This World is too Cruel to Men – Chapter 63

Yoonseo’s premonition turned out to be only half-true.

So, they did end up meeting each other… but that was all there was to it.

And that was precisely the reason Baeksulhwa felt anxious.

Choosing Dogun, a boy from Class 3 among the ten classes, was a good start.

Up to that point, everything was fine… but that was where the problem began.

After all, her mouth just wouldn’t open.

‘Was it this hard to speak…?’

It was the first time in her life she felt this way.

She had no idea where to start or how to begin, and she found her mind going completely blank.

What made it even more nerve-wracking was the fact that the moment she had been clinging to was slowly drawing to a close.

Having guided them to a place with the bizarre name “Special Physical Education Room,” it was now time to take the kids to the Classroom of Class 3. Once they got there, it would all be over.

So, before that, she needed to do something… but what on earth could she do?

She didn’t wish for any more chances to have a conversation just the two of them.

After all, she had naturally realized that as she guided them.

What she had thought might be possible actually turned out to be nearly impossible.

So, realistically, even if it was tough to get there, it would be great if she could at least find out what his interests were.

But what on earth should she say to break the ice?

While she was forcing her feet not to stumble, those thoughts plagued her mind.

‘…Ah!’

Suddenly, something flickered in her head, and she halted her steps and immediately turned toward her juniors.

“Ah, right… I almost forgot to say this. We’re recruiting new members for the Student Council as the new semester begins, so please do consider applying.”

As she said that, she cautiously surveyed the reactions of her juniors to confirm one fact.

That boy, Dogun, didn’t seem to have much interest in Student Council activities.

“Um…! Chairman!”

“Yes?”

“Can we do Student Council activities alongside club activities?”

He appeared to be not that interested in club activities either.

Had he been the least bit interested, he would have reacted when the topic came up, but he seemed lost in thought the whole time.

“Of course. In fact, if you look at the current Student Council members…”

“Then do you have a separate club you’re part of, Chairman?!”

“No, I…”

“What are the advantages of participating in Student Council activities?!”

“Um… well, first of all, it’s rewarding to decide our own work, right? And… also, having a record of participating in Student Council looks really good for college applications and jobs…”

The main reason she accepted the position of Student Council President, which she initially had no interest in, was indeed due to that influence.

She had heard from a senior that having experience as a Student Council President gives numerous little advantages during evaluations for qualifications like the Hero qualification test.

What was important was that when she brought that up, there was finally a noticeable reaction from the group she had been keeping an eye on since earlier.

To be precise… it happened when she uttered the word “employment.”

‘So this is it…!’

To be honest, it wasn’t all that surprising.

In a way, it was expected.

This was mainly because the college entrance ratio for boys was pitifully low.

In other words, it also meant that about 90% of the boys looking at her with those sparkling eyes would jump directly into the job market right after graduating high school.

Thus, the biggest concern for male high school students was employment.

Of course, these children in front of her were brand new freshmen, so they were relatively free from those worries compared to 2nd or 3rd-year boys… but it didn’t mean they weren’t concerned about their future.

Dogun didn’t seem too different in that regard.

Otherwise, there was no reason for him to maintain a disinterested attitude and then suddenly react when employment came up.

And if Dogun’s biggest concern or interest was employment, or his future?

There was indeed a card on this side she could utilize.

Perhaps she had finally found something that could be called a path after wandering around.

It was a liberating feeling, like the blinding whiteness that filled her mind was suddenly clearing up.

Of course, there was no guarantee that this newly found path was the right one… but at least it was something she discovered.

Thanks to that, the emotion of joy began to bubble up within her, but… it didn’t mean she could feel entirely pleased.

It was because this card she had found couldn’t be carelessly wielded at any time.

Think about it.

How many people would readily nod along if a person they had only met twice came up to them and said, “I’ll take responsibility for your future, so help me out”?

So before bringing that out, she needed to build rapport first.

Only then would Dogun, instead of shaking his head immediately, at least pretend to think it over after hearing this side’s proposal.

The question was how to build that rapport… which meant she first needed to understand what type of person Dogun was.

