I Became a Swordsmanship Instructor at the Academy 44

Became a swordsmanship instructor at the academy

Chapter 44

As I left the main gate with the children who had expectant expressions on their faces, I could see Teacher Kim and two tour buses.

“Teacher, what are these buses? Did you rent them?”

“Yes.”

The place I reserved was in Seoul, so it wasn’t that far from school, but since there were 80 people, I rented charter buses.

It would be complicated to go back and forth in dozens of taxis, and it would be difficult to keep track of everyone.

“Oh? It’s the health teacher.”

“Hello.”

“Hi, kids.”

“Is the health teacher coming with us too?”

“Teacher Kim introduced me to a reporter and helped a lot. Group A will ride this bus with me, and Group B will ride with Teacher Kim.”

It seemed like each bus should have at least one guardian, so I asked Teacher Kim if she could accompany us if it was okay, and she gladly agreed.

I went around the two buses to confirm that all the kids had boarded, and then we departed.

“Teacher, what are we going to eat?”

“Are we going far?”

“Could it be Korean beef?”

“I want to eat sashimi…”

“I want lobster!”

I told the students bombarding me with questions that they would find out soon, and they all looked like they were dying of curiosity.

After driving for about 40 minutes and approaching our destination, the students who had been getting bored started murmuring.

“Isn’t this Baekje Hotel?”

“It is the Baekje Hotel. I came here before on my parents’ wedding anniversary. The food quality is really awesome.”

“Isn’t a hotel buffet expensive?”

It is expensive, about 130,000 won per person on weekends and holidays.

Actually, I spent a bit more since I reserved the entire place, but it doesn’t matter.

When the whole world turned its back on me and pointed fingers, these kids trusted and supported me.

The trust and confidence these kids have shown me cannot be calculated in money.

Even now, when I think about the first time I saw their writing, I feel a bit choked up; it was truly touching.

“Teacher, aren’t you overdoing it?”

“We’re not going there, are we?”

“We have arrived.”

“Well, there’s no place to park the bus nearby, so I only rented the parking lot. Everyone stop drinking kimchi soup and get off.”

After giving them a fake until the end, these innocent kids got off the bus with disappointed expressions, but soon my lie was exposed.

Because I had already told the Group B kids led by Teacher Kim.

“Are we really going to the hotel buffet?”

“Amazing! Teacher is the best!”

“Kang Shin-hyeok! Kang Shin-hyeok!”

“Everyone, that’s enough. I’ve rented out the restaurant, but there are other guests staying at the hotel, so don’t be too loud. Now, line up and go in.”

With a loud cheer, the kids responded that they understood, and together we entered the hotel.

I took them to the restaurant and told them to eat to their heart’s content without feeling self-conscious. As I was about to go get food myself, I remembered the bus drivers and went back outside.

There was nothing in the contract about providing meals for them, but since I had chartered the buses anyway, and it would be troublesome for them to leave and come back…

It would have been easier if we had talked and come up together, but I couldn’t think of it because I was busy leading the students.

I was about to call them in case they had already gone somewhere else to eat, but fortunately, the two drivers were talking in the bus.

“There’s a beef soup restaurant about 20 minutes away. Let’s go there…”

“Oh?”

“Haven’t you two eaten yet? Let’s go in and eat together.”

“What? No, this place is too expensive…”

“We’re fine.”

“I’ve rented out the entire place anyway. With so many kids, they won’t charge extra for two more people. It would be troublesome for you to go to another restaurant from here, so please come in and eat with us.”

Both of them looked slightly uncomfortable, but after I insisted, we arrived at the restaurant together.

“Please eat comfortably. I’ll count on you when we leave later.”

“Thank you.”

“Thank you very much.”

After telling them to eat a lot, I filled my plate moderately and came to my seat, only to find that Teacher Kim had already emptied three plates.

“Th-they clear the plates a bit slowly here.”

“Please eat comfortably. It’s a buffet, so you should eat a lot.”

“This is my first time here, but all the food is quite good.”

