.  ‘Come on, no one spoke to you like that!’


  While I stared at Jung Haneul perplexedly, Jung Yohan’s henchman said to him, “Sir, WE are like the mainstream now, so please accept the fact as soon as possible so that you can better occupy a higher position at the reorganized system afterward.”


  “A HIGHER position……? Hey, you’re asking me if I’m curious about the air higher up in the atmosphere, huh?!”


  “Ah, no…… no, it’s not. That’s not what I’ve meant……”


  From earlier, Jung Haneul kept pointing out the words or expressions that caught his ears. However, the other guy was somewhat marvelous while staying patient amid the situation.

  Suddenly, he opened up his arms and continued speaking, “Sir, I’m assured that you’ll definitely understand once you hear about Jung Yohan’s thoughts. What he’s trying to say is this; the whole Ranking Battle is too inefficient.”


  Becoming a little calmer, Jung Haneul moved his chin as a gesture to tell the guy to keep on speaking.

  “Go on.”


  “Why do WE have to fight each other? If we can gather our forces and strengths, we can do much greater things. Don’t you think the Ranking Battle just exhausts us?”


  “.……”


  “Now it’s time to play a bigger game. What we’ve been doing so far is the predators just preying on each other. So many herbivores are there outside the fences, but why do we have to compete ourselves inside? Besides, we built those fences, no, precisely, those who have outdated mindsets among us have put those fences out there.”


  My face stiffened. The metaphors he used such as the ‘predators,’ ‘herbivores,’ and ‘fences’ sounded quite intuitive and smooth.

  ‘Those who have outdated mindsets’ were also assumable. I threw a glance beside me. The guy would be indicating other ranked fighters who held the same view as Dae Lisa.

  Scowling at the sight with subdued eyes, her face looked unusually stiff. At that moment, I heard Jung Haneul’s response, which made me turn my head back to him.

  He spoke in a low voice, “Bullsh*t! Gather our forces to do greater things? Hell yeah! Doesn’t that mean I must work for you guys before having a real fight? Stay calm and obey your master…… Is that what you’re asking me?”


  “No, sir, I’m not asking you to obey us…… We’re just……”


  “Shut the f*ck up! It’s the same as stay put and just watch you guys seize power.”


  “What could be so bad about that? If you just watch us, we’ll guarantee your current position,” replied Jung Yohan’s henchman, stiffening his face.

  Jung Haneul gave a thumb down to the guy. He uttered, “Why do you think the Ranking Battle exists? It’s to sort out cowards like you, weak but cunning bastards standing together in a group, by power move.

  “We aren’t weak nor cowards.”


  “Then prove it! I ain’t listen to those weaker than me. Say what you want after the Ranking Battle, but if YOUR rank is lower than me, I will, of course, not give a sh*t to you though.”


  Listening to Jung Haneul’s determined remark, I exclaimed that these ranked fighters did have their own way of logic. Well, by saying that he wouldn’t listen to those weaker than him, Jung Haneul somehow shared the same view with Jung Yohan though.

  However, thankfully, he wasn’t trying to team up immediately with Jung Yohan’s side.

  Dae Lisa, beside me, also insisted, “Surprising, Jung Haneul. He fights like a weasel but talks very clearly, huh……”


  That was when I heard some noisy footsteps from behind us. The kids, who walked toward this place while Dae Lisa and I were coming here by scooter, seemed to have arrived now.

  When I turned to see the back, Yeo Ryung, Jooin, Ban Hwee Hyul, Yi Ruda, Yoon Jung In, and even Hwang Siwoo were there. He seemed to have joined the group on their way to this place.

  As I narrowed my eyes and showed an unpleased look, Hwang Siwoo slowly averted his eyes from me. At that moment, Ruda tapped Hwang Siwoo’s shoulder and said, “Hyeong, you said you’re gonna say sorry as soon as you see her face.”


  “I…… I’m sorry……”


  With that apology, Hwang Siwoo lowered his head somewhat hesitatingly. I still saw him in dissatisfaction. Well, there was no reason for me to not accept his apology since I wasn’t the actual victim; however, when thinking of what he had done to Ban Hwee Hyul and Yoon Jung In, I didn’t want to get close to him.

