SUP Chapter 30: Ian and His Backup Plan

Ian’s furious outburst was loud.

His accusation at Madison drew the class’s attention. Whispers stopped. Over thirty pairs of eyes turned to Ian, brimming with curiosity.

“Huh?”

Madison’s hand hung midair, still in the pose from pushing Ian. She slowly withdrew it, her expression puzzled, clearly not grasping why Ian reacted so strongly.

“Yo~”

A whistle came from the back, from the class’s naughtiest kid, followed by hoots from others, sensing some romantic drama between Ian and Madison.

Everyone crowded over to gossip.

“No, no, no, there’s no story here for you to munch on. This guy’s just having a brain fart, and I don’t even know why he’s so worked up!” Madison rolled her eyes at the crowd.

She was an eye-roll expert.

“A blushing boy beats all excuses.” Someone mimicked a high-pitched voice, a prankster in the crowd, making the onlookers’ gazes turn even more suggestive.

“Eddie, what crap’s spewing from your mouth?” Madison grimaced, confused, then turned to Ian, shaking an empty pill bottle, and gasped, “Damn, why’re you blushing now?!”

The blonde girl was getting exasperated too.

“I’m pissed! Pissed! Do you know how much you cost me?” Ian shot back, his voice thick with resentment.

He was calculating his losses.

The more he counted, the more his heart bled—Ian felt if he faced a tough enemy later and fell just short of a few EXP points, he’d haunt his desk mate as a ghost.

“?????”

Madison had no clue what Ian was on about.

At that moment, “Ha! I knew it!” Emily, with wavy brown hair, stormed in after asking around, glaring furiously at Madison.

“Ian doesn’t like me! And you, you bitch, targeting me! There’s a reason!” She stole a glance at Ian, who didn’t even look her way.

No choice.

The heartbroken boy was still fixated on his lost leveling buffs. To Emily, this looked like Madison’s “emotional manipulation” of Ian.

She gritted her teeth at Madison.

Madison rolled a massive eye, unfazed. “Save it, Emily. I target you because you lack even the talent to be a bitch.”

She made an exaggerated “gap” gesture with her fingers, the kind that’d thrill a Korean. “Try practicing with more guys? Oh, wait—”

Madison’s acting was deliberately over-the-top, feigning sudden realization, covering her mouth to mock Emily mercilessly.

“You’re already doing that, aren’t you? But no progress? Only learned how to seduce?” Madison led the jeering laughter.

“Fight! Fight!” The classmates, loving the chaos, egged them on. Emily, trembling with rage, was about to roll up her sleeves for a hair-pulling battle when the classroom door slammed open.

A bespectacled man, exuding authority, strode in.

“Quiet!”

Chemistry teacher Walter White, new to Metropolis Public High this year, carried a commanding presence, possibly tied to rumors of knowing gang members outside school.

Word was, he was a gang leader.

Teaching was just a cover for his crime boss identity. With such a wild, almost soap-opera-like backstory, plenty of students bought it.

Thus, the jeering crowd scattered instantly.

Emily slunk back to her seat.

“Class begins.”

Walter White launched into dry chemistry lessons.

Lunchtime, the cafeteria buzzed with noise.

“Where’s that badass?” Ian, carrying a full tray, scanned for his target, then walked straight over, sitting across from a lanky boy from another class.

In the noisy setting, someone sat opposite.

“Hm?”

Sam Winchester looked up at Ian. Not wanting another round of Ian’s show-off vibe, he instinctively grabbed his tray to leave.

“Sam.”

Ian called out.

“Sam Winchester, right?”

He confirmed the identity. “If my research is correct, you have an older brother, Dean Winchester, right?”

“Can we talk?”

Ian kept his tone polite. Sam, initially reluctant, circled back after hearing his brother’s name.

He set his tray down.

Two family-first guys sat face-to-face, but the vibe wasn’t exactly warm.

“What’s your point?”

Sam stared hard at his classmate. He was wary but slightly less tense, knowing his family had no women involved.

“Why investigate me?”

Sam’s tone was sharp.

Ian didn’t answer directly.

“Some kids think you’re a loner, so they mess with you… I’ve dealt with them.” Sensing Sam’s resistance, Ian offered goodwill first.

“Oh?”

Sam frowned.

“Dealt with those pests? You mean you chopped them into five pieces, hid them in five places, and burned them to ash with salt and kerosene?”

“I hope you stabbed their hearts with a holy-water-soaked demon-hunting knife to shred their souls.” The puppy-like boy’s calm tone belied his shocking words.

“?????”

Even Ian’s composure nearly cracked. Seeing Ian’s stunned look, Sam smiled faintly, as if confirming something.

“So, you’re here because of my family’s business.” Sam took a bite of his food, his earlier words clearly a test.

“Smart.”

Ian sighed.

“My grades aren’t much worse than yours, thanks.” Sam replied, pulling out a notebook. “Tell me what’s going on.”

“Spiritual events haunting you, or nightmares waking you up?” He prepared to jot down and analyze Ian’s situation.

Sam had done this routine countless times.

But, “I’ll cut to the chase.” Ian didn’t mention he controlled his scores to let Sam keep up, proof of his high EQ.

“I don’t need your family’s ghost-hunting service. I just want you to ask at home, check if…” Ian glanced around, leaning closer.

“How do I kill a reaper?” Not seeing any reapers nearby, he still lowered his voice, truly a bombshell.

“Hiss!”

Sam sucked in a breath.

“You’re insane! Kill a reaper?!” His knowledge was vast, and he knew what Ian meant, which surprised Ian.

“Well, not exactly.”

Ian paused.

“Phew~”

Sam barely exhaled.

“I want to kill a nest of reapers.”

Ian corrected his wording.

“?!?!”

Sam’s eyes nearly popped out, his expression horrified. Seeing Ian wasn’t joking, he felt he’d met a genuine lunatic.

Killing a reaper!

A whole nest of them!

What kind of mental state dares to dream this?

[NEXT CHAPTER]