The Reborn Genius of an Arts High School - Chapter 54

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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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Episode 54.
Seong Hyun A was an ordinary top-tier student.
Not first place, but still bearing that ambiguous title of being in the upper ranks.
Most people probably couldn’t fathom how cruel such a position was.
It was too late now to choose a different path.
The expectations and resources she’d received from those around her in getting this far.
The sacrifices her parents had made for her, and all the time she’d invested in effort.
All of it already weighed heavily on her shoulders, yet none of it changed reality.
Around her were children overflowing with talent.
At best, she’d managed to cobble together some distinction through consistent external awards and activities.
In all this, she merely scraped by, barely holding her ground.
Any hope that she could do more than this….
“I… I got into the Special Class…?”
Why hadn’t she let that opportunity slip away? Why had she grudgingly accepted it?
Seong Hyun A recalled the moment, just days ago, when her homeroom teacher had told her she was assigned to the Special Class.
She’d wanted to jump right where she stood, it felt so good.
She’d thought her ambiguous position had finally changed.
She’d thought her efforts were finally being recognized.
But it took only a single day for that illusion to shatter.
‘Life and Death’—
a theme, and the time to prove her skill that came with it.
In that moment, Hyun A understood her place.
‘I’m different from those kids.’
She’d already known that Yu Ra and Kang Hyuk were the kind of students who stood out even among their peers.
That being the case, it was Ye Ji in particular who impressed Hyun A’s eye.
She certainly lived up to her reputation—she had extraordinary talent.
This was what those kids did. They painted.
They possessed the pure soul of art, while she just wanted a job that made money.
Now she understood why her Design friend hadn’t shown interest in the Special Class.
‘This isn’t where I belong.’
She was about to let go of the expectation she’d clung to so foolishly.
Or rather, she’d been on the verge of giving up.
***
“……?”
Noticing Hyun A lost in thought, Ye Ji moved ahead.
“What are you doing? Come on!”
The place Ye Ji had brought her was an amusement park.
An indoor amusement park in the heart of the city.
Only then did Hyun A seem to regain her senses, stammering out her words.
“Oh, today? But… we’re still in exam period….”
“Aren’t you giving up on this exam anyway?”
You said you were aiming for Regular Admission, right?
At Ye Ji’s words, Hyun A sighed quietly.
She had indeed said that.
Since her performance exam would be marked as zero anyway, what did her regular subject grades matter now?
But still.
Was it okay to do this when the exam hadn’t even ended yet?
An odd sense of guilt caught at her ankles.
“But you… your grades are good too….”
In response to Hyun A’s question, Ye Ji replied with a playful expression.
“If my grades would change from taking a day off, then they weren’t really my ability to begin with.”
“Ah….”
“You thought that was pretty tactless of me, didn’t you?”
“……Maybe a little…?”
At Hyun A’s answer, Ye Ji burst into laughter.
As Hyun A followed behind Ye Ji, she couldn’t shake her lingering concerns.
Meanwhile, Ye Ji, seemingly unconcerned, went straight to the ticket booth and bought two tickets.
Is this really okay?
Lost in that thought, Hyun A suddenly startled again.
“Oh! Wait, I should pay for mine—”
“It’s fine! I have some money.”
Ye Ji had completely swept Hyun A along.
Her thoughts shifted in an instant from ‘Is this really okay?’ to ‘I’m now in debt to my junior for a ticket!’
“That… well, I suppose, but I have spending money too.”
Ye Ji was already an artist who’d begun selling her works.
Hyun A knew that much about her.
A few ten-thousand-won admission tickets were hardly an issue.
But that was that, and this was this.
Ye Ji spoke to the flustered Hyun A.
“If you really want to repay me, buy me that.”
She pointed to the souvenir shop of the amusement park.
Specifically, the shop selling enormous ribbon headbands and animal ear headbands of that sort.
As Hyun A continued muttering that she’d repay her, the two of them had already entered the amusement park.
