Bring Everyone Above Me!
The professors' protests against the Kim Shinwoo Law grew fiercer with each passing day. Lately, they had started gathering regularly and even holding demonstrations right inside the Academy. The protest site felt all too familiar. It was the exact same plaza where the clowns' memorial tower had been erected last time.
We happened to stumble upon the scene while passing by. Just like with the clowns before, the plaza was swarming with professors. But they couldn't even maintain proper unity. All they did was hurl endless complaints at each other.
"The Kim Shinwoo Law is an evil law! Guarantee professors' rights!"
"Paying research students minimum wage? What kind of horrific nonsense is that! Are you telling us to die because we don't have enough research funds?!"
"Forcing us to let research students go home on time! This is truly garbage legislation!!"
"Guaranteeing research students' holidays? Don't spout such bullshit!!"
"What's wrong with surviving on roots and weeds! We're letting them eat vegetables, they should be grateful!"
Yet despite their chaotic disarray, the professors showed remarkable solidarity on one single keyword. As if to prove it, one professor who had seized the microphone bellowed at the top of his lungs.
"Because of this evil law, must professors die?! Kill Kim Shinwoo!!!!!"
"""""Kill him! Kill him! Kill him!"""""
"The only thing Kim Shinwoo needs is the death penalty!!"
"""""Death penalty! Death penalty! Death penalty!"""""
'These motherfucking bastards?'
Then one of the professors spotted me and started pointing frantically.
"There's Kim Shinwoo over there!"
"Surround him!!"
"Catch him alive!!!"
"Don't kill him nicely!!!"
"Slice him up until he dies!!"
Countless professors charged toward me with fire in their eyes. The sight of them filling both sky and ground was enough to call it a perfect heavenly net. Under normal circumstances, I would've run. But I didn't.
Because Hye-ji was with me.
"Go ahead, Hye-ji. You're up."
The moment Hye-ji stepped forward, the professors' advance halted completely. Ignoring their hesitation, she took another step and declared,
"I descend."
In an instant, the professors scrambled backward. As we headed toward the stage, they parted like the Red Sea, creating a path. Like Moses splitting the waters, we passed through the sea of professors and finally reached the stage.
The professor who had been inciting the crowd from the stage had already abandoned the microphone and fled. I picked up the fallen mic and spoke.
"You people are really getting on my nerves. Every time you open your mouths, it's just 'research students' over and over. I'm genuinely sick of it."
The professors tried to protest again. But the second Hye-ji looked at them, none of them could open their mouths. They could only glare fiercely while maintaining complete silence.
This was where the power of the Unarmed was needed. For now, I'd become the oni.
"Isn't just keeping your professor positions enough?"
The professors remained silent. The difference was that earlier they had been quiet out of fear of Hye-ji. Now they were desperately holding back their rising fury. Seeing that, I continued.
"What are you supposed to do when research students get treated like human beings? Just give them fair compensation and hire them properly."
"You bastard! What the hell are you babbling about!"
One professor who couldn't contain his anger shouted at me. I looked at him and spoke as calmly as possible.
"Research students being treated like people is the same as professors being treated like professors."
"We were research students too, you know!"
"How pathetic. Just because you suffered, you think it's natural to force that same suffering onto others?"
"Shut your mouth!!!"
Another professor couldn't hold back either and started screaming. I stopped Hye-ji, who was about to suppress them, and kept talking.
"Instead of thinking about exploiting research students, why not just write up proper employment contracts?"
"We don't need to listen to that kind of bullshit!"
"Most humans, most companies, even most graduate schools do it that way. Why won't you people?"
I raised my index finger.
"There's only one reason. Because among you professor bastards, there isn't a single decent human being."
"Kim Shinwoo, you son of a bitch!!!"
"I'm tired of dealing with mental patients. I want to end this already."
"Kim Shinwoo!!! You are a creature that shouldn't be allowed to live!!!"
"""""Kill him!!!!!!"""""
In the end, all the professors lost control of their rage and charged again. The massive wave of professors was about to crash over me, but—
"Stop."
As expected, the ultimate deterrent. It was Hye-ji.
The atmosphere between the professors and us was complete opposites. The professors were biting their lips, barely suppressing their fury out of terror of Hye-ji. On the other hand, Jung Ayeon was looking at them with utter disdain, and Elsia was busy picking up the snacks the professors had dropped and eating them.
"Elsia, stop picking stuff up off the ground."
"There's a chocolate donut here too!"
"Ah, well, that's an exception. Give me one too."
I took the chocolate donut from Elsia and popped it into my mouth. The sweet flavor spread through my mouth, filling me with happiness. At that moment, one professor with an extremely vicious face roared at me like a lion.
