Chapter 277: Gift (2)
While I was sitting on the sofa, examining the letter here and there, So-hee and Ji-an stealthily approached.
“What are you looking at? What letter?”
At their appearance, Ho-cheol narrowed his brows, looking slightly fed up.
Although the indoor space was warm from the heating running all day, the two never once took off the gifts they had received from Ho-cheol—the scarf and the gloves—as if they were one body.
I think they even wear them when they sleep.
Honestly, Ho-cheol felt less grateful that they treasured his gifts so much and more slightly creeped out.
What is it that they cherish it that much?
Unable to bring myself to tell them to take them off, I carefully asked indirectly.
“……If you keep wearing them like that, aren’t you going to get a heat rash?”
I used a roundabout way to tell them to please take them off, but it was a wasted effort.
“Ah, well. It won’t co to that, so it’s fine. They’re surprisingly well-ventilated. But what is that?”
Ho-cheol, who finally gave up on making them take them off, explained about the letter.
Then, Ji-an and So-hee made expressions similar to the one Ho-cheol first had.
Ji-an shook her body violently.
“It’s a trap! They definitely set a trap to capture the Mister!”
“Why would they?”
Ji-an, who suddenly had nothing to say, lingered on saying uh― for a long ti before shouting belatedly.
“Eh……. Because they misunderstand Mister as a bad person?”
“It’s not a misunderstanding.”
Well, though I am trying my best to be a good person now, my past self was soone for whom the term 'bad guy' was an understatent.
If I said such a thing to the S-rank Heroes who rember my past, what kind of insults would I receive?
She tapped her knees, looking wronged.
“The Mister is such a good person!”
Ho-cheol let her nonsense pass through one ear as usual, then opened the envelope of the letter and checked the contents.
Since the ti and place were properly specified, it didn't seem like a prank or a trap.
So-hee, who was sitting below the sofa, rested her chin on his thigh and moved only her upper lip as she asked.
“So when is it.”
“It’s today. 8 PM.”
“You said it was the New Year's Gathering?”
So-hee muttered, sounding confused.
There was still a week left until the new year dawned.
Wasn't it too early for a New Year's Gathering?
“That’s what I thought. Their sense of date is a bit strange.”
Ho-cheol nodded in agreent.
This part was truly suspicious.
Even if you call it a New Year's event, wasn't it too early to even call it a year-end gathering?
It would be better to call it a farewell party for the outgoing year.
Do S-rank Heroes not have a sense of ti?
“And gathering all the S-ranks is also a bit much.”
There was a similar event last ti, but that was a gathering created by borrowing the Swordmaster's na because Ho-cheol had sothing to expose regarding the Association's corruption.
A gathering simply for social interaction like this was completely separate.
S-ranks were the core personnel for urban security; they were talents who should avoid even taking a day off, let alone leaving the city.
Aren't they busy?
Of course, Ho-cheol had left a warning to the nearby villains not to cause trouble before and after Christmas, but there's no way the Heroes would know that.
Ji-an clung to the opposite leg like a cicada, determined not to lose.
“So, you’re not going, right?”
“Why would I go and ruin the mood? I should naturally not go…….”
However, Ho-cheol trailed off.
No matter if I was invited, it was too obvious what the atmosphere there would be like if I went.
And above all, my schedule today was quite tight.
I was in a situation where I had to visit my acquaintances and hand out Christmas presents, and even roughly calculating, I would have to run non-stop from noon till midnight just to make it work.
However, if I used this event, I felt like I could dramatically cut down on my route and ti.
A gathering of forr and current S-ranks.
Perhaps the Dean and the Swordmaster would also participate.
I wasn't planning on giving the Swordmaster a gift, so he was an exception, but the Dean.
And the Swordmaster's set nu: Da-yeon and Ye-jin.
Originally, I would have to visit them individually, but perhaps I could handle them all at once through this event?
Ho-cheol, having decided so, reached out sideways and grabbed his phone.
This was rely an expectation; I had to check beforehand so as not to waste a trip.
And fortunately, the Dean was attending.
Da-yeon and Ye-jin originally had no plans, but when Ho-cheol asked if they could co out for a mont, a reply quickly ca back that they would follow the Swordmaster out imdiately.
