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Translator: Vine
Chapter Title: Jealousy (3)
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"It's Jin Yuha, alright, but I'm not the one chasing Cheonhwa. Cheonhwa's the one chasing me."
"Ha! Lady Cheonhwa chasing *you*? A quota-system bastard like you?"
They snickered among themselves, as if they'd heard the funniest joke.
My eyes grew cold.
"Alright, then why did you bother them?"
"Who?"
"The guys you're sitting on."
"They're quota-system guys, just like you."
"So?"
"So what? If you have a pile of trash, you burn it all together, don't you? You don't separate it piece by piece?"
*Crunch, crunch—*
"Ugh…"
"Ack."
The square-jawed man ground the quota-system students' heads against the floor as if stubbing out a cigarette.
I felt disgusted.
*'Ha, these creepy bastards.'*
In this ambiguous gender-reversed world, women possess great power, yet still retain their feminine characteristics.
But it seemed the same was true for men on the flip side.
Perhaps their personalities were masculine, but their strength was weaker than women's, which made them turn out this twisted.
*'No. This guy's just a jerk. Guys like this were always like this, even in the original world.'*
In Shin Sehee's personal story, he was the type who would constantly follow her around,
eventually crossing the line she'd drawn and getting kicked out.
He was, at best, that kind of guy.
"You should be grateful. I'll let you rest for a few days. Aren't you, despite your lowly status, getting training that's way above your station?"
"What was it? 'I want to receive training at the same level as a special admission student'?"
The man with the mean-looking face, standing next to the square-jaw, twisted his lips mockingly.
Laughter erupted from various corners again.
The square-jawed man shook his head, then lifted his heavy backside and stood up.
"I originally intended to watch you a bit longer, but I can't let this go. How dare a nobody like you even bother Lady Cheonhwa?"
He was quite a large man.
I rolled my eyes, assessing their strength.
'Fifteen.'
In my hand was a wooden sword. To think something like this would happen on the very day Instructor Baek Seolhee told me to always carry a wooden sword.
*Clench—*
I tightened my grip on the hilt.
At the same time, I spoke to the square-jawed man in a calm tone.
"Is this what men's jealousy looks like? It's a bit disgusting."
"…What?"
"But even without me, Shin Sehee wouldn't give you the time of day."
I looked at the square-jawed man and let out a low laugh.
"Because, you're ugly as hell."
Perhaps his face was a complex, for at that slight provocation, his face contorted furiously, and he lunged at me.
"You son of a bitch!"
A fist flew towards my face. His hand was wrapped tightly in something like a chain.
*Whoosh—*
A massive fist filled my vision.
*'…After seeing Kang Dohee's fist, this is just ridiculous.'*
I scoffed and subtly tilted my head.
The punch grazed my cheek, missing by a hair's breadth.
"…Oh? You dodged that?"
Just as he turned his body, his face filled with rage, to swing his fist again—
*Thwack—!*
"Guh!"
The hilt of the wooden sword dug deep into his waist.
The square-jawed man's eyes bulged as his head slammed into the floor.
He writhed, clutching his waist.
"Ughhh…"
Drool dripped from his wide-open mouth, accompanied by a groan.
"…You bastard!"
He turned his head, eyes filled with hatred. The drool glistened around his mouth.
I looked down at him and said,
"Today, you're going to get beaten until your eyes pop out."
I gripped the wooden sword with both hands and raised it.
It was the move I'd practiced throughout training.
Basic downward strike.
*Whoosh—!*
The tip of the sword descended in an unwavering arc, falling onto the square-jawed man's back.
*Whack—!*
"Argh—!"
The man, who had been trying to get up, collapsed onto the floor again.
"Don't put your hands on your back. You'll break a bone."
*Whack—!*
"Aargh!!!"
"Hey, I told you not to touch your back, didn't I? You'll break it."
At that, the man completely turned his body over.
*Whack—!*
"Ugh!"
*Whack!*
"Ack!"
*Whack!*
"Guh!"
*Whack!*
"Urgh!"
I swung the wooden sword like a bat, hitting him evenly all over his body.
Since he was big, there were plenty of places to hit.
