Chapter 53: He Just Got Utterly Wrecked, Baek Tae-yang!
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 53: He Just Got Utterly Wrecked, Baek Tae-yang!
"What?"
"I said, stop it."
Kim Min-su bolted upright from his seat.
If he stayed sitting, he wouldn't stand a chance. By standing while Baek Tae-yang remained seated, he could create a gap in their eye levels.
Looking down on the guy he usually had to look up to felt absolutely electrifying.
The bastard was definitely flustered by my words.
After all the subtle snubs and blatant disregard he’d shown me, he must be reeling from this unexpected counterattack.
Min-su felt that now was finally the time to pay back every single humiliation.
Starting from the way he looked at Yu-min with those lecherous eyes to the way he ruthlessly crushed me during our duel.
Even if I could overlook the Gate field trip, I’d tasted nothing but disgrace in this Hallucination Dungeon as well.
‘You didn’t have to be that honest in the interview!’
He was furious.
Thinking about it, if it weren't for Baek Tae-yang, they wouldn't have fought this much in the first place.
As his emotions began to boil over, his face grew hotter and hotter.
"I can't just stand by and watch your behavior anymore."
"What are you talking about all of a sudden?"
Even as they were arguing, Yu-min was letting out soft, muddled moans.
Seeing him pinch and fondle her exactly where her nipples would be—even through her bra—made Min-su lose his mind.
Baek Tae-yang, this guy was the biggest problem.
If only this bastard would disappear!
"First of all, get your hands off her right now!"
"Gah!"
Slap.
With a powerful gesture, he knocked away the hand that had been kneading Yu-min.
When he saw the look of pure shock on Baek Tae-yang’s face, Min-su couldn't contain his joy.
That’s right. If I put my mind to it, a guy like this is nothing.
Min-su opened his mouth to proclaim just how justified his actions were.
"Everyone! This man is not who the media portrays him to be! Furthermore, I am currently in a secret relationship with this beautiful woman here, So Yu-min! But now, I intend to move past our secret and reveal everything! We went from childhood friends to lovers a little over a hundred days ago, and our relationship is excellent! But this man! Baek Tae-yang! Ever since he intervened, things have been going wrong! This is all his manipulation and his wicked schemes! I will no longer just watch; I will expose every single one of this man's evil deeds!"
"Hear, hear!"
"So cool! He's so cool!"
"As expected of the Hero, Kim Min-su!"
Student!
[Don Quixote’s Falsehood activated! Everyone believes your lies!]
The people rose in unison and began to give him a standing ovation.
Even Baek Tae-yang seemed to believe those words because I’d stepped up so boldly; Don Quixote’s Falsehood had applied to everyone on the bus.
Yu-min stopped clinging to Baek Tae-yang and looked at me with sparkling eyes.
‘This is it! This is what I’m talking about!’
But what the Pure Love Diary Writer had taught him didn't end there.
The Writer had said it was better to land several heavy blows than many small ones.
Truly, his advice was nourishment for the soul.
Min-su boldly grabbed Baek Tae-yang by the collar.
Because of the height difference, he couldn't lift him off the ground, but it was enough to force him into an awkward posture.
"What do you think you're doing, Kim Min-su! Let go of me this instant!"
"Hehe, you must be scared! You must be terrified! But you’d better just accept it!"
He probably couldn't wrap his head around the fact that his life as a 'top dog' was suddenly being overturned.
He’d likely never even considered the possibility.
‘A piece of trash, a bastard who’s lived as a popular social butterfly since birth and can’t even empathize with others.’
No amount of insults felt like enough.
‘Does he think being handsome, well-spoken, a good fighter, talented, fit, good at interviews, polite, and not losing his temper is everything?’
Life isn't that easy.
Life is being thrown into the real thing without a single practice run.
This was a scale that a greenhorn who entered Victory Academy without even receiving basic character education couldn't handle.
"Baek Tae-yang! It's time for your punishment!"
"What did I even do wrong?!"
It was the reaction he expected.
Min-su clenched his fist and raised his hand high.
"First! The crime of looking at my woman with lecherous eyes!"
Student!!
Thwack!
Min-su’s fist buried itself in Baek Tae-yang’s solar plexus in an instant.
It was a blow powerful enough to send him flying, but because Min-su was holding his collar, Baek Tae-yang didn't go anywhere.
He would have been hurt less if he’d just been blown out of the bus.
There was a reason he’d grabbed the collar beforehand.
Kim Min-su marveled at his own meticulousness and raised his fist again.
"Second! The crime of humiliating me multiple times!"
Bam!
Student!!!
He put even more strength into it than before.
He didn't activate any skills, as that might cause a major injury.
Besides, that would be illegal.
"And finally, the crime of getting on my bad side!"
Whoosh—Boom!
Drawing out every ounce of physical strength, he drove a final blow into Baek Tae-yang’s solar plexus.
The moment his fist connected, Min-su let go of the collar.
With nothing left to hold him, Baek Tae-yang went flying straight through the side of the bus.
"Squeeeeeeeal!"
"You just got utterly wrecked, Baek Tae-yang!"
