Dad kisses goodbye when he leaves for work, and Mom...
It's the 15th time today. Sihyun, who was irritated by Hamin's repeated play of that song, clenched his lips. Although he usually didn't pay much attention to songs, ever since 'that incident,' he played that children's song whenever there was a chance. It had reached the point of becoming annoying.
After enduring Hamin's continuous play for two weeks, Sihyun, unable to bear it any longer, threw a pencil case at him. Of course, Hamin effortlessly dodged it. Seeing him dodge it so casually only fueled the fire within Sihyun.
"Could you tone it down a bit?"
"Why? It's a good song."
"Yeah."
"There are rumors circulating among the girls that you and Yooseowoo are dating."
"What?"
"You became a superstar with just one kiss, Kang Sihyun?"
Kiss! Sihyun clenched his fist, silently correcting the words he couldn't shout out. It was all because of that cursed talent show. The talent show that started on Friday ended with cheers and applause, contrary to the worries that felt like a mountain. It went better than expected, with even more positive reactions. Yes, it ended well, except for the mishap in the latter part of the performance.
Matching the lyrics that stole a kiss, there were movements that seemed like they were about to kiss during the choreography. Sihyun, who was hesitant to do that movement in front of everyone, succumbed to Yooseowoo's provocation and grabbed him by the collar during the next choreography. It was fine up to seeing Yooseowoo's surprised expression. The problem occurred after that.
How could I have known that my lips would actually be stolen in sync with the lyrics that steal a kiss?
Yooseowoo, who had been dragged along with a sudden pull, collided with Sihyun. If it had been a headbutt, it might have been funny, but unfortunately, the collision happened near the lip area. Undoubtedly, the cheers at that moment were the best on-stage reactions ever.
After that, Yooseowoo ambiguously smiled whenever he saw Sihyun, and on that day, Hamin teased him incessantly. Even now, just thinking about it raised Sihyun's blood pressure, but Hamin continued to play that annoying song, knowing full well about Sihyun's situation.
"Ah."
Thinking about it again, Sihyun tightened his fist as his blood pressure rose, and at that moment, Hamin's hand overlapped with his.
"You can endure it."
As Hamin softly comforted him with a whisper, Sihyun, who took a deep breath, looked at Hamin with an impression. When Haeun mumbled something about Sihyun becoming a superstar with just one kiss, Hamin twisted his body in response. Only after seeing Hamin squirm did Sihyun realize that he had been holding his breath.
"Are these guys creating a path for us to come here or something?"
Hamin, who had unintentionally glanced at the same time, criticized the teammate who hadn't arrived yet. It was the first meeting time before the end-of-month evaluation, where they would face a catastrophe-class irregular together. Being late was definitely not a good way to start the team meeting before the evaluation. Sihyun recalled the end-of-month evaluation notice that came earlier than usual due to the summer vacation ceremony on July 29th.
[End-of-Month Evaluation Notice]
1st-year, 1st semester, 3rd End-of-Month Evaluation
Theme: Cooperation
Details: Defeat the irregular with your teammates. The unity and cooperation within the team during the defeat are the only evaluation criteria. This evaluation will be conducted as a group evaluation, and the team's score will be treated as the individual scores of each team member, with individual performance sheets not issued. The irregular to be defeated and your team members will be notified through pairing three days before the end-of-month evaluation meeting in the team meeting room. Team members will be randomly selected four days before the end-of-month evaluation.
Type: Group evaluation
Date: July 19th
Note: It is mandatory to be in the same team as your partner, and a total of 8 members will form a team.
Today was the day, three days before the end-of-month evaluation, as indicated on the notice. Following the guidance to move to meeting room B, Hamin and Haeun strangely coincided with their direction. Although Sihyun doubted it, they indeed entered the same meeting room together, only ten minutes before they had grabbed the back of his neck. The other four members who would be on the same team had not yet arrived. Given Hamin's comment about creating a path, they had no choice but to agree with the situation.