He seemed to be trying to block with his hands and get back up, but I had no intention of letting him.
The merciless beating continued.
"Aargh! S-Stop! I-I'm sorry!"
The man, unable to take the beating any longer, curled up and cried out.
"Oh, no."
*WHACK—!!*
I finished by striking him on the head.
The man, hit on the head by the wooden sword, rolled his eyes back and let his face slump to the side.
A hush fell over the surroundings.
Their leader had charged in, only to be beaten to a pulp and knocked unconscious.
It had happened in an instant.
"W-What the…!?"
"…C-Captain?"
"How on earth did that bastard…!"
The surrounding men stared wide-eyed in disbelief, alternating glances between me and the square-jawed man.
"Hmph."
I let out a light breath and leisurely took a step forward.
"Hey! Damn it!! Grab your weapons!"
The mean-looking man exclaimed frantically.
At that, the others started in surprise, clenching their fists or drawing the self-defense weapons they carried.
"It's good that you haven't lost your motivation after seeing that, but…"
I curled the corner of my lips.
"Don't you think you should pick your battles?"
"Damn it! This crazy bastard! Let's all take him down!"
With harsh curses, the fourteen men charged.
* * *
*Whack!*
"Guh—!"
A resounding blow echoed, and another man fell to his knees.
The men gathered here were considered quite strong among the male students who had just enrolled.
All their attacks were aimed solely at Jin Yuha.
However, Jin Yuha avoided and deflected their attacks by merely subtly shifting his body or ducking his head.
And the subsequent sword strikes were hidden in the darkness, imperceptible to the eye.
*Whack!*
"Aarghh!!!"
Just as a striking sound echoed, one person would collapse on the spot, letting out a chilling scream.
The pupils of the remaining men trembled with shock as they watched this.
A male quota-system student.
He was clearly someone who hadn't even taken an entrance exam.
Trash who got in without any effort, unlike themselves, who had earned their admission through blood-and-sweat effort.
That alone was unforgivable, but he had even committed the outrageous act of clinging to Lady Cheonhwa and dining with her.
Because he was that kind of guy, they thought he needed to experience the same trials and pain they had endured.
That's why they had gathered.
To teach him a bitter lesson so he wouldn't dare walk around with his head held high as a male quota-system student in Velvet Academy.
To warn him not to even *think* about clinging to Lady Cheonhwa.
But what was this?
Fifteen people were being unilaterally hunted down by a single person.
"It's impossible…!"
"W-What is this…!"
"Damn, no one said anything about this!"
The remaining men shouted in confusion.
Even amidst the chaos, the wooden sword diligently beat their bodies.
"How on earth can a quota-system bastard…!"
"Damn it. Don't say 'quota-system, quota-system,' you bastard!"
"Hiek!!!"
*Whoosh—!*
Perhaps due to accumulated frustration, the wooden sword, imbued with emotion, flew at the head of the man who had just shouted "quota-system."
*WHACK—!*
"Gurgle—!"
The man stumbled, then immediately collapsed on the spot.
*Thud.*
By this point, the remaining men couldn't help but realize. Something was terribly wrong.
"W-We need to run…"
"Monster…!"
Just as they were dragging their feet back, about to turn away—
"Damn it. You men have no loyalty?"
A chilling voice made them freeze.
"Hey, if you take a step from there right now, you're really dead."
"…!"
"Do you want to just get beaten here, pass out, and have it end? Or do you want to be consistently beaten from orientation to graduation?"
From orientation to graduation.
Imagining years of beatings and violence, their faces turned ashen.
In the end, there was only one choice.
"Ughhh… Y-Yes, we'll get beaten now and have it end!"
"W-We're sorry!!!"
*Whack!*
*Whack!*
The last remaining men closed their eyes tightly, meekly took the wooden sword's blows, and collapsed on the spot.
*Thud.*
*Thud.*
And the ones who witnessed all of this…
Were the male quota-system students who had been lying prostrate on the floor.
*'Crazy…'*
*'What is this…'*
They couldn't even open their mouths.
Goosebumps erupted all over their bodies.
This was the first time they had seen Jin Yuha's sword.
