Chapter 078 – The Meaning of a Supernova is a Dying Star
“How long do you plan to lie there? Hurry up and attack.”
Clack, clack.
The “Supernova” waved his hand at me.
It was a blatant provocation, but perhaps one worth succumbing to.
The top-ranked Awakened One in active service.
My power is not insufficient to clash with his.
Chuckle.
I remained sprawled on the ground, adopting a quadrupedal stance.
This is the so-called Hanamjin-style crouching start position.
“My legs have evolved, making me even faster.”
Pwoosh!
With a burst of dust, I propelled myself off the ground toward Nam Woo-joo.
At the moment of third-grade acceleration, the scenery shifted faster than I could handle.
“Darwin Kick!”
BOOM!
No matter how powerful an Awakened One may be, none could evade my instantaneous acceleration kick, resulting in a fierce collision.
When the thick dust settled, I saw the man who blocked my attack with his hand, standing across from me.
His eyes sparkled like stars.
Just like a demon’s.
“So ruthless, aiming for the vital points straight away—it shows great determination, but it’s too crude and straightforward. That means your trajectory can easily be read.”
Swoosh!
I immediately created some distance.
Now, the distance between the man and me is roughly 10 meters.
Nam Woo-joo was shaking out his wrist while brushing off the dust on his body.
“At this point, I must show you something impressive in return.”
“Stop it! Hanamjin, even you can’t beat Brother Woo!”
“Friend! Honestly, I agree with you! It might not be too late to apologize and erase this ever happened!”
“…Even so, someone like Nam Jin might be able to show us something…”
Everyone reacted differently.
While I was observing the surroundings like Nam Woo-joo said, he spoke.
“Surprisingly, you’re drawing quite a bit of expectation. My adjutant thinks you’re worth noting. However, I’ve seen countless Awakened Ones who mistakenly believe they’re invincible just because they cling to their own concepts.”
Clap!
Nam Woo-joo clapped his hands.
Then, a strange phenomenon began between his palms.
“Do you know why I’m called ‘Supernova’?”
Goooh, kraaaack!
A powerful energy, strong enough to be seen with the n*ked eye, gathered in a spherical shape.
A minuscule sphere, smaller than a pebble, distorted the surrounding space like a black hole.
It’s probably quite similar to an actual black hole, isn’t it?
“The star is gravity.”
This was the first time I was facing an Awakened One with such an intense power.
His sheer strength surpasses Yu Yeo-reum’s.
There were many things I wanted to ask this man in front of me.
A fight I can’t afford to lose.
I can no longer hold back the cards I have up my sleeve.
“Officer sir, don’t blame me if you get hurt.”
Swoosh.
I pulled out a grappling dagger issued by the Academy of Gifted Individuals from my bag.
Then, Deoksun, who likes to analyze everything, was greatly surprised.
“Isn’t this the first time Nam Jin has held a weapon?”
“Well, now that you mention it, it does seem like it!”
The tense atmosphere made my palms sweat.
Soon, Baek Yeo-ul, who handles the frying pan Unlucky Bat, stood beside me.
“…In this situation, I’ll fight too! Brother Hanamjin! I’ll protect you from him!”
Who would have thought Bangdaengi would step forward?
The additional firepower felt like adding an ant in front of an enemy tank, but sometimes even an ant could produce remarkable results.
Then, how about planning a strategy?
At that moment,
Pop.
Nam Woo-joo clapped his hand.
The black hole-like formation he had gathered in his hand disappeared, leaving a beautiful afterimage behind.
“Let’s stop. If I keep fighting you all, I’m bound to end up with some injuries by the end. I also want to avoid being scolded by my adjutant.”
—
# # #
The interview took place in the Blue House VIP room.
It was a simple question-and-answer session.
“Are you aware of Nam San-ho?”
I asked Nam Woo-joo about the whereabouts of his younger brother, Nam San-ho.
Nam Woo-joo crossed his arms and thought carefully for a while before giving an ambiguous answer.
“I might know, or I might not. To be precise, it’s more accurate to say I can’t inform you all. It would endanger all of you.”
By my “emotion,” it didn’t seem he was simply lying or making excuses.
He’s a responsible adult who won’t involve students in dangerous affairs.
He’s more reliable than I thought.
Then I’ll change the question.
“Your eyes changed like a demon’s.”
