Bamboo Forest Manager - Chapter 319
The Peeping Tom
Naturally, my charges were quickly cleared.
Though they spoke of distributing false images, it was neither false nor distributed.
“Thank you for your hard work.”
The officer Baek Ho-hwan escorted me out of the police station, his face a tapestry of complexities.
At first, he had believed I maliciously manipulated the images of Jung Chan-woo and Ahn Hyun-ho, spreading them with ill intent. The thought that male university students could have taken such photos never crossed his mind, nor did he imagine we would share them among ourselves for amusement.
After speaking directly with them and showing my image, he apologized profusely and released me.
“I will provide a separate explanation to the complainant. They mentioned they reported it out of concern, after all.”
Well, that’s their business.
“But now, do I have to exercise restraint even when posting profile pictures?”
Isn’t this a free democratic country?
I could voice my displeasure like in our English department group chat, but was this really a matter that warranted police investigation? Even if the prank had gone too far, it felt a bit absurd.
At that, Officer Baek’s expression darkened, and he let out a long sigh.
“Ugh, we’ve been receiving a lot of such cases lately.”
“I mentioned it earlier.”
“Indeed. Especially concerning university students, manipulated images are circulating—”
“Hmm?”
“But the victims are numerous. Not just from Gahyeon University, but from other regions as well. There have even been cases abroad.”
This sounded familiar. Wasn’t it the same story Bong-geun had told me?
“It seems they have their own network among themselves. Nowadays, it’s so easy to create such things. For instance—”
“An open chat room?”
At my words, the officer chuckled dryly and nodded.
“Exactly. Such things are quite rampant. In fact, unless there are whistleblowers or infiltrators, it’s nearly impossible to track them down.”
“Can’t you just infiltrate?”
“That’s difficult. They create chat rooms to gather people before their activities, and after that, they close off any new entries. They only accept those they are sure about.”
As I compared this to the recent posts about disappearing open chat room recruitment in the bamboo forest, it seemed to match perfectly.
“Would you like to see this?”
I pulled out my phone and showed him the saved link to the open chat room.
“You know the Gahyeon University bamboo forest, right? This was the link that was posted there.”
“How… how did you get this?”
“I found these a bit bothersome, so I saved them just in case.”
“This… this will really help.”
“Then I’m just a good citizen reporting on those criminal scum, right?”
“Yes, exactly. Of course, this is just the beginning, but you’ve definitely given us a lead.”
“Then later, tell the reporters that the youngest son of the Cosmic Group played a huge role in solving the case.”
“…Huh?”
Her expression was one of confusion, as if she couldn’t fathom why the Cosmic Group was suddenly mentioned.
I smiled and gave a thumbs up.
“Got it? I’m counting on you.”
This time, I went to Hawaii and spent a bit too much of my older brother’s money.
Even when the kids asked if it was okay, I just ignored them and splurged, to the point where my older brother called me once.
‘This should be fine.’
If the media catches wind of how I helped catch those socially unacceptable s*xual offenders, my older brother might ease up a bit.
‘Ah, this worked out well.’
I didn’t even have to lift a finger for the case to be resolved.
This is why one should live a good life. Then, even while lying down, opportunities will come knocking.
* * *
“So it got resolved like that?”
In the student cafeteria.
Choi I-seo, sitting across from me, paused her spoon mid-air, staring at me.
“Yeah, it got resolved. Just give me a bowl of sundubu, will you?”
“No way. You can eat yours. How did it get resolved so simply?”
“Right? I was surprised too. The timing was just perfect. If it’s meant to be, it will be. Just give me some broth.”
“I told you to eat yours.”
“Can’t you spare me a bite?”
Pouting my lips and trying to look cute, I was met with Choi I-seo pretending to hit me, so I quickly withdrew.
“You ordered sundubu too.”
She pointed at the stone pot in front of me, questioning.
True, I had ordered sundubu as well.
“If it were a different dish, I’d share, but what’s with wanting to share the same dish? Besides, you haven’t even finished yours yet.”
“……I put too much salt in earlier.”
“How much did you put—ugh! Ugh!”
Saliva splatters.
Choi I-seo, who took a bite of my dish, rinses her mouth with water and then huffs in annoyance.
“I’ll pour some broth into yours. And if you mix in some rice, it should be decent enough.”
“Thank you!”
“Sigh, why do you have to tire people out with strange things?”
“No, it’s because someone bumped into me from behind while I was pouring the salt.”
I had a point, albeit a small one.
We continued our conversation while eating the now restored sundubu jjigae.
“Yerin’s been really busy lately, right? Didn’t she say she started filming?”
“Yeah, they said it’s a pretty significant role this time. What was it again, the eldest sister at an orphanage?”
“Wait, you know her role too?”
“I talk to her every night. Since she can’t come to school these days, we chat a lot.”
“……So that’s why you didn’t answer my call.”
Choi I-seo, with a spoon in her mouth, clicks her tongue.
“Huh? What did you say?”
“Nothing.”
I nodded at her awkward smile.
“It’s true I missed your call because of Seo Yerin. I saw the missed call, but it was too late to call back.”
“……Why pretend you didn’t hear it when you did?”
“Because your reaction is cute?”
“…….”
Her ears turned slightly red at my words, and she busily ate her sundubu jjigae.
When our conversation drifts in this direction, she often gets shy, and it’s really endearing.
“Since I shared my sundubu jjigae, I’ll treat you to coffee and cake.”
After finishing our meal, we headed outside to the café on campus.
There was still a bit of time before classes started, so our chatter continued.
“Woo-jin, when are you going to the military?”
