This World is too Cruel to Men – Chapter 578

To be honest, my heart was pounding a bit.

Well, it’s only natural since it concerns the secret of someone known as the world’s strongest, right?

With such a significant announcement about to be made for the first time in history, it wouldn’t be logical for anyone in this line of work not to feel their heart race in that situation.

So what could that secret possibly be?

Whether she was aware of the meaningful gazes from the crowd or intentionally ignoring them, Miss Almighty wasn’t quick to reveal her answer.

Because of that, everyone must have been on edge.

Hmmm, with an expression that was almost ominous, Miss Almighty finally spoke up.

“Ultimately, talent is what you are born with.”

I could almost hear the collective sigh of disappointment from the audience.

Well, of course it makes sense.

After dragging out her words, I expected some grand secret to be revealed, but it turned out that being born with talent is the best.

Honestly, anyone could say something like that.

Of course, the fact that it came from none other than the world’s strongest hero gave it some distinction, but… it still wasn’t particularly helpful.

It can’t be helped; saying that talent is innate implies that if you’re not born with it, you can’t reach a certain level, right?

Maybe that’s why.

The reactions of the attendees, who were each occupying their cherished seats at the invited lecture, split into two distinct groups.

While they didn’t show it too openly in this setting, it was clear to see those feeling somewhat dejected and those with their shoulders raised as if they had just received a compliment.

Thanks to that, it was easy to distinguish who was born with useful talent.

‘Well, there you have it…’

I had expected that unpredictable person wouldn’t just pacify others with pleasant words.

If I had known it would turn out like this, I wouldn’t have had any expectations at all.

Having felt hopeful after just hearing the first part suddenly made me feel foolish.

Just then, it happened.

“Well, I think that’s my opinion on the matter… but if I just leave it at that, many of you would be disappointed, right?”

I wonder if she learned while studying Korean that you need to listen to the full sentence; the statement that made the hearts of those feeling disappointed race came from Miss Almighty’s mouth.

“So, let me give you a small tip for the future heroes sitting here.”

Although she presented it as something trivial, there wouldn’t be anyone here so dull as to not realize that this ‘small’ tip was actually ‘the real deal.’

As everyone tensed their focus—

“How often do you all engage in imagination?”

Finally, the ‘real’ lecture from the hero known as the world’s strongest began.

“Many of you might think this is quite random.”

“···”

“You might be expecting me to tell you a fast way to become stronger, and instead, I’m speaking about something so out of the blue.”

Surprisingly, there wasn’t much response.

It could very well be that it’s a natural reaction.

Everyone could feel how serious Miss Almighty’s face was, far beyond what anyone had anticipated.

This moment couldn’t be missed.

So how could they afford to respond casually?

Thanks to that, aside from the sounds echoing through the speakers, it was perfectly quiet as Miss Almighty continued.

“But still… it’s a surprisingly good method. Self-improvement through imagination, that is.”

Her voice was so serious, it couldn’t just be a casual remark to fill time.

There was something captivating in the tone that drew the attention of the listeners.

With that, everyone’s concentration heightened—

“After all, in your imagination, anything is possible.”

Miss Almighty waved her hand.

A quiet gesture slicing through the air, which might have appeared useless.

What bloomed alongside it was a dazzling display of beautiful lights.

The light that blossomed sparkled like the Milky Way, adorning the hall’s ceiling.

However, that was just the beginning.

As Miss Almighty waved her hand again, flames wrapped around her body.

Perhaps aware of the many people around her, the size wasn’t that large, but they were definitely flames with substance.

The flames transformed into water, the water into lightning, the lightning whipped through the entire hotel hall as a gust of wind, and the wind morphed into blossoms of ice—all this occurred after Miss Almighty’s gestures.

It truly evoked the expression “transformations beyond imagination.”

Watching that spectacle left me in awe.

After all, there had never been anyone who could invoke such diverse phenomena in that manner.

With my mouth slightly agape in admiration, I also found a question rising within me.

‘What kind of talent does she possess…’

To cause such various phenomena with just a single gesture?

At that moment, I had no idea.

There were simply too many tossed-in elements to latch onto any one direction of reasoning.

While I couldn’t quickly develop my speculations, there was one thing I could be certain of: right in front of me, the opponent was ‘naturally gifted.’

One could liken it to a case similar to Bora.

Honestly, when Bora first demonstrated her talent, I thought I would fall over from surprise, but… this was something beyond what Bora could do, and I doubted it fell below her level.

Bora had at least the limitation of ‘having to draw,’ while it seemed Miss Almighty’s talent didn’t even have that.

Of course, this was purely speculation based on what I had just witnessed, and reality might differ.

Though at a glance, it seemed there were no limitations, there was always the possibility that conditions had been met unnoticed by others.

‘Even so, the fact that it’s an absolutely outrageous talent doesn’t change…’

Usually, inherent talents have some form of weakness.

Just as someone with fire-related abilities struggles against someone like me who can control water, there are these interdependent relationships at play.

The association’s meticulousness in assigning missions seems greatly influenced by those relationships.

If one were to push someone who can manipulate water like me against someone like Chae-rim, who handles electricity, that would be tantamount to saying, “good luck getting annihilated.”

‘Of course, if one’s output is overwhelming, they’d devour those interdependencies, but…’

That’s the general idea.

However, in the case of Miss Almighty, based on what I had just seen, it could almost be classified as non-elemental.

Non-elemental means that there aren’t weaknesses that one could exploit.

It was truly a trait befitting her title of the strongest in the world.

As a result, it was natural to wonder.

If, hypothetically, I were to face that woman as an opponent, how would I approach the fight?

Though I wouldn’t really be fighting other heroes, as she said, anything might happen in imagination.

Imagining scenarios was certainly feasible.

‘First…’

While I was enthusiastically running simulations in my head, assuming I would confront the woman diligently conducting her lecture one-on-one—

No matter what I did, even pouring everything from the get-go, I’d still end up on my knees in defeat, gnashing my lips in frustration when the unexpectedly thunderous applause broke through the haze of my thoughts.

With the sudden applause erupting, I wondered if the lecture would conclude.

‘How strange…’

It should still have some time left before the pre-scheduled lecture ended…

Curious, I turned my gaze toward the stage and locked eyes with the woman who was waving at the attendees and walking my way.

In an instant, a smile spread across her face, as if asking if they had been waiting long.

“Twenty minutes.”

“···?”

“It’s the time we have to satisfy our curiosity about each other.”

Just twenty minutes?

Considering all the things I wanted to ask, that felt far too short a time.

As I instinctively stiffened my expression, Miss Almighty’s hand, which had reached out without me realizing, lightly tapped my shoulder.

Then, with an ominous smile, she passed by, her footsteps echoing softly.