Seong Si-woo is dead.
‘Ah.’
I want to ask my younger self from ten years ago.
“Can we k*ll the Demon Lord without the protagonist?”
He would likely dismiss me, tell me to go eat something.
In the end, my ten-year plan turned to nothing but bubbles.
The protagonist could not withstand the Demon’s temptation and corrosion.
If there was even a shred of hope, I would’ve found a way to save him.
But the entire system had already collapsed.
It means something simple: He can no longer be considered human.
I took a deep breath.
And the one thing nagging at my mind—
“It’s too fast.”
Normally, once the corruption begins, you observe the dark energies for months.
Then, at the appropriate time, the demonization starts.
But look at that fallen purple arm—demonization began simultaneously with corruption.
This could mean two things.
First, there wasn’t enough mana to resist the dark essence—thus failure.
But Seong Si-woo had no talent or anything to speak of, except for an abundance of mana. So this doesn’t fit.
The second reason—perhaps the Demon Lord took a particular liking to him.
Demons usually do not come out from behind their veils unless something truly interesting occurs.
And yet, it interfered, breaking the system?
This feels… foreign.
“What in the…”
A Paladin gasped.
I, too, was about to gasp when—
“The corruption was in its initial stage. This… legally speaking, it is no different from m*rder.
Of course, we understood the severity of the situation, but without a definitive diagnosis that it’s irreversible, disciplinary action might still be inevitable…”
The Paladin’s face was filled with worry. She wasn’t blaming me for killing Seong Si-woo, but she seemed concerned about whether I would face consequences.
It would be best to prove there was no alternative.
Though I simply wanted to lie down, I got up from my seat.
However, Cheon Yeoul, standing behind the Paladin, was a step ahead.
She approached Seong Si-woo’s corpse.
She extended her hand.
However, like she wanted to avoid touching something dirty, she twisted her fingers and hesitated—
Eventually, stopping just before touching it.
A blue aura flowed out from her hand.
Cheon Yeoul closed her eyes slightly.
Then, she nodded quietly.
“…That’s correct.”
She turned to the Paladin and continued.
“It’s too late. His insides are already corrupted. Severely.”
The Paladin’s face hardened.
“It seems it was beyond reversal. Your judgment, Hae-in, was right.”
Cheon Yeoul slightly raised the corner of her lips while looking at the Paladin. No trace of our old familiarity was shown in her demeanor.
Her words assured the Paladin, who bowed her head in agreement, clearly acknowledging the High Saint’s judgment.
It was, indeed, the right call.
Moreover, “…a rather powerful demon seems to have latched on to him. It was close to endangering everyone.”
At that moment, Kang Ah-rin, standing opposite, stepped forward.
She glanced down at Seong Si-woo’s corpse, then raised her head and spoke to Cheon Yeoul.
“So, Hae-in removed the threat by correctly diagnosing the tepid judgment of the church?”
Instantly, the Paladin flinched.
Kang Ah-rin crossed her arms and rested her chin on one hand while continuing.
“Shouldn’t this be rewarded instead of punished?”
The Saints standing behind Cheon Yeoul looked uneasy.
However, Cheon Yeoul herself responded with a smile to Kang Ah-rin’s comment.
“That’s true.”
She tilted her head slightly and smirked.
“We almost disgraced the church. It would be appropriate for the church to offer some reward, wouldn’t it?”
She turned toward the Paladin and gave her a kind smile as she spoke.
Right then, I interjected.
“Let’s save those discussions for later.”
I pointed at the corpse on the ground.
“First, we need to burn that corpse. With the church’s Holy Flame, until not a trace remains.”
Holy Flame.
The sacred fire from the church, capable of burning the essence of demons at the root.
Though not as powerful as Celestial Fragments and not meant for combat, its function in purifying those corrupted by demons was undoubted.
We can’t relax until this is completely done. Demons are unpredictable.
The Paladin nodded.
“Of course. One of our church’s High Priests will conduct the procedure…”
High Priest.
When a High Priest of the Church uses the Holy Flame, most dark energies are erased in the fire.
But this only applies to normal cases.
This situation is far from ordinary corruption.
I slightly regretted this. It was uncomfortable.
As if reading my thoughts, Cheon Yeoul spoke.
“No, I’ll do it myself.”
The Paladin’s eyes widened. She tried to dissuade Cheon Yeoul.
“Saint Cheon, there’s no need for you to do this. A High Priest is sufficient for such matters…”
“No.”
Cheon Yeoul was firm.
“It seems a high-ranking demon is involved. I’ll personally incinerate it with the church’s Holy Flame.”
She took a short breath and added,
“Surely you know what can happen if the dark energy isn’t completely removed.”
