015 – Parties Are Only Fun for the Extroverts #4
I selected Prince Juhyun as my sparring partner.
“Me?”
Prince Juhyun, the party concerned, reacted as if it was completely unexpected.
He slightly shrugged his shoulders while looking at Seugal, and it also looked like he was deliberately acting surprised.
“Seugal, what should we do? That guy picked me.”
“Hah, Juhyun’s quite popular. Do well.”
A great chance to crush that Prince Juhyun’s nose flat, who dislikes me, and earn some points with Seugal.
However, one of the male students raised his hand to voice an objection.
“Teacher Wi Seon-a, it’s rather sudden, but it seems odd for Juhyun to suddenly be sparring. With his skills, he’s akin to active explorers, so it doesn’t seem right to face him as a student now, does it?”
Shoosh-.
The male student stood up. I hadn’t noticed before when he was sitting, but now standing, he was quite huge.
His height must be around two meters, right?
On his chest was pinned the same golden knight brooch as our class president’s, gleaming with pride.
“Can I spar instead of Juhyun?”
“You’re in Class F…”
Professor Park looked at me, his bulk, and then Prince Juhyun.
Behind the goggles, his eyes showed a bit of hesitation, but soon he made a decision.
“Suddenly facing off against a 4th rank concept holder isn’t fair. Are you the transfer student? Fight Jang Geunseong, a 2nd rank concept holder, instead of Prince Juhyun.”
Jang Geunseong? A name that sounds like a Chinese restaurant, I thought, when suddenly the guy came up to me with a loud crack of his joints.
From the back, what looked like Prince Juhyun’s group added encouraging whistles.
“Come on, Geunseong!”
“Surely, you’re not going to lose to a Class D student?”
The atmosphere heated up.
I turned my head to see if I had any support, and there was Bangdaengi Baek Yeo-ul looking pale and trembling.
“I’m Jang Geunseong. My concept is ‘Muscle.’ As explained by the teacher earlier, it’s a 2nd rank concept. For your reference, my three main events’ weight is almost a thousand kilos.”
Seeing the steroid-like bodybuilder guy, who seemed like he could fold me in half, was rather unsettling.
Those gleaming eyes look exactly like a gay man’s, and it’s terrifying.
“Teacher, since my control of strength is still clumsy, how about we go for a full no-holds-barred live combat rule? The one who remains standing wins.”
“Hmm, well… What do you think?”
Do rules even matter in the current situation? I wanted to fight Prince Juhyun, but now I have to fight someone else, so my interest has somewhat waned. Anyway, this needs to be over quickly.
“Live combat is fine. I’m Hanamjin, and my concepts are ‘Jumping’ and ‘Emotion.’ I don’t know my rank.”
“Multiple concepts…?”
My introduction cast a strange light on Geunseong’s face. Even the elite students of Class F were surprised, which seemed to indicate that multiple concept holders were quite rare. That makes Seugal, who can transfer concepts to others, truly exceptional.
“Emotion?”
Seugal looked at me with renewed interest. That glimmer meant a little curiosity. With the idea of turning this curiosity into affection, I felt good but was also slightly curious.
“Professor Park, when introducing your own concepts, you often mention their rank. How high is a 4th rank?”
Shoosh-.
Professor Park adjusted his goggles.
“This is not a theory classroom, so I’ll just briefly explain and move on. Everyone’s concepts have levels, from 1 to 5. It’s a scale created by researchers.”
“Is it like the 1st rank concept is level 1, and 4th rank concept is level 4?”
“Exactly. Most of you students usually have level 1 concepts. The goal of this special class is to raise your concept ranks!”
I wondered what the criteria were for ranking concepts from 1st to 5th rank, but it would probably be faster to look it up later.
# # #
“Okay, then face each other.”
According to the instructor’s words, Geunseong and I stood facing each other, about two meters apart.
“Hey, D-class transfer student. Fighting like this isn’t fun, so how about we bet on something?”
