I Became the Leader of Academy City

3 – Rule 2. The Chief of Discipline doesn’t eat alone

She arrived earlier than anyone else, enjoying the morning air seeping into the closed department.

On arrival.

As soon as she entered the vintage Discipline Department office, calm and tension unexpectedly came together.

‘As expected, I’m the first one here.’

It was cozy.

Quiet.

Turning on the light and brewing a hot coffee, she sat at her desk.

Steam rose gently from the coffee cup, with the subtle scent of the beans spreading throughout the room.

Holding a cup of coffee and looking out the window, it was quite scenic.

Ever since the start of the year, I realized that I really liked this moment.

So I always intended to enjoy the silence and tranquilleness during the mornings.

I took a sip from the cup.

Spat!

“Ah, sh*t! It’s hot…!”

My mouth almost got scalded because of the heat.

A bit of coffee even spilled.

“Sigh.”

It would have been a disaster if I had dropped the coffee cup.

‘Just now…did anyone see?’

I quickly looked around.

Luckily, no one was there.

My actions just now could have tarnished the dignity of the Head of Discipline.

I couldn’t tolerate showing such a clumsy side of me to others.

I promptly wiped up the dripped coffee with a tissue and eliminated the evidence.

I almost showed an undignified side of myself.

I sat back in the chair and started to enjoy my peaceful morning again.

As if nothing had happened.

“Sigh.”

The coffee smell was really good.

“Good morning, Head. Have you had breakfast yet?”

“Gulp…!”

I almost choked on the coffee.

“Cough…”

Luckily, I managed to swallow it.

I turned my head towards the entrance of the room where the voice came from. A graceful female student with a sword at her waist entered the discipline office with a gentle smile.

It was Vice Head Oh Baekseol of the Discipline Committee.

“Vice Head…, you’re early. Good morning.”

“Good morning.”

“This is breakfast. Just a cup of coffee will do.”

“Isn’t that a bit weak? You don’t have to have a full meal, but it’s good to intake some nutrition.”

This guy, what’s with his timing?

I didn’t hear any footsteps from the hallway for sure.

‘It’s as if he was hiding next to the door and appeared…’

A creepy imagination crossed my mind, but I soon shook my head.

Our considerate and innocent deputy chief wouldn’t do that.

‘It must be in my imagination.’

I must’ve missed it because I wasn’t paying attention.

Finally, I concluded.

Baek Seo casually sat on the couch and placed a wrapped sandwich on the table.

“Is that breakfast?”

“Yeah, an egg mayo sandwich. Cheap.”

Baek Seo took a bite of the sandwich and chewed slowly.

…Is it because I’m hungry?

It looks like a convenience store sandwich, but it somehow looks delicious.

“…Do you want some?”

Eventually, Baek Seo looked at me with his big eyes and asked.

His timing was so perfect, I would’ve thought he heard my inner thoughts.

As if he predicted ‘Woo Jin would think like this’.

“No, it’s okay. I’m not eating.”

But there was no thought of eating something just because it looked tasty.

‘It’s beneath my dignity to beg for a bite. As a leadership head, one must strictly refrain from such behavior.’

Undoubtedly, it would gnaw away at my dignity like a baby mouse.

Especially Baek Seo is the top talent of the leadership and virtually my right-hand deputy chief, so I could not display such an undignified image in front of her.

“You looked like you wanted some. You can have some, on the condition you eat from where I bit.”

“I said I’m not eating… And stop making strange jokes.”

“hehehe.”

Baek Seo laughed teasingly.

There was no doubt she proposed an indirect kiss, knowing I would refuse.

In the game, Baek-Seo was a supporting character of minor significance.

So I didn’t know his exact personality, but now I was very much aware of ‘what kind of person he was’.

“Anyway, as I said, it’s all good. This is more than enough for me.”

I showed off my cup of coffee with its faintly rising steam.

Even at a time of leisure, I wanted to demonstrate ‘the dignified image of a van leader’.

I could sneak a sandwich later, just need to hold off for a bit.

“Really? Yum.”

Baek-Seo deliberately used an onomatopoeic word as he took another bite of his sandwich.

Although I intended to have a leisurely breakfast.

Since I didn’t expect Baek-seo to have breakfast here, the atmosphere grew awkward, so I started reading the agenda I needed to review.

That’s when it happened.

‘Wait. This smell…’

I had overlooked it while engrossing myself in the aroma of coffee beans.

A fierce, unidentified smell had stealthily filled the room.

What Baek-Seo had brought was an egg mayo sandwich, made of boiled eggs mixed with mayonnaise.

But this smell could not possibly come from a simple egg mayo sandwich.

What was this violent aroma that strongly stimulated my appetite?

Soon, I figured it out.

‘Grilled bacon…!’

It was the smell of bacon.

There was crispy bacon in the egg mayo sandwich?

And that too, grilled bacon?

As saliva gathered in my mouth, my appetite began to roar.

‘Oh damn, I want to eat it…!’

I wanted to ask for just one bite.

I desired to enjoy on my tongue the fantastic synergy of finely chopped boiled eggs, creamy mayonnaise, and grilled bacon…!

The burgeoning desire in my heart turned my eyes towards the clock.

‘It’s still a while before the cafeteria opens.’

I was in a situation where I couldn’t run off to the school cafeteria right away.

Who would have thought that arriving at school early in exemplary manner would lead to such an unfortunate event….

In the end, is my only option to ask Baek Seo for a bite of his food?

‘No matter what…’

I can’t.

Asking for ‘a single bite’ would damage my image, built up with blood and sweat.

Baek Seo would surely let me have a bite.

However, as the student council president, I didn’t want to seem even slightly inferior.

Some might call me old-fashioned.

Some may ask me what the problem is.

