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Chapter 16. Do You Know Who I Am? (2)
It was an unexpected, completely out-of-the-blue question.
Everyone wore blank expressions.
Who else would he be?
Ha Taewoong, the social consideration admission student.
A student who had been admitted to the school through the social consideration program because of his family’s financial hardship.
His entrance exam scores had been decent, but among the students of Cheonghwa High, he wasn’t particularly outstanding.
A troublemaker who had used violence in the cafeteria today and had been summoned to the principal’s office.
That was everything the people gathered here knew about Ha Taewoong.
Has this bastard lost his mind?
Park Donggeun’s thick eyebrows twitched at Taewoong’s insolent attitude.
The kid who had been hanging his head moments ago was suddenly issuing warnings, and even after getting slapped by a parent, he was smiling.
Every now and then, there were students who snapped under academic stress.
Did this punk come here determined to cause trouble today?
Oh Seora’s mother, Jo Heejeong, suddenly felt uneasy.
Cheonghwa High was notorious for having many social consideration students who couldn’t endure school life and eventually dropped out.
Because of that, there were rumors that before leaving, some of them exploded after bottling everything up, or even turned the school into complete chaos.
Perhaps Ha Taewoong had finally snapped and was about to lash out.
Ha Taewoong, the social consideration student who had smiled after being slapped hard across the face.
Even with the teachers raising their voices around him, he showed no sign of panic whatsoever.
“Why isn’t anyone answering? I asked if you know who I am.”
He’s insane.
No one had ever seen such madness in Ha Taewoong’s eyes before.
The gleam in his eyes was completely different from earlier.
“Taewoong…”
His homeroom teacher, Kim Changyong, called out to him in a sorrowful voice.
Although Taewoong had entered through the social consideration admission program, Kim Changyong had never once discriminated against him.
At Cheonghwa High School, teachers of non-core subjects weren’t much different in status from the social consideration students themselves.
Compared to teachers of Korean, English, Mathematics, Science, and Social Studies, they had very little influence.
Kim Changyong was the Classical Chinese teacher, a subject grouped with arts and physical education as a non-core subject.
Naturally, both teachers from other departments and the students subtly looked down on him.
Even though Kim Changyong had graduated from Seoguk University, at Cheonghwa, he suffered humiliation almost as much as Ha Taewoong.
There were too many eyes watching, so he couldn’t openly look after him.
Instead, he treated him exactly the same as every other student.
Just like today’s incident.
He had heard that Taewoong had been taken away in the middle of class by PE teacher Park Donggeun.
The destination had been the principal’s office.
Without even having time to understand the situation, he had rushed over.
According to school regulations, any disciplinary action against a student had to be reported to the homeroom teacher first.
That was both school policy and common sense.
No matter what, Taewoong had been one of his students for an entire year.
But when he arrived…
He witnessed something he could hardly believe.
A parent had slapped his student across the face.
In that instant, he completely lost his temper.
Without thinking, he had raised his voice.
No matter what anyone said, inside the school, Taewoong was his student.
Still, there were clear limits.
At Cheonghwa High School, a homeroom teacher’s authority was extremely limited.
The students all came from influential families.
There was hardly ever a reason for them to rely on their homeroom teacher.
To be honest, homeroom teachers neither had the authority nor the power to step in.
To Kim Changyong, Ha Taewoong looked like a child born to powerless parents.
And now that very child in his care looked ready to explode.
He had no grounds to stop him.
No…
He didn’t even want to.
The principal and executives from the Parents’ Association were present.
Unless something extraordinary happened, Taewoong’s expulsion was all but certain.
Step.
Step.
Ha Taewoong walked toward the principal.
“…”
Thump.
He sat down in the chair directly across from the Parents’ Association executive.
Without asking anyone for permission.
“Y-You! Get up! How dare you act so arrogantly!”
Park Donggeun exploded as he watched.
There was no place where he behaved more cautiously than the principal’s office.
Since even he had to watch himself here, Taewoong’s brazen attitude irritated him to no end.
Slowly.
Ha Taewoong completely ignored Park Donggeun.
Instead, he took out his smartphone.
After tapping it a few times, he played an audio recording.
“No matter if it’s only one free meal a day, isn’t he eating way too much just because it’s free?”
“Seora, let it go. My dad says kids like him have holes in their stomachs.”
“The cafeteria food doesn’t even taste good. At least someone’s finishing it.”
“Even so, that bear eats way too much. If there’s no leftovers, the animal feed gets reduced. What if the animals go hungry?”
“The bear the school raises comes first.”
“So… should we let it slide?”
“Our kind Seora should endure it. Animal welfare. They have the right to survive too.”
“Fine, I’m feeling generous today. Piggy social consideration student, eat as much as you want. Hohoho!”
The voices of Oh Seora and her group echoed vividly throughout the principal’s office.
Even hearing it again, the words were horrifyingly inhumane.
“G-Give me that! Right now!!”
Jo Heejeong hurriedly lunged forward.
She desperately tried to snatch the phone from Taewoong’s hand.
If that recording got out beyond the school…
The consequences would be devastating.
Fortunately, they were still inside the principal’s office.
“No.”
Taewoong smiled faintly as he refused without hesitation.
“You’re trying to blackmail us with that? Go ahead! Who do you think would believe a bastard like you?”
“Would filing a school violence lawsuit also count as blackmail?”
Taewoong muttered as though speaking to himself.
“Taewoong. Friends joke around like this all the time. Delete that immediately.”
