Chapter 399: Hitching a Ride (4)

Jo Gyu-Min closed the door and started 'innocently' eavesdropping right away. A content smile quickly spread on his face as he listened to the urgent voice of Director Jeon.

'That's right. You better feel the heat, director.'

If one thought about this situation logically, they should soon realize that Chairman Hwang couldn't possibly see them as his partner in any shape or form.

However, humans couldn't be that logical. Despite knowing that this piece of luck was never meant for them, they couldn't dismiss the one-in-thousand chance. They couldn't let go, even if the odds were ten thousand to one. Maybe more.

...Even if they objectively could tell that taking a chance with odds like that would be their net loss.

'And that's why people still buy lottery tickets...'

Because there was a chance they might win. Even if the odds were eight million to one...!

The best way to increase the odds of winning the jackpot was to buy more lottery tickets. In that case, what would Director Jeon do to win the lottery called Hwang Jeong-Hu?

'...Fix his problems, obviously.'

The problems in his school, that was!

Jo Gyu-Min cackled and headed outside the school building. He glanced behind and witnessed a pair of men hurriedly rushing toward the director's office and silently prayed for their health.

'Please do your best.'

Even though those incompetent men left alone all the bullying issues plaguing their school, they would no doubt try their hardest to 'please' Jo Gyu-Min now.

“Well, now. Shall I head to the next school, then?” Jo Gyu-Min exited the front entrance and glanced at the blazing sun high up in the sky. “Right, before it's too late.”

Jo Gyu-Min's steps heading toward the car were as cheery as a human could get.

***

Choi Yeon-Ha cheerfully waved her hand. “Jin-Seong~, you forgot your lunch box.”

“...?!”

Is she crazy?!

Han Jin-Seong stared at his classroom's rear entrance in utter disbelief. No matter how many times he blinked his eyes and looked, that woman entering the classroom via its rear entrance was undoubtedly Choi Yeon-Ha.

“...? M-my lunch box?”

What kinda insanity is that?! Don't you know how long we've been living in the cafeteria-food era already! Woman, haven't you heard the term cafeteria parasites, AKA school kids, before?!

Choi Yeon-Ha continued to smile while lightly dangling that lunch box in front of her. “Mister Jin-Ho told me to deliver it for you. Or did I get it wrong?”

The teacher stared dazedly at the interrupter of his class. “Ah...!”

Choi Yeon-Ha took her sunglasses off and apologized to the stunned teacher. “Ah! I'm so sorry for disrupting your class, sir! Jin-Seong forgot his lunch box at home, you see?”

The teacher stuttered and stumbled like a fool. “Ah… Hahaha… Hahaha… L-lunch box, you say? Hahahaha…”

Han Jin-Seong's cheeks twitched and quivered at the same time.

'Please choose between laughing or freaking out, sir! And please don't make that silly-happy face while freaking out, too!'

Han Jin-Seong was oh-so-tempted to take a snapshot of his teacher's face and show it to people who had no idea what kind of an expression that could be. Besides all that, though...!

'What were they thinking?!'

A bloody lunch box? Anyone could tell that was a clear-as-day dumb excuse to intrude into the classroom. In that case, why would Choi Yeon-Ha even resort to such a...

“It… It's Choi Yeon-Ha...!”

“Holy cow, Choi Yeon-Ha?!”

To Han Jin-Seong's shock, though, the impact of her appearance was immediate. The initial stunned gasps quickly gained decibels to transform into explosive cries that filled the classroom.

“Woaaaaaaah! It's really Choi Yeon-Ha!”

“Why is Choi Yeon-Ha here?!”

A massive commotion broke out among the students. One student jumped up on his desk to get a better look at Choi Yeon-Ha, while another blindly rushed headlong toward the rear entrance to get closer to Choi Yeon-Ha.

In the proverbial blink of an eye... the classroom turned into a scene of pure pandemonium.

“Oh no, this is no good...!” Choi Yeon-Ha made a genuinely troubled face, but Han Jin-Seong could clearly 'see' nine fox tails swaying behind her hips!

'You are all being taken for a ride, you fools!'

She is nothing like you guys are imagining! She will smile like an angel while squeezing you dry to death! And she won't even feel guilty doing so, too! Don't be deceived by her pretty face!

Unfortunately for Han Jin-Seong... He was?

very

wrong about something. Even if every person in this classroom knew what Choi Yeon-Ha was really like beneath that angelic exterior, this situation would still have happened anyway.

What was kindness? Short answer: having a pretty face!

Even if a woman's personality resembled a witch, half of South Korea's men would still want to date her as long as her face was as pretty as Choi Yeon-Ha's! Besides, Choi Yeon-Ha was nowhere near as nasty as a witch, anyway. In fact, her personality could be considered quite frail (?) and even vulnerable!

