This World is too Cruel to Men – Chapter 364

As the woman I had introduced as the Technical Director of the Association said, perhaps I finally found a means to take revenge on the Another Ones after enduring a one-sided defeat for so long.

Since the third major air strike, the accumulated anger and hatred of the people began to erupt.

For so long, it felt pointless to express anything, so everyone bottled it up inside.

Once people started to showcase those hidden feelings, they were quickly engulfed by madness… As expected from those tainted by insanity, they raised their voices from all corners, crying out for revenge against the Another Ones.

The problem was… there were more than just a few of such people.

Perhaps that was why, following the announcement from the headquarters, the world plunged into chaos in an instant.

And for some, could it have felt like an opportunity amidst the overwhelming confusion?

Articles discussing the war against the Another Ones began to invade the news section of portal sites, as if they were representing the voices of the people loudly calling for war.

Just a day later, news related to this topic had taken over the portal site news sections altogether.

So many articles popped up that it was hard to keep track of them all.

When I clicked through the articles one by one, it became clear that each offered different reasons for supporting the war.

One article emphasized how much damage humanity had suffered at the hands of the Another Ones, highlighting how many people had gone “missing” because of them, playing on the emotions of the readers.

Another article argued that if the Another Ones were left unchecked, it would be akin to ignoring potential future victims, and that victim could very well be you.

Both types of articles were entirely plausible in the current situation, and so I didn’t think much of it.

To be honest, I accepted it up to that point… However, the issue was that it wasn’t just those articles being published.

There was a flood of articles advocating for war against the Another Ones for various other reasons.

Among them, one article struck me as particularly absurd…

Even before the war had begun, it talked about the immense benefits that would come from winning the war against the Another Ones.

It completely glossed over the sacrifices that would need to be made to reach that point and focused solely on that aspect, which was utterly ridiculous.

Ironically, those articles were recording overwhelming view counts.

Thanks to that, I suddenly realized where public sentiment was starting to sway.

And perhaps fueled by the opinion formed this way…

Like it was a prearranged agreement, each branch of the Association announced a singular plan simultaneously.

Starting an immediate war with the Another Ones was practically impossible for realistic reasons, but they couldn’t ignore the demands of those looking to the Association, so they were preparing to at least begin the groundwork.

Alongside that began the recruitment for an advance team to explore beyond the Rift and establish a base for future activities.

To be completely honest?

When I first heard that news, I wondered how many would actually volunteer for it.

This was because, at that time, the active Heroes had no compelling reason to join.

It made sense since they could continue their usual lives without the need to take on unnecessary risks, as a bright future was guaranteed without risking anything.

Unless someone harbored an extreme hatred for the Another Ones or was so desperate to rise as a Hero that they would risk it all, I thought there wouldn’t be much incentive.

“People who hate the Another Ones to such a degree…”

Surprisingly, thanks to the Association pre-selecting such candidates, the Korea branch quickly met the necessary numbers for the first recruitment team, while other branches were struggling to fill their quotas.

Thus, my stance toward the war only grew more negative.

No matter how passionate the will of the Association and the people was, what does it matter?

The will of the Heroes, who were supposed to carry out the war, was lacking, except for a few.

With such a significant gap between the two, it was clearly a recipe for failure.

Especially when it would be a war where lives were on the line… that went without saying.

So if things continued like this?

Rather than achieving victory in the war against the Another Ones as many hoped, it was clear that the war would lead to a defeat for the Heroes, thus deepening the conflicts between the upper-tier Awakened and regular people.

How do I know that?

Well… I’ve heard whispers of such atmospheres existing in several countries even now.

Seeing the abysmal advance team recruitment rates, there seemed to be a vibe criticizing the Heroes for wanting wealth and fame yet insisting on treading a relatively safe path.

Even if it felt like that now, imagine if the war with the Another Ones ended in a crushing defeat.

What would the atmosphere become?

Without a doubt, the hunt for scapegoats would begin.

And when that hunt starts?

It’s painfully obvious where the fury of those victims, eagerly watching the situation with their eyes wide open, would be directed.

Surely it would be toward the Association leading the war and the Heroes who sat idly by.

The Association would surely do everything possible to distance themselves from the blame that would arise after failure… Leaving the non-participating Heroes to take the brunt of it.

But would those people just sit back and take the hits?

They didn’t do nothing and simply play around despite not participating in the war, either.

Though not all Heroes were like this, most often had a sense of superiority, believing they were different from ordinary people.

Thanks to the desperate management of the Association, that aspect hadn’t been glaringly obvious… But could that still hold true if things spiraled into extremes later on?

By that time, wouldn’t the Association, which had painstakingly managed the Heroes’ image, be too busy moving to avoid accountability?

Honestly, I couldn’t guarantee that.

That’s why I could only feel this sense of frustration.

The reason I found myself sighing more often lately was precisely because of this… Had those worries and concerns started to reflect on my face?

“…Are you tired?”

After finishing all the morning dispatch requests and taking a brief rest, Yoonseo glanced over at me and asked.

“Hmm?”

“You’ve been sighing.”

“Ah…”

“…If you’re really tired, just go in and rest. I can handle things by myself in the afternoon.”

Perhaps it bothered her that I, the one who came to help, wasn’t concentrating on the task and kept sighing heavily.

Yoonseo’s voice telling me it was okay to leave held a slight bite.

“It’s not that.”

“…Then what is it?”

“It’s just… I’ve got a few things on my mind… Sorry, I’ll be more careful going forward.”

“Hmm…”

Even after saying I’d be careful, she still didn’t seem to trust me.

Given her reaction, it felt like she was contemplating something.

I was about to add one more line to my explanation… But before I could open my mouth, Yoonseo spoke again.

“Is it about that advance team or whatever?”

I hadn’t mentioned anything about it, so hearing that question made me realize just how obvious it must have been.

I nodded to Yoonseo, readily admitting it.

If it was that obvious, there was no point in denying it.

And just when I nodded quickly, I heard a question echoing in my ears—

“…Why?”

That was a rather delicate question.

‘Why?’ What did she mean by ‘why’?

Did she somehow want to know why I cared about it?

Or was she questioning why it bothered me?

No matter how I thought about it, I couldn’t pinpoint which of the two was the correct interpretation, so I hesitated to answer, but Yoonseo seemed to notice my discomfort as she took it upon herself to ask again.

“Why does it bother you?”

She opened her mouth again… and asked me why it bothered me.