"Today's game is─"
Before he could finish his sentence, the game immediately started.
"!?"
He couldn’t see or hear anything.
His body felt pinned down by a heavyweight, and only his head could move.
He desperately tried to turn his head around.
"!?"
With a heavy thud, his vision returned.
What he saw was... a cheap wooden floor. He could hear laughter. Yes, it was the laughter of students.
"Who are you?" a gruff voice asked him. "Why did you suddenly collapse?"
Bubblegum blinked rapidly, trying to assess the situation. It seemed he fell over the desk while nodding off.
"Didn't you hear me?"
A math teacher who looked like he could kill a man with one hand kept asking why he fell over. If he admitted to nodding off, he was sure to face repercussions.
"I, I fainted. I have a weak body..."
"Fainted? Do you want me to make you faint for real?"
"Yes... make me... faint!?" Bubblegum suddenly realized what he just agreed to with the monstrous man and was taken aback.
The large figure started to approach him.
Bubblegum stepped back in fear of the approaching teacher, missed his step, and...
He lay flat on the floor.
***
A moment later…
Following the students’ laughter...
Bubblegum got up again and looked at the chat filled with laughter.
A male student stood right in front of him.
The nametag read Kim Woo-Jung.
"Hey, Pinky."
He teased Bubblegum with a smirk.
"Pi-Pinky...?"
Pinky? Why such a name?
"Yeah. Pinky, right? Don't you like the nickname I gave you?"
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtKim Woo-Jung leaned in with an intimidating look.
"No, it's not that... I have another name."
"Hey, Pinky."
A girl from behind called out. Just as he turned to see who it was…
His head snapped back to its original position.
The girl spoke with cackling laughter, "It's the skull reset, isn't it? This is so hilarious."
"Pinky seems to feel pain pretty well."
The girl's name was Yoon So-Hee. Some viewers who switched over from Almond’s stream seemed to recognize Kim Woo-Jung and Yoon So-Hee.
The back door roughly opened and a well-built male student entered.
"...?!"
Bubblegum became speechless.
He was afflicted with the fear status. Disbelief filled his face as he read the status explanation.
Then, a question came out of the blue.
"Hey, Pinky. Did you slap So-Hee's hand?" the male student who just entered, Baek Joon-Soo, asked him.
Others laughed at the ridiculous assertion.
“How can you hit a girl?”
Baek Joon-Soo rolled up his sleeves and approached.
Bubblegum's eyes widened in alarm.
Bubblegum had been gaming for ten years and instinctively knew how to dodge attacks, but…
Due to these three debuffs, his movements felt sluggish.
Once again, he found himself staring at the ceiling.
The screen went black.
***
After that, he opened his eyes in the nurse's office.
Faint letters briefly informed him of his location before vanishing.
“Hey, everyone. What’s with the generation talk? I can conquer this game in two days. I'm a pro at games like this.”
“Everyone, my father once told me something.”
“My son, play your own game. You don't need to match others, so don't compare. I’ll show you my unique playstyle.”
“Alright, analysis time. From my quick glance, this game seems like a hipster-style game with high freedom where it progresses as if it’s reality. They just toss us a little minimap and that’s it, right?”
Bubblegum looked around, determined to prove his viewers wrong.
“Oh, are you awake?”
The school nurse’s voice reached his ears. She looked to be in her late twenties, a traditional beauty. If not for her white coat, she could be mistaken for a news anchor.
“What exactly happened to you? Tell me the truth.”
He couldn't find the words and the nurse frowned.
He felt puzzled about why a PE teacher would be here, but one suddenly appeared from behind with a clenched fist.
The sturdy PE teacher scratched his head, his face turning red.
“I mean, there's blatant bullying among the students. How can you just stand by?”
“Discipline is the responsibility of the homeroom teacher these days. If corporal punishment was allowed, I would've used a golf club by now…” The PE teacher suddenly recalled something and spoke to the nurse, “I left my golf bag in the storage room. Wanna play a round next time?”
