The Returnee Wants to Live Comfortably

Chapter 171 : There Are No Bad Kids in the World (5)

There Are No Bad Kids in the World (5)Amelda came out with the two trainees.

The reason was the trainees' insatiable appetite.

Following the Demon King's orders, she had intentionally made the trainees' food taste worse.

Since the point was to punish them, Amelda followed that command without a hint of mercy.

However, one problem ended up arising.

It was Sang-ah's sleepwalking.

To treat this symptom, the only way was to feed her the "meat" she wanted.

"But why did we come here instead of just going to a barbecue place?"

Ah-rin, who was walking beside her, raised a question.

Was it really necessary to come to such a massive event venue just for some meat?

There was no entrance fee, but considering Amelda's position, she wasn't someone likely to pinch pennies.

"Actually, this is part of our mission."

"Mission?"

"The Holy Church is hiding out here."

The Holy Church had been involved in Choi Seungjin becoming an assemblyman.

Naturally, the Holy Church was present at this inauguration event as well, and that guess turned out correct.

The goal of this mission was to track them down and thrash them.

"If it's the Holy Church..."

Upon hearing the name, Ah-rin recalled some unpleasant memories.

There had once been a man who defected from the Sura guild to the Holy Church.

That man was the one who had made her grandmother and grandfather pass away.

"You seem to know about them?"

"Yes. But... weren't we supposed to come out for a meal?"

"That's right. We're catching those bastards, pounding them, and eating afterward."

"You're so cold-hearted."

No wonder she'd wondered about how easily Amelda had given permission for the outing.

And above all, the fact that Amelda herself was leading them should have been a clue.

"Do you know where those guys are hiding?"

"They're probably disguised as some sort of staff. Security... or maybe cooks."

"I kinda hope they disguised themselves as cooks. That way, while beating them up, we could also steal their food. Right, Sang-ah...?"

Ah-rin looked back as she spoke, then was taken aback.

Sang-ah, who should have been right behind, had vanished.

"Hey! Kwon Sang-ah!"

― Where did she disappear to!

.

.

Sang-ah started wandering somewhere, drawn by the smell of meat.

She eventually arrived at the entrance to a kitchen, with sounds of frying and boiling emanating from within.

Just as she was about to enter, the security guards at the entrance blocked her path.

"Only invited guests are allowed past this point."

"Sorry, but please step aside."

"Eh?"

Naturally, access was restricted to authorized personnel only.

But even after seeing the security there for that reason, Sang-ah paid no mind and continued forward.

"Just one bite..."

"Did you not hear us? Please step back!"

"You can't go in!"

Even as the security guards blocked her, Sang-ah looked like she would push through.

The security—Holy Church members in disguise—thought to themselves,

'Surely she hasn't caught on to what's being prepared in here, has she?'

'We have to stop her at all costs!'

The Holy Church, disguised as security, ultimately struck Sang-ah's head with a fist.

*Pow!*

They held back since she was an invited guest, but honestly, they didn't care if she died.

Anything in their way was simply removed.

"Ow..."

"Eh?"

"That hurts...!"

Sang-ah wasn't even close to fainting and seemed unbothered.

Disturbed, they punched her in the face again.

*Smack!*

This time, the sound was even louder. At lea

st a tooth ought to be knocked out at that point.

But...

"I said it hurts!"

"Eek!"

"I told you, it hurts!"

Even as her head snapped to the side, Sang-ah glared at them.

There wasn't a scratch on her face.

Her eerie expression made their skin crawl.

"I'm just hungry..."

Feeling increasingly ominous, they prepared for battle.

But Sang-ah was far too fast to be considered an ordinary girl.

"Why are you getting in my way!!"

In a blur, Sang-ah seized both of their heads.

Then she slammed them into the floor, instantly knocking them out.

Having so quickly cleared the obstacles, Sang-ah entered the room.

"Hm?"

Sang-ah looked about in confusion; the kitchen was somewhat unusual.