“Mm… Please wait, everyone. Please wait!” Choi Yeon-Ha wagged her finger, and the entire classroom was suddenly enveloped in expectant silence. “First thing first… Can you let me through so I can deliver this lunch box to Jin-Seong? I've other deliveries to make today, you see?”

“W-what is in that lunch box, Miss Yeon-Ha?”

“Oh, this? I thought children nowadays aren't getting balanced, nutritious meals, so I wanted to help by making special packed lunches. I told Jin-Seong to take one with him in the morning, but he didn't! He can be so forgetful sometimes!”

'Forgetful, my foot!'

No one said anything about lunch boxes, you know!

When Choi Yeon-Ha sighed in 'genuine' lamentation, all the boys in the classroom began shuddering. The gesture of?

'We are even more sorry than you, Miss Yeon-Ha!'

suddenly erupted forth from everyone here!

“Hey, Jin-Seong! Why did you have to forget your lunch at home!”

“N-no, hang on! I should thank you for forgetting it, dude!”

“Eh? You… are right? T-thanks, man!”

Why were Han Jin-Seong's classmates thanking him? Just why?!

'Just what are you trying to do here?!'

Han Jin-Seong wanted to yell loudly at Choi Yeon-Ha to immediately stop this insane charade, but her cool gaze quickly put an end to his rebellious streak.

‘Oh, uh…’

It seemed Han Jin-Seong was hopelessly a man at heart, too. Just one stare into Choi Yeon-Ha's eyes was enough to wipe out all thoughts of resistance from his head.

Choi Yeon-Ha's high heels clopped loudly on the classroom floor as she walked up to Han Jin-Seong's desk. While making a refreshing smile, Choi Yeon-Ha pushed the lunch box forward. “Here you go~.”

...Miss Yeon-Ha, please don't wrap the lunch box in a heart-patterned wrap! We aren't inside a teen romcom from the 80s, you know!

Just who came up with this scenario, anyway! Just who?! Did they think this concept would work?! Seriously!

That was when Choi Yeon-Ha smiled warmly again and addressed Han Jin-Seong. “Come home earlier than usual today, okay? We'll be having dinner together with everyone, you see? Promise me that you won't stop by at a PC Room.”

“I-I won't.”

“Good. Okay, see you later.” Choi Yeon-Ha turned her attention away from Han Jin-Seong, then bowed deeply at the teacher. “Again, I'm so sorry for this commotion in the middle of your class.”

“N-no, it's fine, Miss Choi. Hahahaha… Things like this can sometimes happen, after all... To think you'd personally deliver lunch boxes and… Well, uh… You're a lot more than… How should I put this…” The math teacher suddenly became a literary major for the first time in his life while searching for the most eloquent and elegant adjectives in the world.

That was when Han Jin-Seong had an epiphany.

'Ah…?It wasn't about the scenario…?That wasn't important at all.'

In this world... There was a certain type of movie. Movies with rubbish plots and even worse directions, but people still went to see them because the actors were beautiful or handsome. Those types of movies.

For the first time in his life, Han Jin-Seong realized the importance of the 'aura' that all top-tier actors possessed.

𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

Choi Yeon-Ha lightly tapped on Han Jin-Seong's head a couple of times before waving her hand while heading to the classroom's rear entrance.

“W-wait! Please give me your autograph!”

“R-right! Here, in my notebook!”

“And mine, too!”

“You can sign on my chest, Miss Yeon-Ha!”

“Which bastard said his chest just now?!”

Another pandemonium ensued. Kids went absolutely batshit crazy, but the math teacher stood still like a statue, not even bothering to stop the madness running rampant right before his eyes. It was as if the teacher was still searching for the right adjectives to describe Choi Yeon-Ha.

Slam! Bang!

That was when all the classroom windows facing the corridor were viciously shoved open, and the heads of boys from other classes urgently peeked inside.

“It's C-Choi Yeon-Ha!”

“It's real?! Choi Yeon-Ha really is here?!”

“Uwaaaaaah?! It's Choi Yeon-Haaaaaa!”

Martial law was declared just then.

***

‘Am I in Hell?’

After the massive incident called the 'Choi Yeon-Ha Incursion' had finally ended, Han Jin-Seong was sagging lifelessly against his desk.

‘A firestorm swept across us. And burned all of us down to ashes!’

Sure, Han Jin-Seong was also a man! A man just like everyone else, so why?!

He simply could not understand why other students reacted so viscerally like that!

'Am I the weirdo here?'

Even if that was Choi Yeon-Ha, wasn't she a woman like… well, every other woman? In that case, why were the other boys losing their shit like that?

Some idiot, who let his blood rush to his head, even jumped out of his second-floor classroom just to get close to Choi Yeon-Ha when she reached the first floor and broke his leg in the process! And the school had to call an ambulance to take his stupid ass to the hospital!

The balding head of the dean of students was especially soaked in sweat and gleamed brightly under the light as he ran around everywhere to control the anarchy.