“After I see how well you behave~”
“Hey, why are you like this? Let me give those kids a piece of my mind, okay?”
“Goodness.”
Bubblegum listened to their conversation and turned to his microphone channel, “What are they doing?”
They were too obvious about being a teacher couple. Students were usually oblivious, but this was too obvious.
The gym teacher and the nurse simultaneously stared at Bubblegum.
“...?”
An awkward silence followed.
Bubblegum’s voice mistakenly went from the streaming channel to the game channel.
A brief silence fell and the gym teacher asked, "What are you saying?"
"Oh, it wasn't that. I... I felt dizzy. Everything was spinning. School is so overwhelming!"
The gym teacher, possibly as a warning or to show off, flexed his thick biceps and left the infirmary.
"Pink Pig, I understand you may have grievances with school life... but you should maintain some manners, okay?"
The nurse didn’t seem to believe his feeling dizzy excuse.
"Oh, yes..."
"For now, eat this to calm down."
She offered him a Choco Pie and cola.
"We have plenty because of the blood donation event today. Don't refuse."
"I need to go oversee the blood donation car. Rest here a bit more. I'll handle your leave for today."
The nurse left with those words and loaded a cart full of Choco Pie boxes and colas. It looked too much for her to handle alone.
"Ma'am, let me help you."
"Oh? I thought you left."
"How can I leave with all this here?"
As expected, the gym teacher was still around.
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmBubblegum carefully changed to the streaming channel and said, "I feel like I should eat this, shouldn't I?"
Bubblegum claimed to be a survival expert and had been thinking about food as soon as he heard about the Choco Pie and cola.
"There's plenty of water inside and the infirmary door looks solid. This seems like a good place, but taking away all the Choco Pie and cola was a bit..."
Bubblegum checked around the infirmary.
"Oh, there's more here."
There was as much Choco Pie and cola left as she took. Half still remained.
The gym teacher had mentioned the golf club earlier. It could be an excellent weapon in an emergency.
Not only did Bubblegum have a golf club, but he also found a cell phone on the infirmary bed.
"Huh?"
He realized it was his own phone and could access it with his face ID.
"Oh, looks like they brought it to me in advance since I left early!"
It seemed like the school nurse thoughtfully brought it for him. However, he quickly forgot that act of kindness and sneakily left the infirmary, following behind the school nurse and the gym teacher.
"It seems all I need to figure out is the Choco Pie..."
The two chatted about something and looked quite friendly. They walked so slowly as they pushed the cart that he easily caught up.
“Is there any way I can snatch that away?”
Bubblebum got closer and even considered the possibility of stealing from them.
In an emergency, he genuinely considered stealing from them. However, there was no need to get his hands dirty yet.
Suddenly, the school nurse oddly twisted and bit the gym teacher.
"Hey, nurse. Already being this touchy... Huh?!"
He couldn't jest any longer when her teeth dug deeply into his shoulder. The look in her eyes wasn't the same as before.
"What... What's happening..."
The gym teacher managed to push the nurse off and carried her over his shoulder.
The school nurse thrashed about and clearly wasn't in a normal state.
"What... What is this? We need to call 911. Call 911!"
He held his phone in one hand and sprinted toward the school gate while bleeding profusely.
Meanwhile, Bubblegum smirked as he stealthily brought the cart back to the infirmary and locked the door.
Tears filled some of the chat messages.
"Now, let's check. Weapons, ample hygiene items, medicine, food..."
He started coldly calculating. Having played many games, he didn't immerse himself in the situation like Almond.
"Oh, but there's no bathroom. That's a pity."
Compared to Almond, Bubblegum started with an abundance of resources.
"It's like a game where you carry a golf club, beat up zombies, and must reach a bathroom."
The game had such a straightforward structure.
"There's a bed and everything you'd need!"
That was when Almond's viewers realized that Almond should've just set his pride aside and taken the hit.