Chapter 152 – GOY 152

#152

Just ​then, ​I ​heard ​Park ​Geon-woo’s ​voice calling me ​from ​behind.

“Yeon-soo!”

I ​quickly ​stuffed ​the note into my ​pocket ​and turned around.

“What ​is it?”

“I’m sorry. ​I ​misspoke ​a ​moment ​ago. ​I was just ​trying ​to ​persuade you somehow, ​and I…”

“Please apologize to ​Seung-hyeok.”

As I ​turned to ​leave again, ​Park Geon-woo ​shouted ​urgently.

“Yeon-soo, ​I… I like ​you.”

“What…?”

“I’ve liked ​you for a long ​time.”

“…….”

“I know you’re very ​angry with me. But ​it was ​all ​because I like you so much. ​Not telling you the ​truth ​two ​years ​ago, ​impulsively marking you ​with pheromones, ​proposing ​the Exclusive Guide ​Contract, ​and even my slip of ​the tongue ​earlier—it ​was all because ​my ​feelings ​for ​you ​got ahead ​of ​me.”

He appealed ​desperately.

“So, I know you’re disappointed in me, ​but please believe ​me this time. ​Joo Seung-hyeok deceived you.”

“It’s ​not that ​I don’t believe ​you ​because I’m disappointed ​in you, Seonbae.”

“Then ​what is ​it?”

“I ​love Seung-hyeok. ​That’s ​why I ​believe ​what the ​person ​I ​love said. There ​will ​be no ​lies ​in ​the ​way Seung-hyeok has shown himself to me until now.”

“Yeon-soo, this is no time to be so emotional. You need to go to the hospital and get tested immediately.”

Park Geon-woo’s face showed a mix of frustration and worry for me. He was worried about me. However, in the face of his confession and concern, my heart only grew colder.

“Seonbae, is Jeokrunhwa really that dangerous?”

“You’re asking because you don’t know? Of course it’s dangerous! Every Ability User who consumed Jeokrunhwa in Africa suffered from terrible side effects. Even if it’s a Special Red Rune Flower, there’s no telling what kind of side effects will appear!”

“Even in such an urgent situation, you’ve kept this from me until now. There must have been plenty of opportunities to tell me since returning to the country.”

A lot of time had passed since Park Geon-woo returned.

When we ran into each other at school, when he gave a special lecture, when he visited my dorm room—there were many timings to speak up after that. He said he had been in a car accident, but that it was only a minor leg injury. If so, he could have contacted me even while hospitalized.

Even after the break ended and the second semester began, he could have told me anytime if he had made up his mind to do so. But in the end, Park Geon-woo kept his mouth shut.

“Yeon-soo, I wanted to tell you too. But until now, the evidence wasn’t certain… Moreover, since the entire Inspection Division was moving on this case, I couldn’t act individually.”

In short, he was saying that if I found out, Joo Seung-hyeok would find out too, and then Joo Seung-hyeok might notice the Inspection Division’s investigation and hide the evidence.

Feeling my expression turn cold, Park Geon-woo added hurriedly.

“But I continued to worry about you while investigating. The reason I chose the Inspection Division in the first place was because I wanted to investigate this case personally.”

“I understand your position, Seonbae. Missions are important.”

“Thank you for understanding.”

“But if it were me, I wouldn’t have remained silent knowing that the person I love was in danger.”

“Yeon-soo, I joined the Inspection Division for your sake…!”

“I have no intention of blaming you for performing your duties as a member of the Inspection Division, but please don’t use me as an excuse. And I’ll pretend I didn’t hear your confession. Because I have someone I love.”

After bowing my head in greeting, I turned around and locked eyes with a man standing opposite me.

“Kang In-ho…”

“Lee Yeon-soo, what a coincidence.”

He spoke in a dry voice.

“Uh… what are you doing here?”

“I had some business. I’m heading back now. You?”

“Me too.”

“Want a ride?”

“Yeah…”

As I gave a small nod, Park Geon-woo spoke.

“Wait a second, Yeon-soo. I’ll take you.”

“No. I’m fine. In-ho, let’s go.”

“Okay.”

Kang In-ho strode forward, and I followed behind him.

Kang In-ho’s black SUV was parked in the parking lot.

“Get in.”

“Okay.”

Once I got in the car, Kang In-ho started the engine. We didn’t say a word until we left the center.

And I was the one to break the silence first.

“Were you acquainted with Joo Seung-hyeok?”

“Yeah. We met often during Gate Raids. We go to the same school now.”

“You know that’s not what I meant.”

The note Joo Seung-hyeok left said, ‘Don’t worry and go back with Kang In-ho.’

He knew he would be arrested by the Inspection Division today, and he had called Kang In-ho in advance.

“What is your relationship with Joo Seung-hyeok?”

“Employer and employee.”

A desolate answer came back.

“Have you been conspiring with Joo Seung-hyeok to monitor me all this time?”

Joo Seung-hyeok knew far too much about me, and I had suspected there was someone providing him with information. But I never imagined that person would be Kang In-ho.

No, thinking about it, there was no one more suitable than Kang In-ho.