“I’m glad.”

“Where did you go?”

“I forgot to take care of the drivers. Since I rented out the entire place anyway, and they won’t charge extra for them to eat with us, I told them to come in and eat.”

“The more I see the more charming you are, teacher Kang.”

“Haha… By the way, I don’t think I properly thanked you last time, but I really appreciate you introducing me to the reporter.”

“Of course I should help you. We’re a team, right?”

“Ah, still. Thank you. You’re helping me today too, and I don’t know how to repay you…”

“The kids behave well, and it’s not a difficult task. Thanks to you, I’m having a delicious meal too. I would have been disappointed if you had called another teacher instead of me.”

“Then I’ll treat you to a meal at an even better place later.”

“Really? I’ll look forward to it.”

Look forward to it… Well, I know some Chinese restaurants I looked into because of my master, so I can take her to one of the good ones.

After emptying my plate, I went to get more food and saw the kids, all busy eating.

It feels satisfying to see them eating well.

“Um… Teacher, can I order cola too? There’s only juice and ade here.”

“What did I say earlier? I said don’t be self-conscious. You can order as much cola or cider as you want.”

It’s a wicked price of 8,000 won per can because it’s a hotel, but I don’t plan to worry about money just for today.

“But teacher, you seem quite close with the health teacher, perhaps…”

“Jinsu, do you want to stop eating and go back to the bus?”

“N-no, sir…”

He immediately backs down; this kid always has a style of asking for punishment.

“We became close while hunting together during the vacation. We also went to Jeju Island together. Don’t think unnecessary thoughts as it would be uncomfortable for the health teacher. Just eat your food.”

I looked around at all the kids and returned to my seat.

A staff member came to clear the plates, and Teacher Kim seems to have gotten a lot more food in the meantime, as there are quite a few plates.

“You don’t seem to be able to eat properly because you’re taking care of the kids. I’ve almost finished eating, so I’ll watch the kids. Please eat a lot.”

“Not at all. The kids aren’t really children anymore and are eating well on their own. I’m eating plenty too, so don’t worry and eat a lot yourself.”

“By the way, Kang teacher, do you know that Lee Seol passed the recruitment test?”

“Really? Now that you mention it, I think I got a call a few days ago, but with the lawsuit and today’s event… I’ve had a lot on my mind and forgot to call back.”

I’ve been going to the hospital, meeting with lawyers, and with today’s event, making bus and hotel reservations—there’s been too much to think about, so I forgot.

I expected her to pass anyway.

Even though it’s not her specialty, she’s an A-rank hunter with connections to the vice principal, so it would be strange if she didn’t pass.

“Lee Seol will understand. From now on, let’s eat lunch together at school and hang out often.”

“I definitely welcome that.”

Finally, I’ll have someone to eat with.

“If you come to the health room, I’ll make you delicious coffee.”

That doesn’t seem quite right, so I awkwardly smiled and avoided answering.

Considering Teacher Kim’s cooking skills and taste, she might serve coffee with vinegar in it.

“How is the lawsuit going? I saw that Deathpatch issued a correction, but I heard you’re continuing with the lawsuit.”

“The correction is one thing, and compensation for damages is another. It will take some time, but the lawyers will take care of everything once I send them the materials, so I don’t have much to worry about.”

“Still, you can’t completely not worry about it.”

“That’s true. Deathpatch applied for mediation at the Press Arbitration Commission? If it’s not resolved there, we’ll go through court procedures, so for now, I’m just suing the malicious commenters.”

“I hope it gets resolved well. And I hope all the malicious commenters get punished.”

“Of course. I definitely won’t let it slide.”

***

“Mansik, wanna go to the PC room?”

“Wait, let me take this call. Hello?”

“This is the Cyber Investigation Division of Mapo Police Station. Is this Kim Mansik?”

Police?

“Yes?”

“Did you previously comment on an article about Kang Shin-hyeok?”

“What? No, I don’t really remember…”

I thought it was a voice phishing call, but it seems like real police.

