In the sacred school

Episode 7

“The principal, you called me?”

Mokyeon stood up and walked forward. But suddenly, the principal started yelling.

“What time did you come today?”

“Huh?”

“I said, what time did you come?!”

Everyone in the room was watching. Mokyeon’s lips trembled.

“Eight o’clock…”

“Eight? I just saw you coming in! What are you talking about? The chairman is already watching us closely, and now this?!”

Chairman? What was he talking about?

Sae-ah swallowed nervously. Ever since the new chairman took over, the principal had been acting more anxious, trying to impress him. And now, Mokyeon was getting caught in it.

“You almost came in at nine! Get yourself together, Mokyeon! Be responsible!”

The principal jabbed a finger at Mokyeon’s chest, nearly touching him, then stormed out, slamming the door.

He was always hot-tempered, but he had never humiliated a teacher like this in front of everyone before.

“Ugh… huhu…”

Mokyeon covered his face with his hands and sank to the floor. The other teachers hesitated before coming over to comfort him.

But why did the principal suddenly bring up the chairman?

Sae-ah replayed his words in her mind.

It really felt like he was taking out his anger because the chairman had pressured him. The principal never cared about teachers being late before.

If the chairman really said something…

Was it because of me?

Sae-ah shook her head. No, that was ridiculous. There was no reason for that.

“Teacher Han Sae-ah.”

A sudden voice made her turn. Vice Principal Kim Tae-sik stood there, looking serious.

“Yes, sir? Is there a problem?”

“I’ve been holding back, but I need to say this.”

Kim Tae-sik frowned deeply.

“Your classroom is too messy. A teacher’s job isn’t just standing around and chatting. You need to make sure the students keep their environment clean.”

But Sae-ah’s class wasn’t even dirty. Even if students cleaned every day, dust still built up. That was normal. Every classroom was the same.

Why was he complaining now?

And after watching Mokyeon get yelled at, this all felt even stranger.

“Yes, I understand. I’ll make sure they clean properly.”

Kim Tae-sik shook his head.

“You said that last time too. But nothing changed, did it?”

Then, suddenly, he grabbed a mop from the corner of the staff room.

Sae-ah frowned, watching him.

“Go clean the hallway yourself. See how much dust comes out.”

“Right now?”

Students were supposed to clean the hallways at assigned times, and Sae-ah always supervised them. She didn’t see why she had to mop alone now.

Especially when Kim Tae-sik was acting so strangely.

“I’ll make sure the students clean it properly later. If I mop now, it might disturb them when they arrive.”

“Oh, come on!”

Kim Tae-sik’s face turned red with frustration.

“Han Sae-ah!”

His sudden shout made Sae-ah flinch in surprise. Her body trembled slightly.

Everyone in the room turned to look at them.

It felt like the scene from earlier was repeating—just with her and Kim Tae-sik instead of the principal and Mokyeon.

“Do you not understand what I’m saying? Huh? I told you to clean! Do you think I’d be holding a mop myself if it wasn’t that dirty?!”

Kim Tae-sik was the type to be kind to people he considered “his,” but to others, he was harsh and demanding.

Everyone in the room was watching, but since he was older and held a high position, no one dared to speak up against him. They just looked at Sae-ah with pity or indifference.

“…Understood.”

Sae-ah took the mop.

A familiar, bitter feeling rose inside her. She looked up, remembering something from the past.

Her stepfather—always yelling, always using violence.

And even now, after all these years, just one loud voice could make her freeze up like a scared child.

But she refused to let herself break down. Gritting her teeth, she gripped the mop tightly and walked out of the staff room.

As she started mopping the hallway, students began arriving. Some of them noticed her and walked over, looking confused.

“Teacher, why are you cleaning in the morning?”

“Teacher, we can do it!”

Sae-ah pressed her lips together.

Her heart, already heavy with anger, suddenly felt warm from their kindness. But if she let that warmth in, she might start crying. And crying in front of students would be even more embarrassing.

“No, it’s fine. This spot was just a little dirty. You guys go inside and study.”

