Chapter 42
Do Baek-ho.
A man with a naturally violent personality.
He constantly picked fights with people and looked down on others.
Even in high school,
he caused problems almost every day.
Maybe because of that,
fewer and fewer people wanted to hang around with him near graduation.
But even alone,
Do Baek-ho remained just as vicious.
For someone as naturally timid as Kang Ha-min,
he had been the worst kind of person to deal with.
From the beginning,
Do Baek-ho had looked down on him.
Sometimes he would hit Kang Ha-min for no reason as he passed by.
If their eyes met, he would angrily ask what Kang Ha-min was staring at.
Sometimes he would stand beside him and annoy him while asking to borrow money.
It was never anything huge.
Just constant small harassment.
Not quite severe enough to easily report as school violence.
But for Kang Ha-min,
those experiences had made his timid personality even worse.
"Isn't that Do Baek-ho?"
"Who invited him?"
"Invited him? He probably heard about it somewhere and showed up."
Apparently, Shin Ji-a and Eom Ji-ho disliked him too.
They each made a comment.
Do Baek-ho ignored them
and looked around arrogantly.
"You bastards still haven't changed. Look at those ambitionless faces."
With a disappointed expression,
Do Baek-ho searched for a seat.
Then he spotted Seo Yu-na
and grinned.
Seo Yu-na had only just arrived,
so there was still an empty seat beside her.
"Wow, Seo Yu-na, you're still gorgeous!"
Then, as naturally as if they were close, he sat beside her and started flirting.
Eom Ji-ho clicked his tongue.
"Ugh, disgusting bastard. He hasn't changed at all."
Agreed.
Still disgusting.
"I'm feeling generous today! All the drinks are on me! Drink as much as you want!"
Do Baek-ho suddenly shouted loudly.
He had just offered to pay for everyone's drinks.
"Oh, Do Baek-ho!"
"Thanks for the drinks!"
Even people who weren't particularly close to him shouted his name once they heard he was paying.
He really understood how to exploit capitalism.
Shin Ji-a narrowed her eyes.
"I heard Do Baek-ho got rich from crypto."
"Crypto?"
"Back when nobody cared about it. I heard he bought a ton and went around saying it would become the asset of the future."
"Damn, look at how unfair life is. I was wondering why all his clothes looked expensive. No wonder he's buying drinks, he's got money to burn."
So those were luxury brands.
Kang Ha-min knew absolutely nothing about designer clothing.
"Ugh, I'm jealous. That's it, I need alcohol."
"Same."
The two immediately drank together.
Kang Ha-min silently joined them.
His good mood had disappeared just because a few unpleasant memories had returned.
He hated how easily his Estrogen Man emotions took control.
[Master, you seem to dislike that person. If you wish, I'll remove him.]
And then there was the demon whispering quietly from his shadow.
"Hahahahaha!"
Kang Ha-min simply focused on drinking while listening to Do Baek-ho laugh like he was suddenly the main character.
Kang Ha-min had become a Hunter.
He had even undergone Rebirth.
His body was vastly superior to an ordinary person's.
And it had one unexpected downside.
I'm not getting drunk at all.
By now,
his classmates had been drinking so hard that several were already passed out.
Meanwhile, Kang Ha-min was completely sober.
He couldn't help laughing awkwardly.
"...Hic. People always told me I could drink, but Kang Ha-min, your alcohol tolerance is insane."
Eom Ji-ho had already passed out long ago.
Even Shin Ji-a, who was famous for being a heavy drinker,
had turned bright red and started hiccuping.
She had tried to match Kang Ha-min's pace
and ended up drunk herself.
"I guess today is just one of those days when I don't get drunk."
His stomach only felt full of alcohol.
That wasn't particularly pleasant either.
"Ughhh, I surrender. I'm resting."
Eventually,
Shin Ji-a rested her face on the table and admitted defeat.
Everyone at the table was basically unconscious.
I should go to the bathroom.
Since he wasn't drunk at all,
Kang Ha-min stood up without the slightest stumble.
He was just about to turn the corner toward the bathroom.
"Seo Yu-na, I'm asking you to just talk with me. I'm not the same person I was back then."
Ugh.
Why did they have to be here of all places?
Seo Yu-na and Do Baek-ho.
Both of them were standing there.
Hmm.
Kang Ha-min immediately and naturally took one step backward.
Then he returned to his seat as if nothing had happened.
An Estrogen Man never gets involved in something like this.
Whew.
He had cut off the event flag.
Time to keep drinking.
"Ughhh... bathroom..."
Just as Kang Ha-min lifted his glass,
Shin Ji-a staggered to her feet.
Wait.
She really shouldn't go to the bathroom right now.
Kang Ha-min watched anxiously.
Then she stumbled,
sat back down,
and started grabbing at the edge of her pants.
"Bathroom's too far..."
"No, don't!"
Had she lost her mind?!
Kang Ha-min panicked and immediately supported her.
If she relieved herself here at this age,
her social life would be over!
He hurried toward the bathroom with Shin Ji-a.
Seo Yu-na and Do Baek-ho were still there.
Both of them turned around in surprise when Kang Ha-min suddenly appeared with Shin Ji-a.
But there was no time to care.
"Move, move!"
Once he reached the women's bathroom,
Kang Ha-min froze.
No matter how urgent it was,
he couldn't enter the women's bathroom.
"Seo Yu-na, take her!"
"Huh? O, okay."
Seo Yu-na looked confused,
but quickly took Shin Ji-a.
Then she helped her into the bathroom.
She would handle things from there.
Kang Ha-min finally relaxed.
Then he felt an intense gaze burning into the back of his head.
He turned around.
Do Baek-ho was glaring at him.
Why was he glaring?
This was an emergency.
He had no choice.
"Hey, Kang Ha-min."
Do Baek-ho clearly remembered him.
His eyes were full of irritation.
"Does it bother you that much to see me getting close to Seo Yu-na?"
No.
He didn't give a damn.
But the words didn't come out immediately.
"...Ji-a desperately needed the bathroom. That's why I came here."
"If you're going to lie, at least make it believable. I saw you coming this way earlier and turning around."
"I was going to use the bathroom, but I saw you two talking, so I gave you space."
"Bullshit. You brought Shin Ji-a here just to interrupt us, didn't you?"
There was no getting through to him.
Then again,
Do Baek-ho had always been like this.
He decided on the conclusion first.
That made actual conversation impossible.
Back then,
Kang Ha-min would simply give up in situations like this.
But seeing him still acting this way at their age was irritating.
"I know you used to like Seo Yu-na, but I already told you back then. Stay away from her..."
