Chapter 284

〈Chapter 284〉 Part 1, Chapter 13, Section 1

July 23rd, dawn.

The day of the decisive battle has arrived.

Rusalka no longer had to deal with her fiancé problems, and I managed to avoid a crisis by making Rasputin my monster.

Based on one assumption that turned into certainty: Azidahaka recklessly increased the number of S-rank or near-S-rank monsters.

Since most dark-element ability users are either villains or have villainous tendencies, it’s likely Azidahaka made them his underlings, given his personality.

I worried if any heroines might be turned into Azidahaka’s monsters, but fortunately, his influence hasn’t reached them yet.

‘It’s because I’m holding down Seoul.’

Before, maybe I didn’t notice because I wasn’t paying attention, but now that I’m showcasing my presence in Seoul, it’ll be hard for him to come here easily.

‘But now I have to leave this post.’

The concerns I had while forming the Blue Wind Sect in Seoul are finally coming to light. What happens if an Association-Round Table-Dark Legion commander attacks Seoul while I’m away?

‘Fortunately, the Association and Round Table won’t do that.’

The Association is planning to go to India with me, and the Round Table is currently allied with me against the Dark Legion. In the end, the only ones I need to worry about are the Dark Legion commanders.

‘There’s absolutely no need to worry.’

With the second strongest hero in this world after me standing firm, even the commanders won’t dare invade Seoul easily.

SS-rank Round Table hero, *Snow Lotus* Seok Harang.

Before leaving, I flew briefly to Busan to talk with Seok Harang.

* * *

<5:30 AM, Seok Harang's house in Busan>

“You shouldn’t barge into your girlfriend’s house before she’s even showered. Understand?”

“Who said you’re my girlfriend? Wake up.”

Seok Harang yawned as she sat at the table, and I handed her a not-too-heavy morning drink. As usual, it was yogurt packed with blueberries, which she took without complaint.

“First off, good job. You’ve been guarding well while I’m gone.”

“It’s barely been two days…”

“Still, there could be unforeseen issues. There might be other problems besides the commanders.”

I passed over data from Yun Yuhwa to Seok Harang, who frowned immediately upon seeing the list.

“Those bastards…”

“The *Fleeing Ones*. That’s what they’re called now.”

After the Pyongyang incident, these opportunists quickly renounced their Korean citizenship and fled overseas, only to return swiftly to New Seoul once things stabilized.

“Aren’t those guys causing much trouble right now?”

“Not really. They keep creating chaos demanding to return to Seoul and reinstating lost citizenships… Ugh.”

“They don’t need to bother me.”

“Thanks then. With all the commotion, they seem embarrassed to come to Busan and just head straight to Seoul instead. Probably to see you.”

They still haven’t shaken off the idea of turning Cheongnyeon into their national hero. I passed the list to Seok Harang with a warning.

“Be careful. An Azidahaka monster could infiltrate unnoticed.”

“Yeah… talking about that high dragon and demon stuff, huh… Ugh, creepy.”

Seok Harang glanced down at her lower abdomen and blushed slightly. I couldn’t help but smirk.

“You’re worrying about the wrong things, virgin.”

“I need to worry… If you ever decide to… you know, later, I should at least get a sense of how far you can go, right?”

“…Lately, you’ve been so blatant, don’t you think?”

“So what?”

Seok Harang giggled and nudged my knee with her foot. I crossed my legs to stop her and sipped my strawberry latte.

“Anyway, you’re too exposed.”

“Why? Can’t I be open like this? You know very well I only act this way around you. Besides, aside from Sister Yuha, you’re the only one who knows the password to this house.”

“…You never run out of things to say.”

You told me not to break the window, so I came through the front door—now there’s nothing you won’t say. But if I stay here any longer, Seok Harang will definitely stop me, so I redirected the conversation back to the original topic.

“Anyway, watch out for Azidahaka’s monsters. They could pop up anywhere, anytime.”

“Ah, changing the subject because you realized you were at a disadvantage? Hmph, got it, got it. Stop glaring; you’re just cute when you do that. I understand what you’re saying.”

“What did I say again?”