Only then did Hyun A realize she’d been completely swept up by Ye Ji.
“Don’t you want to? If you don’t want to, never mind….”
But faced with Ye Ji’s words like that, Hyun A couldn’t help but be swayed again.
“No! It’s not that…!”
As the flustered Hyun A immediately denied it, Ye Ji turned toward the souvenir shop with her.
There, Ye Ji picked out a headband with a large blue ribbon attached.
“What about you?”
“I….”
I don’t want to do it….
Hesitating at Ye Ji’s question, Hyun A looked around her.
Since it was an amusement park, most of the people around were wearing one of these.
It must be normal to do it here….
She thought that, but Hyun A still couldn’t choose easily.
In the end, still deliberating, she picked out a yellow ribbon headband—the same style as Ye Ji’s.
In the meantime, Ye Ji efficiently grabbed cotton candy as well.
“Buy me some too!”
……This girl’s really something else, huh?
In just a few meetings during Special Class activities, her personality had seemed different from what Hyun A saw now.
Ye Ji was remarkably self-assured and confident.
It was more than enough to sweep along someone as passive as Hyun A.
Hyun A completed the payment in a daze.
“Wow… I didn’t know cotton candy was seven thousand won…. I’ll buy the churros.”
“R-right…. ……But are you going to eat both…?”
“Cotton candy and churros are different.”
Hyun A found herself nodding.
Even so, the cotton candy they shared a bite of was incredibly sweet.
Suddenly, she found herself wondering when she’d last been to an amusement park like this.
Even though it was close enough to reach by bus, it was her first time since elementary school.
A memory from more than five years ago.
The cotton candy melted in the warmth of her hand, making her fingers sticky.
“…It’s delicious.”
Every day was fierce and relentless.
It mattered to memorize one more English word, to practice one more brushstroke….
The more she showed herself this way, the greater her parents’ expectations grew, and with it, her own burden increased.
Of course, to fill that burden she strove harder, and then in turn….
In such a vicious cycle, she’d long since forgotten the desire to play.
“Wh-where are we going?”
Hyun A, awkwardly fidgeting with her headband, hurried after Ye Ji again.
“If you come to an amusement park, you have to ride the rides.”
At Ye Ji’s words, Hyun A still hesitated.
But is this… is this really okay?
In the midst of her endless worry, Ye Ji grabbed her hand and pulled her along.
***
For the first time in a while, Ye Ji was also enjoying herself without a care in the world.
It had been an impulsive decision, but she was pleased with it.
Riding thrilling rides and letting out screams she normally had no occasion to make.
Being surrounded by people full of happy laughter on all sides.
Spending delightfully unproductive time amid chaos and gaiety.
Ye Ji felt her brain, which had been hardening from the greed to fill each day, softening.
Her desire for painting, her yearning to improve each day.
In the end, the conclusion of all that ambition was one thing: wanting to be happier.
When you forgot what was natural, you needed moments like this every so often.
“Wow! You’re a Cheonglim Arts High School student?”
Moreover, Cheonglim Arts High School was a fairly famous school.
Several times while waiting for rides, the staff recognized their uniforms and struck up conversation.
Talk of how impressive it was, the characteristic glib tongue of service workers.
It was all sugar-coating, but even so, it felt quite good.
As they acknowledged her with words saying she was remarkable just for getting into that school, Hyun A’s expression gradually brightened.
A festival of colorful structures and inefficiently designed contraptions.
Everything designed solely to bring joy to the people.
The time spent at the amusement park held a certain significance for Ye Ji.
Because one cannot live every day purely for efficiency.
“Now we just have the parade and laser show left, right?”
Before long, time had passed and closing time was approaching.
Even Hyun A’s previously gloomy expression had grown noticeably lighter.
Stress, as a rule, drives a person’s thoughts toward narrowness and extremity.
Academic stress experienced at a young age varies greatly from person to person, but generally proves detrimental to mental health.
