SSS-Class Revival Hunter

Chapter 147: The Friends (3)

The class president’s smile was simply perfect. The corners of his mouth rose just the right degree, and the corners of his eyes had a trace of intrigue. Shortly after, his seemingly perfect smile faltered, and his eyes went back to normal as he returned to his usual poker face. I felt as if I was under the effect of a spell or something.

The class president climbed on the podium as murmurs filled the auditorium. Leaving me standing aside, he grabbed another microphone.

“Students of Shinseo High School, the video you are watching now shows Hwang Eun-Seo, from Year 2 Class 5, engaging with other students in acts of bullying against Kim Yul, another student from the same class. This video is not staged. It shows exactly what happened.”

The class president wasn’t holding papers. His speech was completely different from the one we had practiced during rehearsal.

“I obtained these thanks to an anonymous informant. Yes, you heard it correctly. There are more videos like this. Hwang Eun-Seo’s crimes are recorded in 103 audio recordings, 311 videos, and 30,790 photos.”

Crimes? Videos? Photos?

“Broadcasting Club Leader, please pull up the PPT,” the class president instructed with a gesture.

“Yes, yes...”

A projector displayed photos one after another. The quality wasn’t very good, but they were still clear enough to show that everyone was wearing our school uniform.

“After today’s presentation, we’ll report Hwang Eun-Seo to official authorities. Of course, Kim Yul, the victim, will also sue Hwang Eun-Seo.”

Report? Sue?

“I would like to ask if any of the teachers working at Shinseo High School have been aware of what has been going on... I see that’s not the case. Yes, that’s right. Despite the repeated criminal activities over the past year, the teachers, who are supposed to be responsible for our safety at school, have not taken any action. This is the reality of Shinseo High School.”

The teachers’ reactions weren’t much different from mine. Most of them couldn’t pull themselves together. A few whispered with a sense of urgency to their colleagues until one of the lead teachers stood up.

“Wait a minute. Hey! Step down from the podium! What do you think you’re doing?”

The class president went on. “I believe that the teachers should also be held responsible when we make the report. After all, that is one of the reasons I’m informing you about the bullying that has been happening in our school.”

“Well, if you wanna do things this way...”

“I would like to call your attention that my presentation is currently being recorded and videotaped. The videos, photos, and recordings have already been sent to some media outlets this morning.”

The lead teacher stood up and looked at the principal. Actually, all the teachers’ eyes were on the principal, who opened and closed his mouth a couple of times before he glanced down at his phone. “G-give me a minute. Please.”

Whether he was making or receiving a call was unclear. He just lowered his head and started talking to someone. His response left the teachers paralyzed.

“That’s a lie!” I screamed into the microphone I was holding. “These are all fabrications! You’re lying!”

However, the speakers didn’t carry my voice. The head of the broadcasting club had turned off my microphone. Only the class president’s voice could be heard through the speakers.

“Please take a look at Hwang Eun-Seo here. Do you remember what he said a moment ago in his apology? He said, ‘Instead of stopping it, I participated in the bullying myself.’”

A buzz of murmurs followed from the students.

“He defended himself by saying he was merely participating in the bullying. According to his words, he wasn’t the main offender. However, he was the one who formed this group, filmed the videos, and distributed them. He never admitted to these mistakes and pretended to feel remorse in front of all of you.”

All the students looked at me.

“Look at Hwang Eun-Seo’s face. Remember his facial expression, his reasoning, and how he tried to run away unscathed from what he did despite starting the bullying.”

Yes, the class president was the one who had been secretly trying to hunt me down.

He lowered the microphone and turned to me, his right hand wrapped around the device to block all sounds from being transmitted. He spoke very quietly, so that only I could hear him. “Oh, that was hard.”

His voice was so calm that I had a hard time realizing that this was really happening to me.

“Anyway, Hwang Eun-Seo, your life is over. You’d be surprised to know how many criminal charges can be applied for what you’ve done. Well, I can’t send you to prison for the rest of your life because you’re a minor, but that’s okay. I can just end your social life forever.”

“Y-You...”

The class president sighed. “I had a hard time pretending to be your friend. I mean it. I was too emotional when I was young. Talking to you often made me feel nauseous. It’s nice that my back doesn’t hurt, but I used to have such a naive worldview... Well, that’s why I got into university like that, I guess.”

He went on, grumbling. “Do you know that you need a lot of money to serve society? No matter what you do, even if it’s just a little bit, life is all about money. Even if you want to plant a tree, go to a region that’s in distress, or help orphanage teachers, it costs money. Phew. I wish I had known this when I was in school...”

“What the fuck are you talking about?” I screamed, unable to hold back my boiling anger.

I paused, realizing that my voice echoed much louder in the auditorium than I had expected. Unlike the class president’s quiet whispering, everyone heard me shouting.

