seen from him. My face currently had massive bruises around both eyes. The swelling on my cheeks had gone down, but the dark marks were still vivid. I looked like a literal panda Shin-woo.
[I told you not to say that crazy shit!!!]
'I didn't think it'd come out as a spinal reflex.'
To explain this, I have to go back a day. To the moment we took down the robbers at the bank.
"It definitely wasn't like this!!"
"Leader! Why the hell did you insist on entering thirty minutes early?! You said you were sure, so I trusted you!"
"I just didn't want to miss my drama! How was I supposed to know there'd be a monster?!"
"You’re always late to everything, so why the hell did you want to be early today?!"
"Shut up, you robber bastards!"
The police had arrived at the bank and were sorting out the situation. We'd used our abilities outside the proper channels, but since it was to subdue bank robbers, it was ruled as self-defense and we weren't punished. The two Silver Claw hunters had woken up and started listing off all sorts of nonexistent heroic deeds, but all they got in return were cold stares from everyone around.
Meanwhile, I was on my knees in the bank getting chewed out by Hye-ji.
"No God? Is it because you have no chest? You crazy bitch!"
"I'm sorry."
Hye-ji was venting her anger without holding back, but she hadn't completely lost her reason yet. I knew that, so I stayed quiet and obedient.
At that moment, Elsia, who had been watching, lit up and suddenly pushed Hye-ji from behind.
"Hup!"
"Huh? Hey! Why'd you push me?!"
Thanks to Elsia's surprise attack, Hye-ji was shoved forward and nearly fell. I caught her just before she hit the ground, and the result was us ending up in an embrace, facing each other. Hye-ji's furious expression vanished in an instant, replaced by a face as red as her hair.
"You okay?"
"Y-yeah..."
"Hey, Elsia. Why'd you suddenly push Hye-ji?"
Hye-ji spoke with her head down, her voice barely audible, while I asked Elsia why she'd pulled that stunt. Instead of answering, Elsia just grinned at us and gave a thumbs-up.
Hye-ji turned in my arms and looked at Elsia with grateful eyes.
"Hye-ji unni! How is it?"
"K-kanp... thanks..."
But there was one problem. I'd been staring at Elsia the whole time, so I didn't notice Hye-ji turning in my embrace. My fingertips brushed against something slightly unfamiliar. It felt like there was a bump, so I gave it a little poke, and Hye-ji let out a shrill scream.
"Kyaa! You crazy bastard! We're outside!"
"Hye-ji, I think you've got a pimple on your back?"
The warm atmosphere instantly froze. Elsia covered her mouth with both hands in horror, while Hye-ji went completely still, slowly radiating killing intent from her entire body. The moment I instinctively sensed death and looked down at her, I finally understood the situation.
Elsia stammered in a terrified voice.
"H-husband... that's...... not your back... it's her chest..."
"Ah, fuck."
"Die."
[Farewell.]
I heard something snap inside Hye-ji. After that, my memory gets fuzzy. I think she beat me until I was nearly dead. The memories are spotty, but the image of Hye-ji expressionlessly pounding me like a machine is burned into my mind. At least she hadn't used her abilities and had only used her bare hands—that might've been the last shred of her sanity.
I was later told that the police had to pull her off me, but by then my face was already completely wrecked. After everything was settled and we returned to the Academy, Hye-ji didn't say a single word. The only silver lining was that on the taxi ride back, she sat quietly on my lap and patted my head, which made me vaguely remember that her anger had calmed down a little.
And so the story returns to the present.
"So why'd you call me?"
"Right. It's nothing major."
The Chairman handed me a stack of documents through his secretary.
"Do you know that a number of Academy students are being expelled because they haven't returned even after break ended?"
"I'm not their babysitter. How would I know that?"
"Then you probably don't know what they all have in common either?"
"No, I don't."
The Chairman smiled faintly.
"They're elves."
"Ah."
[Busted.]
'He still doesn't know for sure. I can just deny everything.'
We'd obviously destroyed every gate in the Great Forest before fleeing to the Academy. So right now, there were no gates left in the Great Forest that led to other dimensions. That's why the Chairman was pointing out that the elf students couldn't return.
I hid my agitation as best I could and quickly flipped through the documents he'd given me. Height. Eyes. Hair color and other physical traits. Rank. Residence information. All sorts of minor details were densely packed. None of them matched, but there was one single common point.
Just as the Chairman said, every student listed was an elf.
"You look like you've thought of something."
"Not at all?"
"Really? Then how about taking a look at this photo?"
The photo the Chairman handed over showed me. Specifically, the moment I activated Hye-ji's special effect. I was starting to feel completely screwed.
"What's this?"
"......It's a duel."
"Isn't Master Duel online?"
"They're using Duel Disks to play offline."
The Chairman chuckled and finally showed me one video and one more photo. The video only had me in it, and when he played it, audio started coming out.
- They're nothing but mere monsters!
- Then what the hell is that supposed to be!!!
- A god!!!
And the photo the Chairman showed clearly captured the Great Forest burning.
"Why do you think the Great Forest is on fire?"
"......Because I used God Blaze Cannon."
"Is that your deck? Your bullshit is so long I'll just nullify it."
"Shit, so it was an Eldlich deck."
The Chairman kept smiling as he urged me for an answer. A smile that felt like it meant something completely different to me.
"Well? Got anything else to say?"
[What are you going to do?]
'That bastard knew everything and was just asking.'
Since I'd already been caught, I decided to just go all in. I crossed my legs, rested my head on my arm, and spoke cockily.
"Well, what the fuck are you gonna do about it? I already burned it all."
"Hahahaha. So it really was you."
The Chairman laughed his head off before speaking again.
"And you burned down the entire Great Forest just for one woman?"
"It was a natural death anyway."
And it wasn't just one woman. Elsia. Even if it seemed a bit excessive, it still wasn't enough when I thought about those bastards. The Chairman stroked his chin.
"Well, whether you burn or destroy the Great Forest isn't really our concern. There was a contract, after all."
"Is that so?"
"Besides, to be honest, it doesn't really hurt the Academy's position."
The Chairman explained that foreign students, excluding Koreans, had to pay an enormous entrance fee upfront. So whether they desperately attended to avoid losing that money or gave it up and left the Academy, either way worked out fine for the institution.
"I can handle any noise from the students' absence and dispose of these documents myself."
"Then there's no problem. Thank you."
"However."
"However?"
The Chairman suddenly grinned wickedly and rubbed his thumb and index finger together.
"It's a bit difficult to do for free."
"I don't have anything."
"Sure you don't."
The Chairman gave his secretary a look, and the secretary handed me a single sheet of paper. It had an account number and the amount the Chairman was demanding.
"That much should be enough for me to look the other way."
"Son of a bitch."
[Excluding the hundred-won units, it's exactly the amount in your account.]
'How the fuck did this bastard know that too?'
"So, what are you going to do?"
The Chairman was watching me with an amused expression, fingers interlaced. With trembling hands, I crumpled the paper and said,
"I-I'll give it."
"No need."
"Really?"
"Of course it's bullshit, you son of a bitch."
"You bastard."
"......Shinu. Watch your language."
Only after transferring the entire amount to the account was I finally able to leave the Chairman's office. My bank account was as empty as Hye-ji's chest.