Kang In-ho and I attended middle and high school together. Since we were both High-rank, we were in the same class for six years, and we often participated in Gate Raids together. Even in college, our lectures almost always overlapped.

It was strange to call him a friend, but he was the person I had been closest to throughout my school years. So, he had been bribed by Joo Seung-hyeok to report my every move.

“I was strictly in a position of being hired for money, so I can’t talk about my employer. But for the record, it wasn’t monitoring.”

“Then what was it?”

“Joo Seung-hyeok worried about you.”

“Worried?”

“He must have heard somewhere that when a child from a Non-Ability User family awakens and transfers to an Ability User vocational school, they’re almost guaranteed to be bullied. So he kept worrying whether you were being harassed. Then he asked me to go to the same school as you and see if you were safe.”

“Then the reason you transferred in middle school was…?”

“Employer’s orders.”

I thought Joo Seung-hyeok had bribed Kang In-ho, who had gone to middle and high school with me. But it wasn’t that; it was actually the opposite?

I recalled the memory of when I first met Kang In-ho.

Seven years ago, after signing a contract with Joo Seung-hyeok, I was scheduled to enter the ‘Seonghan Ability User Vocational School.’

As the name suggests, it was a private vocational school for Ability Users established by the Seonghan Group, and it was famous for having the best facilities in South Korea.

It was also the most coveted school for young Ability Users in the country.

However, by refusing the exclusive contract, that arrangement also became void.

Chairman Joo said he would provide a scholarship regardless of the contract, but I refused. That school had an integrated elementary, middle, and high school system. If I attended, I would keep running into Joo Seung-hyeok.

Since I couldn’t continue attending a regular school after Awakening, I transferred to a Guide vocational school. About a month later, Kang In-ho transferred in.

At the time, I was being bullied at school.

Even in a Guide school, there were so-called ‘iljin’ gangs, and I had been firmly targeted by them from my first day of transfer.

There wasn’t any specific incident. They just seemed to dislike my very existence.

The bullying didn’t stop on the day Kang In-ho transferred, and as soon as the morning assembly ended, they surrounded my seat and started picking a fight.

“Lee Yeon-soo, are you really an S-Class? [Read on Read BL Novels]No matter [visit our site]how I look at [unauthorized copy]it, I don’t believe it.”

“Exactly. To think this thing is an S-Class, it’s fucking ridiculous.”

Because their parents were all High-ranking Ability Users and held positions of power in society, no one helped me even when I was being bullied.

“Even I’m only a B-Class when both my parents are A-Class, and you’re an S-Class? Do you think that makes any sense?”

“Right. Besides, I heard everyone in your family is a Beta. They say there isn’t even a single person who manifested as a recessive even among your relatives, so how can you be an S-Class?”

“I’m telling you, the machine was broken. Even if he’s an S-Class, there must be some defect. Why else would Seonghan have dumped him?”

“Hey, Lee Yeon-soo, just be honest with us. You didn’t dump Seonghan, you were fired, right? They found out you’re not an S-Class, right? And then you played the media because you were embarrassed?”

“…….”

At first, I tried. I tried to clear up misunderstandings and explain things, attempting to get along somehow. But after a month of them picking fights with the same words, I gave up.

Now exhausted from dealing with them, I kept my mouth shut and stared at my book, when one of them kicked my desk. The desk flipped over, and the items inside the drawer spilled out in a heap.

The classmates screamed. But everyone just watched; no one helped.

Biting my lower lip, I tried to pick up the desk, but another guy flicked my forehead.

“Hey! Why aren’t you talking? Are you ignoring us just because you’re an S-Class?”

“Right. He acted so nice on the broadcast, isn’t this all just a facade?”

“Hey, let’s just post this on the internet.”

“Yeah. We need to let people know Lee Yeon-soo’s true nature.”

“Please, just stop…”

My patience had reached its limit. Just as I was about to scream for them to stop, a cynical voice sounded from behind.

“Your inferiority complex is pathetic.”

Startled, I looked back. The transfer student, Kang In-ho, was looking at us with his arms crossed.

“Hey! Transfer student, are you talking to us right now?”

“Who else would I be talking to?”

The largest guy among the unauthorized copybullies shouted, but Kang In-ho didn’t flinch [Read on Read BL Novels]at all stolen contentand responded confidently.

“Are you taking this bastard Lee Yeon-soo’s side?”

“I’m not taking a side, I’m just observing.”

“Observing for what! To snitch on us?”

“Yeah.”

Kang In-ho spat out the word indifferently.

It was an answer that seemed far too bothered to be someone helping a classmate in crisis.

“Ah, so annoying. Let’s go!”

“Yeah, let’s go.”

Thinking that Kang In-ho would tell the homeroom teacher, the bullies left the room in irritation. However, the teacher didn’t say a word that day.

It seemed Kang In-ho hadn’t said anything to the teacher. But that didn’t mean the bullying continued.

After that day, the bullies stopped touching me. They didn’t have the headspace for it.

Some of their parents’ businesses went bankrupt, some fathers were caught embezzling guild funds, and one student had their contract terminated by a corporate guild.

For various other reasons, they all eventually transferred schools.