Chapter 106
After a stormy break, Sunday night came to an end.
I returned to the Academy.
“Did you rest well, Gyeoul?”
“Yeah, you too, right?”
“Taebaek Group has some contracts to sign with the Arab side, and they kept bothering me, saying they wanted to see me and all that. It was annoying, but I still managed to rest well.”
Since we’re always together, I sometimes forget, but Lee Ha-yoon is the youngest daughter of a chaebol family.
It hit me again who the little one next to me really is.
“You had a tough time, huh? They didn’t give you any trouble, did they?”
“If it were that kind of situation, they wouldn’t have taken me in the first place. I can kinda guess what you’re imagining, but just because we’re chaebols doesn’t mean we treat our kids like objects. We’re just a normal family with a bit more money.”
“Well, looking at you and Ha-yun, I can kinda see that.”
“And you’re not exactly from a small family either, right? Your family’s just a normal one with a bit more money too.”
“Hmm… I guess?”
Hmm.
Someone who almost burned 700 billion won on a single tooth is the head of the family.
And I burned 250 billion on a pair of gloves.
Doesn’t exactly scream “normal,” does it?
Anyway, why isn’t Hayan saying anything to me?
Can she not see this?
Can she not feel this shimmer?
Can she not see these gloves that are so dazzling they’re almost dreamlike?
“Oh, you’re wearing new gloves?”
“Ah… you noticed? My sister got them for me.”
“After you kept fidgeting with them like you wanted someone to notice… They don’t seem like just fashion. Are they Awakened One gear?”
“You don’t know? These are ESP gloves.”
“Oh, those are ESP gloves? You spent a lot, huh? They’re pretty.”
What’s this?
Is it because she’s the youngest daughter of a chaebol family? Even after hearing they’re ESP gloves, she didn’t react much.
“These are worth 250 billion won.”
“Yeah, they’re pretty.”
“…”
Boring.
My main goal was to see Ha-yoon’s shocked reaction to the price, but…
Instead, it was the other students walking by who were shocked.
“Did you see that? Those look like ESP gloves.”
“The ones that cost over 200 billion won?”
“That’s insane.”
“I heard there are only three in the world. How did she get one? All of them have owners.”
“There’s a rumor that a fourth one appeared. Guess it’s true.”
“Wow… If your sister’s an S-Class Hero, she can buy you stuff like that? That’s crazy.”
“Is it even okay to bring something like that to the Academy? It’s causing relative deprivation. The Academy should step in…”
“What’s wrong with you? Are you out of your mind?”
“Why are you cursing at me? Shouldn’t you be cursing at Jeong Gyeoul for carrying something so expensive?”
There seemed to be some weird students mixed in, but…
There’s a saying in the Rift: when five people gather, one of them is bound to be a troll. So, I get it.
“Where are Chae-song and Chae-rin?”
“They said they’d be a bit late today.”
“I see. Did you eat dinner? Are you hungry?”
Hayan suddenly looked at me with a strange expression.
‘What’s with that look…?’
“You and Ha-yul were in the news for eating sushi. They said you ate faster than the chef could make it.”
“Ahem, when was that taken?”
Kim Bit-na, the reporter, is working hard, huh.
“They said the restaurant ran out of ingredients and had to close early. But you’re still hungry?”
“No… I was asking if *you* were hungry…”
“Not even a stray dog would believe that.”
“Wow, harsh.”
Pretending to be hurt, I walked a bit faster, and Hayan quickly caught up and linked arms with me.
“Want to go to the snack shop?”
Cute.
“No, it’s fine. I’ll just eat the snacks in my room.”
The girls’ snack tributes never end, and now my room and Hayan’s room have more snacks than the snack shop.
We’ve even started stocking the club room’s snack pantry ourselves. That says it all.
If we hadn’t moved some there, my room would’ve become a snack store with no space to walk.
I was on my way to the dorm, thinking about which snack to eat today, when—
*Beep—*
A sharp horn sound pierced my ears from behind.
“You two!”
“…Us?”
“What, did Gyeoul cause trouble again?”
“…Why do you automatically assume it’s me? Nine out of ten times, it’s probably you.”
While Hayan and I were arguing, the owner of the horn walked up to us.
The horn’s owner was a Student Council member.
With a yellow armband, it was impossible not to recognize them.
“…Jeong Gyeoul, Lee Ha-yoon?”
“Yes?”
“What’s going on?”
“…Two students snuck into the instructors’ dorm, and we’re looking for them.”
“…Snuck in?”
Are they insane?
Even if they snuck into the student dorms, they’d be called crazy, but sneaking into the instructors’ dorm?
When five people gather, one’s a troll.
With 500 people, you get a mega-troll.
“Anyway, it’s one girl and one boy, so it’s probably not you two. Sorry for bothering you.”
“Alright, good luck.”
Since we were on our way back to the dorms and in casual clothes, they must’ve been confused.
The Student Council member sighed and went off to search for the crazy students.
I don’t even want to imagine the struggles of being a Student Council member in an Academy full of Awakened Ones.
As I watched the Student Council member’s back with pity, Hayan suddenly said something out of nowhere.
“…So, one of us looks like a guy?”
“Yeah, probably me. Maybe my hair tied up makes it look short?”
“This won’t do. Let’s go shopping next weekend.”
“…Suddenly?”