"Could it be that our team is just the four of us to balance things out since A-class is only four people?"
"That would be even better."
Hamin spoke to Haeun's assumption. Rather than being on a team with people they barely knew, it was more comfortable to be on a team with the three they were familiar with. Moreover, it was A-class, so the skills were guaranteed. Sihyun also agreed with Hamin's opinion, and as they were nodding in agreement, Haru, who had been silently staring at the door, looked at it with uncertainty.
"...They seem to be coming."
Responding to Haru, whose hearing was the best among them, everyone's gaze turned towards the closed door of the meeting room. Gradually, the door opened, revealing a girl with crimson hair that reached her shoulders.
"...Oh!"
Upon seeing the members inside, the incoming girl seemed surprised and hesitated in her steps. Haeun whistled once, and with a bright smile, greeted the girl. Behind the girl entering hesitantly, a black-haired girl with black eyes that fell below her shoulders appeared. The face was familiar to Sihyun.
Where have I seen her before...
Staring at him with a curious expression, the girl, just like the girl before her, turned to look at Sihyun as their eyes met. When their eyes met, the girl lowered her head.
"Oh, isn't she the one Sihyun saved?"
It was Haeun, who remembered the girl before Sihyun. Sihyun, who only now realized it with a sigh, looked at the girl.
"Team B?"
"Yeah?"
"Uh... C-class Haeyeon."
"An outsider?"
"Yeah."
The girl nodded, and due to the girl Yeesol introducing herself and sitting next to Hamin, Haeyeon naturally ended up sitting next to me. When Sihyun glanced at him, Haeyeon, who followed his gaze, bowed his head.
"Thanks for that time."
A small greeting reached my ears. Sihyun, glancing back when he heard the door opening again, saw another familiar face entering this time.
"Wow, it's the Avengers here...?"
A boy with a similar height to mine widened his eyes and said. I had seen his face a few times before.
"I'm B-Class Shin Ijae. I'm called a senior by the other class kids because I'm fast. I'll just use polite language."
As he took Donghyuk's seat, the boy who ranked among us spoke. Four from Class A, two from Class B, and two from Class C. If Class A had four, filling the rest with Class D would balance it, but instead, another student who ranked in was added. Sihyun, understanding the meaning of Shin Ijae's mention of the Avengers, listened to the boy introducing his partner with a tense expression.
With these members, even if they got scolded by other teams, it seemed like something they had to endure. Including Kwon Yesol, Haeyeon, Shin Ijae, and his partner Choi Hajin. With a total of four unfamiliar people, the weight on my hands increased in the evaluation I would face together with them. Only then did Sihyun realize that until now, there had been a hand on his hand, and as if comforting a tense day, he patted that hand several times.
When all eight people were seated, a song flowed from the speaker in the meeting room.
Dad leaves for work, chu~.
Insane.
Hamin burst into laughter, Haeun hit the table, making a loud noise, and Park Jangdaeso laughed loudly. Seeing the children who didn't know English looking puzzled, Sihyun clenched his fist. This time, Haru patted my hand. A sigh escaped Sihyun's mouth. The lively voice from the speaker was heard at that moment.
"Oh, hello everyone from Team B!"
"It's the homeroom teacher!"
Haeun happily shook hands with the familiar voice. Although it wouldn't be heard, the voice of the A-Class homeroom teacher flowed from the speaker, with a childlike "Hello" two or three times, and the voice of the homeroom teacher from Class A also came from the creaking speaker.
"I'm Lee Hyeji, who will be in charge of Team B! Now, I will inform you about the precautions for the evaluation and the irregulars you need to deal with."
Irregulars to deal with. Upon hearing these words, the children's bodies leaned slightly towards the speaker.
"In this evaluation, you will face a properly classified 'Warning-class' irregular for the first time! The irregular group that Team B will face is the 'Orc,' which poses a high risk even among the 'Warning-class,' and you will face a group equivalent to one division."
