Chapter 1164

<Chapter 1164> Day 15

“AAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!”

Suddenly, a shriek erupted from Noriko Nebata, the unassuming woman with short hair and glasses sitting in front of me. She ducked her head as everyone’s eyes turned toward her.

The cause? An insect. A single hornet had flown into the car and was buzzing around above Noriko’s head.

“W-W-What is that?!”

“A hornet?!”

“Someone grab it quick!”

The previously quiet interior of the van erupted into chaos.

The men scrambled to crouch down as low as possible whenever the hornet approached, panic overtaking them. This wasn’t just any bug—it was a hornet, capable of killing a person. Fear filled the eyes of both male and female alike.

“Shit!”

A man with dyed yellow hair and an ear piercing began swearing loudly, swinging his bag wildly at the hornet. The hornet effortlessly dodged the attack. He glared at it, his lips curling in frustration. This was Hiroshi Tanaka, the notorious delinquent and sardine tattooed man of this circle.

Bzzzzzzzzzzz.

The hornet’s movements grew more threatening, its wing beats louder and more menacing. It darted toward Ryoko Hagawa, who was closest.

“Ryoko!”

Before Ryoko could react calmly, Kyoshiro Wada stepped in, swatting at the hornet with a notebook in hand. The hornet flew backward. Lisa Nakagami, sitting next to me, reacted instantly, swinging her smartphone to knock the hornet away. Incredible reflexes indeed. The problem? It was now heading straight for me.

I flicked my middle finger, striking the hornet’s body with pinpoint accuracy. Though my physical abilities had declined to average human levels, this was no difficult feat.

The hornet collided with the back of the seat before falling to the floor. I crushed it underfoot, feeling the satisfying crunch of its exoskeleton. Sighs of relief mixed with gratitude echoed throughout the vehicle.

“Nakagami-senpai! I apologize!”

Kyoshiro Wada stood up and bowed deeply to Lisa Nakagami, apologizing for sending the hornet her way.

Nakagami gave Wada a sharp glare before dismissing it coldly.

“Whatever.”

Her gaze then shifted to me, her previously sharp expression softening slightly.

“Sorry about that. I panicked and sent it your way.”

“It’s fine. Panic happens.”

“You don’t seem ordinary… Are you familiar with hornets? That finger strike was impressive.”

“Yeah, I’m pretty used to them.”

I smiled as I responded.

Not true. This was the first time I’d seen a hornet since high school. But a mere hornet didn’t frighten me—not when I’ve faced monsters capable of killing ordinary people with a single blow.

“Are you a first-year? What’s your name?”

“Sung Yoojin.”

“…You’re Korean?”

“Yes, I am. Do you dislike Koreans?”

“Not particularly. I actually enjoy Korean dramas and K-pop.”

With that, Nakagami returned to fiddling with her phone. I didn’t bother trying to force the conversation further. Pushing too hard would only come across as clingy—an inappropriate choice for building rapport.

‘At least she doesn’t hate Koreans.’

Among young Japanese women, those who dislike Korea are rare these days. With the recent popularity of Korean dramas and music, many have developed positive impressions of Korea.

‘That logic doesn’t apply to the guys though.’

There are plenty of Japanese men, even professors, who look down on Korea. Some old-school types still think Korea is stuck in the 80s.

While I generally ignore such people… there are always a few troublemakers who push things too far.

‘And one’s here.’

Hiroshi Tanaka. His piercings…


A blond delinquent glared at me. I stared back. A brief staring contest ensued. It was Tanaka Hiroshi who looked away first, slowly turning his gaze as if to say “this isn’t over.”

‘Better teach him a lesson later.’

In the land of Japan where bullying runs rampant…

Even university isn’t free from the culture of ijime that permeates workplaces. ‘I’m already halfway bullied just for being Korean.’

It’s not violent hazing but rather subtle ostracism and disrespect… what they call “indirect bullying.”

Clack clack.

I gazed out the car window. Trees. Nothing but trees.

‘Even for a rural town, this is ridiculous… aren’t we going too deep in?’

Staring at the same scenery gets tiresome. I pulled out my smartphone and launched a new game.

‘A gacha game, huh? Plenty of in-game currency… let’s pull!’

[Great Luck (Lv.Master) activated.]

The skill triggered an incredible stroke of luck.

As soon as I tapped the gacha button, the rarest 0.5% pickup character appeared.

Yet I felt strangely underwhelmed.

‘This once-per-day skill activates for something this trivial? What a waste.’

I shook my head in disappointment.

The skill didn’t live up to my expectations. I gave up on hoping for anything great from [Great Luck].

The van arrived at the village 15 minutes later.

—

We reached Okaruma Village.

For a mountain village, it was surprisingly large with expansive rice paddies and several modern buildings. Most striking was the shrine atop the hill at the village’s edge – the largest structure here.

“Guys stay in that building, girls in that one. You’re free to do as you please until the festival starts tomorrow evening.”

A bulky man with a muscular build and short haircut said. His name was Mori Masahiro, president of the Japan Festival Study Circle and our van driver.

Entering the dormitory, it wasn’t luxurious but functional enough. The problem was we had seven men and only six rooms.

“The two freshmen get the largest room. You two will share.”

“Yes, Mori-senpai.”

“Yes.”

Wada Kyoshiro and I responded.

So we drew the short straw. Two powerless freshmen can’t defy a senior fourth-year circle president.

‘Should I just flip the table and rebel?’

I restrained myself.

It’s too early to start chaos. I’ve been in this world less than an hour. Not enough information yet. I decided to play it cool until I gather more intel.

