episode_0236

Looking back, it didn’t seem like he had lived a particularly vibrant life.

Yang Chan-ho thought as he let his holy sword hang loose.

It was a sudden and abrupt thought, but in a way, it was a question that pierced to the core.

The ‘Hero’ standing here now, preparing for the final battle for the fate of the world.

What was his mindset when he first stepped onto the battlefield?

‘I was lucky.’

In summary, that was the feeling.

It was that simple.

First, it was a responsibility he had taken on as if by happenstance.

A position he had been entrusted with despite having no interest in it.

An obligation he always wanted to cast off.

The Hero. A title he stumbled upon because a mop could be transmuted into a greatsword with mysterious power, and that greatsword just happened to be called a holy sword.

So, how filled with a sense of mission was this individual Hero…?

In reality, he was not. It was regrettable to the young aspiring Awakeners across the nation, and even the world, who worshipped him.

‘It was the same during the Jormungandr incident. Honestly, it wasn’t even a particularly tragic battle.’

In truth, it was incredibly boring. Few would easily believe that, but at least Yang Chan-ho was sincere.

Even if his sense of mission as a Hero was small, his abilities were real.

Hundreds of holy swords were summoned and plunged in, and Jormungandr was gone just like that.

And Yang Chan-ho, in his twenties, who was praised for saving the world… how should he put it?

‘Hmph.’

He was very young. A brat.

And a very much so…

“……”

Muttering to himself, Yang Chan-ho slowly looked around.

It was clearly a battlefield where a chaotic melee was underway.

But at this moment, it seemed to unfold like a scene broken into slow motion.

Scattered blue ice blades, bundles of sword energy, lightning, flames, explosions.

It was fortunate that so many S-rank individuals could gather here. The initial objective was to eradicate villain groups, but that was no longer the case.

This was a battle to save the world once again, a world teetering on the brink of destruction.

Yang Chan-ho surveyed the battlefield with his purplish, shimmering eyes, taking in the full view.

This was a valuable war. A truly sacred and meaningful battlefield.

Was it truly okay for a guy like him to be standing at its very heart?

He was just a good-for-nothing who was satisfied with playing around as an academy head, eating, and occasionally acting like an educator.

‘…Then why did I step forward?’

Suddenly, Yang Chan-ho questioned himself.

Why was he so angry back in the Arctic Ocean?

He had always thought that saving the world was such a cumbersome and inconvenient role that he didn’t want to take on.

– Fundamental problem-solving is of utmost importance, but isn’t protecting the world we live in now something we cannot compromise on?

Why did he utter such a cool line?

Was he trying to show off, as the saying goes?

It was hard to know. Even as he couldn’t grasp his true intentions, his body was still swinging the holy sword erratically.

Yang Chan-ho raised his serious face and looked up at the peak of the Otherworld.

A disturbingly dark space with no discernible features.

If there was anything that held color in such a place, it was that throne.

‘The Master of the Otherworld….’

That was the entity mentioned by the blue-haired girl. No one had told him, yet he couldn’t help but be certain of it.

If something emanating such a powerful presence wasn’t the leader, then what else could it be?

That entity, merely dispatching headless giants and overseeing the battlefield, didn’t seem to have any intention of intervening in the fight right now.

Perhaps it was testing how much these bugs could endure?

“Ha.”

Yang Chan-ho twisted his lips as he split a giant’s body horizontally.

What an arrogant being.

He himself had maintained a rather arrogant position at Cheongsong Academy, but still—.

Yang Chan-ho pressed his lips together and stood still.

Then he met the gaze of the Master of the Otherworld.

Was it a coincidence?

“……”

[…….]

That being also stared persistently down at Yang Chan-ho. As if to say, you’re the only bug worth facing on this battlefield.

“……Alright, it’s about time I graduated from my childhood.”

Yang Chan-ho let out a small laugh and tossed the holy sword. It was already losing its light, having used up almost all its inherent power.

Instead, he opened his subspace pocket and gripped another mop in his right hand.

“I’m a thirty-something old man now, you know. How long am I going to act like a brat and complain about not wanting to do my job?”

[…….]

“If you agree, nod your head.”

He asked, his expression hardening in an instant, but of course, there was no reply.

Yang Chan-ho waited for a very brief moment longer, then suddenly scowled.

“What a rude fellow.”

A deep rumble, a rumbling…

And by unfortunate coincidence, at that very moment, the Master of the Otherworld rose.

A viscous black human form, utterly unrecognizable as to its true appearance.

Had its features and limbs also been indistinguishable, it would have been impossible to even ascertain if it possessed a human shape.

