Chapter 53 – Rule 22. The Leader Stays Composed (1)

 

“Leader, have you heard the rumors?”

 

It was nearing the end of my first semester as the Disciplinary Committee Leader when Ha Yesong’s words caught my attention.

 

“What rumors?”

 

The position of Disciplinary Committee Leader naturally comes with its fair share of gossip. To maintain my authority, it was necessary to stay informed about such rumors.

 

When I asked Yesong, she opened a cabinet door with a flourish.

 

“Eeek!! My eyes!!”

 

Park Minhyuk, who was holed up in the dark cabinet, reacted violently as if he were a vampire exposed to sunlight.

 

Whether it was the light or seeing Yesong’s face that caused his reaction was unclear.

 

“A maniacal Disciplinary Committee Leader who hides in cabinets like Park Minhyuk and catches culprits!”

 

Yesong closed the cabinet and approached me.

 

“Everywhere and nowhere at once, the Schrödinger’s Disciplinary Committee Leader!”

 

“Some rumors, huh.”

 

Starting from the time I had caught the school bullies in the abandoned classroom by jumping out of a cabinet, rumors had started spreading. As I practiced my spatial leap ability and caught offenders in various unexpected places, strange rumors began to circulate.

 

“You’ve been popping out from all sorts of places to catch kids, right? The ones you’ve caught are all terrified! You’ve been using your unique ability, haven’t you?”

 

“Well, yes.”

 

I nodded.

 

The officers are my closest colleagues. So, I didn’t hide my unique ability from them.

 

Yesong leaned towards me with a sly smile, covering her mouth with her hand.

 

“Leader, do you ever use that ability to sneak into girls’ showers or changing rooms…?”

 

“What do you take me for?”

 

Of course, there was that one time with Baek-seo’s shower, but…

 

‘That was out of my control.’

 

It happened because I was still unskilled with my spatial ability.

 

“Stop!!!”

 

Suddenly, the cabinet door swung open, and Minhyuk poked his head out, shouting.

 

“What kind of slander is that towards our leader! The leader is righteous and flawless! He’s not someone who would indulge in such vulgar fantasies!”

 

Yesong laughed derisively.

 

“Minhyuk, you’re so naive.”

 

“What?”

 

Yesong looked back at Minhyuk and extended her hand towards me.

 

“It’s precisely the stern and seemingly flawless leaders who, when they fall into disgraceful acts, create the most dramatic thrill.”

 

What nonsense.

 

Both Minhyuk and I scowled.

 

“The iron-fisted leader who is always dependable, calm, exemplary, and adheres strictly to the rules, accomplishing great feats. Imagine such a leader, unable to control his desires, finally betraying his beliefs and falling into corruption! Or, a leader like that showing a vulnerable side due to ‘unavoidable circumstances’…!”

 

Yesong was passionately raving.

 

“That’s the real thrill!”

 

Her eyes sparkled.

 

‘She’s serious.’

 

Was it some psychological desire to tarnish something pure?

 

It felt like a glimpse into the twisted aspects of modern society.

 

“…Leader, should I exclude her? There’s no hope for her.”

 

“Hold on.”

 

Minhyuk’s forehead veins were bulging in anger at the mere thought of tarnishing my image.

 

Of course, in terms of actual combat ability, Yesong far outclassed Minhyuk.

 

“Ha Yesong.”

 

I sighed and leaned back in my chair.

 

“Don’t project your perverted fantasies onto me. It’s disrespectful to me as a person, not just as the leader.”

 

“Leader, there’s always a demand for this kind of stuff, you know? Like muscle-heads binging on instant food to bulk up, or straight-A students going wild. That kind of thing has a catharsis.”

 

“What are you talking about….”

 

“Don’t you think so, Baek-seo?”

 

Yesong glanced at Baek-seo, who was reading documents on the sofa.

 

Trying to get some agreement, huh?

 

But she picked the wrong person.

 

‘Our Vice Leader would never agree with that nonsense.’

 

Baek-seo was as upright as they come at Ahsung High School.

 

She was a paragon of perfection, incomparable to someone like me.

 

Baek-seo agreeing with such twisted imaginings? No way.

 

“……”

 

“Baek-seo?”

 

Baek-seo seemed momentarily lost in thought, as if she had realized something and was deep in contemplation.

 

Even Yesong was taken aback.

 

“Um.”

 

Baek-seo regained her usual smile. However, her lips twitched intermittently.

 

What could she have been imagining to make her fail at maintaining her expression?

 

“I don’t think such imaginings are appropriate.”

 

Yesong narrowed her eyes.

 

“…Baek-seo, you were tempted for a moment, weren’t you?”

 

“No, I was not.”

 

What’s with the tone?

 

‘Surely she wasn’t actually tempted…?’

 

Baek-seo?

 

“See? That’s how it works, Leader. Even if you and Minhyuk-kun don’t get it, when someone seems too perfect, people get curious about when that perfection will break.”

 

“Huh….”

 

I hadn’t considered that.

 

I always tried to show a perfect image.

 

But does showing only a perfect image make people want to see that perfection crumble…?

 

What a contradiction.

 

“Look at Doha. She’s subtly lifting the book covering her face to gauge your reaction!”

 

“Hmph.”