Episode 21: Cosplaying as a Detective
Whoa, whoa, whoa?!
Why the sudden full-throttle punch?!
“She’s totally a delinquent…”
“No way.”
To me, it looked like Seon-yu snapped after enduring their taunts, but to Seung-ah and Ah-hyun, this was the final blow solidifying their preconceptions about her.
But I could be wrong.
Maybe it’s not their bias but exactly what’s happening in front of us.
The rumors about Seon-yu aren’t great, and she doesn’t exactly seem like a saint.
Still, my shallow instincts, honed by navigating all sorts of politics and human dynamics in college and the military, were oddly on her side.
“There’s a limit to patience.”
Seon-yu showed no guilt for her act of violence.
If anything, she stood tall, as if she’d delivered justice.
But her first-strike victory didn’t last long.
The red-haired girl who took the punch grabbed Seon-yu’s hair and yanked it hard.
“You b*tch!”
“Ow…!”
What do I do?
Should I step in?
The redhead’s friends didn’t intervene, just giggling from behind.
Only one of the three halfheartedly said, “Hey, stop her,” without moving.
Watching this, I was certain.
I wasn’t wrong.
Seon-yu was the one being bullied—I’d bet PineBud and a Pikachu katsu on it.
“Ow! Ow…!”
With her hair grabbed, Seon-yu lost control and was taking a one-sided beating.
I couldn’t watch anymore.
I stood up from the bench to break it up.
As I started walking toward them—
“Hey! Hyun-jong-ssi! Wait! Uwaaah!”
Jin-ah’s voice, more urgent than I’d ever heard, stopped me in my tracks.
I spun around, startled, thinking something serious had happened.
Her gaze was fixed on a tree next to the bench, her face pale as if she’d seen a monster from a fairy tale.
Seung-ah and Ah-hyun, equally shocked, asked, “What? What?!”
“What’s wrong?”
Seon-yu could wait—Jin-ah was my priority. I hurried over to her.
Pointing at the tree trunk, she shouted, “Stag beetle! Stag beetle!”
What’s with this grandma-tap-dancing nonsense? I looked over, and sure enough—
“Whoa, what? It’s real?”
A legit stag beetle was clinging to the tree.
“Why’s a stag beetle here?”
“Catch it! Catch it!”
I’d seen pet store stag beetles, but a wild one was a first, so it was kind of cool.
Saebit High backs up to a low hill—guess the ecosystem’s well-preserved… Wait, that’s not the point!
While I was distracted, Seon-yu was still getting pummeled.
“Jin-ah, hold on, I need to deal with that first.”
I ran toward Seon-yu and stepped in.
I firmly grabbed the redhead’s wrist as she clutched Seon-yu’s hair and caught her other hand mid-swing.
“Stop it. What are you doing?”
Even if they’re younger, I don’t talk down to kids unless they’re elementary schoolers.
But my emotions were running high, and my words came out rough.
Seeing Seon-yu, her light brown hair a tangled mess as she got beaten, made anger surge to the top of my head.
It was like she was already part of our team.
But the redhead was at peak rage too, refusing to loosen her grip on Seon-yu’s hair.
She spat curses at the already-defeated Seon-yu.
“Wow, this b*tch throws a punch out of nowhere?”
With that kind of pulling, it wasn’t just her hair—her scalp must’ve been seriously damaged.
Seeing Seon-yu’s once-eye-catching straight hair now a chaotic mess felt like my hair was being ripped out. Rage boiled inside me.
“Let go!”
I don’t think I’ve ever shouted that loudly in my life.
The redhead glared at me like she might hit me too.
I didn’t back down, glaring back.
“Let. Go.”
“Haa…”
“You’re not reading the room. There are CCTVs all over this park. Want me to call the cops? Wanna mess up your school life?”
“She hit me first!”
“Then let’s go to the police station and talk it out.”
The group of onlookers glanced around nervously.
I’d already noticed the CCTVs scattered around the park near the school.
“Hee-soo, stop it.”
One of the girls, who’d been halfheartedly trying to intervene, spoke to the redhead.
But Hee-soo, clearly stubborn, refused to let go of Seon-yu’s hair.
Man, I can’t exactly hit a girl.
Should I actually call the police?
Just then, Jin-ah, who’d quietly approached, thrust her hand toward the redhead’s face.
In her hand? A stag beetle.
“Stag beetle. Hiss hiss.”
“Kyaaa! What the hell!”
The redhead freaked out and bolted a few meters away.
Jin-ah brandished the beetle at the rest of the group like a trophy.
“Stag beetle. Hiss hiss.”
“Oh my God!”
“What the heck!”
“She’s crazy!”
The group scrambled onto the gazebo, fleeing from Jin-ah.
With a robotic tone, she delivered her message.
“Don’t mess with our side. Stag beetle pincers. Snap snap. Justice guillotine.”
Jin-ah slowly climbed onto the gazebo, beetle in hand, her expression a mix of pure innocence and gleeful malice, like a kid crushing ants.
She’s definitely enjoying this.
“Hiss hiss.”
“Ugh, what’s wrong with her!”
“Is she nuts?”
While Jin-ah expertly herded the mob, Seung-ah and Ah-hyun came over too.
Despite their reservations about Seon-yu, her pitiful state must’ve sparked some human compassion.
“Oh no… your hair…”
“Are you okay? Should we go to a hospital?”
Bolstered by their concern, Seon-yu brushed back her disheveled hair—looking like the scruffy mane of an old lion—and lifted her head.
Despite her swollen, red face from the blows and her sour expression, she was still… pretty.
She had the vibe of a tragic heroine betrayed by her peers.
