Chapter 20
A week ago.
Park Jinwoo belatedly confirmed the truth.
He hadn’t done anything yet, but now he realized why Shin Youngmin had been so fond of him.
‘Huh. What’s up with Kim Hyunsung’s face?’
He subtly peeked into Class 1’s classroom.
Kim Hyunsung was sitting alone at his desk, studying, but his face looked utterly terrible—‘devastated’ was the only word for it. His face was covered in bruises. The marks were clearly from ruthless violence, not from tripping and falling.
‘He was making such a fuss, but I guess he got beaten up outside of school. Shin Youngmin saw Kim Hyunsung’s condition, and since he’d recently ordered me to do something, he assumed I was responsible. Am I supposed to be happy about this or not?’
He returned to his seat.
He figured there was no need to provoke Kim Hyunsung, since things were turning in his favor anyway.
Of course.
That didn’t mean there were no problems.
‘If Kim Hyunsung hears the rumor that I beat him up and comes looking for me, I’ll have no choice but to fight him. Yeah, just try coming to find me. No matter what kind of punk you are, I’ll crush you so thoroughly that you’ll never even think about standing up again. And from the looks of those bruises, he doesn’t even seem that tough.’
He waited.
Waited for Kim Hyunsung to come to him.
He was ready to fight at any time, keeping a close eye on Kim Hyunsung.
But a day passed.
Then two.
And Kim Hyunsung didn’t make a move.
It was strange.
If he had the guts to take on Park Mincheol’s gang, there was no reason for him to stay quiet after hearing the rumor that he’d been beaten up. So what was he thinking? Day after day, all he did was come to school and study, and Park Jinwoo just couldn’t figure him out.
That day at lunch.
He ran into Kim Hyunsung in the cafeteria.
He’d expected Kim Hyunsung to pick a fight the moment they saw each other, but Kim Hyunsung just walked right past him, as if Park Jinwoo didn’t even exist. Then he ate his meal alone. Park Jinwoo watched him the whole time as he ate. Even after warning the entire first year not to associate with Kim Hyunsung on Shin Youngmin’s orders, Kim Hyunsung never came looking for him.
That’s when he realized.
At first, he wasn’t sure, but after seeing his reaction up close, he was certain.
‘This bastard’s scared.’
He was sure of it.
There was no other explanation for this situation.
—
Assuming he was scared.
That answered every question.
Kim Hyunsung must have heard the rumors.
And he must have noticed how everyone around him was avoiding him, so he had to know there was someone behind it all.
So why was he keeping quiet?
He was scared.
Park Mincheol’s crew were just small-time thugs—they weren’t strong enough to take over an entire grade. The first-year hierarchy had already been settled at the start of the semester. Park Mincheol and even Kang Changseok, said to be the strongest in that group, had been pinned to the ground by Park Jinwoo. When everyone saw them bleeding and dazed, the first-year students all acknowledged Park Jinwoo as the top fighter in their grade.
Against someone like that.
Kim Hyunsung must have known he couldn’t win.
So he pretended not to know about the rumors and just endured being ostracized.
“Guess he’s not as bold as I thought.”
He smirked.
He felt a weight lift from his chest.
He’d expected a mad dog who might pull a weapon if things got rough, but if he was so weak that he’d just tuck his tail and run, there was nothing to worry about. Not that he’d ever doubted he could win a fight. Since Shin Youngmin had told him to keep trampling Kim Hyunsung, from then on, Park Jinwoo bullied him even more aggressively.
“Spread the word to all the first years. I don’t care if you’re a boy or a girl—if anyone talks to or hangs out with Kim Hyunsung, they’re dead. Got it? Shin Youngmin is backing me up. Before Kim Hyunsung tries to use Myungjin Construction as his shield, he should realize he won’t be safe here at Cheonil.”
The game had changed.
He went after Kim Hyunsung openly.
He planned to completely crush him the moment he snapped.
A week passed like that.
Park Jinwoo’s friends snickered.
