Translator: Wan ED/PR: Solarin
50. Set piece (1) [1]
While Playlist was shooting, the cheering squad and staff took a break for a moment.
Excluding the soccer athletes who were warming up on the ground with artificial grass, the other discipline athletes moved to their designated audience seats.
There were many people who went to watch Playlist shooting crew up close or to greet acquaintances before the game started and left their seats, and among those people was the 1st year flag bearer and the flag cheering squad leader, Jang Namuk.
Jang Namuk faithfully changed from the cheering squad leader uniform to the Military Academy uniform and sat down in the waiting room designated by Jo Uisin and waited.
The screen installed in the waiting room showed the sports ground’s situation, and though he had no idea what they did, no problem occurred when dismantling the stage.
‘What happened to the staff members who collapsed? And Sihu?’
The stage installed for the sake of the opening ceremony and performance was quickly organized at the hands of Hwang Myeong Foundation’s members.
He saw the staff members with blank looking faces under the stage, but they didn’t seem injured as if the treatment with the recovery items was finished.
Instead of them, what caught his eye in the temporary staff room under the demolished stage was the broken broadcasting equipments, including the sound and video stream devices.
All the broken equipments were products of Namkung Electronics.
‘They said it’s fine, because they’re prepared. Is it really fine?’
‘No way, are they trying to disguise it as an accident caused by the malfunction of Namkung Electronics?’ he thought.
As articles about Namkung Electronics’ products causing big and small incidents kept coming up these days, it wouldn’t be strange if another incident was added.
‘If it’s Namkung Group… They’re related to Gyu-yeon.’
Jang Namuk recalled the Military School’s mate, Namkung Gyu-yeon, who would mischievously snicker saying ‘If only our house gets fucked[2]…’.
Because his Military School’s mate was related to the Namkung Group, he felt a bit subtle about it.
But Jang Namuk judged that it would be shameless to say something about the means chose by a person who helped him, when he was in the position where he couldn’t do anything, so he kept his mouth shut.
Click. Tok.
The door to the waiting room opened without any warning and then closed.
Even though Jang Namuk thought there is no need to be wary in his head, he felt a chill down his spine.
‘I wasn’t able to feel anything until the door opened…! Even now I don’t feel anything!’
In front of the frozen Jang Namuk, red smoke appeared without any sign and scattered.
From the red smoke, a neat man with single eyelids appeared.
That man, Jeok-ho, was carrying a wrapped in chains Tao Sihu.
“Hello.”
“Ah, hello.”
At the polite greeting, Jang Namuk reflexively replied, but all his attention was on checking whether Tao Sihu was safe.
“Is Sihu okay?”
“There are no external injuries. However, as he was under a Demon’s interference for a long time, it would be good if he was examined by a proper medical professional.”
At the word ‘proper medical professional’, Jang Namuk made a complicated face.
Tao Sihu mentioned to him a few times that there were his father’s navy battle-mates at the Military Academy hospital.
The bright expression of Tao Sihu, who spoke about it, overlapped with the message sent by Jo Uisin.
The context of the message said that because it was assumed that the nurse officer was cooperating in this incident and manipulated Tao Sihu’s superpower wave examination results, the Regulation Enforcement Department was involved.
Jang Namuk spoke with a gloomy face.
“… Will Sihu remember it?”
“He was under a mind domination for a long time, so there is a chance of aftereffects if his memories were manipulated. There was also an opinion that his memories have to be erased…”
Jeok-ho looked at the worried Jang Namuk and the end of his sentence blurred.
He closed his eyes for a while, falling into thoughts, and then continued.
“Jo Uisin asserted that this cadet won’t dig up on ‘us’. Please be cautious not to pass our story[3] to the Player Army.”
“Thank you…!”
“I didn’t do anything to deserve thanks.”
After that, Jeok-ho informed him about a few more matters to be cautious of.
‘After Uisin’s name come out, it seems that His attitude somewhat softened…’
Jang Namuk thought like this, but decided not pry into it.
Right now, the important thing for Jang Namuk was that there was no one greatly injured among participants of the sport exchange, including Tao Sihu.
After releasing the chains tying Tao Sihu, he emitted red smoke like when he first appeared and disappeared.
“Sihu-ah, come back to your senses.”
After Jeok-ho disappeared, he tried to wake up Tao Sihu a few times, but even when he shook him, Tao Sihu didn’t easily wake up as if he was in a deep sleep.
On the screen, the Saint of Naejang Mountain and Dokgo Miro’s performance ended, and the stage organizing and ground preparation were finished so the soccer match started.
Even though the whistle of the head judge announced the beginning of the monumental first exchange match and the ball was kicked off the center line, Tao Sihu continued to sleep.
‘He looks fine even though the Eyes of the Star Maiden…’
He told the senior who played a role of general cheering squad leader that he would be leaving beforehand, but as a flag bearer, Jang Namuk didn’t felt good about being gone for too long.
