〈 Chapter 212 〉 Episode 209 – Award Ceremony.
*
Finally, the day of the award ceremony has arrived.
The ceremony is co-hosted by the Academy and the government.
Initially, it was planned to be held twice.
However, due to the suggestion that there’s no need for two separate events, it was decided to cram it all into one.
[Look at how they handle annoying tasks all at once; it must be Korea’s backdrop in this novel.]
‘Don’t underestimate the nation of efficiency again!’
Who are Koreans?
Even when playing a healing game, they pursue ultimate efficiency.
They’re the ones who pay off debts as quickly as possible right after starting Animal Crossing.
Once the debts are paid off, they immediately seek out more ways to make money.
[Looks like there’s a coin involved too.]
‘Mutcoin, dammit.’
Anyway, we were currently on the podium.
Given that this was a rare collaborative event between the Academy and the government, a massive crowd had gathered.
All relevant personnel from the Academy were there, aside from emergency staff.
Students. Faculty. Professors.
From the looks on their faces, they didn’t come out of interest; they showed up because they were getting a day off.
[Can’t see any research students around.]
‘Could it be that these bastards are breaking the law again?’
On the other hand, plenty of people unrelated to the Academy were present.
Countless reporters watching with cameras.
Guild recruiters on the lookout for promising candidates.
And a few government officials keeping an eye on whether rewards would actually be given out.
It was quite astonishing that they could accommodate so many people.
But despite it being an award ceremony, there was nothing grand about it.
They just called names and handed out certificates and rewards.
[No special commemorative events or interviews, huh?]
‘Who has time for that? Let’s just go home quickly.’
[For the love of all that’s holy, at least take a group photo!]
‘Someone will take care of that. Let’s get started.’
At that moment, I could see the Chief waiting to present an award on the opposite side.
Seeing his sour expression made me quite happy.
Just then, the Chief called out a name.
“Saintess Caressy, please step forward.”
“Here comes the start.”
The spotlight of the ceremony was on Caressy.
Naturally, the Chief used utmost honorifics when addressing the Saintess.
Caressy took about three steps forward from beside us and stood opposite the Chief.
The Chief, now with a warm smile, handed her the certificate.
Gone was the awful expression from before.
“Thank you for your hard work. Congratulations on achieving Silver rank today.”
“Got it.”
“The bonus will be deposited into your account as soon as the ceremony is over.”
“Give that pocket change to Shinwoo.”
In that moment, the Chief’s face showed a hint of distortion.
Of all people, she wasn’t pleased at the idea that it was going to me.
Perhaps noticing the Chief’s lack of reaction, Caressy demanded a confirmation.
“Make sure it’s properly done.”
“Ah, yes.”
However, after somehow regaining his composure, the Chief extended his hand to Caressy.
It seemed he was offering a handshake.
“I’m right here! Everyone, take good photos!”
Caressy turned her back and waved at the audience.
Mainly towards the direction where most of the reporters were positioned.
As a result, the Chief’s hand remained hanging in the air.
After waving a few more times, Caressy returned to her original spot.
The Chief stood there awkwardly, then slowly retracted his hand.
“Elcia, up next.”
“Husband! Watch closely!”
Now it was Elcia’s turn.
“Congratulations on your hard work. As requested, your bonus will be deposited into your account.”
“Okay.”
In an instant, Elcia’s energy drained.
It seemed she didn’t really want to face the Chief either.
Once more, the Chief extended his hand.
“Sorry, I have a pig allergy.”
“……”
Elcia politely refused without any hesitation.
Then, without any sign of hesitation, she turned back to us.
Next was Ayeon’s turn.
“Jeong Ayeon, step forward.”
“I’ll be right back.”
Standing before the Chief, Ayeon said the same.
However.
“Congratulations on your hard work, please accept this certificate.”
“Wait a moment.”
“What is it?”
Ayeon refused to accept the certificate from the Chief.
“It’s got oil on it. It’s already lost its effectiveness.”
“That’s unreasonable!”
“Is what I said wrong?”
At that moment, a nearby government official hurried over to Ayeon.
And handed her a brand new certificate.
“Sorry about that. We should have anticipated this kind of mistake.”
“No problem. Thanks for preparing it quickly.”
“Thank you.”
Of course, Ayeon returned to her place as soon as she received the certificate.
The Chief’s offer for a handshake didn’t leave any chance either.
Slowly, the Chief’s face was starting to become quite amusing to watch.
After being embarrassed for the third time, one side of his cheek looked like it was about to rupture.
Next up was Hyeji.
One wrong move, and it could get really dangerous.
Only one life to live, after all.