“Kim Hyunsung turned out to be your typical bully—picking on the weak and running from the strong. He acted tough with Park Mincheol, but now that you’re involved, Jinwoo, he doesn’t even say a word.”
“Of course. How could someone like Kim Hyunsung even compare to Jinwoo?”
“Idiot. His school life is over.”
They all laughed together.
With Shin Youngmin on their side.
They knew their path was set.
For all three years at Cheonil, with Park Jinwoo leading the way, they could rule like kings.
That’s when it happened.
A friend came up to Park Jinwoo and said,
“Hey, Jinwoo. I saw Kim Siwoo talking to Kim Hyunsung. I eavesdropped, and apparently, no matter what you say, Kim Siwoo said he’s still going to hang out with Kim Hyunsung.”
“What?”
Park Jinwoo looked at his friend.
His expression went cold.
Kim Siwoo.
He knew him well.
He was good-looking and could fight pretty well, and Park Jinwoo had tried to become friends with him a few times. But this was different. He’d given a clear warning in his own name, and for Kim Siwoo to ignore it and talk to Kim Hyunsung—it was as good as open defiance.
In that case.
“That bastard doesn’t know his place. Grab him as soon as class ends. I’ll show everyone exactly what happens if you ignore my warnings.”
He would prove it to his friends.
That his threats weren’t just empty words.
—
Normally, after class, Kim Siwoo had planned to go see Kim Hyunsung.
But he couldn’t.
Because Park Jinwoo’s gang dragged him away, and he ended up face-to-face with Park Jinwoo in a cramped bathroom.
Park Jinwoo spoke.
“Hey, Kim Siwoo. I heard you said you’d ignore my warnings and keep hanging out with Kim Hyunsung. How am I supposed to take that?”
It was an intimidating situation.
The towering Park Jinwoo.
And all his friends crowded around him.
Park Jinwoo was already too much to handle—add to that the piercing stares of his friends, and the pressure was overwhelming. Kim Siwoo felt the same. He was afraid in this situation, but the memory of Kim Hyunsung over the past week weighed heavily on his mind, so he refused to back down.
‘That wasn’t the Hyunsung I know.’
Ten years.
A seventeen-year-old boy who’d spent more than half his life with this friend.
Even growing up in hardship, Kim Hyunsung was always cheerful and lively, always fitting in well with his friends. But after the Park Mincheol incident, he’d changed completely. His face darkened, he rarely smiled, and even when they crossed paths in the hallway, he pretended not to know Siwoo. That made Siwoo genuinely angry. Kim Hyunsung had done nothing wrong, and yet he couldn’t accept the reality of his friend becoming an outcast.
Kim Siwoo didn’t know this was due to a previous life.
One thing was clear.
His friend was in danger.
He swallowed his fear at that undeniable truth.
Whatever happened next didn’t matter.
He knew how strong Park Jinwoo was, but if he’d intended to back down, he wouldn’t have talked to Kim Hyunsung in the first place.
Kim Siwoo sneered.
“How should you take it? Just take it as it is.”
“Say it again.”
“Park Jinwoo. I don’t know why you’re bullying Hyunsung, but I don’t care what bullshit you say—I’m not going to turn my back on him. So cut the crap and get to the point, you bastard.”
“Hah—.”
Park Jinwoo laughed in disbelief.
This situation.
Anyone would be afraid.
But seeing Kim Siwoo push back only filled Park Jinwoo with more rage.
This had nothing to do with Shin Youngmin.
He’d thought the pecking order was already established, so he couldn’t tolerate Kim Siwoo standing up to him.
With a murderous expression, Park Jinwoo spoke.
“Fine, that makes things easier. Lock the door. I’m going to kill this bastard today.”
—
Click.
The sound of the door locking.
That was the signal.
Park Jinwoo approached Kim Siwoo and swung his fist.
But—
Smack—!
A kick slammed into Park Jinwoo’s stomach first.
