Ch.1001 – The Boy’s Abyss 1

# 001 – The Boy’s Abyss # 1

A 21st century high school is a class society.

For example, Sojin, the class president of Class D, belonged to quite a high tier in the school’s ecosystem pyramid.

“Hey everyone! Don’t leave yet! The homeroom teacher said he has something to say before lunch starts! Come on! Don’t leave!”

Even with glasses on, she had a pretty face that couldn’t be hidden, good grades, and was popular among both peers and teachers.

From what I heard, Jeong Sojin’s parents were executives at a large corporation, so her family background was also wealthy.

If human worth were measured on a percentile scale, Class President Jeong Sojin would definitely be in the top 5 percent.

“Now, your homeroom teacher has something to say. Someone left this letter in the faculty office. It says there’s someone being bullied in Class D. Does anyone know who this might be about?”

“Teacher! If lunch time gets delayed, the lines will be long!”

“Please finish quickly! There’s no such thing as bullying in our class!”

“Yes, that’s what I thought too, but just in case. Now, everyone close your eyes. Only raise your hand if you know about this letter. Well… that’s right. No one.”

Where would I, Ha Yeongwon, the library committee chairman of Class 1-D, belong in the school hierarchy?

In my opinion, I was right in the middle.

That’s how it should have been….

Thwack-!

I was trying to catch a quick nap before lunch when something hard hit the back of my head, making sparks flash before my eyes.

“Ugh, shit!”

“What? Shit? Did you just say ‘shit’ to me? Wow, did you guys hear what this bastard just said? Class D is really going downhill.”

A male student with red-dyed hair and flashy earrings was holding a recorder like a kendo player.

The boy was wearing a tracksuit over his uniform, which was prohibited by school rules, but he wore it as if it was perfectly normal. With his large build, he looked like an athlete.

“Hey. Ha Yeongwon. You wrote that letter to the faculty office, didn’t you? Saying I’m bullying you? Are you crazy? Can you handle the consequences?”

“No, Geonho. Why would I write something like that? Someone else must have written it.”

I looked around, avoiding Kim Geonho’s threatening gaze to defuse the situation. When others made eye contact with me, they all subtly looked away.

Everyone had the attitude of not wanting to get involved in troublesome matters.

“Ha… Yeongwon, seriously, behave yourself so unnecessary trouble doesn’t happen. Got it? Find out who wrote that letter by the end of this week. If you don’t, I’ll assume you wrote it.”

Rumble-.

After Kim Geonho’s ultimatum, the group of rough-looking boys left the classroom.

As the classroom began to buzz with chatter like blood flowing again after a blockage, someone approached me lightly.

“Hey, loser. Did you really not write it?”

It was a girl with long, yellow-dyed hair wearing a uniform that looked like it might burst at the seams.

She was hiding her hands behind her back as if concealing something, which only emphasized her chest area.

The name “Yang Juhui” was written on her puffy uniform vest.

“No, Juhui. I didn’t write it, I’m telling you.”

I maintained the most submissive attitude possible toward Yang Juhui, who was a head shorter than me.

This way I get hit less!

I even lowered my eyes to look as pitiful and submissive as possible!

As a result, I could see Yang Juhui’s white legs and thin ankles below her short skirt.

I recently overheard her gang talking about how Yang Juhui had earned a million won as some kind of shoe model, and indeed, her legs were slender enough to be model material.

Pretty, relatively good at studying, and popular among the party crowd.

How enjoyable must the lives of people like this be—I was thinking this when Yang Juhui spoke.

“Well, when you’re bullied every day, you’d want to rebel at least once, right? You’re a man too, Yeongwon. Since we’re on the topic, should this noona check how much your little friend has grown?”

“Ow, stop it! And why would I write a letter to the faculty office? I want to know who wrote it too. There’s no bullying in our class, right?”

“……”

Yang Juhui frowned.

But her cloudy expression soon changed to a smile as bright as sunshine.

“This is why I like our Yeongwon. Really. Whenever I see you, I just want to bite you and pinch you. So, did you buy me a new lighter? I thought Zippo lighters were cool.”

“Here. I scraped together money I don’t have to buy it. It’s 5,000 won. I bought it with my dinner money, so you really need to pay me back…”

“Kyaa-. Yeongwon, you’re the best! I’ll pay you back later, okay?”

Slide-.

Just then, the classroom door opened and a scruffy-looking boy with red hair appeared, urgently speaking to Yang Juhui.

“Hey, Juhui! Geonho said he has something to tell you and to come to the old school building! He said it’s super important, so come quickly!”

“Ah shit, who does Kim Geonho think he is, telling people to come and go? Yeongwon, let’s meet later. Come to the back of the auditorium after school. Don’t run away like last time, okay? Got it?”

Yang Juhui put the cutter knife from my desk into her pocket with an angelic voice but devilish threat, then left the classroom.

I don’t know why she took the cutter knife… but I probably won’t get it back. This isn’t the first time my belongings have disappeared like this.

“That’s my knife… And I didn’t even get paid for the lighter.”

By now, anyone would know.

…I, Ha Yeongwon, was the punching bag for Class D’s bullies!

You could say I was at the very bottom of the school hierarchy, a ‘slave’!

But right now, I couldn’t stop smiling.

“Mhehehehe. Kim Geonho, that bastard, look at him freaking out. Seems like he’s a bit scared of getting caught by the teacher? Serves him right. Yang Juhui too. That bitch keeps taking my stuff bit by bit…”

Normally, I would have been too afraid to even mutter such things to myself in case someone heard, but-

Today I was different!

