In front of the Silver Hall.
Red Tiger and Heukma greeted each other goodbye after exchanging device codes.
“We have an air shuttle on standby. There may be an Eye watching in front of the main gate, so this is as far as I will go.”
“Alright. I think I did a good job in putting up a front that my visit is only to give a gift to Hyodon. It will look suspicious if the Tiger Clan’s aide sees me off to the main gate.”
It seemed like Heukma enjoyed the sight of Maeng Hyodon getting flustered by the number of gifts she had prepared.
Red Tiger politely saw off Heukma, but he coldly judged her silently.
“Think carefully about forming a limited alliance with us. You seem to be optimistic about it, so I expect you will persuade Yellow Tiger well.”
“The final decision will be made by Yellow Tiger.”
“The Tiger Clan has a close relationship. Even if the final decision is Yellow Tiger’s, there’s no way he’d ignore your opinion.”
“I’m sure you’re unaware of the crimes I’ve committed in the past.”
“Seeing that you’re still by Yellow Tiger’s side, it’s clear to me that you’ve proven yourself.”
Heukma paused before getting on the air shuttle and looked directly at Red Tiger.
“From a clan head’s point of view, no matter what the circumstances are, someone who commits any crime would’ve been killed to set an example.”
Red Tiger agreed with her statement.
His friends have shown him too much mercy.
Of course, the Red Tiger also considered repenting for his sins by death.
However, he had already signed a contract with Yellow Tiger, and in the end, he was entrusted to remold himself.
Red Tiger calmly responded, not intending to reveal anything more to Heukma.
“…Our clan head wasn’t the Yellow Tiger when it happened.”
“But Yellow Tiger is the current clan head. Well then, feel free to contact me if anything happens. If I’m not busy, I’ll be sure to entertain you.”
With those final words, Heukma got on the air shuttle and left.
Red Tiger was lost in thought as he headed back to the chairman’s office.
He was thinking of Yellow Tiger.
‘Why is Yellow Tiger acting this way? He’s acting the same way he did when we knew that Blue Tiger and the Son of God were reborn as humans.’
By the end of Yellow Tiger and Heukma’s conversation, Yellow Tiger turned almost silent.
There was no problem until White Tiger reported that Avaritia’s priest had lost his sight, and there wasn’t any particularly noteworthy topic mentioned by Heukma after that.
Before he opened the door to the chairman’s office, the Yellow Tiger’s secretary spoke to him politely.
“Red Tiger-nim, Yellow Tiger-nim is away.”
“Where did he go?”
“It’s a little early, but he said he would go home.”
Red Tiger looked puzzled.
He and Heukma talked for a while before the latter left, but that was only for a few minutes.
Of course, Red Tiger expected to discuss more on the Demon Race’s Eye, so he headed to the Hwangmyeong Mansion right away.
‘Did he want to discuss things at the mansion instead of the Silver Hall?’
When Red Tiger arrived back home, the descendants kindly informed him of Yellow Tiger’s whereabouts.
“Yellow Tiger-nim went up to the 5th floor!”
“The young Yellow Tiger, the even younger Yellow Tiger, and the old Yellow Tiger… Anyway, a lot of them are here.”
“I think he gathered his alter egos to rest for a while.”
Yellow Tiger seemed to have called all his alter egos home so that he could rest.
Red Tiger didn’t expect him to do that.
However, what bothered him most was the mention of the 5th floor.
“Did you say he’s on the fifth floor?”
“Yes!”
Yellow Tiger keeps the mansion open and allowed friends to visit and stay freely everywhere, but the fifth floor has always been exclusively for him.
Even if he takes a rest, he had at least one alter ego on the first floor.
It was strange that every single one of his alter egos are on the fifth floor.
‘He even has his morning tea time on the first floor these days… What’s going on?’
Seeing that he’s on the fifth floor, a place where no one else is allowed to enter means that Yellow Tiger wants to be left alone.
Red Tiger glanced at the stairs and the elevators in the mansion, contemplating.
