When the Clock Strikes|Pi Han Ul x Reader|

chapter 21

Sure. If that meant suffocating rules, ruthless competition, and students who either wanted to climb over you or shove you down.

“Yeah,” I said vaguely. “It’s… strict.”

“Strict how?” Lee Jun leaned forward. “Like, crazy exams? Impossible teachers?”

“Both.”

Ji-Woo whistled. “Damn. What were the exams like?”

“Difficult.”

“Harder than here?”

I nodded.

Hui-Won raised a brow. “Then how did you do?”

I hesitated.

They were all staring now.

“I… was first,” I admitted.

Silence.

Then—

“WHAT?!”

Ji-Woo almost dropped her notebook. Lee Jun’s pen went flying. Ga-Min blinked rapidly, as if trying to process it. Even Se-Hyeon, who rarely reacted to anything, looked mildly surprised.

“No way,” Lee Jun said. “First?”

I shrugged. “Yeah.”

Ga-Min looked at me like I had just told him the sky was green. “Waa, You are a genuis.”

Ji-Woo gaped. “So, like, what’s your study method? Do you have a photographic memory? Are you a robot?”

I frowned. “I just… study?”

“That’s not a method, Cheonga.”

Hui-Won looked at me. “And yet, she’s first.”

Lee Jun sighed dramatically. “Man, And here I thought I was smart.”

“You thought wrong,” Ji Woo said.

Lee Jun shot her a glare.

Before the argument could escalate, Ji-Woo grinned. “Wait, wait. Let’s talk about something actually interesting.”

I had a bad feeling.

And I was right.

“The fight in the cafeteria.”

I sighed. “I knew this was coming.”

Lee Jun leaned forward. “You were insane.”

Ji-Woo nodded eagerly. “I swear, I’ve never seen anyone move that fast before.”

Hui-Won blinked. “It was kind of terrifying.”

Ga-Min, ever the nerd, adjusted his glasses. “It wasn’t normal.”

I stayed silent.

Se-Hyeon, who had been quiet this whole time, finally spoke.

“You’re not normal, are you?”

The room fell silent.

They were all watching me now.

Waiting.

I exhaled slowly.

“No.”

Ji-Woo leaned in. “Then what are you?”

I hesitated.

Then—

“I’m strong.”

They waited, expecting more.