I Became the Academy’s Kibitz Villain

Chapter 395: Who Publicly Announces Their Pregnancy? (3)

“Wow, that noona is completely nuts.”

“…How much pressure must the government have put on her for her to explode like that over there? And she’s a woman, no less.”

Two S-class young men, Lee Jun-young and Cheok Jun-kyeong, were watching Baek Seol-hee’s press conference while sitting in front of sodas and hamburgers.

“Hyung, could you ever do something like that?”

“Men and women are in different positions, aren’t they?”

“No, I mean, if you were Seol-hee noona, could you have said something like that?”

“…I don’t think so.”

Lee Jun-young fiddled with a French fry in his hand and shook his head.

“When a man loses his virginity, it’s something he can brag about to others. But for a woman, losing her virginity is a different story, socially and environmentally.”

Cheok Jun-kyeong chuckled as he picked up his cola.

“Noona might not appreciate me saying this, but from a junior’s perspective, it’s a relief that a senior like her has opened the floodgates. What do you think will happen now? Female ability users will start threatening to act like Seol-hee noona if anyone tries to use pregnancy warrants to blackmail them.”

“That is, if she actually intends to get pregnant. If she turns around and says, ‘It was a fake pregnancy,’ her reputation will hit rock bottom.”

“Some people are actually hoping it’s a lie, though.”

“Those are the people who still want Baek Seol-hee to remain their idol.”

Lee Jun-young took a big bite of his hamburger.

“We may wear the title of ‘hero,’ but to the public, we’re nothing more than toys they can play with. And now, that toy is openly rebelling.”

“Wow, Tosin hyung, you’re sounding like someone much older today. This isn’t like you, is it?”

“I’ve been staying up all night trying to organize my thoughts. Even I need to think things through if the situation is this serious.”

“So, hyung, do you think the public will turn their backs on Seol-hee noona?”

“Outwardly, they can’t. Someone who’s been silent all this time suddenly does something no one dared to do. Who would still see her as the meek and innocent Snow White from before?”

What was once thought to be pure white had turned crimson red when people blinked their eyes.

Baek Seol-hee was no longer the same Baek Seol-hee everyone knew.

Whether it was out of anger or the stress of aging, the innocent and naive maiden disappeared overnight.

“Someone said this: ‘She’s not White anymore, so shouldn’t her alias change too?’”

“Because if she marries the prince, she’s no longer Snow White but the Snow Queen?”

“That’s part of it, but if this goes wrong, she could end up being labeled a devilish perpetrator…. Ha, why are you so calm? Do you know something I don’t?” 𝐫ãNȮ𝔟Ěš

“Hehehe.”

Cheok Jun-kyeong shrugged lightly and skimmed through materials from another channel about ‘Who is Do Ji-hwan?’ as he chuckled faintly.

“Turns out, she wasn’t just an innocent person as everyone thought, huh?”

“Everyone knows that already. Who gets pregnant out of nowhere in front of the entire world?”

“Hyung, between us, do you think this was impulsive or a premeditated crime?”

“…Are you saying she planned the pregnancy all along?”

“Probably? I don’t know if the man she intends to have the baby with is Do Ji-hwan, but one thing’s for sure.”

Cheok Jun-kyeong pulled up a video on his Taegeuk Watch and played it.

“The one who issued the pregnancy warrant? They’re being abandoned right now.”

[…Therefore, the warrant issue was handled internally within the Ministry of National Defense. We deeply regret the situation and will promptly reform the ministry…]

Bang!

The man in the suit sitting in the minister’s office, Minister of National Defense Lim Jeong-il, gritted his teeth as he watched the President’s video apology.

“Damn it, he’s willing to bow his head if it means taking me down…?”

The President had issued a public apology regarding the warrant issue.

He even expressed his regret toward Baek Seol-hee, who was holding a simultaneous press conference.

[Mr. President, we heard you apologized for Baek Seol-hee’s actions. What are your thoughts on this?]

[Some people may think reckless issuance of warrants caused this issue, but I believe that view is overly political. I simply thought deeply about what everyone kept parroting about pregnancy and decided I wanted to have a child. That’s all.]

[Does that mean, regardless of the President’s apology, you will continue your course of action?]

[Yes, of course. And the father will only be Do Ji-hwan. Only him.]

Crash!

A white mug shattered, spilling instant coffee over the marble floor.

The aides in the minister’s office couldn’t understand why he bothered breaking the cup, but given that he would soon vacate the office, no one could complain about a little damage.

“Damn it, if it’s come to this…”

“Minister, what should we do? The phones are going crazy right now.”

“If I could hang up on the President’s calls, I would’ve done it already! Phones are nothing compared to that!”

“That… ‘Chairman’ is on the line…!”