“A bet?”
“You’re planning to go to the party in the office tonight, right? How about we wager our invitations. If you win, I’ll give you mine, and if I win, your party invite will be mine.”
If I lose this fight, my plan to announce my emergency marriage to Seugal at the party would be all for nothing.
It was both a fatal risk and at the same time, quite intriguing.
There was also someone who came to mind if I managed to get another invitation.
“Sure.”
“Then no more chatter! Everyone heard, right? We’re betting our invitations to tonight’s party!”
Shooosh-.
Jang Geunseong extended both of his palms forward, setting his stance.
Judo? Jiu-jitsu? It seems like a similar martial arts stance.
What would happen if this guy capable of lifting 1000kg grabs me? My name would probably change from Hanamjin to Pancake.
Therefore, his technique would be fatal in one strike against me.
A moment came when I remembered fighting the section chief Kim Jangdong driving a forklift after me. Strictly speaking, am I better now than then?
At that time, I was limping with an injured leg.
“Start!”
Pa-bwat-!
At the professor’s signal, I quickly took a few steps backward.
The distance between us widened instantly.
“Ho, you’re fast.”
The professor was impressed.
The real impressive part is yet to come.
Shoo-shshoo-.
I quickly threw off my school uniform.
Suddenly, all that was left were my underpants.
“Kyaaaak!”
“What, what is this!”
Female students blushed and screamed while male students looked at me with expressions of “What the heck is this guy doing?”
Teacher Wi Seon-a furrowed her brow.
“What are you doing? Why are you taking off your clothes?”
“It’s strategy. It seems like he knows Judo or Jiu-jitsu, but if I take off my clothes, the chances he can grab me will decrease, right?”
The teacher still looked as if she couldn’t approve.
Then what about my opponent, Jang Geunseong?
The giant elephant-like face was marked by a sarcastic smile.
“What difference does it make by taking off clothes?”
Do they not know?
‘Shedding skin’ is an essential survival skill in this world where everything’s falling apart.
Shoosh-.
I picked up my school uniform top that was lying on the floor.
Then, circling around Jang Geunseong’s vicinity to find an angle, I swiftly threw the clothes at his face.
“Hanamjin’s secret skill, ‘Blind them’!”
“Hey! That’s such an obvious trick!”
Pat-.
Jang Geunseong caught the clothes in the air as if he could tear them apart with his hands.
「Name: Jang Geunseong
State: 《Idiocy》- The opponent’s inadequacy has deflated him. However, he feels good, seeing this as an opportunity to strengthen his status within his group.」
A momentary gap appeared in the mind of the opponent. For me, this short moment was enough.
I had already slipped under his legs like a cockroach at top speed.
“Hanamjin kick!”
Hoo-wang, Perak!
The force from my accelerated foot hit his legs precisely where all men are weak. The two jewels.
My attack precisely targeted that spot and Jang Geunseong floated up into the air as if suspended.
“Hieeeek…!”
It was a surprisingly delicate scream from such a large figure. He fell forward and trembled, clearly out of commission.
But let’s not be complacent.
“Real men! Men capable of sincerely kicking another man’s jewels are divided into those who do it and do not!”
Puk-puk-puk-.
“Kuaaaaak! S, stop! Kuaaaak!”
When I kicked his legs a few more times, Jang Geunseong foamed at the mouth and rolled his eyes until they turned white.
The match is officially over.
My perfect victory made all the male students in the seats instinctively curl their legs and shuffle nervously.
“Yo… That kid’s cruel!”
“That’s not a foul?”
“No, Geunseong suggested we go for a rule-less live combat….”
Teacher Wi Seon-a took off her goggles and rubbed her forehead.
It seemed like she was deep in thought.
“I originally planned to use this duel to demonstrate the difference between a 1st rank and 2nd rank concept. But who would have thought? Leading the opponent to let their guard down and accurately striking their weak points, huh?”