Even though it was possible to receive a broadcast transmission through the cable in the stadium, as if something was done, the device transmission was blocked in this waiting room, so the messages haven’t came yet, but no matter how he looked, there certainly would be many people looking for Jang Namuk.
Even so, because he couldn’t leave Tao Sihu, he guarded him from the side while watching the game through the screen.
About the time when half of the game passed, a chance for Eungwang School’s corner kick came.
“Uh… This is not good.”
At the same time when Eungwang School’s Soccer Club’s leader kicked the ball, Eungwang School’s students moved in perfect order.
Like the origin ‘set pieces’ term, they moved neatly, like chess pieces set by an invisible hand.
The ball left the leader’s toes and accurately headed towards not marked Eungwang School’s athlete, and the Eungwang School’s 1st striker didn’t miss it and sent the ball into goal post.
Jang Namuk abruptly stood up and shouted.
“Ah, no!”
When the soccer ball crossed the goal line and shook the goal post’s net, the cheers exploded in the sports ground and echoed in the waiting room.
The scene of the Soccer Club’s leader and the 1st year striker, who scored the first point in the first game, circling the game ground, was streamed and then the set pieces scene leading to the scoring a point was played in slow-motion.
“…Uh?”
Perhaps because of the loud cheers, Tao Sihu, who sleeping peacefully, opened his eyes.
“Sihu-ah, are you okay?”
Jang Namuk who was looking at the screen with regretful eyes, rushed to Tao Sihu.
Tao Sihu who was lying down on the waiting room’s long sofa, rose up and blinked his eyes.
Tao Sihu looked around with a pale face, and then at Jang Namuk, and leaned against the backrest as if he was relived.
“Uh, I’m okay, but… was anyone injured?”
“No.”
Tao Sihu looked around.
He wasn’t yet able to completely figure out the situation but from Jang Namuk’s words and expression, them being in what he assumed was the Eungwang Stadium’s waiting room, and seeing how the soccer match was progressing normally, he guessed to a certain degree.
That Jang Namuk did something for him and he rescued him.
He should say thank you, but somehow no words were coming out.
Tao Sihu, feigned ignorance, and finally opened his mouth.
“Yeah, right, but… it seems like a big one. What to do?”
“What’s the matter? Are you still hearing strange voices in your head, or your body trying to move on it’s own?”
Jang Namuk recalled the emergency contact information Jeok-ho gave him while questioning carefully.
Tao Sihu didn’t reply straight away and stared at Jang Namuk, then smiled with a frivolous face, as he replied:
“No, the current score is 0 to 1, right? Looking the score, the ‘1’ is written with such big font, so I said there is a big 1, a big one, hahaha!….ack!” [4]
Peuk!
Seeing Tao Sihu, who was spouting immature nonsense, Jang Namuk suddenly felt pissed and unknowingly punched him.
He didn’t put much power into it, but it was a sufficient blow to make Tao Sihu fall back.
Instead of apologizing, Jang Namuk stood up.
“It seems that you’re fine, so let’s just go. Other kids will also worry.”
Tao Sihu nodded with a sullen face and followed after Jang Namuk.
For some reason, he associated Jang Namuk’s fist with the superpower wave lump, that made his Demon encroached mind wake up.
* * *
Playlist’s shooting and the first match between Eungwang School and Player Military Academy’s highschool department safely ended.
The opening ceremony, the Playlist’s performers’ show, and the first match that ended with Eungwang School’s victory were all cool.
It wasn’t cool, but after the game, there was one more attraction.
The very 3rd year class 0’s gang duck walking around Eungwang Stadium.
“The kids smell like bread these days, you know? I followed the smell of bread and easily found them.”
Im Yeonhwa said that, but such superhuman sense of smell was rare.
Among humans, only Maeng Hyodon judged ‘Ah, come to think of it, they smell of potato bread quite a bit’.
While enduring the humiliation, Woo Gihwan started to circle Eungwang Stadium, but Im Yeonhwa got bored and started to follow them by duck-walking herself.
After Im Yeonhwa began to chase them from behind, the 3rd year class 0’s bastard gang, who slowly circled the stadium, started to put all their power into moving.
But the strong homeroom teacher caught up to everyone.
While running at the forefront, Woo Gihwan tried to somehow complete the circle faster than Im Yeonhwa.
While gathering materials about that confrontation, the Newspaper Club’s people improvised and made a finish line, but in the end, the first to cut through that finish line was the strong homeroom teacher, Im Yeonhwa.
“Kids-ah, you also seem to be faster than I expected. If you do additional training starting today, you will become even faster.”
Im Yeonhwa spoke affectionately towards the 3rd year class 0’s children, who were frustrated, but couldn’t even cry out of worry about muscle loss.
Im Yeonhwa made a post on SNS ‘Today Eungwang School won the first exchange match! I also won! ^0^ㅋ’ together with proof shot, and the 3rd year class 0’s bastard, who saw that post, burst into tears after they tried to hold back and cried bitterly.
Even after eating dinner together, the topic didn’t leave this event.
“Speaking of when Miro sung, did You see a person with an enormous camera?”
