Chapter 87-88 – Preparation – 6
[MC POV]
It was said that Yung hadn't always been a stuttering okatu.
Despite being mixed-race Korean, she was quite popular thanks to her unique sociability and pretty face. She leaned more toward being an "insider" than an "outsider."
She was remarkably open-minded and enjoyed engaging with her otaku friends. They often shared all sorts of nerdy information with each other.
For that reason, she had a large circle of friends in middle school. On top of that, many people confessed their feelings to her.
Of course, she wasn't interested in dating at the time, so she hadn't accepted any of them. However, she did have one particular problem.
"Ouch!"
"What's wrong? Are you okay?"
She was the type you'd call a "lucky pervert."
She would trip and fall, only to end up pressed against the chest of a handsome guy in front of her.
Thud…!
"Ah. Sorry."
"U-Uh. It's okay."
Sometimes a handsome guy would trip and accidentally slam into a wall with her. She had that kind of "lucky pervert" constitution.
This wasn't much of a problem in middle school.
Her school was small, and most of the students were her close friends. They had known about Yung's constitution since she was little.
The problem began when she entered high school.
When her other friends went to nearby schools, Yung, one of the top students in her grade, went to a high school with a high academic deviation value (the Japanese version of the nine-grade system).
Yung had originally wanted to attend a school nearby, but her parents had strongly opposed it.
"You can go somewhere higher."
"Honey, it'll be much easier to become a lawyer or a doctor if you go there. So, okay?"
Her parents saw her as a trophy rather than as an individual. But that was fine with her. She still had many friends at her new school.
About half a year after starting high school, things took a turn for the worse.
Strange rumors about Yung began circulating at school. People said she deliberately crossed her legs or fell into men's arms to seduce them.
At first, Yung ignored the rumors. It was a common thing at her previous school. Usually, such rumors would die down if you simply stayed quiet. It had been similar in this case.
Only the people who disliked her were spreading them; it wasn't the mainstream opinion.
The real problem came next.
There was a senior at the school who was famous for being handsome.
He had been dating someone in Yung's grade but suddenly broke up with her and confessed to her.
The only interaction Yung had had with him was when he had helped her after she almost fell. That was already strange enough, but the senior's confession was even more ridiculous.
"I felt destiny with you!"
He claimed he felt destiny after helping her just once and confessed to Yung.
You might think this is impossible in real life, but reality is often a cesspool.
Naturally, Yung rejected him. She thought that would calm the situation. But it didn't.
Perhaps because of the senior's ex-girlfriend, some people started spreading rumors again, claiming that Yung's "lucky pervert" incidents were all intentional attempts to seduce men and that she had even seduced a few.
The difference this time was that the rumors were more malicious, filled with deep-seated resentment and intent.
Naturally, Yung acted the same way this time. She smiled as usual, said the rumors were all fake, and quietly went to school.
It was natural for her to do so. She had to remain a good daughter at home and couldn't cause a fuss.
She had hoped that things would pass quietly. Unfortunately, her wish was not granted.
In middle school, she had friends who had been close to her for a long time, but not here.
She had become an outcast.
When she arrived at school, she had to check her shoes in the shoe locker. Last time, she had just worn them and got pricked by a pin.
When she arrived in class, she immediately headed to the bathroom to get a rag. She used it to wipe the desk that had been defaced with graffiti and insults.
Her locker was filled with all sorts of filth.
Yes. She had been branded as a [toy] in the school society. But even so, she quietly went to school.
Even though she was treated like air by her classmates, she continued to attend classes diligently. She took exams seriously and managed to maintain her top grades.
Those who still held a grudge against Yung because of her reaction started spreading unspeakable rumors.
Rumors that crossed the line began circulating about her.
For example, people said she was involved in compensated dating, selling her body to men, or that she would sleep with anyone who wanted.
Again, Yung thought that if she just stayed quiet, these baseless rumors would die down. But reality was even worse.
While she kept her mouth shut, she became the school's public slut.
Does that make sense?
Well, seeing as it wasn't much different in South Korea, Japan wasn't much different either.
The bigger problem was that Yung heard these words from a former friend while hiding in the bathroom.
After that, Yung didn't talk much, and she became awkward when speaking in front of others.
The duality of humans had traumatized her.
Then an incident occurred that abruptly ended her school life. She had already been seriously considering dropping out due to rumors and incidents that bordered on personal attacks.
While quietly reading in the study room to avoid drawing attention, she remained focused on her book. Late at night, some delinquent seniors discovered her there.Rumor had it they were connected to the Yakuza.
"Hey. How much do you charge for compensated dating?"
"Yeah. Yeah. Let me have a go too~"
"Hehe. Hey. Are you guys the only ones using her? Let me use her too!"
The seniors grabbed her and dragged her to a secluded spot. They were forcing her to give them her body.
"U-Uh… I, I don't want to!"
No. They weren't asking. They were forcing her.
"Hey. We're being nice right now. Do you think you can refuse?"
"Wow. She's so innocent~"
"That's why you should have managed your reputation better."
"Kyaa-Ugh! Ugh!!"
"Aha. It's no fun if you make noise like that."
They covered Yung's arms and mouth, trying to assault her. Fortunately, she wasn't harmed.
