Seodol, the head of the Rat Clan, wasn’t in a very good mood.
His aura looks worse with the gloomy sky and dark clouds just about the River Thames nearby.
Seodol’s subordinate, who continues to drag his luck down, felt like dying too.
“He’s left me on read again. He’s never done this before. Where did this damned Yellow Tiger learn this?”
Seodol dropped the formal language the more he felt annoyed.
The subordinate then gave him an advice.
“Is the other person ignoring your message even after reading it? Why don’t you try calling him, sir?”
“I can’t really do that because it’s not an urgent matter.”
“Eh?”
“This business isn’t urgent, and it’s just something that the Yellow Tiger would find bothersome. I can’t use my ‘chance-to-call card’ like this. If I do that, he’s not going to answer me the next time I call him, and I don’t want that to happen when I’m in an urgent situation.”
Shouldn’t he just not try to contact him then?
When the Yellow Tiger started to become active recently, Seodol contacted him often for no reason.
The fact that the head of the Tiger Clan is ignoring Seodol’s messages seems to be because of the latter’s behavior.
That’s what Seodol’s subordinate was thinking, but he knew better than to run his mouth.
Sedol had a deep frown on his face.
“…Wow.”
But when Seodol looked out at the outdoor terrace, his frown disappeared.
At the end of Seodol’s gaze, he saw an Asian boy in a very noticeable outfit.
The Asian boy was wearing clothes with Mugunghwa embroidered on top of a blue silk.
The white petal completed the three-dimensional effect along with the mixture of white and silver thread.
It was an avant-garde outfit that was fit in the haute couture collection.
The boy stole everyone’s attention, but he was oblivious to it as he was staring at a hologram as he walked.
Seodol’s next words were in formal language again.
“Hey, kid, you look good. It looks like a handmade outfit, and it looks well-made. It looks more delicate and neat than clothes made with a sewing machine.”
Seodol is a designer for a world-class high-end luxury fashion brand.
As someone of royal lineage who was deeply interested in styles created by humans, he decided to immediately approach the Asian boy.
Without giving his subordinates a chance to stop him, Seodol jumped out of the terrace.
“Hello. Do you have time to talk for a second? Oh, that? No, I’m just really this kind of person. Oh, right. Can you speak Korean? Should I speak in English…”
“It’s alright. You’re Seodol the designer, right? It’s an honor to see such a well-known designer.”
The boy’s polite bowing posture seemed exaggerated yet quite elegant.
Seodol thought of the boy as odd, but he replied with a gentle smile.
“You know who I am? Then I’ll skip the self-introduction. Let’s get straight to the point. The finishing on the shoulder part is…”
The boy in avant-garde fashion had an expression that reeks of passion, but at some point, his face loosened.
Seodol was talking for a while before he saw the screen that the boy was looking at.
In the upper left corner of the screen, he saw the logo of Eunwang High.
“It seems like the hologram that you’re looking at shows a website related to Eungwang High. Are you a student there?”
“Yes, but I don’t attend school. My ambition goes beyond Eungwang High.”
He’s a very odd kid.
Seodol rudely thought so, but he responded accordingly.
“…Is that so? Did you receive some sort of bad news? You don’t look so happy.”
The boy’s expression darkened.
“I hate being compared. I feel like my talent is being judged by the wrong measures.”
The boy was looking at an article titled ‘Red Wall Thief vs Phantom Thief.’
* * *
A few days after the school started.
The article about ‘that word’ was finally covered up from the website of the newspaper department.
It’s replaced by a short article who took the main position on the site.
The main feature of the newspaper department’s website was an interview article on Dokgo Miro written by Moon Saeron.
I was the one who introduced Dokgo Miro to her.
Shortly after the article went up, I received a thank-you message from Moon Saeeron.
[Moon Saeron] Have you seen the article? Thanks for introducing me to Miro-nim, Suspicious Vice President!
I was the one who should be thankful.
Although I also have the good intention of giving Dokgo Miro a chance to have her name known, I really did it just to get ‘that word’ out of the site’s main page.
Just like a good chess player, I achieved multiple goals with one move.
The day after Dokgo Miro’s article took over the main page of the newspaper department’s website.
Early in the day, the Year One Class Zero kids gathered in front of the main gate.
‘It’s going to be Dokgo Miro’s first day at school. But I guess she’s still not going to go consistently.”
The filming for the show Playlist was scheduled for this morning.
