The Genius Decided To Live An Ordinary Life [EN]: Chapter 23

“Nice to meet you all. I’m Choi Eung-muk, your sixth-grade homeroom teacher.”

Wahaha-!

The teacher laughed awkwardly, and the children couldn’t hide their smiles either. There were a couple of transfer students and teachers who moved schools in between. Still, the class size of thirty remained almost unchanged.

And for the second, fourth, fifth, and now sixth grades, the same person was their homeroom teacher four times.

For Jinhyuk, who had been forced to transfer to the town school after finishing the first semester of third grade in the past, it was quite moving to complete his elementary education at this rural school with only one class per grade.

“Okay, we need to elect a class president, right? Who wants to be class president? Raise your hand.”

As expected, no students raised their hands, and everyone looked at Son Jinhyuk.

‘Is this my fate?’

Because of the expectations of the children and the teacher, he always had to be the class president, almost against his will. They said they would change the class president every semester, but they never did. His friends would practically beg the teacher, asking if Jinhyuk couldn’t just do it. Why did he dislike it so much?

‘Attention, salute to the teacher.’ The rural school kids were even embarrassed to do that command.

Jinhyuk sighed shallowly and, feeling resigned, just scratched the desk with his fingernails.

But then, the friend sitting next to Jinhyuk raised her hand.

It was Choi Mikyung.

Teacher Choi Eung-muk, who was said to be Choi Mikyung’s eighth cousin once removed, was delighted.

“Oh, Mikyung, would you like to be class president?”

“Vice president.”

Oh, for crying out loud. Jinhyuk lamented silently.

Choi Mikyung, who had already shed her childish ways, grinned at Jinhyuk.

Because of this child, who had the outstanding ability to completely block anyone from sitting next to Son Jinhyuk, Son Jinhyuk had never had a different desk mate.

“Then… Son Jinhyuk will be the class president, and Choi Mikyung will be the vice president-”

“I want to be vice president too!”

“Me!”

“I wanna do it too!”

“Teacher! Me too!”

Suddenly, the vice president election became overheated.

There were thirty students, but ten candidates for vice president.

Teacher Choi Eung-muk took a 30-centimeter plastic ruler and tore a sheet of lifeless-colored drawing paper into strips. He handed them to the student in the front row, and the paper was passed back like a flowing stream. The children, who had lived like this for six years, were more mechanical than machines.

“There are too many of you, and since you all know each other so well, let’s skip the formalities like campaign speeches.”

Wahaha-.

The classroom erupted in laughter. What kind of campaign speech would a vice president have? It was obvious that they wouldn’t be able to fulfill any promises anyway. Usually, they would vote to elect the class president, but this time, they had a unique election to choose the vice president while keeping the class president fixed.

“The friend who comes in second this time will be the vice president for the second semester. We need to save paper.”

Wahaha-.

Was it because they were entering the sensitive period of puberty? The children burst into laughter at every word the teacher said.

Choi Mikyung became the vice president with 15 votes. It seemed she had the full support of the female students. Yuk Sung-chan, who came in second with 6 votes, was to be the vice president for the second semester.

“Then, Son Jinhyuk will also be the student council president…”

Teacher Choi Eung-muk muttered while making a note in his notebook.

At that sound, Jinhyuk, who had been sitting there blankly, raised his head.

Good heavens. Because there was only one class per grade, the sixth-grade class president also had to be the student council president.

Still, Jinhyuk remained silent. There wasn’t much to do anyway. Even if they were student council officers, they were just elementary school kids. If it were an elementary school in the 21st century, maybe they would have done something.

In any case, compared to the intense work he had done in his previous life, school life in the countryside was more like recreation. It wasn’t something he needed to refuse with a wave of his hand.

“Jinhyuk, how about you prepare for the Chungnam Math and Science Competition in April?”

Yes.

Finally, a normal sixth-grade life had begun.

He had always participated in the competition in the past and had consistently brought the top prize to Taeyang Elementary School in the town. The second time would be even easier.

Clap-!

Choi Mikyung slapped Jinhyuk’s shoulder with her palm.

“Hey! Son Jinhyuk, you! How can you not answer the teacher?”

Choi Mikyung’s nagging had also begun.

Jinhyuk rubbed his tingling shoulder.

Choi Mikyung’s hands were quite firm.

He almost reflexively used his power.

***

A banner was hung at the small rural school with 115 students, whose location was unknown.