She forced a smile and kept mopping.

But maybe she used too much force.

She didn’t see the slipper in front of her and—

Splash.

“Ack!”

Someone yelped.

She lifted her head in shock.

The unlucky victim was Dong-jun.

His socks and slippers were now soaked from the dirty mop water. He lifted his foot, grimacing.

“You should watch where you’re mopping.”

“I’m sorry, Teacher…”

Sae-ah blinked.

Dong-jun had definitely seen her take the mop and leave earlier.

So why had he walked into her cleaning area?

Had he come to help?

Maybe he knew about Mokyeon’s situation too and wanted to talk about it?

That thought made her feel a little better.

But then—

“You should clean ahead of time. If you mop when students are coming in, of course, this happens.”

Her small hope immediately shattered.

Sae-ah frowned.

Wait.

Did he not know why she was mopping?

Was he just passing by and got unlucky?

“The vice principal told me to do it. He said I had to clean right now.”

“Oh, really?”

He really hadn’t known.

Sae-ah let out a small, disbelieving laugh.

“Oh man, my socks…”

Dong-jun grumbled, looking down at them.

“My cousin bought these for me from America…”

Sae-ah stared at him.

She had been humiliated, forced to mop the floor unfairly, and he was worried about his socks?

Even if he didn’t understand the situation, couldn’t he at least show a little concern?

And on top of that—she was a woman.

Shouldn’t he at least pretend to care?

It wasn’t like she expected him to stand up for her. But still…

“…I’m really sorry. Should I buy you a new pair?” she said, her voice tight with irritation.

Dong-jun’s frown deepened.

“How are you going to buy the same ones? They’re from America.”

Sae-ah felt her hand suddenly become lighter.

Before she even realized what had happened, the mop was gone.

Splat!

Dirty water splashed onto Dong-jun’s sweater and pants.

His already-wet socks absorbed even more water.

“What the—?!”

Dong-jun turned in shock, only to see someone standing there holding the mop.

It was Seong-han.

Dressed in a neat suit, he looked completely out of place holding a mop. But that didn’t stop him from dragging it across Dong-jun’s clothes like he was cleaning the hallway.

“What are you doing?!”

Seong-han finally stopped mopping and looked at Dong-jun.

“Why are you standing there? I’m just cleaning.”

“Cleaning?! Are you serious?!”

By now, Dong-jun’s whole body reeked of dirty mop water.

“Move. I need to finish cleaning.”

With that, Seong-han casually lifted the mop again.

“You—this—ugh! Are you insane?!”

Dong-jun trembled in frustration, glancing around.

Students were passing by, whispering and chuckling as they watched the scene unfold.

Dong-jun had a reputation for being proper and disciplined. No matter how angry he was, he couldn’t afford to make a scene here.

Gritting his teeth, he turned to leave.

But the floor was still wet.

Thud!

He slipped and fell flat on his back.

“Are you okay?”

Sae-ah rushed toward him, but he held up a hand, stopping her.

He slowly got up, rubbing his aching back.

“I’m fine. I’ll be going now.”

He shot one last glare at Seong-han before stomping off. But with every step, the strong smell of mop water trailed behind him.

Sae-ah turned to Seong-han, utterly speechless.

“What… was that?”

But Seong-han didn’t even look at her. He had already gone back to mopping, as if nothing had happened.

“Chairman!”

She tried to take the mop from him, but he simply looked up and said,

“This is part of my job—helping teachers focus on their classes.”

Sae-ah let out a short, incredulous laugh.

“Then why did you mop Dong-jun too?”

“He was in the way. I was just cleaning. Is that a problem?”

Seong-han shrugged, then continued mopping all the way to the corner of the hallway.

Finally, he turned back to her.

“You shouldn’t be doing this in the morning. It disrupts students during arrival. Cleaning should be done during cleaning time.”

With that, he handed her the mop and walked off, his shoes making a firm tap, tap against the floor.

Sae-ah stood there, watching him leave, completely dumbfounded.