I Became the Terminally Ill Character in My Friend’s Academy Novel – Chapter 88

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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: JayM
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The exams were over, and quite some time had passed since the big incident.

“Hello?”

I was back at the academy after a long absence, enjoying a leisurely daily life. I ate breakfast made by Ha-ni, chatted and laughed with my classmates at lunch, and trained happily with my friends after classes.

Ah, this was healing. This was the academy life I knew.

“Hmm, it’s good to be focused. Yes, I don’t want to interrupt my junior’s concentration, but wouldn’t it be nice to at least pretend to notice me?”

There were some minor happenings, like being surprised to hear that Professor Cathy was under house arrest during class, or Ga-eul packing me lunch again, prompting Ha-ni to declare she’d make an even more extravagant lunch as if she was in a competition. But overall, it was relatively peaceful.

“That’s not how you do it~”

“Hey, So-hyun.”

“Oh, Lilac. What’s up?”

“…Shouldn’t you answer her soon?”

“Haha, what are you talking about? There’s no one else here besides us. Stop with the nonsense and let’s continue training. You asked for my help, remember?”

Today, I was helping Lilac with his special training at his request. It seemed like the defeat from that day still stung him.

“Hmm, strange. Unless my talent has transformed into invisibility, it feels like my junior is ignoring me like I’m a thief? Even I would get hurt if my junior hates me this much for no reason.”

…It would have been perfect if it weren’t for the impurity that had been clinging to me so persistently since this morning.

No, if it weren’t for this idiot Lilac, I would have continued ignoring her, but since he kept glancing over to her, it was bothering me too.

Baek Seol.

The student council president of Reilan Academy with suspiciously strong authority, and the woman I hated even more than the villains when I read this world’s story in the novel. I thought she would leave the academy right after the incident was resolved, but for some reason, she stayed and had been bothering me all day.

“It’s really fascinating. Do you hate me that much?”

“Hey, how could I possibly say something so disrespectful to a senior?”

“You know that’s the same as saying you hate me, right?”

“Of course! I was being sarcastic. Ah, is your head so full of flowers that you couldn’t understand?”

“Oh, really. If I had known that I had such a cute junior, I would have attended the academy diligently. Where did such a cutie pop up from?”

Lilac stopped training and tilted his head, as if he couldn’t understand our conversation.

Don’t worry, Lilac, you’re right. I don’t understand why this conversation is like this either.

I was pouring out all my disgust to her without even a hint of pretense, yet the more I did it, the more she clung to me, as if she loved it.

“Hmm, I was going to help my cute juniors with their training, but since you’re being so prickly, I can’t even approach you.”

Baek Seol naturally approached Lilac.

“For example, our junior could improve his swordsmanship by…”

“Don’t come any closer.”

A cold voice, so unlike my usual tone, escaped my throat.

“…Ah, are you two in that kind of relationship? Were you angry because I was interrupting?”

“Don’t say such horrifying things and stop it with your tricks. This kid is a bit naive, so he might misunderstand if a beauty like you approaches him.”

“So-hyun…?”

“Oh my, thank you for calling me a beauty. Haha, don’t worry~ I’m not really into conventionally handsome guys. Men should have a mysterious aura.”

“…Senior?”

Baek Seol, who had been observing my expression for a moment, smiled and nodded.

“Then, shall we spar?”

“Huh? So suddenly?”

“I want to get closer to my juniors, but it seems like this junior really hates me. How about settling this with a spar? You two can come at me together. If I lose, I’ll give up cleanly.”

“What if we lose?”

“Hmm, then I’ll have a cute junior. The vice-president position in the student council is vacant now that In-young is gone. This is a losing proposition for me~”

She was kidding.

She was looking down on us. She made that offer because she was confident that she could overwhelm us even in a 2 vs. 1 fight.

And she probably could.

In the original story, the reason they were able to catch that overwhelmingly strong perverted elf was because of her help.

If I was the perverted elf’s counter, she was a perfect all-rounder, unaffected by any matchups.

