Apocalypse’s Teacher

Chapter 41

Patriotism is a Serious Matter (3)

***

‘What the heck is this?’
Th i s w a s c o p i e d f r o m ki n gm tl. o rg

In the personal room that had been completely renovated from one of the rooms below the penthouse, I was sweating profusely as I looked at the vocabulary dictionary.

‘How do I memorize this…’

The moment I saw the English words, a sense of dizziness and the agony of my past knowledge crumbling filled my entire body.

I don’t know.

I don’t know this devil’s language.

Sure, there was a time when I could memorize 100 words a day without any trouble, and these words looked familiar, but they wouldn’t stick in my head.

“Pr-Pro….”

I tried to pronounce it somehow, but it was impossible.

Why was this happening?

As I pondered, the answer came easily.

‘…Of course not.’

I had abandoned my studies for five years.

If you count the years I’ve ignored English, it’s been ten years.

Had I even come into contact with English during that time?

No, I hadn’t.

Since the world’s end, all I had done was survive and engage in guerrilla warfare.

With a brain saturated with explosives, alcohol, and corpses, it was impossible to memorize these bland words.

T h is w a s c op i e d fr o m k i n g mt l. o r g
It was a hopeless situation.

My hands trembled, and my heart pounded.

I had to memorize 1,000 words, and 40 of them would be on the test.

Mr. Park and Helen were in charge of the questions.

T his w a s copi e d fro m k i n g m t l .org
Helen had a grudge against me, and Mr. Park had no intention of helping me.

I had to admit.

‘I’m screwed….’

Thirty-three-year-old middle school PE teacher Lee Seokho was on the verge of losing to fifteen-year-old elementary school dropout Kang Ki-hyun.

***

Ki-hyun focused intensely on the words entering her ears.

“Okay, words that start with ‘pro’ generally imply ‘forward.’ Don’t be scared of long words; they’re just combinations of shorter words. In Korean, it’s like ‘cheongdungori’ (teal duck).”

Jung-min’s detailed explanations were a great help to Ki-hyun’s memorization.

Instead of simple memorization, writing while memorizing.

Even using the perspective of the test maker to predict 300 potential questions.

It was a fight she couldn’t lose, even if she tried.

Everyone in the shelter was on Ki-hyun’s side, and despite her lack of formal education, her brain was highly receptive.

With three days left until the bet, Ki-hyun’s memorization was progressing smoothly.

“Next, words that end with ‘al.'”

Ki-hyun’s pen moved.

About twenty words ending in ‘al’ appeared before her eyes.

She wrote them down and listened again.

“Words ending in ‘al’ are nouns. When writing their meanings, think of them as states or qualities, not actions.”

Her hand moved busily.

Inside, she burned with competitive spirit.

-Anything!

Seokho’s words, saying he would do anything if she won the bet.

That was what fueled her.

‘He definitely said anything.’

Ki-hyun smiled.

She knew Seokho liked to maintain his dignity.

‘You’re dead meat.’

With a plan already in mind for how to use this opportunity, Ki-hyun found her detested studying to be rather enjoyable.

***

“Apple!”

Hyesung shouted.

I smiled wearily.

“Good job, Hyesung….”

“Apple!”

Hyesung, who had barged in while I was memorizing words, kept shouting ‘Apple!’

It seemed she really liked the only English word she had learned recently, as ‘Apple!’ was now her favorite word after ‘콩콩이’ (bean sprout).

I needed to focus, but I couldn’t.

Every word I tried to memorize turned into ‘Apple!’

It was a desperate situation.

As much as I wanted to chase Hyesung away….

“Apple is a tree!”

Hyesung was too cute.

My heart melted.

With Hyesung’s beaming smile, words and bets seemed unimportant.

Hyesung hugged her bean sprout pot and sat on my lap.

“Hyesung is going to grow an apple tree!”

“Really? Will you give me an apple later?”

“Yes!”

As I stroked Hyesung’s hair, she closed her eyes and enjoyed the sensation.

How could she be so angelic?

Maybe Hyesung will become the ‘angel bean sprout’ she talks about.

Useless thoughts continued, and my mind went blank.

‘As long as Hyesung is happy.’

With Hyesung being this adorable, the vocabulary test seemed insignificant.

“Apple!”

“Oh, our Hyesung is doing great!”

The important thing was ‘Apple.’

Not Bill or Pearl, but ‘Apple.’

In that moment, I realized once again.

“Apple! Bean sprout!”

Indeed, Hyesung was the best.

***

T h i s w a s cop i e d f ro m k i ng m tl .o r g
“Operation success.”