It sounded exactly like a pig being slaughtered. To think he’d get to hear that sound in person after only ever making it himself.
Min-su’s heart swelled with pride as he felt an incredible sense of catharsis.
"Yu-min, let's get off! Driver, we're getting off here!"
He had no more business on this bus.
All that was left was to be lovey-dovey with Yu-min, so it was only right to catch a taxi and head home quickly.
Student!!!!
"Driver? Yu-min?"
So Yu-min was just looking up at him with those same sparkling eyes as before.
She didn't say a word, just wore a small smile and didn't move or speak.
The bus driver was the same, sitting motionless in the driver's seat.
Even if it was a justified punishment, an act of violence had occurred on the bus.
Could he really just keep driving without looking back even once?
‘Is it a monster?’
The inside of the bus could have turned into a dungeon without anyone noticing.
Just in case, he cautiously approached the bus driver.
One step, two steps.
Just as he got close enough to the driver to put a hand on his shoulder and check his condition—!
"Student, wake up!"
"Eh? What?"
Suddenly, his surroundings began to blur.
That sensation of a floating body rapidly dropping to the ground.
Why was he feeling the sensation he usually felt when waking up from a dream right now?
"Driver Kim, what's going on?"
"Well, I found a student in the back who hadn't gotten off yet. I only noticed while I was cleaning."
"Haha, see? I told you we shouldn't have changed the cushions on the back seats. We only needed to do the priority seating."
"Even so, I didn't think it would be this bad... Good grief... Student, hurry up and get up!"
"...Pardon?"
By the time Min-su rubbed his eyes and came to his senses, a lot had changed.
There was no trace of Baek Tae-yang being punched through the bus, and the crowd of passengers had vanished without a trace.
Just moments ago, they had been applauding his heroic deeds.
Seeing Kim Min-su standing there with a bewildered expression, the two drivers felt frustrated enough to burst.
"Did you eat crow meat or something? Why can't you snap out of it?"
"Isn't he one of the victims from the Wonderland Dungeon?"
"I haven't seen the news yet, so I don't know. I only caught a bit on the radio..."
"Since it's Kim's bus, it must be him."
The mention of the Wonderland Dungeon made Min-su snap to attention.
"Where... are the other... people?"
"He's awake... thank goodness. You mean Hunter Baek Tae-yang and... that girlfriend who was with you? They looked amazing together, I'll tell you that. Anyway, they got off."
"What?"
"I said they got off first. Since there were only three people on the bus, I dropped them off where they wanted. You were so fast asleep that you ended up all the way at the terminal."
"..."
He couldn't say a word.
‘So that was all a dream? It was all my delusion...?’
He hurried off the bus.
To think every single moment of that was a dream!
Vibrate, vibrate, vibrate.
Just as he was rushing home out of sheer embarrassment, his phone rang.
"It's a text from Yu-min!"
My Widdle Puddin'❤️
> Let's go on a date tomorrow, Min-su.
> Let's meet in front of Bogeumjari Mall at 3:00!
> Make sure your hair looks pretty!
++++++++++++++++++++++++
‘Why is this guy suddenly smiling?’
At first, since he was just staring blankly, I thought he was getting ready to say something.
I was thinking of a comeback to throw at him while smiling mockingly just to piss him off.
But he just kept staring without saying a word.
After a while, he even closed his eyes.
Just as I was wondering if he’d been cursed in the Hallucination Dungeon, he started grinning as if he were truly happy.
"He must be having a happy dream..."
"Tae-yang, you're not just going to send me away after touching me like this, are you?"
Yu-min had followed everything I told her to do from start to finish.
From initiating the argument with Min-su to quietly staying in my arms.
Putting my hand on her thigh was unexpected, but everything else was good.
"Of course not. Min-su seems to be asleep, so let's head out quietly."
"Okay."
Beep—
When I pressed the stop bell, the driver asked where we wanted to get off.
He said he was a fan, and while he couldn't deviate from the bus route, he offered to drop us off nearby, for which I expressed my thanks.
After signing an autograph on the driver's dashboard, we got off almost right in front of the dormitory.
"Even if it was just us, Tae-yang, you really have become famous."
"I guess..."
Since realizing my popularity wasn't the priority right now, my reaction was lukewarm.
‘First, I have to keep this momentum going... It’ll be a disaster if Kim Min-su uses time as an excuse to self-rationalize and starts feeling okay again.’
I didn't want to see him sulking alone, then getting over it by himself and acting all cool, saying, 'Why are you still mad?'
Even if I wasn't the one experiencing it, the thought of Yu-min going through that was horrifying.
"Yu-min, send Min-su a text telling him to meet at Bogeumjari Mall tomorrow at 3:00."
"Okay, I will."
Yu-min trusted me implicitly.
I couldn't betray that kind of trust.
Ring... ring... ring...
"I need to make a quick call."
"When are you going to play with meeeee?"
"I'll do it right after this."
Click.
—Hello?
I spoke as I stroked Yu-min’s hair.
"Melanie, there's something I need you to do."
Tomorrow was finally the day of the decisive battle.