Chapter 80 : The Gambling Maniac, Namgung Il (1)
Namgung Il was walking somewhere, following Jeong Hyeon-yeong.
'This brat surely hated me openly from the first day.'
Namgung Il remembered Jeong Hyeon-yeong's face.
Not only had he been the first to express his dissatisfaction with his recommended admission, but he had also been constantly looking at him with a rather uncomfortable gaze since the entrance ceremony.
Of course, since Namgung Il was not the type to care much about such things, he had just ignored him, but Namgung Il had not expected at all that he would be the first to speak to him.
"...There's a place I need you to go with me for a moment."
Jeong Hyeon-yeong had said to Namgung Il in the dining hall.
Since the fact that he had been the first to speak to him was quite unexpected, he had been following him obediently, but Namgung Il still did not know the reason why Jeong Hyeon-yeong had called him.
"Where on earth are we going?"
"..."
"I have an appointment later, so I'd appreciate it if you could finish your business quickly."
"...We're almost there."
Jeong Hyeon-yeong answered and continued to walk forward silently.
It seemed he would not tell him the reason why he had called him until they reached their destination.
Just then, Namgung Il could see a familiar face in front.
"...?"
Hwang Dong-jae, who was leaning against a tree over there as if he had been waiting for them.
At that moment, Namgung Il felt as if he knew the reason why Jeong Hyeon-yeong had called him.
'The one who really called me is that brat.'
Jeong Hyeon-yeong was just an errand boy.
As if to prove that, Jeong Hyeon-yeong stopped walking in front of Hwang Dong-jae.
"...I've brought him."
When Jeong Hyeon-yeong said that, Hwang Dong-jae took his back off the tree and approached this way.
The face of Hwang Dong-jae, which he was seeing in succession following last night.
Since it was not a very welcome face, Namgung Il just looked at Hwang Dong-jae with an expressionless face.
"Namgung Il, you don't even say a word of greeting when you see your senior?"
"Isn't a greeting originally for someone you're happy to see?"
"..."
"I don't feel particularly happy to see you, senior."
Twitch—
Hearing the answer, a slight wrinkle formed on Hwang Dong-jae's brow.
Soon, with a murderous smile, Hwang Dong-jae said to Namgung Il.
"You're still an impolite junior."
"Thank you."
"Yes, I didn't call you to receive a greeting from you anyway."
As expected, the one who had called him was Hwang Dong-jae.
Namgung Il raised his qi sense and checked if there were any brats hiding nearby.
'I don't feel any presence.'
Then it meant that calling him here was not a trap.
Namgung Il returned his qi sense to its original state and asked Hwang Dong-jae.
"Why did you call me?"
"..."
"Are you perhaps thinking of continuing what happened yesterday? Then you won't be able to do it alone, senior."
"...That's good too."
Hwang Dong-jae muttered meaningfully and smiled even more murderously.
"But the reason I called you today is different."
"...?"
"I heard that the Vermilion Bird Class received a demerit from the first day today."
Demerit... a word that he had not expected suddenly came out of Hwang Dong-jae's mouth.
When Namgung Il did not answer anything, Hwang Dong-jae continued to speak.
"And I heard that the brat who received that demerit was a first-year student."
"..."
"Yes, the two brats here."
Just then, Jeong Hyeon-yeong's body trembled slightly.
Namgung Il had also already heard that Jeong Hyeon-yeong had received a demerit from Cha Yul-ryeong besides himself.
But for Hwang Dong-jae to be mentioning that fact now.
Namgung Il could now grasp Hwang Dong-jae's intention to some extent.
'Is he going to use this as an excuse to pick on me?'
Isn't that exactly what he looks like now?
Since Hwang Dong-jae had been holding a grudge against him since last night, he must have been waiting for something like this to happen.
But for it to happen right today, how happy would he be?
If it had been a demerit given to an individual, it might have been different, but since it was a demerit that affected the entire class, it was more than enough reason to find fault.
"It's the first time that first-year brats have received a demerit from the first day."
"..."
"How are you going to take responsibility for this? Because of you, the Vermilion Bird Class is in last place among the four classes from the first day."
"I'm sorry!"
It was then.
When Jeong Hyeon-yeong suddenly apologized, Hwang Dong-jae turned his head that way.
"I will take responsibility for the demerit and return it to its original state, no matter what!"
"..."
"So if you would forgive what happened today, senior..."
"You talk so easily."
Hwang Dong-jae said, thrusting his face towards Jeong Hyeon-yeong.
His lips, which did not move easily when their eyes met up close.
It was normal for an ordinary first-year student to tremble and not be able to say anything when a fourth-year student put pressure on him in front of him.
Especially since Hwang Dong-jae's impression was also fierce, and since he had left a strong impression from the first day, his body couldn't help but be more tense.
"You're a first-year student, so you don't know, but getting merit points is a really difficult thing."
"Th-still, I'll somehow..."
"Let's say you got merit points. Still, the fact that you received a demerit from the first day and made the Vermilion Bird Class last place doesn't change."
"..."
"With just that, the morale of the Vermilion Bird Class is already hitting rock bottom. Even I have already lost my morale and don't want to do anything. How are you going to take responsibility for this?"
It was a sophistry.
In the first place, since Hwang Dong-jae's purpose was to find fault, Namgung Il had already expected that he would speak like that from the beginning.
So if he had said that to him, he would have refuted right away, but Jeong Hyeon-yeong was confused and could not answer anything.