Since the vocational experience was only carried out during the sester, they no longer needed to stay under the Swordmaster, but it seed the Swordmaster rated their abilities highly enough that he continued to employ them as a kind of part-ti job even during the break.
Being able to et these three at once made planning the route much easier.
He pushed away the two people clinging to his legs and stood up.
“Therefore, you two will have dinner together tonight.”
They looked quite displeased with his going out, but since they spent the most important Christmas Eve together, they seed to let it slide.
After that, Ho-cheol left the house and t a few people who he could say he owed a favor to or was close to this year, dividing out the gifts.
Of course, I didn't give handmade gifts to all of them.
Given the ti constraint and also whether I was that close to them, the answer was no.
They received sothing appropriate, like a fountain pen or a wallet.
I ran around until evening, sweating on the soles of my feet, and was finally able to distribute gifts to everyone on the list.
Actually, it would have been more comfortable to divide the distribution over a few days, but since it was a Christmas present, giving it out after the 25th would look strange.
So, in the evening.
I arrived at a hotel in the city, the location of the gathering.
In the grand hotel lobby leading to the eting hall, I spotted Da-yeon and Ye-jin in the corner.
“Have you been well?”
The two, who likewise spotted Ho-cheol, were startled and opened their eyes wide.
“……Who are you?”
“Are you really Professor?”
Ho-cheol tilted his head sideways at their reaction.
“Then who else would I be?”
“No. Well. That is…….”
Ye-jin blinked her lips, scanning him up and down.
“You’re a completely different person. I’m a bit surprised.”
“Ah. Well, is this the first ti you've seen in a suit?”
They both nodded vigorously.
To be precise, it was the first ti they had seen Ho-cheol properly dressed up in a suit.
In fact, Ho-cheol hadn't intended to pay this much attention to his appearance, but So-hee forcefully sat him down, dabbed various things on his face, and even styled his hair with generous amounts of mousse.
Da-yeon, who had been staring blankly at Ho-cheol, blushed and avoided his gaze.
She covered her face in confusion.
Uh uh?
Why am I acting like this?
This was the first ti I had been this flustered recently.
It was still the sa Ho-cheol, but today, just being in front of him was too intense a stimulus.
“Wow. If you ca in like this for lectures, your popularity would double.”
Ye-jin spun around him, genuinely admiring him.
Then, belatedly, she clapped her hands.
“Ah, so why did you call us?”
Surely it’s not because you missed us?
―She said, smiling flirtatiously.
Though she had said it jokingly.
“That’s right. I called you because I missed you.”
At his brief answer, she froze in the posture she was clapping in.
Da-yeon was the sa.
He took out packaged gifts from the paper bag he had brought and handed them to the two girls.
“Here. Gifts.”
The two, completely frozen, just stared blankly at the gifts in Ho-cheol's hand.
After a long mont, Da-yeon finally managed to speak.
“……Gifts?”
“That’s right. Christmas presents. You wouldn't refuse them just because they're a day late, would you?”
Only then did they finally co to their senses and accept the gifts.
Then, they stamred nervously.
“B-but we didn’t prepare anything.”
“It’s fine. Just take them. It's illegal for to receive anything from you.”
He let out a dry laugh and waved his hand.
Giving sothing to a student wasn't strictly regulated, but I had heard that the reverse case was strictly penalized.
There wasn't an exact figure, but was it 30,000 Won?
In today's economy, a gift that wouldn't fall under that regulation was too embarrassing to call a gift.
The two exchanged glances for a long ti, then finally lowered their heads and bowed.
“Thank you.”
“No problem. Spend the remaining week of the year well, be careful in everything you do, and have a good next year. Oh, Ye-jin, did you visit your younger siblings?”
“I'm going to go right now.”
“Good. The kids miss you a lot. Even if you're busy, you have to take care of your family.”
“Of course!”
After exchanging pleasantries, he placed his hands on both their shoulders.
“Ah, by the way.”
The hands gripping their shoulders slowly applied force.
“You two. You didn’t make another group chat without , did you?”
The two girls flinched more violently than ever before.
Cold sweat began to trickle down.
How did he know that?
The hands that had gripped their shoulders slowly moved and touched their necks.
His fingertips pressed down, as if checking their pulse.
“I’m truly hurt. I wasn’t that bad of a professor.”
The two couldn't offer any answer.
They felt that if they uttered even a single word right now, the truth would imdiately be exposed.