“To carefully check if the Fleeing Ones are Azidahaka’s monsters… Isn’t that why you’re asking me to come to New Seoul?”

“Right.”

Thankfully, Seok Harang gets it now. She understands more from the mana transmitted alongside my words than from the words themselves.

“Rasputin was hiding the fact that he was a monster too. Someone is definitely targeting me.”

“Hmm… There are many people targeting Cheongnyeon, but would Azidahaka really target you? If I were him, I’d go after those dark-element kids.”

“That’s exactly why I’m telling you to guard New Seoul.”

Who among the people in Korea with high dark-element potential stands out? First, there are the villains imprisoned in the special ability prison. Among the Blue Wind Sect members in Seoul, Hwangak Kim Ji-hwa is representative, but Hwangak is already my monster.

“At least there’s A-rank Baek Hee-a. Don’t worry about her; I’ll take her to India.”

“…I don’t really like her anyway.”

Seok Harang openly showed her dislike. I wondered if she and Baek Hee-a had some kind of connection. Didn’t they get along fine during the Black Sand Raid?

“She keeps suggesting I move my house to New Seoul whenever she sees me.”

“……Well, that makes sense.”

Even though Seoul and Busan aren’t that far apart, and it would only take minutes for Seok Harang to fly to New Seoul at full strength, the residents of New Seoul still feel uneasy.

SS-rank Phoenix in Seoul.

SS-rank Seok Harang in Busan.

Though outwardly appearing to be rivals, the citizens of this country now know the truth. Therefore, while the residents of New Seoul strongly dislike me for eliminating Light Blade, they also seek a hero to fill that void.

“There’s only Hwakwon in New Seoul, after all.”

“And he loses to both you and me, right?”

“You’re only four years younger, calling him uncle is excessive, isn’t it?”

“What difference does it make? I have no reason to call Hwakwon uncle. Are you scared I might call you uncle someday? Hmph, pretending not to care but clearly bothered.”

“…No, I was just concerned about Hwakwon. How did the conversation turn like this?”

I felt pricked unnecessarily, so I quickly returned to the original topic.

“So, I plan to make Hwakwon SS-rank.”

“Seriously?”

Seok Harang’s eyes widened in surprise. I continued explaining without hesitation.

“Don’t we want as many allies as possible, even if not directly on our side? Why not create another SS-rank comrade?”

“Are you serious about making that uncle SS-rank? Wait, is that even possible?”

“Of course. That’s also why I asked you to come to New Seoul.”

I was slowly preparing to teach Seok Harang methods to elevate human growth limits.

“Creating an S-rank water-element ability user to bring to India.”

Through handshakes, I awaken abilities and enhance affinity rates—something regular squad leaders can’t do, but spirits can. To put it in Hikari’s terms—

“I’ll teach you how to max out levels. Let’s properly inflate the ability users’ power.”

“Wow.”

There are plenty of water-element ability users in Korea. Though not all of them can reach S-rank, at least they can surpass their current limits by one or two ranks.

“So, shower and fly to New Seoul. I’ll drive down from Seoul.”

“Drive?”

“Yeah.”

I swirled my strawberry latte with the straw as I spoke.

“This is also a chance to upgrade my ride. From S-class to SS-class, you know.”

***

<At that moment. Private jet of Ryu Sung flying over Russian airspace.>

The private jet piloted by Xroid crewmembers departed from a Russian airport carrying three ability users, flying over Russian airspace.

Usa, Pungbaek, and Hwakwon.

These individuals, visiting Moscow as special envoys, had to return to Korea, leaving behind only the Blue Wind Sect.

“No matter how I think about it, something feels off. There’s definitely some sort of scheme going on.”

Usa kept spouting conspiracy theories endlessly. He even claimed that the incident where <Rusalka> defeated the Abyss Dragon was a staged drama between Russia and the Blue Wind Sect.

“……So what’s your conclusion?”

Pungbaek, looking exhausted, asked Usa to summarize. They would soon enter Korean airspace, and he wanted at least a brief rest.

“So what I’m saying is this.”

Usa lowered his voice, wary of anyone overhearing.