“Ah, I saw it. The camera itself wasn’t that big, but the lens size was scary.”
“Wasn’t it perhaps the homema Yuri spoke about before? They didn’t watch the game and only took Miro’s pictures.”
Currently, the topic of the conversation we had was about the unidentifiable someone, who appeared holding a professional cannon-sized camera, while Dokgo Miro was singing.
They were wearing a mask so their face couldn’t be seen clearly, but that someone was wearing Eungwang School spring and autumn uniform.
“Miro’s homema is an Eungwang School’s student?”
“Looking at the name tag’s color, they seemed to be 2nd year.”
“Looking at the time when the homema takes and uploads pictures, it’s even at weekday mornings… Perhaps that Person doesn’t come to school.”
“Uh, they uploaded a picture just now.”
Min Geurin, who stayed to the end even though the stadium was full of unknown people, opened a holographic picture.
In the picture was Dokgo Miro from today, wearing the old white school uniform and filming.
Her expression was somewhat awkward like before, but her eye-drawing appearance, and vibrant hair color and school uniform harmonizing so well in the picture, it didn’t suffer in comparison to the school advertisement or stadium PR materials.
“I guess that senior-nim really was Miro’s homema!”
Kim Yuri, who looked at the picture, made such judgment and other children also nodded their heads.
It wasn’t as many as in the 1st year class 0, but there were also truants in other grades.
I guess Dokgo Miro’s homema was one of the 2nd year truants.
After eating our fill in the family restaurant, located in the Hwang Myeong Tower and two cafes, we promised to talk tomorrow and parted ways.
Before parting, Hwang Jiho suddenly spoke up.
“I have something to ask.”
“What?”
“Why you didn’t ask the class children to cooperate? If you accepted Sawol Seeum’s help, you would have more spare time.”
It was as Hwang Jiho said.
It wasn’t that I didn’t think of a way of making Sawol Seeum wait in the waiting room with cut off communication and using ‘The King Said’.
“Beginning with Sawol Seeum, aren’t there children who’ve already guessed your identity? You could’ve ask Maeng Hyodon or Mok Uram to cooperate with you. I said that Kim Yuri can’t use her superpower wave properly, but she could use her Student Council’s position to buy time.”
It seemed like he wanted to ask ‘Why, even though there are chess pieces you can use, you didn’t?’
This time, if we just avoided the Demon’s ‘Eyes’, the difficulty level was low, and the chances of the children finding themselves in danger were low.
Even so, I didn’t want to borrow the class kids’ strength.
“The kids couldn’t play during the Training Camp, you know? I want them to play a bit this time.”
Hearing my words, golden light was emitted from Hwang Jiho’s eyes and then stopped.
It seemed that he examined my state with Brilliant Gaze.
“You’re making this sound knowing how much superpower wave you consumed? The children would probably wish to fight with you, even if they couldn’t play.”
Before Hwang Jiho could say anything more, the dormitory children came our way and the conversation halted.
I pretended I couldn’t hear Hwang Jiho’s words and returned to my spacious and quiet dormitory room.
* * *
The laboratory of the Demon priest serving one of the 7 Deadly Sins Demon Gods, Avaritia of Greed.
The interior, which couldn’t be seen well before because of the poisonous fog, slowly revealed itself.
The most inner part of the greenhouse, which was revealed because the power infused by the priest of Avaritia was cut off.
The tree rooted in the distorted space started to wither at a terrifying speed.
Shaaa….!
Various fruits and the leaves that opened their mouths to swallow superpower waves all rotted as if they died.
And on the tree, which turned completely rotten and pitch-black, bore one purple fruit.
More than a fruit, that thing resembled an eyeball.
The eyeball forming on the tree had the same purple color as the priest of Avaritia’s eyes.
*~*~*
[1] Set piece — both words are borrowed from English, so there is not much I can say. ‘Piece’ could also be understood as ‘peace’. Drawing on a lesson learned in the previous chapter title I also checked the possible Korean words to use here instead but… Nothing really interesting came up. For ‘set’ ‘조각 (jokak set/assemble)’ could be used, and could mean the place where people gather, or ‘놓다 (nohda)’, which would mean ‘to put down’, ‘to release’, ‘to let go’… etc, a lot of meaning for this one. Frankly speaking, ‘piece’ has too many possible meanings and none I came up seemed to have much to add here.
[2] If only our house gets fucked — She actually says ‘If our house gets fucked/ruined…’ and doesn’t end her sentence, but the grammar form used strongly suggests ‘I wish/hope’. So read it as ‘If only our house gets fucked, I would be so happy’.
[3] story — or conversation. Jeok-ho probably means both its meanings.
[4] a big one — What Tao Sihu literally said is ‘That’s a big trouble’. Big trouble is ‘큰일 (keulil)’, ‘큰(keul)’ means big, but ‘일(il)’ can also mean one. (You don’t even know how glad I’m that this joke can be somewhat translated into English without changing much ㅠㅠ)
Translator’s note: *time traveler’s sigh* It’s going to take him so long to learn…
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