Of course, Ho-cheol had a decent relationship with his students and was an excellent educator.
However, students also needed their own ti.
Ho-cheol stared silently at them for a mont, then chuckled again and released the pressure from his hands on their necks.
“Just kidding. Well, it’s your private life, so I should respect it.”
Only then did the two let out a sigh of relief.
No, they tried to sigh.
Before they could, Ho-cheol leaned his head between them and whispered.
“Now, you two send all the contents of that chat room once a week.”
This wasn't simply for gossip or surveillance.
Didn't that unfortunate incident happen last ti because I didn't know how stressed the student was?
If I checked the students' chat history through these two, I could care for them more easily.
“I trust that the chat room won't suddenly beco quiet or anything like that.”
The two, who were suddenly tasked with being spies, made tearful faces.
***
After assigning the mission to send him all the chat history up to now, Ho-cheol entered the hall, the eting venue.
He scanned the interior and spotted one of the few people he could talk to first, then quickly walked toward him.
“Our old man. You look sprightly now.”
At the familiar voice, the Dean of Clington frowned deeply and turned toward Ho-cheol.
“Honestly. I was skeptical when we talked earlier. I can’t believe you actually showed up.”
“Why, did you expect a fake version? By the way, were you two acquainted?”
Ho-cheol looked at the Swordmaster standing next to the Dean with a surprised expression.
The sword strapped to his waist, even in a setting like this, boasted that he wasn't called the Swordmaster for nothing.
The Swordmaster and the Dean of Clington.
It was a rather unsuitable combination.
The Swordmaster wasn't even a Clington graduate.
“Of course we have a relationship. He’s a parent and I’m the dean. Naturally, I’d take a keen interest.”
“Ah. That’s right.”
Ho-cheol belatedly realized the most important connection and scratched the back of his head.
Since the Swordmaster was such a clear symbol of a bad parent, I hadn't even thought about it.
“You…… what are you doing here?”
The Swordmaster, who had been talking with the Dean, glared at Ho-cheol, openly expressing his displeasure.
Even though their personal grudges were mostly settled, there was no reason to welco him warmly.
Moreover, the hosts of today's gathering were S-rank Heroes, weren't they?
It wasn't a normal situation for Ho-cheol, a villain, to show up.
“What, I was invited too?”
Ho-cheol pulled out the invitation card, held between his index and middle fingers, from his pocket and wiggled it.
At the sight of the invitation, not only the Swordmaster but also the Dean looked puzzled.
The invitation was made using a Trait.
It wasn't simple paper, so forgery was fundantally impossible.
And Ho-cheol wasn't the kind of person who would sneak into this place by doing such a thing.
Ho-cheol, in turn, was surprised by their reaction.
“What? You weren’t the one who organized this gathering?”
I had naturally assud the Swordmaster was the host of this event.
There was absolutely no reason for any other S-rank Hero to call .
However, the Swordmaster rely shook his head.
“Why would I?”
“……Then who is it? Who invited ?”
The Dean looked around and called over a few of the most sociable forr and current Heroes to ask.
However, all of them denied being the host and claid to have no knowledge of it.
They simply received an invitation and assud they were gathered for a similar reason as the Swordmaster's previous convocation.
“……That’s strange.”
“It is strange.”
At this point, it was normal to feel sothing suspicious.
The Dean put down the glass he was holding on a nearby table, and the Swordmaster already had one hand on his sword, ready to draw it at any mont.
Just as Ho-cheol was about to figure out the situation further.
Boom―
With a small tremor, all the lights in the hall went out.
The only illumination was a few small spotlights shining on the stage.
And the screen on the stage turned on by itself.
Chchchchick―
A mont of static flowed, and a person's face appeared on the screen.
Everyone in the hall murmured.
The face that appeared on the screen belonged to soone too familiar and famous to the Heroes gathered here.
[It’s been a long ti, everyone.]
Eclipse.
The man they hoped they would never have to see again was staring intently at them.
His deep, hollow eyes were filled not with the joy of seeing old colleagues, but with killing intent.
It was so intense that their skin tingled even through the monitor.
Ho-cheol ran a hand through his hair and let out a sigh mixed with resignation.
“Oh dear.”
It clearly didn't look like he was here to hand out commorative gifts for his long-awaited return.
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