Wada Kyoshiro and I entered a spacious tatami-mat room on the first floor. It was wide but lacked beds, which was inconvenient.

“Mr. Sung. This is our first meeting. I’m Wada Kyoshiro. Nice to meet you.”

Wada extended his hand for a handshake, his face pure and free of prejudice. This guy was clearly destined to be the protagonist of this world. Hiding my discomfort, I shook his hand.

“I’m Sung Yoojin. Let’s get along since we’ll be sharing a room.”

“Yeah, Mr. Sung.”

After putting down my luggage, an awkward silence fell. Then the door opened and Mori Masahiro entered.

“Freshmen. If you’re idle, mind helping me out?”

“Of course, Mori-senpai!”

“…Yes, we’ll help.”

“You’re both lifesavers. Unlike those uncooperative second- and third-years… thanks to you guys, I might survive. I’ll definitely repay this favor.”

Mori’s tone reeked of old-school conservatism. Honestly, I didn’t want to get involved, but for the sake of gathering canonical information, I endured and asked,

“Mori-senpai, what would you like us to do?”

At my question, Mori handed me a camera. A DSLR, heavy and expensive-looking.

“We need materials for the report. Walk around the village taking pictures and conduct interviews with residents about the festival. Sung, you handle photography. Wada and I will manage the interviews.”

I got it immediately. I was excluded from interviews because I’m Korean.

“Yes sir.”

Surprisingly, this turned out to be convenient. All I had to do was click photos from a distance while staying slightly apart.

Following Mori, we walked around the village for about two hours, getting a general sense of its layout. When attempting to approach the shrine at the top of the hill near the village edge, we were stopped by elderly farmers working nearby.

“Don’t move.”


“Shio!”

“Outsiders are not allowed to ascend the shrine!”

This old man was no frail figure. Whether from working the fields or not, his muscular physique peeked through his shirt. Coupled with the farming tools in hand, his mere presence was intimidating.

“Why can’t we? We wish to pay our respects at the shrine.”

Mori Masahiro spoke calmly. Yet, even in calmness, his towering figure exuded menace. The elders swallowed their fear and replied.

“The shrine is currently conducting a sacred ritual in preparation for tomorrow’s festival.”

“No one may enter during the ritual. You may visit the shrine after the festival concludes.”

Mori Masahiro stepped back.

“Ah, I see. We were unaware. May we take pictures of the shrine?”

“If you do not ascend the shrine, it shall be fine.”

Mori Masahiro signaled me. I raised the camera and snapped photos of the shrine. Its architecture was impressive enough to make the task enjoyable.

Wada Kyoshirou approached the elders.

“Is there a shaman at the shrine?”

“A shaman? Of course! Tomorrow night, she will wander the village bestowing blessings.”

“May we receive her blessings as well?”

“Come out onto the streets tomorrow night, and the shaman will bless the village.”

“Will she bless us too?”

“Come out onto the streets tomorrow night, and the shaman will descend blessings upon you on behalf of the Mountain Spirit.”

“Understood. We’ll surely be there.”

The brief interview ended, and we continued wandering the village.

I grew increasingly annoyed by taking pictures.

“At first, it was somewhat fun…”

The sun began its gradual descent.

“Mori-senpai, let’s head back. There are no restaurants here, so we need to prepare food.”

“In that case, the women said they’d take care of it. Thanks for your hard work. I brought some beer to share with you all.”

“Oh, beer! Thank you!”

“However, let’s conduct one last interview. Ah, this is personal, so recording isn’t necessary.”

“Our capacity is fine, so I’ll record it anyway.”

“Alright. Thanks, Wada.”

Mori Masahiro nodded and headed toward the fields. An elderly man working in the potato field noticed us and straightened up. He stared intently.

“Senpai, something about that guy feels… off, doesn’t it?”

His body was gaunt, eyes sunken deep. His pitch-black pupils resembled those of a corpse.

“Showing disrespect to an elder.”

“Ahh, my apologies.”

“Well, I admit he does feel a bit unsettling.”

Mori Masahiro approached the old man and greeted him.

“Hello. I’m a student from Naiou University. Could you spare a moment for an interview?”

“An interview?”

“Just a simple question.”

“…”

The old man nodded slightly, indicating consent.

“Last year around this time, I heard five people went missing in Ooakaruma Village. Do you know anything about them?”

“Are you relatives of the missing?”

“No, not relatives.”

“I don’t know much about that incident. And it’s already been resolved.”

“Resolved? Did the missing return?”

“The police concluded their investigation.”

The old man abruptly turned around, sharply striking the ground with his sickle. It was an eerie sight.

“Elder.”

“I’ve nothing more to say. Don’t bother me.”

Mori Masahiro tried speaking again but gave up. We headed back to our lodging.

Before entering, I told them,

“Mori-senpai, I’ll stop by the convenience store and come right back.”

“Hm? Is there something you need?”

“Cup noodles. I want to stock up for a late-night snack.”

“Got it.”

I handed him the camera and entered the convenience store. They had most basic necessities. Exiting the store, the sun had completely set. The mountain village was darker than city nights, with no streetlights to guide the way.

“Even smartphone flashlights have limits… might as well buy a flashlight since I’m here.”

After purchasing a flashlight and walking, I felt eyes on me.

Turning my head, I saw the same old man standing motionless in the field, holding his sharp sickle, staring at me.

Ignoring the unsettling old man, I kept walking.

But even after covering 50 meters, the old man continued watching me. Growing irritated, I shouted at him.

“Old man! What’s your deal? Stop staring if you’ve nothing to say!”

“…”

The old man didn’t budge, maintaining his piercing gaze.

Frowning, I changed direction and walked toward him.