“Damn it, you should have started with who was calling!!”

The minister hastily grabbed the old smartphone handed over by an aide and moved toward the window.

[This sudden situation is quite alarming.]

“Ch-Chairman, well…!”

Without so much as a greeting, the Chairman of Haegneul Group began speaking, causing the minister genuine panic.

[The internet is in an uproar. Our foreign ability users contracted through Haegneul—Zeus, Thor, Hercules, Unicorn, and the like—are being accused of coming to the upcoming Jeju Island auction to engage in certain activities with women issued pregnancy warrants.]

“Chairman, that’s…”

[Did you spread these rumors?]

“N-no!!”

The minister vehemently denied it, trembling.

“Those are just baseless rumors circulating online! This is all because of Baek Seol-hee, that crazy woman, doing the unthinkable!”

[Indeed, it’s absurd. But thanks to that absurdity, all our plans are now derailed. Just 30 minutes ago, ‘Unicorn’ informed us he won’t be coming to Korea.]

“Unicorn… that S-class from Norway…”

[Whether it’s sticking to their concept or sensing something off, even S-class ability users are pulling out. And I have no desire to be further entangled in this crazy woman’s antics.]

“Ch-chairman?!”

[The damage caused by the reckless issuance of those pregnancy warrants… The fact that Haegneul Group is even implicated is a headache. Let’s consider the matter of the Philippines a nonstarter.]

“B-but…! You instructed the issuance of the warrants…!”

[Me? I have no memory of that. Have I developed dementia? Well then, good luck.]

Click.

The call ended.

“That pedophilic old bastard!!”

Bang!

With a flushed face, the minister slammed the phone onto the floor.

“He said just follow his orders, and now…”

“Minister…!”

The people in the office instinctively understood.

In a word, it was over.

The one rope they had been counting on was now severed from above. With no alternatives left, their only option was to crash into the ground.

“…Baek Seol-hee… Baek Seol-heeeee…!!”

“Minister?!”

Thud.

The minister glared at the TV screen showing Baek Seol-hee casually conversing with reporters, then collapsed backward, his eyes rolling back.

Afterward, an ambulance rushed him to the hospital and admitted him to the ICU, but no one felt any sympathy for him.

“Oppa, I heard the minister was hospitalized. Hypertension.”

“Figures. He’d have every reason to be pissed. Haegneul must’ve cut ties with him by now.”

According to information coming through the Secret Society, some of the S-class men planning to enter Korea had canceled their trips.

‘It must feel burdensome.’

With public opinion in an uproar over whether S-class studs were about to land in Korea, making it all the way to Jeju Island would certainly feel overwhelming, regardless of how quickly events were unfolding.

“At least we’ve managed to stop the men trying to come to Korea…”

If they felt pressured, that was a relief.

“Hehe, oppa. Do you think one of the men planning to come here was actually contracted by Haegneul? Someone who would go to Jeju, impregnate Seol-hee unnie or another A-class, and let Haegneul get sponsorships?”

“There must be one or two. Who knows how many, but we’ll have to keep a close eye on it.”

Sometimes, a man’s rational thinking could be overridden by his lower instincts.

“Since Baek Seol-hee has voluntarily shed the veil of purity, it wouldn’t be surprising if other female ability users in Jeju followed her lead, like the Werther Effect.”

“…Isn’t that about suicide?”

“If it’s pregnancy instead of suicide, it’s not so bad, is it?”

“Hehe, in that case, should I go public myself…?”

“You—didn’t we already talk about this last time—”

[…This is Seon Dong-hyun, a reporter from Haegneul Daily. There are rumors that Do Ji-hwan is married. Is that true?]

Ah.

[If you’re suggesting a relationship with a married man, isn’t that adultery?]

Ahhh.

[Baek Seol-hee, do you have anything to say to Mr. Do Ji-hwan’s wife?]

“Oh no, this is bad.”

Baek Seol-hee.

[Anything to say? Hmm….]

Her rampage mode.

[…They say it’s easier to ask forgiveness than permission.]

Didn’t stop.

[…If I have an S-class baby, I think I’ll be forgiven.]

“Oppa.”

“What.”

“Someone’s commenting live: If it’s for an S-class baby, adultery is patriotism.”

“…Should we agree with that or not?”

In the age of ability users.

“If having an S-class baby makes people overlook murder, who’s going to care about adultery, kidnapping, confinement, or threats?”

“Uh, those are all huge problems.”

“But because it’s a woman targeting a man, people say it’s fine.”

“Who said that…? Haah.”

Human rights were, at times, thoroughly disregarded in the face of S-class ability.

“This is gender discrimination.”

“Says the man who made Seol-hee unnie cry all night.”

“…….”