Just in time, White Tiger and Shinsoo arrived home.
Red Tiger asked White Tiger after briefly telling him that Yellow Tiger was on the fifth floor.
“White Tiger, have you heard anything from Yellow Tiger?”
“…”
White Tiger did not answer.
Instead, he looked at one corner of the living room.
‘What is he looking at?’
At the end of White Tiger’s gaze were the artifacts clumsily made by the descendants, and the tiger-shaped souvenirs made by Yellow Tiger in Joo-Oh Island.
At the top of the souvenir were a hologram calendar and a schedule showing when each person is set to leave the mansion.
‘What is White Tiger looking at? It’s not like he’s suddenly checking out the souvenirs… Is he looking at the calendar?’
After some time, White Tiger turned his attention back to Red Tiger.
“Yellow Tiger didn’t tell me anything.”
White Tiger sat on the living room sofa and invited Red Tiger to do the same.
Red Tiger hesitated for a while before taking a seat.
When the descendants saw Red Tiger sit, they all swarmed and sat beside him.
The descendants seem to expect Red Tiger to have a lot of stories knowing that he leaves the mansion much more than White Tiger does.
While the descendants talked among themselves, contemplating whether to make snacks on their own or to have the automated maid make them, White Tiger said something to Red Tiger.
“I think it’s best to leave Yellow Tiger alone for now.”
With that, Red Tiger had a faint suspicion that White Tiger might know something.
‘No, White Tiger visited the priest just now… He doesn’t know anything more than I do.’
Red Tiger washed away his suspicions by drinking the liquid that the descendants served him, not knowing whether it was tea or vinegar water.
* * *
The next day.
Even today, the entire school was talking about the exchange match with the military academy.
During yesterday’s football game, the nearly defeated military academy made two tsunami-like overhead passes, tying the game and leading it to overtime.
After more than thirty minutes of a neck-and-neck competition, the military academy’s quarterback made headlines as he led the team to a comeback victory with a touchdown.
The quarterback of the military academy was hailed MVP, and even though Eungwang High’s team lost yesterday, everyone talked about that specific quarterback.
Our class was no exception.
“They made that long pass twice in the game already. I thought they’d attack with it at the last minute.”
“The ball could’ve been stolen through that 30-yard sprint. It’s crazy.”
Maeng Hyodon and Song Daesok went to see the American football match yesterday, and they excitedly talked about the intense physical fight during the game.
Everyone was saying the same thing over and over again in slightly different variations, but they don’t seem to be getting bored of it.
Although Maeng Hyodon already watched one yesterday, he still seems to be having a hard time understanding the rules.
Song Daesok and Min Geurin did their best to explain it to him, and although he can’t immediately get a grasp of it, Maeng Hyodon seems to be trying hard to understand too.
Seeing his excited face, Maeng Hyodon seems to have forgotten about the gifts given by Heukma.
‘I guess he cares more about today’s game than the gift from the well-known clan head.’
My playable character is becoming more like a regular high school student every day, and I’m very happy about it.
In addition to the three who will watch the football game later, the others who will watch the soccer and basketball game looked very excited as well.
Kim Yuri, Saeum, and Hani watched the soccer match.
They tried to prepare snacks on their own, but in the end, they all decided to buy snacks together.
I will watch the basketball match where Yoo Sanghoon will play, and Kwon Lena and Mok Wooram will come with me.
There was another guy who was supposed to watch the basketball game with us, but he still hasn’t arrived at school yet.
‘Why isn’t he coming?’
Even after the attendance check began, Hwang Jiho’s seat was still empty.
“I got a call today that Hwang Jiho will be absent due to personal reasons.”
Professor Ham Geunhyung told us that Hwang Jiho will be absent today.
I thought he was just late, but it seems like he doesn’t plan on going to school today.
Kim Yuri, the class president, asked the professor.
“Is Jiho sick?”
“He didn’t submit anything like a medical certificate or a doctor’s prescription. The only thing he told me was that it was for personal reasons.”
