Chapter Text
It’s a normal day. Lunch break’s just started and only three students remain in the Literature club room, invested in their stories just like always. Because of how well they got along, and how despite being in different classes and grade levels they’d be found together more often than not, they were known across the school as the Bookworm Brothers. The name may or may not have been coined for the express purpose of annoying those three peculiar boys.
The oldest–who shouldn’t be in the club and instead be preparing for college and whatnot–is a stoic boy named Kim Rok Soo. Other than the trademark attitude of nonchalance he holds with anyone who isn’t a certain shiny sunbae–revered as the Crown Prince of Roan-Sekwang Academy–or the younger Bookworm Brothers, he really is a normal guy(?).
The second oldest(he refuses to be called the ‘middle’ child)–who just showed up in the clubroom one day while two of his hot-headed classmates(who were far too handsome or influential for their own good) were duking it out across the school and yelling his name–is a shy boy named Kim Dokja. True to his name, he is biologically an only child. Of course, ever since the Bookworm Brothers was coined, he didn’t consider himself so. Not much is known about his home life, and everybody is too scared to ask.
The freshman–sought after by the Occult Club , Writers Club, and Student Council– is a boy named Kim Soleum, who happened to have a lucky encounter with the Literature Club after days of evading all the parties after him and almost immediately(less than 5 minutes!) signed up. Rumor has it that whenever asked to consider his club membership by said parties, his expression would morph to one on the verge of tears, which would result in a demand request to have the Student Council President impeached.
Rumor also has it that certain forces with a little too much interest in the Bookworm Brothers are currently scheming something…
* * *
“Did you guys see the notice board this morning ?” Kim Dokja ran into the room and got straight to his question. Normally, he would have taken his time teasing his clubmates about the latest chaos their rivals/nuisances had created. This time though, he was worried.
He watched as Kim Soleum averted his eyes and slumped into the bean bag they had gifted him not too long ago. Their youngest was trying to disappear into his seat. It took Dokja every bit of self control he had to not coo and fawn over their adorable junior. In the corner of his eye, he saw Kim Rok Soo silently clicking his tongue at him in mock disapproval. And then the oldest of them began smirking.
Uh oh
Rok Soo was someone whose facial expressions had their own variations. Having spent about 4 years observing his hyung, Dokja knew the smirk of pity directed at him was a bad omen– no, the confirmation of a bad omen hurtling towards him…
“What’s wrong with the notice board ?” Soleum spoke up.
Dokja flopped down in his usual seat before answering. He was parched from literally running to the club room, mostly because he had to update headquarters and maybe a little bit because he had to escape the drilling stare of a certain Sunfish-bastard.
“The latest Student Council update had a coded message.”
“What type?” Rok Soo immediately asked.
“An older type. Not the type used for parties and stuff. The message itself wasn’t written by a single person, it felt like the writers were…polar opposites.”
“Student Council’s just a medium?” Rok Soo’s lightly frowned.
“Choi sunbae’s not that passive though…” Soleum’s mumbles were loud enough in the quiet mini-library of theirs.
“Choi doesn’t play chess.” He voiced his dongsaeng’s thoughts. “That blond scammer does.”
“Wait. What does the message even say?” Soleum audibly tapped away on his phone, his face pulled together as he focused.
“It’s basically a challenge against our club. The message itself was written idiotically but the gist of it is that we’re being threatened to take part in an inter-club test of courage unless we want all the illegalities of our club to be aired out.” Dokja huffed.
Their gazes of concern and pity went towards Soleum, who had paled a little.
* * *
A Day Ago
“Wow~ Everyone’s here?” A student with a scar around his neck grinned mischievously.
In the relatively spacious rectangular room, students from different clubs were gathered. And only two people were smiling brightly.
“Wow~ So even the monarchy and government can get along?” A girl with falcon-like eyes retorted, making no attempt to hide her sarcastic and mocking tone.
“Pfft! My, my. The Occult Club sure has some free spirited members.” The golden haired orchestrator spoke effortlessly in the room filled with hostility and tension.
All the groups here had consistently been the school’s hot topics since their current line of members had joined. They were the cream of the crop in their respective fields but their fame–or rather infamy–came from the fact that they almost always had a hand in the abnormal level of chaos Roan-Sekwang Academy’s PR Team was paid double to handle.
Currently, the main representatives of each club were present. They were…
From the Occult Club, Eun Haje
From the Combat Department, Yoo Jung-Hyuk
From the Finance Department and the Writer’s Club, Han Sooyoung
From the Earth Sciences Club and Department, Rosalyn
From the Student Council, the President Choi and the meeting’s note-taker Bihyung
The Organizer of this Meeting, Alberu Crossman
What did these powerhouses scheme? How are the Bookwork Brothers involved?? What chaos will the halls of Roan-Sekwang Academy witness this time???
Find out in the next chapter!