“In reality, <Belleborg> is actually Light Blade Heo Yoon-hwan, and the Blue Wind Sect tried to use him as their main force but ended up giving him to Rusalka. Why? Probably because they fell in love, right?”

“Eh? You wasted our time. Do you really think that makes sense? Phoenix killed Light Blade, so why would they give him to Russia? Hwakwon, what do you think?”

“……It does sound plausible to me.”

Hwakwon responded listlessly. Just before departing from Moscow, he regained consciousness but still preferred sitting alone, avoiding others.

“Tsk. Whatever happened inside there, at least mention Rasputin-”

“EEEEK?!”

Hwakwon screamed in terror at the mention of Rasputin. His overly exaggerated reaction prompted Usa and Pungbaek to shake their heads and change the subject.

“……We should train more when we get back. Our skills have rusted badly.”

“Did you feel it too, old man?”

“Of course, we fought together. Tsk, that bastard. He’s definitely not doing administrative work in Seoul but roaming around fighting monsters. Otherwise, how could he have gotten so strong in such a short time?”

Pungbaek was irritated by the immense power of <Sky Castle> after the Seoul restoration operation. While others getting stronger didn’t affect him much, Ryu Cheon-seong’s growth was particularly hard to overlook.

“……Old man. This is purely my opinion, but doesn’t Phoenix have a natural talent for nurturing other ability users?”

“What nonsense is this?”

Pungbaek swung his staff to scold Usa.

“He’s already the strongest ability user in the world. If he also has a talent for nurturing others, isn’t that a bit too much? He probably just grew stronger wandering around Kyunggi-do fighting monsters.”

“But still, consider the Black Flame Dragon, and the rapid growth of the Blue Wind Sect members. <Phantom> went to China once and hit S-rank, and among the officers, there isn’t a single one below A-rank.”

“……Our growth speed isn’t slow either, is it? Hwakwon went from A-rank to S-rank, and Princess Snow Lotus stagnated for nearly nine years before reaching SS-rank.”

“……It seems he does assist in the growth of others.”

Hwakwon, who had been silent until now, spoke up.

“Regardless of talent, knowing the future allows him to recognize who can grow to what extent. He must be scouting such individuals.”

“That Galactic University? Ugh.”

Pungbaek muttered, recalling the recruitment guidelines distributed to all heroes. The location being Seoul and the mysterious background raised red flags.

“That place is purely a villain training camp.”

“Old man. Both Ryu Sung and the Association are participating too. Combining Hwakwon’s words with my thoughts, here’s what I believe.”

Usa lowered his voice again.

“The Galactic University. The recruitment guidelines are just a cover. In reality, it’s about identifying and nurturing future talents early.”

“……Is there really that much talent in this country? Hmm.”

Pungbaek looked troubled, tilting his head.

“So those who fail don’t have the talent to be ability users?”

“……It seems to be like that. Hwakwon, what do you think?”

Once again, the spotlight fell on Hwakwon, who hesitated to speak. Yet lying wasn’t an option.

“…They said applying guarantees automatic acceptance.”

“Damn, he’s got everything! Damn it, damn it. Now this guy claims he can grow beyond S-rank too? Insane, insane.”

Usa lamented, shaking his head.

“Let’s file our mission report when we return and head to some valley for heavy drinking, old man.”

“Yeah, let’s do that. Tch. Where will the less talented ones find solace?”

“…….”

Hwakwon felt as if sitting on pins and needles, desperately wishing the plane would land soon.

Ch-ch-ch.

A simultaneous alert rang out for all three. On the floating screen appeared Executioner Baek Hee-a.

[Thank you for your hard work in Russia.]

“No problem. Should I report now-”

[No. I’ll receive your verbal report shortly. …I apologize for interrupting your rest.]

“Uh…”

Usa’s expression stiffened.

“Are we heading to India today?”

[…Yes. Your private jet will land in Incheon.]

Baek Hee-a couldn’t bring herself to look up.

Pungbaek, Usa, Hwakwon.

As soon as they touch Korean soil, they will transfer to the Baegnaroh bound for India.