As always, Jinhyuk, who arrived at school first, glanced at the banners spread out at the school entrance and main gate. The competition he had participated in every year since the fourth grade.

In his previous life, the banners had been hung at Taeyang Elementary School in the town, with only the school name changed.

A gust of spring wind blew, carrying a strange smell. It was the smell of fertilizer spread in the rice paddies before planting. The banner, catching the cow dung wind, fluttered once. Along with it, Jinhyuk’s bad memories were revived.

…

If he had known the world and how to deal with it, he would have tried to stand on his own much earlier, but he was a timid and clumsy child. In middle school, he memorized the books in the school library, delivered evening newspapers, and loitered around his friends’ houses. He tried his best to return to the attic late.

It was partly due to the human instinct to return home, even when there was nowhere to go, but also because his aunt had taken the only family photo he had secretly looked at and hidden it away, Jinhyuk couldn’t leave the attic.

To escape the attic and to get away from his adoptive parents’ family, he entered a prestigious private high school in another region as a scholarship student, where dormitories were provided.

After that banner was hung, the second daughter of his adoptive mother, who was three years older than Jinhyuk, had come to the attic in her underwear. Without a moment’s hesitation, Jinhyuk pushed the woman away and ran out. After searching the drawer he had been watching, he found the family photo, and without looking back, he slung his old bag over his shoulder and ran to the terminal. It was the day he said goodbye to the attic forever.

He spent the night huddled under the sign of a pharmacy called Chabuyakguk. Above Jinhyuk’s head, as he transitioned from a child to an adult, the banner, groaning under the torment of wind and rain, fluttered. But it was tied so tightly that it stubbornly held on, even while crying out fiercely.

Jinhyuk had vowed to survive like that long printed cloth, without dying.

…

“Hoo-woo-. It’s vivid.”

Those devilish people and the memories of shivering in the cold were vividly replaying, triggered by a single banner.

Perhaps that was the first time.

‘I ran to the terminal without stopping.’

How much liberation he had tasted while running through the wind and rain.

Perhaps it was because of that day that he felt alive while running and enjoyed freedom.

Several youthful voices pulled Jinhyuk out of his reverie.

“Hi, Son Jinhyuk?”

“Hi, President hyung [older brother].”

“Hi, Jinhyuk oppa [older brother]?”

Yes, friends, come on in.

As the school start time approached, the small single-story school began to absorb the children.

Jinhyuk still answered in his mind and waved to the children.

Choi Mikyung ran up and stuck to Jinhyuk’s side.

As they walked together, the children chattered behind them.

“How can that oppa [older brother] be the president when he’s so quiet?”

“That hyung [older brother] is a real man, so even if he doesn’t talk, the other hyungs [older brothers] and noonas [older sisters] listen to him.”

“How do you know so well? Are you close to the president oppa [older brother]?”

“Of course. That hyung [older brother] even bought me a Jjuba [a cheap, flavored ice treat] last year. We’re super close.”

Was that so?

Jinhyuk wanted to turn his head and check that friend’s face, but he decided not to. He didn’t know what meaning his actions might convey. He did remember buying 100-won strawberry-flavored Jjubas for the younger kids playing in the playground last summer, when it was very hot.

As if she had heard her own praise, Choi Mikyung looked up at Jinhyuk with a pitiful smile. Then, as if she had remembered something, she opened her mouth.

“Jinhyuk, did you bring that?”

That? That was quite a comprehensive pronoun.

That… Today’s art class materials were a washed milk carton, scissors, scotch tape, and colored paper. He also brought the recorder and triangle for tomorrow’s music class. He had written his diary and packed his lunch.

“…There doesn’t seem to be any particular error.”

What was this old soul saying?

Choi Mikyung’s eyes narrowed.

“I’m asking if you brought that.”

Jinhyuk clenched his mouth and breathed heavily through his nostrils.

It was because he felt the need to supply oxygen to his brain. Why did she keep using pronouns? Well, sometimes it was unavoidable. But for smooth communication, he thought specific expressions were essential.

He remembered scolding a team member in the past. It was an employee who used vague words during reports and meetings.

– “Deputy Manager Lee, the expression ‘part’ doesn’t clearly convey what you’re trying to say. Is it difficult to give a detailed explanation?”

