Rank 0 of the Awakener Special School - Chapter 68

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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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Awakener Special School Rank 0
Chapter 68
The next day.
“Ji-hyo, how are the festival preparations coming along?”
During the break, Rim-sa had naturally begun approaching Ji-u, striking up conversation.
“Yeah, well… Moon Yu-jin and the others seem to be handling things well on their own.”
“It must be reassuring to be in a group with Yu-jin. He’s the class president, after all.”
“What about you? You said you were doing the props vendor stall?”
“Yeah, I’m trying to make a few keychains. Though I’m not sure if anything I make will actually sell.”
Rim-sa, seated in front of Ji-u even now, was busily crafting something with a crochet hook, weaving thread together.
Ji-u gazed at her intently for a moment before asking.
“What are you planning to do about the campfire?”
“Huh?! Ow!”
Startled by the sudden topic change, her crochet hook slipped.
“I… I’m not planning to participate in the campfire… Why are you suddenly asking that?”
“Just wondering. It’s been on my mind.”
“Didn’t you have no plans to participate either? You’ve rejected every partner request that’s come your way anyway.”
That was true. Except for one.
It had been four days since receiving the red envelope from Bae Han-gyeol.
These days, whenever they passed in the hallway, he’d look at her with puppy-dog eyes, stealing glances.
Normally, Ji-u might have agreed without dragging things out.
But the conversation with Nam Rae-in weighed on her mind.
Unable to give an answer so easily, time had slipped away…
And finally, the day of the festival arrived.
“Hey, I got an envelope from Seong Do-jin.”
While setting up the vendor stall, Ji-u’s ears perked up at the conversation nearby.
“Seong Do-jin? Whoa, that’s insane. He even gave you candy on White Day.”
“When did he give it to me? Today?”
“Yeah, he was acting like he wouldn’t give anything, and then he hands it over on the festival day. Can you believe it?”
A girl in her group had received a partner request from someone.
Glancing over, the recipient’s face held a smug expression.
“But, like, I’m already with this second-year senior right now. So dancing with Seong Do-jin is a bit…”
“That senior hasn’t said anything, so it looks like he’s not going to ask anyway? If you keep testing the waters like this and can’t dance with anyone, what are you going to do?”
“Ugh, I don’t know. Seong Do-jin is like insurance, you know? If my senior doesn’t give me an envelope before the campfire, I’ll just settle for him as a backup.”
“Why don’t you just reject him if you’re not interested?”
The girl who’d received the envelope pouted, then rested her chin in her hand.
“Because then it gets awkward. I hate that kind of thing.”
“That’s so trashy. You don’t want to do it yourself but you hate to pass it up either.”
“Whatever.”
Awkward…
Yes, if Ji-u rejected Han-gyeol’s partner proposal, things would probably get a little awkward between them too.
Though Bae Han-gyeol didn’t strike her as the type to hold grudges, there would definitely be distance between them compared to before.
‘I’ve been dragging this out so long that it already feels awkward anyway.’
What if Bae Han-gyeol thought she was just testing the waters too?
‘Should I just accept…?’
It wasn’t like they were dating or anything. It was just dancing once at the campfire.
Ji-u didn’t want things to be awkward with Bae Han-gyeol.
For the sake of maintaining a smooth relationship with him going forward, wouldn’t accepting be the better choice?
“What are you doing?”
Just then, someone gently set something on top of her head.
Ji-u spun around in surprise to find Moon Yu-jin standing there, a water bottle in hand.
“Everyone’s working on their tasks. Don’t just stand around spacing out—why don’t you help with something?”
“…Sorry.”
“Are you feeling sick again?”
“No, that’s not it.”
Wait.
Moon Yu-jin was close with Bae Han-gyeol.
Remembering this fact, Ji-u looked up at him intently.
And yet…
“…”
Huh?
The moment their eyes met, Yu-jin suddenly turned his gaze away.
He narrowed his brow slightly, covering his mouth with the back of his hand.
“Why are you suddenly staring at me like that?”