Seeing that he didn’t give a proper reason, shouldn’t his absence be marked unauthorized or unexcused?
Although attendance doesn’t really affect school records in Eungwang High, a perfect attendance award is actually awarded to students.
Authorized or accredited absences can still let a student receive the perfect attendance award, so there are a lot of students who do their best to have their absences written off.
It seems like Hwang Jiho doesn’t have any desire for that.
“I don’t think Jiho is sick. I wonder what’s wrong…”
“Maybe he went somewhere to play around? It’s kind of weird that he’s absent without saying anything to us.”
“Is this the first that he has been absent?”
“Jiho actually almost missed class on April Fool’s Day. He suddenly smiled and laughed and ran out of the classroom, but he made it in time before attendance-checking.”
The kids in our class were whispering in a concerned voice.
By the way, Hwang Jiho ran out of the classroom with a smile after tracking my location back on April Fool’s Day?
“I’m sure that crazy head has his reasons… He belongs to the Hwangmyeong Group, doesn’t he? Maybe it’s a matter within the company?”
“Hmm… If he doesn’t come to school again tomorrow, I’ll go ask!”
On the other hand, Kim Yuri and Song Daesok tried to end the conversation.
My clever playable characters must be close to figuring out Hwang Jiho’s identity.
‘I don’t think it’s a good idea for me to contact him.’
I was wondering if I should at least ask him how he was doing, but I decided not to.
Considering that he’s contacted Ham Geunhyung to inform him that he’d be absent, he didn’t seem to have blocked communication with the outside world.
I’m sure that he’d receive my message if ever I decide to send him one.
However, if I send him a message right now, I think he’d interpret it as me rushing him to take measures against the Pungbaek, Usa, Unsa matter.
I always contacted him exclusively for matters that involved things we had to do.
If I contact him now, I’m sure he’d think that I need something from him again.
‘Should I go to him personally…?’
Before I knew it, morning classes already ended.
After lunchtime, the tip-off for the basketball match between Eungwang High and Player Military Academy was fast approaching.
I was torn, but in the end, I decided to go see the basketball match.
I made a promise to Yoo Sanghoon, and I couldn’t just let Kwon Lena and Mok Wooram be on their own.
Upon arriving at the gym where the basketball match is set to be played, Kwon Lena suggested that we get some corndogs.
However, she had to stop Mok Wooram from spending all the money he earned from his part-time job.
“Wooram-ah… Just one corndog is enough…”
“But there are so many flavors! Lena-nim, are you not curious about how the other ones taste?”
“There’s a corndog stall near our school, so I’ve tried almost every flavor there is. The one with the cheese is the most delicious…”
In the end, Wooram and I had two corndogs each, while Lena had one.
It was 30 minutes before tip-off when we sat down.
I saw Yoo Sanghoon warming up in his jersey uniform.
The gym was almost full, but as soon as I settled down, Yoo Sanghoon immediately found me and waved his hand.
Yoo Sanghoon immediately went to join his other teammates.
He was a bit shorter than me, but now that he was beside the other players, he looked significantly shorter.
He must be a very skilled athlete considering that he was chosen as a starting player even though he was on the shorter side.
I showed my support by waving my hands to Yoo Sanghoon.
“Is he your friend?”
“Yeah. I took the entrance exam with him.”
“Looks like he’s the only freshman starting player.”
“Let me show you the list of athletes for Eungwang High’s basketball team.”
Shooting Guard Yoo Sanghoon (Freshman).
Kwon Lena briefly pointed at Sanghoon’s name on the list.
He was the only freshman on the starting five, and everyone seemed surprised about it.
I explained to Mok Wooram and Kwon Lena what the shooting guard position is, and while I was speaking, Mok Wooram suddenly pointed toward the stadium.
“It seems like someone from the military academy is waving to you, vice president.”
“Do you know him, Euishin?”
In the direction where Mok Wooram and Kwon Lena were pointing, I saw none other than Do Sihoo.