We knew too well about the fear of demons from our fight against Jin Eun-byul. Everyone looked at the supernova Nam Woo-joo with concern.
If the rank 1 Awakened One were a demon, it would be a disaster of epic proportions.
“Ah, that? It’s a side effect of unleashing the concept of the ‘star’ I possess. You see, starting from the 4th grade, the concept can be liberated, allowing the use of its raw energy.”
“So, are you a demon…!?”
Bangdaengi got straight to the point.
She seemed quite uneasy at the thought her cousin might have turned into a demon.
Nam Woo-joo’s answer was simple.
“Not exactly, but somewhat similar. Don’t you study the backlash of concepts in the third grade curriculum at the academy? Everyone knows why concept bearers get tangled up with ‘backlash.'”
“Never heard of it!”
Bangdaengi shook her head firmly.
Chang-sik also shook his head vigorously.
Soon, the know-it-all Deoksun weakly added her own knowledge.
“…Backlash is just… like a cost of the ability…”
“To be precise, this ‘concept’ comes from outside this world, so it’s like a rejection reaction that occurs. After all, awakening and concepts originate from the Great Labyrinth.”
It’s something like a rejection reaction that happens when a foreign organ is transplanted into the body.
That’s what the concept’s backlash is.
“The higher the concept’s grade, the stronger the backlash becomes. If one can’t handle it, they’ll be overtaken by the concept itself, turning into a demon.”
Conversely, if one can control that backlash, they can wield demon-like power without losing their sanity.
The 4th-grade Awakened Ones refer to this stage as ‘concept liberation’ or just ‘liberation’ for short.
“Nam San-ho is somewhere out there, either a liberator or a demon. He’s like a time bomb. When you approach someone like that, you who aren’t even active yet could get severely injured or d*e.”
He doesn’t seem to be lying.
Now he turned the question back to me.
“And how did you all find out Nam San-ho is still alive? We only realized he was alive not very long ago.”
How did we find out? Thanks to Seugal.
But if I mentioned Seugal here, it might expose the fact that I was her kidnapper.
I need to outwit this with a wise answer becoming a man.
“The zombie instigator urged the Seugal kidnapper to surrender, right? Looking at his obsessive behavior towards Seugal, I thought of Nam San-ho, who was called her fiancé.”
It was a clumsy explanation, but I decided to trust the power of “deception.”
Fortunately, Nam Woo-joo thought for a moment and nodded.
“It could be.”
“Isn’t that risky?”
“What is?”
Nam Woo-joo casually shrugged.
Is he putting on a show of bravado?
“Your palms.”
I looked at Nam Woo-joo’s palms.
The hand that blocked my quadrupedal “Darwin Kick” was swollen red.
“Wouldn’t it be better to get an examination? A detailed one. Aren’t there any cracks?”
“Ah! Brother Nam Jin’s attack against Brother Woo actually worked! Hanamjin is incredible! I’ve never seen Brother Woo get hurt before!”
Bangdaengi rejoiced greatly.
Soon Chang-sik and Deoksun also marveled, saying things like, “Could his first attack have actually landed?” or “Since he became a 3rd-grade Awakened One, his destructive power must have increased…”
Nam Woo-joo hid his swollen hand under the desk and snorted with a smile.
“Sister Yeo-reum, aren’t you a bit too delighted that your brother got hurt?”
“It’s fine if Brother gets hurt a bit! He’s Korea’s ‘Supernova’!”
In Korea, talented Awakened Ones are called “Supernovas.”
The reason lies in this man here.
Calling the heroes of the post-apocalyptic world, who fearlessly faced d*ath, “Supernovas” was for the same reason.
Therefore, it’s about time we stand up since we’ve gotten the information we need.
“Kids, let’s go. We need to hurry to arrive in City D on time. Zombies are more active at night, so it’s better to enter buildings before sunset if possible.”
“Hmm? Didn’t we find out where Nam San-ho is?”
Bangdaengi tilted her head, but there’s no specific need to pinpoint his location.
I came here to find out if Nam San-ho, presumed to be a zombie demon, had conspired with the government to instigate the “zombie incident.”
Based on Nam Woo-joo’s attitude, he seemed unrelated to this event. I guess the details will only be clear once I confront Nam San-ho directly.
“Even though finding Nam San-ho who’s hiding deliberately might be difficult, luring him out wouldn’t be that hard. All we need to do is throw out bait.”
And what is this bait?
None other than myself, the “Seugal kidnapper.”