Eyes wide, Park Jinwoo staggered back, and his friends charged at Kim Siwoo with fury.
“This crazy bastard!”
“Get him.”
One versus many.
Kim Siwoo took his stance.
The reason students at Cheonil hadn’t messed with him wasn’t just his good looks—he’d also been a taekwondo athlete through middle school. Kim Siwoo moved lightly on his feet. In a split second, he saw the group charging in and landed a kick right to the face of the guy in front.
Smack!
Twist.
One hit.
The lead guy went down.
But while that happened, the others closed in, and there was no room left for Kim Siwoo to use his signature kicks. In this cramped space, no amount of footwork could create distance, and there was no way to block all the simultaneous punches. From then on, it was a free-for-all brawl. Kim Siwoo took hits to the face, his nose started bleeding, but with a furious glare, he grabbed one guy by the collar and punched him in the face.
Thud!
He threw a punch.
He got hit in return.
He threw another punch as hard as he could, but blows came from every side, and Kim Siwoo gritted his teeth through the pain.
“Guh…”
Even then—
He kept staring down his opponents.
People trained in martial arts are used to pain.
Taekwondo is a combat sport, and in training, if you made the slightest mistake, you’d get hit. Kim Siwoo was no exception. He’d gotten hit so much his butt was raw, his face red and swollen. That’s why he’d quit taekwondo, but he didn’t give in to physical pain.
On the contrary—
“Bring it on, you bastards!”
Thud!
Whack! Whack! Whack!
He struck back with relentless determination.
It was a tangled mess of fists flying, and sometimes a sudden kick from him would send someone crumpling to the floor.
Then—
“Move.”
The others suddenly stepped aside.
His vision cleared, and Park Jinwoo’s furious face appeared.
“This bastard really doesn’t know when to quit.”
Grab.
Crunch!
“Urk.”
He was pinned against the wall.
Park Jinwoo hadn’t expected that kick, but it barely registered against his muscle-bound body. If anything, it just made him angrier. He seized Kim Siwoo’s shirt, ignoring his struggling, and slammed his face into the wall over and over.
Smack!
Bam! Bam! Bam!
It was overwhelming.
Kim Siwoo’s build couldn’t handle such brute strength.
His wild resistance faded, and his face was soon smeared with blood.
It had been a losing fight from the start.
Even in a spacious area, he couldn’t have beaten Park Jinwoo, who’d been a wrestling athlete, and in a tight space like this, he couldn’t make use of his taekwondo skills. Even so, Kim Siwoo followed Park Jinwoo into the bathroom. He knew what would happen, but he didn’t want to look like he was running away because of Kim Hyunsung.
Dragged.
Park Jinwoo hauled Kim Siwoo along.
He hung limp, unable to resist, and Park Jinwoo looked down at him with a menacing glare.
“There are always punks like you. Just because you learned a little martial arts, you think you’re somebody. From today on, you’re screwed. I’ll make school hell for you and Kim Hyunsung both.”
Slap!
He struck him across the face.
Even as blood splattered, he kept slapping Kim Siwoo again and again.
He was meant to be an example.
When everyone in first year found out what happened to Kim Siwoo, they’d make sure not to go near Kim Hyunsung. And after this, nobody else would dare defy him. Park Jinwoo, seething with rage, kept beating the helpless Kim Siwoo.
Then—
Bang!
“…What the?”
A loud noise came from outside.
Still holding Kim Siwoo by the collar, Park Jinwoo turned to see the bathroom door shaking from the impact.
Bang!
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Something was hammering at the door.
With every hit, the bathroom door cracked, and finally, near the handle, a chair leg punched through.
Slide.
The chair leg disappeared through the hole.
Then—
A hand reached in.
An unfamiliar hand gripped the handle, turned it, and opened the door.
Creak.
The door opened slowly.
The owner of the hand stepped into view.
“What are you doing?”
Kim Hyunsung.
He looked down at Park Jinwoo with icy eyes.
