011 – Liars Can Recognize Each Other
The corpse of a demon beast usually contains a small magic stone, primarily near the heart area.
It’s where the creature’s “concept” resides, so it’s also called a “concept stone.”
“There has to be one around here somewhere.”
Zzhuaap.
As I was rummaging through the remains of the dog that I had killed, everyone stared in shock and retreated step by step. Regardless, I had a job to do.
This way, I managed to grab two tiny stones, about the size of pebbles.
“Found it! This is it. Though small, we’ve got ‘eyes’ and ‘noses,’ two of them!”
The possibilities this opened up were endless, so I was ecstatic, but everyone just looked at me with expressions of confusion.
“Namjin, are you okay? I could heal your wounds with my ability, if necessary.”
After I’d finished my task, Geum Tae-sung asked me. His face was obviously wrinkled with distaste.
It must be because I was covered in filth spewed by the demon beast.
“It’s hard to even tell where you’re hurt.”
Honestly, no one at this school could’ve been as unlucky as I was today.
And yet, in a strange way, I was somewhat fortunate.
In fact, it wasn’t just the demon’s filth that was mixed in. When I got hit in the crotch by Baek Yeo-ul, I wet myself. If someone had caught on to that, I would’ve been teased for urinating my pants throughout my school days.
Given the situation, it seems no one noticed.
In a way, it was somewhat lucky for me. Still, it would be best to quickly erase the evidence.
“Hey, you guys handle the cleanup. I need to go wash up.”
There was definitely a stream nearby. Recalling the one where Chang-sik had stepped in dog poop, I thought of washing myself there and started walking.
“Eww, what’s that smell?”
“What is that thing? A demon?”
“Seagal! Be careful! There’s a demon!”
When I reached the stream, there were figures there. The students had brooches resembling knights pinned on their chests.
As none of their faces were familiar, they must have been from Class F.
Wait, Class F students? Was Seugal supposed to be cautious?
Worried, I searched the girls’ faces, and my legs almost gave out when I saw her.
It was her without a doubt, my goddess and my savior, Seugal.
Though she didn’t have any scars and her face seemed slightly younger,
she was without a doubt, Seugal.
I came to wash myself, and here I met the person I longed to see so much!
Could the misfortune I endured by being covered in filth have been a blessing in disguise?
“Seugal!”
I shouted with all my might and ran toward her.
When Class F girls shrieked and pinched their noses to avoid me, Seugal just looked at me calmly.
“That doesn’t appear to be a demon but a student. Are you here to wash up?”
With a soft smile, she took a handkerchief from her pocket and handed it to me.
“Use this. And you…”
Swish.
Seugal eyed my tiger-print underwear.
Her crimson eyes curved like a crescent moon.
“You should really put some pants on.”
“Hey! Hanamjin!”
Splash!—At that moment, someone ran quickly into the stream.
Recognizing the familiar voice, I turned my head to see Baek Yeo-ul stumbling over from afar.
“That’s Baek Yeo-ul?”
“Ah, what bad luck!”
Class F girls glared openly upon seeing Baek Yeo-ul, showing they disliked her. To the degree that their stares were as harsh as the ones they gave to me who was thoroughly drenched in filth.
Only Seugal greeted Baek Yeo-ul calmly.
“Hey, Yeo-ul, how are you?”
“Huh? You, you’re…”
“Still doing well?”
Even asking about the wellbeing of Baek Yeo-ul who’s shunned by all! Truly, Seugal was a considerate girl.
Beautiful face, gentle personality, she was perfect in every way!
She was perfectly suited for harmony with me.
“Alright, kids, let’s go.”
When Baek Yeo-ul stood awkwardly with poor social skills, Seugal, like a fairy who had finished her business, disappeared with her hair swaying in the distance.
The shampoo scent carried by the breeze smelled so good.
“I’ve had good luck.”
I held the handkerchief I received from Seugal up to my nose.
Hmm, this fragrant scent…
“I can approach Seugal using the excuse to return the handkerchief. Good luck.”
“…Good luck? How can you say that while looking at your state?”
Baek Yeo-ul gazed at me through thin eyes.
What’s wrong with my appearance? It’s just a little dirty on the outside.
I’ve crawled around sewage and been contaminated far worse. This filth is nothing to me.
Still, I should probably wash.
Plop, Plop!—Splashing around in the stream water made me feel good.
I’ve hunted a demon, got a handkerchief from Seugal, and things are going far too smoothly.
