This World is too Cruel to Men – Chapter 614

Should I just say it outright?

Or should I keep my mouth shut like someone who has no idea about such things?

It took quite a while to make a decision, but once I had, there was no reason to hesitate any longer.

Despite the sudden onslaught of gazes converging on me like a swarm of piranhas smelling blood, I was able to continue with the words I had intended to say, thanks to that very mindset.

As those eyes seemed to be urging me to speak up—

“Perhaps everyone here has heard about the disturbances in Korea a few months ago.”

I started to slowly bring forth the words I had mentally reviewed time and again like selecting ceramics by a master craftsman.

At that moment, the already intense gazes turned even more piercing.

And among those gazes, many seemed to ask what on earth I was suddenly talking about.

Well, that’s to be expected.

They don’t know what happened that day.

They don’t know what we encountered that day.

So it’s only natural for them to express their doubts like this.

You could say there’s a gap between us.

And it was up to me to bridge that gap for them, clarifying the questions that began to seep into their gazes.

“Due to the unprecedented attack by the Another Ones and the phenomenon of Monsterization, our Korean Hero Association fell into great chaos.”

As a Korean, and as a hero affiliated with the Korean Hero Association, admitting to such a disgrace was like confessing my own shortcomings.

Yet, even though I uttered those words, I wasn’t particularly ashamed.

Because looking back now, it was a miracle that the damage didn’t escalate beyond that.

It was fortunate that such an incident occurred in the relatively small territory of Korea; if it had happened in neighboring China or an island nation across the sea at the same intensity, there’s no way it would have stayed at that level.

The damage would have been at least as severe, if not worse than in Korea.

I was already convinced of that, and thus I could freely mention what could be seen as my own disgrace.

Moreover… that statement served merely as a means to launch into the next words I intended to say.

Acting as if I was about to say something while subtly buying time could also be considered part of that strategy.

“So? What do you want to say?”

And just as expected, interrupting my speech made the impatient ones feel frustrated.

Perhaps that’s why one of them posed a rather aggressively phrased question that echoed in my ears.

“At that time, I was working with my mentor, Lightning Lady, to save the Association.”

In truth, it was to find the missing Dogun, but whatever the real reason was, at that moment, it was true that our destination was the Association building.

While it might be obvious, the individuals gathered here had no knowledge of that fact.

So I opted to sidestep the details, and those who heard me nodded along appropriately.

They would have likely done the same.

It was the reaction I had hoped for from the start, and it allowed me to seamlessly continue with my prepared words.

“Given how severe the situation was then, our top priority in moving forward was reaching the Association building, but unfortunately… we couldn’t arrive where we intended in time.”

As I continued my speech with a blank expression, feeling slightly off, I made sure to sport the kind of facial expression that conveyed the frustration I still felt, even as I reflected on it now.

Was it difficult to match my words with an appropriate expression?

Honestly, it wasn’t that hard.

After all, as soon as I recalled the moment I first realized Dogun had been kidnapped, the appropriate expression sprang to my face as if I were a seasoned actor who had trained for decades.

And it seemed that wasn’t lost on those watching, as no one appeared to suspect anything.

‘Well…’

In a situation like this, isn’t suspecting anything utterly insane?

“…There was an obstruction while moving.”

Thinking that, I punctuated the words I had carefully crafted in my mind, and suddenly the Meeting Room, which was previously still as a grave, was consumed by chaos.

“An obstruction…”

“Not your average hero, but something that could block Lightning Lady’s path…”

“It must have been no ordinary foe.”

It was definitely more comfortable when dealing with those who believed they were the best in the world.

Just tossing out a hook was enough for them to take it from there and run with the conversation.

“The fact that this subject was brought up at this timing must mean there’s some connection between what was just discussed and the enemies that blocked your path that day, correct?”

Look at them now.

I simply dropped a bait, still mindful of the risk of exposing Dogun’s existence, but they immediately pieced together a whole conversation from it.

If I had chosen to explain everything in minute detail instead of this way?

Surely one of them would have picked up on something being off.

But how about now?

They were so immersed in their certainty that they couldn’t even think of suspecting anything.

Thus, there was only one thing I needed to do here.

I had to ensure that their firmly held beliefs didn’t suddenly turn in another direction, solidifying their focus.

That was the only task ahead of me.

“…Precisely.”

The reason I bit my innocent lips was all for that purpose.

How would the people here perceive me?

In a situation where I had to admit that even the best hero in Korea and her apprentice could not overcome an obstruction posed by the Another Ones, wouldn’t I appear quite embarrassed?

I hoped that was the case.

Fortunately, it seemed that the effort I put into that little act of biting my lips wasn’t without effect.

A strange sense of superiority began to fill the Meeting Room.

Primarily, those showing such reactions were definitely below Chae-rim in status.

Learning that someone they regarded as greater than themselves struggled against mere Another Ones likely gave them the feeling of climbing up a rung on the ladder.

Honestly, that wasn’t my concern.

What mattered was that the atmosphere of disbelief towards me had intensified even more than it had just moments before.

“When I first encountered ‘it,’ I didn’t even consider it could be an Another.”

“It…”

“I thought it was just a lost child who had lost their parents in the chaos…”

At this point, I expected someone to interject, but just then—

“Wait a moment.”

As if reading my thoughts, a voice piped up from across the table.

“That sounds like there are more human-shaped Another beings apart from the ‘Queen,’ doesn’t it?”

“That is…”

“Am I the only one who feels this way?”

A voice seeking agreement from those around.

As if responding to that voice, people in the not-so-large Meeting Room began to nod one by one.

“…That’s true. My mentor thought there were no such beings aside from the Queen, but it’s clear that’s not the case.”

“…”

“There are indeed human-shaped beings aside from the Queen. Furthermore… they bear an astonishing resemblance to her.”

“Resemble, you say…”

“My mentor stated… they looked almost like parent and child…”

An entity fascinated by humans, mimicking their appearance—that was the ‘Queen.’

And there stood the ‘Girl,’ resembling a smaller version of the Queen, almost like she could be her daughter.

No matter how I thought about it, they were a chillingly significant pairing, and a heavy silence settled over the Meeting Room.