No Dark Secrets In This Book

Episode 176

‘Jeong Ian’ has been to the military. There’s no way I could have a proper sense of being twenty years old. But the damn world doesn’t consider my circumstances. Everyone around me is glaring coldly. Until I was unaware just now, it didn’t bother me, but now that I know the truth, I feel a bit guilty. But it’s okay. I’m a shameless liar after all.

Let me show you how far a person can pretend not to be embarrassed.

“Hmm? Is something the matter?”

“…”

You’d better stop looking at me like I have no conscience, you damn lover. You don’t seem to know, but looking for conscience in me is no different from going to Seoul to find Mr. Kim.

“If nothing’s wrong, we should head to the banquet hall. I hate wasting time.”

I shamelessly ignored Ryuseong’s reproachful gaze and looked down at the crowd. Fortunately, only Ryuseong knew the truth that I had forgotten my age and treated others like kids. Thanks to that, I survived. Damn. If everyone had found out, I’d probably be treated as a crazy person by everyone by now.

Anyway, the authority of ‘Cassice Demillang’ hasn’t been undermined yet.

Then the next development was obvious…

***

“…”

“…”

As soon as Cassice Demillang finished speaking, all the students began moving in formation without a word. Whether for the victory in the competition, or to open the in-law world, even those who had decided to be hostile to Cassice Demillang.

Well, if Cassice Demillang says he hates wasting time, what can they do?

After all, there weren’t many people in this world whose hobby was dying.

That was the context.

***

‘Hah!’

Why am I laughing like a final villain? Because I successfully escaped a crisis by exerting the aura of a final villain. I, who unfairly made my peers feel guilty for having a different mental age despite being physically the same age, not only didn’t admit my mistake but successfully threatened my peers by wielding Cassice Demillang’s authority. What? You say I’m conscienceless for doing wrong and not admitting it? That’s right. My conscience is dead. Just as Nietzsche, who said God is dead, eventually died himself.

‘What do the two have to do with each other?’

I sincerely advise you not to think about worldly affairs too trapped in stereotypes. All worldly affairs eventually return to the same source. All streams, countless waves, and currents eventually become one in the sea – this is the meaning of ‘all streams return to the sea’. In other words, Nietzsche’s death and my conscience’s death ultimately mean the same death, so according to the principle that everything becomes the same when it reaches the end after flowing, my words were correct anyway.

Because everything ends when you die! Whether it’s God, conscience, or Nietzsche!

‘Ah, is this not right?’

Somehow, it feels like I missed the timing for enlightenment due to my personality. I hope it’s just my imagination. Otherwise, I might want to run and light the Taoist Patriarch’s beard on fire while chanting Amitabha Buddha.

If the esteemed Professor Pungseon, a great Taoist, had heard my inner thoughts, he would have flying kicked me with both feet. But he didn’t hear, so I won. Therefore, I hope the Taoist Patriarch provides me with enlightenment before I engage in practical Taoist-destroying activities in reality.

However, sadly, my prayers didn’t seem to be heard well in the immortal world. I put on a serious expression while slowly walking at the very end of the student procession to the banquet hall. Hmm, I should start by offering 108 bows at the altar, right?

Was it then that my crazy inner thoughts leaked out and formed an aura?

“Eek…!”

A student a couple of rows ahead, who had been glancing at me nervously, let out a short scream of death agony, covered their mouth, and froze on the spot. Ah, what’s this? Did they feel like they were being monitored because I was walking at the very back? Everyone was looking back and forth between me and the screaming student with expressions like they were about to choke. After repeatedly imagining outrageous, grotesque, crazy acts begging for divine punishment towards the Taoist Patriarch and then looking back at reality, I somehow felt proud. In the immortal world, I might just be a mere human whose true value hasn’t been recognized yet, but here, my personality was being acknowledged. It was a moment of deep consolation that there were people who recognized that my soul, though in a different body, was truly a personality destroyer.

‘I really just wanted to avoid causing trouble by standing at the very back, but how did it turn out like this?’

Since I had no intention of moving to the front row, I just casually raised my eyebrows. As if my intention that I was very displeased with their behavior was well conveyed, the students hurriedly started walking again.

Ah, of course, I, the culprit who unfairly used Cassice Demillang’s aura to make the students feel guilty, knew as well.

‘Perhaps the act of calling Cassice Demillang the final villain… might need to be reconsidered.’

That was the recently emerging academic theory in the political world. Not the established theory in academia, but the academic theory in politics.

Or rather, the academic theory in Jeong Ian’s world, you could say.

‘The rhyme is on point.’

I didn’t know I had a talent for composing rhymes, maybe I should have become a poet? A sickly genius writer with a terminal illness – isn’t this setting a bit excessive? I stood on tiptoe to share this newly discovered character trait of this body and brought my lips to Ryuseong’s ear.

Whisper, whisper.

‘How is it? Funny, right?’

For reference, as soon as Ryuseong heard my words, his eyes became as blank as someone who had lost all sense of fun in this world. He turned his head to the side as if he didn’t want to look at me anymore, but despite that, he was matching his pace to mine. As if walking with me was some kind of common sense or truth. You and I both know how strange that is. So I kept giggling beside him. Since Ryuseong made me laugh with something he doesn’t usually do, I decided to return the favor with something I don’t usually do. Is this what they call the aesthetics of give and take? Ryuseong, don’t hesitate to accept it. You’ve done a lot for me. You deserve this much in return. When I looked at Ryuseong wistfully with such intention, a vein popped on his forehead. Hmm. Why is he angry? I tilted my head with an innocent look as if I really didn’t understand, then couldn’t hold back my laughter and almost fell over laughing, bending at the waist. Ryuseong, with a handsome face full of irritation, grabbed my waist. Thanks to that, my balance that was about to collapse was properly restored. Half-embraced, I looked up at his close face and calmly spoke.

“Ah, well done.”

“Where did you put your words of thanks?”

While I’m not entirely ungrateful, saying it like this makes me want to give you a taste of your own medicine.

I pulled on Ryuseong’s tie, then suddenly planted a loud kiss on his cheek before pushing him back. Ryuseong stood there stupidly for a while after being pushed, then suddenly started chasing after me with quick steps. And like the son of the top Korean hip-hop Hanra faction leader, he started rapid-fire rapping.

“…I understand now that you’re unexpectedly shy. When you’re grateful, you could just say thank you, but you express it in such an roundabout way. You have a surprisingly cute side…”

This guy would be good at rapping too, huh? His diction is no joke. I guess families resemble each other even without blood ties.

Anyway, Ryuseong was naively finding me cute without noticing my dark intentions at all, but in my eyes, Ryuseong babbling on and on was billions of times cuter. I smiled gently at him and whispered a secret. I explained in detail what I might do if he kept acting so cute.

That’s all I did, but why…

“Let’s keep our distance for a while.”

“What kind of tantrum is this now?”

“I’m serious.”

“Haha. It would be better if it were a joke, wouldn’t it?”

“…”