"You guys! What are you doing there?!"
A strict physical education teacher who was known for being rigid found them while patrolling the school. After that, Yung was able to return home safely, but her heart was completely broken.
She became afraid of men. To be precise, she feared everyone, but especially men.
Yung locked herself in her house.
No. Actually, she couldn't even do that. Her parents called her a coward for running away from school.
Instead of comforting her, they scolded her for damaging their reputation and told her to go back to school.
She hated her parents so much that she moved in with her doting uncle and aunt.
Thanks to her talented programmer uncle, she was able to learn programming.
She spent several years there, mastering programming and how to find work. After saving enough money, she became independent and reached where she is now. That was Yung's life story so far.
"Hic… Because of this constitution, I'm just causing trouble for others… and making you worry for no reason…"
I listened to Yung's words for a moment and then snapped my fingers.
Snap…!
I saw the life drain from her face. She was on the verge of tears, and I sighed deeply.
"Haa…"
Honestly, Yung's story was hard to believe from my perspective.
She had been forced to drop out of high school in her first year, right at the start of the semester. Even when Haruka had a similar experience, I couldn't fully empathize for the same reason.
'Is high school really supposed to be a place full of bullying?'
I thought it was meant to be full of dreams and hope.
Well, parents could be cruel.
If not, there were only two possibilities. Either both of them were special cases, or…
'She is lying.'
Personally, I didn't like interrogations like this, but I still needed to know the truth.
If she had lied to me…
'I'll go back to the old ways… no. I'll just leave her alone.'
There was no need to act like I used to, even here. I could just think of it as stepping in shit. So I asked while she was under hypnosis.
"Yung, is there not a single lie in what you just said?"
"Yes…"
"I'll ask again. Yung, is everything you said true?"
"Yes…"
Fortunately, there didn't seem to be any lies in what she had said.
'Haa… okay. It's a relief if it's true.'
I felt a moment of relief. But then it made even less sense.
'Then why did she apologize to me?'
'Why would she apologize? It didn't make sense. She hadn't actually done anything wrong.'
The only thing she had done wrong was react lukewarmly to the rumors.
If it had been me, I would have relied on the traditions of South Korean politics. I would have covered it up with another, even bigger issue.
"Yung. Why did you apologize to me?"
"I thought it was all my fault for showing you such an ugly sight because of my strange habit…"
"Did you feel the same way when you were bullied by those high school friends?"
"Yes…"
I didn't know whether to call her a pushover or a saint. I pondered while she remained under hypnosis.
[TIP 2. If you empathize with her and comfort her, she will be saved…]
'The tip window was giving me advice, but could ending it with just that really be true salvation?'
I thought for a moment, but…
"That's not for me to decide."
That was something she had to decide for herself.
If it wasn't her own choice, it would all be meaningless.
Right now, I just had to complete the mission given by the screen.
Maybe, if I released her from hypnosis and showed some empathy, she might be able to find her own path to salvation.
'But…'
Even if the mission failed, there was something I wanted to tell her.
I released Yung from hypnosis and said, "To be honest, I can't say that you're completely blameless in the story you told."
"Y-Yes?"
"At least when you left school, you should have punched the guys who bullied you in the face."
"Eeh?"
"If someone hates you for no reason, you should give them a reason. If someone hits your right cheek, you should punch them in the jaw. The fault lies in the other person, not in you."
"U-Uh…Yes…?"
She didn't seem to fully understand what I meant. So I clarified.
"So, even if someone hates you, don't blame yourself. Blame the person who made you that way."
Yung seemed to understand then.
"B-But, that would be a nuisance…"
"It's okay to cause that much trouble to the guy who hit you in the face."
"R-Really? Is that okay?"
"Yeah. At least for the guys who are giving you trouble."
"R-Really?"
I nodded several times to her repeated questions.
"Hic… R-Really. Really? Is that okay? I thought I should just stay quiet…"
Upon hearing my affirmation, Yung seemed to release the pent-up emotions in her heart.Tears welled up in her eyes, hidden by her hair.
I carefully brushed the hair covering her forehead and said, "If you stay quiet, the world will see you as a pushover and hit you on the cheek again. You have to slap both of their cheeks before that happens."
"Puhuhu. W-What's that…"
Yung had been crying, but then she began to laugh. Her laughter continued through her tears for a long time. Eventually, she seemed exhausted and half-dozing off, so I laid her down comfortably.
As soon as she lay on the bed, Yung, already feeling sleepy, began to drift off. Within moments, she was almost completely asleep. Before she drifted off, she whispered, "T-Thank you so much…"
A screen appeared before me. It was indicating the side episode was complete. More than that, I hoped Yung would rest peacefully.
After leaving the room where she was sleeping, I spoke with Miharu, who was sitting nearby.
"Let's go now."
"Yung is…"
"She's sleeping peacefully, so don't worry."
Miharu's eyes widened at my words. She carefully opened Yung's door, confirmed she was asleep, and looked back at me with a relieved expression.
'No. Am I really that untrustworthy?'
I thought as I headed to the entrance to leave Yung's house with Miharu.
"So that's why… women are drawn to him…"
Before leaving, I heard Miharu mutter something softly. But that was probably just my imagination.