But I, the student council president, am number 1 in the power hierarchy and lead a disciplinary committee with about 400 members organized into 10 squads.

In leading the committee to subdue villains, I needed to reign as a person whom the members can trust and follow.

Even if not perfect, I had to exist as a person who is more dignified and closer to perfection than anyone in this school.

So, I had to be strict with myself.

Not a single misstep was allowed.

It was a courtesy towards those who follow me.

It was the responsibility that must be fulfilled as the leader of a group.

It was a duty.

So.

‘I won’t ask for a single bite…!’

I will not scrounge for the bacon-egg-mayo sandwich.

I will pretend to be unruffled, to rise above this situation.

I had to wait until Baek Seo finished his sandwich.

Just then, suddenly.

Something was placed on my desk.

Only then did I realize that I had been involuntarily closing my eyes tightly.

“?”

Feigning tiredness, rubbing my eyes, I cautiously opened them.

For some reason, a lunch box was placed in front of me.

Beyond it, Baek Seo was there, smiling softly.

“Tired, Mr. President?”

“I’ve lost some sleep recently due to work. But what is this? Did you retrieve lost explosives or something?”

“It’s a lunch box, as you can see.”

A lunch box?

Suddenly?

Why?

“Open it.”

Upon opening the lid of the lunch box, I saw two egg mayo sandwiches made with great care, and a fresh salad sprinkled with dressing.

It was such a beautiful lunch box that I automatically admired it at first sight.

But it was hard to understand why he’d brought such a thing for me.

When I hinted for an explanation, Baek Seo opened his mouth.

“I made it to eat at lunch, but… I’m tired of it. Would the manager like to eat it? Otherwise, I’ll have to throw it away.”

Oh my god.

“Because of the sandwich you just ate?”

Baek Seo nodded calmly.

“Your mind could change by the time lunch rolls around, right?”

“I’m going to eat something else. I just thought of something I want to eat.”

“Hmm, if that’s the case… There’s nothing I can do. It’s inappropriate to throw away good food.”

That’s true.

Although it’s not good for my image to take a bite of something someone else was eating, in this case, it would be alright.

Saliva automatically pooled in my mouth.

It looked much more delicious than the convenience store sandwich that Baek Seo had eaten.

Even the bacon sticking out as if sticking out its tongue, was tantalizing.

He must have paid attention to the appearance.

“Thank you. I’ll eat it well.”

I picked up one sandwich and took a bite.

‘Wow…!’

The fluffiness of the bread.

The soft-boiled eggs that were chewed smoothly in sequence and the deliciously rich mayonnaise together created a fantastic flavor.

Meanwhile, the grilled bacon produced an amazing synergy with its chewy texture and subtle salty taste.

“!”

The sudden emergence of sweet chili sauce intensified the savory flavor.

When mixed with the bitterness of coffee, a blissful harmony spread in my mouth.

I took one bite after another from my sandwich, which swiftly vanished from view.

“Chief, is it good?”

Before I knew it, Baekso was sitting next to me at my desk.

Certainly, it was a taste so tremendously delicious.

Without showing excitement, I gave the highest praise with nonchalance.

“Could you possibly share the recipe next I want to make it too.”

The taste was so good that already I preferred to have it again, hence I asked for him to teach me. That’s was the message herein.

However, for some reason, Baekso shook his head.

“That I can’t do. I won’t tell you.”

“Why?”

“If you want, I’ll make it for you again next time.”

Seriously?

“Isn’t it bothersome? There’s no need to do that?”

It would make me feel guilty.

Baekso waved his hand with a don’t worry about it kind of smile.

“I like cooking. I’m happy to have the opportunity to cook.”

Ah.

Well then.

In a previous life, when I was into cooking, I felt the same.

“If that’s the case…, I’d be grateful.”

Baekso smiled contentedly.

“Enjoy your meal.”

Baekso descended from my desk and headed towards the entrance.

“Are you going to class?”

“Yes, we have a first period class.”

“Take care.”

Baekso left the student council room waving lightly.

“Wow….”

Left alone in the shoddy room.

Finally released the sigh that was barely held back.

This sandwich is unbelievably delicious.

My bride position is currently vacant, recruiting fervently.

Even luring me to place an invitation card there.

…Perhaps it would be rude to propose without considering the other’s wishes.

Suddenly, I remembered the peony amulet in my pocket, which stung my chest.

But, that is an emotion already burnt past its prime. Disregarded it.

Anyway,

‘Why is this so delicious? Is there something different in its filling?’

I picked up the bread, wanting a closer look at the ingredients.

But the ingredients themselves looked perfectly ordinary.

“Hmm?”

When I was about to put the bread back, I noticed something strange.

There was chili sauce smeared on the inside of the bread.

Since the main ingredients were light-colored egg mayo, the chili sauce stood out prominently.

However, the pattern of the smeared sauce was a bit odd.

‘A heart?’

For some reason, the chili sauce was in the shape of a heart.

The shape was too fine for it to be dismissed as a mere coincidence.

It would have been nice to compare with other sandwiches, but they were already chewed up and digested, making comparison impossible.

“…..”

A strange thought crossed my mind, but I immediately shook it off and shook my head.

He said it was a sandwich he brought to eat.

There’s no way he made it for me. That’s just an excessive interpretation.

I wouldn’t even know the sauce was heart-shaped if I just ate the sandwich.

‘Maybe he sprinkled it into a heart shape for fun because he likes hearts.’

It’s common for girls to like hearts.

I almost misunderstood a simple thing.

Anyway.

After finishing off the remaining sandwich and salad, I leaned back in the chair, lost in the lingering flavors.

‘Delicious…’

That day, thanks to my breakfast, I was in good shape.

Starting tomorrow, I should not skip breakfast.