  That was when Yi Ruda spoke with a swiveling smile, “Donnie, it’s okay. Would Hwang Siwoo be that shameless to cover up the things he had done with just A WORD of apology?”


  “O…… of course…… not……” replied Hwang Siwoo as if he had actually tried to do so.

  Showing a wider smile, Yi Ruda said to me, “See? This hyeong is desperate to prove that he’s regretting his wrongdoings more than just putting it into words.”


  “Uh…… I…… um…… uh…… am I……?” murmured Hwang Siwoo.

  “He may want to do everything for you guys because he’s sorry.”


  “I mean……”


  “He would like to throw himself to whatever you, Ban Hwee Hyul, and Yoon Jung In ask for, or else, he wouldn’t even sleep from his guilty conscience.”


  “.……”


  Hwang Siwoo was now just looking up at the night sky wordlessly, pulling his chin high up in the air. I stared at him with a slightly pitiful gaze.

  With a bright grin, Ruda drove a wedge into his words, “Still, it’s up to you, Donnie, whether to forgive him or not, so watch what he does. If it still doesn’t please you, no need to accept his apology.”


  “Uh, yeah……” I nodded bitterly, but on the other hand, although I had never wanted to do so until just now, it seemed to be worth taking the option into consideration while watching Ruda flummoxing Hwang Siwoo.

  At that moment, I heard another crashing sound from the inside of the bar. Quickly lowering our bodies, we approached the backdoor. After checking out the situation inside through the slightly open door, Jooin looked at Dae Lisa, showing a bewildered look.

  “What is going on?”


  “Jung Yohan’s henchman tried to persuade one of the ranked fighters to join and work under them. It failed and turned into a brawl. I guess Jung Yohan is about to reduce the number of competitors prior to the actual Ranking Battle as much as possible.”


  Staring at Dae Lisa responding in a calm voice, Jooin frowned and asked, “Who are they inside?”


  “Jung Haneul from Dae Chun High School, and as far as I know, Jung Yohan’s henchman will be Park Ha Hyun from Sang Duk High School.”


  There was another crashing sound as if something was breaking into pieces. We turned our heads and observed the situation for a while.

  Still, it was a terrible dogfight. If one person defeated another, someone else threw a kick and made him collapse, then another stumbled on him.

  Just like his nickname, the Flying Squirrel, Jung Haneul was boasting his fancy moves. Flying rapidly over the tables, Jung Haneul wouldn’t let Park Ha Hyun dare to catch him. However, he suddenly came up with an unexpected plan to solve the situation.

  Pulling up his sleeves, Park Ha Hyun flipped the table. Jung Haneul quickly threw himself to another table while losing a flat surface to step on. Following his moves, Park Ha Hyun also flipped the other tables one after another.

  As he got to come down on the floor, Jung Haneul revealed his annoyance, “Gosh! You all muscles and no brain!”


  Holding our breaths, we kept watching the rest of the fight. Jung Haneul, who was almost forty centimeters shorter than Park Ha Hyun, couldn’t attack his opponent’s upper body without stepping on a foothold. Just as we expected, Park Ha Hyun was quickly dominating the fight after Jung Haneul came down to the floor.

  That was when Dae Lisa decided to intervene in the fight. Once she stepped forward and gestured at the boys, Yi Ruda, Hwang Siwoo, and Ban Hwee Hyul followed her and ran into the bar.

  The space became more chaotic with added participants.

  “What the heck? Who are they?”


  “Dae Lisa? Why is she here?!”


  “Who are those two?!! Hold on, I seem to get one of them. He’s been making a fuss in our area lately……”


  “I wondered why he wasn’t showing up at the Ranking Battle, but why is he here now out of the blue?!”


  The overall chaos didn’t last long. Clearing out Park Ha Hyun was easy for Yi Ruda, who competed the nationwide Number one Ban Hwee Hyul almost at the same level. He knocked down Park Ha Hyun with a single blow.

  Watching his opponent collapse, Yi Ruda declared composedly, “Park Ha Hyun’s rank is now mine.”