Jung-min gave a thumbs-up.

Ki-hyun and Helen nodded in satisfaction.

It was clear that they were engaged in some underhanded tactics.

What more could be said?

Even Hyesung’s interference with Seokho was part of their plan.

Two bottles of cola secretly given to Hyesung.

A considerable expense in these times, but worth it to them.

Ki-hyun wanted to win the bet.

Helen wanted Seokho to give her meat.

Jung-min wanted to see Seokho humiliated.

United by a common goal, their alliance continued to carry out their devious plans.

“With that brain, there’s no way he memorizes all the words, but it’s good to minimize the variables.”

“Agreed. Seokho is wily. No room for complacency.”

“Alright, let’s move on. Ki-hyun, how many words have you memorized?”

“…About 150.”

“Good, good. Everything’s going smoothly.”

T h i s w as c o p i e d f ro m ki ng m t l. o r g
Jung-min’s cackling laughter echoed through the penthouse.

A little distance away, Jinwoo, who was folding laundry, couldn’t help but smile awkwardly.

‘Hmm….’

He felt a pang of sympathy for Seokho.

But Jinwoo did nothing further.

‘…Because my sister is scary when she’s mad.’

Jinwoo was a shy and simple boy who feared Ki-hyun’s occasional murderous glares more than Seokho, who always treated him like an uncle.

***

On the day of the test, I faced Ki-hyun with a tense expression.

Th i s w as co pi e d f ro m k i n g m tl . o r g
I swallowed dryly.
T h is was c o p i e d f ro m k i ngmtl . o r g

My heart pounded with nervousness.

‘I can do this…!’

Despite not being able to spend much time studying because of playing with Hyesung!

Despite having a hardened brain that struggled to absorb words!

Th i s w as c o pie d f r o m k i n g m t l . or g
I still had a trump card.

‘Cheat sheet…! I’m counting on you!’

The words densely packed into my tightly clenched fist gave me confidence.

Don’t call me a coward.

This wasn’t the time to be picky about methods.

It was a matter of a teacher’s authority.

A matter of my identity.

“Alright, take your seats!”

Mr. Park clapped his hands.

He had been showing up more frequently under the guise of test preparation, but had never helped once, which was just annoying.

I glared at Mr. Park as I sat down.

Then Helen handed out the test papers.

Forty neatly written words on an A4 sheet lay before me.

As tension rose once more.

“The time is 10 minutes! Start the test!”

The trigger was pulled.

I grabbed my pen.

Sneakily opened my fist to look at the cheat sheet.

‘Got it!’
T h i s w a s c o p i e d f r o m k i ng m t l . o r g

There were pre-written answers on the test paper.

About 15 of them.

Fifteen out of forty words wasn’t much, but how much could Ki-hyun have done?

‘I’ve got this!’

I rejoiced.

I began writing.

Thankfully, it seemed my authority would be preserved.

***

It wasn’t preserved.

“Ki-hyun scored 28 points! Seokho scored 15 points! Ki-hyun, you win.”

Mr. Park’s words made my heart sink.

As I turned my head with a creak, there was Ki-hyun with a smug grin.

“I won, huh?”

Her words were filled with blatant provocation.

My whole body trembled.

Fragments of speech that couldn’t form words pathetically spilled out of my mouth, making my mind go blank.

I couldn’t accept it.

Something was wrong.

So I slammed my desk and shouted.

Bang!

“This is a scam!!!”

All eyes turned to me.

But I couldn’t back down.

I glared and steeled myself for a fight, but…

“Losers shouldn’t talk so much.”

My voice didn’t reach anyone.

Ki-hyun approached.

I instinctively took a step back.

I wanted to create distance, but even that was impossible.

Ki-hyun came closer and whispered softly.

“You said anything.”

Her voice had a hint of a smile.
T h i s w a s c o pi e d f ro m k in g m t l . or g

“I’ll think it over slowly.”

With that, she patted me on the shoulder and walked away.

Thud.

I fell to my knees.

Overwhelmed by shame and humiliation, my vision went black.

As I trembled in despair, Mr. Park approached.

“Hey.”

I glared at Mr. Park.

There was nowhere else to vent my anger, so I had to glare at him.

Even that was a failed attempt.

“You idiot, cheating with a cheat sheet?”

His words came with a mocking smile.

“Oh, uh…?”

“I saw everything, you moron.”

Mr. Park clicked his tongue.

Then he walked away.

I felt hollow.

Shame covered all my negative emotions and layered over them.

Meanwhile.

“Apple!”

Only Hyesung’s shout echoed in my ears.

End of Chapter