The unrest was eventually brought under control by the concerted efforts of the teachers, but the ripples from Choi Yeon-Ha's visit remained enormous. Every boy who got to see Choi Yeon-Ha up close couldn't regain their wits and dazedly drooled away like a bunch of sleepwalkers even as the lunch break approached.

Of course, the one who received the brunt of the emotional damage was undoubtedly Han Jin-Seong.

'...I swear, when I go back to the orphanage later,?Imma flip?the place upside down!'

Han Jin-Seong swore to find the one responsible for this insane scenario and humiliate them! And he'd hit them with humiliation several times worse than what he was feeling right now until they died of shame!

“...

Sigh.

Let's just finish my lunch…” Han Jin-Seong forced himself to get up, then trudged toward the school cafeteria. While he walked down the corridor, his senses picked up the flood of gazes landing on him.

'I'm not some monkey in a zoo, okay?!'

People might stare the same way if a monkey in a zoo walked around on its hind feet. And the lunch box oh-so-lovingly wrapped in a heart-patterned cloth only worsened Han Jin-Seong's humiliation.

“Fuu-woo...!”

Han Jin-Seong finally reached the cafeteria but had to stop walking after experiencing a bizarre phenomenon of everyone suddenly turning their heads to stare at him simultaneously.

Han Jin-Seong always thought of himself as a tough cookie who wouldn't wilt in front of people's intense scrutiny. But here he was, finally realizing how much guts one would need to become a famous actor.

Just the pointed attention from so few people was enough for Han Jin-Seong's legs to creak and stutter like a 16-bit processor before breaking out into a robotic dance as if electric motors had been installed on his joints.

'Uwaaaaaah?! G-gimme a break...!'

Han Jin-Seong lowered his head as much as possible and hurriedly rushed to an empty table in the far corner of the cafeteria. He put the lunch box down and began seriously pondering his options next.

'I, uh... I need to eat this, right...?'

As a cafeteria parasite, he needed to eat the cafeteria food. However, he had a strong hunch that doing that would be practically impossible today. Everyone saw him receiving this lunch box, so... Not eating it would surely cause one massive stink later on.

To be or not to be… Either way, he was still screwed, wasn't he?

'...I don't know anymore.'

Han Jin-Seong bravely unfurled the cloth and opened the lunch box. But then...!

“Hey, get out of my way, now! Out of my way!”

A loud, rough-sounding voice resounded from somewhere behind the wall of people, forcing them to part ways.

Han Jin-Seong looked up, only for his jaw to fall to the floor.

'Heol...?!'

Why?! Why...!

Why did he have to attract the attention of that dude!

Choi Su-Han was infamous in the school for being the worst thug here. And such a dude was charging straight toward Han Jin-Seong right now! Choi Su-Han shoved the other kids blocking his way with his thick arms, then stood imposingly before Han Jin-Seong, his glare locked firmly on the latter.

Han Jin-Seong nearly choked on his words. “H-hey, man.”

“...Han Jin-Seong.”

“Y-yeah?”

“That's the lunch box Choi Yeon-Ha made for you, right?”

“...Y-yeah.”

“Hah. Bloody hell...!” Choi Su-Han chuckled in utter dismay, then resumed glaring murderously at Han Jin-Seong like an angry predator.

Han Jin-Seong could only tremble fearfully without realizing why he was being glared at.

Choi Su-Han continued to glare for some time before finally breaking his silence. “...One bite.”

“Eh?”

“...Just one bite, okay?”

“...”

Another bout of silence descended in the cafeteria. Everyone inside had zipped their mouths shut.

Although Han Jin-Seong couldn't figure out why everyone was keeping mum in this situation and at this time...! It was true that everything was eerily silent right now! Actually, Han Jin-Seong didn't want to know why anymore!

Unable to endure this weighty silence anymore, Han Jin-Seong involuntarily picked up the lunch box. “Y-you want to eat this?”

“Can I?” Choi Su-Han's eyes gleamed dangerously.

“Y-yeah.”

“Seriously? No lies?”

“...Yeah, no lies.”

Choi Su-Han suddenly rushed toward Han Jin-Seong and pounded the latter on the shoulder several times. “...Hey, I didn't know you were a nice guy, Han Jin-Seong!”

“Huh?”

“I'm moved by your generosity, man!”

“...Oh.” Han Jin-Seong couldn't help but chuckle hollowly.

'All of them are…?They are all insane.'

Han Jin-Seong finally saw the true faces of the thugs he was always deathly scared of, and the experience left him feeling very complicated.

Just... Just what kind of situation was this?

'You know what, I don't care anymore.'

Han Jin-Seong opened the lunch box's lid, then jerked his head away. That prompted the other boys in the cafeteria to creep toward him like a horde of zombies trying to surround him.

Now stuck in the center of this 'zombie' horde, Han Jin-Seong decided to stop thinking about this altogether.