This World is too Cruel to Men – Chapter 19

The neatly dyed dark blue hem of the kendo uniform fluttered in sync with the steps of the woman who began to move.

Along with that, like a horse’s tail, her hair, gathered up beautifully, swayed gracefully, resembling ebony.

Her long black hair, reaching down to her waist, swayed in rhythm with her movements, along with the hem of her clothes.

And echoing within the hall in response to this was—

“Baeksulhwa! Baeksulhwa! Baeksulhwa!”

“Sister! Seolhwa!”

“Kyaa!!!”

The cries of her name filled the air.

“Huh…”

To be honest, I was a bit surprised.

When I looked her up, it mentioned she was quite popular, but I figured how popular could someone be if they weren’t even a formal hero yet? But I guess, judging by what I was hearing, her popularity was like that of an active hero level.

On one hand, I could understand it… she had more than enough looks to draw the crowd.

Her features, while slightly raised giving off a stubborn vibe, had eyes that seemed to shine beautifully when she smiled, a sharp nose, and small, lovely plump lips tinted with a light pink hue.

And there she stood, with a body that was hard to believe belonged to a high school student; her well-developed physique combined made her a dignified yet beautiful woman.

Simply put, she was the epitome of a beautiful student council president.

A beauty so captivating that both men and women would find themselves instantly enchanted and turn into her followers.

‘Well…’

The reason Baeksulhwa was popular wasn’t solely because of her looks, of course.

It’s true that good-looking things taste better, and one cannot completely dismiss the influence of appearance… but her uniqueness certainly played a significant role.

What more can I say?

Baeksulhwa had quite the unique background.

“Are you two ready?”

“…Yes.”

“Uh-huh.”

“Once you’re ready, please start the tournament when the signal sounds.”

At those words, the two standing across from each other nodded, and just as quickly, a beeping electronic sound emitted from the speaker overhead.

And when it rang three times—

Thud…!

A light sound of someone kicking off the ground resonated, and that was the end of it.

In the blink of an eye, the wooden sword held by the woman named Baeksulhwa was already hovering right in front of her opponent’s throat.

What if that were a real sword instead of a wooden one?

What if this was not just a tournament but a real battle?

The opponent would have been clutching their slit throat, gasping for air.

“…I-I lost.”

Is that why?

Despite feeling indignant, you’d think they might try to do something, yet the words of surrender flowed out almost instantly.

“Wooaaah!!!”

“Baeksulhwa! Baeksulhwa! Baeksulhwa!”

And after that surrender, came a roars of cheers from her fans, and new fans who just got swept up in the frenzy.

From this alone, it seemed that Baeksulhwa’s talent might be an acceleration type that enhanced her physicality or some sword-related ability… but in reality, it wasn’t that simple.

In the recent tournament, Baeksulhwa hadn’t even revealed a hint of the talent she had awakened.

And that was precisely why she enjoyed such fame.

Haven’t I said this several times already?

The world in which I now live is one where everything is divided based on awakening talents; it’s like a talent-based survival game.

As such, prospective heroes, known as Awakened individuals with special abilities, are at the top tier of the talent-based caste system.

But here she was, winning effortlessly against those who did possess talents without showing even a trace of her own.

I could only imagine how exhilarating that would feel for those who had found despair in their own lack of talent or were born into a situation where their talent would never awaken.

Naturally, it was no surprise that she’d be popular.

‘Honestly, it’s impressive.’

While she hadn’t used her talent much in the tournament, it’s not known exactly what her ability was, but the consensus based on rumors from the institutions seemed to lean towards her not having physical enhancement or sword-related abilities.

Yet, to possess such skill regardless…

That meant she had undoubtedly spent years doing what others would deem foolish to reach such a level.

This wasn’t just a matter of having or lacking talent.

Persevering through the disregard of others and sticking to something requires sheer willpower of steel.

And that was precisely why I considered Baeksulhwa a subject of caution.

The thing was, Yoonseo had no experience facing someone like Baeksulhwa.

In contrast, Baeksulhwa had likely faced countless opponents of Yoonseo’s type, making this a fight she was already losing in terms of experience.

Of course, Yoonseo had just witnessed the recent tournament, so at least she wouldn’t let her guard down… but the underlying anxiety was undeniably there.

‘Should I say something now… ?’

That, in essence, was why I found myself repeatedly twisting my pen, lost in thought.

My original plan was to give Yoonseo a wake-up call with this tournament to bring her down a notch due to her recent streak of victories…

‘…There are too many people.’

At this rate, the wake-up call might end up exceeding its purpose.

After all, wasn’t Yoonseo at a particularly sensitive stage?

If she were to lose terribly in front of this numerous crowd, it could have an enormous negative impact on her mental state.

No, to be truly honest…

I wasn’t confident.

