This World is too Cruel to Men – Chapter 568

In a world where few have experienced despair, Chae-rim had walked a flowery path devoid of such emotions since her days as a candidate and throughout her debut. For her, the feelings of frustration and hopelessness were foreign concepts.

Now, the very person who might have delivered her first taste of these emotions sat squarely in front of her.

For any ordinary person, this would be a situation that would crush their spirit, making them feel small and insignificant.

Despite this, Chae-rim displayed an unwavering demeanor.

Even while gripping my hand tightly, she refused to show any signs of retreat or defeat.

And that was… undoubtedly for my sake.

Perhaps that’s why, even amidst the heavy silence pressing on her shoulders, a warm feeling blossomed within my heart.

I cautiously moved my hand to tap Chae-rim’s knuckles a couple of times.

After all, this was my situation to handle, and it didn’t seem right to leave it all to Chae-rim and step back.

So I comforted her, who appeared slightly tense, sighed inwardly, and focused my gaze on Miss Almighty.

At that moment, her eyes were already locked onto mine.

Did she somehow sense that my mindset had changed, either through instinct or her own talents?

Miss Almighty’s eyes shimmered with a dangerous glint.

It felt as if I were staring at glass marbles pretending to be eyes.

Thanks to that, I found myself unconsciously gritting my teeth for a moment, then relaxed my jaw and asked her.

“Before I ask my question, may I inquire about something?”

A question before a question?

It sounded somewhat nonsensical, but she didn’t seem to care much.

Her slight nod seemed to suggest, “Go ahead if you want to.”

“If I were to ask something I’m curious about… what would be the price I need to pay?”

“…”

“Honestly, I think you could at least answer this much.”

As I locked eyes with Miss Almighty, whose expression was unreadable, I posed the question that had been gnawing at me the most.

And perhaps my question caught her off guard, as I felt her gaze shift towards me with a strange intensity.

“From the way you’re talking, you don’t seem that curious, do you? Yet you’re my mother, after all.”

Miss Almighty said this, but honestly, that was hard to believe.

There was a reason I was holding back; it wasn’t that I didn’t have countless burning questions.

Yet, I refrained from acting rashly because I thought I shouldn’t jeopardize the reality I was currently in just to satisfy my curiosity.

“How could I not be curious? It’s just… I’m holding back for a reason.”

“Why? Are you worried I might ask for too much in return for your question?”

“…I can’t say that’s not the case.”

Maybe it was unsettling for Chae-rim to see me at the forefront, opposing Miss Almighty, a position she felt anxious about.

The grip on my hand tightened again.

It felt like encouragement, or perhaps a silent plea for me to trust her.

I wanted to grant Chae-rim that wish, but… this time, I couldn’t.

Just like before, I couldn’t simply step back and let her take care of everything; this was entirely ‘my affair.’

So I patted Chae-rim’s knuckles once more and waited for the opponent’s response.

A soft whoosh of air reached my ears during that interval.

I raised my gaze in the direction of the sound, and there stood Miss Almighty, covering her mouth with her hand that she had lifted at some point.

“Oh, I’m sorry. It seems I may have gone a bit overboard while testing things out.”

“…?”

“So, you asked what the price for your question was, right?”

The conversation felt like it had suddenly derailed.

Despite feeling flustered, I nodded absentmindedly, while Miss Almighty cleared her throat lightly and continued speaking.

“To put it simply… there is no price.”

No price now?

What then was the atmosphere we’d been in all this time for?

An absurdity must have shown on my face.

For a brief moment, my lips twitched, and Miss Almighty, locking her gaze on me, added a quick remark.

“Understandably so… because it has already been paid.”

Already paid?

I hadn’t given anything yet; what could possibly have been received?

Or could it be… something she received from my mother?

To cut to the chase, my assumption was correct.

As proof, something unexpected popped out from Miss Almighty’s embrace.

And that was something I recognized all too well.

“Do you know what this is?”

“Why…”

Why was it in her hand?

Could she somehow read my thoughts?

As if to deny any misconception, she immediately continued.

“Of course, I received it from its owner.”

Could it be that this stone she referred to is the very price she mentioned?

What’s the use in speculating?

The object in her hand was none other than the jewel my mother had once sent me as a graduation gift.

It had a peculiar appearance that resembled a lesser-known gem, or perhaps a type of glass marble.

And Yoonseo had kept it safe, but at some point, I had lost it, its identity forgotten.

I never imagined I’d see it again in this manner.

Well, that part was one thing, but why did she say she already received the price for my question regarding the marble?

I couldn’t quench my curiosity, thus finding myself staring intently at the object in question.

“Have you ever thought this was strange?”

“…?”

“How has humanity been in a survival competition with Another Ones for decades, yet how did we, or rather, the Hero Association, gain the technology to manipulate Rifts without any warning?”

Thinking back, she had a point.

After all, every phenomenon in the world exists because of cause and effect.

Similarly, the advancement of technology should naturally come with warning signs of some sort.

Just as the essential elements for creating a smartphone appeared long before its introduction in history.

However, there were no such precursor signs for Rift generation technology.

Considering how this technology holds the potential to alter the world, it was strange indeed.

‘Right now, because Another Ones are swarming the Heogye, I can only hear that it’s capable of artificially creating Rifts, but…’

Those who have even a sliver of insight might already have realized.

The moment the hindrance of Another Ones disappears, the world will undergo a tremendous upheaval thanks to this technology.

Think about it.

The ability to open and close Rifts at will means access to anywhere in the world through them.

What would take more than a day in the fastest airplane could now be round-trip in just a few hours, or perhaps even tens of minutes.

What else could be called a tremendous upheaval?

Even if it applies to people, if goods are transported through Rifts…

It would certainly be a change worthy of the term “logistics revolution.”

‘Indeed…’

As I contemplated this, Miss Almighty’s next words shifted my thoughts slightly.

“The Rift generation technology isn’t something the Association developed on its own. They merely acquired it by chance.”

Merely acquired by chance?

Could it be…?