"This year, the goal was for the Vermilion Bird Class to be first place, but it's been completely ruined from the first day because of the first-year students."
"..."
"With this, it's been proven that the discipline of the first-year brats has slackened."
At that moment, the smile on Hwang Dong-jae's lips disappeared.
Hwang Dong-jae now said the purpose of calling the two here.
"Gather the first-year students tonight."
"...!"
"As expected, the education yesterday was not enough. So we have to educate them thoroughly tonight so that something like this doesn't happen again."
"The ones who did wrong are me and Namgung Il! So it's enough for just us to receive the scolding!"
Jeong Hyeon-yeong hated the fact that his other classmates were being harmed because of him.
Rather than that, he would be much more at ease if he were to be beaten like a dog by Hwang Dong-jae himself.
However.
"Who says?"
"...!"
"I know for sure how to straighten out the discipline of the first-year students."
Hwang Dong-jae had no intention of picking on these two from the beginning.
Did he know how mentally difficult it is for others to suffer because of oneself?
Although being hit would just be hard for oneself once, that could inflict more pain than just being hit for a long time.
"Your classmates are being harmed because of you."
"...!"
"Even the brats who say it's okay on the outside will be cursing you a lot on the inside. That's the punishment I'm giving you."
Thud—
Just then, Jeong Hyeon-yeong knelt on the floor.
"I was wrong... so please forgive me just once."
"..."
"I'll just take all the responsibility. I'll gladly take any punishment you give me, so please..."
Jeong Hyeon-yeong had been educated since he was young with the family motto that he should live without causing harm to others.
That family motto had made Jeong Hyeon-yeong a diligent child, and since then, Jeong Hyeon-yeong had extremely avoided causing harm to others.
But for his classmates to be harmed because of him from the first day of the academy.
Since this was like breaking the family's creed, Jeong Hyeon-yeong wanted to stop that, even if it meant kneeling.
'It's over.'
Seeing that, Hwang Dong-jae laughed inwardly.
The stronger a brat looks on the outside, the more he must be thoroughly broken from the inside in other ways.
This was what he had personally felt in the past.
Now, if he just broke one more brat, he would finally be satisfied.
"Alright."
"...!"
"But there's still one brat who hasn't knelt."
Hwang Dong-jae said and turned his head to Namgung Il.
"If that brat also kneels and apologizes to me for being wrong, I'll make it all a non-issue."
"..."
"Namgung Il, what are you going to do?"
"Why should I kneel to you, senior?"
Namgung Il said without a moment's hesitation.
"..."
Well, it didn't really matter.
Given that brat's personality, he had already expected from the beginning that he would not be broken by something like this.
'His thoughts will change later.'
As time went on, Namgung Il would also realize it.
Not only would the gazes of the people around him change, but at that time, the first-year students would on their own rebuke and isolate Namgung Il.
When that moment came, Namgung Il would on his own apologize to him for being wrong.
No matter how solid a rock looks, if you keep hitting it, a crack is bound to form.
'...It reminds me of the old days.'
As if to erase the memory of that time, Hwang Dong-jae shook his head slightly from side to side and looked at Namgung Il again.
"Then it can't be helped. I'll gather the first-year students tonight."
"..."
"You don't have to come."
When Hwang Dong-jae said that, Jeong Hyeon-yeong hurriedly got up from his seat and approached Namgung Il.
"Namgung Il! Hurry up and apologize for being wrong!"
"Why should I do that?"
"Why do you have to do that... are you saying it doesn't matter if your other classmates are harmed because of you?"
"In the first place, you're mistaken about something."
Mistaken?
Jeong Hyeon-yeong could not immediately understand what Namgung Il was saying.
"In the first place, the one who is wrong now is that person."
"..."
"To do that just because he's a senior, don't you think that's wrong?"
Of course, he also knew that well.
But the reason why Jeong Hyeon-yeong had knelt was because this was the only way now.
Because he could not do anything about Hwang Dong-jae, who had seized real power within the Vermilion Bird Class.
Jeong Hyeon-yeong had chosen to submit to Hwang Dong-jae rather than cause harm to his classmates.
"Namgung Il... you're not the only one with pride."
"..."
"You and I were wrong anyway. So if we can't take responsibility for that wrong, I think we should at least bend our pride and take responsibility."
Only now did Namgung Il seem to know what kind of person Jeong Hyeon-yeong was.
A personality that was diligent and valued responsibility.
Although it seemed easy to say, the act of bending one's pride to take that responsibility was not as easy as one might think.
"That kind of personality. I don't dislike it."
"...What?"
"Don't worry. I wasn't saying I wouldn't take responsibility either."
Jeong Hyeon-yeong looked at Namgung Il with a blank face.
Just then, Namgung Il, who turned his head and moved his steps somewhere.
Stopping right in front of Hwang Dong-jae, Namgung Il opened his mouth.
"We just have to make up for the points, right?"
"...What are you talking about? Didn't I say earlier that that alone wouldn't be enough?"
"You should listen to what people have to say until the end."
Crack—
"We will make up for the points we lost. And... we will get that much more merit points."
"...What?"
Did he even know what he was saying now?
As Hwang Dong-jae was asking with his expression, Namgung Il said for sure once more.
"If the ten demerit points become ten merit points, the morale that you mentioned earlier will surely rise, right?"
"...Do you really think you can do it?"
"Of course."
Namgung Il said and smiled meaningfully.
"Or would you like to make a bet with me?"
The gambling maniac, Namgung Il.
He proposed a bet to Hwang Dong-jae.
(End of Chapter)