"What?"
Upon the teacher's words, Yesol shouted in surprise. It wasn't because of the target to be dealt with. The problem was the phrase 'equivalent to one division' attached to the back. Orcs living in groups had about 30 to 40 members per division. Facing such a burden with only eight people made everyone show a strained expression, so the teacher said something even more extraordinary.
"There are two clear criteria. The first method is to defeat the Orc Lord, and you need to find and kill him among the nearly 40 Orcs. The second clear method is to defeat more than 20 Orcs."
"It's difficult..."
Unlike the bright teacher, Shin Ijae's expression was dark. 'Lord.' Irregular groups, the leaders of a single entity, exerted at least twice the power of the same individual irregular and could command the group and open rifts. Sihyun, who didn't know that the Lord was included, was also the same.
"Each team will be given different team missions, and the difficulty will be adjusted according to the skills of the team members. Team B's mission will be slightly raised according to the skills of Team B. But I believe you can handle it well. Now, let me guide you on the precautions."
In the classroom where the atmosphere became heavy, Sihyun briefly coughed. It felt more challenging than previous evaluations, as if it might not be the last evaluation of the first semester.
"First, since it's a cooperative operation, only a few skilled team members' activities won't result in a high score. You need to show cooperation with your team members by taking on roles suitable for your class and skills."
It meant that it was impossible for Hamin or Haru to dominate as they did in the previous evaluation. Even if the skills were significantly lower than other team members, each person had to do their share, and even if the skills were perfect, they had to do only their share. With the difficulty constantly rising.
"Until the end of the month evaluation, you can only have meetings and training in Team B's meeting room and training room, and personal training room usage is not allowed. Good luck, Team B!"
With those words, the voice from the speaker was cut off. In contrast to the bright voices bidding farewell from the homeroom teachers, the atmosphere in the meeting room became heavy, and Sihyun sighed briefly. Perhaps because it was the last evaluation of the first semester, it seemed more challenging than the previous evaluations.
"Let's start by talking about each other's classes and then learn about each other's abilities. We need to decide whether to go for the Lord route or the route to defeat more than 20."
As Sihyun, who was pondering, spoke, Hamin began to talk about classes one by one. Yesol was a swordsman, Haeyeon was a sniper, and Hajin was an alchemist. It was the first time I had heard of this class. When Sihyun showed a brief interest, Hajin raised his hand and said that throwing potions and throwing bombs were all he did. Sihyun, who had not yet mentioned his class, looked at Shin Ijae, who had not yet spoken.
Since he ranked in the class, his skills were sure to be solid. Thinking so and looking at him, Sihyun, who received the gaze of the remaining seven, stopped nodding his head. As Sihyun pondered, Hajin talked.
"Let's see each other's classes first and then learn about our abilities. That way, we can decide whether to go for the Lord route or the route to defeat more than 20."
As Sihyun, who was pondering, spoke, Hamin began to talk about classes one by one. Yesol was a swordsman, Haeyeon was a sniper, and Hajin was an alchemist. It was the first time I had heard of this class. When Sihyun showed a brief interest, Hajin raised his hand and said that throwing potions and throwing bombs were all he did. Sihyun, who had not yet mentioned his class, looked at Shin Ijae, who had not yet spoken.
Since he ranked in the class, his skills were sure to
be solid. Thinking so and looking at him, Sihyun, who received the gaze of the remaining seven, stopped nodding his head. As Sihyun pondered, Hajin talked.
"What's your class?"
"Ah, I'm a Berserker."
Berserker, Berserker.
The pretty boy said. Sihyun, who felt his voice echoing in his ears, stopped nodding his head. The class of Shin Ijae, who seemed to be similar to or even smaller than me, was...
"Berserker?"
Everyone showed a surprised reaction. Whether this reaction was familiar or not, Shin Ijae smiled brightly with his cute face.
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