There was a good reason for that!

Taking advantage of the fact that no one was paying attention to me, I whispered quietly.

“Status Window.”

# # #

『Name: Ha Yeongwon Lv.1

Trait: 《The Broken Clock》

Funds: 99 Points

Description: Once promising, you’ve been spending meaningless days just killing time. But even a broken clock shows the correct time twice a day.』

『Advice from 《The Broken Clock》: Collect funds to open the 「Shop」! Funds automatically accumulate at 2P per day and can be additionally acquired through non-routine activities.』

『Funds required to open the Shop: 100P』

Thanks to these words that appeared after the entrance ceremony, I could spend my days a little differently from others.

The reason I could endure being a punching bag and suffering humiliation from Yang Juhui was because of this strange status window.

And today was the day when the funds I had been accumulating at 2 points per day since the entrance ceremony would reach 100P.

“The price to open the 「Shop」 is 100 points.”

I couldn’t know what would be in this status window’s 「Shop」, but it certainly wouldn’t be ordinary, and it shouldn’t be.

Maybe it would sell something like a 「Hypnosis App」.

Or perhaps a magic book that could awaken supernatural powers?

Still, I’d prefer the 「Hypnosis App」.

I’m confident I could put it to good use.

“Lunch time, come quickly!”

From what I’d figured out, points came in at fixed times: noon at 12 and midnight at 12.

So I was endlessly waiting for lunch time, and tick-tock—I could finally acquire 100 points!

“Shit, God, Buddha, please… shit, please…”

『Using 100P to open the Shop!』

『Welcome to the Level 1 Shop.

Our shop sells various items that will help in battles against heroes.』

Did the 「Hypnosis App」 appear!?

From now on, I’m the king of Class D!

『Raising the shop level will add products and apply discounts.

Shop Level 1 Lv (0/100)

1. Trait Drawing Ticket – 100P

2. Capsule Drawing Ticket – 100P

3. Unlock Locked Item – 100P

4. Open Old School Building – 0P』

“……”

Looking at the items for sale in the shop, my mind went blank for a moment.

Since it was called a ‘shop,’ I had expected it would sell things for a price, but most items were so expensive that I couldn’t afford them.

“This is too much.”

100 points means I’d have to save for 50 days!

Do they want me to keep acting like a Pikachu and being a punching bag for 50 more days?

Absolutely not.

Having just opened the shop with no points left, the only thing I could do was 「4. Open Old School Building 0P」.

Thinking I needed to do something to escape my slave status, I moved my hand.

Ding-.

『The Old School Building has been unlocked.』

『Chapter 1. Starting the Nightmare Corridor.』

『Please select a player from the list.』

『You can select up to 4 people.』

“Oh….”

Among the names that appeared, there were many familiar faces.

# # #

Yeongji High School was barely classified as an academic school, with student quality not being particularly high.

As a result, the secluded area behind the old school building often became lawless during break times, filled with various students.

“Hey, did you hear? Someone saw that bastard Kim Geonho walking around Jimun-dong with the English teacher last weekend.”

“Wow, shit, really? Jimun-dong has tons of bars and motels! Kim Geonho with the English teacher? Even though there’s like a ten-year age gap…!?”

“Wow, I’m so jealous of that bastard Kim Geonho. I really, truly liked the English teacher… Is the English teacher crazy? With a student?”

“Ugh, the cigarette smell is really strong.”

When a girl with yellow-dyed hair appeared, the boys who had been gathered in small groups stopped what they were doing and turned their attention to her.

For these hormone-filled teenage boys, every move made by Yang Juhui, who was considered one of the prettiest girls among their peers, was excessively stimulating.

“Juhui doesn’t have a boyfriend, right? Should I try contacting her?”

“Wow, did she make her skirt even shorter? She’s really pretty…”

But even these teenage boys couldn’t casually approach or act friendly with Yang Juhui.

Partly because Yang Juhui, rumored to be from a wealthy family, gave off an unapproachable vibe, but also because Kim Geonho, who ruled Class D like a king, had taken a liking to her.

Among the male students, only Kim Geonho and his punching bag Ha Yeongwon could have conversations with Yang Juhui.

This was also why Ha Yeongwon received additional bullying from other male students.

“Hey, where’s Kim Geonho? Why did he tell me to come?”

Yang Juhui asked.

The boys who were smoking cigarettes all eagerly spoke up, competing with each other.

“Geonho should be in the old school building! I think he called you about the shoe modeling job?”

“Or maybe Geonho is going to confess to you again? Juhui, honestly, you and Geonho would look really good together, why don’t you just date him?”

“With Kim Geonho? No thanks. I told you before. I like strong men.”

The boys wore expressions of incomprehension.

After all, there were very few people at Yeongji High who could fight better than Kim Geonho.

Maybe she’s talking about that senior in third year… While they were thinking this, Yang Juhui took out a lighter from her pocket and lit a cigarette.

All the boys watched her as if mesmerized.

“But why did he want to meet at the old school building?”

“Geonho’s been trying to pick the lock at the old school building for days now. Says he’s making his own hideout. Teachers don’t patrol there, so you can smoke freely and stuff…”

Yang Juhui disliked the old school building.

She got an eerie feeling from that abandoned building.

There were also rumors about it being haunted.

In fact, Yang Juhui was someone who had ‘seen’ a ghost before.

Though she was still confused about whether it was a dream or reality….