Ch. 41 - What the hell?

As Jung Ha-Yeon walked down the hallway, she witnessed an unbelievable scene."Are all kids nowadays carnivores like you? What do you think you're doing right now?!"

"I don't know what that means, but don't you dare try to get away from me."

Hye-Rim held the boy by the hand, refusing to let him escape.

Who is this student, and why is she so obsessed with him?

It wasn't enough that they were holding hands. What Hye-Rim said to the boy was really disturbing.

Don't even think about getting away from me?

What the hell? Why would she say that to a delinquent high school boy?

Is that what Ms. Hye-Rim has always been like? Does she like younger bad boys?

Jung Ha-Yeon knew that since they were here to find the monster, Ms. Hye-Rim was probably clinging to the boy for a reason. She wasn't one to do things without a purpose, so she must have an idea.

But even so,

She doesn't have to be so tempting, does she?

"...Hye-Yung, who is he?"

Jung Ha-Yeon needed to know what was going on, whatever it took.

"...Hye-Yung, who is he?"

Jung Ha-Yeon asked as she slowly walked over.

I'm sure she's curious about what's going on since I'm holding onto a boy, but the problem is that I can't just say it outright, “I suspect he's a monster!” in front of him.

Hmmm, how do I phrase this?

"Oh, Yeon-Ha, this is my new friend."

"...Who's your friend? Don't be stupid."

The boy frowned at the word 'friend' and denied it.

Ignoring him, I continued to signal to Jung Ha-Yeon.

"This is a friend I met yesterday, but something about him intrigues me. I've been following him around because I want to get to know him better."

'I'm suspicious of him right now, so I'm going to keep a close eye on him.' That's what I'm implying to her.

"......Hmm, is that so?"

Hearing my words, Jung Ha-Yeon crossed her arms and nodded. She must have realized what I meant.

"Yeah, I'll tell you more about him later."

"Okay, got it. But Hye-Yung."

"Huh?"

"I think he's feeling a little overwhelmed by you."

Jung Ha-Yeon glared at the boy, her eyes as cold as the way I used to look at criminals.

"If you really want to get close to him, you'd better stop with all that skinship. It'll only make him uncomfortable."

No, but he might be the monster and could run away. You want me to let go of his hand?

Of course, if the monster ran away from me, I'd chase after it, but I assume she's telling me not to do anything excessive.

Perhaps Jung Ha-Yeon thinks this excessive behavior might provoke the monster instead.

"Hmm, is that so?"

"Yes, it is. So I think it's best to keep some distance and just walk with him."

Her words were calm, but there was a strong sense of determination in them. I felt an unspoken pressure from her to follow her instructions and stay away from the boy.

...What's wrong with her? Is she worried about me? I guess she's worried that the monster might act suddenly and hurt me. She wants me to keep a safe distance so that I can be ready to counterattack at any moment.

Even though it's unlikely that I'd be killed by a mere monster, I decided to listen to her first.

"Okay. Since you don't like holding hands, I'll let you off by just standing next to you."

"......"

I let go of the boy's hand, and he quickly withdrew his arm but gave me a meaningful look.

"Have you been flirting with not just boys but girls too?"

"......?"

What the hell is this guy talking about?

"Anyways, Yeon-Ha, we'll be leaving now. Enjoy your class, and I'll catch up with you later."

'I'll keep an eye on this guy and let you know if he's a monster or not.' After saying that to Jung Ha-Yeon, I quickly chased after the boy who was trying to sneak away.

"Wait a minute."

Jung Ha-Yeon followed me.

As she stood next to me, she whispered in a low voice.

"Just in case, I'll stay with you and keep an eye on him."

"Together?"

"Yes, because we don't know what might happen."

Still glaring at the boy, Jung Ha-Yeon insisted on coming with me.

I agreed. He's the most suspicious for now, so I can only focus on him.

"Okay, Yeon-Ha, you can play with us too!"

"......You guys don't have to take classes or what?"

The boy looked like he had the most annoyed expression in the world as he realized he now had one more person to bother him.

I was bothered by two weird girls all day today.

Lee Hye-Yung, who seemed to be trying to flirt with me, and Jung Yeon-Ha, who seemed to like Lee Hye-Yung.

I don't know what kind of love triangle this is. I was already exhausted from dealing with Lee Hye-Yung alone, but when Jung Yeon-Ha came along, skipped class, and stayed by my side all day, I almost died from being overwhelmed.

"How can I withstand that glare all day?"

From the moment we met, Jung Yeon-Ha had been giving me a cold stare, and it wasn't hard to see why.

Her eyes turned cold whenever Lee Hye-Yung's hand touched me, even for a second. It was clear she didn't want me to be with Lee Hye-Yung. No matter who looked, that was the look of a jealous woman.

I know this very well because I am also a woman.

"That Lee Hye-Yung, what is she up to?"

She's seducing a delinquent student she's only known for a day, and she's already seduced the same sex.

Even when I was human, I had never seen a fox like her.