To support Dokgo Miro, who would be attending school for the first time, Kim Yuri suggested for all of us to go to school together.
Saeum of April and Hani stopped by MITRON and bought snacks for breakfast.
“If the shoot is today, there’s going to be a lot of strangers in the school, right…?”
“Should we go in first, Geurin-ah?”
“No, I think I’ll be okay as long as we’re inside the campus.”
Min Geurin shook her head at Song Daesok’s suggestion.
She wore her AR glasses and hoodie snugly, but it doesn’t feel like she wants to run away.
“Miro! Over here!”
Dokgo Miro was wearing her school uniform.
When Kim Yuri waved at her, she came to us with an awkward smile.
“I’m Dokgo Miro. Nice to meet you! There are still many things I don’t know since it’s my first time at school. We decided to shoot a scene where I practice in an empty classroom during lunch and elective classes. That way I won’t be a disturbance.”
King of Back Alleys Dokgo Miro spoke in a shy manner.
After introducing everyone to Dokgo Miro, we all headed to the classroom.
While we were walking, Hwang Jiho said something.
“…This isn’t what they told me.”
Hwang Jiho looked up to the sky with sunken eyes.
An air shuttle was approaching the main gate of Eungwang High.
‘That’s the logo of the broadcasting station!’
In addition to the air shuttle bearing the broadcasting station’s logo, a ground vehicle that seemed to have been boarded by an outsourcing company was coming this way.
Dokgo Miro also looked surprised.
‘Didn’t they say that the filming would start at lunchtime?’
Dokgo Miro didn’t seem to know why they were coming now.
“It looks like the logo of the broadcasting company airing Playlist.”
“Are they coming in advance to prepare for filming?”
“…No. They said they would come during lunchtime.”
Even before Dokgo Miro finished speaking, the staff began to take out lighting equipment from the vehicle that stopped in front of the main gate.
Dokgo Miro ran toward the person who seem to be giving the instructions and gave a polite bow.
“Hello, PD-nim. I… Didn’t you say that you’ll be coming in around 12 o’clock?”
“Oh? I guess you didn’t get a call. We decided to film you, Miro, early because the shooting schedule got messed up. I tried to stretch out the time with the Rapper Monk, but it just didn’t work it. It’s fine, right? Are those guys your classmates?”
The PD spoke with a friendly expression and Dokgo Miro couldn’t protest.
Looking at the situation, it seems obvious to be a power trip against the newbie.
The PD was giving her such a nice smile, and Dokgo Miro felt even more troubled.
“We can film a scene where you’re all going to class, right? Oh, isn’t painter Min Geurin in your class? Shall we interview her first? The Nameless Supernova wouldn’t be a bad choice too. I don’t see the homeroom adviser. Where could he be? Miro, talk to me for a second. Everything we’re doing is for your good, Miro.”
Dokgo Miro’s expression started to harden as she saw the camera.
“Let’s go inside the school grounds first. There’s also a problem with where we’ll park our vehicles so it’s going to be difficult to film in front of the school gate. Come on boys.”
“It would be better to talk to a student other than Miro right now. Hey there, aren’t you the Nameless Supernova?”
I smiled politely and nodded.
We walked toward the school as I entertained the PD’s words just enough.
“Hmm, I think it’s going to look really good if Euishin makes a somewhat suspicious facial expression.”
“Yes! That’s right!”
Thanks to my good sense of hearing, I could hear the other kids whispering in the back.
“Let’s go.”
“…”
Dokgo Miro’s face was still stiff as Hani held her hand while we walked inside.
Starting with Min Geurin and Daesok, everyone had their backs to the camera and safely crossed the boundary to the school grounds.
And…
Swish! Fwah!
“Ahhk!”
The PD who was walking in front screamed.
He got hurt from trying to cross the boundary that surrounded Eungwang High.
The boundary let out an electric discharge.
Soon, the sirens sounded signaling that the Eungwang High security system was triggered.
Wi-ing!
“How dare you try to set foot in my territory before the agreed time…”
In the midst of the siren and the staff scurrying, I heard Hwang Jiho murmur.
The Hwangmyeong Foundation security team and the supporting director had a scuffle over the fainted PD.
“Oh, weren’t those guys informed beforehand? Oh… Seeing that they couldn’t cross the boundary, it seems like they changed the filming schedule without getting permission from the school.”