“……I see….”
As her expression grew slightly melancholy again, the parade began.
Exaggerated costumes and expressions.
Elaborately decorated parade floats.
Ribbons and laces of every color captured the eye abundantly.
It was hardly refined design.
Somewhat gaudy and excessive designs.
But they possessed a beauty that clearly stimulated the human brain.
Sparkling lights from every direction and thunderous music that resonated through the body.
The atmosphere of everyone bringing their day of pleasure to a close.
Ye Ji melted into it all, savoring the last of that joyful moment to the fullest.
“……Thank you for bringing me today.”
Once everything ended, an announcement signaling the amusement park’s closure began playing.
As she moved toward the exit with the crowd, Hyun A spoke.
“But… you don’t even ask why I’m quitting the Special Class…?”
The conversations between her and Ye Ji throughout the day had been very simple.
Next time let’s do that, this time let’s eat this, that’s pretty, that’s nice.
Just talk about what they wanted to do right now and what they saw in front of them.
They hadn’t deliberately brought up anything difficult.
“Anyway, even if someone else talks about it, it won’t change your mind.”
If you’ve already made up your mind, there must be a reason for that judgment.
It was very difficult for anyone else to shake that resolve.
“I just thought I’d clear my head a bit.”
By the time she said this, they’d almost exited the amusement park.
Once outside, rain was pouring down—something they hadn’t noticed inside.
“Ah, no way. It’s raining after all.”
Ye Ji scratched her head and muttered to herself.
“Should I call Dad to pick me up?”
Despite the late hour, traffic in Seoul was congested.
She’d catch some grief for it, but her father would probably come pick her up willingly.
Buying an umbrella and heading home would be faster, but Ye Ji texted her father instead.
Such inefficient actions become justified under the name of love.
“……Won’t your parents scold you for going out to play at a time like this…?”
Hyun A asked carefully, as if she’d heard Ye Ji’s mutter.
Ye Ji looked up from her phone to meet Hyun A’s eyes.
“What would they say? But if I tell them I went to clear my head, they’ll understand.”
When you’re too bound down, your thoughts get trapped too.
At Ye Ji’s words, Hyun A fell into thought.
Understanding.
Perhaps the most difficult word that existed between parent and child.
“I don’t have the confidence to make them understand….”
Hyun A hadn’t yet shared with her parents her decision to quit the Special Class.
The idea of going with Regular Admission was merely her own thinking.
If she hid it, they wouldn’t know, so she saw no need to say anything.
They’d naturally demand to see her grades, but if she made up her mind to manipulate or hide them, what couldn’t be done?
To the seemingly troubled Hyun A, Ye Ji continued.
“If you understand it yourself, then getting others’ understanding right now isn’t necessarily what matters.”
If you can’t make them understand right away, prove it through your actions.
Then your family will gradually come to understand. Even if they don’t understand, they’ll at least accept it.
Because that’s what love is.
But.
“If you don’t understand it yourself, then no one can convince you.”
At Ye Ji’s words, Hyun A fell silent.
‘Did I myself understand this decision?’
She couldn’t answer that question either.
This was a form of escape.
It wasn’t that the Special Class was unnecessary for her.
She wanted to quit only because she felt she didn’t belong.
How could she make anyone accept a heart that wanted to run away?
“My dad’s coming to pick me up, so I’ll need to wait here a bit.”
In the meantime, Ye Ji, who’d received a reply from her father along with his nagging, spoke.
At her words, Hyun A looked up at the sky for a moment.
As she looked at the pitch-black sky pouring rain, she suddenly thought of one of Ye Ji’s works.
Late night. Pouring rain.
If you walked through it unprotected, could you understand what freedom meant?
If you shed your constraints and became free, would your true heart become visible?
“……Yeah. Got it. Take care on the way in.”
With those words, Hyun A took a step into the rain.
“Thank you for today.”

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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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