Chapter 71
Former Seoul Superintendent of Education Lee Moon-young, ex-principal of Jangmyeong High School Han Cheol-yong, and instructor Kim Hak-seong have appeared at the prosecutor's office as defendants.
This morning, Jangmyeong High School announced that it had expelled Lee Mo, the son of the former superintendent who had maintained the top spot in his grade through leaked exam papers, three days ago.
Lee Mo's legal representative in court claimed that his son's grades dropped in the retaken final exams not because he hadn't seen the papers in advance, but because he couldn't handle the immense pressure and psychological burden.
However, instructor Kim's confession that he had passed the exam papers to Lee Mo exposed that claim as false. Moreover, Kim stated that three other students had joined those tutoring sessions with Lee Mo, delivering a shock.
Kim revealed that he had shown the exam papers and answers directly only to Lee Mo, while distributing predicted problem booklets to the three other students and slyly mixing in the leaked questions among them.
As a result, the three students who attended tutoring with Lee Mo stated they had no knowledge of this, but it has been reported that they have since submitted withdrawal letters one after another.
On the bus to Jangmyeong High School, the recent exam leak scandal that had caused such an uproar was playing over the speakers.
The high school boys packing the bus whispered among themselves about how Lee Hyeokmin had always been, how suspicious he'd seemed. Up until Lee Hyeokmin's expulsion, these were the people living in his kingdom, but now they spoke freely of just how cruel the guy had been.
Of course, their stories included Hwang Bohan-jun, the student who had transferred out like a fugitive after growing exhausted from the bullying, and Park Jincheol, who had plummeted from a second-floor classroom to the flower bed below about two months ago.
They had all been bystanders. Desperate not to become targets themselves, they had turned a blind eye to the injustice and kept their mouths shut.
But now that the tyrant Eom Seokdae was gone—what then?
"Ah, this retake's pushing back vacation—fucking annoying."
"Still, vacation starts today."
Class 2-5 was ordinary aside from the retake exams. Lee Hyeokmin's expulsion had happened days ago, and they'd gossiped plenty about it. Now, with vacation ahead, the focus was on what to do with their time—until someone quietly spoke up.
"Hey, but... vacation's starting, and Park Jincheol still hasn't shown? His injuries aren't all healed yet?"
A hush fell over the classroom. The student who had spoken scratched his cheek awkwardly.
"Honestly speaking, Lee Hyeokmin was bullying Park Jincheol all this time, right? Now that he's gone, Jincheol can come back, no?"
He mustered the courage for one more word. In that moment, the students recalled their own sin: how they had stayed silent out of fear when Jincheol tumbled headfirst from the window to the ground below, terrified of Lee Hyeokmin's wrath.
The cowardly tyrant was gone, spring seemed to be arriving—but they still bore a yoke. If it weren't for Park Jincheol, they might have remained mere indirect victims of the grade manipulation scandal. But now, they were enablers, or even indirect perpetrators.
"Anyone actually contact Park Jincheol?"
At the follow-up, everyone fell silent. Truth be told, after Lee Hyeokmin fled the school like a chased dog, no one hadn't thought of Park Jincheol's face.
But reaching out now felt ridiculous, so they snapped shut their flip phones mid-text.
"Did you?"
One student asked. The one who'd been talking about Jincheol clamped his mouth shut.
"...Park Jincheol fell because of Lee Hyeokmin, but pinning it on him falling alone during some stunt feels off."
Another student murmured quietly, and they all nodded in silence.
"But saying now that it wasn't like that feels weird too... Ah, fuck, I don't know."
It had been two months already. His fall was shocking, sure, but high schoolers encountered countless events daily—it faded fast. They remembered Woo-hyuk's own-goal during soccer at last lunch break more vividly than Jincheol's plunge.
Drag.
That was when the back door slid open. Someone entered with head bowed low.
The student headed to the empty seat that had sat vacant for two months, placing a light backpack on the desk.
All eyes turned to him. But no one spoke.
"Mind sliding the chair a bit?"
The only voice came when he asked his desk mate to make room as he moved inward.
Screech.
The chair scraped across the floor as his mate pulled it in, and he slipped naturally into the gap, sitting down.
"Hey, Park Jincheol... y-you okay now?"