Her talent, ‘Perfect World,’ sealed the talents within a certain range around her.

Yes, that’s right. She’s that talent-sealing character that appears in every story.

There’s a reason why readers called her the true protagonist.

Well, it might not seem that overpowered since it only seals talents weaker than her own, but her true strength lies in the skills she displays after sealing the talents.

She was a specialist in combat in many ways. This meant that the matchup was quite unfavorable for me, someone who was barely at the beginner level of superhuman without enhancements.

“I won’t do it.”

“Hmm? Then I’ll keep bothering you, is that okay~?”

Oh, I really hated her, but that was a meaningless bluff, a completely unrealistic nonsense.

“Well, I wonder if you can keep doing such unreasonable things, senior?”

For the first time, a genuinely surprised look flashed across Baek Seol’s constantly smiling face.

Baek Seol wasn’t that kind of person.

I wasn’t sure what she found so interesting about me, but if left alone, she would judge that saving people with her abilities was more rational and valuable than pursuing her own desires.

She would leave on her own even if I didn’t accept her challenge.

“You know, you’ll really regret this later.”

“What’s there to regret, senior?”

“I should have paid more attention to the freshmen earlier. I should have lured you into the student council.”

“Haha, that’s horrifying. I’d prefer it if you continued to stay away from me.”

We smiled brightly at each other.

“…Why are you two talking about things I don’t know?”

Lilac, who had been silently swinging his sword with nothing to say, grumbled as if he felt left out.

Lilac, you’re out of your league. Don’t get involved.

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Cathy stared at the contact displayed on her smartphone.

Kang So-hyun.

If she pressed the area where his name was written, she could easily hear his voice.

Even though she insisted that she was fine, her friend and superior, who cared for her, wouldn’t allow her to return to the academy until she had a thorough examination and the results were out, ordering her to stay home for a week.

Considering she had been brainwashed by the enemy, it was a natural measure, and she knew that “house arrest” actually meant “resting for recovery,” but she couldn’t help but feel sulky.

It had only been a day.

She had only missed seeing him for a single day, but she already missed him terribly.

She wanted to hear his voice, at least.

-In front of me, you don’t have to be the cool Professor Cathy, you can just be Cathy noona.

“Heehee.”

Oh, no.

Just thinking about it made her cheeks flush.

This wouldn’t do if she couldn’t control herself like this when she saw him at the academy.

Until now, the image of Kang So-hyun in her mind had been quite far from the word “cool.”

He was more on the cute side, a friendly image like a younger brother.

But with this incident as a turning point, that image had changed in a very good way.

-It’s okay now.

Just recalling the faint memory of his smile and his warm touch made her body heat up.

She unconsciously ran her hand through her hair, but it didn’t feel the same.

It was more like this. A different feeling.

Recalling his touch, she fidgeted in bed. She carefully stroked her head, imitating his gentle, reassuring touch as much as possible while remembering how he had touched her head.

“Huu…”

It felt good, but it wasn’t enough.

She needed a stronger stimulation than her own touch.

“So-hyun…”

Finally, she gave in to her desire and operated her smartphone to make a call.

[Yes, Professor?]

The moment she heard his voice, she felt a little more at ease, even though her own touch remained the same.

“Ah, yes, about that. I just couldn’t come to the academy because of the house arrest. I was wondering if you were okay.”

It was a ridiculous excuse. What difference would a day make to his academy life?

She just called him because she wanted to hear his voice, but she somehow hoped that he, So-hyun, would say he missed her.

[Actually, it wasn’t that different…]

As expected. Well, it had only been a day. There wasn’t enough time to truly feel someone’s absence.

Just as she was about to accept it, he betrayed her expectations in a good way.

[I do miss you, Professor.]

Ah.

For a moment, the realization that he needed her sent a jolt through her body.

“R-Really?”

[Yes, it’s only a week, but I hope it passes quickly.]

How could he say exactly what she wanted to hear so casually?

Ah, it was a good thing it was a phone call.