"At least I'm alone now, so I can rest easy."

The afternoon classes were over, and the students were streaming out of the Academy. I slipped into the crowd, hiding myself from Lee Hye-Yung and Jung Yeon-Ha.

I kept looking for an opportunity to escape because I knew that if I kept going like this, I wouldn't really be able to get away from them all night.

In the end, I successfully escaped.

"I never thought I would be able to have a normal conversation with a human so soon."

I thought back to my time with Lee Hye-Yung yesterday and today.

Although I was scared of her because of her mysterious powers, she saw me as a human being like herself, and we talked a lot.

Even if her reason for visiting me seemed a little impure, it was my first human interaction since becoming a monster. Even though I found her very uncomfortable, annoying, and irritating.

Still...

"This is what I've been missing."

I was hungry for human interaction. I want to be treated as a human being, not a monster. I no longer want to live in a world of monsters where I have to risk my life to survive.

I want to go back to being human.

"...But it's not time yet."

I am still a monster. I am not human, but I will become one soon. That's why I hid in this academy—to fulfill my goal and be reborn as a true human.

"I can't be treated as a human yet."

No matter how much I pretend to be human, I'm still a monster. So, let's save human-like behavior for when I'm truly human.

I'll always revert back to being a real human.

"I'll have to change my appearance first."

If I stay like this, I don't know when I'll run into Lee Hye-Yung again, and she'll latch onto me. I need to find a new disguise as soon as possible.

I walked around the academy, looking for a suitable student, until a boy caught my eye. He was tall and quite handsome—a cheerful boy with a completely different vibe from my current self.

...Should I just transform into him?

There is only one person in this academy who is chasing after me with a fire in her eyes: Lee Hye-Yung. She seems to be obsessed with the bad boy style, so if I change into the exact opposite, she won't even notice.

I don't think his handsome looks will go unnoticed, but I'll just have to hide well.

I just need to make sure Lee Hye-Yung doesn't catch me.

With that thought in mind, I immediately transformed into the form of another boy.

"Done."

I looked through a nearby window to confirm that I had changed.

Now that I have a new look, I can resume my hermit life. Where will I go to kill time today?

As I walked around the academy again, I saw Lee Hye-Yung running around in front of me, looking around, probably searching for me.

She was likely looking for the old me, who has now disappeared.

Haha, but what can you do about it? The guy you're looking for isn't here anymore, and even if he is, it's not me, but the original delinquent schoolboy.

I was able to walk around with peace of mind, even with Lee Hye-Yung in front of me, whom I had been avoiding.

There would be no reason for her to talk to me now.

"...Ah!"

.......That's what I thought, but Lee Hye-Yung saw me and came running over.

I definitely changed my appearance. How did she recognize me and come over?

"Mr. Chul-Min, may I speak with you for a moment?"

Aha, the boy I transformed into was someone Lee Hye-Yung knew.

...Dammit. What the hell is going on here?

Yeah, it makes sense when you think about it. There's no way a fox like her wouldn't have already approached a handsome boy, and this boy was already in Lee Hye-Yung's circle.

His name is Chul-Min, and he's been targetted by a strange woman. You must be in a lot of trouble.

"...Yes. What is it?"

For now, I answered Lee Hye-Yung's question. She asked me with a respectful tone, so I answered back respectfully.

"I have something urgent to tell you, so let's go to a place where there are no people."

She spoke cautiously as she asked me to leave.

I thought she was the kind of girl who would talk to anyone in a friendly way and approach them, but this was unexpected.

I followed Lee Hye-Yung, wondering when I could slip away again. As soon as we part ways, I'll change into someone else right away.

Next time, I shouldn't be a boy, but a girl.

"I think we can stay here; no one will see us."

Lee Hye-Yung walked behind the academy building and looked around to make sure no one was coming. What the hell is she being so careful about?

As I was thinking that...

"Whew, I've been wearing a wig all day, and it's really uncomfortable, so I'll take it off first."

With a swish, Lee Hye-Yung's hair came off.

"......Huh?"

Her long black hair fell away, revealing bright, beautiful blonde hair underneath.

...What? That was a wig? S~ᴇaʀᴄh the N0ᴠᴇFɪre.nᴇt website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of nøvels early and in the highest quality.

Lee Hye-Yung held the black wig in her hand as she spoke. However, I couldn't understand what she said next.

"Mr. Chul-Min, you can take off your wig too. Don't you feel uncomfortable?"

"...Uh, ah, no. I......"

Seriously, what the hell? What is even going on?

I'm too flustered to speak. I realized that Lee Hye-Yung's hair was a wig, and that the boy I had transformed into was also wearing a wig. Lee Hye-Yung's mood also changed so much. I don't understand it at all.

What is going on here?

"If you don't mind it as it is, just listen to this."

I can force myself to understand up to this point. But there's something else I don't understand.

"We found the monster."

Why is the word "monster" coming out of Lee Hye-Yung's mouth?