This World is too Cruel to Men – Chapter 589

At that moment, those who had quite literally lit a fire under their feet gathered in the special meeting room, buzzing with chaos.

In a way, Chae-rim and the Association Chairman, who held the only authority to make decisions regarding this situation, had retreated to a small rest area adjacent to the special meeting room for a private discussion.

Between them sat a table that was utterly bare, not even a single cup of tea in sight… The empty table seemed to symbolize the relationship between the two of them.

One trying to seize control and the other desperately refusing to give it up.

Or perhaps one challenging while the other received the challenge.

Their dynamic could be summed up like that, and perhaps that was why—

Chae-rim, sitting across from the Association Chairman, bore a face that was anything but comfortable.

In contrast, it seemed the Chairman was largely oblivious to this fact.

“Ha, damn…”

This was precisely why I had tried to avoid meeting this lady as much as possible.

Even though I was no pushover elsewhere, standing before her somehow made me feel oddly small.

I wasn’t sure if it was due to the significant age difference, but that was how it felt.

I had been avoiding one-on-one meetings with her for so long because of it.

Yet, I had no choice but to attend this meeting today…

I mean, a guest who insisted on coming all the way to Korea must be addressed, especially after causing such a major incident.

So I had dutifully shown up—

“So, are you feeling a bit more at ease since things are going your way, Chae-rim?”

If I had known I’d hear such nonsense, I would have thought things through differently.

Could this lady really believe that this situation was the result of some arrangement I made for Miss Almighty?

Even so, I found it hard to believe that someone of her stature as the Association Chairman could fall into such a ridiculous misunderstanding. But upon reflecting, it was hard to deny that from her perspective, the circumstances were indeed misleading enough to warrant such a thought.

I had to acknowledge that since entering Korea, I was the only one who had a direct conversation with Miss Almighty.

Sure, Dogun was also there at that meeting, so calling it a true one-on-one would be a bit of a stretch, but the key point was that the other side wasn’t aware of what had transpired during that conversation.

‘If she really wanted to find out, she could have.’

And rightly so, the venue of our meeting was none other than one of the hotels owned by the Association.

So, in a hopeful attempt, I had gathered trustworthy individuals to create a setup, but considering that lady’s abilities, even luring one person wouldn’t have been difficult for her.

If she set her mind to it, it was certainly possible.

Yet, she hadn’t done so, probably out of concern for the repercussions if she were to be discovered.

As long as the other party remained unaware, that was “OK,” but if she attempted eavesdropping and got caught, it would be an embarrassment of epic proportions.

Because of that, she chose not to intervene, but who would’ve thought it would lead to such misunderstandings?

That being said, revealing the conversations from that day now also felt a bit off.

First of all, not everything could be indiscriminately disclosed, and the moment I started removing secrets from the record, that astute lady wouldn’t simply accept my words as is.

Having sat in the Chairman’s position for so long, she had been through countless skirmishes against those trying to control the Association, so while she might not know everything, her instincts were sharper than most.

‘Speaking of which…’

To think that the Vice Chairman, who was also known as Lightning Lady back in her Hero days, would call me “Chae-rim.”

It allowed me to reaffirm something.

The person sitting before me was still very much stuck in the past.

Part of the reason I had consistently tried to avoid one-on-one meetings with her was also because of this insight.

What can I say?

I was personally acquainted with that lady.

It had been quite a while since then.

‘Talking like this does give off a whiff of corruption…’

To put it bluntly, we weren’t that close.

It was simply… my mother introduced her as a junior from my hometown, that’s all.

In fact, I was just a clueless little kid back then, so it would be hard to say that encounter held any real significance.

Furthermore, I hadn’t seen that “sister,” with whom I played the day we met, after a certain incident came to pass.

‘That lady’s return to the Association happened right after that too.’

Additionally, nearly two decades had gone by since the child and adolescent Awakener-related law was enacted, and that was around the same time as well.

Because of that, as soon as my talent awakened, I was forcibly separated from the childhood friends I had been close with, and considering how we were treated while isolated due to such events, I could never develop positive feelings towards that lady.

In that light, does she even realize?

That the law created out of her determination to prevent kids like my sister from being born has caused yet another victim?

It’s natural for parents who have lost their children to harbor hatred toward those who turned them into such, but just because they have gone through such pain doesn’t mean they have the right to make others miserable.

Moreover, the kids who suffer due to the “Isolation Law” are entirely unrelated to those events.

Given that friendship is essentially everything to children in that age group, the “Isolation Law” is simply a bad law in every sense.

I myself had a hard time adjusting after being suddenly separated from my friends.

Fortunately, I was able to quickly make new friends there… But there are surely many children who cannot.

‘It’s not even right after a large-scale raid…’

Back then, with people dying almost daily, there was no way to deploy the Awakened, now called Heroes, elsewhere.

If there was time to spare, we had to focus on taking down as many Another Ones as possible coming through the Rift.

But compared to back then, what about now?

We were the ones taking the offensive instead.

And… While it’s hard to definitively say whether what Miss Almighty mentioned at the end of her lecture could truly be realized, if by any chance the Another Ones completely vanished from this world, reallocating personnel and resources prepared for potential threats elsewhere could be more than possible.

Of course, I know.

Due to the relentless attacks, the Association’s situation has deteriorated compared to before.

That was undeniably true…

But would that always be the case?

If someone were to ask me that, I’d confidently say no.

It might be tough for now, but once this year’s qualifying exam passes, things will gradually start to improve.

And once the newly qualified Heroes reach a level where they can perform their duties, things will become significantly better.

When such a time comes, if the issues concerning the Another Ones get perfectly resolved…?

Might it not be possible to implement a system where Heroes are stationed in high schools across the nation under the pretense of preparing for unforeseen situations, and extend it even to lower educational institutions?

The path to such a conclusion may be quite rough, but if it comes to fruition, laws like the “Isolation Law” will no longer be necessary.

Since they won’t be needed anymore, such laws could be abolished.

What can I say?

Upon ascending to the Chairman position, the first thing I would want to do is indeed abolish the “Isolation Law.”

And for that, I had to find a way to expel the lady before me, the very embodiment of the “Isolation Law”… yet here I was, already confronting this issue before I had fully prepared.

‘…Tsk.’

A subtle click of my tongue reflected the feeling that the heavens were not on my side.