Most of the utensils were outside standard sizes, and food scraps from the cooking also appeared enormous.

It looked as though food had been prepared with giant ingredients.

Other than traces of cooking, there was no one inside.

"Found it."

Sang-ah exited through a back door she saw across the room.

There, a wide corridor awaited her, and in it stood a massive stainless steel-lidded dish.

It was more than big enough to hold over 100 servings.

The aroma drifting from within made her drool, and she entered the giant dish after lifting the lid.

At that very moment, the cooks walked up the hall.

"We managed to finish cooking just in time."

"I didn't expect Lady Rubera's cooking skills to be this impressive."

"It's almost mealtime for the guests; let's hurry."

"Yes!"

The two, disguised as cooks, began pushing the huge dish.

Thanks to the wheels underneath and the fact that both were awakeners, it was easy for them to move.

"But... don't you hear some kind of sound coming from inside?"

"That dish has a built-in heating function. What you're hearing is just meat roasting."

"That so?"

Without any suspicion, they pushed the dish into the main event hall.

"Now, the vessel of the gods is ours."

Completely unaware of what was inside.

****

A man called the epitome of the law of the jungle.

Kwon Yongha was one of the more ruthless Guildmasters in Korea.

His public nickname was "the Tyrant".

Power, authority—you name it, he had it all. Even the assembled politicians here bowed their heads to him.

"Little bro~"

The sight of such a person affectionately hugging a boy was shocking in itself.

Of course, I too felt my brain shutting down at suddenly being hugged by him.

"Um... Guildmaster Kwon Yongha?"

"Hm?"

"What are you doing all of a sudden?"

Amid the frigid atmosphere, Choi Seungjin cautiously asked.

Kwon Yongha was famous for never shaking hands with anyone.

For him to suddenly hug an unfamiliar boy like a teddy bear was appalling.

"Do you two know each other?"

"Oh, well. This kid here is... mmph!"

I snapped out of it and immediately clamped my hand over Kwon Yongha's mouth.

Things were chaotic enough without him spouting nonsense.

There were TV station cameras here, after all.

Every word he said carried weight; I couldn't afford to get swept up in it.

I hurriedly cut him off.

"That's right! I'm very happy to see you again, guildmaster Kwon Yongha!"

"...?"

"How is Sang-ah these days? She's doing well, right?"

At my words, question marks popped up over everyone's heads.

Everyone was wondering what on earth I was saying, but I shot Kwon Yongha a meaningful look.

As I winked at him with a frown, he smoothly played along.

"Hahaha! Of course, she's doing well. It makes me proud that you're friends with my daughter!"

"Your daughter's friend?"

"Kwon Sang-ah, there's another daughter after my Yongjun."

To answer Choi Seungjin's question, Kwon Yongha put a hand on his son's shoulder and explained.

His own daughter, and Yongjun's little sister.

Currently attending Hand, and when she was a freshman, she got help from a student.

And that student was Ma Seongjin—me.

"That little brat... your daughter owes him a debt?"

"It's still ongoing."

"How could that be..."

"You seem unconvinced. To put it simply... Assemblyman Choi Seungjin you are my son's benefactor. Likewise, my daughter's benefactor is this boy."

—Do you understand?

Choi Seungjin was left speechless by the explanation.

Flustered, he looked to Kwon Yongjun.

"Is that true?"

"Well... I can't say it's wrong."

As Kwon Yongjun confirmed it, Choi Seungjin grew even more dumbfounded.

This boy was Ma Jun-sang's son.

It was one thing to dislike him for being the son of an enemy, but now he had also earned the Hwasan Guildmaster's trust.

When even Kwon Yongha, who never touched anyone, gave him a hug like that, there was no need to think more about how much trust that showed.

The more he saw, the less he liked.

It was infuriating that he was Ma Jun-sang's son, of all people.

But he couldn't shake off a sense of unease.

Was Kwon Yongha the type to act this way just because the kid was his child's friend?

