Lunchtime, hospital staff break room.
Choi Soo-eun momentarily rested and sat down, picking up her smartphone. She had accessed the school community portal.
Recently, Choi Soo-eun had started checking the community again.
To avoid making embarrassing mistakes like last time, it was necessary to keep up with some school news.
Though not the free board, she decided to occasionally check the popular posts.
─── Everyhunter Han-yul Military Academy ───
Real-time Popular Posts
[Title]
[Attention: Not for Sensitive Viewers] Evaluation Match Duration Total 1 min 20 sec ㅋㅋㅋㅋ.gif
[Content]
I captured the evaluation match that happened today, the bout between 1st-year Kang Tae-hoon and 2nd-year Shin Yoon-seong, as a GIF.
P.S. You don’t need to worry about the file size since the match was so short.
───
The community was bustling with discussions over yesterday’s evaluation match, the bout between Shin Yoon-seong and Kang Tae-hoon.
Judging by the GIF, Shin Yoon-seong had been busy tying his shoelaces from the start of the match. Moreover, he raised both hands in surrender shortly afterward.
Though Choi Soo-eun belonged to the Medical Division and didn’t know much about the evaluation matches, it was the first time she’d witnessed a match ending in such a manner.
Without any attempt at combat, the evaluation match had concluded. Choi Soo-eun wondered why they even held the match if this was going to happen.
Shin Yoon-seong was indeed a person whose actions were hard to predict.
“Well, at least…”
It was fortunate that he didn’t seem to be severely injured. Choi Soo-eun hoped for a clean end like this.
If he came back injured again, it would only increase her workload…
“Se-sempai…!”
At that moment, a junior rushed into the break room. It seemed to be an emergency.
She had just sat down, but Choi Soo-eun reluctantly put her smartphone back into her pocket.
“Someone came… that person!”
“Huh?”
However, judging by the junior’s reaction, it didn’t seem to be an emergency.
Then, what was it? Choi Soo-eun tilted her head in confusion.
“Who came?”
“One of sempai’s regular patients…!”
Choi Soo-eun left the break room and headed straight to the emergency room. There, sitting in the waiting area, was Shin Yoon-seong.
Choi Soo-eun approached him and asked.
“What happened this time?”
Had he injured himself again? She hadn’t noticed any injuries in the evaluation match video she saw just moments ago.
He really didn’t give her a break. How could he come to the emergency room again so soon? It was practically becoming his routine.
Shin Yoon-seong showed her his cheek.
“I came to borrow an ice pack.”
“…”
It was his left cheek. Swollen so badly that it looked like a large, steamed egg bomb. It was almost as if he’d been punched hard.
What kind of person only hit in the face when there wasn’t much else to hit? Choi Soo-eun felt somewhat sorry for him.
“Did someone hit you?”
“No. I fell down the stairs this morning and ended up like this.”
Lie. If he fell down the stairs, his arms or legs would’ve hurt first. It wasn’t possible for just his cheek to swell up this way.
He must have been hit by someone else and found it embarrassing to admit now. It was quite funny to see him act this way, considering how often he got beaten by Arna.
Whatever, Choi Soo-eun decided not to pry. After all, Shin Yoon-seong was a man and deserved to have his pride respected.
“Alright, follow me to the treatment room.”
Choi Soo-eun led the way, and Shin Yoon-seong followed after gathering his belongings.
Thud ─
Without being told to sit, Shin Yoon-seong had already taken “his” seat. That showed just how often he had visited this treatment room.
As the junior had said, he was truly like a regular customer.
Clatter ─
Choi Soo-eun filled the well-dried ice pack with ice and handed it to Shin Yoon-seong.
“Here.”
“Thanks.”
Shin Yoon-seong immediately placed the ice pack on his cheek and relaxed his shoulders, murmuring that he finally felt better.
“I heard you had an evaluation match yesterday.”
It must still have been lunchtime, so Choi Soo-eun decided to sit across from Shin Yoon-seong and engage in a little small talk to pass the time.
“I lost.”
“That’s obvious.”
His opponent was Kang Tae-hoon, last year’s second-ranked freshman—an already talked-about person. His skills must be excellent too.
Shin Yoon-seong could never win against someone like that.
“But thanks to the evaluation match, I made a significant amount of money.”
After finishing his sentence, Shin Yoon-seong handed over a shopping bag he had brought along when entering the treatment room.