She must have had an expression she couldn’t show So-hyun right now.

The hand stroking her hair became a little rougher.

[…Professor?]

Perhaps because he heard her breathing over the phone, his voice held a hint of concern.

“Yes, So-hyun.”

[Ah, I thought it was just a check-up call. Is something wrong?]

“No, what could possibly be wrong when I’m just at home? It’s just…”

I called you because I miss you.

She felt a little embarrassed to say it. She had already done too much to be embarrassed about such things, but still, embarrassment was embarrassment.

It was her first time having feelings for someone, so it couldn’t be helped.

“What were you doing, So-hyun?”

[Me? I was training with Han-hee.]

“Oh my, I didn’t interrupt, did I?”

[No, we were just about to take a break.]

She almost chuckled at his diligence.

“That’s good, I’m glad everything’s alright…”

[Hey~ Junior, are you training in the evening too~?]

…A woman’s voice?

[Ah, Professor, an unwelcome guest has arrived, so I’ll hang up now. I think I’m going to say something harsh.]

Oh my.

Cathy, who had frowned in displeasure, was now half-seriously surprised.

Who could it be that made the kind So-hyun show such open hostility?

And how could someone talk to him so casually while receiving such hostility?

…He called her “junior,” right? Then was it a nasty upperclassman who was bothering him?

A dark and murky feeling, opposite to the warmth she had felt just moments before, stirred in Cathy’s chest.

‘He’s mine.’

“No, what am I even saying?”

She desperately tried to ignore the emotions that had briefly swirled within her and focused on stroking her hair again.

‘There’s no way So-hyun would associate with a nasty senior.’

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“Hey, So-hyun. Why do you hate that senior so much?”

After finishing their training and coming out of the shower, Ha-ni, who had finished washing up earlier and was waiting for me, asked with a puzzled look. She seemed to have noticed my rather sharp reaction to Baek Seol, who had interrupted our training earlier. Honestly, I was reflecting on it myself.

Hating someone is one thing, but I shouldn’t have shown it so openly in front of others.

Frankly, she hadn’t done anything seriously wrong yet.

It wasn’t like there was no chance of her reforming, so it was a bit harsh of me to act like this already.

“…I guess I’m being too prickly.”

Ha-ni was worried about my sharp reaction…

“I asked why you hate her so much. That doesn’t answer the question. You even forgave Ga-eul, so she must have done something really wrong. I’m asking because I want to help you criticize her if you don’t like her.”

Oh, so she wasn’t worried? She was just genuinely curious?

Seeing her lightly jabbing the air made me want to laugh.

“No, it’s nothing really. I guess she’s just someone I instinctively dislike.”

“So-hyun, you have someone like that too.”

“The way you say it makes it sound like I’m indiscriminate about people.”

“Aren’t you?”

“…Do I look like that?”

“Ga-eul.”

Oh, that’s a good point. I have no comeback.

Come to think of it, Ga-eul wasn’t a very pleasant character either.

But honestly, I didn’t hate Ga-eul that much originally. Maybe it was because she didn’t appear for long in the novel?

Or maybe it was because she wasn’t a major obstacle to the protagonist.

“Anyway, if anything happens, don’t hide it and tell me, okay? I’ll help you out right away.”

“Hmm, it’s not something I’m hiding, but can you help me with something this weekend?”

“Huh? This weekend?”

“Yeah, this weekend.”

“What are we doing?”

“I’m going to volunteer at the orphanage.”

“Oh, that sounds nice. Are we all going together?”

“No.”

“Huh?”

“I was planning to go with just you.”

Lilac and Cheon Yoo-hak would be fine on their own for a while, driven by their competitive spirit.

It wasn’t efficient to train them together now anyway.

“…Really?”

But it’s a bit awkward now when you blush like that, you know…?

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T/N – Real smooth, MC. Also, yikes Cathy is becoming a yandere.

I also find it funny that Baek Seol clings to the MC the more he insults her. She’s probably an M.

If you find any mistakes, feel free to point them out in the comments.