Lee Gyeongja, the Parents’ Association secretary, who had watched everything from the beginning, finally spoke.
Quick-witted as she was, she instinctively realized this incident was about to spiral completely out of control.
More importantly…
She sensed something unusual.
That child… what is he?
She carefully observed Ha Taewoong.
He was undoubtedly a second-year high school student.
Yet he didn’t seem his age at all.
He had been summoned to the principal’s office—the place where the school’s highest authority resided.
He had suddenly been slapped by the aggressive Jo Heejeong.
Yet unbelievably…
He remained calm.
He had smiled in a way that made him seem abnormal.
But his eyes were unmistakably rational.
He didn’t resemble children who had grown up in poverty.
Most wore eyes filled with hostility and carried an ingrained sense of inferiority.
Ha Taewoong, however, possessed an inexplicable composure…
The kind one only saw in men who had experienced life in the real world.
Of course, perhaps she was mistaken.
Still…
One question kept bothering her.
The one he continued asking over and over.
Instinctively…
It gave her a bad feeling.
“Do you know who I am…”
“Friends? Ma’am, do you normally follow your friends around while they’re eating just to bully them?”
“…”
“Of course, I know it’s because of your family’s terrible upbringing. That’s exactly why I can’t let this go.”
“Hey! Do you really want to die?! Do you know who I am?!”
Jo Heejeong finally lost all restraint at Taewoong’s reply.
She had intended to let things slide at this point.
But her patience had reached its limit.
Her husband’s extensive network of connections even reached gangsters.
Once everything was laid out, there was nothing she feared.
“What? Is your husband some kind of gang boss?”
“……YAAAAAA!! YOU LITTLE BASTARD!!”
Taewoong’s words shattered the last fragment of reason she had left.
Ma’am… you’re out.
Oh Seora’s mother’s shrill stream of curses tore through the air in the principal’s office.
The principal, the Parents’ Association secretary, and both teachers all grimaced.
No matter how angry someone became…
This was a place where they were expected to maintain self-control.
Just as expected.
That was the limit of a nouveau riche housewife.
She rolled her eyes back and completely exploded.
Along with her rage, a pitch-black dark aura burst from her body.
It was the darkest color I had seen all day.
It wasn’t even comparable to the dark energy radiating from the principal, Teacher Park, or the secretary sitting in front of me.
Among everyone here…
Only Teacher Kim Changyong’s aura was pure and crystal clear.
The ability Grandma gave me…
At times like this, I wished it had an off switch.
Whenever I saw the auras carried by people devoid of humanity…
I felt nauseous.
Flash!
Huh?
The moment I thought about a button…
The auras surrounding everyone suddenly disappeared.
Everyone looked normal again.
What? I can’t see them anymore? Then… what if I want to see them again?
Flash!
Just by thinking about it!
Everyone’s unique colors instantly reappeared.
Holy…
There’s an ON/OFF function!
“Heh.”
Without realizing it, I laughed.
What an incredible buff.
“You little thug! You’re actually laughing? Do you have a death wish? You really want to die, don’t you?!”
Oh Seora’s mother’s rampage continued.
Once her temper exploded…
There was no stopping it.
“Ma’am! Do you even know who I am?”
“…”
The same question.
For the third time.
Everyone fell silent at the repeated question.
“Hmph! What? Are you trying to say you’re some hidden heir of a chaebol family?”
Oh Seora’s mother snorted.
Huh? How did she guess?
“…How did you know? Haha. It’s a secret, but… I’m the youngest grandson of a chaebol family.”
The truth was revealed far too easily.
And it was confirmed right there on the spot.
“W-What…? The youngest grandson of a chaebol family? You? Hahahahaha! Hahahahahaha!”
Oh Seora’s mother rocked back and forth with loud laughter.
Go ahead.
Laugh while you still can.
“This bastard has gone completely insane. Principal! A liar like this should be expelled immediately! In all my years as a teacher, I’ve never seen such a vicious little punk!”
A vicious little punk?
Park Donggeun, still clueless about the situation, eagerly joined in.
But—
“Can you take responsibility for those words?”
The Parents’ Association secretary asked solemnly.
Unlike the others, her gaze was thoughtful.
“Secretary, there’s no point listening to another word from this brat. I’ll drag him out myself!”
That piece of trash who barely deserved to be called a teacher, Park Donggeun, angrily stood up.
“Taewoong…”
Teacher Kim Changyong looked just as bewildered.
Everyone assumed I was talking nonsense.
“My father’s name is Ha Donghwi.”
“…??”
I clearly stated my father’s name.
Everyone simply stared in confusion.
They still hadn’t understood what I meant.
“Search for it on Naiview.”
Maintaining my upright posture, I calmly continued.
“If the surname is Ha… don’t tell me…”
The secretary was the first to catch on.
She opened her mouth—
But couldn’t finish the sentence.
Something in her eyes had clicked.
I smiled back.
“There aren’t many chaebol families in South Korea with the surname Ha, are there?”
I asked with a mischievous grin.
Grandfather had never been of any help when I struggled to survive alone in the past.
But now…
Everything was different.
Among South Korea’s upper-class elite…
The Haryun Group name carried real weight.
And I intended to make full use of it.
“……Y-You’re the grandson of the Haryun Group?”
Oh Seora’s mother asked in a trembling voice.
The vicious glare and irrational fury she’d shown moments ago vanished as all the strength drained from her body.
“Yes. I am Ha Taewoong, the youngest grandson of Chairman Ha Cheolgon of the Haryun Group!”