"No matter how much you strut around, you're still just a student! Bring everyone above you!! I'll crush them all myself!!"
'For real? Sounds good to me.'
I didn't answer Piece's question. Instead, I looked at the professor and gave him my most mocking grin.
"Alright, I'll call them. Just wait."
"I'll wait as long as it takes!! I'll destroy whoever shows up!!"
"What about Hye-ji?"
"......Please call someone of higher status than a student."
Since it had come to this, there was one person I could call. I quickly sent a single text message and ignored all follow-up calls.
Now the professors had their heads bowed, even holding their breath. They were shooting silent, resentful glares at the vicious-looking professor who had shouted earlier. That same professor was now quietly shrinking back like everyone else.
I had simply done exactly what the professor had requested. So, faithfully following his words, I had called someone above me.
"I came just as you asked. So, who was it that said they'd crush me?"
It was just... someone quite a bit higher up. It was Chairman Jang Inhyuk. We had only just parted ways, but it couldn't be helped. He was above me, after all.
'Ah, the professor told me to bring everyone above me, so what was I supposed to do? Even the old farts have to assemble.'
'If his head was working properly, he wouldn't have held this protest in the first place.'
"That professor over there who was bowing his head and avoiding eye contact said it."
"M-me? When did I—!"
"Come out here."
Pushed forward by the other professors, the vicious-looking one was half-dragged out against his will. The confident demeanor from earlier was gone. He was trembling like a death row inmate right before execution.
Chairman Jang Inhyuk looked at him with a relaxed expression and said leisurely,
"Why aren't you moving? Didn't you say you'd crush me?"
"That's not what I meant... I only wanted to crush Student Shinwoo..."
"So you're saying Student Shinwoo lied to me?"
"Yes! Yes! That's right!"
"The professor claims that, but what do you think?"
The professor clung to that one thread of hope, his face lighting up with relief. At the same time, he showed a bit of confidence, as if he could somehow handle someone like me.
But hope always hurts more when you lose it after grabbing onto it.
"If you want to crush me, you'll have to beat Hye-ji first."
"Come at me."
"......"
Hye-ji stepped in front of me and faced the professor. It was a perfect checkmate. If he affirmed what he said earlier, he'd have to attack the Chairman. If he denied it, he'd have to fight Hye-ji. Either way, it was death.
The professor's current expression was a sight to behold. It looked even more rotten than when he had been dragged out, and tears were even starting to form in his eyes.
At that moment, the secretary who had come with Chairman Jang Inhyuk asked him,
"How shall we handle this!"
"Chairman! Please spare me!"
"Do I really have to do it myself? Handle it like you always do."
"Yes, understood. A formal notice will be sent to that professor later, so please take note."
"Hic... sob..."
The professor finally burst into tears and slunk back into the crowd of professors.
Amid the slight commotion in the group, one bold professor spoke to Chairman Jang Inhyuk.
"Hello, Chairman. I am—"
"Get to the point."
"I wanted to ask about the Kim Shinwoo Law."
"Go ahead."
"There's a malicious rumor spreading that the Chairman approved the Kim Shinwoo Law. Is that true?"
Chairman Jang Inhyuk smiled faintly at the question.
"Of course I did. I even stamped the seal three times in a row."
"Ah... aah..."
"By the way, do you people have time for this? Have you produced any research results yet?"
"W-well, that's..."
"You're free to gather like this, but if you don't produce results, things are going to get interesting."
With Chairman Jang Inhyuk's final words, the group of professors scattered in an instant and headed back to their respective research buildings. It was a desperate struggle to squeeze just a little more work out of research students who still weren't fully treated as human beings. Though that wouldn't last much longer either.
Once everyone had disappeared, Chairman Jang Inhyuk started to walk away from us as if his business was finished. In the meantime, his secretary quietly scolded me.
"What on earth were you thinking, calling the Chairman all the way here?!"
"Ah, he told me to bring everyone above me. The only person I know who's above me is him."
"......Please be more careful next time."
As soon as she finished speaking, the secretary hurried after Chairman Jang Inhyuk. She was practically running because he wasn't waiting for her.
Even in the midst of that chaos, Elsia was still diligently picking up snacks.
"You damn elf bitch! Stop picking that shit up!"
"Elsia, let's get going soon."
"Husband! There's a strawberry donut here too!"
"Yeah, just one please."
"......Young Master, please pick things up in moderation as well."
I took the strawberry donut from Elsia. It was sweet. Both the donut and the current situation.
After that day, the professors' gatherings never happened again.