At the same time, at the agreed-upon location, a bar…
“Hmm! This pollock roe dish is perfectly seasoned, not too salty, is it?”
A party was in full swing.
That said, there were only two participants. Choi Soo-eun, who had arranged the meeting, and Arna, who had showed up unexpectedly without prior notice.
Incidentally, Shin Yoon-seong, who was originally supposed to come, was nowhere to be seen.
“With this level of saltiness, I could eat as much as I want!”
Arna kept her hands moving non-stop. She ate a variety of dishes laid out on the table without discrimination.
“…”
To Choi Soo-eun, who usually didn’t talk much, it was nothing short of amazing.
If she keeps eating like this, she’ll surely have indigestion later. One wonders how large her pancreas must be. It wasn’t just her ample chest.
Is this what it means to be Western?
“Ah…”
And when is Shin Yoon-seong going to show up? Choi Soo-eon glanced at the wall clock. The appointed hour had long passed.
Could he be planning not to come at all? Did he forget about the appointment altogether? Should I try contacting him now?
“Are you not going to eat that?”
At that moment, Arna spoke up. She was eyeing the small plate in front of Choi Soo-eon.
There lay a serving of finely chopped fatty tuna, known as negitoro, untouched.
“If you’re not going to eat it, I’ll take it instead.”
“What…?”
Not only had Arna barged into the drinking session uninvited, now she was eyeing others’ food as well. She was like a proper thieving cat.
This wouldn’t likely end with just food. She might try to take even bigger things later. Maybe even what Choi Soo-eun valued the most.
Thus, she needed to stay sharp. Even if it was the accomplished Arna, Choi Soo-eon couldn’t afford to back down.
A proper fight was in order.
“No. I’m going to eat this.”
Choi Soo-eun picked up her spoon and scooped up a large portion of the fatty tuna.
“Here!”
She popped the spoon into her mouth in one go.
The informant I had captured was killed by someone, on the very day of the international evaluation match.
It seemed oddly random that someone would come all the way to the gym and start talking about a murder case.
I decided to hear more from Lee Min-ho.
“As you know, only a very few people within the school are aware of this news. At most, it’s those who were part of the match committee at the time, the principal like myself, a few journalists, and finally, student Shin Yoon-seong.”
Just as Lee Min-ho said, even though someone died inside the school, it was as quiet as ever within the campus. It seemed nobody was aware such an event had occurred. I didn’t know about it either.
This must be thanks to Lee Min-ho’s intervention. He likely advised the involved parties beforehand to prevent leaks and managed some lobbying among the journalists to stop the publication of articles.
“…”
Which made it all the more strange. If he planned to hide it, why come to me and confess the fact?
It was hard to predict what Lee Min-ho was thinking.
“Ha ha. You must be wondering why I’ve brought up this story, right?”
Did he read my thoughts? Lee Min-ho spoke up as if he’d been waiting for this moment.
“I am the principal of Han-yul Military Academy. I am the highest responsibility holder in charge of everything from personnel decisions, education, supervision, operation, even to forming relations with external corporations. Oh! Of course, the safety of the school is always on my mind too.”
Lee Min-ho spoke smoothly without a hitch, and he wasn’t done yet.
“However, with a murder case breaking out on campus, I couldn’t just stand idly by, could I, as the principal?”
Had Lee Min-ho not taken preemptive actions, news and newspapers would have been filled with stories about Han-yul Military Academy by now. Afterward, chaos in the school would have been an inevitable sequence.
Lee Min-ho took a step ahead to prevent such a scenario. Perhaps for the image of the school. Or to prevent a drop in the evaluation of principal Lee Min-ho himself.
“In a way, you could say this was an action for myself, because once the news breaks, all arrows will turn toward the principal.”
Lee Min-ho openly admitted it without hiding his intention to care for his image.
“…”
But is that all? Really, is this just about the future of the school or his reputation?
Suppose there was another purpose.
Like the revelation of the identity of the drug dealer circulating stimulants within the school… or the exposure of the assailant’s identity.
“So, I would like to propose something to student Shin Yoon-seong regarding this matter.”
Whatever the reason, it’s Lee Min-ho’s problem. My current concern is why Lee Min-ho sought me out.
Lee Min-ho is now about to reveal the answer to this question.
