And we couldn’t quite return to our daily lives…
There was a big incident where I got kidnapped, and this was not something that could just be brushed aside.
The fact that it became a significant trauma for both me and Sara was a big reason. Honestly, that’s the biggest concern for me. I don’t know what will happen in the future, but it will probably be tough for Sara and me to meet Choi Na-kyung with our usual mindset.
Of course, it was also a big deal for the people around me. It’s not that I did it intentionally, but everything definitely revolved around me and Sara.
Ha Neul, Sua, and Sohee all considered me as their friend, and incidents kept happening centered around me.
Naturally, the incidents that hit me and Sara had to be the central axis of our relationship.
However, the story is a bit different for people outside my circle.
If you get down to it, the incidents that occurred for those people were also caused by ‘me’ or ‘Sara.’ If you dig deeper, what ultimately comes out is the name ‘Ye Sara.’
But to those people, I wasn’t that important of a figure.
What mattered to them was only money.
That’s right. The beings I’m talking about right now are obviously not the people around me.
I’m talking about the school teachers.
…Well, I guess from a ‘physical distance’ perspective, they could be considered somewhat close?
*
I returned to school two days after being discharged from the hospital.
Naturally, Ha Neul, Sohee, and Sua also missed school during that time.
“Are you really okay? Doesn’t unexcused absence greatly affect your attitude score?”
That’s what I asked Ha Neul on the way to school after effectively missing three consecutive days, including the first day I was kidnapped, before even attending a class.
Honestly, I was quite worried. Sohee and Sua had ways to pay their tuition regardless of their grades, but Ha Neul didn’t.
Ha Neul, who got into that school solely based on her grades and was managing a huge tuition fee with scholarships, would face a big problem if her grades were affected. The scholarship is given out per semester, so while it’s okay for now since the first semester isn’t over, it means I don’t know what will happen in the future.
There might not be a need to maintain the top position, but I think there was a passing grade to keep the scholarship.
Of course, I could manage it. Even if I did, the amount wouldn’t affect my finances at all.
However, I don’t think Ha Neul would want to receive such help. From what I’ve learned about her personality over the past few months, Ha Neul didn’t seem to like receiving such big help unilaterally.
Even if I thought it wasn’t unilaterally, the chance of Ha Neul thinking that way and rejecting it was pretty high.
“It doesn’t matter.”
But Ha Neul replied just like that with a very clear voice, without any hesitation.
“It doesn’t matter?”
I asked back, a bit shocked by her reaction.
“Yep.”
Ha Neul smiled brightly when she said that.
How should I put it? It felt like one of my worries had been resolved nicely.
“…Why?”
I asked again.
Ha Neul really wanted to come to this school. Although I never heard this directly, it was clearly depicted in the early parts of the original game that she was looking forward to coming to this school. She studied really hard to get in and even separated from her friends in middle school to enroll here.
Of course, in most routes, Ha Neul quickly realizes the reality. The kids who genuinely study hard in the school she worked so hard to get into are just the same external entrants, while everyone else maintains their grades through private tutoring instead of actual classes.
In fact, if students manage to maintain their grades even like that, they should be thankful. Most students are more focused on establishing relationships than on maintaining grades. If those relationships are healthy friendships, that’s one thing, but most of it is just a form of ‘class division’ to maintain social status and wealth after graduation.
Monies exchange hands between students. They pass bribery to each other’s parents with no feelings about it in the name of gifts.
The students who study hard try to flatter the ‘rich’ kids later, and naturally end up in the lowest class.
From Ha Neul’s perspective, who had previously blended in with ordinary friends in an ordinary school, that was a school I could describe as ‘disgusting.’
However, excluding the Sohee route, Ha Neul remains at the school until the end. The target of her connections is still there in the school.
She overcomes the challenges pouring down around her and connects with someone who seems impossible, a character literally growing as a protagonist, which is why I was shocked to see her react so openly.
“Well…”
In response to my question, Ha Neul paused for a moment and then said:
“I guess I could say that my fantasy got shattered.”
Then she continued with a bitter smile.
“Well, not everyone at this school is the worst… but, you know what we’ve experienced.”
Although she didn’t go into detail, her words were loaded with meaning.
Indeed. We have been ‘wronged.’
And Ha Neul is definitely not the type to just brush aside such things.
If it was just herself being wronged, she would endure it while building up her strength to overcome it, but if ‘all her friends including herself’ are wronged, it would be hard for anyone, even Ha Neul, to endure it.
Of course, she wouldn’t let anything happen in such a school.
And she wouldn’t want to follow the rules set by that school either.
…Hmm.
So then, is she saying she wants to transfer to a different school?
Like in Sohee’s route from the original work?
However, Ha Neul didn’t add any specifics after saying that. She just looked at me and smiled.
Seeing that face made it impossible for me to ask, “Are you planning to drop out of school?” so I could only manage a bitter smile.
*
The reason Ha Neul could be so confident while not following the ‘school rules’ was something I could find out as soon as we got to school.
“Uh…?”
When we entered the classroom, nearly half of the students who should have been present in the class were absent.
The students in this school attended classes very half-heartedly, but they usually showed up on time without fail.
That’s because, of course, attendance and absence are not something you can just solve with money.
In Sara’s case, it became possible because all the students and teachers in the school were scared of Choi Na-kyung, but for students who didn’t have that kind of money and power to dominate the school, it means there’s absolutely no way they could even dream of that.
The hierarchy within the school is defined by money.
But that hierarchy is not absolute. It’s not legislated or dictated by clear rules; it’s just established by a tacit agreement among the students.
Thus, naturally, there is resentment.
Even for kids who aren’t from impoverished families, the wealthy can get jealous and feel inferior to others.
If someone spread a rumor that someone who was marked absent actually attended, it would quickly become a massive scandal. Especially for a kid from a well-known family attending a prestigious school.
Because of that, parents loaded their kids into cars and dutifully sent them to school. Naturally, unless there was a special reason, there were no tardies or absences.
Though I was arriving somewhat early, I was always used to seeing a classroom filled with students when I walked in.
But that was not the case now.
“….”
In fact, as soon as I entered the classroom, it froze.
Well, to be honest, I’ve had my share of moments like this, so it’s not that surprising. I’ve had a few occasions that were worth the experience in this school.
The atmosphere is different from when I met the chairwoman.
Sara, who successfully dropped the title of ‘mother,’ evaluated the situation like this.
I was wondering what was going on.
In fact, I still didn’t know the exact circumstance from that time. Although I had received the story from Sara, I hadn’t seen it through memory.
“….”
I decided to silently walk to my seat. Sohee sat next to me, and Ha Neul sat next to her.
During the time I walked to my seat, the kids’ gazes remained on me.
I’m not that sensitive to people’s feelings, but I can confidently express that there was fear embedded in those ‘gazes.’ It was such an obvious light in their eyes.
When I glanced at Sohee and Ha Neul with a puzzled expression, both of them looked like they were in a strangely good mood.
Did these two do something?
Or did Yang Hye-in come up with some dirty trick? Did she show up at the kids’ houses with some ‘serious talk’?
I sat there lost in various thoughts for quite a while.
Meanwhile, silence engulfed the classroom.
Then, the preliminary bell rang—
A teacher came into the classroom.
However, the teacher who walked in was not the usual homeroom teacher.
It was a rather young female teacher. I recognized her face since she came into the class during class time.
When the teacher made eye contact with me, her face immediately turned pale.
…Wait, so what’s the reason for this?
