070 – Suspended!
“Nam Tae-geon must step back! Nam Tae-geon must step back!”
“Step back! Step back!”
The cries of the demonstrators had been disturbing the skies of Seoul for days.
It had been two days since an ‘unidentified monster’ wreaked havoc in the center of City D and was subdued.
A rumor and misleading information spread by an online broadcast had driven people to the streets to express their anger toward the current regime—at least, that’s how newspapers and news outlets were explaining it.
However, the government hadn’t entirely controlled all the media.
On the internet, which the government’s regulations didn’t fully reach, discussions about the incident two days ago had been going on for a long time, making quite a fuss.
「User: It turned out that Nam Hanamjin’s claim was right about the N-Mart incident.」
└The explanation was that the Demon Beasts were subdued by the police’s special tactical team and the government’s Awakened One force. lol
└I was watching the live stream then, and it was Hanamjin and the kids who took them down. The police tactical team just watched.
「WaiRaptor: Also, I heard that what was rampaging in the city wasn’t even a Demon Beast, but a Demon.」
└That’s what happens when some Awakened Ones go berserk, I think.
└Then does that mean Demon incidents could happen again?
└For all we know, someone like Jin Eun-byul could already be living among us, like nothing’s wrong. lol
Society was in great turmoil.
“Release Hanamjin!”
“Release! Release!”
The cries of the people gathered on the streets weighed heavily on the furrowed brow of the commissioner of police.
Could it be believable that all this chaos and uproar stemmed from just one high school student?
“Sir, this time, it’s necessary to impose definite punishment.”
The commissioner of police, sitting at a large desk, spoke to a man reading a newspaper. The man was rather lean, with neatly trimmed facial hair, and without taking his eyes off the newspaper, he replied.
“What for? Commissioner Kang, isn’t this rather something to be pleased about? A student from Yeongsa Academy bravely took on an unknown threat and saved the citizens. Isn’t this proof that Yeongsa Academy’s education is paying off?”
Yeongsa Academy was an educational institution, and a major achievement, created under the Nam Tae-geon administration.
Therefore, if a student from Yeongsa Academy accomplished some great feat, wouldn’t that be considered President Nam Tae-geon’s achievement as well?
It seemed like the president saw it that way.
“Where is student Hanamjin now?”
“He is currently being detained at City D police station’s holding cell…”
“Release him. The reason… well, insufficient evidence would be appropriate, wouldn’t it?”
The commissioner of police glanced at the president, trying to see if he was truly sincere in his words.
Even though the commissioner had been assisting this man for several years, he still found it hard to read his intentions. He was a man whose thoughts remained incomprehensible.
That was both terrifying and, conversely, what made him extraordinary.
After all, he had always come up with amazing solutions that surprised everyone, and this time would undoubtedly be no exception.
“Still, a situation like this, which has caused so much commotion, and being acquitted without a punishment would set a bad example for many students. Perhaps a ‘suspension’ would be fitting.”
Thus, this was how the male student Hanamjin of Yeongsa Academy came to receive a 10-day suspension.
Captain Kang Cheol-min, who was tasked with informing Hanamjin of his suspension, couldn’t know the detailed conversations above, but he was certain that the series of events was miraculous beyond doubt.
And miracles usually don’t come around twice.
“Hanamjin, you lucky b*stard! Who else in the history of this Korea can create such a mess and get away with merely a 10-day suspension? Please, just behave for those 10 days!”
Though he said to behave—Captain Kang Cheol-min of Class D didn’t think for a minute that Hanamjin was the type to stay calm.
‘Not that this ‘suspension’ itself is a regular punishment either.’
A suspension from Yeongsa Academy was the highest form of punishment the school could impose.
It was due to the ‘differences’ between suspensions at regular schools and those at Yeongsa Academy.
Kang Cheol-min decided not to elaborate on those differences.
“Bangdaengi! Why is only Hanamjin getting suspended? We were all there back then!”
Looking out the window at Hanamjin leaving the school grounds, the female student Baek Yeo-ul shouted.
Soon, all the students began agreeing, “That’s right!”
“Captain! We fought with our lives against the Demon and got no reward but a suspension instead. What Awakened One will ever try to protect the citizens under these circumstances?”
“That’s unfair punishment!”
The classroom became extremely noisy.
As Captain Kang Cheol-min pondered how to calm down the situation—
“I… Hanamjin…”
A female student spoke up.
It was Oh Deok-hui, her fringe covering most of her face.
Oh Deok-hui, who played a major role in the Demon incident and even received ‘awards’, took the opportunity of the quiet moment to add, “Hanamjin said he’d receive a ‘suspension’. Someone needed to take responsibility for the actions, probably him as the leader… But he said not to worry because everything was according to plan.”
“According to plan?”
“Is he some kind of Gills Laito?”
Despite being apprehended live on broadcast after causing shocking incidents, not only did he manage to get released due to ‘insufficient evidence,’ but he also calculated beforehand that he would receive a ‘suspension’ from school?
As the students started murmuring, Kang Cheol-min smirked too.
In fact, Kang Cheol-min also didn’t feel satisfied with Hanamjin’s punishment. Given that he had achieved good results with good intentions, shouldn’t he have been rewarded instead?
But he was a public official and had only one thing he could say.
“Stop yelling and open your books!”
—
—
—
Suspended!
As I had roughly predicted, this time I received a suspension as punishment for the incident, but personally, it felt more like a reward.
No school, plenty of free time!
I feel like I’m flying!
“It would have been even better if it were expulsion, though.”