“Right? I haven’t received my enlistment notice yet.”
—
“Don’t your parents ever try to stop you? Usually, rich kids just get away with it.”
“My parents don’t do that. Unless I’m sick, they tell me to go. My older brother went for that reason. The younger one couldn’t go because he got fat.”
“Hmm.”
“Why? Do you wish I wouldn’t go, somehow?”
“Half and half?”
That’s unexpected.
I thought Choi I-seo would definitely say that getting out through illegal means was out of the question.
“I kind of wish you wouldn’t go. Not because I have any thoughts about the duty of defense, but just because I don’t want to be apart from you.”
“And the other half?”
“I want to see you with a shaved head. I think it’d be cute.”
“…….”
“When you shaved your head, can I touch it? No, wait, can I just shave it for you?”
“You can touch it, but then you have to shave yours too.”
“Shave my head? Don’t even female soldiers do that?”
Choi I-seo, flustered, touches her own hair.
But that’s not what I meant.
“No, I meant down there.”
“Waxing, you mean?”
“Yeah! If you shave my head, I’ll shave yours down there!”
Honestly, I want to try something smooth. As I ask with sparkling eyes, Choi I-seo sips her coffee, pondering for a moment.
“Uh, um. If you really want—?”
What? I didn’t think she’d actually agree.
“I-seo, what do we do?”
“Why again? I said I’d do it.”
“My little buddy is angry.”
“Just hold on.”
Imagining shaving Choi I-seo’s pubic hair makes me stand up.
If it really happens, I feel like I won’t be able to shave half of it and will just pounce instead.
“Ahem, what about Arin? I can’t see her much since my classes don’t overlap that much.”
I respond while picturing the smooth Choi I-seo in my mind.
—
“He’s busy too. YouTube has been doing quite well, you know. They say he practices at the taekwondo studio three or four times a week.”
Yua-rin’s taekwondo performance channel, ‘Cheer Up Team,’ launched with the master, took off from the very first video, riding the algorithm’s wave.
With the help of Oh Yoon-ji, a YouTube expert, they borrowed editing tools and filming equipment, making the first video feel anything but amateurish.
And the taekwondo performances were undeniably spectacular.
The leader, Yua-rin’s striking beauty played a significant role too.
“But why is it called Cheer Up? Honestly, it’s a bit—”
“Cringe?”
“…….”
“Their taekwondo studio is named ‘Daehan Himnae Taekwondo,’ you know. They say it was named during the IMF crisis.”
“Ah.”
“The master wanted to go with ‘Himnae Team,’ but Yua-rin strongly opposed it, so they settled on Cheer Up instead.”
“She’s having a tough time too.”
I heard they plan to post not just performances but also daily vlogs and challenges to build the team’s character.
“That sounds kind of fun. Arin must be thinking a lot about it.”
“So she asked me to come on once.”
“You?”
“She wants me to appear as her boyfriend. She says there are too many guys in the comments showing interest in her.”
“…….”
Choi Yi-seo squints her eyes, resting her chin on her hand, clearly displeased.
I sipped my coffee, trying to gauge the mood.
“Can I at least use a photo of us as my profile picture?”
“Sure, but… if you do that, rumors will really start flying around.”
So far, the word hasn’t spread in college that the three of us are dating. Just whispers about someone among us being in a relationship.
In truth, those rumors probably only circulate within the English department; other majors wouldn’t even know.
“Sigh, fine. I’ll hold back. But don’t go on Arin’s channel. If weird rumors keep spreading about you, it’ll be really bad.”
“Okay, got it.”
Anyway, won’t everything reset once I go to the military?
I had that thought lingering in the back of my mind.
“Let’s get going. I need to hit the restroom.”
The anger from earlier, sparked by Choi Yi-seo, had finally subsided, and I could stand up now.
—
Just a moment away, and there stood Choi I-seo, waiting by the entrance. She shook the moisture from her hands as Ahn Hyun-ho and Lee Gyu-ah entered the café.
“Ah, I-seo. Hello.”
“Hello, sunbae.”
“Hmm, yes. It’s been a while.”
Once, Ahn Hyun-ho had doggedly followed Choi I-seo. He claimed to have shaken it off, yet standing face to face, an awkwardness lingered in the air.
“Ahem, step aside.”
As I squeezed between them, their expressions relaxed, as if a spell had been broken.
I thought they would simply go their separate ways.
“Ah, Kim Woo-jin. Good to see you. Let’s talk for a moment.”
Lee Gyu-ah sent them off to order, and as Choi I-seo stepped out of the café, Ahn Hyun-ho called me over.
“What?”
Was he about to ask about the police investigation from the last time, the one sparked by that Ahegao meme?
“Is there something strange around I-seo?”
“Who? You?”
“I’m not joking.”
His serious demeanor made him cross his arms, a subtle tension in the air.
“What’s going on?”
“Well, Gyu-ah mentioned that she thinks there’s a stalker lately.”
“A stalker?”
From noble mtl dot com
“Yeah, she said she saw someone filming—photos? Videos? Something like that.”
“Hmm.”
I shifted my gaze toward Choi I-seo.
She was gesturing toward me, waiting for me to join her.
And beyond her, across the street, a man was awkwardly angling his phone camera toward her.
“Is that it?”
I hadn’t meant to sound so serious.
After all, a phone camera could easily be turned by chance.
If you grabbed any random guy on the street and accused him of being a creep, that would just be madness.
So I had thrown it out there as a vague example.
—
“Is that b*stard getting away?”
As our eyes met, the man suddenly panicked and bolted.
Without a word, An Hyun-ho and I took off after him.