Our delicate damsel-in-distress’s first words after escaping the crisis?
“Ugh, those crazy b*tches… so freaking annoying.”
Getting beaten up is humiliating enough in private, but with us watching, she must’ve felt utterly mortified.
I targeted the half-up, half-down-haired girl who’d been pretending to be the “nice” one and proposed a truce.
“Let’s not argue about who’s right or wrong. Going to the police won’t do anyone any good, so let’s just end it here, okay?”
The redhead, eyes blazing, snapped back.
“Whatever, call the cops. She threw the first punch, and I was just defending myself. Let the police decide who’s wrong.”
“Fine, have it your way.”
I kept my tone nonchalant and continued eyeing the half-up girl.
“But I bet she feels differently. You’re a Jeje Entertainment trainee, right? Maybe even in the debut lineup…”
A flicker of panic crossed her face, as if wondering how I knew.
I didn’t know for sure if she was in the debut lineup, but she’s definitely a Jeje trainee.
Given they’re set to debut in about eight months, there’s a good chance she’s in the lineup.
I delivered the finishing blow to the stunned half-up girl.
“Wondering how I know? I’m a manager at VIP Entertainment. You know, GraceOne’s agency.”
That slashed the fighting spirit of the other three girls too.
I don’t know their majors, but since they hang out together, they’re likely all aspiring entertainers. My industry connection comment clearly rattled them.
Their next moves revealed who the real leader of the group was.
They glanced nervously at the half-up girl, muttering:
“What do we do…?”
“Should we just let it go?”
“We’re fine, but Jin-yu shouldn’t get hurt.”
This group revolved around the half-up girl.
The puzzle pieces of Seon-yu’s situation were starting to click.
Now I just needed her confirmation.
“Sorry, Seon-yu…”
In the end, apologies come from those with the most to lose.
Jin-yu, the petite girl, tearfully apologized to Seon-yu first.
But Seon-yu’s response was cold.
She clicked her tongue, looking away as if exasperated.
“Tch…”
“Are you joining VIP?”
Seon-yu didn’t even dignify Jin-yu’s question with a response, shaking her head in disgust.
“I hope you make it big. You totally deserve it,”
Jin-yu said, her words sincere to anyone but Seon-yu, who remained icy.
“Hah, here we go again. In the end, you’re the one out to ruin me.”
With that, she turned to me and the Free Sense members.
“Let’s go somewhere else.”
***
We relocated to a café a block away from the school.
Seon-yu, probably wanting to fix her disheveled appearance, headed straight to the bathroom.
Once she was out of sight, Ah-hyun urgently asked,
“Oppa, how’d you know that short girl was a Jeje trainee?”
“I have my ways.”
“So Seon-yu and her were at Jeje together?”
“Yeah, probably.”
“If my hunch is right, Seon-yu likely left Jeje because of Jin-yu.”
The rumors about Seon-yu probably centered around Jin-yu.
I recalled yesterday’s future video.
[Sibling Celebrities Part 3: ‘Idol’ Edition]
Seo Seon-yu of Free Sense.
Seo Jin-yu, a member of ‘Ze;US’, a rookie girl group set to debut from Jeje Entertainment in about eight months.
According to the video, they’re fraternal twins with completely different looks and personalities.
I recognized Jin-yu the moment I saw her in the park.
“What’s going on here? I’m just gonna stay quiet,” Seung-ah said.
“Oppa, are you really taking her for our team? I’m still not sure,” Ah-hyun added.
“Stag beetle. Skrrt skrrt. Those pincers were so cool,”
Jin-ah chimed in.
“Why’d you even bring that thing? It’s gross!”
“I’m gonna raise it nicely.”
“What? In the dorm?”
“Yup.”
“No way! Bring it here, and I’ll throw it out.”
“Stop the stag beetle hate.”
“Speak sense! Go release it and wash your hands.”
“Here she comes…”
Seung-ah spotted Seon-yu coming out of the bathroom.
I stood up, asked for her order, got drinks from the counter, and returned.
As the leader, Seung-ah was checking on Seon-yu’s condition.
“Oh no, there’s a scratch on your cheek. Put some ointment and a bandage on it before it scars.”
“I’m fine.”
“Wait, I’ll go buy some.”
I stopped Seung-ah from getting up and handed my personal card to Jin-ah, who had less stake in the conversation.
“Jin-ah, you go. There’s a pharmacy nearby.”
“Okay.”
“And release that stag beetle while you’re at it. You can’t keep it.”
“Ughhh.”
After Jin-ah left, disappointed, still clutching the beetle, I expressed concern for Seon-yu’s face and hair before slowly diving into her story once the drinks arrived.
“Seo Jin-yu’s your older twin sister, right?”
“How’d you know?”
Seon-yu’s expression was full of wariness, similar to how Seung-ah and Ah-hyun looked when recalling their toxic ex-members.
“Seo Seon-yu, Seo Jin-yu. The names are similar, so I figured you’re siblings.”
I wove the truth from the future video into my deductions.
“Since you’re in the same grade, you’re probably twins. And since Jin-yu called you by name instead of ‘unnie,’ I guessed you’re the younger one.”
“Wow, you’re like Conan,” Seung-ah said.
“What’s with this oppa…” Ah-hyun added.
Their eyes sparkled with admiration.
Feeling like an actual detective, I narrowed down the clues.
“You left Jeje because of your sister, didn’t you?”
“…”
“I think she pulled some kind of stunt on you. Spreading rumors, sowing discord, or stirring things up. Right?”
Seon-yu, silently fidgeting with her cup, began to tear up.
Soon, tears rolled down her reddened cheeks.