The Chief barely managed to compose himself and forced a smile as he called Hyeji.
“Kim Hyeji, step forward.”
“Shinwoo, I’ll be right back.”
Hyeji stood opposite the Chief.
“Congratulations on your hard work. You’re being awarded Silver rank today.”
“Yes.”
“Your bonus will be paid into your account after the ceremony.”
“Understood.”
Next, the Chief seemed to want to offer a handshake to Hyeji.
For the first time, it appeared that the ceremony was proceeding somewhat normally, which might have relaxed the Chief’s expression a bit.
Then Hyeji slightly leaned towards the Chief and quietly spoke.
Her voice was soft enough for only us to hear, but it carried weight.
“Move your front legs. Before I roast you.”
The Chief froze instantly.
With that parting line, Hyeji turned back to us.
The Chief was left stunned by the shock of her words.
I’ll give him credit; at least he managed to maintain a forced smile.
Though that smile was.
“…Kim, Kim Shinwoo, please step forward.”
“See you later, guys.”
When my name was called, his expression shattered completely.
I stood facing the Chief, whose expression was bizarre.
I couldn’t tell if he was crying or laughing.
It was completely indistinguishable.
The Chief gritted his teeth once and, straining, finally spoke.
“Congratulations on your…hard work…”
“Hurry up, we’re short on time.”
The Chief’s face turned quite red.
Clearly, this situation had him struggling.
In the end, unable to hold back, the Chief shouted out the reward.
“Today, you’re being awarded Silver rank!!!!!!!!”
What I chose was a rank-up.
I could’ve thought about money or other demands.
But that was a bit off from my goal.
I applied to be the Student Council President to dismantle the Academy.
After all, since it’s elected by votes, how well I present myself to the outside world is also a strategy.
[Well, if the Student Council President vibes are off, they’d likely hesitate to vote for me.]
‘At least I’m better than a complete failure.’
At the same time, it could also serve another effect.
By not being tied up with money or other things, I could present an image focused on the essence of being a hunter, which is rank.
Thus, I chose the rank-up.
With that, the Chief seemed to be done speaking.
His hand had already plunged into his pocket.
So, with a grin, I spoke first to the Chief.
“Are we not shaking hands?”
“……What?”
In that instant, the faint smile on the Chief’s face completely disappeared.
The question of why I wanted to shake hands when everyone had refused, the doubt about what kind of trick I might be pulling, and the disgust and disdain at the thought of shaking hands with me—his expression was an indescribable mix of emotions.
For a moment, however, the Chief started to craft a sinister smile.
He soon withdrew his hand from his pocket to extend it towards me.
“Sure. Let’s shake.”
In that moment, a glint of sharp glimmer from a blade could be seen in the palm of the Chief’s hand.
He must have prepared something sharp beforehand when he put his hand in his pocket.
Just as I approached the Chief, he leaned in and began to speak in a voice soft enough for only me to hear.
“I will definitely kill you. Your parents, acquaintances—none will be spared.”
Before our hands met, I leaned in as well and quietly spoke back to the Chief.
Smiling mischievously to provoke him.
“Must be tough raising a son like that. You must have a hard time with your son.”
“What does that have to do with it? He’s a much better son than you!”
The moment the Chief got worked up, I gripped the hand he extended with all my strength.
Just in case, I strengthened my hand with my magical power and bundled the wires I had prepped on my palm.
“Yeah? Difference in sons? Screw you.”
At the same time, I started crushing the Chief’s hand with my grip.
The tacky sharp object in the Chief’s palm had already deformed.
Originally, the Chief’s plan was to grab my hand and not let go.
But now, it was I who was holding on and wouldn’t let go.
The Chief desperately tried to pull his hand away, of course, that attempt inevitably failed.
Just as his face started to twist in pain, I turned toward the audience and began waving with my other hand.
Naturally, the Chief had turned toward the audience too.
I whispered just loud enough for only him to hear.
“Everyone’s watching, you should smile, you bastard. Right?”
“Khuhuhuhuhuhu!!!”
Despite the pain, the Chief forced a smile for the crowd.
You could tell he wasn’t just any Chief of the Academy.
After quite a while of waving at everyone, I finally released the Chief’s hand.
[Are you injured? That sharp thing looked pretty deadly.]
‘Do I count being smeared as being injured? If so, I suffered a critical injury.’
With that, the award ceremony concluded.
And that day, a new article was posted.
【The Chief who ended up shedding tears at the awards ceremony. What could it mean? An animal psychologist strongly claims, ‘Those tears are tears of emotion. If not, I’ll resign from all my positions.’】
*
