Rank 0 of the Awakener Special School - Chapter 66

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Rank 0 of the Awakener Special School
Episode 66
Festival preparations began in earnest.
Ji-u’s 1st Year Class 2 had decided, after much discussion, to run a stall selling various foods and trinkets.
“Then we’ll do knitted dolls.”
“If we stick to simple designs, we could make more of them—like coasters or book covers.”
“We’re thinking of doing drinks. Soda and coffee, and maybe corn silk tea would work too.”
“What about cocktails? Non-alcoholic ones.”
Class 2 decided on three stalls in total.
Trinkets, drinks, and food.
“The food is the problem…”
“What about something simple, like bread?”
“Simple? That’s a joke. We’d have to knead it ourselves and bake it in an oven. Then when do we get to look around the festival?”
“Hmm, what about street food?”
“Kimbap has so many ingredients. We can’t even source blood sausage through the school, and standing in front of a deep fryer in that blazing heat would be torture.”
“True. Tteokbokki is annoying to make too, honestly.”
Unlike the other two options, the food menu was difficult to settle on, and the group couldn’t narrow down their choices.
The problem was that Ji-u had ended up in the food stall group, of all things.
That’s how the lottery decided it, and there was nothing to be done about it. It wasn’t like the other groups wanted to switch either.
At least Moon Yu-jin, someone with whom she had some rapport, was in the same group.
Rim-sa, who had drawn the trinket group alone, seemed anxious at first.
“Oh, even if we do insects, beetles and butterflies would be cute as keychains, don’t you think? Can you make them?”
“Y-yes! I’ve made lots of them!”
…After a careful glance around, it seemed she was adapting reasonably well.
‘Thank goodness.’
Ji-u sat perched on the corner of a hastily rearranged desk, chin in hand, gazing out the window.
But then.
“What do you think, Ji-hyo?”
Everyone’s attention suddenly turned to Ji-u.
“…What? About what?”
“Is there any food you particularly like?”
“If we ask for your opinion, the school administration would probably help us a lot with things like procuring ingredients.”
For someone who had been treated as invisible, let alone ostracized, the sudden attention was bewildering. It was almost funny.
Figure it out yourselves.
Under normal circumstances, that’s exactly what she would have thrown at them, casually and curtly.
But instead—I hope you’ll enjoy the festival, since it doesn’t come around often.
Ji-u, who had hesitated for a moment, opened her lips quietly.
“I don’t usually cook. I just eat whatever’s convenient.”
“Hmm, things like salads or poke bowls?”
“No. Cup ramen.”
“…Huh?”
The children’s eyes widened in surprise.
Why? Was it strange because cup ramen came out of the mouth of a wealthy heiress?
“I eat seaweed snacks a lot too. When I can’t even be bothered with that, I just pop a hot bar in the microwave and eat it.”
These days, convenience stores deliver everything anyway. She kept that part to herself.
But then.
“Oh, instant food…”
“Mmm, even so, for a festival atmosphere, something like that feels a bit…”
The unexpected answer had left them speechless, and the mood grew slightly awkward.
It was Moon Yu-jin who broke the silence.
“Why not? I think it could work.”
“Hmm?”
“If it’s instant food, it’d be simple to stock through the school convenience store. With just a microwave and a coffee maker, we can have a decent selection.”
Having said that much, Yu-jin gave Ji-u a knowing glance.
“Right?”
“…Huh? Oh, well, yeah, I guess.”
She answered as such for now.
“Besides, people can eat quickly and move on to see other stalls. Convenience foods are actually more efficient, aren’t they?”
The moment Yu-jin said this, the children’s attitude shifted dramatically.
“Oh, that makes sense.”
“Now that you mention it, that does sound okay.”
Remarkably, the meeting, which had been stuck in place for hours, suddenly began to move forward.
The group leader frantically scribbled something onto a tablet, while the other children spilled out ideas one after another without pause.
“Do we need drinks?”
“The drink stall group is already selling those. We can probably just stock water.”