I didn’t have the courage to console Yoonseo, who might plummet into the ground after experiencing her first defeat.

Though she often barked loudly, Yoonseo had a surprisingly tender heart.

‘Just like a crunchy exterior with a soft inside.’

Tsk, it can’t be helped.

It might be irritating to see it for a while, but there’s no choice but to whisper something in her ear.

I could inform her via text, but there’s a high chance with her personality that she wouldn’t take it seriously, so here…

“Excuse me? I’m going to the bathroom for a moment.”

“Huh? Oh, okay.”

It would be best to talk to her face-to-face.

Thus, after slipping away from the audience, the moment I stepped into the hallway, I dialed her number.

At the point when Dogun called Yoonseo, she was…

Sitting in her assigned waiting room, thinking about what to do next.

‘What should I eat afterward…?’

By the way, she had mentioned wanting chili shrimp the last time, so maybe she’d suggest going to eat that.

As she pulled out her mobile phone to check if there was a good place nearby, it was quite the coincidence that a movie theater was right next door to the famous chili shrimp restaurant.

‘A movie…’

It would surely be great if it were just the two of them.

That said, it felt a bit awkward to insist on going to the movies without any groundwork laid beforehand.

If only I had mentioned wanting to watch a movie earlier.

Searching through the schedule, feeling disappointed, suddenly Dogun’s name popped up on her phone screen as if reading her mind, causing her to startle and drop her phone.

“Darn…”

Her heart raced in a panic.

Was it just that she was thinking of him right then that made him call?

She knew it was unlikely, but she felt as if Dogun had read her inner thoughts completely.

So she hesitated to reach for the phone that slid away but couldn’t ignore Dogun’s call, so ultimately, she picked up the phone.

“Uh, what is it?”

– Ah, it’s nothing much, just wondering if we could meet for a second?

“…Now?”

Seeing each other is indeed possible, but why did it have to be now?

“Why?”

As she asked out of curiosity, the response she received was that he had something to say.

Something to say, huh?

Did he plan to offer her a word of encouragement before the tournament?

Or perhaps…

While she thought it was unlikely, imagining it put her in a restless mood, but regardless, she stood up from her seat.

She had no clue what he wanted to say, but it felt like a lucky turn of events.

Since they were about to see each other, perhaps it’d be possible to go to the movies together after the regular tournament?

“Ah, damn… this is annoying…”

That was her true feeling, but she couldn’t verbally express that as a girl, so after a little huff, she added quickly before Dogun could change his mind.

“…So where do I need to go?”

Out of consideration for her, Dogun mentioned a place not far from where she was already.

After hearing the location, with a sprinkle of anticipation in her heart, she headed to the spot Dogun mentioned, only to hear unexpectedly uninvited words.

Was that the reason?

“…You called me just to say that?”

A snappy retort slipped out reflexively.

It was understandable, considering she wasn’t pleased.

To be summoned here only to hear about someone else…

“Uh? Oh, um… yeah?”

Dogun looked confused as if he had no idea why she was reacting this way.

Even she could see that the other girl was so beautiful that any man would naturally take an interest, making it all the more frustrating.

She had felt it since peeking at Dogun’s computer; it seemed he had a preference for that type of figure.

‘…What’s the deal with that overly chubby figure?’

She knew the truth.

She understood that Dogun had brought it up because he was worried about her and that the other girl wasn’t chubby but just well-proportioned…

But even knowing that, her pride couldn’t help but feel hurt.

Sure, his concern was welcome, but all she needed was a word of encouragement to do well.

Fueled by a sudden surge of tenacity, she half-listened to Dogun’s words of caution while quickly interjecting.

“…What if I don’t lose?”

“Huh?”

“If I win, what will you do?”

“Well, um… wouldn’t that be a good thing…?”

She knew he’d handle it that way.

“…Let’s say this then.”

“Huh? What…?”

“If I win… you’ll treat me to a meal.”

“Meal? That’s easy enough…”

“And a movie too. With popcorn.”

“Huh? M-movie?”

“What? Is that a no?”

“N-no, it’s not that…”

In contrast to his usual demeanor, he seemed flustered, and it was precisely now that the opportunity had arisen.

“Then it’s settled.”

“Uh… okay…”

The moment she got a half-hearted nod from Dogun, she firmly resolved.

She didn’t care whether it was Baeksulhwa or Baeksulha, but she was determined to win by any means necessary.

That was her pledge, but—

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Beeep! Beeeep!

“Huh…?”

Reality was not as easy as she had anticipated.

The instant the match began, a sound resembling ringing invaded not just her ears but her mind ensnared, overwhelming to the point of dizziness, and reflexively, her body staggered, just in time for her opponent’s wooden sword to come flying toward her shoulder.