– “Ah, that part, so… the part I’m talking about is, for this part that the customer wants, to process this part, and in terms of the customer’s complaints or the company’s image, the positive part-”

– “Not being able to explain specifically is the same as not knowing. How are you going to get management approval for the project if you can’t even convince the team leader?”

His head throbbed for a moment. He felt his face flush with the thought that he had acted too much like a 꼰대 [kkondae, a condescending older person]. He felt sorry for pushing too hard and reflected on how he had lived like a machine, rigid and inflexible.

‘Deputy Manager Lee, I’m so sorry.’

Wasn’t he two years older than Jinhyuk?

Anyway, before getting frustrated or questioning, he should ask exactly what she meant. With that resolution, he nodded.

While Jinhyuk’s soul was briefly out for a stroll, Choi Mikyung touched her forehead.

Whenever she asked this guy something, he creaked like a rusty farm machine. Her dad used to hit farm tools with a hammer when they creaked. Son Jinhyuk’s body was like a stone, so hitting him would only hurt her hand. She sighed deeply and shook her head.

“Ugh, never mind. I’ll just ask Eun-jung-”

“What is that?”

“Huh?”

“I’m asking because I don’t know. What is that that Mikyung is talking about?”

Choi Mikyung looked around and then spoke vaguely.

She was like Maeng-gu from Bongsungahakdang [a popular comedy skit].

“Chae-heung-bong-tu [a small paper bag for collecting stool samples].”

Ah, what was that again?

He had prepared well in the morning. Since they had built a new house and were living in a Western-style way, it was nice not to have to spread newspaper in the pit toilet to do his business. It was very pleasant. Jinhyuk vaguely recalled the refreshing morning that the new civilization had provided.

But why was a sensitive thirteen-year-old in the transitional period asking about such a thing? Choi Mikyung was usually very easygoing in front of Jinhyuk, but this was a bit…

“Jinhyuk, I…”

Choi Mikyung opened her mouth cautiously.

Still looking around like a frightened rabbit.

“Could you share a little with me?”

This transitional teenager must be crazy.

Jinhyuk expressed his astonishment with his eyelids raised as high as possible.

In all his life, he had never seen a kid asking to share poop. Was she a dog? Even Janggun didn’t make such a request.

“Can’t you? I accidentally flushed it down.”

Ah, Choi Mikyung’s house didn’t have a pit toilet either. It was a plausible reason. Anyone could make a mistake, and they should have a chance to make up for it. He couldn’t let Choi Mikyung be humiliated in front of her friends at such a sensitive time. Choi Mikyung was like family, and she was his childhood friend, after all.

Worried that Choi Mikyung might be hurt, Jinhyuk forced a smile and held out his hand.

“That… should I give you the bag?”

“Thank you.”

As if afraid that Jinhyuk might change his mind, Choi Mikyung rummaged through her bag.

After a moment of the plastic pencil case rattling, a white paper bag came out. The name ‘Choi Mikyung,’ written in a neat handwriting as pretty as her appearance, was on it.

“Go to the classroom first.”

Jinhyuk received the chae-heung-bong-tu [a small paper bag for collecting stool samples] and matches from Choi Mikyung and headed to the corner of the playground.

Perhaps because he didn’t eat raw food or junk food, Jinhyuk had never received deworming medicine. Maybe Choi Mikyung knew that fact well, which was why she had asked him.

‘I’m doing all sorts of things. I can’t believe I’m donating poop.’

And to a girl.

He had lived for almost half a century if you added everything up. Jinhyuk muttered as he moved his feet. He arrived at the corner of the playground and began the rustling preparation work. He didn’t feel good about having to open this again. He had eaten two bowls of rice for breakfast, too.

That’s when it happened.

A strange and mysterious sound was detected in Jinhyuk’s eardrums.

“Heukkeue-eheung-heunya-euna-eung-”

It was the sound of someone groaning from the outdoor toilet nearby.

Oh ho, a commendable child was working hard on their studies from the morning.

Ha-heup- He took a deep breath and then walked towards the toilet. He firmly pinched his nose and locked his lungs. Jinhyuk could hold his breath for three minutes easily.

“Ang-ae-nung-gung-shing-ming-kkang?”

“Heukkeue-, President?”

A welcoming voice answered from inside.

A friend who could even understand Jinhyuk’s nasal voice, heaven had helped him.

‘That’s it.’

As if it were planned, a benefactor was there at the perfect time and place.

This was also a serendipitous encounter.