Caught off guard, Choi Soo-eun accepted the bag.
“What’s this…?”
“It’s a gift. For you.”
“Gift…?”
The shopping bag was rectangular and long vertically. It resembled a chilling bag used to store wine or whiskey.
“Why would you give me a gift…?”
Today wasn’t her birthday—her birthday was in October. White Day had also passed a long time ago.
There was no reason for her to receive a gift.
“It’s for the lunchbox debts.”
“Ah.”
So it was for the lunchboxes. The ones she had been bringing during his hospital stay.
Choi Soo-eun’s eyes widened in surprise.
“Is it really okay for me to accept this?”
“I bought this gift specifically for you. It’d have no meaning if you don’t take it.”
“Thank you then…”
She hadn’t expected to receive a gift just for bringing a few lunchboxes. If she had known, she would have put more effort into making them.
Choi Soo-eun shyly smiled.
“Can I check what it is?”
Shin Yoon-seong nodded, saying it was fine. Choi Soo-eun reached into the shopping bag and pulled out its contents.
“Hmm?”
A bottle wrapped in newspaper came out. It emitted a faint smell.
This smell was definitely…
“Perilla oil…?”
“Even experts are different.”
Shin Yoon-seong paused for a moment, putting down the ice pack to explain further.
“This isn’t the regular perilla oil you find on the market. This is high-quality, handcrafted perilla oil made by an artisan.”
“…”
“You’ll be surprised if you look up the price later.”
She knew it. Perilla oil was expensive. On top of that, it was artisanal. The price could be double.
To people who enjoyed cooking, this was undeniably the best gift.
“Fuw…”
But why? For some reason, a chuckle escaped her lips.
That Shin Yoon-seong had bought perilla oil. Imagining him ordering it in a store made her want to laugh.
“Is something funny? Did you not like the gift? Maybe I should have given you a bouquet instead?”
“No. Not at all.”
Choi Soo-eun shook her head several times. Then, she tightly hugged the perilla oil bottle.
“Perilla oil is much better than flowers.”
Most importantly, this was a gift filled with thoughtfulness. Proof that he had considered what might be useful to her. As a recipient, there was no way she wouldn’t be happy.
I should cook something with this perilla oil. What would he enjoy? I’ll have to think about it when I get back to my room.
“That’s a relief.”
Shin Yoon-seong exhaled a sigh of relief at last and stood up.
“I’ve gotten the ice pack, so I’ll go now.”
“Uh…?”
There was still plenty of time left for lunch. Couldn’t he stay longer? Choi Soo-eun felt a twinge of regret in her heart.
However, she didn’t make any moves to hold him back. She didn’t want to be perceived as clingy.
“I’ll come again if I need more ice.”
Wearing the ice pack on his cheek, Shin Yoon-seong left the treatment room.
Choi Soo-eun watched Shin Yoon-seong’s retreating back until he was out of sight, tightly hugging the perilla oil bottle.
In all the countless times Shin Yoon-seong had come to the emergency room, she’d never paid attention as he left. Now, her gaze naturally followed him.
Before, his comings and goings hadn’t mattered much to her. But now, she softly whispered.
“I definitely don’t want to lose him…”
She had no choice but to admit it now.
Her feelings had changed.
*
Klang!
In the depths of the night, a sound echoed through the outdoor training center like the striking of a wooden fish.
Klang!
The sound didn’t end with just one strike. It rang out again.
Klang!
“…”
The sound was coming precisely from the bench.
Currently, a male student was sitting on the bench, his shoulders slumped as he stared blankly at the ground.
He looked utterly weak.
Klang!
Next to the student floated a silver, commonly seen spoon. It was floating in the air and continuously striking the student’s head.
Again and again, without stopping.
Klang!
“Hey…”
The student, who had silently endured thus far, finally spoke, addressing the spoon that had endlessly been hitting his head.
Klang!
But the spoon didn’t respond to his call. It simply continued its strikes.
“Did you forget that I filled out the evaluation match application a few days ago?”
Klang!
“You even said yourself during that time… that after the evaluation match, we wouldn’t see each other again…”
Klang!
“So why have you appeared in front of me again…?”
Klang!
“Are you really a psychopath…?”
The student covered his face with both hands, sighing deeply.
When would this nightmare end?
When would this spoon disappear from his sight?
There was no end in sight.
“At least give me a break when I go to the bathroom… I’m really feeling constipated…”
Klang!