The throne, deserted by its master, soon crumbled weakly, and the Otherworld simultaneously trembled.

“Wh-what is that?!”

Seol Hayeon, unable to keep her balance in time, staggered violently until Cheon Sehee grabbed her by the scruff of her neck, barely preventing her from falling.

She hastily enveloped herself in cold energy and looked back at Yang Chan-ho and the peak of the Otherworld.

“……A sharp intake of breath.”

[■■, ■■■.]

The two monsters began to close the distance, as if about to collide at any moment.

One was the Master of the Otherworld, and the other was a human influenced by the Otherworld’s power.

A mighty roar—!

Two surging torrents of color, like a storm, clashed as if trying to dominate each other’s territory.

One was a mysteriously luminous violet, the other a terrifyingly deep black.

“──.”

And in the next moment, it was Yang Chan-ho who moved first. He gently scraped the ground, folding space in a flash and dashing forward.

“Die.”

Immediately after closing in on the Master of the Otherworld, the mop he held transformed into a holy sword.

A flash…!

It was an extremely one-dimensional trajectory.

Merely descending from top to bottom.

Yet, the power contained within that blade was so immense and formidable that it could cleave even mountains and seas in a single strike.

A resounding clang─!!

The repercussions of the collision were, naturally, not to be underestimated.

“……Huh…?”

The result, however, was utterly absurd. Seol Hayeon, who had witnessed the entire skirmish in that instant, couldn’t help but be astonished.

It was blocked. No, deflected? No, no, was it completely dodged?

It was impossible to predict how the attack had been nullified.

A fighting style that couldn’t even be understood by an Archmage’s computational abilities.

‘What in the world is that?’

Seol Hayeon unconsciously swallowed dryly and recoiled a step.

A movement utterly unrelated to her will. But precisely because of that, it felt more humiliating.

She shivered and immediately gritted her teeth, and it was Cheon Sehee who gently nudged her back, as if to encourage her courage.

“What are you doing? Hurry up and go.”

“……Ajumma?”

“The only mage capable of intervening, even just a little, in that crazy battle… on this field, that’s you, isn’t it?”

“……”

Seol Hayeon fell silent. The tips of her ears twitched slightly, which also meant she wasn’t denying Cheon Sehee’s words.

In fact, what she said was true.

It was a battle where Hero Yang Chan-ho’s full power was being revealed. A dangerous act to get involved in such a fight?

For Hong Myeongseon, Lee Cheonsang, and Yeon Seobaek, it was impossible. Regrettably, their class was simply different.

Perhaps Eileen could support Yang Chan-ho to some extent, but…

“……Tsk.”

She clutched the remnants of her steel pieces, which had been completely expended while eradicating the giants.

Even if she tried to draw out more power, they were now just scrap metal.

“So it’s you. You have to do it, Seol Hayeon.”

“……”

“Understood? Hayeon, you’re smart.”

Cheon Sehee, letting out a slight scoff as if subtly provoking her, sliced a giant in half with a blade of lightning.

In fact, she alone had largely dealt with the overwhelming onslaught of giants.

“……Go on, quickly. Sorry to say, but we seniors will handle the stragglers.”

Crackle and zap!!!

Cheon Sehee said that last bit, then explosively released golden mana.

At the very least, the giants shouldn’t interfere with that extraordinary battle.

“……”

Her two eyes were covered in clear golden light, and Seol Hayeon watched Cheon Sehee with a complicated expression for a moment, then bit her lip.

What was most important was personnel distribution, wasn’t it?

She knew it well. Hadn’t her own disciple put forth that argument?

So… so, what she could do now, what she had to do, was.

‘……To assist the Hero.’

It might only be a role of rear support, but in every tale of a Hero, the name of an Archmage always existed.

Not a companion of the Hero… but a second protagonist, building myths equally alongside him, but in a different way.

“──Phew.”

Seol Hayeon exhaled briefly, then immediately flung her cloak wide.

Dressed like an Archmage, it was now time to advance a step further.

To reach, as it was called, the realm of the Grand Archmage. She knew well that she was still far from enough, but if it was merely to reach it temporarily…

“I can do it. Easily.”

Her resolve was firm. Immediately after, Seol Hayeon reached her hand upward without a moment of hesitation.

At that fleeting moment, tiny ice crystals formed and bloomed from her slender fingertips.

–Absolute Zero.

The ensuing spectacle was nothing short of a natural disaster.

A deep rumbling…!

As if an ice age had arrived, ice-covered meteorites began to fall from the sky.

Toward the Master of the Otherworld, who had just deflected Yang Chan-ho’s holy sword and seemed to be preparing an attack.

[……!]

A tremendous crash─!!!