They had been late for the sparring session where the instructor first revealed his skills,
and since then, all they'd seen was him standing still, day in and day out, with his sword.
That's why they had badmouthed Jin Yuha whenever they had the chance.
It felt unfair that the instructor treated him specially, and that they were ignored while being treated as mere training tools.
And hadn't they been put in this awful situation today because of Jin Yuha?!
Jin Yuha, a fellow male quota-system student, yet acting as if he was different.
Naturally, their feelings towards him couldn't be good; only their hatred had been piling up, layer by layer.
But what was this?
That Jin Yuha had saved them.
Displaying an unimaginable level of skill.
"…Hey, are you okay?"
Jin Yuha, with one foot on a man's head,
turned his head with a slightly awkward expression and scratched his cheek.
"Today's incident seems to be because of me. Sorry."
"Why…?"
He had apologized to them.
The guy who had yelled at them on the first day of training, dragging them into it.
The guy who had taken it for granted when they were ignored and treated as training tools.
They knew this was the time to say thank you.
But they couldn't stand not asking.
"Why… are you apologizing? Why did you save us…?"
* * *
"Lady Shin Sehee. Here is the information on Student Jin Yuha and the recorded video you requested."
Under the soft lighting, on a classic desk.
A freshly made hamburger steamed gently.
*Rustle, rustle—*
Shin Sehee skimmed the information about Jin Yuha that the man handed her.
"Hmm, there's really nothing much… There must be something…"
*Thud.*
She glanced through it casually, then closed the file.
"Ah, this must all be a cover. Oh, and did you confirm that?"
Shin Sehee turned her head and asked the man.
"Yes, we were able to identify the person who spoke up about the necklace theft incident. It's been confirmed that a significant amount of information was leaked."
"So it was true… Then it's not particularly strange that Mr. Jin Yuha knew."
Shin Sehee tilted her head from side to side, then let out a soft sigh.
"Well, it's fine. We made a deal. You've also checked the video, right?"
"Yes, it was impressive… I understand why you're keeping an eye on him."
*Munch, munch—*
Shin Sehee put the hamburger in her mouth and played the video.
In the video, Jin Yuha wielded the wooden sword like a ghost, overwhelming the male students.
"Ahaha, as expected. Good work, Secretary Kim."
"…You anticipated this would happen."
At that, Shin Sehee pouted and shot him a glare.
"Could you please not talk as if I ordered it or intended it? It makes me look like a really bad person, you know."
"…"
"I just had a meal with Jin Yuha in front of people, that's all. And I didn't expect him to step in so quickly either."
Though Shin Sehee was adorably grumbling.
The man, who worked as her secretary, couldn't help but feel a shiver of dread.
She intended the jealousy.
The jealousy of the groups who followed and admired Shin Sehee.
'That's not all… How many steps ahead is she thinking?'
He had worked by her side for a long time, but every time he saw her angelic appearance, he felt a sense of incongruity.
"Actually, Dohee is incredibly easy. Her desires are clear. A longing for what she doesn't have. Her unyielding spirit in difficult situations, reaching out to the weak—that pathetic heroism."
*Slurp—*
On the screen, Jin Yuha was seen reaching out to the male quota-system students.
Shin Sehee watched this, sipping her cola.
"Then, Secretary Kim. Now, please overlay the image of the Palandis Guild Leader onto that video and any future daily videos of Jin Yuha. Gradually, frame by frame, so subtly that it won't be noticed. So the Guild Leader's face is slowly overlaid onto this man's face."
"…And then, should I show it directly to Student Kang Dohee?"
"No? That would be too boring, wouldn't it?"
Shin Sehee said with a bright, innocent smile.
"We need to wait until it's more ripe. More. More. Until Dohee finds Jin Yuha annoying, and even hates him. Honestly, if it were up to me, I'd let it go until it completely falls apart—but that would unfortunately go against my deal with Mr. Jin Yuha."
"…"
"It'll be fun, won't it? To see how Dohee, who resisted and pushed him away so much, will change once she falls for him."
Imagining Kang Dohee flustered in front of Jin Yuha, Shin Sehee's smile deepened.
Goosebumps prickled on Secretary Kim's arm, but he merely bowed his head in silence.