A monster sits quietly in the middle of the road, almost as if it’s a threatening sentence.
The earlier overreaction was due to the monster acting reflexively out of fear of being killed as soon as the angry me appeared.
“Um… so, the reason I came here at this time is…”
The surprisingly calm and well-behaved monster began to explain the recent changes aboard the spaceship.
“That, you know… Medik Tenkl, right?”
“Ah, yes, that one who can communicate.”
The monster first mentioned a specific monster rather than the overall situation aboard the spaceship.
Medik Tenkl was definitely an officer monster that had been in the recovery room.
Thinking about the tentacles that looked delicious in various ways, I nodded in response to the monster’s question.
Behind that short nod…
“Recently, that individual was promoted, and a new officer was assigned to that position…”
The news that a new officer had taken the place of Medik Tenkl.
Because of such a small change, there were minor conflicts between the spaceship’s transmission room and recovery room.
The monster explained, filled with deep apologies, that it had been compelled to appear here due to the unreasonable circumstances and the new officer’s reckless working attitude.
From that point on, it was less an explanation and more of a lamentation, as if the monster had much to vent.
“Isn’t it really unfair…? Every time we come out defeated by you, you say we’re useless… saying there’s no reason for you to stay long on this remote barbarian planet… I realize anew that the main enemy of soldiers on Earth is the officers…”
Within that lamentation, there were relatable stories.
Just like in the Korean military, where there’s a saying that ‘the main enemy of soldiers is the officers,’ it seems one newly arrived officer in the recovery room was causing a lot of chaos.
It seems that places where sentient beings live are all rather similar.
“You all are having a tough time.”
Still, all I could offer was a little empathy and a few words of comfort.
The monster thanked me, bowing its head repeatedly as if grateful for even such hollow words.
Then it earnestly requested a heavy understanding just like its prostrated position, asking to understand the entangled circumstances.
“So, it seems like such events will occur frequently for a while, and it’s not because we want it to, so please don’t be too angry, I’m having this conversation directly…”
The deeply apologetic sentences that seemed like something you’d find in paperwork.
I even felt a deep empathy seeing someone else’s subordinates explaining on behalf of the individuals responsible for the incident.
It was a pity that the previously peaceful deployment time became so chaotic, but there’s nothing to be done about being unable to find solutions from above.
“Right, you all have no blame.”
“Th-thank you…”
After the words of thanks, a silence ensued.
It seemed like it was time to go back.
Why isn’t that strange transmission device being used?
I gestured for the monster, who was only watching us, to return by bending and extending my fingers to show my palm.
“Why aren’t you going back? You just need to press that strange device button, it’s convenient.”
“Well, since the incident of the transmission device capture, issuing devices to monsters heading to the Black Zone has been restricted…”
When I asked why it wasn’t going back, this time the monster explained the situation revolving around the transmission device.
“Ah.”
Once it mentioned the transmission device capture incident, only one specific event came to mind.
The plan of preventing usable items from being accessed when issues arise was very similar to the problem-solving approach of the Korean military.
Although it was a form of revenge used for response speed tests, the monster in front of me was a victim of strict military-like operations.
My conscience, which was prodding me, was signaling that this time it was my turn to convey my apologies instead of offering empathy and comfort.
“Um, I’m sorry about that.”
“It’s fine… we should have refrained from such games as well.”
“Now that we won’t take it back, try asking for the device to be turned once…”
“Yes…”
After a round of mutual reflection and agreement, I provided a respectful and painless death as we returned to the school bathroom.
Unlike usual, the monster handling time had exceeded ten minutes.
As the faintly ringing alarm completely ceased with the disappearance of the monster’s presence, students flooded into the school.
They entered through the bathroom window at the back, not the front of the school where everyone was crowding, and released their transformations.
As the bustling noise began filling the classroom, they naturally came out of the bathroom and joined their places, as if they had just come out from there.
Seohyun, who had naturally fallen behind while heading to the playground, asked me nonchalantly as I entered the classroom.
“Where had you been?”