“Mini wet wipes might be good to have, even if we’re not selling food.”
“Ooh, I agree. It’s like a mini convenience store.”
“I like it. A mini convenience store.”
…It felt strange.
Of course, the shift in the children’s attitudes was still bewildering and irritating. She had no intention of getting along with them now, either.
But experiencing her own words unexpectedly unblock a stalled meeting—that was a new feeling.
…Though Yu-jin’s support certainly helped.
‘Did he deliberately take my side?’
Ji-u glanced over at Yu-jin, but he was calmly recording the meeting notes.
“Wait, would we need a refrigerator?”
“Just for seaweed snacks and hot bars, so nothing huge… Oh, there are two unused refrigerators in the club room. I can ask the president about it.”
“Should we stock different kinds of seaweed snacks?”
“Wouldn’t just the standard varieties be enough? Tuna mayo, ham mayo, and spicy roasted seaweed, and, um, also…”
“Bul-dak.”
Then, with a thoughtful expression, Ji-u added one more thing.
“And Cheese Bul-dak too.”
* * *
After school, Ji-u dropped by the Back Courtyard of the Dormitory for the first time in a while.
The Dorm Supervisor was taking a three-day, four-night vacation and had asked Ji-u to look after Som-i in the meantime.
Of course, Ji-u had heard about it from Han-gyeol.
“Thank goodness. I thought I’d be taking care of her alone, but you happened to be discharged from the hospital. If it had been just me, Som-i would’ve been disappointed.”
“From what I can tell, she likes you better than me.”
“Come on, don’t say that. Besides, you were the one who rescued her in the first place. She knows that much, I’m sure.”
Han-gyeol laughed while waving a squeaky toy he’d produced from who knows where.
“By the way, you’re running a mini convenience store for the festival?”
“Yeah. When they asked what I usually eat, I said cup ramen, and that’s how it ended up.”
“That’s good. Your opinion actually got through to them.”
“Maybe. Though I don’t think it would’ve happened without Moon Yu-jin.”
“Yu-jin?”
“Yeah. He was the first one to agree with my suggestion, and once he said that, the rest of them suddenly changed their expressions.”
“Ah…”
With that lukewarm response, Han-gyeol fell silent.
What’s this mood?
“But Ji-hyo, can I ask you something?”
“What?”
“Is it true you’re engaged to Rae-in?”
Ji-u froze.
Her expression stiffened.
“…Why are you suddenly asking?”
“Oh, there’s always been rumors about it. But I don’t think I’ve ever asked you directly before.”
What was she supposed to say here?
The truth was easy enough to tell.
But Ji-u suspected that Han-gyeol had harbored unrequited feelings for Seol Ji-hyo.
Judging by his behavior, Han-gyeol seemed to have considerable affection for Ji-hyo as well. Hadn’t he been kind from the very first meeting?
…He’d even brought Banana Milk today.
And not just today. During her hospitalization, a plastic bag containing Banana Milk or snacks had hung from the Hospital Room door handle every single day.
Ji-u stared at the Banana Milk in her hand for a long moment before speaking.
“The engagement… it’s just something that came up a very long time ago, when I was very young.”
“So you and Rae-in aren’t in that kind of relationship?”
“That kind of relationship?”
“Like dating with marriage in mind or something…”
“What are you talking about? Absolutely not.”
Her voice rose slightly before she realized it.
“…Really?”
“Really.”
She didn’t have terribly negative feelings toward Nam Rae-in, but she did think he wasn’t worthy of Ji-hyo. For one, he had far too many members of the opposite sex around him.
His face was striking, sure, but he had an edge to him that matched. And the inscrutability of his nature.
“Thank goodness.”
Han-gyeol let out a long exhale, as if he’d been holding his breath for ages and finally released it all at once.
Glancing to the side, Ji-u’s eyes met Han-gyeol’s cheerful face.
“Then I can give you this.”
“…Huh?”
Han-gyeol pulled a wrinkled Red Envelope from his hoodie pocket.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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