Making him unable to endure and rush out on his own.
Achieving my objectives in this manner, I was about to leave the Blue House when Nam Woo-joo approached me and spoke.
“Who taught you how to handle weapons? It wasn’t the stance they teach at the academy, right? If you had fought me like that, I might have bled a bit. Who was your instructor?”
“Old Man Hugi.”
“Never heard of him.”
Of course not. I met this old man who was scavenging post-apocalypse junk with a wandering mind, but he handled kitchen knives brilliantly.
I learned how to handle bladed weapons while working for the old man.
I didn’t need to use weapons until now, but it seemed alright to bring them out against Nam Woo-joo.
At that moment, from afar, Bangdaengi waved her hands vigorously.
“Brother! Take care of yourself then! Mom and Dad said to get in touch regularly! See you again later!”
Big brother and little sister.
How truly enviable.
I wish I had a younger sister.
She could bring me water every time I say “water.”
—
—
—
“I guessed this might happen, which is why I tried to prevent meeting Hanamjin!”
After sending back “No Leftovers Day,” Nam Woo-joo had to listen to the scolding of his adjutant, Jang Bo-reum, in his office, all because of the cracked hand.
“First aid has been done, but for a while, you should stay put!”
While Jang Bo-reum, cool as ever, was carefully bandaging his hand, Nam Woo-joo recalled the mock battle from earlier. It was quite impressive.
“That guy’s skills are pretty good, he might even be called the ‘Supernova’ of the future.”
“That will never happen. And this must be kept a secret from everyone. If the story of the colonel getting injured gets out, people will get worried.”
Click.
Nam Woo-joo lit a cigarette with his lighter.
His palm still throbbed.
“I’m good at enduring pain, so don’t worry. But how did he notice?”
– Are you all right?
That single question from Hanamjin had felt sharper than his kick.
It was as if he saw through his condition.
And it didn’t seem like he was asking only about the palm either.
Nam Woo-joo changed the subject to avoid thinking too much.
“Adjutant, how’s the search for ‘Kore’ going?”
“I’ve had contact with an elderly person claiming knowledge about the ‘Fairy Princess,’ but… His mind isn’t in good shape, so it’s not easy to get reliable information.”
“Hmm? An old man? What kind of old man is that?”
“He was discharged from the junior officer rank and served as a Great Labyrinth exploration team member twenty years ago. He claims to have met the ‘Fairy Princess’ during his service, but he can’t even remember his own name well, so the credibility of the information he provides is questionable.”
“Twenty years ago’s Great Labyrinth exploration team member. If someone walked around the Great Labyrinth in the bodies of ordinary people back when there were no Awakened Ones, it’s no surprise his mind went awry. What’s the old man’s name?”
“He calls himself Hugi, though his real name is Hagi-hun.”
Hugi.
Nam Woo-joo felt a sense of déjà vu from that name but dismissed it as coincidence and guided his thoughts toward a more constructive direction.
After all, there was only one thing he had time to do.
“We need to find Kore and seal the gate to the Great Labyrinth before something worse than ‘Zombies’ crosses over.”
“Will Kore cooperate? Sir, you’ve read the files, so you know very well that to close the opened gate, inevitably…”
“So we have to make them cooperate. There’s no room for means and methods anymore. Ah—, if only I’d thought better about my nickname back then.”
Nam Woo-joo has been called “Supernova” since long ago.
It was a nickname given to promising stars, but its true meaning was actually the d*ath of a star.
How much time do I have left?
It has been a long while since cigarettes and alcohol were effective in suppressing his ‘recoil.’
Nam Woo-joo wasn’t doing well at all.
Still, he wasn’t entirely unlucky.
“Thinking about it, the old folks have been urging me to name my successor for a long time. This might be a good time to choose who will succeed the star.”
The possessor of the “World” concept, which rivals tactical nuclear weapons in possibilities.
The “Star,” one of those.
The one who inherits that concept will surely become the supernova of the next generation.
The timing is perfect, and the suitable candidate has appeared.
“What? Colonel, surely you can’t be thinking of him!? That’s absolutely impossible! The generals certainly won’t agree!”
“That may be so. Actually, I find it rather uninteresting to casually pass it off to him. It also doesn’t sit well with my pride to keep getting beaten.”
After contemplation, Nam Woo-joo came up with a good idea.
It was a tale that sparked joy just imagining it.