“As I mentioned earlier, I plan to cover up this incident. To do so, it’s necessary to silence those involved.”
One of those people is me. After all, it was me who made the arrest of the drug dealer.
From Lee Min-ho’s standpoint, I must be quite a nuisance. If something happens in the future, I might stir up the entire school by bringing up this case.
Lee Min-ho came to meet me to prevent such an occurrence later. In other words, he’s here to make a deal with me.
“What exactly are you proposing?”
There’s no harm in listening. Anyway, it’s all in the past, and there’s not much I can do with that information right now.
It’s better to get whatever I can out of this situation.
“By the way, I’ve given generous amounts of money and expensive alcohol to the journalists. That’s the most effective way to ensure silence.”
He openly confessed to making unethical requests. It’s almost questionable if it’s proper for a principal to do this in front of a student.
“But I’m not quite sure about dealing with students. I’ve never negotiated with a student before. That’s why I’m asking. What does student Shin Yoon-seong desire?”
Journalists would close their mouths if offered enough money.
But students are different. Money isn’t always the solution, as each student may want something different.
In my case, money isn’t particularly important. If necessary, I can use the Kang Tae-hoon card.
Therefore,
What I need right now is…
“Let’s say… something related to the upcoming dispatch.”
The dispatch education scheduled during summer vacation, during which Combat Division students leave Han-yul Military Academy and perform internships at various guilds.
Of course, the choice of guild is random, determined by the school’s side.
This time, I plan to pre-designate the guild I want to go to.
“I want to be placed in Venus Guild.”
“Venus Guild, you say? Ah, the place with President Park Won-hyeok.”
Lee Min-ho glanced into the air while stroking his chin for a moment.
Afterward,
“Alright, is it okay to place student Shin Yoon-seong’s name on Venus Guild’s list?”
“And one more thing.”
I continued, indicating that it wasn’t over yet.
“I want another name added to the list along with mine.”
A few days later, summer break started,
the day for guild allocation announcements.
The results are sent individually to smartphones.
“Hey, it’s Venus Guild.”
Kang Tae-hoon, who was chillaxing in the well-air-conditioned laboratory, spoke up first.
The result showing Venus Guild was neither particularly good nor bad for him.
“Oh.”
Next, Rashid checked the result. He showed us his smartphone screen.
On the screen was written the word “Venus Guild.”
“Hmm? So you’re also going to Venus Guild?”
“Uh-huh.”
We were both allocated to Venus Guild. Out of the many guilds, we both ended up in Venus Guild.
“What kind of coincidence is this? It’s ridiculous.”
They seemed ready to dismiss it as a simple coincidence and move on.
However,
“Eh. Me too, I’m Venus Guild.”
The situation shifted when Yoo Ji-woo spoke up.
Kang Tae-hoon asked in shock,
“Even you, kid? Wait, weren’t you in the Technical Division?”
“It’s possible to apply even if you’re in Technical Division. So I just applied.”
“Seriously? You voluntarily applied for a dispatch that everyone avoids like the plague? Are you alright?”
“Why not? It looked fun. Plus, you can receive dispatch allowance if you apply. You need to earn while you can.”
Not only those in the Technical Division, but also the Medical and Administrative Divisions can apply for dispatches since guilds need staff in various positions not just combat personnel.
“Anyway, this is strange. There are so many guilds in the nation, how did we all get assigned to Venus Guild? Maybe….”
Soon, Yoo Ji-woo’s gaze turned toward me, with Kang Tae-hoon and Rashid following.
Wasn’t it obvious? The look on their faces said it all.
“Of course, I’m also Venus Guild.”
I proudly showed them my smartphone. Now, all of us were grouped under the name of Venus Guild.
“What the hell! What kind of nonsense is this! Why are we all in Venus Guild!”
In this bizarre situation, Kang Tae-hoon shouted furiously. Calling it an impossible occurrence.
But surprise wasn’t over yet.
Bang─!
“Wait a minute!”
It happened then. The laboratory door flung open, and a girl walked in.
“Why am I in Venus Guild too? I didn’t even apply for a dispatch initially!”
The last piece of the puzzle, Kim Han-bit, lamented as if she’d been wronged greatly.
“I planned to do some part-timing this summer!”