“Yeah.” The class president smiled. “I talked nonsense on purpose to make you snap like that, kid. You walked right into that one, didn’t you?”

His smile made my head spin again.

“Perhaps, by now, those connections you think you have... Ha.

This bastard.

“Anyway, you probably think that your connections will help you. Not at all. Your girlfriend and I negotiated various things in exchange for deleting the videos featuring her. All of your customers made negotiations like that. Remember. Those children from wealthy families don’t care about you at all. Their only concern is that their names won’t be associated with this incident.”

Meanwhile, the broadcasting club head continued to flip through the PPT, showing more and more photos on the projection screen. The students’s buzz got louder, some even yelling “Fuck” and “This is so sick.”

“I’m sorry to Mr. Kim Yul, but... this is all I can do as class president. I guessed it can’t be helped. I told you this many times since you were young, Gong-Ja.” The class president’s kind smile returned to his face. “People do what they can.”

That smile made something inside my head snap.

“One day, you will meet a person who will make you think that they will ruin the world if left to their own devices, and you’d probably be right. Get rid of them. You should screw them up when you can so you can save yourself from regretting it later.”

The class president chuckled. I yelled and threw myself at him. Although he didn’t fight back, he continued to laugh quietly.

“This is why they say you have to raise your children well. So you can spend your final years without having to worry about them...”

I clocked him in the jaw, knocking him down and crushing him with my weight. I heard people screaming behind me, but I didn’t stop.

You son of bitch! You motherfucker! How dare you! Because of you, my life...!

“Hey, Hwang Eun-Seo! Calm down! Teachers, you need to stop him!”

“Broadcasting Club Head, stop filming right now!”

“E-even if you yell at me... I have to do this...”

My life!

[The quest's clear requirements have been met.]

[Requesting a decision to be made due to the stage’s unique characteristics.]

I did my best in my life... Even though I didn’t live the best life, I really did my best! No one here has worked harder than me or taken life as seriously as I have!

[A decision has been made.]

[The Master of All Life acknowledges that the stage has been cleared.]

No!

[However, The Story of the City of Ascension: Side Story will not be included in the official history.]

No!

[The stage has been cleared.]

I refuse to acknowledge that this is happening! I refuse! I’ve been tricked! Tricked! It’s not fair! It’s not right! Yes, what about my human rights? Mine, no one else’s! Everyone has the right to a fair trial... I am also human! This is wrong!

[Announcement.]

[The twenty-ninth floor has been cleared today.]

It’s not fair. Have pity on me... Come on. Pity me.

[The Master of All Life speaks on behalf of the Tower.]

[Thank you for your hard work, everyone.]

I didn’t do anything wrong.

[I made a somewhat partial choice, but the other children will probably overlook it this time since I tend to be a little more generous to those who went through a lot.]

I didn’t...

[May luck be with you.]

***

That was my first defeat. I inhaled sharply and jumped up reflexively, my heart hammering in my chest. It wasn’t the first time I had been completely immersed in a character, but it was hard to get used to the heartache I had when I came back to my senses. When I looked around, I realized I was in a corner of the great library.

“Mmm...”

“Ugh...”

The Constellation Murderer and the director also sat up. For a while, the three of us caught our breath, too out of energy to do anything else. Our thoughts were jumbled together.

After over ten minutes, the orphanage director whispered, “Gong-Ja... ”

“Yes?”

“Please come here...” the director told me, gesturing with his hand.

For some reason, I had an ominous feeling about this. When I lived at the orphanage, I had seen his eyes turning fierce like that after the kids fought among themselves. I calmly went to the director’s side and kneeled.

“I’m here...”

“Long ago, during the Spring and Autumn Period, there was someone named Wu Zixu.”

I became more and more anxious. When the director scolded the kids, he never did it right away. He always took a break and talked about a story, just like how he would think about a question for a day before answering.

From what I remembered, the story of Wu Zixu was an S-level warning sign among us.

“Yes...”

“I’ve told you this story a lot, so I’m sure you remember. The man dug up the body of an enemy who had killed his family and whipped him until his bones turned to dust. But think about it for a bit.”

I nodded. “Okay...”

“Let’s suppose when Wu Zixu tried to dig up the grave to seek revenge, someone had already dug there, making exhumation easy. They even took out the coffin for him. Do you think Wu Zixu would be happy and say thank you for someone else exhuming in advance? Or do you think he’d be angry and ask why they messed with the grave of the guy whom he called dibs on getting revenge first?” the director asked.

“Uh...”

“Half of the story is missing, isn’t it?[1]”

“D-Director,” I stammered, confused.

“Yes?”

“Aren’t you angry because I pushed myself too hard? Or why I chose to sacrifice myself too much and not take care of myself...? Isn’t that what you wanted to tell me...?”