And why had Kwon Yongha appeared here so suddenly in the first place?

.

.

Kwon Yongha and I quickly slipped away to the restroom.

To keep out of sight, we hid in a stall and—I pulled at his hair.

"Are you nuts or something?!"

"Ow ow ow!"

"What was that? Little bro? Missed me? How the hell can you call yourself the Hwasan guildmaster!"

"Hahaha, but friends can do that, right?"

"Yeah, we're friends! But there are lines you shouldn't cross!"

"Ow ow! My hair, my hair!"

Kwon Yongha had a public image to maintain.

What he did just now could shatter that image entirely.

It'd be a disaster if word got out that I was the reason for his ruined image.

Thankfully, I managed to cover it up by playing the "daughter's friend" card.

At least that made his actions seem plausible.

But there was another problem altogether.

"And why did you have to hug me so... full of affection instead of just hugging me normally?!"

The way he talked back there was so syrupy it was nauseating.

It was like a girlfriend going, "Oppa, did you miss me?"

"Aren't you embarrassed at all about... that?"

"What?"

"We're buddies, aren't we~?"

Yet Kwon Yongha spoke nonchalantly, as if there was nothing wrong.

I was really starting to get dizzy because of this guy.

Buddies? Where in the world would one find such a grotesque "buddy?"

And—

It was annoying enough to have a married man hitting on a boy.

And that boy was me!

With the toilet right there, I felt like puking on the spot.

"Anyway, when's that 'thing' gonna start?"

Suddenly, Kwon Yongha's tone became serious.

His voice devoid of its usual playful note, I let go of his hair and answered about "that".

"Soon, the party leader will take the stage and start the speech. That's when we make our move."

"Hehehe. I can't wait."

Kwon Yongha wasn't here by accident.

He might be a pervy bastard, but he was the linchpin of this operation.

His influence would be essential for the plan's success.

Of course! That doesn't mean I'll ever play along with his perverted antics.

Not even if I die!

"Let's get going."

"Wait!"

Suddenly stopping me, Kwon Yongha held out his hand, asking for something.

"Do you have any toilet paper?"

It was the big one.

****

When I left the restroom, something new had appeared in the event hall:

A massive dish covered with a huge lid.

It looked like it could feed over a hundred people.

Word was the hosts would be distributing meals to the invited guests.

That thing must be it.

As I approached, the lid lifted, letting out a cloud of steam.

.

.

Inside the dish, Sang-ah could see a huge chunk of meat.

The moment she laid eyes on it, her eyes rolled back in ecstasy.

When she regained consciousness, she realized she'd been wolfing down the meat like crazy.

She didn't know what it was, but it was insanely delicious.

Nothing she'd ever eaten tasted this amazing.

― Om nom nom! Om nom nom! Om nom nom!

Even though the dish was heated, Sang-ah barely noticed.

Thanks to that, she was able to shovel the blazing hot, juicy meat into her mouth without a care.

'Yes! This is it! This is what I needed!!'

Maybe it was because of the trash she had to eat at the training camp.

Now, the meat tasted like a gift from heaven.

She even started tearing up as she ate.

Before she knew it, there was no meat left at all.

Only the bones that had supported the meat remained.

"Urp~"

Sadly, she'd finished it all, but it was still satisfying.

The taste was so fantastic that it felt as if she were lying down in a garden of flowers.

No matter what happened later, she wouldn't regret this.

That's right!

—Even if I die, I'll have no regrets!

Screeeee—

At that moment, the lid covering the dish slid open.

As Sang-ah basked in her newfound happiness, she looked out.

And immediately froze.

"..."

"..."

A crowd of people was staring right at Sang-ah.

Among them was a boy she was most familiar with.

As Sang-ah's eyes met the boy's, her smile instantly faded.

"Ah..."

In a split second, Sang-ah's smile turned into tears.

-------------= Clacky's Corner -------------=

Author-nim really knows how to write this uncomfortable situations...

【ദ്ദി(⩌ᴗ⩌)】