Haha…
With plenty of time now, maybe I could try to impress my teaching assistant Seugal. Also, I intended to learn conceptual training from Yu Yeo-reum.
In my fight with the ‘Demon,’ I realized that I probably wouldn’t have been able to stop the creature alone.
My strength, which was called ‘Supernova’ in the destroyed world, seems to still be lacking the necessary benchmark.
I was just thinking I would need to keep trying harder when…
“Hanamjin!”
Someone was running across the field calling my name.
It was Bangdaengi.
“What are you doing here?”
“Self-suspension!”
“Where is there such a thing as self-suspension? You’re skipping school, huh?”
“Just came up with it! We’re partners, right? So it’s not fair for you to take the punishment alone. That’s why I decided to self-suspend!”
“Wow? Bangdaengi, what’s gotten into you?”
I had no idea Bangdaengi Baek Yeo-ul had this much loyalty to me.
It wasn’t necessarily meaningful loyalty, but still!
I feel like crying…
“And this…”
Bangdaengi pulled something out of her school uniform pocket. It was a small coin.
「Name: Lucky Coin」
「Description: A commemorative coin for the 10th anniversary depicting a Fairy Princess.」
「Possession: 《Luck Lv.4》 – The same luck as the mythical bluebird. Grants the owner’s wishes, though its current power has been entirely exhausted.」
“Aren’t that the coin you pulled out of Jin Eun-byul’s throat?”
“Yeah. It was a birthday present from my dad. I lost it, so why did Jin Eun-byul have it? I want to ask!”
Bangdaengi looked quite morose soon after.
“And she also said many people died because of me, and I don’t know what that means either. I don’t really want to know, but…”
So she’s concerned about the things Jin Eun-byul mumbled like nonsense.
I also couldn’t help but be concerned about Jin Eun-byul.
“Anyway, I was planning to visit the hospital.”
Jin Eun-byul was in a ward in a special security unit.
She was hooked up to IVs and machines, her whole body wrapped in bandages, clearly a critically injured patient.
Though her overly extended limbs from becoming a Demon had returned to their regular size, there’d undoubtedly be various scarring and wounds left behind.
She was obnoxious, but she was still beautiful. What a shame.
“Jin Eun-byul.”
I called out to Jin Eun-byul through the acrylic glass.
Then Nurse Jin Ramyeon, who was on guard, got angry.
“Hey! Hanamjin! Do you know where you are? Normally, you’d be locked up here too! Consider yourself lucky to be let go due to insufficient evidence because of the public’s bad opinion!”
Factually speaking, I shouldn’t have been here.
But is there anyone else in this world more qualified than me to ask Jin Eun-byul questions?
Looking at Jin Eun-byul’s condition, though, it doesn’t seem like she’s in a state where she can answer any of my questions.
Doesn’t matter.
I have a vending machine of answers right in front of me.
“…Don’t ask me anything! Please! Why do you keep looking at me like that?”
“Nurse Jin Ramyeon, did Jin Eun-byul say anything?”
“Yes. She told me how she ended up possessing the concept of ‘Demon’. She said she touched an antique box her father gave her as a gift when she was in 6th grade elementary school, and that’s when she started to change.”
A person whose self-awareness was stolen by the ‘Demon’ concept.
Is this individual guilty?
「Name: Jin Eun-byul
「Possession: 《Precognition Lv.2》
Condition: 《Unconscious State》 – Her mind occasionally returns.」
Seeing Jin Eun-byul struggling to breathe through the acrylic glass, Jin Ramyeon added a few words.
“I know her distant relatives; she used to be a good kid. I’m not sure if it’s appropriate to say this in front of you guys who fought a life-or-d*ath battle with her, but honestly, I feel sorry for Eun-byul. She’ll probably never be able to walk again.”
Never being able to walk again.
For me, who had suffered from a serious leg injury before, it was a rather sympathetic situation.
Is this how life can ruin itself just because someone touched the wrong box?
“Sister, what about the box?”
“Oh. It looks like this.”
Jin Ramyeon drew a picture for me.
【O O O】
A box with holes, like a brick.
It looked familiar.
Isn’t this the treasure that Seugal owned?
Is this a coincidence?
While I was pondering, Jin Ramyeon asked me softly.
“Younger brother, how did Jin Eun-byul know about the term ‘Demon’? Where did you get that USB video file? That video was filmed at ‘Eden Church,’ right?”
“‘Eden Church’?”
“When Jin Eun-byul was 14, her parents asked the then-famous cult ‘Eden Church’ pastors to exorcise the demon possessing her body. That video is from that time.”
So there’s a story behind it.
As a reply to Jin Ramyeon, who honestly told me everything, I was also honest.
“From ‘Villains’ Gu Se-jun.”
“‘Villains’…?? YOU…! Tell me you didn’t team up with terrorists?”
Jin Ramyeon frowned.
“If you consider it illegal, arrest me.”
“Fine. You’d be released anyway because of ‘insufficient evidence.’ What kind of magic are you conjuring? You’ve got some major backing?”
“Do you want to know?”
I looked seriously at Jin Ramyeon.
But Jin Ramyeon covered her ears upon noticing something gleaming in my serious eyes.
“No, don’t tell me! Absolutely not! I have a feeling I shouldn’t hear it right now!”
Such a pity.
The good part is coming up, though.
Looking at Jin Eun-byul, who was barely clinging to life, I thought that this was the good part.
Since the ‘Demon’ concept that dwelled within Jin Eun-byul disappeared by destroying the Concept Stone…
The implications of this were vast.
The era of loss is coming now.
—