At this, the Paladin stepped back without a word.
I, too, was satisfied. With Cheon Yeoul, we could ensure a conclusive end.
At that moment, Kang Yunhyeok emerged from behind Kang Ah-rin.
Just his presence seemed to command the entire space.
His strong aura forced people to unconsciously shift their gaze toward him.
He spoke.
“The last Moras has been dealt with. It seems tracking the main body was, as always, a failure.”
I briefly nodded.
Missing Moras was unavoidable. The location of his hiding place was never detailed in the original story.
From the start, he was not an easy target.
Whether he had contacted others, members of the guilds, the association, and more from the church arrived.
They began to handle Seong Si-woo’s corpse.
“Let’s proceed with the cleanup.”
The church personnel prepared a sacred containment vessel.
Gently, they lifted Seong Si-woo’s arm to move the body.
At that moment.
-Ssssshhhhik!
Dark stains began to rise.
Smoke emerged as if impurities were burning. The skin cracked.
“……”
Slowly, very slowly, Seong Si-woo’s skin crumbled.
Even in d*ath, the demon energy still lingered within him.
I sighed shortly and turned my head.
This was not an expected d*ath.
There was affection, there were expectations, and seeing this young person d*e was not…
Pleasant, by any means.
*
I lay down on the bed immediately upon returning to the dorm.
I stared blankly at the ceiling.
My mind was heavy and chaotic.
The test was suspended. Temporarily.
The TV blared about today’s attack.
-A single casualty… confirmed to have fallen in combat against the demon…
Objectively, I had handled the situation well.
The quick neutralization of Medusa, the seamless transition into the Moras chase.
Having only one casualty was, in itself, a meaningful result.
But, that “one”…
“Why the hell you…?”
I covered my head while still lying down.
I sent away the person I considered most important, in the most futile way.
I don’t know what to do. Was it my fault?
“Could there have been a better way?”
“Should I have stayed closer to Seong Si-woo?”
Thoughts swirled nonstop in my mind.
Then,
-Beeeeep
The watch alarmed.
With one hand still covering my face, I cautiously lifted my watch.
Though the test was suspended, comically, the guilds’ bids did not stop.
Videos of today’s active students continuously uploaded to the board.
This was also a strategy from the academy.
Redirecting the public’s gaze from the incident to create other topics.
And those clips began inflating the students’ values.
I sorted the posts by view count.
The one with the highest number of views.
[4 Hours Ago, Views: 3,353,211]
The topmost post showed a video of me severing Medusa’s head.
A figure dashed like lightning in the corner of the screen. The cameraman struggled to follow.
After an erratic shake, they managed to capture it—just barely.
They quickly adjusted the camera upward.
Five clones lunged toward Medusa.
Then, in one swift slice, the head was severed.
-Wow…
The cameraman’s exclamation was audible.
The comment section exploded.
[sdff221]: Who’s this student? They’re not ranked anywhere?
[GrilledClam]: Judging by the bids, this is champion-worthy.
[alex588]: Come to America.
I checked the auction standings.
“Huh…”
[Blue Wind Order] -> [Jung Hae-in] 800,000,000 KRW bid.
[Arcadia Church] -> [Jung Hae-in] 1,000,000,000 KRW bid.
[Mangju Guild] -> [Jung Hae-in] 1,200,000,000 KRW bid.
[Lotus Guild] -> [Jung Hae-in] 1,500,000,000 KRW bid.
It was complete chaos.
“Blue Wind Order…?”
The notoriously closed Yoo Hana family’s escort force.
Bids have come in from there as well.
But the most shocking came later.
[Vanguisher] -> [Jung Hae-in] 5,000,000,000 KRW bid.
Insane.
I let out a bitter laugh and sighed.
Lying here forever would be a waste of time.
I got up from bed and headed straight to the desk.
I opened the notebook and began arranging notes.
Let’s face it.
The Cheng Si-woo Successor Plan spanning 10 years has failed.
I can no longer rely on others’ swords.
In the center of the notebook was Cheng Si-woo’s name.
Around it were others like Yoo Hana, Kang Ah-rin, Cheon Yeoul.
And numerous blessings and martial arts connected by arrows heading toward him.
A mind map of sorts.
I tapped the pen, deep in thought.
For the last time, I deeply debated.
Finally, I firmly grasped the pen.
I erased Cheng Si-woo’s name in the center.
Then, in its place, I filled in a new name.
“Jung Hae-in.”
I absorbed the fragment.
There was no one but me who could fill the void left by Seong Si-woo.
I tossed the pen onto the desk.
“I don’t know anymore.”
This, probably, is the best decision I can make.