“Oh, I wanted to ask you something.”
“What?”
“About Bae Han-gyeol.”
At that, his gaze returned to her as though nothing had happened.
“What about Bae Han-gyeol?”
“Actually, I received a red envelope from him the other day, but I haven’t given him an answer yet.”
“…”
“…”
“…”
“Moon Yu-jin?”
“…Yeah, so?”
Was he even listening properly?
Thinking that to herself, Ji-u continued.
“I wasn’t trying to test the waters or anything. I was just worried he might have misunderstood and gotten his feelings hurt.”
“…”
Yu-jin’s expression hardened visibly.
Was he angry?
He didn’t quite look it though…
Ah. Ji-u waved her hand slightly, adding more.
“Of course, I don’t mean he’d hold it against me or badmouth me to other people. I know that about him.”
“…”
Maybe that wasn’t it.
Ji-u dropped her hand.
“Sorry, I shouldn’t have brought this up. I should just talk to him directly.”
This conversation had been a mistake. She couldn’t quite say why, but looking at Moon Yu-jin’s face told her that much.
She should have asked him directly from the start.
The moment she turned to go find Han-gyeol instead, she froze.
“Is that what you want to know?”
A low voice from behind her.
Ji-u’s footsteps came to an abrupt halt.
When she turned around, her eyes met a pair of silver-gray irises staring directly at her.
“Do you care what he thinks of you?”
“…Not exactly. I just don’t want him to get the wrong idea.”
“You hate the thought of Bae Han-gyeol misunderstanding you?”
“Of course.”
“Why?”
“…”
She was taken aback. Not by the question itself…
‘Is Moon Yu-jin really the type to press and pry like this?’
His face wore the familiar blank expression, yet something about his demeanor felt different from usual.
She wasn’t even sure why she was having this conversation with Moon Yu-jin, but since he’d asked, she supposed she owed him an answer.
“Nobody in the world likes being misunderstood.”
“You didn’t care when other people misunderstood you.”
Other people?
Ah, he must be referring to the ones who had dismissed Ji-hyo.
“Whatever they thought didn’t matter to me. But Bae Han-gyeol is—”
The moment those words left her mouth, something seemed to catch in her throat.
Bae Han-gyeol was…
Different from the others?
— There must be people like that—reliable, steadfast people. This school certainly has its share of hopeless cases, but it’s not as though everyone here is a complete waste.
Tae Ga-young’s words came back to her.
It occurred to her belatedly that the person she’d been describing might be someone like Bae Han-gyeol.
And that had nothing to do with whether Ji-hyo liked him or not—it came before that entirely.
“He’s a good person. That’s all.”
The words tumbled out simply.
And they were true.
From the moment she’d first arrived at this school in Ji-hyo’s place, he was the only one who had been kind to her.
A boy who would throw himself without hesitation to rescue a kitten crying and stranded in a tree.
Someone who, without a care for the eyes of others around him, handed Banana Milk to Ji-hyo despite her being ostracized.
That kind of person.
“But I can’t leave right now.”
“…What?”
“We’re short-handed. The others went downstairs to pick up the last shipment from the convenience store.”
Only then did Ji-u look around and realize the makeshift convenience store setup was occupied only by Yu-jin and herself.
But once the festival began, the crowds would swell, making it even harder to find Bae Han-gyeol.
‘I should have at least gotten his number.’
Though she had Ji-hyo’s smartphone, it had only one classmate registered on it—Nam Rae-in.
Recently, Rim-sa had been added as well.
That’s why she rarely carried her phone around.
Ji-u had no choice but to speak again.
“I’ll just tell him quickly and come right back. It won’t take long.”
“Sales start in an hour, and the refrigerator still isn’t stocked. We haven’t sorted the change either. So—”
Click.
Moon Yu-jin grabbed Ji-u’s wrist.
It was a grip light enough that she could have brushed it off with minimal effort.
“Stay here with me.”
In the moment her eyes met those silver-gray irises boring into her with unwavering intensity,
Ji-u felt her entire body stiffen.

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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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