“To the bathroom.”
I spoke the truth without blinking an eye.
It’s not a lie that I had gone to the bathroom.
Anyway, students and teachers rushed to the playground without any order or set rules.
As a result, students were gathering only with their close friends regardless of class…
In the disorganized crowd, even the teachers didn’t know who was present and who wasn’t.
However, when they called out for students by grade and class in the playground, elementary students weren’t the type to gather just because they were told to.
It was truly the optimal environment to sneak away and transform, handle the monster, and return.
Unlike my vague fears from elementary school days, the school’s attitude toward the appearance of monsters had changed a little, so it was easier to conduct activities.
… Of course, this improvement only came after filing a report to the education office.
“Ugh, the flow is all ruined… what page were we on?”
After the commotion, as students filled the classroom one by one, the teacher exclaimed, leaving enough shock in the students.
Having wasted half the class but continuing the lesson?
No one said which page it was, and only a strange silence filled the classroom, questioning ‘Is he serious?’
Then, unable to bear it any longer, one classmate raised their hand and spoke.
“Teacher, there are 20 minutes left.”
“And so? Open the book.”
“Eh-eh-eh-”
Sadly, it seemed the teacher’s inquiry about finding the page was serious.
As the students confirmed this, a pent-up boo erupted from them.
In an instant, the classroom’s atmosphere fell to the depths.
The teacher’s eyes widened as if thinking, ‘Why are these kids acting like this?’ and compared to the students who had to watch their words, the adult teacher did not hold back.
“Hey, you guys have tests coming up in less than a month.”
“Tell us a fun story!”
“I only have military stories to share.”
“That’s great!”
In the moment where the teacher declared they only had military stories to tell, the class’s unity shone through.
Anything that served as a distraction from class would be better than just sitting through it.
The students were tightly huddled together with that thought, regardless of gender, loudly shouting.
The unexpected unity surprised the teacher, who then crossed their arms, resting them on the teacher’s desk, seemingly acknowledging defeat, and began to recount a story.
“Girls, just let it slide as it is, listen carefully, boys.”
A story that every man who has served in the military must tell, yet the girls listening find repulsive—the tales from ‘that place.’
The students successfully deviated from the future of continuing lessons and found success in changing the subject.
Thinking about it, it’s obvious why teachers who divert to different stories earn positive responses from students.
Nostalgic yet incredulous tales from the military.
When it comes to military-related stories, if they sound like lies, they must have indeed happened.
In the subsequent classes, I listened half-heartedly, getting through the day before heading home with Shiyeon.
As we walked at a comfortable distance, Shiyeon initiated a conversation.
“Did something happen?”
“Huh? What do you mean?”
Shiyeon asked out of the blue if something had occurred.
Seeing the disjointed question, I wondered, ‘Is my expression strange?’ as I passed by an old residential area, briefly catching my reflection in a discarded wall mirror.
… It’s just my regular face.
As I awkwardly stared at the mirror, Shiyeon continued.
“It seemed the appearance time was long, and the handling felt slower than usual.”
“Oh, that’s why.”
Finally understanding, I replied with a short acknowledgment.
She was concerned not about my expression, but because the monster handling seemed a bit delayed.
In most cases, due to timing issues, it was my role to step in.
Since Shiyeon’s perception had improved quite a bit, we often talked about monsters outside like this now.
Of course, without directly using key phrases like monster or magical girl, we often omitted subjects or subtly referred to people.
After all, middle schoolers casually mutter their thoughts.
People tend not to listen closely when it isn’t directly related to them.
Whether the delayed handling referred to the morning’s monster or the one I caught in last night’s game, who cares?
“With the change of superiors, I guess this will happen occasionally.”
“Then, it means it could appear during class as well…”
“Things have been quite calm lately without any major issues.”
Even Shiyeon couldn’t hide her disappointment, hinting at the possibility of daytime monster appearances.
After we returned home smoothly, Shiyeon boldly proclaimed.
“Now, let’s set the monster elimination dates!”
“Yeah?”