“If you keep dressing like that, people will keep misunderstanding! I can’t stand seeing someone as pretty as you being ignored like this!”
…I don’t think anyone’s ignoring me.
Even if they were, I wouldn’t really care.
“It’s fine, I’m most comfortable in sweats.”
Dragging slippers and wearing sweats.
Isn’t this the national rule of school life?
“No!”
Hayan suddenly shouted.
“…Why are you like this today?”
“If you’re going to waste that face, give it to me.”
…?
Does she not realize she’s prettier?
She’s asking me to hand over my face with this weird talk.
“You’re prettier, what would you do with my face?”
“…What are you talking about? You’re way prettier.”
“No, objectively, you’re prettier.”
“Then let’s vote!”
“…Why are we voting over something like this?”
Who’s prettier? Put a sticker on it.
Is she suggesting something like that?
If we do that, I won’t be able to show my face for a while.
“Then admit I’m prettier than you.”
“Fine, I’m prettier than you. Let’s not do something as silly as voting and just go.”
“You’re prettier than me, so why are you wasting that face? Let’s go shopping this weekend.”
“…Fine, let’s go.”
In the end, the voting talk was just a build-up for shopping.
Unintentionally, I’m going to have to wear girly clothes for a while.
Since Eun-chae and Ha-yul are quiet, now it’s Hayan causing a fuss.
‘I just hope we avoid floral patterns…’
***
I was heading out for morning class when a Student Council member suddenly approached us.
“You two!”
“…It’s that person from before.”
“Ah, the one who mistook Gyeoul for a guy?”
“…Did you two cause trouble again?”
Lee Chae-song knows too much about us.
Of course, the one causing most of the trouble is Hayan.
I’m just the one trying to stop her.
Really.
“Can you help us out?”
“…The Student Council? Us? With what?”
“Join the Student Council!”
Suddenly?
An 11th-grade senior with a blue name tag knelt down.
With the Student Council armband, it was way too noticeable.
“What’s that? Did Jeong Gyeoul make another senior kneel?”
“Even worse, it’s the Student Council this time… She’s definitely trying to take over the Academy!”
“Considering she’s been hiding her power, it’s totally possible.”
The students around us started gathering, treating it like an interesting spectacle.
“Please get up…”
“No! I won’t get up until you agree!”
Dude, kneeling like that and talking makes it weird!
Sure enough, gasps erupted from all around.
“What! Is this a confession?”
“Wow, this senior’s got guts.”
“Her personality might be questionable, but Jeong Gyeoul is pretty.”
Is this Student Council punk planning this?
“I’m not joining the Student Council just because of this. We still have some time before class, so let’s talk properly.”
I grabbed the Student Council member’s arm and dragged them to a secluded spot.
“…Is she dragging him away after he confessed to her?”
“Damn, this is intense.”
“I heard her punches are almost on par with Jeong Ha-yul’s. Is that senior going to die today?”
“If her punches were really on par with Jeong Ha-yul’s, Kim Min-ji would’ve been the first to go down.”
The rumors are spreading in real-time.
If this turns out to be nothing, I might actually hit him.
Since the Lee sisters and Hayan followed, it ended up being four of us surrounding one guy.
This might look like we’re shaking him down.
I thought about letting him go and telling him to come back later, but…
Soon, rumors would spread that I’m the crazy girl who beats up guys after they confess to her.
Compared to that, rumors about shaking someone down are nothing.
“Now, tell me what’s going on.”
“…You know I was looking for those two who snuck in, right?”
“Yeah, that was yesterday.”
“Well, I couldn’t catch them.”
“…And?”
“No one wants to join the Student Council, and with the current members, we can’t handle all the incidents happening at the Academy. Jeong Gyeoul, Lee Ha-yoon. Join the Student Council!”
So that’s what this is about? Just a simple recruitment pitch.
While I was debating whether to hit him or not, Hayan stepped in.
“We’re already in the Gourmet Club.”
“You can join the Student Council even if you’re in another club!”
But is it worth reducing our gaming time for Student Council activities?
The Student Council isn’t fun or inspiring, and it’s obviously going to be a lot of hard work.
“No thanks, I’m not interested.”
“We can talk to the Association and get you a good job…”
The senior stopped mid-sentence.
I’m Jeong Ha-yul’s sister, and Hayan is the Taebaek Guild Leader’s sister.
He seemed to get the hint without us having to say anything.
“Please, can’t you help us out?”
“What’s in it for me?”
The Gourmet Club lets us play games and eat snacks without having to eat weird food.
But the Student Council? Are they asking us to do volunteer work for free?
Nothing in this world is free.
Try to tempt me.
“There’s not much we can offer…”
“Then this conversation is over. Goodbye.”
“Well… It’s not like you’re getting paid, and it’s a tough job dealing with violence every day… I’m sorry.”
“Wait… What do you deal with every day?”
“Students cause all sorts of trouble. Naturally, bad situations follow. We have to subdue those who resist with force.”
“What if they get hurt?”
“That’s the biggest concern, right? I understand. Thanks for hearing me out.”
“No, I mean the students who resist.”
“…We don’t need to worry about them getting hurt. The school rules already allow us to handle that. If we worried about that, we wouldn’t be able to do anything.”
I see.
This dumb senior is just like the Gourmet Club seniors.
No talent for marketing.
Doesn’t understand women at all.
“I’ll join right now.”