“You don’t remember… Is your portal ID SD21354? In the article, you wrote, ‘Teachers are like dogs in heat going after students, and the brat falls for the teacher’s seduction and spreads their legs…’ Wow, you wrote something really severe. Still don’t remember?”

“Well… I think I might have written something like that a while ago…”

“You’ve been sued by Kang Shin-hyeok and Eunseo, so you need to come to the police station as a suspect for questioning. Since you’re a student, can you come this Saturday? Oh, since you’re a minor, you need to bring your parents.”

“I had completely forgotten about it… I’ll delete it right away, is there any way to resolve this?”

If my parents find out I wrote such comments, it’s over.

“The lawsuit has already been filed, and even if you want to settle, your parents would have to see it, so it’s impossible. Come with your parents Saturday morning.”

“At that time, the article had that kind of content, and everyone was criticizing. I just criticized after seeing the article…”

I pleaded once more, but the police said that even so, I should have maintained boundaries, and if I don’t bring my parents by Saturday, they might come to get me. Then they hung up.

“Mansik, which call has you looking like that? Aren’t you coming to the PC room?”

“I’m not going…”

I’m doomed…

***

“What did you just say? How much?”

“Kang Shin-hyeok’s side is demanding 700 million won in damages, and Eunseo’s side is also demanding 100 million…”

“We’ve already issued a correction… Sigh. Okay, let’s say 100 million for Eunseo. But 700 million for Kang Shin-hyeok? That’s completely highway robbery.”

“Well… It’s the total amount claimed for damages, mental health treatment costs, lost income while receiving treatment, and attorney fees.”

I saw an article saying he was receiving psychiatric treatment, but since he’s continuing to teach, this must be a trick to extract more compensation.

“Still, it doesn’t make sense. Even Jang & Kim don’t charge 200 million per lawyer!”

“I checked with the Press Arbitration Commission, and they said 100 million is for damages, 100 million includes treatment and attorney fees, and the remaining 500 million is based on lost income…”

“And you’re telling me that makes sense? How can lost income be 500 million!”

Even if he took a break from teaching… No, even if he quit, 500 million doesn’t make sense.

No matter how prestigious a hunter school is, a mere teacher’s salary wouldn’t be in the hundreds of millions, let alone monthly.

“Hunter school teachers go portal hunting during vacations, so they calculated based on his income at that time.”

“Still, 500 million doesn’t make sense. Is Kang Shin-hyeok an S-rank hunter? He’s a B-rank hunter. Our article came out in late August.”

“To be precise, it was the 19th.”

“The 19th is near the end of the month. Still, that’s only about 10 days, and a B-rank hunter earned 5 million per day?”

“Yes. According to the documents submitted to the arbitration committee, his average daily income was over 5 million.”

“That doesn’t make sense. Is he manipulating something or committing fraud?”

“The documents Kang Shin-hyeok submitted were issued by the National Tax Service…”

This is driving me crazy.

After the false report about Kang Shin-hyeok, advertisements have been canceled one after another, making the company’s situation already difficult.

800 million won… I can’t help but sigh.

“What do you think about giving up on the arbitration committee and going to court? If we insist it was for public interest purposes and drag it out for a long time, they might get tired and lower the compensation a bit…”

“If we’re lucky, it might be reduced a bit, but if the period gets longer, we’ll also have to pay delay interest…”

“Sigh. The arbitration committee is next week, right? I’ll think about it until then, so you can go now.”

“Um, there’s still something I need to tell you.”

“What now?”

“We keep getting calls from malicious commenters who have been sued by Kang Shin-hyeok’s side, saying they’ll file claims for damages against us…”

“That Kang Shin-hyeok guy is really ruthless. Ignore them all. They’re the ones who wrote the malicious comments.”

“The thing is, they’re saying they wouldn’t have written malicious comments if it weren’t for our article, and they’re demanding we take responsibility, even threatening to sue. The protest calls are pouring in to the point where we can’t work…”

Sigh… This is really driving me crazy.