The Genius Actor Who Brings Misfortune

Translator: Marctempest
Editor: Rynfinity

Chapter 60

“Hey, which one is better, this one or this one?”

“The first one.”

“…Could you at least look at the screen before you choose?”

Even as I replied to Noh Bi-hyuk’s bothersome question, I couldn’t take my eyes off where I’d been staring for a while.

“Hah, but this one doesn’t have pockets. It doesn’t seem like it suits me… How about this one?”

“…”

“Lee Yeon-jae?”

Noh Bi-hyuk, who had been leaning on my shoulder, looked up with a puzzled expression.

I only came to my senses when the weight on my shoulder suddenly disappeared.

“Oh, sorry. What did you say?”

“You’re acting strange today. Is something wrong?”

Of course, something was wrong.

But it wasn’t something I could tell someone who knew nothing, so I just shook my head.

How could I explain that I heard from the Mist in my dream that Oh Seung-hyun was planning to torment me all day?

* * *

“Yeon-jae! Be extra careful tomorrow! That guy is going to bully you!”

The first words from the Mist, who ran to me with a huff as soon as I opened my eyes, were these.

Seeing the always cheerful kid getting so angry was shockingly intense.

The changed form of the Mist was Oh Seung-hyun, but as if he didn’t want to stay in that form for long, he quickly changed into another form.

Even after turning into Sung Lee-jun, he stomped his feet in anger, and I barely managed to calm him down.

After stroking his hair for a long time, I heard the mumbling of a somewhat calmed Mist.

“How can a young human be so mean-spirited…”

“What is he going to do tomorrow?”

Although it was surprising because I hadn’t had any recent run-ins with Oh Seung-hyun, it wasn’t completely shocking when I thought about it.

His gaze still always held dissatisfaction when he looked at me.

Still, it lasted a few months. I endured it for a long time.

“First, at 10:26 AM, he’s going to put a bug in your clothes!”

“…What is he going to put?”

I was thinking nonchalantly when I heard something completely unexpected, making me freeze.

The Mist, seemingly getting angrier at my reaction, stood up abruptly and shouted, “He’s really a bad person!”

When I asked what kind of bug, it turned out to be a centipede. Where did he even get that?

Seriously, what was he planning by putting that in my clothes?

“The guy sitting next to you is terrified of bugs! So when he sees the bug coming out of your body, he’ll cry a lot! You apologize and say sorry!”

“…Ah.”

“And at 12:24 PM, he’ll trip you in the cafeteria, and at 2:08 PM—.”

The Mist continued to speak without a break.

I didn’t know he had a talent for rapping.

After listening to his long tirade, I patted his back, telling him to calm down.

“Aren’t you angry, Yeon-jae?! Why are you so calm?! Only I’m getting mad!”

“You’re getting angry on my behalf.”

I smiled and patted his shoulder, and he lay back down on my lap with a pout.

The grumbling that Yeon-jae didn’t know anything lingered in my ears. It’s not like I knew nothing.

While gently brushing the Mist’s hair, I thought.

‘He’s changed his strategy.’

Originally, Oh Seung-hyun’s way of tormenting me was more direct.

Methods that caused me pain or injuries, aiming to make me suffer.

But the actions he planned for tomorrow, as the Mist told me, were different.

For example, tripping me in the cafeteria.

I would accidentally trip and throw my tray, scattering food all over the kids around me.

The kids who would get covered in food while eating would be really annoyed.

How scared would my deskmate be seeing a bug crawl out from my body?

The focus wasn’t on me experiencing misfortune but on making the kids suffer ‘because of Lee Yeon-jae.’

‘Kim Hee-yeon is really scared of bugs.’

I remembered my deskmate, Kim Hee-yeon, who had told me she couldn’t sleep all night and came to school with open eyes because of a cockroach at home.

It’s winter now, so it’s not as bad, but she even trembled at the sound of cicadas outside during the summer.

I’m not particularly sensitive to bugs, so even if something crawls out of my body, I’d just feel a momentary shiver and it wouldn’t be a big deal.

But it would be different for Kim Hee-yeon.

“First thing tomorrow, act immediately! Three hours! No, just don’t go to school tomorrow!”

“Mist, calm down. Even if I don’t go tomorrow, he’ll do it the day after.”

I pressed the Mist back down as he tried to get up again and patted his chest.

Luckily, it wasn’t something that would threaten my life, but avoiding it blindly wasn’t the answer either.

Oh Seung-hyun would know. Just because something happened once or twice wouldn’t immediately change my reputation.

It was ultimately a matter of time.

It was unlikely that this was something he started with the intention of tormenting me for just a day or two.

There was only one month left until winter break.

It seemed almost certain that Oh Seung-hyun wouldn’t be going to art school, so I only needed to endure it for one more month.

I sighed, thinking of Kim Hee-yeon with her teary eyes, and decided that I couldn’t just let the other kids suffer for a month while I avoided it.

“Alright, I’ll start acting as soon as I wake up tomorrow.”

“Just in case, look around and stay alert!”

“Yeah, I’ll do that.”

Once the misfortune factor drops through acting, the incidents that were supposed to happen that day either disappear or change.

For example, if a falling pot was supposed to hit my head, it would either fall right behind me or not fall at all.

It’s a part that changes on its own without having to put in extra effort, so as long as I act sufficiently, there’s no need to worry.