“Gong-Ja, you’re an adult now. You know best how to take care of yourself, so why would I say something about it? It was hard raising you, but do I have to worry about that even when you’re all grown up?”

The director’s voice was cold. Amazing. He said that as if it was nothing. I couldn’t believe how much my memories had fooled me. I had forgotten that the director was actually like this.

“When I was raising you, I made sure that you would grow up to be as strong as possible. Sympathy is like a gift that brings you joy if you happen to get it from time to time, but if you get used to it, you become weaker and eventually wither away. Gong-Ja, I don’t pity your life at all. Live the way you want to live.”

The Guardian nodded.

—I see... I was wondering where your temper originated from, Zombie. You’ve been taught this from a very young age...

I suddenly became curious about how my peers from the orphanage were doing nowadays. Kim Han-Bi was a member of the National Assembly. Would I be able to find a video of him online?

“Gong-Ja.”

“Yes?”

“Even if you hadn’t given me the videos or photos, I would have worked my fingers to the bone to screw... Sorry. No, I don’t need to be sorry. You are an adult now too. Yes, I would have worked my fingers to the bone to screw over Hwang Eun-Seo. Why did you go ahead and did all my work for me? Did you want me to scold you once we were done?”

Hey, I’m too old to be nagged! On top of that, the Guardian and Shiny are watching!

“No, but I had to do something, too... Besides, I entered the stage a year earlier than you and started with an immersion level of ninety-five percent. Wouldn’t this make anyone feel a little under pressure?”

The director paused.

Yes! I knew it! The director pretended not to, but he actually cared a lot about other people. I knew it! I was an adult now, so I could tell!

I quickly added, “Yes, Director. You told us that we should live the way we want to live. When I entered this stage, I did what I wanted to, based on what you taught me.”

The Guardian looked like he had another realization.

—I see... I also wondered how you managed to hone your talking skills. Your shamelessness is also part of your early education.

Just then, the Constellation Murderer stood up. The corners of his eyes were watery, as if he had shed tears in his sleep because of a nightmare. He looked straight at me without wiping his eyes.

“Death King, just as you hoped, I have come to understand Kim Yul after experiencing his past firsthand and remembering how he used to live. I have learned a lot, but there is one thing I would like to ask you. What do you want me to do next?”

I said, “Kim Yul is a victim who got killed. There is a will that Kim Yul left behind when he died.”

—You’re the ones who killed me. Don’t forget that you did this to me.

The two sentences made up Kim Yul’s resentment. Even if it meant giving up his own life, he had left a scream behind that would haunt his murderers, the animals, so that they would never forget what they had done. This way, they would suffer forever.

I took out the handkerchief from my pocket and held it tightly. “But you forgot something.”

The Constellation Murderer tilted his head. “Forgot what?”

“Humans from countless worlds have been sacrificed because you killed Constellations. You forgot about them.”

On the fiftieth floor, which I had gotten to using an expedient, the Constellation Murderer had said that he didn’t remember what he did.

“I made two mistakes. First, I didn’t consider the possibility of a new Constellation being born again in a world where a Constellation perished. The second mistake is that I underestimated how bad of a curse a Constellation can cast on their world upon their death.

“I won’t make the same mistake in the future. To express my gratitude for your advice, I offer a reward.”

I grabbed the handkerchief even tighter. “You did it because you didn’t know. It wasn’t intentional. Is it okay to just forget about it and live on? Did Kim Yul think it was okay for the animals to forget about him?”

The Constellation Murderer didn’t reply.

“The people who bullied Kim Yul were the worst sons of bitches, Constellation Murderer. But that doesn’t make your sins wash away. Don’t make the same excuses as those animals.”

What I wished for was that he would stop being a puppet. If he could turn back into a human, that was even better.

“Face those who have wronged you and the lives you have wronged. Please face them head-on.”

The Constellation Murderer remained silent.

“Please make a decision. Now. If you don’t want me to summon you using Monster Legion Reincarnation, then I’ll never do it again. One day, I’ll find all your puppets and destroy them. But if...”

“If?” The Constellation Murderer finally looked at me. There was a vortex of emotions in his blue eyes. “What happens if I decide to face everyone I have wronged?”

I didn’t know whether this was a trace left by Kim Yul, a student from Shinseo High School’s Year 2 Class 5, or whether it was an emotion that the Constellation Murderer himself felt. That was why I asked, “What would Kim Yul have done?”

No response.

“What do you want to do?”

The Constellation Murderer finally said, “I...”

1. The raw is 굴묘편시(掘墓鞭屍)에서 졸지에 굴묘가 빠지겠구나.(굴묘(掘墓/exhume) is missing from the four-letter idiom. ☜