Why are things proceeding this well?
Could I have a goddess of fortune attached to me?
Maybe—
“Hey! Don’t splash water! Hey! Stop splashing! Yaaah! Hanamjin! Yaaah! Ugh! That dirty water went into my mouth! Eeek! Huff, Huff!”
Most likely not.
# # #
“I will announce the joint practice results of Class F and Class D. The team that earned the most points is…”
Class ended.
In front of us returning to the schoolyard, the captain twitched her nose.
“Hmm hmm, is there a strange smell somewhere? Anyway, I will start by announcing the teams with the most points. The team with the most points is Summer Team of F Class’s first group.”
“Of course!”
“We’ve worked hard!”
Jiijji—The girls of Class F shouted.
Summer Team?
When I turned my head, I saw a tall woman hugging everyone, wearing a hoodie.
“Tsu Yu-reum. Captain of Class F. Apparently, she is already treated as a professional explorer even though she hasn’t graduated due to her exceptional skills.”
Predicting my curiosity, Geum Tae-sung whispered information I didn’t even ask for.
Yu Yeoreum.
Summer.
Where have I heard that name?
“Then, let’s announce the second place team. Two teams tied for second place. The first is Class F’s ‘Falling Leaves’ team. The second is none other than Class D’s ‘No Leftover Day.'”
“Wow! We did it! We really did it!”
Choi Chang-sik waved his hands, honestly happy.
Other students turned their gaze upon us, seemingly very surprised.
“Did you do it?”
“Could it be that you had luck? Maybe you found some sort of item imbued with a concept by chance?”
“Still, could it be luck? That’s the Baek Yeo-ul team.”
“…Could it be because of the transfer student?”
Great, great.
I can feel everyone’s attention on me!
Being noticed by people is such a thrilling experience.
“…Ugh.”
Of course, not everyone enjoyed the attention.
Oh Deok-sun, who was introverted and internalized, disliked it.
“Deokhee, thank you for your hard work today. I didn’t realize you were such a good dancer.”
Pang.
With a light slap on the back of the stammering girl, Geum Tae-sung elicited a red stoplight on her cheeks.
“Da… Dance. Forget about it…”
“Then, let’s announce the third-place team. For reference, those who get third place or higher receive a small prize, so you can look forward to it. The third place team is—”
The third-place team was also from Class F.
They swept all the points.
But, well, it was a logical outcome.
Since Class F entered the grounds first at the start of the practice, it was obvious they would secure the good high grounds first.
Did their homeroom teacher, Moon Hyun-a, commit any kind of cheating?
I heard through Geum Tae-sung that the Class D team would get to enter the practice grounds first next time.
“Then, captains of all the teams, please come to the front. Teacher Moon, this is your responsibility.”
The teams that excelled came to the front of the stage to receive their prizes.
Geum Tae-sung nudged me in the back.
“Namjin, go.”
“Me? You’re the captain.”
“I think you should be the captain. Honestly, without you, we would’ve spent all our time at the cliff before returning.”
If you put it that way, I guess it’s fine if I act as the captain.
I did do it all, after all.
So, up on the stage, standing side by side with Yu Yeoreum, Seugal, and me.
Not wanting to miss the opportunity to be next to Seugal, I spoke in the most stylish voice I could muster.
“Ahem, hum, hum, Seugal, I’ll definitely wash the handkerchief thoroughly before returning it.”
“Huh? Oh… the handkerchief. The stream’s tiger-print underwear. That was you, huh? It’s hard to recognize because you’re so clean now. With this unfamiliar face, you must be a transfer student from Class D, right?”
Oh!
Seugal remembered me!
Doesn’t a woman remembering a man count as a green light?
Perhaps Seugal might have fallen for my tiger-like valor.
Then, maybe saying “Would you like to be kidnapped by me?” might yield a “Yes”?
Maybe things will go smoothly after all.
Just as I was feeling good about it, Teacher Moon Hyun-a, who was handing out prizes to the children, frowned at me.
“Smell. Judging from how soaked in filth you are, you must’ve been desperate. But there’s no guarantee that today’s luck will repeat itself next time.”
She looked displeased, and her tone towards me was rather cold.
It must be because she always wears a blindfold, making her nose more sensitive.
In that sense, doesn’t she resemble our Nose Teacher?
“Teacher Nose, whether today’s event was coincidental or not, we’ll see next time. If I beat the Class F students and take first place next time, what will you do?”