‘It looks like I’ll need to come in a bit earlier for a while…’

Given that, it felt necessary.

You know how the saying goes: The early bird catches the worm.

And above all… it wasn’t that difficult either.

Waking up early to exercise was something she did every day anyway.

So it just meant changing her workout location from the dojo to the school.

In that way, a net—if one could call it that—was slowly tightening around Dogun, and he had no idea about it.

And why would he? Baeksulhwa wasn’t showing her feelings clearly like someone else Dogun knew, and besides, Dogun wasn’t particularly interested in Baeksulhwa in the first place.

How could a guy not be interested in a beauty like Baeksulhwa? But, surprisingly, that was the reality.

It wasn’t that Dogun thought of her as a distant figure.

The image of Baeksulhwa he had witnessed in the auditorium was so striking that at that moment, he thought, ‘Ah, that person exists on a different plane from me.’

So, Dogun’s impression of Baeksulhwa was limited to simply thinking, ‘She’s pretty.’

Apart from that, he probably didn’t feel much else.

“So, do you know what I did?”

“What did you do?”

“What else would I do… I just said let’s get started and wiped the floor with them. Once I did that, they couldn’t even think of getting strict with me.”

“Oh wow, Yoonseo… You took over the school on the first day? Yoonseo, you’ve really grown up!”

“Hmm… But what about you? Did anything special happen at school?”

“Anything special?”

“Like, you know… did you make any new friends…?”

“Hmm, well, now that you mention it, there was something.”

“…What is it?”

“Remember that person we met when we went to get our uniforms? It turns out that person is the president of our school.”

Dogun replied casually to Yoonseo’s question, and in an attempt to keep Yoonseo’s slightly inflated ego in check after what had happened at school today, he brought up Baeksulhwa.

He had no idea what kind of impact that would have on Yoonseo.

*

For a moment, Yoonseo doubted her ears.

It was unavoidable.

After all, there was only one person they had met the last time while getting their uniforms, excluding the shop auntie.

That… Baeksulhwa or whatever her name was.

Why… would that girl’s story come out of Dogun’s mouth now?

As warning lights in her brain lit up, a sense of foreboding crawled up her spine.

And her heart, caught in that, thudded loudly.

“I didn’t realize it at the time, but seeing her today, her charisma was incredible. Maybe that’s why, but everyone instantly became her fan…”

But Dogun, totally oblivious to the feelings of others, continued on, and she couldn’t help herself from clenching her jaw.

“…So?”

“…Huh?”

“What about you? How did you feel?”

Thanks to that, her mouth, which had been stubbornly closed, was forced open to ask, because no matter what, she needed to check that.

Once she finally threw out the question, her heart began to race slightly with anxiety.

The answer from Dogun came just as that eerily unsettling emotion was gnawing at her.

“How did I feel? What do you mean?”

With a snicker and a deflating sound as if to say, ‘Why are you asking that?’ Dogun’s answer echoed in her ears, and just like that, all her prior dread evaporated.

After all, Dogun’s tone didn’t sound like that of someone with feelings for Baeksulhwa.

To put it simply… it didn’t seem like he had crushed on that Baeksulhwa or felt any flutter of excitement when he saw her.

If it had just ended there, that would have been great… but somehow, his mouth, which had slipped beyond his control, started to blurt out words.

“…That girl is pretty. And… has a good figure.”

“Well… that’s true, but…”

His voice, laced with contemplation, seemed to shift into unease, launching straight for her heart.

Why did she even ask that question if she was going to feel anxious like this?

Surely, this was when she was feeling unsettled again.

“Honestly, I find it a bit… off.”

“…Huh?”

“No, you see. It feels like that person is too… perfect, you know?”

“Ah… I think I understand what you mean.”

“I see?”

In that moment, she got it.

So… Dogun’s perspective towards that Baeksulhwa was this way.

And she thought, this isn’t something to worry about.

While Yoonseo, too caught up in her feelings of exhilaration to notice the complexities around her, tried to calm her startled heart, she remained oblivious.

While she had presumed that there would be no encounter between the Student Council President and a brand-new freshman, Baeksulhwa’s mind was filled with thoughts on how to approach Dogun more naturally.