There was an awkward atmosphere in the special lecture room. Did I win a match that I was not supposed to win?
Anyway, everyone else’s reactions were irrelevant as my attention had been solely on Seugal’s expression from start to finish.
“Pfft. I’ve never seen a duel like this before.”
Seugal finally couldn’t hold it in and burst out laughing, covering her mouth. When she started laughing, the rigid face of Prince Juhyun next to her relaxed and he laughed too.
“Ho ho ho! What are you doing, Geunseong? Even with him letting his guard down, that’s ridiculous. Hey, stop joking around and get up already!”
This is no joke.
My ‘Hanamjin kick’ is a technique that mercilessly attacks the enemy’s weakest points. I thought he’d need at least two days lying down to recover, but…
“Hey, stop fooling around.”
When Prince Juhyun said these cold words, the eyes of Jang Geunseong, who had been foaming at the mouth and unconscious, lit up. He got up staggering like an old man and went back to his seat, muttering a small apology to Juhyun.
“Juhyun, sorry… If I hadn’t let my guard down, I could’ve won…”
“Why? What do you have to apologize to me for? You lost, didn’t you? Your invitation is gone, anyway. Ah, but it’s really disappointing. The party would have been more fun with Geunseong around.”
Juhyun smiled gently.
Human tractor Geunseong was shaking more from the presence of Juhyun than he did when he got a groin kick from me. His obvious discomfort in front of a handsome man suggested he might just be gay after all.
Shoosh-.
That’s when Seugal, who had been standing next to Prince Juhyun, walked up to me.
She then picked up my scattered uniforms from the floor and handed them to me, her kindness shining like a fairy in full brilliance.
“Hanamjin, right? I have one question… Why tiger underwear again today?”
“I only change my underwear once a week.”
“…What?”
“Of course, it’s a lie. I actually bought many of the same kind. Once I get hooked on something, I just dig into it. It’s the same when I like a girl.”
“Ahhh, I see. This is an ‘invitation’ to the reception at the office. I was worried about when I’d give it to you, but it’s fortunate that we’re in the same class. Is it fate?”
Seugal handed me a small envelope.
She then brought her face close to my ear and whispered softly, like a sweet tickle in my ear.
“One invitation allows one person to enter, but now you have two invitations, right? If you have friends or a girlfriend, you can bring them, or you can sell it in the Youngsago market if you’d like. Selling this can earn you points…”
Sotto-sotto-.
The amount whispered into my ear was so high it made my hair stand on end.
Wait, is this invitation really that expensive?
I immediately started calculating how many days of meals in ramen I could buy if I sold both invitations.
“Still, you must come. Got it? I’ll be waiting for you.”
After saying that, Seugal lightly tapped my shoulder with the palm of her hand.
She really wants to see me at the party, doesn’t she?
There’s no doubt she is planning to announce our emergency marriage.
I stuffed the invitation into my pocket, then simultaneously took something out of my pocket and handed it to Seugal.
“Isn’t this yours? Why did you throw it away?”
“Eh, that’s my handkerchief! I had been looking for it for a while. You found it for me? I was really upset when I lost it. Thank you!”
Seugal smiled purely like a 7-year-old girl meeting Santa Claus on Christmas.
Only, her ruby-like eyes weren’t fixated on me for returning the handkerchief, nor on Prince Juhyun who had reddened his face while we whispered into each other’s ears—it was focused elsewhere.
“…”
“…”
During the entire special class, the gaze of Bangdaengi Baek Yeo-ul, moving like a robot until now, and the relaxed gaze of Seugal met.
For just a moment, but there seemed to be more intense sparks than in all the duels that had taken place today.
“Then, Hanamjin, see you tonight. I’ll be waiting.”
Ultimately, I earned points from Seugal and gained another party invitation.
It’s good to be lucky.
It feels like Lady Luck is surely by my side.