His desk mate, who hadn't spoken to him in two months, asked cautiously.
Jincheol glanced at him briefly and replied curtly.
"Getting there."
"...Good to hear."
The students shifted in their seats. They knew they should stand, go to him, apologize for how they'd asked about it back then—but their bodies wouldn't move.
Time dragged awkwardly until the homeroom teacher entered for roll call.
"......"
The teacher stared at Jincheol in the corner seat for a moment. He'd gotten advance notice days ago that he'd return today, and Jincheol had even stopped by the office with his mother for greetings—no surprise there.
Still, the sight of him sitting in class felt so unfamiliar that the teacher's gaze lingered. Realizing it might affect the others, he turned to face the front.
"Alright, Jincheol's mostly recovered and back in school. Everyone give him a warm welcome?"
The students stayed silent at the teacher's question. Jincheol stared out the window, unperturbed.
"Sure, vacation starts now, and after spring break you'll all be juniors. But still, happy to have Jincheol back healthy. Let's give him a round of applause."
They clapped at the teacher's urging. It was uneasy, off-beat applause.
Then the ordinary end-of-term ceremony began. They turned on the large classroom TV, where the new principal droned on in poor-quality video.
The principal change was two weeks old, but the students paid him no mind. Just glad the criminal was gone.
After the speech, the teacher handed out flyers with advice for the soon-to-be seniors. Sure, the pressure of third year loomed, but these vacation-bound kids showed no excitement.
"Alright, enjoy your break."
As the teacher wrapped up and students reached for bags, they spotted suited men reflected in the hallway window.
"Before you go home, someone wants a quick word. I know you wanna rush off, but it's important—bear with us."
The teacher finished and opened the front door. Through it stepped the two men glimpsed in the window.
Unfamiliar faces. Students followed their movements with eyes.
The teacher stepped aside by the TV, and the sharper-looking one took the podium.
Students scribbled notes on family notice margins: Who're they?No clue. Guessing their identity.
And as if to satisfy the curiosity, they spoke.
"Hello, students. I'm lawyer Cha Juhan. And this is lawyer Kang Minjae."
Murmurs rose at "lawyer."
Cha Juhan scanned the room, then emphasized:
"We're also Park Jincheol's legal representatives."
Some glanced at Jincheol's seat. But he fiddled with his phone, eyes meeting no one's.
"As you know, last October, Park Jincheol fell from this classroom—Class 2-5—window to the first-floor flower bed. Because of that, he spent two months away from school in the hospital."
The students stirred. It's here, some thought, pondering what to do.
Cha Juhan took in their confusion steadily.
"I asked the homeroom teacher about the incident. He said Jincheol was fooling around, his slippers flew out the window, he lunged to grab them, and fell. Said you all testified that."
A sharp silence gripped the room. Groans at "you all testified."
It was true. Everyone here—even anonymously—had written exactly that. Out of fear of Lee Hyeokmin.
"In court, witnesses swear to tell the truth, under penalty of punishment if they lie."
"......"
"But before questioning ends, if you recant prior statements—making the first ones false—you face no penalty."
The students stared, frozen.
"Probably because truth matters more. A witness swayed briefly by temptation or threat can be forgiven. That's how I see it."
Hands hidden under desks clenched uniform pants. They sensed his point.
"As Jincheol's lawyers, we've spent long investigating the assaults by Lee Hyeokmin and his gang on him."
Now the main point. They all sensed it. Cold sweat slicked gripping hands; some wiped it on pants.
"Trial hasn't started. Questioning hasn't either. No one will blame you for recanting testimony."
"......"
"Did anyone here witness Lee Hyeokmin and his crew physically or verbally assaulting Park Jincheol? What happened the day he fell? We've waited long to ask you that."
Then Kang Minjae placed stacks of business cards row by row.
Students took one each, passing the rest back. Soon all had one.
"These are our cards. If you can't speak up now, contact the number or email on it."
Cha Juhan confirmed all had cards, then calmly said:
"Sorry to take time from your vacation rush home. Enjoy your break."
Cha Juhan and Kang Minjae bowed side by side, exchanged brief greetings with the watching teacher, and walked slowly to the front door.
All eyes followed them out.
Then, one student whose cold-sweaty hand had soaked his pants looked up.
"...Um, lawyers. Wait a sec."