“I think you are right, Lena-nim. They dare ignore the school policies? That’s a reasonable punishment.”
“…Did you just say ‘Lena-nim?’”
“They’re so mean. They didn’t inform Miro in advance either.”
My classmates showed no mercy to the PD who had just been electrocuted.
Meanwhile, Dokgo Miro’s face was still stiff.
It’s partly because the cameras are still turned on, but there seems to be another reason.
‘There’s a lot of things around this Dokgo Miro.’
It doesn’t seem like she’s hiding her king-like aura simply to keep up an idol-like appearance.
Unlike what we saw in the video of her as a young child, Dokgo Miro was greatly afraid of the cameras now.
‘Her expression got worse after we entered the boundary.’
I had my speculations, but I couldn’t think of ways to confirm them.
‘…I might need to borrow the Tiger Clan’s power.’
This wasn’t directly related to the goal of a happy ending that I am trying to achieve.
In the end, Dokgo Miro wasn’t my playable character, nor was she an NPC of considerable significance.
If I weren’t part of Class Zero, I wouldn’t even have heard of the name Dokgo Miro.
But I still want to help.
I wanted to cheer for the Dokgo Miro who holds on to what little hope she had and always does her best to achieve her dreams.
“There’s something I want you to check.”
Taking advantage of everyone still being confused, I whispered to Hwang Jiho and made a suggestion.
Perhaps because Dokgo Miro is involved in his “best friend’s” past, Hwang Jiho nodded in agreement.
“Alright. There’s something I want to see for myself too.”
* * *
That teacher who found the elementary students annoying.
The most annoying student for that teacher was Dokgo Miro.
Seeing Dokgo Miro on TV, all the forgotten anger and annoyance of the teacher resurfaced.
‘I should drag her down if she becomes more popular. There’s no point in doing it now.’
The middle school teacher didn’t feel guilty about pulling tricks that would ruin a person’s life.
Being a teacher is considered sacred in Korea.
So then, the teacher thought that it was only natural to punish the children who dare cause stress to them.
That teacher believed that it was his role to filter out the children who he deems to be unable to adapt to society while they’re still young.
His nasty deeds were eventually revealed and he almost lost his teaching profession, but he still felt pride and thought that he was just doing his duty.
Anyway, the teacher thought that he was praiseworthy for at least giving Dokgo Miro a fear of cameras.
‘I’ll have to see that poisonous bitch crumble.’
Although being a teacher isn’t a bad profession in itself, but this teacher had no real talent, unlike Dokgo Miro.
He doesn’t have any desire to be on stage, but he doesn’t want anyone else shining on it either.
For him, there are plenty of ways to drag Dokgo Miro back below the stage.
‘I should call some kids and treat them to a delicious meal. While we’re talking, I should bring up some things about Dokgo Miro that they could spread on their own.’
The teacher looked at the list of the kids who were in the same class as Dokgo Miro.
He compiled the kids who were the most gossip-loving, lie impulsively, and have a nasty temper.
Even if the truth is eventually revealed someday, the damage would already be done and Dokgo Miro’s honor would fail to the ground.
People have the tendency to believe the story that spreads first, and everyone would treat her as the villain for the rest of her life.
While he was writing the message, he suddenly felt a gaze on him.
“…It’s time to go home, what are you doing? You’re not allowed to come to the teacher’s office without official business.”
It was the kid who recently transferred.
Instead of answering, the kid, who stared at the teacher without saying anything, looked at the hologram that was floated.
The kid saw the message containing the teacher’s malicious schemes.
However, the kid didn’t even know who Dokgo Miro was, and he had no power to stop whatever was going to happen.
‘Why isn’t he saying anything? Is he a disabled kid? How annoying. It hasn’t been that long since school started and now I’m burdened with this kind of kid.’
The teacher contemplated on what to do about the kid.
‘What’s his home address…? It’s not a rich neighborhood, and it doesn’t seem like it has that much space inside. Is he living in a rental house?’
The teacher judged that the kid’s social status was way below his, so he decided to ignore the child.
He’s smart enough to pass various tests and training to become a teacher, wise enough to know his subjects, and sly enough to target loopholes in the law.
But there’s one thing he doesn’t know.
That the law of causality sometimes works.
And he doesn’t know that this transfer student visited all the teachers who became homeroom advisers of Hani and Dokgo Miro.
The kid stared at the teacher with his delicate eyes