But there was no need to tell the already angry kid that I wouldn’t do it.

Thus, it became morning, and now before the first period, I was keeping a close eye on Oh Seung-hyun.

“What’s going on? Tell me.”

“Nothing. And that one’s not good.”

“…Hey, the first one you told me to buy earlier was this one, you know?”

Noh Bi-hyuk grumbled as he swiped through his phone screen.

Anything he wore would suit him fine, so why was he being so picky?

I sighed and asked what other options there were as I glanced at his pouting face, which looked like the Mist’s.

Only after seeing all the tops categories on the shopping mall website did he finally let me go.

It was only after the first period bell rang and I saw Noh Bi-hyuk returning to his seat that I snapped out of it.

‘Right, Oh Seung-hyun.’

I turned my head urgently and saw Oh Seung-hyun sitting in the same position as before.

He seemed unusually calm today.

Knowing what he was planning today made his calm demeanor even more strange.

‘I can’t figure out what he’s thinking.’

There was one hour left until the first misfortune.

I had been acting for over two hours, so nothing should happen.

Recently, I’ve been getting up at 5 AM and going to bed before 10 PM.

I kept my sleep schedule well, so it could be seen as me establishing some routine.

If I just handled today’s incident well, things would stabilize even more.

‘I should talk to him sometime this week, depending on the situation.’

I glanced at Oh Seung-hyun, who was sitting quietly.

I didn’t know if talking would help.

* * *

10:25 AM.

There was one minute left until Oh Seung-hyun was supposed to put the bug in my clothes.

I was looking curiously at Oh Seung-hyun, who was sitting quietly today.

When was he going to move? Shouldn’t he be moving soon?

Had my acting caused him to lose his will completely?

While I was lost in thought, I suddenly felt a stiff sensation in my back and unconsciously straightened up, moving away from the backrest.

As I moved the chair back, I collided hard with something, and someone let out a groan.

The sound was so loud that I, Noh Bi-hyuk next to me, and my deskmate Kim Hee-yeon all turned around.

And we saw it. The transparent container in the hand of the groaning boy.

To be precise, the centipede inside it.

I heard a sharp intake of breath beside me, and exactly two seconds later, a scream erupted so loud it almost overturned the classroom.

“What the hell!!”

“Uh, no.”

“Are you crazy?! Get that thing away!!”

Startled by Kim Hee-yeon’s scream, the boy accidentally dropped the container on the floor.

The slightly open lid allowed the bug to escape easily.

The kids, realizing what was happening, quickly backed away in panic.

I quickly pushed Kim Hee-yeon behind me, then approached the pale, trembling boy and asked.

“Can I kill it?”

“Huh, what?”

“I was wondering if it’s a pet or something. It’d be easier to kill it by hitting it.”

I doubted anyone would keep a centipede as a pet, but you never know.

The boy seemed unable to understand my question and just kept repeating “Huh?”, so I was about to ask again when Noh Bi-hyuk, who was frowning, shouted.

“Hey, who would keep that as a pet!”

“You never know.”

“What do you mean, you never know! Anyway, just kill it first. Quickly!”

For some reason, Noh Bi-hyuk, who had been looking at me with a frustrated expression, let out a yelp when he saw the active bug.

It was honestly funny seeing such a big guy reacting like that.

But since there seemed to be many kids suffering, I didn’t hesitate and grabbed a book.

With a thud, the bug disappeared under the book, and the noisy classroom fell silent.

“…It’s dead, right?”

“Yeah.”

I answered Noh Bi-hyuk, who asked with a pale face, and took out a plastic bag from my pocket.

Luckily, no one asked why I was carrying a plastic bag, as everyone was too distracted.

Carefully lifting the book, I shook it into the bag and felt something drop.

The book had some stains on it, but it seemed usable, so I wiped it clean and tied the plastic bag before throwing it in the bathroom trash can.

When I returned, the boy who had brought the bug was surrounded by angry classmates.

“I know your dad is a researcher, but why did you bring a bug to school!”

“I-I’m sorry.”

“Don’t just apologize! If you brought it, you should have kept it secure. Why did you open the lid!!”

Kim Hee-yeon’s yelling was heartfelt.

Her rage was so evident that even Noh Bi-hyuk, who had been angry with her, was taken aback and tried to calm her down.

I turned to look at the person quietly observing this chaos from a distance.

Oh Seung-hyun, who seemed to have nothing to do with this.

‘Wasn’t it supposed to be Oh Seung-hyun who put the bug?’

That’s what the Mist said.

…Or not? Thinking back, the Mist never explicitly said Oh Seung-hyun would personally put the bug in my clothes.

The trembling boy wasn’t the mastermind behind this.

His shaking eyes were directed towards Oh Seung-hyun.

All evidence pointed to Oh Seung-hyun being the instigator.

So, the Mist knew that Oh Seung-hyun had ordered the boy and told me everything?

It was impressive how much the Mist knew. Half amazed, half relieved that the situation was resolved, I sighed.

The teacher, entering the noisy classroom, looked puzzled.

Kim Hee-yeon, her tension released, started to cry, and the boy repeatedly apologized, crying too.

Seeing this chaotic scene, I felt a sense of unease.

‘Hopefully, this won’t continue all day.’

And my ominous feeling was right.