“… Nose Teacher? My name is Moon Hyun-a, so please call me Teacher Hyun-a. Besides, first place? Fuuhh… Go ahead and try. It seems you don’t realize how tough our Class F students are yet. But if you somehow do take first place, maybe I’ll give you a kiss on the cheek!”
Teacher Nose laughed as if I had told the funniest joke.
The prize distribution time ended like that.
“Your name is Hanam Jin, right?”
Just as I was about to descend from the stage with a racing heart, eager to check what the “2nd Place Prize” was inside the paper envelope, someone called out to me.
The girl wearing a hoodie over her uniform is quite tall, almost as tall as me.
She looks like she belongs in the sports club, doesn’t she?
“You are… definitely you were Yurim, right?”
“No, my name is Yu Yeoreum. When you announced that you’d aim for first place next time, it was impossible for me to ignore it. I absolutely won’t lose.”
Swish.
The girl Yu Yeoreum extended her hand to me.
“I’m Hanam Jin. Then, let’s both try our best.”
Ggaaack—
Her grip was strong when she shook my hand.
Is she… perhaps, does she like me?
Unfortunately, my heart is already set on Seugal.
But the faint strawberry scent is quite to my liking!
And the bosom visible beneath the hoodie seems impressively large.
# # #
“So, that’s all for today’s class. Return home safely. There are strange people around the school lately, so be careful.”
Class ended.
While I thought the day was especially long, everyone gathered around me.
“Transfer student, is it true that you almost single-handedly caught the demon?”
“Next time, come to our team! You’re a multi-talented person, aren’t you?”
“Namjin! Pair up with me! I need to earn points!”
What is this, oh my—
Has the rumor about me already spread this much?
Madaat, it’s troublesome.
“I did tell you. I came to school today wearing a cool pair of underwear.”
“Underwear? Pfft, uh, cough.”
“Ugh, the smell.”
“Regardless, Namjin! Think about it!”
Nevertheless, the bunch wanting to recruit me into their team covered their noses and mouths, slowly retreating.
What fragile people.
In a world that’s almost fallen, enduring this level of smell would be impossible.
In contrast, my partner, Baek Yeo-ul, had some resilience.
She didn’t even flinch, sitting right next to me.
“Bangdaengi, are you not bothered by the smell at all?”
“I’m not Bangdaengi! Moreover, my family is a food processing company, so we handle all sorts of ingredients. Compared to fermented things like Surströmming, this smell is nothing. But…”
The hesitant Baek Yeo-ul.
What’s wrong with her?
“Do you need to go poop? Can I lend you some tissue?”
“… Nooo! Just that… uh… well, thank you for earlier.”
“Are you talking about showing your underwear to the demon by taking off your pants?”
“… Yeah! Thanks to that, we earned points!”
What, you were dragging so long just to say that?
I thought you were about to make some grand confession.
If there’s nothing more, it’s time for me to return home and start strategizing about “Kidnapping Seugal with Just a Handkerchief.”
As I rose from my seat, Baek Yeo-ul suddenly grabbed my wrist.
“Let’s… stay in the same group next time!”
Her voice was unexpectedly loud.
So much so that everyone preparing to leave turned their attention toward us.
“Hheeeet!”
Realizing her outburst, Baek Yeo-ul fidgeted uncomfortably, causing her bag, which had been placed on the table, to fall and scatter its contents—books and stationery items everywhere.
“Ah, my pencil case!”
What is she doing, causing so much trouble? Truly unlucky.
However, one of the items that fell out of her bag caught my eye.
“Huh, what’s this?”
It was a photograph.
A picture of Baek Yeo-ul in her junior high uniform, smiling brightly. It was quite a nice photo. But there was something odd. The face of the “person” who had posed alongside Baek Yeo-ul, as if in a hug, was blacked out.
“Give me that! Bangdaengi, what are you doing with that?”
Swoosh!
The girl took the photograph from my hands, looking awkward for a moment, then kept silent, but my mind was filled with exclamation marks.
After all, my Sense of Feeling was able to vaguely recognize the blacked-out face in the photo.
There was no mistaking it. That “someone” was Seugal!
“Bangdaengi, you were close enough with Seugal to take photos with her?”
“… We were kindergarten, elementary, and middle school classmates.”
Classmates from kindergarten to elementary and middle school?
Then you’re practically an expert on Seugal!
Lucky me, the key to assisting me was right here all along.
“Great, Bangdaengi. I’ll stay in the same group with you next time. But there’s a condition!”
